Early start to the day this Saturday , the last one in August.( Alright English geeks, it is a fragment. I know that but it felt right.) Some stray thought a small fret walked into a rather pleasant deem and nibbled the edges until it woke me and I had to get up , face it and put it down. When that was done, the dogs woke up so they went outside to potty, came in to eat and are now kenneled for a post meal nap that is a habit. My dishwasher is loaded and swishing filling the silent house with rhythm. Pretty much the morning rut but an hour earlier than usual. A change in routine that will affect the course of my day. Change does that.
Yesterday I entered the classroom again but it too was a change. No longer a teacher I am an ESL paraprofessional(para ) for short. I spent the day speaking Spanish to help a new seventh grader who speaks no English with her first day at a local school. I had no lessons to plan, no papers to grade, and it was a change. I had been wondering how it would be and I found in one day, it is okay. Maybe even great. I get to work with students on a one to one basis in crowded classrooms and to help them do well. The classroom teacher has to deal with testing, common core, the switch to paperless classrooms but I get to work with the students which after all is said and done why I went into teaching.
Today is bringing a change also. I am going to try to learn to crochet once again. I can do a granny square, chain, double and treble crochet but he results look haphazard because maintain tension has caused me problems. Today is my goal is to learn the basic Tunisian stitch( afghan stitch to some of you). It may be an attainable goal as it is done on a longer needle and is a more solid result than crochet's usual lacy result. At any rate I find learning new things forces me to use as Poirot calls them the little grey cells. New learning keeps my cells active and learning at any age is a true stimulation.
So it will be a day of using English so the grey cells can relax on that end until Tuesday when my para week begins again but they will also face a challenge involving both thought and action. A mixed bag of stimulation and that is a good thing.
Saturday, August 29, 2015
Saturday, August 22, 2015
new dog in the hood.
My dogs live in a limited area of movement the house and the fenced backyard and two of them are always on lead even there.Zoe is on lead because she is an escape artist and true to her mix of breeds is not lazy about digging her way out; Boba because he is small and could slip through fence gaps. They maintain a love hate relationship it the dogs to the east of our yard. Heidi and Snickers are also denizens of a fenced yard who bark in chorus with my trio and run back and forth the fence line. It is a loud and active form of play.
Today on a potty run. Zoe tugged to the end of the lead, Boba growled (actually growled) and Winston went to the fence. Reason/ A new dog in the yard to the west of us. Reddish brown and white it looks like a aussie shepherd mix. Winston wanted to play while the other too were saying you are too close to our place. Now it was just a warning because the hair on their backs had not raised.Zoe forgot to potty she was so aware of new dog. So all three dogs went in . Zoe is in her box until she recalls why she went outside. I sat down to write and zoom Winston and Boba were at the window. New dog is not on a lead and he was definitely in our yard. So it will take a wile until the boundaries are clearly set. We, the humans, can only control the dogs but the boundary setting is their own area of decision.
Guess we humans are much like dogs. Changes have to be challenged weighed and accepted. Right now a segment of our society is not comfortable that the "white race" is no longer the majority of our population and in truth if world population is considered it never has been. Our new dog in the hood is learning that skin color is just that a color not a race. Personally I am ok with the concept that all of us are humans, and if you respect me I will respect you. I can only hope others will come to this realization. After all the Christ we follow knew no limitations on his love.
Interestingly a friend said that she believes as a group these people do not live as we do. Well maybe but I recall one my uncles who worked on relocating people displaced by the TVA dam. They surveyed the people in town about habits such as house repairs, education, garbage disposal and many such mundane habits so like groups could be in neighborhoods. The results people who burned their garbage etc were equal in all color groups. Economic status determined living habits more than color. Now Charlie was well read so it may have been a report he had read, but he did work on TVA. The point is with in area people are people and one color is does not live at a lower standard than others unless economically oppressed. We are people, humans. We all love, hurt, bleed read and breathe air. WE MUST LEARN TO ACCEPT EACH OTHER AND TREAT EACH OTHER AS WE WISH TO BE TREATED. DOGS MAY SET BOUNDARIES, BUT HUMANS NEED TO OPEN THE BOUNDARIES AND LIVE TOGETHER IN PEACE.
