Oops.

September slipped away without a post. Not sure how that happened. So to update you a little --
*We went to Justin and Shelli's wedding, which was fabulous and exhausting. It was good to be with old friends. And how did we get so old anyway? More people need to get married so that we can all get together more often.
*School has been somewhat all-consuming. I'm sitting in the classroom right now, waiting for class to get started. I briefed my first case, which was terrifying, and last week I had my first quiz. Hoping to get the (cross my fingers) good results back this week. There is a lot of reading and learning going on. And you can ask me all about intent and causation and I'll have some things to tell you. Along with Torts, Contracts and Crimes. Did you know that the burden of proof of "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt" is only applicable to criminal cases? I did not. Anyway, I'm working on outlining each class (sounds fun, right?) and keeping up with reading and briefs. And it seems never-ending.
*I went to Women's Retreat with my mom and sister, and was totally blessed.
*I came back home to a husband who loves me and shows it to me in a million ways and realized again how blessed I am to have him as my partner and teammate.
*Fall weather is (finally) here. I'm enjoying cooler temperatures and sweaters.
*And of course, there can't be fall weather without me getting nervous about winter, so that's going on too.
*I'm really enjoying being near my family. It's nice that it doesn't have to be a big deal to go over to my mom's house for supper or anything else, for that matter.
*We love our house. And are learning the joys and trials of homeownership. (Cutting down trees, fixing wet basements, decorating, etc.)
*I wrote two grants for work, and am working on a third.
*Patient numbers are steadily going up!

Those are the highlights I guess. I feel very busy, and ready for a homeleave, unfortunately those don't seem to occur outside of boarding academy. I'm feeling a little under the weather today, but it might just be allergies. I don't have time to be sick, so praying that will just go away. And my teacher is here now, so I'm going to go pay attention to class.

Feelin' groovy

So far nine law schools have emailed me and asked me to apply to their programs, including the University of Notre Dame School of Law, which is a top 25 law school, and Charlotte School of Law, who offered me a $15,000 scholarship for each year. I must admit that I'm tempted, but not tempted enough not to move to Nashville. Still, it's nice to be wanted.

Yesterday we made the announcement to the student body that we're leaving. It was not the most fun moment. And some students came to beg us to stay and offer all kinds of "incentives" for us to stay. Kind of awkward, but, once again, nice to be wanted. We had originally hoped to keep it a secret and just slip away at the end of the school year, but alas, that was not to be. The rumor got out, and then we just had to address it.

In other news: Michael and I both have interviews when we're in Nashville during spring break, which is way ahead of where we were last year at this time when we wanted to move. It kind of feels like everything is falling into place for us to leave for real this year, which is good, since we've already told everyone that we're leaving. I don't know what God was waiting for, maybe to teach me patience, or for me to rediscover some passion in my life, or for some unknown reason, but I do have hope that it will really all work out this time.

Thankful

Today I'm thankful that:

My first snow storm of the season didn't incapacitate me.

My Christmas tree is up, and it's beautiful.

I have a warm house to be in.

We finished watching season 2 of 30 Rock on DVD. Hilarious.

I have a husband who likes to plays games.

There's a purring cat beside me.

The Broncos won.

I'm wearing a soft red sweater.

There's less than two weeks until Christmas vacation.

Year in review (a little late)

1) What did you do in 2008 that you'd never done before?
Taught Business Math, went to Paris, Venice, Florence and Rome, met Barack Obama and Dan Rather, went to the National Zoo, paid off our car, saw Brian Regan live, saw Mary Poppins on Broadway.

2) Did you keep your New Year's Resolutions, and will you make more for next year (this year)?
I don't remember making any resolutions last year.
This year I want to lose some weight and move to Nashville.

3) Did anyone close to you give birth?
Linsey Bailey

4) Did anyone close to you die?
My grandmother

5) What countries did you visit?
England, France, Italy, Austria

6) What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
More time with family, a house and job in Nashville, more joy.

7) What date(s) from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory and why?
January 18-the day my grandmother died.
June 22-the beginning of our European adventure.

8) What was your biggest achievement of the year?
A lot of days it feels like just surviving is a big achievement. But probably, I feel like I am a better teacher all the time, and I am keeping up with my grading better than the last two years, and over all, I just feel more competent in my job, and that's a pretty big accomplishment.

