I only just now learned what a cometarium is, and now I want one.

Harvard University’s Putnam Gallery has a collection of historical scientific instruments. Pictured above is Benjamin Martin’s cometarium, which dates back to about 1766. Here’s what it did:

This apparatus was designed to demonstrate how the speed of a comet varies in its orbit according to Kepler’s law of equal areas. The comet Benjamin Martin chose for this instrument is Halley’s Comet, which goes around the Sun every 75 1/2 years. Martin began producing cometaria before Halley’s Comet made its predicted return, and so was betting that Halley would prove correct in his theory.

I went to the doctor today. Just got back. Broke my 14 (!) hour fast with a gardenburger, fries and an Arnold Palmer.

Delicious.

And I still have cannoli for dessert.

Anyway, I went in expecting them to take my vitals and my blood and wound up also getting a flu shot, a pneumonia shot, a urine sample and and ekg.

So much more complicated than I had expected but - I'm not going to need to see him again until May.

So, anybody else have tomorrow (Veteran's day) off?

I have Remembrance Day off, taking Friday as a vacation day, and Monday is my earned day off, so Five days off in a row!!! I am spending that time refinishing the hardwood in my hall and dining room. A co-worker just helped my pick up the sanders at Home Depot, and I have to say, I'm fairly terrified. I haven't quite worked out how I am going to get the sanders back for Friday @9:00 AM. I hate not having a car at times like this.

ETA: Remembrance Day is the one holiday where most everything is shut.

oh msbelle! I read what you wrote and my heart breaks at the thought of those kids being separated, and then I feel all petty and selfish and small because I am not offering to take them in.

As a resource list?

Yeah, something like that. I could share sources with students and they could share with each other. I know it would be useful, I just haven't taken the time to use it and figure it out.

This project....this project I got an award for this week... this project that has been an unending source of frustration and which has cemented a certain groups' reputation as the worst communicators ever ... this project that is not actually finished... this project is trying to kill me. In increments.

I have EVERY DAY OFF.

Dammit.

Which is what I came here to ask about, actually.

I've stopped being picky about jobs that are actually interesting and within my skill set (teaching, etc) and am now just applying for whatever looks like it wouldn't suck too badly.

However...I've sent about 12 resumes out for admin/receptionist jobs, some retail stuff, and haven;t heard back.

Is it bad form to downgrade yourself, by NOT including a degree or two? I'm thinking about taking the MA's off the resume for some jobs. I don't even know anymore. This economy sucks, and it sure as hell doesn't help that KCMO school district laid off over 300 teachers this year.

Ugh Erin. Hey, what ages have you taught?

If you want to look at delicious organisation possibilities, Burrell, mine is delicious.com/[ljhandle]. None of the content will be of interest to you, but I've tried to be hard core about tagging and using tag bundles, so it might give you and idea of potential.

Sorry about the job situation. 300 teachers, geez. The scary thing is that it could get far, far worse if the earnings tax is voted down.

Burrell, no guilt allowed. We all cannot fix everything, we can just recognize there is a lot to fix and try to do something.