Independence

I'm not sure how independent I feel today. If I start getting deep and philosophical about it, I'm no where near independent and neither are you. Chances are you didn't create your computer and supply yourself with internet access all by yourself. You probably didn't milk the cow to have something to put on your homegrown oats. Nope, you had Cheerios or Corn Pops or something that dozens of people worked on to get to your table. Yep. Not independent.

Also, not really free. I mean, there are things that I have the freedom to do that many, many others do not and I'm grateful for that. There are other things that I used to be free to do that I can't do anymore. Security. Oy.

Well, on that happy note, I hope you all enjoy some fireworks tonight. I wonder how much they will cost us this year and how many people could have had a decent meal instead.

Movie of the Day: ABC Africa. It's about children in Uganda who were orphaned because of AIDS, civil war, or malaria. One grandmother is taking care of 25 kids in her one room house!!! This is an important and touching movie that everyone should see.

Lists

I've decided to keep a list of all the movies and books that I consume over the summer. The movies are in two categories: Theater and video. Wanna hear the list so far?

Movies (theater)
The Break-Up
XMen 3
The Lake House
A Prairie Home Companion

Movies (Video)
Shall We Dance
The Family Stone
Casanova

Books
Knocking Over the Fishbowl by David Oppegaard (yet to be published)
Running With Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott

Not bad for three and a half weeks of vacation. The Movie of the Day is A Prairie Home Companion. It was super funny and just heart-warming. I really liked the way Guy Noir spoke and was fascinated by how slowly Dangerous Woman walked. She was cool. If you have any ties to Minnesota or Garrison Keillor, watch this movie.

Help!

I finally hopped back on my treadmill this morning after a couple days of laziness. I'm having trouble getting a routine down. I wake up later. It's warm. I end up quitting early. Then, I go upstairs (it's in my basement) and it's stuffy.

Would a fan work?

Do I need to eat/drink something beforehand?

Would walking up around 5 AM help?

These are all variables that I need to test. Oy. It's like being in Physics again.

Movie of the Day: Raising Helen. It doesn't really have anything to do with my post, but I was thinking about Abigail Breslin who is in Little Miss Sunshine. It was my favorite movie at Sundance and she's a cool kid who happens to also be in Raising Helen and Signs.

Clean-Up

It's officially July and I've decided that I have too much junk in my house. Or at least on the main floor of my house. I'm going to spend the day sorting, hauling, taking pictures and then dumping, and trying to stay cool. You might have paused on the "taking pictures" portion above and wondered "Huh?" Here's my plan as of late: There are things that I want to remember from college or before that I have kept over the years. Well, I've decided that they take up too much space and I can recapture the memories just as easily if I look at a photo of the item. So, I took pictures of all of my old t-shirts and then sent them off to be rags. Now, I have some posters and what-not that are heading in that direction too. It's gonna be great!

Movie of the Day: Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. The second movies are always a little worse than the first, but it was still funny.

Summer = Reunion Time

I don't have a high school reunion planned for quite some time, but every time my friend Nate returns to town, a mini-reunion occurs. This year, I'm in charge of gathering the locals. Oddly, I hardly ever see them, so it's a little weird to call them out of the blue.

I went to the Boardwalk with my friend Laura last night and I ran into about 10 people I knew, including someone I needed to call for Nate. If you want to find someone in Duluth and you don't know where to start, hit the Boardwalk. They're probably there.

Any way, I don't know if it's the weather or just the fact that it's summer, but old friends are flocking to Duluth or reconnecting. Everyone is coming out of hibernation and they're ready to party. It's great!

Movie of the Day: Since You've Been Gone. Ah, reunion movies.

Shouldn't...

Shouldn't there be a way to scoop up all of the flood water and drop it on all of the forrest fires out West? I suppose there are contaminants, but there should be a way to clean it.

Shouldn't the people who have money to burn, feel like giving it to honest charities that would help even things out?

Shouldn't people be responsible about having children and knowing when they can reasonably take care of them verses when they can barely feed/spend time with the kids that they have?

Shouldn't our taxes go to help cure diseases and fight injustice rather than to killing people overseas and boosting the rich?

Movie of the Day: The Rainmaker. What a poignant movie.

Guarded

Do you think everyone is guarded about something? Not just about what to blog or not, but with all of their friends? It could be religious beliefs, money, health issues, or past experiences. It doesn't have to be something big or traumatic for someone to hide it.

How often are these things serious and how often are they little things that people worry about unnecessarily? I don't know. Talk about a difficult study, huh?

"What are you guarded about?"
"Me? Guarded? Um.... nothing!!!! Leave me alone!"

Sadly, if I think about what I'm guarded about, I'm obviously not ready to share it with the world on this blog. I wouldn't ask you to share either. However, think about it. Maybe it's something that could safely be shared with someone.

Movie of the Day: Guarding Tess. Nicholas Cage. Shirley MacLaine. He guards her. Somehow.

I'm Slow

I'm having a slow start to the day. Well, actually, I've just been doing the day in reverse order. I woke up late, walked on my treadmill, and then did yard stuff with my dad. Then, I chatted with two friends on the phone (Hi, K!) and finally am sitting still enough to write.

I'm psyched because I'm at the point where I can make some plans about the summer. What should I do to my house? How often should I skip town? What book should I read next? It's all very thrilling!

Movie of the Day: Spellbound. It's about a spelling bee. Nerve-wracking!!!

Summer!

I'm heading to the Cities today to celebrate the end of school! It's been two weeks already, but this is the first time that it worked to leave town. Whew....

Duluth has quite a few stores, but some of them are lacking. We don't have a JoAnn Fabric, which is a great place to get craft supplies and fun holiday decorations.

We don't have a Half-Price Bookstore, which is so, so sad. That'll be our first stop.

We don't have a Coldwater Creek, which has gorgeous women's clothing. We'll hit that towards the end of the day.

We also don't have a Buca di Bepo restaurant. Lunch!

Yep, it's gonna be a good day!

Movie of the Day: Scenes From a Mall. I don't really like Woody Allen, but the title was too perfect for today.

P.S. If you are reading this and have any clout with any of the above stores, PLEASE come to Duluth!!!! I'll find other reasons to go to the Cities.

Parties

I went to a birthday party yesterday and didn't know anyone besides the hosts. It was an Open House, so I ended up wandering off after a short time. I could have made new friends, but was just feeling too lazy or introverted for it.

Tonight is the Volunteer Appreciation Party for the marathon. The Sports Garden will be PACKED with people. I will probably end up sitting on the floor to eat my pizza and breadsticks. This doesn't seem to faze me though. Why? Maybe it's because there are so many people that I'm more anonymous. Or, it could be because I will be there with friends. Who knows?

Movie of the Day: Hearts In Atlantis. This is a great movie. Anthony Hopkins and Hope Davis are awesome!

How To Cool Off

I live in Duluth. It's warm here, but not consistently hot, hot. So, to cool off, I have one large fan and one mini fan. That's it. No AC. No Central Air. Windows. I have windows. And, I live on a busy street, so I usually can't sleep with them open (mostly out of fear, not noise). If it gets really hot (like in July), I sleep in my basement. If it's super hot during the day, I might head to Lake Superior (which is always cold) and stand in it for a couple minutes.

The only bad thing about summer is that my favorite item of clothing is a black t-shirt. I wear one pretty much every day. Summer gets tough, that way. I'm going to try to deviate from black today and look for flying pigs.

Movie of the Day: Ice Age. Good flick.

I Love Pi

I love Pi, but today I'm going to focus my attention on p-i-e. Tomorrow is the one and only Rhubarb Festival at First Lutheran Church. It's a fundraiser for CHUM, a non-profit organization that runs a homeless shelter, food shelf, and drop-in center.

I am spending the second half of my morning baking pies at church. I'm not much for baking. I can do it if I try, but I don't bake often. Strangely, if I bake something I eat less of it than if someone else made it. I think it has to do with seeing just how much butter went into it or something. Maybe I SHOULD take up baking. Hmmmm...

Movie of the Day: The Fabulous Baker Boys. :)

Whack-O-Mole

Do you ever have a feeling like you're out of whack? It feels like something is wrong, but you can't put your finger on it. The stars are aligned funny. The air feels eerie. "Normal" has been kidnapped and you're looking for the ransom note.

I think I need to meditate. (I tried to do just that yesterday, laying on my livingroom floor, and fell asleep. Oops.)

Movie of the Day: Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. Things get really out of whack.

