Time Off

It was a much needed break today. Last night I went to bed at 8:30. I slept until aobut 8:30 this morning. Well, I sort of slept. Having a cold kept me tossing and turning a bit. It hasn't gotten really bad other than that tickling cough that has hit this evening.
How did I spend my day off you ask? O.k. I know you didn't ask, but I'm going to share anyways. After sleeping in, I got up and started doing laundry. I took a shower and then headed to Amarillo around 11:00. I went to Barnes and Noble to find a book to keep me occupied on my trip. I actually found three. Then I went to Taco Villa to enjoy a meat burrito grande before I give up fast food for Lent. After that, I went to the Catholic bookstore to look around. Got a book of daily inspirations that I plan to start reading and a music CD. From there I headed to Wally world to get pet food and other miscellaneous goods including a new light to hang over my washer and dryer in the garage so I can see. I am happy to report that I got it hung almost all by myself. I had to use Josh briefly, but I mostly did it myself, tyvm.
I then took Josh to the store to buy him food so he will survive while I am gone. I made supper and continued to do laundry tonight (in my newly lit space) and even did some cleaning. My cold is still here and I am still sneezing and have that tickling cough, but overall it isn't too bad. (Hang on while I knock on some wood) I just have to get through tomorrow at school and then I will be off on my trip to Pharr. Just so you know, I won't be able to blog while I'm gone so just be patient until I get back.

sick of being sick

I have a cold this weekend. Fortunately, it is still fairly mild, but I am sneezing and feel just blah. I can feel it in my throat as well. It would be nice to not be busy or sick just one weekend, you know? Yesterday I spent all day at a speech tournament. We placed second in sweepstakes. Dealing with the competitive students reminds me about the good things about teaching. There are some really great kids that make teaching a joy. Things aren't very balanced right now, however.

I have so much that needs to be done today, but I am not up for any of it. I will probably stay in bed or sit in my recliner most of the day. I may find the urge to do a load of laundry. I can hope at least. It's a good thing I have tomorrow off.

TGIF, I think

Still feeling in a slump of sorts. I was ready to go to bed by 8:30 last night but just HAD to stay up to watch figure skating. So I didn't go to bed until 11:00. I am still tired today. Tomorrow I have a speech tournament. Luckily it is in Canyon so I don't have to drive to Hereford first. Even better is the fact that Monday is a school holiday. It is MUCH needed. Maybe that will be enough to get me refreshed. I have so much that needs to be done. Right now I am just going to focus on getting through today.

A slump

I'm not sure what it is, but I feel I'm in a slump right now. Perhaps it's just this time of year before spring break. Maybe it was my bad day yesterday. I hate ending the day with a horrible class. I don't feel like teaching today or grading papers or doing anything productive. I would much rather be home in bed. I am tired despite going to bed by 10:00 last night. I am to the point where I am again questioning this decision to come back to teaching. Don't worry, I'm not planning on quitting any time soon, it's just that I have been reminded about why I got out of teaching in the first place. Sometimes I feel like I am not a very good teacher. I wonder if this is what I am supposed to be doing. But I am in a position where I don't have any other choice right now. I wonder if I should even dare dream about any other possibilities.
I know this slump will pass and it's just a moment. And it's not that I am unhappy in general. I am still happy with many things, most especially Church right now. That is a bright spot, but even that has been somewhat side-stepped lately. Again, there are not enough hours in the day.

Hump Day

Mid-week and I am still screaming for Friday to be here. I guess it's because this is an actual full week for me. I have been gone for so many Fridays or both Thursday/Fridays that I already am worn out this week. I came to school this morning and I could not open my office door. My key would not work. I had the teacher from next door check it to make sure it wasn't my imagination. It wasn't. We had the "official" guy come out and he investigated and it turns out that some wonderful child shoved a paper clip in it and broke it off. He was able to dig it out. But I guess I have ticked someone off. Oh well. I guess it goes with the territory. I shouldn't let it get to me, but it does a little. It started out with small things like this the last time I taught before I finally had enough. This semester in general is taking it's toll on me. And honestly, it wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for my 7th period. What a way to end the day, you know?
Tonight I have RCIA but will have to leave early. There is a special concert tonight at 8:00 for my friend's father who is retiring after this year. He is a music professor at the college.
I am on my conference/lunch period right now and I haven't really done a thing. I just don't feel up for it today. I just want to go home. I could use a nap. It's not that I am in a bad mood in particular, I am just in a blah mood. Not good, not bad, just there. One of those days where you want to be anywhere but here.

