The Dresser Before and After

This is my spring break project. Notice the sty eye in the above picture.

Broken Window, Broken Dreams

Well, not quite that dramatic. Over break someone broke the window out on my trailer. This morning my blinds were rattling and I opened them to find the bottom window pane shattered. Officer Jay seems to believe it was a homeless man trying to get out of the snow Saturday night. Too bad my bookshelf blocked his way in.

Of course, the work order was completed at the end of the day in the middle of our discussion about writing a catchy lead. The only thing catching my students' attention was the sound of broken glass being swept up. As you can imagine, this window was quite a distraction today. In middle school, it doesn't take much to distract a roomful of students. Dog walkers, brightly colored birds, and a stuffy trailer are the usual culprits.

Grammar, not my game

I was looking at past entries and found several grammatical errors. Stupid things that could easily be fixed by a close read. I know I teach English but please do not make the mistake of holding me to a higher standard. I simply do not see errors as glaringly in my own work. After the third error, I stopped reading. Typos after the fact make me feel sick inside. Sorry readers. I do proof what I post but sometimes I'm too close to notice the blemishes.

It's the same reason I need loving people in my life to act as mirrors to help me see what I'm too close, or personally involved in, to truly see rightly.

"finding my voice"

That's how my good friend, Krista, put it on her blog. She recently wrote about a new goal she has to blog every day. It's inspired by a book she's reading by Mary Pipher called Write to Change the World. The title is intriguing and I'd love a chance to read it myself. Apparently, the author encourages people to put their thoughts down on paper. Through writing often, they can find their "voice." I admire Krista's commitment to blog daily and selfishly, I am excited to have a daily glimpse into her life via the blog. I'd link you to her wonderful thoughts but the blog is private (she's not trying to be exclusive, she's just honoring her school district's privacy policies). Krista, I encourage you on your journey to find your voice and change the world, and I hope to join you in the journey.

Beating the Odds: The Dramatic Story of Sara Lakin

So while reading Outliers, (see previous post) Chris brought to my attention that I have beaten the odds. According to Malcolm Gladwell, success is determined by birth month or your age within your class. Being a May baby, on the young end of my class, I should have nothing going for me. Now Chris, also a May baby but on the old end of our class, should be in line for leadership in a Fortune 500 company. Well, Malcolm Gladwell, who's financing who in this marriage right now?

It's all part of the dramatic story of Sara Lakin, rising above her circumstances, to prove to the world that she will not be held down by her birth month.

One of my favorite pastimes...

It's dreary out this morning in Columbia. Chris and I are at Kaldi's, I'm enjoying a cup of coffee and a blueberry scone. Chris is reading Outliers and I'm creeping on all my favorite blogs. These are my most favorite moments.

I will miss Columbia when we have to leave.

For all they call MIZZOU

Way to go TIGERS! We beat Memphis last night and now go on to the elite eight. Are you impressed 1. that I watched? 2. that I know the different tiers of the tournament? It's all thanks to living with a boy now.



Have I watched any Mizzou basketball before the tournament?



No.



Am I the biggest fair weather fan you'll ever meet?



Yes.



Am I proud of it?



No.



This is my new favorite Mizzou player, J.T. Tiller.

LOST... What just happened?

Did you watch LOST last night? Because if you didn't, you should. My mouth is still hanging open from shock. I will hold off on why I'm so freaking surprised since my friend, Bonnie, might read this before she gets to see the episode in Korean time. Bonnie, lets chat about this as soon as you've finished the episode. All I can say is I am sucked back in!

We were on the NEWS

Click here to view our KOMU school report. Click play on the video screen to the right. It takes a second to load but it's worth it!!!!!

I love you Hazelnut

Dear Coffee Mate Hazelnut Creamer,

I miss you. The Original Coffee Mate just doesn't cut it. You had the power to make my homemade cup of coffee resemble a hazelnut latte from Starbucks. After great debate, we decided to go with your less flavorful cousin, Original Coffee Mate, but make no mistake, you will always be first in our heart- even if you are double the calories and sugar content.

