I can always tell when this happens because I find myself not caring about things I know I actually do care about. I am one of those rare nerds who actually cares about things like democracy and all the pretty shiny rights that may or may not come with it, and how to get those things to people and make sure they matter. But as I sit here studying I find myself bored to tears by theoretical descriptions of the relationship between civil society, democracy, and human rights. I am bored of tedious, hair-splitting definitions of democratic governance that run on for twenty pages and were obviously written by someone who cared a lot more about their academic reputation and being right (or proving someone else wrong) than how to make the world a better place, which is depressing. Did all these knee-jerk(s) academics start off caring and wanting to change things too? Does education suck the will to care out of all of us? Can all the world's problems really be reduced to a fat stack of papers, and does anyone think that producing these stacks actually accomplishes anything?

I know, I know, understand things before you change them. But honestly, I don't think I really needed to jump through all these hoops to know that shit just ain't all right in the world today.

Can you tell I'm ready for a break?

6 days till the return of the matriarch (and little sisteriarch)...