Today on a potty run. Zoe tugged to the end of the lead, Boba growled (actually growled) and Winston went to the fence. Reason/ A new dog in the yard to the west of us. Reddish brown and white it looks like a aussie shepherd mix. Winston wanted to play while the other too were saying you are too close to our place. Now it was just a warning because the hair on their backs had not raised.Zoe forgot to potty she was so aware of new dog. So all three dogs went in . Zoe is in her box until she recalls why she went outside. I sat down to write and zoom Winston and Boba were at the window. New dog is not on a lead and he was definitely in our yard. So it will take a wile until the boundaries are clearly set. We, the humans, can only control the dogs but the boundary setting is their own area of decision.
Guess we humans are much like dogs. Changes have to be challenged weighed and accepted. Right now a segment of our society is not comfortable that the "white race" is no longer the majority of our population and in truth if world population is considered it never has been. Our new dog in the hood is learning that skin color is just that a color not a race. Personally I am ok with the concept that all of us are humans, and if you respect me I will respect you. I can only hope others will come to this realization. After all the Christ we follow knew no limitations on his love.
Interestingly a friend said that she believes as a group these people do not live as we do. Well maybe but I recall one my uncles who worked on relocating people displaced by the TVA dam. They surveyed the people in town about habits such as house repairs, education, garbage disposal and many such mundane habits so like groups could be in neighborhoods. The results people who burned their garbage etc were equal in all color groups. Economic status determined living habits more than color. Now Charlie was well read so it may have been a report he had read, but he did work on TVA. The point is with in area people are people and one color is does not live at a lower standard than others unless economically oppressed. We are people, humans. We all love, hurt, bleed read and breathe air. WE MUST LEARN TO ACCEPT EACH OTHER AND TREAT EACH OTHER AS WE WISH TO BE TREATED. DOGS MAY SET BOUNDARIES, BUT HUMANS NEED TO OPEN THE BOUNDARIES AND LIVE TOGETHER IN PEACE.
Thursday, August 20, 2015
Lessons
Today classes began. My Thursday morning Comp 101 met at McPherson. Interesting fact out of ten students eight were there before class by ten minutes or so, another came in about 10 minutes after the class was to begin and one traipsed in around 1/2 hour after the nine o'clock start. As a practice the office manager called the two late comers. I do not know why but being late is a burr under the saddle to me.
Hold on that last statement is not quite true. I do know why I am always ten minutes early or more and then spend time waiting. This is not a genetic trait , but it definitely came from my parents. Without lectures or shouting I was trained to be on time if not early.No one said this is what you do, but the lesson was there. It was a "do as I do" lesson and they are much more effective than lectures. Children learn from the people around them.Preach whatever homily you want to, they are aware whether you follow the lesson yourself and they do what you do.
Being on time is one way to show respect. Again no words were necessary for this lesson. It was learned when my parents were greeted with smiles as they checked in for appointments and when ( It was often) they were allowed to go in because someone else was late or did not show. Bosses, office managers, teachers among others are on tight schedules, tardiness throws a snag into the works.Teachers have to repeat themselves, doctors and office managers have decide if they are to take who is there or make everyone wait on the late arrival and let us not go into employers who have to confront a terminally tardy employee.
I learned other lessons from my parents' actions. My dad never tried to pay a child's under 12 fee when I hit 12 though I looked younger. My parents made liberal use of thank you and please. I had to write thank you notes. I did not have to like the gift but I had to express thanks to the giver if only for the thought. I recall one such note thanking a relative for a pair of too small Dr.Denton style pajamas when I was in ninth grade. It was not easy task and I admit my mom made me write it twice until it had some semblance of true gratitude. No one was ever out down in our house due to religion, gender, or race. I found out much later Dad did have some biases, but he never said them to or about someone in public or in the privacy of home. Mom and Dad both worked and work was something a person did. They sent me to college so I would not have to live off a sales commission unless I chose to or do some backbreaking soul ripping menial work just to survive. They wanted me to work, but to work at a profession so they made sure I had one.
