And then the end of the first chapter...

So, today, after furious grading and bookkeeping, I have finished all requirements for Purdue for the Spring semester. Now I have two days to clean the house for the upcoming GradPad GradStudent Cuatro de Mayo Party at my house. Charcoal must be gotten. Ditto vodka. I've got bigband and 80s for the playlist. A lovely butting of stylistic heads.

In other news, I have bought the latest Michael Chabon book, which is quite good, from various reports. I haven't read Cavalier and Clay (yes yes, I've lived under a rock for the last decade reading German fiction, so sue me...), so this'll be my entree to the writing of Chabon. Judging from the barely contained freakout of the fiction writers at the news that Chabon will be reading at Purdue next year, I assume he's a pretty damned good writer. I'll admit I was sold on the book (again a possibly painful admission) by the snappy cover art, by none other than Will Staehle, who has done some pretty impressive stuff for McSweeney's, which is a pretty damned impressive literary journal that all who love reading new stuff should read. The "Volumes held in a cover by magnets" issue was a must-have. Who else would publish a collection of Oulipian stuff in English translation? I mean really.
I'm in sensory overload mode. I've just finished a third of my MFA, I've got my house to clean and revamp for an upcoming party, I've got much, much much stuff to read this summer, and I've got a blue million recordings to listen to. Oh, yes, and I've got to write. and garden. and ride my bike more often. I';m sure this will all start coming together in the next couple of weeks. The woodwork, the windows, the painting, the plumbing, the car, the novel, the memoir, the poetry manuscript, the becoming a premier classical recording reviewer, etc. All a matter of time. Sure. And all from my front porch. It could happen. I'll put some water on for coffee.