The last week before school starts is here. It's incredible how slowly the last weeks of school creep by, and how quickly the last weeks of summer fly by. (Sort of like Mike Phelps!)
I haven't accomplished many of my summer goals. My house still is completely unorganized, I've lost control again with my diet, we still don't have a home office/library set up. . . . but I did get some knitting accomplished and oh, how I've read. I've kind of lost track of what # book I'm on. I think I just finished #73. I've got my complete list of 2008 books here at Goodreads. The weather this summer has been extremely wet, and relatively cool. We've had a only a few unbearably hot, humid days so I am grateful for that. We've had over 30 days of heavy rain though since June 1st which is really unusual. Normally we get around 45 inches of rain per year, and in mid July we'd already reached almost 40!
So this week looks rather busy:
1. A day trip with a good friend to Green Mountain Spinnery, Basketville/Putney Winery, and L.A. Burdick - yarn, wine, chocolate, what could be better? These are all in the same neck of the woods, and only about 45 minutes from where I live.
2. Into school to start unpacking the boxes that have been moved to my new room. Our school has undergone major construction and renovation, and I had to move out my wonderfully spacious, though oddly shaped room last April to one of the brandnew huge classrooms, and then repack for a move to a freshly painted, tiny "old" classroom with absolutely no storage. Not only to I have to unpack, I have to figure out how to set up this classroom for maximum efficiency. I will be teaching language arts (as I've done for the last 15 years, and science which I taught once 16 years ago at another grade level.) I have no science supplies, and tons of social studies resources which I will have to sort through, passing on the school bought resources to the teacher who is teaching social studies for the first time. This change is not of my choosing at all! This will probably consume most of my free mornings this week.
3. A new teacher luncheon/workshop on Thursday is on tap. I'm part of the local education association executive board and will help host the new teachers and help them understand the benefits of joining the association.
4. I have to get a copy of the science curriculum and GLE's (grade level expectations) and familarize myself with the textbook. And somehow figure out what I'm doing with science. Of course, I have to start planning the details for the activities of the first 2 weeks of school. We have a general outline, but I have to nail down the specifics of things like "Getting to Know You" activities, preparation for our first field trip on Sept. 3rd, and introducing our 6th graders to the middle school.
5. Finish my Nantucket jacket, block it, sew it together, and hope it fits! I've got one more sleeve to do.
6. Assist my husband with last-minute administrative details for his start of the school year. I do the bookkeeping and secretarial work for his school transportation company. In my free time, of course!
So, all in all, a busy week.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Thursday, August 14, 2008
The Girl with No Shadow - #69
Wow!! What a novel!
The Girl with No Shadow: A Novel by Joanne Harris
rating: 5 of 5 stars
This is definitely one of my "best books." It's a sequel to Chocolat, picking up the story of Vianne Rocher. She's in Paris now, in a new identity, and she has abandoned her magic, and instead has concentrated on "fitting in." Into her carefully constructed life, comes Zozie de L'Alba who turns everything on its head with her hurricane life. Joanne Harris tells the story from 3 viewpoints - Vianne, Zozie, and Anouk, and weaves an intricate tale. Identity and seduction are the main themes. What are the costs of living as your true self? The costs of living a lie? What is worth having? What is true safety? There are several threads woven into this story: mother/daughter conflict; adolescent rebellion; a love triangle; identity theft. Joanne Harris descriptions of the Montmartre neighborhood bring it to life, and I could smell and taste every confectionery, as well as see the cobblestoned streets, and Zozie's bright red seductive shoes. I didn't "read" this book however, I listened to the Harper Audio version. I honestly think that I experienced this book more deeply listening to it than if I had read it. Listening forced me to slow down . . . I couldn't set the pace myself. Sometimes I think I miss subtle nuances when I read because I read so quickly. I know that I have a very well-constructed and fleshed-out visualization of the setting, and if I could draw, I could create a vivid picture of the chocolaterie and the Montmarte neighborhood. This is making me think about how I teach reading in my classroom. I've always done a lot of read aloud, and knew it had value beyond sharing a story.
View all my reviews.
The Girl with No Shadow: A Novel by Joanne HarrisMy review
rating: 5 of 5 stars
This is definitely one of my "best books." It's a sequel to Chocolat, picking up the story of Vianne Rocher. She's in Paris now, in a new identity, and she has abandoned her magic, and instead has concentrated on "fitting in." Into her carefully constructed life, comes Zozie de L'Alba who turns everything on its head with her hurricane life. Joanne Harris tells the story from 3 viewpoints - Vianne, Zozie, and Anouk, and weaves an intricate tale. Identity and seduction are the main themes. What are the costs of living as your true self? The costs of living a lie? What is worth having? What is true safety? There are several threads woven into this story: mother/daughter conflict; adolescent rebellion; a love triangle; identity theft. Joanne Harris descriptions of the Montmartre neighborhood bring it to life, and I could smell and taste every confectionery, as well as see the cobblestoned streets, and Zozie's bright red seductive shoes. I didn't "read" this book however, I listened to the Harper Audio version. I honestly think that I experienced this book more deeply listening to it than if I had read it. Listening forced me to slow down . . . I couldn't set the pace myself. Sometimes I think I miss subtle nuances when I read because I read so quickly. I know that I have a very well-constructed and fleshed-out visualization of the setting, and if I could draw, I could create a vivid picture of the chocolaterie and the Montmarte neighborhood. This is making me think about how I teach reading in my classroom. I've always done a lot of read aloud, and knew it had value beyond sharing a story.
View all my reviews.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Book #67 and #68, I think
I read 2 more Aunt Dimity books this week. I'm still listening to The Girl with No Shadow which I hope to finish later today ---- Here's some commentary about one of the aunt Dimity's.
Aunt Dimity's Death by Nancy Atherton
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Aunt Dimity's Death is the first book in a long series of cozy mysteries. Actually "mysteries" is probably not quite accurate. The stories are more like puzzles that the protagonist, Lori Shepherd sets out to solve. So far, only one of the books involves a possible homicide. Most of them seem to involve tracing missing relatives. I finally found this first installment in a used bookshop and read it after reading about half of the series. It didn't seem to matter. I enjoyed the "back story" as it were of how Lori and Dimity "got acquainted." If you haven't read this series, you need to know that Aunt Dimity isn't really Lori's aunt, and in fact, Dimity is dead. She is a spirit who communicates with Lori through a journal, giving her advice and suggestions. Lori inherited Dimity's cottage in the Cotswolds, as well as Dimity's Westwood Trust that supports a huge charitable empire. These books are full of gentle humor, "slice of life" episodes, and I find them thoroughly enjoyable.
View all my reviews.
The 2nd Aunt Dimity book was this one:
Aunt Dimity and the Next of Kin by Nancy Atherton
rating: 4 of 5 stars
I love the Aunt Dimity books by Nancy Atherton. They are gentle stories, with humor and just enough puzzle to keep me reading. I haven't been able to find all of them at my library and I've been reading them out of order. But I don't think it matters. Aunt Dimity is actually a spirit who communicates to her adopted niece, Lori, through an old journal. Lori is an American who inherited Dimity's cottage (and fortune) in the Cotswolds and lives there with her American lawyer husband and their twin boys. Nancy Atherton, the author, depicts village life with its positives and negatives, and also creates a not-quite-so-perfect heroine. They are somewhat formulaic, but that's part of the appeal! This particular addition has a main character who dies early in the book, leaving a puzzle for Lori to solve. It seems very like the first book in the series which introduces all the characters.
View all my reviews.
Aunt Dimity's Death by Nancy AthertonMy review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Aunt Dimity's Death is the first book in a long series of cozy mysteries. Actually "mysteries" is probably not quite accurate. The stories are more like puzzles that the protagonist, Lori Shepherd sets out to solve. So far, only one of the books involves a possible homicide. Most of them seem to involve tracing missing relatives. I finally found this first installment in a used bookshop and read it after reading about half of the series. It didn't seem to matter. I enjoyed the "back story" as it were of how Lori and Dimity "got acquainted." If you haven't read this series, you need to know that Aunt Dimity isn't really Lori's aunt, and in fact, Dimity is dead. She is a spirit who communicates with Lori through a journal, giving her advice and suggestions. Lori inherited Dimity's cottage in the Cotswolds, as well as Dimity's Westwood Trust that supports a huge charitable empire. These books are full of gentle humor, "slice of life" episodes, and I find them thoroughly enjoyable.
View all my reviews.
The 2nd Aunt Dimity book was this one:
Aunt Dimity and the Next of Kin by Nancy AthertonMy review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
I love the Aunt Dimity books by Nancy Atherton. They are gentle stories, with humor and just enough puzzle to keep me reading. I haven't been able to find all of them at my library and I've been reading them out of order. But I don't think it matters. Aunt Dimity is actually a spirit who communicates to her adopted niece, Lori, through an old journal. Lori is an American who inherited Dimity's cottage (and fortune) in the Cotswolds and lives there with her American lawyer husband and their twin boys. Nancy Atherton, the author, depicts village life with its positives and negatives, and also creates a not-quite-so-perfect heroine. They are somewhat formulaic, but that's part of the appeal! This particular addition has a main character who dies early in the book, leaving a puzzle for Lori to solve. It seems very like the first book in the series which introduces all the characters.
View all my reviews.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Veggie Goodness
I planted a small garden this summer as I do almost every summer - cherry tomatoes, some large tomatoes, zucchini, summer squash, pickling cukes, and green beans. The last few years, I've planted mostly in vain, and this year started off in a similar pattern. I planted beans 3 times only to have the deer consume all the tender young leaves. Then the rain came, and came, and came. Meanwhile, a CSA farm (Community Supported Agriculture) was started a few miles down the road from us. All early spring we watched former pasture transformed into rows of neatly trellised peas, orderly greens, broccoli, etc. One day there was an article in the local paper describing the farm, and a contact number. To make a long story short, we paid for a share in the farm, and now every Friday, I receive an overflowing bushel basket of the week's harvest. Meanwhile... back at the ranch . . . (there was a kids' book my sons loved that used that repetive phrase) my usually ailing garden took on new life and is producing cukes and squash and tomatoes in the blink of an eye. So, . . between the two veggie sources, my larder is stuffed.
In my CSA basket this week I received the largest head of green cabbage I've ever seen. It must weigh 10 pounds. I also got a smaller head of red cabbage, several eggplants, jalapeno peppers, a bunch of carrots,3 green peppers, 2 heads of leaf lettuce, a pound of green beans, 4 large tomatoes, a basket of cherry tomatoes, a huge bunch of kale, 10 heads of garlic, a small personal watermelon, more pickling cukes, and yellow squash. . . oh and cilantro, basil, and curly parsley. In my garden this morning I found 2 baseball bat sized zucchini (from my ONE zucchini plant) 2 baskets of cherry tomatoes, a dozen pickling cukes, and about 7 string beans. I gave my neighbor some of the tomatoes, some cukes, and half my head of cabbage!
Needless to say we are enjoying this great bounty!
A great cole slaw recipe: This fills a 13 cup square GLADware container.
Quantity of stuff is variable! I do this in my food processor with the thin shredding blade for the cabbage, and the small grating blade for the rest.
Shredded cabbage (about a medium head of cabbage)
2 shredded carrots
1/2 of a large Vidalia onion shredded
Mix in a large bowl or container.
Dressing: (I start with these quantities and adjust seasoning to taste)
In a small bowl or measuring cup:
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup buttermilk
OR 1/2 cup half and half
Add 2 tbs white wine vinegar and 2 tbs fresh lemon juice.
Let stand for 5 minutes. Then whisk together until thick and foamy.
While it's standing:
Mix together:
1/2 cup real mayonnaise (not the light version)
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp celery seed
Combine milk mixture with mayo mixture and whisk together. Adjust sweetness by adding more sugar, tartness by adding more vinegar or lemon juice, and thickness by adding more mayo ---whatever suits your palate! Pour over cabbage mixture and thoroughly mix salad. Cover and chill for several hours or overnight.
