Because we all need a little chocolate

Tonight I stomped to my fridge, pulled out a bar of Cadbury's Milk Chocolate Mint Crisp that my cousins brought over from South Africa for me and said, "I AM GOING TO EAT THIS WHOLE BAR OF CHOCOLATE!"  I snapped off the first row and ate the first square and then felt a massive wave of guilt.  I ended up eating two rows - 20 grams which equals about 100 calories - and putting the rest back.

But it got me thinking.  We are all going to need a lot of chocolate to get through the uncertain future that now faces us, so I thought it was only right I share my very best brownie recipe as a gesture of goodwill.

Knock You Naked Brownies

 

 

1 package German chocolate cake mix (18.5 oz)[ I use Devil's Food cake]

1 cup chopped nuts

1/3 cup + 1/2 cup evaporated milk-divided

1/2 cup melted butter

60 vanilla caramels unwrapped (one 14 oz package) [ I use less, you 

can't get that size package now]

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

PARCHMENT PAPER

 

 

In a large mixing bowl, combine dry cake mix, nuts, 1/3 cup 

evaporated milk and melted butter. Press half of the batter into the 

bottom of a greased 13x9x2 inch glass baking dish (line with parchment paper first). Bake in a 

preheated 350 degree oven for eight minutes.

In the microwave or top of a double boiler melt caramels with 

remaining 1/2 cup evaporated milk. When caramel mixture is well 

mixed, pour over baked layer. Cover with chocolate chips. Chill for 

about an hour or until the caramel is hard. Press the remaining 

batter on top of morsels. Return to oven and bake 28 minutes (or less 

for gooier brownies). Let cool before cutting.

 

Note: This recipe supposedly originated at the Salt Creek Restaraunt 

in Breckenridge, Colorado.

I love these things.  And the refrigeration time definitely is important if you want nice smooth layers and ooey, gooey brownies!

Last Day of Classes (Ever)

It was only when I sat down at work this morning and looked at my calendar to make sure I'm on top of things that I realized not only is today the last day of classes for this semester (which means I get a little more time to focus on writing my final papers and studying for my final exams, oh, plus that little thesis thing) but it's (Gods willing) my last day of (academic) classes EVER!

I have been in school since I was 5 years old.  I am now 28 - turning 29 in 4 weeks - and only just now finishing the *class* portion of my life.  Still have to finish the thesis and do the ridiculous paperwork and Trail of Ludicrous Hurdles and Hoops(TM) before I can graduate, but knowing I'm "done" with classes forever is a wonderful and strange feeling.

Sure, this means that the pressure is on to get a "real job" where I won't have summer or winter vacations, no spring break, and I hear you start with something measly like 10 vacation/sick days combined for a full year...but to only have ONE job with ONE boss (instead of three classes with three professors and a thesis chair who all think they should be your #1 priority, plus your boss because you're not rich and can't survive without three jobs on the side) with ONE set of goals per month/year/period...sounds heavenly!

Of course it'll be difficult.  Duh.  Just not as difficult as grad school.  For the record, anyone who says they enjoyed grad school are either masochists, lying, delusional, or have forgotten what it's really like.  Or they got a crap degree at a crap university and never had to suffer for it.

My to-do list has gotten so short.  Tantalizingly short, in fact.  Of course "study for tests" takes more than one day, so it's going to stay on there until the tests are taken, but it WILL be off in a week or so.  Same with my essays.  And I have this weekend completely free from work or projects or anything!  I can curl up in my snuggly flannels inside my thermal sleeping bag (because I'm miserly as all get out and keep my thermostat at 65F) and type to my little heart's content without having to venture outside into the rain and chill predicted for the next two weeks, or really, venture any farther than the bathroom or the kitchen for a glass of water.

I can't wait for Christmas!

Sunday Done-day

I'm done.

Not with work, or the million things I have to do, or the ten million things I want to do.  Today, I'm just done.

