HA! Yeah, they know when my brow knits and I look like I'm about ready to cry...the genius is under the pressure. ;)

I love reconciling. It's why I wanted this job. It's just that I get so busy putting out the fires in the front the main part of my job gets put on the back burner. And it takes a ton of concentration to juggle these kinds of numbers.

I'm so freaking happy I can't stand myself. I've been a stress mess for too long!

I think it's kind of funny that they would be willing to pay you for a few weeks to find a missing $2,000. At what point do they say let's just cut our losses?

I've got my PhD Transfer coming up (about a year into the phd, you have to go through this process, where they look at your plan and some other stuff, and decide if there really is a Phd in it, and if it looks like you'll be able to complete the project within the allotted time).

I've been 'working' at it for a couple of months, but for the most part it's been like pulling teeth. Have to produce a sample chapter, or long essay of around 10k words, plus a report on the project to date, plus a chapter plan, or thesis outline and a working bibliography.

Anyways, after it just being a real bloody nightmare for weeks, it's started really coming together the past week. I have almost finishe dthe chapter/long essay. Just the conclusion to write and then the referenes and editing. Done the story so far on the prject and research, and got about half the bibilography done.

The long essay is good, i think. And so is the story so far. I'm really pleased with them. Also, whilst it's been a painful problem trying to pull this together into a structured form at such an early stage, it's been really useful. I am starting to see how this thesis might actually look.

Do postcards take longer than regular mail? When I took a trip to England in high school, I mailed postcards to family and they didn't get them for like 3 or 4 weeks... But at the same time, I know packages usually only take a week or two, even if they're mailed through the regular post office. How long does a standard letter take, comparatively? Does real mail get higher priority than postcards, maybe?

Within this country, postcards arrive in exactly the same way as any other post.
Overseas - who knows?

It's standard for people to arrive back from holiday a week or two before their postcards.
I sent and received back a DVD from Australia before I got my parent's postcard from Spain.

Perhaps it's just that they are small and light and get left behind in bags...?
Your guess is as good as mine.

This is actually what's making me happy yesterday but there is some residual happiness today, so, whatever.

I completed the hunter safety course and got another 100. Awesome for me.

F3, sweet. Did you ever get that gun?

Still saving for it.

Which one? make a solid decision?

I'm out of work, so, my cash flow ain't.

However, I'm not *at* work, so I can spend my days with SonofV. Today he asked if he could hang out with his friends. I said ok, and they decided to hang out here at the house. I stole this picture of them while they were all focused on the Mortal Kombat match. They're all friends at school, they're all good kids, most of whom have spent the night. I've seen them all before (actually, K, the girlfriend of J1, she's new to me). It makes me happy that SonofV is having a good time with his friends, that he's comfortable having his friends here at our (small) house, that he and his friends are practically oblivious to my presence. I'm just sitting here at the computer in the other room looking in on them. They're having a ball playing Xbox. They also have someone's laptop connected to the stereo so they can play the youtube videos at high volume.

They're such good kids. As a couple left, they said thanks, shook my hand, put away their dishes, just... just... solid young citizens.

I wish I was working, but I wouldn't trade this for a bazillion dollas.

I'm happy to be back home in Virginia with my father-in-law's NJ apartment contents sitting in my driveway in a UHaul I just drove down.

Tomorrow, I move his apartment contents into his new digs across town. I'll be happy when that's done.

damn straight. good on you & for you.

I love being able to be at home with my kids. I'm really very fortunate that we can afford (just) to do this. I do feel really sorry for families that don't get to spend a decent amount of time together, and I have to say that I think me being here makes a big difference to how they grow up socially and emotionally.

Much as I denigrate my family, I do really love them.
In fact that's probably at the root of the issues I have with my sister (unrequited love).

She came over today to do Mum's nails & toenails.
Used my nail kit (birthday gift from Dani) and even more unforgiveably, did a bloody good job.

Nah, I'm not actually jealous. She's always been great at personal grooming. I used to "borrow" her things when we shared a room and I never made anything look as good as she did. Mum's nails look amazing, which means she's happy and therefore so am I.

Three generations.

nice!

you look really, really, *really* young in that picture Sundae.