JANUARY 2025

New year, new aspirations, and new challenges. Welcome to 2025! SONG INSPIRATION The first blog of the year is inspired by Whitney Houston’s I’m Your Baby Tonight. WINTER BREAK I can’t overstate how much I needed four weeks away from N’Angland. I feel – mostly – rejuvenated, with fresh ideas and new year resolutions (last […]

DECEMBER 2024

The semester has ended! Time to wrap up grading – and 2024. Let’s dive in. SONG INSPIRATION December’s blog is inspired by Glorilla’s TGIF. THANKSGIVING RECAP Thanksgiving was just what the proverbial doctor ordered – a week of leisure with family and friends. I was shocked to discover my parents had initiated a reno of […]

NOVEMBER 2024

Only two weeks of class remaining – one on either side of Thanksgiving. Talk about a whirlwind! SONG INSPIRATION November’s blog is inspired by Glorilla’s LET HER COOK. FINISHING THE RAT RACE – EXTERNAL GRANTS AND JOB APPLICATIONS I’m down to my last application for tenure track positions. Although it’s possible other positions may trickle […]

OCTOBER 2024

Halfway through the semester already! SONG INSPIRATION The song inspiration for this month’s blog is Do Better by Stormzy. BIRTHDAY WEEK – A MILESTONE According to the average human life expectancy in the US for my demographic, I’m middle aged. Two weeks ago, I turned 35. My birthday milestones are now every 5 years. Because […]

SEPTEMBER 2024

Almost through the first two weeks of class! SONG INSPIRATION September’s blog is inspired by “Under the Influence” from Chris Brown’s Indigo. MONTREAL I left the country Labor Day weekend to give myself one last reprieve before the semester. This time I traveled to Montreal where I spent a week writing in cafes with an […]

AUGUST 2024

Greetings! This month’s blog has been written from a hotel in the Windy City. SONG INSPIRATION August’s blog is inspired by the summer hit Espresso by Sabrina Carpenter. GOLDSCHMIDT This is my first time attending Goldschmidt – a conference whose praises I’ve heard sung for years. While it would have been nice to attend Goldschmidt […]

JULY 2024

Can’t believe it’s been 4 weeks already – I guess that’s what happens when life is a doozy. SONG INSPIRATION July’s blog is inspired by Megan Thee Station’s viral hit, Mamushi. RECLAIMED SUMMER To quote Representative Maxine Waters, I have reclaimed my time. After 2 weeks and 100+ hours in the Japanese language immersion program, […]

JUNE 2024

Due to severe time constraints, I may shorten the length of the next few blogs. Hopefully that’ll make for quicker reading though. SONG INSPIRATION June’s blog is inspired by Tinashe’s viral hit, Nasty. AN EVOLVING SENSE OF PLACE Earlier this month, I returned to the Southwest to socialize with friends and reconnect with my graduate […]

MAY 2024 – PART II

Rounding out the month with another docket of reflections. Let’s get into it! SONG INSPIRATION The 2nd blog of the month was inspired by Candy by Cameo. THE CASE FOR DO-NOTHING VACATIONS Exploring the world is important to me hence why I travel. I want to explore as much of this planet as I can. […]

MAY 2024 – PART I

There are 5 weeks in May, so you know what that means – double blog month! Here’s part one! SONG INSPIRATION This month’s first blog is inspired by Teena Marie’s, Square Biz. WRAPPING UP SPRING SEMESTER The end of the semester is less than 2 weeks away. It has been a rollercoaster of emotions. Life […]