So much for promises

I did a little work today... little being the operative word. I loaded the dishwasher and picked up the kitchen sort of. And that's it. I sat and watched a movie this afternoon and worked on the baby blanket. I did give in and play a game of RCT3. But it keeps messing up my computer and I decided to give it up for now. Josh made supper tonight. I helped give some instruction, but he's learning to do it finally.

I have to go to bed at a decent hour tonight since I have church tomorrow. I do have to get work done on the house tomorrow as I'll have company over tomorrow night. My friend Kirsten that I always spend New Year's with will be here. I've decided that instead of going to a lot of trouble and cooking something or making appetizers and such that we're just going to go out to eat and then come back here for sparkling wine and other drinks until the clock strikes 12:00.

I'm not making any resolutions since it would be pointless for me to do so. I don't keep them unless I have a very good incentive and I have nothing like that at the moment. Sure, I need to lose weight, but I am not dedicated enought to lose it right now. I've already set in motion my plan to be debt free so that's not a resolution.

I don't think there's any point in a year in review because my life has only consisted of my job and Church. The highlight of my year was my confirmation in April. Other than that it's been work, work, work, cleaning the house, work, paying bills, speech tournaments, and work. Don't believe me... read the archives.

Hi! My name is Annabel

and I am a coaster game addict. (Everyone replies "Hi Annabel") O.k. I don't know if this really is how AA meetings work, but I am forbidding myself to play it today until I get some things done around the house. I have become the epitome of laziness. I sat in my recliner most of the day yesterday playing the game. I got annoyed any time I had to get up for something... phone would ring, dogs needed something, had to cook dinner.... But just so you know I'm really pretty good at it. I've now accomplished about 6 levels.

So in other news... no snow yet. It's cold and there's frozen moisture on my car windshield, but no actual snow. I'm still debating whether or not I believe the weather forcast. The t.v. shows we're under a winter storm warning. But it's always me an my big mouth... I'm sure I'll eat these words later.

I may have to get out at some point today. We're set on food, but the animals are running out... imagine that. Please somebody give the new dog a home! If I get a chance, I'll post another video showing how playful she is.

Well, it's lunch time and I'm going to go find something to eat and then maybe start cleaning the kitchen. But I'm NOT playing RCT3!

Addiction

I bought this game (technically for Josh) probably last Christmas or maybe even the one before. We never played it because none of our computers had the right video card for it. It is Roller Coaster Tycoon3. When I bought my laptop I made sure that I would have the right video card in order to play it. That was in March. I still didn't play it because I knew I would get addicted and wouldn't have time to play it. So just guess what I did yesterday afternoon? I installed the thing and started playing it. It's different from its predecessors in several ways, but the basic concept is still the same. And I'm hooked of course. I was up until almost 12:30 a.m. last night playing, only stopping to make supper. But it's my vacation and I can sit on the computer all day if I want to darn it!

Well, Andrew, the winter weather we were supposed to get has so far only been rain. We had a little bit of thunder last night, but it's just raining. If it gets colder, it will probably freeze and finally break off the tree branches that broke during the last winter storm.

Now I'm going to go install updates to my game and start playing.

The Headless Dog

I took this video of my dog Roo a few years ago. I thought it was cute.

Meet the Rest of the Family

This of course is Josh. This was taken when the band went to the state marching contest and Josh was warming up. Isn't he handsome??


This is my aunt and my dad (and me). This was taken at my sister's wedding about a year and a half ago.


This is Max. He is the first dog that Richard (my ex) and I sort of adopted. He is very sweet, but doesn't like the camera. I'm not sure how I got this picture of him.


This is Roo. We got him as a companion to Max. Richard and I would be gone some weekends and we thought that Max could use a playmate. They became fast friends.


This is Lucy... so named because when she meows it sounds like an obnoxious Lucille Ball whine. My dad found her and couldn't keep her and asked us if we were interested in taking her. I left it up to Richard and he said yes. Little did we know, she was pregnant and had three kittens. Tux (my cat that died over Thanksgiving) was one of her kittens.


