Things are good.

Very, very good.

1. The dogs are better, and running around playing Growl Game like nothing ever happened.

2. I got another request for the first 20 pages of my manuscript, which I am sending out tomorrow. This request came from a long-established literary agency in New York, (which represented John Steinbeck!), and when I read the request letter, I started crying.

3. On Saturday, I have an interview for a teaching position at another school here in Austin, and if I land it, I will pretty much consider it my dream job. Other than writing full time. So I guess it would be my dream teaching job. I don't want to say anything else about where it is or anything, because I don't want to jinx myself. More on that later.

4. We bought a "Gazelle" on Craigslist about a week ago. You've seen the infomercials, I'm sure. It's that gliding workout machine with that crazy dude Tony Little, who says, "You can do iiiiiit!" We've used it every single day since we picked it up. I like it because it's fun. Nathan likes it because it doesn't strain his back. We both like it because we can workout inside. If you've ever spent a summer in Texas, you know that cardio outdoors is not for the weak of heart.

5. The infamous TAKS test is coming up not this week, but next, and I feel ready for it. Or rather, I feel my kids are ready for it.
After the test, it's a mad rush to summer, which is always a beautiful thing.