Spazmanian Devil
I've got the Math heebie-jeebies.
I've got an asinine mental block against math, and I have since I was in 3rd grade. My father used to keep me up late every night working through my math book -- not making fun little math games, or solving interesting puzzles -- just working through the dry book with its examples of things using the Metric system which had no real world examples for me at the time. (2-Litre Cokes hadn't even been invented yet.) I loathe math. I shut off that part of my brain at age 9, and now at age 41, believe me there has been no peaceful reconciliation there.
I'm taking a pathetic math class online this summer -- Career Math. It's so woeful, that it doesn't even qualify as the pre-requisite for Pre-Algebra. It's useful as the math component to satisfy what's needed for my AAS degree in Paralegal Studies. I'd need to take more classes, or study independently (ha!) and pass the entrance exam to get into College Algebra to satisfy the AA degree if I go there later. (Yes, I've taken the test, and no I'm not just being modest here -- I failed it miserably, and got places into, "Math for Protozoa," or "Math For Single-Celled Organisms," or something.)
Anyway - today is the first day of class for the Summer term, and even the mere act of logging onto the website for my math class has me breathing quickly, and spazzing out. This is stupid. I know this is stupid. If other people were doing this, I'd try to express sympathy, but I'd think - correctly - that the person was acting stupidly. I am an intelligent person. I am a hard worker academically. I like online classes and the opportunity to work independently. I have Ian, and other local math tutors to work with my in-person. Even my school offers resources for free tutoring. All that, and I only have to earn a C to get my degree. I got this. So if the unconscious reaction of Total Spazmania would please pipe down, I'd sure appreciate it.
Taos!
At the other end of the relaxation spectrum, Ian and I had a wonderful, restfully invigorating weekend away in Taos, New Mexico! We're not vacationing sorts; we just don't go much of anywhere, so even a little 3-day getaway by car was very exciting to me. The drive from our house into Taos is about 5 hours through some really breath-taking scenery -- I'll have a couple of photos for you... someday. I'd never been through Colorado Springs before, even though it's under 2 hours from our house. Wow! What a gorgeous place that is! The city is right at the foot of the mountains, just gorgeous scenery there! Added to that, we found a location of Rudy's BBQ there to which we had been introduced in Austin, TX. Great BBQ and the only creamed corn I have ever had made from scratch in my life. Delish! That was a nice treat toward the end of our journey back on Sunday.
You would not believe the luxury of the hotel where we stayed! Neither Ian nor I had ever stayed anywhere so swank in our lives. The website for the El Monte Sagrado makes it look nice, but believe me, it can't hold a candle to the place in reality. We had this gorgeous 1-bedroom suite with a balcony which overlooked a little koi pond with lily pads and weeping willows around it. Every little detail of both the room and the grounds was gorgeous. What a treat!
Then for an even greater treat, we spent all day Saturday with artiphant and davetheunicorn, a/k/a Gail & Dave. That was really the impetus for the trip since they were vacationing in northern New Mexico, and I mentioned to Gail that - hey - we don't live too far from there. We spent the day wandering Taos proper, going through little craftsy stores and art galleries, and things, stopping for drinks and eventually dinner in open-air plazas. It was incredibly windy that day, but otherwise the dry, sunny weather was great for that sort of thing. It was so nice to see them again after, I think, about three years since we last met.
Ian and I brought home a new friend, whom I'll have to photograph to introduce you. We've named him Diego. Diego is a crafted metal compy, deliberately rusted, who now stands guard next to the front walk of our house. He's about 2-and-a-half feet tall, I'd say. Diego has sharp little teeth, and he's adorable! I always wanted to fill my yard with bizarre and amusing little metal sculptures and things. Diego is leading the vanguard into the yard of Moriarty Manor. He's adorable!
Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds...
A few nights before our trip, I finally got around to starting The Hunger Games, which has been sitting on my nightstand since March. I enjoyed it from p. 1, and I was anxious to get some relaxing time to read this weekend, which I certainly did -- out on the veranda with the sound of fountains trickling nearby, while "swimming" in the giant bathtub in our hotel room, or just propped up on 10,000 cushy hotel pillows in our room. Wisely, I picked up Book 2, Catching Fire before we departed. I burned through that book in under 24 hours, which is completely unheard of for me, as I physically read very slowly. Just thoroughly enjoyed this series! I'm about 40% through Mockingjay now, just about at the start of its internal Part II. As soon as I hit Post Entry, I'm off to lunch when I get to read read READ, and I can't wait!