This is Tecko (Tee-koh). He is technically my dad's cat, but I inherited him with the house. He's a pretty good cat, but does whine a lot when he wants something.


This is Mollie. She appeared on my doorstep in April of 2005. She actually came shortly before I went to Austin to break up with Marty. I thought she was sweet.... little did I know. She's really kind of annoying. She thinks she's top dog and is very jealous.


This is the (hopefully) visiting dog which has now been named Oreo. I would like to find a good home for her as I can't afford to feed her along with the other three. Josh discovered her late one night when I was gone to a speech tournament or something. She came to our door and Josh let her in... and she's been here for about two weeks now. She's very rambunctious and friendly.

Well, this is the zoo family. I don't have pics of my brother, sister, or my dad's girlfriend yet. I'll post some of them if I can find them.

Go ahead... give it a try!

Create your own friendquiz here

Look a video!

I've jumped on the You Tube bandwagon. Here's a brief video showing 3 of the now 4 dogs. The new dog (who I think will be called Oreo) is the big black one. Max is the grey dog and Roo is the tan one. Mollie isn't seen in this video, but I'm sure I'll show more now that I know how to do this whole video thing. I've got to go through my old camera videos and see what else I have to show. I'm sure I have some great coaster videos.

Andrew's Inspiration

I was inspired by Andrew's blog where he is posting pictures taken with his new camera that he got for Christmas. My camera is about five years old, but I still love it. It is a Canon Powershot G2. The only thing I don't like about it is that it limits you to 30 second videos. Here are some pics that I took today:


Bag of Rosaries that I've made. I took them to my aunt's house so that she could pick whichever one she wanted. I think I'm going to put the rest up on a website and try to sell them. That will be one of my Christmas break projects.

This is the baby blanket that I am crocheting for my brother's baby. It is a boy and his name will be Timothy James. He's due to arrive some time in January. Hopefully I'll have it finished by then.


This is the computer backpack that I bought for myself with the Christmas money that my dad gave me. I'll get to use it when I go to Orlando in two weeks. I can't wait!



This is the set of pots & pans that I got for Christmas from my aunt. I can't wait to use them!

Staying an extra day

Well, I never heard back from Bret so I assume he either didn't get the email I sent or was just too busy. Maybe some other time. Josh and I are staying an extra day and will head home tomorrow morning. This afternoon we went to Chili's. I had chicken & shrimp with loaded mashed potatoes & rice. Afterwards we went to Target so Josh could spend his gift card. He got an dress shirt for himself. Next we went to Best Buy. I finally decided what I should spend some of my Christmas money on. I bought myself a laptop backpack. I've been needed a new laptop case. My old one that I used for work is too small for my new laptop. When I've traveled, I've put it in just a regular backpack and I know that's not padded enough. I'm very excited about it. It's one of things I've wanted but wouldn't ever buy for myself because it wasn't absolutely necessary to have... more of a luxury item so to speak. I spent $30 on it and then another $15 on a Schoolhouse Rock DVD that has all the old songs from the Saturday morning bits. You remember those don't you? Conjunction Junction... Electricity... Three is a magic number... Josh talked me into it. He really wanted it and wouldn't buy it for himself as he's still debating what to spend his Christmas money on. He thinks he wants the iPod but isn't certain which one. He did buy himself a jump drive. They had a 1GB on sale for $20. He wants to be able to back up his novel and such. Well... he's anxious for me to get out of here so I'll head out. I'll post probably after I get back home tomorrow.

A nice break

It has been so nice to sleep in the past several days. I guess despite the fact that I'm generally busy, I am still deep down a lazy bum. I do love to sleep. I slept in until about 9:30 a.m. Texas time. We're going into town in a little over an hour to go have lunch at Chili's and see my sister. I am taking her presents to her. She is going on a cruise next week. I am so jealous. That is something I still want to do some day.

