Whee! What a wonderful day! The sun isn't shining, but the birds sure are singing - haven't heard them in a while. I'm getting ready to head out to Louisiana tomorrow (where it's 76 degrees F today . . . I don't think I know how to dress for that kind of weather!), and so I trooped over to the MSU library to do some last-minute research. (Stop laughing. Yes, I have started working on my presentations; I did my first-minute research last night.)

Actuallly, though, the presentations are writing themselves; I'm excruciatingly familiar with the subject matter (distance education), and so the problem at this point is figuring out what to cut out . . .

But anyhow, back to the wonderful day . . . I parked in the Albert St. lot, walked over to the library, and amused myself looking at books for a pleasant hour. While I was there, I found a book on teaching statistics - not relevant to my current talks, but something I want to approach with my classes soon - and saw that the book, Damned Lies and Statistics was recommended and summarized in a way that made me want to read it. So, I wandered over to a computer with the online catalog, looked up the book, went back into the stacks (as it happened, I knew right where it was), and got it. The wonders of a Big Ten university library!! As I was leaving with my modest stack of books, I wondered why I don't do that more often, since when I do, I have such fun.

Then it was off to Oy-oy Kang's (well, Charlie Kang's - I think of it as Oy-oy because when he was a becoming-verbal youngster, David couldn't say "Charlie" and so he used to refer to his cousin as "Oy-oy." I am pleased to report that David is well out of that stage and has grown up into a very well-spoken young adult). I had a nice big bowl of bibimbap while perusing the books I'd gotten.

Now I have to hurry up and pack for the trip, because tonight Emil and I (and 6546476576567 undergraduates) are going to see Will Ferrell. The tix were a Christmas present from Charlie - a very thoughtful gift, if you ask me. I'm looking forward to this, although I wish I didn't have a plane to catch in the morning.

I'll send pix from sunny (I hope) Louisiana . . .