As the Decade Ends

As 2010 draws to a close, I'm still not sure how I feel about it.  Sure, I had some good moments this year, but I also had some not-so-good moments.  There were also some things this year that I can't label as either good or bad.  So, without further ado, here is the year in review.

First, the good:

• I advanced to candidacy (okay, this isn't official until the first of the new year, but the work and paperwork was completed in 2010).
• The first wedding in my group of friends went off (congrats, Mairead and Alex).
• Reunion weekend in June was a good way to spend a summer (okay, late spring) weekend.  Among other things, I went sailing for the first time in my life (yes, I was a bad SMCM student).
• I have been much more social this year than in previous years.  Well, it seems so, anyway.
• I now get to write the ATT math questions for Frederick County.

Now, the low-lights of the year:

• I now have only one living grandparent.
• It has been over 3.5 years since my last date; over 4.5 years since I've had a girlfriend.  Granted, I sort of knew going in that 2010 was probably not going to be the year to break this streak.
• *Bleep* Snowmageddon.
• It took Pepco a week in July to restore power after a thunderstorm.  
• Frederick County put the patients in charge of the mental health facility known as the county government.

And the things I can't quite label:

• My church's preacher left.  Thus, I've had to serve and preacher a couple of weeks (and start off 2011 doing so, as well).  While I enjoy preaching every once in a while, I'm a little worried how long this may last.
• More seniority in the math department means more responsibilities (like helping with orientation and proctoring qualifying exams).

So, while my 2010 has been better than that of many others, I think I'm ready for 2011 (more on that in the next post).

Christmas=???

While Christmas was good (among other things, I did receive everything I asked for on my admittedly short list), there were definitely some, shall I say, interesting moments. 

1. The Lutheran pastor at Mount Tabor (of the other congregation at my church) jokingly referred to me as a colleague as the "UCC pastor" at Christmas Eve service.  I know I've preached twice since the UCC pastor left (okay, three times after next Sunday), but what?
2. Having two cats high on catnip in the room Christmas morning makes opening presents more difficult than it should be.
3. I got hints that it has crossed my parents' minds to consider a move to Utah.  Can you say, "out of the blue," boys and girls?  However, I don't know how serious the considerations are.
4. My sister admitted to an illegal, but not surprising, activity at Christmas dinner.  Hey, I tried playing Law and Order and advised her to keep quiet.  Unfortunately, two glasses of wine have significantly more influence than an older brother.  I also found out that my dad's drinking may have surpassed my drinking in quantity over the past few months.  (Granted, this doesn't mean much.)
5. The people who made the Bushisms desk calendars are back in business.  They owe John McCain a few bodily limbs for introducing the nation to Sarah Palin.
6. Wait, did the Redskins just beat the Jaguars?
7. Boxing Day "snowstorm" = dud in the DC area.  In the span of 24 hours, six to ten inches became one to two inches.  (Insert your own joke here.)  After last winter, I'm not complaining about this development.

Well, that's the Christmas recap.  Expect what have become the annual look-back and look-ahead posts in the next week.

It Is Over

The preliminary exam is complete.  As such, effective January 1, 2011, I officially will be a doctoral candidate at the University of Maryland.  With this comes a small pay raise and the end of taking classes (for a grade, at least).  However, my advisor is giving me most of the semester break off (which has already started for me) save for reading a paper she is going to send to me at the end of next week.  As such, I get a break until then.

However, I have volunteered for more work in Frederick County.  This year, I am responsible for all of the math questions in the Frederick County Academic Tournament.  (I may attend one of the early weeks, if anyone is interested.)  Also, this morning I volunteered to preach my fifth sermon at my church on January 2, 2011.  Again, if anyone is interested in attending, let me know.  Be advised that I don't know what the sermon is going to be about yet.  Maybe I'll touch on the new baptismal agreement between the UCC and the Roman Catholic Church.

But for right now, I'm taking a break for a little while.  The semester is over.  And I'm going to enjoy that fact.