Just a short post to say, I am spending the next few days with my family. Even though we have been together since Thanksgiving, this is the first time I feel like I can take a break from work and simply enjoy time with them. So that is what I intend to do. Today wasContinue reading “December 25 Day 292: Christmas Break”
Monthly Archives: December 2020
December 24 Day 291: Not a Creature was Stirring
The dinner dishes are washed and it’s finally time to wrap the meager presents I have accumulated for my family this Christmas. I did not do much shopping and half the things I ordered online have yet to arrive. There are stockings to fill, pictures of coming gifts to print, and presents to wrap. IContinue reading “December 24 Day 291: Not a Creature was Stirring”
December 23 Day 290: Ode to Tacoma’s 12 Days of Christmas
Christmas is coming. I’ve been working on a Tacoma version of the Twelve Days of Christmas. What do you think? I am in need of original photos for 11, 9, 4, and 3 but I hope I have captured the spirit of Tacoma. Twelve geese a-gliding, Eleven sailboats sailing, Ten seals a-bobbing, Nine locks safeguarding,Continue reading “December 23 Day 290: Ode to Tacoma’s 12 Days of Christmas”
December 22 Day 289: Recreate to Celebrate
What a fun social “hour” hosted by the MAA Special Interest Group for Recreational Math (SIGMAA REC). I was there for more than three hours–chatting, playing, and meeting friends. I had an intimate conversation with a dear old friend, just the two of us. I had different small group conversations about math clubs, covid, andContinue reading “December 22 Day 289: Recreate to Celebrate”
December 21 Day 288: Solstice
Today has the least light and most dark of the year. That means tomorrow things will start to brighten—imperceptibly at first but the little gains will accumulate and bring those beautiful bright long days of summer.
December 20 Day 287: Holiday Gathering
In this time when we are suppose to limit our exposure to others, indoor gatherings of friends and family are frowned upon. How is a girl supposed to celebrate the holidays with the family she loves? Especially when they are over 2500 miles away? My husband will groan, but I am suggesting gather.town. They haveContinue reading “December 20 Day 287: Holiday Gathering”
December 19 Day 286: By the Numbers
286: The number of days since the University of Washington system suspended face-to-face classes on all three campuses to address concerns around a novel and rapidly spreading coronavirus. 200: The number of posts I have made to Math in the Time of Corona at this time—essentially one per day for two quarters with a summerContinue reading “December 19 Day 286: By the Numbers”
December 18 Day 285: Finally Finished
After 5 days of oral assessment, including 19 interviews between 8 am and 3:30 pm today with hardly a moment to breathe, I can report that the final assessment interviews for Autumn 2020 are finished. With more than twice as many students as last spring, I feel as if I have entered a Zoom coma.Continue reading “December 18 Day 285: Finally Finished”
December 17 Day 284: You Know It’s Been One of “Those” Days When…
…for this first time in 13.3 years, you send a reply all message to the entire school without intending to. Oops. Nobody really needed to know that. I am too tired to be embarrassed. Sending a retraction only draws attention to it. People will know it was an accident, right?
December 16 Day 283: Words of Gratitude
I am overwhelmed by the kind words I have received from students today. Some have come in email, others through the Course Management System, and some even “screen-to-screen” (since we weren’t actually face-to-face) at the end of their oral interviews. “Thanks again for the great quarter and helping me learn, and have a good day!”Continue reading “December 16 Day 283: Words of Gratitude”
Math in the Time of Corona 