Their lessons were not always the same. Mom taught me to cook. to sew and to craft.She also read and encouraged me too. I remember her telling the public library"s head person that I could read Peyton Place( the Grey book of the era) though I was under twenty-one. She taught me a lady could enjoy a somewhat dirty joke, that family came first, and that life was an adventure. Dad gave me a love of travel. He took us to different states and to Mexico and Canada. He gave me the love of movies by taking me to Saturday Matinees. He too taught me life was an adventure to be lived by coming into the kitchen saying," I am going to________.Are you coming?".
My parents did not lecture or explain.When I became a teen and was pondering moral decisions such as smoking( they both smoked), they simply said it is your life, you decide. Another statement that hit home was the ne that went Remember you live with your bad decisions everyday of your life, not us. So think things through. That was only said once but when faced with a decisions the What if of both the yes and no were considered before I decided. It put the responsibility where it truly belonged with me. They would support me but they would not make excuses for me.
This is a long discussion brought on by a late student but I wonder how she learned that it was okay to be late and ask for an update of class when class was over.. I know how I learned life lessons. How did you?
Sunday, August 16, 2015
sunday and re-reading again
Sunday for real is here after yesterday felt like Sunday all day. It feels like Sunday so the inner clock is once again working or as the Brits say tickety-boo.
Re-reading THE NIGHT REMEMBERS by Kathleen Eagle I was amazed at an element I had missed in my first reading. Jesse Wolf is a nearly perfect description of a person suffering from ptsd. He can function in society but when the darkness comes he reacts to life by rejecting the world. The reader watches him teeter on the edge of giving in,of ending it. In the 90s when I first read it his shattered spirit drew me into the story and held my attention , but I never thought of the syndrome so often in today's news. Was it because I was more naive politically than I am today or was it because ptsd had not yet been in the public eye? Still re- reading it knowing about the syndrome adds greater depth to the story.
Knowing the era and the rules of the world at that time also helps one gain reading depth. PRIDE AND PREJUDICE is a case in point.during a first read the conflict between Elizabeth and Darcy catches the readers' interest. It is after all the boy meets girl, conflict between them and a happy ending when they realize they care for each other. The classic romance format in a nutshell. But it is so much more. Austin has written examination of marriage and manners in the regency era. In this era one never addressed each other by first names unless the person was a sibling,parent etc or given permission, proper young ladies never were alone with males , and marriage or spinsterhood were the choices for women if not in the servant class. In this classic there are several examples of marriage which one must first realize never or almost never based on romantic feelings. The older Bennets are in a marriage the husband regrets as he married for pretty face and a need for an heir and now he and his wife have little in common so he removes himself to the library allowing her to dither along. Charlotte aware that she is near spinsterhood marries Mr. Collins and makes the best of it. Elizabeth's older sister is lucky enough to marry Mr. Bingley ,but only after he decides to defy convention and marry her despite her poor social level and the idiocy of her mother. The younger sister is rather impulsive and causes the entire family's reputation( all-important in the era) to come into question when she elopes without benefit of marriage. Elizabeth and Darcy marry based on love and attraction only after trials have been faced, His first proposal which she refuses speaks of how he is defying society by asking her to marry him. When a reader knows the strictures of a highly regulated set of rules based on birth and wealth, the comedic moments have so much more to them, and Austin's commentary on her era hidden in the story rings stingingly true.
Dana Stabenow's Kate books are easily re-read. The plot always keeps one interested but each re-read reveals how carefully the plot is woven. Each re-read gives the reader more details on Alaska and the life of its residents. The books gain in depth and read in order, the growth of the characters is richer than on a first read. I suspect the books of Craig Johnson and C.J.box will benefit in the same way when re-read. Not only will the main characters become fuller and more real, but also the minor characters will be seen more clearly,
Good reads are enjoyable , but great books can be re-read even while knowing the outcome for the little gifts of insight into the characters and the writers' talent that come with each re-reading. I urge you to try a re-read of a favorite book and you will find out why it rings so true to you,
Re-reading THE NIGHT REMEMBERS by Kathleen Eagle I was amazed at an element I had missed in my first reading. Jesse Wolf is a nearly perfect description of a person suffering from ptsd. He can function in society but when the darkness comes he reacts to life by rejecting the world. The reader watches him teeter on the edge of giving in,of ending it. In the 90s when I first read it his shattered spirit drew me into the story and held my attention , but I never thought of the syndrome so often in today's news. Was it because I was more naive politically than I am today or was it because ptsd had not yet been in the public eye? Still re- reading it knowing about the syndrome adds greater depth to the story.
