Filling the Un

There are many times, I have had that unsettled feeling that I am not productive enough, not leaving a significant enough mark in the world, not clutching onto that brass ring, not swinging on that star. It hits me once in a while, and I ride the familiar roller coaster of unease. It's more than restlessness and just shy of  full-blown panic.

On my desk, there are literally 3 novels in various stages of completion, sitting there. There are countless ideas for novels and books in my head. Yet they gather dust in both places. At my work station, I have boxes of beads and bindings waiting to be turned into jewelry. In my drawers, there are paints and brushes, pens and appliques, paper and pencils waiting to participate in my great art project. On my computer are various images and textures itching to be turned into digital art. On my phone, under To Do, is listed a camera that I want to buy and start taking photographs to use in said digital art.

Let's not even mention the other things on my To Do list that need to be done. One of which is bombing my garden because after all that work and money, it is again overgrown with weeds. So much for low-maintenance garden. Time to install grass and put this albatross on the market. I'm not made for this. Give me a self-contained apartment and I'm good to go.

And as I sit, with this feeling of un-achievement. As I wallow in all the things that I could be doing but don't, I ask myself: What the Eff are you waiting for? What's holding you back? Where has all your mojo gone?

Maybe I simply have given myself too many things to do. It could be possible that I'm suffering from apprentice-at-many-things-but-master-at-none syndrome. Maybe, my focus should be shifted from all the things that are not getting done, created, achieved and focus on what I have accomplished to start with.

After a long struggle, I am solidly on the road to losing weight, having lost 30 lbs or so over the summer. I feel like I am carving myself out of the layer of excess baggage I have been carrying around for most of my life. After all, I have lost a small 5 year old that had been piggy-backing on my body. I feel lighter, more accomplished, prettier and more human. I feel like I will achieve the total weight loss that has been my Nemesis and be the woman I have always been inside, underneath, in my head.

That's huge. That mends my self-esteem and how I move about in the world. It helps my gaze meet that of others instead of looking away in shame because of the way I look. It boosts my confidence and self-assurance that I have a place in the world instead of living in a category of people who are constantly being criticized, made fun of or pitied. I am becoming unchained from the stereotype that fits a body type that fits a mental image this society has about people who have looked like me. That's got to be worth as much as a finished novel?

I have been independent and supporting myself for most of my life. I have gotten very little help along the way in paying for my bills, making the decisions that make a life function smoothly, providing the necessities and some of the luxuries. I have managed to buy, sustain and pay for two houses in succession by myself. That's gotta count for something. At least one line of jewelry can equate to this accomplishment.

I have successfully eased 20 years-worth of students into an understanding of how their brains work, an appreciation of literature and the written word. I have made them think, and laugh and be engaged. And I'm still doing it to this day with equal commitment and passion. I love the essence of my job though I have no interest in the politics and agendas that plague the system that has not succeeded in jading me from the things that I love- imparting the brilliance of literature and the students with which I interact. That's surely on par with a gallery of paintings?

Am I famous? Hell no. Will I ever be? Who the heck knows? That doesn't mean I haven't achieved greatness in some small way (yes, I know it's an oxymoron). It also doesn't mean that the novel I have been sitting on, or the jewelry line that languishes in my head, or the artwork that is awaiting to leave my fingertips will not surface. It means that I need to stop focusing on the unfulfilled and start filling it.. bit by bit.

The feeling between uneasiness and full-blown panic begins to ease. I reach for my phone and put "Save for a Camera" on the top of my to-do list.

Filling the Un

There are many times, I have had that unsettled feeling that I am not productive enough, not leaving a significant enough mark in the world, not clutching onto that brass ring, not swinging on that star. It hits me once in a while, and I ride the familiar roller coaster of unease. It's more than restlessness and just shy of  full-blown panic.

On my desk, there are literally 3 novels in various stages of completion, sitting there. There are countless ideas for novels and books in my head. Yet they gather dust in both places. At my work station, I have boxes of beads and bindings waiting to be turned into jewelry. In my drawers, there are paints and brushes, pens and appliques, paper and pencils waiting to participate in my great art project. On my computer are various images and textures itching to be turned into digital art. On my phone, under To Do, is listed a camera that I want to buy and start taking photographs to use in said digital art.

Let's not even mention the other things on my To Do list that need to be done. One of which is bombing my garden because after all that work and money, it is again overgrown with weeds. So much for low-maintenance garden. Time to install grass and put this albatross on the market. I'm not made for this. Give me a self-contained apartment and I'm good to go.

