Divine Discontent— Last Thursday marked the first day of spring, and for me the arrival of spring always brings to mind the opening chapter of The Wind in the Willows. In this chapter, Mole is spring cleaning when he is overcome by the mood of the season: “Spring was moving in the air above and in the earth below and around him, penetrating even his dark and lowly little house with its spirit of divine discontent and longing.” This weekend, I felt a sense of kinship with Mole. I spent much of the weekend reading a dissertation written by a graduate student in the College of Education. I am a member of the student’s dissertation committee, so I really had no choice in the matter. Still, when the sun came out yesterday afternoon, I joined Mole as he “bolted out of the house.” I grabbed my shovel, dug up one end of my garden, and planted some radish seeds and lettuce seeds, and my sense of discontent subsided a bit. As we head into the final stretch of the spring semester, I hope that you are able to carve out a little time to share with Mole “the delight of spring without its cleaning.”
Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:
Kirk Melnikoff ran a workshop on “Digital Tools and Resources for Exploring the Early Modern Book Trade” at the Renaissance Association of America’s Annual Meeting in New York City.
Paula Rawlins, one of our former M.A. Students, has been accepted into the Ph.D. program at the University of Georgia, with four years of funding. She plans to study contemporary Southern literature.
Aaron Toscano presented a paper titled “Outsourcing Technical Writing: Multiple Technical Writing Futures” at the Conference on College Composition and Communication in Indianapolis, IN.
Upcoming Events and Deadlines— Here are some dates to keep in mind:
April 3 — Henrietta Goodman will read and discuss her poetry on Thursday, April 3, at 6:00 pm in the English Department Lounge. She is a 1991 graduate of UNC Charlotte’s English Department and is the author of two widely acclaimed books of poetry: Take What You Want (2006) and Hungry Moon (2013).
April 11 — The EGSA Professional Day will take place throughout the afternoon.
Quirky Quiz Question — In the beginning of Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows, Mole bolts out of his home and ends up having a picnic that consists of “coldtonguecoldhamcoldbeefpickledgherkinssaladfrenchrollscressandwidgespottedmeatgingerbeerlemonadesodawater.” With whom does he share this picnic?