angst

Angst-causing items at the Mac house:

• Chinese beetles. Orange, wanna-be ladybugs. One just flew into my hair as I sat down in front of the computer. Yuk!
• Graphic designers block (similar to writers block). Scott started on a poster for "Jazz on the Green" yesterday afternoon. Whenever I pop into the office, the design has changed. I think he's on layout number 4 right now. Ah, my perfectionist husband...
• Writing tests. A very undesirable requirement of teaching. I know, I know, I need to be able to prove my students have learned something, but I feel like I'm either asking small-detail questions that don't really matter in the grand scheme of life or asking questions that they won't understand and will leave me with a pile of essays to grade. Which is the lesser of two evils?

Not to end on a downer, though, let me share a few joy-inducing moments:

• 79 degrees in November
• Giving a student a compliment on his improved class behavior and having him shyly say, "Thanks" and seeing the gleam in his eye that says he's excited I've noticed.
• Sending that same student's parent an email. Her reply was that I may have brought a tear to her eye.
• Knowing what I'm going to make for dinner.
• Being surrounded by a clean house.

What are your joy-inducing and angst-inducing lists?