Molly's and Mid-terms

Forgive me, few readers, for not writing more frequently. (I love alliteration) Besides being busy (see?), I have been lazy and a bit overwhelmed with life, I guess, and to write on here would mean to confirm how crazy shit has been. Since I last wrote I have started a new job, started my first full time semester of graduate school and moved into a new apartment. Those are the main things, and they all occurred within roughly two weeks of each other and I am still playing catch up.

Now to catch YOU up... my new job is at Molly Maguire's. It is an Irish pub and I will not say anything more in case people I work with (or worse, for) read this. I'm not saying I like it or dislike it, I just work there.

My new apartment is in... ahh, nevermind. I am sure you couldn't care less where I live. And if you could, I don't want you to. But, I do like it; it has a nice little sun room on the front with large windows, which after spending about 8 months living underground, is freakin' sweet. I spend a lot of time in this room and it makes me feel healthy and creative. I am sitting here now.

Grad school is... intense. The workload for two of my classes is completely manageable, but the third is a bit over my head at times. I tend to grasp concepts better than I think I do, which means I usually end up doing pretty well, but I stress myself out all semester, usually over nothing important. Sometimes after I offer my opinion or theory I really want to ask the teacher and fellow students if I sound "smart". I know I shouldn't need such reassurance or coddling from others, but I am still new to the game and not quite as confident as I wish I was. I am also still trying to recognize when other people are sounding smart and original, or just using large words to mask (consciously or not) that they are full of shit. Sometimes that is easy to point out, but some people are REALLY good at it. I have been honing my skills on that one very years now, and I think I am starting to get it. I really can be quite naive sometimes, though.

I can't write too much for now, as I am in the middle of mid-terms and was only using my lack of attention to my blog as a distraction from my actual work. Do expect to see more from me now, though. I realize that I am going to be doing a lot of writing for school and regardless of what kind of writing I do, practice makes perfect. Plus, I have noticed that I am getting flustered with life and rather than take it out on my boyfriend, I am going to try and work out some of my frustrations here. I think that is healthier.

One last thing, unrelated to the rest of the blog: on Sunday October 16, 2011, the world lost a great guy, Dann Manela. He was a friend of mine and the significant other to my dear friend, Maureen Griffis. He was in a motorcycle accident that took his life. Since then, he and Maureen are all I have been able to think about, which is tough to deal with, although not nearly as tough as she has it now. My heart goes out to both them and their families and I hope I can be as good of a friend as she needs during this rough time.
I am not good with these things. When I experience loss and tragedy, I tend to clam up and not talk to anyone, so I have less practice at talking these things out. It is difficult to ever feel like you are saying the right thing rather than the wrong, to feel that you have any right to comment one way or the other since I have no experience like this to compare. Regardless, I'm thinking of you, Mo, all the time, and hoping that you will get through this alright. You are strong, so I know you will, I just wish you didn't have to.

"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal."  ~From a headstone in Ireland