Tomorrow is the last day of summer and I will be trapped part of the day. After that I’m going to meet some old friends for a beer or two. The day after that the slow grind to the grind begins.
The slow grind to the grind begins with trips to the school where I work to finalize plans for make-up exams. (Hopefully I get a better reaction than the last time I went.) The only problem with that is, no matter how it goes, it’s the company I work for that might have issues. I’ll have to write a report and send it in and then, depending on the mood of the recipient will have to field at least one email about schedule changes.
Wednesday will be spent writing the make-up exam (probably from the comfort/distraction of home) and another daily report will be required and if I haven’t yet received an email about schedule changes, the odds of getting one increases.
Thursday is the make-up exam. This goes one of two ways 1) the student arrives, writes the exam and I spend some time marking it and filling in forms, 2) the student doesn’t arrive and I have to wait the entire 50 minutes in case, 3) the student arrives late and rushes to finish the exam. I will fill in yet another report and almost certainly will get the email about schedule changes if I haven’t yet received it
Friday I have to go in and check the final mark (if I’ve made any changes). That involves showing up at work, waiting and checking. While I’m waiting I’ll be planning the next term and probably meeting with my colleagues about the schedule and curriculum. This part usually isn’t much of a grind as my colleagues are all pretty cool; it’s just that seeing each other reminds us that the grind is about to begin.
On Monday the actual grind begins. The slow grind to the grind isn’t that bad, it’s just the mindset it puts you in. The grind is coming.
That said, the worst part about the grind, for at least two weeks, is your legs suddenly getting used to standing on hard objects again. If you’ve had some part time classes during the summer this isn’t as big a deal. The main change is you go back to your old students and it’s very easy to fall back in the old ways.