Wedding Season Begins!

This summer, everyone we know is getting married. On Saturday, we missed a wedding in Pennsylvania to attend the wedding of Billy's high school friend, Kevin, here in Maryland. The ceremony was nice, the reception was fun, the after-party in Federal Hill was entertaining. We got the chance to catch up with some friends we haven't seen in a while. And most importantly, the bride and groom seemed very happy!

Before we left, I managed to squeeze in a run and watch 17 year old American Melanie Oudin upset Jelena Jankovic in the third round at Wimbledon. I've never been a JJ fan, and it was fun to watch a young kid with a lot of determination stick with it and pull out the win of her life so far. I had to miss the other matches yesterday, but was glad to see that both Andys advanced with relatively little difficulty. Although there haven't been a lot of huge upsets, week one was full of exciting matches, and I am sure week two will not disappoint. Roddick is looking better than he has in years, and he's finally starting to get (what I believe is) proper recognition. Though he'll likely have to go through Andy Murray to get to the final, I am optimistic. I am excited to see how it all pans out. Oudin has a favorable matchup in the fourth round, so I will be cheering for her to make it to the quarters, but otherwise it looks like it will be a Williams vs. Williams final. I think Serena might have what it takes to beat Venus this year. The Legg Mason Tennis Classic, which takes place here in DC in August, just released its list of players. Billy and I are planning to get tickets to the quarterfinal and semifinal matches, so we should get to see a lot of great matches and some of the world's top players (including Andy!).

Today was middle Sunday, so the void left by Wimbledon's rest day was thankfully filled by the US vs. Brazil soccer match. I was sorry to see that they lost hold of their early lead, but it got me excited about World Cup qualifying and made me think there might be reason to watch the World Cup next year. I hope they will outlaw those terrible horns, though. I can't figure out why the fans blow them constantly throughout the game. Why not wait until a good play, or a goal is scored?

Work wise, the past week has been fairly uneventful. I work three more days this week before leaving for New York on Friday, and I'm really looking forward to our vacation. It will be fun to be a part of Erin and Brent's wedding, to take in Cooperstown with my dad, and to see old friends at Nick and Amber's wedding. Then Billy and I will be home to relax for what's left of our summer. Time moves so fast these days!!

Happy Father's Day!

I hope everyone was able to enjoy some fun time with their families this weekend! Yesterday we went up to Pop's to spend some time with Patti's side of the family. This was our first time seeing Cash since his six month birthday, and he is crawling now, so he is full of energy! He also likes to be held up so he can hop around. He is looking less and less like a baby and more and more like a toddler! Pop's recent round of treatments seem to be improving his health a bit, so hopefully the summer months will continue to bring an improvement in his condition. Today we had Brian, Patti, and Chuck over to the house for dinner, after which we were joined by NaNa, Mr. Dick, Nancy, and Tony. It is always fun to have the family over to our house, and it reminds me how fortunate Billy and I are to have such a nice home that can accommodate so many guests. I wish that we could have spent some time with the fathers on my side of the family, but I trust that you all enjoyed your days out west! I am looking forward to seeing my own Dad in a few weeks and taking in Cooperstown with both him and Billy. I always wanted to go there with my dad when I was a kid-- I think ever since I saw it on "A League of Their Own" and Ken Burns' baseball miniseries. To be able to enjoy it with my dad and my husband will be a special bonus.

I kicked off the morning with a 10k race here in town. My friend Danielle had been training to run it with me, but unfortunately she has been feeling unwell and didn't think she could complete the race. I was disappointed that she couldn't join me, but she still came along to cheer me along, and Billy was there as always. Erin came out to see me finish, so my fan club was complete! I was hoping to run it in under 60:00, and I finished in 57:01, which is a pace of about 9:10 per mile, so I was really pleased with my performance. I really enjoy running on my own, because it helps me clear my head and relieve stress, but it is also a lot of fun to be racing against other people. When there are people to keep pace with and chase down, I don't notice my own fatigue as much, and I am able to run much faster times. I have an 8k coming up in August, and the Army 10 miler in DC in October, so I am hoping to continue improving my race pace while cutting back on miles a bit now that the weather is heating up. It is harder to get runs in, especially long ones, when the only comfortable times to hit the road are the few hours after sunrise and before sunset.

