Near Miss

I teach until 10 p.m. on Thursdays and then am back on campus at 11 am for Friday's class. If I see students after class (as I did last night), the turn around can be pretty brutal. Even though I sleep well--despite Peeps's tendency to purr, mew, tap, walk on my head and generally be restless most nights--I did need a green tea this morning. I stopped in at a convenience store opposite the Waverley Building where I have class and was directed over to a stack of tea bags and a hot water dispenser--you make your own then pay.

As I was unfamiliar with the machine and probably a little groggy, I pushed it up to dispense water (noting that it seemed really hot) then pushed it back down to stop as I moved the cup away. The water continued pouring and I looked down and realized my hand and wrist were in the way--there was a somewhat surreal time lag where I noticed before moving.

Of course, there could have been a very unhappy ending but for some reason, my skin seemed to resist the boiling water. I calmly paid, walked over to class, told my students I had to run cold water over my wrist and had the miraculous fortune of not scalding my right hand and spending the morning in the emergency room. Instead, we discussed TV celebrity, watched an episode The Comeback (which polarized the class) and then somehow segued into celebrity scandals, courtesy, I think, of Charlie Sheen. Now I'm waiting to moderate at the grad student conference and barely bothered by the small sore patch on my previously bright red hand. I am lucky indeed.