Don't Give Up

Jamie got back to me and responded in the affirmative. I didn't tell her "hey, wanna start a duet with me?" because I'm not sure that's what I want. I don't want to start dreaming like that until I know that the two of us gel. We got along extremely well for all of one day: the new teacher seminar for Glenbard schools. After that, we've certainly been cordial, but I think we've seen each other only 2-3 times since then, and it's been nearly two years since that seminar.

We even invited her to jam with the group and possibly join, but she kept cancelling, so I gave up. So why am I trying again? I don't know. I just am.

I have a spreadsheet that lists the songs I can play in front of others. A lot of them are not at all memorized, requiring me to look at a "cheat sheet" while playing, but there are 342 songs on the list, and I've likely forgotten to add some. (Make that 319 songs, as 23 of them are potentials that I have yet to learn.) That's a pretty good number, until you take into account that I started playing guitar 15 years ago. 21 songs a year for 15 years? Eh, not bad, I guess.

One song on the list is "Don't Give Up," a Peter Gabriel song featuring Kate Bush, a fave of my young-adult self. It'll be interesting to see if Jamie can sing it. I've asked Eileen to learn it, but she doesn't seem to have the time to learn songs with me. Some can learn songs while driving from job to house and vice versa; some can't.

Allstate called and will interview me in the next week. I've heard that entering the actuarial profession in health is the best avenue, but that's not what Allstate does. It's either property and casualty or life, and it's likely the first one. P&C is probably not my ideal choice, but it's still a good avenue to take, and I'm not in the position to be choosy. 

My self-esteem is better of late, but I look forward to being of service to someone for a change. I need value.