Part of it is that I am determined not to be a big slacker. I'm going to do all the reading I'm supposed to do, and then some. I really want to get the most out of my classes (especially my Pound class, since when I took Keats with that professor, my lack of outside reading contributed to my frustration with the class).

I'm not sure if that made sense, but I'll keep right on rolling, here.

I have class four days a week, and I work one day a week. That leaves me one day (Sunday) to plan my lectures, and one day (Thursday) to do my homework. I really don't know how my schedule is going to be, because I haven't gotten into the groove of it yet. And I haven't experienced Mondays yet: teaching in the city in the morning, then driving to the East Bay for class in the afternoon. Ack.

But I have a feeling that I'm going to be a very busy person this semester.

Today I went to my Friday morning class, Three Women Modernists. We're studying Neidecker, Moore and Bishop. My friends warned me that this professor has some problems, but I always like starting a new class with a new teacher, so my optimism was unquenched. And, lucky me, the class is fantastic!

Apparently, the professor (Hamilton) took students' criticism of his teaching style to heart. By all accounts, he has improved a vast deal. All I know is that I was fascinated by everything he was saying-- an historical overview of the period from 1900-1925 or so, roughly. I took copious notes and my attention never wandered.

In spite of the fact that I was tired, and perhaps a wee bit hungover.

Why, you ask? Well, I'll tell you. I went to see Madonna last night!

Living inside of me, there is an absolutely ecstatic ten year old, who dressed up like Madonna all the time back in 1985, and who has been dying to see her in concert ever since. That girl was not disappointed in the least, even though the tickets were hella expensive.

I was initially wary, because I heard she was only doing a couple of her old songs, and it was going to be mostly new stuff. But her new stuff is great, too-- "Ray of Light," and "Beautiful Stranger," and "Music," and everything else she did. Even the songs I didn't know. I mean, she's Madonna! She rules.

And the staging was amazing-- the sound was incredible-- our seats absolutely ruled. And best of all, I got to see the concert with my sister and my cousin, and Ash. They flew in just for the one night, and left this morning at six so they could get into work at seven. Crazy? Perhaps. A blast and a half? Why yes, yes it was.

My sister bought me a necklace, which was so sweet of her. It's silver and it says "Madonna." And yes, being the gigantic nerd that I am, I wore it today. I woke up at 9:02 (for a 10:00 class in the city) and still had the wherewithal to put on my Madonna necklace before leaping into the car at 9:07.

I also got a Halloween present, which involves a whole lot of glitter. (Tim's theory: "No guys think girls wearing glitter is cute. At best, they are indifferent." My infinitely superior theory: "Ooh! Look at the pretty sparkles! Pretty!") Thanks, Little One! And I gave her the mix CD that I made for her. My notify list got to hear all about this in the formative stages, since I asked for song suggestions.

It was so fun to see the girls. Abby and I have been dying to see Madonna for what feels like our whole lives, and I don't think either of us could stop screaming the entire time we were there. She's just an amazing showman. It was like a theatrical performance. If you've seen the HBO broadcast, you know what the show was. But it just doesn't compare to being there, the energy of all those people and the fact that you are in the same room as Madonna.

I bought myself a Madonna poster and of course, I have my necklace. My sister and Ash each got a T-shirt and some posters, and a program. Lucy got a program and a poster, I think. The merchandise was so overpriced-- even if I could afford to spend $40 on a shirt, I don't think I would do it. And those were the cheap shirts-- some were as high as $100. For a shirt.

Okay, surreal moment of the night: we bought a shirt for David Boreanaz. He gave Lucy some money to get him a shirt, so she bought him a shirt. That's just weird. You'd think, being famous and all, if he liked Madonna, he'd be able to go to the concert himself and buy his own shirt. But the ways of the famous are mysterious and shrouded, I guess.

Lucy let me use her phone to call my house during a couple of songs and leave bits of the concert on my machine. I came home and listened, and the message is like, "Fffffzzzzzzzzz AAAAAH! Zzzzzzzffffff WE LOVE YOU! Tropical ZzzzzzsssshhhfffffZZZfff MADONNA! Fzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz- Isla Bonita Zzzzz AAAAHHH!!" It's almost like being there all over again.

We hung out for a little bit after the concert and watched some MTV, but then the girls had to go to bed so they could get up for their ridiculously early flight home. It was sad to see them leave, after such a miniscule visit.

My sister's birthday is coming up soon, and I wish I could go home for it. (My mother's having a big housewarming party, apparently. Hello!? I was totally not invited.) But I have no idea how school is going to go. I have a strong feeling that getting away for a weekend will be impossible for a while.

I hope I'll be able to still speak at Journalcon, but I'm not making any promises.

Phoebe has been eating millet seeds out of my hand. Although she's wary of the Big Giant Hand, if I approach her in the right way, she's okay with it. And it's so cute, because once she's done with the seeds, she'll start nibbling on my fingers, sort of checking them out, I think.

I did the whole "move the bird cage and see if Phoebe will land on my hand" trick today. She did land on my hand once, and sat there for a good 30 seconds or so, until I tried to offer her some millet with my other hand. The presence of two Big Giant Hands was too much for her tiny pimento brain to handle, and she took off.

Surprisingly enough, though, Pigwidgeon landed on my hand, too! He didn't sit there as long as Phoebe did, but that is absolutely the first time Pigwidgeon has come anywhere near me, other than his morning ritual of walking around in circles on my ass.

"And not moving into my permanent home yet is a problem, too. I can't fully settle in, and I keep fearing they're going to change their minds. And so I'm still waving my roots around wildly, waiting for a place to plant them."