Slowly Getting There One Day at a Time. Chisel, Chisel, Chisel

Room 108 of Canisius Hall has become my home away from home. Today, I pulled apart my Service binder (an appendix of my dossier) and started to rearrange the work so that it makes more sense and details the work I've done with the Faculty Salary Committee, the World Diversity Committee, Bridgeport Higher Education Association, Hoops4Hope, Literacy4Life, GSEAP Advisory Board, MLK Celebration, and Poetry for Peace.

As I combed the material, the items that stand out the most are the student publications, the Writing Our Lives conferences, the free workshops I've done with GSEAP's partner schools, the Student Teacher Celebrations, the faculty search committees, Writing in the Limelight events, National Day on Writing, National Digital Learning Day, and, of course, commencement.

I remember hearing a Dean at Syracuse University once state, "Academia is a way of life. It all flows together in a consortium of research, teaching, and service." A National Writing Project Director's role, too, allows me to fold in many corners like a giant origami piece of art. There are many folds to the organism.

Today, I will edit and write. I will catalogue and count. I will produce an official Table of Contents and get graduate students to help me create labels and tabs for the items I'm missing.

And I'm dreaming - I'm dreaming of a summer vacation, any vacation, and a location where I will no longer have to spend every second I can find working on demonstrating what it is I do at work. The rugs of our building are used to my steps and pace. I'm thankful for those who stop by to give me words of wisdom and encouragement.

I am almost done with this exercise and go-around. Already I am thinking, "So what are the next big projects I want to accomplish." First and foremost, I want to have space to take a break sometime in the near future.

A guy can wish, right?