Gardening Update

Well, the mystery-peppers, that I was really hoping were bells, seem to be turning out to be jalepenos and another hot variety. Not much of a hot pepper type, so I guess these'll be lots of give-aways. Figures. The most prosperous part of the garden!

The eggplants have gorgeous lavender flowers, and the cucs came back after being pillaged by the woodchuck. (Thanks, Anon. Blogger, for the tip on cayenne pepper...seems to be working there!)

Unfortunately, he seems to be willing to brave the cayenne to get at the tomatoes, tho'. They just start getting about fist-sized, still hard and green, when I find them half-eaten on the ground. sigh. Think I'll double dose the cayenne...

The strawberries were an absolute flop. I'll never buy from that company again.

Ticks seem to have been losing their side of the battle, altho' the weeds are suddenly growing very quickly and I'm gonna have to tackle them before they become hiding grounds. I'm pushing back the borders, in regards to the poison ivy. Seem to be making some headway there, too.

All in all, I like the progress we've made and have been able to maintain. I'd like to conquer new yard-territory, but the work schedule has been too all-consuming lately. As long as we maintain, I'm ok with it.

Now, I am waiting to actually EAT some of these rewards (...um...except for the hot peppers.) Anybody want some?

Quotes For The Day

Gottfried Leibniz
(1646-1716)

(German philosopher, mathematician, and diplomat, he invented the binary system—the foundation of modern computer architecture—and accomplished major breakthroughs in calculus.)

"Music is a hidden arithmetic exercise of the soul, which does not know that it is counting."

Sir Francis Bacon
(1561-1626)
(English philosopher who established scientific empiricism with his method of observation and experimentation, which laid the foundation of modern scientific enquiry.)

"Knowledge is power."

Phish Food

I love how Natasha says she's a "Wine connoisseur. Gourmet coffee drinker. Chocoholic. Cheese snob. "

For many years I've thought of myself as all of the above, plus a list of other-snobs, insisting on the freshest fish, freshest local veggies, etc., as well as something of an ice cream snob. For years, I was a Breyers-only (all natural ingredients!), then graduated to Haagen-Dasz when the budget allowed. I'd heard about Ben & Jerry's, but quite honestly, the names of the flavors sort of turned me off, and I didn't check them out any further. I assumed that with names like those, they had to be full of all sorts of chemicals, blah blah blah.

Well, the other day, we had a play date at the beach, which went all wrong...as soon as the blankets were all spread out right, everyone properly sunblocked, toys sorted, etc...it started getting dark, and there was this ominous booming, and then the lifeguards blew the whistle and people swarmed to their cars, getting pelted with cup-sized drops of rain. I had to quickly come up with a Plan B for two 4/5-year-olds and accompanying grown-ups. Hmmm...came up with a picnic in a place that I knew had covered tables. Then, the other mom offered ice cream, and a particular one was reccommended, which, I discovered when delivered, was B & J's. Huh. My first try. Ok. I'm a sport.

And I was hooked.

So tonight, DD and I had a movie night, first one in ages and ages, and she wanted B & J's. So, I actually went to the grocery store and bought some. Coffee Heath Bar Crunch for me (mmmm) and Phish Food for her. Now, again, thrown by the name originally, I wouldn't have tried it. But I did. And it has actual fish-shaped dark chocolate chunks. I loved it. Delicious! And then, I read the label ('cause I read absolutely everything) and found out all kinds of other stuff, like, what percentage of sales went to what charity, and how they came up with the name, and that the coffee extract was Fair Trade Certified. Very cool.

Ok, so, this mom, always struggling with the weight loss thing, now has a new secret-treat love...for that once a month movie night when ya gotta have something other than salad...it's B & J's.

4th of July Weekend

We have been enjoying the goings-on this 4th of July weekend, Little Sir and I. I didn't want to
travel all the way to Southampton or Southold for fireworks on the ACTUAL Independence Day,
but we did have a leisurely breakfast at Bagel Lovers on Main St., in Riverhead, followed by East Enders for coffee, where we met an old friend of mine, did a little shopping and general putzing
around, followed by a fun play day. Eventually we checked out one of the local free outside
concerts. Then, on July 5th (why did they do that???) we made the choice between the fireworks
on the riverfront and the ones at Riverhead Raceway. We shared a blanket under the cloud-
canopy (as opposed to the stars) with some old friends and their visiting relations, and ooh-ed
and ah-ed in all the appropriate places. (I personally think they should have collaborated and
had the river front fireworks after the free outdoor concert on the Arts Council grounds on the 4th, but I wasn't asked...) It would've been nice to have 2 nights of fireworks!

Today, the 6th, the last day of the weekend, Little Sir came teaching with me in the morning,
and then we dooziebotsed around...went to East Landing for a few hours, then Stotsky Park,
then to our favorite local farmstand for fresh corn and tomatoes for dinner, and home again.

So, happy Independence Day weekend. I hope you got to do some fun local things.

Biography: Robert Redford

In my latest library movie hunt I found a new purchase: from the program "Biography" (I think from A & E) they had a few in the series, so I picked up the one on Robert Redford. I learned so much about him I didn't know, and was glad to see it wasn't full of things I already DID know. I like him even more, now, after watching it. If you like Redford, this is a good summer movie watch.

The Mod Squad

Since I go to the library once a week for my Sat. movie night dose, I'm always looking for a little variety. I like to see new movies with favorite actors, older movies with favorite actors, discovering new actors, sometimes foreign films, sometimes off-peak type films like Sundance festivals and such, some documentaries, even DVDs of seasons of old t.v. shows. (They have new ones out, too...I've seen a few of the latest ones that way so I'm not completely out of touch.) But every so often I find a real treat...an oldies t.v. show.

One of my favorites in elementary school was The Mod Squad. I thought Peggy Lipton was the coolest, hippest thing...and the guys were great, too. I wanted to be part of that team! Well, the library had the first season on DVD, so of course, I checked it out. I got to see the very first episode, which I don't think I ever did before...how the Mod Squad got to be.

Those of you who were fans...ya gotta check this out!

My next one to track down is the original Mission Impossible series. I think that was my absolute favorite in elementary school. I definitely wanted to grow up and be one of them!

More Battles With Nature

So, I had decided to make our poor, sad neglected yard prettier this year, safer to play in, and more productive! It's been a battle with the various creatures and nuisance plants, but we've carved out a few garden areas with some veggies and flowers, and it's starting to look like we've done something!

Well, 2 nights in a row, I heard distinctive munching noises outside the window by my computer, which just happens to overlook a garden. I turned on the outside lights, and it stopped. Another time, I actually went out and yelled and lectured. I had pretty good idea it was the woodchuck that had taken residence under our porch...hibernated for last winter, I think, and decided to stay.

So, this morning, I went out to water, and noticed my 2 biggest tomatoes, still very green, were half eaten. Then, I saw ALL my beautiful cucumber leaves...the best part of my garden so far...they were perfect, and just starting to flower...had been eaten off. All I have is a sad empty vine!

Grrr!

So, I went through the phone book for nuisance animal pest control. The town doesn't deal with woodchucks (didn't think so,but it was worth a shot.) The other guy who called back said it's about $550 to remove it.

$550 to be able to grow my own veggies...do I really think I'm gonna raise $550 worth of vegetables? No.

Ok. On to plan B.

I don't have a plan B.

Does anybody out there have a plan B?

(and please don't suggest I buy a dog or cat. No thanks.)

I just want to keep my garden that we've worked so hard on.

Anna and the King

My, but it's been a long time since I've written here. The end of the school year rush, summer preparations, and still rounds of interviews, waiting to see where I will be in September.

Tonight, I gave myself the evening off and borrowed the DVD, "Anna and the King." I've wanted to see this since it was originally in theatres, 9 years ago! It was everything I'd hoped it would be and more. Absolutely beautiful, and touching, and thought-provoking on so many levels.

If you haven't seen it in a long time, or never did in the first place, check out "Anna and the King." You'll be glad you did.

Public Service Announcement

We regret that the Gardening and Back-To-Nature moment must be interrupted...
by Nature.

Grrr...

Let me explain.

Little Sir and I have been happily puttering around our little garden, and trying to get the rest of the yard in shape, little by little. I'm always careful to take the necessary precautions, as is DH, to wear long pants, have socks pulled up over the pant legs, and spray us with Deep Woods Off, even all over the shoes. I am not messing around with ticks and all their little friends. (We have found about 10 so far this year, but none actually biting us.)

DH does the mowing and heavy stuff, Little Sir and I are exploring our garden. We've also done a little spring/summer cleaning, bringing out mattresses to be aired out and all that. Cleaning out the shed. Fun stuff, let me tell you. (The garbage men must really love us by now.)

Well, Saturday I found 3 ticks...one on a mattress I was bringing in (...unpleasant thought...), one crawling up the front door, and another on a shirt. One of these was a lone star tick (those are the bearers of Rocky Mt. spotted fever. I thought they didn't come this far north!)

