Strange & Fantastic Commuters

It really is the little things! Life has supplied a few unexpected curve balls lately, but in the midst of hardship came a wonderful surprise. As you may know, we commute daily on the MARC for our round-trip journey from Charm City to Chocolate City. You probably don't know, but for my birthday A. created a book of "coupons" for me to use over the course of this year. These coupons are colorfully illustrated and thoughtfully represent how well he knows me. Some coupon examples: Organic Homecooked Ethnic Meal; Day Hike with Keba; Explor-a-bike Day and so on...

These coupons tickled me so much that I pulled out my coupon collection recently on the train to ponder when and which one I would use first. As we made our way home, I decided to cash in my Day Hike coupon for that weekend. I reached into the depths of my backpack and...what...no way...WHERE ARE MY COUPONS?...no way, they have to be here, I just had them...NO!...(emptied bag onto floor) THEY ARE GONE.. NoooooOOOOO!

A. is so smart. These were nontransferable and couldn't be redeemed without the actual coupon. He smiled mischievously at my dismay as I tried to convince him to recreate, he denied me, and I sank my shoulders with self-disappointment. BOOHOO for me, right?

THEN, about two weeks later, our school secretary told me that I had a phone message in my mailslot. This is not uncommon, so I slowly made my way to my mailslot to see who I owed a return call. The message read, "Theresa called about those coupon."

Ummm, what? I don't know a Theresa, not sure what "those coupon" would/could be, so I disregarded this message by telling myself there must have been an error. (Not once did A.'s coupons cross my mind, but I do usually call people back.)THEN, last week, the same wonderful secretary informed me of a letter that recently arrived for me. This too was placed in my mailslot. I sauntered that way and began to open the letter. This envelope was handwritten and the return address was from Glen Burnie.

I opened this mystery package to find...MY COUPONS!!

Theresa Arney from Glen Burnie mailed my coupons back to me! This incredibly persistent woman sought me out to return what most would have considered trash. She jotted a short note about how she tried to contact me at work but I never returned her call, so she just mailed them to me. Well, jeeze, I sure felt awful for not calling her back, but my Thank You note to her was mailed today.

Oftentimes I find myself disgruntled by human misbehavior. I find people rude, brash and inappropriate (especially those from my Mid-Atlantic region). Sometimes I can shrug these feelings away by looking at the amazing people I surround myself with, for they fill me with reassurance and sanity, but sometimes those yucky people stick with me so deeply I can't sleep. This seemingly simple gesture-Theresa's persistence- made my week, well actually my year. I feel warm and fuzzy inside, smile with ease and don't care about those stupid passive aggressive, rude, inappropriate people out there. Those people can't hold down the Theresa's of the world!

THANKS TO MY FELLOW MARC TRAIN COMMUTER FOR BRINGING BACK HOPE!

Do you agree with this projection of happiness?

Challenge!

Decide, Commit, then Put in Many Miles...

If you believe you are brave enough, strong enough and weather-proof enough, commit to the 2007 Seagull Century. (Note: I did not say the 50 miler, or that we are so sweet we melt in water, but I said we commit.)

I will do it!
And you?

Biking Theme Ringing On

Paris = City of Bikes?

Explor-a-bike Part 2

Explor-a-bike day faced a detour when the words "hot springs" summoned my soul.
Steamy bathing was needed, good, and worth another trip. So not too much dirty spray on the butt today, but rain (and, what, SNOW!) is in our forecast, so hope for dirty dirty butt lingers.


Restless. Restless. Restless...Incredibly RestLESS.
Lately, full of unrest.

Maybe it is the moon and its almost-fullness. Maybe it is the fact that I need to start something new. Maybe I miss someone. Maybe there is a void or a craving I am missing. (Like when I just want some chocolate and think a cup of tea will suffice, yet it never suffices. Sometimes a girl just needs a bit of dark chocolate...)

Yep. Something new. I think I want to write a zine.

Explor-a-bike day

It rained a lot last evening. I learned this when I sauntered onto the back deck this morn, it was drenched, but strangely I didn't hear the slightest rain drop during dreamy time last night. A drenched deck means there are puddles all over the city! And, riding over, through and in puddles while perched on my bike is one of my favorite energy burners. I also really enjoy getting my butt covered with mud from that dirty spray from the back tire. Oh, and I hope one of the puddles ends up drizzling on my face. Needless to say...

I am eagerly heading out for an explor-a-bike day. Oh, and I just purchased a snazzy new helmet. And, helmets equal confidence and smarts on a bike.
Plus, I want to check out this spot!, and they are open today.

FUN.
Explora-bike-day.