It has been another busy week. Billy and I got rear ended when he was driving my car home from dropping his car off for service, so now I have to get my bumper replaced. It seems like there is no end to these fender bender incidents when one's life necessitates commuting in the DC metro area. We continued to settle into the new building at work, and are finally working out the "kinks" of the new arrangements, so I am hoping that it will start feeling familiar soon. I finished watching the film trilogy of The Lord of the Rings and feel that I can now hold my own in a conversation with anyone about the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Tonight while playing a game, I found myself irritated that the scrabble dictionary does not recognize "palantir" as a word, at which point I realized that it is probably best for me to take a break from nerd-land before I find myself playing World of Warcraft and visiting Renaissance Festivals (if any of my Tolkien friends are reading this, I adore you guys and acknowledge my own commensurate nerdiness, but you know this is true!!). This week I also watched Smart People (surely most English professors are NOT like this, right?), Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist ("We didn't miss it- this IS it"... loved it), and Gran Torino (who knew there were so many racial slurs with which I was not familiar? or that Clint Eastwood sings?). I'm also reading my way through "The Great War and Modern Memory." I've read parts of it before, but it's kind of required reading for someone who wants to specialize in Great War literature, so I'm revisiting it. I also had to write my C.V.-- ugh. The professors submit CVs that are upwards of 30 pages long and mine fits on one half page.

On a more somber note, a co-worker of Billy's who was one of the leaders of the James Webb Space Telescope project passed away this week. After discovering that he had a brain tumor, he underwent a high-risk surgical procedure in an attempt to remove it. After the surgery, he spent several days in ICU, but was ultimately unable to overcome the complications of the surgery. It has been humbling for me to think about it. I've often considered how terrible it must feel when an athlete suffers an injury and loses use of the body that has brought him success. It has always struck me how devastating it would be to know that at any moment, you could suffer an injury that would take away your livelihood as well as your ability to play the game you loved. I had never considered, however, that those of us who work with our minds could likewise lose our capacity to think properly in an instant. To realize that this man, who was determining the proper configuration for the set of mirrors that the telescope will use to look back in time, could suddenly find himself struggling to regain consciousness or hoping to regain the ability to speak is heartbreaking. I've always thought pursuing a career in academia was "safe" because no one could ever take my mind away from me, but I now realize how naive this thought was. I hope Billy's co-worker's friends and family members will find comfort in knowing that although his life was brief, he has contributed to projects that have and will continue to radically transform our understanding of the universe, while evidently also proving himself to be a good man and a sincere friend.

It leaves me wondering; what have I done so far with my own mental gifts? What is the extent of my responsibility to the world to devote my mind to serious pursuits rather than to reading People magazine? If I were to lose it all today, what would be my legacy? Have I loved people enough? Have I served humankind enough? How much do my academic pursuits really matter? I hope I will get the opportunity to see my plans through until the end, when I can instruct students at the college level, nurture their interest in literature, and encourage them to become the kinds of thinkers and high school teachers that this world desperately needs. I hope I will have the opportunity to be the kind of wife and mother who supports and encourages her husband and children in their own pursuits and contributions. But this man's death has reminded me that none of that is promised; I can't be so focused on what I hope to contribute in the future that I fail to contribute anything right now.

So I choose to continue to read. And to think. And to love. And to reflect. I feel fortunate to have found, so early in my life, so many of you who are committed to doing the same.

Weather Data!

Billy has added a new feature to the blog! He has his own weather station in the back yard that updates its information to the internet. The weather data in the gadget to the right is from the live readings in our back yard. Below is a picture of the weather station out back. The anemometer is mounted at the top of that pole for a more accurate wind reading, and the thermometer is inside that accordion-looking thing to prevent the sunshine from tampering with the reading. Above that is the rain gauge.


If you click on the temperature reading, it will take you to a website that shows the data in more detail, including graphs, previous readings, etc. If you're interested, you might also like to check out Billy's weather website at www.MarylandWx.com. Those of you living in the Baltimore/DC metro area might learn to live or die by his radar feature like I do.

