Right, so... this is what happened in January...

I really should update y’all on my life this month—I just can’t think of anything significant enough that it would be interesting to read that can also be posted on a public blog… some private stuff, etc. You know how it is.

Ok. Umm… I returned to work on January 4th after a nice (albeit short!) week at home with family and friends. Among my favorite days were a shopping trip in Seattle with my mom and sister, a gorgeous performance of The Nutcracker with said mom and sister (AND I ran into my old music teacher, who was there with his daughter!), a surprise visit to Bremerton to visit Andrew, Lindsey, and the babe (whose laugh is so intoxicating that I physically can’t keep from giggling when I hear it), a New Year’s Eve party (where I found many old friends and caught up with them… Neil, Jacob, Casey, Matt, Nicole, Lilly… I miss all of you!) and several quiet, one-on-one days with a few dear friends.

Work has been pretty stressful since I’ve been back. One of my cases was supposed to be resolved the Wednesday before last, and I was excited because it was the culmination of three months of hard work on my part. The client desperately needed a doctor’s appointment that she was finally going to have that afternoon. I stood with her and waited for her medical transportation to arrive. And we waited. And waited. And then… we waited some more. Long story short, it turned out that her medical transportation request was never sent. I was unbelievably frustrated—the rest of this woman’s life hinged upon this doctor’s appointment, and something as trivial as a clerical error kept it from happening. We were back at square one, and she’s been declining since I got her case in October.

The rest of the week didn’t seem to get better, and I found myself looking forward to Friday, which was the day I was going to take the GRE. (How stressed out do you have to be to look forward to a standardized test?) I took a personal day, drove to Philadelphia, and took the exam. I scored right around the middle of the bell curve, and I’m still waiting on the Analytical Writing score. I felt really good about the writing section, but only time will tell.

I had realized a few days before I took the test that I really had no idea as to what master’s program I wanted to enter, so I decided to hold off on applying anywhere for a while. I have some ideas now, but I don’t want to rush into anything and I do want to take a little bit of time to clear my head and plan carefully.

The following week was a short one for us JVs because we took off for Dalton, PA for Re-Orientation. It was only the second retreat where all of JVC East was present—the ninety of us won’t see each other again until Dis-Orientation in (gulp) August! We stayed in a seminary (although right now it functions as a retreat center because there aren’t enough vocations to fill the giant building) for the week, and I must say that I really appreciate the appeal of being a seminarian! I had my own little room with a desk and a rocking chair, which is really all I need. I never quite realize what the privacy of one’s own room feels like. The Fatima Center staff fed us very well, and (my favorite part) there was a Eucharistic chapel just down the hall from my room. If I had had the privilege of attending theology classes all day (I did, actually, but they weren’t necessarily comprehensive about our faith), it would have been a week in the life of a seminarian. Since I can’t do that, maybe I’ll go get a theology degree…

I think that our community as a whole found a lot of growth, both personal and communal, this past week. It wasn’t always pleasant, but it was a growing experience. After we had a talk at dinner on Monday, it felt like we’d knocked down a wall that had kept us from communicating fully. So I guess it was a big help. As it was, I called a few friends back home for support, all of which helped me somewhat.


On a semi-related note, our community was also in charge of planning Mass on retreat. Among other things, we planned the music—which is always my department. I must say, we have talented musicians in JVC East! Being the de facto director, I got a lot of compliments (which I tried hard to spread to the rest of the choir/band) on the music. People were pretty moved, and I was happy with it.

Now that I’m back at work, life didn’t wait for me to get back into the swing of things gradually. By 2pm on Tuesday (my first day back) I had to help break up a brawl in the lobby! Two women in their fifties were fighting over a boyfriend (I think—there was a lot of R-rated Spanish getting thrown around, but I caught most of what they were yelling at each other). The guards pulled off the aggressor, and I pulled away the one that was clearly losing the fight (she didn’t really fight me back, thankfully). Is it bad that I’m not shocked at any of this anymore?

So, now you’re caught up! Hopefully I won’t leave everyone hanging for a month again for a while.

Cannon Beach pictures

Here they are, as promised.

By the by, if you get a minute, please pray for the soul and family of John Kirschner. He's the father of a friend of my brother's who passed away on August 18th rather suddenly. The funeral was on Friday. As he was a well-respected man, it was well attended. Quoth the Book of Wisdom, "The just man, thought he die early, shall be at rest" (Wis. 4:7). And, quoth Hamlet, "May flights of angels sing thee to thy rest."

Anyway, photos. Here they are.