9)Did you suffer illness or injury
No, just the usual maladies...

10) What was the best thing you bought?
Plane tickets!

11) Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
Various students at various times.

12) Whose behavior merited Celebration?
Michael's. He is very patient with me and is willing to do just about anything to make me happy. He's pretty amazing.

13) Where did most of your money go?
Bills and Europe

14) What did you get really, really excited about?
Europe, dancing with Shelli, a baby book that my mom made me.

15) What song will always remind you of 2008?
"Yes We Can" by WillIAm.

16. Compared to this time last year, are you?:
Wiser? Hopefully I'm getting wiser all the time. This is kind of difficult to measure.

Healthier? Emotionally? Yes. Physically? It's really a toss-up.

Richer? We have more in savings and less debt, so I suppose that we're richer, yes.

17) What do yo wish you'd done more of? More playing and time with friends and family, more reading, more exercise and more traveling.

18) What do you wish you'd done less of? Less anxious worrying and computer game time.

19) HOw much did you spend on christmas? I have no idea. Several hundred.

20)Did you fall in love in 2008? Marriage is a constant re-falling in love with someone you know better all the time.

21) What was your favorite blog post that you wrote?
Probably the series about Europe.

22) What was your favorite TV programs?
My favorite new series is 30 Rock, favorite returning series: The Office.

23) Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
I sometimes hate various students. But it doesn't last for more than a day. So I guess not really.

24) What was the best book you read?
Probably my favorites were People of the Book and I Am Asher Lev.

25) What was your greatest musical discovery?
Probably Ingrid Michaelson and Eastmountainsouth

26) What did you want and get?
This sweet winter white cape jacket.

27) What did you want and not get?
This cute little dress in Paris.

28)What was your favorite film this year?
I really liked The Dark Knight and Wall-E.

29) What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
We ate at Uno's and saw Charlie Wilson's War. I turned 25.

30) which celebrity/public figure did you like the most?
Tina Fey.

31) How would yo describe your personal fashion concept in 2008
Comfort and cost effective with a little quirky.

32) What kept you sane?
Michael, antidepressants, Barack winning the election, trips home to see the family and dreaming of a different future.

33) Who did you miss?
My grandparents.

34) Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
Don't trust the stock market.

35) What did you lose this year?
My temper, several times.

36)What did you gain this year?
Hope that there can be joy again, a book club.

37) What was the best new person you met?
Maybe the new principal.

38) Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
It's been a hard year, but I'm climbing out of the rubble...

Negligent blogger returns to cyberspace

I know. It's been awhile. I have the semi-excuse of the broken keyboard, but truth be told, I have a work computer and Michael's computer if I really wanted to blog. Also, I can't find my camera cord, so I can't post pictures. Which is irritating me. I know it's been missing for at least two months... but where could I have put it? I've turned the house upside down, but no luck. In any case, life here continues in it's usual busy, generally good way. It all feels more routine this year, and yet I'm busier than ever with Junior class sponsorship (ugh) and Business Math. We're starting to look for jobs in Nashville for after this school year. I'm anxious to move home, and unsure that God will allow me to do that.

Some other things that have happened lately: We went to Louisville and Nashville for Thanksgiving break. I helped Michael's mom do some wedding planning, (she's getting married at the end of March), and I was with my sister when she found "the dress", (she's getting married at the end of May).

We went and bought a Christmas tree at the tree farm down the road. I decorated it and am feeling especially jolly this week. I love Christmas ever so much. Strange, for a girl who hates winter so much. Maybe it's because Christmas makes winter seem more bearable.

I've been off birth-control for a few months now and feel like maybe my depression/anxiety/sluggishness is lifting. What if that were one of the big contributing factors all along and I never knew it? I've been on birth control since shortly before I started college because of the ovarian cysts... which is right around the time I started having serious problems. I'm trying not to think about those seven years of struggles, and yet hope that it could be true, so that it would maybe ease the struggle. And no, I'm not pregnant. But yes, someone asked me again last weekend at church. That was pure joy.

This year for Christmas, my family is going to Gatlinburg. This will be the first Christmas without Grandma, and my aunt and mom were finding it a little too difficult to try to do normal Christmas without her. We're very glad to have something to look forward to this year (Christa's wedding) instead of more death, like last year.

