Wednesdays.

Having a bad day?


Not anymore. Wednesdays are my longest days (class from 8 AM to 7 PM with two kinds of work and two appointments in between), but in some mad way they're also my favorite. I usually try and pick out my outfit on Tuesday nights and leave myself extra time to do my hair Wednesday mornings because feeling pretty really helps me get through all the things I need to do. Today, though, was a sweatshirt-and-ponytail day, because on top of everything else I had a history exam to take (for which I had to skip Tibetan class, unfortunately. I hope I didn't miss any more yak stories.).

I feel starry-eyed and surprised about how effectively I managed my time this week: in four days I wrote an eleven-page paper on political unity and disunity in the Levant under Rome, sent it to the TA days in advance to guarantee a good grade, and studied intensely for two separate history exams, both jam-packed with new material. The first one was multiple choice and I received a perfect score; the second one was entirely written and I felt all of my answers were complete and thorough. And at the behest of multiple encouraging friends who regularly express the flattering belief that I am the supreme high mistress of all things knowledge (ha!), I took the College Jeopardy qualifying exam. But if I'm contacted for an interview I'll have to decline, as I'll be on my mission during the contest this November.

Tomorrow is a day to breathe; I'll work on new Arabic vocabulary for my quiz and transcribe some Cairo interviews so I can have something to show at my research meeting. I'll talk to some professors about getting me more study abroad data. I'll bug my students about submitting their term papers just the way I want them. I'll put together my lecture (I teach apicomplexans on Friday) and set up my lab. I'll watch the BYU game and update my bracket. And I've also been selected for the starring female role (Esther) in tomorrow's Biblical Hebrew reenactment of the Purim tale in honor of the holiday.

What can I say? What can't I say?
La vita è buona.
La vida es buena.
الحياة جيدة.
החיים טובים.