January 27
I am already thinking about what to do with all this material.
1965
Spanish exam finished in 55 minutes. It was a real dud. I got an A- on that easily. I took along a book called "Un Pueblo Mexicano" to read when I finished. It turned out to be written in Spanish - with a lot of the vocab from our test in it. I didn't cheat, though. It sure felt nice to get home early for a change. Ah! Mid-years are over.
Comment 2006
How typical. I use to grab something to read as I left the house, not thinking over the choice at all. This was evidently one of my dad's books from the time he was a high school Spanish teacher.
Every house we ever lived in either had built-in bookcases when we moved in, or had them by the time we left. As a printer's son and grandson, and an editor/printer himself, he loved to read and own books. By the 1960s, they filled one entire wall in our living room. As a teenager living in a rural subdivision with no personal transportation, I pretty much read my way through most of them. Frankly, most were forgettable, but he also owned classics that became favorites, such as his complete collection of Sherlock Holmes, the Bounty trilogy and the Rockwell-illustrated Tom Sawyer.
And no, I really didn't cheat on the test. By high school, my cheating days were long past, though still a dark source of secret shame. In fifth grade, I use to wait until everyone else went to lunch and then find my spelling test on the teacher's desk and correct any words I got wrong. Never got caught.
1983
Kiddo has weaned herself in the last month. Yesterday she didn’t nurse at all — most days it was just once a day. On the one hand, it’s sad, because (a) I enjoyed it and (b) it’s a sign that she’s growing less dependent on me. But, as we keep saying, sometimes between now and when she turns 18… She’s a really nice baby, but I expect she’ll also be a nice toddler, a nice little girl and a nice young woman. Maybe even a nice old lady, but I wonder how much I am responsible for that!
Yesterday I got quite a bit done, by working on diddly things when she was awake and writing while she was napping. She’s harder to keep amused, and requires more watching now. Between crawling and pulling herself up the nearest vertical surface, she can get into trouble a lot quicker. Well, time to move on to work!
1991
It’s taken a long time, but somehow a sense of order is creeping back into my life. I tidied, cleaned, and reorganized the living room a week ago. That’s probably the five-hundredth time I’ve done it since 1980. But this time it stayed that way for a week. The key?
1) throw things away! Lots of things.
2) keep less in sight; it’s easier to see what’s out of place.
3) Train the family ( a work in progress, especially with the person who leaves his music on the piano. Ahem.)
#1 has been the most satisfying. We have so many books we have not read and never will. We have so many records we haven’t played in over a decade. It’s terrifying how much we own that we never use. Really a drag. Now if we can only get around to fixing up the house! That’s what we get for buying a fixer-upper.
The kids were sick last week, but even that wasn’t so bad. And they are both on the mend and close to their old selves again.
Playing the fiddle has been a great treat for me. I started just about a year ago. I’ve learned so much, faster than I expected. Kiddo 1 is doing well, too. She has an excellent ear and even enjoys practicing. Kiddo 2 may enjoy taking some classes, soon, too.He’s certainly not ready for music, but maybe dance?
1997
Sarah talked today about the value of the journal as a place to sort out problems. While at first I felt smug that I already have a journaling habit didn’t need to be told to use it, it is true that I haven’t written in it much in the last 4-5 years. Perhaps the lack of daily dialog contributed to my stress level. I just heard Kiddo 1’s clock go off. Will she make it?? Today is the first College Park Scholars meeting of the new semester. I really, really hope that this semester we are able to have fewer meetings, shorter meetings, and move the meeting from Monday!!
Comment 2025
Monday morning meetings should be against the law. Also Friday afternoon meetings.
1987
Then more cold, then another snow storm. What a long weekend. Now Kiddo 1 is starting to get used to being home and I am dying to get into the office. A grad school friend called Sunday - she and her husband are separating. It seems unbelievable. But they’ve been having problems for over a year. Still…it’s hard.
I have my energy level back, I’ve gone beyond the first few weeks of adjusting to a new baby, and I’m still kind of floating through each day. Part of it is that from day Kiddo 2 arrived, between holidays, weather and the winter break, I’ve been completely without a schedule, other than feeding him. Kiddo 2 has been home a lot, but hasn’t been demanding much time or attention.
I do need some kind of schedule, once it stops snowing and the semester starts! Weekends have been unpredictable. Jim’s been working the last three Saturdays, and this weekend we were snowed in. I guess I’ll manage somehow.
2003
Classes start tomorrow, and now that I have my new haircut, I might be ready.
What do I want to accomplish in CPSP118R this semester? Where did we leave off? Where do we begin tomorrow? And where did I put my watch?
2005
The semester has started, and it looks good. A student pointed out that I am teaching a gazillion classes. So, so true. But I’m happy.
I scheduled a mini-retreat this morning around the question, “Where do I want to be in May?”. For two hours there will be no other thinking or planning. None. Zip. Nada. Just free-flowing thoughts about that question, and note-taking.
The ideas:
I’d like to feel like I’m going to live forever.
I’d like to act like this is my last day on earth.
I’d like to finish a couple of articles.
I’d like to have a reflective record of what I am learning.
I want to be healthier and more fit.
I want to finish an old, neglected project.
I want to feel more secure financially.
I want to settle into our newly-empty nest with Jim.
2012
Book Release Party for Pink and Blue (Facebook post)
2019
Mazunte Morning
Comment 2024
After a week in Oaxaca, we took a long bus ride to the resort town of Mazunte. A real change of pace, as you can see.
2019
Remember that book proposal I submitted back in November? They said yes, so consider me engaged.
Comment 2023
Well, there’s a nice helping of Smith Island Cake for you! Five layers of writing, three layers of Spanish, with tasty bits of motherhood and my hatred for meetings.
My daughter: Kiddo 1 turned out beyond “nice”. She still is not a morning person, but I can’t hear her alarm clock anymore because she lives several miles away. Like I had to, she is figuring out how to be and live and do.
That 2019 book: There’s a proposal, an introduction, and one and a half chapters. There are scores of images from Sears catalogs, and lots of research notes. The publisher let me drop the project when I couldn’t access the primary sources I needed, due to the pandemic. I knitted over a hundred hats, mitts, and scarves, and started this project. That book? Like my high school crush on V, just a pleasant and slightly embarrassing memory.
Comment 2025
What book?