(originally posted yesterday, 5pm)

After a decent day off Monday, this work week proceeds as usual. I've got a dozen things to write (approximately) and just a small time to do them, and none of them things I can really work on here at work, hence the journal entry. I need to make concrete decisions regarding this summer very soon. My options regarding classes to take are scarce, and enough other things are or may be going on that perhaps just taking the summer off from classes to focus on those things as they happen, and the zine, church things, and my own writing as well. If I do take the summer off then it's virtually a lock that I'll be heading east on I-80 with S. mid-May. We'll have to figure out what's in store as it will be a combined wedding attendance (well, for her...not sure about myself being there) and vacation. We'll probably try to spend a couple days in Chicago if we can afford it. I'd like to get together with a few folks in Chicago this time around, as well. We'll see what happens. I'll meet soon with my academic advisor, hopefully in the next few days. Hopefully he's more help than my undergrad advisor, a little old lady who kept screwing things up and ended up just going under MY direction on how things would work. On top of the free time I'd gain in taking the summer off from classes, the Indiana trip would mean I'd get a little time with our families and my godson, his sister and the young child forthcoming, plus their parents (one of whom is "juandelacruz" on the vagrant forums -- check out his journal!). All those things together really have me leaning toward taking no classes.Today on my lunch break I started reading sections of Blues People by Leroi Jones aka Amiri Baraka. I'm finding what I've read thus far to be very in-depth on a number of levels. For the African American Novel class we just read Their Eyes Were Watching God, possibly the first "black feminist novel," by Zora Neale Hurston. I enjoyed the book and our class discussion on it last night, as well. While not a critical success or heavily-studied book in its day (published 1937) or in Hurston's lifetime (died 1960), it's drawn quite a bit of scholarship in the past 25-30 years. The novel is well-written on a number of levels and definitely a worthy member of the Black Literature canon, and I tend to agree that it should be on the list of great American novels, as well. Incidentally, a film version premiered on ABC this past Sunday night, executively produced by Oprah Winfrey. As with most films, it left things out here and there, but also made a few major errors, a couple of which greatly influence the perception of the author's intent and voice. But, you know, Oprah produced and Halle Berry starred, so it scored pretty big points with a lot of people, I'm sure. I'd get more into details but don't want to spoil it for anyone, plus my time at work is almost through.This new zine really needs to just name itself.