Happy New Year

Happy New Year to everyone! I hope this year is kind to everyone. It is indeed good to see the backside of 2008!

I excited to have a new President and hopefully new ideas moving into the White House. I've just been looking at You-Tube and was surprised and not surprised at the same time to see how many there are for Barak in Saint Paul. I absolutely loved it when he secured the nomination and came to Saint Paul to the Excel Center, where the RNC was scheduled for their convention, saying, "I'm going to Saint Paul first." In looking back on the Minnesota Public Radio site I was reminded the line for admission for Obama's appearance was 1.5 miles long. On January 20 the University President has invited all of us to the Auditorium to see the inauguaration ceremony and then the parade. In between the two events we'll have lunch together as a university community. In all my years of working, I've never seen the Inaugauration regarded in this manner.

I'm already looking forward to my seven weeks in Poland during the summer. The plane ticket is purchased. Now to pay the fees for this volunteer experience. I'll be teaching in Zakopane and Reymonotowka (outside of Siedlce). During my free time I plan to visit Wroclaw and Poznan. Who knows what other adventures may happen? I've just noticed candles on a table setting on a TV program and that reminded me of the night I was in a basement cafe in Torun and the electricity went off. We really did have dinner by candlelight, and wonderful that the candles were lit before the electricity went off! Otherwise it would have been very dark in that basement!

But before going to Poland, I'm also scheduled to be a grandmother for the third time. We still don't know if this little one is a boy or a girl. The daddy wants a boy very much, I'm cheering for a girl. My daughter is just worried about everyone being healthy.

I'll be finishing my last semester as the chair of the Nurisng Department at Metropolitan State. In the best political jargon, this is neither an office I sought or want. On Monday when I return to work, I'll also be unpacking in a new office in a different building. This one will give me a view to the south, but having not spent much time in the office, I don't know if I'll be seeing buildings across the street or that the view will also include the Mississippi River.

This all is surely enough adventure for the first six months.