Still Here

Yes, I haven't posted in forever. The few days after the election when I allowed myself time to breathe on account of needing to recover, the process of recovery pretty much took most of what I had, and little was left for blogging. Honestly, little was left to say.

Once I began to recover substantially to have something to say, I remembered I was in law school and said, "Oh, SHIT." And have since been playing catchup.

So don't expect a lot of posts in the next few weeks.

But some brief updates:
- School is frantic. I'm not too frantic, but I'm not the frantic type. I'm the CT version of frantic. Everyone else, however, is having an aneurysm, which amuses me, because they're all further ahead of me in terms of work progress.
- It's still 90 degrees here half the time.
- I miss snow, and Pittsburgh, and my east people. No urgent pining or catastrophic emotional breakdown, I just miss y'all.
- LT now lives in Fullerton, which is in Orange County, where at election time there were Yes on 8 signs HANGING FROM THE BLEEPING TREES. But the apartment is really nice, and Fullerton itself has a not-bad feel to it, and LT's daily routine gets to include a train. And of course, we are happy to be relatively together again.
- The cats are doing well.
- I can't believe the Penguins are still playing hockey without me.
- Skype rocks! (HI MT!!!)
- The Cali Supreme Court granted review to determine the validity of Prop 8 (it is being challenged on the grounds that it was too substantial of a change to have gone through the amendment process, and should have instead gone through the more stringent revision process). Deadlines for various briefs and responses stretch until January 21, and word is that the hearing will likely be in March, with the decision sometime after that.
- The Steelers got the first 11-10 final score in NFL history (MGGramskyGramboski!! Hi!!) but it was cheapened because the TD that was disallowed on the last play should have been counted. Either way they won. I'm happier with the oddball score, but betting folks aren't.

That is all.

The Amazing People I Know

I took LT home last week to DC. We're doing a decent job of things, but she is having a really tough go of it with her family in some respects. It's hard on me, and I'm not even the one who has to have the difficult and hurtful conversations, although some of the stuff is pretty harsh and pointed right at me. My xylophone friend is strong and brave; I am proud of her.

MT is once again proving her qualities as an amazing human being, fostering SEVEN kittens for the ARL until they are old enough/big enough to be fixed and put for adoption. The littlest one has an eye injury, and weighs all of 11 ounces. The patience and dedication that MT shows in caring for and cleaning up after such a herd of babies is nothing short of inspiring. And she still somehow finds time to care for her own three cats and hang out with her odd friend C.

I'm so very happy to say that GJ is finally running into some happiness and luck. She spent a long time being a sympathetic and supportive ear to my difficulties, all the while going through a pretty rough patch herself. All I hope to do is return the favor! Her door/email/phone is always open, no matter how rotten her days have been. I hope with all my heart that things keep looking up for her a bit. (But I do hope the Wings blow the Cup.) And I wish her safe driving coming to the 'Burgh this weekend!

MG has always been my biggest cheerleader and venting partner. She knows what she feels is right, and fights for it unashamedly, especially when it is a friend. She has been pulling for me in my law school journey for years--well before I even knew for sure that I was on it! Her advice has been freely given and invaluable, as well as her support.

sM and I have had an uneven path in our friendship, but his encouragement and example have been integral to the future that I now eagerly work towards. Sometimes it takes a new voice reminding you of what you are capable of to make you really see it, and he provided that voice, as well as a picture of what someone can be when they follow their heart and passion. He always take the time to see how you're doing, which is especially impressive these days for a few reasons.

AK (not your AK, MT) is an endless source of entertainment. Even though we haven't hung out in a while (mainly because I'm a ridiculously busy bastard)--she's been around as a constant source of levity and friendship. I swear, we WILL get together before I move!

MD, Maker of Lutes, McGurk (I know a lot of "M" people...), AJ, and all my other Pamela's family are just that, a family. I don't see them as much anymore, but I can show up at the back door at any time and get an immediate round of yells and hugs and high-fives and general silliness. I love you guys!

To all of you, and to everyone else who has been there for me and inspired me and comforted me and let me comfort them and made me laugh and showed me new restaurants and recommended great movies and taught me things and made me confident and made me humble, I raise my office coffee mug in a toast.

Thank you.

