This
Journal

November
1999

I don't believe that I am actually here trying to write this. We've had a very long day here in Mundelein, Illinois. It's ten o'clock. Billie is singing "Good Morning Heartache" and I'm trying to wind down from a day of classes and conferences with parents. The kids went home at noon and conferences began at 1:30. We broke at 3:00 and began again at 5:30 - and went til 8:30. Then the faculty were called to "vespers at the monastery," which fooled no one. Pizza and suitable beverages.

So after a fairly productive morning in class, I got ot meet a lot of the folks and was pleasantly impressed. Nobody yelled at me (which in itself makes the day a triumph). Parents were all very supportive of what they felt I was trying to do in the various courses. It's humbling to see how they trust me to be doing what is best for their kid - which is exactly what I'm trying to do...in my somewhat quirky fashion.

At "vespers" it was nice to see a big crowd of laughing, eating, talking people here at my house. It strikes me that these folks really enjoy each other's company, though there were the usual (eternal?) subdivisions of women, older guys, younger guys, and new guys which seem endemic to American gatherings. Much talk of tomorrow's bus ride to the faculty retreat down at Aylesford. We're a bunch of kids...for better and for worse.

Ach. Enough of this. Tomorrow is another one.

Blind and unwavering indiscipline at all times constitutes the real strength of all free men.
Alfred Jarry