Enjoy!!
Does anyone have any good eggplant recipes? I've grilled it and sauted it, and baked it so far.
In my CSA basket this week I received the largest head of green cabbage I've ever seen. It must weigh 10 pounds. I also got a smaller head of red cabbage, several eggplants, jalapeno peppers, a bunch of carrots,3 green peppers, 2 heads of leaf lettuce, a pound of green beans, 4 large tomatoes, a basket of cherry tomatoes, a huge bunch of kale, 10 heads of garlic, a small personal watermelon, more pickling cukes, and yellow squash. . . oh and cilantro, basil, and curly parsley. In my garden this morning I found 2 baseball bat sized zucchini (from my ONE zucchini plant) 2 baskets of cherry tomatoes, a dozen pickling cukes, and about 7 string beans. I gave my neighbor some of the tomatoes, some cukes, and half my head of cabbage!
Needless to say we are enjoying this great bounty!
A great cole slaw recipe: This fills a 13 cup square GLADware container.
Quantity of stuff is variable! I do this in my food processor with the thin shredding blade for the cabbage, and the small grating blade for the rest.
Shredded cabbage (about a medium head of cabbage)
2 shredded carrots
1/2 of a large Vidalia onion shredded
Mix in a large bowl or container.
Dressing: (I start with these quantities and adjust seasoning to taste)
In a small bowl or measuring cup:
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup buttermilk
OR 1/2 cup half and half
Add 2 tbs white wine vinegar and 2 tbs fresh lemon juice.
Let stand for 5 minutes. Then whisk together until thick and foamy.
While it's standing:
Mix together:
1/2 cup real mayonnaise (not the light version)
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp celery seed
Combine milk mixture with mayo mixture and whisk together. Adjust sweetness by adding more sugar, tartness by adding more vinegar or lemon juice, and thickness by adding more mayo ---whatever suits your palate! Pour over cabbage mixture and thoroughly mix salad. Cover and chill for several hours or overnight.
Enjoy!!
Does anyone have any good eggplant recipes? I've grilled it and sauted it, and baked it so far.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Taking Stock
It's hard to believe that in 2 weeks, the school year starts again. Summers just seem to get shorter and shorter and shorter. We've had a lot of bad weather this summer too. According to the local news, it rained 17 days in June, 16 days in July, and so far, it's rained 5 days in August. Definitely a wet summer, with not a lot of sun.
I haven't accomplished much in the way of organizing my house or de-cluttering it, either. I have done a lot of reading and knitting, which are both ways I de-stress. Unfortunately, I've had a lot to de-stress about. For most of the summer we were on pins and needles as to what was going to happen on our team at school. That decision was made, and now I'm stressing over the fact that I can't teach what I'm good at teaching (and qualified to teach!) and I will be teaching a major content area that I'm not qualified to teach. What's really making me nuts right now is that I don't even have access to the textbook til the end of this coming week!
Yesterday marked the 3rd anniversary of my mom's death. Three years ago I spent my summer caring for her during her final days at her home in another state. My husband stayed here, and I spent the summer 1000 miles away. I feel blessed that I was able to give my mom the gift of being able to die at home, supported by her children. I really miss my mom -- I still catch myself heading to the phone on Saturday mornings to tell her about a book she has to read, or to ask for advice on what to do with the mountain of cabbage and eggplant I received in my CSA share this week. And there have been lots of reminders of her this week -- from the mountain of veggies that she always knew how to can or freeze, to finding a copy of a book by one of her favorite authors featured on the "favorites" shelf at the library.
I had my annual physical and eye exam this week too. A mix of positives and negatives. Positives include the fact that my glucose levels are better than they've been, my good cholesterol is REALLY good, and my blood pressure is really good. Negatives include the fact that my weight hasn't budged, my bad cholesterol hasn't changed, and I need a new prescription for my glasses. That means new frames too, since they can't use my existing frames for my new lenses. I hate trying to pick out new frames too. My husband was out of state on business, so I had to rely on the office staff at the eye doctors and my own sense of what looks good to pick out new frames. I hope I chose wisely --- the office staff was split on the 3 frames I narrowed it down to! I went with the first pair I'd tried on and kept coming back to. They were the cheaper frames too. Now I just need to get a decent hair cut and color and I should be set!
I haven't accomplished much in the way of organizing my house or de-cluttering it, either. I have done a lot of reading and knitting, which are both ways I de-stress. Unfortunately, I've had a lot to de-stress about. For most of the summer we were on pins and needles as to what was going to happen on our team at school. That decision was made, and now I'm stressing over the fact that I can't teach what I'm good at teaching (and qualified to teach!) and I will be teaching a major content area that I'm not qualified to teach. What's really making me nuts right now is that I don't even have access to the textbook til the end of this coming week!
Yesterday marked the 3rd anniversary of my mom's death. Three years ago I spent my summer caring for her during her final days at her home in another state. My husband stayed here, and I spent the summer 1000 miles away. I feel blessed that I was able to give my mom the gift of being able to die at home, supported by her children. I really miss my mom -- I still catch myself heading to the phone on Saturday mornings to tell her about a book she has to read, or to ask for advice on what to do with the mountain of cabbage and eggplant I received in my CSA share this week. And there have been lots of reminders of her this week -- from the mountain of veggies that she always knew how to can or freeze, to finding a copy of a book by one of her favorite authors featured on the "favorites" shelf at the library.
I had my annual physical and eye exam this week too. A mix of positives and negatives. Positives include the fact that my glucose levels are better than they've been, my good cholesterol is REALLY good, and my blood pressure is really good. Negatives include the fact that my weight hasn't budged, my bad cholesterol hasn't changed, and I need a new prescription for my glasses. That means new frames too, since they can't use my existing frames for my new lenses. I hate trying to pick out new frames too. My husband was out of state on business, so I had to rely on the office staff at the eye doctors and my own sense of what looks good to pick out new frames. I hope I chose wisely --- the office staff was split on the 3 frames I narrowed it down to! I went with the first pair I'd tried on and kept coming back to. They were the cheaper frames too. Now I just need to get a decent hair cut and color and I should be set!
Friday, August 8, 2008
#65 Another Middle School Novel
The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee StewartMy review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
I enjoyed this novel. It deals with some serious ideas -- media control, "big brother is watching", etc. It reminded me a bit of the Wrinkle in Time trilogy, particularly when Charles Wallace is on Camzosz(sp?) I don't think it will have wide appeal to my students; while there is quite a bit of action, it's long, has an involved plot, and is definitely written for very strong readers. I will be interested in reading the subsequent novels in the series.
View all my reviews.
Monday, August 4, 2008
#64
Water for Elephants by Sara GruenMy review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a good story that compelled me to spend the better part of a weekend reading it. I thought the author evoked the time period and the circus setting well. Circuses have always attracted me and repelled me,almost simultaneously, and I had a similar reaction to the book. Although I am quite biblically literate, I found no parallels to the Jacob story. I liked the way the story was told, from Jacob's perspective at the end of his life, and I loved the relationship that developed between Jacob and Rosemary.
View all my reviews.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
Changes
It's August and in my world it feels like Sunday night. School starts for me in 3 weeks and as a teacher I always feel that July is Saturday morning with the whole long weekend ahead, while August . . .well August is the "tomorrow is back to school" feeling. It's been an unsettling summer as far as school is concerned. When I left in June, there were 7 teachers on my team. As of this week, there are only 6. Due to low enrollments and fears of fuel costs, a teacher has been moved to another grade level. The teacher that was moved was my teaching partner which left me dangling. I am now going to teach with a wonderful young man. I was his mentor the first year he taught, and he has grown into an amazing teacher. So far so good. The downside to this is that I have to give up teaching the one subject that I love with my whole being, and teach a subject that I only tolerate. For all of my teaching career, I've taught social studies and was instrumental in changing the curriculum emphasis to ancient civilizations. I have built up a huge library of resources with my own money, and in fact had just purchased some great books for my Mesopotamia unit (with my money, of course.) I have always identified myself as a social studies teacher first and foremost. Now I'm not. I have to teach science (which I have done in the past) but I just don't love it. On top of this, I have to familiarize myself with the curriculum in just 3 weeks. To make it even more unsettling, I can't get into the building to get the textbook or materials until at least August 15th due to construction. I have contacted the other science teachers at my grade level who assure me that I will have no problems, but nobody has a textbook at home. I will also be teaching language arts, which I do enjoy, so it's not a total loss, but I feel like my identity has been ripped away. I keep telling myself, it will be okay, but I don't believe it yet.
So, three weeks left . . . .
So, three weeks left . . . .
Book #63
Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R. L. LaFeversMy review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Theodosia Throckmorton is a plucky heroine who must attempt to to save the British Empire from an evil Egyptian curse. I really enjoyed this adventure and I think that a lot of my 6th graders will enjoy it also. There is a sly humor about the writing that appealed to me, reminding me a tiny bit of the Lemony Snicket books. I also like the fact that Theodosia is a strong female character who does what she feels she has to do, even if she doesn't want to do it. I will be interested to read more of this author's books in the series.
View all my reviews.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Book #62
The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick RiordanMy review
rating: 4 of 5 stars
Percy Jackson's story continues in this fourth installment. It's another exciting adventure that will appeal to my students. This time Rick Riordan focuses on the myths of Daedalus, King Minos, and the labyrinth. The tension of the series builds also, as characters from previous books return and are more heavily involved in the overall quest to save Olympus. And there is a startling resolution to one character's quest!
View all my reviews.
Monday, July 28, 2008
More Books
I've been reading up a storm over the last 2 weeks. Nothing heavy however. I've surpassed my goal of reading 50 books and am now working on reading 100 books this year. These represent books 55 -61.
First up are 2 more Aunt Dimity books by Nancy Atherton, Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil and Aunt Dimity: Detective. This series is thoroughly enjoyable. Lori is an American woman who inherits an English cottage from her mother's best friend Aunt Dimity. Aunt Dimity still inhabits the cottage in an old journal through which she communicates. Lori solves mysteries with the help of Aunt Dimity's advice. I'd class these in the "cozy mystery" genre and I'm looking forward to reading the rest in the series.
Next are 2 books in the Elm Creek Quilt series by Jennifer Chiaverini series: The New Year's Quilt, and The Winding Ways Quilt. I also enjoy this series - it's gentle storytelling, although by this time the books are also pretty formulaic and predictable. I listened to The Winding Ways Quilt, and thought it was perfect as an audio book. This book tells the "back story" of most of the supporting characters, and each story was very engrossing. In fact, several times I got so lost in a particular character's story, I forgot I was listening to a book.
The Weaver and the Factory Maid is the first book in a series by Deborah Grabien. Ringan Laine has moved into a cottage that is haunted and he and his girlfriend figure out how to lay the ghosts to rest. Each of her books is named for a traditional English folk ballad, and the story is based on the story told in the ballad. It was quite an interesting read.
The Amethyst Heart by Penelope Stokes was next. The story was trite, and the author's heavy-handed proselytizing was annoying. I think the best Christian fiction makes its point without preaching.
The next book I finished was Home by Julie Andrews. I enjoyed this memoir but was disappointed that it ended with Mary Poppins. She had a very difficult childhood, but she persevered. I was interested in her accounts of the difficulties she's had with her voice - I guess I never realized just how difficult it can be to sing professionally.
Finally, there's Twilight, by Stephanie Meyers. Since most of the girls in my classes were reading this book last spring, I decided to read it myself. I can certainly understand why they're attracted. I didn't hate it, but I can't say I love it. It was too long, and dragged out, and frankly, I got bored about half way through. I won't put it on my classroom shelf, because while there's no explicit sex in it, it teeters on the edge. I didn't find it objectionable as an adult, and I think for older teens it's not objectionable. I don't think 11 and 12 year girls need any more titillation that is already out there. I put in the category of it's okay with me if you read it, but I'm not going to give it to you.
