You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have . . .

The weather in Big City feels a lot like Ireland's today, which is both good and bad. Bad because it makes me want to be there, rather than here. Good because it reminds me that there are climates more amenable to me than Big City's. Good and bad together because nostalgia is always a mixed bag. (Any Lacanians in the house? Can I get a "Jouissance"?)

Such musings, in addition to tangentially prompting me to hum "The Facts of Life" theme song* at odd moments, lead me into this very sloppy post about what's going on in the World of Wiseass:

Bad
--Octavia Butler's death is still haunting me.
--Badger's eviction is on my mind, and I so wish I could do anything at all to help.
--Wonder Woman's next surgery may or may not be necessary, but it will certainly inflict real and permanent damage.
--This stuff in South Dakota--and the necessity for posts like this one--make me want to howl out loud with rage. How have we lost so much ground?
--The news that our president was apparently not so much incompetent and unaware as actively unconcerned about the Katrina disaster is only adding to my urge to howl.
--I can't find the battery recharger for my digital camera anywhere.
--My attempts to beat back the forces of entropy in my apartment keep failing. Badly.
--Weeks ago, I saw pictures of myself which were so unflattering that I can't shake the feeling that I look both ludicrous and disgusting.
--The term is nearly over, which means a drastic increase in student complaints as they realize what their grades are likely to be, an increased grading load, and increased flakiness on everyone's part as we all work hard to (a) care and (b) not fall apart.
--I'm having recurring, painful headaches which Excedrin does nothing to banish.
--I'm sleeping very badly and having terrifically vivid dreams about things which are either horrifying or focused on a profound sense of longing and loss.
--I have to write two fellowship applications, a paper abstract, and at least three pages on my prospectus this weekend. I also have to grade a set of papers and a set of quizzes.

Good
--Crafty Jew, Dr. V., Morgan, and I are going to have a road trip to Kalamazoo, which not only means that the phrase "medievalist road trip" may be deployed in earnest, but also that I will get to visit a truck stop and buy all the beef jerky, Easy Cheese, and weird trucker hats I could want.
--A 'Zoo blogger meet-up is in the works.
--An Ancrene Wiseass CafePress store is in the works. It will include some profoundly goofy things.
--It looks as though I'm going to be able to get published by writing an encyclopedia entry about something which excites me terrifically and which I've been wanting an excuse to research further.
--A wonderfully smart person who has finished a book I didn't know about on a fantastically exciting topic gave a talk here recently which helped me re-frame some of the questions I want to ask in the dissertation and, indeed, figure out what the hell I'm trying to do, anyway.
--Partially as a result of that, I got some real work done on my prospectus Sunday.
--I got to have brunch with Gorey Gal (a.k.a. Map) last weekend, and that was very nice, because I don't get to see that much of her anymore.
--I am getting out of what turned into the Student Government Post from Hell.
--Theory Prof is a wonderful, beautiful man. And he is actually reading and responding to the Unspeakable Project upon which other faculty members won't deign to comment.
--Daffodils are in season again.
--Mouse has this way of rolling over on his side and looking at me with his paws crossed in front of him that just makes me go all gooey inside.
--Boy Roomie has been very nice to me, despite my being whiny, grumpy, flaky, and just flat weird in turns (and sometimes all at once).
--The term nearly over, which means I will soon be able to say goodbye to a class which had Very Bad Chemistry Indeed and hunker down for a whole week (Oh! The joy of Spring Break!) to work on finalizing my prospectus.
--There is a very pretty European man serving coffee in the nearest campus cafe. He is fun to look at.
--I've had a week of good classes at the dojang, during which I made discernible progress and didn't feel idiotic the entire time.
--I wore this shirt with my neon orange Chuck Taylors today and discovered that one of my favorite scarves matches the shoes perfectly.
--I'm having dinner with Morgan, Bellwether, and Boy Roomie tonight.

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*By the way, did y'all know that the first season's theme song was even worse than the one we know and "love"? Seriously. Take a gander at this.