I have wanted to do this for many years now. And now I finally am. Together with a group of friends I plan to walk all night from June 29th to June 30th.
Cancer runs in my family. So I run races so that it will stop running with me. If you would like to donate through me, you can do so on the internet at my RFL web page.
Back in April a large crack suddenly appeared on my windshield. I mentioned it in two blog posts: The Randomness that can be Monday and A simple request. And as I remember then, it was a drastic and sudden change in the weather that occurred at the same time. We had another big change in the weather this week. On Tuesday we were up in the 90s and yesterday a big cold front came through and it was rainy and cold and we got to the 50s. The crack had angled down and then curved up just slightly. This morning, after a real cold night that had come after some very hot days, the crack grew another 5 inches or so. And this time it is moving straight across the middle of the windshield. It was a not so pleasant surprise to see that when I got in my car this morning. It really needs to angle up or down again, and fast. I don’t want to have to replace my windshield right now. If it angles, it won’t obstruct the driver’s view. But if it continues to go straight, eventually it would be right in my line of sight and I’d have to replace it sooner than my next safety and emissions inspection.
There are days when I wonder if I live in my apartment or my car. Getting out of my car tonight I grabbed everything. I ended up with my purse, back pack, camera bag, lunch bag, beach mat, a pair of jeans, a pair of shoes, a handful of papers, and a box with a crystal apple in it. I was as wide as the stair well.
I wonder what I’ll pull out of my car tomorrow night.
When talking about ways people learn, there are three general styles – auditory, visual, and kinesthetic. Some people learn better through seeing something. Others learn well when they hear it. And still others need to move their body in some way to learn something. While working on my Masters degree I have learned a lot about learning and teaching, so much that I’m now not sure I could adequately describe them. It was a good opportunity to look at my own teaching and learning styles and I have learned a lot about myself.
Before now, whenever I’ve thought about my own learning style, I always thought I was somewhere between visual and auditory. I never really considered that I was a kinesthetic learner. Yet thinking about it today, I believe I am a kinesthetic learner. I have probably been that way my whole life, but I just realized it today. As I was thinking about my thinking and learning, I realized that I often mentally manipulate objects, I play with numbers and move them around in my mind. I believe that is why I never considered myself a kinesthetic learner before. I move things, but I do it in my head. Sometimes my hands move as I’m visualizing and moving things around.
But if I do something once, I can do it again. If I’ve been somewhere once, I can get there again, even if I’ve just mentally moved myself there, I can trace that path again. So I really am a kinesthetic learner. I’m a very spatial person, but that space doesn’t necessarily have to exist in the physical world.
My feet are beautiful and I love them, especially since they don’t hurt any more and I can wear pretty strappy sandals now. Yesterday I went to Kohl’s to buy some casual black sandals. I have a brand of shoes there that I really like. I bought a pair of brown semi-dressy sandals from that brand last summer. My brown boots are also the same brand. Yesterday I found some black ones I like, as well as some very casual brown ones. They all feel so comfortable, which with my feet’s history is important, and they look great.
But there is something odd about all of those shoes. They are all the same brand, but not a one is the same size. The brown sandals I bought last year are a size 9. The boots are a size 8. The black sandals are a 7.5. And the brown sandals I bought yesterday are a size 8.5. Yet they all fit my feet and feel great. Huh?
This is why I am terrified to buy shoes on-line without trying them on and walking around first. I can’t even count on consistency across a brand. I have the same problem with pants.
I really don’t think I could handle a job where the only real stopping point I could look forward to was retirement. It was a bit strange to completely clear my desk on Friday, lock all the cupboards and drawers, turn off the lights and lock the door behind me, but it felt so good. No matter what else I’m doing during the year, I know it all has to be finished by the last day of school. There is a stopping point to everything. I will be doing a few things for work over the summer, but I don’t technically have to do anything until August 15th.
Of course I don’t get to sleep in for another week. One of the three classes I am taking this summer is a week long class, from 8am to 4pm every day for a week. And that week just happens to be next week. But after that, I get to sleep in.
I work with some great people. I was so extremely blessed to get the job I did. My principal is amazing. He trusts us all to do our jobs and gives us room to do them. The teachers and staff at my school are some of the best there are. It will be good to see them all again in August and catch up on all the things we have been doing over the summer.
Both Chicago and West Side Story were on TV tonight. I haven’t seen the stage version of Chicago yet, but I have seen West Side Story live several times. The summer it was at the SCERA I think I saw it three or four times. There are a few other shows that I’ve seen the film and stage versions of – Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Music Man, Evita, 1776, Fiddler on the Roof, and a few others I’m not thinking of right now.
And tonight I started thinking about the differences. I’ve often heard people talk about the differences between books and movies, but only rarely have I heard talk about the differences between stage and movies. I think for me, the stage version is always more powerful. But I don’t think I know why yet. West Side Story made tears fall tonight, but I remember watching it live and quietly sobbing in the audience. The films never quite touch me the way seeing them live do, and that’s true even when I know half the cast (which might say something about the quality of actors I know that they can make me believe their characters and the story that much).
Why is it that a live production is that much more powerful?
I am an educator and PhD. I quilt, belly dance, run, read, and try to grow things. I am a Mormon. I am infertile. I am a daughter, sister, aunt, grand-daughter, friend, wife, and mom.
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