First up are 2 more Aunt Dimity books by Nancy Atherton, Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil and Aunt Dimity: Detective. This series is thoroughly enjoyable. Lori is an American woman who inherits an English cottage from her mother's best friend Aunt Dimity. Aunt Dimity still inhabits the cottage in an old journal through which she communicates. Lori solves mysteries with the help of Aunt Dimity's advice. I'd class these in the "cozy mystery" genre and I'm looking forward to reading the rest in the series.
Next are 2 books in the Elm Creek Quilt series by Jennifer Chiaverini series: The New Year's Quilt, and The Winding Ways Quilt. I also enjoy this series - it's gentle storytelling, although by this time the books are also pretty formulaic and predictable. I listened to The Winding Ways Quilt, and thought it was perfect as an audio book. This book tells the "back story" of most of the supporting characters, and each story was very engrossing. In fact, several times I got so lost in a particular character's story, I forgot I was listening to a book.
The Weaver and the Factory Maid is the first book in a series by Deborah Grabien. Ringan Laine has moved into a cottage that is haunted and he and his girlfriend figure out how to lay the ghosts to rest. Each of her books is named for a traditional English folk ballad, and the story is based on the story told in the ballad. It was quite an interesting read.
The Amethyst Heart by Penelope Stokes was next. The story was trite, and the author's heavy-handed proselytizing was annoying. I think the best Christian fiction makes its point without preaching.
The next book I finished was Home by Julie Andrews. I enjoyed this memoir but was disappointed that it ended with Mary Poppins. She had a very difficult childhood, but she persevered. I was interested in her accounts of the difficulties she's had with her voice - I guess I never realized just how difficult it can be to sing professionally.
Finally, there's Twilight, by Stephanie Meyers. Since most of the girls in my classes were reading this book last spring, I decided to read it myself. I can certainly understand why they're attracted. I didn't hate it, but I can't say I love it. It was too long, and dragged out, and frankly, I got bored about half way through. I won't put it on my classroom shelf, because while there's no explicit sex in it, it teeters on the edge. I didn't find it objectionable as an adult, and I think for older teens it's not objectionable. I don't think 11 and 12 year girls need any more titillation that is already out there. I put in the category of it's okay with me if you read it, but I'm not going to give it to you.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Finally - A ME ME MEME
I've been slow to respond to this meme after being tagged by Cathy. Too many thunderstorms kept me off the 'net!
Here are the rules:
1. List these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog.
** I went to Cuba when I was 13 months old! I have no memory of this trip, but there are lots of pictures. I look like I was having fun most of the time. We were visiting my father's family.
** I spend most of my free time knitting, reading, or on the internet. Occasionally I do housework, but only when necessary!!
**I have lived in CT, NJ, OH, CT again, with summers in IN, and in NH for the past 32 years.
** I chartered a sailboat for our 25th wedding anniversary. We invited my cousin and his wife to join us, and we spent 10 days sailing the British Virgin Islands in the sailboat. It came with a captain and a cook! We spent most of our time snorkeling.
** I've worked at Burger King, as a library page, as a switchboard operator, a church secretary, an office manager, a bank teller, a bookkeeper, a special ed paraprofessional, and for the last 14 years as a 6th grade teacher. When I retire from teaching, I'd like to work as a church secretary again. I really liked being a switchboard operator too - back when you wore headphones, and actually plugged wires into the switchboard!
** I almost failed algebra in 8th grade. I got a D on the final exam only because my teacher took pity on me! I aced geometry though, freshman year, and actually ended up taking algeba 2, analytic geometry and trigonometry, and calculus. I even took a college calculus class and 2 other math classes in college. The only math I really understood though was geometry and game theory!! I'm good at memorizing algorithms and formulas!
** I was married jointly by my UCC pastor and a rabbi in an interfaith wedding. We married in the DAR Chapter House where the women in my family were members. The best man was Roman Catholic, my maid of honor was American Baptist, my bridesmaids were Presbyterian, and my musicians belonged to a Swedish Covenant church. I've always said we were multiply blessed! We actually got married twice in the same ceremony - both clergy did their complete liturgies!
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
Here are a few people I'm tagging- lots of other have already been tagged. If you would like to join the fun, feel free, and let me know!
Panhandle Portals
NH Knitting Mama
Songbird
Here are the rules:
1. List these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog.
** I went to Cuba when I was 13 months old! I have no memory of this trip, but there are lots of pictures. I look like I was having fun most of the time. We were visiting my father's family.
** I spend most of my free time knitting, reading, or on the internet. Occasionally I do housework, but only when necessary!!
**I have lived in CT, NJ, OH, CT again, with summers in IN, and in NH for the past 32 years.
** I chartered a sailboat for our 25th wedding anniversary. We invited my cousin and his wife to join us, and we spent 10 days sailing the British Virgin Islands in the sailboat. It came with a captain and a cook! We spent most of our time snorkeling.
** I've worked at Burger King, as a library page, as a switchboard operator, a church secretary, an office manager, a bank teller, a bookkeeper, a special ed paraprofessional, and for the last 14 years as a 6th grade teacher. When I retire from teaching, I'd like to work as a church secretary again. I really liked being a switchboard operator too - back when you wore headphones, and actually plugged wires into the switchboard!
** I almost failed algebra in 8th grade. I got a D on the final exam only because my teacher took pity on me! I aced geometry though, freshman year, and actually ended up taking algeba 2, analytic geometry and trigonometry, and calculus. I even took a college calculus class and 2 other math classes in college. The only math I really understood though was geometry and game theory!! I'm good at memorizing algorithms and formulas!
** I was married jointly by my UCC pastor and a rabbi in an interfaith wedding. We married in the DAR Chapter House where the women in my family were members. The best man was Roman Catholic, my maid of honor was American Baptist, my bridesmaids were Presbyterian, and my musicians belonged to a Swedish Covenant church. I've always said we were multiply blessed! We actually got married twice in the same ceremony - both clergy did their complete liturgies!
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
Here are a few people I'm tagging- lots of other have already been tagged. If you would like to join the fun, feel free, and let me know!
Panhandle Portals
NH Knitting Mama
Songbird
Friday, July 18, 2008
Friday Five- What's In a Name?
If you are a regular reader of Songbird's blog, you know that "The Princess" has requested a new name. Her older brother changed his "secret identity" a while back and now this lovely young lady is searching for a new name on her mother's blog. This got me to thinking. How do we come up with all of these names? There must be at least a few good stories out there.
1. So how did you come up with your blogging name? And/or the name of your blog?
I knit. I teach. Therefore knitnteach. I've used dswgr6 from the start of my email/internet experience. My initials and grade 6 combined. Not very original.
2. Are there any code names or secret identities in your blog? Any stories there?
Not really. I don't identify people by name, usually just by identity - i.e. my husband, elder son, younger son, and knitting buddy. I keep thinking I ought to think of clever code names, but never quite get around to it.
3. What are some blog titles that you just love? For their cleverness, drama, or sheer, crazy fun?
Blog names that have attracted me and kept me as a reader:
Knitting & Other Nonsense in Edith's House
Possible Water
Don't Eat Alone
4. What three blogs are
you devoted to? Other than the RevGalBlogPals blog of course!
Blogs I read daily include a number of the RGP blogs - you probably know who you are, plus
The Yarn Harlot, of course,
Don't Eat Alone
Panhandle Portals
and it's not a blog but I check in daily with a number of groups on Ravelry.
5. Who introduced you to the world of blogging and why?
I don't remember! Probably the Yarn Harlot, and Cathy's Grace Notes. I found these blogs early on and decided I wanted to blog too!
Bonus question: Have you ever met any of your blogging friends? Where are some of the places you've met these fun folks?
No, I haven't --Yet! I'd love to meet up with them.
1. So how did you come up with your blogging name? And/or the name of your blog?
I knit. I teach. Therefore knitnteach. I've used dswgr6 from the start of my email/internet experience. My initials and grade 6 combined. Not very original.
2. Are there any code names or secret identities in your blog? Any stories there?
Not really. I don't identify people by name, usually just by identity - i.e. my husband, elder son, younger son, and knitting buddy. I keep thinking I ought to think of clever code names, but never quite get around to it.
3. What are some blog titles that you just love? For their cleverness, drama, or sheer, crazy fun?
Blog names that have attracted me and kept me as a reader:
Knitting & Other Nonsense in Edith's House
Possible Water
Don't Eat Alone
4. What three blogs are
you devoted to? Other than the RevGalBlogPals blog of course!
Blogs I read daily include a number of the RGP blogs - you probably know who you are, plus
The Yarn Harlot, of course,
Don't Eat Alone
Panhandle Portals
and it's not a blog but I check in daily with a number of groups on Ravelry.
5. Who introduced you to the world of blogging and why?
I don't remember! Probably the Yarn Harlot, and Cathy's Grace Notes. I found these blogs early on and decided I wanted to blog too!
Bonus question: Have you ever met any of your blogging friends? Where are some of the places you've met these fun folks?
No, I haven't --Yet! I'd love to meet up with them.
A Lazy Week?
I can't say there are too many VISIBLE accomplishments this week. I did finish my Lace Ribbon scarf - or at least finished the knitting. I have to block it but need to borrow my knitting buddy's blocking board, and she's in Los Angeles visiting her son. (And yes, for those of you who read my blog, her son and my son hang out together sometimes - in fact, 2 of my son's housemates are kids he grew up with here in our little NH town.) Anyway. Mostly I relaxed and I can't tell you how good that feels. I've been staying up til midway through the 11 pm news, knitting while I've watched DVD's of Dark Shadows (a gothic soap I adored as a teenager), Battlestar Galactica season 1, or season 1 of Deadwood. During the day, I've gone to the Wellness Center to get in my required exercise, puttered in my garden/yard, read, and listened to audio books while I've sat on my porch and knitted. Yesterday I started this, my new knitting project.
It's Norah Gaughan's Nantucket Jacket. I'm using Berroco Pure Merino in a periwinkly blue. The yarn is so soft and springy and the pattern is just challenging enough to be interesting without being frustrating. Not exactly mindless knitting, but very enjoyable. I'm listening to Winding Ways Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini, and it's a perfect foil to my knitting. So, while I haven't accomplished some of the goals I've set myself for the summer (organizing my house, repapering a bedroom, etc.) I'm doing a great job on the biggest goal --- relaxing and recharging.
It's Norah Gaughan's Nantucket Jacket. I'm using Berroco Pure Merino in a periwinkly blue. The yarn is so soft and springy and the pattern is just challenging enough to be interesting without being frustrating. Not exactly mindless knitting, but very enjoyable. I'm listening to Winding Ways Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini, and it's a perfect foil to my knitting. So, while I haven't accomplished some of the goals I've set myself for the summer (organizing my house, repapering a bedroom, etc.) I'm doing a great job on the biggest goal --- relaxing and recharging.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Books #52-54
The first book I read was Miracle on 49th Street by Mike Lupica. This is a middle school novel set in Boston and NYC. Molly's mom has died and she is living with her mom's best friend in Boston. Just before her never-married mom died, Molly found out that her dad was the star of the Boston Celtics. Molly's mission is to convince the MVP that he is indeed her father. This book was well-written, though from my point of view, predictable. I think my 6th grade girls especially will find it engrossing. I'm considering using it this year along with another Lupica book Heat.
On the adult side, I read Rumer Godden's Coromandel Sea Change. This is one of hers I hadn't read before. It takes place in India, probably in the 1950's. I found the plot a bit dated, but the writing is wonderful.
Finally, I LISTENED to Janet Evanovich's Fearless Fourteen. I wanted to knit on my porch and I wanted to read. Voila! Audio books. I enjoyed the experience, but wish I had read the book instead of listened to it. Because this is a series that I love, and have read, I have developed very strong character visualizations. The reader's interpretation of Ranger drove me nuts, thus taking a bit of the pleasure out of the book. I also got a bit tired of all the "bad" language --- it's not horrible, but I never noticed it while I read. Despite all that, the plot was good, the potato cannons and the monkey made me laugh out loud, and I got a lot of knitting done. I think that in the future, I will choose books to listen to in which I haven't invested quite so much imagination.
