2008 - New Beginnings
In the mood to muse a bit about new projects for 2008. I'm not one for New Year's resolutions, but 2008 seems to start with steps in new directions that should prove interesting.
First, something I find kind of hard - I've decided to part from my beloved "Roadrunner," my '89 Cadillac Brougham, a monster boat with a huge 8 cylinder engine that unfortunately guzzles gas like, well, maybe not QUITE like, a hummer. Love to drive that old car with character, comfort, even luxury, but it's getting to the point where it's hard to keep the baby fed. Besides, environmentally friendly it isn't. So I'm exchanging it with a '92 Ford Taurus in really good condition with low miles and much better gas mileage - and the personality of, well, nothing much.... Sigh....
Second, I'm teaching my first online course at the college level. Not quite sure whether I'll like it, but it's the wave of the future when it comes to especially higher education. I like the face-to-face interaction with my students (will still teach some classroom courses for a while), but it'll save time in some ways. I'm not sure whether online discussions will be quite as effective as in class discussions, but we'll see. It'll keep me busy this semester - I'm bound to screw up a bunch of times ;-)
Third, I've decided to be serious about writing that historical novel I've been thinking about for at least twenty (!) years. I've had some positive feedback from some lovely people on LiveJournal that encourages me to give it a whirl and at least write a couple of pages each day, more, if I have the time. Language had been a barrier (I'm German, but have been living in the US and teaching English since '88, so my German started sounding awkward/stilted/archaic and my English wasn't up to the job yet). But now I feel my English is sufficient to try it. Let's see if I can finish it this year....
Fourth, we've got some super home-bred horses that make me want to get back in the show circuit in dressage - with one maybe at Prix St. Georges later in the season, and some young ones in the Young Horse classes. Gotta get myself in shape, first, though - winter flab needs to go!