The View From Kalamazoo

Visited St. Louis last week/weekend. Had a great time staying with my friend, Laura, drank copious amounts of Guinness and ate way too much pub food (and loved every second of it!) I met with some folks in the St. Louis Univ. history dept. and they were very nice, straight-shootin’, and encouraging. (my biggest criteria might be, at this point, behind ‘fund me’ is ‘be normal-no bastards need apply’. I can’t see spending upwards of 5-7 years with people I hate who torture me at every turn) The Vatican film archive there is a definite bonus, the carefulness with which one must choose a housing area/neighborhood to find decent schools is not so exciting, and I don’t even want to discuss the world of hurt my sinuses were in from pretty much the moment I arrived…in short, I’m definitely planning to apply.

Also attended a Studies in Medievalism conference, and can only say that I am even more certain than before that conference that I am *not* into medievalism. A couple of the papers were really interesting, a couple made me cringe a bit, one I sat grinding my teeth through (I couldn’t even *begin* to figure out a polite way to make the comments that needed making, it was so very, VERY off the mark in one section) – I call it the ‘TMJ paper’ at this point. Ack.

The Basilica is gorgeous. No one in that city can drive. Fried ravioli is very strange. The Arch, lit by the bright light of the setting sun, is truly magnificent to behold. Fried chicken at Pat’s is a beautiful, beautiful thing.

Go, Leif, go!

Haven’t worked out in two weeks. I’m not sure how guilty I should be feeling, but I’ve been busy, out of town, and just exhausted. It ain’t the guilt that keeps hitting the snooze button on the alarm clock… I’ll go tomorrow. Must get back on track. Have been trying to be better about my water. Even given the great deal of Guinness I enjoyed in St. Louis I have only gained a lb., at least by the clock at the doctor’s office yesterday, which is Very Good, Indeed.

Interesting bits:

Book Auction (fascinating books, disturbing paperweight)

Orthodox news (Hell not freezing over).

On college campuses, today, the Good Samaritan would be arrested.

I’d better stop holding the door for little old ladies or I’ll be picked up, myself. Bah.

For the Amazing Things One Finds on the Internet file: ut quatiant! Baby Got Back!

I have a co-worker who doesn’r watch TV, doesn’t listen to the news on the radio, doesn’t read the newspaper. Some days I can understand the need to isolate oneself – my own son is not quite 13 months old, the same age as this poor little girl, and stories like this just make my heart ache … and get all of my old-testament leftover bits a bubbling. Shame that boyfriend can’t be held upside down and slammed repeatedly into a wall…a real shame.

There are bad weeks.

There are bad days in bad weeks.

This morning I dropped my coffee in the parking lot, and I was sad. Annoyed. Cursing this bad week and my sinus headache and getting no sleep…and now no coffee.

Then, a friend in the building shared this charming bit with me, and I just..can’t..stop..laughing.

The day has got to get better, now.

They’re not gonna take it anymore!

Meet Razanne. There was a need, it’s been filled. Put her on your Eid Mubarak shopping list for the little girl in your life!

It’s a religion-specific doll wonderland out there. I still like this one. Hey, we have fluffy Wiccan Barbie, a Muslim, pseudo-Barbie…and apparently Barbie is Jewish, anyway. Who knew? (last time I checked Ken is NOT packaged with a yarmulke)

So I’m sore today. Yesterday I upped my reps on just about everything, and while I’m usually able to push my lower body harder and end up sore, today I’m feeling it more in my upper back. I managed to lose 1/2 lb. of the lb. I gained on the date weekend, so yesterday’s weight was 268.

Catching up – I need to be better about water (have been *terrible* the last week or so) and pay closer attention to my diet – I’ve been busy, stressed, and eating dinner too late in the evening to be healthy. I should talk to Em’s ped. about her dosing again – the second dose of Adderall wears off right after dinnertime. On nights she has homework I have to sit down with her immediately after getting home (no sooner than 5:30 on a good day) THEN make dinner or there’s no chance at the homework at all. In the middle of this I have to get something together for Colin and let him nibble on little ravioli’s or something while I’m working with her because he comes home hungry – needless to say I end up eating after homework, after they eat, after Em gets ready for bed and gets her Clonidine…
*sigh*
We need to be able to do homework. I need to talk to him about a non-XR for those evenings when there’s an assignment or reading books sent home – we worked on it when her dose was wearing off and she burst into tears after we tried and tried and tried and said she didn’t have her medicine and couldn’t read! That frustration is too much for her. And me.