There are a lot of joyful moments during the holiday season. Here are just a few of them so far this year:

Today was the annual Math Dept party and grab-bag, at which 15 of us gathered for eating and chatting. Of course, the food was good (especially Deanna’s dumplings, cookies and brownies baked by various people, and various delicious cheeses with crackers), and the chatting, but so were the presents. I got a large tin of biscotti from Joe, who actually retired two years ago but still subs in the building and will be a member of the department until he relocates to North Carolina next year.

Seeing former students back from college is always a joy. So far I’ve chatted with Rabbit and Preeti. Alas, CK and Jen came this afternoon during the party, so I was only able to chat with them for 5 minutes at most. Hopefully they will return in two weeks so we can talk longer. This might be the last time one or both of them return to the Math Lab before they abandon their old high school forever, so I don’t want to miss this last chance to chat with either of them.

Tomorrow is the annual faculty luncheon consisting of a six-foot sub,salads and desserts made by the faculty (including the leftovers from today’s math party), another chance for teachers who are usually too busy to actually sit and chat awhile.

Friday the Guidance Department makes an amazing number of foods which they serve to all teachers smart enough to visit them during the day. I know I will be there, haha!

It is always nice to receive presents from some students, not because of greed (ok, maybe there is a bit of greed involved ☺) but it is nice to feel appreciated, even if in some cases the parents initiate the gift-giving. So far I’m getting videos at Blockbuster, books at Barnes & Noble, and eating more candy than I really should!

Next time I’ll tell you about an Italian-American family’s Christmas Eve.