300th Post!

I just realized that. Go me.

However, it's been quite a while since i've updated anyone on anything, and i recognize the lack.

Brief rundown: daN and i have been actively looking for a condo in JP. Alas, it certainly takes some time, and though it is a buyer's market, it's been a buyer's market for so long that there is not much to buy. Sellers who don't HAVE to sell aren't. However, there are a couple places that would work for us; we're just waiting. Either the prices on them will drop, or something else will come along. That's THAT for now.

We've got up to Maine a few times for quick runs. Nothing terribly relaxing, but that's summer for ya. If you aren't taking the summer off, it manages to be pretty hectic. At least for us. We saw Matt and Kathy last weekend (woot!), and have been woefully neglectful of other friends lately. It's sad! Looking at condos certainly takes time. In addition, it takes us about an hour and 15 minutes to get to that neighborhood from here on public transit. By the time we get home, we don't have any time or chutzpah left to be social.

The good news is that Harry Potter is out, and even though daN and i are reading it to each other (which is SO enjoyable but takes longer) we are almost a third of the way through the book. "Why is that important?" one might ask. In a city where people are reading it while walking down the street and talking about it in public with their friends, the chances of hearing a spoiler by naive happenstance go through the roof. The sooner we finish it, the sooner we relief ourselves of the stresses of hearing a spoiler. That being said, we are both really enjoying this one. I have got to say that JK Rowling has really outdone herself on the pacing of this one. And so far, doing a great job of tying in old themes and characters.

What else? I am still loving my job. It's pretty darned great. In fact, they gave me a raise last month that I wasn't expecting at all! How nice! And helpful. Not to mention that it continues to be a warm and caring environment. And, being scientists, they're all very excited about my new thoughts for a future career... i'm still mulling it over, but I have been experiencing renewed interested (in the form of completely geeking out over the most recent articles in "Nature" magazine in front of my coworkers) in astronomy and particle physics lately, and it occurred to me as i was falling asleep the other night that i just might LOVE being a high school physics teacher. I love physics, i have an aptitude for it and did well in the class, took more of it in college just because i wanted to, and i love teaching.... and i would have summers off. I also sort of want to be a drivers' ed teacher, but that would certainly be on the side. And i could teach yoga after school or something. I don't know .. the idea has really excited me, because it seems like some kind of a missing link. I would certainly need some further education. More algebra, trig, and geometry (which were the math classes i LOVED)... i'm mulling it over, but i'm REALLY excited about it. Fascinatingly, it's even practical, a characteristic typically lacking in my job ideas.

That's all for now, folks. I am going for a walk before it gets too f**king hot to move.

A Post

Happy Fourth of July, everyone. Things are good. I am looking forward to a day off in the middle of the week to relax, and, perhaps, go to the beach. I think that sounds like a nice time :) Will i go to fireworks? No. See, they start at 10:30, and it takes about two hours to get home after the works end because of crowds. It's a bit much for me given that I have to work the following two days. But you know, i miss fireworks a lot.

In other news, I have an announcement that explains everything about my digestive system and why have I have chosen to eat the way I eat recently. I have IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome). It turns out that it isn't normal to have such painful and extreme reactions to certain kinds of food as I do, and I officially have to be careful about how I eat in general now, even at restaurants and other people's houses. Long story short, the more tired and worn out my intestines get, the sooner I am incontinent. That doesn't sound appealing to THIS 27 year old. The diagnosis was vindicating in many ways -- I'm not just making this up; it really does hurt for days whenever I eat wheat and dairy, and also when I eat too many tomatoes or peppers. It's all about balance. "Moderation," as I recall saying in my high school graduation speech. So there it is. One in five or six Americans has it, and it is expressed differently in everyone, including the major trigger foods. For example, I have a very averse reaction to wheat and dairy wh ile others are fine with those foods but can't eat fruit. This process has been an education. Moreover, it explains EVERYTHING! It's quite exciting to finally have a clue, and feels validating to be able to tell people solidly that I really do have to be careful about what I eat.

I have some kind of a bite under my right armpit that has been itching since Thursday evening. What's with that?

On a closing note, a hopeful tale for young Mainers in exile like me:

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One Student Does the Incredible: Gets Law Passed for State to Pay Off College Debts
http://www.alternet.org/story/55646