Into the Wild Wood and Home Again

  All Hallows Eve   Kissed but not cut by the combine, solitary cornstalks rustle in wordless laments. Crows bicker and feint,   sparring over slim leavings, gathering seed in the cold. Pumpkins guard our doorsteps, lined up with precision,   or clustered in tight little groups, barring any wayward shades. Tendrils of cold seep around sagging gray weather stripping, finding   warmth in the kitchen. Wool-wrapped, we huddle around the fire, ghost stories haunting the edges of conversation, too real, too likely, to speak of.   Published in the Aurorean , Fall-Winter 2018    

Dark and cold again, with really awful weather in the forecast for Halloween. Poor kids. We'll see what comes of it-- I may end up with a metric ton of pretzels packets and cocoa. That said, it's not today, and today's weather looks like it will be degrading as the day goes on. Yay.  I spent a little over an hour on Zoom last night in an actually useful webinar for AP stuff. Then I watched a little TV and went to bed. Crazy stupid dreams all night, then woke with a headache. Bleah.  I hope today at work is sane; it should be. High school kids don't get that excited about Halloween (well, there is likely to be at least one party, but they don't share that too openly)-- what they do get excited about are naps and snacks.  So, if I don't get to hand out much of what I've already stockpiled for trick-or-treaters, they'll get the motherload. I'll donate the cocoa to the school pantry or something.  And, on a positive note, how 'bout them Blue Jays? =)...

Yesterday was a good day-- work went well, and then Holly got a "big girl" haircut! She now has a cute little shoulder-length cut with bangs! Then we carved our pumpkins and it was time for bath and bed.  You may have seen the memes on social media talking about handing out actual food things on Halloween. Funny? not so much. I have a case of noodle cups, pretzels, and some small packages of oreos to give out. And hot cocoa packets, too. No chocolate-- face it, G and I both can't stay out of it. =) I also emailed our guidance department yesterday at work about what the in-house food pantry needs most. And I emailed our church secretary about doing a food donation component at the annual harvest supper. I cannot believe that in this nation, people will be going hungry starting this weekend. And it's entirely avoidable; this starving-out of the most vulnerable is a manufactured, cruel crisis. This "trick" is draconian. Not on my watch.  I also refilled the sna...

Yesterday was a bit strange. Holly was all ready for school, I was almost ready, and we were sitting down to breakfast when she threw up all over the table, herself, etc. O lordy. I'm am not good with vomit, but hey, ya gotta be the adult in the room...  So, I ended up staying home with her (she was perfectly fine after), and getting a lot of school stuff done, so that was good. And we played several rounds of Disney Princess Yahtzee.  Today, then, I will get my students back on track (heaven knows if they did what I wanted them to, but hey, it's a dice roll). Both classes have ongoing papers in the works, so I'm hopeful that they worked on those.  And tonight, we carve pumpkins. I have to stop and get one or two more, and then... gourd gutting will commence! G's company is having a fun competition-- send in photos of your carved pumpkins and someone will win $200.00. We won't likely win, but it's worth a shot.  Other than that, I hope your day is a good one. Hu...

What a busy weekend. I didn't finish up with papers til 8pm last night. I did take a little time off to watch football (Pats won again!), but other than that, it was full speed ahead both Sat. and Sunday.  G put away the deck furniture, he helped me switch over the curtains, and I put a second blanket on the bed. It gets cold upstairs. I also baked: a pear/raspberry pie (it was our pears, and it was yummo) and a set of six big blue-nana muffins. It was a good day to bake, as it was cold and damp.  And so we enter "winter food" season. I also bought a beef pot roast (it was on sale, and even then--yipes). Hearty foods on the horizon. No more salads for dinner. Not for a while, anyhow.  I am going to make an effort to cut as many carbs as possible, though-- better for G's diabetes, and maybe I will feel more energetic, too. That said, there was this HUGE russet potato at the store-- it'll be enough to feed at least the two of us, maybe a third person. Crazy! And thi...

