Graduation

Last night Stella graduated from her Beginner Obedience Class - HURRAH!

Frankly, I wasn't convinced it would happen. It was a difficult test and she can be pretty stubborn - especially on the down/stay. She certainly doesn't like the down command and even if she settles into it, she's unlikely to stay there if I move. And to top it off, she wasn't allowed a treat during the command. UGH.

But she surprised me. After several tries, she settled into the down and stayed - for a moment. It was enough for our instructor to think she was ready to move on so I accepted that and we are gearing up for an intermediate class in December.

I debated taking Buster to beginner instead, but Stella is far bigger and more obstinate than Buster so I figured my time and money is better spent on her. After we finished, and Stella had her photo taken in her cap (no gown) and was given her graduation gifts, our instructor Val said she was "very impressed." She also said she didn't say that to many people . . . she usually just said "congratulations" and waved them on their merry way. I was thrilled! I think in my next life I'm going to work with dogs (or animals in general) so getting a compliment from a professional was especially nice to hear. I've debated going to school to learn to be a professional trainer myself . . . time and money always seem to keep me from following through.

Still, Stella and I have a lot of work to do! She is quite good alone with me and minds very well in public; but get her with Zoe and Buster or at home and she's another beast entirely. I'm hoping the next round of classes will help all that.

But for now, my little girl has accomplished something and I'm proud.

Of course, the toy Val gave her is already in pieces . . . and I'm hiding the treats.

e-disHarmony

Okay, so I've been on ONE date since joining eHarmony a while back. ONE. And that one date was not only my first with my "match," but also my last. SIGH.

Now, to be fair, some of the guys I've been communicating with live too far away for a casual date. But there was a guy in KC with whom I was chatting I thought had potential. We had even traded our outside e-mail addresses . . . but since then I haven't heard from him. I refuse to stalk the guy, but I did send him a couple short e-mails inquiring about him. NADA. What's the phrase? "He's just not that into you." So I've stopped trying.

So, even though I'm paid up through eHarmony for a freakin' year, I'm thinking about hiding my profile and giving match.com a shot again. I'm just tired of being lonely and alone. But I once again begin to wonder what I am doing "wrong." And I've been around this idea over and over, I know . . . I should be myself but clearly there is something about me that is keeping me single. Because the common denominator in all these communications and relationships is ME. So will going back to match.com make any difference? I just don't know.

And both sites are hard work. They take time. I'm willing to put in the time, but after a while you begin to wonder if it's worth it! Seriously. ONE date.

So what do you think. Do I expand my search? I realize finding a guy is a numbers game in some ways. As PhD (who, btw is now OFFICIALLY done - hurrah!) likes to say, more shots on goals, more goals.

But I am clearly not shooting well these days. Have I lost my touch? I used to be pretty good at being single. I met and dated lots of guys of all ages and backgrounds. But I'm not only being shot down online, but also "in person."

The other night, when my friends and I were celebrating the Writer's birthday, I left my phone number for our waiter at the hidden champagne bar. Nothin' - I got nothin'.

And it makes me worried about my job search and the possibility of my staying put here. Sure, nothing is guaranteed, but I think I have as good a shot as anybody at the tenure track gig here so if I get it, and choose to stay, am I dooming myself to a life of solitude?

Well, whatever. I'm not one to stand by and keep wondering. I'm nothing if not pro-active so I guess I'll invest some more money and join match.com again.

And there's some singles thing on campus this Friday. Maybe it's time to mingle with some male professors!

So if you're reading this and care, send me some good mojo!

Oedipus and Interviews

Yesterday was a busy and important day.

First, I was up at 4AM to take the Artist to the airport. She was off to South Carolina for a family wedding and rather than pay to park, asked for a ride. Since I'm often up that early (or nearly), I said yes.

Then it was back home to walk the dogs, sans one leash, and prep for my day. For me, it was an unusual prep because it included putting on a little make-up. I know! ME! But we had a guest artist coming to one of my classes who could potentially employ me as an actor some day . . . so one must look one's best!

We had BFA auditions starting at 9AM on campus and that ran until shortly after 11AM. Then I had a short break before I welcomed that guest artist from the Shakespeare Festival of St. Louis. I actually know her from DC and we have one mutual friend who is dear to us both, so I was really looking forward to seeing her.

She arrived and we had a great 2-hour class visit. As I was escorting her out, she asked if I was planning on auditioning for their summer show. I said, "DEFINITELY" and we said good-bye. I am keeping my fingers crossed for that!

Then I met with a student. Though my full-time Alexander training has been put on hold, I have a few students I work with at school. It's important practice for me and I believe is doing good things for them, as well.

At 3PM the real fun began. As those who read this blog regularly know, I am once again conducting a job search. I have applied for the tenure track position I am covering for the year, but as nothing is guaranteed, I need to be pro-actively searching elsewhere. I am happy to say I made it to "semi-finalist" status here and yesterday I had my phone interview.