Trace
I've got an asinine mental block against math, and I have since I was in 3rd grade. My father used to keep me up late every night working through my math book -- not making fun little math games, or solving interesting puzzles -- just working through the dry book with its examples of things using the Metric system which had no real world examples for me at the time. (2-Litre Cokes hadn't even been invented yet.) I loathe math. I shut off that part of my brain at age 9, and now at age 41, believe me there has been no peaceful reconciliation there.
I'm taking a pathetic math class online this summer -- Career Math. It's so woeful, that it doesn't even qualify as the pre-requisite for Pre-Algebra. It's useful as the math component to satisfy what's needed for my AAS degree in Paralegal Studies. I'd need to take more classes, or study independently (ha!) and pass the entrance exam to get into College Algebra to satisfy the AA degree if I go there later. (Yes, I've taken the test, and no I'm not just being modest here -- I failed it miserably, and got places into, "Math for Protozoa," or "Math For Single-Celled Organisms," or something.)
Anyway - today is the first day of class for the Summer term, and even the mere act of logging onto the website for my math class has me breathing quickly, and spazzing out. This is stupid. I know this is stupid. If other people were doing this, I'd try to express sympathy, but I'd think - correctly - that the person was acting stupidly. I am an intelligent person. I am a hard worker academically. I like online classes and the opportunity to work independently. I have Ian, and other local math tutors to work with my in-person. Even my school offers resources for free tutoring. All that, and I only have to earn a C to get my degree. I got this. So if the unconscious reaction of Total Spazmania would please pipe down, I'd sure appreciate it.
Taos!
At the other end of the relaxation spectrum, Ian and I had a wonderful, restfully invigorating weekend away in Taos, New Mexico! We're not vacationing sorts; we just don't go much of anywhere, so even a little 3-day getaway by car was very exciting to me. The drive from our house into Taos is about 5 hours through some really breath-taking scenery -- I'll have a couple of photos for you... someday. I'd never been through Colorado Springs before, even though it's under 2 hours from our house. Wow! What a gorgeous place that is! The city is right at the foot of the mountains, just gorgeous scenery there! Added to that, we found a location of Rudy's BBQ there to which we had been introduced in Austin, TX. Great BBQ and the only creamed corn I have ever had made from scratch in my life. Delish! That was a nice treat toward the end of our journey back on Sunday.
You would not believe the luxury of the hotel where we stayed! Neither Ian nor I had ever stayed anywhere so swank in our lives. The website for the El Monte Sagrado makes it look nice, but believe me, it can't hold a candle to the place in reality. We had this gorgeous 1-bedroom suite with a balcony which overlooked a little koi pond with lily pads and weeping willows around it. Every little detail of both the room and the grounds was gorgeous. What a treat!
Then for an even greater treat, we spent all day Saturday with artiphant and davetheunicorn, a/k/a Gail & Dave. That was really the impetus for the trip since they were vacationing in northern New Mexico, and I mentioned to Gail that - hey - we don't live too far from there. We spent the day wandering Taos proper, going through little craftsy stores and art galleries, and things, stopping for drinks and eventually dinner in open-air plazas. It was incredibly windy that day, but otherwise the dry, sunny weather was great for that sort of thing. It was so nice to see them again after, I think, about three years since we last met.
Ian and I brought home a new friend, whom I'll have to photograph to introduce you. We've named him Diego. Diego is a crafted metal compy, deliberately rusted, who now stands guard next to the front walk of our house. He's about 2-and-a-half feet tall, I'd say. Diego has sharp little teeth, and he's adorable! I always wanted to fill my yard with bizarre and amusing little metal sculptures and things. Diego is leading the vanguard into the yard of Moriarty Manor. He's adorable!
Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds...
A few nights before our trip, I finally got around to starting The Hunger Games, which has been sitting on my nightstand since March. I enjoyed it from p. 1, and I was anxious to get some relaxing time to read this weekend, which I certainly did -- out on the veranda with the sound of fountains trickling nearby, while "swimming" in the giant bathtub in our hotel room, or just propped up on 10,000 cushy hotel pillows in our room. Wisely, I picked up Book 2, Catching Fire before we departed. I burned through that book in under 24 hours, which is completely unheard of for me, as I physically read very slowly. Just thoroughly enjoyed this series! I'm about 40% through Mockingjay now, just about at the start of its internal Part II. As soon as I hit Post Entry, I'm off to lunch when I get to read read READ, and I can't wait!
Trace