I think he knows I'm about to leave him

For the last few days, he's been very "clingy" toward me.  He's always been one to want to sit next to me and to snuggle, but lately I can't even walk into another room without him following me.  In bed, he is lying so close to me that I can barely roll over.  It's like he knows that something is up.  I would try to explain, but he just wouldn't understand.  It isn't that I don't love him.  I do...with ALL my heart, but this is something I have to do for me.  For us.  I have to go.

WHAT?  NO, I am not talking about leaving John.  I'm talking about Bama.  I swear he knows that my summer is almost up and that I'll be going back to work next week.  Seriously.  I sit for two minutes and he is in my lap.  I walk to the kitchen and he follows.  I fold clothes, and he lies in the floor staring up at me with the saddest of faces.  He has always been a "momma's boy" but goodness...lately it is like he is glued to me. 

Ali, on the other hand, doesn't care.  As long as she has a soft place to lay and a blanket to curl up in, she's good.  If John and I ever had to give them away (NOT gonna happen!), Bama would grieve.  Ali would adjust.  In minutes.

I need to make sure that there are plenty of special  treats for them.  We give them "biscuits" for regular treats, but they get "bacon" for special treats...when we're about to leave for a few hours or after they get a bath.

I know that after a few days, Bama will be back in his routine, but those first few days kill me because he always looks sooooo sad standing at the puppy gate, watching me leave.  Then again, I get such an enthusiastic greeting when I get home.  :)

Now, I need to go put laundry into the dryer.  If I can get Bama out of my lap, that is. hahaha

Have a GREAT day!

And my style is...

Your style is Rustic Charm


Country, handmade and cozy, featuring one-of-a-kind finds. Carefree mix of the new and old. Lived-in look. Country and Rustic describe my home.

 
I was playing around on the 'net and wound up on HGTV's site because I'm trying to decide how I want to redo our bedroom whenever I eventually get around to it.  I ran across a quiz on decorating style.  I love doing quizzes, so I figured I take this one to see what my style ended up being.  I had to select pictures for various scenarios...which room would I most likely unwind, what room would be where I would throw a dinner party, which room would I sleep best in, etc.
 
Based on my selections, I have a rustic charm style.  That is SO me!  I want my home to have a comfortable, lived-in look.  I want people to feel like they can come in, kick their shoes off, and put their feet up on the furniture.  I love finding those "odd" pieces and trying to make them work with a new piece.
 
Some quizzes I've taken have made me laugh because I feel that the answers were WAY off, but not this one.  Now, I just need to find that perfect look for the bedroom.  :)

Miss Cathy Smith

In August of 1983, I was a junior in high school, and Miss Cathy Smith was my English teacher and our yearbook sponsor.  Miss Smith had taught at Oakman for several years and had a reputation as one tough teacher, so I was terrified on the first day of class as I sat in her room--I think I was even afraid to breathe.  We had all heard how hard she was and how strict she was, and since Oakman was, at the time, a small 1A school, we didn't have a choice of teachers.  I had Miss Smith for English and yearbook in 11th and 12th grades.  She was also the girls' homeroom teacher for 12th grade.

Miss Smith's tough reputation didn't fit her physical appearance.  She was maybe 5'5" and MIGHT have weighed 100 pounds, but even the biggest and toughest of guys would shake in their seats if she had to give them "the look."  The thing about Miss Smith, though, was that she didn't have to use her teacher look very often.  Her reputation preceded her, and everyone of her students respected her 100%.

Another thing about Miss Smith is that she really wasn't a person to be terrified of.  Being on the yearbook staff for my junior and senior years meant that I had an opportunity to get to know her in a different setting from the normal classroom setting...a more relaxed, laid-back setting...and we all learned that she was very relaxed and laid back.  She was fun to be around.