I still haven't decided if we're heading back today or not. My friend Bret still hasn't contacted me, but I haven't checked my phone yet since I can't get a signal in the mountains here. I'll check it when I get to town and then decided if we're going to head back or not. If not, we'll leave tomorrow morning. I do enjoy visiting my aunt, but I still miss my own bed and my own stuff.

Last night we watched The Producers. My aunt and uncle hadn't seen it yet. I thought it was one of the funniest movies I'd seen in a long time. When we get back to town, my friend Kirsten, her dad, Josh and I will probably go to the movies. For several years it was a tradition to go see the Lord of the Rings movies but now we'll have to figure out what else is showing that seems interesting. I wasn't a huge fan of the movies... they were alright, but not something I'd watch over and over. Josh hasn't decided what he's going to spend his money on yet. He wanted an iPod so he may get that.

I so glad my aunt finally came into the digital age. Now I can post and check my email when visiting. I used to go through internet withdrawals every time I would visit. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.

Merry Christmas

Well, I'm here in Albuquerque patiently waiting for the turkey to be finished. My aunt is making mased potatoes right now and my job will be to finish the salad. We got in around 2 a.m. last night. The last hour of driving was hard. I was really tired. I could have had Josh drive, but he'll drive on the way home tomorrow. We actually had a few snowflakes falling when we left last night. The Christmas Eve Mass was really wonderful. We actually had a very packed Church. It was awesome. I did get my voice back so I could sing.

I got up around 8:45 this morning and by 9:30 Josh was chomping at the bit to open his presents. He didn't get much in the way of packages because he said he wanted cash. I gave him a DVD (Pirates of the Caribbean) and a book (Next by Michael Crichton) and then a $100 bill. He also got $50 from my dad and $50 from my aunt so he has more money than me!

I got $100 from my dad, a bottle of wine, bookstore card & game from my friend Kirsten, and my aunt gave me a new set of pots & pans which I've really been needing.

We may be leaving tomorrow but I'm not sure yet. I was hoping to get to see my friend Bret & his wife while they're in town, but may not be able to. I found out too late that they had a thing on Saturday afternoon for friends. He posted information about it on his blog but I didn't read it until 11:00 that night. I was hoping he would have called or something. I've emailed him and he still hasn't responded. Oh well. I guess I can't do anything about it.

Well, I better go make the salad. Hope everyone is having a wonderful Christmas!

My Favorite Toys

This is in response to Rich's blog. I had a lot of great toys when I was a kid. I'm not sure I can pick a favorite, so I'll just list a few of them.

Big Wheel - I loved riding this thing. Unfortunately it was what caused my unfortunate accident when I was four. I was hit by a car and broke my neck while playing on it.
Light Bright - That thing where you put colored light pegs in holes and create pictures.
Little People - My cousin and I loved playing with the little people. We had the Castle, house and cars and different pieces here and there. I also had this wooden set of blocks that were not for the little people but I used to create apartments and garages etc.
Barbie - I got my first Barbie when I was around eight. I had the superstar Barbie with the arms that were bent, a boa and pierced ears. I had a friend that had the Dream House and we would spend hours playing Barbie. I also had a Barbie Head doll that you could apply makeup to and fix her hair. I didn't have a Ken doll, but I did have a Shaun Cassidy. (Hunka-hunka)
Playdough - I had the Fuzzy Pumper Barber Shop. It was great fun until I left the playdough out and it got hard.
Whee-Lo - I don't know what it is about this, but it was mesmorizing. In fact, I found one a few years ago at Cracker Barrell and had to buy it.
Paint spinner - I don't remember the official name of this, but it was cool. You put a card down and it would spin around really fast and then you added paint and it spun the colors on the card. You added different colors and got a really cool design.
Record player/Jam Box - Music was always a big thing as a kid and I remember playing records all the time. Eventually I graduated into tapes when I got my first jam (boom) box.
Bicycle - I remember that I had a hard time keeping a working bike. My big brother would take them apart and never put them back together. Finally in the sixth grade I got probably my 4th bike and my parents forbade him from messing with it. In fact I once had to change a flat tire and although he offered, I wouldn't let him do it because I feared I'd never see it again. I rode all over the neighborhood on that bike. No wonder I was so skinny!
Intellivision - Video game console that came after Atari. The graphics and game capabilities were far superior for it's time.

So my questions for you blog readers is... what were your favorite toys as a child? Was there something you always wanted but never received?

For me, I always wanted the Domino Rally game. I never got it. I'm still disappointed.

Just for Fun

My Peculiar Aristocratic Title is: Her Most Serene Highness Lady Jennifer the Ambidexterous of Throcking by Hampton Get your Peculiar Aristocratic Title

Ahhhhh sleep

It is so nice to have a day where I can actually sleep late. I woke up at 6:00 of course as my body is somewhat used to that, but I didn't let that deter me. I rolled over, petted the cat and went back to sleep. I was really awake a little after 8:00 but I didn't actually get out of bed. But now I'm up and ready to slowly get some things done, but mostly take it easy. I think I'm feeling better. (It's amazing what actual rest can do) My voice is close to normal although I'm still a bit congested. To do today:
Wrap presents
Clean the house somewhat
Laundry
Last minute shopping (I know.. but I thought of some last minute things of course... but I'm NOT going to the mall...the traffic was a nightmare yesterday and I didn't actually go to the mall, just a shop near it.)
Go to Mass at 5:00 so I don't have to go in the morning and then again at night. (That means I can sleep in again :)
Visit my friend Kirsten & exchange gifts. Josh is also supposed to give her dad a CD of some of his music so he can help him with his compositions. (He's a now retired music composition professor)
Pack for my trip to Albuquerque
Decide whether we're going to leave after Mass and get there late or leave early Christmas morning.

So that's the agenda for today... along with some t.v., sitting in the chair, and maybe a nap.

Finally a break!!!

I better enjoy this while I can. After school starts again I won't have another break until Spring Break. Kids left school at 11:30. I had to stick around until one. I had to figure out how to get my trophies for our upcoming tournamnet ordered after having issues with the company not faxing me the previous year's order and then not being able to fax something to them. Hmmm... maybe it's the fax machine. I finally talked to an actual person that was willing to help me. I was able to email my order in and she called me back with a confirmation that it had been received. Whew!

Now I'm home and I think I may rest just a little bit before heading out for last minute shopping like everyone else. I don't have much to do, but I do have some rosaries to finish and need to pick up a few more things.

I still have a cold or whatever, but I think I'm improving. My voice is still hoarse, but not as bad as yesterday. Well... time to go take it easy.

Bleh

I went to choir rehearsal tonight but I couldn't sing because I barely have a voice at the moment. My ex-husband would love it though. It's that low raspy voice that he finds very sexy. I'm just irritated by it. I really want to be able to sing on Christmas eve. I ended up just being the "ears" and listening for balance.

This afternoon was a total waste. The kids were finished around 11:45. I had to wait until 1:15 for the special lunch they had for us. It was o.k., but nothing to write home about. We got our annual Christmas gift. This year it was a candle in a large ornament shaped holder. It smells pretty good. So at 2:00 I have absolutely nothing to do until 3:45 when I can "officially" leave. Luckily I had gone to Walmart earlier and I picked up a 4.88 movie (Pleasantville). I just popped it into my DVD player and I watched it while finishing up the crocheted throw that I was making a friend of mine for Christmas. I got the throw done and by the time the movie was over it was time to come home.

Once I got home I finished the rosary I was making for Father Phan and finished the box I was going to put it in. I laid down to rest around 6:00 and had to get up at 6:45. During that time Josh rescued a bird from the dogs so now we have another guest to deal with. I know, I know... but I'm an animal lover and I can't help it. It's in my blood. But now I'm too tired to think. I'm going to go to bed and just try to survive the last day tomorrow. Luckily we can leave by 1:00.

