If you don't play, you can't win

It's hand, foot and mouth disease. You could have guessed that and gotten 200 points! Now don't you wish you'd given it a shot? I don't know what the points are good for, but 200 has to be good for something! I can't believe there were zero comments when 200 nebulous points were on the line.

So I'm working at home for the rest of the week. It's a drag because I think I'm going to have to miss commencement tomorrow. Our first one, and I think I'm gonna be home. It's a drag because it's harder to motivate myself when I'm not at the office.

But it's cool because it's looser. I can wear my jeans and my ultra comfy MBTs that I got from my sister's store in Las Vegas. (She doesn't own it, but she and her husband both work there and basically run the joint.) Today I'm wearing two t-shirts as an experiment ... you know, that layered look? I was not an early adopter, but today I'm thinking it's cute.

Another benefit: getting Jamba Juice with little man, ostensibly to soothe his poor, blistery little mouth. Actually, I think it worked for that. It was also a nice treat for Mama. I had Mighty Cherry Charger. He had Mango-a-Go-Go. Mine was yum. I didn't try his -- what, do you think I'm nuts?

It's also good because I have a lot of writing projects to catch up on -- a professor's publication about Chlamydia trachomatis, a grad student film project on immigration, a grant to start a student research e-zine and refine our pre-calculus course, an award for our IT department, and others I'm sure I'll think of as soon as I open my work e-mail again. It's easier to write when I'm not in the office with the ringing phone and the loud lady on the other side of the divider talking on the phone.

For some reason listening to the current feature about Earth, Wind & Fire on NPR doesn't distract me quite as much. Although as the Pledge Week festivities begin, I'm thinking I'm going to have to turn it off. I know, I should pledge. But the little I can give is unfortunately not going to make them shut up. Oh, maybe I will still do it. They did just put a new translator in for our town that has made a tremendous difference. I should reward them.

Little sickie is happily entertaining himself on NickJr.com while I work on my laptop. He loves not having to compete with his big brother for screen time!

I am very, very lucky to have a workplace that allows me to do this. My sick time is gone and I sure as heck don't want to start taking vacation time to stay home with a sick kid. Really, over and over my workplace proves itself to be an excellent venue for a mom to work. My office-mate is a mom, my boss wants to be one, her boss is a devoted young father of two. The chancellor took a week off the month before grand opening to go babysit her grandchildren -- what does that tell you?

Okay, back to work.