Places

I have many half-written blog pieces in my head that have formed over the past few weeks, but it seems that is the place where they want to stay for now.

However, one thing I have found myself pondering lately is the notion of beauty; where it comes from, where you find it, what it means.

And while I believe beauty can be found almost anywhere, there are two physical PLACES I have been to in my life that have struck me as being particularly beautiful, particularly special.

Particularly magical.

This is the Gap of Dunloe in Ireland. I went here when I was an eighth-grader, and thought it was the most beautiful place I had ever seen. The foggy landscape with its craggy rocks and verdant grass was almost surreal; I felt as if I had stepped into a storybook.. This place is also special because it was the last vacation I took with my mom. While my father, brothers and I rode up the steep path in a jaunting cart, she forged bravely ahead, a solitary figure on horseback. I can only imagine the wild freedom she must have felt as she strode confidently up and down the hills-English saddle and all! One of the most beautiful memories I have of her.

Another place that has resonated within me is Lake Tahoe in California. This was one of the highlights of a cross-country tour I took with three of my girlfriends from college last summer. The pictures really don't do it justice.

Our attempt at a jumping photo...we didn't quite get the timing right. :)

I could have stayed there for hours, just absorbing the mountains, the clear water, the air. I brought home a really neat stone as a souvenir, but have since felt slightly guilty about removing it from its natural habitat. Though I enjoy having it, I might like to go back and return it someday.

The world is full of beauty. Beautiful places. Beautiful life.

"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul." ~John Muir

Farting in class

Yesterday I had to present a lesson plan on Hamlet to my class.

I spent hours working on it, researching ideas, writing, and revising.

I aligned my lesson around the TN state standards for teaching English and literature.

I planned activities according to Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences to accomodate different learning styles.

I planned alternative activities to allow student choice.

I created handouts, rubrics, instruction sheets, visual aids, and character charts.

I thought I was prepared.

That is, until my teacher said the word fart.

"Pardon me?" I inquired, perplexed and already turning red in the face.

Apparantly the acronym for the writing strategy I used - RAFT - reminded her of the word fart.

"You have to be careful when teaching middle and high schooler's," she said, "not to use words that can easily lend themselves to other words."

And that was the only teacher feedback I received on my lesson.

It did get me to thinking, however, that if nothing else my students would definitely remember the RAFT, or FART writing strategy for the rest of their lives. Besides, how funny would it be to say, "Hello class. Please take out your writing journals. Today we are going to work on FARTs!"

New Bedspread and the JCP 4th of July Extravaganza

Remember how awful my bed looked in the previous post? Here is what it looks like now:

(Excuse the old sheets laying in the corner, please).

Much improved, right? (Oh and don't worry, my brother picked up Clara Wednesday night so this comforter should be safe, haha. It was nice getting to see him! We listened to music and played air hockey on his iphone, who knew you could do that?! Not me!) Anyway, I really like that the comforter is reversible and I love the bright colors and patterns in the quilt. I couldn't afford both so my sister got me the quilt for my birthday. Thanks sis! I think we spent close to 3 hours in JC Penny last Sunday picking everything out. Neither of us could believe the amount of time we were in there but we had so much fun! We also looked at clothes, shoes, accessories, men's clothing...pretty much everything! Since the bedding was so bulky, a nice salesman helped us by getting us a cart. I couldn't resist being punny by commenting to Alina, "J.C. Penny-it's all inside...my cart!" as we rolled through the aisles. I even found a cheap-o rug to put in my room which I've been wanting to do pretty much since I moved in...over a year ago. I still would like to have some curtains eventually, just taking it a little bit at a time! We had hoped to make it to Old Navy and Belk as well that day...but clearly JCP sucked us right in and we ran out of time. Alina also convinced me to purchase a pair of these:

I thought they were kinda weird, but Alina convinced me they look like something Miley Cyrus would wear...and if you know me you know how much I love her. (Party in the USA!) My suspicions were confirmed later that night at the 4th of July fireworks/concert however when my dad innocently inquired, "What happened to your pants?" haha! I was tempted to come up with a bizarre bleaching incident story to tell him but just decided to go with the more boring response, "They're acid wash, dad," as if that was something he should know. ;) He played with the Murfreesboro symphony on the 4th and I was very proud of him!

