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As if it were not enough to work and plan the vacation-to-beat-all-vacations, Lea Ann and I have a dedication to the continuous broadening of our horizons, through education. We are scholastic masochists. Just to be clear, Lea Ann has an undergraduate degree and a Master’s degree, but is currently enrolled in a highly-ranked undergraduate math program. Stuart is the comparative under-achiever, having only a single undergraduate degree and pursuing his first Master’s. Needless to say, these things take time. In the name of full disclosure, it should be pointed out that work and school does not fully describe our time commitments. I have a musical group that performs original compositions in live venues several times a month. Naturally, I write for the group, book many of the venues, and rehearse now and again. The group has released two CDs. I also have a rock climbing habit. Together, Lea Ann and I also dabble in various investments, including real estate. Lea Ann also has a knack for graphics, having created the covers for both of my group’s CDs, a CD for a friend, wedding invitations for friends, etc. We also show our travel photography at various locations in our area. We are looking into cloning. Actually, the idea of going to the Arctic Circle in summer seems perfect for us. Up there, we need never waste time in activities like “sleep”. If the sun never goes down, why should we? At any rate, all this schooling creates its own scheduling difficulties. Some classes are required, so we need to take those when the opportunity arises or be stuck in scholastic purgatory. Undergraduate programs, in particular, are not known for their flexibility with scheduling time off for vacations (let alone good behavior). So, Lea Ann decided on the critical one or two classes for the summer. Then those changed. Then those changed. Then they settled into a pattern. Then that changed. Then, just to make things interesting, I decided to sign up for a core class in my program, considering that it would probably not be offered again for many semesters. All through this, our actual vacation window keeps slipping back and forth by as much as four weeks, while we try to fit around our class schedule. Finally, we reach a point of stability with Lea Ann’s schedule, so we can make some definite plans. Small problem: My class ends somewhere in the middle of our trip. No problem: I just work it out with the professor—I am going to skip the last three classes of the semester and just do all that work ahead of time. I can see a ship on the horizon. It looks like the name is something like “D’Saster”... |
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All materials © 2004 Lea Ann Mawler & Stuart Mawler
