I have discovered something about myself: I have no mercy; I am pitiless, heartless, and cruel.

In the six semesters that I have taught here:

I have failed three children of my friends.

I have failed two particular students four times (each).

I have failed a graduating senior, who did not graduate because of my class.

This past semester I failed a single mother and a young man whose father died.

To my students, past and future: Neither your position, nor your effort, nor your personal tragedy entitle you to a passing grade. There is only one way to pass this class: turn in passing work, on time. I have one loyalty: to the English language, to make sure you can use it with facility.

Having said that, last semester I gave out four times as many A's and B's as I gave out D's and F's on the final paper.

Make of that what you will.

So, today I hit the big 3-0.

How do I feel? Not remarkably different from yesterday. Somewhere in my mid-twenties (about the time someone asked my age and I had to pause because I'd forgotten it) I discovered that it was less about the "yearly increment" and more about the "situation in life." I am a single college professor with a great girlfriend, so 30 is pretty young. A few years ago, I was a security guard without a girlfriend, and I felt *really old* then.

It is a little sobering to consider that Jesus began his earthly ministry when he was my age. But then, I've felt like I've been playing "catch-up" to Jesus since I was 12, and wasn't able to impress everyone at church with my Bible knowledge.

Or maybe since I was born, cause you know, I didn't have choirs of angels announcing my birth.

At any rate,

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day
To the last syllable of recorded time

So, I'll see ya then!

Baccalaureate was tonight. Sometimes I skip it, but this time, we had William F. Graham IV speaking (the grandson of the legendary Billy Graham). He was a really good speaker, with a warm, resonate voice.

Afterwards, there was the Marine Corps commissioning of a friend of mine, Chad Phillips. I had never seen a commissioning before, and the President intimated that they hadn't had one done on campus since World War II, so that was really cool. It was done a few minutes after the Baccalaureate was over, and I was surprised - despite there being a reception to go to, over 90% of the people stayed seated to see the commissioning.

The reception (which was the main thing I enjoy graduations for) was much better than it's been in previous years. They had all the dishes they usually have, plus eggrolls. Yum!

So, it's "next week," and I feel anything but free. I had 50 10-page papers and 30 5-page papers to grade, for a total of ~650 pages.

Now, I have 10 10-page papers and 30 5-page papers left to grade, leaving me with ~250 pages left to grade.

Still plugging away!

So, this is final exam week - again. I have lots of work to do, and am feeling slightly overwhelmed. Next week at this time, though, I'm going to feel FREE FREE FREE!

Thank you, that is all.