Dear Monkey on my back,

Consider yourself evicted, Dear Monkey. I am done with you. It has taken a long a gruling process to get us to this point, but the time has finally come for you to leave now. Please don't ever come back.
Love,
One who is finally done with her project.

End in sight, really?!?

I have reached the point in my long list of homework to complete that I might actually be able to finish.

Then you won't have to read boring emails about me not wanting to do homework.

I'm not sure what I'll write about, though.

We'll all just have to wait and see won't we.

I just want a clean house!

All week long (last week, as this week is only a day or two old depending on your view point) I found myself fuzzy headed. I even blogged about it. I couldn't concentrate on homework, and I felt like I wasted a lot of time doing nothing. What I really wanted to do was clean my house, but I knew that homework needed to get done. I kept putting off cleaning, and I kept being to fuzzy headed for homework. I found the solution on Saturday when I'd had enough of the house and went on a cleaning frenzie. Besides my bad attitude about doing homework in what is supposed to be my summer vacation (Dear Self, get over it. You aren't 10 any more. There's no real summer vacation. At least not until after the Masters, and even then I'm sure something else will pop up--please not the PhD yet!!!!!!!!!) my fuzzy head was caused by the absolute chaos in my home that I had been putting off taking care of until I could get my homework done! Oh, the irony!!!! (I am feeling very exclamatory tonight!!!!!!!!! So there.)

Isn't it amazing that All I wanted to do this past week was the one thing I've been avoiding for most of my life, but pit it next to homework and I'm a cleaning machine.

I asked my cousin the other day how he got his son excited about doing homework. His reply was that he just sits at his own desk and looks like he's having fun doing his. And of course son wants to do the fun stuff dad is doing. I asked him if he'd come to my house and look like he was having fun doing his homework, so I would do mine. He, he....

Here are the 5 minute vacations I found this weekend:
1. Playing my new piano (thank you, Kristen, from the bottom of my heart!)
2. Listening to the Dude playing the piano.
3. Yoga
4. Looking at beautiful artwork.

By the way the cookies were amazing!

Placing bets

I am not a morning person (yes, I hear your laughter). Most of you already knew that, but I had to say it to bring what I am about to say into context. I am getting to a point though, where I want to be. It helps in my profession to be a morning person. Really, really helps.... The morning is also one of the only times where I can do things and not get side tracked by someone else, whether it's the Dude or a friend, suggesting something much more alluring that whatever it was I was attempting to do at the time. Setting time aside to create art is important in my life. And I have even been known to get up before 4:30 to get the perfect shot of the sunrise or balloons ascending (these I snapped on vacation). Art I have found is the key to getting myself up early. Wave an art project in my face and I will get up earlier than anyone who knows me would ever dream that I could. Art and road trips. I am a sucker for a good road trip. And for me good is made up by the people in the car with me. I even go on a road trip every year for my birthday. And I usually try and include an art project in the festivities.... Hmm... What will I do this year? I've decided to celebrate my birthday for a whole month this year. ANYWAY!

Back to getting up early for art. So I can get up at the most disgusting hours of the morning to GO somewhere for an art project. The problem is rolling out of be to shuffle the room next door that is my studio and attempting to create before my eyes have lost their sleepy reflexes. That's what I struggle with. Especially on those dark winter mornings when my body insists that I am not an evolved, semi-mature, well educated human being, but instead a nice fuzzy, comfortable, sleepy bear that needs to hibernate for the rest of the dark cold winter. It's the sun that turns me into a human being. And that silly sun takes oh, so long to appear in the winter.... mmmm.... sleepy bear....

So! They say (don't ask me who "They" are... they just are and that's all that matters) that it takes 30 days to establish a good habit. It's August now. Who thinks I can convince my body that I'm a morning person before Labor day? Anyone? Well at least the crickets are on my side....

I think that will be my goal for the rest of this year.

Breakfast Cookies?!?

It seems like the season for burnout. Many of my friends, many of the blogs I read....We all seem to be effected by end of summer malaise (is that really spelled correctly?). And evidently I am no different. But my burnout has to do with homework, and since my class ends next week, I really have no time for this! I have so much to get done! There is so much more pressure to get more than acceptable grades in grad school. Whose idea was this anyway?

And what do I do when school--the school that I teach, not take--starts again?! Am I going to be able to make it through the year? Only to be greeted by a summer full of MANY classes.... Will I be able to make it to December 2010?

Any ideas for mini vacations (like 5 minutes) that are totally refreshing?

These cookies might be one. Be prepared, my family, for a test batch of these. The Dude might even like them. As long as I leave the aniseed out. I hear those gasps, oh, family of mine. I would question his judgment like you are doing right now, but he did marry me so he can't be totally tasteless. (Snide remarks to yourself, hmph) Although he also abhors vinegar, and he did like Captain Underpants. Hmmm.... Well, good thing I'm vain enough not to be worried about his choice in spouse.

Also... (drum roll please)
After (cough) ahem, many years.... I will start playing the piano again tomorrow. That is if it makes the move o.k. (Prayers will be appreciated) I also have a piano teacher lined up (thank you, friend K! You rock!) to make me learn the theory this time.

If you are lucky, I might even post a picture of my piano for you. But only if you are lucky :)
(Yes, I did just put an emoticon there, so :P )

Is it just me?

So I've been noticing in my class that I am spacing out often. Is is just me? Do I have those things that buzz around your brain from HP, Luna's friends? Is it me, or are my classes boring? I just hear the teacher from Charlie Brown. I think they need to include more visuals. Pictures... Now that would make things fun. Teachers like to hear themselves talk. I hope I'm not that kind of teacher. I might have to break down and video myself teaching so I can see what it's like to be my student. I hate watching myself! Maybe my students do to:) Things to do, things to do....

I have not forgotten you

Dear follower,
I have not forgotten you. You light up my days. Talking with you is always a marvelous adventure. We enjoy the same quirks in life. Sometimes we even look like each other. Today however when you collapsed with unexplained giggles on my kitchen floor, it reminded me of the joys of growing up together. Long lost friends reunited by the humor of mistaking a teaspoon with a Tablespoon. Well, not really reunited. We have been together often. Our lunches together highlight my week. I hope we may continue that during the ensuing school year (can you see the panic in my eyes? Not over lunch you silly...)

And so it is, dear follower, I am back. (Well, after I finish Our Mutual favorite book) I hope to continue to be here for a while longer. Perhaps I will even have something clever to say. Or my children will and I will share it with you. Because you, too, will find them wise and clever and slightly humorous.