Niceties

Christmas break has been a lot nicer than Thanksgiving break, so far. Here are some of the things that make it nice:

Sharing chocolate from my students with my brothers and sister

Shopping with my sister for her Christmas Eve outfit

Making double-chocolate peanut butter cookies from a mix from another of my students

Buying gifts at Hobby Lobby and T.J. Maxx

Exchanging gifts with my cousins

Singing carols to shut-ins and hospital patients

Drinking soy chai lattes from Starbucks

Listening to Classical WETA ("Classical for Washington") on iTunes along with the sounds of my siblings playing Age of Empires multi-player (they are so harmonious)

Home Sweet Home

I'm back in Tennessee. My mom was worried about the roads, but they were all clear by the time I left at 2:45PM. Well, the main roads were clear. And by the time I got farther south, all of the roads were clear. There's still a little snow on the ground down here, but it's definitely melting.

I almost wrote that I'm back home in Tennessee, but that didn't seem accurate. I definitely feel like a visitor here. Everything familiar and routine is back in Maryland - all of my stuff and my way of doing things. Visiting my parents' house can be weird because I'm not exactly special enough to be treated as a full-out house guest and yet, as I already mentioned, it's not the same as being in my own home.

If home is where the heart is, then where is my heart?

Christmastime Is Here

I reckon I wouldn't post at all if this weren't my main means of communication with most of you. With the holiday speedily approaching, I realize that I have never begun the tradition of sending out Christmas cards. It's kind of the grown-up thing to do. How many of you send out Christmas correspondence? Letters? Cards? Emails?

Well, I sadly won't have time to start any new Christmas traditions this week. I'm planning to drive home to Tennessee on Friday night, which means I have approximately two more nights in Maryland. And hardly any Christmas shopping is finished.

One of those nights, Thursday night, is our school Christmas concert. I signed up to be a student monitor. Last year, that involved sitting in the theater with the students and making sure they behaved and kept quiet. This year, with a shift of venues and loss of seating, I instead will be spending the whole show in the green room with three other teachers and all of the upper school choir students. Yippee.

Tomorrow night, then, I hope to finish the bulk of my grading and do laundry and pack. It's hard to know what to bring home for a two week vacation that involves Christmas Eve in Kingsport and New Year's Eve with my grandparents in Richmond and a trip to New York City as well. I want to pack lightly and still have everything I could possibly need. I am no good at planning.

Yes, New York City! I thought all my opportunities to visit were over for a while, but apparently my mom has been wanting to go for a while and suggested a trip with my sister and me! We are going to see New York City Ballet's Nutcracker and the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. I even convinced them to see a matinée of Hansel and Gretel at the Met. It's in English so I thought it would be a good introduction to live opera. I'm such a nerd. I am so excited.

I haven't been thinking about college nearly so much this year as I did last year, but I apparently have such strong winter and/or Christmas memories attached to Hillsdale that I've been feeling a bit nostalgic recently. My church did a small-scale production of Handel's Messiah and of course that reminded me of choir freshman year. The new Facebook group "Overheard at Hillsdale College" has been providing a lot of funny memories. And to remind me of Whitley, tonight I made this:

Whimsy

This is a whimsical blog - I only ever post on a whim. I feel a tiny bit bad that this blog hasn't been favored by my whimsy in over two months.

Only a tiny bit bad, mind you, because the last eighty-three days have been profitably occupied. The first trimester of my second year teaching is almost over. First, though, I have two sets of tests, three sets of quizzes, and seventy-one character comments to finish. Then I get to go home for Thanksgiving! Our school has a full week off for Thanksgiving this year, and provided that I finish everything in time, I can spend it all in Tennessee.

Last Saturday I drove with a couple of other Latin teachers from my school up to Dickinson College in Pennsylvania to a workshop on ways to incorporate "active" methods for teaching Latin. Those include not only conversational Latin ("hello", "how are you doing", etc.) but also spoken grammar exercises, text exposition, and drama.

As our instructors presented each of these exercises, they had us participate in each one. At the end of the day we read an original Latin paragraph on Christopher Columbus, written by the Spanish bishop Juan Gines de Sepulveda. After reading it, we were divided into groups and told to come up with short skits dramatizing the paragraph we had just read.

Ours was about a fictional sycophant tattling on the rest of the sailors - who were homesick and scared and ready to commit mutiny and go home - to Columbus, who then comes to the sailors and tries to convince them to keep sailing west.

Someone at the workshop managed to videotape most of it and posted it here on YouTube. I think it's funny enough, even if you can't understand what's going on. It was even difficult for me, knowing Latin, to understand everything. I showed the video to all my students on Friday, and after watching it several times throughout the course of the day I was just beginning to get a grasp on everything that was said (except my lines, of course).

So that's part of what's been keeping me busy. As always, I'll try to post more frequently. Hope you're all doing well!

I Did All That Reading on the Metro

I had one goal for the past week: to finish reading the Douglas Wilson book required for teacher training. As of today, I have finished 90 pages out of 143. I have to read 53 more before tomorrow morning. It is almost the first thing on the schedule.

So what else have I done this week? That is exactly what I am about to tell you.

Sunday was a day of adventure. The night before I had gotten an email from Lisa, the dear lady who used to be my neighbor and wants to adopt me, asking if I'd like to meet her in DC for a late dinner. She had a meeting the next day and her flight was supposed to get in at 7PM at Dulles. I could stay the night in her hotel so I wouldn't have to take the Metro back until the next morning. It sounded great - until her flight got delayed. I decided to go for it anyway because it was a lot more fun than sitting around the apartment with nothing to do (okay, except reading). So rather than having a late dinner, we had even-later cocktails. And Lisa tried to convince me that every human being deserves health care and that government was the best means of providing it. Overall it was a fun evening, though. I got to explore Dupont Circle and order room service. Her room was at the Hilton on Embassy Row, right across from the Indonesian Embassy. I thought of Tessa.

Monday was a day of exploration. I forgot to mention that Hannah Mahan was in town! She actually spent most of the summer here in Maryland, visiting with Laura and working. She has decided that her next life adventure is sailing, and spent the last several weeks getting her sailing certification at a summer camp in New York. She's been back over a week and has already started her job aboard the Woodwind, a schooner that takes people on tours of the Chesapeake. Monday was the day for getting all her job-related paper work done, as well as for moving into her new apartment (which is close enough for her to bike to work).

Around 9AM she picked me up at the Metro station and we set out across the Bay Bridge - the first time I'd actually been on this beautiful, 4-mile bridge - towards Kent Island and outlet mall that can be found there. Hannah needed khaki shorts and I needed khaki pants. We were both successful. After grabbing a quick bite at Wendy's, it was off to the dock where Hannah's boat lives. That is where we discovered that there were actually three seperate places we needed to be, and none of those places was the dock. So in between finding all those offices, not to mention helping Hannah move into her apartment later that evening, I learned a lot more about Annapolis and its environs.

Tuesday was a day of nothing. And I do mean nothing. Now, I know most of my readers are industrious folk, and may not be able to concieve of a day of nothing. Let me tell you how it goes. First, one sleeps in until noon - at minimum. I can't actually remember when I got up Tuesday, although I'm sure I did. Second, one eats at a liesurely pace. If one is eating breakfast around noon, and wants to fit in a couple more meals before, say, 8PM, eating actually takes up a of one's day. Please note that one should probably not eat so much on a such a lazy day, though I chose not to heed this useful bit of advice. Third, and perhaps most important, one must have a television, or better yet, a computer, at his or her disposal. Computers are best for a day of nothing, for they provide many activities which make one feel as if one is accomplishing something, e.g. blog-reading.

Wednesday was a day of joyful reunion. First, I reunited with Laura at 9:30AM at the airport. She had spent the weekend in Oregon, visiting Hillsdale alumni and celebrating the wedding of one Brittany Wilkens and the nephew of Ravi Zacharias. Second, I joyfully reunited with real life, partaking in such activities as exercise and grocery shopping. Oh! and I also reunited with the Bay Bridge, as Laura and I went to a movie night at her church which is across the bridge. We watched The Mission, and I found it to be quite good and also sad. Has anyone else seen it?

Thursday was a day when nothing went as planned, but was a good day despite it all. I went in for an oil change, expecting some extra scheduled maintenance (e.g. tire rotation, air filter change). I was somewhat surprised that the scheduled maintenance also included something called a "transmission flush" which cost over a hundred dollars. After doing a little research on Google, I found out that this is something done for cars once they reach 100,000 miles and doesn't have to be done that often. So that's good. And I have money set aside for car maintenance, which is also good. Just unexpected, that's all.

The second escapade happened later. Hannah had invited us to go on the sunset cruise on her schooner. (By the way, if you are ever in Annapolis, this is kind of a standing offer. She can usually bring friends aboard for free, provided that all the tickets for that particular cruise haven't sold yet. It's a great deal, if you're flexible.) Because Laura and I are Laura and I, we ended up being late, and made it to the dock just as the boat was pulling away. We acutely felt the meaning of the phrase "missed the boat". Since we were planning to stay the night with Hannah in Annapolis, we spent the next three hours in a bookstore/coffeeshop where we got to chat with one of our students who was working that evening. Laura caught up on Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire while I learned all about wine. Then we caught up with Hannah and enjoyed a late dinner of pancakes.

Friday was a day of transition. After returning home in the morning, Laura began to prepare for another weekend of travel - family vacation this time - and I began to move my stuff to a more permanent location. You may be asking yourself just where that location is. And the answer is. . . that I have decided not to move at all! I shall be living with the Stevens for at least another year, and possibly longer since they are actually building a tiny bedroom adjacent to the downstairs kitchen and Laura's apartment.

I admit that it took me rather a long time to decide to do nothing, but I think Laura and I needed that week or so of living together to realize that yes, we still enjoy being roommates in close quarters and yes, there would be enough space provided that we each had private space to which we could retire - hence the tiny bedroom. So we're back to sharing a bathroom. Laura commented that it felt like being back in Whitley. I think that's what I was afraid of at first, but now I see it as nothing but a positive thing. Remember I was comparing each housing option in terms of cost and location? This one beats all, and comes with the added bonus of staying with the Laura, the Stevens, and kittens. I can't forget the kittens. I'm glad I won't be losing them.

Saturday was a day of shopping. Sitting around the apartment all day with nothing to do (okay, except for reading) was not my idea of a fun weekend, so I decided to make another excursion into the District of Columbia. I hope that nobody is offended I did not notify him or her, but I actually had a very specific mission and knew the weather was supposed to be bad and did not think anyone would be interested in coming along. So despite the forecast of thunderstorms and flash floods, I set out. I wanted to visit Urban Outfitters to try on a couple couple items I had seen on the website, as well as its sister store Anthropologie to look for some decorative doorknobs to send to my sister as part of a birthday present. We have an Anthropologie in Annapolis, but they did not have the doorknobs I had in mind. Unfortunately, neither did the Anthropologie in DC. I do think I saw an old friend from Tennessee, but it was a little to weird so I didn't go up to her. I know she's living in the area. Maybe I'll email her to meet in more deliberate circumstances. Oh, I probably should have gone up and said hello. I'm so silly.

We do not have an Urban Outfitters in Annapolis, for some reason, so I was particularly looking forward to that leg of the trip. Sadly, I was again thwarted in my search, but I did find a pretty skirt and jacket that prevented the trip from being completely unfruitful. After leaving that store I ran into the weather. It was pouring. Fortunately, I was prepared with an umbrella. I did almost lose a shoe in the middle of a crosswalk. The light was about to change, so I picked it up and carried it across to the sidewalk. I felt kind of gross crossing Pennsylvania Avenue unshod, but it was better than getting run over.

Finally, back in Maryland, I had to go to Old Navy to get the second part of my sister's present. (I forgot to mention that I got a different pair of doorknobs at Anthropologie. I know that doorknobs are a strange present, but towards the end of the summer a handle on our closet door kept falling off and I told Julie that I would send her some pretty decorative ones. So I am going to put them in her birthday package.) On the way home I almost got swept away in a flash flood. It was very exciting, but I did make it home safe and sound.

Sunday, or today, was a day of rest. It was not a day of nothing - doing something usually makes me feel far more relaxed than doing nothing. So this afternoon, besides composing this blog post, I went running, washed my hair, did a couple loads of laundry, and made dinner. I think I've gotten done everything that needs to be done before we go back to school tomorrow. Except finish that book - which is what I am going to do right now!

Briefly

What do you think of this ring? It struck me for two reasons. First, I decided in the past year that I like big rings and when I find the perfect one I will buy it. Second, because Emily likes green and black and it reminded me of her.

I think it's pretty, but not the perfect ring for me. I think it's too long. A lady who used to go to our church used to wear big long rings like this, all of them turquoise. I didn't like them when I was little.

Anyway, I'll have more interesting things than rings to post about later on, but I have to go out and do errands and send my sister a birthday package!

Settling Down

Yesterday afternoon was the end of Latin review class! I ended up having more students than I was expecting (having called the office for a student roster last week) and planning for, so I felt like I was kind of improvising the entire week. It was a little challenging to have students from so many different levels (some entering 8th grade, some entering 9th grade - and new to the school - and some entering 10th grade) who all needed to be brought up to speed with where they needed to be in September. I really enjoyed the new students, though. They were hard-working, paid attention, and actually seemed to care about their own progress. I have learned not to take these things for granted! Overall, the past week has given me great reason to cherish this coming final week of summer vacation. It also makes me look forward to teacher training (which doubles as in-service) the week after that. I will finally get organized!

This weekend I am just going to be lazy. And get things done. I think I can do both.

After I write this, I am planning to lie outside in the sunshine and read the final book for teacher training, Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning. We also read Brave New World, which I have already heard other teachers complaining about but which I really enjoyed. It's one of those "this-is-what-will-happen-to-our-society-in-the-future" kind of books, but to me it seemed less of a political statement and more of a exploration of human nature. It was fascinating. Anyone else read it?

I also want to make a decision about where to live. I want to stop living out of the back of my car and move in somewhere! Yesterday I made a little spreadsheet of all the different houses and the driving times from each one to all the places I frequent, i.e. school, church, gym, shopping. To my surprise, I found that the place in Bowie, although twenty minutes from school, is as close, if not closer, to everywhere I go now. So to me, that seems like the clear choice! It's the not the cheapest, but not the most expensive, and it has the best location. Isn't that what they say about real estate? Location, location, location. But when I talked to my mom on the phone yesterday she did not sound that excited. She is still stuck on the idea that I can find something dirt-cheap, possibly with someone from church. She still holds out, despite the fact that my dad has already spoken to a couple of pastors up here, and those pastors have contacted other pastors as well as their congregations. She wants me to wait until Sunday to make the decision. UGH. I cannot figure out whether this is a time to honor my parents by doing exactly what they advise or a time make a decision on my own. To be honest, I hardly think I am wise enough to make this decision. And I know parents just want what's best for me, but UGH. I am frustrated.

I am SO looking forward to settling down. Settling into a living space. Settling into the routine of the school year. And now I am going to settle into today, because it really is a great weekend. God is good!

In Maryland, Missing Family

I finally found what I was looking for on a candy blog. Although Coconut M&Ms may have been released on a few test markets, they will not be widely available until later in the year (I can't exactly remember when). They also lack real coconut chunks and are merely coconut flavored. Well, I'm still holding out hope. In the meantime, a lack of chocolate will do me good. Since Saturday I've eaten eight fun-packs of peanut M&Ms as well as sampled some of Laura C's homemade no-churn mocha ice cream. I think it's time to go running again!

I haven't really enjoyed much outdoor activity in the past couple of days since it has been entirely too hot. Right now it's after 8 PM, the sun has set, and it's still 87 degrees. Lynn, for the first time I'm beginning to realize what Texas weather must actually be like. Wow.

I did sit out on Laura's deck this evening to play with the two farm kittens. It is so cute to see them come bounding across the yard, over the grass that is almost as tall as they are. One of them likes to jump into my lap and lick my fingers - yes, lick my fingers. I think one time it tasted peanut butter and now keeps looking for more. The other is more distractable and likes to chase lizards and butterflies. They are both outside the sliding glass door right now - the Ooo! I think the active one just pounced on a lizard! Now they're just chewing on each other's tails. They will be good mousers for the barn. Now friendly one is playing with a milk carton and adventerous one is stalking a slit in the boards where a lizard last disappeared. I'll stop boring you, but you really should see them. And I'm not even an animal person.

In other news, I was getting a little discouraged this weekend about the apartment search. I definitely have options, but have been getting kind of overwhelmed with said options and nothing quite perfect. I really just need to prioritize. So far, the front runners are...

1. Furnished bedroom and bathroom (to be shared if/when second bedroom is rented)
Nice family of three - mom, dad, two-year-old - found on Craigslist
20 minutes from school, 5 minutes from church
$550/month including utilities
Almost sold on this except...bedroom walls need painting (could be fun) and can't tell what the family dynamic would be like (they seem nice)

2. Furnished bedroom and bathroom (to be shared if/when second bedroom is rented)
Choir director's home and possibly another girl from church
20 minutes from school, 35 minutes from church
$450/month including utilities
Almost sold on this except...it's rather far from church (hard to get involved) and I wouldn't want to switch churches if I was renting from the choir director!

3. Unfurnished bedroom and private bathroom (house looks beautiful and has hardwood floors)
Single woman found on Craigslist
12 minutes from school, 30 minutes from church
$500/month + 1/2 utilities
Almost sold on this except...it's the most expensive, still a little far from church, and I would need to acquire furniture (although that could also be fun)

This reminds me of last year when Heather was listing her NYC apartment options. That was about a year ago, right?

I Just Love My Mom's Ringtone

Okay, of first importance: where on earth are these are these coconut M&Ms I keep hearing about? I have been to both Walmart and Target and seen neither hide nor hair of these intriguing morsels. I've seen dark chocolate M&Ms, peanut M&Ms, peanut butter M&Ms, even almond M&Ms - but no coconut M&Ms. I'll have to wait until I get back to Maryland.

And that's a trip I'll be making very soon. Next Monday I begin teaching a week-long Latin review course, so I have to be back this weekend. I called the office this morning and found out that eight students are enrolled for the class: three rising eighth-graders, four rising ninth-graders, and one rising tenth-grader. It's going to be difficult to think of last year's eighth-graders as ninth-graders, etc. I think seeing them this coming week will help a little. Regular school doesn't start until after Labor Day so it will be a little while before I see all my students again. I'm rather looking forward to it.

I'm thankful for the down time before the beginning of school not only to adjust my state of mind (from child-at-home to teacher-in-charge) but also because I need to find a new place to live! Laura C called me last week with the revelation when the Stevens asked if I could move downstairs, they didn't mean could I move downstairs for the summer. They meant permanently. They quite understandably missed the flexibility of having a guest room. For me, however, this meant moving into a smaller room in their house or moving someplace else. So I have decided to move.

I don't know where I'm living yet but kind of excited. Besides the obvious bummer of losing a great neighborhood (a sheep farm only five minutes from school) and proximity to great people (both Laura and the Stevens), I'll be gaining the change and new experiences I'm coming to expect and enjoy. My grandma, as is her wont, found out about the situation and immediately called a friend who is a retired pastor in the area to see if he knew anyone in the church family looking for a renter. My dad, not to be outdone, called another pastor up there with the same request. I asked another friend to check the messages boards at her church. I scoured Craigslist.

As of today I have one lead and am planning to go meet the family on Friday evening. And don't worry, Mom, I'm going to take someone with me. Their house is in a great location, close to the church I've been attending and about twenty minutes away from school. Definitely not the same as five minutes, but whatcha gonna do? I have several other emails out on other postings but no other replies yet.

So that's the general update. I'm moving on. I got a lot of stuff done today but started feeling a little bit lonely with the knowledge that I'll soon be leaving my family behind for another year. That feeling was probably intensified by the fact that I'd just left a lot of family behind after the reunion. Which was wonderful. I'm sorry for not posting after Day 1 but internet connection was restricted - that is to say extremely slow - due to some quota having been surpassed. I can email you the rest of the juicy details, Anna, if you're still interested. And the Flaab.com post is still upcoming. Stay tuned!

Family Reunion - Day 1

Greetings from Canton, South Dakota! Has anyone else noticed how many towns there are by the name of Canton? I know that there’s one in Georgia, Tennessee, Michigan, Ohio, and South Dakota - of course. Any other Cantons out there?

We arrived tonight around 6:15 to a yummy dinner of salad and spaghetti. It was my grandparents’ night to cook. After dinner all the boys went downstairs to watch the Cardinals game and the girls went upstairs to watch the season finale of The Bachelorette. Not that I have ever watched that show ever once before in my entire life, but certain South Dakota cousins of mine are into it (and a certain contestant by the name of Kiptyn) so we all indulged. By the time the dramatic and tear-filled conclusion rolled around two hours later, the last of the families had arrived. We helped them unpack, had devotions and announcements, and have basically been visiting ever since.

Most people are off to bed now, actually. I’m sitting in the living room with a rotating fan and my uncle and two cousins playing chess. After posting this I plan to brush my teeth and make up my pallet in the girls’ room. And go running with cousins tomorrow morning.

Good night.

The Family Reunion

This week is the family reunion. My family always refers to it as THE family reunion because there really isn't any other for us, at least at this level of reuniting. Every year my mom's side of the family - her family, her twin sister's family, the families of her two brothers (who are also twins), and her parents - manage to gather in one spot for about a week. That's five families and twenty-four grandchildren. And it never fails to be fun.



This year Anna can't come and the rest of us are quite disappointed. Cousins missing a reunion here and there is nothing terribly new, at least since we all started going to college and getting jobs. I almost wasn't able to go this year due to a teacher's conference back in Maryland. That fell through due to under-registration and so I'm going after all! In the spirit of thankfulness (and of blogging more often) I am going to write every day of this week to share some of the more interesting goings-on.



This afternoon we'll set out on the eighteen-hour journey to South Dakota where everyone's gathering this year. Our cousins who live in town here have already left. We all were at a friend's wedding last night and they decided to leave after that and drive through the night. My dad couldn't miss two Sundays of church so we had to wait until this afternoon. We'll stop in St. Louis tonight and proceed on tomorrow morning. For some reason my parents weren't into the drive-through-the-night idea.



And sometime this week I'll write about Flaab.com, too.



Let me know if there are any other requests.

Three Month Update?!

I may have bested my time-between-posts record! Apologies to my dear readers, whom, without the aid of that blessed invention called the RSS feed, I surely would have lost to throes of frustration and boredom.

I'm sitting at my family's kitchen table this lovely July evening, listening to the cuckoo clock and LOTR Return of the King soundtrack (after worthy efforts earlier to expand my musical taste by second-hand listening to my brother's hip-hop Pandora station). I'm watching small insects crawl across the sliding glass door and non-committal attempts at rain on the part of the sky. And I thought I would share some highlights of my summer.

. . . and it is now about 45 minutes later. I got a sudden desire to write on Emily J's Facbook profile, even though she won't get it for several more days. And then, in the process of finding a picture of my most recent shoe purchase (see below) I got distracted by a new fashion blog and online boutique. I have moved on to the Love Actually soundtrack. Slightly more modern, but still a soundtrack. Hmm. So anyway. . .

WHAT I DID THIS SUMMER

- Visited a J.Crew "sample sale" at the distribution center in Lynchburg, Virginia. I was looking up a code for 20% off or free shipping or something and came across a comment where someone made mention of a "distribution center sale". I was intrigued by the possibility of such a thing, and upon Googling it I discovered that there would be just such a sale the following weekend! My mom and brother came along for the four hour drive (Josiah was looking for college clothes, and what better place to get that preppy look, right?) and we were not disappointed. The place was a big warehouse from which they mail out people's online orders. It was set up like a garage sale, with cardboard boxes labelled with clothing styles/sizes set up on tables in a big ring in the corner of the warehouse. We got there about an hour early to wait in line, and it was definitely worth it. Once they let in a certain number of people, no one else could come in until someone else left. Upon entrance they handed us a big plastic garbage bag and price list. I didn't really know what to hit first. A lot of people swarmed the shoes - that was definitely the easiest place to find your size. For other things you just had to dig through the boxes. It was kind of hit-and-miss as to what you could find. But find stuff we did! I got some shoes, a pair of boots, two turtlenecks, matchstick jeans, a dress, and a couple of headbands. And a suit coat, skirt, and cropped pants. Josiah got some great kahkis, dress shirts, ties, and a couple of blazers. My mom got a skirt and some sweaters. Not everything was in perfect condition, and once we were home we discovered that a rather noticeable recktangular hole in the back of one of Josiah's shirts. Bummer. Somebody must have wanted a sample (attempt at wordplay).

Wow, that was pretty boring. Once I got started I felt the need to chronicle every little detail. And I didn't even mention everything like the fact that we dressed in skirts and athletic shorts and sleeveless shirts so that we could try things on without dressing rooms. Oh! and I am now on their email list, so hopefully I'll find out next time there's a sale. It's about four hours from DC, and if anyone's interested it's definitely worth the trip. It makes everyday J.Crew sales look expensive (they actually kind of are). Just to brag a littl--that is to say, to entice you to come, I got these $100+ shoes for $30. Even if none of the clothes fit (and you're bound to find something...I did) you can get shoes. They had boxes and boxes of shoes.

While I'm on the subject of shoes, here's the picture of the black Circa Joan & David "Beauchamp" Oxfords that I got at TJ Maxx for $7 (I know all that info because I had to look them up online because my camera is broken and I couldn't take a picture myself).

They're a little. . . adventurous. . . but I am up for the challenge. I'm not sure if it's actually a trend that will work for me, but for $7 I may as well try, right? I'll let you know if I can pull it off.

WHAT I DID THIS SUMMER, CONT'D.

- Ran the Crazy 8s. I made the distance in time! My sister Julie was a big encouragement, my running buddy for about the first month. After that, she decided running wasn't for her -- she's really into tennis right now -- but she definitely helped me get back into it. If you ever want to start running, I highly recommend running with a friend. I've also enjoyed running with my cousins who are MUCH better runners than I am. I go with them on their long slow runs or we go to the track together for speed workouts.

I ran the same race back in 2007 and then kind of slacked off. This year I have decided to do a bunch of other races to keep things interesting. The week following the Crazy 8s, my cousins persuaded my brothers and me to do a 7-mile trail run on top of Bays Mountain. Although it was farther than I had trained this summer, I had run 6.3 a couple weeks before and I figured I would just run slowly. And I did. . . at an 11:12 pace!

On Sunday, my brother Caleb and I tried a speed workout called "Tabata" after the scientist who researched it. It's only 4 minutes long (aside from warm up and cool down) and goes like this: run as-fast-as-you-can-like-a-bear-is-chasing-you for 20 seconds, then jog or walk for 10 seconds. Repeat 8 times. Whew. It went a lot faster than I expected, but hurt so much more! It hurt my chest. . . I don't think I've ever had to breathe that hard in my life. I told Caleb that I should have consulted with a doctor first. But no heart attack. I recovered nicely and might even be crazy enough to try it again next week. Apparently you can do this with any exercise (lunges, squats, pushups, etc.) and there are even .mp3 tracks available online of upbeat songs that people have edited to include audio signals for each interval. The benefits that Dr. Tabata found in his study include increased speed and VO2 capacity. I guess time will tell if I'm doing it correctly. We read about it in Trail Runner magazine (which they were giving away at the last race).

WHAT I DID THIS SUMMER, CONCLUDED

I am a very lazy writer. And now that I've put off writing for so long it would take way too long to write about it all. So I'm switching over to list format. If you would like to hear more about any one of these, tell me in the comment section and I will expound in future posts. I'm afraid I have bored most of you blathering on about clothes and running. *sheepish grin* Here's some other things I did.

- Started reading the biography of Alcibiades in Latin (really need to finish)
- Learned Scott Joplin's "Pine Apple Rag" (almost)
- Played piano for church one Sunday when all the organists were out of town (yay hymns)
- Bet myself money on Flaab.com to lose weight (and won)
- Went to a conference of the Association of Classical and Christian Schools in Atlanta, GA (where I saw many Hillsdale alumni)
- Visited a friend in Wilmington, NC (and went to the beach)
- Washed and waxed the family mini van after replacing hub caps (two were missing from the old set. . . redneck, anyone?)
- Slept in a LOT

WHAT I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO

- Family reunion in South Dakota
- Teaching a Latin review course
- Missing my family when I go back to Maryland
- Attempting to see a DC United soccer game
- Visiting IKEA and redecorating my room
- Buying jeans
- Joining the Annapolis Striders or some other running club
- Going to "Jazz in the Garden" at the NGA Sculpture Garden
- Thrift shopping in Baltimore
- Seeing friends again
- Teaching my second year of Latin

Spring is Here

Several things today made me confident that spring is here to stay for a while.

- A canopy of leaves has appeared over the forest road near my house. They make a pretty dappled pattern when the sun shines through them.

- Leaves equal shade, which is a good thing considering temperatures over the weekend. I lay out in the sun for about thirty minutes this afternoon wearing only a swimsuit and came inside sweating. I had to take my second shower of the day...a cold shower. It felt good.

- The trees also seem to be producing quite a lot of pollen, evidenced by the light yellow dust on every car parked outside. Fortunately, my car is beige. Unfortunately, I left all the car windows open last night and as a result there is pollen covering the inside of the car as well as the outside. Fortunately, I am not allergic to pollen.

I think this week I'm supposed to be focusing on physical wellness. I started a pattern of going to the gym every morning, so that's good. I decided to start training for the Crazy 8's 8K run that Kingsport's Fun Fest holds every year. I didn't run last summer and felt like I missed out. Anyway, it's more fun to exercise when you have a goal. The local track club has a training plan for newbies ("Trotties" Workouts - love the name) which lists a series of intervals to walk/run each week (e.g. walk three minutes, run three minutes, repeat five times). Eventually you're running the whole five miles. So I'll begin that program this week. I'll also try not to eat so much sugar. Ohhh boy.

And another spring thing - I got my tax refund! Maybe I'll buy some running clothes.

Notes from Time Management Week

It really feels like a chore to write a new post. I am SO not a writer. If I should ever go to graduate school I would first need to "make my peace" - as my choir director is so fond of saying - with writing.

My quote-unquote "self-improvement" project is going pretty well. As expected, pefection is not being achieved. So far I haven't even used the little chart, although I may eventually. I did observe an almost immediate shift in focus in my day-to-day activities last week, however. Appropriately enough for "spritual discipline week" (last week) it was a renewed focus on the important things, the eternal things - on God. That shift in focus effected a shift in priorities, and I watched in amazement as other areas of my life fell into place. For example, in order to have time to read the Bible I have to make time, which requires me to stick to a slightly more detailed schedule. I began to be more conscious of using my time well and being more prompt. And - bonus - this has allowed me to start going to the gym more regularly, even before "physical wellness week" (next week) starts. So cool.

Of course, now the challenge will be to turn these short term changes into good habits.

I could blather on, but with all this talk about my "self" I'm feeling a bit "self-conscious" (shout-out to Jessica G).

Mid-Week Review

Doing pretty well, I guess. Monday night I paid for my Easter frivolity and stayed up all night finishing tax returns and lesson plans. Tuesday I felt accomplished and, um, tired. Being tired is not good for praying and reading the Bible. I watched an Easter sermon before falling asleep and letting my computer run out of battery. Slept in a little too late this morning to have any real quiet time. This evening I made up my mind to go to a Handel's Messiah sing-along at church - kind of a preview for a performance we're doing this Christmas. Of course that was amazing (I even used the old orange score from Hillsdale).

It's sad how seldom I get up to go do things. I forget how much I'll enjoy activity and company - or conversely, I forget how bad I feel if I'm just lying around doing nothing.

So made up a little "self-improvement" chart but haven't used it yet. Tuesday I was too tired to remember; today I was too busy (the day having been cut short at both ends). Maybe tomorrow I'll be back on track.

I'm amazed at how much of the week is already gone. That's what comes with having Mondays off, I suppose. The upper school final exam schedule just came out - the entire last week of school is devoted to reviewing for and giving finals. That means, after this week, there will be only four weeks of class left! And my birthday is next week. My, how time flies.

Time-Waster, Procrastinator

Okay, it's a good thing "time management week" is coming up, because I just spent more time than I would care to admit working on the details of this new blog layout. I couldn't just paste in the ready-made template...no, I had to fiddle with the code in order for it to be perfect (of course it's still not perfect, but I'm trying not to think about that). See the little link at the top labelled "Blog Archive"? Yep, I put that there, having mastered the HTML command for a page jump. I also added the "Home" link at the bottom of the page next to "Older Posts". And the main reason I'm posting now is so that the ugly Star Wars video will be bumped of the front page. Even though probably no one would notice. Good night!

Self-Improvement

Regardless of whether it is good, right, and necessary, the Sisyphean task of improving myself is a something I'm going to be focusing on for the next several weeks. As all we Hillsdalians learned in Western Heritage, Benjamin Franklin had a certain amount success in self-improvement (and I must interject that I can't help thinking of that one episode of The Office whenever I think of old Ben)...so then why-oh-why can't I?

I have found, at lowest count, five areas I wish to strengthen:

1. Spiritual discipline
2. Time management
3. Physical wellness
4. Reading/leisure habits
5. Writing/communication strength

Continuing on the inspiration of our eldest founding father (and now, oh lord, I'm thinking of the musical "1776") I think I'll make a little chart. I'll have a description of what each category encompasses and make a little grid with a square for each for every day of the week. If I mess up in a specific category, I have to mark it with a dot. I'll focus on one area per week, but keep track of my progress in all of them.

I know this is kind of strange. I'm just sick of letting my life run away from me. I've been so lazy and I hate it. I think this kind of situation results from being a type-A/type-B personality mix. Anyway, I'll posts updates on how this crazy scheme is going (especially in week five, when my goal will be to update daily). Ta-ta for now.

My Mom Could Use This

Gmail Autoreply

Scientific Method

You know how they say you can affect something just by observing it? I like how life is going right now, and I think that's maybe why I'm afraid to blog. Or...maybe that's just an excuse. It is now March - seven days before the Ides, as we learned in Latin class today. It is four days before spring break and New York, eight days before Tennessee and home.

Last weekend, a fellow teacher and I implemented the first step in a great experiment. Our goal is simple: to be more sociable. We have rules. Rule Number 1: Go out every Friday night, no excuses, to a different bar in Annapolis. Rule Number 2: For the sake of finances, it must be during happy hour. Rule Number 3: For the sake of finances and time, drinks are limited to one, two at most. By following these rules, we can happily go out every week on our schoolmarm salaries and schedules, and meet and talk to people whom we don't see at school all day long. We had an enjoyable evening last Friday - spent a little over an hour and felt like human beings. Our companion for the evening was a guy from her Bible study, and more friends are being recruited. Follow-up activites (concerts, etc.) are being planned. The experiment seems promising.

If I go to bed now, it will be the first normal bedtime in forever. We'll see how it turns out.

Must Break the Writer's Block

Been listening to ABBA music on YouTube and now really want to watch Mamma Mia! Anybody seen it?

Just finished the second trimester and got all grades and student comments in on time! It feels weird to be finished...on time.

Read the first two books of the Aeneid and enjoyed them much more than I did freshman year of undergrad.

Looked up airfare to Athens and Rome. Also looked up rent on apartments in the Annapolis area. Will be saving for a while.

Will be going to bed soon.

Alle wollen in den Himmel, aber niemand will sterben.

I saw that quote today on the Facebook profile of one of my old ballet teachers. It means (roughly, with the help of Google Translate) "Everyone wants to go to heaven but nobody wants to die." I think that German is a beautiful language. I'm jealous that one of my friends is becoming downright bilingual while I am perfecting my knowlege of a language I cannot speak - although there is a spoken Latin program at the University of Kentucky this summer that I could go to. I think German is the language I want to learn next. If I ever were to go back to school for classical studies I would need to know German. If I ever were to travel to Germany it would be nice to know German.

Anyway, I won't be able to do anything about this desire to learn another language for about four more months. Then it will be summer, and I will have a nice long time to do whatever I want. I'm not really sure everything that will involve. I need to figure it out soon.

I guess the theme of this post, if there is one, is that there are things I wish I could do; problem is, they take doing.

Which Boots Do You Like?

Made Me Laugh

This just needed to be shared. Found on the blog of a fellow Hillsdale alumn, I present...

Star Wars as told by someone who hasn't seen it!


Star Wars: Retold (by someone who hasn't seen it) from Joe Nicolosi on Vimeo.

There's A Place For Us...

Ha!

While visiting Heather a couple weeks ago, I noticed a peculiar thing. Each time the subway trains approached and left a station, the screeching of the wheels seemed to play the first three notes of "Somewhere" from West Side Story. You know, "There's...a...place...(for us....somewhere a place for us...etc.)" Heather just thought I was imagining things because I was just excited to be in New York. But I kept hearing it. So I went home and looked up the song on YouTube and the similarities in pitch were undeniable. Then I turned to my other favorite website, Google, to do a little research. Turns out that I am not the only one to have been hearing things.

The Gothamist answers an inquiry on the subject.
The aptly-named blog "Lulled by the Train" discusses it.
Even the New York Times had an article on it.

I'm not insane! And just so you can experience it for yourself, here are Maria and Tony to sing for you. Unfortunately, the opening note is kind of inaudible...you have to wait until Maria starts singing to hear all thee notes together.



I feel like I need to apologize to Emily for the theme of this post. But what do you think, all you NYC travellers? Have you heard this before?

I'm Baaaaack!

I am now back in Maryland. Unfortunately, however, both of my winter coats are in Tennessee. 7 and 1/2 hours away. I am kind of looking forward to experimenting with my wardrobe to compensate.

Speaking of warmth, I'm planning on buying a space heater soon, since the house where I live is primarily heated with a wood stove, the heat from which is quite pleasant but does not circulate to my bedroom. Any suggestions on brand or type or size? (You shoudn't even need a Blogger profile to comment, dear non-blogging friends!)

The last few days I have been feeling kind of gloomy about leaving my family and heading back for two more trimesters worth of planning and grading and report cards (but not the teaching - still love the teaching), but as I got ready to leave this morning, I started feeling motivated again. Praise God! It was really quite pleasant to come back to my little room and hang up the gorgeous 2009 calendar that Laura got me for Christmas (see below) and light my little tea candles and unpack my wonderful shoes. It's enough to make up for a cold room and missing coats. (Boy, did that sound dismal. I promise I'm really quite content!)