Honk If You Want Peace

My mission today is to find an excellent Hippie outfit for Sunday. If I can find multiple outfits to suggest to others, that would rock too. The theme: Peace. Well, I'm thinking "Peace, Baby, Peace," but that's just me.

Start with inner peace and work your way out. That's my goal.

Movie of the Day: Gross Anatomy. Just talked about it with a friend who is visiting. Not to be confused with Grey's Anatomy.

Sorry. Try Again.

About three weeks ago, I mentioned that I went on a date. I know, it was a shock, but weird things happen. Any way, I thought it went well. Maybe it did. Either way, the gentleman has not called. I think four weeks is probably a good indicator that he won't be calling. So, it's time to give up on that option.

When I was in 9th grade, I went through confirmation classes at my church. I remember asking our minister if we could start Methodist nuns. He just laughed. I wasn't really serious, but it felt like I could join up. If I knew I'd still be single in 2006, I probably would have pushed the issue. It could have been a new religious movement! Oh well.

Deep down, though, I want to get married and be a mom. Not sure about the whole pregnancy thing so maybe adoption's the way for me.

Oy.

Movie of the Day: Step Mom. Julia Roberts learns how to be a mom.

Limbo

You know how when you are super busy, you can come up with a long list of things that you would rather be doing at the moment? Then, when things slow down and you look at the list, it's suddenly lost its allure?

That was me this afternoon. I wandered my house, looking at dishes, piles to file, or magazines to read and didn't feel like doing any of it. So, I laid down on my office floor and took a nap. I should get softer carpet.

Movie Style

I went to a movie with my folks yesterday to celebrate Fathers' Day and started thinking about movie-watching styles.

Where do you like to sit: lower, middle, top, or way in front?
Do you sit next to the aisle or the center?
Do you buy food or sneak in food or avoid food?
Do you talk? Only during previews? During the movie? Only quietly?
Do you stay for the credits?
How prompt are you in arriving?
Do you get up and go to the washroom or sit and squirm?
Do you plan ahead and only drink minimal amounts to cut down on bladder issues?

So many questions!

Movie of the Day: The Lake House. Saw it yesterday and really liked it. Roger Ebert mentioned that there were logical issues to ignore, but it was still good. I concur.

Books

I sometimes have a hard time focusing on one activity for very long. Last night, I started watching Amelie and then read for a while, pausing the movie. I would then alternate between the two until I finished the book and gave up on the movie. Is that weird?

I can also read multiple books at once. I have one that I really should finish since I started it about a year ago. It's a cheesy Nicholas Sparks book and I abandoned it for something better. It's sitting there, reminding me to either finish it or read the last couple pages so I know "whodunit". Hmmmm... I have heaps and heaps of books in my office to read. I think my problem is that I love books and wandering the Half Price Bookstore on Ford Pkwy in St. Paul.

In college, there was only ONE book that I didn't finish reading for a class. It was called Pamela and apparently was the first novel written (according to my prof). Well, it was annoyingly sexist and I had other classes to worry about. So, I bluffed my way through that question on the final.

Any way, the Movie of the Day: Death to Smoochy. Weird, weird movie. Funny, too.

Good Job, Runners!

What a week! What a day! I got up at 3:45, showered, ate and headed to the waterstation. We had a ton of great people this year and I've even had an idea or two about what to do next year to get more people or tweak the experience. More on that in posts to come, I'm sure.

The weird thing after volunteering is that you kind of feel like you've been through the mill. (Outdated saying?). Any way, as you are creeping home through traffic and the sunburn is starting to appear, all you really want is lunch, a shower, and a nap.

After the nap (where I'm at now), I'm not sure what to do with the rest of my day. I'm still feeling fuzzy, sunburned, and ready for a quiet celebration. My sister Sara wasn't able to go this morning, but is interested in heading to the tents tonight. The tents have a lot of people, drinking and listening to bands and scoping each other out. I feel like renting 5 movies and crawling under a blanket on my couch. Hmmmmm... Compromise?

Any way, it was a good day and I hope a successful race.

Movie of the Day: Prefontaine. That guy could run.

Less Crabby

I was too crabby to post this morning. Sorry, dear readers (all three of ya). I just didn't want to share the grumpiness so thought silence was better.

Now, with 125 (the exact number) baskets delivered safely to their runners, I am free to chill for the rest of the day. Ah, much better. That, and I went to the spaghetti dinner and carbs help my mood too. Whew.

Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day. Michelle did an excellent job of summing it up. Add in the bonus of seeing some of my fun students and the knowledge that I'm not in charge of the whole 200-person/16-table station this year, and it should be an awesome time! (For a couple years, I did the baskets and headed the waterstation. Then, I woke up and realized I was insane!).

Movie of the Day: Waterworld. Saw this in a cheap theater in the Cities during college. Has the girl from Napoleon Dynamite in it. Otherwise, it's a pretty crappy movie. Unless you like Kevin Costner. Wait, why am I recommending this?

Live Bigger

Once the marathon is over (Saturday afternoon), I am going to need a project. Not a house project, a fundraising project (sorry, Linda), or anything "ordinary." I need something creative, fun, and unique to do. Something that would qualify for a "What I Did Over the Summer" essay, if I were still assigned those. (Actually, I've never been assigned one of those essays. We just got down to business right away).

Any way, so Dear Universe, I'm looking for some ideas. I really should find Rob and tell him. (He's our local Buddha. Tell him you want something and it comes true. Just remember to be specific.)

Movie of the Day: X-Men 3. Saw it last night with Michelle. Lots of action. I realized that I don't really like Rogue. Not for any blatant reason, just because she's sulky. Any way, as we were walking out, I had this sudden memory that there might be an Easter egg at the end. So, we stood and stood and stood there waiting, waiting, waiting. Just as we turn to give up, Happy Easter!!!! Whew! It was awesome too. If you go, stay until the end, end, end.

This Morning

I've spent the day making elite runner gift baskets with my parents, my sister, and my friend Rosemary. It's always an challenge to organize and carry out the making of 84 baskets (today). It went well, though. During the process, I thought of all the people who should get baskets too. Not marathon baskets, per se, but gift baskets of some sort:

doctors and nurses
teachers (I like chocolate.)
witty writers (or your favorite, etc.)
pastors
social workers

The list goes on and on. Who do we reward in this country? CEOs. Movie stars. Athletes.

Movie of the Day: Carolina. I have yet to see this one, but just heard about it on Monday. It stars Julia Stiles and Shirley MacLaine. I tried to find it at Block Buster, but my sister found it on the We channel yesterday! Weird, huh?

What? Huh?

I have too many things buzzing around in my head today. I'm scared to even start sentences, for fear that I will lose my train of thought. I'm going to try really hard right now so you don't have too strange of an experience. I have my covenant group tonight and I hope I'm coherent by then. Yikes.

I think what I really need is to sit in some outdoor cafe with some friends and just talk and laugh. Goof off and not worry about things that are in the future. But... alas, it's a day to help the marathon. Coffee later.

Movie of the Day: Shall We Dance? Sweet. A little nerve-wracking. Nice ending.

Plants

So, I finally bought plants yesterday (remember my post about wanting to buy plants about 5 months ago, ha ha). Well, yesterday was the day! As I mentioned, I have a murky green thumb, so my shopping technique is probably murky too.

I hit Home Depot running and filled the cart (and the rack below) with beautiful flowers. Did I read about shade or sun? No. Did I read about just how much water they need? No. Did I decide "I need some yellow."? Yes. Yes, I did. I have purple, orange, red, and yellow. I'm psyched. Will they shrivel up after a couple days? I hope not.

I'll read the labels before I plant them. Well, more specifically, before I sweet talk my dad into helping me plant them. Yep, murky. He's a great dad and probably feels sorry for the plants that are stuck with me!

Movie of the Day: The Break-Up. Saw it last night. It was good. Spiteful, but good.

Jumpy

I'm kind of a jumpy person. Usually I can hear someone coming and I'm okay, but this week a couple people snuck (really, it's sneaked, but who says that?) up on me.

I had a massage Friday afternoon and, as usual, I'm one big knot of Becca. How do you unknot? Yoga? I've done it in the past and I could try it again. I think it's psychological and emotional, though. How does one give up being Type A? Legally, of course. (I know where some of your minds were heading...). Do I need some sort of life-changing experience to put things into perspective? Could the experience be something good instead of a tragedy (which would do the trick, but not be a fun way to spend Summer).

Hmmmm.....

