change on the horizon

well, it finally happened. Lafayette College called. i actually had to listen to a voicemail last night because when he called I was on the phone with John Curtis who I have only talked to maybe twice since Katrina.

i called them back today to talk details, and i've been weighing my options since. i'll let you see what you think:

Current job

Lafayette job

work from home - wear whatever i want no commute (except into the next room) flexibility to run errands, do laundry, etc. lonely and lack of creative cynergy isolated (esp when Tim's not around) pay - same as current benefits - same as current professional development - not much if any maxing out my abilities at a distance mostly Blackboard support mostly support faculty larger school; Michigan name recognition

go in to an office - must look "professional" only 4 mile commute work normal 8:45 - 5 hours people to bounce ideas off of potential to meet new people, make community connections pay - slight increase benefits - .5% difference in retirement professional development - highly supported opportunities for building new skills and using more of my creativity than now more "academic" technology work with faculty, staff and students smaller, liberal arts; back to my roots

toenails red as skittles

not sure about the title of this post other than i just spent a few minutes of my work day giving myself a little pedicure. i've been noticing that because of this work at home thing i've been letting myself go a little. got to stop that.

it's been a long boring day. i know it's my fault since i do have lots of work that needs to get done, but i just couldn't bring myself to do much of it. i did get caught up with grading for that faculty training course i teach. that's another thing i've sorta let go. it's really hard when there are just two people. and the other issue is that i've been spending lots and lots of time with my Baker class. they're so needy. i just can't figure out why it's so hard to read something in a book and copy it to your computer. but they seem to be having a problem with it. i think maybe it's the attention to detail that they lack.

they offered me a contract to teach this same course two sections each term for winter. i'm not sure how i feel about that. i mean, don't get me wrong $6200 in 12 weeks sounds grand, but it's a hassle. so i have to make a decision what i want to do. i wish i had heard from lafayette to know if that's a go. if i knew, i might could make a better decision. but still i wait.

nothing very exciting to report. it rained all weekend. we did go buy a deep cleaner for the carpet. kelvin used it in the living room on sunday afternoon. it works nicely and the cleaning stuff smells great so that's a plus. i just wonder if the little spots will come back or if they're gone for good.

on another random note, i do love the cold weather. it makes hairy much more of a lovey. basically, she's cold and i'm warm so she endures sitting on me and sleeping near me in exchange for some additional warmth. she's just a user.

well, i think my friend Oprah is calling...

a nice new sticker

well, i didn't have to let loose any deamons on the heads of people at the car dealership who did my inspection. luckily they didn't have to order any parts to put the new sticker on. i guess now i can stop cursing their name. i was so looking forward to them saying 'well, it's been over 30 days, you're going to have to pay again'. At which point i had practiced a manouver to leap over the counter and unleash some of my "southern charms".

other than that lack of excitement this morning, nothing really going on. still working from home. still waiting to hear back from my interview. i knew it was going to be at least a couple of weeks so i'm not super anxious about it yet. i do however, keep thinking of things i wish i would have told them or answers i could have given. isn't that how it always works though?

well, back to the salt mines...

girl power!

I spent less than half an hour today doing some light mechanic work on my car. I felt so empowered. I had finally had enough of this tail light drama so I went to Auto Zone and ordered the part. It was delivered to their store about 24 hours later and I picked it up last night. Getting my hands a little dirty was so worth the $50 saved and the lack of hassle.

I'm not sure that's I've shared the tail light drama on here so some of you may not be informed. See, here in the lovely state of pennsylvania they require two different inspections: a general mechanical inspection and an emissions test. I took my car in mid-August for both of these. I paid them the $55 and they passed my 10 year old car on emissions but said to get the mechanical i would need to have my right rear tail light replaced. They said they could get one from a junkyard and it would be $140 with labor and everything. I said sure and had them order it, or so i thought. The suggested 3-5 days passed and no call so on day 8 i called them. Seems no one told the parts guy to order it so he assured me he would and would call when i came in.

