All is (reasonably) well...

Wow.

I just had a day so very productive that I can scarce believe it.
I have two to-do lists running lately, and I managed to reduce one of them by about half tonight.  It's amazing how much you can get done if you just tuck in and tackle the mess in little chunks.  The very thought of these lists had a stultifying effect on me last weekend.  Tonight I managed to shake that off and clear out quite a few cobwebs.

I also was able to complete all my quiz/school assignments that are due by next Monday night, so my weekend studies can be comfortably devoted to preparation for the pathophysiology test on Tuesday night.  Tomorrow after class I have to trot down to Dallas for a brief but much-needed visit to my folks, and then Friday it's a visit to my orthodontist and home again, with a possible quick stop by Lush to indulge in one of those patchouli bath bombs they have for Halloween this year. Yum.  Probably have a nice fizzy bath, a glass of champers and a soak in the tub with Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett, a personal favorite I've been turning to lately for odd moments of chuckles to recharge my batteries.   This will be the first proper bath of the semester-- long overdue.

There are new things afoot for me in a professional sense. I'm still working at the salt mine a small amount of time per week, but I've got a couple of other irons in the fire that wll help to sustain me. 

The school work itself is not that daunting, but the sheer volume of it can be overwhelming.  I've got some great backup in the form of my very supportive family and Himself and teh puppehs, and then on the nursing end of the spectrum, dear friend and august nurse herself, Mrs. Sci-Fi has been a very supportive party, along with the lovely Christina who is in an RN program her ownself out in Massachusetts.  It's funny to think about, but I go from one deadline to another, like mileposts or telephone poles when you're running a marathon. "If I can just make it past that next one, past that tree, past that bump in the road..." and then you scrape up enough gumption to pick a next target.  In baby steps, you get there, and those people who stand along the roadside, cheering at the enervated marathon runners-- those are my friends and family and pups, and you folks, too: all of you help me see I can do this, and I'm grateful for the encouragin' words. 

The brown pups are in bed, but Praline just came in to check on me-- she is never comfortable when I'm gone.  Poor little lass was fraught with worry when I was gone for my surgery for several weeks, and when I came home, she'd only leave me very briefly to do the necessary outside, and stayed otherwise glued to me.  I'd better help her rest easy (and myself) and get to bed.  I hope to have peaceful, pleasant sleep, and I hope you will, too.  :)