Sunday, July 31, 2011

So. . .What Have I Been Doing This Summer . . ?

Some of you very artfully replied to a similar question a few weeks - or was it a few DAYS - ago?  I had intended sharing my stuff at that time but never quite around to it. . . Hey!  Have you ever seen "a round tuit"?

A few years ago one of the chaplains at the Catholic Center on campus at the beginning of Lent was talking with us about the Season and how we were going to live it.  He then narrated some of the excuses we too often use to put things off and one of the more common excuses . he says, is "One of these days I'll get around to it. . . " and before we know it Lent is over, Spring is here and we are all off and running." Then he asked a few students to walk around the chapel and give each of us A Round To-It.  "Now you no longer have that excuse;  I've given you one."  It was a small, circular piece of wood, around the edge it said "This is a round to - it. "  In the center was a cross.   So many of us carried it around in our pocket the rest of Lent as a reminder.  A few years later my round-to-it is one of the things I keep in my pocket.  A good reminder.

I just wanted to share this with you, since I think it is part of my excuse for this summer.  Have you ever seen a summer fly by so quickly?!   August 1st tomorrow.  

And the End of Summer for Peter and me "on the Cape . . near P'town" is coming to an end.  We did a lot of work this summer getting ready for school and Fall work. . preparing some of the material I want to use in the class of Intro Psych I will be teaching. . . .It has come down to this.  I will teach two sections this semester, meeting with them three times a week.
And working at the Counseling Center on a regular basis.  Plus my own classes beginning the doctoral program in psychology.

Peter becomes a full time student again, in his junior year.  He has been doing a lot of reading and readying to "throw himself into the program."  Added to his undergrad work he  will begin the two year program preparing him to work as part of a med/surgical team in a medical center with the education and hands-on experience to do a lot of the ordinary med-surg procedures in a medical practice. This is for a licensed certification.  This is a relatively newer program starting up in various areas around the country.  A lot of his classes will be in the college of medicine and practical experience in the large excellent teaching hospital connected with the med school here.

And we have spent a LOT of time at the beach, hiking, sleazing-out, just ample time to BE together. . . and we have done a lot of exploring and searching into ourselves, our hopes and dreams, needs and desires in life.  With the relaxed life and ample free time much of this just happened naturally as things presented themselves.

Our lives are going to change. . . not only in the academic parts but in the real nitty-gritty life of living together 24-7.   As I mentioned earlier my grandmother, at whose home I have lived the last few years. . . off campus, of course, and "across the river and through the woods. . .to Grandmother's house we go. .  ..the Fit knows the way. " and so forth.  LOL. . . ..Mme Bouvier has invited me back and also asked Peter to live with us also.   Gram is very fond of "her boys" and likes having her "men around the house."

Without having to change much to her living quarters, we will have an Up and Down living apartment.  Upstairs are two good-sized bedrooms, and a large bathroom.  This bathroom. . . .must have been the master bath . . .has two sinks, a separate shower and a bath tub. . .and only one Throne. . . .hahahaa . . . we plan on keeping the two bedrooms, will share one. . .we always do. . .and use the other for other stuff. . . .maybe when one of us needs to stay up reading, etc. we can do that without disturbing one another.   The first floor is one large room. . . .one part kitchen and dining, the rest a wonderful roomy place to watch TV, read, study, hangout. . . very convenient.

Most of the time we will be eating with Gram. . . she loves having her boys to cook for. . . .and this is a good incentive for her to eat healthily herself., having us to cook for means she will have the meals planned:  excellent for the three of us. . .but we are not "chained in", as she puts it "to eat with the old lady. . It's no fun just cooking for myself. . ."  So this is definitely a win-win sitz for the three of us.

Later on this week we will be packing up our cars and heading back to school. . . We will dump our stuff, get some of it settled and then we are heading out for some vacation traveling for ourselves.  We are going to Canada, La Belle Provence de Quebec, and specifically MONTREAL.  I've been there before 'with the family'. . .our first time there alone. . .with each other, of course.  One of my colleagues from grad school has invited us to stay at his place. .. in the city. . .
in "old Montreal". . . in the Gay Village. . . . A lot of the homes have the stairways to the second floor apartment[s] on the outside of the building. . .mostly iron/metal stairwell, but on the outside. . many are circular.  Very different. . .and often quite beautiful.

And then after seeing/being there for a few days we will head back to school, to settle in and, before we know, be "back in school". . ..exciting. . .a whole new world opening for both of us. . . . WoW-zer what will all this be like. . .. ? 

6 comments:

jimm said...

Where am I? Dunes been house-cleaning? Does Gram have room for one more? I'm hungry! j/k of course.

I carry a keepsake, as well.

JustinO'Shea said...

It does sound nice, doesn't it, jimm. . . .;-)

Gary Kelly said...

Your adventure in life reminds me a little of mine when I was your age, except my ship didn't have a rudder or a compass. I had no idea where I was headed. I wish you bon voyage, JustinO. Navigate well.

Richard said...

Justin, I like the new look of the page (new look for a new life?). One question though: when the page loads all of the small pictures briefly load, then they disappear. What's up with that?

BTW, I am SO envious of you. I would love to be going back to school and enjoying the vitality of campus life.

JustinO'Shea said...

Thanks, Gary. . .it's going to be fun and productive, I feel strongly on this. Planning yes, but a whole lot left open to "let's see how this works". . . .and "try this. . ." :-)

Always space for a Creative Spirit who moves where she wills. . . ;-)

JustinO'Shea said...

Snores? Snores? Who snores? Me?
Naaaaaw. . . .LOL

I getcha, Coopsta. . .hahahahah