Anyway, hope ya'll had a nice 4th of July weekend! I can't believe another weekend is already upon us!

This is Why I'm a Cat Person

Meet my brother's dog, Clara, who I have been dogsitting this week. Notice the bits of fluff and blanket strewn about?

This is what I came home to last night. Although she was safely locked in her kennel at the M.O.D. (Moment of Destruction) she managed to pull my bedspread THROUGH the gate before she preceeded to shred it into tiny pieces.

Rest in peace, dear bedspread. You kept me warm many a night.

At least her kennel looks comfy now.

How I Became Popular...or Not

“Popular!

You're gonna be popular!

I'll teach you the proper ploys

When you talk to boys

Little ways to flirt and flounce (Ooh!)

I'll show you what shoes to wear

How to fix your hair

Everything that really counts

To be popular

I'll help you be popular!

You'll hang with the right cohorts

You'll be good at sports

Know the slang you've got to know

So let's start

'Cause you've got an awfully long way to go”

-From the musical Wicked

If you are familiar with the Broadway musical Wicked, you have heard this song. It is sung by the pretty, popular character Galinda at the point of the play where she decides to give the rather unfortunate looking Elphaba a makeover. This is my favorite part of the play, not only because the song is cute and funny, but also because I can totally relate…

“I’m going to give you popular lessons,” my sister (the Galinda in this story) announced one day to my nine-year old self. A year and a half my senior, she had graciously decided to make me, the Elphaba charity-case, her newest project.

Step one to becoming popular: handwriting lessons. (Who knew handwriting had a direct correlation with popularity? Why, my sister, of course!)

“Your writing isn’t bubbly enough,” Galinda, er … Alina said. She handed me a sheet of notebook paper with the ABC’s written neatly across the top in her perfect handwriting. “Try to make it look like more like mine.”

After I had painstakingly copied her letters, we moved on to phone etiquette.

“How many phone numbers do you know?” she demanded, a question that confused me. I started rattling off our own phone number but was quickly stopped. “Not our phone number, how many other people’s numbers do you know?”

“Oh!” I said, “Well I know Ginger’s and Jessica’s…”

“Tell you what, Galina interrupted. “Let’s have a contest to see who knows the most phone numbers. I’ll go first.”

And with that we started spouting off the phone numbers we had memorized. Since she obviously had more friends than I did, I’ll let you guess who won.

I’m a little fuzzy on what else my popular lessons entailed, or if they even went any further past that first day. Who knows, maybe after the phone number contest I was given up as a hopeless case. Meanwhile I taught my little brother to say “thank you” if anyone ever called him weird.

“Consider it a compliment,” I said. “It’s cool to be weird!”

No wonder my sister was worried.

I LOVE Top Banana!!!!

Good morning Top Banana! Time to get up!!

I looooove Top Banana!

I like to pretend to be just like him!

Us going bananas!

Stop tickling me Banana!!

I got a lil mad at him...

But I still think he's number one!

Besties!!!

I'm the top banana!

My dance teacher has a thing with bananas. I'm not sure what started it all, exactly, but over the last couple of years she has been collecting plush toy bananas (with faces on them) and bringing them to dance class. She loves them so much, in fact, that she convinced her husband to win a human-sized stuffed banana at a carnival recently by knocking 3 pins down with a bean bag. That banana now lays prostrate across the shelves where we keep our shoes and dance bags. But I digress...

Anyway, she has started giving out "top banana" awards to the dancer who impresses her the most in class each week. It's kinda like when you are in kindergarten and your teacher lets you take home the class stuffed animal for the weekend, only we get a banana instead. Sometimes she forgets about the banana and no one gets it. Sometimes she isn't pleased enough with anyone to give the banana out. But last night was a different story. Because last night....I got the top banana!!!
FINALLY! I have never gotten it before and I was sooo excited. Possibly the most exciting moment of my dancing career, hah! Okay maybe not, but still! I'm top banana!

I also got my first solo dance dress last night!

I bought it used and need to replace a few crystals on it, but I think it is sooo pretty. I can't wait to wear it at my competition in September. Let's just hope the judges think I'm top banana as well! But until then, I have a plush banana at home to remind me that for this week at least, I'm at the top!