Hmmm. It's been a long time since the last update. Where has the time gone?
Alas, much of my time has been devoted solely to the gentle art of daily living. Although I'm getting better at managing my health, my energy's still pretty low, and I haven't been getting out as much as I'd like.
My Summer's off to a good start, however. As previously forecast, I switched to a new job at the UW last February; I managed to hit said new job at a point where several big projects were coming to a head, but things are settling down now, I'm settling in nicely, and I think I'm even beginning to see some small benefits from the quieter worklife.
I am positively delighted to be able to be back in school again. My quarters seem to be coming in MUP prerequisite themes this year; Spring was environmental science (with a 100-level online class and the UW Water Center's Tuesday morning seminar series), and Summer is American government (with POL S 202 supplemented by a class on state government at the Evans School, and a dash of GIS for kicks). I'm a little concerned about the workload this Summer; I'm taking vacation time for the first two weeks of the quarter (this week and next) and will also be using a few hours of vacation each week to go to class, but it may still be more than I can handle while still working. Fortunately, the Evans school class meets only during the b-term (mid-July to mid-August), so if I find my hands are full with the other two classes I can easily make it disappear.
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
January 11.
How can I be 37? It sounds like such an advanced age, an age at which I ought to be wise or at least set in my ways. For me, though, it's an age at which I feel very, very young. The last year has made it ridiculously clear that I need to make big changes in how I live my life, something I find by turns frustrating, frightening, and hopeful.
The first of those big changes is coming right up: I'm turning in the job I've found so stressful over the past three-odd years for something I think I'll find less so. I gave notice at the old job a few weeks ago, and am slowly coming to terms with everything that will entail: leaving a group of people I've come to care about, turning away from a challenge, likely even taking a pay cut. It's been hard and wonderful to hear over the past few weeks that I'll be missed there. I'll probably be gone by the end of the month.
Where am I going? Well, it's reasonably certain that I'll be the assistant to the director of a much smaller program on campus, although nothing's final as yet. If it works out, I think it will be a nearly perfect job for me right now. I'll have a chance to learn some new things, but in a quieter environment; I'm hoping that will help me manage my energy better so I can start taking classes again.
In the meantime, I've been having a great birthday week despite my battle with a nasty respiratory thing. Mom and Dad took me out to an indulgent dinner on Saturday, the lovely Carissa organized a wonderful (and deliberately non-surprise) dinner tonight, and I've been showered with gifts and good wishes. Thank you all--I won't be complaining this year about having a birthday so close to Christmas.
How can I be 37? It sounds like such an advanced age, an age at which I ought to be wise or at least set in my ways. For me, though, it's an age at which I feel very, very young. The last year has made it ridiculously clear that I need to make big changes in how I live my life, something I find by turns frustrating, frightening, and hopeful.
The first of those big changes is coming right up: I'm turning in the job I've found so stressful over the past three-odd years for something I think I'll find less so. I gave notice at the old job a few weeks ago, and am slowly coming to terms with everything that will entail: leaving a group of people I've come to care about, turning away from a challenge, likely even taking a pay cut. It's been hard and wonderful to hear over the past few weeks that I'll be missed there. I'll probably be gone by the end of the month.
Where am I going? Well, it's reasonably certain that I'll be the assistant to the director of a much smaller program on campus, although nothing's final as yet. If it works out, I think it will be a nearly perfect job for me right now. I'll have a chance to learn some new things, but in a quieter environment; I'm hoping that will help me manage my energy better so I can start taking classes again.
In the meantime, I've been having a great birthday week despite my battle with a nasty respiratory thing. Mom and Dad took me out to an indulgent dinner on Saturday, the lovely Carissa organized a wonderful (and deliberately non-surprise) dinner tonight, and I've been showered with gifts and good wishes. Thank you all--I won't be complaining this year about having a birthday so close to Christmas.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
