I'd like to claim full credit for my clever, alliterative title today, but alas, I was inspired by the Bangles' "Manic Monday".

Being an English teacher, the world for me, most days, is one big gigantic metaphor. To illustrate, I liken my post today to two track and field events. First, the high jump is all about height (natch)...somedays my blog posts here resemble the high jump. I pick one topic and go into extreme depth with it. The question becomes - how high (aka deep) can I go with this topic? I only talk about one thing, but talk about it A LOT. Then, there is the long jump. The point of this event is not height, but breadth. How far can I jump?

Today's blog post will be more long jump than high jump. My plan today is to cover a number of topics in a brief fashion...but not with a lot of depth.

Here goes:

1. Yesterday was my bi-annual teeth checkup. Everything looks great, plaque was scraped away, and the dentist says things look about the same. What a relief, because honestly, I have teeth issues. I insanely dread dentist visits. Whenever I have nightmares, it's usually about something to do with my teeth, like they're being violently wrenched out of my mouth, etc.

2. While the hygenist polished my teeth, I watched a segment of Oprah. She interviewed on a man who'd been sexually molested by his mom. WTF? Like, his mom forced him to have sex with her! WTF again? Now, some people will say my moral compass is way off - but even someone as depraved as I cannot comprehend what thought process would ever bring a mother to the conclusion that she can/should have sexual relations with her ten-year-old son. YUCK! What was disappointing, though, was how reluctant Oprah seemed to let this man tell his story. She interrupted him on several occasions...usually when he was right in the middle of some kind of major confession/epiphany. Just sit and listen, Oprah!

3. Despite temperatures today in the mid-20s, the sun is shining and the sky is blue. I know my eyes see three feet of snow and ice everywhere I go, but my heart feels the coming of warmer, brighter days.

4. My job today consists of herding high school seniors around a classroom, administering various yearbook-related tasks. There is a undercurrent of buoyant pliability in the air...they are working steadily, in their own lackadaisical way. And things are getting done. My college class is even better...I am proctoring a test today. Sitting here while eight students discuss the realism in Kate Chopin's "The Awakening"...sometimes I find it hard to believe I get paid to do this.

5. Several students will be gone later this week for the State Wrestling Tournament. This three-day event signals the end of the wrestling season and the beginning of the spring sports season. Yet another reminder that the end of the year is approaching. Also, I have one State wrestler in my class, and of course, all the focus is on him. Wrestling is not a sport I understand, nor is it one I fully condone, but...whatever.

So that you all may now cast aspersions on my fragile psychological state, I will now post a happy, upbeat blog entry for my faithful readers.

No doubt now you will categorize me as bipolar.

The black mood has been lifting slightly, I will say, in the last few days. It is my hope that this trend continues...

Anyway, I certainly had a memorable Valentine's Day this year. Most years this holiday has been utterly forgettable - I cannot really remember any VDay gifts or activities from past years.

Until 2010. This year, I took the initiative to book two tickets to a Valentine's Dinner at a local winery. I simply decided to get past the typical protocol bullshit and got the tickets because I wanted to go and I wanted Brent to go with me.

It. Was. Such. A. Blast.

First of all, I knew I wanted coordinating outfits. It sounds cheesy, I know, but I just wanted to do it. I happened to have a cute bright turquoise 50s-style dress, usually paired with a cute black cardigan sweater...so my end of the ensemble was complete. Brent would require new wardrobe pieces. He decked out in black slacks, black button-down shirt, and a bright turquoise tie.

We arrived at Tassel Ridge at 6:30 for an hour of wine tasting before dinner. That was great - we sampled several different wines and noted ones we wanted to purchase later. In between the sipping, we noshed on Brie and bread bits dipped in flavored olive oils...along with about thirty other couples. I noticed another coordinating couple...red and black.

The buzz had kicked in by 7:30...we then sat down to a mixed greens salad, topped with crumbled blue cheese and slivered almonds. Brent claimed he knew I was "wasted" when I said I liked the blue cheese crumbles. I reminded him that this was true blue cheese dressing...not the vile puke Kraft markets. The pairing wine for this course was called "Candlelight". Apropos, no doubt. Fortunate for us that it was a wine we'd sampled earlier and enjoyed.

