Hanna banana
like a good girl, i went to the store this afternoon (which was crowded with like-minded people), and stocked up on water & non-perishable food, (i.e., crackers & bread & tuna & peanut butter). not surprisingly, the bottled water and battery shelves were already fairly empty, but i hope/think i have enough ). the candles and flashlights are ready to go. i think i know the drill by now, though it's amazing how much a hurricane still can affect areas like this that are 200 miles inland.
Hurricane Isabel's eye passed over here in sept 2003. it was midnight, the power was out, and it was downright eerie to be in the middle of the eye, b/c it suddenly got calm and clear and starry under a spooky moonlight, which illuminated swirling clouds in the sky. (that is, until the rain and wind picked up again with renewed ferocity on the backside of the storm). in the morning, it was brilliantly sunny again, but huge trees were down all over the place like broken matchsticks.
school has started up again here. i'm back in classes, and so far, so good--it looks like it's going to be a good semester. if all goes smoothly, i hope to finish up the class work portion of my degree this coming spring. the thought of finishing courses scares me and excites me at once. it's thrilling to methodically clear every hurdle and get closer to my goal. it's also scary as shit, because it means i have to face comps (comprehensive exams), and everything else that comes after that before i've fully earned my degree. and sometimes i still ask myself: "M______, what the hell are you doing?! do you know what you want out of this??" but, it's baby steps for now.
last week, i was monumentally bummed to realize that summer was waning and my vacation was ending. that feeling still lingers. but assuming you know me well-enough, is that really anything new? still, as an advanced grad-student (even at my age!), maybe there's a glimmer of new energy and new beginnings that only a brand-new school year can bring. it's not that different from the excitement i felt when i was little, when my parents bought me a new pack of #2 pencils, notebooks, and new back-to-school outfits. boy, i couldn't wait to meet my new teacher each september (august?), and hoped with all my might that my best friend and i were assigned to the same classroom. do you remember how that felt?
what else is there to look forward to? oh! i watched the new 90210 on CW tv, followed by the Season 11 premiere of Top Model (also on cw). but i should save the mindless, trashy tv drivel for its own separate diary entry.
....off to enjoy the last of the sunlight before the storm clouds fully take over. tomorrow will not be pretty. at first, i thought i'd check out a movie and pop some popcorn for a storm party tomorrow...except on 2nd thought...if the electricity goes, then how can i watch the movie or pop the corn?
