2004-09-09 - 6:54 p.m.

I've been nowhere and doing not much besides lesson plans and sleep. I like my new job a lot. I like the people I work with a lot. And I even like my new environmentally friendly commuter car.

I do sometimes get hit by the desire to go �home� to my last school. Then I think about why I left, and I get cranky, so I think about other things.

Today's mail provided an excellent opportunity to think about other things, and to be homesick simultaneously. Last week, the phone rang and the caller ID showed a name I didn't recognize. The mysterious caller left a message, and turned out to be Mitten Quotes , asking for my mailing address. Well, he's all grow'd up and out in the world, such as it is.

Dear Mrs. Vocat,

Hey, how's it going? I am starting my first semster at [College], that's right THE [college]. The teacher in our orientation class told us to start writing to someone using �snail mail�. I concluded that was a reference to the U.S. Postal Service albeit a degrading one which I'm sure they don't appreciate as they tend to pride themselves on a speedy yet efficient delivery service. Any who, I figured writing to you would be a good way to keep in touch and force you into writing me back. Aside from that you're really the only person from [the high school] I would want to talk to.

Hockey tryouts begin tomorrow and from what I've heard the coach really likes to skate us which isn't very fun. Last year was the first year we played competitively and now we are playing pretty good schools so it will probably be a �fun� year. College has been filled with fun thus far; I just finished listening to karma chameleon by the culture club in my dorm room...alone...in the dark. What a party it has been.

Because I haven't seen you since the end of the school year I suppose I will tell you about my summer. The first week I went to [state] with [a lot of people from high school]. After that I spent the majority of the summer working at [grocery store] where I saw your sister a couple of times. Everyone else went to Bonnaroo, a modern day Woodstock, in June, but I chose not to go as I had work and I am not a dirty hippie. Then in the beginning of August we all camped in [town, state] where [buddy]'s family rents a cabin for the week. It was a lot of harmless fun if you disregard the roman candle fights we had on the beach at 1 A.M. No one lost more than one eye and I would lose my depth perception in the name of fun any day. Well that was my summer and now I am here, my e-mail address is [[email protected]], but feel free to write me back using the fine people at the United States Postal Service using my return address on the envelope as that was part of the project.