kmcdade : MyBlogHer Profile

I work in an elementary school computer lab. When students come in to the lab to write, they’ve usually got something on paper already. But when they sit down at the computer, the first thing they want to do is change the color, the font, the size, anything but actually write.Is this the procrastination impulse? Is it like when we as adult writers have to gather paper, sharpen pencils, find the perfect pen? Or when we have to check email and Twitter first, and have the perfect cup of coffee on hand before we start to write?  Read more >

I left work early today, not because it’s the Friday before a three-day weekend, but because I was paralyzed by anxiety and depression.   This is an ongoing condition, but today I don’t even remember how or why I became depressed.  Was it the overwhelming chatter of the fifth graders, or the incessant “I need help!” of the kindergartners?  I’m not sure.  I simply became unable to function, and had to leave the room in the middle of the kindergarten class to take a quick walk.  Fortunately, since I’m only the computer lab assistant, there were other adults there, so this was n  Read more >