three on thursday

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Thing one: I am housesitting and dog sitting. She's pressed up against my legs.

Thing two: The past couple of weeks have been so much fun at school--I love what my classes are working on and they seem to love it, too!

Thing three: I need to kick up my gift knitting a notch (or two). I think I've fallen behind.

unraveled wednesday

Join Kat @ AsKatKnits for some fun!

Starting the body of the Winter Hiking Hat and half-way through Tim Curry's magnificent performance of A Christmas Carol.

ten things tuesday

Ten random things:

1) I tried to schedule service for my car (55,000 miles) and the garage is booked out until the end of the first week of December. Although, with Thanksgiving in there, I'm sure people want time off.

2) Overnight we had freezing rain, snow, and more freezing rain, causing a 2-hour delay of school this morning. The ride was not particularly good nor was it the worst.

3) I challenged one of my classes to a Gratitude Scavenger Hunt! There are 10 prompts and photographic evidence is needed for all ten. They flipped their lids and had a blast with it. I created a Padlet so they could see the real-time editing going on. I can't wait to challenge another class tomorrow!

4) I wrote a letter of recommendation for a former student who is academically and motivationally challenged. I was thinking about it a lot and was able to explain his academic performance in the framework of someone who loves learning about nature in the natural world but the classroom isn't their favorite place. I think it ended up being a good letter.

5) We finally have a plan for Thanksgiving. We're relying on rotisserie chicken from the deli to do our cooking!

6) I will be on Maggie duty Thursday. Dad has a cardiology appointment in southern Maine, so they'll be gone a couple of days. Snuggle time, here I come!

7) My book group is supposed to meet Friday but I'm not so sure--the weather is supposed to be awful (yet again)! Plus, I didn't like the book...

8) I hate winter. But I love heated leather seats. And I love my car starter.

9) My next Stitch Fix will be here on Friday! YIPPEE!!! I requested animal print accessories, so we'll see what I get.

10) I've read a couple of books that are duds lately. Luckily, Audible has an exchange policy! I've had fantastic customer service!

Found at Target!

undisputable proof of capability

November 19, 2019
Undisputable Proof of Capability
Scorpio Daily Horoscope

The sudden realization that you are entirely capable of realizing the objectives you set for yourself can awe you today. You may feel particularly capable, clever, and creative, or you may simply understand that your aptitudes are refined enough to carry you forward. However, if you do not feel an inspirational sense of self-assurance today, consider devoting a portion of your free time to focused introspection. As you reflect upon your past, the triumphs you see in your own life's history can prove to you that you have met the universe's challenges with aplomb. You can make the most of the glory you see today by channeling the pride you likely feel into your goal-realization efforts in the present.

Our past accomplishments can be a wonderful source of inspiration and motivation because they demonstrate to us that we have within us what it takes to make our dreams come true. We encounter much in our individual journeys that can awaken the specter of self-doubt in our minds and hearts. To combat these demoralizing forces, we should look toward the achievements that made us feel proud and capable. As we review these triumphs in our mind's eye, our determination to successfully realize our current objectives is reaffirmed. We instinctively understand that no trial or test we face in the future will be more trying than that which we were called upon to best in the past. You will find the strength to move forward today when you look backward and see the many great feats you have already performed.

currently

I am...

Reading: I'm listening to First Grave on the Right

Listening to: to the local news

Loving: I have made a huge dent in my holiday shopping

Thinking: I need to get knitting on a hat for my sister's priest--she knit a scarf but has never knit a hat and didn't want to learn how on a gift project--and since I love knitting hats, I volunteered

Feeling: motivated

Celebrating: I went to sleep so early last night--I slept like a log--and today I've been productive and motivated

Grateful for: a meeting that wasn't too tedious after school

Weather: currently 28 degrees

Enjoying: the yarn from my sister (for the hat for her priest)

A quote I want to share:

self-care sunday

💜💓💛

sunday stealing

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From Facebook

1) What is your favorite TV show (currently)? Below Deck

2) Would you like to be a child again? no

3) Has anyone ever told you that school times were the best period of his/her life? Would you say that to someone? Why? some of my former students who are adults look back fondly at their years at CHS--I might say it about college

4) How's the weather? it's 24 degrees but sunny

5) Do you like camping? I used to

6) Do you believe in paranormal phenomena? no

7) If you would create a holiday, what would it be called and how would we celebrate it? When would this holiday be?