Love, Sara

"the ogre wink"

I awoke this morning to a monster in the mirror. I've had a painful sty for the last couple of mornings but after a shower and some allergy medicine it was unnoticeable. Well, last night my sty exploded in size. I now look like an ogre mid-wink. So I did what any well informed patient would do when her medical school student was unavailable at work... I checked it out on Web MD. Now I'm totally freaked because I need to seek medical counsel if...
my eyelashes fall out
pus or thick discharge continues to drain from the eye
it lasts for longer than 3 weeks
the white part of my eye becomes red

Yikes. Please little sty, go down, get out, don't you know this is my spring break?

Sara, how did you spend your spring break?

reading all about josh and naomi. if you have a half day, read about their adventures together in nyc. i'm loving her bangs... any objections???

Spring Break as a 24 year old?

I just spent some time reading this morning. I'm waiting for my apartment's workout facility to open up- doesn't open until 9 AM which is something I could write a whole blog entry about... and sipping coffee, listening to music. An empty week stretches before me. Typically the thought of a week off with no plans might send me into a panic mode but I am looking forward to some time to relax and work on other pursuits in my life besides grading, planning, and school email.
On the agenda;
- getting sized for a bridesmaid dress for Megan's wedding
- refinishing a piece of furniture Chris and I picked up from Salvation Army a few months ago
- finishing Outliers and Not Much Just Chillin'- The Hidden Lives of Middle Schoolers
- Writing... my own stuff
Thank you Spring Break!

Walking for a Cause

one hundred and fifty walkers...

ten raffle prizes...

forty-one blue Tap Project tees...

one mile...

and eight hundred and fifteen dollars later...

Itchin' to blog some random thoughts

I have been caught up in whirlwind lately. I feel like every afternoon has been filled with activity after activity with little time for reflection or breath. Tomorrow is the Tap walk and I can feel the excitement building. The t-shirts came in yesterday and look wonderful. I can't wait to see a sea of periwinkle walking down the Smithton halls tomorrow. So far we've raised just shy of $400. I have one last day of penny wars in class and hope to reach $500. I'll post pictures of tomorrow's event and give you a full run down after I've recovered myself.

I played in the faculty- student basketball game today after school. Played might not be the right way to put it. I ran up and down the court and avoided the ball. It was a fun time, I got a new Mountain Dew tee, and my students love any opportunity where I can embarrass myself so overall, it was a win.

My husband is currently persuading me to commit to the P90X workout challenge. It's an intense, 6 days a week, work out regimen. When it comes to working out, I enjoy a nice thirty-minutes on the elliptical, hunched over a book, melting calories. This would definitely be a step above my current fitness level. Right now, I am leaning toward the challenge. We'll see how I feel when it comes time to put the sports bra on and "frog crunch" my way to perfect abs. I have a slight aversion to discomfort...

Writing = Insecurity

I just joined a teacher writing group. As a product from the writing institute, an intense- 4 week, summer experience for teachers of writing, we are meeting once a month to share our personal writing.

When asked to join, I was honored and immediately said yes, and then reality struck... I don't write in my free time. This was going to pose as a problem.

After a few insecure moments, I talked to one of the group members about my fear in joining the group and my lack of contribution. She encouraged me to just come, observe, and then go from there.

So we met at Kaldi's and we shared. It was the first time where I've felt like I had meaningful relationships at my school (outside my teaching team). We talked about life, school, pregnancy (Kerry's) and then we sat down and honestly and openly looked at each piece of writing.
These women are good; they're insightful, talented, and witty in their writing. Despite their obvious craft of writing, I began to feel at ease. Writing seems best when it's simple. Each piece of writing dealt with the nuances of life. As we read and discussed, my mind swam with ideas of things I could begin writing about.

So I am resolving to try and write regularly. My students are beginning a short story study and we'll be writing our own short stories in the process. Each class begins with a creative writing prompt that hopefully will provide inspiration for future writing. I'm going to take that time and write each day with my students. I have a friend who teaches eighth grade in KC and she said she's started writing with her students, allowing her students to view her writing in her journal and it's been huge for building student confidence and trust in the classroom.
If students see us writing, I think they are willing to try it themselves.

So we'll see. The only way to hone the craft, is to write and write often.