Thanksgiving and still alive

You know, Imaginary Reader, it's funny... I was so sure that when I started school, I'd have a regular schedule, and I'd start posting on a regular basis. At LEAST once a week, if not every day.

Yeah, so much for that.

See, I sort of promised myself that I wouldn't post any drama on this blog--you know, wouldn't use it to vent or to bash anybody. And the school year started with a whole huge boatload of drama. Drama up the wazoo. And by the time the drama calmed down, I was stressed and pressed for time, and this blog was just NOWHERE on the priority list. School comes first, after all. And then there's Hillel, of course. And I do love my family--they are CERTAINLY a priority, not that there's much I can do with my family when I'm at school. And for a while there, I was even working, so that's certainly a time commitment... Anyway, you get the idea. I haven't had much time or energy and I've been swimming in stress.

But now it's Thanksgiving break, and I still have plenty of schoolwork to keep me busy all week and family to visit in between. That's what I've been doing all week; if I haven't been visiting family, I've been doing homework. And I should really probably be doing homework now. But I'm tired, and quite frankly, I've had enough. It's Thanksgiving. For once... it's nice to relax.

So while there's still a little bit of Thanksgiving left, I'll say what I'm thankful for.

I'm thankful for a chance to relax today. I'm thankful for the wonderful family I have--thankful for how supportive they are, thankful that we love each other, and thankful that we don't have to PRETEND to like each other at gatherings like today. We're genuinely happy to get together.

I'm thankful for my Hillel board. I'm thankful for their good ideas, for their hard work and dedication, and for how supportive they are.

I'm thankful for my friends, two in particular--Ryan, over on The Muppet Mindset, and Rachel, one of my board members. Both of them have been with me through all sorts of stuff and supported me so much... (You may have noticed I've been saying that a lot. I've needed a lot of support lately. I'm fortunate enough to be able to find that support everywhere I turn.) I'm also thankful for Rachel's roommates, who have absolutely no objection to me randomly invading their apartment to watch Fraggle Rock, vent to Rachel, and do homework. Or pretend to do homework. Or stand in the kitchen and watch them clean up or make food. Or whatever else I may need to do in attempt to maintain some semblance of sanity.

I'm thankful for my professors, who actually care about us students and really want to teach us and help us learn and grow and become successful. It makes all the difference. And it helps that they actually know what they're talking about, too.

And I'm thankful for the Muppets, for Fraggle Rock, and for Sesame Street. I'm thankful for all the joy and hope they bring into the world. I've said that Fraggle Rock is all that's keeping me sane this semester... and really, it's not much of an exaggeration. But mostly, I'm thankful for the magic. Yes, Muppets, Fraggle Rock, and Sesame Street are all magical, and I'm incredibly grateful for that.

And I'd say that summarizes most of what I'm thankful for this Thanksgiving... and it also happens to summarize most of my life. So I guess I'm not doing too bad.

And the clock just changed, so it's no longer Thanksgiving and is now Black Friday. Best wishes to those of you crazy and/or brave enough to head for the stores.