Then, Sunday, Little Sir and I are out erranding and he says, "Ow Ow!"

"What's the matter?"

"Something's biting me!"

"Biting you where?"

"Inside my underwear!"

I quickly pulled over, told him to get out of the carseat, come up front, pulled down his pants. Yup. A deer tick. In a very sensitive area I was not about to attempt tweezers on.

Ok, gingerly pull back up the pants, leave the fly open on the shorts, gently get rebuckled into the carseat, and head for the emergency room..
That adventure went better than most of its kind, and we were on our way, with pages of instructions on follow-up.

I noticed today my left elbow has soreness I've never experienced before..for about 3 days, now. Might as well get a Lymes test for me too. Tried to do that today, got a nurse on the phone who argued with me, trying to tell me I just have a virus that's going around,blah blah blah. (Why do they have these posters up in the doctor's office about the symptoms of Lymes, etc., and to contact your dr. right away, if they're just gonna pooh-pooh you when you call?)

Anyway, today it was too beastly hot for DH to mow before his evening shift at work, so I decided to tackle it when I got home around 7:30 pm. Did the regular tick preventative measures, just like always. I took the recyclables to the street first, pulled some more stuff out of the shed to go out, and noticed a wasp buzzing around my head. Further investigation found a new nest just above the shed door. Very nice. Carefully inspected all around the perimeter of the house, and found a few more. Lovely. Made a mental note to deal with that tomorrow...suypposed to get thunderstorms again tonight. Don't want all that lovely poison to wash away.

Got the mower going (we have a new-to-us antique mower which needs a little coaxing), and busily roared along, semi-uneventfully...

And then I noticed it.

Creeping along the borders of the property where it wasn't before...and in a few places I did spot it last year and tried to hard to get rid of it...


poison ivy.


sigh.


Will we ever have a yard that's safe to play in?

p.s.
Oh, and, the house is over-run with ants, of various sizes, inside and out. Bought some special traps today, set them up tonight after everything else was done for the day. Then I noticed in fine print, "not effective against...carpenter ants..." Great. So I'm only killing 2 of the 3 kinds. How do I kill carpenters, short of an exterminator, which I can't afford right now, what with tick spraying and all.

Gardening

I keep promising myself that I will successfully have a little garden this year...haven't had a decent one in a few years...lots of obstacles, including t-i-m-e. But I hate weeds and areas of no flowers or anything. So, today, after previous prep work, Little Sir and I got the patio tomatoes in the ground, and some bright yellow marigolds, which, I hear, keep the rabbits from eating your veggies. Hope that's true.

The hanging strawberry plants I bought at a fundraiser haven't shown signs of life yet. It sounded like a good idea, but what arrived was a bag of dead-looking plants and this tablet of instant peat-moss or something, that, with a period of watering, grows up to fill the basket with potting soil of a type...including some stuff that looks like what's inside disposable diapers...those silicone-looking beads that absorb the liquid. Hmmm. We'll see.


We have a groundhog, or whatever you call those beaver-otter-ish looking rodents that pop up on the side of the road, eating grass and stuff, that hibernated the winter under our front porch. I only discovered it in early spring, when at dawn, he was out scrounging around for something green to eat in the lawn. Periodically he can be seen at dawn or dusk, but quickly scuffles away back under there whenever something startles him. Anyway, I hope he doesn't like my garden, either.

Concerts In June

I just read the upcoming events at Stony Brook for the beginning of the summer season. The Emerson String Quartet is sponsoring an intensive week-long program for 3 winning string quartets, which includes full tuition, room and board, travel expenses. The intensive study includes some events open to the public, and "culminates in a pair of free public concerts in which the young performers will have a chance to show what they've learned." (according to the SBU blurb.)

This is a great opportunity to bring the kids (or just go alone!) to see and hear some amazing music, and perhaps broaden their horizons a bit. Some of my students have been so inspired after these performances, to take up a new instrument (particularly cello, for some reason.)

Friday, June 6, Stony Brook

8:00 pm	PUBLIC CONCERT, Staller Center Recital Hall

Saturday, June 7, Southampton

4:00 pm	PUBLIC CONCERT Duke Lecture Hall Southampton

I'm planning on taking Little Sir on Saturday, perhaps after a picnic lunch at Agawam Park. You should come! (It's free!)

No Assembly Required

Ok, so, I just spent about an hour and forty-five minutes helping Little Sir put together some of the many little pieces that came with the accessories to his new castle. (The castle itself is mostly assembled, with the exception of the drawbridge, flaming torches, flags, and a few other sundries.) Normally, this would be fun. Except that some of these little pieces don't exactly fit where they're supposed to, and some things just don't go the way they look in the pictures. (The brackets for the flaming torches keep popping off the wall, the armor rack doesn't hold the armor the way it's supposed to, etc.) The visors were pretty easy to snap onto the helmets, and the horse's gear went together fairly easily.

I haven't even attempted the catapult yet. I need a break. Mostly because, I have learned, that these new "green" lightbulbs don't give off enough light to work by. I haven't had to do any real close-up work since we've started using them, so I've put up with the annoyance of never feeling like I have enough light (except for in the kitchen, where it drives me crazy. I want to SEE what I'm chopping!) But now it's really starting to bother me. I even checked the closet to see if we might have any of the old lightbulbs left.

Of course not.

Ok. Enough venting. Back to the world of knights.

Happy Birthday, Little Sir!

Well, it's official. Little Sir's name must change again. He is no longer Little-Sir-4-Year-Old. He is now Little-Sir-5-Year-Old. Somehow, it just doesn't sound as cute as "3" and "4" did.

I loved him being 4. It was perfect. Potty trained, semi-independent, yet still snuggly and I-love-you-y. 5 seems so old. sigh.

So far, the birthday week has been a success. (Yes, "birthday week." We are rarely all together at the same time, so events seem to come in increments.)

Monday was the parent-gift, a day at the Bronx Zoo with the two of us, complete with camel rides and everything.

Tuesday and Wednesday, mostly uneventful.

Today, he had a little time with DD before work, and spent half the day with his big brother, getting spoiled, getting to choose their activities...he chose:

1) a few rounds of Rock Band (he likes to play guitar AND sing at the mic)

2) breakfast at the bagel shop

3) then, Number-One-Son took over the choosing and surprised him with
a trip to Toys-R-Us where he was allowed to pick his own gift. (He picked the first thing he saw, a Spiderman swim set: goggles, fins, and gloves that shoot water instead of webs.) Number One encouraged him to tour the entire store carefully before making his actual selection. He ended up with a Playmobil castle...and the Spiderman set. (I guess
that's what big brothers are for.)

4) then, I picked him up after work and we had play time before picking up a pizza and meeting DH at the park for dinner al fresco.

5) now, he's in the tub with the Spiderman gear.

What a day!


I kinda wish I could be 5 again. Just for a little while.

Quote of the Day

Just read Msn's "75 Skills Every Man Should Master." (I know, I know...I am not a man...but I had a tiny bit of downtime at work, and it was on the cover page , and I was a little bored, and curious, sooo...) Mostly, I agreed with things on the list...and many things woman should master as well. I just happened to like this, so here's the quote:


Describe a glass of wine in one sentence without using the terms nutty, fruity, oaky, finish, or kick. I once stood in a wine store in West Hollywood where the owner described a pinot noir he favored as "a night walk through a wet garden." I bought it. I went to my hotel and drank it by myself, looking at the flickering city with my feet on the windowsill. I don't know which was more right, the wine or the vision that he placed in my head. Point is, it was right.

Memorial Day

I realize the solemnity of Memorial Day, and I do honor those to whom honor is due.

But, this year, contrary to my normal practice, I think I will actually take some time off. Not the whole 3 days, but at least one. I'm cooking up a plan...
I'll keep ya posted.

What are you doing this weekend? (And please, don't everybody say "working"!)

Characters and All That

We had an interesting experience yesterday, that gave me one of those deja vu-ish moments. Chase bank on Rt. 58 (Best Buy shopping center) was having their grand opening, and I had one of those coupons that came in the mail, offering a nice bonus for opening a new account. So, Little Sir and I traipsed off, coupon in hand, to do our banking business, and see what the "grand" opening had to offer.

The young "personal banker" I was directed to, Heather, was very sweet and intelligent and managed my various money issues efficiently. Meanwhile, several layers of "manager" came over into the little booth where her desk was to introduce themselves and shake hands. Little Sir was inundated with balloons (both the regular helium kind and those made into little animal and toy shapes by a clown lady, with minimal make-up and normal hair,) pretzels, hotdogs, juice boxes, cookies, you name it. There was a bouncy house, which was quite a hit. Great free fun.

