what's the time?
so june left, july flew by, august was a blur, and september has disappeared. here i am back in school in a completely different place in my life, and, although the school is the same, i'm not! i had an amazing summer full of travels (orcas island in washington and southern california) and great time and huge transition. so i began this year with a different kind of energy and commitment, and my relationship to every aspect about being here in this wacky middle school has shifted. i actually feel more connected and committed to teaching than i have since graduate school! it is amazing.
my work with accomplishment coaching has been radical and my coach (look her up--she's amazing: alyse mcconnell) has changed my life. it's hard to believe i'll be graduating in december with this incredible team of people. i've never had an experience like this one, not in college, not in graduate school. those of you who've played team sports may have an inkling of what this has been like, but it was brand new to me! i've never been part of an entity that was created solely to support what i'm up to. it's pretty powerful stuff. i also made the decision to leave ac at graduation and not move on as a mentor coach. i may go back to them eventually, but for now, i'm done in december and i'll have my life back! not my old life, cause honestly who would want that? but this new, cool life i'm living full of growth and possibility.
i'm still dating...lots of first dates and no seconds. but that may change this coming week. i met a guy (let's call him brad) who i really like at least via the telephone. he made me laugh and we totally connected verbally. plus he's tall and relatively easy on the eyes. so we have a first date on monday and we'll see if the physical will or can match the mental. i'm actually excited about this in a way i haven't been since philip. so that's really lovely. we're having a dessert date--apparently i passed muster enough to warrant dessert and not only coffee. pix patisserie, baby! salted caramels and macarons!
also i started a french club here at the middle school this year. and while we've only had one meeting, it's totally adorable. there's no foreign language taught here anymore since hey who needs that? and there's no money for an actual language program, but there is grant money to pay me once a week to throw some french around and giggle with the kids and have them say: "how do you say, squirrel in french?" so freakin' cute! so i get to flex a bit of my french muscles and the kids get a bit of language and culture and it's totally a win/win. and for the first time since i've been a teacher, there's a population that might actually have access to enough money for us to plan a student trip to france. omg. that would be insanely awesome. it would also be insane, but if they really want to do it, who am i to say no?
my band is slow. slow like molasses in january slow. we got a new bass player who's terrific but as busy as the rest of us and figuring out a practice schedule is like pulling teeth. also when did it get so freakin' hard to get a gig? i don't know! but it's frustrating. we had some momentum, and now i'm feeling a bit like sisyphus with that damn boulder. but i'll keep pushing because that's what i need to do.
the family is in portland from orcas this week which is like balm to my soul. i miss them terribly. having enzo so far away is a bit like having a missing limb. the ghost limb of an amputee. i can feel him, but he's not actually there and that breaks my heart. yesterday evening we all met up for dinner. he came running into the restaurant and jumped into my arms and just hung there hugging me for what felt like an eternity but was in now way long enough! then he leaned back and gave me a huge kiss! and luca was chanting aunt julia aunt julia aunt julia. then enzo said: i want to sit next to my aunt julia. and my already melted heart pooled up on the floor around my feet. so yeah getting them here for the week is splendid. i was able to take thursday off so i'll be having lunch then going to the zoo and then having a sleepover at my house with them on thursday and going to the pumpkin patch on friday morning as well. there'll be other time with them too but those are the big activities this time and i can't wait!
i made a committment to becoming a library user for the fist time since i was kid. no more buying books for this poor girl! and i've also empowered my commute by listening to books on cd. so brilliant! why did i not do this a million years ago? so this school year i've read/listened to how we decide by jonah lehrer a terrifically fun book about the science of decision making. people of the book by geraldine brooks about a book conserver and the history of the haggadah she's restoring--an absolutely riveting novel that flows through time so beautifully that you just get swept up and never really want to leave. and now i'm making my way through her fearful symmetry by audrey niffenegger who also wrote the time traveler's wife. this woman can write! this one's a ghost story about twins who inherit an apartment in london. and one of the characters, martin, who's suffering from a very serious case of ocd, is one of the most fascinating characters i've ever read! whenever we leave his chapters, i'm always let down for a minute and thrilled when he comes back in. delicious!
and i'm also watching way too much tv. how can you not when the fall season comes back? boardwalk empire is brilliant. i mean come on! the cast is incredible! then there's bones (sigh), chuck (meh), supernatural (woohoo!), parenthood (<3), mad men (swoon), dexter (yikes!), stargate universe (ok!), sheesh! not to mention big bang theory, himym (though i'm so much less into it since the bromance came and went), modern family. my god. i really could do nothing but watch tv all day. and i am on the edge of my seat for lie to me to come back. i discovered it over the summer and mainlined it of course as i do. tim roth is incredible and i love him to pieces. he would be the one short man i'd doff my skivvies for. i do have a thing for tall. also spooks and i can't wait for miranda to come back and there's being erica and lost girl. oh those canadians and brits. and the new nikita is intriguing, of course, though i don't know that i'll ever get around to it. oh and i also read a really good article somewhere about caprica which totally made me want to give it another try.