I've been good - I got up in time, made breakfast from scratch, prepped my lunch, biked to work, got here and got everything ready in plenty of time for the noon opening.  And now I've been doing some freelance stuff because I'm broke and need the extra cash...but I'm tired.  I don't want to work anymore, and I resent that I have to work two freelance gigs on top of my day job to pay the bills.

I just want to sit here, keep one eye on the monitors, and daydream about impossible things; winning the lotto, spending a month in Naples, driving an Alfa Romeo down the Amalfi drive, seeing Carnivale in Brazil, the northern lights in Alaska, Incan pyramids and Egyptian ones, to dive for pearls in Hawaii and trek to the North Pole in their summer.

But what I should do is work, or I won't have a chance of making *any* of that become reality.  Blah.  How I hate growing up!

Saturday Blues

It's pretty pathetic how brain chemistry can ruin a perfectly good day.

I woke up late, made an omelet for breakfast, went grocery shopping, came home and did laundry, had lunch, cleaned the whole apartment, cleaned a bunch of candleholders, went to the shops again, fixed a stained costume, made dinner, and carved a pumpkin.

And I still feel like shit.

The Next Peak

If you are ever so minded, you should read L. M. Montgomery's "Emily" series.  The first is "Emily of New Moon", the second "Emily Climbs" and the final book is "Emily's Quest". 

I've read them all so often I can't remember where any of them ends and begins (except perhaps for the first beginning and the final ending), but a recurring theme is that as she grows as a young woman and as a writer she reaches peak after peak on the "Alpine Path".  The Alpine Path is basically a dreamscape where with every achievement and her growing mastery of her art she has climbed a new level and gets to walk along a plateau for a bit before having to struggle upwards to the next peak.  She observes that you can never reach the top, but when you crest a plateau you get a wonderful feeling of achievement and exhilaration that helps you onward and upward during the hard times.

Today I got an email.  That's not the exciting part; I probably get well over 100 emails daily (it drives me insane!) and while probably 80 of them I get to delete, 10 I have to read and the last 10 require I do yet more work on something or other.  No, the exciting part is that today, among emails about university clubs, semester progress reports, sales at Target, and cheap Texan health insurance, I got an email saying I've been accepted as a sportswriter for Planet Benfica.

And may I say, the view from this peak is glorious.

Minor Set Back

I was doing so well with my blogs and then I got bronchitis - not that I knew that at the time! - and it all went to hell.

I finally gave in and went to the doctor on Friday after three weeks of coughing and hurting and generally suffering and she pretty much took one look at me, listened to me breathe for five seconds and said, "Bronchitis."  Gave me scripts for prednisone and antibiotics and told me to pick up some Mucinex DM, to take all my prescribed medicine or else, and if I was still shitty a week or so after finishing them I could make another appointment.

I finished the antibiotics today, finish the prednisone tomorrow, and guess I should remember to take my damn Mucinex twice a day instead of once.  I still feel like shit.  In fact, I almost feel worse than I did when I first got sick, minus the fever and headache.  I don't know if it's the drugs or what, but she warned me there would be nasty side effects and holy smoke she wasn't kidding.  Been shaky and exhausted and definitely got the paranoia one hardcore.

Went to RenFest on Sunday, and although I was very good and only had one beer, sat down and rested frequently, kept in the shade as much as possible, and drank 7 bottles of water, I was completely knackered by the time I got home (after sleeping in!) and spent all Sunday night and most of Monday on the couch, half-asleep in a bronchitis-induced stupor.  Yesterday the only things I really accomplished were cooking the week's meals, going for a walk, and having a shower!

Today I've gotten some important things done, and hope to do more this evening.  But I at least have enough wisdom now to stop and rest when I start shaking or feeling like hell.  The harder I push at those low-energy moments, the longer I'm going to feel awful.

I kind of wish I'd stayed home today too, but I need the $$, and this job is not physically taxing, and sitting quietly in class and taking notes shouldn't kill me either.  (...shouldn't...)  Thankfully, all my work can be done on the sofa with my laptop, and at the most, with a few extra books lying around me.  PLUS I have enough prepped food to last me all week, so that's one big stress-er off my back. 