Everything was fine...until...

enter "Chase", a 6' 5"-ish adult in a blue dog costume, the kind of costume one sees worn by someone standing on the side of the road in front of some business, waving as the cars drive by. Seemingly innocent, non-verbal, waving in a friendly manner, when "Chase the Dog" was brought over to my son, fear instantly registered on his little face. He tried to be brave, and when the lady who was doing the introductions asked if he'd like to shake "Chase's" paw, he very politely, with quivering lip, said, "No, thank you," turned to me and said, "Can we go home, now?"
I picked him up and he was shaking from head to toe.

And I remembered. DD had similar reactions to clowns when she was little. (Still doesn't like them, actually.) I was instantly transported back to Disney World where I witnessed a surprising melt-down in my normally courageous little girl.

Shortly thereafter, I saw another child freak out when approached by Mickey Mouse.

So, what is it about people in costumes? I explained to Little Sir that it was really just a person in a costume, just like when he puts on his Spiderman costume, or his Eeyore. Do these costumes instantly give him the ability to swing from skyscraper to skyscraper by webs, or make him a literal donkey? No. Logically, he understood, and even asked to be taken back again a little later, to try to approach "Chase" again. We tried again. He still shook. Couldn't do it.

Why do costumes thrill and excite some, and terrify others? I just don't know. What do you think?

Leave Replacement

Under the category of "Be Careful What You Wish For," I'll now enter, "wanting a FT job in my new certification."

I haven't been blogging, or doing much of anything else, since I started my new job, sort of suddenly.

I should back up. After "Enough is Enough!" and my speaking blessings and positive things, we had a wonderful trip to sunny Florida to go to DD's college graduation. Everything I'd been dreading, fearing, things that potentially could go horribly wrong, did not happen. We, and our luggage, all arrived at the right places, at the right times, together! Amazing. Never had THAT happen before. Our ride was there to pick us up, after a minimal baggage-claim wait. Weather was perfect. We had some R and R time and good visiting time with family and friends. I got some excellent one on one time with DD, and got to see some of her special places (and, we being the crazy ones we are, decided to alter her graduation dress the night before!!! Shoulda taken pictures of that!) I didn't get lost on the long drive from our friends' house to her school and back again, and Little Sir was a real trouper (even when he got sick. Apparently, croup likes to travel, as well.) Thank You, God, for a reprieve from horribleness and giving me some blessing time to bask in.

As soon as we got back, I signed a contract, and Boom! Life as I knew it changed dramatically. I am now a FT ESL teacher. No more subbing. (Yay!) I am in the same school every day, teaching my own students, making my own schedules, learning the ropes of this particular place. But it was definitely diving into the deep end of the pool. I was handed quite a mess, with multiple problems of all different kinds, seemingly right from the beginning of the school year. I am attempting to salvage what is left of the school year, straighten out the mess, assess all those in my care, get them services they've been lacking, target what skills each individual student needs to focus on to be academically successful, and give meaningful instruction. It ain't easy. (Plus, I seem to have picked up a bug early last week, which is hanging on, leaving me drained and with little energy left for the rest of my life, after school.)

Still teaching my private music students, most of whom are headed to NYSSMA. Some are doing excellently, sure to score well, others haven't put in the time they should've and scores will probably reflect that, too. After a frustrating day at Job #1, it is often pleasurably relaxing to sit beside a music student and help them tweak their pieces. There are many times where I think, "I get paid to do this???" Which is good, because it balances out the other, which makes me think "I am not getting paid enough to do this!"

And so goes this next little phase of my life.

How's yours?

Enough is Enough

Right after my last blog post, a series of really crappy incidents occurred...a sort of ratwheel of unpleasant events that just keeps spinning and spinning. I've thought about different ways to blog about it, and have come up dry. So, I'll just gripe a little.

It all started when my dear friend/surrogate mom, Carole Rucci, finally lost the ultimate fight with cancer. I will write another whole entry devoted to her, as befits the absolutely incredible woman she was. But for now, suffice it to say, the night I got the call that she was really at the end this time, was the beginning of the dominoes going down.

One thing after the other, until tonight, when the carwash guy drove my car off the carwash machine-rollers and slammed it into a 5-day-old Prius. Yeah. Insurances companies are gonna have a field day with this one. (And, it was only a few weeks ago, I had to call mine to tell them I'd been smashed by a hit-and-run while in the pediatrician's office.)

So, I am now officially saying, Enough Is Enough! I am ready for the next phase to begin, the one that brings positive events, thoughts, feelings, blessings, you name it. It's time, already.

My To-Do List

I suddenly feel the urge to make a to-do list. Not the kind of errand-ing to-do list...you know, "pick up the dry cleaning, get milk, go to the post office, clean the oven, fix the screen door..." kind of list. I mean, an Eventually To-Do List. Things I've always wanted to do but either couldn't afford, or didn't have time for yet, or needed the right person to do it with, or some other qualification. So, I'm gonna start one right here. It may be updated periodically. Feel free to start your own here, or add suggestions to mine. It's so much fun to share.

1. Go cross-country skiing (Always wanted to do this...actually, when I was younger I wanted to do downhill, but after back injuries and carpal tunnel syndrome, I figure cross country is safer, and better exercise...and easier to share with.)

2. Scuba dive in Hawaii

3. Really learn Turkish well (have made so many half-hearted attempts...)

4. Get back the French and Italian I've lost, then increase fluency

5. Get published in a scholarly journal (maybe TESOL???)

6. Learn how to reallly play "Blackbird" (Paul McCartney)

7. See the Swiss Alps

8. Finally reach my ideal weight/fitness level




ok. your turn.

Taxes

Taxes.

This one single word is an instant stress-bringer.

Every office job I had, working on the taxes, whether gathering the information to be used in the preparation, or actually filling out forms, was always a little bit scary. Maybe it's because there's so much on the line. If you make a mistake, it could be very problematic later on. I did have two stints working at H & R Block, and that helped me see it all in black and white, understanding how the whole system works. But still, when it's MY taxes, it's personal.

So. We're done. For one more year, I can breathe until it's time to do it again. Did I remember all the things to claim? Do I have this receipt, that bill, that form? Can I claim this thing this year? Ugh.

Not one of my favorite activities. Not at all.

Spring is Here!

It seems, Spring has come early this year. Partly, because "they", the decision-making powers that be, moved Daylight Savings Time up so that it's earlier than ever, and partly because Easter was the earliest in something-like 93 years (or so I've been told.) So, we had D.S.T. , quickly followed by Easter, with St. Patty's Day sandwiched in between. And, now, we're off and runnin'...

Little Sir and I were treated to a visit to the Aquarium in Riverhead on Saturday. It was totally unexpected, and totally delightful. Got a text with the invitation, and who could pass that up? (Thank you, thank you, again, "B"!) So, right after my morning lessons, I picked him up and met our friend there. They were having a "penguin egg" hunt, and there were lots of little kids there with their families. The lovely weather made seeing the outside exhibits, penguins, sea lions and seals, all the more pleasurable. It was Little Sir's second visit there (it is pricey), and last time he was petrified of the sharks. This time, that exhibit was the first one he wanted to see! There is a big maturity-level difference between 3 and 4-years-old, I guess, in the fear-factor area. It was almost exactly a year ago that we went for the first time, with my dad.

Being at the Aquarium brought back all those old feelings from childhood and adolescence. I had so wanted to be a marine biologist and work with someone like Jacques Cousteau, diving in all those wonderful places, like the Great Barrier Reef. Ah yes. But the Federal funding had been cut, and the programs were gone by the time I got to college-choice time...and so...on to other options...and life changes, taking different paths. One always wonders what life would be like if one had taken an alternate path. Would I be a marine biologist, having dived all over the world (without a weight problem!), or would I have been unemployed within my field eternally after graduation with a useless degree and lots of loans? So, instead, I started out a writing major, taking a scholarship, music minor. Later flip-flopped that. On to other degrees in other disciplines.

All of these experiences shape our lives, making a many-faceted stone. Who knew, all those years ago, when all I wanted to do was swim with dolphins, and explore the depths of various seas, and learn and learn and learn about different species of animal and plant life, that I would one day end up a music teacher with TESOL certification, headed to speak at the international TESOL convention in 2 weeks? Life's crazy sometimes, huh?

March 17th

March 17th is very special to me. Yes, it is St. Patty's Day, and yes, I have an Irish heritage (1/4 Irish,) and yes, I am partial to green, and Celtic music makes my blood tingle...
but the best part about March 17th is that that's the day my Dahlink Dawtah was born. My little girl. Not so little any more...she's taller than me! She takes after my two grandmothers, who were both taller than their husbands. She is beautiful, both inside and out, and smart and talented and sweet and generous and has a heart of gold, truer than any at the end of the rainbow.

Happy Birthday, Sweetheart...I love you!

Ooouuuch...

After being politely pestered and nagged by my son's karate teacher, who loves to enlist positive peer pressure, to try out their adult kick boxing class, I finally gave in and went, on my only real night off in ages. I was a little nervous about going. I know a lot of the other parents go, and they look pretty in-shape to me. I have not been particularly successful in getting back to my pre-baby body, and Little Sir's 4 now! But, after staring critically at myself in the mirror in my exercise pants and t-shirt ("You look beeeyoooteeful," said Little Sir sweetly,) off I went.