Back to the grind

Well, is it Friday yet? No? Today was TAKS testing. We had to administer those lovely state mandated tests that in general are a complete waste of time, money, intelligence among other things. We had to have a three hour block of time for a test that took about an hour to complete in most respects. And once again, I had the students that are just basically headaches. I don't know any other way to put it. Luckily it was a situation where there are two teachers in the room so that helped mostly.
My afternoon classes just watched an episode of Monk. I'll tie it in to my upcoming lesson in some way. It was pointless to teach today when I only had 3 of my 5 classes. I'm still trying to figure out what I'm going to do tomorrow. I have a few hours yet.
Tonight Josh and I went to Amarillo to Best Buy. It's been a LONG time since I went to Amarillo for anything other than going through there on my way to somewhere else. I picked up two movies. I wanted to get the movie "Life is Beautiful" because I thought it might be a good movie to incorporate into the next chapter I am teaching. I haven't seen the movie, but have heard so many good things about it and I think it may fit. So I'll get a box of kleenex and watch it this weekend. I also got the movie "In Her Shoes". I haven't seen it either, but have read the book and loved it. I also heard good things about it so I'll find a time to watch it as well.
I also got some Taco Villa for supper tonight. It was quite yummy. Although after reading Grumpy's blog, I want some of his homemade lasagna and salad with his homemade blue cheese dressing. How far is it to Alabama?
Next week I am going to the TFA state tournament down in Pharr, Texas. It will be interesting, I think. I wish I would have had a laptop to take with me, but haven't seen my tax refund yet. I checked online today and I am supposed to receive it by March 21. Patience.

Go ahead... tell me what you think

Click on this link.

A good/horrible trip

I left early Thursday. I didn't quite leave by 6 as intended, but I did leave around 6:20 a.m. The trip down there was actually quite easy. Traffic was easy, roads were good, and had no problems. I made it to San Antonio in about 8 hours. I found a parking garage right behind my hotel that only charged $6.00 a day rather than the hotel valet parking which was $18 a day. I checked in and then made my way to the convention center. I only got sort of lost once. But I found it, got my family badge and then went and checked out the exhibit hall where they have anything and everything related to music and then some. I ran into my friend David and hung out with him for a while. I saw several people I hadn't seen in a long time. My friend Kirsten called me close to 5:00 and said that she was back at the hotel so I headed back that way. We decided to go have an early dinner and then go see Harry Potter at the IMAX. We went to Landry's which was o.k. but I didn't think it was that great given the prices. We went to the Rivercenter Mall to kill a few hours. I did some shopping, but didn't find anything I really needed. It was good to see Harry Potter on the IMAX, but I am still disappointed by how much was left out of the movie.
Friday I slept in until about 8:30 then took a shower and got ready. I was going to meet Richard for lunch but he wasn't able to make it. We went to Casa Rio and had mexican food. It was pretty good and the prices were reasonable. The rest of the afternoon was spent at the exhibit hall. I finally got to see Josh briefly. He had told me that he found the music software he wanted. It's only $250. I do want to get it for him. It may just be a while. Oh! He made 3rd chair in the concert band. I think that's pretty good for a freshman. Well, my feet were absolutely killing me after being on them ALL day. I didn't leave the convention center until 6:30. I went back to the hotel and ordered room service. Sure it costs an arm and leg, but sometimes it's worth it. All day on Friday I was sporting a headache. I did get some tylenol, but it took a while for it to go away. After I ate my dinner, I took a hot bath and then was feeling o.k. I got dressed and ready for the reunion. They have a reunion for many of the colleges and I went to WT's reunion. I ran into several people that I hadn't seen in a long time. I had two rum and cokes over about a two hour period. Around 11:30 Kirsten and I decided to go the bar and order a top shelf margarita. It is a very good margarita. I had a pretty good buzz after the first one. But I followed in Kirsten's footsteps and ordered a second one. We had to leave the bar at midnight but took our drinks out in the lobby to finish. I have to say that by then I had a good buzz and was drunk, but not to the point I couldn't walk straight etc. Just a happy state where I talked a lot.
We headed back to the hotel. Kirsten proceeded to give me her theories on Harry Potter and we were up until almost 2:00. I fell right to sleep. And then things went way down hill. I woke up at 4:45 and had to go to the bathroom. And then I started to get that feeling that something wasn't right. I started salivating like one does just before vomiting. Sure enough, up came my dinner. I really didn't think that I had drank enough to warrant this. I was actually telling Kirsten earlier, I've somewhat learned to know where my limits are. So I went back to bed. I was up again at 7:45 throwing up the water I drank. I took two more tylenol at 9:00 hoping I could keep it down. By morning I was rethinking whether or not this was related to drinking. I just felt horrible. But it wasn't really like a hangover. And my friend Kirsten who weighs about 100 lbs. wasn't really phased. I go down to check out around 10:00 so I can get to Josh's concert early. It took 25 minutes to check out. There was a line and then when it was my turn, the computer decided to freeze up. By the time I was finished, I had to run to the theatre (about 8-9 blocks away) in order to get a seat. Nothing like running in a brisk 35 degrees when you feel like crap. But I made it and finally found a seat. His concert was really good. I went and bought the CD of it for him, then told him I was heading home.
I was not looking forward to a 9 hour drive when I barely slept the night before and still felt bad. Although I didn't feel like eating anything, I figured I should eat something to give me some energy and perhaps wake me up. I stopped at a McDonald's around 1:00 and got a cheeseburger, shake and some water. I took more tylenol. It lasted about an hour. I had to pull over to puke. What a mess! I wasn't very careful and ended getting some of it on my clothes. I continued on until I found a rest stop and then pulled over to change. I almost made it half way and found myself unable to keep my eyes opened. I pulled over again to another rest stop and took a 20 minute cat nap. That seemed to do the trick. I started feel bad again around 6:00 so I took more tylenol and got a coke for the caffeine. I also nibbled on some crackers just to have something in my stomach. Let me tell you, this was the longest trip of my life. I still felt queasy and I pulled over just outside of Lubbock at a rest stop and tried to vomit again (because it generally feels better after you've done that) but it didn't work. I finally made it home though I felt the need to hurl for the last hour and a half of my trip. Luckily it did wait until I got home. I immediately headed for my bathroom and let the deed be done. I took my temperature which was 99.7. I didn't take any tylenol because I wasn't sure my stomach could handle it. I drank some water and headed to bed waiting until I had to go pick up Josh. As fate would have it, his phone didn't work and he ended up getting a ride home from his band director. I stayed in bed until 2:00 a.m. I got up and took my temperature again and it had gone up to 101. So took a regular tylenol and a tylenol pm and finally got some sleep. I slept until about 10:15 this morning. I didn't want to miss Mass two weeks in a row so I made myself get up. I went to church, but didn't sing in the choir. I am glad I went. After church, I went to the grocery store as we didn't have milk or other basic necessities. I came home, had some lunch (and kept it down), started this blog until I decided I needed a nap. And that's what I did today. Oh, and to answer Summer's question. The Christmas tree is still up. And it will probably be up for another week. But lemme esplain. Other than the fact that I haven't been home and I am behind on so many other things that taking a Christmas tree down is really on the bottom of my list AND there's a light out in my garage so I can see very well to get things put up anyways. And it's not just those easy light bulbs... it's the really long florescent kind that I have to get at a hardware store. So until ACE hardware opens up down the street, it will have to wait until I can make it to Amarillo. But luckily we're getting a day off in a week. Next Monday is some kind of school holiday, so I'm thinking that is when my tree will come down. You can stop laughing now.

Good Morning

Or something like that. I am up with the worms or birds or something. I am heading out to San Antonio this morning. I intend to leave by 6 a.m. which is in 20 minutes or so. So why am I blogging? Well, I haven't blogged in a day or three and I figured my few faithful readers would like a brief update since I will be gone until late Saturday. It is a 9 hour drive and I want to get there before rush hour traffic and I have to get to the convention center before 5:00 to pick up my badge. And for the record... Yes, I will be careful. I really hate it when people say that. O.k. I really don't, but it is pointless, don't you think? I mean what am I going to do? Mmmm.. I think I'm going to just this once be quite careless in driving and go off this bridge just for the fun of it. I am always as careful and cautious as I can be. Now I cannot speak for the other idiotic drivers out there, but I try to keep my eyes peeled for them. I have checked my oil and my tires. I added anti-freeze and windshield washer fluid to my car. And yes, I know where each liquid goes. I even cleaned out my car and vacuumed the floors. And tell me... why do I always want to put two c's in vacuum? O.k. enough is enough. I really have get dressed and out the door in approximately 14 minutes. I'll report back sometime on Sunday.

Just tired

I came home and had no desire to mess up my still dirty kitchen with more dishes so we ordered out tonight. It was very good and very filling, but now I have that kind of after Thanksgiving feeling of not wanting to move. I took a nap, but still feel really tired. I exhausted my brain today with trying to get my grading done and grades entered into the gradebook. I have to verify grades tomorrow and still have some grading to deal with. (Missing work discovered today)
I also have to get ready for another substitute which generally takes forever. I have a million pounds of laundry to do, but I am at least getting it sorted and have a load in the washer now. I would like to leave a clean house, but that just may not happen.
What else is new? Nothing. I have nothing exciting to share. Life is the same old thing right now. No love interest. This will be the first Valentine's day in probably 7-8 years that I haven't had someone in my life and gotten flowers. But I'm not sad. Just in a state of reflection. Perhaps it's a good place to be in. Though I admit I will miss the flowers. Since 1997 I have either been with Richard (who despite his faults, still did the right thing on special occasions most of the time) or in 2004 I wasn't exactly with anyone at that time but did receive flowers from Steve in Michigan and in 2005 I still had Marty (well sort of). But I am learning to deal with the fact that relationships aren't everything and I really need to learn to just do my own thing now. I pray for guidance in that area almost daily. It's time grade some papers and continue with the laundry. It's still the story of my life.

Do I have to go back?

I don't really want to go to school tomorrow. I have to get my grades completed. I still have a few papers to grade and I am just not up for it. I don't know if I have anything to wear tomorrow and I really don't care. Can you tell I am ready for spring break? Actually, I am ready for any kind of break. I enjoyed getting away, but having to deal with substitutes and leaving work and all of that, it is sometimes more trouble than it's worth. The fact that I am leaving again and driving to San Antonio doesn't help. But I really want to hear Josh's concert and this trip will be nice in the sense that I will get to see a lot of old friends from college. I am really looking forward to this trip... other than the drive.
I am still giving thought to the idea of getting my librarian certification. I am still thinking I might want to get out of the classroom at some point. Or perhaps move on to teaching college. Problem is that it will take a lot of time and money of which I don't have generous amounts right now. I am also wondering if I did make the effor to get my certification if I would receive a salary decrease. In general, librarians make more than teachers... but not if you compare a starting librarian salary to a 5-6 year teacher salary.
My brother stopped by today. We had a nice long visit. He is in the process of getting divorced which is a good thing. I know as a Catholic coming into the Church that I probably shouldn't say that.. but it is true. And besides... his marriage wouldn't have been considered valid since his wife had been married before. We also talked about God and religion and all of that. It was interesting. I invited him to my confirmation at Easter Vigil. I think I will have some family there. I am not sure how many though. I am thinking about sending out announcements. I am inviting people by word of mouth, but I do want to get across the importance and significance of the event.
Well, I need to get the dishwasher started and figure out what to wear tomorrow.

I am home

I am back from Vegas. It was quite uneventful, but nice to just be away. The only gambling I did was a dollar in a slot machine at the airport. One of the teachers I work with gave me a dollar to put in a machine for him and so I made sure I did that before heading home. He/I didn't win a thing. I didn't drink, gamble or even shop. I went to the shot show, ran credit cards for my uncle, read books, graded papers, and played solitaire. Tonight I must get caught up with grades, but I think a nap is coming on soon. Travelling is exhausting you know?
This week I have to get ready to go to San Antonio and hear Josh play. Luckily some money has come my way so I can make the trip. I'll post more later when I get a chance.

Off to Sin City

Strangely enough last night in RCIA we talked about sin and confession. I doubt I'll get into much trouble on my upcoming trip to Vegas. I probably won't even gamble except maybe a few bucks in some slots. But I am looking forward to just getting away. Technically it's a working trip, but if it's anything like last time, the work shouldn't be difficult. Dealing with credit card transactions and making change. School is wearing me out and I could tell that my kids were in the same boat that I am right now. I know my lessons aren't always exciting, but they could barely keep their eyes open today. It was interesting though when we played with the legos. I am supposed to be at choir practice right now, but I just have too much to do before leaving dark and early in the morning. Tonight when I got home we immediately went to pick up my cousin who is visiting from San Diego. She desperately wanted to go eat at Taco Villa. (They don't have those where she lives.) We also had to go pick up Josh's piano book. He had his first lesson yesterday. After dinner we headed to Walmart to get some things for Josh before I leave for a couple of days. I won't be posting for the next couple of days since I won't have access to a computer... so stay tuned.

My Turn at this Meme

1. What time did you get up this morning? 6:35 (Ten minutes after the alarm went off.)

2. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds all the way.

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? The Producers. I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time.

4. What is your favorite TV show? Monk

5. What do you usually have for breakfast? Usually don’t do breakfast. Sometimes it’s cereal (frosted mini-wheats) but I can’t remember when I last had them.

6. Favorite cuisine? Italian

7. What is your middle name? Ann

8. What food do you dislike? Almost all vegetables, except for corn, potatoes and salad fixings.

9. What is your favorite CD at the moment? I don’t have a favorite as I hardly listen to them any more. It varies.. maybe Chicago (the musical) right now.

10. What kind of car do you drive? Honda CRV

11. What is your Favorite sandwich? Schlotzsky’s Roast Beef and Cheddar

12. What characteristic do you despise? People who constantly lie, but deny it. Hypocrisy.

13. Favorite item(s) of clothing? My rollercoaster freak t-shirt.

14. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? Sandals resort in the Caribbean

15. What color is your bathroom? purple

16. Favorite brand of clothing? There are different brands??

17. Where would you retire to? Somewhere warm with no hurricanes or earthquakes

18. What was your most memorable Birthday? When I was kidnapped in college and my friends surprised me with a party

19. Favorite sport to watch? I usually don’t watch any… but maybe Olympic gymnastics or skating.

20. Furthest place you are sending this? To my blog. I think people in Michigan read it and once in a while Marty pops in from Alaska. Oh, Michelle in South Africa pops in once in a while too. So probably there.

21. Who do you least expect to send this back to you? Bret

22. Person you expect to send it back first? I expect Summer to steal it.

23. Favorite saying? Oh well.

24. When is your birthday? November 10

25. Are you a morning person or a night person? Neither any more. I still hate getting up early, but I can’t stay up late either. Probably an afternoon/evening person.

26. No question? O.k. a random fact then. I don’t shave my legs in the winter unless I am planning on wearing a dress.

27. Pets? 3 dogs (Max, Roo, Molly) 3 cats (Lucy, Tux, Tecko)

28. I’m trying to figure out what I am going to give up for lent and why two questions are missing.

29. What did you want to be when you were little? A choreographer

30. How are you today? Pretty good. Tired.

31. What is your favorite candy? Twix

32. What is your favorite flower? Roses or a mixed bouquet

33. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? Immediately? Friday. But mostly I am looking forward to Easter Vigil when I am confirmed in the Catholic Church.

Getting closer

I made an executive decision today to teach my classes to play charades today. (Nonverbal communication lesson) Because of that I was able to get a lot done on grading. I still have journals to read, but hopefully I will get that done tomorrow. I have to get everything done by Thursday since that will be my last day this week. (Vegas on Friday, baby!) I even did some laundry tonight, unloaded the dishwasher, and made myself supper. Josh went to a Baptist revival (long story, read my Catholic blog) and had pizza. So I graded tests tonight and one of these days I might take the Christmas tree down. I know you're laughing. But oh well. It's just not very high on the priority list right now. Maybe before Valentine's day.

Overwhelmed and then some

To answer Summer's question, no it isn't over and it doesn't look like it will be soon. I came home tonight after picking up my son from a police officer at the park (more on that later) and saw the messy pile of dishes, the animals that wanted attention, the piles of laundry, and it just hit me that I am probably in over my head at the moment. If I had a place to just go and cry I would have done just that, but unfortunately there isn't a place, nor is there time for such nonsense. Shall I catch you up? (For those readers that haven't abandoned my blog for lack of posts)
Last week was spent with two days after school working on debate stuff. Tuesday I actually came home at a decent hour, but was still so exhausted after the previous weekend's speech tournament that I was in bed by9:30. Thursday all day was the debate tournament. I didn't get home that night until 10:30. Friday morning I had to go to school and spent the entire morning getting ready for a substitute for the afternoon and on Monday. We left to go to the speech tournament around 2:00 and I didn't get home until midnight. This morning I headed back up to the speech tournament and was there from 9:15 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. On my way home tonight I get a call from a police officer telling me that I had to pick up my son at the park. It seems Josh and some so-called friends (I will call them idiots) went to park to play with air pistols that are technically harmless, but they look like actual guns. Some neighbors called the police and they responded to the scene. They didn't press any charges, but did state the seriousness of having a gun that looks like a real gun in the dark. Luckily the boys didn't make any threatening moves or it could have been a very bad thing. I am surprised at Josh being involved, but I think he realizes how incredibly stupid it was and I don't think he will be hanging around those guys any more.
So now I am home. I just wolfed down some chili (without beans) and rice. I really don't have time to post, but the guilt got to me. It isn't ending soon, I'm afraid. Tomorrow I have mass at 8:30 and immediately after Josh and I have to leave to go to Albuquerque. I have to go to my aunt & uncle's 20th wedding anniversary party. Nevermind the fact that I don't have any laundry done, haven't checked the oil in my car (which is necessary), and haven't packed a thing. And I am so exhausted right now, I don't think I will get anything done tonight. I am also singing in the choir which means I have to get to church early. Luckily I did decide to wait and come on Monday. I know what you're thinking... just don't go on this trip... stay home and relax and take care of yourself. No can do. The family would be very disappointed if I didn't go, I would feel guilty and I would also be disappointed to miss it. So when I get back, I have to teach for 3 days at school, then get ready to go to Vegas on Friday. The following week on Thurs/Fri I am going to San Antonio (driving, no less) to see Josh's all-state band concert. The week after that I will have off, and then the first week in March we will be going to the state speech contest in Pharr, Texas. (And yes, Pharr is really far.)
What else can we add to the wonderfulness of all of this? Oh, Josh's band trip money had to be paid this week. I paid it instead of the phone bill and his lessons. I have a gazillion papers to grade and haven't touched any of them.
O.k. this post doesn't have much in the way of happy thoughts right now.. so I will share something happy. The students did fairly well at the tournament. One student finally qualified for TFA state and our team received a sweepstakes trophy. I also sent off my tax return this week and I will some day be getting around $1300 back. I actually qualified for Earned Income Credit this year which netted over $300 in my return. I want to buy a laptop with the money, but I have a feeling it will be squandered on things like electricity, heat, water and food. Oh well.