Make that a grande, please

Wow...all I can say today is that I'm exhausted! Why are some weeks harder than others? What makes this week any different than last week or next week? For some reason this week I was grouchy, I was irritable, and at times I was downright nasty! All of the things that I normally love about my students were grating on my nerves to no end. Their chatter about silly things like boys, the game last night, or what they were going to do on the weekend seemed so trivial...usually I love hearing about their lives. I could not wait for each school day to be over so I could go home and crash, only to realize that I had this meeting to go to, that student to tutor, or this commitment to fulfill. What a week it's been. Last night was the cherry and whipped topping on the ice cream sundae. I had committed to helping Kevin with his outline...he has a huge presentation for his masters class today and I, being someone that normally loves writing papers and doing outlines, said I would be happy to help him. And I was...really! I love to help my husband in any way that I can. Basically, I sat and typed whatever he told me. He would give me ideas and I would give him feedback as to how he could better arrange those points into outline form. At first, I was really enjoying it. I know, it sounds nerdy, but sometimes I really miss being in school! It's fun to organize thoughts and watch a paper outline appear before my very eyes. I also love seeing Kevin do this kind of work, he's a smart guy, but normally hides it behind sports stats and funny jokes. So, there we were, working away. Me at the computer, he on the futon next to the computer. We began at 9 p.m., and that was our first mistake. What were we doing starting at that time? I don't know...we had spent the previous hours going to McD's for some yummy cheeseburgers, watching Survivor, Kev was tutoring the girl upstairs in her math homework, I was reading e-mail,...there is no end. We can think of a million little things to do, in order to put off what we don't want to do! The first hour wasn't too bad. We were getting the main ideas down, and really making some progress. Then, hour two passed...and hour three. By the time we were done organizing all of the quotes, putting in all the points, and crediting all of the articles it was midnight. My eyes felt like they were going to bug out, I had been looking at the computer for so long. We were almost done...and suddenly Kevin decided he wanted to extend the margins so that he could fit more quotes on a page. Suddenly, I snapped. "Fine, you do it!" I exclaimed, and walked out of the room. Let me note here...ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE PROCESS KEVIN HAD BEEN SAYING, "I can take over if you're tired honey...honey, you're tired, let me take over. Stace, you can go to bed if you want too." Me: "No, I want to help you. No, I can't sleep if you aren't there anyway. No, I'll stay." I'm so darn stubborn sometimes! Anyway, he's done. The outline is complete, the quotes are typed, and I know my man is going to give a stellar presentation tonight. This morning I can look back and say I'm really glad that I could help him. It was actually fun to work with him on something like that, and fun to see the wheels a turning in his mind! It's not often that I get the chance to see that side of Kevin. This morning was rough though. I slept in late...very late. Luckily, I start the day with my prep, so it was okay that I wasn't here right when the bell rang. Let me tell you, I definitely knew that I was stopping at good old Starbucks for a grande, non-fat, no-whip, extra hot, half sweet peppermint mocha today! Mmmmm....MMMM! Man is it good! I think I'm ready to face this day!