The first month of 2011 is already over, just like that.  Maybe it was the excitement of finally getting rid of my crutches, but January really sped by without me even noticing.  Each day I felt closer and closer to my old self again, marveling at the wonders of being able to do the most normal of things.  Walking down stairs without holding on to the handrail is my latest feat, which still kind of makes me giddy with pride.  I suppose it’ll get old after awhile, but I’m going to cling to that sense of amazement and appreciation for as long as a I can.

In the meantime, I’ve been working like crazy.  Rewriting my dissertation proposal, incorporating all the new theory I’ve learned since October, and basically reworking my entire framework of analysis.  I’m actually kind of loving it.  What I don’t love is the idea of publicly defending the proposal in April, but it goes with the territory, I suppose.

In other news, there’s some travel on the horizon (other than the normal back-and-forth between Bremen and Hamburg).  I finally collected enough points on the Deutsche Bahn to earn myself a free roundtrip ticket anywhere within Germany, so mein Schatz and I are going to spend a weekend in Dresden this month.  I must admit that everything I know about Dresden I learned from Slaughterhouse-Five and ZDF’s episode on August der Starke from their German history series Die Deutschen.  In other words, not a whole lot.  Tourist tips and suggestions are most welcome!

At the end of the month I will also be making my annual pilgrimage back to Seattle to see the fam and celebrate my nephew’s 5th (!) birthday.  I’ve made him promise to teach me how to play chess, even though I have a sneaking suspicion that he’s going to kick my butt.  Some smuggling of roasted coffee beans in my return luggage will also be happening. Mmm!

Lots more to share, but it’s getting close to my new self-imposed internet curfew (which actually seems to be working), so it will have to wait for another blog post.  Till then!