tryin2makeit's Journal

A fine 80 degree day in Jersey. I helped out with Urban Fishing in Elizabeth today. It was totally urban. Lots of bilingual kids, speaking in spanish, their code language. It was a nice school- the Ronald Reagan school, recently built and had smart boards! Matt and I kinda spent the day walking around the classroom, or listening to Lynette and Nick talk about urban watersheds. Felt wierd, like we should have jumped in to say something. But we did help out with the games, and getting kids to respond to questions on the sheets. I am scheduled to go back on Friday to help with the fishing day- that should be a lot more fun. Went back to the office to close out the day, wrote some follow-up e-mails for co-sponsorships, worked on legacy books, and got my paperwork ready for the staff meeting, which is now scheduled to take place in Trenton. Andy and I are gonna go hang out afterwards. Drink coffee all day on a rainy day. Listen to newly purchased CDs. I remember feeling very bad about driving into Elizabeth alone today, seeing the populations walking around. It felt like a poor town and I was out of my comfort zone. That tends to get me depressed. I wish I could overcome that. And also wishing I had more to say to Lynette at lunch today- she is a cool person. My social skills will kick in eventually. One piece at a time now. Played some chess on my arrival home. TWO games, 'cuz I lost the first one so badly. I am up around 1300 now, feels wierd. I was a little bummed that I didn't play with a plan. It is not easy to come up with one on the spot with the timer running when I am not used to it. It would help if I could try harder. Next game! making good piano progress. That 30 minutes/day seems just right, and it clears my head. I like that. Gonna start getting into the GRE prep soon. Cracked the book this morning @ breakfast.