All Summer in a Day – SOL 26

If, like me, you somehow have not read this story – read it FIRST!  (Here’s a link – All Summer in a Day)  My entry contains SPOILERS!!

Somehow I have managed to make it this far in my learning and teaching career without ever reading this short story by Ray Bradbury.  I came across it today as I was reading another site.  All I can say is

WOW

what an amazing piece of writing.  (Not that I was surprised, it is Ray Bradbury.)  The description, the characterization, the suspense.  And all of this accomplished in just four pages.

In the hope that I had missed something and that poor little Margot had not missed the sun, I searched all over the internet, hoping to find someone’s analysis that indicated there was a window or backdoor in the closet.  But, t’was in vain.  My heart was broken.  All throughout the day, as I go about my daily life, my thoughts keep coming back to Margot.

While Margot’s sun may only “bloom for just one hour,” this is a story that will stay with me for much longer.

47 Synonyms for tired – SOL 23

According to thesaurus.com there are 47 synonyms for the word “tired”.   Unfortunately, I am feeling every one of those 47 synonyms today.

My favorite is “tuckered out”.  It reminds me of something my grandmother said, or would have said!   A new word for me?  “Fagged”  – which comes from the mid 16th century.  I know of the word as a British slang for cigarette, but never knew it could also mean tired or exhausted.

The more I look at the synonyms, the more fascinated I become.  For example, take a look at these “opposites”:  fed up and broken-down mean tired, and done in and played out mean tired.  Then, there are the terms done in and done for!  And don’t get me started on enervated and innervated!!  No wonder people have such trouble learning English.

In looking up the word tired, I learn that to be tired means that “one has used up a considerable part of his or her bodily or mental resources”.  To be exhausted, on the other hand, means “to be completely drained of energy and vitality.”

Hmmm – maybe I need to start my post again, I think I’m feeling more exhausted than tired.  Good thing it’s Friday.

Happy weekend!

Bo’s New Toy – SOL 22

Last summer we adopted a dog.  It was supposed to be part collie, but ended up being part greyhound, part boxer, part terrier and part mutt!   He looks like a cross between a kangaroo and a deer.  Sometimes when he is at the back edge of our property near the wood line he looks like a small deer because of his size and coloring.  My husband named him Bo beacause he is a rescue from Alabama, and, well, everyone knows Bo Jackson is from Alabama!

Bo goes to “daycare” several days a week.  He is much bigger than the other dogs – actually he is bigger than the allowed size, but the owner fell in love with him when he was a puppy and allowed him to stay on.  When I picked him up today, the owner told me that she had taken Bo and several of the other dogs for a long walk.  While walking, Bo found a stuffed animal on the path.  He refused to drop it, and insisted on carrying it the entire walk.

How I would have loved to have seen that group;  Bo prancing along, proudly carrying his new found toy, surrounded by several much smaller dogs probably thinking how embarrassed they were to be seen with Bo!!!

Packing, unpacking, and packing again – SOL 20

We leave for Guatemala in one week and five hours, and still the packing continues!

Packing, unpacking and packing again –

Did I pack sunblock?  Did I pack shoes?

Packing, unpacking and packing again –

Take out the sweaters, the forecast has changed!

Packing, unpacking and packing again –

Where is my raincoat?  I need it today.

Packing, unpacking and packing again –

Must buy more shorts, the ones here don’t fit.

Packing, unpacking and packing again –

I’ve chosen too much, I can’t zip the bag.

Packing, unpacking and packing again –

I hear a weird sound.  Did I pack the cat?

Packing, unpacking and packing again –

With one week to go, the fun’s just begun!

Sparkly carrots – SOL 19

I am an instructional coach.  Previously, my job required me to be in a variety of school districts.  My “office” might be an unused table in the library, the data room (which had a “corkboard” constructed of old soundproofing taken from the auditorium; it smelled like a campfire), a semi-broken desk in the Pre-K office, the main conference room (which was always being needed for other projects), and a corner in the principal’s office (not a good place for inspiring the kind of trust an instructional coach needs).  Needless to say, I never had a place that was truly my own.  This year, my responsibilities have changed, and so I now have an actual cubicle and desk, which I am having fun personalizing and decorating.  Since I’m here only 2-3 days a week, I haven’t gone crazy, but I have added a picture of my girls, a bird calendar, a cartoon mouse pad and rainbow push pins.  (Hey, this is Slice of Life – it’s ALL about the small things!)  I’m also having fun doing seasonal decorating.  Today, I put up my newly purchased “Welcome Spring” sign.  I didn’t buy it because I’m longing for Spring (which I am), or because it’s starting to look like Spring (which it’s not), or even because it was on sale (a $3.99 bargain).   I bought it because the bottom of it is a great big orange and green sparkly carrot. It’s silly and adorable, and makes me smile every time I look at it.  And, isn’t that what life is all about?  Finding those small things that keep us laughing and smiling in a world that doesn’t always laugh and smile.

Here’s wishing you lots of  sparkly carrots in your life!

Harlem on Parade – SOL 18

My car radio somehow got set to the “40s channel”.   It’s been fun to listen to; many of the songs I know from listening to them on my grandparents’ records.

A song played today that I didn’t know – “Harlem on Parade”.  It had a great tune and a great beat.   But more than that, it had some great lines.  One in particular that struck me was:

When you hear the bugle blow,
That’s the time you’re bound to know
That the man behind the horn
Is as handy with a gun
When there’s fighting to be done!

What a poignant reminder for me that the young men and women that I hear about on the news are not just soldiers, but young people with hobbies and passions, families and friends, hopes and dreams.  All things put on hold for me, my family, my country.

I thank them all.

 

 

Inside we are all the same – SOL 17

We were at a swim meet today, and in between races, I did my usual people watching.  I watched one father cheering on his young son.   I’m not sure how the child finished, but he wasn’t one of the top finishers.  I heard the father call across to his son.

I couldn’t tell what the father was saying, because he wasn’t speaking English.  Even so, I could tell it was something supportive.  From the look on the father’s face, it was obvious how proud he was of his son, and how happy he was for him.

It struck me then, that even though we may come from different places, speak different languages, look different on the outside, have different beliefs and cultures – love is the same.  We all want the people we love to be happy, and we celebrate with them when they do something well.

I know that this isn’t something terribly profound, but sometimes it’s a good to be reminded.

Does Slice of Life = Mindfulness? SOL 16

Today I was going to write about a song I heard on the radio but while writing it in my mind on the way to work, I realized something.  Most of my ideas are coming while I’m driving to work – things that I see, something I hear on the radio, random thoughts or questions that I have.  Most of my slices are “driving slices”.  Obviously I do more than drive.  Why is it then, that I don’t have slices from throughout my day?  When I think about the things I do in a day, a week and in a month, it seems there should be plenty of fodder to pull from.  Yet, most of my ideas are born in the car.

This morning, I realized it’s because during the day I’m so busy “doing” that I never stop to notice.  I move from one thing to another to another, never really stopping to notice.  (And yes, I realize that’s not that different from 99% of people!!) The only time I’m not doing is when I’m in the car.  I’m driving, yes, but the part of my mind that’s not concentrating on the road and other drivers is free to notice and think.

Maybe that’s part of  “Slice of Life.”  The idea of mindfulness, of seeing events through the eyes of a writer and/or artist.  I think back to another slicer’s post of watching a student chase after a hat on a windy day.  I would have seen that, but unless action was needed by me on behalf of the student or hat, I would have dismissed it.  If instead, I take/make the time to be conscious and aware of the things around me – to really see what is happening, not only will I have more ideas for my “slices,” but I’ll also gain the benefits of living a more mindful life.

It’s worth a shot.  Here’s to a more mindful, more “sliceful” life!!!

Smiley Face Speed Sign- SOL Day 15

In our neighborhood there are several signs that register the speed you are driving.  They probably have been there a little over a year.  Sometimes when I go by I’m driving the speed limit, sometimes slightly below, and sometimes slightly above.  Nothing terribly radical.

Today though, I noticed something different.  I approached the sign going slightly above – maybe 34 in a 30.  I eased off the gas and my speed dropped to 30.  All of a sudden a bright green smiley face appeared on the sign.  I KNOW the face hadn’t been there before.  Even my daughter noticed that it was different.  Now, before you say it’s just because I was always above the speed limit, I’ve been BELOW the speed limit before, and the sign registered that – not a face.  The smiley face is definitely new!!!

I would love to know the conversations that prompted its addition.  Whatever the discussion, the result is the same – I’ll keep driving the speed limit hoping to be rewarded with a digital green smiley face!!!  🙂

Little Free Library SOL – Day 12

Each morning on my way to work I pass a small wooden structure on the side of the road.  It’s about the height and size of a mailbox but is painted bright reds and corals and pinks.  The front is clear plastic or glass and has a picket fence painted across it.  Inside I can see a row of books lined up.  It’s a free lending library.  Or, according to Google, it’s a Little Free Library.

Every time I drive by I wonder about the person who made this Library, and what kind of books are inside.  Was it a child who created it as part of a community or Scout service project?  Was it a librarian, English teacher, or book-seller hoping to share the love of books with others?  Was it someone faced with an ultimatum posed by a spouse pointing to several thousand books – “Them or me!”

I’m always on my way to work and so never have time to stop and look.  Each time I drive by I create imaginary characters and then decide what types of books they’ve placed in the box.

Someday I hope I’ll have time to stop and look, maybe picking up a new title or two.  Until then, though, I’ll keep driving by wondering and imagining.