thursday mornings

I am sooooooooooooo over being in grad school part-time while working a full-time job.

The stress of it all has manifested in my being crabby and exhausted. I've been sick for all but one month so far this year, and after a long conversation with Leo, I'm opting to take a break or just take it easier. (One class a semester instead of two.) I know, baby steps ...

I mentioned my state of mind to Diana. Her take on it was that I'm 30 units into a 49-unit program and that I should look at it as though I've made it past hump day and that it's the Thursday morning of the week known as grad school.

It's an apt metaphor for where I'm at. That's because on Thursday mornings, I get up an hour early for a Toastmasters meeting that goes from 7 to 8:30 a.m.

I thought about Diana's point this morning as I cursed my alarm and rubbed the gunk out of my eyes.

I'm cranky and exhausted when I get up on Thursdays. I haul myself out of bed (often reluctantly and wondering why I signed up for this Toastmasters/ grad school thing anyway), stumble into the shower and clothes, rush the dog through his biological needs, and then hit the road to something that I actually get a lot out of. I lead/ sit through a meeting with good friends that invariably entertains me and teaches me something about myself or the world in which I live and then leave invigorated and wanting to share the experience and knowledge with someone else.

So, yes. I'm in the Thursday 6:20 a.m. stage. But I'm thinking that my current sleep deprivation and general crabbiness will fade as I approach the 9 a.m. on Thursday mark in my 'grad school week.'