Good Green Ivy (Leaguer)

Go UPenn!
One of my favorite aunts works at this impressive Ivy Leaguer.

Tell me something, please!

What does marriage mean to you?
Please share!

Anthology of Foliage

Like a mother with her first-born's baby album, I want to watch our plants mature and discover the world.

Palm (donated by Mom Bowers):
This beauty fawns the dining room. Its sinewy green fingers long to be caressed while bubbles of growth are sprouting.

Baby Coffee Plant:
With waxy leaves shimmerring in the sun and a soft fragrance, this baby keeps our current vino from Mendoza company.

Rubber Tree:
Both of our childhood homes contained a massive rubber tree, with time Keba will be able to say the same.

Kitchen Crew (from left to right): Spider, Dwarf Plant, Philodendron:
This spider has been through the past four years with me, and looks it. But, its buddies are thriving. The dwarf likes medium light, but the philodendron is a climbing sun-bather. Even with their differences, these three seem to get along just fine.

Aloe:
When you are as accident-prone as me, you quickly learn of this wonder. To use it, is to love it.

Philodendrons:
In this pot you will find two varietals of philodendrons: colorful, air-filtering wonders! I want the yellow to drape downward and red/green to spread, spread spread.

Poppop Philodendron:
This is our majestic beast. Sometimes this plant shares war stories from back in the day (just like my daddy).

Living Room Crew (from top to bottom): Prayer Plant, Exotic Angel, Mandarin Orange:
This trio requires the most attention of them all. The fickle Prayer Plant curls and hides, the Angel is difficult to keep happy and moist, and the Mandarin's tips brown regardless of repeated efforts. Despite our trials and tribulations, this crew seems pleasant enough in the living room.

Ficus Tree (donated by Mom Pintzuk):
I love reading in this corner! The only way this corner could bring more pleasure is if the ficus fingers would turn the pages of my read.

Buddha Hoya Rope and Jade:
For some reason, our easy-to-please jade makes me want to dive into a lilypad covered lake (childhood flashbacks of East Lake, but no idea why). Buddha Hoya is loving the radiating heat. Along with the philodendrons, this climber will soon belong to our living wall.

Mixed Climbers: Philodendrons + Buddha Hoya:
This group of three longs to hear bedtime stories and wake with the early sun.

Orchid Surprise (donated by Mom Bowers):
We are trying to nurture a glorious Orchid, keep your fingers crossed. My parents have unsurpassed luck with orchids...just trying to live up to my family's green thumb.

Diffenbachia (donated by Mom Bowers):
This beauty likes a breathe of fresh air every now and again. Its curled arms are very curious.

No wonder I got the flu!

70 degrees on Wednesday ---> Snow falling on Friday.
Dare I ask if Spring will come?
March's fickle self can bow down, and springlike sunshine can flow any day now.

Hello, Spring? Can you hear my plea? Please come back, please! We will welcome you with blooming buds, tee-shirted arms, and backyard blasts. Come again, won't you please?

Bring the snotty tissues back, please!

Oh, I wish I had a head cold, but NO! I GOT THE FLU!

On Tuesday, A arrived home and immediately decided that my pain needed more than his abundant supply of TLC. He was right, for all day I suffered through aches and chills, waves of nausea, and that same killer headache. Then, as he touched my face to soothe my pain, he noticed that I was burning up. So, he drove to me to the nearest Patient First where gentle nurses and doctors cuddled me, offered me Matzo Ball soup, swabbed up my nose and deep into my throat, and diagnosed me as the tenth flu case that day. I was running a 103 fever and "looked awful". Now, two days later, I am taken TamiFlu and feeling a bit more normal, but still unable sit upright for more than 10 minutes.

First warning sign of the Flu: an unbearable headache.
If this happens, head straight to a health care professional.

From a pile of snotty tissues

Just as I praised my body's immune system this winter, wouldn't you know it-- A full-fledged-not-getting-out-of-pajamas head cold strikes. Despite all efforts to avoid this hardship, I was unable to go to work and even less able to keep the fragile area below my nose and above my upper lip dry today.

On Friday, I was sent a vicious warning sign: the headache to top all headaches. Yes, this headache was the Queen Bee of Headaches, the not to be disputed champ! But, the weekend offered a mini-reprieve (for the headache dulled after 12 hours of slumber): Saturday contained a hard running workout under sunbeams; long, slow Sunday brunch capped off with sunbeams on our back deck; Sunday slow run---- AND---- this is where my current plight began. For, it was on this run when I was forced to acknowledge my lethargy and snot production.

I ended my run early, and defiantly returned home to challenge my body to bring on the cold as I gulped echinacea like a fiend. But, alas, to no avail. I am sick and after one day, I am sick of being sick!

