9/22 How did this happen?

I realized today that if I didn't post, the meaning of it all would soon be lost. I have spent much time in the last two weeks helping our guest, a young lady from Germany, settle into American life. Nina will be with us until mid-October and is taking English classes at Point Park University. Her English is very good and she tested into the Masters class, but her afternoon class is conversation practice and film study. That group is very basic, but she is making the best of it and plans to talk with the instructor today to see if she can help out with the more basic students or do extra work to help herself advance.

Last Saturday the three of us toured the Carrie Furnace site so that she could get an idea of the history of the area we live in. About an hour after we arrived home, our friend Charlie cycled in on his way to St. Louis. He spent until Sunday morning with us, but we had a very good visit. As it turned out, shin splints caused him to leave off his trip yesterday and fly home to Boston from Columbus. He was fine on the bike, but any walking was extremely painful and he was afraid of doing permanent damage. We thoroughly enjoyed the time he was here, and we all vowed that we would not let four more years go by until we see each other. We are going to plan either a weekend in Boston or some days next June in P'town.

The other exciting thing is that I have a role-playing interview next week with the Standardized Patient program at Pitt. In this program, people play the roles of patients to help medical students hone their communication skills with patients. The phone interview I had yesterday went very well and they invited me for the next stage before the end of the day. This would be a very flexible option that pays fairly well and is much more palatable than subbing. I feel fairly nervous about it, especially since our friend Jay is involved. But I think it's an adventure I'm willing to try.

Nina has fit into the household well, and seems to like my cooking. She has not rejected any dishes yet, and pronounced my grilled chicken and vegetables "delicious." Tonight's dinner is shredded beef sandwiches at Ward and Terri's. I will bring roasted salt and vinegar potatoes. We're going to watch the season premiere of The Big Bang Theory together!