When It Rains It Pours

In the category of baby steps toward self-actualization, I am now paid for the work that I do. I'm still at CSIS, which is great, and now working for their Abshire-Inamori Leadership Academy. They do a lot of great programs involving career development, leadership training, and honing the skills necessary to succeed.

Additionally, I'll be doing statistics work for the Global Aging Initiative to help update a solid chunk of their Global Aging Vulnerability Index. Perhaps those statistics and econometrics classes really were a good idea.

I'll also be keeping a foot in the door with this financial security project that's slowly taking off. Still keeping the eyes open for a bona fide job, but at least I'm continuously in a better position to do so.

In other news, starting October I'll be living in Columbia Heights. It's a great neighborhood, great location, and looks overall like a nice place to be. I'll be with David from CSIS, Doug Foote of Tufts, and a tbd. Good times.

I've had in the back of my mind that once things were a little more settled, I could pay again the amount of time they deserve to music, running, and other pursuits. I suppose now I have to make good on that. Baby steps, at least.

End of Summer

Getting up to New England was great. I was sad not to have had the opportunity to go up during the summer, which is a special season for the area. I'm glad to have caught the tail end of the summer weather though. Compared to the last few months in DC (a relatively mild summer, I'm told), Boston was sufficiently warm with that wonderfully brisk breeze that makes me think of fall semesters at Tufts. I'm a big fan of the cool nights, too.

The weather cooperated long enough to make it up to Maine for a few days around Labor Day weekend and get in some sailing, beaching, and lounging. I hadn't been back for several months and I was missing it. A good group of people were back around too. Only a couple leaves were starting to turn. Maine is a great place.







Amanda's back for her last year at Tufts. It always takes some adjustment to get used to living in different places again.

In other news, it's starting to cool down in DC too. Already, a few days have gone by without me sweating through my shirt on my daily walk to the metro. Nights are a welcomed handful of degrees cooler than the day too, meaning more opportunity for sleeping with the windows wide and the covers heaped. And kitties running in circles.



Soon it will be moderately appropriate to wear flannel-lined pants.

Up North

Up in Boston for the week. It's a needed break. The cool weather feels great. Can't believe it's September. Wilderness people get back tonight. Maine in a few days. Short sentences are easy.