And lastly, for this post, I'm reading The Shack right now and I would like to recommend it to all of you. I'm finding it very mind-opening and hopeful. I'll try to be a better blog friend.

Take it

We've been married for three years today. I won't say that every moment has been blissful, but I count it as success when the good moments far outweigh the bad. And they most definitely do. In a year that has been especially rough for me, Michael is my rock. And he's patient with me when I would be infuriated with him. So I'm happy to be married and to see where the adventure leads.

To celebrate our anniversary we went to the dentist. It's been a shamefully long time since I've been. I'll just say this: I was in high school. And I have no cavities. Woohoo! I hit the genetic jackpot on strong teeth I guess. And just so you don't think we're totally unromantic, we also went to Barnes & Noble, Panera and Cold Stone.

And I think our next adventure begins on Sunday when we fly to London. We'll be mostly out of contact until at least July 8. We'll see how long it takes to recover from Europe. Wish us luck!

Things done

I've been feeling amazingly uninspired to post on my blog. You might have noticed. Or maybe no one checks this anymore. In any case, maybe in many years I'll look back at this and remember what my life was like at this point in my life... So here goes.

Nothing all that exciting, actually, we:

Michael turned 25. I love him more all the time. (Especially when school is out and we can spend time together.) He's such a blessing to me in so many ways. If you don't love him already you should get to know him better. It's worth it, I promise.

Graduated a class of seniors. Some really great kids that I will definitely miss having around.

I donated plasma twice. The second time, after I was done, I blacked out and vomited everywhere. It'll probably be awhile before I donate again.

I bought almost $400 worth of books. For the library. But still, it was quite a thrill. Now to get all those books cataloged...

Got my office quite cleaned out. As much as possible for a pack rat like me, anyway. Next step: painting it something other than this awful plummy mauve color. I'm thinking green.

In the last three weeks three people have asked me if I'm pregnant. Unless they know something that I don't, I'm not. What compels people to ask this? I've been trying not to feel fat about it. Haven't they ever listened to Brian Regan?

We made a quick trip to our parents' homes. While in Nashville we went house shopping. Found three houses that we like. Then pretty much decided that we'll wait until next year to buy. But at least we discovered that there are houses out there in our price range that we like. Fabulous. I also got to sing with the praise team at church while I was in Nashville, and that was a lot of fun. It's been a long time since I've done that. We helped decorate for Leslie's brother to propose to his longtime girlfriend. That was fun.

Now we're back home and I'm trying to get some work done before we leave for Europe in a week and a half. (!!!!) I'm really excited, but also nervous, partly because I've been sick for almost a month and I want it to go away before I leave, but I don't have a doctor to go see. And also, I'm hoping that the dollar will take a giant leap forward while we're gone. You know, so we can afford to eat while we're there. Crazy, I know.

We have some friends and their three big dogs staying with us while they try to figure out what to do next. So our house is a little, ummm... extra cozy. (?)

Camp meeting starts here tomorrow. I don't think I'm prepared for the invasion. Only one way to find out.

And that's all I can think of for now.

The end.

101 posts

For my one-hundred and first post I will tell you about Brian Regan. Most of you readers know who he is, you know, the "take luck" guy. Perhaps you, like me, nearly peed your pants the first time you heard him. Or had to pull your car off the road so as not to have an accident from laughing so hard while driving. Perhaps you slip little comments into your daily conversations that make you laugh, but confuse others. "Many much moosen." My students think their English teacher has lost her grammatical sense. Perhaps you call other Regan fans when you see two log trucks pass each other going opposite directions. Hey, it's been known to happen. In any case, Brian Regan has brought a lot of laughs to my life, and hopefully to yours as well.

Of course, one of the things that I appreciate about Regan is that he doesn't need "dirty" words to make his comedic stylings hilarious. Many comedians use these words alot. For shock value? I'm not sure what exactly what makes curse words funny, but Regan doesn't need them.

