Kelly's Blog Dump 7/14/08

Okay, so I finally caved in and got a facebook. I swear I spent 8 hours on it today. Sad. Sick. Fun. But it has brought up a dilemma for me- what to do about students- current and former? I've had a couple of friend requests and am not sure what to do.

Along the lines of technology, I also finally played my first games of wii. I am an excellent virtual bowler, which just shows you how inaccurate the game really is. I worked up quite a sweat boxing my sister. My mom couldn't figure out how to time the shots in tennis so she just would frantically wave her controller back and forth in a frenzy hoping to hit the ball. Surprisingly, she often would.

Bravo is giving me a great birthday gift this year.

Also here is the promised haircut shot. I don't know why it's so fuzzy.


Here are just a few Nashville shots.








Besides sight seeing I had a really great time with all my relatives. Last time we got together I posted a picture of my then 1 year old second cousin Jack smoking a cigarette. Well, he has developed a new vice now that he's in his "terrible twos"

Add it to the Map

Now I have to add another city to my map. We decided to go to the Atlanta area to see my grandma for a couple of days before we fly out of Nashville. All I can say is humidity and mosquitos. Although my bites are not as bad as the chigger epidimic of 2007 (AKA Jo's luau) it is still pretty itchy. And I am reminded of why I moved out of my parents' house- my mother's snoring kept me up most of the night last night. Sometimes vacations help me appreciate my "real" life!

On the Road Again

I'm leaving again tomorrow for a family reunion in Nashville. I'm travelling a lot in July, every weekend in fact. After Nashville is a conference in Colorado, followed by a Big Fun Weekend in Dallas to meet the newest addition to the family, Chloe, and wrapping up with a weekend in Sedona. Just for a fun, I made a map of my travels this summer, not including Europe.


View Larger Map

Haircut

I recently got my hair cut and highlights. It was a bit drastic for me since I've basically had the same color and cut forever. And yes, for the last several years I have been cutting it myself with kitchen scissors. Dull kitchen scissors. So here are a few "teaser" pictures of my new "do"

Did I get my hair done like this?

Or is it like this?

Perhaps a photo of my real hair will show up soon!

Where I Was

Sorry I didn't post from Europe. But I am back. I was on a school trip to Edinburgh, Scotland; London, Oxford and Stratford upon Avon, England (obviously); and Paris. Here are a few picture highlights.

The Elephant House coffee shop in Edinburgh where Rowling wrote the first HP. (By the way, I also drove past the Eagle and Child in Oxford which is where the Inklings [Tolkien, Lewis, etc] hung out, but no pics)

The view from the window of the Elephant House is of Edinburgh Castle. Looks just like my vision of Hogwarts.

Just couldn't resist this obvious shot.

Another obvious shot, but London's Tower Bridge is so darn pretty I couldn't help myself.
Another view of London from the Milennium Bridge. Apparently it used to wobble, but I can vouch that it's wobble-free now.
Here's Big Ben and the Eye, which we rode and was very cool.

As an English teacher I was duty bound to go to the recreation of Shakespeare's Globe Theater.



I thought this was an appropriate shot ("Swan at the Globe") since that is what some of my students call me Swan.

Proof the British like their beer. I enjoyed fish and chips and a beer at a pub on the Thames while a soccer game was playing the background. Could there be a more British scene?

The famous white cliffs of Dover. This is the view from our ferry as we crossed the channel to France.

Me and Monet. Proof that I got some culture in France.

This was the view of Greenland from our plane. I couldn't believe how beautiful, not to mention cold looking!

Be assured, there are many more pictures where those come from! Bear with me if I post more soon.

Prom 2008

Ah the joys of prom...

Me and my lovely date

Me and teacher friends (Meg, Meghan, Joanna, Me)... really, were your teachers ever this good looking?

One last cute shot of more of the crew.

Did you know they still dance to Spice Girls? And there's a whole new generation who like to do the "Thriller" dance. And I still can't do the electric slide.

Bathroom Remodel

I know our readers are dying to see what is up in my bathroom. Don't worry, the following pictures are not graphic, although some are ugly. I bring you: The Evolution of a Bathroom


What it looked like when I bought it:

My original bathroom design on a very limited budget:

My latest creation (new tile floor, new toilet, lights, sink, paint, etc.) on a still limited budget:

The last thing I need is artwork. This is what I'm considering.

Birthday Wishes for Jo!

Hau`oli Lā Hānau

MY minor BRUSH WITH A minor CELEBRITY

Friday night we gave my dad his Christmas present, which was a concert with his beloved Beach Boys. We have all been to many BB concerts with him over the years and pretty much knew what to expect: old men in Hawaiian shirts, old men in non-Hawaiian shirts, trophy wives, etc. But this concert proved to be a little different. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, thanks to the writers' strike, the BB had a celebrity guest drummer. BB and Full House fans alike should be uniting on this one: John Stamos. He used to play with them and I guess he got bored since he couldn't work on ER and begged to come back and tour (at least that's what the BB said, but it could very well be the other way around). Anyway he was there, sweating up a storm, playing the guitar, drumming, and even singing. I'll even admit it, he was pretty hot, but it did make me feel a little dirty to think about Uncle Jessie in that way.

