The best part of the job...

As I helped a student with a vocab packet, I leaned on the student's desk, putting my left hand down on the desk. The student, a very funny sort of person, was amazed. "Woah, playa!" (which is what this student has decided he will call me -- as if that isn't funny in and of itself.) "Your husband -- he iced you out!"
I also had a very enlightening conversation today with two students about what constitutes a "dub" and what does not.
It is true...you learn more from the students than they learn from you.
But hopefully the majority of the stuff they learn from me is useful.

Who knows why?

Perhaps only a divine being or Miss Cleo can answer this one: Why do I love "The Shining" so much? It's such an awesome movie. We FINALLY bought our very own copy last night...hooray! And I watched it last night, and I'll watch it tonight and forever and forever...
If you want to see the best tribute ever, check out this. Midnight, and the stars and you...

Have you been to the desert on a horse with no name?

I hear that it feels good to be out of the rain. But I wouldn't know, since it's actually raining here in the Mojave! It's very funny when it rains, because here's what happens: it's like the first snow in Minnesota. I had kids asking me if we could go out and play in the rain instead of work on vocabulary today. Yeah right -- dream on, suckers! And suddenly everyone is a Sunday driver -- people who would have run you off the road rather than use a turn signal yesterday are now driving at the least 15 miles under the speed limit and pumping their brakes excessively at evey stoplight.
You'll all be happy to know that my friend at Sahara/Fort Apache was out is full regailia today, unfased by the rain -- pharoah hat, playing a fake guitar with his teeth. Buckwalter saw him earlier this morning, and he was wearing a Cat in the Hat hat (sounds a bit repetitively redundant?) and a red Nascar jacket. It would appear that he has different costumes for different times of day.
The big news is that I went on a hike at Red Rock Canyon yesterday -- a little solo adventure for the Madame. I took the Keystone Thrust trail -- and it was gorgeous. Not very long, not a large elevation gain (only 400 ft.) but the views were astounding all the way up. I'm going again this weekend to try out another hike that takes you right past the red rocks themselves -- or the Calico Hills. Taking a hike by myself was so awesome. I loved the silence -- meditative and centering -- and the weather was beautiful. There really aren't too many words to describe it. So beautiful...should have sent a poet. (Name that movie!)

Carnitas and Creepy Crawlers

As I compose this post, my lovely husband is chopping away at onions, mastering the culinary feat of "carnitas and salsa verde" for dinner. I was told by all the people who helped me track down the necessary ingredients at the grocery store today that I was a very lucky gal -- and I couldn't agree more.
Today I repotted my rosemary and lavender plants to see if I could get them to grow a little bigger. Imagine my surprise when I picked up the watering can sitting next to me to find a small spider of very foreign looks sitting right on the spout. Now, I've been very impressed with myself vis a vis bugs in Nevada so far. They are much larger and creepier of crawlers than the bugs of Minnesota, but they wish to have much less to do with me than the bugs in MN who all seemed to want to eat me or at the very least, torment me a little. These bugs stay clear, which makes it easier for a bug-offending person like myself to not be bothered by them. But I still don't like spiders. Please understand that I loved "Charlotte's Web" when I was little and still do. I even called the Black Widow spider (before we knew she was quite so harmful) that sat at the bottom of the stairs here "Charlotte" until Buckwalter noticed that she looked a little too much like this for our comfort. Even looking at that picture gives me the heebie-jeebies. So this little guy on the watering can took me a bit by surprise. But I finished my repotting, and just moved the watering can to the opposite end of the deck. I finished all the watering with my Nalgene. The little guy has relocated to the wall of our deck, where I'd much rather have him than on something I need to touch. Yikes.
But I'm becoming braver by the day. A few months ago, how would I have reacted to this little spider? Freak out moment, drop and spill all the water, probably not scream, but maybe would have liked to. Today? Place spider in new environment, finish job at hand, and then return inside, where the ferocious kitty Lyra would keep me safe and secure from all bugs. What a good girl.
Yum-bumbly smells are coming from the kitchen. Time to investigate and maybe forage for a snack! I wish delicious and bug-free evenings to you all!

Ideas, ideas everywhere

And no idea what to write about. This has been one of those days where I was bombarded by posting ideas every 12 minutes. I spent the day at my first during-the-school-year Professional Development. They're required for new teachers to the district. At first, it was LAME. And when I say lame, let me explain, lest you think I am being foolish. The day started out with a two hour content seminar on how to write a proper lesson plan. Perhaps this is so lame to me because I'm only 2 years and some months out of college...it hasn't been that long ago that I had wonderfully qualified and severely talented educators teaching me this information.
Luckily, the day was not a complete wash because the next item on the menu was the keynote speaker, a guy named Rick Smith who talked all about classroom management -- he was upbeat, full of great ideas, and a fast talker. Then the afternoon was spent in two separate "topic" seminars -- I attended one on Brain-based Learning and another on Bullying in schools. Both were okay. But at least they were about topics I don't already know, such as, oh, I don't know, how to write a lesson plan.
The craziest thing in the lesson plan fiasco was that some woman asked this question of the teachers running the class:
"Is there anywhere on the internet where I can find a template for a lesson plan?"
Luckily, I was sitting next to another woman from my school so we both had someone to look at incredulously. I'm sure you could create a very complex lesson plan if you wished to, but my lesson plan "templates" have always been self-created on Word, because they consist of this:
Objective:
Materials:
Procedure:
Reflection:
That's it. Four words, and then you fill in the blanks after the colons with the appropriate information. No template from the web needed. I get so frustrated with other teachers sometimes...they can be the worst "students" on the planet, and sometimes they just don't use their heads.
But I made it through unscathed and still feeling positive because I had a great lunch outside at Chipotle (with a Diet Coke and lime!), read some of my book, and got to see a very fun keynote speaker. And also, I got to drive the MINI all over town -- always a joy.
The night picked up rapidly when Buckwalter and I hit the town. We did not paint it red, but perhaps another time. I'll let you hear what he has to say about that, because he always describes the evenings so well. Let it be known that I had a great time, and also that Greek Isles casino hosts Karaoke every night except Wed. We shall be making our debut soon...soon.

Picadillo!!!!

This is a post I know my mom would be happy to read...
Buckwalter and I are finally getting the hang of eating at home! After at least two years of living it "New York" style, going out to eat every night, we're starting to cook more often and enjoy it. I happen to believe we owe it all to Ed, the drummer/music man who works with Buckwalter and has been supplying him with many a scrumptious recipe. This Saturday we made a delicious Picadillo -- Mexican Hash. You put it on a tostada and yum yum. Eat up. Delish. We made it with Serrano peppers, which I am quickly learning to call friend.
Then, a few weeks ago, we made our own salsa! (Recipe, again, from Ed. Kudos to him.) It was AWESOME. I never, in my entire life, realized how simple and how fun salsa could be to make. Well, it was probably fun because Buckwalter did most of the work...but he looked like he was having a good time too. We plan to experiment with this recipe a little...you know, add some of this, take away some of that.
But it's a fun change, and I know the cat likes it. Anything that keeps us home more and earns her more attention. Viva home cooking!

Muad'Dib

I just finished Dune yesterday. The lucky thing about that was it meant Buckwalter and I got to rent the campy movie directed by David Lynch, and starring Kyle MacLachlan of "Sex and the City" and "Twin Peaks" fame. Also in a role? Oh yes, it was Sting. In all his glory, posing for half the movie and looking very sassy indeed. It was a lot of fun. Another one of the things I enjoyed so much was the music by Toto. Wow.
I am always amazed at how a thrilling and fantastic book can be turned into a terrible not-even B movie. How does this work? Seriously...it's like the kids who failed my Drama classes last year -- you have to work at it.
Now onto The Constant Garderner so Buck and I can go see the movie before it's too late!