Destination: Working Vacation

This past week has felt like the first real week of "summer." Billy and I are still working, but we've been able to enjoy the sunshine and more leisure-time activities than we have for several months. Monday and Tuesday I was off work while the movers transported all of our stuff into the new building. Monday I met Erin for lunch and we went to Alexandria to pick up my bridesmaid's dress for her wedding. It fits fine without need for alterations, so that was an exciting discovery! It is hard to believe her wedding is getting so close!

Wednesday it was back to work in the new building-- but not without a considerable number of "growing pains." I don't have my own desk in the new office, and on days when I am supposed to be working in the main reception area, there's not really a place for me to sit. I didn't say much, assuming we would figure this out as we settled into our new space, but several of my coworkers have been much more vocal about their displeasure about their new surroundings (This is not enough desk space! I look like a receptionist! My drawers got broken in the move! etc.). It's hard to hear people griping about such trivialities, especially considering the number of people out of work, but I'm trying to remind myself that if this job was my career rather than a means to an end, I might see things differently. I'm hoping that after some time passes people will learn to adjust and realize how much better off we are even though it is an adjustment.

On Thursday evening we met up with my friend Anne-Marie and her husband Jon at the Orioles game. Anne-Marie is in my graduate program, and we have had three classes together already, so it feels like we are old friends, but until this week we had not met one another's spouses. Even though the offensive slump the Orioles have been caught in continued, it was fun to get together outside the school environment, and I was glad to meet Anne-Marie's husband and prove to Billy that she is a real person and not just a figment of my imagination! : ) We were back at Oriole Park last night to watch them play the Braves with our friend Pat and a friend of his. It was a perfect night for baseball, and after losing an early lead, the Birds scored 6 runs in the 7th inning and ended up winning 8-4. Both nights we were seated right down on the field thanks to Jon and Pat's respective work tickets, and it was fun to have that perspective on the game. We were also in Baltimore on Friday night-- a cover band we like was playing a free outdoor concert, so we went to dinner before meeting up with Hernie and Crystal for the show. They are in the midst of planning their upcoming October wedding, so it was fun to hear about the progress they're making in that, and it was great people watching! In the complex where they had the outdoor show, there is also a live music venue that had some kind of indie show going on, and there are several dance/nightclubs, so it was quite an eclectic mix of people, fashion, and body art!

I have also enjoyed pursuing my academic interests at my own leisurely pace now that I'm not facing anyone else's deadlines. I am continuing to work my way through the film trilogy of The Lord of the Rings and have enjoyed analyzing the ways Peter Jackson chose to translate the mythology onto film. I wonder what it would be like to see the movies without having read the book-- there is so much missing and unexplained-- but I can see why Tolkien fans and "regular people" alike have responded positively to the films. (I don't know how you could watch them in the theater, though, not to mention back-to-back-- I can only stand about one hour at a time.) I never thought that in a million years I would like this story, so I am further surprised that I have actually developed respect for it as a work of fiction. I think it will always retain a little sentimental value for me because the text and the class represent the "fun" portion of a very rigorous academic semester, and without that little bit of fun, I might have lost my mind (not to mention my focus)

And, Nate says I'm the last remaining American tennis fan, so feel free to stop reading now, but... I have been suffering for the past week from the lack of tennis excitement that overwhelms me during the two weeks of each Grand Slam. Andy Roddick had a good showing in the Wimbledon tune-up tournament at the Queen's Club, but he had to retire in the first set of the semi-final against James Blake yesterday due to a foot/ankle injury. The good news is that he should only be sidelined for a few days, but the bad news is that he did not get a chance to test his skills against Andy Murray, who beat Blake easily in the final. Murray will certainly be exciting to watch at Wimbledon this year (can a Brit actually win it?!), but if Roddick could have beaten him or even played well against him it would have been a good sign. Oh well! Djokovic lost to Tommy Haas in the final of the other tournament, so as far as I'm concerned, his demise continues.

I also admit to succumbing and violating my boycott of Twitter when I found out that Andy Roddick uses it. So does his new wife (the swimsuit model), and much to my surprise, her updates indicate that she is actually kind of funny.