Talking Politics With My Mom

At the risk of bringing up the potentially volatile subject of politics, I have to relay the most recent phone call I had with my mother:

Me: Hi Mom, whatcha doing?

Mom: Watching the debates. I have to decide who to vote for.

Me: I'm too lazy to watch the debates. You'll just tell me who I have to vote for anyway.

Mom: No I won't. You can vote for whoever you want.

Me: Then I'm voting for Hillary.

Mom: No you're not. Now get off the phone so I can find out what's wrong with Ron Paul. Click.

Calling All Jane Fans

I don't think any of you are quite as Jane nerdy as I am, but I wanted to alert anyone interested that PBS is airing some new Jane Austen movies on Masterpiece Theater. It's on Sunday nights here, but I'm not sure if that's just my local station. The first one is this Sunday. Here's the link.

By the way, I saw a preview of the movie, The Accidental Husband. I was very upset- since when is the beloved Colin Firth relegated to the role of the uptight British guy who doesn't get the girl? Don't people know he's Mr. Darcy?

The Best of 2007

I'm compiling a list. I know- shocker. What was the best of 2007. Movie, TV, song, book, food, anything. If you have any suggestions, let me know. I will unveil said list soon. Be warned, I have eclectic taste. As Carrie Fisher says in When Harry Meet Sally "Everybody thinks they have good taste and a sense of humor but they couldn't possibly all have good taste." Well, I of course think I have good taste.

Kelly's Christmas Update 2007

My Christmas too was very nice and relaxing. I stayed in my pajamas the entire day. Speaking of pajamas, guess what my mom bought us?I stayed in those pajamas even when my mom's friend Patty and her daughter Sarah came over. The fact that Sarah is one of my students seemed to not phase me at all. Do I have any shame? Or are those just really cute pajamas?

Besides the pajamas I got all sorts of other fun gifts. I got a nice new digital camera, DVDs (The Office seasons 1 & 2, Gilmore Girls season 7, Ocean's 13, Steel Magnolias), a jewelry box, and lots of little fun stuff.

My sister got me something I need like a hole in the head. But I don't think I can have too many of these.

Oh and I got one more thing-a kitchen sink. Literally. Thanks Mom!

The one unexpected gift came from my grandma. My sister got a check for $50. But I guess I'll be saving hundreds!

Rachel and I also enjoyed a gift her sister and brother in law got.

Guitar Hero is very fun and addictive. I think the kicks and dancing hurt my score but it made me look cooler. And guitar is all about looking cool, right?

Holiday Fun

This weekend I participated in a fun tradition around here. There's a neighborhood in which everyone decorates their homes for Christmas. They have hayrides and walkthroughs and such all season long. I have participated a couple of times in a 5K run through the neighborhood. It's really fun to run and see the lights and such. This Sunday night was the annual Jingle Bell Run.

I went with two of my co-workers and their sister. Yes, we are all that tall. The short one on the end is my mother. Here's me with my personal cheering section:

There was one sad thing that happened, although I take no personal responsibility, even though some newspapers blamed it on the runners.

One last Christmas anecdote, my sister who teaches kindergarten told me:

One of her students prayed the other day, in the most sincere voice possible:

"Dear Lord, I pray for all the children...

who don't know...

Santa.

Please, let them hear the bells."

We don't know what she meant either.

Season of Giving

Since this is the season of giving, I decided to get myself a gift. That's what Christmas is all about, right? So I got myself something I have wanted literally for years! As of last night, I now have a DVR. I am assured this will change my life forever. With the DVR and my new satellite TV service I also have three free months of some movie channels. So last night I was up until ungodly hours setting my DVR to tape all the movies I want. But my DVR only holds 150 hours so I will have to hold back the madness at some point.



I also splurged ( I am really bad- I know, I think it's the thrill that I just finished my grad school finals and I'm going crazy) on a really nice purse. For years I have been buying purses from Target (I know- there is no shame) and Ross and the like. I have been very happy with these purchases (except for the one Kate Spade knock off I bought on the street in South Carolina which Wendy assures me was sewn in a sweat shop by a child- I feel pretty guilty about that one) but I saw this one and I just had to have it. I will try to include a picture later.

To counteract all this selfishness, last night I also tried giving a little back. So I spent some time in prison. No joke. My church went Christmas carrolling in prison. My pastor took me a little aback when after singing he said, "now we want to hold hands with you and pray for you." Hold hands??? I signed up for singing- not PDA. But, in the end, it was actually really nice. The prisoners were very respectful and seemed genuinely glad to see us there. And if you were wondering what prisoners watch on TV, I can answer: wrestling, American Movie Classics, and Emeril. I'm not joking.

Sorry, Grandma

Monday night I watched Dancing with the Stars for the first time. My grandmother insisted. She is a huge Marie Osmond fan. In fact, she made me vote for Marie five times. Even after her scary doll dance. If you didn't watch it, this is all you need to see.

