Checked off the list

My fall rotation report.

Finally!

('Bout darn time, too.)

Memories

I've got plenty of reading to do... but reminiscing is an enjoyable diversion.

Deutschland fehlst mir!

From my weekend with Emily in Tübingen:


















The street sign is the important part, of course:














(Frog alley. If only I could live there...)

New Year's Tally

This may be a little late out the gate, but I feel like a bit of stock-taking since it's near the rather arbitrary start-point of the 365.4-day planetary orbital cycle.

Good things, from the most recent to old news:

• Quarter 2 of grad school is getting started with a bang, and I'm excited about the material in class and in my new rotation lab. Molecular bio is spiffy, as is neuroanatomy!
  
• Coming back to my apartment after break felt like coming home. It's nice to feel settled-in in a new place, and it definitely happened faster this year than last year.
• Christmas! Seeing family and friends back in StL - particularly catching up with some folks after a long time - was a great way to bring back happy memories.
• Speaking of reunions, I went back to Kenyon for one night in early December to attend the Cornerstones fall concert... despite the truncated stay, I got to check in with the Guitar crowd, see a great show, catch up with old friends, and attend the afterparty in Snowden with all the current 'Stones! (I have no idea if Robbie K. reads this, but what a pleasant surprise to see another alum from the "old crowd" on campus again! It was great to have someone with whom to bum around, commiserate over the changes since we left, and celebrate our time on the hill. Apparently I'm not the only one drawn back to the Chapel like a moth to a flame, and spending a quiet hour there with an old friend really made it feel like Kenyon.)
  
• Carolling with the Catatonics right before break was splendiferous... but I'm always a sucker for singing at nursing homes. If the PhD thing doesn't work out, maybe that's my true calling.
  
• Surviving my first quarter at Northwestern! Not to mention new friends, new places, and new ideas...
• I can't help but think that my quick transition to Chicago living is significantly aided by Mike's proximity. After 5 years of distance, I'm like the proverbial kid in a candy store every time we get to be together, which is practically every weekend. I realize that someday I'll become desensitized and won't leap for joy at the prospect of divvying up the housework (this weekend we vacuumed AND bought deeply discounted Christmas decorations! yay!) but for now I'm still totally enthralled by folding shirts together. That does quite a bit to perk up the day-to-day, or week-to-week, routine.
• 2006 had some major landmarks... Roomie Jen and cousin Sarah's weddings, moving to Chicago, not to mention finishing up my year in Germany. It's surreal to think about where I was this time a year ago. I'll admit that I don't spend lots and lots of time pining for Deutschland, although any brush with German language or culture makes me smile. I also know that the entire experience has left its indelible mark on me. So many of the adventures I had over there were nerve-wracking challenges that left me feeling weak, alone, and scared... but I went ahead anyway, and even as I was hard on myself for being afraid, I was learning how to deal with those feelings. I'm more self-aware, confident, and adventurous now, and I have learned to recognize and apply those traits positively.

I don't want to do a parallel list of bad things from the past year, so I'll avoid that. Instead, I do want to list a few "special intentions," as it were, in lieu of formal resolutions.

• I know it's breaking the rules to include stuff from 2007, but my friend Bethany's wedding was this weekend. That's not the bad part, of course! I had planned to attend, but unfortunately I couldn't be there for it. I hope it went well, particularly the musical contribution by current Cornerstones and alums!
• I have a few friends who are going through tough times, and I wish them comfort. You guys probably know who you are. I don't have any magic words to make things instantly better, so I'll offer my friendship and hope it helps.
  
• I'm realizing quickly that my chosen career path requires a certain amount of ambition and just plain elbow grease. I need to keep the former stoked in order to maintain the latter.
• Reunions are grand and all that... it's lovely to reconnect with folks after a few years and pick up right where you left off, but it also reminds me how nice it is to enjoy their company in the first place. Keeping in touch is fun and easy! I should initiate that more often.
  
• How about some ideas, the thrust of which head towards circling the general area of... wedding dates!?! Huh? Let's start with the year and narrow it down from there.

Lab early. Must sleep. 'Til next time!