Movie of the Day: Veggie Tales: Where's God When I'm S-Scared? tee hee

Counseling

I think teachers should have an hour-long, mandatory counseling session as they head out the door. A debriefing of sorts, if you will. Some way to find closure to the year. I challenge you to find a teacher who had an easy year this time around, so we could all use a good head-shrinking.

Now, by this time, you are probably thinking, "Will she ever stop talking about school???" The answer is yes. Today. The only time I will talk about school from now until August (when I start worrying about it again) is when I run into a kid and something goofy happens or if something extreme happens.

From now on, I'm gonna talk about my yard. (Just kidding. My green thumb is more of a murky color with brown spots, so that won't be happening.)

Oh, this was interesting. In the last couple days, I've been talking to friends about books or teenage slang or what not and usually refer to a movie. Well, channel surfing last night and this morning produced three of the movies that I referenced! How weird is that? Along Came Polly. The Thornbirds! And one more that I'm forgetting. Odd!

Movie of the Day: Ladder 49. Joaquin Phoenix and John Travolta are firefighters. Good drama.

Sweet

Sweet reward! Today is it. The kids are gone. The lockers are getting cleaned out as I type, and my grades are 30 minutes away from completion. How does it feel? Sweet.

It also feels exhausted, a bit sweaty from the heavy book lifting, and a little sad.

Now what?

Movie of the Day: The Incredibles. Make sure you watch the extra: Jack Jack Attack. It's worth the whole rental price.

Do You Want Fries With That?

I have a theory about jobs: they're like restaurants.

Some are drive-thrus and you take it all home with you.
Some are delivery- you don't even leave your house.
Some are fast food- work a little for cheap and leave with just enough, but maybe not filled or healthy.
Some are casual sit down- eat, leave.
Some are fancy- get a little food and pay a lot.
Some are like Perkins- open or on-call all night (think parents and doctors).
Some are like Buca's- way too much food and lots of leftovers.

My job is like a seasonal Buca's. Too much, then closed for the summer.

Movie of the Day: Instinct. Good movie! A little scary.

P.S. Today is the last day of school (for kids)!!!! tee hee.

Free Association

While I don't really feel brain-dead this morning, I also can't think of something brilliant to write. So, here's some free association (probably condensed from the actual brain pattern):

Big Bird
Snuffy
Snuff
Gross
Grouse
hunting
Hunters
Hunters' Park
flower shop
old Dominos
pizza
lunch
hour
not 28 minutes
28 Days
Viggo
A Perfect Murder
Gwyn
Moses
Red Sea
Red, See
Purple glasses (mine)
Astigmatism
No contacts
Contact paper
Not really paper
correcting papers
End of School!

Movie of the Day: The Ten Commandments. TV or old version. Didn't get to see the Dougray Scott version, but he's cool. So....

Itchin' To Be Done

Do you ever have times in your life where you rush, rush, rush around to get everything done for a deadline and once it's over, you have a sort of phantom feeling? You know, like someone who's lost a limb, but still feels their hand or foot itching.

That's how it'll be for me very, very soon. Some years, I've actually gone back to school to make sure I locked my file cabinet or grabbed everything I needed for the summer. I'll wake up thinking "Oh! Did I.....?' Yes, relax. It'll take about a week for the phantom spells to fade.

I don't mind...

Movie of the Day: Phantom of the Opera. Gerard Butler is too hot for the role, but we'll excuse that. Great music. Awesome cinematography. Very cool.

Chill

Each day before school starts, I have the Garden State soundtrack playing in my room. When it finishes, I start it up again. I know this is monotonous, but I like it. Lately, however, I've been switching it up and playing the Beatles "1" (their #1 hits). Why? I don't know. I think it's to get more energy and less "chill" in the room. It's throwing off the kids, though! They especially like The Shins.

Movie of the Day: Dazed and Confused. Story of my work life. Ha ha. Just kidding. Sort of.

Practice

So, I haven't had Spanish as a class in a long time (like 13 years), but I watched Real Women Have Curves last night as a study break and could NOT figure out how to get the subtitles to work. This meant I had the chance to brush up on my Spanish skills. It's a great movie (Movie of the Day, actually). It's about strong women and a girl who longs to break out from her mother's traditional views on women's roles. It's very cool.

Almost There!

Ah, the last weekend before Summer. That time when the weather is great and the hammock is whispering my name. I am indoors correcting homework/tests, etc. and plotting out the last week of work. It's a final sacrifice for the year. Try to end it well. Try to plan ahead to make the crazy week ahead go smoothly. We'll see how it goes...

Movie of the Day: Flatliners. Creepy.

Silly

I feel the need to do something goofy this weekend (maybe even today). Hmmmm...

What should I do?


Movie of the Day: Jack. Robin Williams as a kid. Goofy. Not much different than he is now, I suspect.

Weird

I wrote this morning and the post didn't post. Grrr....

Today has been interesting. I was about to climb the walls after school. My room was stuffy (had the kiddies shut the windows before they left) and I just couldn't face all of my correcting. So, I decided to go to Erbert and Gerberts, but the traffic was insane so I ended up at Perkins. I was one of two patrons! My waiter turned out to be a former student who sat and talked with me while I ate. He said that he and his girlfriend always say I was one of their favorite teachers. That was so nice to hear after a long, kinda rotten day. Whew. I was definitely glad I ended up there.

Still don't have a movie for ya. Do you have a movie recommendation for me?

Repulsed

The NorShor Theater has finally hit rock bottom. I will be boycotting any show or activity there and I encourage every person of moral standing to do the same.

What's going on, you ask? Well, Google NorShor Theater and Duluth and you'll see that the owner has decided to objectify women and cater to the creeps of the area.

As it was, I hated going there because of the fear of being in that neighborhood alone at night (to get to my car, etc.). Now, it'll be worse. Will I go to the neighboring stores? Hell no.

Movie of the Day: I'm too upset to come up with a movie right now. Maybe I'll think of one later.

Hmmmm....

Ork Bork. Spork. Dork. Torque. Fork. Mork. Cork. Pork.

Yep, it's gonna be one of those days....

(I'm not insane yet, don't call the men in white coats. Honest.)

Movie of the Day: Prime. Sounds like an excellent math movie, but in fact is a romantic comedy. Funny.

Stress Cleaning

When I'm stressed out or pissed off, I like to clean. It releases some of the tension and fixes something I can control while I figure out what to do about the stress source.

When I heard that a former student took his life, I swept my classroom. When I was a teenager and was mad, I would speed clean the whole house. (It's a miracle my parents didn't try to provoke me for free maid services).

Movie of the Day: Aeon Flux. Saw it yesterday. It was decent. Interesting outfits on Charlize. Weird plot. Won't be buying it, but it's an good "renter."

Memorial Day

Memorial Day has always been about so many things all at once. There is the obvious passing of veterans (who I wish didn't have to fight), the loss of loved ones, the day away from work, and the winding up of the school year.

For veterans and those fighting, I pray for peace.
For the loss of loved ones, I remember their stories and hope to live by their example.
For the day off, I try to keep this feeling of calm and rest throughout the week.
For the winding up of the year, I pray to stay focused (or regain focus) and that my students will do the same.

Oh, did I mention the food?

Movie of the Day: The Da Vinci Code. Gripping. Different from the book, mostly in a good way. Worth seeing. When I think of Da Vinci, though, I think Ever After. He was cool.

Date

Last week, I went on a date. Yes, an actual date. Becca. Date. This is a rare thing. What's even more bizarre is that I think it went well.

Now that I have some down time, I'm left rehashing it and wondering if he's going to call. (Yes, I know I could call. Of course.).

Movie of the Day: Nanny McPhee. Watched it last night. Super cute. Emma Thompson is awesome!

ZZZ's

For the second Friday in a row, I took a nap after work! This is weird behavior for me, but I just couldn't face the evening without sleep. Last night, I went to bed at 10 and woke up at 5:30! That's unacceptable, so I went back to sleep until 9. Ah! I feel so much better!

You know those commercials "Ah, the power of cheese!"??? Well, "Ah, the power of sleep, man!" Every time I see Lord of the Rings and they talk about the power of the ring, I want to giggle because I think "Ah, the power of cheese." Tee hee.

Movie of the Day: Anastasia. Sweet with a mystery.

Improving

Things have been kind of stressful in the Life of Becca as of late and I'm finally seeing a little "break" in the action this weekend. Thank goodness!!! I can't explain just how psyched I am to sleep in tomorrow morning. It should be glorious.

Anyone have exciting weekend plans?

