Bright Lights of the City + June goals

Sending off my draft of Chapter 3 was the last task I needed to accomplish before I leave tomorrow morning for four weeks in New York City. (Well, I just started cleaning and packing for the month, but somehow that always gets done.) As much as I increasingly loathe any time away from D., I do look forward to my annual stint in the city. I love the teaching, opportunities to eat well and see museums, and of course, spend time with my East Coast family and friends.

I'm glad I've taught at this program before, and am therefore less anxious, because this summer will be especially busy! Here is my list of goals for the next month:

June goals:

Wedding-related:
Pick a date / find a venue and a church.
Use venue to help determine visual style/colors of the wedding. Rustic farmhouse? Elegant ballroom? Late spring or height of summer?

Dissertation-related:
Keep working on German.
Read Stesichorus, Pindar, and Pseudo-Scylax (what an "author"!).
Review my current chapters, start formulating larger arc of argument for intro/conclusion.

Job search-related:
Write a 1-2 page teaching philosophy.
Develop a syllabus for a Heracles-themed seminar and intermediate/upper-level Latin and Greek classes.

New York-related:
See my friends!
Visit the major/my favorite museums once (Met, Guggenheim, MoMA, Morgan Library).
See a show.
Oh yeah, and teach an extremely intense, 24-7 language class.

AND, while I'm in the Philadelphia area, play with my baby niece, the Florette!

Okay, even I have to admit that this is kind of an ambitious list. I will have to prioritize, and some things just won't get done. I already know one thing that won't happen: "Keep working on German." Who am I kidding? But I will leave it on the list as a little guilt-inducing reminder to myself that I still haven't read the German books on my bibliography from last summer. I'm sure I'll be embarrassed by the number of things I haven't accomplished on July 1st, but I may as well set the bar high!