Christmas Eve Eve Eve

The year is coming to a close. There are two more workdays left, including today. The students are gone for the most part. I know of a few that are trying to get some bulk work done on their research, but other than that, it’s been quiet.

A surprising number of us are still in the office. Perhaps because of the mild winter, no one is leaving early to travel. We are all in the office wrapping up the year. Today I have a backlog of stats to get done, a project to install for one of my committees, and the last of the communications for the year.

Next year will start with a rush of things to do. I teach early and in a couple of classes. I have several individual projects to get moving from the beginning. Two are research projects. I still haven’t set my schedule for free-standing workshops either. To be honest, I haven’t give many of them since my first semester. I prefer targeted, requested workshops.

The new year starts with a new boss as well. We’ll see how that changes things for me as well. I’ve gotten used to working without one. It should be interesting to see what types of things she wants to implement. There was some controversy in her selection. There was some controversy in the whole position. Tie will tell how wise the decision was. I’m particularly interested in seeing if she has the capability to create a vision and get buy-in to move the department in a solid direction. We run the risk of being a reference department that focuses on past service models and doesn’t innovate to move forward.

But that is the future, the near future, but not now. Today I have simple tasks and a slow work day as we wind down for the holiday. I am quickly appreciating that the university goes on complete shutdown for about a week. Works for me.