It really was a great work-out, although not quite what I was expecting, and the instructor was very careful to repeatedly tell me not too push too hard my first night. I surprised myself by aggressively punching and kicking my imaginary attacker (the bag) in choreographed moves. It was fun! I can definitely see how this is a stress-buster, in more ways than one! The self-defense is a good skill to have, just in case...

Even tho' I didn't push too hard, and didn't try to do exactly what the class models did, I am sore today, in places I didn't think I would be. But I am proud of myself, and I think I just may stick with this, if I can just just figure out how to reasonably schedule it. It's important. I have to do this for myself (4 years of trying it my way, always putting my body last, has not worked.)

But...Oooouuuch....

A Very Pleasant Surprise

I am not someone who wins things often. As a matter of fact, the last thing I remember winning was a giant pumpkin, 'way back in 1978, I think. I was with my mom in one of the past-glory-days big box stores, that's long gone now, and she'd bumped into an old friend there. As I was standing there, bored out of my mind while they yack-yack-yacked about things of no relevance to adolescent me, I spotted this sign nearby about winning awesome prizes. Intrigued, I checked it out. All you had to do was guess the weight of this enormous pumpkin. Ok. It was something to do while I waited impatiently.

Not being a mathmatical genius by any stretch of the imagination, I took one uneducated guess, judging by the sheer girth of the thing, and wrote it down on the slip, with all my info (name, address, telephone.) The ladies were still at it, so I continued to fill out slips. I just threw a set of random numbers down, with a decimal point somewhere in the midst, slip after slip, until I got writers' cramp. Finally, Mom was done and we left the store, with the pumpkin promptly forgotten.

About a week or so later, I got this call from the store, asking for me. Confused at first, I couldn't imagine why they'd call me. I hadn't shoplifted or anything, and certainly hadn't applied for a job. You guessed it...I won! I was all excited, hardly believing my ears.

"Which number won?" I asked.
"Excuse me???" came the reply.
"Well, I made more than one guess, so which one was right?"
Turns out it was one of those random numbers, about twenty digits long.
Huh. Go figure.
Probably made me look exceptionally brilliant.

"So, what did I win?" I asked.

I won a "fabulous turkey dinner for two, including 2 complimentary glasses of wine" at the store's attached restaurant (whoo hoo!) and...
the pumpkin.

Ok. So I dragged someone with me to redeem the prize, ate the semi-edible turkey dinner in the ambiance-free setting, too young to drink the wine (even tho' the drinking age was 18 back then!), and loaded that pumpkin into the back seat of the car (no small feat!) Triumphantly, I brought the pumpkin into the house, where it sat in all its orange glory on a table in the living room for quite some time, the conversation-starter of the decade, until it was time to butcher it and turn it into many, many dinner-time experiments (and a freezer-full to last a very, very long time.)

Ok. Fast forward to yesterday, 29 1/2 years later.

One of my music students gave me a beautiful big coffee mug for Christmas, with this really pretty wintery scene etched on its clear glass, the envy of the household. Everybody wants to drink out of it. It was filled with Lindt truffles (mmmm) and a Starbucks gift certificate. Very nice. Very thoughtful gift to a music teacher who's on the road a LOT, and who's always pinching pennies, so I don't treat myself to this sort of thing very often. I have been doling out the precious cups, trying to make it last as long as possible, seeing how many beverages I could get with it.

Last week, I used my last of the gift certificate, a bit sadly. It was a bittersweet moment, when I surrendered the card, remembering fondly the cute little boy and his sweet mom who had bestowed it lovingly upon me. As I stood on line, I noticed a chalk board with the trivia question of the week. Apparently, you could guess at the answer, put it on your receipt with your name and telephone number, and you'd win free coffee or something. Ok. I had noticed this board before, but the questions were always something I didn't know...based on nuclear physics, or some rock idol, or which celebrity shared a birthday with Lewis Carroll or some such. But this day, I happened to know the answer! Yippee. So, after placing my order, I asked how to supply my try at the prize, filled out the slip, and was on my merry way, the question now forgotten.

Yesterday, I had a very long day of teaching ahead of me, so I stopped mid-way through to purchase a cup of the brew that I've begun to enjoy (especially now that I have finally learned HOW to order there...sooo complicated!) When it was my turn, I looked up to see the flavors of the day, and saw my name in big bold print on the chalkboard.
"Hey, that's me!" I said.
"What?"
"Up there...that's my name!"
"Can you prove it?"
"What???"
"Can you prove it?"
"You mean like with i.d. or something?"
"Yeah...I gave a prize to someone once who said it was them, and then the real person came in to claim the prize and I'd given it to the wrong person."
"Oh. Well, my pocketbook is in the car (dumb move, I know), but I can go get it."
"Is that your mail you're holding?"
"Yes."
"That'll do"
So, I handed over a piece of mail with my name on it, and was given a card that said "Customer of the Week" with stamps for 7 complimentary beverages...any type, any size, anything I wanted. Wow!

So, now, I will slowly savor this card, allowing myself hot, comforting, caffeine-laced beverages to get me through long teaching days that stretch into evenings, without pinching pennies, for a little while longer.

Ahhhhh.

A Perfect Meal

Every so often I happen upon a wonderful, memorable meal, and I just want to savor the moment. Yesterday, sick to death of the same old, same old round of meals (no more chicken, please! tired of spinach, green beans, blah blah blah) I went to the fish market looking for inspiration. They had scallops (ocean scallops and bay scallops) that looked pretty good, so I bought some, thinking they cook up pretty quickly, and I could throw something together after Little Sir's karate class.

The result was mmmmmmmmm...

Here's what I did:

Mediterranean Scallops
serves 4

Ingredients:
2 TBL butter
1 1/2 lbs bay scallops (could use sea scallops)
3 medium-sized tomatoes
2 cloves garlic
1 bunch fresh parsley
1 lemon
1 package pilaf
(flavor or your choice)
1 large loaf Italian bread


Prepare rice (plain or pilaf, your choice. As it's cooking, based on how much time it will take, start the following.)

Put about 2 TBL butter in a large shallow (fry) pan, on low heat to melt.
Cut up 3 medium-small sized tomatoes into about 3/4" chunks, add to melted butter.
As the tomatoes are sauteeing, slice 2 sections of garlic and set aside (for maximum potency or flavor and nutrient-absorption, they're supposed to "rest" for at least 10 minutes after slicing/chopping, before cooking.)
Rinse a big bunch of parsley (we like Italian parsley) and pull off the leaves...about enough to fill a dinner plate 1/2 - 3/4" high. Discard the stems. Set aside.
Rinse the scallops and set aside to drain.
Squeeze the juice from 1 lemon, set aside.

Once 10 minutes has passed since slicing the garlic, add garlic and parsley to tomatoes. Once garlic is soft, add lemon juice, and a minute later add the scallops.

Once the scallops are fully cooked, white all the way through, it's ready to serve!

Serve the scallops and mixture over the pilaf with some warm Italian bread. Bon appetit!



**you could substitute olive oil for the butter. I usually do use it instead, but sometimes the garlic burns too quickly, and the temperature needed for the rest is too high. Butter works better for me with this recipe.

Help Me Make A List

I have decided to compile a list for myself and other teacher-friends of important things to do (and NOT to do) to inspire creativity, true learning, even greatness in our students. I am looking for good ideas. What did your favorite teacher(s) do? What did the worst teacher (s) do? What do you wish a teacher had done?

This may be something updated, revised, and revisited here on the blog. So...let me hear your ideas!

It's The Little Things

Saturday afternoon was cold, but sunny and not windy, so Little Sir and I took advantage of the mildness. After playing whiffleball for awhile, we took his bike (me walking, him pedaling) down the road to visit the neighbor's horses. We brought a bag of windfall apples from a tree at DH's job...not particularly edible for people, unless you bake them to death in something, but a nice equine treat.

On the way home we had a nice chat. Little Sir decided he really wants a horse. I explained that horse ownership requires a lot of money. "So, can you give me lots of monies?" he asked sweetly.

"Well, I don't have lots of money, Love."

"Pleeease..."

"It's not a matter of 'please'...I just don't have it."

"So...how do you get lots of monies?"

"Ah. Everybody wants to know the answer to that question."

"So...what's the answer?"

"Well, first you have to get a job."

"Why do I have to get a job?"

"You work for someone, and they pay you for what you do."

"Oh." "What can I do?"

"Well, you need a job that pays very well. Maybe you could plan to be a doctor."

"Or a soccer player?"

"Yes, that would pay you a lot of money."

"Ok."

"Ok."

Problem solved.

Since We're Talking About Kids' Stuff...

