Jenny Quinn

December 21 Day 653: Mileage Run Part 1

This is my gift to myself — one final airplane trip in 2021 simply to accrue enough frequent flyer mileage points to advance to the next level. Just a hop to San Francisco and back with lounge access for the day, earning the final miles needed to become gold. Is it worth it? Absolutely, ifContinue reading “December 21 Day 653: Mileage Run Part 1”

December 20 Day 652: Submitted

Grades are submitted and I have four days to prepare for a family Christmas. It’s a little late to start thinking about the holidays, but I have been preoccupied with other priorities until now. My youngest put up the tree and lights last night. There is still decorating to be done. This will be theContinue reading “December 20 Day 652: Submitted”

December 19 Day 651: Me & 23

Happy Anniversary to my husband of 23 years. There have been ups and downs, ins and outs. But always together. Stronger than ever. What we have built together has great value: a partnership, a home, a family. He has always believed in me and helped me to believe in myself. After almost two years inContinue reading “December 19 Day 651: Me & 23”

December 18 Day 650: Return to the Sunnyside

Taking a break from grading, my husband and I drove down to Salem, OR to pick-up our youngest from his first semester at college. On the way, we stopped by Sunnyside Piazza because I wanted to see its new intersection art. Three months ago to the day, I celebrated completing the manuscript for my laborContinue reading “December 18 Day 650: Return to the Sunnyside”

December 17 Day 649: Realistic or Out-dated ?

I am pleased to report that all the papers submitted in support of group projects have been graded. What distressed me was what students thought were appropriate sources for references. I use Wikipedia and Wolfram MathWorld as much as the next person. They are great places to start answering questions and have good science/math entries.Continue reading “December 17 Day 649: Realistic or Out-dated ?”

December 15 Day 647: Interview Marathon Part II

My first academic term teaching face-to-face since March 2020 is close to completed. Continuing my COVID practice of assessing students through oral examinations, I recently finished two long days of interviews. This reflection will detail the process and lessons learned (much as I have done in the past as documented in all these posts.) TheContinue reading “December 15 Day 647: Interview Marathon Part II”

December 13 Day 645: Interview Marathon Part 1

I spent 7 hours (plus a few breaks) administering interviews for individual final oral assessments today. I’m halfway done and will complete the rest in another marathon session tomorrow. Every term has one or two students that just give up. The stress and pressure from school, family, and work take their toll. Today, I feltContinue reading “December 13 Day 645: Interview Marathon Part 1”

December 12 Day 644: Procrastination

I thought I would be further along in my grading by this time of the weekend. I had big plans. First I would grade presentations, then projects, and then portfolios. Ideally having it all done before the marathon interview sessions start tomorrow for my students’ in-person oral final exam. Instead, I have graded last homeworks,Continue reading “December 12 Day 644: Procrastination”

December 10 Day 642: Daydream Believers

We can dream up idealized solutions to a problem. Others can agree it’s a good solution and want to implement. But please don’t present your daydreams as real solutions until you have confirmed with all parties involved and understand the limitations. Just saying. Cover image created using one of my own photos and DeepArt.io.

December 9 Day 641: Behind the Mask

I was so happy to have my students attend class on campus this quarter. It was easier to build community in person than through a screen. I cherished the ability to use group activities at a moments notice without interrupting the energy of the room. Masks kept us safe. But as someone who is notContinue reading “December 9 Day 641: Behind the Mask”