I'm ALiVe...

Hey there -- just a note to my friends to let you know that i'm still alive and almost on the other end of my crazy time. I'm on call for work this weekend, and the big meeting that i mentioned in the last post is almost here -- tomorrow and the day after. I've been working 12+ hour days at work the last week (and don't forget the hour commute on either end), and I'll be working from 7am - 9pm the next two days. But it will all be worth it. This meeting is very exciting, and I'm proud to be a part of it, and I'm glad that it's about to happen. I'm exhausted! It takes a lot of time to plan meetings. I designed the programs, worked with a printer to get them done, tracked the speakers' itineraries and made hotel rooms and other travel arrangements along with itineraries for them, kept track of registration and waitlist manually, printed name badges for all of the attendees, poster presenters, and speakers...Oy vey.

Also, i had a WONDERFUL time at Mum's wedding. The best part was watching Mum drive up the hill in a tractor to the pulpit made of corn stalks, pumpkins, and hay bales. It was AWESOME. Mum and Rick both teared up while she was singing to him during the ceremony. It was a lovely wedding. Someday I'll have pictures of it available on my online photo album.

Last weekend, i had a blast with Patty, Kat, and Rebecca from the good old days of Hampshire College. Friday night, we rented a room at Do Re Mi Karaoke in Allston, and it was SO MUCH FUN. They have a great selection of songs to choose from -- and TONs of them. It's BYOB, and costs about as much as an evening of bowling would. I had a blast. The following day, we drove out to Northampton and Amherst to wander around Hampshire College reminiscing and play with the goats and drink fresh pressed apple cider. Revisiting Northampton's wonderful independent shops was also a lot of fun, and so was going to our favorite Japanese restaurant. Mmm.

The weekends were marred only by the fact that i hadn't been home in a while and officially ran myself ragged -- i got a full blown sinus infection sometime after getting back from Monhegan around October 2, and I suffered through it until i finally got some antibiotics a week and a half ago. Within 48 hours of going on them, i felt much better. It was my first time on antibiotics in three years (since my sinus surgery) and that's certainly a record for me.

It was funny -- I called my doctor's office from work and told them that I wanted my doctor to call me so I could talk to her about my sinus infection when she had a chance. The receptionist said, "she'll probably want you to come in -- they don't really like to prescribe things over the phone anymore. Do you want me to set up an appointment with you?"

"No," I said, "please have her call me back first."

"Alriiight," she responded, as if to say, "suit yourself."

She called me back about an hour later. "The doctor wants to know if amoxicillin is alright."

HA! That's right! Because you look back at my medical history, and 90% of it is sinus infections. I know it when i have it.

Anyway, that's all to say that this month has been really good but hard, made harder by being really sick for more than half of it, and made harder by the fact that I can't stand how dirty the bathroom is, etc. I have had a lot of fun, but I have also been really sick and am just starting to feel "normal" again. But I wouldn't have traded any of it for the world. How often do I get to go to Monhegan, see my mum get married, and reunite with old roommates at Hampshire Homecoming? So they all happened on the same month. Oh well. Oh yeah -- somewhere in there, i got a deep tissue massage because i really needed it.

Yesterday, I had the day off and was home for the first time in over a month, and i realized i had forgotten how to relax. That was troubling. It didn't take me long to figure it out again, though :)

Sorry this post is so scattered. There's been so much good stuff that i can't possibly contain all of it. The point is, i miss you guys and hope you're doing well. And pretty soon, i might even be able to see you.