Maybe it's because I have been reading more kids' books lately, partly to prepare for upcoming lesson plans, and partly to see what I want to add to my personal classroom library, but while Little Sir and I were on our weekly library video/DVD hunt, I was looking for something a little different than we usually get. Sometimes I get him things that are purely educational, like wildlife flicks, or more along the line of The Electric Company, and sometimes I'm aiming for widening his literary/cultural horizons, broadening the base of his culture-acquisition, like last week's The Adventures of Robin Hood, with the incomparable Errol Flynn.

This week, I just wanted something different...not sure what...

And then I saw it, and I knew this was the one. Did you ever read Beverly Cleary's books? She was one of my favorite authors, as a child...I love the Beezus and Ramona books (even tho' I wasn't sure I particularly liked either sister), Henry and Ribsy, and especially The Mouse and the Motorcycle. It was made into a movie many eons ago, so the animation of the mouse isn't as high-tech as Stuart Little, but it's still good. Little Sir was absolutely laughing out loud at several portions...deep, belly laughs. I was laughing, just listening to him laugh! And it is funny.

It's a cute flick, which the box says for "ages 4-11, adults" ... whatever THAT means.


For a little light fun, innocent, nonobtrusive, and worth even comparing to modern computer-animation techniques, check it out.

Another Book Review

My current job has some lag time, which permits me extra reading time. I have not found any wonderful grown-up books to report (I have started and left many, not worth finishing, and one I did finish left me very disappointed at the end.) However, I have discovered two more for elementary kids, probably more for girls than boys, but not necessarily so.

Me and the Pumpkin Queen, by Marlane Kennedy. A delightful book that follows a girl through several years in elem. school. She's not prissy prim, but more interested in successfully growing a giant pumpkin to enter the Pumpkin Show (there are lots of details in this process) than nail polish and clothes. She is also dealing with the recent death of her mother, and has a wonderful relationship with her dad and grandparents. Her best friend is a boy, which is another healthy relationship. Probably appropriate for ages 7-12, depending on reading ability, I give this 4 stars.

Lucy Rose, by Katy Kelly. There are at least 3 of these out: Lucy Rose Big On Plans, Lucy Rose Busy Like You Can't Believe, and Lucy Rose Working Myself to Bits and Pieces. This character is delightful, intelligent, a little quirky, a breath of fresh air. She and her best friend, Jonique, spend a lot of time coming up with ideas to help other people, from the residents of a retired-people's home, to Jonique's mom's struggling to open a bakery business. Lucy Rose's parents are going through separation/divorce, but are doing so with a healthy supportive relationship with their daughter. Both sets of gradnparents are also available, which adds much flavor and humor to these books. Lucy Rose gets 4 stars from me, probably appropriate for ages 7-10, depending on reading ability.

Ya Hadta Be There

Life from a 4-year-old's perspective can be very interesting, and the communicating of life's experiences often needs a translator (transliterator?) to sort out the details. Case in point: our first real field trip, tagging along with East End Homeschoolers at the Long Island Science Center. Little Sir was telling his big sister all about it on the phone. It went something like this.

"Guess what? We had a chocolate class today!"

"Really! Was it fun?"

"Yeah. And we ate yucky beans." ("cocoa beans," I prompted)

"And it was hot."

"The room was hot?"

"No. The chocolate. It was hot. It came in a cup. And we made shapes out of it."

"Oh! You made chocolate to eat?"

"Yeah. And there were bugs!"

"Bugs in the chocolate?"

"No."

"You used a candy mold shaped like bugs?"

"No." ("We were at the Science Center." I whisper.)

"We were at the Science Center."

"Oh! The Science Center had bugs."

"Yeah. They were in a cage. There were lots of them!"

"Oh."

"And a snake!"

"A snake?"

"Yeah. He had a really long tail."

"Oh. That's nice."

"Yeah. And I got a yoyo."

"Did they do something with yoyos at the Science Center?"

"No."

"Did they show you how to use one?"

"No."

"Was it a chocolate yoyo?"

"No. It's here! Wanna see it?" He holds his new yoyo up to the phone.

Deep sigh... "I gotta go now. I love you. Bye!"



Sometimes I wish I had it all on tape.

Locked Out

Little Sir is very very happy. He has a story to tell, and he doesn't care who he shares it with. The fact that it might bring embarrassment upon his mommy somehow makes the whole story-telling that much more pleasurable.

It all started like this. I had come home from substitute-teaching on one of those particularly brutally windy and cold days last week, just in time to kiss DH good-bye as he rushed out the door for work. As we were scurrying around the house, grabbing coats, hats, Little Sir's backpack, etc. , yelling questions back and forth ("What did Little Sir eat for lunch?" "Who's babysitting him today?" "I have to drop him off at K's after karate so I can go teach lessons." "Did you fix the flat on your car?", and so on.) These days, this is basically how DH and I communicate in person...on the fly. We actually speak more on the phone than face-to-face.

In the midst of all that, Little Sir is yelling, "Someone's knocking on the door!" "What?" "Somebody's knocking on the door!" "NO! Not now! Who is it?" "I don't know. There's a "Stranger's" car in the driveway."

Sigh loudly. Grumble, grumble. It better NOT be a JW or something, or someone trying to sell us something. NOT today!

I open the door to see 2 ordinary-looking young men standing on the porch, obviously freezing to death. "Are you selling that bus out there?"

Oh no. Not now. DH and I look at each other. If he does it, he'll be late. I have about 15 minutes leeway before Little Sir and I absolutely have to roll out of the driveway. Ok. DH leaves, and I play saleslady.

I grab the keys to our converted schoolbus/RV (which IS for sale...anyone interested?) and take the young men on the tour. "It's fully self-contained, has all new kitchen appliances, tub as well as shower," blah blah blah. They are suitably impressed, as everybody is. Discuss the engine, price. Blah blah blah. "We'll be back..." They never are.

I stick the bus keys in my coat pocket, run back in the house. , "Are you ready, Honey?" I ask Little Sir. He's all bundled up like a snowman, over his karate clothes. I briefly think I should either change his pants into something heavier, or pull sweats over them...second guess myself...no, we'll only be outside for a second, then in the car, heat on, he'll be fine. Make sure the back door is locked, lock the front door behind me, check my coat pocket for the keys, and race to the car. "Ok, Hon', let's get buckled quickly. We don't want to be late!"

I reach in my coat pocket for the car keys, pull them out and, "Oh, no! NO!"

"What's wrong?"

"These are the bus keys!" I frantically search the other pocket, my pocketbook (where I KNOW my cars keys are not...my keychain, the one with the HOUSE key on it!)

I quickly close Little Sir into the car. At least he won't be out in the wind. Ok. I can figure this out. I am an intelligent woman.

I check the back door, even tho' I know I just checked it from the INSIDE to be sure it was locked. I check all the windows, but they have these security stops on them...can't open them more than an inch from the outside. Sigh. Ok. What do I do now? DH is already too far away to have him come back. What do I do? I don't have my car keys, so I can't drive to get help.
Think! Nothing. No ideas.

Ok. Call DH. "I'm almost to Southampton. Do you want me to come home?" "No. That's crazy. Then you'd be really late for work. I'll figure something out."

Back in the car. Tell Little Sir what's going on. "Try the window." "I did...they're all locked." Well, actually, I didn't try ALL the windows. Not the ones in his bedroom. Ok. Couldn't hurt to check.

By some miracle, one of those opened! Yay! But it's over my shoulders. Ok. Go get Little Sir. "You have to help me, Hon'. I'm going to put you through your bedroom window, and you go unlock the front door, ok?" (Normally, he is NOT allowed to unlock the doors!) "Ok!" HE'S got a big smile on his face. HE thinks this is an adventure. HE is laughing as I put him through the window, and drop him on the other side, ever-so-carefully. I hear his footsteps through the house. I hear his little voice on the outside of the front door, "I did it!"

I am so happy, so proud of him! "You did such a great job! I'm so glad you were here with me!"

Oh no. I check the time. Too late to get him to karate, now. He would've missed half the class. No point. "I'm sorry, Love. That took so much time, we can't go to karate today."

"That's ok." he beams back at me. "I saved the day!"

On our way to K's now, to drop him off for a few hours of playing with her kids while I teach music, he is happily chattering in the backseat. "I did it! I went through the window. I opened the door all by myself. We were locked out and I saved the day!" I call DH and let him know, and let Little Sir tell his exciting news on the phone.

And as soon as we got to K's, he had to share his story.

It's great to get to be the hero sometimes. Even when you're only four years old.



(Many thanks to Luna for sharing her story, and inspiring me to blog about mine!)

Amber Brown

I am a read-aholic. Ok. I admit it. My husband often teases me for it (and I quickly retort with my minutes reading = his hours reading news/politics/finance on the internet...somehow, he doesn't see the equation.) I enjoy reading many different genres, written for various age levels.

