Ride home

It's starting to get cold here. But it's that in-between cold. When the day starts out, it's just right for the "medium" coat, but by the time it's dark and I'm waiting for the bus to go home after class at QC, I'm wishing I'd brought my real winter coat.

Sometimes I just wish someone would offer a ride home. :)

Thanksgiving was good. I went upstate to see my family. My cousin Dawn hosted the meal for her first time ever this year, and it was a big success. I also got to see my cousin Duane (haven't seen him in probably over 15 years) and my grandma and great-aunt Freda, who are now living together after grandma's surgery.

In school news, we're getting ready for the ELA exam (the big high-stakes test for the state of NY) and have about 19 days left until Christmas, at which point we'll have off until Monday, Jan 3, 2005.

Besides that, I'm just running around like my usual crazy self, wishing I had more hours in the day to get everything done. Maybe someday my life will be organized and sensible, but I'm not holding my breath waiting for that to happen. Actually, the chaos is kind of...invigorating.

Tough travel

Only two more days to go until Thanksgiving Break! Yay!

I managed to escape from school the moment it hit 3 pm, for which I am very proud of myself. I have been staying way too late and being tired and stressed out because of it. It has been hard not having enough time to myself at home. I'm still adjusting to life post-roommate and have a lot of stuff to do. I am also preparing to head upstate for the holidays and would like to have everything in order before I go.

However, that seems a lofty ambition at this point. I've been so worn out lately that by the time I get home, it is really difficult to get off the couch and get moving. I'm finally starting to feel better, which is definitely a plus, but the recovery has been slow. This past weekend I began to put my house back together and am hoping that everything else will be finished soon.

Although I was able to run from school relatively early today, I got stuck on the train...or without a train, to be more accurate. I had to stand on the platform at Queensboro Plaza for nearly twenty minutes, and during that time, the station manager sent us up and down the stairs with his announcements. ("Due to an earlier incident, all Manahattan bound service is suspended and Astoria boutnd service will be on the lower track." 2 minutes later, it was reversed. Another few minutes, that was switched. I think I went up and down the stairs 4 times before it was finalized.)

After a quick stop at the Post Office and then McDonald's, I headed home, only to be cut off by road construction and forced to walk two blocks out of my way, each way, to go around the road crew. But, finally, thankfully, I got home and spent the rest of the evening puttering around, looking for Christmas gifts online and balancing my finances.

Last, but not least, it is already time for a new recruitment effort by the Fellows program. If you are interested in leaving your current profession to join New York's Brightest and get a scholarship for half your Master's degree, go to

www.nycteachingfellows.org

The entire application process is done online....if you decide to go for it-good luck!!

Benefits

Things in Texas with the court went well. I took care of closing the bank accounts and now have a realtor looking into the property values of both houses.

While I was gone, Sarah moved into a cozy little studio on the Upper East Side. I haven't talked to her since then, but I'm hoping we can get together sometime soon.

Yesterday was a holiday, and I spent most of my time lounging around, lolling between cuddling and napping with the warm furry girls.

Today was pretty cool. I went to a NY English Language Arts test prep seminar, so I essentially had today off, too. Well, I mean I got to be with grown-ups all day and feel like I was learning beneficial things. The meeting was held at Columbia University, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Totally swanky.

After that (I got out at 2...nearly an hour earlier than school usually lets out, so yay for me!) I went and did a little shopping. In the two years I've been here in NYC, I've lost enough weight to make my winter coat virtually useless. So, off to Macy's. Macy's is crazy. All the time. Enough to make a normal person claustrophobic. But once you get over that, it's 10 floors of shopping extravagance. I ended up getting 2 coats-one for "cold" and 1 for "holy crap, it's F'ing COLD."

Then to Sephora. Ah, Sephora. It's heavenly. I got a fun makeover from Benefit, which wasn't really so much of a makeover as a "I-came-in-with-no-makup-on, so-whatava-got-to-sell-me" kind of experience. I got a few small things and then finally headed home.

On the way from the subway to the apartment, I stopped and got a pizza at Romano's, which was very good and very cheap. (A small pizza with 2 toppings is about 6 bucks, and that lasts me about 3 meals.) Then, home to the girls.

We watched Sex and the City reruns, and now they are going somewhat nuts. I am going to try and play with them so they will stop waking me up at 5:30 in the morning all full of energy.

Yay for weekends!

Last look

Okay, I admit it. Even though I was really angry at him, I had still been interested, ever so slightly, as to his life sans moi.

So, I've been checking his blog.

I am now pleased to report that he has posted a new entry, I read it, then found myself...bored. No longer do I have any desire to check up on his current situation. Instead, I found myself wondering what it was that he had that tied me so inexplicably to him. I remember the words I used to use when describing him, remembering myself so enraptured by him, and am now, honestly, somewhat surprised to discover that whatever characteristics I had previously found to be so enthralling to now be completely absent. I believe it is safe to say that the emotional journey I have been on over nearly the last ten years is over.

In totally unrelated news, my classes are starting to improve. I have learned a lot over my first marking period as a new teacher, and there are several new classroom strategies that I will incorporate into my management system as the year goes by. Some will be introduced as early as tomorrow, as I will be observed next week and would like them to be in place before I get evaluated.

Finally, I am heading back to Austin tomorrow after my 5th period class. My court appointment to petition the court for administration privileges for Mom's estate is first thing Friday morning. I am hoping to accomplish much in little time. I head back to the city on Monday, partly because I wanted to leave a space open in case I needed to visit with the lawyer again before I leave, and partly because with my flight coupon I was restricted to a non-weekend return trip.

I hope I'll get to visit with some of you while I'm home, because now that I've taken so many days off (grieving, exhaustion, flu, and now court) I'm not planning to be back until the summer, when I can come for a more extended period of time and get more accomplished. See you soon!

Love and kisses!