I do believe that I have finished my first semester of graduate school with my dear friend D. Boy, am I exhausted!

She's studying non-profit management. At first, the assignments were quite tough. I mean, really, she had to just hit the ground running with essay questions I had to practically translate for her to even figure out what was being asked. Of course, that meant much Googling on my part to figure out the question well enough to help her understand.

Now, many weeks and essay questions later, D can plow through her assignments with the best of them. Tonight, she just finished her second final research paper. I do admit that my suggestions for her topics were partly motivated by what kind of research I would like to learn. However, both were within her realm of professional development as well. Her two topics were: the impact of the mortgage crisis on affordable housing and the cultural gap of the digital divide. Her research and final draft were stellar. Honestly, sometimes I grow downright jealous over how well she writes.

SIGH

I do so admire those who can wield a skillful pen...