Knowing the era and the rules of the world at that time also helps one gain reading depth. PRIDE AND PREJUDICE is a case in point.during a first read the conflict between Elizabeth and Darcy catches the readers' interest. It is after all the boy meets girl, conflict between them and a happy ending when they realize they care for each other. The classic romance format in a nutshell. But it is so much more. Austin has written examination of marriage and manners in the regency era. In this era one never addressed each other by first names unless the person was a sibling,parent etc or given permission, proper young ladies never were alone with males , and marriage or spinsterhood were the choices for women if not in the servant class. In this classic there are several examples of marriage which one must first realize never or almost never based on romantic feelings. The older Bennets are in a marriage the husband regrets as he married for pretty face and a need for an heir and now he and his wife have little in common so he removes himself to the library allowing her to dither along. Charlotte aware that she is near spinsterhood marries Mr. Collins and makes the best of it. Elizabeth's older sister is lucky enough to marry Mr. Bingley ,but only after he decides to defy convention and marry her despite her poor social level and the idiocy of her mother. The younger sister is rather impulsive and causes the entire family's reputation( all-important in the era) to come into question when she elopes without benefit of marriage. Elizabeth and Darcy marry based on love and attraction only after trials have been faced, His first proposal which she refuses speaks of how he is defying society by asking her to marry him. When a reader knows the strictures of a highly regulated set of rules based on birth and wealth, the comedic moments have so much more to them, and Austin's commentary on her era hidden in the story rings stingingly true.
Dana Stabenow's Kate books are easily re-read. The plot always keeps one interested but each re-read reveals how carefully the plot is woven. Each re-read gives the reader more details on Alaska and the life of its residents. The books gain in depth and read in order, the growth of the characters is richer than on a first read. I suspect the books of Craig Johnson and C.J.box will benefit in the same way when re-read. Not only will the main characters become fuller and more real, but also the minor characters will be seen more clearly,
Good reads are enjoyable , but great books can be re-read even while knowing the outcome for the little gifts of insight into the characters and the writers' talent that come with each re-reading. I urge you to try a re-read of a favorite book and you will find out why it rings so true to you,
Saturday, August 15, 2015
Sunday but wait it is Saturday and Murder is on my mind.
So far today I am having a Sunday even though it is a Saturday. the day has a tempo of a Sunday uncrushed, focused on no particular task. The dogs are in sleeping mode. I got up dressed and went to Brewed Awakening for coffee and even though they are not open on Sunday , it is mentally a Sunday. This has happened to us all at one time or another. Our internal clock goes awry for a bit.
Perhaps this is because I have been researching poisons so I can kill someone. It must be quick and practically untraceable via an autopsy without significant and sophisticated testing. I was thinking of castor beans in chili. Castor beans are source of rincin which is deadly. It causes organ collapse.. but I wonder if a good coroner would be able to see signs of the collapse in what appears to be a healthy body. It can be as quick as 36 hours or take longer depending on how it is administered to the victim. so more research is needed.After all the victim is dead,. the means must be found.
Put your mind at ease.The murder is fictional and I am writing it. Writing is part of my life and this tale 's opening came to me in a dream almost fully written. It is an opening I like and the characters are forming well but the method of the kill has to fit. The body bears no visible wound, has no signs of heart attack etc so these are limits on the choice of poison. I will find, but the search is blocking other activity.
Miss Marple plays in the background for white noise as I write. It has often been a Sunday treat on PBS's Masterpiece Mystery so it adds to the displacement of my days. Agatha christie often used poison as a weapon and she made a study of them during volunteer service in WW I. At the moment I am wishing I could channel her knowledge to make my life easier. Oh well it is learning process and even at my age one can learn.
At any rate I must the search will go on but I will try to recall this is Saturday not Sunday.
