i know. i'm blushing.

Almost a year ago, I posted a picture of a birthday cake I made for a ridiculously random party my friends threw in Chuck Norris’ honor. Just a couple days ago, I was glancing through my site stats when I noticed that someone had gotten to my blog from a link at the Huffington Post.

Wha?

Turns out, Mr. Norris made me famous. Well, maybe not famous. More like a teensy blip on the comedy-news aggregation scene. My cake photo found its way into some random post about amusing pop-culture cakes earlier this month at the Huffington Post.

This made me curious about how much traffic my one, obscure Chuck Norris post was bringing to my blog. It turns out, a LOT.

49% of the search terms people use to find my blog (through Google or Yahoo or wherever) have do with Chuck Norris. FORTY-NINE PERCENT! Who knew so many people are hungry for Chuck? (In the interest of transparency, I should tell you that I also counted terms that imply Chuck Norris but don’t necessarily include his name. For example, there were four hits on my blog using the search “will roundhouse kick you for food,” and I included that with the Chuck Norris tally because, well, wouldn’t you?)

Also, my site stat thingy was broken for a while, and within just an hour or so of [Bryant] fixing it, I noticed that two internet searches had already led people to my blog. Both were looking for Chuck.

Furthermore, what do you think the #3 most-clicked post in the history of this blog is? (I guess there’s really not much suspense in that question, considering that all I’m doing right now is talking about The Chuck.) That’s right! It’s my Chuck Norris birthday cake post. I know this place isn’t bursting with fantastic material, but I’m not really sure how I feel about the Texas Ranger making it in my top 3. …Proud?

A week from today, I start my NAC class. (Stands for “Nursing Assistant-Certified.” It used to be called “CNA” instead of “NAC,” and I don’t have any idea how long ago they changed it, but I’m having a heck of a time switching.) Becoming an NAC is part of my plan to ultimately go to PA school (“Physician Assistant” …too many acronyms here, I know), and then finally become a PA.

So my class is in Seattle and it starts at 7:30 in the morning. I know that normal, productive people are like, “What’s wrong with 7:30? It’s my favorite time of the day. It’s my time right after yoga class, when I eat my fiber-full bran muffin and peruse the New York Times. You know, right before I solve world hunger at 8:00.” But I’m not like that. For me, 7:30 is stupidly early. I know I’ll suck it up and rise to the occasion or whatnot. Maybe I’ll become a morning person or something. Who knows. Stranger things have happened. I think. At least it only lasts five weeks. Short and sweet. I can hack it.

But… I’m nervous. Not about the difficulty of the NAC class. I’m optimistic that I’ll do okay with the material. It’s not even the early-morning issue that makes me nervous. At least not directly. What gets me worried is time.

TIME!

It’s all I’ve had lately. Soooo muuuuch tiiiiiiime. I know, I know, I’m the only one in the world who has ever had an excess of free time. But I did. And I liked it. As deadening and soul-sucking as it was to feel like I didn’t have direction, it sure was amazing to have tons of free time.

This move to Washington has been the catalyst for tons of changes in my life, one of them being less and less time to spare. I’m back at college, and I love it. I also love that college has been the only thing putting demands on my schedule. I’ve got all the time in the world to study. This NAC class will change that. I’m fully aware of how thoroughly ridiculous I sound. But I feel it, so I’m going to say it and just hope no one holds it against me. I’m worried I’m going to have a hard time getting used to balancing more than a couple things at once again. It’s been a long time, folks.

Plus, I probably wouldn’t mind as much if class started, oh I don’t know, after the sun came up? ;)

You ever wonder if garbage truck drivers revel in the number of car alarms they set off, or if their trucks are too loud for even them to hear the carnage they leave behind? Cause I wonder that twice a week.

I’m feeling the urge for some Sunday evening quotes again. Too bad by the time I’m finally posting this, they’re not really “evening” quotes anymore… more like “ridiculously late Sunday night/early Monday morning” quotes. Ah well. Here are two that jumped out at me tonight as I fanned through my quote book.

I didn’t remember until just a minute ago that I quoted this E.M. Forster line in an old post on an old blog from what feels like an impossibly long time ago.  It seems appropriate that the same quote that affected me then—as I first started plowing through this funk—affects me now, years later, as I’m finally emerging from it. I have a very different feeling about this quote now, though. It’s somehow more comforting and less ominous than it was then.

Four random thoughts of the moment:

1. I never tire of Hint of Lime Tostitos.
2. My instructor cancelled lecture tonight, so I got home from school an hour and a half earlier than normal. Score.
3. Someone keeps parking in our spot. It doesn’t really matter because we have two parking spaces and only one car. And it doesn’t always bug me, but tonight it kind of did. When I pulled in (an hour and half early!), I saw that same red car parked in our spot and got out my pen. I wrote a note pointing out that we pay for the spot and would like it if they stopped parking there. But I chickened out and didn’t put it on their car. Sigh.
4. Lost. Tonight. Three hours! (Yes, I’m still watching and loving that. Isn’t anyone else?)