Shit + Fan =

So things are looking up, or down, depending on which side of the teeter-totter you feel like jumping on.

The past few weeks have been one long swirling flush down the toilet bowl of life, but I'm pretty ok with it now.

Whining first, then explanation.

1. Student papers (each 6pg). Gah.
2. Sister moved back to Racine after I worked really hard to get her a home in Chicago.
3. Still no conclusive results on the epilepsy thing. They want to have me stay in the hospital for 4 days with an EEG hooked to my head and see if they can catch my brainwaves during one of my elusive (possible) seizures. No word yet on how expensive that would actually be (or if my insurance will cover it).
4. Committee HATED all over my proposal and B-----t shifted me over to V----r as the new director of the project.
5. Pinched a nerve in my shoulder which is now in constant burning pain.
6. Lost my driver's license somewhere on the Midway in HP
7. Keyboard on my computer is not working properly so I have to cut-and-paste every "a" in my writing. (like the last 6)
8. Gained back the weight I lost during the culinary holocaust of deliciousness this weekend

Suck.

But it's all ok, and here's how I'm rationalizing it.

1. I'm almost done grading, so there will be joy and celebration at the end of the day.
2. Sister DID get enrolled in a cool radiology program, so she will be setting herself up for a really promising future career.
3. I might get to spend 4 days in the hospital getting all that work done that I never have the chance to sit down and do. And maybe they'll fix my sleep apnea too!
4. Despite the sadness, I looked at my primary sources again and have a killer new idea for reshaping my dissertation (in a way that makes much more sense to me and makes much more sense with the literature).
5. Uh, no - the shoulder thing genuinely sucks.
6. This is the perfect opportunity to apply for an Illinois license (which I have been meaning to do anyway)
7. I now have the justification I need to buy a new laptop and junk the old ones.
8. It was delicious.

I will continue to persist in these happy thoughts no matter what else the world throws at me. I cannot be stopped. I AM A RAY OF FUCKING SUNSHINE DAMNIT, and I will KICK THE SHIT out of anything that stands in my way. TASTE THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING, BITCHES!

Ahem.

So anyway, I'm having my preceptees over this Sunday for hanging, snacks, and a 70's disaster film marathon. I'm thinking it will be rockin'. Although I'm pretty sure that they think I'm a lot more interesting than I actually am.

Oh, I almost forgot. Some really cool things have happened too! I got an award for excellence in undergraduate teaching (part of which will pay for my laptop, and part of which is a plaque I have standing right above my TV. A PLAQUE! Nifty!). On top of this, my preceptees got together and signed a card for me, and bought me a copy of Proof and popcorn. I never expected something like that from my students, and it makes me feel like a superstar teacher. I mean, presents? Rock!

Ok, I should stop procrastinating and get back to grading. Besides, these "a's" are really bugging me.