The Trending Prof

I’ve been in the teaching world for a few years and haven’t quite yet figured out how to really decompress.  When the job is never ending….really never ending….I have started to learn how important it is to carve out time regardless of the fast approaching deadlines.  I know that if I am going to be my best in the classroom, I have earnestly got to be refreshed myself.  I owe it to myself, my family and I owe it to the students who are expecting me to be on my game in a few short weeks.  How to unwind?

An easy escape for me is to visit family on the west coast, or jump on a cruise ship and sail away from the city (except I did run into a student one year at the pool on a ship….NO!! At least she didn’t ask me any exam questions, phew!).

However, no matter the location, reading has again become a great relaxer for me.  I used to read for fun before undergraduate and graduate school. For whatever reason, I almost stopped reading books during that time.  I think partially because I felt guilty for not reading the latest publication or my textbooks.  It’s really too bad that I took such a long hiatus from reading for pleasure.

I loaded up on 6 new titles, some eBooks and some good old fashion paperback copies.  I’ve already polished off 2 books (they are so much easier to read than my regular physiology textbooks) and plan the next week reading my face off.  I particularly like to read suspense (but not scary) or a drama with interesting characters and story line.  I don’t like to read pure fluff, but it certainly doesn’t have to be academic either.  My latest read is a delightful novel by Dee Henderson, circa 1999 “Danger in the Shadows”.   I’ve already put the next 3 books on hold at the library and I am so excited to pick them up in the morning.

How do you unwind? What is on your reading list before the summer is over?

Follow