Writing Prompt: In a Car

At my UConn Teacher as Writer class on Saturday, the instructor asked us to think of a moment in a car... whether it was ourselves or a character we created. This caused me to think of so MANY moments, that I couldn't pick one, so I started writing about how much time we spend in cars in general... here's the rough draft... I would love comments or feedback as I might have to do some polishing up on this one...

A car is a fertile bed for memories...we owe our lives to cars - not just for travel and safety...you don't think much about getting in a car, traveling through time and space. But how much of our lifetimes are spent encapsulated in cars? Even the largest SUV is not so big we'd want to remain forever. Yet how much time...?
How many memories, conversations, relationships (familial, friendly, platonic, romantic) are forged in a car?
I lost myself in my mother's big blue VW Vanagon throughout my childhood- a slow 45 mph trip through dozens of worlds, lives, characters as book after book flashed through my fingers like dotted lines on the highway to and from school.
In a car, I cried and sang my way like windshield wipers on a rainy day through many relationships as I drove myself through the congested freeways of love and boyfriends until I found the same road my husband was traveling.
I idled in the back of many a car while my parents drove us to Grandma's or Grandpa's house and boredom caused my siblings and me to backfire until the inevitable "If I have to stop this car...!" silenced our overheated engines momentarily.
A car is sacred as a church - where many a prayer is offered up for relief, guidance, peace, safety and "oh-dear-Lord-don't-let-me-hit-that----!" I believe our guardian angels spend a lot of time perched on fenders.
In a car you can be alone, be yourself... you are a bubble speeding along on this swiftly spinning planet - singing out loud, arguing with yourself, your seatmate, the radio.
Cars take us away, cars bring us home. And they are slow, real-time, compared to the speed with which we do everything these days (email, texting, planes, online transactions zipped to the bank faster than we can turn on the ignition). Cars are beginning to have the ponderous gait of horsedrawn wagons in comparison.
Yet they grant us that one luxury we seem to be spending too quickly -time with ourselves and with others - real-time, not virtual time. For this, I say, we owe our lives to cars.

Now, why don't you try it? What is your most vivid memory that took place in or with a car? Post your response on your own blog and link to it in the comment box below, or just write a quick response on the comment form.

Baby of Mine...

Okay... having a baby has become fun at last... I mean, except for that sharp pain in my hip whenever I take a step (which is often since I work in the BASEMENT of our school and have to go up and down the stairs a minimum of 4 times a day! And I coach the cross country team ... no, I am NOT running with them this year!).

But seriously, now that the nausea is gone, I am sort of okay with the stabbing pain and the exhaustion part - it's much preferable... :)

I thought I would hate getting a big belly and all but I kind of like this roly-poly feeling... and I like feeling the baby rolling around in there - which has been a new event this past week. I can't wait until Matthew can feel it too!

So - 5 months in ... halfway there ... starting to think about names, doctors, baby furniture, vaccinations, car seats, etc...

As I said... it's getting to be kind of fun!

Having a Baby...WOW!

Okay - sorry that I've been In Abscencia all summer... but I've been busying growing a whole person inside me... yes, we're expecting our first child.
First, I need to vent a little about the...

• morning sickness that lasts all day...
• the fact that last year I was running 10 miles at a time to prepare for the 1/2 marathon and now I can't even get up the stairs without losing my breath!
• the withdrawal at not being able to drink coffee (not b/c it's got caffeine but b/c now it tastes like dirt)
• a belly button that feels like it's going to explode!
• maternity clothes that are all made of polyester and look like they come from granny's closet (sorry, grandmothers out there!!!)
• people joke that I'm going to have the baby writing in their writer's notebook by the time they're 2 years old (ahem! correction: my baby will be writing in their writer's notebook from Day 1, even if I have to scribe it for them!)

...yeah, they never tell you about these things....
However, being pregnant is also pretty cool because...

• having cravings for McDonald's is kind of fun
• Matthew is so nice about filling in the blanks in the housework while I'm sleeping!
• Everyone makes a big deal about you!
• I get weekly email updates that tell me the size of my baby every week and make up funny nicknames for him/her!
• I get to hear gory birthing stories all the time now!

Sigh... I can't believe I'm going to be a mom... scary and cool. I can't wait to see how it goes! :)

Product Review: Ball Plastic Jars with Screw Top Lids!

I am just so amused at this product - and I don't know why... perhaps because I have started canning food a lot...

Anyway, you know how when you open a jar of home-made canned food, and you don't use it, you have to put the metal screw cap back on over the flat lid... and somehow, doing this seems to get sticky jam or sauce all over the cap and lid as you try to line everything up? Okay, maybe that's just me...

Well, anyway, last fall, I found these awesome plastic jars with lids that screw on, that you can put your leftover canned foods into after you open a jar. Then, you don't have to worry about a messy lid, spoiling food from a seal that isn't tight enough, or breaking a glass jar!

Once you open a jar of sauce or jam, or in my case, canned peaches... you just dump the leftovers into the Ball plastic screw-top jar, and pop it in the fridge. Also, now you can wash and store that glass jar for use later next year when you're canning again! Plus, the plastic jars come in a 4 pack, and the lids snap into each other and then onto the jar bottoms for stackable storage, so you don't have a mess in your cabinet!

I'm Amused!!

Would you Believe...?

Four years ago I didn't even KNOW there was such a thing as the Teacher of the Year award. Now, I have been awarded this honor by a "jury of her peers." Five essays and one interview panel later, I'm still in shock that it's actually ME!

Through the past four years at Windsor Locks, I've been surrounded by a core group of supportive teachers on my teams and in my department and even in other grades, departments, and buildings who have encouraged me, made me smile when I've had a bad day, and reminded me why I am doing this job.

Teaching is NOT easy. To do teach effectively, you have to be relentless at times about teaching to the standards, expecting quality, and meeting the needs of diverse classes. But you don't teach alone - along the way, so many people have been there for me to provide advice, resources, and moral support.

I want to thank a few people (and I'll miss a ton, I'm sure!) who have influenced me:

MaryKay, you taught me that a good teacher always follows through on what she assesses the students need. You can't go forward until you have gone back and corrected the misunderstandings students have about concepts.

Chris, you taught me (and I'm still trying to learn this one) that you CAN have a relationship with even the most difficult students, and still retain composure and be firm.

Jen, you taught me that we can believe in how we teach, even in the face of opposition - because it works!

Kelly, you taught me to just laugh sometimes - because it's not worth stressing about it too long (again, still learning this one).

Mike, you taught me to continue in the face of "adversity"... that it's NOT crazy to stay up till 2 am to get schoolwork done - if it needs to get done, do it! (but I'll never beat you to school!)

...there are so many others who've helped me work hard, but relax a little, look at the data, but then look on the bright side (not my strong point), think about the students, but then also take a little "me" time to refresh...

Thank you... I hope I continue learning lessons from all of you! Here's to many more years of friendship and camaraderie together!