And as I sit, with this feeling of un-achievement. As I wallow in all the things that I could be doing but don't, I ask myself: What the Eff are you waiting for? What's holding you back? Where has all your mojo gone?

Maybe I simply have given myself too many things to do. It could be possible that I'm suffering from apprentice-at-many-things-but-master-at-none syndrome. Maybe, my focus should be shifted from all the things that are not getting done, created, achieved and focus on what I have accomplished to start with.

After a long struggle, I am solidly on the road to losing weight, having lost 30 lbs or so over the summer. I feel like I am carving myself out of the layer of excess baggage I have been carrying around for most of my life. After all, I have lost a small 5 year old that had been piggy-backing on my body. I feel lighter, more accomplished, prettier and more human. I feel like I will achieve the total weight loss that has been my Nemesis and be the woman I have always been inside, underneath, in my head.

That's huge. That mends my self-esteem and how I move about in the world. It helps my gaze meet that of others instead of looking away in shame because of the way I look. It boosts my confidence and self-assurance that I have a place in the world instead of living in a category of people who are constantly being criticized, made fun of or pitied. I am becoming unchained from the stereotype that fits a body type that fits a mental image this society has about people who have looked like me. That's got to be worth as much as a finished novel?

I have been independent and supporting myself for most of my life. I have gotten very little help along the way in paying for my bills, making the decisions that make a life function smoothly, providing the necessities and some of the luxuries. I have managed to buy, sustain and pay for two houses in succession by myself. That's gotta count for something. At least one line of jewelry can equate to this accomplishment.

I have successfully eased 20 years-worth of students into an understanding of how their brains work, an appreciation of literature and the written word. I have made them think, and laugh and be engaged. And I'm still doing it to this day with equal commitment and passion. I love the essence of my job though I have no interest in the politics and agendas that plague the system that has not succeeded in jading me from the things that I love- imparting the brilliance of literature and the students with which I interact. That's surely on par with a gallery of paintings?

Am I famous? Hell no. Will I ever be? Who the heck knows? That doesn't mean I haven't achieved greatness in some small way (yes, I know it's an oxymoron). It also doesn't mean that the novel I have been sitting on, or the jewelry line that languishes in my head, or the artwork that is awaiting to leave my fingertips will not surface. It means that I need to stop focusing on the unfulfilled and start filling it.. bit by bit.

The feeling between uneasiness and full-blown panic begins to ease. I reach for my phone and put "Save for a Camera" on the top of my to-do list.

Reality Insanity

I sit here in my office, staring out at the snow as it tumbles down in tufts for the first time this season. My coffee is warm and perfect. My house is quiet. Peace reigns inside and outside my head.

I have not fallen off the face of this planet. I have been cocooning, trying to restore my balance, my sense of direction, my stoicism. What I have been doing a lot of is reading and watching television - namely the Olympics and reality TV.

First, and foremost, I would like to especially thank Serena, Gemma, Judi, Rowena, Boho Mama, Shell, Steve, Tabby, Paula, Queen Muse, Rosebud, Tess (welcome!) and Cynthia (welcome back!) for your beautifully supportive and touching comments. All the best to you, my blogging friends. I have returned to blogland because of you. There was a time I thought of deleting my blog and leaving because I started to think I had nothing much to say worth sharing and because I have been a very poor blog pal indeed.

My news in a nutshell:

• My gluten-free diet has had several positive effects. I have gone down a dress size; I don't feel bloated with painful gas any more; my skin is clearing up. The most interesting part about all this is that it has not been a struggle to maintain. No falling off the wagon. No cravings that I can't overcome.

• I have now almost completely gone organic, especially with meat and dairy products. The hormones that have been fattening up the livestock, have been fattening me up. I figure it's worth a try, and since only good can come of it, there is nothing to lose, except a few extra dollars and hopefully a lot of extra pounds. And as the commercial says, I'm worth it. :)

• I have scrapped all my other projects in favor of writing about something that has truly preoccupied me which is the sad state of my profession. The preliminary title of my book is School Schmool, but that it bound to change. I will share some of it with you, welcoming your feedback.

