Book

I just finished the third Jen Lancaster book at my nearby local coffee shop. I may have frightened some of the patrons with my laughter, I tried to contain myself, but tears were rolling down my cheeks. If you are easily offended she is not for you, but I have read all three of her books this summer and she has gotten my serotonin from laughing at their highest level. That, combined with Barack finally settling on a running mate has me feeling elated. I certainly hope I got the link right this time as I have had some bad luck trying to link to things, so now I am going to take a look. Oh itisn't there dammit, I am leaving out one last step, I see it here. Leah, help me.

I see the link twice, but you don't. grrr. so the title, "Such a Pretty Fat..."

Politics

I pass a small billboard on my way to work that says hope and supports Barack Obama, but I haven't felt the hope until today. Now I can unclench my jaws, they are aching from 8 years of dread of what more can go wrong with GWB. Now I can tell you that a glimmer of hope is an actual physical feeling, a tingle, relief. I have despised GWB since before he was elected and he proved me right, then another election to him, how could it have happened. Now we can take a breath, and if we are smart, we won't vote for another four years of george w bush. I feel giddy with hope.

Week One

Three days with students, 6th and 7th graders are into their projects already and 8th graders are doing contour drawings. I have enjoyed every day, but my ankle and knees have made the end of the day quite exhausting. Today I felt really good, little pain so I did a couple of errands before I came home and did not do my exercise. That part is bad, but I have not felt like doing what needs to be done all week. I can tell you one thing for sure, you can swim 4 or five days a week and other exercise 3 hours a week, and when you get back on cement floors, they are still cement and it is like you never left. I do have my classroom back in order and I seem to have a great group of kids in at least 4 out of 6 classes.
We have had two team meetiongs/lunch and laughed and laughed, our team is really workin the serotonin. That makes the rest of the day fly by.The morning flies by,
then there is lunch plan where we laugh so loud then the last half of the day zooms. WE have 6 new teachers in the building, all experienced teachers who tried to get into our building. New ideas, new energy.

Thursday

I am showered, spritzed and rolled on--well, gelled. I have a workshop on boys in crisis today and I am not going swimming. A sure sign my summer vacation is over. I do get to do this fun thing though, I am going after the workshop later today to give my grandson a day at "home". I finished my first paint pen painting with the birthday pens after the style of surfboard artist drewbrophy.com. DH got the video for his b-day and we both loved it-- so simple and fun. My students are going to be wowed! I shall have to figure out a way to do this with some of my students, an expensive project. Maybe I will write a grant.

We have had an unusual run of beautiful weather, more like Colorado than the midwest I am waiting for the high 90's and equal humidity, and I expect it next week after we get back to school. It is wonderful and since my air conditioning has been struggling all summer, I have been able to give it a break.

YA YA Day

Spent all afternoon with my BFF cousin, her 4 grandchildren, and one daughter-- the park is more fabulous than I remember from 4-H and church parties. They have moved the pool and added a lot of area to the park. There are nice playgrounds, a nature center, family cabins that look really great, and trees trees trees trees. Today was cool, dry and breezy, not the usual humid 100* we often have this time of year. Must be global warming.

Countdown

Last Monday before school starts, last Monday in the pool with my release from the laws of gravity. The pool certainly always makes me feel like a kid and I was hoping my breast stroke would have magically improved by watching some Olympic swimming, at least I don't kick myself on my shoulders any more and I can move forward. I am sure the butterfly is my true calling, but....well, there's learning it.

I have a Lizz Wright cd playing in the kitchen and she has a beautiful voice, not as deep as Joan Armatrading, but it can go low. My students would hate it, I need the top twenty on XM for them, but there are bad words in those. About cd's, as I was poised with my paring knife trying to open the damned thing, I noticed I had the knife pointed right at my heart--oops, cd's are becoming passe and I still can't open them easily. My vinyl is upstairs, too. You know, big round black things you play with a needle on a stereo. I would love to blast my old Donna Summers through the house on a perfect day like today--all the windows open, the doors open,we never have days like this in August. I expect it will get up to a hundred once school starts

Saw a photo of my sister-in-law with her new incision where they replaced her skull in her head. It is at least as big as a saucer if not a bread plate. I never imagined such a large incision. There is a reason I am not in the medical field and bless those who are. I don't know how long it will be before she reaches a state of stasis-- my understanding is that the great plastic brain can do amazing things, so I will hold out hope that she will be able to cuddle her grandson once again and take care of herself. There is a great string of sadness here mixed in with the joy of each new step forward, and I don't mean steps on foot, let's be clear here, I mean progress back to some kind of independence.

New Blogger

I have just added my niece to my sidebar, I think I have drug her kicking and screaming into blogging! I just kept asking and asking-- she is now here. Now if I can get some other people to twitter, that would be just fine. I will be going back to school in one week and will have to stop twittering a few times each day...I will probably be shaky and have a little headache. It must be my version of smoking. I must say though, she posted a photo on her very first entry and I have yet to do that, sorry Rick.

Survival

My sister-in-law survived surgery today. She suffered a massive stroke on May 9 following open heart surgery. She has been in ICU or rehab ever since. They had to remove a section of skull over the affected area and today they put it back. The surgery took about 4 hours. I had no idea it was such a time consuming surgery. At this point she is in recovery and in another 45 minutes or so her husband will get to go up to see her. He has been with her every single day since this happened, fortunately he works in education and was just coming close to his big break of the year, summer. I don't know when we will be able to breathe a complete sigh of relief, but she made it through this day's surgery. Now her brain is safely covered with bone instead of a helmet. whew.

Something Beautiful

I was stopped by a train on Friday, something interesting and kind of striking was going by --I finally realized the gigantic sculptural forms were blades for wind turbines. Each one lay on one and a half extra long flat cars, car after car after car. When they are mounted in the distance, they just don't look that big.

August 1

The countdown really begins today, on my birthday. One from eighteen equals seventeen days until the first day of school. We get a really nice invitation to a mandatory teacher meeting on the first day. Then we spend the afternoon at our own building having a faculty meeting then some time in our classroom. I always find the invitation somewhat hilarious. I signed up for a workshop on "boys in Crisis" pm the 14from 9 until noon, I can still swim before that, so my summer isn't ruined! I think the topic is very improtant, even critical.

I got home from my swim and a little stop at panera's to read and have a late breakfast, followed by the tiniest little bit of shopping at TJ MAXX. I found Henry a new set of extra long sheets for his bed, they're covered with tiny alligators or crocodiles and of course they are blue to go with his decor.

The dog had wrapped her cable around the tree and so could not come back to her water. I stupidly went out without another leash to loop around her neck and ended up tightly trapped against the tree myself with the cable cutting into my bare ankles as she was determined to knock me down and probably lick me to death. In her great happiness, she clawed my arm and it is quite the bloody mess. I am considering keeping it that way until the dog's daddy comes home, but I can't stand the smell of dog on me so I am going to have to wash up. My brand new white T is also splattered, I buy these t's to splatter at WORK! and not feel badly about it.
I will probably be able to get the blood out. Walmart special.

My arms and shoulders are so tired from last night's workout, but in a very good way. I didn't even know with the beta blockers I take that I could even get my heart rate up into an aerobic zone, but I can. I guess that is what I need every week. I wear myself out on the elliptical, but with my knees, I don't really raise the heart rate, though I do sweat plenty and need lots of water afterwards. I have a book around here on aerobic weight training, and I had a sample last night, I liked it.