Movie of the Day: Shag. The dance, not the Austin Powers action. Great chick flick.

Corey Haim

I have a confession: I was madly in love with Corey Haim in junior high. Madly. I had 80 posters of him on my wall. I bought every magazine that had him in it. I saw all of his movies except Lost Boys because my folks wouldn't let me. (A couple years later, they said I could, but I decided not to). Any way, wow. It was pretty serious between us.

Eventually reports of drug use, etc. started the downward spiral of our "relationship." The posters started coming down and he was replaced. I still have the posters, though. You have to cherish your first crush. (Well, movie star crush any way....)

Movie of the Day: License to Drive. Saw this one quite a few times. Stars The Coreys (Haim and Feldman) and Heather Graham.

Time

Welcome to the Time Store, where you can find more time!

Need an extra day to finish a project? No problem. Need more hours in the day to accomplish everything? We've got your answer. Need someone to "hold on a sec"? Piece of cake.

Our prices are right, too! An extra day is only $50! One hour is $10 while minutes are only a buck. Just need a second? Three for a quarter!

It's a great way to get through your day without being rushed. Just stop in or save time and order online.

Coming soon: Time Bank. Need to live on borrowed time? Want to save time at a high interest rate? Visit us!

Movie of the Day: Space Camp. My favorite movie of 1986. Lea Thompson, Kelly Preston, Tate Donovan, Joaquin Phoenix (when he was called Leaf), Kate Capshaw, and Tom Skerritt. LOVED this movie!!!

Grandma Sylvia

Yesterday would have been my grandma's 92nd birthday. She was such a cool lady and I miss her a lot. A few funny facts:

• When she taught us how to blow bubbles with our gum, her bubble exploded on her glasses and she had to go in to get them fixed. Imagine explaining that!
• We used to watch Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters together.
• She LOVED ice cream.
• She used to whistle without whistling- a sort of breathy half-whistle.
• She liked to square dance.
• She didn't sleep with a pillow.
• She helped me with my frog biology project.

Movie of the Day: Wings of the Dove. My sister Sara and I were watching this and JUST when it got to the love scene, my grandma walked in and was appalled! From then on out, it was Parent Trap and Shirley Temple when Grandma was in town!

Nerd Summer School

I've gone to nerd summer school twice in my life, ...which might relate to why I'm not more outdoorsy.

The first time was the summer after 5th grade. It was a Gifted and Talented program and we took a bus down to Washington Jr. We had classes like computer science, physical science, creative writing, dissection (ugh), acting, art, and movement (dance, not gym). The cool thing was getting to meet other 5th graders from around town who later became friends in junior or senior high.

The second time I went to nerd summer school, I went away to U of M Morris the summer after my junior year. It was a program for minorities in science and math (females count). I was there for 7 weeks and studied astro-physics, psychology, and scientific ethics. I met a ton of different people, but haven't kept in touch with many. It was cool in a nerdy sort of way. Plus, they gave us $100 for food each week and then my folks bought me food instead of having me spend it!

Movie of the Day: Something New. Great movie that I saw yesterday.

Parallel Lives

Have you ever thought about how many parallel lives a person could have? Now, technically speaking, they couldn't be parallel because each of them would have started at your birth or whichever decision made your "lives" branch off, but you get the idea.

What if you had asked out that "crush"? What if you studied harder, went to a different college, studied something else? What if you moved somewhere exotic or less exotic or became an astronaut? What if you slacked off more, or lost your job, or ate 24-7? What if you married the weirdo who kept asking you out or didn't marry them?

Oh, the possibilities!

Movie of the Day: Bubba Ho-Tep. Michelle recommended this for movie night. She thinks we hated it, which isn't true. I thought it was weird and I probably won't be buying it, but it was entertaining. They're making a pre-quel. Beware.

Under Pressure

I don't do well under pressure. I panic. I hold my breath. I think too quickly and talk even more quickly. This happens when I think I've lost my credit card somewhere or there is an emergency.

When I have smaller issues, I sometimes get stopped in my tracks. Lately, I've had decisions to make and I'm stymied. I can't make up my mind this week. I heard somewhere that teachers make 1,000 decisions a day, so having my skills on the fritz is a huge problem.

Yesterday's turmoil was about my former student's funeral. To go or not to go? I know I sound callous in even wondering about going, but I also think I might feel like a hypocrite if I do go. I didn't know him well at all and I think I would be going out of guilt and obligation instead of to honor who he was.

As I walked into school yesterday, I saw some graffiti on a table that said "Rest in Peace, _____". May he rest in peace.

Movie of the Day: Boyz in the Hood. Sad. Compelling.

Surreal

Do you ever have a sudden surreal glimpse of your city or town?

I was driving along, minding my own business last night when I had this sudden feeling of "If I were visiting a different town and drove down this street, what would I think of it?" Would I think, Hmmmm.... they live near a lake (a huge one)? Would I pay attention to how wide the road is or how it's lined with trees?

It's weird. I get surreal feelings every so often. When I was younger, it used to creep me out. It's like looking at yourself in a movie only you can't get any clues from the soundtrack.

Movie of the Day: Friends with Money. Saw this last night with my friend Laura. We didn't get to see it at Sundance, so wanted to make sure we saw it now. I really liked it.

Roller Coasters

I had a "Roller coaster" kinda day yesterday. I got to work and found out one of my students from first semester had taken his life. That sent the day and most everyone in it into a tailspin of questions and tears. Teachers were asked to try to carry on, which worked to some degree. After work, I had some good things happen (watched Alias, received some fun email, etc.). Rollercoasters.

My random brain takes roller coasters and jumps to Valley Fair (Minnesota's main stationary amusement park). I haven't been there in years, but I love three specific rides:

1) The Flume aka log ride. Fake log boats. Water. FUN!
2) The Corkscrew. About an hour's wait for 45 seconds of fun. You get to be upside down.
3) The Looping Starship. Looks like a Viking ship. Swoops like a pendulum until you are upside down. (Theme?) Very good for losing change, glasses, your lunch.

Movie of the Day: A Time to Kill. Amazing movie. Very emotional, so brace yourself.

Alias

"Alias" is about to wrap up its 5-year run and I'm sad since I only started watching it a year ago! Thanks to DVDs, I've watched them in order and have only missed two episodes (they're somewhere on my tapes and I'm too lazy to go through all of them again to find them).

Thankfully, Michael Vartan is back for the last few episodes and I can drool once more. I've liked him since Never Been Kissed came out.

Now, they just have to get through the last two episodes without everyone dying and we'll be good.

Movie of the Day: The Myth of Fingerprints. Good family angst movie. With Michael Vartan...

Veggies

Argh!!!! I have reached the critical stage in every teacher's year where I just can't deal with students any more! I feel like drawing a picture of a HUGE vat labeled "Patience for Teenagers" and show it tipped upside down with one last drop coming out. Oy. There are 17 more school days and I might need a transfusion of hope. Hmmmmm...

Other things in my life are weird. This morning, after my commune with the treadmill in my basement (weird in and of itself), I actually ate a cucumber. Before 5:30 AM. Now, it's not the actual vegetable that causes me concern, but the timing of the whole thing? Who eats that before their Wheaties? I must be losing it.

Chocolate before breakfast is another story....

Movie of the Day: Fried Green Tomatoes. Grab the Kleenex.

Fiction

Have you ever thought about your favorite fictional characters? Are there any that would make you drop everything and run away with them? Come on.... think about it a minute. I have one friend who likes the girl in The Fountainhead. He's into pain, I guess.

I prefer James Fraser from the Outlander series, myself. Sigh. More on that later....

Movie of the Day: The Butcher's Wife. Demi Moore marries a butcher thinking he's her soulmate. Odd things happen from there. Cute. Funny.

Get a Life

I'm having one of those evenings that end up with me telling myself to "get a life." I need to figure out something exciting to plan, look forward to, etc. Something unique, fun, and "cool." Well, "cool" in a "I'm a cautious, nerdy, teacher type" kinda way. Ya know?

I'll be on the alert for major spiritual promptings for a bit while simultaneously trying to cultivate patience (not my forte).

My Yard

It's that time of year, when greenhouses are sharing their wealth (while we spend ours). Heaps of plants crop up everywhere and I have the urge to spend hundreds of dollars on flowers. Flowers for the back yard, front yard, shepard hooks, along the driveway, hooked to my garage, or pretty much anywhere I can think of! I'm psyched!

Movie of the Day: Daddy Daycare. Saw it last night because my students think I look like the little girl with glasses who is ironically named Becca. Hmmmmmm.... Maybe I can see it.

