Father's Day

So many people have problems with their fathers. I am so happy to not be one of those people. My Dad is genuinely the nicest guy I know. Happy father's day dad. We made him a pie, correction, Jen made him a pie. She made one for her dad too. Cards... the whole deal. They came over before she had finished baking it. It's all ok. It was a nice visit.

My day started early. I went to rietta ranch in Hubbardston. I actually woke at 5:30. This happens to me on vacation. The stress goes away and I wake up really early all the time. So, I went to rietta.

Rietta Ranch is an anomaly. It is a mixing ground of cultures all centered around what really amounts to junk. Yes, I bought stuff there today. I bought three books for my students and one (total trashy novel) for me. I also bought a crosscut of a geode for Henry... (50 cents!! YEAH!!) Jenny and I have this running joke about Rietta. We were walking there a few years ago when this guy stepped out in front of us and exclaimed, the hope evident on his face "Good morning folks, come take a look at my African Art." It was pronounced "Gud Monin fokes... cum take a luk at my AAAfricen AAt." Like he was from Jersey. Total running joke. And that's Rietta. These people, that I would literally walk away from if they approached me in .... anywhere... are now part of the experience and are, well, welcomed, and mixed in with people that I know and that look ok, like my friends Tom and Lucy who I met there, or my parent's neighbor Rosella, who I bet was there even though I didn't actually see her. I got there at 6:30 and the place was absolutely packed. There were people selling incense, soap, porn, old records, rip off baseball hats, dvd's, plants, motors, unrecognizable tools. Old Asian women selling round paintings of cat faces on ceramic disks. It was, and always is amazing.

I got home and readied myself for church: Type out song sheets, print out song sheets, shower, pack up everything, ask Henry if he want's to come with me, find Henry's shoes, pack up Henry's miscellaneous items, and off to church.

Church went well, second week with drums in the mix and it went off fairly well. Jenny told me that I could take us anywhere I wanted to for supper because it was father's day. I chose.....Duguay's Fried Chicken and Seafood. (btw, Duguay's, under spell check options, comes up as Druggies... interesting) Maybe it was because of my Rietta experience that I couldn't get Gardner out of my head, but.... yes.... Duguay's. The place burned down a while ago, maybe a year or two. I was devastated when it went. Although I really only go there like once a year, if that, it is the only place that I like for Fried Chicken. Without an option for decent fried chicken, life seemed a bit dull. I was thrilled when I heard it was reopening last year. This was my first time ordering since it burned. I am happy to report that the food tastes the same... GREAT! Chicken, Jo jo's, cranberry sauce and cole slaw! Yes!

I ended the day by watching half of "The other F-Word" a documentary about Punk Rockers that are now Dads and how they're coping with the responsibility. What a great movie. I'll finish it tomorrow. I need sleep time, I wake up early during vacation...
vacation
...... vacation

lets just keep saying it.
vacation
v a c a t i o n


db

Ends and Beginnings

Possibly the best thing about teaching is that it ends... and then begins again. I really do mean the second part too. Let me not belittle the beauty of the end of the school year. I do appreciate being laid off for 3 months or so and having all of that time to spend with my kids and family. I really do love it. But as far as working goes, a little known secret treasure that is a teacher's occupation, is that the whole thing ends and begins again annually.

I get to think about what was successful this year and make changes and rethink and produce a newer, better product every year. The true joy of this can only be appreciated by those that experience it. I am already fine tuning things for next year...sacrilege I know. The first picture is my classroom. It doesn't look like that anymore mind you. Everything is all tucked away in closets and the floor is clear of desks....... hibernating.

Today is Saturday. It isn't really vacation yet. It's the weekend. It normally takes a couple of weeks to feel the pounds of pressure that is my life dwindle and fade. Still, I have this little buzz in the back of my brain sounding off about the lack of responsibility I have come Monday.

I woke fairly early this morning, and Henry and I went for our walk. We found some raccoon prints and the cedar waxwings were out :) I actually started reading a book (I can only really do this in the summer as correcting is my world all school year). I cut some brush that was drowning out my gooseberry bushes. They are doing fine by the way, because I know how interested all of you are in my gooseberry bushes. I read up on them today and found that they will probably be ripe around mid July. I made barbecued shrimp lettuce wraps for supper. I played with the kids in the yard. We all played a new board game that Nora just got tonight. It was a relaxed, nice day. Love these.

I just read a bit on the huffington post website ( I highly recommend btw. very interesting articles) about fathering daughters. I had pretty much heard it all before, but that didn't stop a few points from hitting home.

1. Don't just call your daughters pretty. Although I am sure they are, they are also brilliant and hardworking.

2. Allow your daughter to say no and have that decision carry weight. Teach them that their words are powerful right from when they are young.

3. Let them fall asleep with you while they are still young enough to want to.

In other news, Henry had his first fencing lesson of the year. He attended a few last year. I am trying to help him get over being so tentative. KILL HENRY KILL!! He just ballet steps around and swats at people.... DESTROY HENRY! TEAR the teacher a new breathing HOLE!! I hope it will seep in somehow.