In the normal classroom setting, though, she demanded excellence from ALL of her students.  She required us to memorize the first eighteen lines of The Canterbury Tales...in middle English.  To this day, I can still recite those lines (and I could even before I started teaching British lit.)  She would make us learn the grammar rules, and then we would take a quiz by drawing one of the rules and reciting it.  We had weekly spelling and vocabulary quizzes.  Quick side note--Gary, who was a year older than me and one of my bestest guy buddies in the world--was on yearbook staff.  He was going over the vocab one day during yearbook.  The word was apathy, but Gary, to aggravate Miss Smith, kept pronouncing it a-path-y and saying that the definition was "what you have to walk on to get to the out-housey."  LOL  When we had to give presentations, she had a certain way she wanted us to begin, and if we didn't, she would make us go back to our seats and start all over until we got it right.  We usually didn't have to begin more than once.  Even though she had very strict requirements and high expectations, she was also fair and understanding.  She would not force extremely shy students to make a presentation before the class, but she did not penalize them either.  She would allow them to make the presentation to her alone.  That is something I do with my students.  I encourage them to make their presentations before the entire class, but if they refuse, I won't give them a 0.

I found out today that Miss Cathy Smith, or Mrs. Cathy Smith Byrd Leake as she became sometime following my graduation, passed away after a battle with cancer.  She was 60 years old.  I had not seen Miss Smith (as she will always and forever be to me) since my freshman year in college, but I wish that I had taken the time in the years since to write her and to let her know how important she was in my decision to become an English teacher.  I frequently make references to her in my English classes.  She was a wonderful teacher who touched the lives of many, many students over her career.  I hope I can have half the impact on the lives of my students as she did on my life.

Miss Smith, may you rest in peace.

Things she'll never do

A few weeks back, I posted on my other blog about a friend of mine who had lost her daughter.  Karen and I were colleagues several years ago when Kara was just a tiny thing.  Once Karen remarried, they moved to Clay Co., and she got a job teaching there.  (It was a definite loss for our school, and a definite gain for theirs because she is an AWESOME teacher!)  She and I were never close friends, so we didn't stay in close contact, but whenever we'd run into each other, we'd spend several minutes catching up.  Even still, hearing of her loss broke my heart.

Kara lost her battle with CF while awaiting a double-lung transplant.  (I think that is correct.  I've heard a couple of different things, but someone who is very reliable told me that.)  Anyway, with all of the excitement of Jessi's wedding, it made me stop and think about how very fortunate/lucky/blessed I am because there are so many things that Karen will never get to do.

For example, she will never

• hear Kara say, "Mom, he is THE one."
• be able to ooh and ahh and gush over Kara's engagement ring.
• help her choose her wedding dress and make wedding plans.
• see Kara walk down the aisle as her baby girl.
• see Kara walk back down the aisle as a beautiful new wife.
• hear Kara say the words "You're going to be a grandmother!"
• hold her baby girl's baby.
• cry with her when that baby begins school.
• SO many other things...

Yes, Karen has other children.  She has two boys, but their is just something special about a daughter.

Now, on the other hand, Karen is able to sleep at night because she knows

• Kara is praising her GOD each and every second!
• Kara is rejoicing with her loved ones who have gone before.
• Kara no longer struggles with a body that isn't perfect.
• she will see Kara again someday and that reunion will be so very precious.

A scholarship fund has been set up for nursing students at Central Alabama Community College in Kara's memory.  Karen is working to get T-shirts made up with "In It to Win It"---Kara's motto---on them.  She was in it to win it, and while she may have lost her earthly life, she has won so much more!  I think I'm going to order a shirt!

Have a GREAT day!

Like father, like daughter

Notice any similarities?  Goofy daddy has rubbed off on goofy daughter.  (You might need to click on the picture of John to see that he is sticking his tongue out almost exactly like Jess is.  His mouth is just open more.) Goofiness abounds in our family, and that's why I love them.  When John and I told Katy and Jessi we were getting married, one of the first things Jessi (who was almost 9 at the time) said was, "We've got to weirden you up."  I think I have weirdened up over the years.  LOL

It amazes me how much like their daddy Katy and Jessi both are.  Katy is just like her daddy in that they both do all they can to avoid conflict.  I really hadn't thought that much about it until recently.  Phillip and I were talking, and he said that he sees that same trait in both of them.  I have to agree.  Jessi is just like her daddy in that they both let things just kind of roll off them without worrying about whatever it is too much, and she has her daddy's goofy sense of humor.  Katy has a great sense of humor too, but she is just a much more serious-minded individual.