It was so great to take my two teams to the regional tournament at Plymouth High School! They competed well, won a few rounds, scored in every round (which is always my goal for them), and they had a good time! They go to another tournament next Saturday, but my assistant coach will be taking them because I have a writing class. That's fine-- they'll do well, and since my assistant is a former team member from when she was a student, they'll have a great guide!  That all said, reading the questions for the ten ten-minute rounds nonstop is exhausting, and my brain feels mushy at the end of it all. We were supposed to go to the movies to see Psycho on the big screen, but it felt like work to go out-- the weather was cold and damp, and the pellet stove was much more inviting. So, delivery pizza and a quiet night. Not bad at all.  I'm reading at church, too, today. The second reading kind of feels a little whiny on St. Paul's part. He recounts how, at his first trial, ...

So, I ordered two pairs of glasses from an online retailer. Why two? One to replace my progressives, and one for computer/grading use. That odd, mid-distance is the issue; with progressives, my eyes are not acclimating to the not-near/not-far of computer use. Thus, headaches, eyestrain, etc. We'll hope for the best. Why online retailer? Because I could get two pair for less than half the cost of one cheapo pair from the optometrist associated with the eye doctor. And there was a teacher discount. =)  I hope I chose well. I hope they fit well. I hope I didn't just waste 230.00.  They'll be here in about two weeks.  In the meantime, I need to be better about eye drops, taking screen breaks, and so on. Maybe I'll get lucky and they'll come sooner. Probably not. But we can hope.  We went to dinner at IFB; there's a new fall cocktail that is gorgeous and tasty. I'm glad. It made me happy in the way that blooming flowers, unexpected emails from friends, and findin...

Finally Friday. But not the last day I'm with students this week-- tomorrow is the first quiz bowl tournament of the year, and we will be off to Plymouth High School bright and early. I have a doughty group of 7 kids able to go, so we can field a varsity and a jv/newbie team.  That said, how do I get the weekend's stuff done? It's always a challenge. I have three full sets of essays to read and grade, too, which is a pile of reading.  Today, I have an eye doctor's appointment-- I took what I could get, since they are booking out into April. Gee whiz. My eyes get tired very easily, and I don't know what can be done. Computers, books, papers... these are the foundations of my personal and professional life, and they all cause me eyestrain. We'll see what this doctor says. The last one said, "dry eye issues." I have the drops, I have the heating pad, I still have eye strain.  Wish me luck.  I hope you have a great day, and please-- extend grace and space ...

 Yesterday was the Toga Party in British Lit. That is, students wrap themselves in various bedsheets, toga-style, and present rehearsed readings of selected speeches and scenes. It was the usual mix of really well done to shaky bits, but mostly, they did fine. And my new assistant principal was there for the whole shebang-- I invited her-- and it was great for her to see, not only because she's getting to know what I do, but because four of the kids in the class are former students of hers (she taught 2nd grade in a neighboring town that sends their kids to us for middle and high school).  What fun, eh? One thing, though: kids do not have sheets. Most of them do not. O, they have a fitted sheet, but no flat sheets. I guess people just wash their blankets weekly? Weird. So I'm on the hunt for large (full size and up) flat sheets. I'll hit up the thrift store and see what's out there. I donated two of my old ones to the cause.  Sheets or otherwise, we had fun, they enjoye...

I spent Monday night working on a book review for my poet-friend Meg Kearney's new heroic crown of sonnets titled Cardiac Thrill. It's a fantastic little book, a cycle of sixteen poems (one prelude, the rest is the heroic crown). The internet had blinked off, and I could not possibly be more grateful. Most evenings, I am tired, and I convince myself that I need to dull my senses with television. Granted, good TV (Poirot, Father Brown, etc.)-- but it's still a soporific. I could not be distracted by researching yet more AP-related stuff, either, which is an ongoing endeavor. All I could do is focus on the long-overdue review I owed to MicroLit Almanac. And I am so glad.  I wrote and wrote, thought and thought, and revisited the poems. I revised a little. Then, because the internet was still off (and was throughout the entire night), I could not send it to the editor. Which means, of course, that I was able to look at it with fresh eyes again in the morning. I revised a bit...

