5x5*

or I felt like making lists!

5 Things I am Sick and Tired Of
1. Back pain. Yoga and massage therapy are helping, but I still have a grouping of constant knots in my back muscles concentrated around my right shoulder and at the bra level. I know I am lucky that it is muscular in nature as opposed to skeletal or nerves, but it really stinks.

2. Feeling under-appreciated at work. This is more from the standpoint of the faculty members and students themselves instead of my boss. It may be primarily in my head, but it isn't a nice feeling.

3. Politicians who pay lip-service to valuing education but then refuse to fund it or other educational organizations.

4. Worrying about money. There never seems to be enough.

5. The fact that being a conscientious shopper means paying more for just about everything so that you can get products that don't support slavery (chocolate companies), or companies that treat animals inhumanely (most meat companies), or the company that brought us Agent Orange and now brings us GMO (Monsanto), or the petroleum industry (plastics).

5 Things I've Loving Right Now
1. The new season of Doctor Who. I just hope that the final episodes aren't weep fests waiting to happen.

2. My local farmer's market. I wish that we had one year round, but I know that's really hard for such a small area. I go almost every Saturday, and the roast chicken I made yesterday with the locally, organically, and humanely raised chicken was the best I've ever had.

3. My sister and her adorable children are in town for a visit this week! Sadly because of work I will only see them in the early evening when they are cranky, but they will still be fun.

4. My dog. I love him all the time of course, but he just got groomed and so is extra soft and fluffy right now, making him more like a living teddy bear than normal.

5. We have a chipmunk colony (well, there are at least three of them) living in the backyard and they are so much fun to watch.

*Bonus points to anyone who gets the reference.