cleaning house and other sunday sundries
i woke up this morning full of energy, which is a good thing since i had to spend 30 minutes digging out my car in order to go the the grocery store. ST's fighting a cold so i put him in the passenger seat with his scarf tied tightly under his chin and listened to his useless grousing (i'm fine... so hard headed... why don't you just let me...) and his helpful advice (put it in D2, that's what it's for). eventually we made it to the grocery (where everything now cost a billion dollars. let me just say, i'm definitely feeling the 9% increase in food prices in my neck of the woods) picked up some essentials and some cold medicine and made it back to the house with little fanfare. it was nice actually, apart from ST losing his bank card (don't ask me how, he barely got out of the car) and ry running off and propelling himself into the huge snow drifts over and over again, completely immune to our calls to come inside.
sometimes i can't imagine the chaos a child would add to my life, and yet i go on blithely planning another dog and a child in the next two years. i have no idea what's wrong with me, but i hope it's not contagious because i do believe it could do a body in.
upon coming home, ST took ry and went off to his mom's house to shovel her walk and take her to church (yes, he is that kind of son) and i set about cleaning the house. we've been a bit lax about the house cleaning the last few weeks, but with both ST and ry out and this weird fierce energy, i figured it was time to do a thorough job. three hours later, here i sit in a clean office which is off a vacuumed hallway across from a neat t.v. room and down the hall from a sparkling living room. i am rather pleased with myself, not least because this should make it much easier to work in the house this week -- something i'll have to do since all the snow makes driving un-fun and all my writing buddies will be heading off to their out-of-state families for the holiday.
as for our holiday, we're finally getting our christmas tree today. we've not been able to get it before now because of the car situation. i've no idea how ry will react to a tree in his play area (for that is the whole house, especially the living room, which we rarely use) but i just hope he doesn't raise his leg on it to make a point. he's as cute as a little wookie, but he's a male dog and sometimes he gets this totally serious, completely mutinous look on his face when i try to stop him from doing legitimately doggy things like marking his territory. woof. it's just my luck to get a puppy nearly as stubborn as i am. what can i do but fight the good fight and keep my fingers crossed?
i'm taking a break from dissertation stress today. i'm no closer to completely the 1st chapter than i was on friday (which means i'm no closer than i was on wednesday, the last good working day i had), but since i had a little bit of a nervous breakdown about it yesterday, i've decided to give it a rest with hopes that i can tackle this bastard of a project renewed on monday. as god is my witness i will never do anything like this, ever again. i'm still praying for the H-S fellowship, but a career in the academy is looking less and less likely. i'm better at and more interested in other things these days and whatever might have been had i been more savvy and less naive, this is what is -- exhaustion and disappointment and the great desire to flee.
speaking of being un-savvy and naive, my most charismatic adviser threw a holiday party last night that was surprisingly fun. the dionysian quantities of wine went a long way to enabling the whole experience, i'm sure. on the whole though, we students were not too unpleasantly aware of the host and through the haze of the good food and drink, surrounded by the company of fellow long-suffering friends, it was easy to see, once again, how this one manages to cast such a profound spell. i tell you what, never underestimate the power of charisma. this particular professor has got enough to lead a cult. in fact, she just might be, depending on how uncharitable your mood.
not much else, i don't guess. i'd better go down and get the last of the laundry. then i don't know what i'll do. read some poetry maybe. anyway, we'll see.
hope the holidays are unwinding happily out there.
sometimes i can't imagine the chaos a child would add to my life, and yet i go on blithely planning another dog and a child in the next two years. i have no idea what's wrong with me, but i hope it's not contagious because i do believe it could do a body in.
upon coming home, ST took ry and went off to his mom's house to shovel her walk and take her to church (yes, he is that kind of son) and i set about cleaning the house. we've been a bit lax about the house cleaning the last few weeks, but with both ST and ry out and this weird fierce energy, i figured it was time to do a thorough job. three hours later, here i sit in a clean office which is off a vacuumed hallway across from a neat t.v. room and down the hall from a sparkling living room. i am rather pleased with myself, not least because this should make it much easier to work in the house this week -- something i'll have to do since all the snow makes driving un-fun and all my writing buddies will be heading off to their out-of-state families for the holiday.
as for our holiday, we're finally getting our christmas tree today. we've not been able to get it before now because of the car situation. i've no idea how ry will react to a tree in his play area (for that is the whole house, especially the living room, which we rarely use) but i just hope he doesn't raise his leg on it to make a point. he's as cute as a little wookie, but he's a male dog and sometimes he gets this totally serious, completely mutinous look on his face when i try to stop him from doing legitimately doggy things like marking his territory. woof. it's just my luck to get a puppy nearly as stubborn as i am. what can i do but fight the good fight and keep my fingers crossed?
i'm taking a break from dissertation stress today. i'm no closer to completely the 1st chapter than i was on friday (which means i'm no closer than i was on wednesday, the last good working day i had), but since i had a little bit of a nervous breakdown about it yesterday, i've decided to give it a rest with hopes that i can tackle this bastard of a project renewed on monday. as god is my witness i will never do anything like this, ever again. i'm still praying for the H-S fellowship, but a career in the academy is looking less and less likely. i'm better at and more interested in other things these days and whatever might have been had i been more savvy and less naive, this is what is -- exhaustion and disappointment and the great desire to flee.
speaking of being un-savvy and naive, my most charismatic adviser threw a holiday party last night that was surprisingly fun. the dionysian quantities of wine went a long way to enabling the whole experience, i'm sure. on the whole though, we students were not too unpleasantly aware of the host and through the haze of the good food and drink, surrounded by the company of fellow long-suffering friends, it was easy to see, once again, how this one manages to cast such a profound spell. i tell you what, never underestimate the power of charisma. this particular professor has got enough to lead a cult. in fact, she just might be, depending on how uncharitable your mood.
not much else, i don't guess. i'd better go down and get the last of the laundry. then i don't know what i'll do. read some poetry maybe. anyway, we'll see.
hope the holidays are unwinding happily out there.