It's Over!

On Saturday, I graduated with my Master of Arts in Teaching. I decided to skip commencement and celebrate my own way. So, instead of sitting on a basketball court, no doubt decorated with streamers, we went hiking.



Wildflowers, sun, good friends.

But wait, then we went wine tasting and headed off to sacrifice a virgin here.



Who doesn't love druids and mini stonehenge?

The best part, however, was the champagne bookends of the weekend. Thanks for the bubbly Smartypantsless and random gay bartender!

Now, all I need, is a job!

It's an Adventure

Through the window I hear the rain
It reminds me of you
The sounds of the drops
Caress me as sweetly as you

What are you doing for 4th of July?
Getting in a car and going to Atlanta?
It’s an adventure.
I’ll pick you up at the train.


On my pillow my eyes fill with tears
And I'm here feeling blue
Call me crazy but I can't stop thinking
Of how you could never be true

Can we drop these guys I met on the train off at the hostel first?
Enjoy Philadelphia, we’re off.
10pm and we’re headed to Georgia
Do you think we should nap at this rest stop?

Still miss you
even though you done me wrong
Still miss you
it's been much too long
I thought I could find another fella
But all I want to see is
your red umbrella

I thought it was only 12 hours away?
Um.
Oh well!

You walk by my door
You always would knock there before
But tonight you walk on
I guess our love isn't that strong

The sun is coming up, spreading tentatively across the highway.
My bare feet are on the dash, as I wipe sleep from my eyes.
Lush, humid air envelops the interior of the car.
The South in July.
I flip through stations. 17 hours on the road with only the radio.
And this song comes on. The song that sounds like wisteria covered porches, with mint juleps beside rocking chairs. Acoustic guitars and harmony accompanying cicadas.
The South in July.
Back when college radio meant something special.


I try to erase
All the days that I looked
at your face
With love in my eyes
Your leaving was such a surprise

And I look at you. My best friend, as we head on an adventure. I am so in the moment. But so in my head. Not knowing until this song that the phone call made to Smith before we left would be my last. But hearing the lyrics, it all became clear.

Still miss you
even though you done me wrong
Still miss you
it's been much too long
I thought I could find another fella
But all I want to see is
your red umbrella.

For the moment, it was just warm breeze, feet up, old friends acting impulsively. We lived our lives to the furthest extent. And the commingling of pleasure and sadness in memories would become familiar. But for then (and now), there are always adventures to be had.

Potty mouths

J - "Ms. Wendyrella, I don't feel so good. I ate something in the bathroom."

me - "you did what?"

J - "He told me there's a new candy machine in there."

me - while on hold with poison contol. "you really think if we had a secret candy
machine, we'd put it in the boy's bathroom by the kindergarten?"


***********************
J - "and then he wiped his butt with toilet paper and threw it at me."

where did I go so wrong?

Proof that I have taught them something

The other day, one of my lower level students wrote a sentence that was spelled out enough that I could read it. It was tremendously exciting to see this child progress from barely being able to write her name to writing out an intelligible sentence.

It said: I hat u (She even picked up on the fact that we point to each word as we read. She was very focused on it while staring at me)

The next day, she went a step further.

It said: I hat ms wenderlla (See, she knows that a sentence has a purpose. And cool, I wasn't sure she actually knew my name!)