Or watch some of the video here.

I believe one judge mentioned Bride of Chucky.

Needless to say, our votes were not enough and poor Marie didn't win.

Weekend Entertainment

This weekend I saw a really touching movie- Lars and the Real Girl. It's another one of those movies where if anyone were doing this is real life it would be creepy, but in a movie it's considered really sweet. I'll admit to tearing up a bit.

I also played Settlers of Catan for the first time. And I won. I sure know how to build those roads.

Saw this on msn and thought it was interesting. Guess if you want to have boys you better stop eating that fish.

Success!

This post might not seem monumental, but it is. This is the first time I have been able to post from work in about two years. It took several technicians and a couple of months to allow me to do this. No, I am not exaggerating. Our IT person said they had to invent entirely new rules of programming or something, just to allow me this great privilege. So now I feel the burden of incredibly interesting and insightful posts. I'm not sure I can live up to this kind of pressure. But this is just to let you know that I'm back. Yay!

Sober Thoughts

It's been a really long time since I've posted and I'm afraid the only thing I want to write about isn't particularly cheerful. Sorry!

Last week I went to a teaching conference on the Holocaust. Now this topic has interested me for a long time. I have been to Dachau and the US Holocaust Museum in DC twice. The conference was really interesting, even more so because there were several survivors there and we had a chance to talk with them personally. I felt a sense of urgency in hearing them because virtually our kids (if they are fortunate) will be the last people to hear these stories in person. It's a sobering thought and one that gives me a profound sense of responsibility. I have had the fortune to hear survivors speak a couple of times and it's pretty amazing. There's a local website that chronicles the lives of surviors who live in my area. Several are the ones we met last week. A couple are already dead. If you have a chance and can hear a survivor speak personally, I really encourage it. At least the ones here are really eager to have their stories heard. Our school is planning to do a whole day and have several come and speak.

By the way, this comic in the local university student paper was of particular discussion the whole time.

Many of the speakers also urged us to find out more about genocide going on around the world, such as in Darfur. I feel convicted because I've been hearing about this for years, but never have really stopped to find out more about it, let alone do anything.

On a somewhat similar note, I have become obsessed with PBS' documentary "The War" by Ken Burns. I've never been a "war person" and couldn't tell if the Battle of the Bulge was during the Civil or Revolutionary War (the answer is ofcourse WWII) and why it had that weird name. Like I said, I'm interested in the Holocaust, primarily because I love stories and battles and war seemed so impersonal. But "The War" sucked me in with of all things, a marathon. So I watched several episodes and was absolutely riveted. The best part is that these men and women tell their personal stories and it really made the events come alive for me. I have even been to Normandy and saw where D-Day occurred, but I don't think I really understood it until I watched it on "The War" and heard the men talk about their experience. It fills me humility to think of the sacrifices that were made. I also so regret the fact that both my grandpas fought in the war and they're both dead now and I never once got to hear their stories (although it wouldn't be surprising if they didn't want to share them). Though some of the results of the war were, at best, morally ambiguous (Hiroshima??) there is no denying the way we are forever changed because of it.

[A somewhat related tangent, I saw the movie Becoming Jane and was struck by how difficult life was for women in that time and really what little freedom they had. It must have been so frustrating to not be able to make money or have a career or be able to choose things you wanted. I found myself thinking, how did things change for women? And of course there were a lot of things, including feminism and women's sufferage, but also WWII. Women joined the work force in droves when the men were off fighting. So some of the reason that I have the freedoms to work and live my life the way I do is also because of the war.]

Anyway, those were some of my rambling "deep" thoughts. Up next I'm watching the series "Band of Brothers" so I'll see if this inspires any more.

New Roommate

Well, I didn't exactly request that he move in, nor does he pay any rent, but apparently I have a new roommate:

( for the record: that is NOT my hand)

Now my little gecko friend doesn't scare me, but I am sort of concerned about his intelligence level. Since I have developed a terrible cold (yes, it's 105 outside and I have a "cold") I've been putting in a lot of couch time. In the last several days I have noticed that my friend hangs out on my curtains. Every curtain in my house has been visited. I would think it would be an attempt to get to the outside, yet he isn't on the window, or the blinds, but the curtains. And when I attempt to let him out he freaks out and scampers (?) to the next curtain (like I can't find him?). You might think he's worried that I'm going to kill him, but I do explain each time that it's for his own good and he's going outside (maybe that's the problem because he's grown accustomed to air conditioning and is not stupid enough to go OUTSIDE now). At this rate he will never get outside and I have no idea what he's eating or drinking and how long he can last. I may be a gecko killer by neglect any day now.

Too bad my new little friend isn't a bit more like this

We could have nice conversations over coffee, I love the accent, and perhaps I could get a discount on my car insurance. (on a related note, I got a letter from my insurance company with a coupon for $100 off my deductible if I have a claim in the next 6 months and I actually found myself hoping I'd use it- that is a very sick obsession with coupons).