I keep telling myself it's smart to do the slowly-but-surely thing now.  Let my body relax.  I have to go to Houston on Friday and that'll be tiring, and I work all Saturday, but at least work is not physically taxing like I said earlier.  And this Sunday I am going to lie on that couch like I'm a Victorian woman with smelling salts clutched in her feeble hand.

Because I bloody well can!

IT'S AUTUMN!

There's been a faint feeling of autumn in the air, but tonight I just went out to check the mail and it was COOL outside!!  So I asked Alexa what the temperature was and when she said 71F I immediately ran around my apartment opening windows.  My thermostat is set at 79F but my apartment is filling with cool, sweet-smelling air and dispersing a summer's worth of cooking smells.

This week has busted my ass bigtime.  Take today for example:

7:00 am - Get up.
7:30 am - Make breakfast from scratch. (Omelet with bell pepper, onion and feta cheese.)
8:05 am - Walk out of house on way to bus.
8:30 am - Arrive on campus.
8:45 am - Let self into work, begin opening gallery.
1:00 pm - Leave work. 
1:05 pm - Eat lunch.
1:30 pm - Stop by library to pick up books.
2:20 pm - Class starts.
3:35 pm - Class ends.
3:50 pm - Class starts.
5:10 pm - Class ends.
5:20 pm - Meeting with semester project group that *I* am in charge of. (Seriously. How'd I get suckered into that?)
5:45 pm - Meeting over, take bus home.
6:10 pm - Cook dinner.  Eat.
6:45 pm - Develop GANTT chart for one semester project.
7:45 pm - Email group chart.  Divvy up proposal responsibilities.
8:00 pm - Download raw data for semester project.
8:10 pm - Wash dishes.  Practice vocal exercises while cleaning.
8:20 pm - Put insurance card in car. Check mail.

I am now writing this blog as a mental break.  I need to develop a second GANTT chart and mail that off to my project partner for my *other* semester project (that I am also lead on!).  I need to create a dropbox file for the database class group and upload sets of images to it (each of us gets a set to be responsible for until the end when we use our best model on the entire bunch).  I need to upload a bunch of ESRI stuff to my virtual machine.  I need to study for the two midterms I have on Thursday.  I need to write another page of my thesis (trying to do a page a day right now), and find a couple more sources.  I need to render a couple more artifacts for my thesis as well.  I need to send off my novel again, and write 100 more words of fiction.

I've started a new system where I do a small amount of big things every day.  The (at least) 100 words of fiction, sending off my novel daily, one page of thesis and a couple artifacts daily, and a couple other things are all part of it.  In one way it's awesome.  Because I'm really getting stuff done and it's in manageable chunks.  On the other hand, I have SO MUCH to do every day and I'm going a little crazy.  Right now I just want to sleep because I'm exhausted (was passing out in my later class...was literally pinching myself and pressing my nails into my arm so I would wake up), but if I sleep now that means there's a CRAP TON more I have to do tomorrow.

Tomorrow is going to suck anyway because on top of my regular shift at the downstairs gallery I picked up an evening shift too so I'm only going to leave campus around 8:00 pm (going to have to bike too, because the buses go once an hour, on the hour, at that time of night).  Fortunately my meal planning excel spreadsheet worked its magic, because I have two prepped meals ready to go in my fridge; once for when I get home at 3:30 for an hour or two to get some work done, and once for 8:20 when I get home exhausted and ready to cry myself to sleep because I'm so tired and I'll have missed a whole day of potential Luke Cage watching.

Ugh.  Back to the grind.  I'll do as much as I can, but when my body starts shutting down, tonight I'll just stop.  I didn't last night, and that's why today was so goddamn difficult!

Time to breathe

Admittedly, I have a crap ton to get done tonight.  BUT none of it is due tomorrow.  Which means, for about five whole seconds, I'm ahead of the game!  Huzzah!

