Bright spots in a rough day

I suppose it's just the end of the semester looming, but today was really rough for a couple of reasons:

1. I'm sad that my family gets to be together in NC while I'm here (even though they'll be here in one day and a wakeup)

2. I'm a little overwhelmed by everything that needs to get done before December

3. My foot hurts

4. The library is insisting that I lost a book that I know I returned

5. My laptop bottom is cracked, so I have to leave work tomorrow to go to the Apple store to see what they can do about it

However, today hasn't been all bad. For everything that's upset me today, there's been something positive to balance it out.

First, when I parked at school today, one of the compact car spots was open, which is never the case. And since I drive a little car, I got to park there, which made me pretty cheerful. The parking garage leads me to #2. I was walking to the library, minding my own business when a running guy brushed by me-he didn't actually touch me, but he was close enough that it scared me to death. I let out a gasp because I was wrapped up in my own world and that startled me out of it. He called "sorry" over his shoulder, but then when I got further up the street, I saw that he had stopped to apologize properly. He said that he hadn't really been paying attention because of his iPod, and asked several times if I was OK. Of course I was, but his kindness in actually taking the time to make sure made me grateful for human kindness in general.

Third, I have a new pair of shoes! A woman in my Old English class got them, wore them once and found that they hurt her feet, so she passed them on to me. They're oxblood (which is about the worst color name I can think of) leather heels-not practical for cobblestones, but oh so pretty for other things :)

Fourth, I had a bit of a breakdown this evening and rather than sit around feeling sorry for myself and eating a bunch of crap, I decided to clean my apartment really well. 2 hours later and I have a clean apartment (#5!), but I feel much better about myself. Lately I've renewed my commitment to taking care of myself, because I'm seeing how much of a physical toll being in grad school takes on a body; if I'm going to be in this kind of environment professionally, I need to make sure that I'm in tip-top shape. So the fact that I kept my commitment to that makes me pretty proud of myself. Also, I am now exhausted, so I'm off to bed. Maybe one of these days I'll become a regular blogger. Maybe.