Bad blogger!

I have neglected this for a while, but I feel it is my duty to provide some amount of updating. I recently discovered this thing called Facebook, so that has hogged much of my allotted daily internet time.

Since the new year, school and my extracurricular duties have been all-consuming. My lovely service club held a "Mr. MHS" pageant this week which caused me much stress, lost sleep, but eventually joy. It was great that in a school with rich, white suburban kids, the winner, the boy whom our judges (and audience) felt was the best representative of our school, was a recent immigrant from Africa. He was so nervous backstage, but his talent and heart definitely won him the title. I felt like I was back at CSS organizing the Parents' Weekend talent show again. It was kind of the same thing, except that high schoolers need a lot more direction than college students. But the kids were awesome, and in the end, we raised a heap of school supplies for needy kids and $490 for our area foodshelf.
But now that it's over, I can devote more of my time to sleeping and recovering from this cold. At least I didn't get that horrible stomach virus that everyone in the metro area seems to have contracted.

In other news, husband and I have been working on a plan to remodel our only bathroom. It has what I believe to be the original sink from the (very) early 20th century, and a bathtub that has seen better days. The remodel will include spraying the tub, installing new tile throughout, new sink and toilet, new window, and adding some much-needed ventilation and electrical outlets. Right now, I have to plug my hairdryer and straightener into the light fixture over the medicine cabinet. Kind of awkward.

We're also thinking about trading in our 2007 Yaris for something with a little more room, and 4 doors. Any suggestions? I love the idea of a Matrix, but we'd probably go used on that so we could get more features for less $$. High on our list of priorities are gas mileage (since I drive 20 miles per day) and safety (AWD would be great for those slippery commutes in the winter). Our new car will also definitely not be American or German. Based on our combined past experiences, I think we will probably only ever buy Japanese cars. I hope some redneck doesn't come after me for saying that.

Finally, we are planning a fantastic trip to Dublin for my spring break. And it just so happens to be over St. Paddy's Day! It's my first trip back to Eire since 2000, so it will be cool to see how well I remember my way around. I know I can definitely navigate myself between Grafton St, Trinity College, Temple Bar, and the GPO. I am especially looking forward to going back to Kilmainham Gaol, although I doubt that the cast from A Prairie Home Companion will be there on the tour with us again. We have also booked a day trip to the Wicklow mountains since I told B that there was no way I was going to go back to Ireland and only visit the city. When he visited me back in 2000, he only really saw the countryside (and Galway), so it will be exciting for him to see all that Dublin has to offer.

Well that's all for now. Slainte!