Jess brought the similar pictures to my attention.  Of course the one of John was taken the day of the wedding, but the one of Jess was taken when she had her bridal portraits done.  I hadn't realized that they were so similar until she made a comment about the picture of John on facebook.  She said she thought that one of her bridal portraits was just like that picture of her daddy.  Since I have her disk of bridal portraits on my computer, I knew I had to do a post about it.  I think it's just too funny. :)

Gotta get myself ready for "work" tomorrow.  We have orientation for seniors, and since I'll have a senior advisement, I have to be there.  Ho hum...back to reality.

Have a GREAT week!

Missing the hubby!

Don't get me wrong.  I LOVE being at the lake, and I would move here tomorrow, BUT after not having seen John since he left for work Tuesday morning, I'm starting to miss him somethin' fierce!  One phone call a day just isn't enough.  That being said, I know that I have no reason to complain because I know that there are hundreds, no thousands, of service men and women who haven't seen their families in MONTHS.  I know the three measly days I'll have spent without John pales in comparison.

It's been a good few days.  Nice and relaxing and quiet.  And HOT.  I've tried to spend time out on the dock, but I can handle only a couple of hours.  That's enough though.

I'll leave here late tomorrow afternoon to go to Hartselle since this is our weekend to stay with Billie.  I'm not sure how many more months there will be that we'll be staying with her.  The paperwork for getting her into a nursing home is in the works.  We just aren't sure how long it will take to get it completed.  I know it is really hard on Connie since she is the only daughter.  The "boys" won't have an easy time of it either, but Connie handles her emotions much differently than they do.  In the end, it will truly be better for Connie, too, though.  Quite frequently, Connie will have 35-40 missed calls and/or voice mails on her cell phone in a DAY.  She is also the one who gets the brunt of the woman Billie has become.  She was saying on Sunday that her mother tells her all the time that she knows that Connie hates her.  Billie doesn't tell John, Danny, or Tim that.  It's the Alzheimer's talking.

I got started on reworking my student handouts last night, and tonight I had planned on redoing my PowerPoint.  It hasn't happened though.  Just couldn't bring myself to think about the Anglo-Saxon period.  It isn't anything that will be difficult, but it will be time consuming.  I'll have to make sure that the slides match the handout; plus, I want to add some You Tube videos that I've found. 

I'm seeing an early night tonight--probably as soon as John calls.  Hopefully, I'll be able to sleep.  It took me FOREVER to fall asleep last night.  Finally, about midnight I got up and got my book (The Sound and the Fury) and read for about 30 minutes.  I wish I had some Benadryl.  That would certainly help!

That's a wrap for tonight.  Have a GREAT weekend, and please pray for me to have patience and strength.  :)

I think I'm caught up from the weekend

Wow!  Either I am starting to really feel my age, or the heat and humidity from Saturday really took a bigger toll than I thought it would.  (I prefer to think that it was due to the heat and humidity.)

By the time John, Katy, and I got back to the house Saturday night, it was almost midnight.  Katy and I did our nighttime rituals (you know, makeup removal and all that...stuff men don't have to worry about) and all three of us CRASHED.  Even as tired as I was, I was still awake by 7 and up by 8.  We met Danny, Linda, Connie, and Blain at Oskar's for lunch at 11.  After we got back, Katy loaded up the barbecue and cake she'd brought home from the reception and left.  Before noon, John and I were both asleep.  At some point, I got up from the sofa and crawled in bed where I stayed until 4.  The rest of the day/night, I was worthless.  I did download my pictures, though.

I know Lance and Jess were bone tired.  About 9:30 or 10 Saturday night, we started cleaning up the mansion.  Some of their friends were still out on the patio having fun, but the bride and groom were right in the middle of the cleanup...Jess still in her gown and Lance still in his tux.  She had cake all over her hands from helping to bag it up for "doggy bags."  I told her that I don't ever recall a newly married couple helping with the clean up.  She just laughed.  That's just the kind of young adults they are, though.

