Bit of Ivory

That was a nice vacation. Kinda tiring, but nice. It was fun to spend time with the fam, go to classes, learn a bit, and best of all, NOT WORK. Was tough to drag myself in today, but I did it. Oh, well. One more week of full time, then it’s school and part-time hours. I can handle one more week. Hopefully they’ll have my replacement soon, so I can train him/her before I go down to part-time.

My family was able to meet my brother’s girlfriend last night. We made an apple pie and she came over to watch the Olympics. So far, I approve. She’s cute and nice and likes Toyotas. She likes HP, although I have not yet ascertained her shipping preferences. She has also never seen What’s Up, Doc?, a situation which must be rectified soon.

Still no word on Ginny. Dad was going to try calling again today. At this point, it seems highly unlikely that I’ll get her back in time for school. GRRRR. *hates Best Buy with the burning passion of a thousand fiery suns* I need to know what’s happening with her, though, because depending on what her status is, I might be buying a new hard drive and Windows XP for Harry.

Speaking of school, I bought my textbooks today, online. Saved $45. I should get them by the time school starts, hopefully. If not, I can always buy them at the bookstore, handle them carefully, then return them when my other copies arrive. In any case, textbooks are costing me about $110. Not too shabby, I think. And that’s including a new all-in-one version of The Lord of the Rings that I might have been able to do without, but decided not to. Was only $14, anyway.

In other good news on the money front, my tuition is going to be significantly less than I was expecting. When I was accepted, they sent a paper that we were supposed to fill out and return by April 1 to recieve a $1000 tuition credit. Well, I sent it in, and I got the credit. But it’s not just $1000, it’s $1200. Which means my tuition for this semester will be all of $870. If I manage to make enough money during the school year to pay for my rent and living expenses (which I should), I’ll still have enough in the bank to pay my tutition for winter semester, too. Then a summer of full-time (I hope), and I should make enough to pay tuition next year, too. Which could mean getting through my masters without having to take out a single student loan. *crosses fingers*

Yesterday was my last day of teaching my Primary class. Considering how apprehensive I was about teaching a bunch of 8 year olds, my reaction was kind of comical. Tears were shed. I wrote a personal note to each of the kids, telling them how much I love them and bearing my testimony. I hope that, if they don’t remember anything else about me, they’ll remember those two things– that I loved them, and I believed in what I was teaching. I don’t remember any specific lessons from my Primary days, but I do remember the teachers who cared about me, and the feelings I got while listening to them. I plan to return for the baptisms of my remaining kids. And I have the little notes they wrote me, and this picture that one of my girls, Camille, drew of my family. Am feeling rather sad about going to a singles ward, where there are no adorable Primary kids. *sniff* On the other hand, there are no single guys in my ward, either. So there are definitely compensations.

Finished the Laurie R. King books, up to Justice Hall. I don’t want to buy The Game, since I now own all the rest in paperback, so I will check it out from the library instead. And then I join the rest of you in eagerly awaiting The Locked Room. Need to finish it before Monday, though, since I don’t know how much time I’ll have for outside reading– or at least new reading– once school starts. When I’m in school, I still read outside of classes, but not usually stuff I haven’t read before, because I tend to get hooked and ignore my homework. If I stick to stuff I’m familiar with, it’s much easier to put down. Thus my 200 readings of Pride and Prejudice.