Progress

Chug, chug...like the determined locomotive, I am slowly climbing out of my valley of stress, heading into the station of Christmas Spirit.

Though the days continue to be dull at times, some important landmarks have slid past.

The cards have been signed, stuffed, sealed and mailed...carrying with them my first ever Holiday Newsletter. I finally gave in this year, knowing that if I attempted to write individual notes in each card, the added obligation would tip me over the edge. As it was, the composition of the newsletter had me up past my bedtime Wednesday, but that's ok. I actually enjoyed it.

I was starting to relax Wednesday, as the I had started building momentum for climbing out of the valley. I had a half-day off work, to use up some leftover vacation time before year's end. I'd planned to use it in case I needed extra time to prepare the final exam for my French class that evening, but as it turned out, I was ready already.

So I came home from work at noon, actually cooked myself lunch, did some laundry, vacuuming and dishes, and finally felt like I was (nearly) caught up with housework.

The exam was short, so I got out an hour early, came home and finished grading...even submitting the final course grades online. Done! Free--relatively--until the second week of January.

Work is still busy, busy, but that half-day off helped me catch up, in an oddball way. So, though I had to still go in to work on Saturday, I got as far as touching on some of Friday's work--the most caught-up I've been in a month. I'll have to backtrack on Monday, but it's still good to know I'm getting closer.

And so, today, I took some time this morning to address my Christmas cards, pack up some gifts to mail off, and go to the post office on the way to work. Done, and done!

And maybe, just maybe...Rosie will get a little more attention these days. Here she is, helping clean out a casserole earlier this week.



Such a good, helpful girl.

(Nancy, the train pictures are for you...by request!)
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Chances are, I won't have time to post again before Christmas, so I'd like to wish everyone who celebrates it a happy one! Your continued reader- and friendship is one of my most valued gifts, every day of the year. Truly. Thank you.

And, as a gift to you, I'm gonna share a couple of new blogs I found recently (yeah, I know, what the hell am I doing looking for more blogs to keep up with...call it holiday optimism).

The first, I picked up from the Blogroll of the Courteous Chihuahua. It's called Old Picture of the Day. It's exactly what its title describes: each day, a new photo, normally in black and white, or sepia, bringing to life a bygone era. It's a fascinating way to see what history looked like before it was history, and a pain-free way to learn something once in a while!

The second was on the Blogs of Note page, which I almost never look at. But I'm glad I did, because Not So Humble Pie is such a perfect fit for me: food, gorgeous pictures, and a bent for the scientific and nerdy. Yummy!

Enjoy, and hope Santa treats you all well.