The One Where I Am Thankful November 30, 2008

I really do need to post more than once a month. My readers (all two of them) might give up on me. So, another Thanksgiving has come and gone. This year, I was the hostess. My mom and step-dad* made the 1.5 hour drive to my house, as did my step-brothers** and their women***.

Now, I’ve cooked a turkey before, including removing all the extraneous stuff it has shoved in different cavities, prepping, and baking. I used to do this when my grandfather was still alive. I’d stay at his house while visiting, so I was in charge of getting the turkey in the oven. Of course, I had my Aunt Becky on the phone guiding me step-by-step. However, it had been a few years and I was a little rusty. For example, the neck is shoved up the bum, but the other stuff is shoved in the other end.

Additionally (this is my new favorite word, it makes you sound smart but not pretentious; feel free to use it), I was in charge of the green beans (I do these all the time – green beans, some chopped onion, and some fat back/salt pork in the crock pot for a few hours) and the dressing. All went well, but I did get a bit stressed because everyone arrived while I needed to be pulling out the turkey, starting the dressing, etc. Also, there were people in my kitchen, why were they in there? Talking? Asking me questions? And why doesn’t my mom know where everything is in my kitchen?

I also did some transcribing over the weekend – I finally got a couple interviews in on my dissertation. YAY! I leave on the 10th for a whirlwind tour of Virginia and New Jersey to visit three schools. Fun, huh? I’m just hoping for good weather… fingers crossed.

Anyway, all is well in my world. I’ll post some more movie reviews soon. I’ve watched quite a few. Some on our brand new 61″ HD TV. Christmas came early to our house and it’s SO clear, just like being there.

* He’s not really my step-dad, he and my mom have just been together forever
** They are my “step-dad’s” sons, so not really my brothers (see above)
*** They are not married, but have been together forever (are you noticing a trend?)

The One Where I Bore You July 28, 2008

So tonight it’s a campout in the living room. My little old dog has been vomiting all day. He DID manage to keep down half a milkbone biscuit and some water tonight, but that’s been about it ALL day. I came down this morning to find him laying in his own vomit in his kennel. Poor baby. So I’ll be sleeping downstairs on the air mattress to keep an eye on him. I’m sure there will also be some snuggling involved.

I’m watching Paranormal State. It may be completely fake, but it freaks me out. I love it!

Just as an update… I went ahead and turned in my dissertation draft without proofreading it. I figured that I didn’t want to put a lot more effort into it to feel good about it and then get it torn apart. So I decided to turn it in feeling bad about it so that when she bled all over it (with red pen – or type in this case) I would feel like it deserved it. I got a lot of good feedback, but it was red. I will be revising this week and weekend.

Holy crap, this show is scary… I’m gonna turn off the lights and watch!

The One Where I Wonder July 20, 2008

What exactly am I wondering? I’m wondering if the 26 pages I’ve written on my dissertation (at least 10 or more of them being written this weekend) are crap. They seem kind of crappy, but I haven’t gone back to proofread yet. This is due to the fact that I’ve been working on this thing since 9:30 this morning. I did take a break to eat lunch and dinner. It’s also due to the fact that they are probably pretty crappy and I don’t want to see them. I’m also wondering why this font is so tiny… is it just my laptop screen?

Anyway, let me give you a brief movie review. I did watch a movie on my day off this week.  Apparently, I should have been writing. But instead of writing I did housework and I watched Dan In Real Life. Brief synopsis: love triangle. This is another movie where Steve Carrell does some of his normal schtick, but not a lot of it. For another example of this, but to a lesser degree (less schtick), see Little Miss Sunshine – it’s AMAZING.  It gets 5 ROWRS. But I digress…

Dan In Real Life also has Dane Cook in it. I’m not a big fan, but he’s okay in this flick. It has a good ensemble cast and a good story. You may even cry. I’m not saying I cried, but I did. Wait, it’s possible I’m confusing my crying from when I watched Rendition on Friday night. Yes, I should have been writing. I’ll review Rendition later, but it has Jake Gyllenhaal – you know it’s going to get five somethings, just for him – forget plots and stuff.

Oh, so Dan In Real Life gets 5 renditions (not to be confused with the movie) of Let My Love Open the Door. That means 5 stars, for those of you who are sticklers for traditional rating systems.

I shall now go and read over what I have written today. Or, I will curl into a tiny little ball and cry in a corner. Or both.

ps – RIP Bob Yum – I wish I had met you

The One With My Black Husband June 26, 2008

As you can see (hopefully) from my Flickr photostream, I am writing this from Dissertation Boot Camp.  And I am snuggling with my black husband.  He’s in the picture, do you see him? 

I did go to Walmart today and buy a husband so that I could sit comfortably on the bed and write.  They had them in hot pink and turquoise, but I decided black was better.  Aside from the new husband, I also found a theoretical framework on which to base my study today.  That’s a GINORMOUS step!  One I’ve been trying to accomplish since I took Comps in January.  YAY for Hagerty and Stark’s Dimensions of Program Goals, Structures, Processes Used for Comparative Analysis of Accreditation Standardszzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.  I should be able to get a lot of writing done tomorrow!

Okay – off to Google the problem I’m having with Vista and Outlook… grrrrr

The One Where I Got a New Job! May 18, 2008

It’s been a crazy couple of weeks.  The trip to Texas was nice, but it was really good to get home.  We got home on Saturday and I had an interview on Tuesday for a new job.  I got offered that job on Wednesday and will start it on June 2nd.  YAY!  I will be a Student Services Manager on the Columbia campus. 

I usually supervise people just because I’m bossy – it’s not actually in my job description.  Now I will supervise three people and get paid for it.  It’s a great next step for me career-wise.  Also, did I mention no more 2.5 hour commute each day and no more 120 mile round-trip gas bill?  YAY indeed!  However, I’ll definitely miss my co-workers and students in Aiken, but it’s time for a new experience… 

Thursday I had Dissertation Bootcamp Reunion and I may finally know which direction I want to go with my research now.  Friday we had an all day off-campus retreat for my current job.  Then I went to the house in North Augusta for some more painting (I forgot my camera, but I’ll post an update soon).  I did that Friday night and most of Saturday (except for Saturday evening when we went to dinner at Jenny’s house – a member of my Dissertation committee).  Today I’m getting ready for my presentation at the NACADA Conference which will be today thru Tuesday.  I’m also hoping to work on my book review that is due June 1.  After Tuesday, I’ll be back at work like normal for a week and a half to wrap everything up before leaving. 

That’s it for now… I’m too busy for stuff like this!  I’m sure that means I’ll write more soon…