The grass in my backyard is knee-high

No joke, it's knee-high and the dogs won't walk through it. So much rain, no time to mow...it's kind of comical really...

Yesterday was the last day of classes for me. I've been ready for the end for a month - finally, grades recorded, freedom at last...I am sort of nostalgic as I may not return to teach in the Fall. But I am getting ahead of myself..for now, enjoy a short, 45 hour week and get some rest.

I got a raise - a considerable raise, relatively speaking, but not nearly what I'd like to be making. I guess we all sacrifice something - I am choosing to stay in a job I like with people I like despite the low pay. Quality over quantity I suppose. Money may not buy happiness, but it sure helps relieve the stress.

The dryer is broken - for a month or so now. The laundry is piled everywhere. It's rather comical. I've been too busy to be annoyed by it and now it's just funny. I can roll off the bed and not hit the floor - not kidding the pile is that high. Tuesday the dryer man came...spent about 30 seconds (okay, 45 seconds) turning on the dryer and turning it off again. Proclaimed something broken, said they don't carry that part (of course not, why would it be simple) and so now I wait another week to have it fixed. This Tuesday I will be the laundry diva! It is a sad commentary on life, but I am actually lookin forward to doing laundry all day - re-establishing order to my home, my closet, etc. So blase...but, nonetheless, I will feel so good when it is done.

NICJ has been rather amazing lately - clear thinking, problem solving, eye on the ball, helpful, supportive kind of behaviour. It's like night and day - still rather surreal to me, but I am enjoying this behaviour, astonished in the knowledge of what I went through. Funny, I knew I was dealing with/putting up with a lot, but I didn't realize how much I was taking/sacrificing until I was treated well again. So much is still so hard, but simultaneously so much better/easier than even a year ago. I'm not entirely sure how I handled it all - how I got through it - how I survived. There are some days when I am just simply in awe of the journey I have travelled in the last three years. And wondering how much longer I can sustain my dissatisfaction. I have come to realize though that so much of myself was lost. So, my mission for the coming months is to rediscover myself, my strength, and move on.

Finally, NICJ is painting again. Like a fiend. He's just finishing up two big commissions. 8'x6' panels with heavy metal frames. I'd forgotten what it's like to be steeped in art - to smell the mineral spirits and the oil paint - to watch the work emerge and evolve - to critique and analyze. I do this with my students, but they are so naive still. His work is amazing. It's nice to see him creating again. It had been over a year since he painted for real. Slowly, I am remembering - it comes in fits and flashes...he hangs the piece for the client tomorrow. Finally, focus is returning...

I'm sure I've forgotten tons of things: Kevin's departure; Joe's promotion; Susann/B. drama; choking; Easter at the Herrington; the mudbath; the neighbor's fence and new pup, Bogey; plumber payment drama; Melissa's birthday; etc. Life has been full, life has been a lot lately - life has been piling up. I'll be glad to shake it off and relax for awile.