Just two more days

But I'm not counting. O.k. yes I am. I feel horrible today. I'm losing my voice and now I'm sporting a headache and I'm congested. But I can't afford a day off so I'm here at school. I have another hour before the kids arrive. Because of the weather we have been starting an hour late for the past three days. The roads really weren't bad today. There were a few slick spots in town, but it's not bad. I didn't let Josh drive the past two days. Maybe I'm over-cautious, but I'd rather he didn't get the lesson of driving on ice just yet. I haven't posted much lately as I feel there just hasn't been much to say. My shopping for the most part is done. I have a few more things to pick up and I can do that either Friday afternoon or on Saturday. I didn't put up my tree this year or send out cards (not that I ever send cards... I have boxes because I have the intent, but just never get around to it.) I'm losing my voice and I'm supposed to have choir rehearsal tonight. I just hope it returns by Sunday. I really want to sing for the Christmas Eve Mass.
I have been going to bed early the past few days. I think my ragged running is catching up with me. I am ready to just sleep in and be a lazy bum for a few days. We still have a visiting dog. One of Josh's friends is interested in her, but I don't know if his mother will let him have her. She is very sweet, but she is in puppy mode so she likes to chew things, she's not house broken (despite the fact she can use the pet door), and she eats more than probably my other three dogs combined. I hope I find a home for her soon. I know I'm not keeping her because I haven't given her a name though she probably thinks her name is "No!"
I finally got caught up on my grades. I have been reminded as to why I am NOT an English teacher after grading 38 typed oratory speeches. I guess kids think I'm stupid or something because about 5 or 6 of them plagiarized their speeches. Of course they had an ENTIRE semester to work on them, but perhaps that just wasn't enough time. I'm reading what they turned in and for some reason I know that they're not capable of using certain (proper) language and fancy words. I type in one of their sentences in google and sure enough I find websites where they cut and pasted the information.
Well, I guess I've rambled on enough. I think I'll go find some crackers or something to munch on.

Christmas Meme

1. Egg nog or hot chocolate? Although I am quite fond of rum, I have to vote hot chocolate on this one.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? wrapped - unless it's really big and then I hide it and make them find it.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? colored
4. Do you hang mistletoe? what would be the point? No date in over a year, no single males coming through my door...
6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? I loved it when my mom made her homemade cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning.
7. Favorite holiday memory as a child: Probably the year I got a jam box and the Olivia Newton John "Physical" album for Christmas.
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? 2nd grade. I realized that Santa's presents were wrapped in the same wrapping paper as all the other non-Santa presents.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Yes, that was the rule... one gift on Christmas Eve... but now I get so few gifts I just wait until Christmas day.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? what tree? I didn't put one up this year.... but when I do, I have lights and all the ornaments (except for a few) are music-related.
11. Snow! Love it or dread it? I like the look of it and if I have no place to go it's fine, but I hate when I have to get out and drive in it.
14. What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you? that we are celebrating the birth of Christ and it's a time to spend with family
15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? I don't have any particular favorite dessert associated with Christmas
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? turkey dinner with all the trimmings
17. What tops your tree? an angel holding a harp (music themed of course)
18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? mostly giving, but I certainly don't mind getting gifts. When you get older, the less you get it seems... but I LOVE to give and I often try to make something special for others
19. What is your favorite Christmas song? What Child is This?
20. Candy canes: sure, why not.
21. Favorite Christmas movie? A Christmas Story. I am afraid to admit this... but I have never actually seen "It's a Wonderful Life". I've seen parts of it and know what it's about, but I've really never watched it.

