And the Fun Just Keeps on Leaving

Besides all the work I'm having to do for this Yeats class, which has pretty much superseded anything fun or other-academia-related or, you know, ELSE other than Yeats, I'm also dealing with regular life, which is a bitch.

The cars are both getting old (the car is 10 years old and the truck is approaching 20), and they're both breaking down. A lot. Often. Constantly. I had to have a major (and expensive) part fixed on the truck last week (it kept me from having any stopping power, which was NOT fun) and this week we tried to get the AC recharged in the car only to learn that the compressor was blown. The nice people at Jiffy Lube (and I'm not being sarcastic there; they were great) tried to arc the compressor to start it, which didn't work but did blow a fuse so both brake warning lights came on and cruise control broke. So we took it to our regular mechanic (also great guys) and they replaced the fuse, changed the oil, and put some non-squeaky stuff on our brakes before tackling the AC. Turns out a new compressor--labor and all--is going to cost us $950.

This on top of me trying to plan a trip to Hawaii for my sister's wedding, plus the trip to Savannah for PCAS, plus W.E.'s trip to Atlanta for his school-required colloquium.

Say it with me now: ARGH!

Once school starts in (late) August and I get my financial aid refund, we'll be okay, but I was planning to use that to get most of the work on my teeth done. Now we may have to do SOME of the work on my teeth and leave the rest of it in the bank to replenish our quickly depleting reserves.

My apologies for the whining, Gentle Readers, but I needed to get that off my chest. Now it's back to the drudgery of reading and writing for my Yeats class (and not working on DEVIL'S PIT, which I'd rather be doing) and possibly working out so I don't embarrass myself with pudge at the wedding.

Argh. Argh. Blargh. Argh.

Long couple of weeks. Yeats class still kicking my ass. First big project is now finished and just about ready to turn in, but now I have two weeks to write a major paper and try to keep up with all the homework at the same time. My desk is--again--piled up with books, most of them with a library stamp on them.

Just thought I'd pop in and let you all know that I'm not dead, just drowning.

Brief Stop-In Between Yeats Plays

So Mark is reading Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets now. And I'm following along with him. At a chapter a day, he's not likely to outpace me too badly, and it'll give me a chance to do something besides read Yeats every day.

Four weeks left until this class is over.

*headdesk*

*dies*

Slayage

Last weekend was the Slayage Conference on the Whedonverses, and it was tons of fun. Besides the stress and panic over my first presentation at an academic conference (not to mention my first time as a session chair), the conference itself was informative, fascinating, and a good time. I got to meet Dr. Rhonda Wilcox, co-founder of Buffy studies and editor of the Slayage journal (and she knew who I was!). The place was packed with big names in Buffy academics, so it was a constant fight not to completely geek out and go all fangirl (I went a bit fangirl when I met Dr. Wilcox, but I think I managed not to freak her out).

This is St. Augustine. It is beautiful.



The college is tiny, with only about 2500 students and 100 faculty. It's also a baby college, only about 40 years old.

After the first keynote speech (and before a friend's presentation) on Friday, we went to the beach:




When that storm front hit the beach, we took pictures of a friend's sandcastle really really quick
and got the heck out of there.

On Saturday I had my presentation, then we went to the shops and bought souvenirs. That night there was a screening of Dr. Horrible and the Firefly episode "Out of Gas." There's nothing quite like a whole room of people singing the Firefly theme. After the screening we hung around and talked to Dr. Lavery and Dr. Wilcox while my friends played with my camera:




And then I got a picture with Dr. Wilcox and Dr. Lavery.

On Sunday we came home. I'm still not completely unpacked. Summer classes started on Monday, the brakes on my truck quit, and I'm already drowning under homework for my first class. But it was a great time and I'm glad I went.

In October, a bunch of my classmates and I will be going to Savannah for the Pop Culture Association of the South conference!

Slayage Time

Tomorrow at an ungodly early hour of the morning, I'll be heading off to Florida to make an idiot of myself participate in the intellectual geekiness of the Slayage Conference on the Whedonverses. I'll be updating here, Twitter, and Facebook sporadically if at all (I will have Internet access, but time? That's another matter). I'll be back with a full accounting and hopefully pictures on Sunday.

Now if you will excuse me, I must take myself off to finish packing.

Chasing Lights (Stats)

DEVIL'S PIT

New words: 1,429
Total words: 17,524

Mean things: tired. Depressed. Sucking black hole of despair. Unrequited love. Monster?

Favorite: We were going in circles, I was sure of it. We were never going to get out of here. We’d become another mine folk tale, a warning to children about what happens to idiots who go into dark, dangerous places underground.

Music:
"One by One" - Sirenia
"Snow White Queen" - Evanescence
"Wave of Anguish" - Lacuna Coil

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I'm toying with the idea of tossing another mine-folklore monster in here. Waiting on thoughts from my beta readers first.