Jiggettyjig

Home again, home again. After 49 days of pure, indulgent vacation (some of it luxurious, some of it less so), I'm back at school. Everyone is remarking on how rested and relaxed I look, which well I should as I've just had my summer break. However, I've got first-term-of-the-year energy in a last-term-of-the-year environment. I'm surrounded by grumpy, burnt-out stress puppies, so we'll see how long the beachbum glow lasts.

The odd thing about taking a vacation in the 'wrong' term is that the university goes on without you. It's amazing what I've missed in ten short weeks. Changes in the cafeteria, the departmental paperwork, the recordkeeping procedures... "When did that happen?" has been on my lips a lot the past few days.

There has been one rather unusual, truly unexpected change. The university now has a ... (wait for it)... nail salon! Manicures, pedicures, massage and reflexology on tap, right above the cafeteria. My first response was righteous indignation: "How ridiculous and sexist! These women are supposed to be studying, not playing Barbie!" And then I thought a moment. The girls who spend their time in the library will still be there. The ones who spend their time gossiping in the cafeteria might as well do their gossiping while they're getting their nails done, and then at least something useful gets accomplished. Besides, it also means that I can get a pedicure every week without having to fight through traffic to get to a salon.

And this could be the answer to the last-term grumps. Maybe those burnt-out stress puppies I work with should go and get their feet massaged. It always works for me.