Odds 'n Ends - UPDATED with more college-y goodness!

Happy New Year!

It's been awhile, hasn't it?

Sorry 'bout that.

My blog absence came about after I was told that it seemed like my blog was just an attempt to elicit "kudos" or "congratulations" for being a dad. While I don't believe this is true, it bothered me that my writings here could have been perceived in this way. Therefore, every time I attempted to blog about something I heard this criticism repeated back and forth in my head. Ergo, no writings.

I think (hope) that I'm over it now.

In any event, here are the bullet points of news from before Christmas:

• Jenna applied to SEVEN colleges and has been accepted to FOUR - Anna Maria, Colby-Sawyer, Plymouth State and now Central Connecticut State University. We're still waiting for word from the other three. As I told her directly, she is already further along in a college career than I was at her age. I am very proud of her.
• I finished my second semester at Harvard on December 17th. I earned a "B+" in both my "Folklore & Mythology" and "Expository Writing" courses. Now I am waiting to see if I will be accepted into the degree program there.
• Next semesters classes: "The Hero of Irish Myth & Saga" & "Tolkien as Translator: Language, Culture and Society in Middle-Earth".
• My father turns 73 next week. In honor of this milestone he has asked that the family gather at Pogo's in Bridgewater for a hearty breakfast. My Dad is a man of simple desires.
• In the last month Dad has had two eye surgeries to correct his vision. Now he sees better than ever. He says he can read National Geographic magazine easier so this is a good thing.
• I highly recommend "Cranford" on Masterpiece Theater on PBS. Dame Judy Dench is stellar as Miss Mattie. There is no simple way to describe the easy charm of a story set in a small town in England during the 1840's. However, I find myself swept up in the lives of these characters.
• Have I mentioned that I love my cardigan sweaters?
• I highly recommend a snowy afternoon at James's Gate watching Manchester United while munching on Gate nachos and drinking a pint of Guinness in front of a roaring fire.

And there you have it.
Welcome to 2010, everybody.