Birthday Season

Last week, we were sucked into the vortex of the birthday season, where the birthdays will hit, one after the other, for several weeks.  My BIL's birthday was the 20th, Jessica's is tomorrow, and then my FIL's is just around the corner on the 3rd, Emily's is on the 6th, and Tim's is on the 10th.  Whew. 

Jessica is going to be having the full b-day week.  She went to Oregon to visit her dad & family.  They had a one-year memorial for her cousin, Adam, who died unexpectedly last year.  Then they had a birthday celebration for her Monday night.  Last night, my mom, sis, brother and SIL came over for dinner.  Today it was my grandma's turn to come by, and then tomorrow, will be her actual birthday.  I think we have a couple of days' break in there because she's working, but then Sunday she's planning a birthday gathering with a few of her friends.  Oh, to be turning 22.  I feel so old. 

Last week, I dug out her baby book and looked through it.  I was appalled at all of the blank pages I'd left.  I wrote down some of the most important things in the beginning, and had a separate sheet of notebook paper full of words/phrases she said before she was two, but I was a complete failure after that.  I guess life took its toll and I had a lot of craziness to contend with so it got pushed to the side, but I still feel horrible.  I guess that is why I'm always on her to make sure she's documenting everything for little man.  She looked at me like I was crazy today because I told her she should write in his book that he has his first cold.  He got it from his uncle in Oregon, who seems to have a cold every time Jessica is down there.  Bo is 2 1/2 and goes to daycare, so I'm sure that is the reason, but now little man has it and is pretty miserable.

I feel horrible that I don't have any $ to buy much in the way of b-day gifts for Jessica and Tim.  :(  That *is* the downside of being a stay-at-home gran with no real income.  Bah. 

I'm going to have to hit Tim up for a new computer for my b-day.  I'm using his right at the moment, but it is a nightmare and I hate to use it.  It is soooooooooooo slow, it isn't even funny.  But my laptop has been acting up forever and now the cord won't stay in, so I basically can't use it until I can somehow rig it to stay in and not budge one millimeter.  Unfortunately, since I used Jessica's laptop cord, it also messed hers up, so I can't really use that.  As much as I love the convenience of having a laptop, I may just have to go back to having a desktop PC.  The amount of power and speed of processing I need, I just really can't get in a laptop and/or if I could, it would be unaffordable.  So... I dunno.  I just know I need to have something.  I have assignments due next week and then will be starting on the Blackboard portion of the quarter.  Jessica is starting back to school in September as well, so we need something reliable.  Ugh. 

I'm starting my elective module/quarter.  It is Creative Non-Fiction.  Should be interesting.  I am just having a hard time deciding which direction to go with it.  There are so many different options.  I know most people focus on the memoir, but I don't know what I'd really want to address in a memoir.  I have been thinking about writing something about women and art, but I'm not sure that I am ready for that.  Eventually I'd loev to write something about the American culture and how our systems impact us.  Travel is another option, but again, I'm not sure if I'm ready for that.  I guess I will wait to hear from the prof for the course.  I sent her an email several weeks ago asking a few questions and looking for some suggested reading, but I haven't heard back from her yet.  Hmmmm... what to do?  I am kind of frustrated because I'm not sure about the first assignment and how much I need to submit.  If it is 3500 words for the first submission... I might be in some trouble.  Yikes!

If you had to write non-fiction, which direction would you go with it?