Blogging on the Powwow

I am remembering Murray this week, three years after his DOD. I think that I will always associate the end of an academic year with the time that we lost Murray. We knew that he was suffering and that he didn't have much time left. I was grading late into the night, feeling the pressure of what I call "the season of extremes" in academia. I had gotten little sleep when I heard from Murray's assistant: a text alert on my phone and then a phone call to let me know that Murray had passed away. I'm not able to visit his grave to mark the anniversary this year, instead I'm in the Caribbean. Murray would approve. He loved travel. I have my computer so that I can put out some fires at work and maybe submit that paper that I have in queue. Yes, Murray would approve of this, too. So, this week, I am holding close some of my favorite memories of Murray... Sitting with him at the long table in his office, hearing him talk about work and life Watching his enthusia

Let me start this post by acknowledging that I'm lucky. I'm a person with access, opportunity, and mobility. I'm also lucky to be able to see so much of the world through my professional and personal travels. But, sometimes trips go well and sometimes they don't. I'm stuck in Newark for several hours right now, at 5:00am, so I'll take the opportunity to pen my story of woe. This work trip involved traveling to San Francisco to attend and present some of my research at a conference for academic social workers. I travel a lot for work. Strangely, I've never had a conference take me to San Francisco. The week before the trip was stressful at work and home, with our dog going to the emergency vet twice in 36 hours and needing unplanned minor surgery. The federal government is shut down and I have some concerns about traveling during this time. My theory is that air traffic control workers might not be at their best when they're trying to figure out how to