Jessi Grieser
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jessgrieser.com
Jessi Grieser
@jessgrieser.com
Sociolinguist, novelist, photographer, quilter, saxophonist and Boglehead. Associate Professor of Linguistics at UMich.
107 Days, by Kamala Harris. Great and interesting pace. Some new insights, some things we already knew. In many places it’s too much apologia and too little self-analysis, but the point of this book is clearly the story and the saga not the politics. #booksof2025 #booksky #blackbooksky
November 24, 2025 at 4:03 AM
This is how long we’ve been in this building.

Grabbed a couple for the next time I have to teach sign = signifier + signified
November 20, 2025 at 7:34 PM
The Testaments by Margaret Atwood. A satisfying sequel with enough twists and turns to keep things interesting even if you’re very familiar with the world. Loved the character growth arc and background of Aunt Lydia especially, and Ann Dowd doing the reading makes it that much better. #booksof2025
November 11, 2025 at 9:48 PM
James by Perceval Everett. Loved the use of language as a plot device in this, and find it an interesting retelling. I’d never read Huck Finn! Rich storyline, though act III felt like it came a little out of nowhere. The relationship btw Jim and Huck is well done. #booksof2025 #booksky #blackbooksky
November 11, 2025 at 9:45 PM
OMG 😭😅
November 10, 2025 at 1:33 AM
Mood:
November 8, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Gehringer and Grieser “Shifting Vowels in a Stable Place” retrieved from the printer!

Poster session 1; Poster #20.

#nwav53 #ncvs #michiganEnglish
November 4, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Loving this database view in Notion. Each of my Ph.D. students is a line on a Gantt from start month to planned grad and the color is where they are in the program (pre quals, in quals, pre-prospectus, dissertating). Clicking on the line leads to all my advising notes.
October 17, 2025 at 6:12 PM
[white [student athlete] jerseys] not [[white student athlete] jerseys]

But picking a jersey from a Black player would’ve helped here, M Den!!
September 29, 2025 at 3:47 PM
Siren’s Song by Elizabeth Salo. An interesting witchy romance that does a good job setting up the series to come. While the plot was a little confusing in places, a fun twist at the end makes the next book a want-to-read.
September 29, 2025 at 12:28 PM
Dufour: “Hegseth thinks this is cool”
My tumblr-addicted ass: “More interesting is the fact that neither Dufour nor Hegseth understand the pragmatics of ‘cool story, bro.’”
September 27, 2025 at 1:53 AM
Not a bad day. Time for dinner.
September 23, 2025 at 10:22 PM
I’m makin’ a thing.
September 6, 2025 at 9:38 PM
Be careful when calling the forcats package in R.
August 29, 2025 at 6:13 PM
Contemplating the cooking vs restaurant dilemma:

There is food at home

vs.

There are kittens at home
August 24, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Ah. Achieving “big enough to jump on the desk” size right before classes was a masterstroke, kittens.
August 22, 2025 at 8:36 PM
I realize that in the 15 minutes I have wasted being angry about this and making it work differently I could've completed this task 5 times over but WHY DOODLE WHY. This is the worst way to present these choices to enable me to quickly see if I am free.

I miss the old calendar overlay so much 😭
August 14, 2025 at 10:19 PM
I don’t know who needs to hear this today because I needed to hear it several weeks ago, but laundry detergent caps actually SAY to toss them in with the laundry. They get fully rinsed that way, turns out!
August 7, 2025 at 7:28 PM
History Lessons by Zoe B. Wallbrook. A fun debut mystery that sits a murder amidst all the problems plaguing the humanities in higher ed: ego, microaggression, and institutional politics. Some characters were a little cartoonish but the MC’s excellently drawn West African family makes up for it.
August 7, 2025 at 2:24 PM
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. Perfect book club summer read. The characters are richly drawn and just the right amount of mutually cantankerous; the setting feels exactly right for a small town. And the mystery ends satisfyingly. Who knew an octopus narrator could be fun? #booksky
August 7, 2025 at 2:12 PM
I can just see my kittens if they could go back to the shelter.

“No. Dude. It’s AMAZING. Not only do you get a house but once a week she just dumps WARM CLOTHES on the bed and leaves them there for us to sleep in!”
August 6, 2025 at 10:58 PM
We’re getting ready to move to smaller offices 😭 but I enjoyed the joke of getting to describe myself as “the faculty member who is part of a different minimalist program”

(Gonna be super sad to leave my space tho)
August 5, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Blake has a new collar and would like you to know that he has gotten just a tiny bit bigger and thus the next shelf of the tree is available.
July 24, 2025 at 11:12 PM
By the way, BlueSky. I got new kittens last week. Like…strong work, evolution. Kittens are an excellent invention.

Blake and JJ after the @umichfball.bsky.social champs.
July 17, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Just developed photos in Lightroom. Recalling the first time I shared an album and ppl went “these are all so good!”

And like, yeah. I know how to shoot and have good equipment. But a lot of the difference between snapshots and even amateur photography is a willingness to trash 90% of your shots.
July 13, 2025 at 2:41 AM