Brrrrrr

It's cold here and I really hate the cold. We're getting freezing rain tonight so going to school in morning is going to be loads of fun. I'm washing my long johns so that I can stay warm tomorrow. I still have about 30 oratory speeches to read and grade, but I'm still finding I can't grade at home. I think I got through two of them this evening. I'm going to head to bed soon.
I don't have anything interesting or pertinent to say. I am just so ready for school to be out. I'm also quite ready for pay day tomorrow. I just hope the weather and roads aren't too bad by the end of school tomorrow.
My throat has started to feel scratchy and I fear that some kind of illness may be coming on. I really hope not. I just need to get through the next few days so that I can actually enjoy at least some of my break.
On the good news front, someone called yesterday about the dog. They didn't lose one, but they said they're interested in her. I told them I'd call them back in another day or so just to make sure the actual owners didn't call. I'll call them tomorrow and see if they're still interested.
Well, my bed is calling me. It's early, but I have a feeling I'm going to need to be ready early tomorrow morning.

Survived the Lock-In

I'm not sure how I did it, but I managed to stay awake all night and still drive home this morning. I saw something I very rarely get to see most mornings.... a sunrise. Usually I'm driving/riding in the other direction most mornings as the sun comes up. Once I got past the 4:00 a.m. mark, I got my second wind. The kids had a blast and we had more than enough to eat. I bought way too many pizzas, but they didn't go to waste as some kids took them home afterwards. We had all the snacks you could eat. We played Cranium and Battle of the Sexes amoung other games. Some kids did fall asleep, but we started cleaning up around 6:30 and were able to leave by 7:00. I got home around 7:45 and went straight to bed. I got about 4 hours of sleep before I had to get up and go back to Hereford. The students had a mini-festival amongst themselves so I was there from 1:00 until 6:00. Now I'm waiting for my dinner to finish (Taquitos in the oven). I'm going to eat, maybe watch some t.v. and definitely call it an early night. On the good side... I did get some papers graded and now I just have the oratory speeches to read. Ugh. That will be a chore that I have to complete in the next couple of days. Fortunately I have all my semester tests ready to go.
I have another visitor at my house. I don't know what it is about stray animals, but they seem to think my place is a pretty good place to go when they're lost. Maybe word has gotten around the neighborhood that I'm a sucker for lost pets. Well... we have a visiting dog and I insist on it being a visitor because I absolutely can't afford to keep her. I've placed an ad in the paper and am hoping the owners will claim her. If not, I have to find her a home. Anyone interested? I think she'll be a pretty good sized dog. She's medium sized right now but I think she's still kind of a puppy and has huge claws. She has some kind of "bull" mix in her I think. She is very sweet, friendly and playful. I do hope I can find a good home for her if the owners don't come forward (which would be a terrible thing in my book). I can't believe she doesn't have a collar or anything. I'll post a picture of her tomorrow.
I'm feeling thoroughly exhausted. At least I think I'll sleep really well tonight. Well, I need to get some laundry started. I'll try to report back tomorrow if I have anything to say.

Progress!

I've finished making the two semester tests that I needed to make. Now I need to create two study guides and get everything printed. My grading is caught up except for the oratory speeches that I need to grade. That will be like grading 5-6 page essay papers. I guess maybe I can get some of that done during the lock-in Friday night.

Yesterday I got home around 5:00 and decided to run to the store to get a couple of things. The church choir director called me right when I got to the store and asked if I could come to rehearsal that evening. For some reason I thought that it started at 6:30, but it actually started at 5:00. So I quickly got the things I needed, ran home, grabbed my clarinet and headed out. I was at rehearsal until after 7:00. I came home and made some rice to go with my leftover cashew chicken (which I'm having today for lunch as well.) I just felt exhausted and I ended up going to bed shortly after 9:00. The phone rang at 9:45 so I had to rush and pick it up. My aunt called to find out if I could go to the Shot Show in Florida to work for my uncle in January. Free/Paid trip to Orlando? Heck yeah!

I hope I make through the weekend... if so, I should be doing pretty well until Christmas break. Friday is our lock-in so I will be up all night for that. Then I'll get to come home and sleep for a few hours only to return to the school Saturday afternoon for a festival among just the speech students. Then I'll return home and sleep as late as possible on Sunday before going to church. Josh and I are playing at the 11:15 Mass.

Well, class is about to start so I better get ready. Sorry for no post yesterday. I wasn't feeling as verbose as I usually am.

It's about time

Well, I'm finally caught up on my grading. I don't know what it is, but I just can't make myself grade papers at home. Day after day I take my bag home full of things to do and I don't get any of them done. I am by no means caught up with everything I need to do, but I do feel a sense of accomplishment in just getting the grading done. I'm still amazed at the number of students failing my classes however. I need to get my semester tests done and then hopefully I'll be on the home stretch. There's just so much to do and not enough time.

Well, I just wanted to give you a quick post during my lunch break since I didn't post last night and probably won't be able to post tonight. After school I have to rush home, then to the grocery store, then make my famous cashew chicken for the party. Maybe tomorrow I'll have more time... or not.

Out of the Loop

It seems like it's been forever since I've blogged although it's only been a couple of days. I have also missed reading my favorites and had to take some time to do that before posting myself. I'm still exhausted but overall we had a very good weekend.

We left around 9:30 for Lubbock on Friday morning. We got there and the bus driver took the long route to the restaurant, but we made it and the kids got their hamburgers & fried cheese that they hungrily anticipated. We then headed to the hotel. We checked in with no problem other than the water had been turned off because the were working on something. But that was no big deal since they just had to change and then get back on the bus. We made it to the tournament on time and my kids did an amazing job. We only took 14 students, but we had 26 entries in semi-finals and from there we had 21 of them in finals. The team won sweepstakes (again) and one of my students was a surprise as the top interper. (She beat another student on my team that generally takes that spot.)

It was a very late night for us. We didn't get to leave until 10:30. We got to the hotel at 10:45 and they decided to order pizza instead of going to a fast food place. Mine came rather quickly, but the boys pizza didn't arrive until midnight. Needless to say, we were all pretty tired on Saturday morning and my kids weren't as successful. They still did o.k., but we only ended up with 8 in finals.

My son Josh went with us and he is now qualified for state in oratory. I also have another student that qualified in the same event and then another two that got the points they needed in duet. One of my other students who did not want to comepete in foreign extemporaneous speaking (she usually competes in domestic, but is already qualified) ended up qualifying in that event as well. I entered her because they needed to make numbers for full qualification points. (Don't ask... it's confusing)

We got in very late. We didn't get to leave until around 11:30 after stopping at Wendy's for food. We got back to Hereford around 1:45 and I didn't get to bed until 2:30. I got up at 9:00 to go to church, but just felt exhausted. I picked up lunch after Mass and then I went back to bed. I slept another four hours. Now I probably won't be able to sleep tonight. I still have a million things to do. I didn't get a single paper graded this weekend. After my nap, I loaded the dishwasher because we had a mountain of dishes left undone. (Now it's down to the size of a hill.) I still have to go to the grocery store as Josh is finally going to cook! He's had this long-standing "thing" about not learning to cook until he gets his driver's license. Well, now that he has it, it's time! I have no idea what he wants to cook, but it will be his choice. That will be a nice change... Josh can start dinner (assuming we have clean dishes) from time to time.

So, grocery store, dinner, grade papers, do laundry (so I don't have to go to school naked tomorrow), clean out my car (I'm driving the carpool in the morning), figure out my lesson plan for tomorrow, and I'm sure there's more that I haven't thought about yet. Well, it's back to being busy as usual. I have a Christmas party on Tuesday, instrumental rehearsal on Wed., choir rehearsal on Thurs., Lock-in at the school on Friday, speech festival on Saturday afternoon. On top of that, I have to get trophies ordered for our tournament, create my semester tests, catch up on all my grading, and figure out a day to do my observation at school. I haven't finished my Christmas shopping so on the 20th (pay day) I will have to get that done as well. I'm ready for Christmas Break!!!

full speed ahead

After a day of teaching at school I had to rush back home to pick up Josh from school and get to the driver's license office so he could get his license. All went well and he is now officially licensed... God help us. We then went to pick up his car from my dad's shop. He followed me home until I turned off to go to church. I had to go to the Vigil Mass for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception as it's a Holy day of obligation. After Mass we had choir rehearsal for over two hours so I didn't get home until about 9:40. I picked up a bite to eat before getting home, scarfed it down and then started a load of laundry. I still need to pack, but I think that I'll do it in the morning. I get to sleep in a little longer in the morning. I have a sub for all day tomorrow and I still have to get to the bank, but I don't have to leave the house until around 8:30.

