Moved!

This blog can now be found at:

http://windonmyback.blogspot.com/

Hope to see you there!

peace & love,

renski

that time of year, again

Holiday weekends do not typically bring with them productivity.  Case in point: I had the week off of school, which would have been a great time to get ahead of the game.  Instead I read books not about the American Revolution, and watched a lot of movies.

us all weekend

We did not plan Netflix correctly and found ourselves at the local Red Box, where we rented 3 movies on Saturday evening – Up, The Ugly Truth and G.I. Joe. When he returned them Sunday afternoon, three more came home in their place – Funny People, Angels & Demons and Four Christmases. As we had just finished decorating our shoebox apartment (lights strung on the high ceilings!  Tchatcky everywhere!  Fake prelit $20 6′ tree!) , we opted for Four Christmases to keep with the holiday spirit!

It is of no relevance that I happen to love Reese Witherspoon, and forgive her for taking Jakey G away from me (rumors of their split almost broke my heart!).  Her kids seem well adjusted, as in not dressing like sluts, and if I had to rank Hollywood parenting skills I would put her right up there with Jennifer Garner.  This has absolutely no bearing on this movie at all, because my love for Reese was leveled out by my ambivalence for Vince Vaughn, but it was a pretty decent movie.  This paragraph is not even close to my point, by the way.

In one scene in the movie the main characters were trying to go to Tahiti for the Christmas Holiday to avoid their families.  Mr B made an offhand comment that we could never do that with my family, because we actually love them and like spending time together.

many pumpkin martinis were consumed

And, he’s right.  This year we spent three days at their house eating, drinking and laughing.  We saw the high school football half time show, played hearts with my folks, and had ten people for dinner, plus an additional six for drinks and foyer-turned-dance-hall party afterwards.  There were two twenty pound turkeys, each brined to perfection, stuffed cabbage, veggies, salad and more dessert than you could shake a fist at.   While we missed my sister (who is still living in Ireland), it was nice to have so much of the family together.

Of course, Thanksgiving marks the kickoff of the holiday season.  Mr B and I pack the Trans Siberian Orchestra CD’s and listen to them on the 2 hour car ride home.  While we planned to bag serious decorating this year because a. we have no room and b.  we won’t actually be here for Christmas Day, that fell through once we wrapped the first gift.  We needed lights!  And that required a trip to Lowes to get sticky hooks to hold them up…and we emerged with a fake, pre lit tree.  We barely have enough room for it, but it’s so well worth it.

It seems that for a lot of people the holidays are one stress after another.  I am thankful that thus far we’ve been able to keep our eye on the positive side of it all…now to see if that continues in the next few weeks!

peace&love

Ren

that small town charm

Until August of 2007, I have never lived in a small town.  I grew up in a city of about 85,000 people in Central Connecticut, which had a great sense of community but was not small.  I lived in DC for four-ish years while I did my undergrad.  It goes without saying that in no way, shape or form is DC a small town.  And then, because Mr B is from upstate NY I agreed to move here once I was done with school.

For a year we lived in a tiny village (village as in it is a smaller part of an already small town) in Columbia County.  We were right on Main St in a quaint 1770 apartment, complete with wavy glass windows and slanted molding.  This town had two gas stations, a Family Dollar, two small restaurants (one catering to the locals, and one to the ‘city-idots who came up on weekends, pricing wise) and a volunteer fire alarm that was right across the street from us.  (Side note:  if you have never heard one of these alarms, imagine the loudest and most prolonged wailing you can.  And then repeat it three times.  At 2am.)  This small town did not have a grocery store and thus, many day to day essentials were purchased at the Stewarts Shop, which was diagonally across the street from us.

Well.  I was unemployed for the first month we lived there.  This meant I ran to Stewarts quite a bit.   One day while I was getting the paper the cashier asked me how the job search was going.  Say what?!  Turns out she had noticed that I would go to the job section first and deduced it from there.  Then other things – my hair cut, my clothes, and on.  At first it was a little bit weird (I had not lived in places where people were nice to you!) but I grew somewhat accustomed to it.  I noticed her haircut and knew she was a single mom.  It was a decent relationship, even if it did mean I didn’t run out of the house without brushing my hair anymore.

Now we live in Greene County, and have been here a few months past a year.  Because it is larger than our last stomping ground I was convinced for a while that it would not be quite the same.  Thankfully I had already had small town experience, because I was quickly proven wrong.  We frequent one Italian restaurant (always sit at the bar) and they know us by name.  The one time I abstained from a beer with dinner, the rumor mill got started that I was pregnant – now, I make sure to always drink (!) or explain why I am not.   The laundromat owner knows what day I come in and will ask if I was ill if I am late.  The cashiers at Price Chopper know we always have a 3 pack of water under the cart, and the pizza joint on Main St knows us by face.