• I have immersed myself in reality TV: Amazing Race, The Bachelor, Survivor, American Idol. There is something lurky and seedy about these shows that in my present state of mind, I crave. I have always been a student of human nature, my own and others'; and these shows provide me with infinite material. It is mostly this material that I will be sharing with you on my blog until the implosion of my personal life settles into something more inspiring. :)

Here are some of my preliminary thoughts on these shows:

Amazing Race is easily my favorite because not only does it take us around the world to experience things we probably never will, but it contains a lovely element of personal achievement. This season has an additional sweet spot, namely the inclusion of a couple who met and got together on Big Brother, Jeff and Jordan. I enjoy seeing them in circumstances diametrically opposed to those on BB. They have been doing quite well; not to mention they are genuinely cute together.

Survivor: Heroes versus Villains is really a misnomer. It is supremely difficult to win this game being a "hero". Strategy is all about blindsides and backstabbing. After all they must outwit, outplay, outlast. I have favorites from both those tribes, and am looking forward to seeing what happens.

The Bachelor is not a show I usually watch, and have not watched throughout. The whole concept is quite unsettling especially with contractual obligations to pretend to be "in love" or "falling for" multiple partners, ensuing in inevitable drama. The thing that got to me about this season is not the participants as much as the viewers and the media. You would have to live in a time-warped bubble not to notice how the tabloids, show hosts, and entertainment commentators have been shamelessly trashing one of the women of the show, Vienna. People have been saying and printing some very vicious statements about her; and having watched some of the show, I have to wonder what about her brings out the mean girl in so many. To repeat what they have been saying would be condoning it, so I won't but seriously do these people have any mirrors in their homes?

American Idol Season 9 is under way; and for the first time I have been watching it since the auditions. Though I had some early favorites, the first show with the 24 left me bored and repeatedly reaching for the remote, especially when I writhed with agony at the many pitch problems. Could the contestants even hear themselves? I watched as each of my favorites floundered through songs I would have not picked for them, and renditions that either puzzled me or left me in need of pain killers. I am cursed with perfect pitch. My ears were offended regularly by several of the women and men.

The one bright spot of the show? Ellen. She brings a ray of sunshine on the judges' panel which has been horribly nasty, and unproductively negative throughout the process. They laughed in people's faces during some of the auditions; and no matter how foolish and deluded those auditioning are, it does not excuse this rude and childish behavior on the part of the judges. The comments they were making on the first live show, while true, could have been tempered with some tact and humanity. In past seasons, I have always agreed with Simon's assessment, after all, the man knows the industry; but I found myself shaking my head at his comments on Tuesday's and Wednesday's shows. He has been particularly brutal. His eye might be projected into his X Factor future, but this is no way to act. He was however, not the only one with inappropriate commentary and behaviour. Kara DioGuardi's simpering and carrying on during contestant's Casey James' performance was just plain embarrassing.

Phew. What a long post! Stay tuned for more show commentary and snippets of the book I am writing. I will be coming around like a good blog neighbor to have some tea at your blog homes and eagerly read what you have been up to!

Cheers my beautiful friends. :) It's good to be back.

Chronicles of Change

All good things come to those who change. Once the decision has been made, there are several processes that need to happen. Visualization of the change is necessary, but so are the practical things that can bring it to fruition. One must research and study, and then prepare the necessary tools. It also takes courage and an iron will to leave behind habits of being that have not been working.

Then comes the slow and steady application of the visualizations, research and preparations. In other words, action.

These are the chronicles of my change:

Professionally, I have decided to remove myself emotionally from the many failures of the system in which I work. In letting go of the things that are not in my control, I am free to focus on the things that are. I am free to focus on the fun in my profession not the frustrations.

Personally, I have been speaking up to the people in my life who have thus far marginalized me. I don't keep silent out of politeness, anymore. I don't grumble to others about it. I just tell them what I find acceptable and what I don't. Bottom line. I don't want to spend any more time trying to keep people in my life who don't respect my time or my company. I have people who do; I'll focus on them.

Physically, I am in the process of changing my diet. I call it a process because there is a huge learning curve here. The first thing off the menu is gluten; and so many things contain gluten. Things that are prepared gluten-free are very expensive which means I need to make the foods I used to buy. Like bread or bread products. I need to change the way I prepare my meals. I have to be conscious of everything that's in every forkful of food I eat.

I am swimming in a huge kaleidoscope of changes. It can seem daunting; but I am excited. Yes, excited because the things that are not working are not worth keeping. It clears the way for things that do.

Ain't Life Grand?

