Requisite Before-The-Holidays Post

Well, this is my last post before the holidays, so first off I'd like to wish any readers I have a happy whatever-it-is-you-celebrate! And now some random musings:

- It totally does not feel anything like Christmas to me. It's too warm and there's no snow. Of course, it doesn't help that the year is going so quickly for me that I can't believe that in just under two weeks it's going to be 2007. Plus, not being a student anymore is throwing off my sense of time. I've been a student for so long that I'm used to having a well-defined break for the holidays, but now I just keep working (ahem, "working") and don't have a specified few weeks off. So, it's just weird. But don't get me wrong, I don't miss being a student whatsoever.

- Karen has gotten me addicted to weffriddles. I like them because they can be quite tough unless you think about them a certain way. I'm now on Level 47.

- I've been applying for more jobs recently. I just applied to two government jobs, one for the Department of Labor and one for the Census Bureau. Both of these are statistician jobs, which works for me, since I have a B.S. in math. Plus, they both are based in Chicago, which is ideal for me. One, it's a large city. Two, it's really close to home. That is, it's three hours from home, which might sound far for some people, but that's a hell of a lot closer than I am now.

- The reason I'm applying for the jobs mentioned above is that I'm almost certain that I want a job that isn't specifically in this field. Unless, of course, it's one of the teaching jobs I applied for. I've just been getting more and more disenchanted with meteorology, or really, atmospheric science. I don't feel a passion for it, which means that I probably shouldn't get a job in it.

- The sad thing is that I'm still not sure what I want to do with my life. I had this grand notion that after I was finished with grad school, I'd be able to get a great job in the field and really like what I was doing. I'm not saying that this couldn't happen yet. I'm just thinking that it probably won't because of the mentioned lack of passion. But, as my therapist has told me, it's not like I have to get a job using my master's degree. Having it just makes me a more interesting person. Or at least, it will to other people. I don't think I'm that interesting myself, but other people might.

- So, yeah, no job yet, but I'm applying, which is at least hopeful. If nothing else, come next spring or summer, depending on how long the funding lasts, I'll just move back home if I don't have a job.

- I'm still sad about my bunny. It's weird how much I miss her even though a lot of the time she annoyed the crap out of me. I've even had dreams that she's still alive. But, I'm bringing her home and am going to bury her there once the ground thaws.

- I'm surprised by the lack of Christmas cards I've received. I wasn't expecting a lot to begin with, but I've only gotten two this year so far. Well, technically one card and one family photo. I guess it isn't just me that isn't entirely in the Christmas spirit.

- I am, however, really looking forward to being at home for a while. I need a vacation again. It seems like not that long ago I was home for Thanksgiving. This time, though, I'll be home a bit longer. I'm home for about a week and a half, mainly because my sister's birthday is New Year's Eve and she's turning 21, so it should be lots of fun.

Well, I guess that's about it from me. This is probably my last post before the holidays, so again, have a wonderful celebration (I'm trying to be too P.C., aren't I?) and probably a happy new year too, since I won't be around the internet too much while I'm at home. Cheers!

Short Update

Just a few quick updates to my blog:

1.) I've created a new blog dedicated to TV show commentary here. It's a work in progress, but hopefully something that other people will enjoy. I'll keep posting on it unless I don't get any readers, so anyone that reads this blog is welcome to head on over there and check it out, and if you like it tell some friends. I like having an audience.

2.) In making the blog mentioned above, I noticed some new templates available for Blogger. Thus, visitors to this blog will notice a new background. I love lighthouses, so I decided that this background is perfect for me. If you have any comments about it, preferably good (but I'll deal with bad ones as well), let me know.

That is all for now. What can I say? My title said it would be a short update.

RIP Anya

Today while I was at work, my rabbit died. I've been worried about her for about a week now, mainly since I've gotten back from Thanksgiving at home. I'm not sure what happened, really. She was a bit off when I got home, but I attributed that to the stress of the ride home. She seemed to get better, though.

On the trip back, though, she seemed to get worse. Well, not really worse, but she had been acting strangely. First she wasn't eating as much as she normally does, but again, I just thought that she needed to calm down from the stress of the trip home. But, I got more and more worried as the days went on because she was lethargic. Unfortunately, I didn't have the money to take her to a vet, so I just did whatever I could, which wasn't much since I don't know a whole lot about rabbits.

Over the last couple days she'd been acting really weird, though. A lot of the time, I found her with her two front paws in her water dish, just standing there. I didn't know what to make of that, so I just let her be, and petted her when I could. Yesterday she was very slow moving, so I held her a bit and tried to comfort her. I think on some level I knew she wasn't doing too well. Especially this morning. She really looked to be on her last legs, and I was worried that I'd come home to find her not living anymore. That turned out to be the case. She had died sometime while I was at work.

At this point, I'm wondering if there was more I could have done. I realize that there probably wasn't, or at least there wasn't anything I could have done that wouldn't have been terribly expensive. Reading that over, it sounds really bad, and I don't mean to sound incredibly cheap, but that's the way it is.

Anyway, I just really hope that she wasn't in too much pain when she died. I'll never be certain because I don't know what was wrong with her, but at least she's not in pain anymore. I'll miss you, Anya.