Today was hard.  Up at 7 am, breakfast from scratch, work from 8:45-1:00, lunch, meeting with a TA at 1:30, class from 2:20 - 3:35, class from 3:50-5:10, stay late to talk to prof, bus home, call my parents, make dinner, and eat.  It's 7:30 pm and I just finished eating.

Now I get to apply for a job, send my novel off again, write two hundred words of different novels, start my study guides for my first two exams (in a couple weeks), email my teams for our semester projects, email the client for one of the semester projects, and then I'm probably going to be exhausted and stop the actual work and get started on some sewing.  At least, I hope I get that much done.  I need to work on my thesis, but I won't be able to focus on something like that tonight, so it's slated for tomorrow and Saturday while I'm at my security guard job.

Of course at work on Saturday we're having a rather important Native American artist (I don't know who, but my boss spoke of her with reverence) give a performance, and there's a mess of drama about that already.  We've had at least 100 people RSVP but the room only fits 50 and it can't be moved.  I'm gloomily anticipating fireworks, but hopefully all the people won't show and it'll be relatively simple instead of completely exhausting. 

Oh well.  Back to work!

Late night, going anywhere

I am exhausted. 

Slept reasonably well last night, got up in good time, made breakfast from scratch, went to work, got a Fiverr job, finished it, finished my shift at work, went to the geography department to get some paperwork done, came home and passed out.  I hate being sick.

Woke up in time to send an email apologizing for having to miss the meeting this evening due to being sick as hell, ate some food, and started in on my homework.  I managed to finish and turn in one by 9:30 pm, and the other one just won't work so I'm going to meet my TA tomorrow to see if he can make it work.  Made dinner, ate it, put on the tv and started sewing.

I've finished the drawstring bag for my Halloween costume, but I'm going to make a drop bag as well because I don't think I can handle the drawstring one with my costume gloves. 

I also sent off my novel again.  Now I'm going to shower and then spend half an hour writing.  I prefer going to bed by midnight, but I did have that nap this afternoon.  I'll just have to survive tomorrow somehow. 

Tomorrow is going to be even busier than today.  No naps allowed because I won't be home much before six.  I can't wait for 5 pm Friday when I can collapse on the couch and turn off my brain!!

Mad Mondays

Today has definitely been weird and not cool.  I'm still sick and I'm super exhausted because of it.  I didn't eat anything til about 2 pm and then I slept for a bit and I woke up feeling kinda rough but was much better after I ate something.

I've gotten some work done, but not as much as I wanted to, and I'm not feeling very well so I'm wondering if it will get done before tomorrow night.  At least my week's lunches are prepared, a bunch of recipes got printed, and I've taken out the trash and run the dishwasher.

I sent my novel off to one agency and got an auto-reply back saying they're not accepting submissions from August 1, 2016 through January 1, 2017.  But their website didn't say a thing!!  How aggravating.  So I sent it off to another one.  I need to get published.  And some money would be nice too.

Grad school is rough.  I'm pretty sure I should've spent today in bed - I almost certainly should be in bed now - but time doesn't allow for niceties like that.  Okay, time to be good.  I'm going to unload the dishwasher and the drying rack and try to finish some homework.  Cross your fingers...

Sick on a Sunday

I really want to go to the dollar store and get cheap ribbon for headdresses (RenFest is coming up y'all) but I'm feeling pretty awful today. 

The worst part is that my beloved kitty Narcissus is probably dead.  We knew he was really ill and dying, but he stopped coming home when my parents let him outside (he hates litterboxes) and we figured he was snoozing under a bush (this, plus sleeping under our cars in the driveway was about all he did for the past year) and his body finally gave out.  I can't even go look for him because they're in Florida and I'm here in Texas.  So I'm pretty down over that, even though 16 1/2 years is a pretty damn good run for a cat.

On top of that I'm definitely sick.  I'm sure my body is just trying to make me slow down, but grad school doesn't allow for such niceties.  Fortunately, I realized I was sick while I was shopping (if the coughing and headache and clogged chest shouldn't have tipped me off when I woke up...) so I managed to buy some orange juice. 