As I hop off the whirlwind that is my life right now for a little bit, and I get my bearings, I am suddenly hit with a marvelous revelation. Things are happening. Wonderful things. Every day. Sure, there are setbacks, and frustrations, events that make me want to tear someone's hair out, but I choose to not focus on those right now. Right now, I will take a moment to reflect on the successes.

As the year is winding down to an end, I took some time out on Sunday again to recuperate from parties and gatherings, from errands and gifts, from cleaning and reorganizing, from the myriad of tasks that are associated with my job.

I made a lot of wishes this past year, set a lot of goals, put together a lot of dream boards, and chose a word for the year which was actualization. In other words, I set a whole lot of wheels in motion.

Where did those wheels take me?

To actualization.

• I wanted to rearrange my home and garden, and I did. My garden is a clean palette ready to be turned into a Zen garden. I rearranged my home for maximum efficiency and use, comfort and enjoyment.
• I wanted to get back into a more creative living and I did. I started drawing again, making jewelry, planning creative workshops, spreading the creativity out to my students and colleagues.
• I wanted to organize and streamline my department at work and I did. The physical spaces at work are now more functional and accessible to all. People aren't tripping over extraneous clutter. The courses and curriculum are well on their way to being more seamless between the grades, and the teaching more consistent between the sections.
• I wanted to open up to life after a period of retreat, and I am. I am accepting more invitations, opening up to new people, and enjoying life without unnecessary expectations.
• I wanted to travel, and although I haven't yet, I am closer to my goal. :)

All in all, not bad for a year. Not bad at all! :)

It's important to take some time and take some stock in our accomplishments. You would be surprised how many there are once you start listing them. Even in a year of challenge and hardship. There are silver linings everywhere. What are your silver linings?

Darkness Be Gone!

There have been times in my life when I have felt the darkness sweep down on me like a vulture ready for the last vestiges of life to leave my heart. I have felt the curtain of despair slowly fall on me, enveloping my mind and heart, turning everything bleak. I have walked with shadows as they pointed out the wasteland around me, gleefully relishing my sadness.

Yet, in those times, when my whole being was threatened with a subterranean existence, I did not realize that a warrior lived inside of me. A woman more powerful than all the cartooned images I idolized as a child. A woman strong enough to will the darkness back, laugh despair into oblivion, tear down the curtains to let in the light, shoot an arrow straight into the heart of that vulture. To make the wasteland dissolve into a world filled with light, life and possibility.

It started as an echo of a voice. A dream of one day being saved by some nebulous other. A longing for release and acceptance. A wish for the shining armored figure to come galloping to my rescue. While outside, a battle waged for my being.

There were enemies everywhere, lurking in mirrors to mock me, in false friendships and love affairs to destroy me, in broken promises, in well-meaning put-downs. And I ingested all of them, accepting my defeat, swallowing the criticism, giving into the apathy.

But she would not let me. Not my warrior.

Her voice became stronger, more outraged, more emphatic. She refused to give in, acquiesce, lay down her arms. She fought on for me, despite of me.

And I survived.

Every heartbreak.

Every broken dream.

Every forsaken promise.

Every maiming experience.

And I am here today, to say, I am victorious. Every time that vulture appears on the horizon, I take aim at it until it falls in a heap to the ground. Every time that curtain threatens to smother my breath, I rip it away and let the fresh air in.

I choose the light.

I am the warrior.

And it feels good!

Serenity Revisited

Good morning beautiful people!

I would like to start this day by saying Thank YOU! I don't know how you do it, but you have woven a magic carpet and allow me to ride it daily. Your words, your comments, your selves boost me UP, and I am so grateful. :)

My wish is coming true.

Yesterday, I was firmly inside my bubble of serenity, undisturbed. I floated through the day in bliss.

I printed out the directives that I had put together yesterday morning (3:30 am) for the department, (three pages) in preparation for the meeting. I photocopied them and placed them in their mailboxes. I even showed it to the Vice Principal in charge, and the Principal to make sure I didn't have anything over the top on there, and they want to use it as a template for other departments!

I took something that was frustrating me, and I turned it around. If I don't make a change, then I am doing everything for nothing. The department needs organization desperately, and that is exactly what I am doing. Even if I decide not to do this again, I will have achieved my goals.

I painted the above in photoshop as a celebration. That is how I was feeling yesterday. Floating.
It's challenging indeed "painting" with a mouse, but you know I love a challenge. *wink*

I also worked a little bit more on this landscape, and I believe now I am finished with it. :)

First stage:

(click on image to enlarge)

The clouds and water are mostly how I wanted them to be, but the mountain shapes and land mass lack definition.

