Duly Noted

The honeymoon period at the ranch is ending, and I'm beginning to feel the need to venture out into greater Marin. I need another outlet. Triatholon? Community Theater? Something... I've been antsy these last few days despite the beautiful sunshine. I can't seem to pull it together. Today, fortunately, at the Saturday family program (a toddler day...oooh my love for snot-filled two year olds! Many of you may remember my deep rooted fear of the toystore carpeting. Disgusting.), a burst of happiness filled me up and I felt like a flower bulb waiting for that first raindrop...and finally it came! I was twiddling my thumbs, counting down the hours to freedom, when the puppet parade was called to action. A blur of cotton candy pink, face-painted cheeks, and mothers with digital cameras and perfect ranch attire gathered in the garden. Kids were waving around sheep, chickens, and worms on sticks. Zia ran up to me with a drumset and before I knew what was happening...th...

When I chose to teach a handful of Hemingway short stories in my twelfth grade English class, I did not expect to moderate a heated discussion about acquaintance rape.  Yet, to veer away from the conversation directly counteracts my belief in literature’s ability to tackle the most human and difficult of topics.   Hemingway’s “Up In Michigan” begins innocently.  Liz is infatuated by Jim.  Jim thinks Liz “had good legs,” but “he never thought about her.”  Suspense builds as Jim gets drunk and Liz waits for him in the kitchen.  Thanks to the omniscient narrator, readers learn that Liz is frightened but she goes for a walk with Jim anyway.  Even though Liz verbally resists, the narrator describes, “She was frightened but she wanted it.  She had to have it but it frightened her.”  After the deed is done, Jim passes out, and Liz, though miserable, covers him with her coat before walking away.   Whether Hemingway intentionally wrote Jim...

It's been a while.  I know.  I started to outdo myself with the monthly mommy posts.  Misha is an objectively small wonder, but the world is full of wonder and it is okay if he isn't always in the spotlight.  Especially on the interwebs. So...what ELSE? My classroom is a space that restores me and my gratitude for life.  It is my book club.  Unlike adults, teenagers are reckless.  They don't think twice about criticizing Langston Hughes, and then, in the same breath, commenting on the relevancy of his 1926 commentary on white supremacy and artisthood.  In my class, it is OK to change your mind. Besides Langston Hughes, we've been reading this by bell hooks, this by George Orwell, and watching some of this . At home, I have been reading this and listening to this !

School was cancelled again due to bitter cold temperatures.  So what did I do?  Head to the gym, of course!  I couldn't wait to get in an interval workout after a two day running hiatus.  I have been getting interval workout ideas from a running group that meets every Thursday morning.  I am never able to join them due to my morning work schedule/routine, but I like to do their workouts so I requested to keep me on the email list! Here was today's workout: 1 mile w/u 4 x (4 min, 3 min, 2 min) w/1 min. recovery jogs between each interval.  I ran each set a little faster- starting at 8 min/mile pace and ending at 7:30 min/mile. 1 mile c/d Total mileage: 8 miles I finished up with some quick stretching and my standard 8 min. abs. I felt awesome! Now, the special thing about this workout is that I completed it while talking with a colleague of mine on the treadmill next me.  As a p.Hd student, she is busy too so we have found that workout meetings ensure c...

As a teacher, I am a creature of habit.  5:30 alarm, sleep 5:40 alarm, sleep 5:50 wake up Head downstairs, get coffee and oatmeal started. Do 8 minutes of abs while waiting for coffee and oatmeal. Eat breakfast, read emails, check weather, and toodle around feedly and pinterest 6:30 Feed Misha or prep milk, brush teeth, floss, comb hair and get dressed.  Pick out a scarf to wear. 7:15 Bike to work, enjoy the fall colors 7:45 Meet with students about essays, respond to work emails, get ready for classes 8:30-11:30 Teach! 11:30-12:00 Wrap up materials, get ready for tomorrow's classes. 12:00 Bike home, enjoy leaves again! 12:30 Home sweet home!  Cuddle and feed Misha. 1:00 Eat lunch outside on our picnic table and make plans for the afternoon. Unlike my mornings at work, weekday afternoons have yet to fall into a routine.  Although sometimes I yearn for this, I am okay with no routine with one caveat.  I need to spend some time moving, and...

I didn't post last week's dinner menu, so this is a double feature post.  (As a side note- SAT question of the day is a routine warm up in my English class.  The subject of week's grammar question was a 1930's ploy to attract more moviegoers by offering a double feature- two films for the price of one.  I asked my students if they ever went to a "double feature."  They giggled and looked around.  I told them not to worry as my mom was a real supporter of "double feature"- one of her more rebellious habits along with McDonald's ice cream for lunch.) Anywayssss- to the menus! February 23rd-Friday, March 1st Saturday- "Homemade" pizza...although there really isn't anything homemade about this pizza...store bought crust, mozzarella log, italian sausage, basil, and pizza sauce. Sunday -Salmon, Israeli couscous, and steamed green beans. Monday- Brocoli and cheese soup (cooking light- thanks mom!) with baked potatoes (microwave...so...