Moving Out!

This past week has been a busy week at work as we prepare to move out of our old, run-down building and into our brand new one. The English Dept has been in its current location for about 15 years, so that means fifteen years of garbage has piled up. My friend Katie and I were given the job of going around to all the desks in the building and emptying them out. They were supposed to be cleaned out before the professors and teaching assistants left, but in most cases, that did not happen. Among other things, we found shoes, hats, a Devo cassette, a George of the Jungle vhs, teabags, every norton anthology, mouse poop, loose pills, love letters, divorce papers, a hatchet, a hammer, pay stubs, and a bottle of scotch. And probably enough paper clips to stretch from here to the west coast.

On Friday, I distributed the trash cans to all the rooms in the new building, so I got a good feel for how nice it is. I think our whole program is going to have a much different feel now that we're in an up-to-date facility. The location of the building is also much more convenient; it eliminates the ten minute walk I used to make from the parking lot, and the building is directly adjacent to the library. I am not looking forward to the process of unpacking everything we've packed up in the past several weeks, but once we get settled in, it will be great to be in our new home.

I have also been watching as much of the French Open as I can fit in, and I was excited this morning when Roger Federer finally claimed the title which has eluded him. I wish Soderling had played more like he did when he beat Nadal, and would have liked to have seen a more competitive match, but it was fun to see Roger win all the same. I am hoping that Rafa Nadal's rumored knee injury doesn't keep him out of Wimbledon, as that title will be Federer's chance to surpass Pete Sampras's record for Grand Slam titles. A rematch between the two of them would be pretty exciting.

I also watched the first installment of the Lord of the Rings on film, and it was interesting to see how the story was handled in comparison to the book. I felt like it differed in quite a few ways, so it is kind of surprising to me that people who love the books so much also love the movies. I'm looking forward to seeing the next two installments to see how they compare, as well.

Billy and I went to a goodbye party on Friday evening for our friends Erin and Brent, who are moving to New York later this month. We are attending their wedding in July, but besides that, we are not sure when we will get to see them again, so getting together with them before they go is fun but also kind of bittersweet. Last night Billy and I went to see "The Hangover," which was pretty funny, and we don't go out to movies very often, so it was fun to do something a little different.

I don't have to work tomorrow or Tuesday (the movers will be transporting all of our stuff to the new building), so I am looking forward to spending some time reading and hopefully getting a little bit of sun. I also have to clear out the laundry room for the delivery of our new dryer after the heating element went up on ours last week. As my dad says, "The joys of home ownership!"

Blog Makeover

Hello again! Now that I'm on summer hiatus from my graduate classes, I am going to try to post a weekly update to my blog for those of you who followed my progress so closely as I was training for my race. Here's a brief recap of what I've been up to for the past few weeks!

I turned in my final seminar paper on Tuesday, May 19. The weeks leading up to it are a blur in my memory. As best I can remember, I spent nearly every waking moment working on three papers: one about the theoretical constructions of narration and description, one about Eowyn from The Lord of the Rings and her similarities to the British Women of WW1, and one about Willa Cather's composition of The Professor's House and the construction of its second section. I was very pleased with how all three of them turned out, and this semester really helped me to isolate my research interest: Women's writing about and after WW1. I find this subject area more and more interesting with every new text I read, which is nice affirmation that I'm on the right "life path." I'd be lying, though, if I didn't admit that I was also pleased to be finished with my semester of three seminars, one theory colloquium, and very little free time!

In the midst of my paper writing, I did manage to compete in a team marathon in Frederick, Maryland, with Billy's cousin Heather and two of her friends. (Those of you who attended the Oregon reception remember meeting Heather, who made the trip west.) I recorded a significant personal best for my 5 mile leg (46:26), and although the weather was bad, it was a great chance to stop thinking about J.R.R. Tolkien for a few hours. Here's a picture of me running toward the finish (even though it's just a proof).

I also got to take a break from writing for a day to attend the Bridal Shower and Bachelorette Party for my good friend, Erin. I am in her wedding on July 4, and she is moving back to New York after school gets out in June, so it was a great chance to spend some time with her before she leaves and to meet the rest of her friends and family. For the bachelorette party, we went to an outdoor wine festival, which was a lot of fun (and GREAT people watching!).

