A Separate Peace

Vickie has returned to Valpo, but her week here was a nice respite from the stress of the semester. I had to go to campus a couple days and couldn't fall too far behind on my work, but I had gotten far enough ahead to be able to enjoy her visit without stressing too much about taking some time off.

She arrived with a birthday gift for Oscar: the Snuggie for dogs. His expression aptly represents his feelings about it. He might be able to answer the phone while wearing this Snuggie, but it kept his legs from bending in the fashion necessary for jumping up on the couch, so he was not a fan. He'd much rather lay on your legs underneath a conventional blanket. He didn't seem to hold it against Vickie, however, and he joined her in bed every morning after Billy and I got up.

We got to do some fun things while she was here. She and Billy came to watch my Thanksgiving 10k on Sunday, and I surprised myself by finishing only 10 seconds slower than my best 10k time, so that was exciting. I think Billy must have enjoyed having her along so he could discuss the different runners' fashions while waiting for me to show up at the finish line. We got dinner and drinks with friends in Federal Hill and celebrated a friend's birthday in Canton. What says "Baltimore" better than the Domino Sugars sign?

We went up to PA with Billy's family for Thanksgiving, and everyone got plenty of delicious food to eat. Vickie and I ate more than our fair share of the Paula Deen's Gooey Butter Cookies we had prepared to take. We managed to get in a little bit of shopping, and we went to see "The Blind Side" yesterday before she left. Oscar enjoyed plenty of extra attention while she was here, which made me feel a little bit less guilty about the fact that he has spent much of the past 4 months sitting on my lap while I read. Although he did a fair amount of that with Vickie, as well.

Mostly, though, Vickie, Billy, and I sat around and joked with each other and laughed. Once in a while I need a reminder that if everything else fell away, I would still be fortunate for the people I have in my life and what a good time I have when we're together. This Thanksgiving, I'm thankful most of all that Vickie came to visit to remind me that this is a good life I have. I hope that she will be as fortunate as I have been in my post-graduation years. And I'm looking forward to the week at the end of December during which I'll get to see most of my family members without having to open a book once. (We all know I'll open at least one book. But I won't have to.)

But for now, it's back to Ranciere and the Politics of Aesthetics. After all, time and tide wait for no [wo]man, and there is a lot to do before Dec 17. At least now, the end is finally in sight!

(A Separate Peace by John Knowles is a classic coming-of-age tale about the relationship between two adolescent boys. It's kind of heartbreaking, actually, but I can't help reading it every couple of years.)