On top of *that* I'm seriously worried about money.  I've been approved for a freelancing gig doing transcription, but I know I'll be pretty slow at that, especially since I don't have a lot of time with lots of quiet which I'll need for that.  I've also started freelancing on fiverr, but of course, I have to wait for people to come to me.  Hopefully between the two of those, I'll make the extra $260/mo I need to survive.  I'm filling out surveys on a website to earn $10 prepaid Visa gift cards for spending money (I told you I'm desperate), and I've formed a new resolution to send out my novel to one agency per day.  If it were just that, that'd be ok, but I also have a lot built up on my credit card (from conferences, being underemployed for months, and sudden, unavoidable expenses) that I desperately want to pay off ASAP.  I have a tiny amount saved up but I'm thoroughly disinclined to spend that because it's my only safety net. 

In one way it's fortunate I'm no longer interested in a social life.  I go out once a month or so to my favorite bar for wings and a few beers (it's a dive bar and those wings are so worth the calories and the expense), but other than that I scurry home as soon as I can every day, knock as much work as I can out of my way, and settle down to Netflix/Amazon Prime and a vodka (diet) tonic with lime in my ugly, comfy clothes, and some soft pillows and my Kindle.  Of course, if it's a week day I usually skip the drink and have a 40 calorie frozen popsicle and don't bother with the Kindle because I already have a headache, but still. 


Oh well.  I have a loving, supportive family even if they're far away.  And I'm going to keep on writing and maybe one day I'll get some love (and money) from that.  In the meantime, it's time for me to curl up on the couch and relax.  I've spent today getting shit done despite feeling like crap and now I'm tired out.  I don't think I'll even prep the week's lunches today.  I can do that tomorrow since I don't have class or work (thanks to that I usually reserve Mondays for doing as much thesis/hw as I can to make the rest of my week easier) and can cook and eat whenever I'm hungry.  Yay for good planning!

A memory for the ages

Had a thoroughly fabulous day today!  Ok, so all last night the kitty was moving from spot to spot on the bed and I didn't sleep too well, and Mom dragged me out of bed at 8:30ish so we could get my car to the mechanic, but after the mechanic we went to the Orlando Premium Outlets and since the Croc store had "buy one get two half off" she bought two pairs for herself and one pair for me as a present!

http://www.crocs.com/p/womens-capri-v-shimmer-flip/202845.html?cgid=footwear&cid=040#q=silver&start=15
^^ This pair, in silver.

Next stop was the Florida Mall and as soon as we walked in we saw A REAL-LIFE BRICK AND MORTAR THINK GEEK STORE!!!!!
We had the best time, but were very good and did not buy anything, although I really really wanted the Captain America backpack/shield and Mom really really wanted the Twitchy Kitty tail.
http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/iniv/?srp=1 < she wants to wear it in class to express her angst at her students without getting in trouble.
OMG do I ever want to work there.

Then we hit up Lush (drool), Sephora (I am in LOVE with NARS lipstick "Cruella" but the shop assistant found me a Sephora-brand dupe that costs $12, whereas the NARS costs $26), a soccer shop (Portugal jerseys cost $90...no way, Jose!), Franchesca's where I found the cutest dinosaur earrings that will be in my Christmas stocking later this year, a jewelry store called Tous (their stuff is GORGEOUS - http://www.tous.com/us-en/new-arrivals/jewelry/), and finally after Chinese in the food court for lunch, we went into JC Penny on the way back to the car and their costume jewelry is 50% off basically *everything* except sterling silver as long as you buy at least two pieces.  The sterling silver jewelry is 65% off if you buy at least two pieces!!  Mom and I were going nuts and she's gotten half of her Christmas shopping done now and she's thrilled at the prices she got on everything, and I went a little crazy and bought a beautiful gold bracelet and a lovely long gold necklace with dainty little inclusions here and there.

