Dumping ballast

As expected, a lot of things have happened in the past two months since my last entry. Among other things, my sis won two more international awards in her costuming (she's already got four) and the whole family was there to cheer her on. She's done us proud - you go, girl!

I've found another job, one that isn't management. I'm back in the trenches getting my hands dirty with code. Honestly, with the economy being what it is, returning to the technical track is probably the smartest move for me right now. I'm seeing managers being laid off left, right and centre. Returning to a coding position feels very much like a homecoming of sorts. I'd say that it's rather like coming home to live at your parents' house after being away for years. The room looks and feels the same, but everything's smaller and feels less vibrant unlike when you were a child. I doubt I can stay long at my coding position - I'll be gunning for a managerial posting once the economy's recovered somewhat. I do love my new company though - it's huge and appears to have many opportunities for advancement.

I'm spending more time with the kids these days, something I've been trying to do for a long time but haven't due to lack of time. I'm realizing that it's a load of crock. If I really wanted to spend time with the kids, I could. I just need to prioritize them higher. I'm also grossly overcommited in my personal life. It's time to pare things down to a sane level. This probably means stepping down from some of my volunteer positions and quitting D&D for a while.

I've opened up some new avenues of interest, ballet being one of them. I've signed up for 9 months of ballet with the premiere ballet school in the province - may the gods have mercy upon my soul (and limbs). I'm excited and scared at the same time. It's going to be painful but oh so cleansing. Aside from ballet, I'm also actively pursuing other activities from time to time. It's cheaper than therapy. :)

My health is slowly getting better. I think my solo vacation in June was the turning point. I'm a firm believer that if your mind isn't healthy then the body will be ill as well. My June vacation gave me a chance to get my head screwed back on right. Balancing my improving health is my new job - it's a lot more physical than I've had in over a decade, so I'm deathly tired by the end of the day. The one thing that's still lacking is stamina. I don't appear to be improving in that regard. I'm hoping that ballet will help with that, and that I shall be able to sign up for a Pilates class once finances improve.

Oh, and I picked up a Waterman Charleston in ivory with a Fine nib. Paired with my Private Reserve Plum ink, it's given me the impetus to journal again, which has been a real stress reliever in the past little while. Too bad my Paperblank journal doesn't seem to take fountain pen ink well. I shall have to find another journal when I've filled this one, perhaps something by Clairefontaine.

Yes, I'm an expensive gal. Deal with it. :)

I ain't dead yet!

No, I haven't gone off with someone who TALKS LIKE THIS quite yet. On the other hand, I'm not ready to blog about what's going on right now. So, this is a placeholder for those of you who are wondering if your RSS feed is still working with my blog (and you know who you are).

More later, I promise.