Ham Hocks and Tapas

In half an hour I'm going to Faith's for my final going away party. This week has been full of goodbyes and this is the last big group one. Faith is having a "Ham Hocks and Tapas" party to send me off with "enough love to last three months (normative time for adjustment)." Why ham hocks and tapas you might ask? She wanted the food to represent both sides of my culinary life; the midwest and CA. Apparently ham hocks and tapas were the first samples to come to mind and we laughed so hard, the two became the name of the party. Also included on the menu: jello salad (jello set with fruit and popped out of a decorative mold), somosas (Indian cuisine), a California cheese plate and the dregs of my liquor cabinet, including a three year old unopened bottle of blue raspberry vodka given to me as a joke by my late great friend Kathy Finch. The major players for tonight are neighbors and a handful of Faith's friends that have become mine over the years. It should be a good time.

Why The Long Face?

My apartment is empty and the defense is done and I am happy for both. But now I have two weeks before hitting the road and am not sure how I should spend it. I want to bask in the sun at the beach ten blocks away but feel pulled back to working on the dissertation. I want to sleep for the next fourteen days but have syllabi to create and textbooks to choose. Maybe I can balance it all?

Passed the Defense But Won't File for Months

I passed my dissertation defense officially today. It was kind of a let down. Instead of jumping around with joy like I feel I should be doing, I'm home, back in my scrubby clothes, and packing boxes for the big move. There are many big changes that need to be made to the diss and it may take me until into the new year to complete them. So there you go. Good news. Hooray. Pffft.