My newest discovery (well, I personally did not discover her, the publishing house did that all on its own, but you know what I mean) is the "Amber Brown" series of books by Paula Danziger. I've only read the first 2 books, but so far, I am hooked. In the first book, "Amber" is a 3rd-grader, coping with different stresses in life, including her best friend moving away, with humor and intelligence. She's a 4th grader in the second book. I don't know how old Danziger has let her grow so far.

I would definitely recommend the "Amber Brown" books, probably for 3rd-5th graders...depending on how old "Amber" gets. Maybe older! And for anyone else who, like me, reads "eclectically."

I have a stack of other books (grown-up, mostly) to browse through to see what I'll read next. Riverhead Library has a winter reading club for adults now, so I may even get a free dinner out of it!

What are you reading?

"Your Majesty"

As we were driving home from errands, Little Sir was chattering away in the backseat (as usual), and said something about "Your Majesty." So, of course, I had to take advantage of the "teachable moment" and asked him what that meant, and when do you use it, blah blah blah. Since he got the t.v. series Prince Valiant on DVD from his big brother for Christmas, he's had lots of time absorbing medieval protocol and customs.

It got me thinking. Different cultures attach similar titles and phrases ("Oh King __, may you live forever...") Some believe their royalty is descended from, or currently exist as, gods. (This can caused all kinds of terrible repercussions when, as in the case of Japan, the people were subjected to the rude awakening that their sovereign was, indeed, merely human, and able to be conquered and made subject by other powers.)

"Your Majesty." Just think about what that means. I mean, of course you cannot address royalty by their proper name, title-less. I am not up on when it is appropriate to say "Prince So-And-So" and when you use "Your Majesty", but still..."majesty", from whence we get "majestic"...makes me think of awesome nature scenes, like the power of the ocean, or an incredible mountain view. To give that title to a human? I suppose there have been those deserving of the title. In general those in positions of honor and respect get titles thrust upon them, whether they deserve them or not. "Your Lordship"...meaning, you have lordship over me in my mere lowly state. But "Majesty"! Wow. It really is something to think about.

How about "Your Awesomeness"?


I suppose, growing up in the U.S., rather than in a monarchy, say, I don't fully get the significance of these things. But it does give me cause to stop and think.

"My Mere Ordinariness..." me

Brain, Child

At the library (one of my regular hang-outs,) after finding the required items on my list, I had a little extra time, so I browsed the children's room a bit while Little Sir played with the puppet theatre. I'm always looking for early childhood/pre-K/K-2 ideas for projects & educational boosters to do with him.

I ended up at the magazine display, and stumbled upon a publication I haven't noticed before. It's called Brain,Child. The self-titled "magazine for thinking mothers" has lots of interesting articles I enjoyed, and I would highly recommend it to any of you who regularly stop by at my blog here. Definitely not for women only, it's about parenting...but different than all the other parenting magazines I've read over the years. I can't quite put my finger on why, just yet. I'm still dabbling in my first 3 issues, dipping into articles here and there, as a title strikes my fancy. I'll keep ya posted.

Band-Aids

"Take that, you Band-Aids!"

jibber jabber jibber jabber


galloping-around-the-house noises


"Pow, pow.....pow-pow-pow!
Look out! The Band-Aids are hiding behind the door!"

scurrying, rustling noises somewhere behind me

"Look out! Those Band-Aids are really bad!"


Ok...Suddenly these words start wafting through into my conscious mind, as I work on the computer on an important presentation. Bad Band-Aids? All I can remember having in the medicine cabinet are Elmo and Big-Bird bandages. What is he talking about?

"Pow. Pow. Pow-pow-pow!
Look out, Tonto! Here they come! Look out for those bad Band-Aids!"

I clear my throat. "Hey, Honey, come here a minute."

"Otay."

"What are you playing?"

"Dere's bad duys over dere."

"Bandits???"

"Band-Aids."

"Who are you right now?"

"I'm de Lone Ranger. Dis is my friend, Tonto. Say, 'Hi, Tonto!'"

"Hi, Tonto. Are you chasing bandits?"

"Ummm. I fink so."

"Ban-dits. Not Band-Aids."

"oh.
Come on, Tonto! Let's go!"

Galloping noises recede...

Chalk

With all this interviewing, and reading lots of books and articles to prepare me for upcoming teaching seminars, I am in a "teaching" frame of mind. To keep within the current mood, I borrowed a DVD from the library from the "new" shelf...sorta just jumped out at me.

At first, I thought it was a documentary, and only at the end do you figure out they're actually actors. It's called Chalk and it reminds me of a podcast I had to watch for one of my grad. online courses, on the NYC Teaching Fellows. That followed a group of professionals who'd agreed to join the Teaching Fellows...in exchange for a free MA, they'd teach in a NYC school for 2 years, I think. It was a way to get teachers into the NYC schools, who really were suffering a teacher shortage. By going into the professional world (anyone with a BA or BS in anything qualified) to bring people in, the idea was to plump up the workforce, and breathe new life into a really stale and suffering school system.

Anyway, Chalk follows a group of 1st and 2nd year teachers & one administrator in one particular school for one year. They are taped in their classrooms, faculty rooms, meetings, and also speak into a web cam at home. It really seems very authentic. I was very surprised to find out it was scripted, and I know there must've been quite a bit of input from real-life beginning teachers. It was very interesting to watch, especially as I'm entering this work force, myself, after an adult life outside of the "system."


I'd recommend this movie for anyone at all connected with teaching or with the schools in general (BOE, panel members, coaches, PTA, parents in general, etc.,) and anyone outside as well. It's an insightful look into how different personalities deal with the stresses of teaching in a public high school, how some survive and how some do not. I came away with some thoughts of how to make myself better as a teacher, a professional, and in dealing with difficult situations. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Peter and the Wolf

Wanna come visit my world for a minute? I'll give you the guided tour.

I am sitting at the computer (obviously) after a looong day, hot cup of tea nearby to warm me up after freeeeezing myself outside running stupid errands after all my professional appointments. (My feet never stay warm in dress shoes, even tho' I blast the car heat on them in between stops.) The tea is also a good remedy for jangled nerves, the result of professional-and-other related events of the day. I am checking the professional email, and dealing with all those messages. Then on to the personal email, getting rid of junk (just as much as in my regular mailbox!), answering who I can briefly.

DH is off at work, and Little Sir is bopping all around the house, occupying himself with one thing then another.

All of a sudden I realize, he is humming, at the top of his lungs (yes, this is possible) the various tunes in "Peter and the Wolf".

Ah, yes. I have succeeded in raising a cultured 4-year-old. Well, pat me on the back.

sigh

I deserve this tea.

The Substitute

Well, while I am waiting for my real grown-up job to materialize (the one with benefits...medical, retirement, paid sick days and holidays, etc. etc.)
...not that being a private music teacher is not a grown-up job, it's just that I have so much fun with it, and it can be quite unstructured, or student-structured/tailored, answering their personal needs, not some artificial "standards"...(I digress...)

I have been coerced into being a substitute teacher.
Yeah.
You remember her. The one who came in when your "real" teacher was out, who never really knew what was going on, mostly because the "real" teacher neglected to leave anything resembling a lesson plan or hint of what the kids were working on. This was the one you either loved because they were fun and soft on you, and let the class chit chat and hang out, or hated because all they did was punish the ones acting up. The substitute...the one everybody tries to pull something over on.

Yes. Well, that would be me.

Ugh.

NEVER thought I would do this.

On the other hand, it hasn't been all bad. Certified pre-K through 12, I get my pick of a list of teachers and levels to replace for the day or however long they're out. If I don't like a class, I don't have to go back. What a concept!

I got to proctor the English Regents this week, among other things, which was very interesting from the other end of the exam. The listening portion I had to read aloud was actually worth the read.

Some classes are tougher than others, some make you want to scream, or pull your hair out, or are soooo boring you almost fall asleep (not a good thing.)

I'm remembering all kinds of movies...
Sidney Portier's To Sir, With Love
Stand and Deliver
Dangerous Minds
Mr. Holland's Opus

Ah yes. Time for a new teacher flick. Any suggestions?

Resumes and Applications

I learned something about myself today. I have always sort of dreaded filling out forms, doing paperwork, doing them as quickly as possible just to get it DONE. But, now that my MA is finished, the certification is in the process of being worked out, it is time to begin job hunting in earnest. Once the resume was polished up, and I got the info. I needed to begin (references' addresses and all that,) the leg work started. For the past few weeks, I've been finding the application process to each of my chosen school districts (within reasonable traveling distance,) which can be very different from district to district.

Well, I picked up my final (I think) application. I had a little extra time, so I went to Starbucks with my handy-dandy gift certificate from Christmas (courtesy of a sweet music student,) got a grande non-fat no-whip mocha (sigh---what a mouthful), settled into a nice table for one, and got busy. Fifteen minutes later I was shocked to find I'd vanished down memory lane, as I was writing all those "previous non-teaching experience" items. Wow. I really have done a lot of different things. Secretary for an electrician's office, tax preparer, waitress, etc. etc. The list of hobbies and non-teaching-related interests did similar things to me. I remembered people and places I haven't thought about in years!

