february 7, 2001. This morning I have the stupidest allergy-related injury ever. At about 4 a.m. last night I woke myself up with a horrible sneezing fit that seemed to go on and on. I was half-asleep and not putting the points together too well; all I know is that I went from sleeping to sneezing to hurting. I pulled a muscle in my neck from sneezing. This is not a joke. You wouldn't believe how many movements are directly related to the left side of your neck. It's getting better, though. From 4 to 5 a.m. I couldn't do anything but lie on my side & try not to move at all. When I inevitably began to fidget, the pain was like a knife and my whimpers woke the Boy. He was pretty calm about the whole thing, considering that I kept waking him up during his last hour of sleep and I wouldn't let him near me to see the invisible neck injury. At least it was an excuse to stay home from class & sleep. It huuurts. I want a neck brace. Yet through all this dull aching, I have to give mad props to my neck - all these years, and I've had no idea how much it does for me every second. Good work, neck. We salute you. I have the Class That Makes Everyone Angry tonight, but I'm looking forward to it in a queasy sort of way. Tonight is the night we are to hand in a whole bunch of modified lesson plans - and since the assignment was inadequately modelled (ooooh! teacher-speak!), I have no idea what the hell I'm supposed to be doing. But that's okay. I have something to hand in, something that smells a fair bit like a collection of modified lesson plans. It's paper-shaped and oozes confused effort. I just hope that's enough. (To get the full intended effect of the last bit you must say it aloud in a world-weary Charlton Heston voice, squinting at the sunset. Go on, try it. I won't laugh.) I'm pretty sanguine about the whole thing. After the first couple of weeks a switch turned in my brain and I stopped worrying so much about everything. When other students complain, I just remind them that the professors are supposed to be modelling effective teaching techniques. We're a room full of highly-educated, highly-motivated people; if we don't get it, it's not our fault. In other words, pffft. I may be about to flunk, but I can't make myself care.