"The best way to prepare for life is to begin to live." -Elbert Hubbard
So the weather has gone crazy again. Here, in Seattle, it is "normal" but in Lakewood/South Tacoma and apparently (according to the radio) in the north end it is all crazy, too. It snows, it hails, then the sun comes out (sometimes while it is still snowing) and then the cycle continues. So far it wasn't sticking, but who knows what the night might bring? I certainly don't. The kids don't want to miss any more days of school. When they saw it snowing they were all "Nooooooo!" Which was funny, since they usually get so excited about it. Now they realize the distinct possibility of going to school into the last week of June or even (shudder) July. Right now I really could care less if we have one more day of school in June and would welcome another day off tomorrow. Too bad it isn't within my power to control the weather...just this once.
I am working hard to distract myself from my *cycle* and it is not easy.
In fact it is very, very difficult.
But I keep at it. AF is due any day now...could be as early as tomorrow, could be not until next Tuesday.
And tonight instead of working on my fun secret project I have to EDIT RESEARCH PAPERS. This is the last one we assign for the year, so after this stack of drafts the light is visible at the end of the tunnel, as "final drafts" are due in a couple of weeks and that is the last of it. It isn't the last of grading papers, but the last of the research papers--which I truly despise above all others. Yes, I'd rather just avoid them. But no matter how hard I try, I can't will them into nonexistance.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
a daring adventure
"Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing." -Helen Keller
Now there are only two links left on my chain. It's a little weird to see it go--since it was supposed to be counting down the days until I was able to test...
I just got home from the dentist. I am so glad to be home, to have that over. And I am so thankful and happy that it went well. I have had some bad (and that is putting it lightly) experiences in the past with not getting numbed enough. Because of my anxiety I scheduled to have all of the work done in one go--which means that I had work done for two hours. It also means that I am still totally numb on the entire top of my mouth. This seriously sucks, because I cannot even drink with a straw right now. I tried. It didn't work.
So now I am going to go run some errands and try to distract myself from my hunger and thirst. Going out in public like this will be strange, though, because it is difficult to talk and even though it isn't true, I feel like my face is three sizes bigger than normal.
Now there are only two links left on my chain. It's a little weird to see it go--since it was supposed to be counting down the days until I was able to test...
I just got home from the dentist. I am so glad to be home, to have that over. And I am so thankful and happy that it went well. I have had some bad (and that is putting it lightly) experiences in the past with not getting numbed enough. Because of my anxiety I scheduled to have all of the work done in one go--which means that I had work done for two hours. It also means that I am still totally numb on the entire top of my mouth. This seriously sucks, because I cannot even drink with a straw right now. I tried. It didn't work.
So now I am going to go run some errands and try to distract myself from my hunger and thirst. Going out in public like this will be strange, though, because it is difficult to talk and even though it isn't true, I feel like my face is three sizes bigger than normal.
Monday, February 26, 2007
I'd like to thank...
Well last night I defended the legacy and brought home the trophy for the third year in a row. There was a lot of pressure on me to do so, and I lived up to the challenge. This was a difficult year to do it, too, as there were several big upsets. Most notably were the awards for best Supporting Actor (Allen Arkin won--the big buzz was for Eddie Murphy) best Foreign Language film (Pan's Labyrinth did not win, yet it had won for Art Direction, Makeup, and Cinematography...so go figure) and best Animated Feature (Happy Feet beat out Cars, which most critics had as their pick). But I managed to choose enough of the awards correctly. Mr. C made me vote for "The Departed" for Best Picture (on my own I would have picked "Little Miss Sunshine") and it turns out he was right. It isn't that he really knew something, it is just that he really wanted Scorsese to win (I was already planning to vote for him for Best Director) and for his movie to win as well. So anyway, I had a good time and it was fun to take home another Oscar to keep the other two company.
And here is the quote for the day:
"Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of." -Benjamin Franklin
Sunday, February 25, 2007
seasons
"Believe that you have it, and you have it." -Latin Proverb
It is another gray Sunday.
But there are plenty of signs of spring's approach. Little buds on the trees, bulbs just starting to peek out of the ground, a certain smell and quality of the light when the sun does peek through.
I love all of the seasons. I realize that we have very mild versions of the four seasons here, while other places have very distinct differences in them (and others, like where the in-laws live, have pretty much two seasons: hot and cold). But I have lived in the Northwest my entire life, and I have come to know and love the subtleties of our seasons.
It isn't easy for me to choose a favorite. When asked I do say that it is summer. This is true because I love the long days and the fact that I have some time off of work then...and the time has this quality to it that I long for during other parts of the year--fewer clothes, relaxed sense of time..."the livin' is easy."