Then on the way home we stopped at our favorite International supermarket and I got a couple Croatian beers to smuggle back to Texas, and Mom got more boerewors for our braai this weekend.  In sad news, they only get Walkers' crisps at Christmas and Easter now, so once again I am without my beloved ketchup crisps :(

While we were driving home the garage called and my car was ready, so Mom dropped me off there and went on home while I went to our local mall (10 minutes from my parents' place) to get some tank tops at H&M (no H&M within 90 miles of my apartment in Texas!) and check our Franchesca's for more dinosaur earrings so Mom could use them as additional Christmas presents.  I did find another pair, and bought them, and since THEY were having a BOGO 50% sale, I also bought myself a lovely gold ring studded with tiny zircons. 

Then I was all out of energy and definitely out of money so I marched myself home and I've had a lovely evening watching DVDs and working on a novel.  I'm so glad I worked all those extra hours on Tuesday so I fulfilled my hours of the week on Wednesday and get today and tomorrow off from work.  Of course, tomorrow I have to buckle down extra-hard at my thesis because I skived off today, but that's alright.  Maybe I'll even be inspired and write like ten whole pages!

Headache Express

I got a lot done today folks.  Finished my SSI training online, took my diving final test, made a couple cakes (took them to the test to cheer everyone up), turned in a final paper, worked, cleaned, and did two loads of dishes.

Tomorrow I have a lot to do as well, but with the following thought uppermost in my mind: THE SEMESTER IS OVER!!

I have an unpleasant headache now, which is preventing me from really enjoying the relief.  I took a hot shower, which helped.  May take some pills in a bit; I think it's been long enough since I had that beer with dinner.

The ingredients for bolos de saboia - flour, baking powder, sugar, eggs, and lemon.  That's it.  Unless you count butter or spray to grease the pans/parchment paper with.

I broke one egg yolk in the cup, and it's now in the fridge awaiting the omelet I'll make for breakfast, but other than that the only yolk that broke happened in the bowl, so I'm really very proud of myself.

The finished cakes!  Not quite like Mom's, but she has a standing mixer and it's easier for her to beat stuff up for longer.  Still pretty good and my classmates liked it a lot, but dang I have a lot of cake left!


My head is getting worse.  Time to find that ibuprofen.

The Grump List

GIS prof emailed me asking to drop off a hard copy of my final paper at his office.  I guess he likes writing on things while he grades?  I can do it tomorrow before my exam, but GRR!  I thought I was completely finished with that class!

Also, dive test tomorrow.  Only written, and I do know most of this stuff...only do I know it enough to get an 80% on the test?  I NEED this certification.

My apartment has been tidied again.  It's amazing how disgustingly messy it gets during exam season.  I'm also on a very weird eating kick because I ate an entire sleeve of jaffa cakes and I'm still 500 calories under my calorie limit for the day.  I should make a stir fry so I don't eat more junk.

I've sorted out all my dive gear.  My gear is in the bag under my bike table, and the uni's gear is in a laundry hamper I bought specifically for scuba stuff so I can take it to campus tomorrow.

Really, all I have left to do - other than study - is scrub the kitchen/bathroom and do my mending.  (Besides my thesis, of course.) Soo...studying it is.

I would still prefer to do nothing.

Cinco de Mayo...part one?

I guess it's technically May 5th, being 12:37 am here in the Central Time Zone.  I guess I'm feeling bloggish today!

Had my meeting, went to the shops on the way home (got an adult coloring book for $1 at the dollar store which I'm feeling a bit smug about), got home, grabbed an apple and went for my walk in the sunset.

It was a glorious walk, and at one point I even saw a cottontail rabbit!  I only just noticed it in the nick of time; was walking around a bend in the path and looked up just in time to see him rear up in alarm and then bounce away showing his adorable little cottontail.  It was the sweetest thing, and I find it a major pity that rabbits don't enjoy being cuddled, because if they did I would TOTALLY get a pet rabbit and snuggle it like crazy.

