Looking forward to …

I LOVE having something to look forward to.  In fact, I often find that I enjoy the looking forward more than the actual event.  Strange, huh?  I think I get a little depressed when there aren’t fun things on the horizon.  The next six weeks or so are going to be pretty tough, school-wise.  However, I am comforted that interspersed throughout and beyond there are several things to be excited about.  So starting with today, I am looking forward to:

• A coffee shop concert tonight w/ Angie
• No work this week (lots of time for homework)
• Finishing up w/ my current ACT student next week.  (It hasn’t been a bad experience; I seriously can just use ANY extra time for school.)
• My DC road trip w/ Jayme.  We are both visiting high school friends.  Granted, high school was two years ago for her, so it’s not quite the reunion it will be for me and Tracy.
• Easter
• The sold out Death Cab show
• Sitting 2nd row at Neko Case
• My Hebrews Exegesis paper presentation.  This was supposed to come just before the Neko Case concert, but got pushed back one day.  So I’m sure I’ll be stressing the whole concert rather than enjoying the relief having finished something significant.  Regardless, I really am looking forward to writing and presenting my paper.  It’s over Hebrews 12:1-2, which is one of my very favorite passages.  I’m sure I would love it even more if I felt like I could give it the time it deserves.
• My paper presentation being over!
• The Franz Ferdinand show the week before finals … yeah, you can see where my priorities are!
• Finals being over! (Notice I am NOT looking forward to finals.)
• The Iron & Wine sold out show at Schubas
• A Stacey weekend including Ben Harper!  She’s been promising for awhile now, and signs are looking good for a Chicago visit.  Oooh … and Bahama Breeze!  They closed down the OKC restaurant before I got a chance to go, but supposedly there’s one up here.  I’ve been waiting on her to go since August!
• Having only one class this summer.  I am really looking forward to not having to pick which classes get my attention and which go back burner.  I’ll be in the last of my Hebrew pre-reqs, and let me tell you, it’s a good thing.  Unfortunately, as much it’s needed not to be so, Hebrew has suffered the back burner shame this semester, and honestly, it needs a little love.
• Having an actual summer.  From June 13th to August 25th, I am free, Free, FREE!  Granted, I will need to make as much money as possible in this time span so as to hopefully not work as much during the school year, but it will be a nice break from the tyranny of assigned reading, papers, and tests.
• The births of various children.  I am not an aunt, and my brother is 15, so I don’t anticipate becoming one anytime soon.  I do, however, have a few friends that are expecting babies #1, #2 and #3 ranging from any day now to mid-August.  I can’t wait to welcome Mystery Baby Kelley, Lily Grace Lucas, and Baby Boy Davidson into the world!
• A summer trip to Texas.  I haven’t been home since early January, so I am excited to visit family and friends and perhaps see a couple of those babies.
• U2 in September!  Yay for my friend Kristine getting in on the pre-sale.  Row G on the field … that has to be close, right?

Hmm … notice a theme, anyone?  You can’t blame me; I haven’t been to a concert since January, so I’m perhaps a little overexcited.  Not a lot of time for blogging these days, but this was a much needed break.  Hope all is well with all!

Mark your calendars!

For years I have been waiting for a certain television show to come out on DVD.  It seems like every show imaginable (case in point: Alf) has its own DVD set, but for some reason or another, Designing Women has yet to come on the scene.  The delay supposedly has something to do with music rights, as the show made liberal use of all kinds of tunes, especially Motown hits.  Well, much to my delight, I received an email this morning informing me that in just a couple months I will be able to bring Julia, Suzanne, Mary Jo and Charlene home to live with me forever!  Season 1 releases on May 26th, and I could not be more excited.  The writing is incredibly clever, right up there with Gilmore Girls.    And unlike any other show I’ve seen, Designing Women addresses tough and timely issues like AIDS and domestic abuse with sensitivity and intelligence.

So, to celebrate the show’s upcoming release, I leave you with a few of my favorite clips.  Enjoy!

The Night the Lights Went out in Georgia:

Ain’t No Mountain High Enough:

Battle of the Sexes:

Marry Me, Bill:

High School Reunion: