Sheesh

I forgot that I changed my comments to "moderate" and then stepped away for MONTHS! Sheesh. Sorry about that kids!

Okay, so the sights in Duluth look like mud, or puddles, or tracks through the mud and puddles. I am taking a yoga class and the window looks out to Lake Superior. You would think this would be wonderful, but it's down-right grey out there! Lovely waves, though.

I'll work at getting some pics.

Movies: Bridesmaids was hilarious. Not for the faint of heart.
TV Shows for Kim: Castle. LOVE Castle. I watched House for a couple years. I'm behind on Glee, but I like it. Veronica Mars rocked.

Books: All three Hunger Games. One Day. Brightest Star in the Sky (which I'm reading right now). Then, I think I'll read the two books my aunt loaned me 4 years ago.

What books do YOU suggest?

Chatter

I've been chatting with a friend about blogging and found that I haven't written in about two months. Why do you think people blog less? Is it Facebook? A phase of life? The format? A lack of topic?

Personally, I think it's Facebook because I can write a sentence, hope it's witty, and move on with my day. Blogging could be that short, but it hasn't been for me, in the past. So, dear, faithful reader, what topics would you like me to ramble on?

Movie of the Day: Gnomeo and Juliet. Kinda cute.

Goo

I've been sick for a week now. It's probably a cold, but it's hanging on for dear life and making me annoyed!!! My eyes are so swollen and gooey today that I don't think I can wear make-up. So, not only is it state testing today, but they're going to be scared by my facial pallor. I better amp up the lipstick.

Movie of the Day: The Tourist.

Oh, Deer!

Yesterday, four deer decided to hang out (lay down, even) in my back yard for over an hour! It was strange. They were big and just sat there. One of them stared at me when I took pictures of them and the rest just ignored me. I stayed a safe distance (i.e. in my house) to take the pictures. I guess they really liked the pile of grass clippings that never made it to the recycling center or whatever. Cushy. That, and the sun combined with a space without snow must have made for an ideal late afternoon nap.

Movies to check out: The Switch, It's Kind of a Funny Story. Both are GREAT!!!!!

I'm Slow.

You know you need to blog when friends start requesting posts. Yep, this one's for you RMT!

Next Wednesday is a Photo Exhibit at Hope UMC in Duluth and I had a tough time picking out which two pictures to submit. I ended up just raiding my livingroom.

The exhibit starts at 7:00 PM and should be a good "show."

I other news: It's March. Whoa. How'd that happen?

Movies for ya:

Just Go With It
Unknown
Post Grad
No Strings Attached

Hibernation Movies

Welcome to January! Or, more appropriately, welcome to the END of January! It could not have arrived any sooner (yes, I know there is still one week left, but I'm doing some wishful thinking, okay?).

I've been watching HEAPS of movies lately, so I shall recommend some:

1000 Journals
Despicable Me
Vicki Cristina Barcelona
Inception
Salt
Just Wright
Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World
Easy A
The Kids are Alright


I'm pretty sure I've watched all of these in January. And there are more.

Do you have recommendations?

Whoa! It's been almost three months since I last blogged. Wow! What does it mean? Am I super busy? Am I just posting status updates on Facebook instead? Weird.

What would you like me to babble about?

A Bit O' Banff

Slow Going

So, I've been building my deck with my dad. I've been doing more constructing than you might aspect (if you know me), but it's been satisfying and exhausting. The super heat and humidity of the past two weeks were also our constant companion. Here are some photos:



Ta-Da!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lil' Bro's Wedding

Here are a few pictures from the wedding on June 11, 2010:

Piles

I guess I come off as an organized person. You know, like someone who would wear out a labeling machine or something. And sure, I'm compulsive. I'm the first to own up to that. I'm very organized at school. At home, not so much. My office has piles of stuff. The top of my microwave collects mail and coupons that I eventually throw away after their expiration date. I have too many magazines, books, and plants laying around. hmmmm.... anyone else smell a summer project?

Movie of the Day: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. Awesome. In Swedish. Not for the faint of heart.

You Make a Good Point

I was texting my new friend Kamil the other day and he wrote "Don't volunteer to suffer." WOW! It was so poignant! I think I "volunteer to suffer" frequently, or at least "to be uncomfortable." Do I have a martyr complex? Maybe. Did I take his advice? Yes. Bullet dodged.

Movie of the Day: Boy A. Such a good movie. I own it if you want to borrow it.

Really Random Wednesdays!

• I think it's funny when I own a book for literally years and haven't read it and then suddenly decide to read it and finish the book in two days. I feel like I need to be "ready" for a book sometimes. I can be intrigued by it, but just need the right mood or soil for it's idea or something. This happens over and over again to me.
• Tomorrow, I get to be an extra in a zombie movie. How cool is that?
• I have to do a little head shake when I think about how it's almost June. Amazing!
• I've started packing up my classroom. 5 full boxes and there's more to do. I can just picture the last day of school: I have one pen and 35 pencils. That's it in the room that doesn't fall in the desk category. Too funny.

How's that for random?

Movie of the Day: Iron Man. I finally saw the first one. Now I can see the sequel!

New Job

Some of you may know that Duluth is reassigning all of it's 6th grade through 12th grade teachers right now. The process isn't over, but many of us know where we will be next year. In fact, we are having staff meetings at our new sites today.

It's a little nerve-racking, actually. I do not know my new boss. I know all of my new math department, though. And, some of my friends from years gone by will be around again, which is great!

My current boss, a great guy, just sent the staff a peptalk email about using our leadership training skills from the past few years to help us through this transition. It was exactly what I needed to hear.

Movie of the Day: One Fine Day.

Long Time, No See (or Read)

Sorry. I have no excuse. Here are a few things on my mind lately:

• I know the state of my life is in unrest when I empty my dishwasher one meal's worth at a time and start using spoons in place of knives.
• I'm wearing down, when I start thinking it's a good idea to bring a tape measure to see if my date's lied about his height.
• I'm so lucky to have arrived home BEFORE the Icelandic volcano. My students don't agree.
• I think I want to start a Kidney Walk team in honor of my friend Nate. What to call it? What to call it?
• My school is being closed for remodeling for a year and all the teachers are getting to reselect their jobs based on seniority. I have to decide where to go. Eek.
  

Movie of the Day: Young Victoria. SUCH a good movie!!!!! She's my new favorite queen!

Spring, Sprang, Sprung, Recoil

Spring usually arrives in Duluth in about May. Usually. This year, it decided to visit for a bit in mid-March. Everyone was happy, but skeptical. "What the heck? It's so warm." 90% of the snow melted. The only stuff left is under a pile of dirt and insulated. That's it!

So, when the warm temperatures realized just what they were doing and that they were extremely early, they decided to hightail it out of here for a little while. That's fine. If it snows again, which it may, it won't last very long.

On my way to choir this week, I heard the creek water rushing and decided to take a few pictures for my friends out of town. See above.

Movie of the Day: Hot Fuzz. Goofy movie.

Skate Your Way to April

So, evidently, April's weather has decided to show up in Duluth a month early. This is mostly a great thing. What's weird is that all of the snow that is melting is then freezing overnight (evidently April Weather has nights off). While the streets are mostly dry, yards, some sidewalks, and driveways are a smooth, shiny ice. If you are the skating type, hit the yard. If you're the skiing type, I'm sorry, but you'll have to switch to skates. Puddle-jumping is just around the corner.

Movie of the Day: Emma (BBC version). Mr. Knightley is hot. He'd melt that ice....

Stream for the Day

I haven't blogged in a while, so I think instead of trying to come up with a topic, I'll just babble for a bit.....I reserved a hotel room for my trip to London and even got a good deal...I've had a headache since yesterday afternoon and I blame the change in weather...I had a conversation about sodium in food last Sunday and now I'm paranoid about it....The snow on my driveway from the Christmas storm is finally gone...I joined Netflix, so I won't be out in public much any more....I sent a package overseas and it STILL hasn't arrived after 4.5 months...I could really go for a day off...I haven't xeroxed the quiz for today, so the machine better be working!...I was told to arrive at my meeting today thirsty, how very odd....

Movie of the Day: New York, I Love You! a response to Paris, Je T'aime. I liked both movies.

In Honor of Nate

I'm sorry I haven't blogged much lately. Things have been rather emotional in the World of Becca as of late. Above you will see a picture of me with my dear friends Nate and Dave. This is the first picture of me that I've ever put on my blog and I think Nate would be proud.

You see, Nate passed away last Saturday, unexpectedly, at the age of 36. The whole past week has been a rollercoaster of happy and sad thoughts of Nate. He was brilliant, funny, friendly and inclusive to everyone. He couldn't understand why I didn't put heaps of pictures on my blog or why I didn't invite every last friend to stay at my house during our 10-year-reunion.

He stayed at my house that weekend and I remember him talking on the phone with Claire (his future wife), sitting on Brighton Beach doing homework (quizzing me with random questions that I failed), and getting me to organize the troops to hang out.

When I went to visit Claire and Nate in Paris, he asked me to bring Cap'n Crunch, peanut butter and tortillas, if I had room in my suitcase. He rationed the Cap'n Crunch that I delivered. We were both obsessed with checking our email and staying connected with friends and we both proof-read our emails before sending them.

I remember we both got our wisdom teeth out the summer of 1992. His dentist didn't tell him to avoid straws, so he was healing slower than I was and his surgery was a day or two before mine. I remember he took a little cooler packed with ice with him to the Blues Fest. He made things happen.

I miss my dear friend and I cannot begin to imagine how his family, wife, and two small kids are feeling right now. I just hope that they know that Nate was loved by everyone who met him.

Okay, We Can DOOOO This.

I have one week before receiving the rest of my Christmas vacation. Yes, Duluth likes to cut the December break short and give us 4 days tacked on to Presidents' Day. It's nice now, stressful for busy folks in December.

So, what will Becca be doing with her week off? I'm not sure. I know 7 teachers going to Mexico. I was even invited along, but my passport is away on "renewal" and I don't think it'll return in time. Bummer.

I will, therefore, look for fun things to do around here unless I'm invited to some exotic domestic locale.

Movie of the Day: Airplane! Saw it for the first time today. I liked it.