j, k, l, semi-colon, quotation, returning.

I'll be frank. The fact is that the last two years of school at the University of Oregon have pretty much ransacked and pillaged my personality. I'm largely defined by my experience as an institutionalized student now: what I think, what I do in my (supposedly free) time, what I dream (and nightmare) about, all revolve around school. It's been both positive and negative, and certainly (for better and worse) transformative. Say what you will about the merits of college education, but there's also a lot ot be said for organic, independent discoveries and feeling and writing without constant critical analysis--there's a lot to be said for living in a world outside of academia, in short. It's where, you know, reality happens. And stuff.

There are five weeks left in the term before I graduate and move on, and the time has come ("the walrus said") to pull my independent, creative mind from the ashes and resurrect some sense of who I autonomously am, aside from a student and aspiring language arts teacher. Hence this ridiculous blog, which I told myself I wasn't going to do anymore... yet here we are, here I am, out of necessity--compulsively returning to creative writing, my literary miracle grow. Magic in the making, kids.

If my posts are inane for the next month or so, it's because I'm regrowing an organ that has been amiss for a while. I debate whether it's my heart or my brain. You'll see in the next few weeks as the words come tumbling out.

And now, in an abrupt change of subject,
I present,
Five fabulous things happening in the next few months (aside from graduation):
1. A 2+ week long roadtrip with the man-of-my-heart through the Southwest (including Joshua Tree, CA and Flagstaff, AZ) and into Austin Texas (oohoo! A 10-year pursuit) and New Orleans (which we're especially interested to visit/document, given its current condition).
2. Suddenly acquiring the time to read the following (not in chronological order): the poetry of Derek Walcott, the short stories of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the novels of Christina Garcia, and the collected works of Joseph Campbell.
3. The emergence of daffodils, my favorite flowers.
4. The arrival of my Demeter order (grass, dirt, and laundromat fragrances).
5. The donning of sandals and skirts and sunglasses, and the attendant multiplication of freckles.
Yesss.