After I had a few days to decompress from my busy semester, Mom came to visit for Memorial Day weekend! This was her first trip back to Maryland since the wedding, so it was exciting to show her what we've done with the house. While she was here, we attended a Orioles/Nats game at the new Nationals Park, walked around campus in College Park, tried out Duckpin bowling, attended a Memorial Day BBQ with Billy's family, exercised on the trail where I do much of my distance training, and visited the Holocaust Museum in DC. It was great to have her here, and her visit really helped me transition from full-time brain activity to a more relaxed state of mind for the summer. While Billy and I both enjoyed her visit, I think it is fair to say that Oscar was especially upset to see her leave. In fact, he peed on the floor right next to her suitcase to show her his displeasure. (This is a dog that never has "accidents"; he only has what I call "intentionals." If he is unhappy, he will let you know-- not unlike his mother.)

Billy has been enjoying his summer break from classes since about two weeks before I finished up. He concluded another successful semester and only has one more class to take this fall before he earns his MS in Information Technology. May was an exciting month for him and the other workers at the Space Telescope Science Institute because the astronauts went into space to complete the final repairs on Hubble. He hasn't done any work on Hubble, but seeing them improve Hubble made me realize how exciting it will be when the telescope he is working on launches in 2014. Below is a picture from the live internet feed that NASA ran during the repair mission; at this moment, the astronauts were bringing Hubble into the cargo bay for the repair work. You can also learn more about Billy's telescope, JWST, by reading this article.

Our summer travel plans include attending the weddings of several friends and spending a week in upstate New York with Dad. (My dad is doing great and enjoying his treatment-free summer!) I'll continue working about 20 hours a week at my job on campus, and it's an exciting time for us there as we prepare to move into our new home in a much nicer building. The work I'm doing feels a bit menial, but I really like the people in our office, and I'm happy to do whatever they ask of me to long as they're paying my tuition. I'll also be working on preparing for my PhD application, which I'll submit to Maryland in the fall. I have some research to do before I can develop one of my seminar papers into a writing sample, and I may audit a German course during the second summer session to prepare myself for the foreign language requirement. I've done a pretty good job of keeping up with my running, and I have several races planned for the summer months. The next one is a Father's Day 10k that I'm running with my friend Danielle.

We're also hoping for an exciting summer of Orioles baseball (while the A's continue to disappoint). The future of the organization is arriving in Baltimore one player at a time, and while they still have a losing record, the young players seem to be establishing themselves well. Last night we made our first trip of the season to Camden Yards to see the MLB debut of Matt Wieters, our new catcher, who is one of the top minor league prospects. He went 0-4, but played well in the field and called a good game behind the plate. Tonight, he got his first two hits with a triple and a ground rule double. Along with Roberts, Markakis, Jones, Scott, and some other pitchers (who are so new I don't even know their names- Billy will scold me for this), the team is looking like they might have a winning season, if not this year, then next. It was fun to be part of a big crowd last night who were excited about the direction the team is heading... and it was fun to see a decisive victory!

This morning, I slept in until 11am, and awoke to find that Andy Roddick has made it to the second week in Roland Garros for the first time. Monday he will play Monfils, who I love to watch, so I will spend the day trying to avoid hearing the results in order to watch it on my DVR. Summer has officially begun!

Treatment Update!

Hello again! I wanted to give everyone an update on my dad. He had new diagnostic scans run at the end of April to determine the effectiveness of the chemotherapy treatments he underwent in February, March, and April, and the results were very positive! The tumors have not all disappeared, but some of them are gone, and the others seem fairly dormant. This is a big improvement since they determined in November that he would need another series of treatments, and for the time being, it is not necessary to surgically remove any of his liver. It also means that he gets to enjoy his summer without undergoing any more chemotherapy for a while. He'll continue to get diagnostic tests and they will assess his treatment options as time progresses, but this latest round of treatments has been quite successful.

Thanks again for your ongoing support for me and my dad! Now I'm off to packet pick-up for the Frederick Marathon Team Relay!