I used to have a student who looked so much like Vincent on Judging Amy, that it was uncanny. I also had a student who looked like a girl in Camp. Funny.

Rainy Days

Today is one of those days best spent reading, napping, or watching dvds. I, however, am going to correct tests and run errands. So far, I've slept in, used my treadmill, and ate some cereal at noon. Thrilling, huh? Luckily, I like slow days, sometimes.

Anyone have a fun ritual for a rainy day?

Movie of the Day: Elektra. Cheesy. Odd "plot." Jennifer Garner kicking butt.

Life Coachin'

While my class was having a work day, I helped one of my students get her act together. She looked like she might have a panic attack at any given moment. I had her make a list of everything she needed to get done. Then, we prioritized it by how much time each thing would take, what was realistic to get done, and how many tests/quizzes she could make up in the morning. I then came up with a painting idea (she was having painter's block) and gave her advice on how to break some news to her parents.

It was awesome!!!

Movie of the Day: Last Holiday. Excellent message. Positive. Queen Latifah is very cool! LL Cool J has "cool" written all over him!

Late Night

My friend Rick played a show at Amazing Grace last night, so I didn't get home until about 10:20. I would have been fine if I didn't need to write a test for today. Ack. Poor planning on my part. Well, by the time I finished the test, it was 11:00. I was a bit loopy from the day and decided to number the questions with perfect squares. Yes, that means, 1, 4, 9, 16, etc. I got up to 1024! That's a normal number of questions, but I'm going to tell people that the last question is # 1024 and see if they panic. Should be funny. At least for me.

Movie of the Day: Picture Perfect. I know it's a cheesy Jennifer Aniston movie, but I really liked it. Give it a try.

Cop Out

An example of just how much I over-think things:

I have an opportunity to volunteer for a good organization Saturday morning.
I'm dragging my feet about signing up.
It's not a hard task, but it's early.
I tell myself that my partner from last year can't go, so I'd be alone or go with my folks.
Would I be that much extra help?
Could I use the sleep?
Am I just rationalizing laziness?

I know I SHOULD go, but I SHOULDN'T do it grudgingly. Is there another way to help? Argh. What is my problem?

I have to decide today.

Movie of the Day: Matilda. Strong, smart girl. Interesting school. Crazy parents. Plus, Pee-Wee Herman!

Kohl's

My family's Sunday routine is to go to lunch after church. Sometimes people go with us, and other times not. This past Sunday we went to Olive Garden and then to Kohl's. Somehow we ended up sitting in the "deck furniture" area in the back, under a canopy, and chatting. The chairs were comfy and that part of the store was relatively empty. I could have sat there a lot longer than the 10 minutes we were there, but it felt a little weird. Comfy, but weird.

About three minutes before we left, a couple sat down in some other chairs to rest. We tipped them off to the comfy ones.

Oh, and I dressed a mannequin who seemed to think it was Mardi Gras.

Movie of the Day: Nell. Jodie Foster is awesome, especially in this movie.

A Fresh Start

Dear Monday,
I'm writing to let you know that I'm a bit tired this morning, but don't worry I'll perk up when the caffeine hits. I know you have a lot of pressure, being the first day of the work/school week and all, but if you could somehow find a little time for goofing off, that would be cool. You have a lot of responsibility having to start the week. Every week. Forever. I know it must wear you down, just like it wears down some people. I hope you have a chance to rest the "rest" of the week.

Take care,
Becca


Movie of the Day: United 93. I saw this last Monday and it was awesome. I was scared to see it, actually, but it was very well done. Even though you know how it ends, you hope and hope that something will change. The hardest scene to watch was when the passengers are calling their loved ones to say good-bye. See it if you think you're in the right state of mind. Oh, and I liked that it didn't paint the hijackers as horrid people.

I Might Stink

My shower is broken. It won't drain. Even after my dad worked on it with a snake and Drano. This morning, when I put water down it (to test my luck), the water drained into my basement. Literally into a bucket in my basement. Swell.

So, I shall improvise this morning and come up with a plan later. Maybe it's time to set up a sprinkler and grab my swimsuit....

Movie of the Day: Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. Great movie!!! My church movie group is watching it tonight! Yea!

Hyper

I'm having one of those mornings that start out good and just get better. Now, I'm franticly trying to find someone at home to babble to over the phone and everyone is out having a life! I wanna talk. Speed talk. Get hyper and silly and tell stories. Is everyone mowing their lawns or what? Yikes.

I've also noticed that I am a slob in the evening and then run around all morning putting things back where they belong. I'm like "Why the heck is this sitting here?" I know why, but why didn't I put it back?

Oh well. I've now typed this in about two minutes and my fingers can't go fast enough for my brain (not even half a can of pop in me yet today, so don't try to blame that). hmmm... who else could I call?

Movie of the Day: Lilo & Stitch. Watched this last night with my buddy Zane, who is 6. We had a lovely evening.

Interesting Week

As this week comes to a close, I'd like to take a moment to ponder why I'm in a decent mood. Could it be that my classes were smaller? Could it be that I watched a movie every day this week after school? Could it be that things are calming down? Or, could it be that I'm using my treadmill?

What movies did I watch, you ask? M: United 93. T: Fun with Dick and Jane. W: Proof. Th: Pieces of April. Tonight? Who knows?

Movie of the Day: Pieces of April. Blogagaard recommended this movie and I really liked it. Katie Holmes is great and in a role with more than one dimension (nice change). The movie is about a family about to lose the mother to cancer. It's funny, sweet, heart-breaking and according to B. an accurate representation of what families go through.

To Soul-Laugh

Digging through some papers just now, I stumbled across my "list". You know, "what do you want in a guy?" Blah. Blah. Blah. One thing on my list is to find someone who makes me soul-laugh.

Soul-laughing is that uncontrollable, stop what you're doing, try to quit crying, and if you're lucky, keep breathing kind of laugh. Mine end up silent somehow. It's like I can't get enough air in to create a sound.

I came close to having a soul-laugh yesterday. I was at choir practice and my voice kept cracking in this one spot and I felt like a junior high kid. The third time I just started laughing, which got Nancy started and she didn't even know what she was laughing about. That's the beauty of soul-laughing.

Grandma's Marathon

For the last five years, I've volunteered for Grandma's Marathon in one capacity or another. It started with me gathering about 15 people to help hand out water along the route. Then, I was recruited to be in charge of the entire waterstation. I did that for three years while also helping with the hospitality committee. My job was (and still is) to create gift baskets for the elite runners and then deliver them to hotels. Usually it's around 100 baskets and takes about three days to do the job.

Last year, I decided that I couldn't do both the baskets and captaining the waterstation. The baskets are done by Friday noon, and then I would get up at 3 AM to set up the station. I just couldn't handle the pressure, I guess.

This year, on June 17th, I'll be back to handing out water along the route (and doing the baskets). If you have any interest in tagging along, let me know. Everyone is welcome (well, you should be at least 4 year-old)! Everyone gets a free shirt.

Movie of the Day: Proof. Jake Gyllenhaal, Gwyneth Paltrow, Anthony Hopkins, & Hope Davis. AND math!!!! Gotta love it. Actually, it was an excellent movie. Very emotional.

New Vocab Needed

I was talking to a friend yesterday about the Land O' Blogging and how strange it is to read someone's blog, make comments, have them make comments on your blog, and realize that you haven't actually met the person. How do you address or refer to such a person? "Friend" seems too strong. "This guy/girl whose blog I read" is a bit cumbersome and too impersonal. "Using actual names is confusing for non-readers. My friend suggested "Blog Acquaintance". BA? Hmmmm.... might work. Might make me sound like a sheep. Here's to ewe, BAs!

Movie of the Day: Fun with Dick and Jane. Funny, after it's done being depressing. Jim Carrey cracks me up. And, what's with Alec Baldwin in all of these "nasty boss" roles?

Baby Steps

I'm in a group that meets each Tuesday to talk about how our faith/life is going. At the end, we each ask for a prayer. Then, we pray for each other every day. My prayer for last week was for "playfulness" which I desperately want right now.

My prayer this week was too complicated to verbalize in the time we had, so I said "help and understanding for people who cause pain."

I don't know what the other ladies thought of when I said this, but here's the long story...

I was thinking of some of the difficult prayer requests that we've had so far and what would be the toughest one I could think of. I finally decided to have them pray for the President. Now, I'm a Democrat. Forever. End of story. So, this was a big step.

