Fourteen hours straight

Yes, I was at school for fourteen hours today... the regular school hours, of course, then photographing THREE football games: 7th grade, 8th grade and Junior Varsity.

I am tired. And probably bruised, thanks to a bizarre mis-step while crossing the track to get some closeup photos of the 7th grade game. I went down on both knees and my left hand (I kept my right hand up because it had the camera) and stayed down there for a brief time to re-establish brain contact with the rest of my body. I'm too old and fat to be falling down, yanno? Any-hoo, I will certainly have a bruise on my left knee, since it seems to have taken the brunt of the fall. I was glad I had on corduroy pants, which protected me from a lovely roadrash.

Tomorrow I will attempt to process a couple-hundred photographs from this week. I will make this attempt on an ancient Pentium III. In order to open a single digital photo and manipulate it in GIMP, I must close out every other program running. It takes upwards of ten minutes PER PICTURE. Obviously there isn't enough time in my day to do EVERY photo. I'm gleaning out the very best ones for now and saving the rest for when I get a computer that was at least manufactured sometime during THIS century.

Yes, I've requested a new computer. Dunno if I'll get it, but I've requested it. I talked to the tech dude tonight (he was reffing the football games) and he said that my request is locked in the middle of a teeny power-struggle thing over whose budget it comes out of. Typical! Oh well.

I'm doing the very best I can to make myself indispensable. I think I've done quite a bit better this year as far as the socialization scene is concerned. Last year at North Ruralville High, I don't think I got to know a single other teacher's name until sometime close to Christmas, and I certainly didn't eat lunch with them because I was terrified of all of them. Here I was in a new state, doing the single-mom thing and trying hard just to stay afloat.

This year I started right in learning names and joking around with people, and it seems to be working. I hope. I'd really like to find someplace that can be HOME for us.

In the meantime, though, I'd really like to find someplace soft and comfy to sleep, because I am BEAT.