Speaking of bad language, I guess I shouldn't complain. I started watching the first season of Deadwood, and while I really like the story, every other word of the dialogue is a "F" word or worse. I don't get it. I guess I wouldn't mind so much if the vocabulary was a little larger, but to hear the same 3-4 words used repeatedly is a little much!
I'm still working on the Lace Ribbon scarf. I think I'm on the last pattern repetition. I hope so -- I love the pattern, but I'm tired of it. And I'm basically a monogamous knitter. 99% of the time I only have one project going at a time, although I have been known to have a pair of socks going at the same time as big project for portability's sake. But this scarf was supposed to be the portable project, which it is. It's been to Los Angeles, Connecticut, and Rhode Island in the last 3 weeks!
On the adult side, I read Rumer Godden's Coromandel Sea Change. This is one of hers I hadn't read before. It takes place in India, probably in the 1950's. I found the plot a bit dated, but the writing is wonderful.
Finally, I LISTENED to Janet Evanovich's Fearless Fourteen. I wanted to knit on my porch and I wanted to read. Voila! Audio books. I enjoyed the experience, but wish I had read the book instead of listened to it. Because this is a series that I love, and have read, I have developed very strong character visualizations. The reader's interpretation of Ranger drove me nuts, thus taking a bit of the pleasure out of the book. I also got a bit tired of all the "bad" language --- it's not horrible, but I never noticed it while I read. Despite all that, the plot was good, the potato cannons and the monkey made me laugh out loud, and I got a lot of knitting done. I think that in the future, I will choose books to listen to in which I haven't invested quite so much imagination.
Speaking of bad language, I guess I shouldn't complain. I started watching the first season of Deadwood, and while I really like the story, every other word of the dialogue is a "F" word or worse. I don't get it. I guess I wouldn't mind so much if the vocabulary was a little larger, but to hear the same 3-4 words used repeatedly is a little much!
I'm still working on the Lace Ribbon scarf. I think I'm on the last pattern repetition. I hope so -- I love the pattern, but I'm tired of it. And I'm basically a monogamous knitter. 99% of the time I only have one project going at a time, although I have been known to have a pair of socks going at the same time as big project for portability's sake. But this scarf was supposed to be the portable project, which it is. It's been to Los Angeles, Connecticut, and Rhode Island in the last 3 weeks!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
A Visit to the Toadstool
We are blessed in this region of New Hampshire to have an amazing bookseller called The Toadstool. There are 3 locations, and it's an independently owned bookstore that competes with a Borders. The Toadstool has been around for about 30 years, I think, -at least as long as I've lived in this neck of the woods. Each of their locations is different, but all of them offer an amazing selection of books, an extremely knowledgeable staff, and a wonderful browsing atmosphere. They also are wonderful to teachers. Teachers get a discount for classroom books ranging from 20%-25% off.
This morning 2 of my teaching colleagues and I met at the local shop to browse for books for our classrooms. We have the grand total of $139 each to spend on our classroom libraries or to round out our novel sets for language arts. I already knew what I wanted to buy, but I had fun browsing the shelves for great middle school novels. I will be purchasing a classroom set of Mike Lupica's Miracle on 49th Street. I already have a set of his novel Heat which I used last year. My kids, girls and boys alike, enjoyed Heat, but I wanted a novel with a female protagonist as a counterpart to it. So that eats up most of my portion of book money.
I did buy a couple of other titles - books that either intrigued me or that I know are popular with the middle school set and I just haven't read them yet. (With my own money of course!) I got a copy of Stephanie Meyers' Twilight because I know that the girls are all reading this. It's not what I would choose to offer 6th graders, but I want to stay current. I also bought The Mysterious Benedict Society on the recommendation of my incoming 5th grade niece. She and her brother have led me to some great books! Finally I found a book called Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos that intrigued me. It's set in London in 1906 and appears to be a combination of adventure, magic, and mystery. Amazon describes it as mix of Nancy Drew and Indiana Jones. So I have my next set of books to read!
We're headed to Providence this afternoon to celebrate Elder Son's birthday #28. It's hard to believe - he's as old as his dad was when we got married. Where does the time go!
This morning 2 of my teaching colleagues and I met at the local shop to browse for books for our classrooms. We have the grand total of $139 each to spend on our classroom libraries or to round out our novel sets for language arts. I already knew what I wanted to buy, but I had fun browsing the shelves for great middle school novels. I will be purchasing a classroom set of Mike Lupica's Miracle on 49th Street. I already have a set of his novel Heat which I used last year. My kids, girls and boys alike, enjoyed Heat, but I wanted a novel with a female protagonist as a counterpart to it. So that eats up most of my portion of book money.
I did buy a couple of other titles - books that either intrigued me or that I know are popular with the middle school set and I just haven't read them yet. (With my own money of course!) I got a copy of Stephanie Meyers' Twilight because I know that the girls are all reading this. It's not what I would choose to offer 6th graders, but I want to stay current. I also bought The Mysterious Benedict Society on the recommendation of my incoming 5th grade niece. She and her brother have led me to some great books! Finally I found a book called Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos that intrigued me. It's set in London in 1906 and appears to be a combination of adventure, magic, and mystery. Amazon describes it as mix of Nancy Drew and Indiana Jones. So I have my next set of books to read!
We're headed to Providence this afternoon to celebrate Elder Son's birthday #28. It's hard to believe - he's as old as his dad was when we got married. Where does the time go!
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Vacation Week #2
I spent most of the week since we've been home from LA trying to get my days organized. I'm hoping to have a yard sale later this month, so I've started working in various rooms to get that organized. We had carpeting put in last winter, and in the process dislodged much junk that has just been piled in corners. Now that school is out, I'm trying to go through the stuff and either toss, put away or earmark for the yard sale. On top of that my husband is moving his office out of the house and has piles of boxes in at least 2 rooms. I feel like we're perpetually moving!
I've done some more knitting on the Lace Ribbon Scarf mentioned previously. It's now about 25 inches long. I need to start another project, but I can't decide which of the many I have queued on Ravelry to do --- Seville Jacket? Nantucket jacket? Vintage Vest? Or should I do some more socks? Or what about all the yarn I bought to knit another Modern Classic? I can't decide so I just knit on the scarf!
I had 2 really vivid, weird dreams last night. I was with a group of teachers and we were in some sort of school or retreat center. It was very late at night, and we were in a lounge. We were holding a worship service of a sort, and a colleague with whom I'm presently at odds with, held up a clump of eggplants (like a cluster of tomatoes) and suggested we all go around the group and use the eggplants to inspire a prayer or share an image it brought to mind. She asked me to start and I began to share. As I started to say what came to mind, she interrupted me and said, "No, it shows togetherness and community." I started again, and again she interrupted me. Finally I got out "Yes, the eggplants together show unity, but what it suggests to me is that I am not part of that group. I am separated from the group and am other." The 2nd dream also involved school, teachers and students. We were hiking along a deserty mountain trail and the bell rang for the end of recess. I was following a group of students back. The shortest way back was down a very steep cliff above a shoreline with lots of rocks and a rough sea. The longer way was less steep, but we couldn't see how it would get us to where we were going. Most of the kids took the steep path but I followed the group that took the longer, more gentle slope. As we went down, there were side paths but all of the routes were really difficult. One student (someone who I'd never had as a student, but had worked with him in an afterschool activity) decided to take one of the short paths. He got to the water's edge, and decided to jump in and swim the rest of the way. When he jumped in, he hit his head and slid to the bottom of a tide pool. From where I was up high, I could see him lying under the water, unconscious. I couldn't get to him, so I started shouting for help. Across the way, another teacher heard me and she started scrambling down rocks to help. That's where the dream ended!!!
I know that I have a few issues that I'm trying to figure out. I do feel like "odd man out" all the time at school, and I am trying to decide what do to about that. I don't feel like I have any options. I also am "at sea" about church at the moment. I haven't been going to services lately. I burned out in leadership roles, and have not been able to warm up to our interim pastor. I'm not interested in going to a different church; I love the people, the denomination, the way my church lives out its understanding of Jesus' Way. I just can't seem to go sit through a service. So I'm praying about that, and trying to decide what to do there too. I guess in some ways I feel "odd man out" there too, because most folks seem to love the way things are right now. Any ideas out there??
I've done some more knitting on the Lace Ribbon Scarf mentioned previously. It's now about 25 inches long. I need to start another project, but I can't decide which of the many I have queued on Ravelry to do --- Seville Jacket? Nantucket jacket? Vintage Vest? Or should I do some more socks? Or what about all the yarn I bought to knit another Modern Classic? I can't decide so I just knit on the scarf!
I had 2 really vivid, weird dreams last night. I was with a group of teachers and we were in some sort of school or retreat center. It was very late at night, and we were in a lounge. We were holding a worship service of a sort, and a colleague with whom I'm presently at odds with, held up a clump of eggplants (like a cluster of tomatoes) and suggested we all go around the group and use the eggplants to inspire a prayer or share an image it brought to mind. She asked me to start and I began to share. As I started to say what came to mind, she interrupted me and said, "No, it shows togetherness and community." I started again, and again she interrupted me. Finally I got out "Yes, the eggplants together show unity, but what it suggests to me is that I am not part of that group. I am separated from the group and am other." The 2nd dream also involved school, teachers and students. We were hiking along a deserty mountain trail and the bell rang for the end of recess. I was following a group of students back. The shortest way back was down a very steep cliff above a shoreline with lots of rocks and a rough sea. The longer way was less steep, but we couldn't see how it would get us to where we were going. Most of the kids took the steep path but I followed the group that took the longer, more gentle slope. As we went down, there were side paths but all of the routes were really difficult. One student (someone who I'd never had as a student, but had worked with him in an afterschool activity) decided to take one of the short paths. He got to the water's edge, and decided to jump in and swim the rest of the way. When he jumped in, he hit his head and slid to the bottom of a tide pool. From where I was up high, I could see him lying under the water, unconscious. I couldn't get to him, so I started shouting for help. Across the way, another teacher heard me and she started scrambling down rocks to help. That's where the dream ended!!!
I know that I have a few issues that I'm trying to figure out. I do feel like "odd man out" all the time at school, and I am trying to decide what do to about that. I don't feel like I have any options. I also am "at sea" about church at the moment. I haven't been going to services lately. I burned out in leadership roles, and have not been able to warm up to our interim pastor. I'm not interested in going to a different church; I love the people, the denomination, the way my church lives out its understanding of Jesus' Way. I just can't seem to go sit through a service. So I'm praying about that, and trying to decide what to do there too. I guess in some ways I feel "odd man out" there too, because most folks seem to love the way things are right now. Any ideas out there??
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Reading Review
Now that school's out, I've really been reading up a storm. As usual, it's mostly fluff. However, the first book I finished was Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food. His premise in this book is that few of us are eating food anymore. Instead we eat food products. Just about everything we eat is processed, and if we took our great grandmother to the grocery store, she wouldn't recognize many of the products there. Since the dawn of "nutrition science" just after WWII most of our basic foods have become products, with preservatives, additives, enrichments, etc. His advice is to shop the perimeter of the store, read labels, join a CSA where possible, shop farmers' markets, grow your own where possible, and just be aware that most of what we put in our mouth is the PRODUCT of a food industry instead of the original food itself. He also argues that it really doesn't matter which "diet" you choose, as long as you eat in moderation, and you base your food choices on food , not product. Thus his opening words "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." This is the 2nd book of his I've read. Several years ago I read The Botany of Desire which discussed the relationship of 4 plants with humans - tulips, potatoes, marijuana, and apples. That was a fascinating read!