Then, it morphed into praying for all of the people who have seen so much hurt in their lives that they see no alternatives to violence, fear, and oppression. People who grew up in poverty of spirit or finances. People who didn't have time to be kids.

In Becca's Ideal World (I'm sure there would be kinks to work out), everyone would receive enough food every day (and not too much), everyone would have a noble task or job to perform, and everyone would have someone to talk to (parent/counselor/teacher/religious leader) who was wise and kind. Everyone would have medical care, a roof over their heads, and enough clothing for their climates. Everyone would have time to think/relax/dream. Everyone would have access to an unbiased education. Everyone.

Kind of a long prayer request, huh?

Beads

I had a couple minutes to spare yesterday, so I ended up in a bead store, just looking around. I heard the clerk say that she marks the beads up 300% because of theft. This pisses me off. I spend too much money on beads and hearing that it's because of bead thieves is annoying. I should get my act together and make some bead myself. The chance of theft is much smaller.

Movie of the Day: Harold and Maude. I remember sitting in my backyard as a kid and having my mom yell out of the kitchen window that a cool movie was on tv. I was at the impressionable age of an early teenager. The last thing I wanted to see was a teenager and an octogenarian falling in love. EW!!!! I should try it again. Maybe. Someday.

Plans

I think I have a new project for this week. One that will get me through. It's gonna sound nerdy, I'm sure. While walking on my treadmill this morning, my thoughts wandered to what I'm going to do with my Algebra 2 class on Wed/Thurs/Fri. this week. Eleven kids are going on a chemistry fieldtrip to Chicago, leaving the rest of us to go on about our business. In most classes, this would be half of the kids and I would fluff my way through the time. My class has 30 kids, though, thus taking the class down to about all the other teachers' class-sizes. hmmmm...

So, I've decided to make the three days awesome (and educational). Just how, I'm not sure yet. It must involve food, math, and (I hope) laughing. I'll keep you posted on what I come up with.

Movie of the Day: The English Patient. Oh, how I loved this movie. The torment. The secret love. Ralph Fiennes. Sigh.

Getting a Grip

No, not "a lot" of something, but a handle on things. I feel like I've been in survival mode this week and maybe even for weeks or months. It's a sort of disconnected, wandering type of feeling that isn't as fun as it could be.

I'm trying to do the things that I "should" do. Here's a list:

floss (yep, I was busted)
exercise
do my correcting
pay bills & write letters/e-mails
general tidying up of piles of papers around the ol' house

It's not astro-physics, but I have to make myself do the list. (I wonder if I'd have more fun with astro-physics?).

Any way, I'm off to bed so I can get up at 4:30 to walk/run. Some of you don't even go to bed by 4. Oy.

Until tomorrow...

Hi

I think it's funny how people talk to each other depending on how long it's been between visits and how close they are as friends, etc. I went to a birthday party yesterday and I hadn't seen some of my friends for a while. When they asked if anything was new, I said no. So did a couple other friends.

I know for a fact that there are new things going on in their lives and in mine. Somehow, these are too personal to share in an initial "how are ya?" conversation.

How are you?
Good. I'm moving. (A friend)

How are you?
Rotten. My students are shoving me off the deep end.

How are you?
Well, my toe hurts and I can't feel anything in my left arm.

When these types of answers do happen, we all think it's weird. We're trained to be "good" and then eventually own up to things. Hmmmmm....

Movie of the Day: Tristan + Isolde. A star-crossed love story. I felt bad for Mark (whose name, you notice, is not in the title).

Soon

It's about the time when I start fantasizing about Summer. The lure of sleeping in. The thrill of having "nothing but time" on my hands. The freedom from pesky teenagers and demands. Ah, it's sweet.

My last day of work for the year is June 9th. Teachers have one day to wrap up grades, finals, clean their rooms, and check out. Yes, we have check out sheets. As soon as you're done, you go home.

One year, I was done so early, I felt guilty leaving. So, I helped other friends clean and organize their rooms. I had "nothing but time." Such an amazing feeling.

Now, I've started looking at projects for my free time: an awesome Sundance scrapbook (It won't be cheesy. I'm not into all of those themes stickers and stuff), planting trees in my yard, reading the piles and piles of books in my office and maybe an Oppegaard original if he's willing, and just chillin' on my hammock. I CANNOT wait.

Movie of the Day: About a Boy. Hugh Grant plays a man living off of his inheritance. He meets a boy who changes his life forever. Quirky and fun.

Cute Waiter

Four women from church, sitting around a table discussing "A Girl Named Zippy" by Haven Kimmel, and I have my eyes peeled for the cute waiter. Yep. Typical Becca, I guess. He's in his late-twenties, I think. When he brought us water, he asked how we were and when I returned the courtesy, he said he was "fantastic." Yikes. Okay. Cool. Wonder why he's fantastic. I wish I'd asked.

This was the second time our group met there and he was our waiter then, too. Well, actually, I think he wasn't. He just kept our waters full because he's OCD about water. He also said he was an avid reader (sucking up to a book club? Wanting more tips? Who knows?).

Any way, he seems interesting. The trouble is that at some of the local establishments, it's tough to tell the orientation of the wait staff, especially it they aren't overtly gay. My sister has the perfect question: "What does your ex-girlfriend think of you?"

If he answers: He hates me, She really hates me, What ex-girlfriend?, or We're best friends, then you have some answers without being quite so rude.

I'm not sure I could even pull off asking that question. I'd like to learn more, though.

Maybe next month.

Movie of the Week: 20 Dates. A man makes a documentary about asking out 20 women. Very interesting.

Catch Phrases

My phrase for today will be "Step away from the teacher." I need space or I might end up in a padded room. (End of the grading period).

Other interesting catch phrases from pop culture:

Arnold: What you talkin' `bout Willis?
Mr. T: I pity the fool!
Cookie Monster: Me want cookie.
Fozzy Bear: Wacka wacka
Bart Simpson: Don't have a cow, man!

I especially like Fozzy's.

I better go make my "Step..." sign.

Movie of the Day: Three Men and a Little Lady. If you haven't seen Three Men and a Baby, watch that first, then see the above. Super cute. A little 80's, but still relevant.

Slang

My days have been filled with teenagers lately. They have their own language, as I'm sure you know. Since I'm around it so much, I know what most of it means. Here are some translations for you. Use them at your own risk (of being laughed at).

grip: a lot usage: I got a grip of money or a grip of homework tonight
crib: my house/apartment/cardboard box/home
Oh, snap: Oh no/Oh crap.
shart: to fart and a little poo comes out (gross, I know)
lurk: someone who wanders quietly or lurks around

Movie quotes are big. I try to see teen movies, but avoid anything in the horror genre. No need to lose sleep over slang.

Movie of the day: Michael. John Travolta plays Archangel Michael. An all-star cast travels cross-country with him, learning about life.

Substitute Teachers

I started my teaching career as a sub. For three months, I hopped from school to school, never knowing what I was getting into. By November, I had a semi-permanent job for a teacher out after surgery. Then, I switched at semester time and took over for a teacher who retired. From there, I had my own job.

Last Friday, I had a sub while I was at the Math Conference. The day after a sub can go a lot of different ways. If you have a good sub, everyone did what they were supposed to do without getting sent out of the room. If your sub didn't have a good day or didn't do what you expected, the day after is annoying. Yesterday was really annoying.

The kids all wanted to complain that the sub talked the whole hour while they wanted to work (Imagine this. They wanted to work.). He read poems and stuff, which would be fine if it weren't the end of the grading period and the kids were done with everything.

I had one class that spoke up and said they had to work. I'm guessing they were less than tactful about it, based on their personalities. He did, however, sit and let them work. I guess he was sad and crabby after that.

Yikes.

Oh well.

We try to move on....

Movie of the Day: Possession. A movie about two researchers (Gwyn. Paltrow & Aaron Eckhart) who make a discovery about two poets never thought to know each other.

Flossing

I have a love/hate relationship with flossing. I love when I do it, but hate the actual process. It's one of those things that I know I SHOULD do every single day. If I skip ONE time, I'm doomed to not floss for months. (I brush three times a day, though.)

Today, I see the dentist. The hygenist is probably going to comment, but there has been the rare occasion when she didn't. Yep, that's right folks, I got way with cram-flossing before the appointment (a couple days).

This time, I started last night, which probably won't cut it. Well, it cut my gums, but ... Any way, we'll see. If she mentions it, I'll own up to my laziness and try to do better. What else can she do, right? Slap me with a No Flossing Ticket?

