When a Stranger Calls

Yes, my Jack is the poster child for scaredy cats. If I ever thought he would alert me to danger, I was sorely mistaken. This is what he does whenever there is a knock at the door:

Love, Actually

Happy Valentine's Day

History Boys

I was a History major in college. Whereas my primary focus was Imperial Russian History, Colonial/Revolutionary American History was a close second. When I heard that my next work conference was going to be held in Williamsburg, Virgina, I was thrilled. I first went to Williamsburg when I was in fifth or sixth grade. I got to travel with Grandma when she went there with the Somerset High School marching band. We went to Colonial Williamsburg and Busch Gardens. I have vague memories from that trip - more of Christmas shops and roller coasters than anything historical. I was there again in high school during one leg of the Project Close-Up trip. Most of the week was spent in DC, seeing our government "close up". We spent 2 glorious days in Colonial Williamsburg. We toured the historical colonial area and saw the Governor's House, had lunch at the King's Arms Tavern (peanut soup - yum), and visited the apothecary, the wig-maker, and the shoe-maker.

For those who have been to Sturbridge Village or Plimoth Plantations, Colonial Williamsburg is very similar, but better. I only had a few hours to spend in between sessions and the weather was cold and wet so many of the places were closed, but I was able to get to see enough to tide me over until the warmer weather when I make a return trip.

The conference itself was great. It was the annual meeting of the Southern Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers. I attended sessions on the Privacy Act and how to best communicate with students in this age of texting, myspace, and facebook. We had a traditional "Groaning Board" dinner on Tuesday night, complete with colonial dancers and balladeers. It was a great conference in a perfect location. The sun coming out would be the only thing that could have made the trip better.

Training Day

I was always one of those people who loved school. I liked shopping for school supplies, new school clothes, and I was eager to find out who my new teacher was. It didn't matter what kind of school - elementary or grad school. I loved being in class and learning new things. Okay, maybe not Calculus, but pretty much everything else. This week I get to go back to class...sort of. I have training on our information system as we will be upgrading to version 9.0 in July.

I'm an impatient learner and I think that this week will be a lesson in patience for me. I like to move along quickly and with little interruption. It's kind of hard to do that when you are in a class with people of varying expertise and experience. I understand why we go at the pace we do. It doesn't mean that I have to like it. Day 1 is not completely over yet and I kind of wish I could just take the book home with me and teach myself. Of course, in doing that, I miss out on the classroom experience - which I really enjoy. I got to meet other people from across campus who I e-mail a lot, but very rarely see. So, I'm looking forward to the rest of the week if only because I get to see these people for three more days.