Sick.

I've been sick for the past couple of days. It is Michael's fault. He had a scratchy throat and general sluggishness on Saturday, and I came down with those symptoms on Sunday. On Monday, mine got a lot worse, and I took some medication and slept a lot. On Tuesday, I experienced the runny nose part of the illness. This morning, I woke up with Demi Moore's voice. Not fun.

End of summer progress report

The end of summer vacation is finally upon me, and after considering the summer, I decided to report on the status of various projects and things that I may or may not have discussed on here.

First, readers may or may not recall that I was going to teach myself Latin. That didn't happen. Big surprise there, I'm sure. I'm hoping that being back on a schedule will prompt me to actually study it this semester, at least a chapter a week.

Second, I had hoped to do some research on the problem of evil. I started out very well at the beginning of summer, as I diligently printed out some papers I found online, and I read maybe.....some of one on the way to Texas. Upon my return from Texas, I didn't look at the papers even once, except to move them to a folder when I was trying to organize the quagmire that is the computer room. This progress report is looking pretty bad.

Third, I wanted to read a book on Leibniz over the summer. After about the fourth chapter, I gave up due to lack of interest and a conviction that I was crazy for starting such a project on my own in the first place.

Fourth, I wanted to reorganize the computer room/office. I actually did that, and it is working out fairly well. I rarely lose anything, and the biggest problem we were having (filing away important papers and shredding personal papers or junk mail that could be used for identity theft) is something we are doing a better job of keeping up with.

Fifth, I wanted to develop a consistent exercise regimen and get a little more fit. I was actually fairly successful with that, which is crazy, because I thought it was my most ambitious goal. Usually I work out a week and then give up, discouraged because my workout is difficult to complete or I get too sore. Actually, it is only in the past two weeks that I have started losing any weight. Before that, I was only changing my body composition: losing fat but gaining muscle. Thus, no real change in weight. I have gone down a size in undergarments, and I don't get as winded going up and down stairs or walking across campus. I still sweat like mad, but I think that is more due to the heat and humidity. I guess I did pretty well on this one. Well, I can't remember any other project I wanted to do.....and this is a long post, so I'm going to shut up for now.

Wedding Invitations...AAAHHHH!!!!!!!!

Lately, my future mother-in-law, Karen, and I have been trying to do some major planning for the wedding. One of the things that will be a bit tricky concerns the invitations. Michael's parents are hosting a reception for us a few months after the wedding in Michigan, for their family and friends who were not able to attend the actual wedding. We are puzzling over how to handle the reception response cards and the wording of the invitations, etc. I've been playing with the settings on invitation sites, and it is surprising how tricky it can be. For instance, one would think that if you just picked the most inexpensive and simple invitation, you will automatically get the best deal. That isn't always the case, depending upon what other things you'll need with the invitation. In my case, I will probably need a response card and a reception enclosure card along with the invitation, and that is where a lot of the companies seem to trick you. I saw an invitation that I really liked, but thought it was a bit expensive. It turns out that the invitation itself may be more than other invitations, but the response cards and enclosures cost less than many other invitation enclosures, bringing down the price considerably. So I'll have to be very careful to make sure I'm getting what I want for the best price. SIGH.

The school is stirring....

I went to the office today because I needed to be advised, and I was happy to see lots of people running around the department. Some of the faces were unfamiliar, but it is still nice to know that very soon I will be getting back into action. I also spent some time organizing my office, like getting rid of old papers and notes and filing away important stuff. I'll get to see everyone on Friday at the department meeting. This semester I will be a TA for Reasoning and Critical Thinking. I'm happy about it because it is a course I haven't assisted for yet, so it will be good course experience. On the other hand, I will have discussion groups again, which can be both good and bad. Discussion groups are good for the students, and good for me, because it gives me some teaching experience and more one-to-one interaction with the students. It's bad because it takes a bit more preparation, and this semester I have set some goals for myself concerning my coursework and language studies. I really want to be more disciplined this semester, and hope to cultivate some good work habits. We'll see how well all that works out.

Movie: The Island

Michael and I went out with some friends to see The Island last night. It was pretty good, despite the science being a bit bogus. However, as was pointed out to me in an argument about such matters, science FICTION doesn't have to be scientifically accurate or even believable. A lot of people have complained about how the movie put in lots of crashes, bangs, explosions, and the like. I actually liked it. A few of the incidents even made me wince. I could have lived without the sex scene in the movie, but hey, it had explosions and crashes, so I guess it needed one of those too. All in all, it was an enjoyable experience.

Slightly bored

I want to go back to school, NOW. I'm ready. All I have to do is buy books, and I'll be set. I'm getting a bit bored around here, and starved to see familiar faces. I miss my fellow graduate students, including the annoying ones. I am also anxious to find out what my TA assignment will be for the fall semester. For my first two semesters, I assisted the same instructor, and it was awesome. He and I got along, and by the second semester I already knew his teaching style and how he liked to grade, so it was pretty easy. This time, I will definitely be assisting someone else, and I am not sure what to expect. Anyway, I'll stop whining.