My favorite line from Prelude to a Kiss is when the old guy tells Meg Ryan to floss. I think of that in my times of flossing shame.

Confession

My confession: I've never been fishing. Yep, you read it here first. Becca has never been fishing. And I live in Duluth.

Growing up, no one in my family fished. My dad is a do-er not a sit-er. He's also a talker which I guess is not a good thing while fishing. I, too, am a talker (more on that later).

Today, our church service will have a fishing theme and I feel like a poser. So, I'm going to tweak my themed outfit to match my allegiance to the fish. (I won't eat them, so why kill them, right?).

Back to the talking thing. My sister Sara says I talk more on days that I'm not teaching. Do I have some sort of quota to fill? Is it that if I'm not teaching, I have some other activity to report on? Or, was it just a more exciting, less confidential kind of day? Who knows? I think it tapers off in the Summer, but I'll have to pay more attention in June (which is REALLY close now!!!).

I also can hang out with friends and just talk. For hours. This shocks my friends who have kids or lives or whatever. Bottomless coffee? Nope. Many course meal? Nope. Sitting and talking? Yep.

Oh, and one more random thing: if anyone out there knows how to disable Norton Anti-Virus so a new printer can be installed (and then enable it again), could you give me some pointers? Thanks.

Movie of the Day: Look Who's Talking. Classic 80's movie that I completely forgot about until channel-surfing one day. Cheesy. John Travolta's "come back" movie.

Math Conference

I spent yesterday (and half of today) at a State math teachers' conference here in Duluth. Picture 1200 math teachers or future teachers gathered around. The Nerd Factor was high.

It starts early in the morning and we attend a couple seminars, eat lunch, go to a couple more. Lather. Rinse. Repeat today (minus the afternoon stuff because some people have more than a 10-minute drive home).

Any way, my seminars were a mixture of The Good, The Decent, & The Ugly. I actually made a couple mouthy remarks in the Ugly one. Nothing disrespectful, just more disappointed in the content of the presentation compared to my expectations. Oh well.

My students in 4th hour are HUNG UP on me getting a boyfriend, so they told me I needed to get three phone numbers of guys and that they'd call them during class. Oy. Not going to happen.

Any way, I hope ya'll are havin' a lovely weekend. Here's the Movie of the Day: Thank You For Smoking. Saw it last night. Funny. Tongue-in-cheek. Also had a preview of my favorite Sundance movie: Little Miss Sunshine!!!! WOO HOO!!!!!

Girl Scout Cookies

I asked Tracey what I should blog about "tomorrow" and she said "Girl Scout Cookies." She got hers yesterday and I got mine on Wednesday (some of them) .

My favorites are Samoas. You can get any of the rest of them as knock-offs year round. Samoas are special. When Kid #1 asked me to buy them, I forgot about potential kid # 2's and beyond and ordered 4 boxes of Samoas. Then, Kid # 2's younger brother asked me to order some. How could I say no? I don't have those yet, but I think I probably ordered more Samoas! Ha.

I wonder what the average number of boxes ordered is per person ordering?

Movie of the Day: Chasing Amy. Not for the stuffy people out there.

Reality TV Bugs Me

I get enough reality every day. I don't need it on TV. I need to see shows with smart dialogue, interesting characters, and normal life stuff. Shows where the parents are smarter than the kids and teachers are there to help. Right now, that wouldn't sell, I guess.

I think of the shows of my youth and what the kiddies have now. I watched "Family Ties," "Growing Pains," and "Facts of Life." Now the kids have "Malcolm in the Middle" with stupid parents and mouthy kids and "Yes, Dear" with the same scenario. I'm sure there are even more that I just can't think of right now. Why are we teaching our kids to be rude?

When I was a sophomore in high school, I was sick for a day and called my Algebra 2 teacher to get the assignment. I said, "Could you tell me the assignment and junk?" (Common vernacular for the early 90's). He said "Junk?" like I had offended him. I felt so bad. Yikes. Now, if I had a kid call for their assignment, I think I'd pass out from shock.

Movie of the Day: Patch Adams. Robin Williams is awesome and inspiring. The REAL Patch Adams spoke at my school a couple years ago. He said the movie was tamer than he really is and commented on how awful it is that we PAY to advertise for clothing like Nike, Old Navy, Gap, etc. He was fascinating!

Things that are Blue

A random list of things that are blue:

• the sky
• blueberries
• Jell-O
• eyes
• Grover
• bodies of water
• my kitchen
• Cookie Monster

Movie of the Day: Blue Sky. Jessica Lange and Tommy Lee Jones. A married couple who live on a military base. She's a little loony. I saw Jessica Lange at Lake Ave. Cafe a couple years ago; she was wearing all blue (denim).

Howdy

My mind is swimming in mediocrity right now. Nothing to report. Nothing to ponder. Just routine. Tromp. Tromp. Tromp.

Anyone out there have something exciting going on this week?

Movie of the Day: Gattaca. Good movie. Futuristic space travel and how we get ourselves in trouble with too much genetic advancement and not enough heart.

I have time?

I left work today at 3:47, two minutes after I could have done so, but about 30 minutes earlier than usual. I thought I'd run a few errands, pick up some food, etc. Then, I decided I didn't feel like running around and decided to go home and rake my yard (how noble, huh?). Well, turns out it's a bit too windy for any productive yarding. Darn (half-hearted darn, really). What to do? I guess I'm just going to have to read a book, watch some of my backlog of taped tv shows (LOST & Alias), and essentially be a lazy bum all evening. WOO HOO!!!

Here We Go

It's back to school today for all the Duluth kiddies and teachers. There are thousands of little groans going on (or will be in the next few hours) across the city as we face the final stretch of the school year. It's exciting and I tell myself "That's nothing!" Then I remember the obstacles:

• state testing (starting Wednesday)
• field trips (not mine, but absences from other trips)
• General lack of attention because brains turn off at about 70 degrees or the glimpse of a sunny day

I'll see what I can do to get things to stick in their supple minds. Hmmmm...

Movie of the Day: IQ. Meg Ryan plays Einstein's niece. Tim Robbins is the mechanic who tries to show he's a genius to win her love. Walter Mathau is Einstein. His buddies are famous mathematicians. Cheesy, but funny.

Up Early

Happy Easter!

Today is a day for getting up early. Really early (at least for a Sunday). Church-goers across the world are dragging their drowsy butts out of bed to celebrate Jesus' resurrection. I suppose it wouldn't show enough excitement or respect (somehow) to have a noon service today. Hmmmm...

It took me hours to fall asleep last night. Usually, I'm good for about 5-10 minutes of unwinding and then I'm out, but yesterday I had caffeine after a couple days without it. Maybe that was part of my problem or maybe it was all the post-vacation re-entry stuff buzzing in my head. Either way, I'm gonna need a nap today.

Movie of the Day: Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Very quirky. Very. Funny, though.

Teeny Tiny World

It's a small world, after all. It's a small world, after all....

As promised, here is a recollection of the last day of our trip a.k.a. The Day Becca Felt Like Crap.

I woke up at 3:30 AM with huge stomach cramps, like knives. I thought it was something I'd eaten and tried to go back to sleep. Woke up with a headache, chills, and other unmentionable symptoms. Not the best state for flying home. Oh, AND the sun was out for the first time all week. Oh well.

I spent the whole ride to the airport trying not to yak in the hotel's van. I was still freezing.

Once we got on the plane and I sat in my window seat (not the best for a sick passenger, I might add), I suddenly flipped from chills to sweats. Yep, swell. So, I sweated my way home, hoping not to infect the lady next to me.

At one point, I thought I was going to pass out. I kept seeing stars. Misery!

It was a three-hour flight and by the last half hour, I started feeling better. So, I chatted with my neighbor a bit. She was chaperoning a church youth group from North Carolina. They had 14 kids and 5 adults on this year's trip. They pick a new place each year. She said they were Quakers.

Suddenly, I remembered that I had had a brief (very brief) e-mailing stint with a Quaker pastor from North Carolina this fall. I'd never met him or seen his picture, but only knew his first name. I said that he was a huge Republican and she was mortified! (I was too.). She asked if she could retell the story to the guy next to her and it turns out he knows said pastor!!! How bizarre!!! He gave me the guy's last name and verified it with the Quaker pastors index that he was creating for his church! WEIRD!!!!

It's a small world....

(I also forgot to mention Ghirardelli Square in my previous post. Chocolate. Lots and lots of it.)