Next up on my finished list are two nostalgic re-reads: In this House of Brede by Rumer Godden, and Dawn's Early Light by Elswyth Thane. I read both of these in junir high/early high school and found them sitting forlornly on the library shelf while I was browsing. I had really enjoyed them as a teenager and wondered if they stood the test of time. In the House of Brede deals with a successful businesswoman who leaves her high-powered career to join the Benedictine nuns. Dawn's Early Light is set in colonial Virginia, just as the Revolution breaks out. Julian Day is a newly arrived from England and gradually becomes converted to American ideas. He befriends an abused child, Tibby Mawes, and their lives become intertwined. This is the first of a series of books featuring Julian and his descendants and I remember loving this book. It's still a pleasant read, but definitely not as gripping as it was when I was 14 or 15.
A very different type of read was Sacrifice by S.J. Bolton. This is a thriller/mystery set in the Shetland Islands, in Scotland. The mutilated body of a young woman is found buried in a field. Was she murdered as part of a cult sacrifice? The plot revolves around some ancient Shetland legends,and it was a very gripping read. The author created a very plausible world and evoked what felt like an authentic atmosphere. This was a first novel so I will be looking for a second one in the future.
Another "different" kind of book was historical fiction, set in colonial Massachusetts. This was called Bound by Sally Gunning. Alice is indentured as a house servant at age 7. All is well, til she turns 15 and is abused by a member of the household. How she handles the abuse and the consequences of her choices make up the rest of the novel. I was disappointed in the book, mostly because of the remoteness of the narration. I never felt a connection with any of the characters. The author did a good job of illustrating the institution of indentured servants.
Finally, pure fun! Aunt Dimity's Good Deed by Nancy Atherton. This isn't the first book in the series, but it's the first I've read. I thoroughly enjoyed this, and look forward to finding others in the series. Aunt Dimity is actually dead, and sends messages to her adopted niece through a journal. While the premise sounds silly, it's actually quite fun --- kind of a Ghost and Mrs. Muir feeling, if you remember the TV series with Hope Lange.
That's it for this installment. It's time for another trip to the library. And in case you think I just read fluff --- I also read Time magazine, US News and World Report, the daily paper, Sojourners magazine,
and a few other heavier things!
Next up on my finished list are two nostalgic re-reads: In this House of Brede by Rumer Godden, and Dawn's Early Light by Elswyth Thane. I read both of these in junir high/early high school and found them sitting forlornly on the library shelf while I was browsing. I had really enjoyed them as a teenager and wondered if they stood the test of time. In the House of Brede deals with a successful businesswoman who leaves her high-powered career to join the Benedictine nuns. Dawn's Early Light is set in colonial Virginia, just as the Revolution breaks out. Julian Day is a newly arrived from England and gradually becomes converted to American ideas. He befriends an abused child, Tibby Mawes, and their lives become intertwined. This is the first of a series of books featuring Julian and his descendants and I remember loving this book. It's still a pleasant read, but definitely not as gripping as it was when I was 14 or 15.
A very different type of read was Sacrifice by S.J. Bolton. This is a thriller/mystery set in the Shetland Islands, in Scotland. The mutilated body of a young woman is found buried in a field. Was she murdered as part of a cult sacrifice? The plot revolves around some ancient Shetland legends,and it was a very gripping read. The author created a very plausible world and evoked what felt like an authentic atmosphere. This was a first novel so I will be looking for a second one in the future.
Another "different" kind of book was historical fiction, set in colonial Massachusetts. This was called Bound by Sally Gunning. Alice is indentured as a house servant at age 7. All is well, til she turns 15 and is abused by a member of the household. How she handles the abuse and the consequences of her choices make up the rest of the novel. I was disappointed in the book, mostly because of the remoteness of the narration. I never felt a connection with any of the characters. The author did a good job of illustrating the institution of indentured servants.
Finally, pure fun! Aunt Dimity's Good Deed by Nancy Atherton. This isn't the first book in the series, but it's the first I've read. I thoroughly enjoyed this, and look forward to finding others in the series. Aunt Dimity is actually dead, and sends messages to her adopted niece through a journal. While the premise sounds silly, it's actually quite fun --- kind of a Ghost and Mrs. Muir feeling, if you remember the TV series with Hope Lange.
That's it for this installment. It's time for another trip to the library. And in case you think I just read fluff --- I also read Time magazine, US News and World Report, the daily paper, Sojourners magazine,
and a few other heavier things!
Thursday, July 3, 2008
The 1st Week of Summer Vacation
We took a short trip to Los Angeles to visit our younger son - an extended weekend trip of sorts. We flew out Thursday and came home on the red-eye Monday night. On Saturday, the 3 of us went to the Temecula Valley to visit 3 of the more than 30 wineries located there. As you can see from the photo, we made a few purchases. We visited Ponte Family Winery, the Wiens family winery, and Mount Palomar. DH and I had been to Temecula 3 years ago and couldn't believe how much the area has grown in those few years. The last time we went there were only a handful of wineries on the main road. We sampled wines at all 3 wineries, and made some purchases at all 3 of them. I really enjoyed the Mount Palomar winery the best -- knowledgeable pourers, great ambience, and great wines. I bought an "everyday" wine Shorty's Bisto red and their signature Solera Cream Sherry. I wanted to buy a couple of others but my budget was shot! At least now they ship to NH so if I get so inclined, I can order on line. I really like the Ponte Zinfindal port too. At Wiens, we sampled a really nice orange champagne which my son bought. I loved their white port, but had already bought port.
We also visited the Getty Villa in Malibu. This is a smaller museum than the Getty Center, built as a replica of a Roman villa to house Getty's collection of Roman and Greek sculptures and antiquities. It was beautiful there, and it was really interesting to see sculptures and pots that are pictures in the resources I use with my students.
We had some great meals too --- Brazilian at Fogo de Chao, Mexican at Don Antonio's, omelettes at Santa Monica's Omelette Parlor, and an amazing lobster and goat cheese frittata at Literati II, where my son's housemate is the sous chef.
I love LA, but just to visit -- too much traffic, smog, and threats of wildfire for me to live there.
I also started a new project - The Lace Ribbon scarf from Knitty.com.
Here are a few photos.
I'm using Classic Elite Alpaca socks on size 3 needles. It's an easy to remember pattern, but since it's fingering weight it's slow going! I did several inches on the plane ride back from LA.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Knitting Projects Finished
This first is the Green River Tunic. I am very happy with the quality of the knitting but not happy with the fit. The neckline/shoulders are too wide for me, and despite reknitting the sleeves twice, they are also too long. I love the top, but in order to make it fun to wear, I think I will have to completely re-do the bodice, narrowing the neckline and shortening the armholes. Is this something I'm going to tackle? Not at the moment. I wore this out Sat. night and kept pulling the neckline up on my shoulders.
The Princess Mitts should have been a snap, but it took a couple of froggings and re-knittings because the left thumb gusset chart was wrong. I got some false starts too, due to knitter stupidity! Once I figured out that the chart was wrong, it was pretty easy - except for some more knitter brain freeze. I really like these though! I have another skein of Classic Elite Princess in a turquoise so I will probably make another pair.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
A Day and A Half and I'm Sick
I'm down to counting the hours til school is out. This has been the longest week! And there's still a day and half to go. Don't get me wrong. This year's group of 6th graders has been the kindest, most compassionate group I've ever taught and I'm actually sad to be losing them. But we're all tired! It's been a long year with lots of bad weather that prolonged the school year. Since last week, we've basically been about fun - walks to the local ice cream parlor, field day, nature walks, another field day . . . more like crowd control than teaching. In between we've done grades, pod awards, academic awards, Pride Awards, (too many awards if you ask me!), placements, budgets, bid orders, and lots of packing for the next move. And on top of it all, since Monday I've had a sore throat, swollen glands, and general exhaustion -- but no fever. Not a great way to end the year. . . .
I did finish another book, A Ghost in the Machine by Caroline Graham. It's another Inspector Barnaby book, and it's very intricately plotted. I wish I'd waited to read it til school was out, because I lost track of a few things, I wish I hadn't --- too many interruptions! I liked it though.
I did finish another book, A Ghost in the Machine by Caroline Graham. It's another Inspector Barnaby book, and it's very intricately plotted. I wish I'd waited to read it til school was out, because I lost track of a few things, I wish I hadn't --- too many interruptions! I liked it though.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Hot and Humid
Last week we were shivering and this week we're sweltering. We've broken several heat records over the last couple of days. We're in the low to mid 90's with incredible humidity. This is not normal June weather in NH. The ONLY saving grace for me is that my class room (temporary) is air conditioned. Since May 1st I've been enjoying a very spacious brand new classroom while the classrooms in the 1915 part of the building are being renovated. Unfortunately for me, I will be moving into a unrenovated 1950's classroom for fall. And it's tiny. Very tiny. I'm not sure how I will squeeze in there with my classes and still be able to do all the project work I like to do. I guess when it was built, it was all rows and worksheets. Not at all conducive to cooperative groups, project based work. Oh well. I'm enjoying the air conditioning for now. I don't have it at home so I haven't slept very well the past 3 nights. Last night, even with 2 fans going, my bedroom was 87° at 11 pm. It was down to 84° at 5 am. Outside was cooler, but by just a little. I prefer my usual winter bedroom temps (58-62°) better!
I just finished Elizabeth George's new book "Careless in Red." It was great! I've always enjoyed the Inspector Lynley series, and this one was one of her best. I think I especially enjoyed the fact that the whole story took place in Cornwall where I vacationed in April.
Counting down the days til school is out! (8 more!)
I just finished Elizabeth George's new book "Careless in Red." It was great! I've always enjoyed the Inspector Lynley series, and this one was one of her best. I think I especially enjoyed the fact that the whole story took place in Cornwall where I vacationed in April.
Counting down the days til school is out! (8 more!)
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Ten More Days
Ten more LONG DAYS till school is out. Even after 13 years of teaching 6th grade I haven't figured out how to do the last 2 weeks of school so that it's more than just crowd control. The kids are done and the teachers are just about literally done because we have to have our report cards done almost a week before school actually closes! We have to all pretend though, and that's what makes it especially hard. We had a field trip scheduled for last Wed. but got rained out. Our rain date got rained out too, and now we can't go. My partner and I are going to try to do parts of the trip with our kids one nice day this week. (All the other 6th graders got to go on the trip. We had to go in 3 batches . . . ) We also have a mini trip scheduled Thursday - a walk to the local ice cream stand. Then we have the equivalent of 2 field days scheduled on June 16 and June 18. In between we're trying to keep everyone happy and in control! And then there are all the administrative tasks we have to get finished --- budgets for next year, placements for next year, awards, and of course the packing. As I said, 10 long days . . .
I just finished reading Mark of the Lion, by Suzanne Arruda. It was a really interesting adventure/mystery set in post WW I colonial Africa. The heroine is a former WW I ambulance driver in search of her dead boyfriend's half brother. She's plucky, beautiful, intelligent and unconventional, the storyline is fast-paced, and there are lots of other interesting characters. It's the debut novel of a new series, and I enjoyed it. I also think the author evoked the time period well.
I just finished reading Mark of the Lion, by Suzanne Arruda. It was a really interesting adventure/mystery set in post WW I colonial Africa. The heroine is a former WW I ambulance driver in search of her dead boyfriend's half brother. She's plucky, beautiful, intelligent and unconventional, the storyline is fast-paced, and there are lots of other interesting characters. It's the debut novel of a new series, and I enjoyed it. I also think the author evoked the time period well.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Getting to Know Me
I'm tagged for this meme by Cathy, so here goes:
Rules: The rules of the game get posted at the beginning. Each player answers the questions about himself or herself. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.
Ten years ago: 1998 - In my 3rd year of teaching 6th grade. My sons were in high school!
Five things on today's "to do" list:
1. Go to church for the first time in almost a month. Long story.
2. Finish the monthly billing for my husband's business and do some of his correspondence.
3. Go to a graduation party. Our neighbor's daughter (our "adopted" daughter) just graduated from nursing school.
4. Finish my Waving lace sock.
5. Sew the sleeves into my Green River Tunic - I hope. I've done this twice already and am not happy with how it looks.
Things I'd do if I was a billionaire:
1. Create a charitable foundation - I'd want to give some to small struggling, progressive/liberal churches; some to Special Olympics, some to education, and some to medical research.
