"Just Somebody That I Used To Know"

Man, talk about a busy couple of days. I'm glad my grandparents came to visit me, but I'm glad I don't have to play tourguide anymore. That's freakin' exhausting, let me tell ya.

We had a good time, though. They got in late Sunday afternoon, and we went to dinner with Michelle. Monday, the grandparents and I went down to the Shenandoah Valley National Park and did Skyline Drive, which was absolutely gorgeous. We also managed to spend virtually the whole day in the car, which sucked. After Skyline, we headed up to Potomac Mills, which they liked but found overwhelming (a word I'd hear repeated often on Tuesday).

Tuesday was spent in our nation's capital. We saw the major monuments and memorials along the Mall, enjoyed the beautiful weather, and basically just sorta wandered around. We took the Metro in, thank God, 'cause I really didn't want to try to navigate DC or find a parking space (especially that second one...dear Lord, is parking there ever a nightmare).

My grandparents had a good time, thankfully. I miss being able to see them regularly, and I think they do, too: why else would they drive all the way out here for a two-day visit? I mean, they'd already driven all the way to Wisconsin on Thursday and Friday, then turned around and drove an additional who knows how many miles to come see me? It's crazy. But they did it, and I'm glad.

Supposedly my father will be coming out to visit at the end of June/beginning of July. We'll see.

Anyway, with the grandparents gone, the rest of the week is given over to doing the things around here that I need to do. Today, I'm going to run errands, such as a trip to the bank and the post office, wash the car, etc. Tomorrow, we've got a cleaning lady coming in to clean the apartment from top to bottom, so I guess another of my responsibilities today is to pick up everything in my room so the lady can clean. So much to do, so little time.

I also need to write up lesson plans for the coming week. We're starting the 4th Quarter on Monday, and I'm wanting to get my students moving. I want to try to get through the Civil War before the 4th Quarter ends. Weather or not that's possible (and-- given my plodding speed thusfar in the school year--it may not be) is another question entirely, but we'll see if we can do this thing.

Oh, and last night, I picked up the two Beatles Capitol Box Sets: the first eight American Beatles albums, all in one place. These are the records I grew up listening to, so there's probably an element of nostalgia in this. But I don't care: these were the records dad had, they were the records I sat in the living room floor listening to, and they're the records I intend to rock out to now. Snoogans.

~chuck

Song of the Moment: The Beatles, "Twist and Shout"