Class and all that:

I'm now taking a class on Thursday nights. It is one of the worst classes I've ever taken. Maybe this is karmic payback for all the good classes that I blew off, that when I was ready to take a class again, it is a giant waste of time. I really think I was willing to pay attention, to attend the class, to not spend my time in class reading the Onion. And I get a class where I would probably get more out of reading the Onion.

The class is insanely easy, one. I think we've covered less in two weeks than we did in one week of my undergrad class and the homework is definitely way easier. No one else seems to give a damn either. Last week, the professor started to do something totally wrong (like the kind of wrong where I might have given one of my kids no credit for) and no one else comments. I think they're all just zoning. Finally I said something even though I hate correcting the professor, usually, because it was just THAT wrong. And I've never been good at the three hour at night classes (cf Byzantine History 330-610 and 610-1025, held in the Reg and featuring too much lecture for me ever, but particularly at night). So it's kind of a three strikes thing.

But-- I got my hair cut. It is very short. I won't know if I like it till I wash it and dry it myself. And today I learned much about railroads and ate much fudge and an Eggel and it was a good day. And tomorrow I am kayaking. There is no presumption of kayaking skill, so hopefully it will be fun.

Hee:

Peeps go to the library...

This weekend:

So I had a really good weekend, all in all. Friday night, I went to see 500 Clown Frankenstein in Baltimore (good, though I don't know the original well enough to appreciate it) and then played games.

Saturday, I went to the Laurel racetrack. It was a spur of the moment thing, since they'd just opened for the season. I got there in time for the sixth race, watched the horses get saddled for that one, and found a nice spot on the rail. There I met Jimmy, an older guy very much into racing who's thinking of buying a horse. Jimmy really likes to talk, so in the two hours I was there, I learned a lot about him. I also met Tony, Jimmy's possible future trainer, who really likes to gamble. I did see one stakes race with a half-brother to Afleet Alex, but the rest of the horses were nothing special. It was a VERY good time.

Sunday, I went to see a movie with A--. Movie was good, and somehow in the combination of the movie (The Constant Gardener) and talking to her I figured something out. I made the wrong choice back there a way. I knew I had to give something up, and I thought in London I'd figured out that math was what I couldn't give up. But I was wrong. Math is something I like doing, and something that I will miss when I am no longer doing it, but it is not something that is a part of me. Math is not who I am. Travelling is. Not just travelling on my vacation but living abroad, and not just in English-speaking countries.

I'm restless, I think. I love going into a new city, a place where I haven't made any mistakes yet, a place that's not full of regrets. Once it gets too full of my memories, it's time for me to move on. I thought that I could give this up and maybe it would even be better for me, but I can't. I don't feel right here.

So what does this mean for me? Well, for right now, not a lot. It means that right now I'm in the last math class that I will take, at least for the foreseeable future. It means I'm going to try to get into an office where I can do some travelling in the winter. It means that I am going to take the Foreign Service exam next spring. But I'm not just going to up and quit my job or anything like that. I am going to remember though. Remember how going into London felt, remember Prague and Ireland and Costa Rica. Remember what it meant to be happy, rather than just to be not unhappy.

Velma the Volvo:

So last night I had real car problems. Right after I dropped A-- off at the Metro, I tried to make a left turn, and the power steering had died. Like, I was using all the swimming muscles that I had to make the car turn. I drove up until I could get to a good place and pulled off. Talked to my mom and my dad, and my dad said I probably wouldn't mess up the car driving it any more so I decided to try to make it home.

I took the Beltway (apparently manual steering is better at higher speeds), and as I got to Georgia Ave, I noticed that the engine temp gauge was really high. I pulled off again, and this time call edAAA. Of course it's going to be two hours, but I'm priority since I was sitting on the Beltway. I called D-- and my mother. Some nice couple stops, but they can't really help me (did I mention it's about 11 pm by now, so it's dark. I did pop the hood and could see a broken belt dangling below the engine). My awesome roommate D-- called back and told me I couldn't sit out there by myself, so she came out to sit with me. Another car has broken down on the left shoulder about 100 yards back and two state troopers moved him to the right, put some flares behind him, and didn't bother to stop and ask if I'm OK. D-- got there about midnight, not long after AAA called to tell me 10-15 minutes.

About 25 minuts later, the tow truck driver showed up, hooked up the car and took it to the Savco in Laurel. He was awesome, he told me he could tow the car to Alaska if I wanted and told us not to drive slow on his account (we were leading in D--'s car). He also admired D--'s toes. We got the 15 miles to Laurel for free since she had a plus member card. I should find out how much more that is, it might be worth it. Got home about 1:15.

This morning I discovered that three belts failed, including the power steering belt, because the crank pulley was broken. The crank pulley is a dealer part, so it cost about $250. The whole thing was $450, but they did give me a free oil change, which was very nice. It is fixed now, and this *might* fix the AC (one of the broken belts was the AC belt).

I'm also suffering from the cold of death (maybe it's even the flu, since I think I have a fever, but it didn't come on like the flu and it's early in the year) so I skipped work without feeling guilty at all. Sleeping a lot tonight!!