Winter is coming.. I can feel it. How I wish it would stay away for a long time, but unfortunately, I have no control over such matters.

This year I've decided I want to wander into the mountains upstate and check out the fall foliage. So far, the location that seems most interesting is the Catskills. Hopefully I'll be able to find a way there and back.. sounds like a good way to spend the weekend.

I will also be attempting to ice skate this year. This will be my third winter in NYC, and it's time I step up to the plate. Lord help me. I may very well break my neck.

Where did Sunday go? Sigh. I am still a firm believer that we should only have to work four days a week, and then have three day weekends. The human race would be much nicer with that added break. Maybe I'll start a petition.

Pictured above is my bed. It is adorned with my new Jersey Cotton-T sheets. (I picked them out.) Let me tell you this, I have no idea how I lived without these sheets until now. I now understand why my brother loves the ones I bought him so much. I will never use regular sheets again.

In other news, I spent 6 1/2 hours writing a research paper today. I began at 2pm and ended around 8:30pm. All in all it totaled 14 pages. (I had to learn APA format for this one; the only form we used at my undergrad school was MLA). I even sent it to the professor a week early. I hope she chokes on it.

I was reviewing a lesson on manners recently with my class (I just got a new batch of 3 and 4 year olds). I asked them "What do you say when someone gives you something?" They answered "Thank you!" Then I said, "What do you say when you bump into someone?" They said "Excuse me."

After several more questions, I came to this: "What do you say when you want something?" And the little princess in my room says "I love you!" - I then spent the next 30 seconds trying to keep a straight face while explaining that the right thing to say is "Please."

I broke down and bought inside-out peanut butter cups today. This means the center of chocolatey goodness is blanketed by creamy peanut butter. I must admit, they look better than they taste. Don't get me wrong, they're not awful, just.... different.

I need to start a paypal account to help pay back my student loans. Look at it this way... you would be donating your money to insure your child recieves a wonderful education. Lord knows society could use a few more good teachers.

Quite frankly, I think if you earn a degree in the field of Education and actually become a teacher your student loans should be forgiven. I've estimated that by the time I finish paying my education loans back, my unborn children will be ready to attend college and I'll have their loans to worry about for the rest of my life.

Happy thoughts.

Can you say Highway Robbery? Let's have a little background on Grace here. I like credit cards. Who doesn't? But I'm different than most people. I just enjoy having the little plastic gems because the fronts of the cards are fun to look at when I open my wallet. I only actually use one of these cards, and I make my payments every month like a good little girl.

Recently, I opened a bill for my favorite card, and happened to glance down at the interest rate. I immediately became ill, picked up the phone, and called the company to find out if someone had made a mistake, or if they were really trying to rape me with their interest rate. There was no mistake. 20.4%! I almost fell out of my chair. No wonder I can't get the balance down. I'm not made of money!

Thank goodness I have a shimmering stack of unused plastic in that wallet of mine. I called Bank1One and inquired about their balance transfer policy. The nice woman on the phone (her name was Stephanie) told me that for only $50 I could transfer my balance and lock in a 4.9% interest rate for the life of the loan. There is a God. The weight of the world is a little less heavy now. Too bad my student loan situation can't be improved that easily.