Second stage:

(click on image to enlarge)

I made the mountains snowy and blue and added the fall trees on the edge of the lake. Better. I didn't know what to do with the brown goopy things behind them.

Final stage:

(click on image to enlarge)

I got rid of the goop, gave the mountains more definition and a darker color, added a few birds, and voila. Landscape Dream!

The next step in my creative endeavors is to combine the two skills I am acquiring in photoshop: digital collage, and painting. I am excited to see what I can come up with!

It has been such a blessing being part of this blogging community. I might sound like a broken record, but I cannot say it enough. I am challenged, inspired, supported, and nurtured daily by this Fountain of Love, this Tribe of Creativity, and I cannot get enough! :)

Thank you again!

Blessed be :)

Freedom

I wake up early but in a delicious mood. It's my first day off for the holidays and I am mistress of my own time!

How awesome!

Outside the world is blanketed with snow. The first storm of the season. Everything is white with blue gray shadows outside, like a million doves resting peacefully. We are expecting more snow, so this is a perfect weekend to hibernate with a good book, pop corn and movies. A few deep power naps and some frolicking in the snow should balance out the next couple of days nicely, and restore my energy levels.

Yesterday, the last day of school, was filled with smiles and well-wishes, cookies and goodies.

We also had our assembly where the teachers performed for the students.

Okay. Can I say how exhilarating that was? When we got on stage and throughout our performance, the students brought down the house. We felt like superstars. From the way they reacted to our performance, I think we killed it. Heh! When I get the video or a link to youtube with our performance, I will get to see it. And so will you! :) I'm not too shy to post it. ;)

Today's card is Release, a transformed "Judgement". I chose to rename this card for the obvious reasons. Judgement, though a word that means balanced consideration, has also become associated with rigidly negative connotations. I'm all about transmuting the negative into positive, so "Release" was born. Out of the fire, powerful intentions shimmer into the universe. Reborn, renewed, released, this surge enlivens the spirit, the heart, the body with a fresh infusion of life. This is a sacred communion between the soul and her origin spirit. It is a profoundly personal source of enlightenment, not a dire accounting of one's flaws.

We have all been there. We are our own worst critics, most of us. I know I can be. I don't know why it is so much easier to put ourselves down, than to give ourselves praise. We worry that we will seem immodest, arrogant, self-absorbed; but if we do not acknowledge our own victories, and forgive ourselves of our flaws, while working on them with awareness, then we are not authentic.

I release all that I am, knowing I am growing into the soul I am, free from the influences that pummeled me into submission. I shed the negative, accusatory influences that have sought to bring me down. I step out of the soup of negative energy into the fire of transformation, being all that I truly am.

This is my wish for you. To be reborn from the ashes of the destructive influences in your lives, and out of the fire of intent, rise, the truly splendid souls you are!

Blessed be :)

Turning Turning

I can taste it. Two more days, and I will be released into my own care. In other words, HOLIDAYS!

The past few weeks were wrought with stress as my plate of things to do and situations to deal with has been heaped higher and higher. There have been a couple of breaking points when I thought quite literally I would lose my mind, but I have mostly kept it together. At least I didn't pummel anyone within an inch of their lives. :)

Taking the good advice of the my many friendly guides in the blogoshpere and in my everyday life, I started to trim down the things I committed to doing. I'm not completely stress free. I have undertaken some huge tasks because I believe in them, but I am taking myself off the hook. I put myself there to begin with.

Time for change and turn of events is upon me. This I can feel in the very marrow of my soul. This is inevitable, as I am in the process of transformation. I am coming into my own, everyday more sure of my direction, clearer in my vision, more steady in my intention.

Tuesday, I chaired a staff meeting that could have been disastrous. I'm not exaggerating. Those of you who have been following my journey, know that there are plenty of reasons for anger, resentment, frustration in my workplace. It is bubbling over with toxicity. It threatened to explode on a guest speaker we had come in to go through Safe Schools procedure which has become Law. I had to make sure that people stayed calm, and had an opportunity to speak without losing their tempers. I even stepped in to save one teacher who was in the process of committing professional hari kari. I know I did a good job because everyone I have encountered since has told me so. Even the principal... (insert a pregnant pause). Yes that principal!

We had more interviews this week and selected another outstanding candidate for yet another position (one of five) that needs to be filled. I know I am responsible for this process happening in a timely fashion because in the past, we have languished for weeks without necessary positions being filled.

