Five Things This Week

I used to  be a spelling bee champ. A Quiz Out master.
What happened to me?

1. Remembering how to be a student. I was always a model student, from kindergarten through undergraduate; you could maybe say I was a professional student, but instead of being paid with money my hard work was rewarded by warm and fuzzy feelings of being smarter than you. But it's been almost a decade since I received my BA, and now in my second week of my graduate program I'm realizing that I've forgotten all of my mad school skillz. My first time through college, I was so paranoid about missing deadlines that I would pull all-nighters three nights before a paper was due, even though I had the outline done, all my resources fetched, and plenty of free time every upcoming afternoon.

Now I've, gasp, found myself doing things at the last minute, not because of procrastination but because I don't remember what the phrase time management means.  I feel mentally challenged by just trying to keep track of reading assignments. (I'll let you know how I feel about the actual reading when I finally get around to doing it.) Additionally my handwriting has degenerated into that of a howler monkey, and the function of a two-pocket folder now baffles me. Why are there two pockets? What goes on the left side, and what goes on the right side?  

2. Being Thankful. Three months ago, my husband was literally dying, but now he's living (Thanks, modern medicine!) and has found a job (Thanks, Marcia!) as an assistant teacher. He's grumbling, though, because it has been a long time since he's had to deal with the daily grind. For the past several years we've gotten by on part-time freelance work (Thanks, simple living!), and now he makes about the same amount of money working 40+ hours a week in a school as he did working part-time from home. (Thanks, non-union, corporatized charter schools!) Additionally, I've been offered a full-time job from the company for whom I've freelanced for three years (Thanks, my obsessive, awe-inspiring attention to detail!), and they are allowing me to work from home to accommodate my school schedule. (Thanks, telecommunication innovation!)

3. The Justice System. We all know that Drew Peterson is a Class A creep-o and murderer, but I'm a little worried that the state of Illinois finds it perfectly acceptable to convict someone based on gossip.

4. Feeling Good About Myself. I liked Plus Model Magazine's Facebook page, and every day they inundate my feed with images of gorgeous women of all shapes and sizes, and it has done wonders for my self-esteem. Also noteworthy pages to like: Healthy is the New Skinny, Operation Beautiful and My Body Gallery. Women can be sexy no matter what their size, no matter what their imperfections (or even because of them). I think most men and women would agree with this statement, but misrepresentative media has made us all forget.

5. Returning to Form. Have you heard the new Dirty Projectors album?