Often I get to this point in the year and I’m just beyond thrilled to be done with school. I’m not there right now, and I could attribute it to not having been quite as busy this semester, or it might just be that the funk that I fell into when Miles went missing overrode any other emotions. He’s still gone, and I’m guessing we might not see him again. It’s been quite difficult to deal with—losing a pet with such uncertainty is a real challenge. I feel like I’m coming out on the other side, and (of course) I would be thrilled to see him again…we’ve still been occasionally putting up more signs, walking around looking for him, checking online daily, but the feeling is turning more into a feeling of…not hopelessness, but sort of a futile-ness behind the whole thing. Surely if our actions were going to bring him home they would have done so by now. We’ve learned about numerous other black cats living here and in nearby neighborhoods, but none of them seem to be Miles. It’s still possible he’ll show up or get picked up, but it just seems unlikely. I dream about finding Miles, and about how cute and bitey he was, but during the day Muriel doesn’t seem too bothered by his absence, and there is just no sign of him ever having been back around.

So there you have that. On a brighter note, I’m playing with The Who this week, so that’s fun. I must admit my complete ignorance of pop culture and bands and such, especially from when I was younger. When I got asked to play with the group (they are doing a concert tour with orchestras), I asked Louie, do you know the band The Who, figuring he did as I’d heard of them, but not really knowing how big they were. He started laughing at me.

I’m also just waiting for my nephew to arrive—he was supposed to make an appearance today, but you know babies—they are never prompt. I’m sure my sister and her husband are even more eager than I am!

This week is a short week: three days of teaching, one with The Who, and then 4 days off for the holiday weekend. We are headed to Eureka Springs to spend a few days relaxing and sightseeing with friends. We’ve booked a little cottage through VBRO and are really looking forward to a few days away. I haven’t had a day off since late-March, so to say this is a well deserved break would be a bit of an understatement.

Louie and I did manage to get out for a hike yesterday. OH and Louie got a new car. It’s our car and his car, in that it’s his day to day car, but it’s our car to take on road trips and such. We got a Subaru Forester, and it will be invaluable on our camping road trip this summer!

So we took the Forester and went for  hike on the Lime Kiln Trail at Rockwoods Reservation. We have hiked that trail several times in the past, but not for a few years. It was nice, but I did get a few bug bites…I guess it’s time to start putting on the spray.

I’m deep into wedding season and the summer is looking pretty good as far as gigs. I’m also trying to get my students as organized as possible, but that’s always difficult! (So many moving parts!). I have been running regularly, albeit quite slowly, and I think that’s really been helping with my sleep. I’m happy to be off from my college teaching for a few months and have a little more time to do other projects I’d been putting off. I also took some me time today and got a pedicure—my first for the summer season. I tried a new place that had opened recently near my house and thought it was just fine, so I’ll probably return.

Muriel really enjoys boxes. This one in particular seems to draw her in and she has spent quite a lot of time in it. Her other favorite place is standing on top of a router in my living room. I think it’s because the router is smooth but warm.

I liked this picture because she looks like she is just taking a little break from reading. I’ve got a stack of books I’m hoping to get through over the summer, and this Bill Bryson is one of them. It’s not my favorite of his, but I’m learning quite a lot. I got it and a few of the other books because of the History Chicks podcast, which one of my students turned me on to. I highly recommend it! Speaking of, I’m looking for new podcasts—any suggestions? I’m not interested in politics podcasts, but anything well done otherwise?