In the midst of dealing with exams, and substitute teachers from hell, maintaining a delicate balance between my personal and professional relationships in the department, trying to make sure my students have the skills necessary to achieve their goals, I have proven that I can also play an important role on a school-wide scale. Yes. I am proud of myself. I don't remember another time in my life when I said those words, and meant them.

That is transformation indeed.

This is why I chose today to let The Wheel of Fortune make her appearance. This is her day.

The tide is ever turning. Conditions ever change. Situations transmute into other ones. The wheel keeps turning; but with our guides, and the wisdom they allow us, we can gain insight, enlightenment and empowerment through these changes. And before we know it, the change is within us. Many fear change because of its uncertain outcome, but it is necessary for growth; and in embracing it, we experience life and ourselves in ways we never imagined. How exciting is that? :)

May your steps lead you to exciting, new discoveries. :)

Blessed be :)

100th Post!

Woohooo! I made it to my 100th post! I never thought how much starting a blog would change my life, but it did.

It started as a solitary journey, a need to type out my thoughts and let them go into cyberspace. I had this growing desire to let my thoughts wander out of my head onto the web. Most of the time they went unread except by me, but it was alright. In the action was the reason. I wanted to put my voice out there.

There were months I published quite a few posts, and months when I hardly published anything at all.

Then through a series of fortunate events, I came upon Soul Coaching and decided to participate at the last minute. I didn't think I would have time to complete it, but I thought I would give it a try.

And I am glad I did. Going through the exercises taught me a lot about myself and has started me on a journey of awareness like I have not had before.

But more importantly, it allowed me to connect to a world of amazing people whose encouragement, advice, support and friendship have come to mean so much to me. My journey is no longer solitary. I reach out, and others reach back. I have become part of a community of souls that has filled my heart with hope.

Externally, my life has not changed that much. Yet. I live in the same home. I work at the same place. I deal with the same B.S. I am in a leadership position now, which has added to my stress exponentially.

All that is just the peel of the fruit. The juice and pulp have altered. I am transforming.

I have started and will complete my Tarot project which is the child of this journey. It was birthed through this process, and now has a voice of its own. Its own purpose and destiny.

I am identifying the things that fill me and the things that deplete me, and in so doing I am in the process of allocating them according importance and impact in my life.

I am aware of myself, and how I react to others. I am learning to stop blaming myself for others' decisions and actions. I am asserting myself more, not in an effort to control others, but in an effort to have integrity in what I believe in and who I am.

I was taught at a tender and early age to subjugate myself for others. That my feelings, my needs and my goals were not as important as anyone else's. That even in saying that they were, I was being selfish. This made me vulnerable. I was damaged, as person after person came into my life, took what he or she needed, and then left without a backward glance. Each time, I was left with a lower self-worth, half-broken. But I didn't break. I kept on. I tried to make others happy.

Now I know how sadly deluded I was. I cannot make anyone happy. I am not responsible for anyone else's happiness. That is not to say I can go around stomping on people and disregarding their feelings. It does mean however, that they cannot do that to me either.

I don't know if I am relaying how important this last realization is, but it's gigantic. It's liberating.

This is why I have chosen The Star for today's Tarot. It speaks of possibility. Of hope. Of being guided to a better today. This card is about the nourishment of dreaming. The integrity of vision. The belief that one's path is authentic and true. With this card, I am aware of my accomplishments, and of the road ahead. It is filled with light.

May the Star guide your steps to your soul's ease.

Blessed be :)

Challenging but Positive! Week 4

This week was a challenging one, but I will not lose track of my newly formed practice of celebrating the good things.

• I held a meeting after school with the Grade 9 teachers for information and support. I treated them all to coffee and muffins. They were all appreciative and we all came out of that meeting with great ideas and plans. It was a success!
• I was able to correctly identify what was bothering me, and let it all come out uncensored so that I may deal with it.
• I was asked to do a seminar on blogging in the classroom for the school.
• I was able to take care of a friend when she was not feeling too well.
• I made an exciting lesson plan about archetypes and Tarot cards using Power Point. The students loved it!
• I finally got a landscaper to clean out my front garden and car port. The front is a clean slate to work on in the spring!
• I went on an awesome field trip with the Grade 9s to a performance of Elizabethan music as it relates to Shakespeare. It was very informative. The hurdy gurdy was fascinating!