8) What word(s) do you dislike? Can you tell why? most of the words I dislike are foul and I find them unnecessary

9) What color do you dislike? What do you associate with it? I'm not a fan of yellow and I don't really associate anything with it

10) Do you believe in otherworldly creatures, eg. ghosts, etc? no

11) Pick two of your favourite fictional characters. Where are they from (what movie, book, etc?) and why are they your favourite? My fictional boyfriend is Armand Gamache from Louise Penny's Three Pines series and my fictional friend is Jo Mackenzie because she owns a knitting shop

12) If you could change anything or add anything to your body would you? (this can be interpreted however, but, think, would you like to have fins or extra hands?) I have always hated my double chin--you'd think I would be at peace with it since I've always had one, but it's what I would change

13) What are some family traditions you have/had growing up? Do you still continue them, if yes, why, if no, why not? we used to gather at my grandmother's house for Sunday dinner--I dream about going over there sometimes

14) What do you think of tattoos? Do you have any? I like them because I have six

15) What is the most disgusting habit some people have? I don't even want to guess

16) If you could bring back one TV show that was cancelled, which would it be? I wonder what the Sugarbakers and their friends would be up to

17) What was the most unsettling film you have ever seen? American History X

18) What book has impacted you the most? I'll go with the Three Pines series since they are currently my favorites

19) You're on Death Row and get one final meal: What is that meal and why do you choose it? oh, I don't know--I don't have a go-to favorite meal

20) What is the first profession you remember wanting to become as a child? I wanted to be a professional reader

postsecret

PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on one side of a postcard. I like to post one that speaks to me each week.

finished reading

If this wasn't a book group selection I would have stopped reading it. I didn't care for the stories. They were too out-there for me. And it felt like the author was trying too hard to be avant garde. Meh.

From the publisher:

In the taut opening, "Victory Lab," a boy witnesses the attempted abduction of the girl next door and is faced with a harrowing choice: Does he ignore what he sees, or override years of smothering advice from his parents and act? In "Home," a combat-damaged soldier moves back in with his mother and struggles to reconcile the world he left with the one to which he has returned. And in the title story, a stunning meditation on imagination, memory, and loss, a middle-aged cancer patient walks into the woods to commit suicide, only to encounter a troubled young boy who, over the course of a fateful morning, gives the dying man a final chance to recall who he really is. A hapless, deluded owner of an antique store; two mothers struggling to do the right thing; a teenage girl whose idealism is challenged by a brutal brush with reality; a man tormented by a series of pharmaceutical experiments that force him to lust, to love, to kill—the unforgettable characters that populate the pages of Tenth of December are vividly and lovingly infused with Saunders' signature blend of exuberant prose, deep humanity, and stylistic innovation.

saturday 9

Judy at Carnegie Hall

Song #1: "When You're Smiling." What made you smile this week? oh--lots of things, especially my students

Song #2: "Almost Like Being in Love." We've all had many crushes, but love is rare. How many times have you fallen in love? 2 times

Song #3: "This Can't Be Love." This Rodgers and Hart song was introduced in the play, The Boys from Syracuse. Syracuse is the county seat of Onondaga County, NY. What county do you hail from? Aroostook County, also known as The County

Song #4: "Do It Again." What's something you'd do again, if only you had the time or money? (A book you'd like to reread, a recipe or pattern you'd like to make again, a vacation destination you'd like to revisit, etc.) I would love to go back to Washington, DC

Song #5: "You Go to My Head." Judy forgets the lyrics, but gamely keeps going. Tell us about a recent moment when you chose to keep going, no matter what. oh brother--I have been suffering from Estrogen Withdrawl aka Menopause Brain this week: not remembering routine tasks and losing my place in conversations or forgetting simple words

Song #6: "Alone Together." Is anyone there with you as you answer these questions, or are you alone? I am blissfully alone

Song #7: "Who Cares?" This song was written by brothers George and Ira Gershwin. They had a lesser known brother, stockbroker Arthur. Are you more creative and artistic, like George and Ira? Or more analytical and methodical, like Arthur? I am more creative and artistic

Song #8: "Puttin' on the Ritz." Judy sings that The Ritz is the place in New York "where fashion sits." If we wanted to see everyone "all gussied up" in your town, where would we go? some other town--there's no place around here where people get gussied up

Song #9: "How Long Has This Been Going On?" Judy sings about discovering how glorious romance can be. Have you made any new discoveries lately? It doesn't have to be as groundbreaking as Judy's. A new podcast or a faster route to work counts, too. I got a fire stick and love it--it's convenient to be able to watch Netflix/Hulu/Starz on my TV instead of on my iPad

the friday 56

The Friday 56

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader
(If you have to improvise, that's ok.)
*Find any sentence, (or few, just don't spoil it)
*Post it.

I'm listening to and reading Tenth of December.

Is my mom killed? the baby said in Becca's voice.

No, no, she said. This gentleman was just leaving.

The hunter, captivated by her beauty, toffed or doffed his cap, and, going down on one knee, said, If I could will life back into this fawn, I would do so, in hopes you might defer one tender kiss upon our elderly forehead.