I already long to be back with my scholars:

Our soon-to-be NEIGHBOR's birthday bash!

*See two posts below for what we did to the house during the recent snow storm.*
Here is the birthday girl, and she just bought a house in Baltimore too!
J & I had only a lil bit o'fun during the birthday surprise...

Good Green News- Go Aussies

Aussies are setting the pace...Will the rest of the globe keep up?

How Green Can Our House Be?

That's our challenge to each other...

When we decided to purchase a home together, A & I furthered our study of sustainability and green living while striving to continue living an organic and conscious lifestyle. Our new house is/will be completely organic, furnished with all recycled materials/products (which we will build and purchase), lots of healthy light, full of philodendrons and other productive plants (thoughts now of a living wall in the living room), and we are saving for solar panels as we recycle the enormous amounts of trash that pile up next to our back fence. Also, as we continue to learn and challenge each other, we are garnering a large amount of eco-knowledge, plus a deep love with our house and this exciting new stage of the life we gleefully decided to share.

Here is an update:

As we first settled in:


Mom gave us an Amaryllis and it loved the new pad immediately:




The kitchen mess at first:


Recent purchase from a nearby antique store:


A's tofu-love celebrating one of our first nights, YUM!:








The basement, as it stands now:




Painting began when we were mired by the recent ice/snow storm (we ended up with 6 days off from school):










We're almost there:






The finished product:










Questions, comments, concerns (my should-be copyrighted teaching probe) about our work so far?

Talent does come in many forms...Thanks Liz!

Fantastic hands, eh?! This artist deserves mad props. Imagine the hours and patience this artist must possess. Luckily for the world, he photographs his work for posterity. In my opinion, the eyes of the animals show his rare talent. Click on any photo below for a larger, more detailed view!

Bliss on a brutal morn

This morning we were greeted with a horrid sign, "7:00 MARC Local-----CANCELLED"
Ok, no stress, we are world-travel-savvy and able to persevere-- or so we thought. We ended up taking the 7:15 EXPRESS MARC with about ONE MILLION other people, landing us at Union Station and then 20 minutes late for school. I lost my love aboard the Red Line, but we were reunited on the Orange Line. Whew!

Commuters are great people. This morning as my face aligned with this friendly woman's crotch, a man's shoulder and another woman's sleepy eyes, I noticed how pleasant everyone can be when stress strikes. We commuters quickly form an alliance against all conductors when our schedule is rudely interrupted. Poor conductors. But sarcastic, thus sane, commuters are a blast first thing in the morning.

Deepish Thought: Women commuters all carry at least two bags (I have data to prove this, yet I am the exception.), and men carry only one large bag. Why is this? Are woman just destined to carry more of the load, regardless of what the load may be? Or, do women need/want more things to get them through a day? This was this morning's deep question...

Other deep thoughts lingering from last night:

The Wire is the greatest show EVER! produced and should be mandatory viewing for all citizens of the USofA.

Owning a house makes us feel like we are trapped in a virtual game of "house" all the time. (And, we so do like playing house!)

I have a good gym partner now who assists my struggle of staying fit and warm at the same time.

Utterly Impressive!

Look what high schoolers can do when they care. This act embodies why I am a teacher!
Don't forget to pay attention!

I just gotta say one more thing...

COMING SOON!
Updated Photos of Our New Pad

Stay Tuned!

(These photos have been taken but need to be uploaded, and this may very well be my procrastination method for this evening!)

I just gotta say...

I am procrastinating now. My grades are due for the second marking quarter this Friday and there is still a stack of research papers needing my red pen's flare piled on my desk. I just can't seem to find the grading-drive right now. I just completed flaring a huge pile of Midterm Exams (which my scholars performed well on for the most part), and the drive has exited my entire being. Maybe on the MARC I can knock some out, or maybe I will fall asleep.

Sleeping on the way home is a newfound joy. I like commuting on the train, for its gentle rock ebbs me to dreamland with ease. The regular conductor, Mark, rouses me at Penn Station and we gently smile each other a good night. But, grading papers produces no such ease. Grading is undoubtedly the most dreadful part of a teacher's job. At my ambitious school teachers design their curriculum basically from stratch, teach multiple classes a day containing non-tracked scholars, incorporate public policy into daily lesson plans, meet with colleagues to collaborate, attend meetings on the regular, and then ARE EXPECTED TO GRADE EVERYTHING in a timely manner. This is not out-of-the-ordinary and I don't want to come across as negative towards my challenging job, but my MUST BE DONE by FRIDAY TO DO LIST is daunting and has me cringing constantly.

Save Darfur

Don't forget to pay attention!