Perhaps this is because I have been researching poisons so I can kill someone. It must be quick and practically untraceable via an autopsy without significant and sophisticated testing. I was thinking of castor beans in chili. Castor beans are source of rincin which is deadly. It causes organ collapse.. but I wonder if a good coroner would be able to see signs of the collapse in what appears to be a healthy body. It can be as quick as 36 hours or take longer depending on how it is administered to the victim. so more research is needed.After all the victim is dead,. the means must be found.
Put your mind at ease.The murder is fictional and I am writing it. Writing is part of my life and this tale 's opening came to me in a dream almost fully written. It is an opening I like and the characters are forming well but the method of the kill has to fit. The body bears no visible wound, has no signs of heart attack etc so these are limits on the choice of poison. I will find, but the search is blocking other activity.
Miss Marple plays in the background for white noise as I write. It has often been a Sunday treat on PBS's Masterpiece Mystery so it adds to the displacement of my days. Agatha christie often used poison as a weapon and she made a study of them during volunteer service in WW I. At the moment I am wishing I could channel her knowledge to make my life easier. Oh well it is learning process and even at my age one can learn.
At any rate I must the search will go on but I will try to recall this is Saturday not Sunday.
Friday, August 14, 2015
books, authors and re reads.
Books are a major part of my life as you my readers know or have guessed by now. I borrow books from the library, read on my kindle, and read books as they have for eons. If I had access to scrolls, I would read them and one of my daughters said I would read toilet paper if it had print. Oddly she might just be right.
At the moment I have several favorite series. Louise Penny's Inspector Gamanche series draws my attention by the older man's wisdom contrasted with his younger counterpart. Stuart MacBride" sometimes a bit gory series keeps me reading as Inspector Steele a rough cut female lead irritates her DCI. The medieval tales of Brother Cadfael offer a gentle sense of peace as crimes are solve. CraIg Johnson,C.J.Box and Dana Stabenow create believable characters who live in places that sing with reality.Agatha Christe is my favorite traditional( especial Marple) though P.D James intriques me also as do the Hamish Macbeth stories by M.C. Beaton Rhys Bowen series set in London between the wars. Yes I love mysteries with a high tendency to pick a cozy over a gore filled tome.
But mysteries are not al I read. Romance holds a spot in my heart also. Eloisa James, Mary Balogh, Anya Seton will be in my reading moments quite often as will Nora Roberts, Cathy Maxwell,Juliet Quinn among others. However I never cared for the Brontes except for Jane Eyre. Austin is a favorite though Northanger Abby and Emma are low on the list.I confess I try to read an Austin once a year because of her wry wit and forward thinking about a woman" ability to actually think.
Fantasy is also a a genre to my liking. Anne McCaffrey, Patricia McKillip, J K Rowling are among the authors I can dive into. Jim Butcher's Dresden files takes me away to a fascinating view of Chicago. Tolkien is a must read and One my thrills in life was drinking at the "bird and the Babe" in Oxford where he and C.S, Lewis sat, talked and created their works. Another though not fantasy was eating a meal at the pub Thomas Hardy ate at. That brings me classics. Dickens never wrote a bad book though some are more readable than other. Oliver Twist's Fagin still is a major character that fascinates me. Moby Dick leaves me cold and I prefer Hawthorne over Poe.
The test of a good book for me is a re-read. If I knowing the outcome can still enjoy the act of reading the book after some time has passed it is a good book. Re -reading reveals new aspects that were overlooked in the first read; it adds depth to the enjoyment of the book. Some books are well worth a re-read others not so much.The Stabenow , Johnson. Beaton and Butcher are among those. At the moment I am reading for a second time after the passage of several decades Kathleen Eagle's THE NGHT REMEMBERS and savoring every delicious word. Several of her backlist are on order so I can once again join the lives of her characters. good writing will survive rereading and the reader emerges with a richer knowledge of the world the author has built.
At the moment I have several favorite series. Louise Penny's Inspector Gamanche series draws my attention by the older man's wisdom contrasted with his younger counterpart. Stuart MacBride" sometimes a bit gory series keeps me reading as Inspector Steele a rough cut female lead irritates her DCI. The medieval tales of Brother Cadfael offer a gentle sense of peace as crimes are solve. CraIg Johnson,C.J.Box and Dana Stabenow create believable characters who live in places that sing with reality.Agatha Christe is my favorite traditional( especial Marple) though P.D James intriques me also as do the Hamish Macbeth stories by M.C. Beaton Rhys Bowen series set in London between the wars. Yes I love mysteries with a high tendency to pick a cozy over a gore filled tome.
