but I like to pump my own....

After crashing, picked myself up and went into the week, not helped by a couple of nights where I just couldn't sleep. Now more balanced, know my work better and neighborhood and so on, things are starting to be more familiar and have met a few more people. It's really funny, you can't get your own gas here. Someone has to do it for you. I find this really strange. Just between states, it is sort of foreign. I am also heartened some by the turnouts of the primaries so far.

Some good news; my German relatives from southern DE, with whom I spent a vacation and a christmas (one of my favorite christmases ever), are coming to visit the U.S. in the summer and to meet my Granddad and other relatives-- his cousin, the father of one of them, died in the last couple of years. My granddad's simply delighted, which is lovely. So I will visit too to interpret and translate, since the Germans don't speak much english, and as my family speaks about zero german, apart from my granddad, who is fluent. Then they're going to tour around in the U.S. for a bit on their own and I'm helping to find some German-language things for them and to organize who's when where in terms of my family members in CO.

It's interesting how much confidence I've gained on the job already. I have a nice boss who's proactive, a good person, and with strong interpersonal skills, and that's always welcome. Learning much.