Survival of Family Parties and Other Things to Be Proud Of

This weekend was a party for my grandpa's 80th birthday, and it was quite an ordeal for everyone, especially my grandpa. I was annoyed at having to be social when I'm still not feeling great and getting over a lovely head cold and cough. It was nice to see some of my distant cousins from that side of the family though, since I hadn't seen a lot of them for several years. I didn't even know my cousin Nick had kids until now. He's got two of them, little girl named Sydney and a little boy named Cody. My great uncle Archie and auntie Olga just dote on those little ones. Family squabbling about the hassle of planning and cooking and whatnot, the party was nice, though I truly did consider it a survival game. I was so tired and cranky by the end of the day that I was more than happy to come home and collapse.

In other news, I finally got the official letter stating that I'm a fully certified instructor. Took a long time of waiting, but it's nice to be able to finally put the black collar on my uniform. Twelve years worth of work. I'm quite proud, and I can't wait to show up for class on Thursday and have my new collar on my uniform. I also received the official patches, with my name on them, that I can put on the breast pocket and lapels of the suit I can buy to wear at official ATA functions. Dunno how soon I'll be able to purchase it, since it's rather expensive, but it's not like I need it urgently either...I prefer to wear my uniform to testings and other functions anyway.

Third thing of note...Thursday is also the day of my consultation for my wisdom teeth extraction. I'm nervous about it, but it does mean a day off from work and a day to sleep in and spend some time with my mum. It's still nerve-wracking to think that they're going to cut open my gums and yank them out, but oh well. I'll survive.

I'm also working on my plans for the future, researching schools and saving money. Dad wants me to get a teaching certificate, though that won't really make a lot of difference to me in the long run, since I want to be a professor. I've gotten great recommendations from some friends, and I also am working to contact some professors and others who can help me decide on the right path.