Lothlorien

I remember writing this "just as..." blog post two years ago, when I was taking a class on Tolkien, and I noticed that the sun always comes out for his characters right when things get really tough for them.  I also remember talking to Dad about it.  He thought it was really hilarious that I had agreed to spend an entire semester reading about hobbits, dwarves, elves, and ents.

Yesterday, after what seems like 6? 8? 10? 30? weeks of walking to Mordor, the sun came out for me.  I long ago set this day aside as my "day off" before I began working on paper #3, but if I could have planned exactly how the day would go, I couldn't have imagined it this good.

It started Tuesday evening, actually, when my program director emailed the announcement that I had won the "Kinnaird Prize" for the best master's student paper written in 2010.  (Remember when I did my research at the Library of Congress?  Or gave my talk at the conference in the fall?  It was that paper, on Harriet Beecher Stowe's Dred.)  I didn't win in the PhD category, but my friend Katie did, so that was icing on the cake.  I couldn't help thinking to myself (and, okay, to a few others), Not a bad showing from the girls from the waitlist.  It should be a rule that every time you get an award, you get to share it with a good friend you have always believed in, even when other people weren't quite sure about the both of you.

Yesterday itself began with sleeping in.  Then I drove to campus in the sunshine, with the windows down and the sunroof open, for our Graduate English Organization's end of semester lunch and award ceremony.  I got to chat with several professors and classmates that I haven't seen much this semester.  Trying to figure out if people were congratulating me on the baby, the essay prize, or both was not a bad way to start the lunch.

We had selected one of my favorite professors, Tita, for the "Outstanding Mentor" award, and since I was one of the ones who nominated her, our president asked me if I would collect some comments about her and present her with the award.  I get really emotional doing things like this, but I managed to (almost) hold it together while I read through them.  Tita has been such a source of encouragement and compassion for me this year that I was really touched to be able to tell her how great she was and read the comments others had shared.  She was completely shocked and honored by the award, and all she could say to me for about 10 minutes afterward was "thank you" and "I can't believe you didn't warn me!"  Tita is one of those women who is so brilliant, kind, generous, and humble that she almost seems too good to be true.  To get to be a part of showing her the department's appreciation for her tireless support of our students really made my day.  It should also be a rule that every time you win an award, you are allowed to present one to someone else that will mean a lot to them.  That was way better than just getting an accolade to add to my C.V.

Then I came home and tried to clean up some of the mess I've been making the past several weeks before Billy got home from work.  Then he, Vickie, my friend Danielle, and I went to the Orioles game-- my first of the season.  I haven't seen Danielle in far too long, the weather was perfect, and once I've been to a baseball stadium the summer feels like it can officially begin.

Thanks are in order for my cousin Jeff, the current assistant general manager for the Mariners, who left us the tickets for the game since his team was in town.  We got to see their Cy Young winning pitcher Felix Hernandez (Vickie and Billy knew this-- I did not), who I assume has had better nights.  But the best part for me was that Adam Jones went 4 for 4 and hit a two RBI triple that put the O's up 4-2-- the same Adam Jones the Mariners practically gave away in a 2008 trade to the Orioles for Eric Bedard (before my cousin had anything to do with their front office decisions).  To him it probably felt like winning a best paper award after getting put on the waitlist felt for me.  The Orioles' starting pitcher, Chris Tillman, was also one of the minor league prospects the O's picked up in that trade.

I told you it was a good day.  Extra sleep + sunshine + award receiving + award giving + seeing friends + baseball stadium + 3 of my favorite Marylanders + minor redemptions = one of the best days.

(I don't know how to explain Lothlorien without completely nerding out on you, but basically, it's a really nice and restorative place in the forest.  The members of the Fellowship find themselves welcomed there after they think Gandalf has died protecting them in the escape from Moria .  It stands against the evil forces in Middle Earth, kind of exists outside of time, and has really nice trees and singing.)