It's back to work. Hope you all had a good break. I did my taxes and got sick --- which isn't as bad as it sounds because 1) I at wasn't at CSUSM; 2) I'm getting a refund (however small); 3) I had a chance to read a few good novels; 4) I started the break out at a very interesting conference in a very fun city (SF).

And, for a very (very) fleeting moment, I was on top of the NCAA brackets --- but having picked neither of the final two teams, I expect to be dethroned by someone much more prescient than I am about hoop matters. Ah well . . . .

This week is a busy one. We have a Senate meeting ---- the agendas are starting to get crowded, so please try to read your agenda and the accompanying packets before the meeting. If you are giving a report, please keep it short --- we have lots of business that has to get done. We can always come back to reports if we speed through the rest of the agenda.

Also, I have to go to the Chancellor's Office. The various academic senate chairs from the other campuses are getting together to compare notes. I'll know more at the end of the week about how the budget stuff is working at other campuses and report on that then. Early information sharing suggests a wide variation across the system about how involved (as opposed to how 'represented' and how 'present') faculty senates are at the budget tables on other campuses. I hope to learn a lot. Actually, I hate going to Chancellor's Office. For all the benefits (and maybe someone could remind me what these might be) of being in a big system, there is a stultifying centralizing tendency (not to mention a feeling of umerited superiority, in part because they take themselves soooooo seriously) that emanates from Golden Shore. One is expected to feel like country cousin in visiting and to marvel at central CSU wisdom. Fat chance. Oh well, I'm sure I'll survive.

Only 5 weeks more of being Senate Chair. One thing that spring break hammered home was how much I want this year to be over.

More later.