But by the time fall rolls around each year I am able to welcome it without too much sadness. School starts when the days are still pretty long and the weather is still very agreeable. Things don't really start changing until later into September, and often we continue to have plenty of sunshine and warm days well into October. Then the air starts to get crisp and the colors change. Fall always has this sense of "newness" for me. A sense of fresh starts. This has to do with the new school year, I am sure, and I enjoy being a teacher because of this. The new school year always starts with such opimism and this gives us momentum to get us through the longest and most intense part of the school year--the first semester.
The edging into winter is more subtle since it generally doesn't snow here. The days get very short, and the leaves are gone from the trees...but late fall and early winter pretty much look and feel the same. It is the holiday season that really ushers in the change. After Thanksgiving is over it is like we step across an invisible line from fall into winter. I used to celebrate the solstice as well as Christmas. Now I just acknowledge it quietly/personally. Maybe when we have children I will celebrate it again.
And here we are again...late winter and the first signs of spring are starting to make themselves known--seen, smelled, heard. My father told me once that this time of year is often depressing for him. The reason why is that it is quite common for us to have "sunbreaks" (a term I am sure is only used in the Northwest--or only in places that are known for this abundance of rain). So we go for days and days with nothing but rain, rain, rain. And we don't lament--because this is just how it is and we are used to it. But then the sun will come out, and the sky is so blue and bright and you can see for miles...it is like the world opens up and becomes ten times bigger. Where my father lives it is so beautiful--the Olympic mountains in his back yard and the Straights of Juan de Fuca (with Victoria, BC on the other side) off in the distance as his view from the front yard. So this sense of the world opening up when the sky is clear is far more intense there. On days when you get this glimmer of what the world is beyond all of the rain clouds you cannot help but be uplifted. However, the moment is fleeting, and when it is gone it can leave you feeling down. And this cycle can go on for months. It is not uncommon for June to be one of the wettest and/or grayest months of the year.
Well, Mr. C is up now and it is time for the Sunday rituals. It is hard to have the coffee brewing and not have any of it!
It is another gray Sunday.
But there are plenty of signs of spring's approach. Little buds on the trees, bulbs just starting to peek out of the ground, a certain smell and quality of the light when the sun does peek through.
I love all of the seasons. I realize that we have very mild versions of the four seasons here, while other places have very distinct differences in them (and others, like where the in-laws live, have pretty much two seasons: hot and cold). But I have lived in the Northwest my entire life, and I have come to know and love the subtleties of our seasons.
It isn't easy for me to choose a favorite. When asked I do say that it is summer. This is true because I love the long days and the fact that I have some time off of work then...and the time has this quality to it that I long for during other parts of the year--fewer clothes, relaxed sense of time..."the livin' is easy."
But by the time fall rolls around each year I am able to welcome it without too much sadness. School starts when the days are still pretty long and the weather is still very agreeable. Things don't really start changing until later into September, and often we continue to have plenty of sunshine and warm days well into October. Then the air starts to get crisp and the colors change. Fall always has this sense of "newness" for me. A sense of fresh starts. This has to do with the new school year, I am sure, and I enjoy being a teacher because of this. The new school year always starts with such opimism and this gives us momentum to get us through the longest and most intense part of the school year--the first semester.
The edging into winter is more subtle since it generally doesn't snow here. The days get very short, and the leaves are gone from the trees...but late fall and early winter pretty much look and feel the same. It is the holiday season that really ushers in the change. After Thanksgiving is over it is like we step across an invisible line from fall into winter. I used to celebrate the solstice as well as Christmas. Now I just acknowledge it quietly/personally. Maybe when we have children I will celebrate it again.
And here we are again...late winter and the first signs of spring are starting to make themselves known--seen, smelled, heard. My father told me once that this time of year is often depressing for him. The reason why is that it is quite common for us to have "sunbreaks" (a term I am sure is only used in the Northwest--or only in places that are known for this abundance of rain). So we go for days and days with nothing but rain, rain, rain. And we don't lament--because this is just how it is and we are used to it. But then the sun will come out, and the sky is so blue and bright and you can see for miles...it is like the world opens up and becomes ten times bigger. Where my father lives it is so beautiful--the Olympic mountains in his back yard and the Straights of Juan de Fuca (with Victoria, BC on the other side) off in the distance as his view from the front yard. So this sense of the world opening up when the sky is clear is far more intense there. On days when you get this glimmer of what the world is beyond all of the rain clouds you cannot help but be uplifted. However, the moment is fleeting, and when it is gone it can leave you feeling down. And this cycle can go on for months. It is not uncommon for June to be one of the wettest and/or grayest months of the year.
