Cooking to procrastinate

I remember when I used to love to cook. I think that was probably because I didn’t come home to cook after driving around for an hour to get home from work and then picking everybody up from school. It may also have something to do with the fact that I used to not have two kids hanging off my legs moaning about how they will starve to death in the next thirty seconds if they don’t have food. It might help too if it wasn’t after 6ish every night when I got home. I remember thinking what a lovely career academics would be, since I could read books and get paid for it, and have a class in the morning and spend the rest of the day home writing (or whatever). Such fond fantasies.

Anyhow, I did love to cook once. Tonight after our thrilling Boston Market tv dinners (which are actually not that bad), I had to make macaroni and cheese for Chris’s athletic banquet tomorrow night, which is a potluck—go soccer moms. I’d planned to make two macaronis when I got home from work and we’d eat one, but once again I mysteriously was unable to leave school until the last possible second. I suppose it’s a good thing the kids have to be picked up at a particular time or maybe I’d never get to come home. So after dinner I made the macaroni—dinner for tomorrow night is mostly ready now!—and then just because I was dying to, I made fudge. Also I’m avoiding grading papers. I did plow through a pile of them today, many of them not too bad, but I can’t tell you how much I hate reading research papers that have two sources, both from the internet, when the assignment requires something altogether more substantial. At least when I procrastinate I know when to quit. To be charitable, though, it did take me a while to learn the fine art of gauging exactly how long I could put off my work. I think I’ve got it down now, though.

Laura helped me with the fudge and also with the dishes afterwards. She’s getting big enough to really help, and in fact stirred the fudge for me the whole time I was chopping chocolate. It looks a little grainy this time, but I’m sure it’ll be fine anyhow. After the fudge, I avoided grading a while longer by working on my own paper (which isn’t due until March, so there, procrastinating students!). It’s going to shape up into something interesting, I think. I’m looking forward to having some time next week to work on it at length. But for now—well, I’ve put off my grading long enough that I’m too tired now to be fair, so I’m off the hook until tomorrow. I’ll get up early and grade some more before I have to report for jury duty again.