Toga party!

The ninth grade English classes are doing research papers on aspect of Greek and Roman life - what kinds of jobs people had, what they did for fun, what they ate, how they fought, what their music sounded like - all my favorite stuff. In graduate school (art history school, not library school!) I wrote my thesis about Greek jewelry, because I think that people's everyday personal objects tell us what we really want to know. Their literature and marble buildings tell us some very fine things about them, truly, but how a lady wore her hair or whether she liked long necklaces or short gives us a more evocative peek into her mindset, I think. Certainly what they ate makes us grateful to be in the 21st century - you were picturing a nice Greek salad and some baklava? Sorry. Not in 450 BC - try coarse bread and olives, some fish if you were wealthy.

So I got to host the ninth graders here in the library all week and point out where the best books are for their subjects, introduce them to the mysteries of double-sided copying, and offer to be of service for search terms and suggestions. I'm pleased to say they took me seriously, and I've been fielding requests ever since. In many cases I've copied articles from some of the larger books to preserve their bindings (but you have to do the bibliography work yourself - there's no free lunch!) So you out there, if you're looking for that article on how to fold your peplos or what silphium tasted like . . . see me at the desk!

Incidentally, for you sharp-eyed folk who looked at the picture: the Greeks didn't wear togas. They wore all kinds of other big folded and pinned pieces of cloth, but not togas. Go ahead, ask me about it. I'm here weekdays until 4:30.

Not quite infinity, but definitely the future

Last night was the 100 Days, excuse me, 86 Days Dinner. It was well-attended by two Belles, one Cruella, three Minnie Mouses (Minnie Mice?) two Jack Sparrows, three or four toy soldiers, Winnie the Pooh, Ursula, Tigger, Pocahontas, the whole Cool Runnings bobsled team, Tinkerbell, Hades, Hercules and his muse, and Jiminy Cricket, just to name a few. But the real showdown was between the two Woodys. Dan B. looked great, but Mr. Newhams looked even greater. (Sorry Dan.) And in a beautiful bit of symmetry, Dan's tribute to Mr. Newhams left many of us a little moist around the eyes.

One of the things I enjoyed most was hearing about all the accomplishments of my colleagues and what an impression they have left on our soon-to-be graduates. It's a good feeling to know I am among such a caring, skilled group of teachers and I am glad to be counted among them. I was also impressed by the public speaking abilities of our seniors; not everyone finishes high school with such a well-developed sense of calm behind a podium addressing a crowd and it's a more useful skill than you might think.

Eighty-five days left to go. Time flies, huh?

100 days to go

Happy March! Tonight is the 100 Days Dinner, an event at which senior students and their teachers enjoy an evening of togetherness over country-club food. But that's not all. Because I'm a newbie, I had no idea of the entertainment. Not only are all attendants required to come in costume, but each teacher is lauded by several students with original speeches about his or her fine qualities. This year's theme is Disney, and if I told you how much of my week I spent researching characters and their attributes for students and faculty, you'd be amazed. But do credit my professionalism: you want information, and I provide it, whatever it is.

The best term I can use to describe what I feel for the students . . . is pity. That's right, pity. Why? Because that's an impossible task. For those of you who have known your teachers since seventh grade, how do you encapsulate all you might feel for them in a minute or two? And in my case, nine of you have only had me as a teacher since January - how could you actually fill a minute or two? Furthermore, it's a tribute, not a roast, so you can't be funny, and report cards come out on the 26th, so you can't be honest either! You don't want to be sappy, because that's embarrassing and your fellows are watching. You don't want to be lame, because, well, that's lame.

So yeah, I pity you, you poor dears. On the other hand, I feel lucky as heck because I get to dress up in blue velvet pantaloons and eat some lovely chicken dinner while at least two or three of you tell me how great I am, and then of course I get to blog about it the next day. See you at 6:30!

Out-of-Door wins 114-108!

Yesterday's Academic Olympics match was a roller-coaster ride the whole way through: first we were up by 18, then we were down by 20, then Alex pulled us out of the fire with a 12-point music bonus question that saved the day. In the end it came down to the team question, and we earned 6 points to their 2. We even had spectators: Mr. Latta stopped by to witness the drama, and Ms. Kozak couldn't tear herself away. What's next for our heroes? Tune in next time and find out.

Happy Valentine's Day!

There's something about me you should know: I love candy. Shocking, isn't it? I'm always the one cracking down on the lollipops, the gum, the chocolate bars. You'd think I was hatin' on candy in general. Nope! I love candy, and I know I'm not alone - bugs love it too, so when you share it with them it causes icky problems for the books I also love . . . you see the problem. I'm torn between my two great loves, candy and literature.

And that brings me to my next point: whatever information your little heart desires, I can fix you up. Just this morning Miss Barlow asked about the origins of Valentine's Day and I said I though I had some research on that. I believe she may have thought I was kidding, but in three minutes I was back with the February 14 entry from Butler's Lives of the Saints, right here in our own reference section. See? She had a desire for information and I fulfilled it.

So eat some candy (far away from here!) and celebrate love, in all its glorious forms! Have a wonderful week off, and I'll see you all fresh and eager on the 23rd.

Alexander the Great, right here in the library

Today I had the pleasure of meeting most of the ninth grade. I had met many of you before in different circumstances, but today I got to be a professional about it: I came to Mr. Dougherty's World History classes to show students what the library can do for them. Specifically what it can do for them while they're working on presentations about Alexander the Great for later this semester. We talked about the library catalog and how to look for books we own, how to use Questia to find electronic books and articles, and the superstar favorite: how Questia will format its sources into an MLA-style bibliography, all ready for you to download and insert your other sources for attaching to a paper. I bet I have some new fans now!

Get smarter!

We're all humming along here, trying to stay warm - the library has big beautiful windows that let in lots of natural light, but it's fair to say it's a little on the brisk side in here with all the glass. It does foster a kind of measured, scholastic-type environment: glasses-wearing lasses with hair braided against the inevitable static, lips tucked in against the cold as they peck their calculator keys; bent-headed boys in sweaters rubbing their hands along their insulated coffee mugs while they pore over books for their research papers.

There's no chance of a beach visit, pool swim, or even a Frisbee game tonight, so let me suggest this: how about the school play? Get Smart is on at the Lower School campus, totally free for faculty and students, $5 for lucky guests. It opened last night and early reviews are glowing. Catch it tonight at 7, and Saturday at a 2 p.m. matinee and again at 7 in the evening. Shoe phone's ringing - it's for you!