So another 8-10 days pass and no call. So I call again and this time it was a 'oh, the junk yard didn't have it in when we called and we didn't know what you wanted to do.' What i wanted to do was go up there and stangle them, but instead I asked that they order the part new and give me a call when it was in. It was only a $10 difference so I was going to be flexible. My flexibility gave out last week when kelvin called for me and sure enough, no part.

This is when I took matters into my own hands literally.

So the word to all my female friends is to put it to the man next time and just do it yourself. It's a great way to waste a half hour. And i think i'm going to use the $50 saved for a really nice pair of shoes.

a fun weekend

Other than grading all day yesterday I had a fun weekend. Saturday Kelvin and I escaped to the mall for a few hours. I picked up some nice thing including a brown suit. Hopefully I won't have to wear that other than for maybe the presidential inauguration at Lafayette (am I wishful thinking?).

We drove down to Wilmington to meet up with friends for the evening. It was nice to dress up for a change. We ate at this place called Pharohs. I don't advise it if you're on a schedule. Then we went to this new cool club. I highly recommend it to anyone visiting the northern Delaware area. It's call Lux and it was very nice. I recommend the drink "Sunset on Normandy". I'm sure we'll be back there soon. Kelvin had called a few days before and spoke with one of the co-owners. She was super nice and hooked us up with a nice loungy corner for the evening. We did a little dancing, but mostly talking to the THIRTEEN of us that ended up there together. Kelvin and his entorage...

the morning after

This morning after I awoke from my light coma I watched a movie and just relaxed. It was such a long day yesterday, but I feel like it went well. I think it would be a great opportunity to move in a slightly different direction than I'm currently headed. I hope if they make an offer it's quite attractive so the decision will not be difficult.

The school, and especially the newly renovated library facility where I would work is amazing. They certainly don't cut many corners; everything is top of the line. I think I wouldn't be disappointed with a 21" studio flat screen connected to a G5 on my desk :)

One member of the search committee is going to be out of the office for two weeks (how's that for vacation and personal development time?) so disappointedly, I probably won't hear anything until mid to late October. Once they meet, they'll decide if the "need to bring in another candidate."

So again I sit and wait.

Good news

After weeks of bad news I finally got a breath of fresh air yesterday. Lafayette College called. I have an interview there on the 29th and 30th of this month. I guess it's going to be a busy couple of weeks.

I leave Sunday for Flint. We have our faculty development day next Wednesday. I'm trying to ignore the fact that I have four presentations to make that day. It is exciting to see everyone and meet a few of the faculty I've been working with but haven't met.

For the second time in two weeks I got a wicked migraine Monday night. Though not as bad it's been lingering on. I feel like my eyes might explode. I think it's going to be a long day...

storm work

Mom sent me a few photos of dad's new portable office and the mamoth truck they used to move it to Metarie this weekend. It's really good to know that dad still has a place to prop his feet up on a desk. I wonder if he's still able to get his after lunch nap in? Actually she said he was probably sleeping in there last night... Luckily they have a fouton.

guilt

i've discussed this with several people whose judgement and opinions i trust. with them i've come to the conclusion that these feelings we're having all boil down to guilt.

guilt for having left my former home for yankee country.
guilt that i care now but probably didn't before.
guilt that even though i care, i still do very little.

i've given some money to the red cross, and i bought a Walmart gift card to send to a friend to help her and her family. it doesn't feel like enough, but it's all i have to give for now.

the email i sent out this morning

I don't usually send out email like this, but the past week and a half has been nothing usual.

As most of you know, I am from Louisiana and my family still lives there. My parents who live in Baton Rouge had just a few trees down but no real damage from the storm. My brother who lives on the Northshore of Lake Ponchartrain also fared okay. Most of the siding is gone off their brand new home, but they're all safe.

My dad works for the electric utility company there and has been working 18-20 hour days making sure restoration crews have meals and at least a cot to get a little sleep. While schools and universities have been closed my sister has gone up to their church to play with children and help the 80-90 people who are staying there for the week.

While my family's lives are okay, many of my friends and former students are living with friends and family in other cities throughout the state as they can not return to their homes in New Orleans.

