Comings and Goings

I have been in school full-time for the last month, earning my certification to Teach English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). It was a good way to use my time productively while waiting for the damn legislature to get a budget enacted so I can go back to work. It was also an eye-opener, because when I left college at the age of 20 I pretty well detested going to school. Now, I am incredibly sad that I don't have to get up and go to school Monday.

The last month has been revelatory in a host of ways. In addition to packing in a ton of information related to teaching, I somehow rediscovered myself (yes, it sounds cliche, but I cannot think of a better way to describe it). I made some new friends; I cemented relationships with a couple existing ones; I found a new love; I refound the joy for life that I had lost over the last 4 1/2 years; I was so busy that I only could find time to sleep about 6 hours per night, but I didn't mind at all; I traveled all over the city for a month and only started my car four times; I talked to random people on the street and on Muni; I realized that the world really is a fascinating place.

The downside to this is that it truly IS fascinating and now I want to learn more about it. I am dying to go back to school full time and finish up the degree I never got. OK, well, finish up the degree I hadn't even thought of getting (I was a business major when I left school - now I want to study something fascinating like anthropology or linguistics). Could I take a year or more off work and finish up my schooling? Probably. Would I have any money left afterwards? Probably not. Do I have to decide now? No, thank god.

So, a huge thanks to all of my friends and family who supported me in this endeavor to enrich myself. In so many ways, this has been one of the best months of my life. All I can say is: YAY!