I have this psychological need to be constantly taking on new projects. I always need to be amassing more work, more responsibility. I used to be more cautious about it. Freshman year I agonized over whether to commit myself to taking on my first experiment in web design, wondering if I'd have the time to invest in learning HTML (I also have this control-freak kind of pride that doesn't let me do things the easy way, e.g., FrontPage). I declined a nomination for a Pep Band office (which turned out to be my only chance, as going abroad killed my ability to serve the next term and ability to be nominated for the final term) because I was worried that my Maroon-News commitments would be too much. But then I felt like a slacker when, early on in the semester, being Assistant Commentary Editor became less of a time commitment than being a production assistant had the previous semester. Of course, that all changed when Jon Egan realised he could dump all the work of the section on me -- a development I was perfectly happy with.

This year, I'm well beyond those kind of reservations. When Nan asked me, in a voice that suggested she wasn't optimistic about my response, to be a Deacon in University Church, I was ready to start work before she even got done explaining my potential duties. I realised afterward that I could have easily said no, claiming too much other work and commitments (on top of the fact that I don't feel like I'm exactly one of the pillars of Christian faith in UC). I had the same kind of experience when Lisa Benton asked me to be her research assistant sophomore spring. Or when Andrea told me Keith Brooks was looking for help in getting the Prism put together. My busiest week sophomore year was the week that I chose to begin working on Lore 2000.

The reason I'm writing this now is because I just got an email from the Geography secretary saying that Michael Peletz (my anthropology seminar advisor) is looking for someone to help him with a mapping project. I jumped up and had the phone in my hand before I paused to think. I'm behind enough in the work I already have, so taking on more wouldn't really help the situation. He'd probably get better work out of someone who is either not so busy, or who has learned time management skills. But when I see him in class on Monday I'll probably still ask if he's found an assistant yet.