1. Share one happy moment/memory from the holiday season. 

Hmm, it wasn’t anything just specifically to the holiday but in the few days before Christmas and directly after, I feel like everything around here just felt right. No one was unhappy and no one felt stressed (many of you may know what I mean; husbands and wives go through times of turmoil, especially around the holidays) but I just felt like all was well.

2. Let’s be reasonable with our expectations going into this new year, k? What is one thing you’d like to accomplish/improve/complete/do in 2022? 

Well, based on what’s going on now with class uncertainty, I’d like to pin down some kind of side job that is at least consistent. (Do you need an editor or an assistant? Hire me!)

3. Every January 1st (since 1976) Lake Superior University has published a list of

words they’d like to see banished from the Queen’s English. Words may be banished due to misuse, overuse or just general uselessness (go here to read more about how the words are chosen). Here are the words/phrases they’d like to see banished in 2022-

wait, what?-no worries-at the end of the day-that being said-asking for a friend-circle back-deep dive-a new normal-you’re on mute-supply chain

Which of these words/phrases do you use regularly? Which of these words would you most like to see banished from everyday speech and why? Is there a word/phrase not on the list you’d like to add? 

I don’t use any of those because you’re right – they suck! I’d like to also abolish “bruh” and “sus” because my kids say them too much.

4. Best thing you ate in the month of December? 

Hmm, probably the fajitas I had at Miller’s Ale house when we were in Tampa. This sounds crazy because I don’t usually care for that place maybe it was just the day but they were so good!

5. January 5th is National Bird Day. Are you a bird lover? What’s your favorite bird to see in the wild? Choose a phrase from the list that follows and tell us how it relates to your life currently…eat like a bird, bird’s eye view, early bird, bird-brained, free as a bird, a little bird told me, or kill two birds with one stone.

I guess I’ll say a hawk, because I don’t generally care for birds but birds of prey are cool. And phrase-wise, I like kill two birds with one stone because I generally take that approach to life and getting stuff done.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I am going to include two excerpts from this time last year:

From Jan 5, I wrote: Have you ever been in a situation where something you’re counting on – something big and integral to your life – hangs in the balance? Well, for me, that is the case today. I’m not much of one for prayer but I am on my knees asking God to help me out here. I was assigned two courses at the community college but as of right now, they are not opened or assigned to me. They are low on enrollment. So as I try to gather my thoughts to work on my other job stuff, I am worried that that may not happen. However, in some ways, this has happened before. At SNHU, which was always my part-time extra cash, I’d sometimes not get an assignment and I’d panic and then it would all work out fine.

Then, on January 6th I wrote: If you read yesterday, then you know I was in dire straights for a short time. Yes, the community college job hung in the balance. But I should have known that they work at the last minute; it seems to be their M.O. It’s not their fault really; the kinds of students (most of them anyway) who go to this school like to do things at the last second – you know, like register for courses. So around 3:30, I was notified by my Dean that my two courses were full and I’d soon get access to them! I was very very relieved. Then this morning, I was just offered a third section. Geez, I couldn’t say no; but it will be so so much work.

Surprise to no one, I am in the exact same boat, yet a little more worried than last year. I still have not heard about my courses so if you’re the praying type – and I know a good many of you are – I’d appreciate any help in that area. If I don’t get the 2 I was offered, then things will be TIGHT this semester. Mostly because I am down two sections from the prison job, due to a cut in federal funding. So yeah, I really need this!

I sit here panicking but also, feeling like I can make it through, with positive thinking and prayer. I cannot help but be slightly negative and think “but what if it DOESN’T work out this time?” and I know that kind of thinking helps no one. So yeah, no more whining. I’m going to work on this one class and hope and pray for the best!