I know some of you were curious.

And yes, I did take the classic "stand on the front porch with my backpack on the first day of school" picture.
As a kid, I meticulously planned every part of my first day of school outfit. I don't know what happened since then, but somehow things digressed to the point of last Thursday when I rolled out of bed, grabbed the first thing sitting on my chair to wear and stumbled out the door to class. Maybe it's a good thing? Maybe it shows that I'm older and mature and I'm not worried about others judging me by the clothes I wear? Or maybe I just like to sleep in until the last possible second and I'm too lazy to go downstairs to pick out my clothes (it's a long story, but I don't have a closet and I have to keep my clothes downstairs)? Yeah, okay, that's probably it.

Think again.

Every once in a while I have a fantasy about having a mindless job that is stress free and allows me to really leave work at work. Then I remember that most of those jobs include some form of manual labor. Then I help a friend paint his massive apartment for 3 hours and going to more school makes a lot more sense.

Chatty McChatterson

A few weeks ago Whitney got a real job and it's really affected the frequency of our midday chats. Due to Whitney being a working professional, our midday chats have turned to "after work on the drive home" chats, but I'm not complaining. Today's chat went something like this:

Me: Have you guys been watching the Olympics?

Whit: Yeah, did you hear that the American women's softball team lost to Japan?

Me: Yeah, I know, isn't it sad?

Whit: Yeah, especially since Japan's uniforms are so ugly.

I have a secret.

School starts in less than one week and while I pretend to moan and groan about it, it's just that- pretending.

I love school and shudder at the thought that this could be the last year I have a "first day of school." I'd be a student forever if I could. There's nothing like the anticipation of a new year and the excitment that a fall semester brings. Bring on the text books. Bring on the lectures. Bring on the research projects. I've got my backpack and pencils ready.

P.S. Please remind me of this mid-semester when I'm up to my eyeballs in 30 page term papers.

P.P.S. I was telling a less than enthusiastic 3rd grader that I was getting ready to start school too to get him excited about the upcoming school year. His only question? He wanted to know what grade I'm starting. I told him I'm going to be in the 18th grade and he looked like he wanted to die at the thought of going to school for that many years.

Why you gotta do this to me, Circle K?

I'll admit it, I can't deny a $.69 44oz sodie- even if it is 11:00pm.

Good News.

I still have 8 more years to make it into the Olympics as a gymnast.

Just in case you weren't aware, I LOVE the Olympics. Did anyone see this 33 year old gymnast from Germany? Forget my MSW, I've got a new goal to shoot for.

I wish I was in China.

Deep Breath.

I watched SYTYCD, sat on my porch swing and watched the rain at 1:30am, and got a good night sleep. Man, I feel a lot better about life.

Snap out of it.

Growing up we had a Mary Engelbreit themed kitchen (sorry, it was built in the 90's- and it was way cool if I might say so myself). Anyhow, I'm having one of those days (for no good reason) and all I can think about is how many times I sat at the dinner table and stared at this poster.

I don't make sense.

I had to take a drug test today so I can start my practicum at the hospital in a few weeks. Why do I feel nervous even though I know it'll come back clean? It doesn't make sense.

I just can't get enough. I just can't get enough.

I haven't been sleeping well. Well, actually I take that back. I sleep fine once I've nodded off, it's the actual falling asleep part I'm having trouble with. Am I stressed? Nope. Worried? Nope. But I do have an addiction that is keeping me up at night. I can't get enough of This American Life on NPR. And now that I've discovered all of the archives online, I just want to listen all night long. Who needs sleep when I could be learning about taxedermy shops in Paris, or listening to stories of midwest high school proms?


It started out as a slight interest. Occasionally I'd tune in while I was driving, but now it's way out of hand. I prop my laptop up next to my head after my bedtime routine and let the blue glow and Ira Glass lull me to sleep. This probably isn't healthy, but I don't really care.

Yes, I do sleep with my feet like this. It's more comfortable than you'd think.