29...

I know I haven't updated in a few days. I have spent most of the week in training for my other part-time, temporary, seasonal job as an academic orientation advisor. This means that this coming Tuesday, confused 18-year-olds and their equally confused parents will arrive on CMU's lush green campus, and ask for directions to parking lots I don't know the location of, and then I'll sign these kids up for classes later that day.

There were a few training highlights to the rest of the week-- I already mentioned the ROTC sponge-guns-- another major highlight that comes to mind is learning country line dancing. I was previously unaware that the Electric Slide was a "country" line dance. I thought it was remedial organized wedding dancing, like the Chicken Dance or the Hokey Pokey. WRONG! The Electric Slide is officially country. It was brilliant to watch a bunch of fit and hot people in athletic gear dance together-- oh yeah, country line dance day was also "Athletic Apparel Day." This theme scared me a lot. I don't wear tennis shoes as shoes, as a general rule-- only to exercise. And, since I had to teach that day as well, I still had to look slightly presentable. I was able to find a pair of pink Puma sneakers that are slightly athletic, but cool enough to to teach in.
They were also comfortable enough to dance in.

Uhhhh, what else...

Well, I had a good birthday. I spent it in Orientation training. Everyone sang to me. Later, after I went out to buy a cake and a pair of earrings (in that order, BTW-- always dessert and then jewelry), Andrew and I went to dinner together at the Brass Cafe. I got smoked salmon. I ate all of it.

When we came home, we ate the cake with our friends Courtney and Dan, who stepped in at short notice to watch Evan, who was supposed to be with my mom and dad over the weekend. My parents couldn't take him because my paternal grandpa had a heart attack and a seizure last night, and my dad had to go to the hospital to look after him. My grandpa is OK at the moment. We all realize he is very old, and know that even though he lived through this that he probably doesn't have much time left. He has outlived two wives... and, for the most part, I think has lived a pretty happy life.

I hope to do the same.