This morning I've been online getting information for my dad who is trying to help arrange a way to get a 13 year-old boy to San Antonio. He was separated from his mom during the evacuation, and they located her at a shelter in San Antonio. I can't even imaging how frightening it would be for anyone, much less a child.

I say all this to encourage you to help in any way you can. I know on campus there is a collection going on today for the Red Cross, and if you feel compelled, please give. There are many other organizations accepting donations so I encourage you to find the way that feels right to you, and give what you can no matter how great or small.

We think of tragedy like this striking people who are very far away, but this feels very personal to me.

a long, tearful week

i realize i haven't posted in several days. mostly becuase i couldn't find words. i've gone through the whole gambut of emotions: fear as the storm went through, relief when i talked to cara who was lounging in bed watching the rain, panic as we didn't hear from my brother for several days, sadness to watch my fellow statesmen with nothing but their life, anger listening to the blame game from ivory towers when people are still hurting and lost. i don't think i've ever cried so much watching the news. i can't decide if i would be better off if i were closer. it's been tempting to load up the car and hit the road headed south.

but instead of heading south i just wait on instant messanger for any of my family to get online and talk to me. i can't tell you how many times i've listened to the operator tell me 'due to the hurricane in the area you are calling your call can not be completed'.

i've also tried to contact several of my friends and former students who i believe may have been effected. i've also scoured several message boards and websites just checking up on people. i'm so glad to hear from them or about them.

Katrina coming to visit

I talked to my sister this morning. They were laying awake in bed watching the storm come in. I'm so nervous about what's happening back home. I hope they come through alright. As you can imaging the cell phone service is busy so I'm not sure when I'll be able to talk to them again. Soon i hope; I worry until then.

When I talked to my brother they were going to Fallyn's parents house because they have a theatre room with no windows where they could at least be safe from flying glass. They live on the Northshore of New Orleans on Lake Ramsey. I just hope they're far enough away to stay safe.

I guess we'll just watch and wait. I'm sure dad will put in plenty of overtime in the coming weeks.

Not sure if anyone reads my blog, but this is one I've been keeping up and refreshed as this begins: http://www.nola.com/weblogs/nola/

a Tide-al wave

What an eventful evening. Instead of going upstairs and working like I should have, Kelvin and I popped in our second Netflix: Million Dollar Baby. It was the first few minutes of the movie and i was having a hard time focusing. All of a sudden this loud explosion sound came from the laundry room. I jumped up only to realize the huge bottle of Tide that I had used for the first time to wash this load had wiggled off the washing machine in it's final spin cycle. It's not just a regular bottle, it's the he Tide from sams that does 150 loads or something crazy like that. It fell on the top and the lid shattered and a font of blue slimy liquid was gushing all over the laundry room floor.

Kelvin went up and got a handful of towels and I began cleaning up the mess... Boy we have some clean towels this week.

Cheeseburgers in Paradise

Last night I was able to finally experience a Jimmy Buffet concert live and in person. It was such an experience... I think if I ever have a third opportunity to go, I'd even enjoy just doing the tail-gating that happens pre-concert. What a fun party. Kelvin says it's such a white-person thing... wear grass skirts and crazy costumes, drink beer, eat crap, bring pools with sand or water... you probably get the picture.

Kelvin and I are going to run some errands today since he took the day off. We're in search of a book shelf for the office that will hold all our written treasures. Seems with me not having an office we have way more crap in here. Other than that, no real weekend plans. Maybe a movie or dinner out... we're so wild and crazy.

in search of a purple shirt

good thing i got an early start on work this morning seeing as how i took a two hour "lunch" to get a USB hub and ended up searching all over for a purple dress shirt for kelvin. he's finally decided that purple might be nice, and it would go especially well with the pants and tie i bought him this weekend so i hate to not look. it's just hard to find a 18.5 neck that has 36-37 inch sleeves.

i always seem to have issues with clothing makers. when will they realize that not all of us who have large chests also have ass for days? and in kelvin's case, why do they think all men who have thick necks also have short stubby arms? we also have these issues with shoes, but i'll not get into that right now. i just hate it for any offspring we may bring into this world... they're screwed!