Got home and got straight back in the car and went to my friend's place to check on her cats.  One of them escaped as I was walking in with the empty watering jug (watering her plants too - it's too hot in Texas to let them go a week without water) so I chased her around for a bit and then trapped her in the laundry room (it's outside, like a utility closet sort of thing) where she hid behind the washer and growled when I peered over and talked to her.  I texted my friend who told me to leave food and water in the laundry room and leave the door cracked and she should run right inside in the morning.  Let's hope it's true!

Came home again and called mom for a little bit before microwaving leftovers for dinner.  Did some homework and then settled down to work on my novel for an hour or so.  Then I made my grandmother's aguardente com mel FINALLY after having the ingredients in my larder for a month.  It can cure over the summer and I'll crack it open come autumn, just in time for such a thing.

Ta-da!
Then I put the dishwasher on, took out the trash, tidied up and polished off a couple chores.  I've really gotten a lot done today.  Not enough, of course, but when is it ever enough?  Now I have the French windows open so cool air is flowing through my apartment and dispelling the warm honey smell, and I'm going to settle down with my new coloring book while I watch my murder mystery.

There are compensations, even in Texas.

May the Fourth Be With You

My "fourth" is pretty grumpy so far, and I have no idea why.  I got up at a reasonable hour, went to my friend's place (I'm looking after her cats while she's away) and did my homework there (figured no wifi = fewer distractions, even with cats present) before coming home, going for my walk, and then settling down to doing my accounts.  (That was bleh - that conference cost me a thousand bucks and I didn't get a penny from any of the grants I applied for!  It's going to take me months to pay that off.)

Then I had some cornbread muffins for lunch and got down to working at my nonprofit job.  This new assignment is giving me a migraine because although these reports are usually half bolded (bolded stuff you don't need to code) this one has ZERO bolded font, and there are dozens and dozens of tables which take forever to code.  I wanted to ZIP right though this, and nope.  Not happening.  Oy.

Finished with that for the day, and I'm going to leave for a meeting in a bit.  Then I'll check on my friend's cats, go for another walk (because I can) and then home to work on a final project that's due Monday.  I'd hoped to finish it before now, but I've been having a hell of a time focusing lately.  Maybe it's because the weather is just so GLORIOUS that all I want is to be running around outside on the bike trail I walk (it's almost exactly 2 miles from my door, roundtrip back to my door), which passes by a lovely stream and two playgrounds (usually overflowing with kids which makes me happy - I can't imagine a whole childhood spent indoors with videogames, blerg!) and has wildflowers and birds and is really one of the best parts of living here.  I wish I'd found it sooner!!

Once the semester is properly over (i.e. everything turned in and tests taken) I'm hoping to have more time for my work/my thesis/and the gym, as well as getting to relax a bit, mentally.  I am at least taking a bit more time for myself.  Tomorrow a farmer's market is having a grand opening and I'm going, and I'm also going to see the new Captain America: Civil War tomorrow night.  Fingers crossed that it'll be a good one!  The reviews have been fab, so I'm feeling optimistic.

Sunday, one day

Had a hell of a weekend.  Worked 15 hours over 3 days at my retail job, not nearly enough at my nonprofit job, did some essay writing and thesis work and have been trying to organize some dive class stuff only people are being a bit slow about answering their phones which is irritating as heck!!

My stomach is also hurting right now - I think it's either the leftover pizza I had for lunch, or the leftover spicy rabbit mac n cheese for dinner.  Planning on a cheese-and-onion omelet for breakfast tomorrow, because if THAT upsets my stomach then I'm in for a world of hurt.

Tomorrow is going to be a busy day.  Long shift at work, then it's looking like we'll have dive class, and I'll need to get a couple hours of work in somehow, and do the final draft of my poster so I can print it on Tuesday.  I also need to start packing for the conference - my neighbor has already agreed to look after my place for the few days I'm gone - and figure out what the heck I'm going to do in the way of shoes.  If only my sparkly gold Gucci sandals ($13 at Ross) were appropriate conference attire!

There was so much more I wanted to accomplish this weekend, but I got quite a lot done so I suppose it could be worse.  I still haven't vacuumed or swiffered or cleaned my bathroom though...that will have to wait until I get back, I suppose.