They were getting up at 3 and leaving home at 4 for the airport.  Wayne and Kay were taking them, so I would guess they spent yesterday afternoon taking it easy.  I hope so anyway!  Jess sent Katy a text Sunday morning.  She said they got about an hour and a half sleep at home, and that she slept all the way to Atlanta.  It was her first time to fly, and she was very nervous, so I doubt she slept on the plane.  Lance said they'd call when they got there.  I told him not to worry about calling us...just to enjoy themselves.  We haven't heard from them, so I'm sure all is okay.  If it weren't, one of them would have definitely called by now!  I would love to hear from them, but it's their honeymoon...calling us should be the last thing on their minds.  hehehe

I had planned on going to the lake today, but I decided to wait until tomorrow.  I'm glad I did.  It has given me a chance to get the house cleaned up since I didn't have time last week.  I didn't figure I would have time because of all of the minor things I needed to do before the wedding--pick up John's tux, find my jewelry, get my nails done, pick up my dress from the cleaners.

I needed to run to Alex City today, but I don't think I'll make it.  I hope to take Jessi's flowers to have them dried, but I need to call my florist to see if they do them.  I need to take my dress to the cleaners, and there are pictures I need to pick up at Wal-Mart...some of the ones I took, and some from the engagement pictures, and some from her bridal portraits. 

Guess that's about it for now.  I hope you have a GREAT day!

What a beautiful bride!

Jessi and Lance's day was perfect from beginning to end.  The only "cloud" on the day was the very brief rain shower.  Right after she came down the aisle, it rained for just a few minutes, and then right after the ceremony was over and everyone was standing outside congratulating the happy couple, it rained again, just a little harder, so everyone ran for cover.  Once the rain was over, the party began and lasted until about 11:00.

Here are a few pictures from the big day.

Rehearsal on Friday afternoon...short and sweet!

This is a fountain on the grounds of The Greystone Mansion in Auburn, AL.  The home was built in 1892 and is gorgeous!

Making herself even more beautiful.  She was the calmest bride I have EVER been around.  No worries, no concerns.  About 30 minutes before the ceremony, she began to show some signs of antsiness, but it was just because she was ready to get the show started.

Her dress was AMAZING!  I looked as if it had been specially designed just for her.  No other bride could make it look so good.

A picture says a thousand words...

Oh, to be as young and beautiful (and thin) as Jessi...

Jessi's flower girl Bailey.  She is so cute!  She provided the laughter.  She got about half way down the aisle before she turned, yelled "I want Mommy!" and ran back down the aisle.  She probably had more fun dancing afterwards than anybody.

The back of the dress

All of the flowers were done by Jess's friend Alison.  They were awesome!  She worked herself to death all day long.

The bridal bouquet...stunning!

Molly, Jessi, and Katy...three very beautiful sisters.

This may sound conceited, but I am quite proud of this picture.

Molly and Katy, the gorgeous bridesmaids

Father of the bride...He looked so very handsome in his tux, but it almost took the National Guard to get him in it and then to keep him in it until pictures were over.  In his defense, the humidity was stifling!  Of course, he was making a goofy face, and this is the ONLY picture I got of him all day.  Thankfully, the official photographer will have some. 

I.  LOVE.  THIS.  PICTURE.  Again, it may sound conceited, but dang, I think I did a good job on this one.  Then again, it isn't hard to take a good picture when the subject is so beautiful.

This is Lance's nephew Eli.  He was the most handsome ring bearer.  You gotta be quick to get his picture, though.  LOL  He is really a cutie pie.  I could just eat him up.

Another picture I just love!  They did the "traditional" groom doesn't see the bride before she walks down the aisle, so this was the only physical contact they had all day long.  Look at their faces...you can just see the excitement and anticipation in their eyes and their smiles. 

I didn't get any pictures after the ceremony.  My brain was bouncing all over the place, and I didn't even think about going back up to the bride's room to get my camera.  The reception was wonderful, and the pahhhhty (said in a deep Southern dialect) afterward was a blast.  The happy couple are in Cancun, hopefully relaxing and enjoying their first day as Mr. and Mrs. 