so does that catch me up? i think it maybe does. how the heck are all you guys who still remember i'm around? since school started again, i've had a few surfacing moments in a journal or two. no excuses though. i do love you all even if i suck at being an lj friend.
gros bisous!
my work with accomplishment coaching has been radical and my coach (look her up--she's amazing: alyse mcconnell) has changed my life. it's hard to believe i'll be graduating in december with this incredible team of people. i've never had an experience like this one, not in college, not in graduate school. those of you who've played team sports may have an inkling of what this has been like, but it was brand new to me! i've never been part of an entity that was created solely to support what i'm up to. it's pretty powerful stuff. i also made the decision to leave ac at graduation and not move on as a mentor coach. i may go back to them eventually, but for now, i'm done in december and i'll have my life back! not my old life, cause honestly who would want that? but this new, cool life i'm living full of growth and possibility.
i'm still dating...lots of first dates and no seconds. but that may change this coming week. i met a guy (let's call him brad) who i really like at least via the telephone. he made me laugh and we totally connected verbally. plus he's tall and relatively easy on the eyes. so we have a first date on monday and we'll see if the physical will or can match the mental. i'm actually excited about this in a way i haven't been since philip. so that's really lovely. we're having a dessert date--apparently i passed muster enough to warrant dessert and not only coffee. pix patisserie, baby! salted caramels and macarons!
also i started a french club here at the middle school this year. and while we've only had one meeting, it's totally adorable. there's no foreign language taught here anymore since hey who needs that? and there's no money for an actual language program, but there is grant money to pay me once a week to throw some french around and giggle with the kids and have them say: "how do you say, squirrel in french?" so freakin' cute! so i get to flex a bit of my french muscles and the kids get a bit of language and culture and it's totally a win/win. and for the first time since i've been a teacher, there's a population that might actually have access to enough money for us to plan a student trip to france. omg. that would be insanely awesome. it would also be insane, but if they really want to do it, who am i to say no?
my band is slow. slow like molasses in january slow. we got a new bass player who's terrific but as busy as the rest of us and figuring out a practice schedule is like pulling teeth. also when did it get so freakin' hard to get a gig? i don't know! but it's frustrating. we had some momentum, and now i'm feeling a bit like sisyphus with that damn boulder. but i'll keep pushing because that's what i need to do.
the family is in portland from orcas this week which is like balm to my soul. i miss them terribly. having enzo so far away is a bit like having a missing limb. the ghost limb of an amputee. i can feel him, but he's not actually there and that breaks my heart. yesterday evening we all met up for dinner. he came running into the restaurant and jumped into my arms and just hung there hugging me for what felt like an eternity but was in now way long enough! then he leaned back and gave me a huge kiss! and luca was chanting aunt julia aunt julia aunt julia. then enzo said: i want to sit next to my aunt julia. and my already melted heart pooled up on the floor around my feet. so yeah getting them here for the week is splendid. i was able to take thursday off so i'll be having lunch then going to the zoo and then having a sleepover at my house with them on thursday and going to the pumpkin patch on friday morning as well. there'll be other time with them too but those are the big activities this time and i can't wait!
i made a committment to becoming a library user for the fist time since i was kid. no more buying books for this poor girl! and i've also empowered my commute by listening to books on cd. so brilliant! why did i not do this a million years ago? so this school year i've read/listened to how we decide by jonah lehrer a terrifically fun book about the science of decision making. people of the book by geraldine brooks about a book conserver and the history of the haggadah she's restoring--an absolutely riveting novel that flows through time so beautifully that you just get swept up and never really want to leave. and now i'm making my way through her fearful symmetry by audrey niffenegger who also wrote the time traveler's wife. this woman can write! this one's a ghost story about twins who inherit an apartment in london. and one of the characters, martin, who's suffering from a very serious case of ocd, is one of the most fascinating characters i've ever read! whenever we leave his chapters, i'm always let down for a minute and thrilled when he comes back in. delicious!
and i'm also watching way too much tv. how can you not when the fall season comes back? boardwalk empire is brilliant. i mean come on! the cast is incredible! then there's bones (sigh), chuck (meh), supernatural (woohoo!), parenthood (<3), mad men (swoon), dexter (yikes!), stargate universe (ok!), sheesh! not to mention big bang theory, himym (though i'm so much less into it since the bromance came and went), modern family. my god. i really could do nothing but watch tv all day. and i am on the edge of my seat for lie to me to come back. i discovered it over the summer and mainlined it of course as i do. tim roth is incredible and i love him to pieces. he would be the one short man i'd doff my skivvies for. i do have a thing for tall. also spooks and i can't wait for miranda to come back and there's being erica and lost girl. oh those canadians and brits. and the new nikita is intriguing, of course, though i don't know that i'll ever get around to it. oh and i also read a really good article somewhere about caprica which totally made me want to give it another try.
so does that catch me up? i think it maybe does. how the heck are all you guys who still remember i'm around? since school started again, i've had a few surfacing moments in a journal or two. no excuses though. i do love you all even if i suck at being an lj friend.
gros bisous!