What a Difference a Week Makes

I was so stressed about everything earlier this week, but now that I've seen how my days are going to be, I'm fine! I have someplace to be every day, but often it's only for an hour or two, which leaves me plenty of time to study. I taught my first class yesterday and my students are adorable. Half of them are Freshmen and they all seemed interested in being in the class, especially when I told them that all they had to do was show up and do their assignments on time and they'd earn an A in the class. I think I'll take them some candy next week!

I'm loving working at the library, even when someone asks me a question I have no idea how to answer. It's a constant learning experience and when I actually do help a student find something they need, I'm thanked about a million times. One of my fellow TAs said that she's addicted to the adoration. I thought that was funny.

Just finished reading THIS BOOK
for one of my classes and I really enjoyed it. Add it to you list!

The electricity keeps cutting off while I'm writing this because this huge thunderstorm just hit. Better go put a diaper on Abby. Storms make her pee!


Here's something I didn't know, but I'm going to check my tires in the morning:
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=4826897

It's Already Piling Up

I woke up this morning at 5:30 completely saturated with anxiety, so I got out of bed and did my laundry. You know you're old when you meet the youngsters coming home from partying while you're carrying a basket of dirty underwear to the laundry room.

The last two weeks I've been in training for working the reference desk at the MU library and for teaching my classes. Oh my God I have never been so overwhelmed and I'm also taking three graduate classes, all reading/writing-intensive, and I have three meetings each week, and when am I going to find time to take a shower and change Abby's diaper?

I just finished THIS BOOK, which is the last for-pleasure-only book I'll be reading until Christmas break, and what a novel to go out on. It was the most torturous novel I think I've ever read, written in English, and I felt a little sick the entire time I was reading it. Fortunately, I'm taking a Readers' Advisory class and we get to choose our genre and I'm going to read "multi-cultural" literature, I think that's what it's called, and I'm hoping I'll find it interesting. I'm also taking a children's lit class, which is not my field of interest, but I thought it would be helpful to take in case I end up working in a public library. So, I'll keep you posted on my readings if they're worth discussing. For my History of Books and Printing class, we're reading THIS ONE
which is interesting and worth taking a look at if you're in love with books.

So, all I have to write about is school right now and I really need to get back to my assignments. Classes begin Monday and I already have a paper due next Friday but hopefully I can squeeze in a shower sometime this weekend!

Where to Begin...

I can't begin to write all the details of the past few weeks, but I had a great time while I was in Arkansas for two weeks. We celebrated my birthday and I got some great time with Reece, both brothers, and my mom. Emily came home with me for a few days, too, and that was wonderful as well. Here are pics of Emily and Reece, but I have a lot more over on Flickr, including a good one of Grandmother Bera, so go take a look and I'll be back to post more thoroughly when my brain is less fried.

Here's Emily in Columbia:



This is such a good one of Reece and Don's cat, Muki: