Made it!!! I actually wrote EVERY day, for THIRTY ONE DAYS!!! Unbelievable. Except now I'm going to have to keep writing. I mean, I was planning on it anyway, but now I have to. I have so many random ideas and things I'd like to write about but I don't have time!!! I thought I would have time to write some deep, wonderful epiphany or something. I don't know.
Instead, this is what happened:
Woke up late.
Tried on 13 outfits trying to pick the perfect thing for my presentation tonight.
Forgot to get clothes for track practice - back to the house.
Forgot to take my allergy meds - back to the house (this is real. I can't survive long without it)
Late to Before-School practice.
First period spent trying to put in contacts in my eyes.
Rest of first period spent trying to think of a plan for the kids to do without lots of my own involvement because
already behind in grading
end of six weeks next Friday
had to plan for my presentation and for Thursday's track meet/sub
teach for 3 periods
forgot my lunch
helped sell prom tickets during lunch
track after school
back in to change for presentation
present google classroom to the "ambassador program" (community members/parents/school board)
stay for questions
home by 8:30
deep talk with bf about whether or not we move for his job and give up my own.
SHOOT! I'm about to miss the LAST DEADLINE!!! NOOOOOOO!!!!
Quickly written, no time to think or edit or be cute or clever slice.
It's been so wonderful writing with all of you. I can't say how much I've loved writing, how much I love reading all the comment love (it really does make a difference!) and how much fun I've had reading and commenting on everyone's blog!!! Until Tuesday!!!
-M
Tuesday, March 31, 2015
Monday, March 30, 2015
Stress Penguin #SOLC15 - 3/30
Today was a testing day for us:English I. Talk about mind-numbing. At least I was in one of the rooms with spoken-testing accommodations so I wasn't just staring at kids silently for five hours. As I watched the students filling out their little bubble sheets, concentration furrowing their little brows, deep thinking causing them to bite their lower lips, I waxed a little poetic. (I've always wanted to use that phrase!) I was constructing these fantastically descriptive and lovely essays on the goings-on of the room. After lunch, my brain decided it was no longer interested in anything, especially writing, and I kind of lost the desire to write any of them, much less take the time to edit and share. So I will share my two favorites. Forgive any weird grammar or spelling, it's been a long day.
Some people have worry stones; others keep stress balls or bean bags near them, or on their desks. One carries a stress penguin. Stress Penguin sits, stoic and straight, on the corner of his desk, the ever watchful guardian of the tester. From time to time, his human looks up from his test to consult with Stress Penguin, as if staring him desperately in the eyes, the answer will be whispered to him by the tiny bird. Stress Penguin sits in silence. Without warning, he is snatched from his post, the air crushed out of his body once, twice... five quick pulses, like a drill in dexterity, or maybe just a nervous twitch. The sentinel is returned to his place on the corner of the desk, refilling his body to its normal proportions. He watches the progress, wishing he could help more. If only he could tip, maybe fall with his beak "coincidentally" on a key phrase. If he could soothe his human's nerves with calming words, rather than suffering the periodic brutality of having his body crushed time, and time again. Stress Penguin can do no more than be a watchful sentry, a comfort and support, a silent encouragement, waiting for the next moment he is needed to alleviate some tension on test day.
Stress Penguin
Some people have worry stones; others keep stress balls or bean bags near them, or on their desks. One carries a stress penguin. Stress Penguin sits, stoic and straight, on the corner of his desk, the ever watchful guardian of the tester. From time to time, his human looks up from his test to consult with Stress Penguin, as if staring him desperately in the eyes, the answer will be whispered to him by the tiny bird. Stress Penguin sits in silence. Without warning, he is snatched from his post, the air crushed out of his body once, twice... five quick pulses, like a drill in dexterity, or maybe just a nervous twitch. The sentinel is returned to his place on the corner of the desk, refilling his body to its normal proportions. He watches the progress, wishing he could help more. If only he could tip, maybe fall with his beak "coincidentally" on a key phrase. If he could soothe his human's nerves with calming words, rather than suffering the periodic brutality of having his body crushed time, and time again. Stress Penguin can do no more than be a watchful sentry, a comfort and support, a silent encouragement, waiting for the next moment he is needed to alleviate some tension on test day.
Nostalgia
I remember looking forward to testing days. In elementary, a testing day meant several things: a break from your normal routine, a chance to prove yourself, a snack break. You pause during the test, set aside your booklet, and the class mom greets you with the gift of juice and crackers. There is something so satisfying about apple juice and peanut butter crackers. You take your allotted snack and set it on the paper towel or kleenex, taking care not to let the oils on your fingers or spilled juice get on your test booklet. You chat with your neighbor. After the desks have been cleared, the test continues.
"I will be writing about how to write an essay." The TAAS test (the texas something something standardized test at the time) was simple. Especially the writing. You get five lines for an intro, 13 for each of three paragraphs, and 5 lines to close it up. "I have now written about how to write an essay." We've changed since then. The prompts are a little more advanced, the criteria have changed. But it still makes me miss some of the oddest parts of my education. I can still remember looking at Mrs. Walden's "keys" to the TAAS (shaped like keys) on her wall. I remember the guinea pig being removed from the room so he couldn't let out one of his famously timed "EEP EEP EEEEEP eeeeEEEEEEEP!"s.
I miss testing, but the rules are different now. No snacks, definitely no peanut butter (nut allergies every where), no simple formulas, no quick readings with straightforward questions. even the seals are different. No more slicing open a hand or tearing half the page trying to slide your pencil between the thick paper stickers that were supposed to be "easy open".
I miss the days we got a long recess at the end of the day because testing small kids all day is a bit rough on them. We need this back. We need the outdoors, and recess, and time to let loose all of the pent up energy that these poor little tester's are trying to harness into strategic question-answering skills.
Sunday, March 29, 2015
#ShelfieSunday
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| "The Academic" |
 |
| "The YA" |
This week, we have the reference shelf (or the Academic). This is comprised largely of books I had to buy for college, some for high school, and are mostly non-fiction. A large amount of these books deal with language, history, and the history of languages and Spanish-Speaking countries. I will admit: I have not read all of them. I will, though. That is, if I ever stop buying Young Adult books!!
Shelfie #2 - the YA. I am an Adult who reads Young Adult novels. I'm still young, right? I just love escaping into a book that isn't so serious sometimes. It's nice to lose yourself in some magic and adventure from time to time. I think exactly none of these are non-fiction. That's how I like it.
Today I'm sharing some Guest Shelfies!! These are my boyfriends shelves. His collection consists mainly of running, zombies, a few bios and auto-bios, and two WHOLE shelves of Star Wars! Don't knock 'em til you've read 'em. I did not have high hopes for these books, but the Old Republic has been really entertaining. Are they masterpieces? No. Are they all well written? No. Fun? Definitely!! The Revan trilogy and Bane trilogy have been my favorites. I recommend starting there.
Anyone want to hop on my Shelfie train?? You can follow me at mw8187 on instagram. I only have two so far, but I'm going to build it up. Don't want to post your own? Send me your shelfies and I will post them as my guest shelfie! By golly, I will interrupt this fad of staring at our own faces all day.
 |
| Guest Shelfie!! |
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| Guest Shelfie!! Thanks Aaron! |
Today I'm sharing some Guest Shelfies!! These are my boyfriends shelves. His collection consists mainly of running, zombies, a few bios and auto-bios, and two WHOLE shelves of Star Wars! Don't knock 'em til you've read 'em. I did not have high hopes for these books, but the Old Republic has been really entertaining. Are they masterpieces? No. Are they all well written? No. Fun? Definitely!! The Revan trilogy and Bane trilogy have been my favorites. I recommend starting there.
Anyone want to hop on my Shelfie train?? You can follow me at mw8187 on instagram. I only have two so far, but I'm going to build it up. Don't want to post your own? Send me your shelfies and I will post them as my guest shelfie! By golly, I will interrupt this fad of staring at our own faces all day.
The Feeling of Home #SOC15 - 3/29
“La vida sería mucho más agradable si uno pudiera llevarse a donde quiera que fuera, los sabores y olores de la casa materna.”
"Life would be much nicer if one could take where ever they went, the tastes and smells of their mother's house."
- Like Water for Chocolate
I always like to go to friends' mom's houses and see bits and pieces of my friend in the house. I really like going into anyone else's house. It sounds odd, but I just like to see what they've done. How did they decide to decorate it? What is their color scheme? How do they use the space? I always think it's interesting to see different homes.
When I first went into Aaron's apartment when we started dating, I remember thinking how fancy and earthy everything looked. His tables were iron and marble, leather couches and ottomans, dark browns and blacks and grey all over. Even the pictures he had on his walls were things like a black and white picture with trees. His dishes. His dishes are brown. I didn't even know they made brown dishes.
Now, every Sunday, we go to Aaron's mom's house for dinner. Going into her home you can definitely see where Aaron gets his taste from. Almost everything is dark, rich, earth colors. The walls are brown, except the kitchen where it's a deep burgundy color. The carpets are brown, the tables are stone and glass and iron. The furniture is all dark leather, and the decorations are in browns, blacks, and deep, deep, rich earthy colors: dark greens and reds, like you might see under a dense canopy of trees in a forrest.
My apartment, by contrast, looked much like my mom's house. I have a tropical blue bedspread with lime green and white hibiscus flowers all over; the reverse side is pink, orange, green, blue, and white stripe. My art is colorful, vibrant, and eclectic. There are flowers everywhere, colors everywhere, and tons of pillows. I have fiestaware dishes of all different colors, except black and white, and my pots and pans are all red or blue. I even have a rainbow collection of chopsticks! I prefer soft cloth fabric to leather, I hate metal, and I'd take painted wood over metal any day. If you saw my post about my mom's house though, you might get it. I think it's interesting that we carry it with us.
We are currently trying to decide whether or not to buy a house, or continue renting. I'm kind of slowly leaning more and more towards buying my own house so I can decorate and paint and do the things I want to do. I've wondered how that will go. How will we decide what kind of bedspread to get, what kind of art to hang, what kind of dishes to buy? What will our house smell and taste like? How will we make a new home out of a house?
My mom told me once, "Home is where your mother is." She said, after her mom died, she wondered where home would be. It wasn't El Paso any more. She would have to make her own. I am lucky to still have my mom, and she's right. Even though I've never lived in the house she owns now, and even though I've lived in west Texas for TEN years now, I still say I'm going home when I refer to her house. How will I make a home? I will take the smells and the taste and the love of my mother's home, and bring it with me. Maybe I can make room for a little bit of metal and earth and leather. (That's a big maybe)
"Life would be much nicer if one could take where ever they went, the tastes and smells of their mother's house."
- Like Water for Chocolate
I always like to go to friends' mom's houses and see bits and pieces of my friend in the house. I really like going into anyone else's house. It sounds odd, but I just like to see what they've done. How did they decide to decorate it? What is their color scheme? How do they use the space? I always think it's interesting to see different homes.
When I first went into Aaron's apartment when we started dating, I remember thinking how fancy and earthy everything looked. His tables were iron and marble, leather couches and ottomans, dark browns and blacks and grey all over. Even the pictures he had on his walls were things like a black and white picture with trees. His dishes. His dishes are brown. I didn't even know they made brown dishes.
Now, every Sunday, we go to Aaron's mom's house for dinner. Going into her home you can definitely see where Aaron gets his taste from. Almost everything is dark, rich, earth colors. The walls are brown, except the kitchen where it's a deep burgundy color. The carpets are brown, the tables are stone and glass and iron. The furniture is all dark leather, and the decorations are in browns, blacks, and deep, deep, rich earthy colors: dark greens and reds, like you might see under a dense canopy of trees in a forrest.
 |
| Aaron's cabinet space |
 |
| My cabinet space |
My apartment, by contrast, looked much like my mom's house. I have a tropical blue bedspread with lime green and white hibiscus flowers all over; the reverse side is pink, orange, green, blue, and white stripe. My art is colorful, vibrant, and eclectic. There are flowers everywhere, colors everywhere, and tons of pillows. I have fiestaware dishes of all different colors, except black and white, and my pots and pans are all red or blue. I even have a rainbow collection of chopsticks! I prefer soft cloth fabric to leather, I hate metal, and I'd take painted wood over metal any day. If you saw my post about my mom's house though, you might get it. I think it's interesting that we carry it with us.
 |
| This is basically my whole aesthetic. |
 |
| Even my binders at school are bright |
 |
| My whole life looks like this |
We are currently trying to decide whether or not to buy a house, or continue renting. I'm kind of slowly leaning more and more towards buying my own house so I can decorate and paint and do the things I want to do. I've wondered how that will go. How will we decide what kind of bedspread to get, what kind of art to hang, what kind of dishes to buy? What will our house smell and taste like? How will we make a new home out of a house?
My mom told me once, "Home is where your mother is." She said, after her mom died, she wondered where home would be. It wasn't El Paso any more. She would have to make her own. I am lucky to still have my mom, and she's right. Even though I've never lived in the house she owns now, and even though I've lived in west Texas for TEN years now, I still say I'm going home when I refer to her house. How will I make a home? I will take the smells and the taste and the love of my mother's home, and bring it with me. Maybe I can make room for a little bit of metal and earth and leather. (That's a big maybe)
Saturday, March 28, 2015
Sideways #SOLC15 - 3/28
Tonight I am writing horizontally and one handed. Today we CLEAN cleaned our room: under the bed, the bay window seat, the crate, the closets. It is spotless! Then we cleaned the livingroom, the backyard, the garage, the porch, watered flowers, cleaned the kitchen, and took Dot on a looooong walk. Now she has trapped me on the couch. Dot is curled up next to/on top of me, and is laying on my arm. She is way too sweet and cute to move.
Tonight we are watching "Guardians of the Galaxy". Can I just say... Chris. Pratt. mmmm... Chris Pratt is quickly becoming one of my favorite actors. I loved him in Parks and Rec, loved him in Guardians. I love his interviews. He's just a funny, clever, handsome handsome guy! Did I mention he's good looking?? ha ha
If you haven't seen this movie, I think it's worth the watch, unless you're like a friend of mine who hates all things fantasy/sci-fi/nerdy. *cough cough puente cough cough* Even she might like this! It's action, adventure, space, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana (another of my favorites), plus a talking raccoon! And Vin Diesel making a tree adorable and lovable. It was good enough we've started reading the comics! I'm very behind, but they did a very good job casting.
That's been my whole Saturday! Tomorrow will be grades, lessons, cooking, laundry, and cleaning!
Friday, March 27, 2015
Found Poetry Friday #SOLC15 - 3/27
The Morning Playlist
Roslyn, My love,
Roslyn, My love,
with you in my head
Let me sign your Satellite Heart,
Cover your tracks
Flightless Bird, American Mouth
Never think I didn't mean it.
Supermassive black hole,
Don't you mourn the sun.
I belong to you.
All yours.
Meet me on the Equinox,
Edge of my dreams,
Go all the way into the Twilight.
Love will take you,
Eyes on fire, speaking a dead language,
Sleeping at last.
I stole this idea from Ruth Ayres, who stole it from Ruth Metcalfe. I took it one step further. With the exception of one song (Love Will Take You), all of these titles are from ONE MOVIE FRANCHISE! Granted, it's a 5 movie franchise, it's a HUGE list of songs. I love this idea of finding poetry though! Maybe I should be teaching English... maybe I'll get Speech certified next....
The Library
Paper towns
City of ashes
A clergyman's daughter,
The time traveller's wife,
She's come undone,
Same kind of different as me.
Behind the tortilla curtain,
Over the wall,
the Illustrated man,
A Lion among Men.
Their eyes were watching God,
Then we came to the end.
This second piece is entirely from books in my bookshelf! It's been a tough day. Another 14 hour school day in the books. Time for bed.
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Boys Ruin Everything, Even Meditation #SOLC15 - 3/26
Be still and know
That you are good.
Sit back,
Close your eyes,
and Breathe.
Breathe in, know that it's okay
Breathe out, to not be perfect.
Breathe in, it's okay
Breathe out, to not be okay.
Breathe in, know that the bad things
Breathe out, they'll all go away.
Breathe in,
...some day...
Breathe out.
There is passion,
and there is Peace.
There is strength,
and there is Serenity.
There is power,
and there is Wisdom.
There is victory,
and there is Harmony.
There is Life.
"So take a new grip with your tired hands and stand firm on your shaky legs. Mark out a straight path for your feet."
You can do this. Don't think it, feel it.
Breathe in, breathe out, repeat.
You can do this.
Alright, so I borrowed a little here, a little there. If you didn't know, throwers are a bunch of basket cases. Probably all athletes... probably all people, at that. Something happens to these kids. They step into the ring, take a breath, and then, it happens. You can see it. They start to think. Damn.
Now, I typically encourage thinking. It's a great thing, especially in the classroom. Not so great in the ring. They start to think about messing up, all the things they do wrong, how they can fix it RIGHT NOW before they throw. Think about who's watching, who isn't watching, why are they/aren't they watching? What if I don't do well?
SHUSH!! SHHH! Stop thinking! Relax, little buddies. You've been doing this for weeks/months/years. You're fine. Let your body do the work and tell your head to shut it. This year we've been practicing being a little more "zen" and throwing like it's fun. It's not exactly working yet ... but we're trying.
Sadly, their current mantra goes like this, "I am a strong, independent, black woman, and I don't need no man! This one's for Katie."
I don't know. Don't ask me, because I don't know. Somehow, my zen message has gone horribly askew. Leave it to teenage boys.
That you are good.
Sit back,
Close your eyes,
and Breathe.
Breathe in, know that it's okay
Breathe out, to not be perfect.
Breathe in, it's okay
Breathe out, to not be okay.
Breathe in, know that the bad things
Breathe out, they'll all go away.
Breathe in,
...some day...
Breathe out.
There is passion,
and there is Peace.
There is strength,
and there is Serenity.
There is power,
and there is Wisdom.
There is victory,
and there is Harmony.
There is Life.
"So take a new grip with your tired hands and stand firm on your shaky legs. Mark out a straight path for your feet."
You can do this. Don't think it, feel it.
Breathe in, breathe out, repeat.
You can do this.
Alright, so I borrowed a little here, a little there. If you didn't know, throwers are a bunch of basket cases. Probably all athletes... probably all people, at that. Something happens to these kids. They step into the ring, take a breath, and then, it happens. You can see it. They start to think. Damn.
Now, I typically encourage thinking. It's a great thing, especially in the classroom. Not so great in the ring. They start to think about messing up, all the things they do wrong, how they can fix it RIGHT NOW before they throw. Think about who's watching, who isn't watching, why are they/aren't they watching? What if I don't do well?
SHUSH!! SHHH! Stop thinking! Relax, little buddies. You've been doing this for weeks/months/years. You're fine. Let your body do the work and tell your head to shut it. This year we've been practicing being a little more "zen" and throwing like it's fun. It's not exactly working yet ... but we're trying.
Sadly, their current mantra goes like this, "I am a strong, independent, black woman, and I don't need no man! This one's for Katie."
I don't know. Don't ask me, because I don't know. Somehow, my zen message has gone horribly askew. Leave it to teenage boys.
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