A boring post.

I apologize in advance that my posting has not been as consistent as I said it would be.  Here it is halfway through June and I didn't even write for May...  But better late than never, sometimes... right?

The most recent update: things are going very well for me here.

The month of May was full of finishing up study skills with my students, taking final exams, finishing research projects, and traveling home to California to see family and friends.

One rather big update that you don't know about my life is that I have decided to sell my Mazda3 in order to buy a cheaper car and not have a car payment when I graduate!  I drove Vikki home in May and left her there for my parents to sell (since it's a CA title and technically in their name) and flew back here to OK.  I bought a bike from an international friend who flew back to France at the end of last semester, so that's currently how I'm making my way back and forth to work and around town.  My legs were KILLING me the first week (I couldn't fall asleep at night the first few nights, and I felt like my quads were HUGE) and my butt was pretty sore all the time, but now it's all good and I'm enjoying the commute a lot.

A blessing I received at the beginning of June was a generous offer from the Kopke's to buy their old Camry for $500.  It's a 1996 blue Camry with an RBHS parking sticker on it... but the AC works and it runs smooth, so it sounds great to me!  Plus... no car payment!  

Also, things changed at my work.  They informed me after the first week of June that, due to budget cuts, the study skills program had been trimmed down to freshmen only, and since Candice is a GA, she will be teaching it (she has been teaching sophomore study skills).  At first, this news was hard to handle because I felt it was a nice way of the department easing me into unemployment.  My supervisor assured me that they were going to find work for me to do to keep me on staff (because there's been a hiring freeze, so they want me to do any jobs that might come up).  At first I was worried that I wouldn't have much to do and they would have to let me go, but in reality the exact opposite has happened.  One of my coworkers has been on vacation for the past two weeks, so I have been doing her job (coordinating subject tutoring).  Also, I've been administering a reading assessment to incoming freshmen, which has been an interesting learning experience (and resume booster) but also exhausting.  

It's interesting to walk into the office every day to find myself doing another job.  I have been assigned to tutor a female sophomore student in study skills twice a week one-on-one, and I have also been assigned to be a note-taker for a class no one else is available for.  This next week I will be doing another coworker's job while she is on vacation (she is the coordinator for the writing center).  The experience has taught me an important skill to have in a workplace: flexibility.  

I'm enjoying my class, I think primarily because I'm only taking one, rather than three.  We meet three times a week for four hours each class session, but the material we cover is so interesting that the time goes really quickly.  And I've actually been keeping up with the reading!  Which makes me feel like a more responsible student.  The class is about media and pop culture - how to teach students to be critical viewers of the media, as well as teaching them how to use media to their advantage.  We also talk about how to use pop culture to teach basic reading and writing skills to our students - the theory being using material they are interested in, because studies show students learn much more when they are engaged with the material.  I'm learning a lot and loving the decision to take the class this summer.

Also, my friends and I have decided to become better cooks this summer.  Candice and I have been making a lot of our own sauces, dishes, and desserts.  We've had a dinner party every Friday night this summer.  Marisa, my roommate, has decided that Friday is officially pie day, and we are going to make a different pie every Friday, document the experience with pictures, and then blog about the experience.  We're hoping to develop a following...

Also, as a side note, I moved in May.  I'm now living off-campus, about 2 miles north-west of OU, in a house with one other graduate student.  The house is quaint and newly remodeled, so it is very comfortable.  I have my own bedroom, AC, a washer and dryer in the house, and a dishwasher.  It's worth the extra $60-$100 dollars a month.  We're also looking for 1-2 more roommates, and have two promising prospects.  We're hoping to have a friend move in with a dog, and another girl move in who is interested in growing  a vegetable garden.  Yes, please!

Anyways, this post is pretty boring, but I wanted to update you all on the fact that life is going well and I am very thankful and happy to be here.  I'm sorry for not calling you all more often, but I'm going to try to get on that soon!  Love and miss you, thank you for your friendship and love.