Typing...

I found a very fun link to a typing test on Anna's blog (and Krystal's and Morgan's) and I tried it. I typed 80 words per minute! Who knew? Tragically, I forgot to copy the html code to post my score. I was very proud of myself and wanted to show off! I am all about finding hidden talents. When I got home, (Of course I tried it at work. What else am I supposed to do at lunch?) I tried it again on our desktop (I was trying to show off to Isaac) and only got 69 words per minute. I have decided that the flat keys of the laptop facilitate faster typing. :-) After trying this and looking at my 'ranking', I would like to know who is at the top of the 'ranking list' and how fast does that person type? I was only in the 100,000's for 80 words a minute so that must mean there are people out there typing 100 or more words a minute. Does anyone know anyone who can type that fast? Can you even see their fingers? Do they do nothing but type all day long? Crazy.

One Week and Counting...

Well, in exactly one week we will be on our way to Arizona. We'll drive down and then I'll fly back on Sunday so I can finish teaching for the year. Isaac is so excited! I think it will be a fantastic experience for him, although I wish that I didn't have to stay here for a few months while he is away! I am looking forward to officially having a job lined up so that I can plan a more permanent move.
In other news, Isaac has almost finished completely digitizing our family history files! My parents have quite a few written and taped personal histories of various ancestors and he has spent the last couple of weeks scanning and converting them to digital files. It is so cool to be able to have all our Books of Rememberence and such in one computer file. My mom even has some tapes of interviews she did with her grandparents and great-grandparents that we now have as digital files on the computer! We've spent quite a lot of time (Isaac more than I) at the downtown Family History Library filling in the gaps in the information we have. I wouldn't quite say it is nearly "done," but we've made a lot of progress.
Also very exciting was our dinner with our friends Krisy and Dan (and her fantastic parents) last night! It was so fun to get together and visit for a little while, since it has been a couple of years since we were all in the same state. It is just not the same keeping in touch only through the phone and email!
In less exciting news, (but in keeping with our tradition of talking about Clancy like he is a person) Clancy had a doctor's appointment today because he developed a really pronounced limp in his front legs last week and we found out that he has early onset osteo-arthritis! Poor thing! It is not good, especially since it is in his front and back legs already. He has some medicine now that the vet says should help quite a bit, but it is really sad to watch him move around when he is obviously in pain. I hope the medicine helps soon.

SPOGG

I am a grammar Nazi. This, I admit, actually gives me a certain sense of pride (especially since I am an abysmal speller and need something to make me feel good about all those years of English language instruction). I am conscious of the proper use of suppose versus supposed and then versus than. Renegade apostrophes and commas are no match for my red pen. So, imagine my delight and joy upon finding SPOGG. That's right. SPOGG. It stands for Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar. The society is my new friend. I now get email updates, all devoted to good grammar. If you, like me, have an inner stickler, visit http://www.spogg.org/. You can buy a tee-shirt.

Things I do not understand...

I think that I am a reasonably intelligent person, but occasionally I find myself confronted with things that, no matter how hard I try, I simply do not understand. Today I have encountered many of these unponderables. For example:
I don't understand bumper stickers-they are the equivalent of a tattoo for your car. I saw an "Alan Keyes for President" sticker today and thought 'Now, don't you feel foolish? The man has demonstrated, in the years since running for president, that he is a crazy person. You look like you want a crazy person to be president. This could have been avoided if you had not stuck a permanent reminder of your temporary insanity on your car." Tragic.
I don't understand the apparent inability of teenage drivers (and others) to use their turn signals. Do they think that drivers around them have telepathic powers and can discern the upcoming movements of their car? One of these days, there is going to be a 20 car pile-up in the parking lot of my school and I am sure it will have started because someone failed to use his or her turn signal.
I don't understand why someone would ever, for any reason, purchase a beer can shaped hat. These are for sale at a local store and it is clear, from the number of beer hats on the shelf, that someone, somewhere has bought one. Actually, several someones. Why? Where would you ever wear a beer can shaped hat? What were you thinking?
I don't understand what the girls at my school are thinking when they wear sweatpants with words on the backside. Do you really want people reading your rear-end? Why not just attach a blinking light to your bum? Where was your mother when you left the house this morning?
I do not understand the term "organic food." Is not all food, by definition, organic? If it wasn't organic, it wouldn't be edible. Right? So, isn't the term redundant? Not only that, but it just sounds silly. Everytime I hear someone talk about 'organic' food I want to interupt and say "As opposed to what? Plastic food?!"
I do not understand the abuse of the word "like." I counted 24 'likes' during one conversation with a student today. Can they not hear themselves? Do they not know that they do not make any sense? I feel bad for "like." Such abuse.

