Looking Back

As I say goodbye to 2010, I cannot help but look back with fondness.  This year has been amazing, a quite honestly, life changing for me and my family.  I would like to list the positives that have accompanied this year in my life.....

• I graduated from UT with a BA in Mid East Studies, Asian Studies (East Asian Specialization), Arabic, and a minor in Japanese
• I got a job that runs two years, and I will be a National Teaching Fellow, further living the drea,
• I was accepted into grad school and will be working toward my Master's in Education, starting next year.
• My honey and I bought our first home

These are the more tangible events of 2010.  Now I want to look back on some of the "me" stuff I have been working on.....

• To be a better mother.  - This goal is a daily challenge that I face.  I have learned so much, but I still have a long way to go.  This is a goal that one never stops working on.  I succeeded in working more closely with my children and their schools, but my patience could still use some work....
• To be a better lover. - Sometimes I get so caught up in my work and all the "need-to-be-done" tasks, that I forget to work on the romance of my relationship.  Having graduated and having less responsibility looming over my head has really contributed to taking stress off our relationship.  Although, the boy has begun working nights, so that makes our time together significantly less.....
• To take better care of my body. - Here is an area where I have completely failed.  I have been eating better, true, but I have been so wrapped up in those dam "need-to-be-done" tasks, that I neglect my daily yoga plans. Aargh.. *sigh*
• To nurture my spiritual life. -  The very nature of academic life is that one works to nurture their mind, but the spiritual is less emphasized.  This is true of me.  I have been doing better, especially the latter part of this year. Again, this probably has everything to do with having graduated and having less assignments....

In the New Year, I plan to work more on all of these goals, as they are not simply one year goals, but lifelong pursuits.  I am so optimistic about the coming year, as it already holds so many promises and possibilities.  I love the path I am on, and look forward to walking it.....

Marked

   I just finished reading this joint effort by P.C Cast and her daughter Kristen Cast. Together they wrote a vampire novel. Actually, it is more than that.  This book is the first in a series of vampire novels.  Now, I am just as into vampires as the next guy, but I am from a different school than the current craze.  My school is comprised of Anne Rice's characters, as well as Joss Whedon's Spike and Angel.  However, I am still up for any new offering of undead lore, so I gave this novel a go....

     The story begins when our heroine, Zoey, becomes marked.  This means that she will become a vampire in a few years. As those who are marked undergo "the Change," they attend a Vampire Academy of sorts.  The rest of the book follows Zoey as she tries to fit into her new "life."

     The story has a very interesting,albeit not too original, plot line.  It is well thought out and is definitely entertaining, yet the writing is distracting.  A good writer can tell a story, including the main character's struggles and inner conflicts, and never draw the reader away from the actual tale.  However, in this story, the main character's inner monologue can be so out of place and, if you will, "wonky" that the reader has to purposely pass over it.  (Not to mention a vagrant overuse of parenthetical statetments.)....

     I do believe that I may pick up the second novel... if I can get it for free on bookmooch

Life, as yet, Unplanned

I just attended the commencement ceremonies for my Bachelor's degree.  It was last night at 6pm.  Three degrees, three kids, and seven years later, I feel I have accomplished much!  It felt so good to walk across the stage and shake the Dean's hand, knowing that I was crossing the threshold into a new chapter of my life.

During the ceremony, there was a faculty speaker, Dr. Robert King.  He gave a short, simple, and sweet speech.  Contained within his speech were five "suggestions" for how to live the rest of our lives.  I found the advice to be very sound, so I thought that I should chronicle them here, lest I forget them:

1.     Be flexible.  Having graduated with a Liberal Arts Degree, flexibility is key to success in one's future....

2.     Read one book each month.  It does not matter what it is, just that you read something that does not come off of a computer screen...

3.     Do not depend on your gadgets.  One day each month, turn off all gadgets, and live!  This means cell phones, tvs, laptops, etc.

4.     Know thyself, and practice the Golden Rule.

5.     Love really is essential for living a full, fulfilled life.