a free day

Today I had a big deadline at 12:30. I'd been working long hours in preparation, and now it's over. Done. Fini.

As I was walking away at 12:30, all I could think about is I wanted to do the rest of the day: clean, exercise, pray, read, feel the sun on my face.

If you had a totally "free" day all to yourself (no work, no kids, no responsibilities, no meetings, no schedule), what would you do?

p.s. I posted this picture because it reminds me of summer. We're almost there, I keep telling myself.

Sand, Hamburgers, and Seagulls

Today we're headed off to Little Talbot Island with some friends to go camping.

I can already feel the sand between my toes, smell the hamburgers, and hear the seagulls.

What's your favorite place for getting away? And, what do you smell or hear when you think of that place?

A Florida Sunset

An extra hour of sun. Ribs on the grill. A chill in the air. Sweatpants. Furry playmates.

A Florida sunset.

Good day.

Today has been a good day.

The rain finally broke.
The sun came out.
The puddles were bigger than ever.
A new friend joined us.

Spring.

Today is a sunny 73-degree Sunday in Gainesville, and the college students are all walking around in flip flops and tank tops, with swimsuit ties showing at the neckline.

Three days ago we were wearing wool sweaters and closed-toed shoes, heaven forbid. So, this weather is very welcomed.

The sunny beginning of Spring always reminds me of Aprils in Auburn, when we used to lay in the quad or in the white house yard all day, running off to a class five minutes before it started, and running back to lay out as soon as it was over.

What's your best memory of spring? Is it spring yet where you are?

Fall in Florida

Now that it's December, the leaves have finally fallen in Florida. So, here are pictures of our fall boys...

6 weeks out...

Just to give you an update, our Disney Half-Marathon packets came in the mail! Exactly 6 weeks from now, we will be finished with the race and will be riding Space Mountain and eating churros. Here's the course route that came in the packet.




The full marathon course is much more impressive as it goes through all the parks. A few of the guys are bravely attempting this one.




So far, this experience has been fun and challenging.

It has been challenging because I never know what to expect from my body. Some days, I feel great and barely break a sweat. Other days, I feel like puking and collapsing in the road. Brad has had the same experience.

It has been fun because the good days feel great. And, we have gotten to train with friends from church and through the process have gotten to know them better. Today, the girls (Sarah, Betsy, Kendra) and I ran seven miles. We left Sarah's house, ran the trails up to Betsy's, grabbed water, and ran back. We ran slowly, but it felt great. I wouldn't have been able to do these runs without friends to push me.

Anyway, 6 weeks and counting... wish us luck!

summer

All is well at the Chappell house tonight... Brad's on his computer, Tuco's disembowling froggy, and kitty is licking her rear.

I don't guess there's much to report with me. The new job at the Village Market is going well, and my independent study on L2 phonology has been interesting so far. I have discovered one thing about myself, though: without deadlines, I'm a wreck. I have a long reading list and a few writing assignments. However, there is no start date, no end date, and no real deadlines in between. whew...

In other news, I got a new fun tripod, the gorillapod! It has bendy legs, so it attaches to most anything. And, it's strong enough to hold SLRs with the lens fully extended. Look at these fun little things...


The past couple weeks, I have been playing around with photos in Haile. Here are the most recent ones...

One Year

This week marks one year since Brad and I moved to Gainesville. We were just reminiscing about how we used to go for long walks every night, excited to be living in a new place and hopeful about what cool thing we might find.

Now Gainesville is home.

We have a great church, amazing friends, and fulfilling jobs. I don't know how long we'll stay, but we know that for now we're in the right place. The Lord has truly blessed us here, and we're so thankful!

Graduate School: A Survival Guide

This is my theory: graduate school is a perpetual series of ups and downs, and only when the ups outnumber the downs can a student survive. Those of you reading, do you agree? Let me give you an idea of what I’m talking about when I say “ups” and “downs.”

My ups:

1. A day when I “got it”
2. A day when my students “got it”
3. A word of encouragement from a colleague or professor
4. thought-provoking research
5. A break!
6. A productive night
7. A task well-done

My downs:

1. lack of sleep
2. a less-than-ideal grade or review
3. deadlines
4. ultra-competitive colleagues


So, what makes us stick it out? If burn-out is a result of too many downs, how can we strive to create more positive experiences?

I have some ideas. This I will call “Graduate School: A Survival Guide”

1. Preparation. I have realized that when I show up to classes unprepared, I leave exhausted and frustrated from trying to catch up and understand. If I take an hour to simply read over the material, I will understand what’s going on, and I will be able to “get it.” See number 1 and 2 in my “ups” list above.

2. TV on DVD. This is very important for a graduate student. These short 30-minute episoldes of your favorite TV show (mine being Scrubs, Arrested Development, and Seinfeld) are a good source of sanity. See number 5 in my “ups” list above. Everyone can take 30 minutes out of work to laugh a little.

3. Be an encourager. If you encourage others, they will likely return the favor. I make a point to not only encourage my colleagues, but I also try to encourage my professors. Remember, they are people too! See ups list #3.

4. Surround yourself with good people. If certain people make you feel bad about yourself, simply don't go there. This applies to friends, advisors, etc. This is similar to number three.

5. Work on something you love. Don’t choose your research based on ease or on faculty input. Choose topics based on interest. If not, burnout is a sure result! See ups list #4.

6. Get out of the house. Sometimes you just need to go to the library or a coffee shop. This will help with numbers 6 and 7 on the ups list.

7. Exercise. This is an absolute necessity for me. It helps me wake up in the morning; it helps me sleep well at night. It gives me energy, and it serves as a stress-reliever.

8. Finally, try not to complain about your situation as a student. Whenever I am tempted to complain, I think "I am blessed to be where I am right now!" I applied for this program and got in; I love what I study, and I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. I truly believe that hard days in school are better than the monotony of the mind-numbing nine-to-five jobs that most Americans sit through.

Okay, those are my suggestions. What about the rest of you? What are your tricks for staying sane? Post a comment and let us know

Intramural Volleyball

Well, I have some good news. Last night we played our first intramural beach volleyball game, and we won! Go Lemmings!

This is the question that I have about intramural beach volleyball, though. Why in the WORLD does UF schedule beach volleyball in January and Febuary? I mean, we do live in Florida, so I can see the reasoning. However, we played at 8:00PM, and it was FREEZING!! By the time the score was 10-6, I couldn't feel my little bare feet. I tried to wiggle my toes so I would know that frostbite hadn't set in, but they wouldn't respond. hmmm...

Next year, we should talk to UF about this. In fact, I think beach volleyball should be played at 1:00 in the afternoon on a bright, sunny April day. Then we could soak in a little sun while tossing the white ball around.

phonology review

I think the perfect time to revive an old blog is when you have a midterm in 12 hours.

Instead of memorizing the motivations for phonemic analysis, I usually find myself doing one of three things (or three of three things):
1. cleaning the house
2. buying new music on itunes (assuming it will help my studying)
3. playing online

I am currently trying numero tres.

au revoir.

yay!

Well, it's official. We're moved in! We moved six million boxes into the Uhaul on Tuesday and moved them out again Thursday. My mom and dad came for a few days to help, and we are no longer living out of boxes and random bags of stuff. We have drawers!

Tuco is adjusting well, too. He had to learn to go on a leash, which is a different (and very exciting) process for him. He works hard to find the perfect spot, and after completion, he jumps and twirls and licks and wags to celebrate his accomplishment. Ha. What a great dog.

Well, we'll keep updates coming about life in Florida. It's been fun so far.















packing. boo.















Packing up isn't fun.















Here we go!















Mom loves unpacking boxes.