The winter of my dis(rather)content(edness)

What a disappointing winter it has been. No snow, but lots and lots of rain and almost 100% gray, cloudy days. One reason I'm looking forward to my trek to Michigan (other than the 12-hour drive, which I'm rather excited about - a great time for thought-collecting, listening to music, and listening to books-on-CD) is that my parents already have a lot of snow at their place. It will feel like Christmas.

Still, despite the weather, it has been a decent season. Besides the election of Barack Obama, which seems like the culmination of four years of hoping for me, I've been active in other, different ways: I went on three dates and it was good. I think it's over now, which is okay - I felt like each successive date got a little less special than the one before it, and the last one ended kind of awkwardly (and I haven't had my latest phone call returned, so it's probably a mutual feeling). At least it happened; it had been a while and I think it might lead to more.

Otherwise, though, I find my life in my early 30s as in a holding pattern a bit. I'm still renting, and don't feel that motivated to buy a house; I feel like I should be 100% debt free before that occurs. I'm still driving the same car I've been driving for 7 years; it's on its last legs, and I don't trust it to drive back to Michigan (I'm going to rent), but I don't really want to jump headfirst into a new car purchase right now. I'm enjoying the time not spent waiting tables, but am wasting too much of it. I'm working out like crazy, but also eating as if I'm worried the world is running out of food, so the overall net loss is small. The years keep rolling by.

Thankfully, I have teaching, which seems to get better and better with age. It's been a good year; I feel refreshed and envigorated almost every day in front of all those young people. The ninth graders bring me the most joy; the eleventh graders provoke my thought. How lucky I feel to work in a challenging, stimulating, and creative environment every day...

Not sure where that came from. I guess it is the season of giving thanks and reflection, though. I'm not blogging very much over here these days, and maybe I should do this more. It feels good.