THIRD-QUARTER UPDATE
Autumn has always seemed like a more natural "New Year" time for me than January. I don't know if it's due to the changing leaves or that still-imprinted-on-my-brain "back to school" feeling, but it always seems like a better time to sit back and take stock of the previous year than January 1st, by which time everything sucks.
This has been a good year all in all. I went to multiple weddings, and served in not one but two of them for Drew. Some of them had really nice social excursions attached, like the bachelor party in Atlantic City for Glenn and Drew's Alberta trip - which included a giant boat, awkward younger brother of the bride hitting on female bartender, and a commerorative coin featuring a ship which "withstood withering American fire" in the War of 1812. As Lake Erie's finest hour, I've never felt the War of 1812 gets enough publicity.
Also got some good mini-trips in there, including a springtime excursion to the University of Maryland area to see Ilya and a Brooklyn visit to see Dan just this past weekend. Probably my quietest trip to the city ever, due mainly to Dan getting over a cold and not feeling all that well, but still really nice. I got beer all over my pants on friday night and it still didn't ruin the vibe.
For all the buzz and busytude of New York it's the only place I've ever visited enough to feel any real sense of familiarity, at least with the parts that I've been to a lot. Grand Central, take the 4, wander towards Dan's place. On the way back on Sunday I was asked directions by two different people (well, one was an elderly English couple but I count them as one person) and was actually able to help them out. A third guy had a more complicated question and I had to tell him "I'm from Albany." Not sure why there were so many lost people on Sunday.
Whenever I go down to the city I can't help but wonder what it would be like to live there. It seemed more livable on this visit than most. Dan, Steph, and I wandered around extensively on Saturday and what struck me was all the people just going about their lives. Men, women, children, different ages, different races... so much life. Let me tell you, Albany does not have that kind of humanity on the weekends (the only time it does outside of working hours is on the 4th, when people from surrounding suburbs are lured by Price Chopper-sponsored fireworks). I remember going for a very long walk the day after St. Patrick's (a gorgeous day this year, btw) and seeing nothing but bare trees and tiny piles of puke from the night before. I am the king of puketown.
But life is good. I made (an am making) a good dent in grad school this year, and my Health Care Finance class showed some signs of promise this week. I really want this class to be good. I want to learn. I specifially want to learn about health care provision, because I think it is going to be one of the most important issues for the American people over the next several decades. I've got a good routine worked out for this semester, and I've done a good job of maintaining. Maintaining health (have been exercising consistently since the spring), maintaining my GPA (a solid 3.86) and maintaining friendships. I'm a better maintainer than initiator, lord knows, but I'm improving in that area as well. The free-floating anxieties of my semi-misspent youth are just about gone, and the curiosity is still there.
This has been a good year all in all. I went to multiple weddings, and served in not one but two of them for Drew. Some of them had really nice social excursions attached, like the bachelor party in Atlantic City for Glenn and Drew's Alberta trip - which included a giant boat, awkward younger brother of the bride hitting on female bartender, and a commerorative coin featuring a ship which "withstood withering American fire" in the War of 1812. As Lake Erie's finest hour, I've never felt the War of 1812 gets enough publicity.
Also got some good mini-trips in there, including a springtime excursion to the University of Maryland area to see Ilya and a Brooklyn visit to see Dan just this past weekend. Probably my quietest trip to the city ever, due mainly to Dan getting over a cold and not feeling all that well, but still really nice. I got beer all over my pants on friday night and it still didn't ruin the vibe.
For all the buzz and busytude of New York it's the only place I've ever visited enough to feel any real sense of familiarity, at least with the parts that I've been to a lot. Grand Central, take the 4, wander towards Dan's place. On the way back on Sunday I was asked directions by two different people (well, one was an elderly English couple but I count them as one person) and was actually able to help them out. A third guy had a more complicated question and I had to tell him "I'm from Albany." Not sure why there were so many lost people on Sunday.
Whenever I go down to the city I can't help but wonder what it would be like to live there. It seemed more livable on this visit than most. Dan, Steph, and I wandered around extensively on Saturday and what struck me was all the people just going about their lives. Men, women, children, different ages, different races... so much life. Let me tell you, Albany does not have that kind of humanity on the weekends (the only time it does outside of working hours is on the 4th, when people from surrounding suburbs are lured by Price Chopper-sponsored fireworks). I remember going for a very long walk the day after St. Patrick's (a gorgeous day this year, btw) and seeing nothing but bare trees and tiny piles of puke from the night before. I am the king of puketown.
But life is good. I made (an am making) a good dent in grad school this year, and my Health Care Finance class showed some signs of promise this week. I really want this class to be good. I want to learn. I specifially want to learn about health care provision, because I think it is going to be one of the most important issues for the American people over the next several decades. I've got a good routine worked out for this semester, and I've done a good job of maintaining. Maintaining health (have been exercising consistently since the spring), maintaining my GPA (a solid 3.86) and maintaining friendships. I'm a better maintainer than initiator, lord knows, but I'm improving in that area as well. The free-floating anxieties of my semi-misspent youth are just about gone, and the curiosity is still there.