1. Before leaving for any vacation it is always worth it to clean out the fridge. Even if it means staying up until 5 a.m. for a 7:30 a.m. departure to a foreign country. (Although, I’m not sure dumping that pasta a week early would have made too much of a difference. Gross.)

2. Real vacations are a must. It’s nice to visit family, but sitting on a balcony overlooking a rustic beach with a good book and a cup of coffee cannot be beat. (Except maybe by the porch of a mountain cabin.)

3. My skin is in fact able to get tan. Took me 26 years to figure that one out.

4. I really, really, really love my dog. And, I think he feels the same way about me. (Seriously, when I typed that, he jumped in my lap and started licking my face as if on cue. No, I didn’t call him over!)

5. I am not a very good sales person, thus my second attempt at Avon is going about as well as the first. Badly. Unless you count my expanded makeup supply as a success. This may be one way that I am very much like my dad.

6. When I make baked ziti I use ENTIRELY too much cheese. It may taste good, but is really gross when you have to clean the bowl a month (or more, I really don’t remember) later. (see #1)

7. I get entirely too attached to tv show characters. Two of my favorite shows, Private Practice and Grey’s Anatomy, have been killing me a bit recently. But, I keep watching because I love the characters. It’s a sad, abusive, cycle.

8. I do not think I can ever go back to life without a DVR. Commercials are way to annoying.

9. I much prefer to read a book than watch it on video.

10. I think I’m going to watch LOST this summer. The entire thing.

11. My dog is a tennis ball magnet. It is growing increasingly common for campus golfers to lose tennis balls in the bushes by my apartment. It is also increasingly common for Tuck to disappear into a bush and come out with a ball in his mouth.

12. I had the BEST staff this year. I was so incredibly sad when they all left. It was a good year.

13. I really want to learn to speak Spanish. I just don’t think my brain works that way.

14. I just re-read this before hitting ”post” and realize that I am getting old. I was surprised by how old 26 sounds. At least I have a couple of more days before 26 becomes official.

With that, it’s off to bed. Another day of productive work tomorrow I hope!

While it is not really a first, a couple of weeks ago I the chance to drive to Fort Worth to see my favorite author, Donald Miller. You may remember my previous post detailing my excitement about his newest book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. A couple of friends joined me, and we drove to Fort Worth to have dinner with a few of my favorite former students turned friends, and then on to see Don. Let me just tell you that it was more than worth the hour and a half drive and the $15 ticket. After Donald finished speaking we had the chance to wait for autographs. Kelcy, a student who joined the trip, remembered to bring her book however, I left mine on the kitchen table. We waited in line for her to get her book signed, and I got the chance to meet Don in a moment of awkwardness and awe. Highlights of our 30 second conversation include that he called me “nice” twice. Ahhhh. . . . Here’s a photo of me and Don.

Also recently I tried a new vegetable- acorn squash. I have seen them in the grocery, but never tried it before. My friend Steph posted a link on her blog with a simple recipe so I decided to try it. I must admit, acorn squash was very yummy! You should check out Steph’s blog for yummy recipes.

Tuck recently had a big first. In preparing for Thanksgiving, I felt really guilty about leaving him with other people so often this year. So, since Southwest Airlines recently changed their policy regarding pets, allowing animals aboard flights, I decided Tuck would come along for Thanksgiving. For the first time in his life (that I know of at least), Tuck got to spend lots of time in a crate and flew. The flight out was relatively uneventful, minus the three times Tuck busted out of the cage and decided to try to wander around. Luckily the people sitting around me thought he was cute and wanted to play with him. He was much happier when we got in the car with his grand-people.

May you have a happy Thanksgiving filled with a few firsts!