Week Plans

This week my schedule is changing a bit. I am going to start tutoring my niece. Natalie has been going to a tutor once a week anyway for math. I am excited to have the ability to help out, but tutoring can be difficult in the respect that you need to make learning all that more fun. As if not doing this on a daily basis wasn't ahrd enough, this is also my niece. I'm not going to lie. My 2nd bedroom has become not guest quarters anymore. After being privey to 2 retirements of teachers that were more "hands on" then you can shake a stick at, my guest room has become a teaching material warehouse. I literally have any type of manipulative imaginable in boxes and boxes. While some seasoned teachers thought I should throw out all of this stuff b/c it becomes overwhelming & start anew, I ahve successfully pilfered through all of it & now it's permanent home has become what I will term as "my teacher closet." I just couldn't help it. Both of these teachers that retired had a lot of cool stuff that I knew that I would inevtably have to run out at 11:00 on a school night & try to find for a various science experiment, project, etc. Anyway, enough on that tangent. I am excited to tutor this week. I hope that I can help in a fun way.

Weekend

The summer night is like a perfection of thought. ~Wallace Stevens

Had a relaxing weekend this weekend. Tried to not spend a lot of money. I really wanted to go to Tom Petty at Deer Creek but I tried to be responsible. Therefore, I worked out & went to Natalie's school /church picnic. Saturday I watched a movie (Matchpoint with Scarlet Johansen) and then went out for a couple of drinks with Heather & Jason. t felt nice to get really fixed up. I hadn't done that all week really. Yesterday I spent the day with mom at the pool. Colin gave me JBL speakers (he got the fat Bose system for Christmas & didn't need them anymore) Anyway, they are these portable speakers that connect to ipod at the pool. It makes the pool experience that much more fun. The only downside of it is that it requires batteries that only last for like 10 hours. But I am not complaining! I am very fortunate to have these. They will be so much fun during vacation. Additionally, it is nice to introduce new music to my sister. My mom got a Shuffle for when she goes to the gym so I make playlists & download them for her as well. Finally, on Sunday night I came home & watched some tv. Dad told me about a documentary that they are doing all summer on the History Channel about the Revolution. I flipped between this and another Sunday favorite on cable "Intervention".

No work

There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart. ~Celia Thaxter

Ok, I resigned myself to the fact that I'm not going to work this summer. It's like I wake up in the morning with the best intentions of trying to be responsible & to find some summer work & then I end up on this computer, dowmloading music, at the gym, or playing with my niece & nephew. It seemed so easy to get temp work when I lived in Indy. In fact, I would even say that I was a pro at it. However, in Louisville there haven't been any callbacks on the issue. Therefore, I've decided to put my efforts elsewhere. I figure that next school year that I will have my hands full anyway with going to a new grade. There will be homework for me every night. There will be no assistant & I definitely don't know the content area like I did 1st grade. There will be a lot more grunt work in 5th at night, to be sure.

Anyway, I am also just enjoying waking up in the morn and having the ooportunity to do things that I never have an opportunity to do during the school year. These are things that I never get the opportunity to do in the morns during school:
1)Check non school e mail
2) Write in my blog
3)Go out to lunch
4) Drink as much chai tea as I want (there won't be a bathroom in my room this coming year)
5) Straighten up the house (what's that during the school year? That's reserved for weekends)

Summer Reading

Anyone who says they have only one life to live must not know how to read a book. ~Author Unknown

One of the best things about summer vacation is having the opportunity to get some reading done. While the latter half of summer break I will be doing some 5th grade novels & getting ready for the school year, I am just reading some random stuff right now. I just got done with the following books and would recommend:
1) Me Talk Pretty One Day-David Sedaris
2) Dress your Family in Denim and Courdorouy-David Sedaris
I liked both Sedaris books. They kinda reminded me of the Chuck Closterman (Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs" that I read over Spring Break. It is just basically short storoes on pop culture. I guess that he was in Louisville recently at the Palace doing something with NPR & This American Life. At any rate, they were both pretty humorous books.
3)Nickel and Dimed-This is a documentary from a woman that went around and worked only minimim wage jobs just to see of she could get by. It was an interesting read, but only depressed me---whom lives pretty much paycheck to paycheck as well. At any rate, it was a pretty quick read and satisfied my need to constantly read about oppressed people.
4)The Beach- This book said that it was an international bestseller & now a major motion picture. I guess I didn't get the memo? Anyway, I am not quite done with this one but it basically reminds me of a lot of different types of books rolled into 1. The basic jist is a group of gen x'ers on a beach. But so far it's a thriller. I will keep ya posted.......