The next course brought mashed garlic potatoes, beef tenderloin drizzled with an "In the Dark" reduction, and roasted vegetables. The wine here? A dry red called "In the Dark." The food was excellent, the wine was not. However, we are not dry wine-loving people, so that explains it, I suppose. In fact, Brent and I prefer the sweet wines...what Captain the Wine Connoisseur refers to as "pancake syrup". I actually did not finish my food, as I was too busy chatting with my husband over a myriad of meaningful topics. A waitress whisked my plate away at my first pause...which was okay by me. Brent's cheeks were pretty rosy with the flush of wine by the time the molten chocolate cake dessert came around...complete with the Osky Fizzante pink. I did not finish this dish either - it was very rich...it must have been because I am certainly not one to let chocolate go to waste.

After a few more minutes of chitchat and browsing in the wine shop, yours truly (being the more "sober" of us two) drove the ten minutes back home.

It was just so much fun. We felt like adults (how funny!). I will definitely be taking advantage of Tassel Ridge's events again...soon!

As indicated in my previous post, I am suffering from what one might call "the blues"; another "mild depression"; another "the winter blahs".

Ad nauseum.

Myself, I prefer none of those terms. I happen to like the color blue, and I wish not to equate it with my negative state of mind. "Mild depression" sounds too clinical and cold - not to mention a malady that can be treated with drugs. The season may have a small part in my sadness, but the third term seems to indicate that the "blahs" disappear once spring arrives. And alas, I fear that what ails me has done so for the greater portion of a year, maybe even two.

To me, the correct term is: melancholy.

I am suffering from melancholia.

I'm nearing 35 and already I feel weary of this world. Broken, burdened, beaten down, those pockets of joy I come across every now and then are becoming few and far between. I feel tired most of the time, lack of general feeling of ambition, and essentially I am living and doing only what I need to survive.

The worst part is: I don't know what to do about it. I don't want to be on medication. I've simplified my life about as much as I can. We've planned some special events/activities in the coming months as something to look forward to. What's left for a solution?

As much as I may blame the weather, my husband, or my children...I inherently know this sadness resides within me, which only adds to my helplessness.

However, hope springs eternal, and that is about the only thing I've got right now, and hopefully, it will be enough to carry me through.

I feel as if an otherworldly force impels me towards the Abyss of Despair…and it could be one of many things:

1. It is “that” time of the month. The ensuing hormonal upheaval causes me to feel unstuffed at the seams. I also morph into a dangerous carbohydrate addict during this time and I can’t fight the change at all. The other adult I live with understands not this curse, and thus, does not “handle with care”, so to speak.

2. While the exercise regimen is coming together nicely (training for spring and summer 5Ks again), the eating regimen is not. The diet soda consumption is violently unrestrained, fruits-and-vegetable ingesting is on the decrease, and in general, I am not being totally accountable when it comes to recording my food intake. Weigh-in day tomorrow…*sigh*.

3. Storm clouds may be brewing on the horizon as far as the World of Work goes. Nothing real definitive there, though.

4. I may possibly have an acute case of cabin fever. Also, it has been a mighty long time since I’ve been out and about in any kind of social scene, and Homebodyitis has definitely set in. Doctors may have to amputate.

I’m trying to keep it together and keep myself civilized, but it is a close thing. I almost burst into tears about five times while grocery shopping at Walmart this morning. I mean, c’mon, I know the price of milk is ridiculous and that they don’t carry the brand of hummus I like, but really? This Streamer’s got to get a grip! And soon!

is a composer named Clint Mansell. He's done music for films like "Requiem for a Dream" and "The Fountain".

Anyway, I've listened to this particular piece a lot times and I love it more every time I hear it. It's called "Lux Aeterna".

Clint Mansell's "Lux Aeterna" on YouTube

Shivers every time!