So, what's going on at 36 weeks?  Here are a few observations. Baby... Baby is an acrobat.  This doesn't surprise me as the first ultrasound at about 6 weeks revealed the little guy bouncing up and down and throwing bows in his pod (throwing bows= dance move, throwing elbows).  Now, he thinks it is hilarious to kick me in the rib cage and let his foot linger for a while.  He likes to somersault during class discussions  and distract me from my eager 11th graders.  He is clearly displaying early signs of class clown.  This is worrisome.  He also tends to move when I (or he?) is hungry.  Instead of a 5 o'clock cocktail, I get a 5 o'clock kick in the ribs.  :)  I love it. Me... My belly bump is for real at this point.  Although, at parent/teacher conferences, several of my 11th grade parents expressed utter dismay when I said "Yup, so I only have four more weeks left...(eyebrow lift/grimace/anger)...because I am due April 1s...

A month into Summer with a capital S (cause Summer is for real for teachers), I have had a fair amount of hours to pick apart and contemplate my dependence on staying "busy."  You might just say I stayed busy stressing about my lack of busyness.  (I know this will tickle more than a few of my readers who I tease about their dependence on busyness.  Let's just say this comes from a place of understanding.)  My stress naturally led into some soul searching.  If my schedule is not full...If I am not working full time...If I don't know what the day has in store...If I don't have a plan...Well, what then?  Who am I?  What's the point?   On Sunday evening, my eye caught The New York Times headline, "The 'Busy' Trap. "  Author Tim Kreider argues that busyness is an "existential reassurance, a hedge against emptiness."  He claims that people stay busy "because of their own ambition or drive or anxiety, because they're addicted...

Are you someone that gets cliches messed up?  I do this frequently.  The name of this post was "Coming Up For Water" until I remembered that I am not a mermaid and I actually need to breathe to survive.  Sometimes, I need to be reminded of this. Anyway, my loyal readers, you must be wondering what's been up in these parts.  Well, let me tell you, time never slows down.  Here's a glimpse into the state of affairs in our household: 1. Our garden:  Last summer, I experienced overwhelming anxiety at the idea of breaking ground.  So much so, in fact, that I decided not to plant anything.  This year, Mike stepped on board (again, another example of messed up cliche: hopped on board or stepped up to the plate...) and joined the team (okay, so stepped up to plate would work better here...duly note: Math, not English, was actually my favorite subject as a school kid).  Turns out, we are a great team and we have already accomplished more garde...

About a month ago, our capable media specialist weeded our high school library.  Basically, the weeding process entailed tearing through the shelves and removing copies of books that were deemed outdated or unusable. Now, for a high school student and for your average curious and occasionally up-to-no-good English teacher, this stack of "weeds" is not seen a pile of unwanted dandelions.  No sir!  This pile represents a treasure trove of real joy. The plot thickened on this particular weeding occasion because the weeding process aligned perfectly with Poetry Outloud, a student recitation poetry competition co-produced by yours truly.  As I have been known to do, I harnessed help from a dear and extremely witty Macalester friend.  To my pleasure, her reaction to the pile of "weeds" was precisely as I had hoped. Pulling out our smartphones, we selected two books in particular that we felt needed to be documented for prosperity. The whole month is encapsul...

What is marvelous about today? Mid-quarter grades are due...which means that there are only 1 and 1/2 quarters left of school!  Which means summer is not unimaginably far away! Haircut!  Shorter...and a touch darker!  Yes, I got some rich dark brown highlights.  I think one person noticed. I run after school almost daily.  Once and a while though, I cut myself some slack and veg out with a diet coke, a blanket, and a stack of reading material.  Today is one of those days.  Rachel is bearing with me and being cozy too. Today is Greg Vasich's birthday.  Mike and I are honoring him tonight with an annual burger night.  If only he were here to share it with us.

This post is a tribute to Miles and Laurel and all other bloggers who participate in the Marvelous Monday phenomenon. 1) The McCarthy parents visit.  In addition to playing cards and drinking Slivovitz , we decided to pack a little entertainment into our presidents' weekend itinerary. Friday: Fame, as performed by my high school students! Saturday: Sherlock Holmes, Part I.  Everyone fell asleep except Dad. Sunday: American Teacher at Bryant Lake Bowl AND Cat On A Tin Roof at the Guthrie Monday: Breakfast with Downton Abbey.  OMG. Each of these showings could really be a post on their own so I will leave it at that for now, but prepare for a critical review in the near future. 2) At Bryant Lake Bowl, a poster advertised Orange Mighty Trio's spin off group, NES.  They are performing this Thursday along with an 8-Bit beer release.  I quite enjoy seeing my husband's photo in the window! 3) Speed workout!  Tried and true running partners, Rebecca...