I began writing this intent on pointing out the times when this is a negative thing – when you see someone you don’t want to chat with but are obligated to by social standards, or when you want to pick up a prescription in private.  But as the words unfolded, I realized that this is not indicative of how I feel most of the time.  The truth is, after living in large, impersonal cities for so long, it’s nice to be part of a small community.   Cheers was on to something – having somewhere people know your name is underrated, especially in todays world.

peace&love,

Ren

gooooo yankees!

So.  Maine fails to allow gay marriage.  The Yankees win the World Series for the 27th time.   And Matsui proves why he has always been my favorite Yank.   What a whirlwind.

Incredibly disappointed in Maine, but I almost think that goes without saying.  I won’t stand on my soapbox much longer than to say…shame on you, Maine.  And shame on all the other states without laws legalizing gay marriage.

Very excited the Yankees won!  I had my doubts after they lost game 1 but they held strong and showed everyone what they were made of.

from the NYT, I wasn't there

I do wish that some Yankees fans could be more gracious *ahem facebook mud slinging ahem* but to be fair, over the course of the series I’ve seen a lot of people actively rooting against the Yankees in some not so nice ways.  It’s the nature of the game, I suppose.  And speaking of the nature of the game, I am so excited that Matsui was named MVP.   He was one of the main reasons I began to love the Yankees as opposed to just going along with it because I was a New Yorker.   At any rate, it was a well deserved win in their new home.

Today will be day one of Couch to 5k .  SA already did her portion, so that means I have to motivate through it!  I am really excited.  My former college roommate, Roomie, put it perfectly: “I want to be able to do a 5k whenever.”  That’s only 3 miles and to be honest, seems like it should be an entirely reasonable goal.  This is one of the main reasons I am excited about the Couch to 5k Program that we are going to be using – it’s structured, and if we can push through it, I know that we can get to where we want to be.

peace&love,

Ren

of morality and legality (or something like that)

“Drive Safely” has become the new parting phrase at school. Where we used to say “catch ya later” or “hang in there”, we now remind one another that it takes but a swerve to end it all. I am not a religious person, but I find myself saying a prayer when I pass the spot where HSR passed.

We attended a wedding in CT this past weekend for a family member of mine and his partner of 21 years.  It was a beautiful wedding for so many reasons, not least of all that their relationship has already lasted more than most marriages do*.  This is why I don’t understand why people have an issue with gay marriage.  How is this joining of two people who love each other dearly, and will continue to love each other dearly, damaging to the sanctity of marriage?   Our good friends, two women, are about to embark on the process of adopting a child.  Domestically they can adopt as a couple but they are looking at nearly 4 years of red tape.  Internationally, they have to pretend to be single, because the rest of the world doesn’t think a child should have two mothers.

In other news, my girlfriend in NYC and I are going to long distance train to run a half marathon together.  We’re going to start with a 5k and work our way up, but this is very exciting.  It will be nice to have someone to be held accountable to, but still have the independence of doing it alone.   I’ll update as we go along.  As of now, starting Thursday.

Annnnd I’m off to do schoolwork.  Or something.

peace&love,

Ren

*(I am making this statistic up)

things that grind my gears

Pretend for a moment that I am Peter Griffin on the episode of Family Guy where he joins the news station as the ‘What Really Grinds My Gears’ guy.

You know what really grinds my gears?  People who do no work.  People who, in a graduate program, seem to think it is a-ok to continue to operate as though they were in an undergrad program or high school.  These are the people that are coming to class stoned, falling asleep and without having read a damn thing.   Falling asleep because you were too preoccupied doing Godknowswhat (obviously, not schoolwork) is inexcusable.  There are seven of us in class.

not actually me, obviously

We notice this.  So does the Prof.  Not reading?  It happens.  Once, maybe twice a semester.  But if it DOES happen you sit there quietly, not spew a bunch of words that make absolutely no sense in an attempt to save your sorry ass.  Oh, and the excessive weed?  Yeah, we notice.  Very mature.

The workload is manageable.  You opting to do other things than work is not my responsibility, not now or ever.  And guy with the learning disability, same goes with you.  We understand you learn differently, but this does not excuse you from work or abstain you from responsibility from irrelevant, annoying things you say.

This has been this weeks episode of Things That Really Grind My Gears.

In other news, I’ve lost yet another memory key.  This one with all the work I’ve done since starting grad school.

peace&love,

Ren

motivation station, please

Isn’t it sort of crazy how your best intentions go astray?   I’ve determined that my issue is not lack of time; rather, it is lack of structured time.  One downside to only doing school is that I have so much time not spent committed to one thing – such as a job – that I tend to waste it.  So last night I decided to structure my time – getting up, working out, eating, showering, etc.   I was doing great this morning until…well, until I fell behind and have yet to make a real start on school work.  *fails*

The thing that I did accomplish though was realizing that I want to get to the point where I can consider myself a ‘runner’.   My sister runs a lot, and I have in the past, but it’s not anything that I have done recently.  Time and energy all stood soundly in my way, but it’s time to get past that.  I know it’s getting colder but I plan to try outside for a while until the snow hits.  Then I’ll go back to the workout videos inside.