Like I said, the day could not have been any more perfect.  Lance and Jessi were surrounded by family and friends who love them and will support them throughout their lives together.  John and I are so happy to welcome Lance to our family.

I hope the week ahead is filled with nothing but HAPPINESS and LOVE for you!

It is WEDDING DAY!

Jessi and Lance's big day has arrived!  It is an absolutely gorgeous morning for an absolutely gorgeous couple to begin their lives together as husband and wife.

I pray that each day of the rest of their life together is filled with as much love, happiness, joy, and excitement as they fill on this day.

I KNOW it is going to be a FABULOUS day!  I hope yours is GREAT too!

What is WRONG with people?????

Within just minutes of turning on the Today Show this morning, I heard three stories that just really disturbed me.  This wasn't the first I had heard of these stories, but the fact that there were three of them almost back to back got me to thinking.  If there had been only one of the stories reported, I might not have felt compelled to blog about it.

First of all, they were interviewing the family of four-year-old Alisa Maier who had been kidnapped but found and returned.  Then they went to the story of Kyron Horman, missing for over a month.  And finally, it was the Mel Gibson deal.  All of these stories disturbed me.

Thankfully, little Alisa seemingly is fine, but who knows what COULD have happened?  What kind of person takes an innocent child?  Cuts her hair so she looks like a boy?  Then, when he is about to be caught, commits suicide?  Makes me wonder what secrets he has carried to his grave.  Oh yeah...they said they think he may have murdered someone.

In the Kyron Horman case, he is still missing.  His stepmother is reportedly the last to have seen him alive.  Apparently, she had hired (or tried to hire) the landscaper to kill her husband, and now it is being reported that she has been sexting HER HUSBAND'S FRIEND.  Her husband has taken their 18-month-old daughter, filed for divorce, and filed a restraining order.  It is obvious that this woman has some problems!  First of all, if you aren't happy in your marriage, LEAVE.  Don't have a sexual relationship with one of your husband's friends and certainly don't try to off him.  (Sexting or having a physical affair...in my book, both are cheating.)  Secondly, biological child or stepchild, you don't EVER intentionally put that child into any kind of physical danger or cause any mental or emotional stress.

Then, ole Mel.  I have always been a Mel Gibson fan...he seemed to be an awesome husband and father and I was crushed to learn he and his wife were divorcing, he was a fantastic actor and director...but lately I'm having to rethink this.  I honestly have to wonder what has happened.  Has he always been the Mel Gibson we're hearing on the tapes but he kept that person hidden, or has he flipped?  Just for the record, I've always thought that the girlfriend was a gold digger from day one, but this is the mother of his child.  The only thing that is happening here is that he is destroying his relationship with his child.  Even though I think Oksana is a gold digger, if I were her, NO WAY would I allow him to have anything to do with my child.  Mel needs some counseling or something.

Because I was washing dishes and making breakfast when all of this was on, I did check out the news sites to make sure I didn't hear something wrong.  In the process of doing that, I found a article on msnbc.com about a mother who has been jailed for HAVING SEX with her 14 year old son.  She gave him up for adoption when he was only a few days old, but she then found him.  Instead of having the feelings a mother would have for a son, when she met him, she had the feelings that a girlfriend has for a boyfriend.  THAT.  IS.  SICK.  Some things you just don't do with or to your child, and having sex is one of them.  He is now 16.  The article didn't say how long the "relationship" lasted.

Is this a picture of what our society is becoming?  What is the world going to be like when Sam and my future grandchildren are adults?  What about their children and grandchildren?  Y'all this worries me.  It concerns me.  It scares me.  But what do we do with these sickos?  I wish we could send them all out to a deserted island with no food, no water, no anything.  Let them fend for themselves. 

OK...I need to put on some happy, upbeat music and get this out of my mind.  I've got way too much to be happy about this week. 

I hope you have a GREAT day!

Substance?