It is an odd time of year for a transition point.  Winter break and New Years have passed, and a change of seasons is still far off.  Yet, Minneapolis schools proclaims today as the end of quarter 2, semester 1, and I would like to honor it as such.  For twenty weeks now, I have been teaching 9th and 10th grades; a new...and, at times, headache inducing...experience!  But, I gotta tell you, these kids are growing on me everyday.  Just last week, as we reflected on Orwell's 1984 , a student proclaimed, "I was completely satisfied with the ending of this novel.  In fact, I'd argue that we don't read enough of these soul crushing books!"  Honestly, I couldn't agree more, kid.  Tenth grade is the year of depressing novels so he is in luck. Why is soul crushing important?   I think there comes a time where we really need to look at our world beyond our ipads and snowboarding trips and endless access to clean water.  For today's tee...

The following New York Times article caught my eye this morning: Out on the Town, Always Online by John Leland. ***It is probably crucial to note the the context from which I am reading and analyzing the article.  Currently, my tenth grade class is devouring (okay, I am devouring and eagerly promoting the relevance of the book to them) Orwell's classic, 1984.  I wish we had enough copies of M.T. Anderson's dystopian novel, Feed, to pair it with, but nonetheless, 1984 certainly stands alone in its creepy correlations with our present day.  In John Leland's article, smartphones are one step away from becoming an additional body part.  (For Feed non-readers , the characters in the novel have a computer chip in their brains that basically functions as a smartphone but they don't need to type; the chip can read their minds).  Please note the following quotes from the article: "Mr. Hunt and Ms. Beaudreault resumed their conversation seamlessly, as if the i...

Dad and I visited the Walker Art Museum   before he left town today.  After doing our best to appreciate some of the more controversial exhibitions (namely, Midnight Party (an investigation of our dreams and nightmares through art), we were about to make a break for the gift shop when a gallery on graphics caught our eye.  We decided we better check it out as we both like graphic art and I recently learned that "op" (as in op-art) is a word all by itself (thank you scrabble).  The exhibition was hands-on, relevant, and a reminder of all the inventive art that digital media has exposed to audiences.  So cool!  I jotted down a bunch of ideas for my classroom.   Here is one video that I've seen before but could always see again: I also really liked Doyle's Identity Guidelines.  He created a standard self.  Here, he is showing two variations on his standard outfit.  As a ni...

Inspired by several educators and colleagues emphasizing the value of authentic student interest in regards to increasing reading volume, I decided to let my students select a book from our media center for independent reading with a little follow-up video production assignment (basically, the assignment works like an advanced version of Reading Rainbow where they can share their tastes and critiques with classmates). Our class period in the media center went well until I noticed that two of my 11th grade boys selected a variety of books that solely focused on drugs: "Cocaine," "Legalizing Marijuana," "Meth." Great. I felt a little annoyed and a little stuck. Surely, I am not one for censoring books. But, any teacher in their right mind would feel uncomfortable with their students walking down the school hallway carrying a series of books on drugs. Right?! Like, what if we ran into the the principal?! Or the head of the school board? "Oh, thi...

So in addition to the holiday bootie buster challenge (I know, what a name), I am also partaking in a blogging challenge organized by a couple of fellow teachers whom I spent some time with at NCTE. The challenge is described here if you feel like joining: http://alittleleeway.blogspot.com/2010/11/2010-blogging-challenge.html With that in mind, I received an email from my friendly media specialist, Patty (oh man, do I love her), with the following link: http://edorigami.wikispaces.com/ The site is filled with ideas, directions, definitions, and tutorials for including media in the classroom. I definitely plan on using some of this material in the near future.

This past weekend, I traveled to Disney World (perhaps my least favorite vacation destination...I am admittedly part snob, part anti-consumerist) in order to attend the National Council of Teachers of English mega conference! Although "consumer world" itself (Mike's nickname) was over-priced and bridged on ridiculous, I did manage to have a fabulous time and not spend too much money. Actually, the price was really right for me as MCTE (the Minnesota division of NCTE) paid for my flight, my gorgeous room, and my conference fee in honor of an award I had been given- MCTE's early career teacher leader. Truly, I was so surprised to have been nominated, and I felt very grateful for the nomination, the award, and the opportunity to attend the conference. For me, the highlights of the weekend were many. I was absolutely inspired at the sessions I attended on Friday and Saturday. The teachers and researchers seemed to really stress the value of student engagement and mot...

Inspired by the "Three Things Thursday" trend as exhibited on the blog Run Girl Run and other healthy living related blogs, I am going to start my own TTT series! So here's three things for this Thursday: 1. The weather has been totally FUNKY: the morning started dark, cloudy, and wet. Then a snowstorm during my 2nd period English 11 class! As we turned from our books, Their Eyes Were Watching God, to look out the window, I heard one teenage guy gasp, "A Christmas Miracle!" Although he wouldn't admit to the comment later, I found it totally amazing. Now, it's four; I am about to leave school, and fittingly...the sun is out! What a day. 2. Brought some almonds to work today for a snack and surprisingly, they really filled me up and kept my energy going. I always knew almonds were supposed to be highly beneficial, but I had yet to experience the effects myself. I will have to see how they sustain mean during the evening run with Ray the dog. 3. We...