Take this soul and make it sing.

I've been far too productive in the last week or two. So productive, in fact, that I feel hungover from productiveness.

I have:

1. Written an extensive proposal on a new policy approach to obesity.

2. Started work on turning said proposal into an op-ed (move over Maureen Dowd!).

3. Written a detailed argument advocating for greater funding of breastfeeding programs for Maryland WIC recipients.

4. Written a research proposal to study the effectiveness of a more comprehensive program for domestic violence victims in Baltimore.

5. Attended a conference for public policy nerds. The highlight? Finding out that recent econometric modeling proves that my neurotic personality does not cause my migraines. Or hearing a girl talk about her "weepwoductive weeseach." Seriously. I think that if I couldn't say the letter "r" I would pick something else. Like statistical modeling (no r's!). Or even hand modeling (no talking!).

6. Written a depressing paper on foreclosures, specifically about Baltimore City's embarrassing practice of tax-lien-to-foreclosure, which has happened to 19,000 families in the last seven years. Some of these foreclosures were due to $272 unpaid water bills. And the city is trying to sue a bank for foreclosing on 373 properties during the same period. No joke. LOVE this city.

7. Written a really boring paper comparing different conceptual models of public policy. I get bored just thinking about it. I pity the professor who has to read my paper plus thirty other similarly boring papers. Oh wait, I don't. His own freaking fault.

8. Calculated about five hundred different premiums for health insurance for a
fictitious company. (Which is one thing that really makes me laugh about going back to school after working--it's all pretend!)

9. Organized a service project for the House of Ruth (hruth.org).

And all of this while hosting one of my five favorite brothers for a weekend of fun (and Miss Shirley's)!

(I wrote this list to justify my current mental state.)

Amidst all of this excitement, all I could think about was how much I would rather be a groupie to this fabulous band right now. (Say what you will about U2, but not to me. I've loved this version ever since the U2 Imax and my only complaint about his most recent concert was that this song didn't make the play list.)