A quick update and my appreciation

Thank you, dear readers, for returning time and again to my blog, even though there's been precious little in the way of content over the last few months.

As you may know if you've been playing along at home, this spring I started an MFA program in Graphic Design (you know it's important if it's capitalized). I finished my first quarter on June 1. This, combined with end-of-the-fiscal-year pressures at work, combined to stress me out to the point that I acquired a case of shingles. They're pretty much vanquished at this point, but they were a pretty fair indication that I needed a break. Thankfully I was due to head to Norway for two weeks of doing absolutely nothing. However, this trip was taken with more than a tinge of guilt, given that Merujo's brother died just before I left. I felt terrible that I wasn't going to be here for her, and I still feel bad about it. She's off visiting family now, hopefully decompressing a bit herself.

That's about it, really. Summer quarter has started, but I'll try to regale you with a few tales of Scandinavia over the next few weeks. I took some photos that might be of interest, so even if you can't be bothered to read the squiggles on the screen, at least you can look at the pretty color pictures.

In other events, it's time to root for Brazil out of hemispheric loyalty. It's what I always do once the United States is eliminated from the World Cup. On the other hand, there's a tiny bit of me that would like to see Ghana take it. It won't happen, but I wouldn't be upset if it did.

That's about it. Stay tuned for future updates, and again please accept my thanks for sticking with me despite my lack of postings over the past three months. You rawk, and you know it.