  Metaphor. The East Wing provide(s)(d) space for the First Lady's offices and to hide the addition of the  Presidential Emergency Operations Center (PEOC) during World War II, an underground safe bunker added by FDR in 1942.  Think of it as you will. I was shocked and saddened.  But we'll have a ballroom that dwarfs the historic building.  It'll go well with the food court.  C

It's dark, 60 degrees, and rain on the way. Ah, fall.  I actually don't mind all that much, and we need the rain so badly. Today will be a busy day, but if all goes according to plan, I'll be making an apple pie later. Something to look forward to. The agenda at work looks a bit jam-packed, so it'll be a rocket on rails kind of day, I think. I'll be glad to be home.  And here I am, perseverating over a day that has not even started.  Shortly, I have to get breakfast going, and get myself out the door. Some days it's easier than others, and today is one of those that I'd much rather be at home, reading and writing, cooking and so on...  But that is not to be. Hi ho, Hi ho... I hope your day is a delightful one. Hug your favorites. We are all hoping to see a brighter day. C

Today is supposed to be a lovely fall day-- temps may be mid-60s, touching 70, by mid-afternoon. And the last leaves will drift and skitter around, and the birds will beg at the feeder... I hope to get outside for a little bit to soak up some autumnal grace.  We all need a quiet spot in our days.  I spent some time yesterday going through and rearranging some glassware and mugs in the kitchen cabinet. What seems like busy work was actually necessary-- we have too many of both. There are a select few we use all the time, and the rest just sit there, gathering dust. I am giving some to Meg; she could use a few extra glasses and mugs. I have even more in another cabinet-- jelly glasses. Literally, glasses that were jars of grape jelly, with cartoon characters on them. We collected those years ago, and they are a nice size for little hands. I think I'll get a few of those down and wash them up. Holly is about ready for open-cup most of the time, and between our two houses, a few s...

I'm minded to consider the list of complaints/abuses outlined in our prime foundational document, T he Declaration of Independence, today. It seems we have come full circle in many ways-- just a few points to ponder: He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them. He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only. He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures. He has dissolved Representativ...

  I've about decided to abandon a lot of the "helpful" materials that the College Board puts out there. The "daily videos" are, for the most part, not useful, and they are BORING. I can't imagine being a teacher and playing those day after day.  The practice quizzes and writing prompts, sure. Those I can tailor. But seriously-- there are far better videos for supplemental use on youtube.  That all said, my poor students are bored. College Comp is not all that toe-tapping anyhow, and this long stretch of rhetorical analysis has gone on long enough. We are shifting into research (the CB calls this the Synthesis essay)-- using source materials to support a claim. I am confident that my students have a good grasp of this, as we have a class they all have to take called Speech and Research. They are quite familiar with using sources to learn about/ support an argument. So, from here on out, I sincerely hope that things pick up.  Why is rhetorical analysis boring ...

I took two of my students to my alma mater for a college visit. They were hesitant at first-- neither one really saw college as a realistic option. That said, by the end of the visit, they both liked what they'd experienced, enjoyed meeting the people and seeing their programs of interest, and even declared the campus "cozy." Goal met. Whether they choose to apply to VTSU-Lyndon or not, they felt welcomed and their interests piqued.  It was nice to be on campus; even with all of the changes, the atmosphere was much the same. And the brisk fall breeze, the blowing leaves, and the fountain now in the library pond all brought back a lot of memories, of possibility thinking. I hope that the kids felt it, too. I think they did.  Have a good day, and hug your favorite people. We all need a lot of reassurance right now. C

I vacillate between a serious case of imposter syndrome and the certain knowledge that I know what the hell I'm doing. Pretty much daily. Maybe even hourly, sometimes. This whole teaching AP thing has me twitchy, like I'm doing something I ought not to, like I have no idea what I'm doing (which is sometimes the case), and then... I look at the work I've put in over the last almost four decades, and duhhh. I do know what I'm doing. The technical stuff --the College Board website-- still has a lot of mysteries. But do I honestly need most of it? I feel guilty I'm not using the whole damned thing, but then... my stuff is good stuff, and I don't need canned lessons for my students. That is not teaching.  I joined a couple of Facebook groups, one for AP Language and the other for AP Lit. In both, there are hundreds of teachers --and I'm pretty sure I'm giving some of them a little more credit than they seem to deserve-- who are panicky about pacing, about...

It has rained for 24 hours. What a necessary blessing!  And today is Holly's 4th birthday-- and she is at that age when birthdays are magical, full of excitement, and she's about to pop. Never mind we've done fun stuff for the last three days... =)  So, today after I pick her up from school, we'll head to Starbucks to get her a cake pop. That in itself is magical, at least to her.  I don't know when I lost the sense of magic and wonder, but maybe, if I spend enough time with her, I'll find some bits of it here and there. Like this morning, there was a gorgeous red cardinal at the feeder. There were chickadees and blue jays too, but the cardinal held his ground (well, his perch), and did not spook off, like they do usually. I suppose I can make a metaphor out of that experience, and I may-- I have not written a poem of any merit at all in ages. But there's something arresting about a beautiful red bird hanging on, regardless of distractions, keeping his spot ...

Most of the outdoor stuff got done yesterday. At least, the more pressing things. The deck furniture is next, but the outside water is turned off, hoses packed away, and the garden boxes cleared out. G picked a few pears, too-- I don't think I'll be making gallons of pear sauce, but maybe a little pie or something will happen. We've given a lot of pears away-- which is a great thing-- because people need/want them, and I just do not have the time to focus on a big pear project.  Today, though, will be a relatively slow day. Amen. I have not had one of those for some time. Holly is here today all day, but we are both still in our pjs -- exactly what I want. She needs a quieter day, too-- her pre-birthday celebrations have both wound her up and wore her down a bit. We will bake muffins today for her school "party" and maybe go for a ride. Maybe. I'm not pushing string one bit today.  I do need to sweep/vac/wash floors-- they are grimy from all the traipsing in a...

UP, and it's just starting to get light out. It's chilly; 29 degrees. October in full swing, eh? We had a fun celebration (early) for Holly's birthday yesterday; the food was good (as always), and Meg made some nice cupcakes. We'll keep the party going for the next few days-- her actual birthday is on Tuesday. O, what fun to be four! Today, after church, I am hopeful we can get the outdoor stuff done. It might not be all of it, but some must be accomplished. We have to put away hoses and so on, and probably the deck furniture. We may have a couple of warmish afternoons, but it's time. It's always a hard decision: put things away while it's still sort of warm, but also-- isn't it nicer to do that work when it's still warm?  I should pull up all the dead tomato vines, pea vines, green bean plants. I will put away the folding pea fence (that thing worked well!), and so on. Time to put garden stuff away. I'll store the little bits, things like the ga...

I think I may have figured out at least part of the AP website conundrum. We'll see. The youtuber I found was somewhat helpful, but clearly, the website has been changed a little since the video was created. So, we'll see. I set up a 55 question practice "quiz" for the kids to do next week.  One thing that is troubling me a lot is the way some teachers are using AP Classroom material as graded assignments. Not in my school, but the people yammering in the social media groups. We were expressly told, over and over and over again, that the AP material was never to be used for a test grade; the most we could do is use it for a "completed" assessment. Yet these yahoos are using the multiple choice questions, etc. for grades-- and are complaining that the kids are not doing that well, so O Woe, what to do about the grades in their high-stakes classes? Seriously. Do your damned job. If you are a teacher, please create material that reflects what you are teaching. ...

Huzzah! We finished Macbeth, and we started the conversation about what the play suggests about leadership: what is a good leader, and what happens when obsession+ambition+greed+unfettered opportunity+ violence happens. They liked the play!  In other schoolish stuff, the freakin' AP Classroom platform is giving me a real pain in the butt. No lie. It has a lot of options and stuff you can do, but since I have received zero training in the platform, it's all a muddle. We have a PD day tomorrow, so I think I might invest some time in figuring that damned thing out. I've been to the summer training, I sat through three boring hours of a webinar, and both times, no one has run us through the website and all its wonders.  And I'm wondering why.  There's probably a youtuber out there somewhere. Dare I say, maybe there's a cheat sheet online. There's little hope in finding anything twice on the dang website; it's pretty jam-packed, but not as user-friendly. At ...

