Vacation Edition

A lot has happened in the last week beyond this new format. I'm no longer a full time employee and have taken up (although not until we get back from vacation) my new part time status. I *AM* however, now officially a full time student as I chucked a huge amount of coin at the University of Toronto a few days ago. I worked very hard this summer and it was worth it as I was able to save over 60% of my tuition for the year. I've selected all my classes and here's a look at what will be filling my head in 04-05: HIS334- 19th & 20th Century Central Europe HIS377- 20th Century American Foreign Policy HIS344- Conflict & Co-operation in the Cold War Era HIS425- Historiography HIS426- Historians USA300- Thinking About the US and I can't wait!!! I've been communicating with some people from my college (Trinity) and learning more and more about the wonderful (and very historic) part of the university to which I now belong. Apparently the Trinitrons (as we are known at Trinity College) tend to be despised by the other colleges because our traditions are the oldest (and the most firmly held) and we're a bit pompous (so of course *I* fit it!!!). Now the Trinitrons will tell you it's just jealousy because Trinity is the hardest college to get into but they also fully embrace the pompous label. The night before classes start I will participate in the Matriculation and Convocation ceremony where I'm officially entered into the Book of Trinity. The few people that I've talked to are already, it would seem, intrigued that I'm quite a bit older than most other Trinitrons. Hopefully they will be more eager to meet me than to mock me. This week I was also able to start playing softball with my father-in-law again. We've lost both games (I swear it's not my fault!), but considering I had a year lay-off, I don't think I played all that poorly. We have one more game tonight and then a weekend tournament in a few weeks. Better late than never I guess. Shelley and I (and Dixie and Willow of course) are at this moment preparing for a week-long vacation to Virginia to see little Christina's baptism, relax with our wonderful friends, play golf (ok that's for me), enjoy the beach, and generally re-charge our batteries for the next little while. It will be nice not to have the make the drive alone this time as sometimes the miles start to drag- especially at night. I know many people look forward to reading details of Shelley's latest renovation projects. She is currently designing a patio area behind the workshop that will eventually have a trellis and serve as a summer time relaxation spot. Also, since next summer we want a deck in place, the patio will be a more natural surrounding with the raspberry bushes within reach. Here's what it looked like before- http://stamant.org/Albums/ShelleysGardens/images/100_4252.jpg and here's what it looks like so far (with still lots to do of course)- http://stamant.org/100_4608.jpg and a closeup- http://stamant.org/100_4612.jpg Here is how she describes what she wants to do: "the first level, which is directly behind the garage, on which i will put the old enamelled sink from our old kitchen. it's original to the house. the sink will be used for potting plants. i would like to put some trellis over the spot and some wavy white curtains, and in the summer i can lounge there and drink lemonade and just reach out and pull raspberries right off the bushes beside the fence" Well, that's it for this week since I've still got lots of packing and cleaning up to do before we leave in 12 hours (not to mention get ready for a softball game). Perhaps there will be a mid-vacation update at some point, but until then... Cheers