When the alarm clock went off at the normal 6am, it was still dark, very dark, outside. I expected it to be light since it should actually be an hour later. Then I realized that sunrise was not until 6:50. Big surprise that it was dark at 6:00.
When I got to school this morning, I soon realized that I had forgotten my iPad. In reality, this was no big deal, but in that moment when I reached in my backpack and it wasn't there, my day again turned as dark as it was at 6am. How was I going to go through my day without it? How would I record grades or let my students know what assignments they were missing? What if I needed a musical example from iTunes? What about keeping up on the news during the day? What if I needed to type a document? The truth is that this whole conversation that I was having with myself was ridiculous. Not being able to do these things would not be life changing for me or anyone else for one day. After I settled down and thought about my reaction, I came to the conclusion that I am addicted to me iPad. Yes, I do use it for all of those good and noble things, but what I was actually upset about was not having during my lunch hour when I catch up on blogs, surf the web for dinner recipes and play a game or two to de-stress before my afternoon classes. Sadly, I am addicted to this piece of technology. I have admitted it. That is the first step to recovery, right?
Next, I walked into the office at school to check my mail and make some copies. The copy room looked different. I figured it had to do with the light having shifted as a result of the time change. Nope. It had to do with the room having been painted stark white over the weekend. I didn't even notice that. I am usually fairly good at recognizing such changes. I guess I was still in shock over having to spend the entire day separated from my iPad.
After teaching my morning classes I headed down to the workroom to warm my lunch. Another change! Not only had the workroom been painted the same stark white as the mail room, it had also been rearranged. The table was in the place of the computer; the computer was in the place of the storage cabinets: and, the storage cabinets were in the place of the table. As an added bonus, the microwave and toaster oven are now more accessible. The best news of all is that there is a possibility that we will get a Keurig machine in the workroom! These are all good changes.
I am not one of those people that is opposed to any change and all change. I just wasn't quite ready for so much of it on a Monday morning - especially when I was trying to embrace my newly realized addiction.
I heated my lunch and wandered out to the Coke machine for a diet coke. (I had a monster headache, one that only a massive dose of caffeine could address.)
What? What's this? No Coke machine? WTF! My coping mechanism for change has now been maxed out. I headed for another place where I knew there to be a soft drink machine. As I walked down the hall I saw this.
This is the Coke machine sitting in the middle of the hall, blocking a classroom door, not plugged in so therefore not dispensing drinks. Why exactly is the Coke machine here? There was no one around to ask. Maybe they are going to install one in every classroom. That would be a really good change!
I ended up walking over to the student union and getting a drink in a cup with ice and a straw When I finally sat down to eat, my lunch, which I had heated before going on the grail quest for a diet coke to help my headache, was cold. It was good, but cold.
Today was definitely Monday by all accounts. Tomorrow has got to be better. I am confident that it will be - especially if I remember to take my iPad with me in the morning!
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