a breath of air

Greetings once more from Pittsburgh! Hope you all are doing well in your respective locations. Jane, any updates? I've been thinking of you. Thanks for your card, Karis. The pictures are hanging on my fridge, and I hope to write you back for real very soon.

It's been a busy month so far around here. Preparing for a wedding, trying to stay on top of the tasks for my job, and also working on the other projects around the house and mind. I love that feeling of busyness, but I miss having the opportunity to keep in touch with people better. There is so much to be said for having friends spread all over the place, but having regular or daily contact is not one of them. Then I found myself last week having to go looking for a wedding dress and not finding anyone available to go with me. It was similar in some ways to seeing a movie alone, and wasn't such a bad experience, but you just have no one afterwards to discuss it with.

Saw Brokeback Mountain over the weekend and really enjoyed it even though it was very sad. Has anyone else had the chance to see it?

Sending a hug to each of you.

A new job and a new beginning

Hi all,

Just wanted to send an update and reiterate that I think this is a good idea. Maybe as fall and winter come we'll have time to put up some more writing and thoughts here.

I've just begun a new job, working from home as a research associate for a professor at UNC Chapel Hill. I'll be helping her on some grants about the work of libraries and the future library workforce. I'm a little concerned about how working from home will change my daily routine and limit my interaction with others. She wants me to come down to NC maybe once a month, but otherwise I have to set a schedule and be disciplined enough to work from home. Any tips or suggestions?

The trip to Seattle went well- I missed seeing Karis and Marin, but got to have wonderful indian food with Jane, catch up briefly over dinner with gotwals and her partner Jess, and see other old friends who live there. The weather was as good as it was for your wedding, Karis, which is the only other time I've been in Seattle. Oh, and I fell in love with the coffee house Zoka near Greenlake!

Jane also passed on to me a copy of your poetry book, Amy. It was such a neat read, and I've shared it a bit with people around me. Wish we could all get together to share and encourage more writing-- can this forum possibly be the place?

Anna S- Pgh is only 4 hrs from DC, so maybe we could meet up sometime? Hope you are doing well, and looking forward to hearing more from you!

hugs to each of you-- aerni

West Coast Bound!

Well, my last day at my first job after grad school was this past Wednesday. It was strange and somewhat traumatic to be done (since it wasn't my choice to leave). However, now that it's over, it is a relief. I don't have anything definite lined up yet, but a few promising possibilities. And a little free time never hurt anyone, especially if you own a house!

I'll be out west for about 5 days, starting next Tuesday. I'll be staying with some friends in Tacoma on Tuesday the 9th (we're actually on the same flight from Pgh), but plans after that are not set. I'd love to do relaxing and active things with folks, and there are actually many people to see! I'm really looking forward to it, and am sorry to miss you, karis.

Gotwals, it would rock to be able to catch up. Could we maybe plan for a dinner together with Jane and anyone else who wants to come along? What night works for people? I'm guessing one of the weekend days would probably work best. Let me know.

Great idea!

Hi everyone,

great to be here and I'm happy to connect with you on the Internet. I'm still not sure how I feel about posting lots of personal details on the internet, but I think having a connection to each other is a great thing.

I just made some reservations to be in your neck of the woods in August. It will be wonderful to catch up in person, and then be able to write and share thoughts here. We could even all read a book again and "converse" about it.... maybe?!

take care and more soon.