Back in the saddle

I'm home from the beach, back at work, and fighting a cold-- and oddly, in a decent mood. Maybe that's just because I'm still fresh from the vacation. Expect pictures soon, though I only got a few good ones.

I did FINALLY meet Miss Ellery, and I think I'm in love! She's a tall little thing; 24 inches long at just under three months. So she has a lot of length but not a lot of muscle tone to move it around. She notices everything, expecially sound-wise-- I noticed that she paid special attention when someone started singing (erm, guitly) and when the music from the TV changed. Let's get this girl into piano lessons, stat!

Less than two weeks left of work!

Bare bones blog

I'm going to keep this as short and sweet as possible, because if I look at the computer screen too long my head is going to explode. Read: I have a very nasty headache.

Today I woke up with a sore throat, sore head, and a sore ear. The throat and head, I believe, are related. The ear, I know for sure, is sore because there's an inflamed blackhead on the inside. Ouch.

I flagged today. All day. Except for when we drove east to Skykomish to check out a road that needs to be worked on.

I came home from work and ran a few errands: replaced the battery in my phone (the battery wouldn't hold its charge and I kept missing calls), got a few new books and a new set of headphones.

The books and headphones are in prepartation for the drive to Oregon tomorrow night. My family's down there, and I'm joining them for the weekend along with Maddie and Amanda.

Thus, I am waiting for a load of laundry (full of summer clothes) to wash so I can put it in the dryer before I go to bed.

I really want to go to bed. I do not feel well.

I really hope a mini vacation helps. Come December (and winter break), I intend to take a weeklong (or so) sabbatical all alone. I don't think I've been by myself on my own terms, or on a bona fide vacation for the past three years. I am overdue. And I need some rest.

Home from Oregon, going to the doctor ASAP

The good news is that I had a lovely time down south with the family. I'm perfectly contented to go back to work tomorrow, since my mind and psyche have been cleansed by the sea.

The bad news is that I'm entering into the sixth week of this "cold," although I'm pretty damn sure it's not a cold. I've had a bunch of fevers, I have no energy left after work (not even for a twenty-minute workout) and I'm coughing like Typhoid Mary. I'm sick and tired of feeling sick and tired, but I think I figured it would just go away. Off to the walk-in clinic tomorrow to see what's up. I had really hoped it was allergies, but they it would have stopped when I left town. Apparently there's something raging within my system.

110° In The Shade

Blimey, it's hot.

Although it isn't really 110° in the shade. That's the name of a musical that I learned a fun, "dramatic" song from.

I knew my blog was going to get boring once I started work- there's so little to write about! But I'll try. Thoughts in bullet points:

• Ichiro Susuki earned the MVP award at the All Star game yesterday. He was was the first player ever to hit an inside-the-park home run at an All Star game. Actually, it was his personal first, too. My mom made this very astute observation: Does anyone else think it's ironic that the Japanese sensation's MVP prize was a really crappy American-made truck?
• The last Harry Potter book is coming out soon! I'm rereading the sixth one, in order to refresh.
• My dad and his godson, John, are up at Mt. Baker this week, fishing. Tomorrow night my brother and sister and I are going to go up and join them. We used to go every summer, when I was little. Although back then I didn't actually fish when we were in the boat. Holding a living thing as it dangles by its mouth from a sharp object never appealed to me very much. I used to sit in the boat and read while 10 or so of my cousins and three of my uncles would fish around me. Methinks that tradition is going to continue. I always loved being out there with everybody, but I hate actually catching fish.
• Ditto for eating the fish we caught/will catch. Seafood doesn't sit well with me. I, sired by a Bostonian and fruit of a Seattlite's womb, cannot eat fish. Joe's always joked that I'm not really related to anyone in this family (his proof being my hair color); considering my reaction to seafood, I'm being to wonder about that...
• One of my daily joys this summer is following Tuan's blog- his time in India sounds amazing! Although it makes me question the content of my own blog (what did Tuan do today? He brought food to the needy in India and nurtured his spiritual life. What did I d0? I held a sign... I'm not changing the world much...)
• Speaking of folks from B'ham, I spent about half of last week up on Catholic Row with my lovely NCCM cohorts. Highlights included a barbecue, learning how to use a Nintendo system (picture Patrick asking in a slightly incredulous voice, "Molly, have you ever played a video game before?" "No." For a nanosecond, the room was perfectly silent...), Mass with Fr. Qui-Tac at the Newman center, and dinner afterwards at Boomer's. I was so happy to see everyone- it made my week, truly.

This incredibly random, nonlinear, and ill-structured blog is brought to you by hypoglycemia and stifling heat. Thank you very much. Goodnight.