Whee!
I'm now back at my place after a week at my parents' for the Christmas holidays. I must say - I do like how NH / VT drivers actually slow down for when there's merely the possibility of black ice. Connecticut cars never seemed to do that... But, 'twas a good Christmas. It was good to have some down time and spend some good time with my parents and dog. We also got together with my paternal grandmother a couple times, and with my aunt and uncle and their family. But the Christmas Eve church service was really nice, and the homily had a message that I needed. Then Christmas Day was a good traditional day, some good leg of lamb dinner, and I did a decent amount of the cooking for it, which was fun.
I also got some good gifts. My parents pretty much completed my kitchen - I now have (two) nice bamboo cutting boards, a knife block to actually put my knives in, and the rest of the spice jars that I needed. Kitchen playtime! And the wood boards will actually take care of my knives well enough that I can go get them properly sharpened now! Also - a CD, hardcover Dune book, more guitar picks, and a few smaller things. Also, my aunt is crazy. I need a bigger DVD case now. She works for Fox as a marketing rep, and so I usually get DVDs from her. But she took me up to her library this afternoon, and just kept going with 'Have you seen x? Here you go. And this is good too. And this. And this. ...' Now I need to watch these! "S. Darko," "Valkyrie," "Jumper," "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (both versions), "Behind Enemy Lines," etc. (Also - how did I not even know that there was a sequel to Donnie Darko???)
And I'm almost done applying to grad schools! Now, just to hope I get into one of my top choices... Suspense! I look forward to doing some good research and taking a few more interesting classes in specifically structural engineering next year, though. The gap year was a needed and welcome break, but it's time to get back into school.
And the other bigger to-do list item - I think I now (finally) have mail or e-mail addresses for everyone who I wanted to send holiday greetings to. New Year's is a good excuse to send something, too, right? :-P ... Eh, well. A lot will be late, but it's an excuse to reconnect / stay connected with friends, and that's my biggest thought with it. It's too easy to lose touch or just rely on Facebook, etc too much. Actual one-on-one communication is so much more valuable!
Anyways, I have work tomorrow (ugh...), so it's off to bed for me!
I also got some good gifts. My parents pretty much completed my kitchen - I now have (two) nice bamboo cutting boards, a knife block to actually put my knives in, and the rest of the spice jars that I needed. Kitchen playtime! And the wood boards will actually take care of my knives well enough that I can go get them properly sharpened now! Also - a CD, hardcover Dune book, more guitar picks, and a few smaller things. Also, my aunt is crazy. I need a bigger DVD case now. She works for Fox as a marketing rep, and so I usually get DVDs from her. But she took me up to her library this afternoon, and just kept going with 'Have you seen x? Here you go. And this is good too. And this. And this. ...' Now I need to watch these! "S. Darko," "Valkyrie," "Jumper," "The Day the Earth Stood Still" (both versions), "Behind Enemy Lines," etc. (Also - how did I not even know that there was a sequel to Donnie Darko???)
And I'm almost done applying to grad schools! Now, just to hope I get into one of my top choices... Suspense! I look forward to doing some good research and taking a few more interesting classes in specifically structural engineering next year, though. The gap year was a needed and welcome break, but it's time to get back into school.
And the other bigger to-do list item - I think I now (finally) have mail or e-mail addresses for everyone who I wanted to send holiday greetings to. New Year's is a good excuse to send something, too, right? :-P ... Eh, well. A lot will be late, but it's an excuse to reconnect / stay connected with friends, and that's my biggest thought with it. It's too easy to lose touch or just rely on Facebook, etc too much. Actual one-on-one communication is so much more valuable!
Anyways, I have work tomorrow (ugh...), so it's off to bed for me!