Making a Home Sweet Home

I am officially a graduate student! I am enrolled in five classes right now and am honestly considering adding another class. The sixth class is a colloqium, which just means I get to go listen to guest speakers that come every few weeks and write two papers. Not too bad for three points, right?! I just have to get permission to take that many classes - minor details. I am also registered for a trip to Antigua, Guatemala, from January 2 to 14 and am very excited!! It is a trip with the mathematics education department - we're watching how the classes are conducted. I have been to all my classes except for one - it meets on Tuesdays. Four of my classes meet once a week for an hour and forty minutes, but one meets twice a week for an hour and a half each time. I don't think that's too bad!!

I was quite surprised to discover that the majority of my classes have 45 people in them - I even have one class with a 100 people! This might not seem like too big of a deal, but I'm not used to having classes with that many people - there weren't even that many people enrolled in the math program at UMHB!! It's great! It's also very nice because there are a lot of people that are in all the same classes with me - yea for study groups. As a result of all the orientations and apartment socials that took place before class started, I knew someone in all my classes the first day of school! I love that!!

In other exciting news, a sweet couple that lives upstairs is letting us borrow their extra tv while their cable is out in the bedroom!! The husband is in my math classes with me and when I told him I read the first chapter of the textbook before class because I had nothing to do I think he took pity on me! I must say it's quite nice to be sitting on the couch watching tv - the little things that people take for granted.

Ready for more exciting news? Bobby and I have gotten all of our boxes the past few days!! We weren't expecting two closets so we didn't pack enough hangers, but that's okay because at least now we have clothes (even if they are still in boxes). We also ordered a wonderful pots, pans, dishes, silverware, etc. set from Target and that box came in today (four days early) so guess what?! We cooked our first dinner tonight in our apartment!! The minor detail is we ate macaroni and cheese, but at least it was cheaper than eating out and it was made fresh in our own apartment so I got to eat in my pajamas!! More good news? Okay. Thanks to the wonderful help of Charles, (boy did Alice marry the right guy!!) Bobby and I are now able to use the internet with our router!! What a guy!! Also today we set up the answering service on our telephone (more complicated than you would imagine). We decided this needed to be a priority because the front desk lady got mad at Bobby yesterday because she couldn't leave a message and tell us we had a package - I wonder if she's ever moved and forgotten to pack a phone cord?! (Sorry, I should be nicer) Today I also got to go to Container Store (it's like being back at home in Texas) but I was disciplined and walked in and bought the shower thing I needed (the chrome tower that sits on the tub - yes, it does sit on the edge of the clawfoot tub - and holds our shower stuff) and walked out, I didn't walk around the store because I knew it'd be too tempting (man, I love that store!). Now my bathroom is clean and organized and everything is in its place!! We also bought new pillows for our couch - it's comfortable if you sit on it normally, but when laying on it, the ends were a little hard. We also bought a little rug for the kitchen to try to cover up the majority of the nasty tiling that is coming up. I still won't go in there barefoot (yea for comfy flipflop slippers) but at least it doesn't look as bad! If you couldn't tell, it has been a great couple days!!

Yesterday I had a three hour gap between my two classes that are on the fourth floor (have I mentioned, yet, that four out of five classes - including the one that's twice a week - are on the fourth floor! I know I need the exercise, but I don't think my knees know it) so I went home to change books and was going to study but Bobby said he wanted to go to Starbucks and, well, who am I to turn that down?! Twice in one week!! But both times were Bobby's doing, so it's not against my Starbucks budget! The place was swamped! I think class must have just let out at Columbia (Starbucks is across the street from the side entrance onto campus) or something because it was awful! But, like a good person, I patiently waited at the counter for my Grande Java Chip Frappuccino (sidenote - after ordering I saw they now have a pumpkin spice frapp so guess what I am going to get next time?!) and I was trying not to be rude, but every one was stepping in front of me, so the lady didn't notice that I wasn't getting my drink. After five minutes I finally worked my way to the counter and planted myself. She noticed that I had been there awhile and apologized and reminded the people about my drink (other people's drinks were taking awhile too, but I think at that point I beat all of them). After ten more minutes, she apologized again (poor girl, she was getting all the grief from the customers - and some of them were horribly rude - and it was the fault of the brand new frapp guy who didn't know what he was doing) and then when she reminded them about my drink she said venti! I was going to correct her, but decided against it. A few minutes later she handed me my drink and she said she got me the venti because I had been waiting so long and she felt bad. What a sweet girl and what a yummy drink (I prefer venti, actually, because of how quickly I drink, but it's too expensive). Then Bobby walked me to class (what a guy) and sat with me until people started showing up for class (which was almost an hour - we got there early because we had nothing else to do). It definitely has been a great week!!

Sidenote - How can you tell if you are meant to be a math major? If you lay awake at night, unable to sleep because of a math problem that was discussed earlier in the day. In my class last night, she assigned some homework and one of the problems is a proof of sorts that I was having trouble figuring out and it was driving me nuts! As a result, I lay in bed pondering the solution and did not sleep well at al last night! I think I've got most of it, but it might be another restless night!!

I know this is all probably much more information than you were intending to find out, but I haven't written in awhile and I am procrastinating either going to bed or studying some more (how do you make the decision - do I try to go to bed now and wake up early to study, or give in to not being tired and study now even though it's almost midnight?) and I decided to make sure every one is caught up on the lives of the Patterson duo living in New York City!!

Smile: My apartment is finally starting to look like a home (except for the lack of things on the walls - minor detail)!!
Frown: Boxes, boxes, everywhere!!