I talk too much and say too little

I think too much; it gets me in trouble.

I know those aren't the actual lyrics for you Better than Ezra fans, but I think the last line is more appropriate for me. I do feel a little like I have nothing profound to say; but some of you have been harassing me about not writing so here goes...

This working from home is getting better I guess. I feel much more productive if I sit in the office upstairs, but I still feel guilty that I haven't really produced as much tangible product as I usually do in the office. Hopefully that is about to change. I'm working on this Captivate course that feels like has taken me forever. I finally have a pressing deadline so I think I'll be done next week; I hope so cause I'm ready to move on to some other things that excite me more.

I must say there are some drawbacks to working from home. Yesterday the cat barfed her breakfast up on the table so I had to clean that up; that would never happen in a real office.

I did have a good time with my sister here last week. She left on Monday and she never had a bunny spotting the whole time she was here. That's why the photo of the bunny. I hope we didn't bore her; but I'm afraid we did. Her being here made me realize how old kelvin and I act. We really don't lead exciting lives anymore; not that I ever did really. Hopefully we'll find some connections soon and have some stories to tell. While she was here we (should I say her because I simply assisted) added a third coat to the red in the laundry and kitchen. I love it. You can see updated photos here.

Still no word form the new LC. I was hoping that by sending my interview suit to my seamstress mother they would call in an ironic turn of events and I would have to wear my old suit. But alas, no call. I do know that one of my three references just got information in to them this week so maybe that is all they were waiting on. I can be optimistic right?

I began to panic yesterday morning about money. I guess I finally realize we are going to have to pay for this wonderful house we're living in. Tough to grow up huh? Anyway, I know we'll be fine financially, but something flipped my panic button and I've begun to obsess about ways to save money and make more money. As a matter of fact, I know kelvin wants to go out to dinner tonight and to lunch and a movie tomorrow, but I've been thinking of things I could cook tonight instead so we can save that money just in case. It's okay to be frugal right? Or am I going crazy?

In other household news, the green bell peppers are growing. Ironic that neither of us like bell peppers and yet it's the only vegetable growing in our yard. I guess the people before us like them. I think if the rabbits don't eat them I'll at least try them just to say I've eaten something grown in our yard. I just wish it was yellow squash or something I might appreciate more. But it has been fun to watch them grow. It's amazing to see the daily changes in living things. I guess we don't realize the changes in one another as dramatically. Maybe if we did we could be more sensitive to the needs of others.

I guess I've gotten a little philosophical being at home alone all day. I think it's helped to slow down and examine things from a different perspective. If I come to any real dramatic realizations I'll be sure to share those.

one of those bloggers i hate

I'm becoming that. That blogger who drives me crazy because they don't post for a couple of days and then when they do it's stupid. eek. I don't want to be that...

They finally got the Internet working consistently on Saturday. I worked a full day yesterday here in my home office. It was quite nice. I had a helper too.

She's so funny. We had a storm come through and last a while. She finally gave up on watching the rain fall and she crashed. We have bunnies and some sort of prairie dog looking animal who come visit her at the back porch. I really think one day she may break through the sliding glass door.

Our other excitment yesterday was getting PA insurance and plates for the cars. Today we're going to attempt the DMV; I'm sure that will lend itself to some great stories.

I guess I should attempt to get caught up with work since I'm not two weeks behind because of the move and the lack of Internet that actually worked. (Can you tell i'm a little bitter?)

Frazzled week

It's been one of those weeks where I want to get in bed and wake up next week. I think some times I underestimate what can really be done in a set timeframe. Of course, the most frustrating part of the week has been the Internet connection. First it was our frying of the wireless router. That was replaced and now the cable signal comes and goes throughout the day. It works first thing in the morning so I am attempting to get as much done between 5:30 and 9 am before it decides to crap out. Yesterday afternoon I worked on getting the office put together so I could get work done. If it doesn't work this afternoon I'll work on the Captivate course. I'd like to finish the course by the end of next week so it's off my plate.

