Vacation week

I had to decide before the beginning of March when I would take my paid vacation from UPS. I looked at the school calendar and decided that the week before classes start would be as good as any. So this past week my vacation destination was NW Iowa where my family lives. Besides not having to get up at a little after 4 each morning, my week of rest included reading two books just for fun, doing the daily crossword puzzle, taking a nap the first several days and catching up with family and friends. As always I enjoyed riding my bike on the quiet country roads. I find it refreshing to spend a few hours among the corn and bean fields under blue sky with the only sound being that of the birds and the wind and the tires on the pavement. I don't even mind the country smells as I pedal past a hog or cattle farm. I do find it interesting that it really doesn't matter which route one takes, there is always at least one farm place that looks like it is trying really hard to be the local junk yard.

The main outing for the week was to a piano concert at Glenn's house in Spirit Lake. Mom had heard about Glenn, a farmer from the area who gives an intimate concert each Tues and Wed evening on a donation basis. Each guest is served a glass of wine or lemonade as they come in and during intermission friends serve some type of dessert or small sandwich. He began the evening with some classical works and apologized for having to use the music since life had been a bit busy so he hadn't been able to get it all memorized. He ended the first segment with several ragtime songs. After intermission he played a few of the popular songs from 1922, 1942 and 1962. Then he sat down with a list of requests and played them most of them from memory or by ear. There were two he declined to play because they needed a whole band to do them justice. If you live in the area and like piano music it is worth checking out. http://www.pianoglenn.com

This week my classes begin. After spending two years working on prerequisites, I am looking forward to starting the actual Occupational Therapy program. I have a stack of books and syllabi and it's looking like I have my work cut out for me. Wednesday and Thursday I will meet my cohort and professors. More on that next week.