Carefree

A life without love is like a year without summer. ~Swedish Proverb

The last couple of days the weather has been fabulous. I love that the summer has not been to incredibly hot, and this is definitely a favorite time of my break. It’s amazing how fast the day goes during the school year, but it’s even faster in the summer. It is already the middle of June. At any rate, the past few days have been fairly uneventful, but I can honestly say that this is the first week that I feel completely relaxed. It’s weird that it takes that long to decompress from the school year, but I guess that’s what’s to be expected from a year of running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Anyway, went out to see the kids since I hadn’t seen them for a couple of days. Mom left for Atlanta so no downloading music for a couple of days. (I left the key in the house b/c I forgot that she was going out of town) Therefore, spent the afternoon with Heather and the kids and then went out for some adult time. After too many adult beverages and meeting new friends, safely arrived home. Spent the rest of the weekend getting liscense tags renewed, took a quick roadie to Bowling Green, went swimming at Heath’s health club, and made pinwheels and special cake for Father’s Day. Still have to run out and get something for dad. He’s so hard to shop for. Guess I will take the easy way out and opt for a shirt or book.

Groundhog's Day

Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability. ~Sam Keen

Ok, so the past couple of days have been somewhat surreal in the fact that it seemed like it was groundhog's day. Shannon has had the whole week off & I am just now getting back toi Louisville to recap the weekend's adventures. I have been neglectful of the blog but it was only because I kept trying to relive the last couple of days over and over. It was a kinda of experiment of sorts. While I was coerced by Shannon to engage in the never-ending weekend, I was definitely a supporter of having a partner-in- crime to help kickoff my summer break as well. Therefore, it was no surprise to focus our attention on several things, but mostly the sun, fun and laughter.
I asked Shannon the other day where she thought we might wake up in the morning. Her guess was as good as mine. To be sure, wherever my head hit the pillow, sun, fun and laughter were involved.

Not glib at all

What is one to say about June, the time of perfect young summer, the fulfillment of the promise of the earlier months, and with as yet no sign to remind one that its fresh young beauty will ever fade. ~Gertrude Jekyll

So "glib" seemed to spread like wildfire this weekend. It has made for definite summer of 2006 vocabulary for the masses. While less than a month ago we watched Tom Cruise accuse Matt of being glib, it seemed to be on the tip of everyone's tongue that I was around this weekend. I am glad that no one was glib around me. However, I might've had to remind some to keep their spirits up and return to a healthy state of non-glibness at all times. Moreover, were anyone to be too glib, I would have had to remove myself from the glibness at all times.

On a seperate note, I guess the popularity of the word got out to the masses via a newspaper article, VH1 and word of mouth. I'm glad it's out. If my friends and I were too selfish with the word, it would have been TOTALLY GLIB.

Italian Fest

Summer is the time when one sheds one's tensions with one's clothes, and the right kind of day is jeweled balm for the battered spirit. A few of those days and you can become drunk with the belief that all's right with the world. ~Ada Louise Huxtable

Had a great weekend that lasted a little longer than usual. Started the weekend out at the Italian Fest to celebrate Shannon's birthday. Weather was beautiful and the slight breeze made the wine experience that more inviting. This is definitely becoming an annual event, going both nights during the fest. After a delightful meatball sandwich to entice my palette it was off with the gang for a bit of dancing. Fun had by all, pics to come.

Chrystie's Pirates

Xander

Lilly

Garrett

Screw aerobics, I think I could just hang out with these little ones (a year apart each) and I could get back to my pre back to Louisville figure.

What is an aunt but to gloat?

Come on, you know they're cute..................