Theatre abounds! My students should finish Macbeth today, easily. We have just Act V to do! And they've been busy creating coats of arms for themselves to hang across the white board-- that is a fun little side project, and they are looking good. I hope they have had a good time; they seem to have been enjoying it! G and I went to Weathervane to see The Producers -- the live performance is more bawdy and raucous than the movie, but it was really good and really funny. It felt good to laugh. I got to bed late, though, so I'm a little foggy this morning. And on the sports note: the Bruins won their opener and the Yankees are now playing golf.  All good things.  I hope you have a wonderful day. Hold on to those you love. C

My Brit Lit kids read, in parts, aloud, the first two acts of Macbeth in under 80 minutes. Not that we are trying to set any sort of speed records, but let's be honest-- this crew has a very spotty foundation for all things English-y due to their having such a (poor? incompetent?) teacher last year. We are having fun! We are reading it at about the rate it should take to put on the play itself! And that's always my goal. I stop occasionally to "decode" what's what, but they are getting it pretty well, even without my glosses. Yes, we've been diving into Shakespeare in preparation for this: sonnets, the "insult day," we saw The Tempest live and watched Henry V (Branagh version)-- but this is their first real foray into reading it aloud, themselves, relatively unaided. I'm super pleased.  If anyone ever tells you that a/ it's too hard, or b/ it's not relevant, send 'em my way. The play is a commentary on the fact that the insidious po...

Today, we finally get to start Macbeth . What with field trips and homecoming, it got moved a full week-- but today, we should get right into it. There's a lot to be learned about temptation, misplaced loyalty, and madness in the play. I wonder if it will occur to them that there are connections to be made, that Shakespeare is timeless. Just wait'll next week when we get into Julius Caesar ... At any rate, we'll have fun.  Sorry for a short note again; the day gets rolling at 5:30, and it's a rocket on rails.  C

I'm not going to lie, I'm going to be next to useless until coffee hits (and likely after), but it was the pick-me-up I needed to watch the first half, then listen to the second half, of a really good football game last night.  Yes, I finally went to sleep around 11:30 (two hours after my bedtime!), but it was worth it. I hope you have a super day, and please, hug your loved ones. Keep us all safe. And enjoy the little "victories" when they come. C PS: the Blue Jays are walloping the Yankees, too...

Today's first reading in church is incredibly apt: The prophecy that Habakkuk the prophet received. Habakkuk’s Complaint 2  How long,  Lord , must I call for help,      but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, “Violence!”      but you do not save? 3  Why do you make me look at injustice?      Why do you tolerate wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are before me;      there is strife, and conflict abounds. 4  Therefore the law is paralyzed,      and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous,      so that justice is perverted. The Lord replies, essentially saying, hang in there, that "the vision still has time," and if it's late, "wait for it, it will surely come."  Words to hope by. C

Today is the feast of St. Francis of Assisi.  This is his prayer for peace: Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. I hope you all have a peaceful day. And please, hug your loved ones--pets included!  C

So, here's a poem from Robert Frost. Today, after my regular work day, I get to go to the Frost Place, peak foliage, and teach some poems and prompts to a group of visiting middle schoolers. I am excited about the opportunity; not only do I get to spend a couple of hours in the most breathtaking places in my neck of the woods, but I get to forget (for a time) all the high drama and dudgeon of the news cycle.  In keeping with that mood, here's one of my favorite Frost poems. I hope you like it, too. Stay safe, hug your favorite people, and keep your eyes open. C October By  Robert Frost O hushed October morning mild, Thy leaves have ripened to the fall; Tomorrow’s wind, if it be wild, Should waste them all. The crows above the forest call; Tomorrow they may form and go. O hushed October morning mild, Begin the hours of this day slow. Make the day seem to us less brief. Hearts not averse to being beguiled, Beguile us in the way you know. Release one leaf at break of day; At noon...