priorities

Back to New York and back to work....I'm going to start to work more evenings and weekends. Ezer and I have a study date for Saturday and he's going to do work/keep me company while I do data entry tonight to help the lab catch up more on the SSI study.

I read an essay this morning that talked about the "myth" of balance and instead encouraged focusing on priorities. Something to think about...what are my priorities for 2006 and beyond. I'm thinking about trying to memorize a Bible verse per week. It's an intimidating undertaking though...so easily not completed and so measurably so. But I know that God's word in my heart makes a huge difference in my life.

More California happenings:

- It was nice to stay at a guesthouse in Silverlake for a few days. We "won" our stay during a silent auction at a charity event for an HIV organization. It turned out our host had once also been a board member of NMAC like Ezer (National Minority AIDS Council). Our host informed us that Tim Robbins once stayed in our suite. :) The bed was very comfortable...it's all about mattress pads. Actually, after staying at one B&B during my first recruiting trip for USC I asked my parents for a down feather bed one year for Christmas. It's a full size so didn't exactly work on my twin mattress...Ezer wasn't too keen on bringing it back to New York.

- Megumi, my aunt's (by marriage) cousin's daughter from Osaka, Japan, visited California for 3-4 weeks and stayed with our family for a few days. It was quite funny to go to the beach with her and see her ask all these cute surfers if she could take a picture with them. She had black contacts...might be fun to try for the day.

- Ezer and I had dinner with a couple friends and met their new significant others. It's always an interesting time...you've both heard about each other, maybe everyone is a little nervous, you're really happy for your friend but also can't help but feel a bit protective and wanting to look out for them.

I think the friendship combo that is most likely to be affected by a new relationship is when a man and woman are friends and the man gets involved with someone. I know that when Ezer and I started dating he stopped hanging out with his female friends...almost completely. It wasn't something I had asked of him, but perhaps a time and priority issue. There have been one or two women I have had uncomfortable vibes about and he's been responsive/sensitive to that. I think the best advice I've heard is that male-female friendships can continue to the extent that the significant other feels comfortable. The range of comfort among friends I know varies greatly. One of the benefits of having been single for a good time pre-dating/marriage is that I have good male friendships that continue to this day. I can't say I've made any close male friendships since with the exception of significant others of friends.

- Ezer did a great job at the OC marathon despite the boring course and extremely sunny day. It was nice that my family got to cheer him on. Dad came with me for the whole race. May and Mom joined us at the end.

Random observations:

- I got lists of math majors from the math department this morning. Our targeted date for the first focus groups is February 3rd. I wonder if I could expand from Columbia i.e. see if the Princeton Diversity Working Group needs help. I could just call myself an educational diversity consultant. :) Today I am feeling like if these postdoc things don't work out I don't want to look for a full-time job post graduation. Not that this is the first time I've felt this or that it won't possibly change.

- There was so much overhead space on the plane Christmas Eve. I wonder if it was because people were more likely to check in luggage than usual due to gifts and longer visits.

- Like mother, like daughter: I warned Ezer last night that I am probably going to turn into my mother for better or for worse. I don't think he realized before we got married how much I like having the t.v. on. I have fond memories of lying in my parents bed watching tv with my mom and sisters (dad was usually working on a project or somtimes already asleep). I'm excited about the winter olympics coming up though it's not at the most leisurely time of the year (we first got a tv tuner for Ezer's monitor which he used for DVDs when the summer olympics were on in 2004). Maybe we can go see them in Vancouver in 2010. :)

Our dining room set is coming this afternoon!