Its a small world after all

This is going to be a difficult thing to put into writing. I am good, new, but good friends with the Nyman family from Chicago. They moved to worcester, started going to our church and came to the soup group/Bible study we go to on Monday. We are close enough now to start going on vacations together, they have watched our kids, I started teaching their daughter guitar for free.... we're close. Today, Mike's parents from Chicago came with them to soup group while visiting for a week.

Jen sat down and started talking to Mike's Dad. I found out that they have a cousin that actually taught in the room that I teach in at Central Tree. Crazy right? It gets crazier my friends... oh yes.

O.K. Mike's dad, John, said that he actually grew up in Gardner. I thought that was funny because I grew up in Templeton. I asked him if he knew any of the Bronson's because they were kind of "known" in Gardner. He didn't remember their name. I thought, alright, understandable. Jen mentioned that my Mom's maiden name was Meunier, and he gets this little smile. He sits for a while and doesn't say anything. I thought I should mention some names, but right before I do, he says "Susan?" And I said, that's my mom, and he actually laughed out loud. He then states that he dated my mom for like a year when he was 16 and that my grandfather broke them up.

Is this weird enough for you?!?! They are from Chicago!!! Do you know the amount of stars that would have to align for this type of thing to happen.

I don't believe in fate... really... I mean it.... I don't! ............. fine... maybe.

db

The Goonies and Barre Falls Dam

Does this desire, to see the inside, to know, live in everyone like it does in me?

Henry had his outing with the boyscouts today at Barre Falls Dam. I have gone to this place since I was tiny. I actually learned how to ride a motorcycle on the driveway there. There is this cement building at the top of the dam that I have never been able to get into.... and it was bothering me.

I just need to know what its like! I need to see! Maybe its awesome in there? Its the whole Goonies mentality. Under every wishing well there really needs to be some sort of aqueduct of cave system leading to buried treasure and pirate ships. Right? I think so. It is no different with this building at Barre Falls Dam. You can imagine my disappointment when it looks primarily the same on the inside as on the out... cement.

Still, who knows. Maybe the lower levels are cool. :)

Henry also sat through a pretty cool presentation on hides and skulls. The two employees, each still comfortably in their teens, did a bang up job of keeping the scouts interested. They seemed like really nice kids, one of which was an eagle scout from Henry's troupe. I was almost an eagle scout (maybe we'll talk more about that later). :)

db

ps, don't you love Henry's hat? He decided a couple of days ago to put a feather that he found in our backyard in it (love).

Monster

I went for a walk this morning... I actually came down with some sort of mega-head cold. Its been pretty bad for the past three days. This is compounded of course by my inability to take decongestants. Wolff Parkinson White does not allow for such things. So... tough it out. I am probably better off for it in the long run anyway... At any rate, I went for a walk this morning. Its been a rainy week and I was happy to get out in the sun. The horseflies are back in all their glory, but I have found another side benefit to walking with a heavy breathing, hyper active dog. Most of the horseflies are content to follow his, sizable, carbon dioxide trail. Still, there were a few that tested my patience.

I got a few pictures that I like. I am keeping the little tendril one as my background on my ipad... I like it. On the way back to the car, this big guy was trying to cross the road. Chaucer, of course, rushed him and the snapper got all defensive. He actually snapped at Chauc and, very contrary to his nature (I have only heard him bark a handful of times) Chaucer let loose with a full blown volley of barking and stomping. It was pretty funny and also a bit heartening. I now know that if presented with something trying to hurt me, or him, Chaucer will actually give a crap.

In the end, I ended up picking the sizable thing up, he was about a foot long or so) and putting him in a large puddle down the road. That wasn't before he tried several times to definger me and actually let loose with some sort of very, very, foul smelling fluid that literally hit one of my knuckles and has remained in my nose since. Thanks for nothing big guy.

db

Bos to the Ton

Its the end of the year. This is a very packed couple of weeks for me. Correcting needs to be done. Contests need to be sorted. Awards need to be decided. Packed. You will all have to forgive me for not writing consistently this week... maybe the next as well.

We had our end of year class trip this past week...thus the empty Fenway picture. We have one heck of an end of year trip. We hit many of the coolest things in Boston, including, my ever-favorite, the Fenway tour. This year should have been amazing because its the 100th anniversary of Fenway. Actually, it was pretty amazing. The only problem was that our tour guide was kind of awful. No one could hear anything that he was saying and he wasn't saying a whole lot anyway. Still, there is something very special about walking out of the city and into the open fields of Fenway.

Pu Pu Platter

With huge degree of alarm, I realized that my kids have never experienced that cross-cultural, massively sensorial, and absolutely mandatory experience of a pu pu platter.

There is something completely mesmerizing about that little blue fire in the center of mounds of deep fried animal parts. It is like a little bit of neanderthal living set before you with an 80's sound track to boot.

Well, I set out to remedy this problem at once. I even called chopsticks to make sure that they had the little fire. "ring....ring..."
"Hello."
"Hello, chopsticks"
"Um, yeah, this is going to be a weird question, but: When you order a pu pu platter, does it come with a little fire in the middle of the bowl?"
"..."
"..."
"You have kids?"
"Yes"
"Ya, we bring out fire for you children."
"Thanks!"
"Click."
Wa La! (that may be the first time that I have ever actually spelled "Wa La").
We came. We ate. We felt very greasy afterward.