6:08 a.m. Alarm goes off. Remembering that it’s going to be 20 degrees outside, I greet the morn with a hearty, “Oh haell no.”

6:15 a.m. The hot water lasts not-quite-as-long as the actual shower. Previous comment emphatically reiterated.

7:30 a.m. For the first time in over a month, there is no windshield frost to be scraped. Day is looking up.

8-9:45 a.m. In the office. Prep for class, do some grading while listening to Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot for the millionth time.

9:50 a.m. Walk from Mears to JRC. On the iPod: Vampire Weekend, “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa.”

10-10:50 a.m. ENG-223 (British Trads I). Paradise Lost, Book 10. Just who does God think He is anyway?

11 a.m. Lunch in dining hall with Professor Odom. Mmmm … spicy stirfry.

12-1 p.m. Humanities division meeting. Ugh … spicy stirfry.

1:15-2:05 p.m. HUM-101. Thucydides. This whole semester seems like one long meditation on justice and mercy.

2:15 p.m. Back in my office. I need coffee. And cookies. The JRC seems very far away. I should do some work.

2:26 p.m. Walk from Mears to JRC.

2:37 p.m.Walk from JRC to Mears. iPod: Wolf Parade, “Shine a Light.”

2:40 p.m. Back in Mears listening to the new Killers’ single, which poses the profound question “Are we human, or are we dancer?” I discover that in my office with the door closed, I can be both.

2:45-5 p.m. Work on syllabi for next semester. iTunes: Rolling Stones, “Exile on Main Street” and Spiritualized, “Lazer Guided Melodies”

5 p.m. Head home. Talk to Mom on the phone.

5:30 p.m. PTI on ESPN2.

6-8 p.m. Dinner with Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus (the book, not the actual guy). Prep for tomorrow’s 8 a.m. medieval literature seminar.

8 p.m. Heroes.

9 p.m. Eine kleine nacht reading before bed.

10 p.m. Set the alarm for 6:08 a.m. See entry #1.