All The Posts I Would Have Written...

So I've actually wanted to post in the past weeks several times. Alas, I still don't feel like I can spare the time. I'm getting better though.

Anyway, here are the abstracts to the posts I would have written.

I Thought We Lived in a Good Neighborhood. TM and I were so excited to be able to give out candy this year after years of living in apartment buildings in NYC, where you don't ever buzz someone in that you don't know. Our neighborhood is filled with houses that are filled with kids. We went to Costco and got a big bag of candy and 100 Blow-Pops...just in case we ran out. Apparently, we live on a crappy street because only one group of kids came by all night! And of those five kids, only two of them were in a costume. TM gave them each a huge handful of candy and I've been bringing the rest to school. So sad...

Happy Anniversary? TM and I celebrated our first anniversary the beginning of October. It isn't technically a year since we became boyfriend/girlfriend (that's in December), but it's been a year since we've basically been together...he didn't date anyone else once we had our first date and I went on one lame ass date before I realized that I was comparing the dude to TM. It was a great anniversary: dinner in the North End, gelato in a cute dessert shop. The rest of the month did not go so well. We had a very hard month discussing our "next step." It was really difficult, where a lot was revealed and a lot of tears were shed. Ultimately, it was one of the best things that has happened to us. We are closer and know so much more about each other than we did...even after a year. Now we're having a blast!

Duh! I want to be engaged. TM knows this and we are "in talks"...I don't think anyone is going on strike or anything. It's just funny because as soon as I said it out loud to TM, it felt like this huge revelation and the most obvious thing to me simultaneously. I think being married to TM would be the coolest thing ever.

Movies I've Seen. So part of my adjustment period at Harvard is trying to find balance between getting my work done and taking care of my family and me. It's still a struggle, but I'm getting better. So good, in fact that for three weekends in a row, I've seen a movie in the movie theatre! Can I say again how much I love having a $7 movie theatre walking distance from my house? So I've seen Eastern Promises, American Gangster, and Lars and the Real Girl.

I officially don't get David Cronenberg films. I mean I don't get what the hubbub is about. This movie is well-scripted and directed in a pretty straight-forward way. There is one pretty amazing scene in the film that I have never seen before...I imagine that must have taken some skill to execute. Besides that, it was pretty good, but not great.

American Gangster, on the other hand, was so kick-ass! Denzel was better than he was in Training Day. In Training Day, I could feel him actively trying to get the audience to forget his usual acting type. Like he was screaming: "I'm not always a nice guy, you know!" Granted, he was screaming in an excellent voice. With this film, he wore his character like a perfectly tailored suit. You didn't see the work behind the character...he just was. And Russel Crowe's character was made for him: earthy and awkward and sexy and tough. He was a meaty actor in a meaty role. It was a fascinating story as well, all the more interesting because it's true.

I loved Lars and the Real Girl so much. I understood that character so much. I don't know if it's due to the writing or due to my own mental health struggles, but I totally got why Lars did everything he did and it all made complete sense to me. There were several moments where I was laughing and sad crying at the exact same time. Anyone who has dealt with loss, with loneliness, with family issues should see this film. I'm not saying you'll relate to it the way I did, but you'll definitely recognize something in the film. So Good!

It's Coming Together. The cool thing that happens in a strong academic setting is happening for me right about now. I'm making brand new connections in my brain. What I'm learning about in my Econ class is tying into my core doctoral seminar about the role of education in perpetuating or dismantling class. When I learn about adult development, I can apply to how workers in an organization deal with change. I'm going to use the skills I developed in my qualitative interviewing class on a class project in another one. I love that feeling of connecting.

They Are Dropping Like Flies. Perhaps I had Harvard on too high a pedestal, but I thought that the Admissions Committee did all the weeding out before we got here. I know I was struggling with feeling stupid, but it didn't seriously occur to me that I would quit the program. I thought I might fail out, but I'm not worried about that anymore. However, there is serious self-doubt creeping into the ranks...people who I thought had this whole grad school thing down are catching the "I wanna quit" cold. It's kinda scary. No one beside the woman I spoke about before has actually done it, but there is more talk than makes me comfortable. I just have to keep my eyes on the prize: Dr. L. Britt!

Shout-out. A friend of mine...who hasn't posted on her blog in quite a while :)...is making a huge life change soon. It's something that she's wanted to do for a long time and now she's making it happen. I just want to say that I'm very proud of her and happy for her. Yeah!

Scared to Hope. So I just saw the latest "Grey's Anatomy" episode online. That one was good! It was really good. It wasn't precocious and annoying they way it's been all season. It was simple and well-written and it let the good actors be good actors. It was interesting to see Christina not be top dawg. It was comforting to have Bailey back in charge. And I'm SO happy they are sabotaging the whole George/Izzie thing, because that relationship reeked of a Sweeps Week ploy. It was like the writers tried to have a one-night stand with a lame plot choice and the choice ended up pregnant, so they were stuck with it. So now I'm happy with the show, but I still have to take it one episode at a time, because who knows if it will get annoying again.