Resume Blogging...Now

If absence makes the heart grow fonder, this post should be really good. As you might have noticed, I took a vacation both from school and from blogging. But, now that I’m back, the blogging can resume.

My first week back was a grueling one: I went to nine classes. That’s seventeen hours of class. I know that if you’re working forty (or more) hours each week at your job, you probably don’t think that’s very much. I sympathize with you, I really do. But, according to a conversion chart I just made up, seventeen class hours is the equivalent of sixty-two work hours. So, why did I go to nine classes this week? Well, I’m glad you asked. I’m switching out of my ‘Evidence, Objectivity, and Policy’ course, because as it turns out, the class didn’t really cover objectivity or policy, and only dipped its foot into evidence. In its place, I’m going to enroll in two half-credit courses this term. I’m embracing my adventurous spirit and venturing outside of the philosophy department for these courses. I have a wide range of options: Terrorism and the Rule of Law, Contemporary Disputes about Justice, The Liberal Idea of Freedom, and Greek Political Thought, among others.

My Christmas break was great. In fact, I even got a mild sunburn on my birthday. We went to a Houston Texans game to celebrate, and between tailgating all morning and sitting in the sun to watch the game, my London paleness vanished. The tailgating championships were held on the day we went. All of the best tailgaters from the season were competing for the crown, or for a year’s supply of beef, or something. All of the competing tents had so much great food. After the judges passed through each of the tents, they were opened to the public. I have no real authority to say this, but Houston has overtaken Green Bay and Kansas City in NFL tailgating rankings. The neighbors (six pack) came over for my traditional birthday dinner: mom’s lasagna & wedding soup and liters and liters of Chianti. I can’t think of a better birthday dinner, or better people to share it with. New Year’s Eve was a blast, too: we had a suite at the Rockets game and tickets to a party in Midtown. All things considered, it was a great way to ring in the New Year.

It was great to see so many familiar faces while I was home in Texas. I was only gone for a few months, but it’s always nice to be reunited with old friends. I only have nine more weeks of class in the Lent term, which is really hard to believe. If I blink, I’ll miss it. Between the term and exams, I’ve got a trip planned with a handful of my classmates: we’re going to Dublin for St. Patrick’s Day.