last day of school... for a long time!

Wow. Today is my last day of school. I can't believe how fast it went, and yet I'm so intellectually exhausted, I can't imagine it feeling longer. I'm off to my last class that will include cheese and wine, and then my last University of Chicago duty will be graduation a week from now. I'm so glad I did it, and only sort of glad its done. I can easily say it was my most challenging experience, and I've grown so much intellectually. I can also easily say the a PhD is not in my future (so near future at least) and that real employment will be fantastically appreciated. I'm so happy to have my master's at my age; now lets make a dent in those loans!

cat morning

here they are being so cute... this is basically how they spend their day. Lainey on the queen's pillow and Hank not far behind.

I am so wanting spring right now,

And I am so ready for travel...

but before these things I have to write write write to get my thesis done. ugh. 

some awesome things...

-I made an awesome split pea soup tonight. so yummy. 

-I was reminded of how aaron and I connected over ben harper.

-I sold my first ebay item and am on to the second!

-I found out I am not behind my cohort in thesis progress/ job search. In fact I'm ahead of some!

-I'm knitting so fast I had to take a week off so as not to spend too much on yarn.

my chair

This is my chair. I have been living in this chair. These past two weeks have been "I have to get back to work" weeks, and almost any spare moment has been in my chair trying to work. Often I am doing work, but if I had been as diligent as I had hoped I would, it would have been one week in this chair - not two. But tonight I turn in my last paper and finals will be done. I have to work on my thesis over break, and will return to this chair... but at least I'll take a few day break. 

So here I'll bee until most likely late in the night, but I'm sure I'll insert some procrastination in the form of a blog post. 

getting in the mood

I woke up to a white city this morning. There's nothing like the first Chicago snowfall. All is white. There is an erie quiet. For a short time everything looks clean, as it should be, and perfectly in its place. I can't wait to head down to Hyde Park this morning. It's going to be so beautiful I know it. Here is the view from my balcony. 

This weather gets me in the mood for the holidays. I'm happy that 

Finals are almost here, hence break is almost here

My mom comes in less than a week

I didn't get sick even though I had a sore throat 

I have Hank to keep me company

I found a great new clam chowder recipe. 

school

So I have just finished my second week of my Masters program at the University of Chicago. I am loving the school. The caliber of faculty, beauty of the buildings, and the rigor of thought has really inspired me. But the debates have thus far been very theoretical, and at times I like this, but at other time I wish for a more applicable focus. I have a hard time choosing classes because that ones I wanted conflicted with each other, so I petitioned a faulty member to oversee a course that will allow be to begin research for my thesis. I was approved and am so happy to have the opportunity to have one-on-one instruction with a man who is an authority in the field, and to be able to get a head start on my thesis. It will put me months ahead of the others in my program.

I've met some really great people but have been struggling to make any real connections. I always have  a hard time making friends. But there are plenty of people to chat with in class so I can't complain. I'm happy to be there- and I just hope I work hard enough to make it all worth it. 

Last class with PC

This is Patrick Callahan. Today I had my last class with him. I took 'American Foreign Policy' with him during my junior and it put me on the path toward my career. The interactions of American foreign policy and the rest of the world was fascinating. Learning about the history of foreign policy through each president since Nixon showed me how the decisions of the past are still very much effecting us today and that there have been so many unintended results from those policies. Needless to say... I was hooked. I did an independent study with him in the spring and I just completed a course about the UN and world problems with him. He wrote my recommendation for graduate school.

I have to thank him for so much because without his teaching I may have had a very different path. So now is the time to sing his praises. He is always so funny and enjoyable in class. He facilitates great discussions that somehow always lead to insight. He's always able to bring the topic to a deeper theoretical level.

I always envisioned him as my secret advisor as I enter the IR field. He would be my brains when I had a question with no answer. And I can still contact him. But realistically this is the end of the road for us. I just wanted to introduce him as the person to whom I owe any professional success in the future. Thanks Callahan.

Brenda Diana Duff Frazier, 1938 Debutante of the Year, at home, 1966.

I can't work right now. I'm afraid that if I don't have a lot to do I'll be a lazy person. But I'm also afraid of always having so much to do. Work doesn't come natually to me. And I know it comes naturally to some.

I love this Diane Arbus photo - the title says it all.