Decided to start tracking all the good that has happened since the start of the pandemic. Because often it feels that everything is awful all the time, but sometimes things are still good. And just like before there are some fleeting moments of awesomeness. ...

For instance, my courses will all be on-line this fall and I am not bummed out. I was amazed at how well my Phil Mind students transitioned to this new medium in the spring. And I am seriously stoked about teaching metaphysics for the first time this fall at @UNRPhilosophy

The kids' camps were all cancelled, which I thought meant I would get nothing done. Instead it allowed me to focus on spending quality time with my kids without feeling guilty about not doing research. At a leisurely pace I still wrote, co-edited textbook Chs, & read widely.

Awoke before dawn excited for first day of class so decided to take a bike ride to see sunrise across the fields.

First day of classes went well (enough) yesterday. Only 5 students had trouble zooming into the first class. Most of these came in late. While in the later class the number went down to 3. So about typical for a regular first day of class.

The pandemic has further honed my ability to assess if a research project is worth the effort and if something really needs to be said. For instance, over the past three days I have cut a long (8000+ words) phil paper down to a >4000 word interdisciplinary short report.

For the first time in five years I can take my kids to school on their first day. I have missed one first day of kindergarten, two first days of first grade, & one first day of high school. So today I might not get much done, but I am truly grateful to be here for these moments.

Getting back to this thread ...
Grateful for moments like these - mid-week date night at the beach after dark listening to the waves eating takeout