Now, what was I saying about that heap of schoolwork?

peace&love,

Ren

life is too short

Tuesday morning, at 8:41am to be exact, a classmate of mine died in a tragic and horrific car accident.  She was returning from visiting her parents in Mass and was maybe 15 minutes from school when she allegedly swerved into the other lane and collided head on with an 18 wheeler. 

This accident detoured myself and others throughout the day; not once did we know it was her.  We knew by the time our evening class convened.  It became more of a group grief session than an actual academic forum; although, this was for the best.  The services are still being worked out. 

I was not as close to her as others were, but I did know her.  Just last week I had offered her my couch if she needed it (she commuted from the city to upstate once a week).  I was, am, and will continue to be shaken up by her death.  Someone my own age, on the route I take to class every day, taken from this world.  She was a wonderful friend to many, warm hearted, funny and our public schools have forever lost a great educator.  

Life is too short.  Tell the ones important to you that you love them, and give you parents (or children, or both) a hug. 

RIP, HSR.  <3

it really isn’t the destination that matters

When I decided to come on and finally write a new post here, I had no idea that it had been since May that I had written here.  Yeesh, people.  It’s a good thing no one’s life was hanging in the balance here or I’d have a guilty conscience.

In the vein of long absences, and my previous post longing for the community of academia again, let me just say that yet another cliche enters the fold: pain has no memory.  Ah, how quickly we forget that with great intelligence comes great arrogance.  The program is fantastic, without a doubt, but it would be nice to whip people into shape – preferably samurai style.

We made it to Americade this year and as promised it was filled with insanity.  I got to test ride a 2009 Harley Sportster 883, a Yamaha R6, and a Yamaha FZR6.  I learned that at this point in my life I am not a sportbike girl although with a few more years under my belt I can see how that would change.  The FZR6 was fun, but if I’m going for a crotch rocket I may as well go all out.  I did love the Sportster 883, as much as I tried not to.  It’s actually a bike that when I will seriously consider when the time comes to upgrade.  It was so comfortable, and I love how skinny the tank is.

Until I can upgrade, I’m loving the bike I have now.  I’ve only been able to ride it since the middle of June, and since that point I’ve put 500 miles on her.  She’s sexy and she handles insanely well.  I wish the pipes on my car were not louder than the pipes on my bike (I’m considering taking the baffles out/getting new mufflers), but all things considered I have no complaints.  Mr B and I have been riding them everywhere, especially when we have no destination.  This weekend the local bike shop is sponsoring a poker run and I think we might do that, even if I am terrified about riding in groups.  But like most things, I’ll be nervous until we do it, and then I’ll get over it.  Plus, $20 gets you entered, all the food you can eat, and awesome raffle prizes.

I had ordered a new netbook, one of those “adowable” (in the words of my dad) tiny things that can word process and browse the internet, Monday and it arrived yesterday!  It’s so ridiculously small and yes, cute, that I keep calling it my new toy  It’s destiny is to replace all the word processing and such I do on this computer (my 4+ year old iBook that randomly likes to crap the bed) and ensure that midway through this year I don’t up and lose my ability to do schoolwork.  The only thing that sucks is that I don’t get wireless in our apartment, and it doesn’t have a jack for the phone cord – because yes, we have dial up.  However I can get wireless all over town and on campus, can access the internet on this computer and really?  Is it such a bad thing to be blocked from any form of procrastination when working on a paper?  No, I did not think so.

I am hoping the rain doesn’t hit today so I can go for a ride, but then, wishing for no rain these days is a waste of wishes.  Le sigh.

peace&love,

Ren

grey hairs already, I dare say

On most days I like living where I live – the county, that is.  A county that the US Census Bureau defines as rural and I, as a resident, would tend to agree with.  We have large pieces of property, the noises of birds and frogs overpower traffic, and the sounds of sirens are so rare they are generally cause for discussion.  But the one, acute longing that I do feel is for the academic community I left behind in DC.

I don’t claim to be a great scholar.  I don’t claim to have taken near enough advantage of what DC had to offer.  I suppose, though, that those cliche sayings we all love to groan over exist for a reason because no, I didn’t miss it until it was gone.

Yesterday and today were spent in orientation for my Master in Arts of Teaching at a small liberal arts school in the Hudson Valley.  I am completely overwhelmed at the prospect of 63 credits in one year, make no mistake.  But I am also thrilled because once again, I am in a thriving academic community.  Never have I been so overwhelmed – on almost every level imaginable – at what this year is going to bring.

Of course, this is all dependent on Sallie Mae actually following through on their responsibilities and sending my loan information over.  Oh, it’s always something.

peace&love,

Ren