November 20, 2000

One year ago: my cats make a lot of noise and I learn some lessons about making phone calls to get information.

This is a picture of me and my grandmother a.k.a. Nan. I love my Nan. It was her birthday Saturday and she turned 79 I think. She's the bee's knees. We look a little bit alike, don't you think? So when last we spoke, I had attended a wedding. One of the things I forgot to mention about the wedding itself was that I saw two of my friends and former classmates who did not attend the reunion. Remember how I was kind of mad that they weren't going? Yeah, those guys. I walked up to one of them and said hello. We'll call him "Rob" because that's his name. Rob said hello back, and then told me he had been afraid to talk to me because he thought I would yell at him about not going to the reunion. Yell at him! I don't yell at people. Much. Anyway, I assured him that it was all water under the bridge, and that I had only wanted them to go because I wanted to see them. And now I was seeing them. Then, I was talking to my other friend and classmate, Steve, about the same issue. Anyway, the point is that everything seems to be cleared up between us all, and Steve has even e-mailed me since then, so I think the friendships have been repaired, if they were ever even broken. So that's good news.

This picture is of Jim and me, at Nan's house. Nan has this photo collection featuring each of her kids, and then pictures of their kids next to them. So there's my dad's high school graduation picture, and then my brother's picture to the left, and my picture to the right. Then, in the corner of each picture, she stuck a little picture of the significant other. And the picture she had of Jim was really old and funny. So she wanted a new one, and here it is. Although I think I look terrible, Nan wants a picture and a picture she shall get. That sweater makes my eyes look really blue, doesn't it?

So, if you couldn't figure it out, on Sunday Jim and I went out to visit Nan for a bit. Then we had lunch at my mom's house and headed out. On the way back, we stopped at Target, because we don't have one in Sryacuse, which is a crime. I had bought these postcards of my hometown from the early 1900s on Ebay, and there were four in total. I wanted a picture frame with four openings, and I knew they had nice ones at Target. So that was the purpose of the trip, and mission accomplished. Then we headed back to Syracuse.

Last week is kind of a blur. It all happened so fast. I had a lot of recapping to do, plus I did the website for Brenda's wedding. Then Mary saw how I did the one for Brenda's wedding and she wanted hers done the same way, so I've been working on that. Also, I've been fielding questions from my future students about textbooks and the like, and trying to get my syllabus together. It's all pretty freaky. I'm like the expert, and I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing. Oh well, I'll just make it up as I go along as usual. I figure after the first time, it'll all be much easier. If I do a decent job, and they want me to teach the same class again, it will be cake.

Plus, we got our first snow this weekend (and thus the picture). It didn't stay around long, but we're supposed to get more this week. I hope it doesn't ruin everyone's Thanksgiving travel plans! We are going to my parents' house on Wednesday night, and then going to this little cabin in the woods for Thanksgiving with my mom's family. It should be crowded, but with lots of good food. I love me some turkey and mashed potatoes.

This final picture is Mia, looking stunned as usual. Saturday, Jim and I went on a marathon cleaning spree of our apartment. I even scrubbed the ceiling in the bathroom which, due to poor ventilation, gets mold or mildew on it over time. Our apartment has never been so clean, at least not since we moved in. Jim was a godsend. I'm like the scrubber and scourer, and he's the neaten and straighten guy. I hate finding places to put things away, so I really appreciated his pitching in.

Why all the cleaning? Because Wing Chun and Glark were stopping in on Sunday! They are headed down to NYC for the week, and this is about halfway. They got here on Sunday, bearing Canadian candy. We hung out for a while, then went out to dinner. After our meal, we came back to our place and watched The Simpsons and Malcolm and then Jim and Glark played PS2 games while Wing and I chatted. This morning, Jim had to go to work, but Wing and Glark treated me to breakfast at IHOP. They have glazed pancakes that are a little slice of sugary heaven. Then they continued on their way. I hope they have a great week in NYC. What a great time to visit.