Well, still no news–at least, none that would bring me (or those of you who are following my blog) any sort of relief. The mailbox continues to be empty, save for unwanted catalogs and sadistic ads for lawn services–Do these people ever look out the window?! I know it’s sunny today and the amount of daylight is increasing, even here in the Arctic tundra, but Phil’s prediction of 6 weeks of winter for the rest of the country would be a ridiculously early spring here. I know, grouse, grouse, grouse, grumble, grumble, grumble.

Nope–nothing in my mailbox, nothing in my inbox, and nothing on my voicemail. I continue to be hopeful that no news is good news regarding my grad school application, but as the song goes, “L’espoir est un plat bien trop vite consomme.” (Roughly translated: “Hope is a dish that is too quickly consumed.”) I need the mental equivalent of MyAlli, I’m beginning to think–something that will fill me up in place of the dish I’m really craving…

I do have one tiny tidbit of news to share, although it’s not the kind of tidbit that I might find remotely helpful in trying to remain sanguine about my chances. Desperate for any kind of a sign, I visited the university’s Web site yesterday morning, and found that (hooray!) there was an update on the Admissions section that our applications are now under review.

That was the good news: the bad news, also contained within the update, was that although there is one more position available this year than there was last year (up to 13 from 12), the number of applicants (as I predicted) has also increased, up to 433.  Ugh.

Those of you who read my posts about my Math travails vis a vis taking the GRE this spring know that I don’t know how to use those numbers to figure out my official odds [Damn it, Jim, I’m a writer, not a bookie!], but even I can see they mean that the competition this year is, indeed, stiffer.

So the countdown continues, with me even more pathetically obsessed about it than I was before I checked their Web site. [Note to self: Stop doing that!]

As I wait, I will continue to work on the homework for my classes (which, by the way, I’m pretty sure I’ve decided I hate–This type of work is not for me at all, though I will continue to plug away at it so that I can be prepared to do something other than write if I have to). I will continue to hack away at my manuscript, offering it to readers and editors and publishers and agents to see if something pops with that while I’m waiting for news.

Stay tuned–it may be a bumpy ride.