2. Invest some so that we can live comfortably for the rest of our lives, and be able to travel.
3. Put the rest into a trust for my adult children and future(?) grandchildren. They could use interest but not principal.
Three bad habits:
1. overeating and underexercising
2. biting my nails
3. sloppy housekeeping
Five places I've lived:
1. Milford, CT
2. Bridgewater Township, NJ (back before it was its own town)
3. Chagrin Falls, OH
4. Storrs, CT
5. Jaffrey, NH
I also had ties to Madison, IN. My parents moved there while I was in Storrs. I never lived there, but visited during the summer.
Five jobs I've had:
1. Library page - high school
2. Cashier at Burger King - high school
3. Switchboard operator on college campus - college
4. Church secretary - college
5. Bank Teller - college and first out of college job
6. Office Manager - for 15 years, for my husband's business
7. Special Ed Associate - starting in 1992
8. Teacher - starting in 1995 and still going strong
I know that's more than 5. What can I say? I've been around a while!
I'm tagging some folks who might not know me, but I read their blogs regularly:
Rev. Songbird
Vamantaknits
Possible Water
Panhandle Jane
Rules: The rules of the game get posted at the beginning. Each player answers the questions about himself or herself. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.
Ten years ago: 1998 - In my 3rd year of teaching 6th grade. My sons were in high school!
Five things on today's "to do" list:
1. Go to church for the first time in almost a month. Long story.
2. Finish the monthly billing for my husband's business and do some of his correspondence.
3. Go to a graduation party. Our neighbor's daughter (our "adopted" daughter) just graduated from nursing school.
4. Finish my Waving lace sock.
5. Sew the sleeves into my Green River Tunic - I hope. I've done this twice already and am not happy with how it looks.
Things I'd do if I was a billionaire:
1. Create a charitable foundation - I'd want to give some to small struggling, progressive/liberal churches; some to Special Olympics, some to education, and some to medical research.
2. Invest some so that we can live comfortably for the rest of our lives, and be able to travel.
3. Put the rest into a trust for my adult children and future(?) grandchildren. They could use interest but not principal.
Three bad habits:
1. overeating and underexercising
2. biting my nails
3. sloppy housekeeping
Five places I've lived:
1. Milford, CT
2. Bridgewater Township, NJ (back before it was its own town)
3. Chagrin Falls, OH
4. Storrs, CT
5. Jaffrey, NH
I also had ties to Madison, IN. My parents moved there while I was in Storrs. I never lived there, but visited during the summer.
Five jobs I've had:
1. Library page - high school
2. Cashier at Burger King - high school
3. Switchboard operator on college campus - college
4. Church secretary - college
5. Bank Teller - college and first out of college job
6. Office Manager - for 15 years, for my husband's business
7. Special Ed Associate - starting in 1992
8. Teacher - starting in 1995 and still going strong
I know that's more than 5. What can I say? I've been around a while!
I'm tagging some folks who might not know me, but I read their blogs regularly:
Rev. Songbird
Vamantaknits
Possible Water
Panhandle Jane
Monday, May 26, 2008
3 More Books Read
I finished 3 books this week -- only one really grabbed my interest. I really enjoyed The House at Riverton by Kate Morton. It's historical fiction, set in England just before, during, and after WW1. Grace goes to work at Riverton as a housemaid at age 14, just before the start of WW1. She is fascinated by the family, and in particular, the Hartford sisters who come to Riverton first as visitors and then later as residents. The novel is told in retrospect. At the close of her life,Grace is dictating her memories to a beloved grandson. She examines her memories, and figures out some pieces of the past that had long troubled her. Kate Morton appears to have done extensive research into the time period and paints an intricate picture of the disintegration of a world, and the changes that overwhelmed many. I wasn't completely satisfied with the ending. I think there were a few loose ends that could have been tied up a bit more tightly. But I did enjoy it a lot!
4 More Weeks
We still have a month of school -- June 20th is our last day, and it seems so far off on the one hand, and not enough time to get everything done that needs to get done. I'm trying to finish a novel with my kids and complete a social studies research project, on top of all the end of year activities that pop up every week. And this week, will be interesting as I am going to a 2 day reading conference, so have to figure out how to structure activities for the sub. We also have a field trips scheduled for June 4th and 11th, and a field day to plan.
It's been a great weekend weatherwise, and I feel like I've accomplished quite a bit. I got my garden planted -- several tomato varieties, pickling cukes, bush beans, yellow squash, zucchini, and basil. I still have room for a few more things. The black flies are horrendous this year too -- I have the bites to prove it. I've got bites under my hairline, behind my ears, on my ankles, you name it. . . The bane of NH spring - with the beautiful weather come the black flies . . .
It's been a great weekend weatherwise, and I feel like I've accomplished quite a bit. I got my garden planted -- several tomato varieties, pickling cukes, bush beans, yellow squash, zucchini, and basil. I still have room for a few more things. The black flies are horrendous this year too -- I have the bites to prove it. I've got bites under my hairline, behind my ears, on my ankles, you name it. . . The bane of NH spring - with the beautiful weather come the black flies . . .
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Wuz UP?
The ceiling. That's my usual response to my students when they come into my classroom and greet me like this!
I have been really busy lately with the "beginning of the end of the year" stuff, spring stuff, personal stuff, and some church stuff.
Friday night was a 6th dance - the first dance just for the sixth grade, and the first dance they were allowed to go to. In my middle school dances are just for the 7th and 8th graders, although usually there's a "Beach Dance" at the end of the year to which the 6th graders are invited. This year, as part of our Positive Behavior Support" program, we offered a dance just for the 6th graders so that we could "teach" them our behavior expectations for school dances. They will next be allowed to attend the traditional Beach Dance in June. About 2/3 of the kids showed up for an hour and half of loud, pulsing music (all pre-vetted by us for language appropriateness!) They really had a lot of fun "chicken-dancing," doing the macarena, and some line dances in addition to the usual jumping up and down that constitutes dancing today!
Last weekend I was away at a retreat, part of a series, called the "Small Church Vitality Project", offered by the NH Conference of the United Church of Christ. It was really interesting and worthwhile, but it was also exhausting! It was also DH's birthday and Mother's Day! Lots of stuff packed into a short amount of time.
I've been knitting too! I'm working on this:
I also went to the WEBS Tent sale and stocked up on some yarn: Berocco Pure Merino for the Nantucket Jacket from Interweave Knits, Valley Yarns Berkshire Bulky for a cardigan jacket, and some Classic Elite Alpaca Sox for Spirogyra fingerless mitts from Knitty.com
And I've been reading:
1. Hold Tight by Harlen Coben - a thriller that held my attention well while I read it, but have already gotten mixed up in my head with others he's written.
2.Plum Lucky by Janet Evanovich. Very inconsequential, but a very relaxing way to spend a sunny afternoon on a screen porch.
3. Black Ships by Jo Graham. This was really interesting historical fiction. The story follows Gull, a slave from Wilusa (Troy) who becomes Pythias, the guardian priestess of the goddess of Death. The book follows her as she becomes Aeneas' chief advisor as he sets out to find a new home after his life is destroyed. The book is a retelling of Virgil's Aeneid, from a female perspective. Since I've just finished teaching ancient Greece and we are now studying ancient Rome, the timing couldn't have been better. This was a totally serendiptious choice from the public library; it was featured as one of the new books.
4. Miracle at Speedy Motors by Alexander McCall Smith. This is the newest novel in the Ladies' No. 1 Detective Agency. I thoroughly enjoy this series. While this wasn't the strongest novel in the series as far as I'm concerned, I never regret spending time with Mma Ramotswe, Mma Makutsi, and their lives in Botswana. The gentleness of the storytelling, and Mma Ramotswe's view on life never fail to reassure me that life is good.
So it's been a busy May and will continue that way, if not more so. This week we have Parent Information Night for the parents of next year's 6th graders. They are always nervous as their children move into the middle school from our 2 elementary schools. We spend a lot of time reassuring them and making them feel like we're not a big bad scary place. So we provide lots of opportunities for them to come in and get to know us, and as a result, they realize we're a nice school too!
I have been really busy lately with the "beginning of the end of the year" stuff, spring stuff, personal stuff, and some church stuff.
Friday night was a 6th dance - the first dance just for the sixth grade, and the first dance they were allowed to go to. In my middle school dances are just for the 7th and 8th graders, although usually there's a "Beach Dance" at the end of the year to which the 6th graders are invited. This year, as part of our Positive Behavior Support" program, we offered a dance just for the 6th graders so that we could "teach" them our behavior expectations for school dances. They will next be allowed to attend the traditional Beach Dance in June. About 2/3 of the kids showed up for an hour and half of loud, pulsing music (all pre-vetted by us for language appropriateness!) They really had a lot of fun "chicken-dancing," doing the macarena, and some line dances in addition to the usual jumping up and down that constitutes dancing today!
Last weekend I was away at a retreat, part of a series, called the "Small Church Vitality Project", offered by the NH Conference of the United Church of Christ. It was really interesting and worthwhile, but it was also exhausting! It was also DH's birthday and Mother's Day! Lots of stuff packed into a short amount of time.
I've been knitting too! I'm working on this:
I also went to the WEBS Tent sale and stocked up on some yarn: Berocco Pure Merino for the Nantucket Jacket from Interweave Knits, Valley Yarns Berkshire Bulky for a cardigan jacket, and some Classic Elite Alpaca Sox for Spirogyra fingerless mitts from Knitty.com
And I've been reading:
1. Hold Tight by Harlen Coben - a thriller that held my attention well while I read it, but have already gotten mixed up in my head with others he's written.
2.Plum Lucky by Janet Evanovich. Very inconsequential, but a very relaxing way to spend a sunny afternoon on a screen porch.
3. Black Ships by Jo Graham. This was really interesting historical fiction. The story follows Gull, a slave from Wilusa (Troy) who becomes Pythias, the guardian priestess of the goddess of Death. The book follows her as she becomes Aeneas' chief advisor as he sets out to find a new home after his life is destroyed. The book is a retelling of Virgil's Aeneid, from a female perspective. Since I've just finished teaching ancient Greece and we are now studying ancient Rome, the timing couldn't have been better. This was a totally serendiptious choice from the public library; it was featured as one of the new books.
4. Miracle at Speedy Motors by Alexander McCall Smith. This is the newest novel in the Ladies' No. 1 Detective Agency. I thoroughly enjoy this series. While this wasn't the strongest novel in the series as far as I'm concerned, I never regret spending time with Mma Ramotswe, Mma Makutsi, and their lives in Botswana. The gentleness of the storytelling, and Mma Ramotswe's view on life never fail to reassure me that life is good.
So it's been a busy May and will continue that way, if not more so. This week we have Parent Information Night for the parents of next year's 6th graders. They are always nervous as their children move into the middle school from our 2 elementary schools. We spend a lot of time reassuring them and making them feel like we're not a big bad scary place. So we provide lots of opportunities for them to come in and get to know us, and as a result, they realize we're a nice school too!
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Book #30 Jamaica Inn
Of course, since I went to Cornwall, I had to re-read Daphne DuMaurier. I started with Jamaica Inn. I first read this over 40 years ago. It's still good! I didn't get to Bodmin and the real Jamaica Inn, but I enjoyed recognizing the villages and towns mentioned in the book that I passed through on the train, or went to -- Helston, Truro, Penzance, and of course St. Ives.
Rainy Weather
It's chilly and rainy today, not the bright spring weather we long for. The daffodils are trying hard to bloom, and my magnolia tree is trying to blossom, but the rain is knocking the blooms off the branches. I had to go out and run errands and I didn't appreciate the wetness. However, just over a week ago, I was experiencing very similar weather and I didn't mind it as much. I spent my April break in Cornwall, and for much of the week, we had drizzly, misty, rainy weather.
It didn't stop us however from having a terrific vacation.