Substance.  According to Merriam-Webster online, five definitions exist for the word substance.  One of the definitions is "practical importance"...something that is meaningful and useful.  So for Karen to give me this blog award means so much to me.  I do not see my blog as anything meaningful or useful, except as a way for me to keep up with what has gone on in my life. 

Like Karen, I used to keep a diary as a child.  Many years ago, I was going through boxes of stuff that was still at my mom's house, and I found those diaries.  I threw them away.  They were so...silly.

When Katy was pregnant with Sam, she started a blog, and it looked like something I would enjoy, so I started one, too.  To begin with, it was going to be all about my love for Alabama football.   I made two posts, and then I didn't make another post for three months.  Now, I post something about once a week.  Sometimes more; sometimes less.

Like I said, I started my blog as a way for me to keep up with life, but it is also a way for family and friends to know what is going on with John and me.  I've "met" some friends through the blogging world, and I love to read their blogs to see what is going on with them.  One thing I love is the variety of blogs that are out there.  Some are like mine--the daily "grind" of life--while others are inspirational.  Some of just down right fun.  Some are a great place to find recipes.  Some are about the hopes and dreams the author has, and some are a place to vent frustrations, anger, disappointments (and my blog definitely falls into these categories at times.) Some are a combination of all of the above and more.

As part of the acceptance of this award, I am to sum up my blogging philosophy, motivation, and experience in five words.  I think my five words would be:

Life (family, friends)
Hopes
Dreams
Reflection
Contemplation

I'm supposed to pass this one to five bloggers, but I feel very generous today, so I'm passing it on to ANYONE who wants to take it. 

As always, have a GREAT day!

It's wedding week!

This time next week, Lance and Jessi will be an old married couple happily married newlyweds and on their way to the lake with me Cancun for a wonderfully relaxing honeymoon.  Please pray that they have a safe trip there and back and that the weather is perfect.  Jessi has never flown, so that will be an experience for her.

I think she has most everything taken care of, so maybe this week won't be extremely hectic for her.  Of course, she knows that if there is anything that needs doing, all she has to do is call and I'll be on it.  I'm planning on staying at the lake until Wednesday, but if she were to call right now and tell me she needed me to do something for her first thing in the morning, I'd be there.  Some things are more important than hanging out at the lake. 

She is going to be one of the most beautiful brides ever.  (I can't say she is THE most beautiful bride ever because Katy was absolutely gorgeous as a bride herself.)  Kay, Lance's mom, and I met Jess at the bridal shop the day she went for her final fitting.  When she came out of the changing room, I teared up.  (She said she told Lance she knew I'd cry.  She knows me pretty well.  LOL  I will seriously need a handkerchief for the day of the wedding.)  Her dress is gorgeous, and the style "fits" her perfectly.  And the dress FITS her perfectly.  Honestly, she could model for a bridal designer.

Lance will be an extremely gorgeous groom as well.  (Again, I can't say his will be THE most gorgeous groom because Phillip was quite gorgeous on his wedding day.)  I know he's really looking forward to wearing a tux.  LOL  Jessi has told him that as soon as the wedding is over, he can put on his Teva's.  He'll be stylin' in a tux and Teva's at the reception. 

I ended up having to buy a second dress because when I took my first dress to be altered, the seamstress snipped a tiny hole in it.  I took it back, and he fixed it.  It is barely noticeable, but I still know it's there, and I'm not wearing it.  Not for the wedding anyway, but it's one I can wear elsewhere.  The dress I ended up getting is very simple.  It isn't "mother of the bride" at all (and there is a whole long story about that, but we're not going there.)  This is a dress I can wear to work, to church, to anywhere, yet it is very classy.  And classic. 

John's tux will be ready to be picked up Thursday afternoon.  At first, Jessi wanted him to wear just a suit, but she messaged me one day and asked if her daddy would be okay with wearing a tux.  I told her he absolutely would be okay with wearing a tux if that is what she wanted him to do.  He would wear a pink bunny suit (think A Christmas Story) if that is what she wanted him to wear.  He will look so handsome as he walks her down the aisle.  He has no qualms whatsoever about "giving" Jessi's hand to Lance in marriage.