Yup. Phone interview. It's a weird thing being the internal candidate. Though I have a relationship with everybody interviewing me, they must follow the same procedure for hiring as they do for all candidates which includes a phone interview. What is especially weird is that they call me from the Dean's office just down a couple floors and must introduce themselves and ask questions as if they don't know me or my work. It's a NUTTY process. And though I understand why it must be done this way, I can't help but think it's a bit stupid. And uncomfortable. They, of course, asked why I was interested in the position and I didn't feel like I could say "because I like it here". I mean, I want them to know that, but how do I let them know that without being too informal??? Grrr. Dumb and dumb.

So I finish that stressful interview just in time to do a final prep for my first design/concept meeting for Oedipus! UGH. Frankly, I think this one had me a little more stressed than the job interview. Seriously. Oedipus is a HUGE play with an enormous history and here's little old me directing it. Plus, being the new kid in town, I felt the meeting was a proving ground of sorts for some of my design colleagues. I had to come in with strong, cohesive ideas and be prepared for a barrage of questions. It was shaking in my boots when we got started!

But I had done my prep work and felt it went well. Of course, what I felt may have been relief to have such a big day over and done! I'm just hoping the designers are excited and have enough information to do what they do best - take my little ideas and RUN with them.

So by 5:30PM I was toast. I just drove home, had a lame little dinner (I desperately need to go grocery shopping!) and sat in front of the TV. I started watching The Wizard of Oz, but have seen it so many times gave up and went to bed to read for a bit. I finally crashed . . . but woke up in the middle of the night having interview and Oedipus nightmares.

SIGH. I guess I can look forward to a lot of sleep deprivation: the interview process is on-going until I land a job and Oedipus doesn't open until April.

Maybe I'll get some sleep in May.

A New Beginning

This morning, the Artist drove to my home at 5:15 in the morning to join me for a run. I have, at last, found a running partner!

I am so pleased. We plan to run together three days a week and both feel that having a running partner makes all the difference in the world. It does. If I know she is waiting for me at her house at 5:00 AM, I'm sure as hell going to get out of bed and meet her! There is nothing like accountability.

We ran a good pace together and with an extra pair of hands we easily managed the three dogs. Buster was a good sport and did VERY well. In fact all went well with one exception.

Stella. Yup. She was actually EXCELLENT for most of the run. We were on our way back when we reached an area I know a fox lives. Sure enough, she and Zoe caught sent of it and though both pulled, only Stella managed to escape.

So she disappeared into the early morning darkness and the Artist and I lost track of her. I finally had to go yelling through the brush to find her and when I did, she had magically lost her LEASH. Great.

Fortunately, since I have a knack for finding and catching strays, I knew a trick. She still had her gentle leader on (thank heavens!) so I took Buster's leash off him and attached the hook to Stella's leader, took off Buster's collar and fed it through the leash handle, and voila! Two dogs on one leash.

It wasn't terribly hard running with them that way actually as both pups were getting pooped. The Artist held onto Zoe and we happily ran back home.

So it's a new beginning for me!!! One I'm pretty sure I can continue and enjoy. It's a winning situation all around. I can get back into shape, wear out Stella, and catch up with a friend all at once! I love the human company and we're both so excited we're already talking about a spring race. She has never run a race longer than a 5K so we're starting small with a 10K. But I might investigate a spring half-marathon and should I get the permanent gig here, I might even look at a full marathon for the fall of 2009.

Hurrah!

Hope

Hope comes in many forms. Last night, it came to my home town as presidential hopeful Barack Obama. I was one of the lucky ones to get into the stadium and hear him speak.

I stood in line with friends for about 4 hours to get in. It was like a party on the street as thousands like me and my friends turned out to support him. We were joyful standing together for a common goal. And even when heckled by a those few (and I mean very few) who dared, we didn't take the bait. We just smiled and joked amongst ourselves. It was particularly fun to note the line extended so far that it was across the street from where Palin spoke just days ago. She didn't rally these kind of numbers!

Entering the stadium was like entering a rock concert. It was electric and packed. I admit I was surprised my tiny corner of this red state turned out so many people to see him. I was overwhelmed by the size and diversity of the crowd. It was thrilling. And then the rock star appeared.

He was articulate, intelligent, humorous, and inspiring. He makes me hope - and fear - for Tuesday's outcome.

Those of you who read this know my politics so aren't surprised by my enthusiasm for him. But it has been a LONG TIME since I've been this excited about a candidate. And so I wish and pray for Tuesday. And I have hope that the U.S. won't disappoint me yet again.

But I worry. I worry for Obama's safety (just listen to the repeated "kill him" at McCain and Palin rallies and you'll know what I mean). I worry that the Republicans will pull another rabbit out of their hat and we will have to endure four more years of narrow-mindedness, greed, and corruption.

Still, if Obama is worried he isn't showing it. And it's his calm and determination in this storm that makes it okay to hope.

So this morning I bask in the glow of knowing a good man with good ideas loves his country enough to want to serve it for the next four - and the following four - years. And God willing he will.

I could ramble endlessly about some of the things he said, like the clear argument that 8 years ago we had a surplus and it took the current president 8 years to accumulate as much debt as ALL 42 previous presidents combined. He reminded this home of hunters that he wasn't interested in taking away their guns. He spoke of old arguments like big government v little government and said he was about BETTER government. But instead of my babble, this article shares the highlights.

So this morning, hope shines bright in Southwest Missouri . . . and Wednesday morning, I hope it shines bright across the U.S. and beyond.