Be careful what you wish for

For the last four years, I've complained about the boredom of working with Ass Clown Colleague at Egghead High. I couldn't wait for ACC to retire so that I could get the library program off the ground again. Well, my dream has come true. I have a wonderful new colleague (we poached him from Rival Egghead High) and we are busily trying to start a true library program. At the same time, we're participating in a pilot project with New York Public Library as reported in the Wall Street Journal that has taken a tremendous amount of work to get off the ground. And, if we weren't crazy busy enough taking on as many as nine classes a day to get the project rolled out, we've just heard that we have been granted a substantial amount of money to add a computer lab in the middle of the library, a proposition that doesn't thrill me but that will necessitate a much-needed renovation of the space as it's laid out now. So we're hopping, both of us on the floor or working 9 out of 10 periods a day, eating on our feet and grabbing a bathroom break when we can. It's been gratifying, never boring, but also physically very tiring.

What's saving me from total exhaustion? I've begun practicing Bikram yoga at a studio here in Beach Community. It's tough -- 26 postures in a room that's heated to 105 degrees with 40% humidity for 90 minutes -- but I've noticed results almost immediately. I'm still a beginning beginner, and I can barely get myself into the foundation of most of the postures, much less attempt the postures themselves, but I love the practice and plan to continue with it as long as I can. I'll post more about how it's helped me later, but if you know me, you know that I've never, ever embraced any fad or movement, especially one that requires a huge physical, spiritual and mental commitment. So I'm a little bemused by my love of this regimented style of yoga that feels like torture sometimes.

As usual, the holidays caught up with me before I even had a chance to catch my breath, so I'll be riding the end-of-the-year-madness locomotive from now until the New Year. I'll try to post more often, if only to keep my thoughts straight and mark the passing of time before it totally escapes from me.