Saturday, December 30, 2006

Christmas in a Yurt


For Chirstmas this year, Navigator & I decided to spend a few days on the Oregon coast at Cape Lookout State Park. We rented a yurt for three nights, explored the cape and visited the Tillamook Cheese factory. We brought our tree, decorations, and all the presents that had arrived prior to our trip. It was an awesome Christmas!


Our tree with presents!



Dinner time!




Navigator stuck in the brush on our hike



A stormy coast


The super-cool bike-helmet-strap ear warmers that I made for Navigator



And the front view...

(notice the totally awesome sweater he's wearing... That was his present last year)

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Winter Break Musings

I have been such a poor blogger this term. I had planned to blog and blog and blog about how difficult it is to go to grad school, and all the shit I am required to do and blah, blah, blah.

I never had time.

I had a lot of shit to do.

The day before my last classes, I had to finish putting together my work sample and create my transparencies for my presentation of my individual program plan for my focus child. I had purchased a package of transparencies for a presentation during summer term. I was certain they were somewhere in the house. I tore the house apart looking for the tranparencies. When Navigator came home, I was in tears. Everything had come to a halt because of the transparencies. I couldn't function. I couldn't do anything else. I screamed at him, the poor fellow. On top of that, one of the guest cats was scratching at the door to the office and it was annoying the hell out of me. Navigator left, walked to the Office Depot & purchased me new transparencies, then had dinner at John Barleycorn's, the local McMenamin's tavern, and proceeded to get drunk. When he came home to deliver the transparencies, I was too involved in my work to notice his stagger. He was pleased with himself.

I was up until 1AM putting my work sample together. I was a mess the next day, and could barely keep my eyes open in class. I was certain that I wasn't going to get straight A's this term and that I would have to re-do some sections in my work sample. I was certain that Fall Term wasn't over when we hit the bar for happy hour.

Grades were posted last week. I have a 4.0. I have no idea how I pulled that off.

Winter break has been a whirlwind of activity. I've been subbing at Head Start in the afternoons and working with a little boy who has developmental delays in the morning. It's been two weeks and I have yet to have a vacation. The mother of the little boy offered me $20/hour to work next week. I hate to have to turn her down, but I have to turn her down. I need a break.

Thinking back on Fall Term, I think it was much more difficult than summer term. I was working full time during summer term, as well as carrying a full load, but it was much easier than fall term. I have been told that Fall term is the most difficult and winter term is better. I certainly hope so.

We're staying in Portland for Christmas this year. We have no plans to do anything. I'm pretty happy about this.

Well, it's off to work, I go!