We're heading to an overnight tournament tomorrow. We'll be in Lubbock for a swing tourney which is two tournaments in one weekend. I won't get back until late late Saturday night. That means no posts until some time on Sunday.

I'm glad to see that Andrew is back... you were very missed. Take care of yourself. I'm glad that you're wise enough to know when you should ask for some help.

Well, I gotta get to bed as I'm totally exhausted. Hope ya'll have a great weekend. See you on Sunday.

Just busy

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days. It's been busy. I did come down off my high after this weekend. Last night Josh had all-region band tryouts and he made first chair.

School has been very busy. I have so much to get done and it seems I'm not even making a dent. I'm starting to prepare for our speech tournament by getting the website information set up. I have learned quite a bit this year in creating web pages and such and although I'm still lost on several things, I'm figuring out many more. My observation is going to be tomorrow. I'm not worried about it. We're covering debate right now and tomorrow we're doing a mock public forum debate. I am so behind on paperwork and other stuff I don't know when I'll get it all done. At least I'm staying late at school tomorrow.

Josh and I tried to get his driver's license today, but the office closed at 5:00. He won't be able to get it until Thursday. I will have to leave right after school so we can get there early (despite it being open until 7:00) because I have to get back to go to Church by 6:00. Then we have choir practice. How long until Christmas break? You know what? We even have a tournament over Christmas break!

Well, I don't have much more to say tonight. I'm still busy. My house is falling apart again. I still haven't put up a tree as I've had no time. Maybe one of these days I'll get another break.

Beaming with Pride

Sometimes when you start feeling down and have those rough days, something great happens to turn it all around. It has been a very good day. The day came much too early, however. I got to bed around midnight last night after the tournament. This morning I had to get up by 5:30, leave by 6:00 and drive to Hereford to pick up my three debate students. I gave the other kids a break and let them meet at 8:00 a.m. instead leaving early with the debaters. Luckily there's a teacher that drives the bus for us once in a while and he's been great about letting me take my car and such. My students did VERY well at the tournament. We had 22 entries in finals. The team won first place sweepstakes AND two of my students won outstanding interper and outstanding speaker. On top of ALL of that... (I know you're amazed that there's more) Josh won FIRST place in oratory. He is almost qualified for state. He needs two more points which I think he might be able to get at the tournament next weekend. He is traveling with our team although he is competing for his school.

I was driving home tonight with the biggest grin on my face. I just couldn't help it. I am so very proud of my students and especially of Josh. I really needed this pick me up. I can't take much credit for it, but it doesn't change my level of pride in them.

Nothing to do

Well, that's not completely true. There are things to be done and things I should be doing, but I'm not doing any of them. I've packed my bag with lots of papers to be graded, I just don't feel like grading them right now. I cleaned off my desk and got my substitute information ready. (I'll be gone the last two class periods today.) I ate lunch. (Soup & salad) I went and got a candy bar for dessert. I checked my email. Nothing but spam. I filled out a form to teach a workshop for the next staff development in February. I figured there might be interest in digital cameras and since I do know some things about them, I figured why not. I still have an hour until my next class and I'm bored. I don't want to go anywhere because the roads in town are still very bad. I can't fill out any requisitions for next week because the secretary that handles them is gone and I need more forms. I'm feeling very cold right now. I didn't wear Long Johns today. Well, I'm going to go find something to do or just twiddle my thumbs. This will be the only update today and there probably won't be one tomorrow. I'll catch ya'll on Sunday.