March comes in like a lion

Weather:
I thought the roof of my building was going to fly off the other night. That fear was followed by wondering if the sheets of speedy rain were going to break the skylight and drown me as if I were in a fishbowl. Luckily, neither happened.

I guess winter has come and gone. I certainly didn't notice it very much. I might very well take my 4 pairs of long-john pants and 6 long-john tops down to the railroad tracks and burn them in a long overdue thank you to the gods. If you know anyone of medium womanly build who might like some cuddle duds, let me know, as we're starting to have 39F-53F degree days now. Gone are are the 30F-43F, with only one half-hour of rina that looked like snow and sleet. I hear there are flowers blooming in the countryside under the grey skies. With spring break next week I'm tempted to take a jaunt out of town just to see.

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India:
in other news: I've started adding the India photos. I've got 2000 in total so it's a slow process. Slightly impatient, I decided to do the editing and uploading while forgoing the titling. That will have to come later - or in stages. So, if you're so inclined to see some of New Delhi, it is slowly showing itself at 616 photos.

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Back home:
I/We made a law. I've never made a law before. I hope it's worthy of being on the books and that forty years from now, children aren't reading about the policy failure of Compassionate Care for Rape Victims. Although, I do hope they're reading about "back in the day when this kind of legislation was necessary.."

I wasn't able to be there for the Governor's signing of it into law, but I could feel it over here. A huge sigh of relief. An excitement for future women seeking equality and justice. And, hopefully, just the right amount of pat-on-the-back to help my colleagues to keep fighting the good fight.

People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime.
When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.

I am so lucky to have been able to work and live with some amazing people during the CCRV effort.

news article
video of signing (Highlights: Rep. Musser - Republican, says "Don't tell my caucus." and gets a laugh. Survivors: Linda, Amanda. Being able to see all my colleagues through the lens - Sara's LONG hair. And Governor Doyle, who even though he can't pronounce "contraception" very well is still a total champion for women's rights.)

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School:
I'm going to try to write 3,000 words this weekend. Not randomly, but perhaps stringed together under the frame of privatization or perhaps independent regulatory agencies. Yesterday, our professor for international economics told us we have a lighter workload than our colleagues at other schools and that during his first year of school he lost 15 kilos and his mom told him he wasn't going back (he's Italian and damn good looking, so I imagine he lost a bunch of pasta weight). His comment was kind of harsh and a little uncalled for, but I do love his course. It's just that 3 problem sets (the first of which took me 10 hours total), 1 midterm, 1 group presentation, 4 weekly bibliographies (complementing our course pack readings) seems a bit excessive when considering the totality of the work load. I don't mean to complain or whine, and it's not that I don't want to be challenged. I just want to have the opportunity to do my work well and not half-assed-hoping.

I've heard that the first year of grad school is the worst. But there are only two of them! I'd rather like to have a few more after this one just to balance things out.

Maybe I'm not up to par. I often feel like I'm falling behind, struggling to hear and internalize every word, treading water, barely getting it at all. And then when it comes time to regurgitate or reformulate, I hope I can discover something new. But I gave that up last semester when I realized I'm not in the research field, I will not be discovering new ideas, I will not be publishing right now. So, I am content to try to understand and demonstrate my comprehension. Bor-ing. But oh well.

So, I'm looking at Spring Break next week Thursday for 6 days. It would be a delight to go somewhere for a few days. If I get this 3,000 word paper out, I will let myself leave the city and be alone. Now, to think of a short 2.5 day trip. Please feel free to send your suggestions!