I didn't cry today. I am definitely making progress.
I need a personal assistant. He or she would go to class for me, take notes, and brief me on the important points. He/she would also see to the nonsensical busy work of punching holes in massive amounts of paper and assembling notebooks therewith. He/she would be responsible for the washing of my car, the ferrying of my dry cleaning, and the choosing/purchasing/sending of graduation/bridal shower/wedding gifts. That would free up a lot of my time, which I could then use to respond to emails and comments that I find absolutely intriguing. Until the hiring process is concluded, please be patient as I have to tend to all these things myself.
I think my dad was left on the doorstep as a baby. He is the only one in his family to have ever left his hometown of Gadsden, AL, and when we go back to visit, the lack of family resemblance becomes noticeably stark. He doesn't look like them; he doesn't act like them; he doesn't tawk lahk theyem; and fundamentally, he doesn't think like them. So different is he that my relatives can't hope to understand him, much less my mom or why he married her. It's obvious they don't know what to do with us (especially my mom and me), and they don't tend to make much of an effort. That my dad feels compelled to go back to that place every year and honor some imagined familial obligation seems absurd. He ought to just let it go. But he can't.
As we drove through the streets of the small southern town, I saw old storefronts and faded signs. I saw neglect and disrepair. But if I squinted, I could almost see the Gadsden my dad sees. The Gadsden of the '60s and '70s. Everything takes on a greenish-yellow tint and you can hear the crowd at a high school football game in the background. There are parades and local heroes and... possibilities. My dad had so much going for him then, and he has more than met his potential. He wants to come home and have his family be proud of him. But his parents are dead, and his many successes are lost on his siblings. It's a big world out there and they've never seen it.
Today I make my way toward Alabama. But don't worry, I'll be back. In the meantime, read about last year's visit.
After spending 7 hours at the mall(s) with my mom, I'm beginning to think I should hire myself out as a shopping caddy.
As probably none of you know, whenever an eating establishment requests a name to go with my order, I always give the name "Mary." Everyone knows how to spell it; everyone knows how to say it. It minimizes confusion. You can't imagine the myriad ways to butcher the name Meredith, and if it has the potential to come between me and food, something must be done.
Anyway, I offered up my customary pseudonym at lunch today, and something rather unusual happened. The cashier responded with, "That's a good name for you." I chuckled to myself and considered telling her it wasn't my real name, but decided against it. It's close enough to my real name to not be worth contending. Besides, that would have ruined everything.
As humans, we all struggle with life's questions...
Why am I here?
Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
How on earth do you keep people from posting stupid stuff to a listserv???
We have 50 people on our listserv, some of whom love to send fwds and others of whom hate to receive them. (I know, how hard is it to hit delete? Nonetheless...) For those finicky inboxes, I am the only line of defense, and I take my responsibility very seriously. I have asked nicely, I have asked in ALL CAPS, I have even turned on the moderation feature so that nothing gets by without someone's approval. Unless, of course, it's one of the other moderators who sends it!!! GAAAH!
And so my Sisyphusian torture continues. Feel free to offer advice, but remember, I have to see these people on a regular basis, so it would be good if they didn't hate me. Thank you for your concern.
My professor's comments on my recently submitted paper:
"Excellent mixing of sources."
"Nice integration of Zemlin [anatomist] with topic."
"A pleasure to read."
"Excellent content and organization."
"A copy if you will."