If anyone can explain these things to me, I would very much appreciate it.

It's A Small World After All...

You know that game "6 degrees to Kevin Bacon" where you try to connect celebrities to a Kevin Bacon movie? I suck at it. But, that is irrelevant. The point here is that the world is a small, small place. Also, dangerous. Case in point: Caleb is dating this girl...we'll call her Mary. Mary goes to the high school where I teach. Caleb also has a friend...Suzie. Suzie is the daughter of a woman (Martha) I work with here at my high school. Suzie goes to Caleb's high school, but Suzie know's Mary(who goes to the high school where I teach) . Turns out Mary is taking a class from my friend, Martha, (mother of Suzie). And Suzie is in two classes with Caleb. Caleb tells Suzie all about Mary during class. Suzie tells her mother (Martha) all about Caleb and Mary. Suzie's mother comes to me and says "OH MY GOSH! Mary is DARLING! I bet Caleb and Mary are SOOOO cute together!" I laugh. Mary then goes to Martha's class and Martha, innocently, says, "How's Caleb!?". Mary is MORTIFIED that her teacher knows her boyfriend, sort of. Mary tells Caleb that Martha asked about him and now I am in trouble with Caleb for talking to Martha and Mary. Which I haven't. Martha has talked to Mary and to me, but I have initiated none of these conversations. Nevertheless, all this talking is my fault and I am in trouble. Suzie is also mad at her mother for talking to Mary and I about what Mary told Suzie and what Suzie now told her mother. We are both in trouble. Sigh. Cue the circus music...

Happy days are here again!

When last I left you, dear readers, things must have seemed pretty...bleak. I apologize if my negativity brought anyone else down into grumpiness.
In the days since Monday (Dark, evil Monday) the grumpiness has dissipated. One reason for my new, more sunny, outlook is that all the 'calling people I don't know' (one of several things I 'hated' on Monday) paid off! Several of the places I have contacted about jobs have replied! Yippee! One, in particular, would be incredibly interesting. I will say no more, for fear of jinxing myself, but if you find yourself with a few free moments in the days to come, do please send 'good luck' vibes out into the universe for me! And, while you're at it, throw in a few for Isaac since we are quickly approaching his return to flight school! The countdown continues-28 days until we leave for Arizona. Isaac is dutifully studying his textbooks and watching the flight school instructional videos, sent to him by ATP and is sooooo excited to get started. I get to hear all about wind patterns and VFR conditions these days. It is actually pretty interesting-I'm vicariously learning all sorts of stuff I never knew I didn't know!
And, in totally unrelated news-I have started another quilt. After working on the first one for so long, it felt weird to have 'nothing' to do. So, I got some new fabric (various shades of red, cream and light brown-so pretty) and have started a "Log Cabin" style quilt. Maybe this one won't take a year!

Things I hate...

That's right. Things I hate. This morning, I woke up on the proverbial "wrong side of the bed" and realized that there are many things I hate. I hate crunchy peanut butter. Have you ever had crunchy butter? No. Why? Because butter is supposed to have a lovely smooth texture. As a member of the butter family, crunchy peanut butter is a horrible mutation of a wonderful thing. If I was in charge of the world, there would be no crunchy peanut butter. I also hate alarm clocks. Even when set to cheerful, wake-up-and-start-your-day-with-a-good-attitude music rather than the wake-up-and-kill-someone beeping, I really hate my alarm clock. I also hate the fact that, without fail, I wake-up 10 minutes before it is supposed to ring. Why, WHY can't I actually sleep for those 10 minutes, rather than lying in bed, half-asleep, waiting for the stupid alarm to go off? I hate cold showers. Enough said. I hate paper work. I hate stupid, bureaucratic, nonsensical paperwork that only exists to justify the job of someone too untalented to do anything else. I hate looking for a job. I hate calling people I don't know on the phone. I hate it when my computer won't work the way it is supposed too. Sigh. As you can see, this list could go on forever. Harumph.