Wouldn't it be nice to wake up and find out that all of my work was done, my house clean, my food prepped, my novel accepted by some agency, my thesis complete, and all my paperwork in order?  Talk about pipe dreams!

Oof.

I'm pretty proud of myself.

Today started badly - I woke at 7:30, decided I was tired, set a timer for 30 minutes...and woke up at TEN A.M.  One of my friends pointed out that my body clearly needed the rest, so I shouldn't feel bad, but I still do.

Then, I checked my email and I'd forgotten to turn in my timesheet yesterday.  ACK.  Sent some frantic emails and got the whole thing sorted out in half an hour or so, many blessings upon the payroll woman who was so patient with me!!!

Finally managed to settle down and get some work done, then headed off to class.  After class I buttonholed the professor and told him about my woes in regards to graduating on time/GIS certificate/classes offered next semester, and he gave me the name of a professor to email, and assured me (as did another student waiting in line) that they "make substitutions" all the time.  I have all my fingers and toes crossed; I haven't heard back yet, but I'm sure he's a very busy man, and this isn't the easiest time of the semester for anyone!

Was full of hope on my way home and got a lot more work done before heading off to scuba.  We had such a fun lecture, all about nautical archaeology, and then went to dive lab and learned how to dive with full-face masks.  It is extremely weird - EXTREMELY! - but I'm glad to know how to do it.  We're going to do one more dive lab (at least) with them, but I'll be very glad to go back to the regular setup. 

Then I came home, thinking I could finish my conference poster in half an hour or so and get to bed.  HA!

First, I realized this computer doesn't have Picasa on it, so I tried to download it...and Google is no longer supporting Picasa!!  It was so damn simple and useful and I just LOVED it.  Now I have to save up and buy Lightroom, and I'm simply FURIOUS about it.  I'll just edit all my photos on my old laptop until I have the money for Lightroom, sucks to Google.  I downloaded GIMP to get what I needed done, done, and THEN Rhino started screwing up so that it took me well over an hour to do what should have taken two minutes.  It was my fault for leaving it open for hours and letting my computer sleep with the program running, but still.  GRR!

Then I had to finish the actual poster and as you can see by this timestamp, it took me until 1:30 am, so THREE hours to do what I thought would take 30 minutes.  But I've emailed it off to a couple people to proofread it for me, and I've sent the three amphorae I've done to the people on the project for their comments, so I have really done very well today.

But now it's time to go to bed and collapse.  I was going to get up early tomorrow and Get Things Done before work so I could have a lovely, relaxed Friday evening after work, but now...not looking like it.  Sigh.  Grad school is not for the faint of heart!

Oh, Wednesday

I've actually managed to get a lot done today.  It didn't start well - I slept better last night than I did the night before, but still not well, and woke up with mucous all up in my head and chest and feeling like crud.

Nevertheless, I made it to class, and although I may have zoned out once or twice (seriously, did not get enough sleep), I managed to pay attention and asked a few questions and I think I learned something, so yay for that.

Then I went to a meeting and waited for 40 minutes but the guy never showed.  I'm pretty mad about that, but one of my profs looked at my work and gave me a few pointers, so that was nice.

Went home and conked out immediately for around an hour before getting up and doing some work.  Managed to get a lot done before my meeting at 5, and got home around 7.  Did the dishes, fed the birds, had dinner, did my laundry (just finished folding and hanging the last of it), sent a bunch of emails, took out the trash, worked on thesis stuff, and I've just settled down to work on a novel.

I'm really relieved that tomorrow all I have to do is work and show up to class.  Once I get home tomorrow night, and wash all my scuba gear, I'm going to kick back on the couch with a beer and watch some Netflix.

Could still do with a hug, though.

More Bad News

Every time I "rise above" something crappy, and get my life on an even keel, BOOM.  Something else gets me right in the gut.

People keep telling me that once this is over, I'll be able to handle anything.  But will I?  And do I even want to?  How often do people in real life actually get kicked in the ovaries, over and over and over again?