I've had some exciting things on the job front. I got a call on Monday from a school we'll call NJ2. I did a phone interview with them the same afternoon. It was a great conversation and it was equally as sad to pull my name out of their search. The school is about 80 miles from here and while the 55K salary was tempting, I just don't think I can do that commute every day.

Yesterday I went on a face-to-face interview with NJ1. I think they would be really great to work for. They have a great program and the boss seems exceptional. They do lots of pilots, and I think they have lots of room for creativity. I worry about the commute there too. It's not that it's a bad drive, I just hate for kelvin and I both to drive to NJ everyday.

The best news (in my opinion) is from Lafayette. I got email from the boss there, we talked by phone Monday, and I am going to campus this afternoon to "talk" to him. I can't really decide if this is an interview or what exactly. I mean obviously he wants to meet me to check me out. He said on the phone that the committee was impressed with what they saw. I might feel differently later, but for now, I think this is my best option. The location is great, the fact that I would get to work with faculty, staff and students is exciting to me, and of course the idea that they have two classrooms of Mac's is always a plus.

So say a prayer if you think about it. I just don't think this work from home thing is going to work for me for the long term.

In other news, the house is still coming along. I don't have much time to work on things during the day, but I've tried to do a little each evening. Hopefully I'll get more done this weekend.

Settling in

it's only been a few days but i feel like we're beginning to settle in a bit. we've cooked three meals here now so i think in some weird way that equates settling. i've posted some pictures of the house it's not perfect by any means but it's coming along.

today we fixed breakfast and sat for a while watching tv. i unpacked two or three more boxes and put some things away. then we left here in the big Penske truck to run errands. (let me plug Penske right now... they're great. the truck was relatively new and their rates are so much better than the other rental places; we got discounts for reserving online and for AAA. we had the truck from wednesday to sunday which is much longer than the others too. So what i'm saying is, rent penske if you need a big truck.-- enough of the shameless plug.)

So we ran errands in the big truck. We headed out and went to U-haul to return the six dozen furniture pads we rented for the move. We left there and went to Lowe's. I bought the parts to put up wire shelving in the laundry room. They make charcoal shelves now supposedly for the garage, but i'm all about matching and since the washer and dryer are black i went with the super duty shelves. I'll tackle that project maybe on my lunch break tomorrow. We also picked up a super cool water sprinkler. It has this track thing where you can create a water pattern so it only waters where you want it to as it goes around. It's hard to explain, but it's super cool. We also picked up a sprayer for the hose. It's going to be a challenge to keep this yard as beautiful as it is so we are trying to gather the tools to keep it looking good.

After Lowes we went to Wal-mart. I must say it's nice to be back in a place where wal-mart isn't a bad word. We bought an outside trash can and got a discount because they didn't have the lid. We also bought a weed eater and some other miscellaneous stuff we needed but forgot yesterday when we were there.

After depositing the purchases at the house we took the truck back. i think kelvin was a little sad; he had become attached to driving it, and he did a great job.

Of course at this point in the day it was about 3 and our orange danish and sausage was long gone. Kelvin grilled up steaks and i fixed sliced potatoes with Tony's. It was a yummy meal, and luckily we didn't run out of propane.

i have lots to do tomorrow for work. it'll be my first official day on the job as a telecommuter. We'll see how that goes.

on the road

it was about 53 degress outside when we woke up this morning. i just hope the coolness holds on sans rain so we can get packed up. kelvin and i have been up an hour or so finishing up packing. taking the bed apart and such as that. we hope to be on the road as soon as Red's crew gets us loaded and i vacuum and wipe down the bathrooms. just trying to get that deposit back from the rental office.

i can't believe today is here. if all goes well we'll rest our heads in Easton tonight and in our new house tomorrow night. i can't wait.

if anyone reads this and is bored tonight, give me a call on the cell; i'll be on the road. just think about braut and hairy in the car for 10 hours. call for my sanity.