...and the list grows on

Another slow night at work. It's crazy to me that we have been lucky to keep 1-2 patients at this time of year. Notoriously, the fall and winter months are when the pediatrics department blows up. This time last year there were a few nights when I didn't have time to eat my lunch. But here it is 12am and I am scratching my head trying to come up with things to do to keep me awake as I have exhausted all of my reading material PLUS the reading material of my co worker and all of my regular websites. WHAT IS A GIRL TO DO??? Thats right, do what I always to: make an over-ambitious list. On the list of things to do tonight:

1. Join the RealSimple No-obligation Book Club (!!). This month we are reading a book called The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. I am pumped as this is a book about a family seen through the eyes of the family dog. I so wish that Barnes and Noble was open at 7am so that I could go and pick up a copy when I get off work in the morning. Its probably better that I don't though, seeing as how I have to wake up a bit earlier tomorrow afternoon in order to make it to my kickboxing class (my hamstrings are SCREAMING tonight from Monday's class)
2. I am going to learn Spanish. I took three years of it in high school so I'm hoping it will come back easier than I think it will. At the start of the summer I took care of a special-needs girl who was non-verbal. Her mother, however, was not. Her mother was VERY verbal! Spanish verbal, that is. Everytime I went into the room, girlfriend started talking to me in Spanish. Didn't try to give me hand motions to help me understand what she was talking about, draw pictures - nothing. But I was suprised at how much I actually understood of what she was saying. It took my a little while to get my ears accustomed to deciphering the words, but I stood there and listened as best I could interjecting an occasional "lo siento" as she told me of the hardships she and her family have faced sice they moved to Florida from California. In the morning before I left, I got a HUUUUUUGE hug from the, at this point, sobing mama who explained that she doesn't normally have anyone to talk to and was so grateful that I just listened to her all night! I think Jesus gave me ears to hear her that night. All that is to say that I think I would like to learn a little espanol so the next time I am in a situation like that I have a little more to say than "lo siento." Especially if I find myself living in, say, So. Fla one day and taking care of LOTS of spanish speaking kids and families.
3. Learn to play piano. This desire started almost a year ago when David and I were driving back up to Tallahassee from a visit to So. Fla and listening to Chris Rice's Living Room Sessions album. It was so pretty. I remember hearing my Mom play paino after dinner when I was little and have very happy memories of that. My sister knows how to play paino too, so I decided that there was no reason that I  shouldn't know how to play. It will give me something to do on my days off from work and allow me the possibility of having a really pretty grand piano in my home some day when I'm a "grown up" without being looked at as a poser : ). I had looked into "learn to play paino books" a number of months ago but decided that I amd not really a disciplined reader (a trait I'm hoping to kick with number one on this list) so a book on learning to play piano may not be the most effective way of learning. I think I need someone to teach me. Anyone have any suggestions of someone who wants to take on this task?

I realize this is a pretty ambitious list. So I'm going to leave it with that. Although, who knows. I'm on page 90 of 336 in this months RealSimple Magazine, so I may just add a few more things in a little bit : )