John and I are so very happy for Jess and Lance.  He adores her and would walk to the ends of the earth for her, barefoot and through fire if necessary.  He will protect her and do everything within his power to see that she is happy and well taken care of.  What else could parents ask for their daughter's mate?  Wayne and Kay are crazy about her as well, and that makes us feel good as well.  I have several friends who do not have good relationships with their in-laws.  I can't imagine being in a relationship where my in-laws didn't like me.  Thank God my father-in-law and my mother-in-law accepted me as a daughter and didn't see me just as their son's wife.

To Lance and Jessi...May God bless your life with much happiness and joy.  May your days be filled with sunshine.  And not that I'm rushing you, but I can't wait for the phone call saying we're going to be grandparents again.  LOL  Your daddy and I love both of you so very much, and we are so very happy for you!  Congratulations and best wishes!

Only a month left

One month from today, I will be greeting my seniors for the 2010-2011 school year.  Summers just don't seem to last nearly long enough.  The old saying says that three reasons to be a teacher are June, July, and August, but that certainly isn't true now.  Not in Alabama anyway.  Our last instructional day for the past year was May 27, and the first instructional day for the new year is Aug. 9.

I know that the next month is going to fly by.  We are "booked" every weekend until the end of the month.  We have a couple's shower/party to go to this weekend for Wes and Brooke.  (Wes's mom and John went to school together, and his stepdad and John have been friends forever.)  We have our big event...Jessi and Lance's wedding...in just over a week, and then we have our weekend to stay with John's mom.  My plans for that last weekend before I have to start to work do not include doing ANYTHING except relaxing at the lake. 

Between now and the end of the month, I need to get busy with my plans for the year.  I want to revamp some of the material I teach.  I did sit down the other night and read a couple of pieces that I haven't read before, and I think I'll add one of them.  I was at the school yesterday for a bit, and I looked at my roster.  Unless there are changes, I have 103 students first semester.  I know I'll have to revamp my research process.  I don't see any way I can grade five bib cards and 20 note cards for 103 students in one weekend.  It was hard enough to get everything graded with only 75-80 students.

Am I ready to get back to reality?  Not quite, but I think it's more because I dread having to get up early.  I am ready to see all of my teacher buddies and to see what the year holds. 

For now, I'm going to enjoy these last few weeks.

As always, have a GREAT day!

So, who ARE you, really?

For that matter, who am I? Over the past few years that I've blogged, I've read a variety of blogs. Some have made me laugh, some have made me cry, and some have made me shake my head in wonder. I've read blogs and thought to myself, "I would LOVE to be this person's friend in 'real life' because she ROCKS." You know, unless your readers are ALL family and friends, it would be so very easy to create the person we want others to think we are. Heck, even with family and friends, we can do that to an extent, right?

Think about it. Sadly, we occasionally hear horror stories about young girls who are befriended by someone who pretends to be around the same age. Amazingly, they have extremely similar interests and hit it off. After several weeks, they plan to meet at the local mall. The only problem is that the person who befriended the girl ends up being a 40 year old pervert who rapes her and leaves her dead in the woods. It happens. We know that 50 year old men who are undercover agents pretend to be 15 year old girls just to catch those pervs and get them off the streets.

And it isn't just perverts or undercover agents who do this. HOW do you know that I am who I say I am? HOW do you know that I'm happily married to a wonderful man? HOW do you know that he doesn't beat the living hell out of me on a regular basis? HOW do you know that I love my job as a teacher? I could tell you that I have been selected Teacher of the Year three times during my career, and you'd never know the difference unless you work with me or live in the same town. (Just for the record, I haven't been TOTY once, much less three times.) I could tell you that I have run in the New York Marathon, and you'd simply have to take my word for it. I could take the experiences of someone else, make them mine, and then share them with you.

I'm not saying that this happens with bloggers in general, but I'm sure it happens some. Why do people do this? Who knows. I'm sure a variety of reasons exist. And what in the world even made me think of this as a blog topic? The Brad Paisley song Online has been running through my head today, and it just made me wonder. I mean...how easy would it be??