There are plenty of good reasons why I haven’t really cracked a book since Wednesday night:

Amy came to visit and we were busy having delightful conversations and being friends.

We attended chapel with Justin McRoberts and got to have lunch with him.

The Social Justice Chapter hosted Justin McRoberts in concert that night.

Esther and I needed to take some more personality tests.

I went to see “Amazing Grace” in the theater today. You should too.

I didn’t have much homework due Friday, so I finished everything Wednesday night.

I am tired.

I saw a robin yesterday,
Or was it the day before?
At any rate, I saw it
On my way back from the store.

I heard it twirt and chipper
I saw it light upon the stone.
I smelled the smell of melting snow
I felt warmth in my bones.

This winter came and went so fast,
(at least I think it’s going.)
Today I didn’t wear a coat,
Last week we joyed for snowing.

Four little puppies once did gather
The snow up in a pile
But I will watch this winter melt
And skip and sing and smile.

Imagine handling 1245 emails per semester within a Windows based web-mail system that didn’t work right on a Mac. I couldn’t search the email, I couldn’t keep an address book, and I couldn’t see if I had gotten any emails without typing in my username and password– no “remember me on this computer” for this one. No keyboard shortcuts, no graphical user interface, no message preview.

But all that has changed, many thanks to Nathan and the helpful, though busy and mac illiterate, computer services department of TCC. That was the triumph of the week. What superbly awesome thing is going to occur next?

I looked at the clock at 9:38, 10:38, 11:38, and 1:38. I think at 12:38 I was in the art lab, so… yeah.

Lori and I spent some good quality time together this weekend. We went to see the Southwest Symphony Orchestra. We made up half of the students who walked from the dorms to the chapel to pay five dollars to see this local orchestra perform. We also skipped some sleep to talk late into the night.

Other things I did this weekend: benefit coffeehouse shindig for the homeless; singing with gospel choir for the Multicultural Alumni Network; eating with them because not very many multicultural alumni came; finding out that Kim nee. Ritzema and I both had the same room our freshman years; making stew in my crockpot; going downtown with Sunday Snacks to hand out lunches, coats, socks, and blankets; doing homework.

Yes, indeed, 18 credits last semester, 32 test based credits from AP, CLEP, and the Spanish entrance exam, 10 dual-credit credits, one FYF credit and two interim credits means that I am a junior. And no, just in case you are wondering, I am not planning on graduating early.

It is very cold and I want to snuggle under the covers and sleep until noon, like I did on Saturday.

Like jasmine rice, black beans, alfalfa sprouts, fresh orange and ginger. The sprouts grown in a jar in my dorm. Good things like a conversation in Esther’s room, or in the van on the way home from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (another good thing, and my first chance to wear that seven dollar pea coat from Goodwill (another good thing)), or around the tables in the cafeteria. Good things like the gnome sitting in my spider plant, next to the aloe shoots shared by a friend. Like the complete works of Shakespeare, which will have all passed beneath my eyes by the end of the semester. Like a good beginning to this semester.