It's Hasn't All Been Texting and Crying and Hummus

My last few postings have been kinda glum, because whenever I let myself slow down these days (read: have enough breathing room that I can do things like blog) that's how my mind goes. So I'll now point out a bunch of stuff lately that has been great. Some of them are small moments, some bigger.

- Gorgeous weather. As much as I like winter, the renewal of spring is always amazing.
- Upon learning that LT and I are likely headed different directions, a half-drunk friend getting very wide-eyed, putting his arms around both of us, and exclaiming, very slowly, "But....what's gonna....happen?"
- GO PENS!!
- During the tail end of the gauntlet which I haven't been able to blog about yet, my trip to Chicago was an absolute blast. I loved it.
- Being included on the season video for my Cincy buddies even though I'm not technically on their team.
- Tearing the leg of my jeans open while climbing a seven-foot tall fence.
- Pierogies at the Harris Grill.
- GO PENS!!
- Going to see Chris Pureka and Nicole Reynolds, I was reminded that music is the most amazingly direct path into my soul, and how much I love live performance. I could never imagine a world without music.
- Encountering someone who embodies all the coolest things in the universe: a Canadian, hockey-enthused, tattooed, gender-bending, socially conscious, violin-playing musician. It's true, the bass players are always the coolest ones. ALWAYS.
- The woman who adopted a very sweet, quiet, 10-year-old cat. It made my heart smile to see someone willing to give poor old Dottie a peaceful couch to sleep on.
- Softball!!
- Coffeeeeeeee
- The excitement - even if it is bittersweet - of planning the coming next phase in my life.
- Reconnecting with and remembering to get the support of old good friends - MT, GJ, MG, MD, thank you all so much - and discovering the support of good new ones.
- GO PENS!!
- Sitting on my couch with the sliding door open and fresh air coming in, with Tiki curled up on my lap and Whiskey curled up next to me.
- Planning my next TATTOO!!
- Did I mention GO PENS?!

Things I Learned/Remembered Today

- When driving an automatic, you don't have to push a clutch to start it or put it in neutral to keep it from stalling.
- Driving an automatic is boring.
- People who drive automatic forget about parking brakes and don't remember that they're really good for your transmission.
- Sometimes you just need to tell someone to fuck off rather than let frustration gunk up your inner juju.
- Philadelphia has WaWa.
- Philadelphia has useful highways that remind me of Jersey (sometimes I do actually miss the Garden State Parkway).
- Some people play hockey on teams that are actually...y'know...teams!
- You can still have a shit ton of fun playing a game that you lose. (Well, actually I always knew that, I just wanted to mention it because it's fun.)
- I can't wait to go play in Chicago with MG! And in Cinci with [insert team here], hanging out with my buds!
- However old I feel, my knees feel older. (No wait...just one more season then I'll go get them looked at...I swear!)

Nighty night, y'all.

Testing, Testing...

Ah....yello! Yeah, I've been a delinquent blogger. But as MT and GJ can attest, I've also been a delinquent email chatter and texter. Work has gotten ridiculously busy lately, and it pretty much feels like I've been constantly busy outside of work.

Of course, sitting here right now trying to sum up my delinquency, I can't think of anything specific. So...over the next few days I'll be trying to catch y'all (and myself!) up on what's been going on.

To answer MG's main questions really quick, though - nope, haven't heard back from anyone yet. You'll probably be the first to hear when I do!

Catsup

Oh, where to begin.

- Strep throat and more sleep than I ever thought possible
- New glasses
- Unexpected trip to DC
- Bizarre office movements at work
- LT and I hit one month
- 162 (86th percentile) on the LSAT
- MG passed the bar (YAY!!)
- Can't think of a Halloween costume
- Two of MT's foster kits got adopted (bittersweet YAY!!)
- Addiction to Overheard in Pittsburgh
- Visit from some Cincy buds for a Pens game
- Central Pittsburgh season started with a 4-2 win
- Can't think of a Halloween costume.

Oh, and this article makes me want to write headlines.

Don't Encourage Me

I'm on the phone with my friend MG who read about my office supply plight. A recent JD victim...er...recipient, she's been providing constant input for my plans to return to the hallowed halls of learning next year and chase down my own. So, it's a little bit ahead of time, but she set me up with a nice office supply shopping list for next fall:

Highlighters
Highlighters
Highlighters

...and...

maybe some highlighters.

What is that I hear? Is that my Office Depot membership card crying out from lack of use? I've been ignoring the poor thing...