summer thoughts, summer things

So school's out. And I seem to be managing okay with one post per season, but since I'm in summer mode, I shall try to step it up just a wee bit here. First things first, some shots of Amelia in progress, just to show you how Cricket-colored she really is. Cricket is looking very sweet in that pic, sniffing the dirt and being all puppy-like. Dogtor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde every day, in every way.
And also a pic of my newish Birkenstock clogs (because I can't wear boots all the time) which caused a mild disruption at work.
See I got them thinking I could wear them to work. And I got away with it for weeks, wearing them with black pants, dark socks, like they were traveling to my repressive school incognito. But one day, I wore them with some brown corduroys, and my boss, she of the power suits in every color of the rainbow, was in the classroom watching us teach. And I could tell by the look on her face that something wasn't going well, even though the other teacher and I were working hard and the kids were relatively well-behaved. The next day, she followed me into the copy room and said "I need to let you know that those shoes you were wearing weren't professional." Arrrgh. I will not rant and rave about this now that I've quit the job, but damn, lady, neither are your 3-inch burnt orange acrylic nails either. Especially that chipped one...

But now it's summer and I'm happily unemployed, and figuring out my next plan in a life that's gone all crazy here. In spite of my two degrees and multiple credentials and lengthy years of teaching, I can't seem to see any joy in the thought of returning to a classroom next year. Not sure if this is temporary or permanent, and so I'm hesitant to launch myself full-on into the search for a full time job just yet. Lucky for me no one's hiring yet anyway. I am thinking my dream work would be a part time teaching job or maybe just a lot of tutoring or working in a learning lab or something. I'm also in the process of applying to GA State University to do some coursework to get certified to teach English as a Second Language, but the program is competitive and I'm late to the game, so it might not happen this fall. All this is complicated by P being offered his dream job in Washington, DC. My husband and his nomadic career are a challenge to me at times. Fortunately, he is indulgent to me in other ways, and so we are going to manage this thing slowly. I don't really have another move in me just now. In spite of the fact that I despise the educational system I've found myself in right now, I despise more the fact that Work causes no small amount of disruption in a life that I otherwise quite enjoy. So P is going to take the job, we're going to keep the Atomic Ranch, because we both love living here and it's a better investment this way and there will be a long-distance marriage for the next year, which we have survived before and will survive again. I will be spending some time in DC (this makes me happy) and he will be spending time in the ATL - and then after the next year is up, we'll figure out what we want to do with the Atomic Ranch, and whether we want to move Lock, Stock and Barrel. P thinks he's found a condo that works okay for the new job, walkable and bikeable to work and dog-friendly, in case I should drive up with the beasts. So this summer is one of a lot of uncertainty and figuring out the New Normal, a process which will go on for some months, at least. Even if we were to sell the Rancho, it would be months before we could put it on the market anyway, and so this approach makes more sense. I love the DC/Northern VA area a lot, and would happily go up there again, just not yet. I'm not ready to face that Beltway Buzz of energy, the extreme population density, and the cost of living. Atlanta seems somehow softer and easier right now. The Atomic Ranch works well for the dogs, and of course the dogs are what we keep first and foremost in mind when we go a-house hunting.

Project Spectrum Red Month of May came and I started Kiri, which, right after I blogged it, a few weeks ago, dumped me hard. I could NOT get the stitch count right to save my soul, and so it was hurled into a corner and I am finishing up Ysolda's Rose Red beret in some lovely Madeline Tosh yarn that my knittah Debbie inspired me to buy at Stitches. The yarn is ALL THAT, as everyone had been telling me, though my stash of other things is substantial enough that I won't make a habit of it. I will blog this as soon as I cast off and get some pics. I'm hoping desperately that it fits, and that I have enough yardage to finish it, so dear readers light a candle for me and hope along with me.

Even though life "feels" insane right now, I am pretty positive and happy at the moment. I did what I set out to do, which was to survive the year from hell, and I am looking forward to the changes and new adventures coming up. And hopefully more blogging.