We flew to London and took the train to St. Ives. I am still amazed how much open land there is in Great Britain. We stayed in a guest hotel called The Old Count House. We had a very comfortable room with a sea view, although it wasn't until the 4th morning that we could see the whole harbor and Godevry Light! There was too much "mist." Our hosts were very friendly and hospitable, and they served a wonderful breakfast every morning. They live in one part of the house which at one time was the home was the "counting house" for the owner of a tin mine.
Every morning we walked down the hill into town and explored the area.
The first day it was pouring so we took the train to The Eden Project, about an hour from St. Ives.
An exhausted clay pit has been reclaimed, several enormous geodesic domes have been built, and they have created several biomes inside. We spent the good part of the day exploring the rainforest and Mediterranean biomes. Another day we took the train to Penzance. From there we went to St. Michael's Mount. This is a small island off the coast that you can walk to at low water across a manmade causeway.
On the top of the island mount is a castle! We climbed the path to the top and although we didn't have the view that one would get on a clear day, we were quite impressed.
Another day we went to Land's End - the most westerly point in England. Incredible scenery!
I took a ton of pictures. I wish it were easier to upload to my blog. (I have dial up internet, so it can take forever to get a picture uploaded!) If you 're interested you can view my album at my Picasa web page here
A few random thoughts generated by our trip:
1. We were incredible impressed by how easy it was to travel around using public transportation. We did not rent a car. If we wanted to go somewhere we either walked or took the train or the bus or a combination! In my part of New England this is next to impossible. It's too far to walk to work or to the grocery store or anywhere else for that matter. Even if I lived in town, there is no public transportation available.
2. I was also incredibly impressed by the availability of bathrooms everywhere we went - at the train stations, at the bus stations, in the villages themselves. They all were open and CLEAN!
3. Kids are kids everywhere. One time we were in Penzance at the bus station awaiting our bus back to St. Ives. School let out and all the kids (middle school age) ran to the bus station. (They use public transportation too) There about 20 or so kids, boys and girls. They split into groups -- one group pulled out a hackey sack, another group started chasing each other around, the girls huddled together, some pulled out candy bars, etc. A couple of the boys were teasing each other, getting a little rough. My teacher-y voice almost broke through my vacation mode, but I caught it in time and enjoyed the fact that I wasn't supervising recess!!
4. I finally got the hang of the money on this trip. By the end of the week, I wasn't inspecting each coin to be sure it was the right amount. It really showed me how much we take for granted in our every day life. When was the last time you tried to make/change and carefully inspected each coin to be sure the quarter was quarter or the dime a dime?? If something cost 50p (like the shuttle bus to the top of the hill) I can now visualize the 50p coin, or 2 twenty p coins and 10 p coin.
5. I love hearing the differences in vocabulary and idioms. We were often asked if we were "on holiday", and we were frequently asked to "Mind the gap" or "Mind your step." People will "phone" you and offer you "sweets" or "puddings" instead of dessert. Appetizers are "starters" and entrees are "mains". Cars are put into "car parks" and the restrooms are usually called what they are " toilets." It makes me smile though that often they are labeled "female toilets" or "male toilets" or "gents". Tips are called "service charges" in restaurants, and are usually only 10-12%.
6. Cornwall is the poorest area in England, or so I'm told. Tourism is the number one industry, and there is a small fishing industry and some agriculture. Cornwall is doing a good job of "branding" itself in an effort to boost agriculture and fishing. In almost all of the pubs and restaurants we visited, the menus advertised that the produce and meat were from local sources. I certainly enjoyed the local products immensely --- especially the locally brewed ales (Cornish cream, Doombar, and Tribute, to name 3 I sampled), the ice cream (the best I've ever eaten in my life!) and Rhodda's clotted cream. None of these are exactly good additions to a WW plan, but they are delicious! We sampled some "made on the premises" apricot saffron almond ice cream that was absolutely heavenly. And there's nothing like a good pot of tea, flaky scones, homemade strawberry jam, and clotted cream. Clotted cream, in case you're not familiar with it, is hard to describe. It's not whipped cream, and it's not butter, but it's like both! We had a Cornish cream teas in the place of a meal on two occasions. I don't know if I can find clotted cream anywhere around here. It's probably best if I can't!!
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Knitting and Reading Updates
I finally finished the first sock - Waving Lace- from Favorite Socks. I've only been knitting it since November! It took quite a back seat to other projects and pneumonia. I finished it over vacation- while in Cornwall, UK! (More on that in another post.) If I'd been allowed to knit on the plane I would have gotten the 2nd sock underway. Alas, British Air doesn't let you knit on their planes.
I've been working on the Valley Yarns pattern, Green River Tunic, too. This is the back. I've almost finished the front too - just the right bodice left to do, and then short sleeves. It's a fast, easy knit.
I also read two more books: Third Strike by William Tapply and Philip R. Craig, and The Woman Next Door by Barbara Delinksy. I liked the first and was bored with the second.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
More Than Half-Way!
I got a lot of reading done this last couple of weeks.
Book #25 was Barbara Pym's Less Than Angels. I enjoyed the combination of gentle but acerbic humor, and I really cared about Catherine and Phoebe and their graceful competition for Tom Mallow's love. Her writing is very Jane Austenish and I think the fact that I've been watching the Jane Austen offerings on public TV's Masterpiece at the same time, was a great mindset!
Death a L'Orange was book #26. This is part of a series and falls into the category of a "cozy" mystery. Carolyn is a food writer and she is on a tour of France with her husband and son when strange "accidents" begin to happen. Needless to say she is right in the thick of it and attempts to solve the mystery of who and why. The story is told from several different points of view. While I enjoyed the diary entries from the perpetrator, I didn't think it was necessary to include her husband's point of view. I much prefer the Diane Mott Davidson series and Philip R. Craig series, but I'll probably pick up another of Nancy Fairbanks' books for a quick easy read.
#27 was Change of Heart by Jody Picoult. This one was a challenging read due to the subject matter and to the writing quality. I still haven't decided what I think about it. It was a gripping read, and I enjoyed the characters grappling with the religious questions raised in the plot. Personally, I love wrestling with theological questions so that aspect of the novel held me. The death penalty question and the civil rights of prison inmates also poses questions worth thinking about. However, as a whole I was disappointed in the novel. Her trademark twist didn't work for me -- it was predictable and disappointing. I usually leave a Picoult novel feeling "Wow, I didn't see that coming! But what a great ending!" That's not the feeling I was left with here. I also found the switching back and forth between character's perspectives less effective than in other novels.
Book #25 was Barbara Pym's Less Than Angels. I enjoyed the combination of gentle but acerbic humor, and I really cared about Catherine and Phoebe and their graceful competition for Tom Mallow's love. Her writing is very Jane Austenish and I think the fact that I've been watching the Jane Austen offerings on public TV's Masterpiece at the same time, was a great mindset!
Death a L'Orange was book #26. This is part of a series and falls into the category of a "cozy" mystery. Carolyn is a food writer and she is on a tour of France with her husband and son when strange "accidents" begin to happen. Needless to say she is right in the thick of it and attempts to solve the mystery of who and why. The story is told from several different points of view. While I enjoyed the diary entries from the perpetrator, I didn't think it was necessary to include her husband's point of view. I much prefer the Diane Mott Davidson series and Philip R. Craig series, but I'll probably pick up another of Nancy Fairbanks' books for a quick easy read.
#27 was Change of Heart by Jody Picoult. This one was a challenging read due to the subject matter and to the writing quality. I still haven't decided what I think about it. It was a gripping read, and I enjoyed the characters grappling with the religious questions raised in the plot. Personally, I love wrestling with theological questions so that aspect of the novel held me. The death penalty question and the civil rights of prison inmates also poses questions worth thinking about. However, as a whole I was disappointed in the novel. Her trademark twist didn't work for me -- it was predictable and disappointing. I usually leave a Picoult novel feeling "Wow, I didn't see that coming! But what a great ending!" That's not the feeling I was left with here. I also found the switching back and forth between character's perspectives less effective than in other novels.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
#23 and #24
I've finished 2 more books : Written in Blood by Caroline Graham and Daughter of York, by Anne Easter Smith.
The first is a police procedural mystery, and it's part of the Inspector Barnaby series. Midsomer Murders is a BBC TV series, that is taken from Caroline Graham's novels. This novel is the fourth in the series, but the first one I've read. The Amazon review compares her writing to Agatha Christie. I agree that her work is reminiscent of Christie. She details life in an English village and has well-developed characters. Inspector Barnaby and Sargeant Troy feel like real people -- both are good at their jobs, but their flaws are also portrayed. All is not sweetness and light, yet the darkness isn't overpowering as I've found in other crime novels. (I had to return Patricia Cornwell's latest book because I found it so dark, depressing, and almost depraved.) I also did not expect the final twist, and yet, the ending also made sense. I really enjoyed it!
I also finished Daughter of York This one took me a while to get into. I almost took it back unfinished, but stuck with it and it finally clicked. This historical fiction follows Margaret of York, sister to Edward II. She is married to the Charles, Duke of Burgundy, in an effort to secure Burgundy's support against the Lancasters. As a teenager, I read a lot of historical fiction as well as nonfiction about the War of the Roses, and the Plantagents, so that's what drew me to the book in the first place. This was interesting because of the female perspective -- most of the other books I'd read previously were from the male point of view.
The first is a police procedural mystery, and it's part of the Inspector Barnaby series. Midsomer Murders is a BBC TV series, that is taken from Caroline Graham's novels. This novel is the fourth in the series, but the first one I've read. The Amazon review compares her writing to Agatha Christie. I agree that her work is reminiscent of Christie. She details life in an English village and has well-developed characters. Inspector Barnaby and Sargeant Troy feel like real people -- both are good at their jobs, but their flaws are also portrayed. All is not sweetness and light, yet the darkness isn't overpowering as I've found in other crime novels. (I had to return Patricia Cornwell's latest book because I found it so dark, depressing, and almost depraved.) I also did not expect the final twist, and yet, the ending also made sense. I really enjoyed it!
I also finished Daughter of York This one took me a while to get into. I almost took it back unfinished, but stuck with it and it finally clicked. This historical fiction follows Margaret of York, sister to Edward II. She is married to the Charles, Duke of Burgundy, in an effort to secure Burgundy's support against the Lancasters. As a teenager, I read a lot of historical fiction as well as nonfiction about the War of the Roses, and the Plantagents, so that's what drew me to the book in the first place. This was interesting because of the female perspective -- most of the other books I'd read previously were from the male point of view.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Debbie Bliss Baby jacket with lace edging
I just finished knitting this baby sweater as a gift. It's knit in Rowan Wool Cotton, and it's a Debbie Bliss pattern - Jacket with Lace Edging. The color is Hiss.
The knitting went fast. The finishing was a bear! Too much hand sewing for me. But I'm pleased with the way it turned out. At least I'm able to seam more neatly than I used to. I guess I need to focus on that.
The knitting went fast. The finishing was a bear! Too much hand sewing for me. But I'm pleased with the way it turned out. At least I'm able to seam more neatly than I used to. I guess I need to focus on that.
More Snow?!!
Just when we're getting used to the idea that spring might be coming, we're told that we could receive over 6 inches of snow tomorrow. Even my 6th graders groaned in protest when they heard the forecast. Now you know we've had too much winter when 12 year olds protest the possibility of a snow day!
Book #21 is Lizzy Bright and the Buckminster Boy and #22 is The Titan's Curse. Both are middle school novels. Lizzy Bright is historical fiction,set in 1912, and deals with some very serious subject matter. Young Turner Buckminster is the son of the Congregational minister and they've just moved to a small coastal town in May. He doesn't fit in with the others in town, and he makes friends with Lizzy Bright, an African-American girl who lives on a nearby island that is home to a small group of what the town considers the "riff-raff". The town is trying to evict the small island community so that they can convert build a hotel to attract tourists from Boston. He has to deal with being a minister's son, disobeying his strict father, racism, and he has to figure out how to help his new friend. It's a pretty heavy book and it's based on a true story. I'm not sure I would recommend it to any of my 6th graders, but certainly some motivated 8th graders would enjoy it.