Well, Mr. C is up now and it is time for the Sunday rituals. It is hard to have the coffee brewing and not have any of it!
Saturday, February 24, 2007
far away in the sunshine...
"Far away in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead." -Louisa May Alcott
Last night Mr. C and I went to a show at the Sunset. Our friends were having their CD release party and it was quite a show. The band is called The Rodeo and they play what I guess you could describe as country-esque music. But they are not really country music guys. Two of them are old friends of Mr. Cs, one used to be the bass player for the drop and the other is a producer who has recorded their albums. The music is fun, kitchey...and the crowd really gets into it. Lots of whiskey drinking going on among the band and the crowd (they do this whole whiskey baptism thing). So we were out really late. As a result I slept pretty late today as well and ended up being late for my appointment with Tiffany. But I wasn't too terribly late and she went into her lunch time a little bit for me.
And I've spent most of the day working on my secret project. I am more than half way done with it and it is coming along really well. This makes me so happy. As a result though I didn't do any of the work that I took home with me. Oh well. I really hate having to do work on the weekend, since I work so hard during the week.
Tomorrow is Bob's big party, and I have done some research for my ballot, but I don't know that it will be enough to bring home another trophy for us this year. I guess we'll see...
Last night Mr. C and I went to a show at the Sunset. Our friends were having their CD release party and it was quite a show. The band is called The Rodeo and they play what I guess you could describe as country-esque music. But they are not really country music guys. Two of them are old friends of Mr. Cs, one used to be the bass player for the drop and the other is a producer who has recorded their albums. The music is fun, kitchey...and the crowd really gets into it. Lots of whiskey drinking going on among the band and the crowd (they do this whole whiskey baptism thing). So we were out really late. As a result I slept pretty late today as well and ended up being late for my appointment with Tiffany. But I wasn't too terribly late and she went into her lunch time a little bit for me.
And I've spent most of the day working on my secret project. I am more than half way done with it and it is coming along really well. This makes me so happy. As a result though I didn't do any of the work that I took home with me. Oh well. I really hate having to do work on the weekend, since I work so hard during the week.
Tomorrow is Bob's big party, and I have done some research for my ballot, but I don't know that it will be enough to bring home another trophy for us this year. I guess we'll see...
Friday, February 23, 2007
all I've got
"First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do." -Epictetus
This is what I have to offer for now.
This is what I have to offer for now.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
some good things
"The power of imagination makes us infinite." -John Muir
Yesterday during my AP class, instead of doing all sorts of mundane things that need to be done, I painted. It started off innocently enough--as I was tidying up and organizing I found myself looking through the cabinet where the painting students keep their work. A few students didn't continue with the class this semester, so I took their canvases out to make room for the new students. One painting was in oil and it was not very successful, and I know this student will not return for her freaky-eyed portrait. So in a burst of inspiration I started covering it with paint. Now it is the underpainting to a wild landscape. I'm letting it dry for a few days before I continue. I was working on it when the AP students started coming in and I didn't stop until the period was almost over (only brief interruptions when they needed my feedback or help with something).
Today I had the joy of watching brilliant young minds ponder some big questions about our world. And the superintendent of our district happened to come into the room while we were in the middle of things (she was in a meeting next door and needed to borrow a dictionary). She stopped in her tracks and started asking one of my students questions about what we were doing. That was kind of cool.
And tomorrow is Friday...as much as I hate to wish time away, I sure do appreciate the weekends.
Yesterday during my AP class, instead of doing all sorts of mundane things that need to be done, I painted. It started off innocently enough--as I was tidying up and organizing I found myself looking through the cabinet where the painting students keep their work. A few students didn't continue with the class this semester, so I took their canvases out to make room for the new students. One painting was in oil and it was not very successful, and I know this student will not return for her freaky-eyed portrait. So in a burst of inspiration I started covering it with paint. Now it is the underpainting to a wild landscape. I'm letting it dry for a few days before I continue. I was working on it when the AP students started coming in and I didn't stop until the period was almost over (only brief interruptions when they needed my feedback or help with something).
Today I had the joy of watching brilliant young minds ponder some big questions about our world. And the superintendent of our district happened to come into the room while we were in the middle of things (she was in a meeting next door and needed to borrow a dictionary). She stopped in her tracks and started asking one of my students questions about what we were doing. That was kind of cool.
And tomorrow is Friday...as much as I hate to wish time away, I sure do appreciate the weekends.
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