Random Rant-y-ness

So where do I begin? I feel like crap just now. No really. And there are probably lots of reasons for that, but I'm trying to focus on the things I really want to get out, you know?  So basically, I just kinda feel like I never get anything done.  Today, I went into work (although it's spring break) with the intention of getting a set of exams graded.  Well, when I got there, the heating in the building was malfunctioning, and it was, no kidding, 98 degrees in the building.  And I thought I could just open the window, because it was like 40 degrees outside, but then it was just all windy and papers and stuff kept blowing around.  All this to say that I didn't actually get grading, or much of anything else, done.  And oh yeah, also the fire alarm keep beeping intermittently in the building, which it does occasionally.

But that's really the least of my issues at the moment.  You see, I have this essay that I want to revise.  It's a long (and boring) story, but it's possibly been accepted for publication pending revisions.  Anyhow, so one project for this week, it being break and all, is to at least work on revisions for the piece.  But I'm feeling lost as to what the editors are wanting me to do.  I mean, they've emailed suggestions for revision, but I just don't "get" it, which really kinda makes me feel dumb.  But what's even worse is that I finall today read through the piece today, and I feel like it's total crap.  I mean, I think I have some interesting ideas, but it's like there's no cohesion, and I've no idea where the essay is really going.  It's all this and that about Narnia and the cultural context of WWII England, but it's like there's no point or direction to the whole thing.  And I feel like I need some sort of theoretical grounding that I can't really get ahold of.  I mean, I open by trying to situate my discussion within the context of current critical responses to Harry Potter, which makes sense in one way, but it's just not working.  And I don't know where to go from here.  I'm always a believer that I can somehow write my way out of this sort of thing, which is probably part of what's motivating this particular post.  Uggh!!!  Why does writing have to be so painful?  The thing is that I sorta just don't even care about this essay any more--I have no passion for it.  And yesterday C. said that maybe I need detachment to get it done; this seems reasonable.  But I'm not really detached in a healthy way; I'm more just annoyed and want it to be over.  This is exactly the feeling I had to get to in order to get my dissertation done.  So maybe it's a productive annoyance.  But really, it's not very pleasant.  But who said life was supposed to be pleasant????

My other writing project for the week is to work on this conference presentation on S. Meyer's _Twilight_ saga for this conference that I'm presenting at next week.  And seriously, I just increasingly hate the series for a number of reasons, and am kinda annoyed with myself for deciding to present on why I think something is dumb instead of why something is really great or really interesting or whatever.  Anyway, I guess that I just need to sit down and draft some pages and see what I can come up with.

On a happier note, Fenway thinks I'm just the cat's pajamas.  And that makes me feel better.  Also, being off of work for the week is nice.  I've been reading lots of interesting stuff, including Ian Rankin's Inspector Rebus series.  I've also been watching as much of Prime Suspect on DVD as I can.