I couldn't believe it took about an hour, even with my resume in hand to copy from, to fill out the whole thing. I actually enjoyed the process, and the memories it brought to me. So much life, so much variety, so much to sum up on those tiny little lines. What should I divulge? What will reflect well on me in an interview? What's not such a good idea? How much is too much? Should I mention previous sports I've done and coached, when I am obviously not in tip-top shape now? If I mention proctoring the National Geography Bee, will they want me to get it going in this school? It's a lot of work. Do I mention international quizzing? What items will open lines of conversation I'd rather not pursue? So many questions!!!

sigh...

Blog Support

Nan Patience, of North Fork Parents, decided to drop the "Bloggers World" section of the website, which has thrown some of us into a tizzy. Nan got me started on blogging, and led me by the hand until I got going (if you recall, I am the self-named "Technologically Challenged One.") She has been absolutely wonderful, both with her website and to me personally, and I will be forever grateful to her for introducing me to this facet of technology. However, I feel like a virtual orphan, now! (waaaah!!!)

I hope to post links to other blogs I loved from there, but I have to find you first. Six, Natasha, Nicole, momof3, Melissa...I'll be emailing...then have to navigate my way around here. (Believe it or not, I couldn't even find my own blog at first! Had to go back through old emails I'd sent to friends, telling them about the blog. Thank God, I am a virtual packrat, as well as a literal one!)

More later...

Looking For An Echo

So, there I was,
standing in front of the DVD collection at the public library,
midway through the Day-Quil cycle,
'cause it was too early for Ny-Quil,
feeling all stuffy-headed and blegcchy,
just wanting some movie that I could veg out with,
not requiring too much concentration,
nothing scary or creepy,
nothing too violent or R-rated in any way,
nothing too cutesy,
sophomorish,
or full of irritating-humor-which-I-don't-find-funny-only-stupid,
just about ready to give up and just watch a little kid movie with my 4-year-old,
when I saw it.
"Armand Assante" sort of just jumped out at me.
Now, I am no expert on Armand Assante films, but I've seen a few.
Mostly, I have liked what I've seen. There's just something about the guy.
I feel almost like I know him. He's like so many guys I've known in real life, sort of.
So, anyway, I got the movie, "Looking For An Echo."
And it was perfect.

First of all, it starts with lots of black and white pics of Brooklyn in the early '50's,
with doo-wop music in the background. You see, my mom grew up in Brooklyn, and so I grew up on her stories about Brooklyn...she was a die-hard Brooklyn Dodger fan (and those fans could never really appreciate another team once they defected to another state.) The music was from her era, her time, and it reminded me of that series we used to watch together, "Brooklyn Bridge."

So, that got me hooked.

The rest of the movie was good. Not too anything-I-didn't-want. I cried a little in the sad part, and wished my mom was with me to share it. Or my Grama. An authentic Brooklynite, she would've liked it, too. And the theme song was awesome...as was Edoardo Ballerini, playing Armand's son.

So...my rating of this movie is a solid 4 stars. It's not tremendously flamboyant about anything, just a good, solid story, about some characters I felt I could relate to.

Whether you have any kinds of roots in Brooklyn, or just like Armand Assante, or doo-wop, or a movie about growing up and dealing with what life gives you...check it out.

The library movies are free.

Memories of Christmas 2007

- Little Sir insisting that his stocking was a slipper, wearing it, and wanting the mate

- Yummy delicious fish feast with fresh marinara and filletto di pomodoro

- An amazing puzzle book from DD for Little Sir on the continents...very cool!

- Nothing burned, ruined or forgotten at dinner. (But I did find out that my dad doesn't like calamari...oops. I never knew!)

- No arguments.

- Time to laugh.

- Time to talk.

- No. One Son's gift to Little Sir of Prince Valiant on DVD. Also, very cool!

- 3 gift certificates from students of mine to Starbucks. (Hmmm...now, I have to think of exactly how to order...soooo complicated.)

- DH surprising me with a gift, after we'd agreed to go shopping together after Christmas for each other's gifts.

- Quiet time to read...books of my own choosing, not homework!!!

Now, if only I didn't always have to pay for the good times. Little Sir woke up around 2 a.m. Christmas morning with a rip-roaring fever. Croup turned into an asthmatic episode, nebulizer and all that. Then went into a stomache virus. Night after night of high fevers. Cranky, cry-y, whiny boy, alternately very snuggly cuddly, "I love you"-y.

No more sickness! I declare 2008 the Year of Health!

Benazir Bhutto

I just had the strangest thing happen to me. I opened Yahoo, and the top news story was today's assassination of Benazir Bhutto. Tears filled my eyes as I read.

Who was she, and why is this important? you might ask.

Part of my job as student teacher in the high school placement, was coming up with regular journal assignments for the kids, based on current events. I had them write about natural disasters in the news, and other things, trying to find stories relevant to their lives here and back home.
My last assignment to them was on women world leaders. I gave them brief bios on Hillary R. Clinton, Angela Merkel, Michelle Bachelet, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and Benazir Bhutto...all very intelligent, politically powerful women, all very significant on the world scene. In writing these bios, I had to do a lot of research, then boil it down to bite-sized pieces, on 4 different levels (differentiated instruction.) I learned a lot about them, and gained new respect for each.

This morning, when I read the headlines, I felt like I'd been kicked in the stomach. This woman, educated in Harvard and Oxford, former prime minister of her country, following in her assassinated father's footsteps, with so much to say, and so much yet to do, recently returned from self-imposed exile, who knew she may be killed for coming back, did so anyway, for the betterment of her Pakistan People's Party, and for her people.

And now she's dead.

You see, 6 months ago, she was barely more than just another name in the news to me. But, in becoming an ESL teacher, I am learning in order to teach my students, to make them more knowledgeable about so much more than just English. I am growing as a person, discovering more about this world of ours, from biology to earth science, geometry to algebra, history to current politics.
Now, I wish I was still in that classroom with those kids so we could have a follow-up lesson on Benazir Bhutto. I hope they remembered what we learned about her, and that when they see or hear her name on the news, it will strike a chord.


So this is what being an ESL teacher is all about, huh?

Bogged Down in Paperwork

I just realized it's been over a week since I've posted anything. I had no idea how time consuming all this certification paper-processing could be. Just when you think you're finished, there's another stack to deal with. Ugh. I just want to clear off my desk already! I have company coming!

My last day of student teaching at Sachem High School East was yesterday. I have some nice photos, and the kids gave me a card that they all signed, and a gift certificate to the teacher supply store. (I also got a Starbuck's gift certificate from Secret Santa!)

I am soooo glad it's over. All in all, both my placements (elementary and secondary) went pretty smoothly, and I met some great professional people and some pretty cool kids, too. There are some who are ESL success stories...like little Vietnamese Tracy who came in 9th grade not speaking a word of English. Now, she's out of ESL, in 12th grade, and taking AP Chemistry and other challenging stuff. She's on her way to a medical career.

But there are others, SIFE kids, mostly, (Students with Interrupted Formal Education) who came with little or no prior educational experience. Some of these are just biding their time in school, bewildered by the work, wishing they were elsewhere. The system as it is now is not doing them any favors. Take the Regents? Are you kidding? Why not just give them a trade...anything...so they can function in the real world.


As in any career, there are real frustrations, and rewarding moments, too. I'm glad I've landed in this profession, and trust I'll have a full-time job soon. Until then, I have time to reconnect with people and catch up on my life. I also have to prepare for the April TESOL convention, where I am going to be a presenter (ugh.)

Happy Holidays, everybody. I hope 2008 is wonderful for all of us!

Done With Grad School!

Yippee! Yay! (You may now envision me singing and dancing.) Last night I had my very last grad. school seminar class at Stony Brook, to finish this degree for certification to teach ESL. I feel like a tremendous weight has been taken off my shoulders. There is still a ton and a half of paperwork to do, things to process, official errands to run, blah blah blah, but one really big item has been crossed off The List.

Graduation is Sunday. It's probably strange, but that ceremony and all the pomp and circumstance does not mean nearly as much to me as the little get-together I had with my friends and co-survivors last night, AND that little piece of paper that's coming really soon saying that I am certified! (no...not certifiable...)

this is me heaving a great big sigh of relief...

Fact For The Day

Just when I thought I was caught up with the latest in whether-it's-a-planet-or-not, I learned something new in our first issue of National Geographic Kids magazine. Here goes... the order of the planets now includes 3 dwarf planets (Ceres, Pluto, and Eris.) Here is the official order:

Mercury Venus Earth Mars Ceres Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto Eris

They're having a contest for a slogan (mnemonic device) to help us remember them. They've suggested
My Very Excellent Mother Can Jump Slowly Under Nelly's Plastic Elephant.

Enter the slogan contest at kids.nationalgeographic.com, and click on planet contest.