But mysteries are not al I read. Romance holds a spot in my heart also. Eloisa James, Mary Balogh, Anya Seton will be in my reading moments quite often as will Nora Roberts, Cathy Maxwell,Juliet Quinn among others. However I never cared for the Brontes except for Jane Eyre. Austin is a favorite though Northanger Abby and Emma are low on the list.I confess I try to read an Austin once a year because of her wry wit and forward thinking about a woman" ability to actually think.
Fantasy is also a a genre to my liking. Anne McCaffrey, Patricia McKillip, J K Rowling are among the authors I can dive into. Jim Butcher's Dresden files takes me away to a fascinating view of Chicago. Tolkien is a must read and One my thrills in life was drinking at the "bird and the Babe" in Oxford where he and C.S, Lewis sat, talked and created their works. Another though not fantasy was eating a meal at the pub Thomas Hardy ate at. That brings me classics. Dickens never wrote a bad book though some are more readable than other. Oliver Twist's Fagin still is a major character that fascinates me. Moby Dick leaves me cold and I prefer Hawthorne over Poe.
The test of a good book for me is a re-read. If I knowing the outcome can still enjoy the act of reading the book after some time has passed it is a good book. Re -reading reveals new aspects that were overlooked in the first read; it adds depth to the enjoyment of the book. Some books are well worth a re-read others not so much.The Stabenow , Johnson. Beaton and Butcher are among those. At the moment I am reading for a second time after the passage of several decades Kathleen Eagle's THE NGHT REMEMBERS and savoring every delicious word. Several of her backlist are on order so I can once again join the lives of her characters. good writing will survive rereading and the reader emerges with a richer knowledge of the world the author has built.
Thursday, August 13, 2015
thursday the week is nearly gone
Thursday and nothing that had to be done. Oh the house needed work and the writing is always there, but I felt free as there were no meetings, no appointments, no classes. It was not humid nor was it overly warm. I did run for coffee, and bought some groceries. Otherwise I have played with the dogs, knitted. binged on Miss Marple with the aid of my Roku.
When I found out French was no longer a course at Buhler,I wondered what will I do. So I got sub applications in to several schools and got okayed at three of them. Number is just lacking the tb test papers. Then the college offered me two classes. and a few weeks later offered me two more. Now today I got called about being an ESL aide at a local 8th grade.the lady said they could be flexible around my classes for HCC. Tomorrow I interview and what happens happens. Rather think my Spanish and French might make it a possibility for me. I hope it will work out but if it doesn't no stress. At first I worried about filling my time and now I wonder if it might be too full. Life!!
Lunch tomorrow with two pals. We often do this to have a girl's time. We are giggly like teens, serious as oldsters and calm ladies who lunch in turns. All three moods appear when we are together. The support that these times gives to each of us is invaluable.There is no price on the good feelings produced by friendship.
Spent two days this week training in a new nine program for the college. Time well spent and the new program is much easier to use. So now I am ready to teach my classes with new skills.
No profound thoughts this week. Keep reading they will appear in time.
When I found out French was no longer a course at Buhler,I wondered what will I do. So I got sub applications in to several schools and got okayed at three of them. Number is just lacking the tb test papers. Then the college offered me two classes. and a few weeks later offered me two more. Now today I got called about being an ESL aide at a local 8th grade.the lady said they could be flexible around my classes for HCC. Tomorrow I interview and what happens happens. Rather think my Spanish and French might make it a possibility for me. I hope it will work out but if it doesn't no stress. At first I worried about filling my time and now I wonder if it might be too full. Life!!
Lunch tomorrow with two pals. We often do this to have a girl's time. We are giggly like teens, serious as oldsters and calm ladies who lunch in turns. All three moods appear when we are together. The support that these times gives to each of us is invaluable.There is no price on the good feelings produced by friendship.
Spent two days this week training in a new nine program for the college. Time well spent and the new program is much easier to use. So now I am ready to teach my classes with new skills.
No profound thoughts this week. Keep reading they will appear in time.
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