Cooler than You: Stupid Things I Say and Do

These days I've been thinking a lot about what has transpired in the past year. Last year this time I was fretting away the days until a defense, battling severe anemia, and then there was that pesky surgery on the horizon. Don't forget I was staring the prospect of unemployment in its ugly face. Funny how much things have changed, and it is also funny at how they haven't come that far from where they were. Last month I realized that I hadn't gone out much in almost two years. That was when things started, well I should reword that. That was when the health started to go sour. I didn't feel like explaining so I let that conversation make me sound like more of a loner and nerd than I really am. I defended just fine, had the bloody surgery four days later (yes, a bad pun I know), and things went awry. What I let people know is that there was an unplanned blood transfusion, which coincidentally gave me my bat wings. And seriously, for those of you that are ap...

Well I did my first 5K of the season yesterday. It was for the Lupus Foundation of Virginia, and since it's only been going about two years it was a small crew. I wanted to come in under 35, and I came in at 34.4. Nice indeed. Only bad part . . . it rained for the first part of the run.

Somewhere in here I might have forgotten to say that I'm running a 5K on 22 November. It's for the Arthritis Foundation, and this run is the Richmond, VA leg of the Jingle Bell Run. It's gonna be cold, I know. Probably not a keen mix for a Lupus girl, one with Raynaud's and Fibromyalgia, but it's all good. Arthritis goes with Lupus, you should be able to figure out why I know, so this one means something more than just making me get out the door everyday. I also have the obligatory obnoxious running hat and gloves. You know . . . goofy colors so that when you are chugging along the side of the roadway no one can miss you. See, here's proof I'm full force into the running train game again: https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=278027&supid=238035162 I'll have my 30 minute time back by then. Trust me. Those that have experience with me and the running know. . . been doing it for years. While I'm not stealer, I am funn...

Istanbul was a lot of things, and good was certainly one. Drunk another. I’ve decided that I drink best internationally, and I’ve come to realize that being sick for far too long kept me form getting my drink on. Hmmmm. Anywho. Those that know me know that I fell in love with Turkey the first time I went, and this time was really hard coming back to the states. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve got a great gig at ODU, but Turkey is Turkey and Istanbul is Istanbul. There is something about walking along the Bosporus, drinking too much white wine, and knowing that you are thousands of miles away from where you began. Yet, this time things got a little crazy. If I ever get my laptop fixed (another story for another day), I’ll upload the delightful pics I took. Though, right now there are horrid photos of me at the conference. That is one of the many reasons why people aren’t allowed to take pictures of me. That and I don’t really care to have shots of me giving papers. I always look tri...

I haven't posted much lately because I've been busy with the new semester and finishing the first book. In the next few weeks I'll be sure to post loads of stuff, but this is what I got a draft of today . . . And yes, folks, we are all about the self promotion. Buy our book. Expand your mind. Bring us enough royalties to buy a cup of coffee. Oh, I might be biased because my name is on here, and I took the cover photo, but I think it looks absolutely gorgeous !

Leaving Long Island was a lot of things. Though, being an upstanding citizen and all, I did flip it off as I crossed the Throgs Neck Bridge. Yes, I did. Mature, I know. For those of you who got my messages all day . . . laugh. I did. The point of this . . . I am now at my end point, for the time being. And no, I am not happy about the state of my life and career at this point in time. Rooting through things, unpacking, freaking out because I have no job, and becoming even more depressed to learn that adjunct jobs are slim to none has left me far far too uncomfortable. So . . . I rummaged through the vinyl in my parent's house to find my old Willie Nelson Stardust album. Humph. First, I opened the closet door and what did I find? No, not a literal skeleton. But, I did find a metal cane propped next to a .22 rifle. I was even a bit dismayed to learn that it was a "real" one and not an air. Now seriously, is this set-up meant to be easy access for the upwardly a...

So I spent the day helping a friend submit his dissertation to the graduate school, and let's just say I was soooo very happy to know that three formatting notes were changed since I submitted the first week of April. Humph. A notice on the website would be have been nice. Oh well. All done. He now has his SBU tie, like I have my SBU scarf. Now . . .I finalize my book manuscript. Three weeks to deadline. But, look what came in today . . . I heart my purple glasses. I do not heart manuscript submission. I am tired, and I will party like it is 1999 when all is complete.