So being the Brian Regan fans that we are, when we heard he would be in the area, we snapped up our tickets. We drove to Scranton, (double-bonus, home of The Office!) the Electric City, with our friends Mark and Candace. There were probably about 2,000 people in the theater, so thank goodness we got orchestra seats, because his humor is definitely partially physical. Not totally necessary, as you know from the cd, but it certainly adds to the experience. Anyway, we totally enjoyed the experience. There were several times when I couldn't breathe because I was laughing so hard. Also adding to my enjoyment was the guy in the row in front of me and a couple seats over who was enjoying the show perhaps more than I. He was having convulsions. After Regan left the stage we gave him a standing ovation, so he came back. People (ok, I did it) yelled random phrases from his former acts and he would then do that particular bit. He made comment that part of humor is the surprise element, but he got some of his biggest laughs from those old jokes that everyone knew. At one point he just started an old bit and from the first phrase I was laughing uncontrollably. And who knew his dad was from Scranton? So all in all, a hilarious time. I highly recommend that if you get to see this comic genius in person you do so.

Also, Leslie has been visiting this weekend. Which is fabulous. And we got her addicted to The Office. We watched pretty much all day yesterday, only taking breaks to eat and play a little Dutch Blitz. It's always great to have Leslie around. She makes me feel good about myself and at home. I know, I'm already in my home, but she makes it more comfortable. I also highly recommend a visit from Leslie. And in other news, in case you hadn't heard, James and Linsey had their baby, Micah James, on April 2, Leslie's birthday. So hurray for that.

Out of the blue

Inexplicably, yesterday I woke up and felt good. I woke with thoughts of what I could do. So I got up and went for a two and a half mile walk with Shelby. Shelby could barely keep up near the end. Then I did a load of laundry. Then took a shower. Then I unpacked clothes that have been laying on the futon in the living room for a month. Then I put away clothes in my bedroom that had been around longer than that. Then I cleared off the kitchen counter and washed it. Then I vacuumed the floors and cleaned up a big potted plant disaster made by Pounce. Then I dusted. Then I made a dip for the Superbowl party I was to attend. Then I did some grocery shopping. Then I watched and enjoyed the Superbowl. If this sounds like a normal day to you, then a little part of me hates you. Because this was more than I have dreamed of accomplishing in the last several months. Some days taking a shower is a chore and so it doesn't get done. I've lost ten pounds because of my lack of appetite and my lack of energy to get up and make anything edible. I can't remember the last time I've felt so happy. For no apparent reason. Also, I didn't need a nap.

On my walk I prayed that spring would come soon. (Hurrah for global warming, at least where I live.)

Today I'm tired and I have a sty in my eye. But I didn't dread coming to work this morning. And I have hope that I will feel happy again. That was gone for awhile, folks. Just a couple of weeks ago I was telling my step-dad that I was having to deal with the idea that I may never be happy again. And to have one day of happiness was like the sun breaking through the clouds of a hurricane.

I think at least part of it was lowering my medication-I'm down to 30 mgs. The fatigue caused by the 50 mgs was as bad as depression. Now I know that not every day will be good, and I can't let myself expect that, but I can hope that some days will be good. And one might just hit me out of the blue.

"You walk in a room, you look out a window and something there leaves you breathless. You say to yourself, it's been awhile since I felt this, but it feels like it might be hope." -Sara Groves

Boo-yah

Free Rice. Reached level 50 today. Didn't stay there. But still.

Blessings

I have amazing friends. Sometimes I forget, because they're far away, and I'm not really good at staying in touch. But then they remind me. They are generous and thoughtful. And amazing.


Here I am in the light of my new light box. If you know what I'm talking about, thank you. You made my life a better place to be.


And, as promised, pictures of Pounce and the Christmas tree. I think this is quintessential Pounce. Curious and in your face.


Our giant tree.


An angel ornament that I inherited from my grandma. (I love angel ornaments and joy ornaments. You get it, Angela Joy.)


I don't even know where the string came from, but Pounce loves it.

The principal came to observe my class this morning. I think it went alright. I have a counseling appointment tonight and good things to report. I have amazing friends and family. Even when it doesn't feel good, my life is very blessed. Also, if you haven't tried it yet, go to Freerice.com. I'm obsessed. I've donated more than 30,000 grains of rice in the last three days. That's a lot of vocabulary words. And a lot of life avoidance, but I'll deal with that later. At least it's for a good cause.