I'm in a Colorado State of Mind...

Well one week until Christmas, and I made it all the way back to the East Coast for the holiday festivities. But can I really enjoy myself and relax? Not really... I'm too stressed out about crap related to work. I have one student who tried to play me for a fool telling me some sob story about how if she wasn't able to find a way to improve her grade in my class (she got a D) then she wouldn't be able to graduate on time. I happen to know that D is considered passing. It's one thing to ask for consideration, it's another to lie in order to get it. I will have this same student in class next semester. I hope she learns from her mistakes.

It is also that time of year to do annual evaluations. I have never done one of these before, and I somehow thought ours would be due Jan 15th. That would give me a week to take care of it when I return from my break. Unfortunately they are due on the 10th (two days after I get back). Of course, all the materials I need to refer to for this project are SOMEWHERE in my office... so there will be a mad dash to complete that upon my return.

What else???? Oh yeah I have about 7-10 students who want me to write letters of recommendation for them - at 3-4 schools a piece. That means I may have up to 40 letters to dish out. Most aren't due until February, but a few have January 15th deadlines and the students are already harrassing (er gently reminding) faculty about them. I know how stressful that is for them and I do plan on getting the letters done on time - they are on my "to do" list for this week so they are DONE before Christmas.

Next semester I am going to be SUPER busy. I am doing some clinic supervision for ABR testing. I have to set up my lab (yay!). I am teaching 5 different classes. That's right FIVE. I am not doing them all by myself (only 2 of them are all mine - 3 are team taught), but that makes my schedule hell. One of them I have to prep from scratch, and it's not my most favorite of topics... so I have my work cut out for me.

I miss Cullen too. I know it's so silly for me to complain about, I mean a measly 10 days away. My poor parents suffered through months when my Dad was in the Navy. But still... I miss him. I am sooooo excited that he's coming to visit after Christmas. I just can't wait for him to meet my family.

I guess the bottom line is I am in New York but have Colorado on the brain... you could say that I am in a Colorado State of Mind =)

P.S. My friend Todd sent out a note yesterday about his mom passing away. It's sad and scary to be of an age where my friends are losing their parents. There was a point in my life when Todd and I were really close, and I have fond memories of his mother and spending time at his parents' old house in Monsey, NY before they moved out to AZ. My thoughts and prayers are with Todd and his family today.

Finals, Finally!

Well it is finally here, finals week. At the end of this week the fall semester will be over and I will have made it through a complete academic year (well half of one year and half of the next).

I'll be travelling back to NY on Saturday to gear up for the holidays with family and friends. Cullen will be coming by to meet 'the fam', so that will make this holiday extra special. I have lots of things I want to do, on my agenda for the holiday:

Baking Christmas cookies (I promised Mom I would)
Ski trip at Greek Peak - hopefully there will be, um... snow
Gift exchange with Mom, Dad, Amy, and Joe
Trip up to Mohegan Sun (hopefully I'll hit it big!)
New Year's Eve at the Lloyd residence
Partaking of NY food - Bagels and Pizza and Cheesecake, oh my!
Touring Cullen around NYC
Rockefeller Center
Ice Skating in Central Park
Wicked! at the Gershwin Theater
The NY Philharmonic at Lincoln Center
The Museum of Natural History
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Walking across the Brooklyn Bridge
Dylan's Candy Bar (of course)
Serendipity 3?
A possible visit to the Botanic Gardens

I am going to be sooooo tired from all the fun and excitement that I think I will need a vacation from my vacation.

Saturday night was entertaining. Went down to Denver to watch Travis (Cullen's brother in law) in the world premier of a musical comedy entitled "B.F.E. The Town Christmas Forgot". I ended up being a cheap date because we went to dinner earlier at a place called "The Tavern" - really cool sports bar/restaurant. I ordered some mashed potatoes and found a shard of plastic in them... No worries, nothing bad happened - thankfully it was large enough that I noticed it before I tried to bite and/or swallow. The manager comped my meal.

Sunday I bought a new pair of running shoes. I decided that since I am going to try and train for a 10K I needed to get professional guidance on the right pair of shoes for my feet. I think I tried on about 8-10 different pairs of shoes before finally deciding on a pair of Saucony's. Y'all should have seen the store, I made a mess of it. I also probably clocked about a 1/4 mile running in all the shoes to try them out. hehheh. Now I need to actually start using them. I have been sooooo lazy about exercising AND I've been eating not so fantastically, the holiday bulge is settling in... but I am trying not to worry about that too much. I know once the new year rolls around I am going to get myself into a nice workout routine again. Cullen and I will certainly motivate each other as we prepare for the Memorial Day run.

I also got my Christmas gift from Cullen yesterday. It was pretty darned cool, he had me going on a treasure hunt all throughout his apartment finding things. At the end of the hunt was the main gift with a heartfelt note that made me cry. I think he was pretty proud of the reaction he got.

Well this has turned out to be quite a long post, so I'll stop right here...

Three hundred and thirty eight

Yep, today is the 338th day of the calendar year. I heard that on the radio this morning driving into work. Can you believe it? Christmas is exactly 3 weeks away. It was a year ago this week that I moved out to Colorado, so technically it is my 1 year anniversary =). I have to admit that I was a little nervous about what life had in store for me out here. I came to the Centennial state (Colorado is nicknamed that because it became a state in 1876) not knowing a single soul. No friends. No family. Just the majestic Rocky Mountains. It was a bitter cold week, so cold that my wiper fluid froze on the drive out here. This morning it was a balmy 1 degrees (-4 with the windchill), so not too different than 1 year ago. However, I am not as nervous about what the future holds for me.

My job has run smoothly for the most part. I like my co workers, everyone is very supportive so it is a nice work environment. I managed to get myself into shape - dropped the extra pounds I put on in Memphis and feel a lot better about myself now. I found a karate school where I can continue to pursue my love for martial arts, and made a few friends there. But the most significant change is the blessing of meeting a wonderful man who I have fallen deeply in love with. I came across an anonymous quote last week, "Once in a while, right in the middle of an ordinary life, love gives us a fairy tale", and yes with Cullen I feel like I am living a fairy tale. He makes me feel like a princess who has finally found her prince charming. I know that sounds ridiculously corny and mushy... but hey that's how I feel and I'm not afraid to say it.

So anyway, hope everyone's Monday shapes out to be a good one. Remember- Monday morning is just the first step towards another Friday afternoon =)