My Trip

San Francisco has a ton of interesting museums, hills, and nautical views. Here are some of the fun sights:

SF MOMA (San Fran Museum of Modern Art)

• A Picasso
• A Diego Rivera
• A Salvador Dali
• 3 Ansel Adams photos
• 2 Frida Kahlo paintings
• A bunch of Calder mobiles

de Young Museum

• Tons of African, Aztec, & Incan art
• Funky glass art
• a HUGE picture of blurry circles that were supposedly to be vibrating atoms
• a James Terrell skyspace "pod" that you sit in and look at the sky. It was overcast, so not that thrilling. Did see a bird, though.

Hills

• Went down Lombard street. Slowly.
• Took a cable car in the pouring rain. Lots of bells dinging.
• If you know how to repair brakes, you would strike it rich in SF.

Ferry/Cruise Rides

• Our hotel was in Oakland, so we took the ferry over to SF a couple days. It was about a 45 minute trip for $4.50 (if you bought a ten-pack of tickets).
• The bay cruise takes you under the Golden Gate Bridge which was awesome.
• It also takes you around Alcatraz. Did you know Native Americans claimed it as their land for two years (after it had closed)?

Golden Gate Bridge/Golden Gate Park

• We didn't actually touch the bridge, but took some lovely pictures. Lots of pretty flowers in the park too.
• Did you know there are buffalo in Golden Gate Park? Oh, give me a home...

Well, that concludes our mini-tour of San Francisco. More details to leak out later, I'm sure. Oh, and keep your eyes peeled for the events of "the last day" or "The Day Becca Felt Like Crap".

Movie of the Day: Saved. A satire on Fundamentalism. Hilarious!

I'm back!

Greetings! I'm back from my short vacation to Soggy San Francisco. The sun came out yesterday morning as we packed to head to the airport. Typical, I suppose. When we left SF, it was a whopping 70 degrees. When we landed in Minneapolis, it was 84! Yep, global warming is alive and well.

Any way, we had a nice time hanging out with my aunt and uncle, and seeing the sights of the Bay Area.

More details to follow....

Movie of the Day: The Rock. We took a bay cruise around Alcatraz on Wednesday (in the rain). Very interesting...

Greetings

Greetings From Sunny California. There's a little sun. A little. We are relaxing this morning, plotting out what to do for the rest of the day. My aunt is prepping her music for her orchestra rehearsal tonight. Her orchestra is playing with the San Francisco Gay Mens Chorus. We're going to try to catch a bit of the rehearsal. It's a shame that all of those cute, clean men will be gay. Maybe there will be a few scruffy ones for balance.

My aunt claims that there are a slew of single, straight men in the city, but I'm not sure I buy it. It's kind of nice to just assume that no one would be interested and just go on my happy way. Hmmmm... a new way of life? Ignore men? Hmmmm.....

So, I know you've been missing a movie of the day (for two whole days!) so, I'll give you a trilogy to take care of you: The Lord of the Rings saga. Enjoy!

I'm officially old.

Well, maybe not so old. Maybe just mature or tasteful. I don't know.

My friend's little sister tried to convince me to get a myspace account. I told her I had a blogspot, but she kept on with the pressure. So, I've been doing a little reading and searching on myspace and I'm just not impressed with what I'm seeing.

I found the site of another friend's little sister and found more than I EVER want to see.... Gross!

I'm either old or just out of that "age-bracket" or something. Or, I'm just a prude. Whatever. I don't need those types of images in my head....

Any way, how y'all doin'?

Whew.

Today is the last day before Break. Thanks goodness. Tonight, I do my dishes. You might think this is pathetic, and maybe it is, but I feel better when my dishes are done and my house is reasonably clean.

When I was a kid, my friends and I were obsessed with the movie Annie (coincidently, the Movie of the Day). We had all the songs memorized, would pick parts and put on the play. Some of us even helped clean one mom's house! She had to pretend to be like Miss Hannigan. I wasn't there, but I wonder if she did the drunken slur too. Hmmmm... I love Carol Burnett!

PA

I could really used a temporary Personal Assistant right about now. Someone to pick up the metaphorical drycleaning. Someone to get me lunch. Someone to remind me to make the test I have to give at 10:00 (I forgot to tweak the tweaks I wanted to make. Drat!). Someone to pack my suitcase! Someone to have my mail and newspaper held.

Yep, that would be lovely.

Movie of the Day: War of the Worlds. I'm not a big fan of Tom Cruise any more, but this was interesting and made me jump (in a good way). Dakota Fanning is going to need extensive therapy as an adult.

Recycling

A little while ago, I had a huge problem with junk mail taking over my kitchen (more specifically, the top of my microwave). I decided to buy a $2 waste basket and keep it near my front door and then chuck junk mail straight into the "recycling bin" right there! It's actually quite nice!

Since I haven't had any major projects aside from work and church stuff, it's nice to use some creative ideas to smooth annoyances at home. I feel a little bit like Doc in Back to the Future.

Movie of the Day: Back to the Future. I LOVED this movie growing up. Classic 80's.

Micro Happiness

Do you ever think of the teeny, tiny moments of happiness that you have throughout the day? Here are a few of mine:

the feel of my pillow right before I get up
the last couple seconds of a warm shower
the first three M & M, which always taste different than the ones to follow
getting personal mail
hearing an old favorite song on the radio at the exact time I needed to hear it
making my quiet students giggle

Sometimes, I think we focus on chasing macro happiness too much and ignore the micro stuff.

Movie of the Day: Good Will Hunting. Robin Williams. Matt Damon. Minnie Driver. Ben & Casey Affleck. Math. A brilliant, tormented young man, and a wise mentor. Great movie!!!

Jewelry Shopping

Yesterday, I stopped by Catherine Imports with my sister Sara. We were just looking around, but I was drawn to the jewelry counter (naturally). I'm a jewelry junkie. My grandfather was a jeweler and one of my only memories of him was sitting on his lap in his tiny workshop while he worked on watches. He smelled like mints (similar to Altoids). My whole life, I've been drawn to shiny, pretty jewelry.

Sara laughed when I asked to see something by name: "Can I see the blue abalone with the pearl?" I know what the stones are and usually what the cut is.

When Sara was looking for engagement rings to suggest to her honey, I went with to help decipher the "Diamond" stuff. It was fun.

Now, they have right-hand rings. I would love one, but worry that if I bought one, it would outshine any possible engagement rings in my future. I tend to be attracted to smart, but poor guys. Drat. So, I hold off on it.

Movie of the Day: Big Daddy. Adam Sandler. Joey Lauren Adams. Jon Stewart. A man helps take care of his friends new-found son. Sweet and funny.

Inspired

Sleep helped. (Whew).

Movie of the Day: Emmanuel's Gift. It was a wonderful documentary about a man who was born with a deformed leg. He overcomes amazing prejudice to become a national hero and help so many other people who have disabilities. I just happened to notice this movie when I was cruising Block Buster. I'm glad I did.

Well...

Do you ever get in one of those moods where you just don't know what to do with yourself? It's like you are Monumentally Bored. Not just a passing moment of, "hmmmm....what should I do now?" but a "My life is a Hamster Wheel of Nothingness"? I need energy to create something good and fun right now. I need to reconnect with friends and laugh.

Or maybe I just need some sleep. (My mom's answer to this "beside yourself" kind of feeling.)

Teaser: Saw an awesome movie tonight. More tomorrow....

Random Thoughts

I can't come up with a topic for the life of me today, so you're going to get some genuine randomness for this lovely April 1st.

• My new shampoo is grapefruit & honey, but it smells like caramel apples to me.
• I think this is probably a bad idea for spring.
• Steven Wright has a good quote about shampoo: Boycott shampoo. Use real poo.
• My yard looks like a lake and it's turning into a river in my basement.
• The Month of Trudge is over!!!!!
• One purchase on the National Parks website has landed me on at least 10 environmental mailing lists. Save a tree; quit mailing me.
• One week from today, I'm leavin' on a jet plane. WOO HOO!!!! California, here I come!
• I don't think Duluth is going to get another snow day, so now I'm hoping for a power outage or maybe a day to sanitize the whole school (mono is all over this year!).
• I know, "Sanitize?" It happened in Wisconsin, it could happen here.

Well, that's about all that's been buzzing through my head for now. I hope you have a lovely April Fools' Day. Look alert!

Movie of the Day: Memoirs of a Geisha. Saw it last night. I didn't know anything about geishas before seeing it, so it was very educational. Also, the cinematography was amazing!