Thanksgiving, Part II

Well, just to complete the air travel adventure package, DD's trip back to college was not uneventful. She was fogged-in. The flight kept getting delayed and delayed, and finally cancelled altogether. She got her luggage back (again,) I went to the airport to pick her up (again) and we went home for a 4 hr. night's sleep, got up and out before the sun to be back there bright and early. The lines of people on rescheduled flights was pretty incredible. I've never seen so many people there, before.

But, she is back in college-land safe and sound, back to classes, studying, and waitressing on the side. So life returns to normal (??). Or our version of it.

Home for Thanksgiving

My Dahlink Dawtah is home for Thanksgiving. Her university has one of those extended Thanksgiving breaks, which is lovely, especially since she comes all the way from Florida for this visit!

I had been listening to all those warning shows about the airlines and holiday travel, what to do and what not to do. Well, DD had a great deal...she'd finally logged enough miles with her rewards program to earn a free ticket (yippee!)...so, there were really no decisions to be made. She flew back, we stood by the luggage belt to pick up her bags and...
only one bag. Wait a minute. There were two.
Suddenly, we are aware that several other people have that same look on their faces, and are making the same sort of comments were are. Hey! Look at the luggage carts of people going around...maybe somebody grabbed yours by mistake (or NOT by mistake...that's another whole topic for a later blog.)

Ever notice how many people have BLACK luggage? Makes everything look awfully similar!

So, anyway...the airline's story is that it's the government's fault. Ok. I know we like to blame everything on them...but, this? It seems the feds have to check every piece of luggage, but they have a limited amount of inspectors assigned to each airline, and if not all the bags are examined, then only the approved ones go with the flight. The rest stay behind until checked out, then go on a different plane.

Does that sound stupid to anybody else?

So, the airline gave us 2 options: either we could come back when they called us in several more hours to pick it up, and get a nifty $40 travel voucher for our troubles, or have it delivered to our doorstep for free.
DD wanted the delivery. It was promised (in a later phone call) by 11:30 pm. So, by 12:30 we were in bed and snoozing.

3:30 a.m. I am awake. The porch light shines around the edges of my bedroom blind and drives me crazy. Call the airline again. Get a machine. Leave a message. Is it possible they dropped it off at the wrong house?

Turn off the light. Go back to bed. Get all warm and snuggly and just about to drift off, when...


Knock, knock, knock. It's the luggage delivery guy (parked up on my LAWN.) Here's the bag. What about 11:30??? Yeah, well, that's about when they called him to come get all the bags. God only knows where all those other people live, and where on the list we were.


So, DD is home, safe and sound, with both suitcases.

Another holiday's travel adventure over.

New Advice

I was just talking to one of my student's moms today, and she was telling me her tale of woe concerning her 3 kids' medical issues. It started sounding very familiar. Everywhere I turn, I am hearing stories much like ours, and...if I had stock in Albuterol, I think I'd be a really happy investor right now. After some really horrendous experiences, this mom came to a conclusion, which she shared with me as the advice for the day:

When your child has any kind of medical problem, go straight to the specialist. Call the pediatrician, get the referral (if that's how you have to do it with your insurance), and head straight out...tell them to send it, fax it, phone it, 'cause you're on your way. She saved her daughter's life that way, after 2 pedes said she "just had a cold"...weeks of it...5 minutes with the pediatric pulmonologist and mom's gut feeling was confirmed...the tonsils were so enlarged, the girl was slowly choking to death. Whizz, bang, up to the OR, out they came...and she's ok, now. Other scary stories, too.

So, that's my second-hand advice for the day. I think I'm gonna check out who the specialists we may need are, have their numbers ready, and, if God doesn't choose to spare us from another round of medical problems, we'll be ready.

A New Concern

My Little Sir has been prone to different allergies, and has had "allergy-induced asthmatic episodes" in the past, sometimes accompanied by croup. Anyone familiar with this sort of thing knows how scary it is to sit with a small child in the emergency room as they gasp for air and cough their lungs out.

We've been back and forth to the pediatrician in the past few weeks, with what was first diagnosed as "just a cold." We had to go to the emergency room one night, with Little Sir using a nebulizer/oxygen/steroids, etc. Then, the ER doc. prescribed an inhaler of Albuterol, along with an antibiotic, which he said I could use, or not use, at my own discretion, since the x-ray showed no pneumonia so far. (So far???) The ER doc and our regular pediatrician do NOT agree on almost all the treatments. (oh, goody.) Back and forth, back and forth, phone calls galore...thank God, CVS has a drive-through. (What a concept!)

Anyway...long story, shortened...

Talked to another mom of a 4-year-old (this one's in kindergarten.) Her son's been through the same thing...she brought the inhaler (with the spacer...I'm learning all kinds of new skills here...oh, joy...) She said she got a prescription for an extra one to keep at the school nurse's office. When she brought it there, the school nurse opened the closet and showed her BASKETS full of the same thing for many other children in younger elementary grades.

Ok. So...the media tells us about the killer viruses around, particularly the one in Rochester area which manifests itself as an ear infection in little kids, but does not respond to any antibiotic known to work on pedes. Only works with a specific adults-only antibiotic, and the only way to tell if your child has this, is to request the pediatrician do an ear tap. (Ouch.) If not treated properly, deafness results. (Again, oh joy.)

My school mailbox is almost daily manifesting the latest warning from the administration. It MRSA, it's scabies, it's______...you name it.

The "experts" say we are over-run with all this because of overuse of antibiotics, and the viruses just get stronger. The mom I spoke about was wondering if her son's school might have particular environmental issues, as well, as soooo many little kids are sick enough with lung problems to need inhalers...the school nurse said, "Hmmmm...never thought of that. Maybe I should bring it up to the administration." (Ya think???)

It's not my imagination. The bugs are getting stronger and more diverse. The international community does not necessarily agree on how to treat these things. (When we were in Turkey, they seemed to use stronger drugs than we do here (when I brought our scrips back, the pediatrician told me we couldn't even get that stuff here, but that it was really good.) And, my mil was told not to let the U.S. hospital but him on any kind of inhaler (???) because it would cause other lung problems. I asked the dr. here, and he had no idea what I was talking about. (Nothing like discussing 4th hand info...))


So...I am exhausted from running from dr. to dr., dealing with medicines and treatments, making nutritious remedies like chicken soup, herbal teas, honey & lemon drinks, shower treatments, Vicks Vapo-rub...take him outside so he can breathe...no, he's cold...take him in the bathroom with the steamy shower running...make sure you dry his hair right away...
Oh, and DH has been sick with several viruses too (including gastro-intestinal. That's just loads of fun.)

Everywhere we go, wash your hands, wash your hands, wash your hands...

sigh

Interviews and Other Surprises

Got a call back to another round of interviews, yesterday, which I hear is a good thing. One is a leave replacement (not really what I want...only get sub-pay, no benefits, etc.) and one is a real job opening in Sept.

The same day, I got an email which flattered and terrified me. Let me back up a bit...

Last semester, I had the blessed fortune to bond with 3 other ladies in my program, who had pretty much the same college schedule. 2 are also married mommies, the other an engaged-mommy-wannabe. As this department is especially fond of assigning group projects, we decided to get ahead of the professors and make our own group. (We've all had the horrible experience of being assigned to a partner(s) who does no/terrible work, and have had a stressful time of it, with grades suffering because of it.) It worked out great for us, as our talents compliment each other, and we had a blast working together (at someone's house over wine and cheese...doesn't get any better, right?) Sometimes the kiddies came along and had their own fun time in the other room. Well, one particular project took us months to do, as it counted as 40% of the grade, and was to be part of our professional portfolio...we wanted it to be awesome. We designed a high school math curriculum for English language learners of multiple levels of English proficiency and from diverse first languages. It was very involved, with lots of hands-on, kinesthetic learning, different technology media and translated/adapted texts.

Well, our professor (who, it turns out, is in a very influencial position in this particular discipline's international community) was quite impressed, and instructed the rest of the class that this was the model lesson, what to strive for. She asked us a lot of questions, how we did each phase, and seemed very pleased. Afterward, she took us aside and told us she was on the committee for 2008 international convention, which happens to be in NY this time, and asked if we would present there. Wow! My friend (very quick on the uptake) said, "Sure, if you give us all letters of recommendation!" She said she was already doing that, this was beyond that. Ok ... sure, why not?

I promptly put it on the back burner, and got on with my life, on to the next assignment for the next class, etc. Didn't exactly forget about it, but really didn't think about it. I figured it was going to be a small thing off in a corner room, not so important.

Ha! Well, got an email from the organization, saying our proposal (what proposal???) had been accepted by the committee and that they were very excited about our presentation, blah blah blah...did we need a projection screen, any other tech. devices??? Lots of info, etc.

sigh

so, it's for real.

ok.

I can do this.

You see, I do NOT like being watched, don't
like being front and center, don't like being judged...and here, we will be on display before hundreds of people. Oh, goody.