A fitting end

I love that this Frazz comic was published on my last day of institute. If it's not an appropriate summary, I don't know what is.

(click picture for a legible view)



That said, I think it's bedtime.

benefits of the phone

As annoying as it is to wait and wait and wait for a call, there are times when telephones are worth it. Like when a student actually does come for their last class of the day (despite missing mine) after I call during lunch. And when I finally (FINALLY) get to talk to people I've been trying to get to answer my questions for a week.

I like long walks....

In order to maintain sanity, take a break from work during the neverending cycle, remind myself that there is life outside of a couple of buildings and a bus, I've been taking daily walks around campus. Get back here in the afternoon, change out of the professional dress into the jeans and t-shirt (note for a later post, my wardrobe balance), and go OUTSIDE!

It helps a lot. Still, I've pretty much figured out campus, at least the parts I'm comfortable exploring. I miss trails in a forest. Or on the beach. Or at the zoo's gardens. Or anywhere that's not dominated by buildings. Because they become familiar quickly and don't change with the seasons. A week and a half and then my scenery changes. Hopefully I'll get more walks in the coming year. Though maybe not quite as enthusiastic as Randall.

An attempt to remember the positive...

...because otherwise the crazy stress takes over.

The happy long conversations with bunch of friends I hadn't talked to in a while this week.

The power of being in a church so full that when you sing hymns you can barely hear yourself, even when you know you're singing way out loud.

The relief of no lines at the copy center.

The giddyness at being a rebel and borrowing books without others knowledge. (I was desperate. And I promise I'll return it and put it back on the right shelf. And it's not like there's a system in place that will let me check anything out.)

And the further relaxation with new reading material.

The bliss of a long, hot bath. With a trashy magazine to read. And room service cheesecake when I'm done. And cable TV. (And yes, this is drawing on yesterday. But I'm close enough to stressball right now that I'm clinging on to it.)

The hope that there's less that 2 weeks to go here. (Ignoring the fear of the 100 weeks to come.)

A short drive, but a world away....

It's amazing how close vacation can be. The dorm doesn't have hot water. One of my friends was checking into the hotel a half-block away and inviting us over anyway. So I got to enjoy a bath. In a different environment. And eat room-service cheesecake. And watch TV. And now things just seem so much nicer. Despite being back in the brown and beige and slightly moldy smell...

if you could only take....

I realized at some point that coming here I answered for myself the question of "If you could only take three books with you to an island where you'd live for the rest of time, what would the be?"
Not that this is the rest of time, but that I couldn't pack a lot, scratch that, my normal amount of reading material. And I don't really have access to a library. Not buying books. Not borrowing from other people here. Just the three (or four) here.

I thought I'd share.

1. The Bible (I brought NIV) -- Because really, it has the basics of so much literature. So many stories I haven't read. Good stuff.
2. Thurber: Writings and Drawings (one of those Library of America books) -- Because it's my favorite, make-me-laugh, bedtime book. For years. I really should re-cover it.
3. Life Prayers -- Because it was a gift from work. And it has prayers and meditations that I hadn't read yet. And because I stuck in the cards from work people, so it makes me smile.
4. (if you count it as a book) My journal -- Because I have to have something to process in that's just for me.
   

"you play trumpet?"

After hearing my name and that question, I was surprised at how quickly I was able to place the speaker. I only played during middle school, so figuring out what time frame and what location he'd known me in went pretty quickly.

I hadn't seen him since we left middle school, so there was the brief exchange of paths since then. I was curious why he chose to do this. When he returned the question, I pointed to our shared past. "Why weren't you in my honors classes back then?" My classes did not reflect the race makeup of the school, but it's clear that people can be successful despite not being in them (or not successful even though they were there).

Just a reminder of the small world. The way the world shifts. And the reason why I'm here.

oh give me a home....

and get me out of this unhealthy environment.

cross fingers for sleep

The one night when I hoped to get to bed early, there's a fire alarm. I'll still be asleep by 11. But :-P (Ah well, was warned it was coming. And turned out to have other work that I was doing up until the drill anyway.)

I hate goodbye

Subject says it all.

Whether the relationship's been short or long. Whether the break's a week or unknown. Just blah.

ready, set, crash

It's been crazy. Check. But I'm glad I've done the things I've done. I've been able to identify new faces so much. And I think my group will be amazing.

Happy details:

• waking up from nap while on layover (using nalgene for a pillow=sign of exhaustion) and seeing guy I'd met earlier this week arriving to be on my flight
• shuttle pulling up and seeing another guy from our group coming straight at us (turns out he was heading to his car, but he was more than happy to help. excellent)
  
• surprise hug from behind from classmate