I loved The Titan's Curse. This it the 3rd in the series by Rick Riordan. Percy Jackson is a modern teenage boy who discovers he's the son of Poseidon and a mortal. He and some other "halfbloods" are attempting to prevent the end of civilization as we/they know it. It's funny, clever, full of adventure and excitement, and updates Greek mythology. A lot of my students have been reading this series and they love it. It helps that we study Greece and Greek mythology this year so they get the references. I was surprised though, because I thought this was going to be the last book, but apparently it's not. I'm glad, because I've enjoyed them!
On a related note, I'm reading The Odyssey to my 6th graders and they are eating it up! I had them on the edge of their seats today - literally. They can't wait til tomorrow to find out how Odysseus and Telemachus get rid of Penelope's unwanted suitors. I love it!!
Book #21 is Lizzy Bright and the Buckminster Boy and #22 is The Titan's Curse. Both are middle school novels. Lizzy Bright is historical fiction,set in 1912, and deals with some very serious subject matter. Young Turner Buckminster is the son of the Congregational minister and they've just moved to a small coastal town in May. He doesn't fit in with the others in town, and he makes friends with Lizzy Bright, an African-American girl who lives on a nearby island that is home to a small group of what the town considers the "riff-raff". The town is trying to evict the small island community so that they can convert build a hotel to attract tourists from Boston. He has to deal with being a minister's son, disobeying his strict father, racism, and he has to figure out how to help his new friend. It's a pretty heavy book and it's based on a true story. I'm not sure I would recommend it to any of my 6th graders, but certainly some motivated 8th graders would enjoy it.
I loved The Titan's Curse. This it the 3rd in the series by Rick Riordan. Percy Jackson is a modern teenage boy who discovers he's the son of Poseidon and a mortal. He and some other "halfbloods" are attempting to prevent the end of civilization as we/they know it. It's funny, clever, full of adventure and excitement, and updates Greek mythology. A lot of my students have been reading this series and they love it. It helps that we study Greece and Greek mythology this year so they get the references. I was surprised though, because I thought this was going to be the last book, but apparently it's not. I'm glad, because I've enjoyed them!
On a related note, I'm reading The Odyssey to my 6th graders and they are eating it up! I had them on the edge of their seats today - literally. They can't wait til tomorrow to find out how Odysseus and Telemachus get rid of Penelope's unwanted suitors. I love it!!
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Just for fun!
You Are Oregano |
 You have are charming, funny, witty, and smart. You love to party - and people love to party with you. You are always friendly and warm. You are able to help people get along. |
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Ups and Downs
It has been a weird couple of weeks, with quite a few ups and downs in my life. This has been a long month school-wise. It's the first month that we've had complete weeks of school - no snow days, no weather interruptions, and only one planned early release. So we've actually had 3 full 5 day weeks for the first time since November. With the time change that occurred in that time frame, we all had some major schedule adjusting to do!
We've been dealing with some really stressing things too . One of our students has been fighting against life-threatening pneumonia and its complications. He has been in ICU since our Feb. break and seems finally to be stablized. However, he is on the list now for a lung transplant because of major scarring that has occurred as a result of massive infections. This has affected not just teachers, but a stepbrother and other close relatives who are also among our 6th graders.
We are also moving our classrooms next month as the final phases of construction start. We will move into some temporary rooms for the rest of the year, and then have to move back for the fall into different classrooms. It wouldn't be so bad if we were getting the beautiful new rooms, but we're not. In fact what really has me depressed is that after FINALLY getting a big room 2 years ago, I will most likely be moving into another teeny classroom with NO storage. Plus our team will be split up among 3 floors instead of the current 2 floors we're on. There is a chance that I will get a great room, but if that happens, I will be one of 2 6th grade rooms in a hall otherwise filled with another grade level. That will make things a bit more difficult as far as transitions go, but I'd much rather have that alternative.
I also had had the possibility of moving to another grade level, but that door closed. I was really bummed about that, but it makes the packing easier.
Family life has been rather stressed too --- another sister has had to deal with breast cancer. Fortunately after the bad news of the diagnosis, the rest of the news is positive. This has been difficult for us all.
So what are some ups?? Well, I am back on track as far as exercise and diet. I've managed to get to the gym almost every other day this month, and I've lost almost 4 pounds. I tried the rowing machine the other day and discovered that I didn't mind it. I can't say I love it, but at least I can stand it. So along with the elliptical, there are 2 cardio machines I can tolerate. So between those 2 machines and the twice a week water aerobics classes, I'm back into positive motivation. I hope it lasts!
Another up is that we have a great trip planned for our April break. We are using some travel vouchers we received last summer when we got bumped to go to Cornwall for 5 days. I am looking forward to that!
And finally, my overall mood had changed for the positive - I definitely know that the longer daylight hours is involved.
We've been dealing with some really stressing things too . One of our students has been fighting against life-threatening pneumonia and its complications. He has been in ICU since our Feb. break and seems finally to be stablized. However, he is on the list now for a lung transplant because of major scarring that has occurred as a result of massive infections. This has affected not just teachers, but a stepbrother and other close relatives who are also among our 6th graders.
We are also moving our classrooms next month as the final phases of construction start. We will move into some temporary rooms for the rest of the year, and then have to move back for the fall into different classrooms. It wouldn't be so bad if we were getting the beautiful new rooms, but we're not. In fact what really has me depressed is that after FINALLY getting a big room 2 years ago, I will most likely be moving into another teeny classroom with NO storage. Plus our team will be split up among 3 floors instead of the current 2 floors we're on. There is a chance that I will get a great room, but if that happens, I will be one of 2 6th grade rooms in a hall otherwise filled with another grade level. That will make things a bit more difficult as far as transitions go, but I'd much rather have that alternative.
I also had had the possibility of moving to another grade level, but that door closed. I was really bummed about that, but it makes the packing easier.
Family life has been rather stressed too --- another sister has had to deal with breast cancer. Fortunately after the bad news of the diagnosis, the rest of the news is positive. This has been difficult for us all.
So what are some ups?? Well, I am back on track as far as exercise and diet. I've managed to get to the gym almost every other day this month, and I've lost almost 4 pounds. I tried the rowing machine the other day and discovered that I didn't mind it. I can't say I love it, but at least I can stand it. So along with the elliptical, there are 2 cardio machines I can tolerate. So between those 2 machines and the twice a week water aerobics classes, I'm back into positive motivation. I hope it lasts!
Another up is that we have a great trip planned for our April break. We are using some travel vouchers we received last summer when we got bumped to go to Cornwall for 5 days. I am looking forward to that!
And finally, my overall mood had changed for the positive - I definitely know that the longer daylight hours is involved.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Reflections
I just finished reading Take This Bread by Sarah Miles. Engrossing and challenging! She captured for me the meaning of communion, and what it means to be Christian. This book is the story (up to this point, anyway) of how she allowed herself to be opened up to God, and how she struggles to make sense of God's presence in her life. I like what she says about the journey:
"Conversions isn't after all, a moment: It's a process, and it keeps happening, with cycles of acceptance and resistance, epiphany and doubt. . . . it stayed hard. I began to understand why so many people chose to be "born-again" and follow strict rules that wyould tell them what to do, once and for all. It was tempting to rely on a formual-"accepting Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and savior," for example--that became itself a form of idolatry and kept you from experiencing God in your flesh, in the complicated flesh of others. it was tempting to proclaim yourself "saved" and go back to sleep."
A couple of years ago, the deacons (I was one of them) of my church engaged in a study/prayerful discussion of what communion meant and how we should offer it. We read theology, talked about our own beliefs, and prayed a lot. Ultimately we came up with this statement which appears in our bulletin on communion Sundays. (In our church - the first Sunday of the month)
In October 2004, after much thoughtful discussion and prayer, the Deacons reached the following understanding:
Jesus spoke always about God’s unceasing love for us. Jesus also promised that all who came seeking God’s presence, would find it. Jesus never turned anyone away from him and welcomed all who welcomed him and his message. Jesus invites us to join him at his table. It is Jesus who hosts this table and welcomes all who wish to come to it. Therefore, if you seek the presence of God in your life, if you hunger and thirst and wish to be nourished by God’s boundless love, if you wish to come to the meal, you are welcome.
We opened up Communion to anyone who desired to be fed, and for us, it's no longer an exclusive meal to be shared with those in the club. Children of all ages are welcome at our table too.
Our church is struggling right now -- an aging congregation, strapped finances, burned out leadership. We are in a pastoral search too, and we're working on changing our organizational structure. At the same time, we are a "doing" church -- we hold monthly community suppers, run an emergency shelter, a very busy food pantry, and we host AA groups, and a grief group. We are "Open and Affirming" and work hard for social justice on a number of fronts. Sometimes though we get so busy acting out our faith that we don't nourish it enough, or we become blind to the fact that our actions are how we are experiencing God in our midst. Instead we focus on how hard and exhausting our lives are. It's helpful for me to see how others have struggled -- I'm able to refocus and see things from a different perspective.
And I'm giving myself some time to nourish myself. I have just stepped down from a significant leadership position at church that I've filled for 8 or 9 years. I recognized the burnout signs. It's time to step back, regroup, and let go. For a while anyway!
"Conversions isn't after all, a moment: It's a process, and it keeps happening, with cycles of acceptance and resistance, epiphany and doubt. . . . it stayed hard. I began to understand why so many people chose to be "born-again" and follow strict rules that wyould tell them what to do, once and for all. It was tempting to rely on a formual-"accepting Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and savior," for example--that became itself a form of idolatry and kept you from experiencing God in your flesh, in the complicated flesh of others. it was tempting to proclaim yourself "saved" and go back to sleep."
A couple of years ago, the deacons (I was one of them) of my church engaged in a study/prayerful discussion of what communion meant and how we should offer it. We read theology, talked about our own beliefs, and prayed a lot. Ultimately we came up with this statement which appears in our bulletin on communion Sundays. (In our church - the first Sunday of the month)
In October 2004, after much thoughtful discussion and prayer, the Deacons reached the following understanding:
Jesus spoke always about God’s unceasing love for us. Jesus also promised that all who came seeking God’s presence, would find it. Jesus never turned anyone away from him and welcomed all who welcomed him and his message. Jesus invites us to join him at his table. It is Jesus who hosts this table and welcomes all who wish to come to it. Therefore, if you seek the presence of God in your life, if you hunger and thirst and wish to be nourished by God’s boundless love, if you wish to come to the meal, you are welcome.
We opened up Communion to anyone who desired to be fed, and for us, it's no longer an exclusive meal to be shared with those in the club. Children of all ages are welcome at our table too.
Our church is struggling right now -- an aging congregation, strapped finances, burned out leadership. We are in a pastoral search too, and we're working on changing our organizational structure. At the same time, we are a "doing" church -- we hold monthly community suppers, run an emergency shelter, a very busy food pantry, and we host AA groups, and a grief group. We are "Open and Affirming" and work hard for social justice on a number of fronts. Sometimes though we get so busy acting out our faith that we don't nourish it enough, or we become blind to the fact that our actions are how we are experiencing God in our midst. Instead we focus on how hard and exhausting our lives are. It's helpful for me to see how others have struggled -- I'm able to refocus and see things from a different perspective.
And I'm giving myself some time to nourish myself. I have just stepped down from a significant leadership position at church that I've filled for 8 or 9 years. I recognized the burnout signs. It's time to step back, regroup, and let go. For a while anyway!
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Done! (except for the zipper)
My cardigan is done. I did a really nice job knitting this but I'm even more pleased with how well I finished most of the seams. It took me the better part of 5 hours to join the sleeves and then seam everything. I like my sleeve joins better than my side seams, but all in all, it's the best finishing job I've done so far. My only regret? I wish I'd made the larger size! I can wear this, but it's got a little too much negative ease for my preference. But it's okay. . . by next fall I hope to have lost another 20 pounds so it will be fine. I just have to find a 26 inch zipper to put in.
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