Here we are. It's Friday evening. As one of my old partners always used to say (dripping with irony) at this time of the week, only two more working days 'til Monday.

But in the wee small hours of this morning, a blessed event occurred: I finished grading exams for another term. Yes, those 250 lovely little essays -- each with its own individualized meaning, of course -- have all been read, re-read, and arranged into the hideous grading curve. Grade reaction time starts next week, and that can be draining, but it's a Sunday stroll in the park compared to sitting up nights with the bluebooks.

By the way, I'd like to thank the makers of Sanford Col-Erase erasable colored pencils for their fine product. They are the official marking pencils of my tax classes.

Now it's time to start digging into the huge pile of other work that has taken shape on the floor of my den while I have been separating the wheat from the chaff. I ought to be caught up by the end of spring break, in late March!

But hey, it's nice to have a good job these days. I dig in gladly.