Namaste, Y'all. For Real!

I just twisted the head off of a bunny, a hollow Godiva chocolate bunny. Last week our school, which contains all 8th graders for the county and no other children, took our state writing tests. I don't know about the kids, but I'm still recovering. Mercy. That was something else.

While I just read that tequila helps with weight loss, it's Miette's Bedtime Stories that I want to share with you here. Priorities, people!

Who is this Miette? Who can say? All that you need to know right now is that she has spent hours speaking into a microphone for the good of humankind. And her voice. Her voice is as gentle as that well-worn favorite blanket of your childhood, the one that casts its calming spell and lulls you to sleep with all of its softness.

You can listen to her stories right now from your computer. Visit the iTunes store and download them there. Do you have Apple TV? Yep. Miette's podcasts are waiting for you and your remote. (Can someone please invent a television that allows us to darken our screens with the flip of a switch, so we can listen in peace?)

There are so many wee stories to choose from. Where does one start? You can peruse the recordings by author's name. If you are one of those English major types, you will recognize some of those lovely classics that often nestle themselves in anthology after anthology. There are many surprises as well, the B sides of short story masters.

My own go-to tale for dozing off is William Faulkner's gem, "A Rose for Emily." I know, but it is so familiar that the nightmares must be too distant in my brain to register now. Faulkner's writing style coupled with Miette's voice swirl  smooth placid circles within my brain until the night is no longer and the alarm announces the new day. There are no sheep needed, just Count No-Count.

The only time I would recommend driving to her podcasts is when she features a guest reader. One of my favorites is a massive collaboration of folks performing Cornell Woolrich's classic, "Murder Was the Case." Some of you may be wondering why you haven't heard of this story. It's the basis for the Alfred Hitchcock film, Rear Window. 

Over the years, Miette's recording equipment has improved, so you may want to browse available stories starting with her most recent offering.

I could go on, but I'm just getting in between you and your new tasting menu. 

If you ever see this dear Miette, please give her our thanks and a word of encouragement. It's nice to know that kind folks are laboring without fanfare to do what they love and share it with others. Doesn't it make you wonder what other treasures are out there hidden amongst the ephemera of the web just waiting to be discovered?

And if you came here to look for my cat's Pick 4 numbers, 

Gracie just walked across the keyboard to the tune of...

2398.

Holiday!

It's the last 45 minutes of the last class before holiday break!   

May I recommend some colored pencils and mandalas?

That is all.

Love Have Mercy

I'm spent.   What to do?   What to do?   I just visited YouTube and typed in "ps22."   Why?   Because somewhere children are singing.   They are.   I need PS 22 to remind me of that.   I've mentioned them to you before, but I really can't get enough of Mr. B's wee songbirds.

Here's their current featured video--

I'm too old and unhip to know who Rebecca Loebe is, but you can visit her website here.  

All I know is that this song is like a tiny meditation, and you can't help but feel better about life.  

In supporting roles are the patent leather shoes on a dear girl in the front row.   Baby girl church shoes are timeless and sweet.   Isn't that alone a comfort in itself?

Have mercy on yourownself, if you can find the time.   You're worth the effort.

Pass the Peace Like We Used to Say

Soul Brother Number One!   You know who I'm talking about.   The Legendary James Brown!

I've been thinking about JB a lot lately because I feel like one of my engines is on fire...as in SOS.   I mean, how did he do what he did for year after year without burning out?   That's a lot of energy wrapped up inside some snug tailored suits.   Didn't he ever get tired?   Well, he feigned it sometimes.

Exhibit A:

Not to say that I'm laying down all of those slick moves during a school day, but I sure am beat when the children leave.   I like to imagine that someone comes and puts a cape on me when I feel like I can't go on.   Mine is made out of flannel or terry cloth, and you know it's machine washable.   Otherwise, I'd just fret about getting it dirty and paying the dry cleaning bill.

Lately some of my work stress has also made me wake up in the middle of the night in...you guessed it...a cold sweat.

Oooooooooooh.    Heh.

But not in a good way.

But enough about me, back to JB.

Have you been looking for a way to fit James Brown into your classroom studies?

If you are studying the civil rights movement, I think he fits just fine.

It's April 5, 1968, the day after Dr. Martin Luther King was gunned down during his visit to Memphis where he was supporting the local sanitation workers' strike.   Riots were boiling in cities across America, including Boston.   Boston's Roxbury and South End areas to be specific.

Brown was scheduled to perform at the Boston Garden, 

but would it cause the violence to escalate further?   

The mayor was unsure.   Should the show go on?   

It did.

It was broadcast on television too, and looped repeatedly through the night.

According to History.com, the crime rate was even less than a normal Friday night in Boston.

Here's the set list.

The sound isn't great, but you can catch the concert below.

Here's a better sounding version of one of the songs he performed that night.   

That's life, people.   We gotta pick ourselves up, cape optional, and get back in the race.

Get on the good foot, y'all!

Encore?

Yes.

You can't listen to this and feel bad for too long.

What will your verse be?

Excuse me.    I know that you are busy stomping on bubble wrap to relieve stress after assessing assessment assessments and the assessors themselves.

May I interest you in a little inspiration?

It's free.

The last time that I remember watching Dead Poets Society was years ago...on the big screen.   I was an awkward teenager who was excited at the thought that there was all of this marrow to suck out of life and that boys would write me sheaves of poetry.   It's not likely that I was seriously pondering a career in education at the time.   I was thinking about boys and rosebud gathering, not inspirational teachers.   Yawn.

I'm kind of excited about watching the film as a teacher.   Mr. Keating had some great ideas about connecting literature to life and making the beauty of language unfold before them.   Remember the earthy coziness of the poets' lair and how much fun it was for the boys to carry on with their education outside of the classroom?   Awesome.   When kids take the reins, it's a great day.

I think that it's because of this film that I skipped so many of  my college English classes that were held in a windowless bank building.   Literature and life without a single ray of sunlight or glass portal to the natural world.   It was making me dumberer.   And grouchy.   But this is all beside the point.

Here's the rub.

   

What will your verse be?   It's up to you.   

But...I beg you.

Please don't be the person who put the "ass" in assessment.

Yes, I said "ass," but so did Shakespeare, so that means it's okay, right?

Let's not let anything make "fools of us all."

Signed,

Little and Fierce

For the Win

Bubble wrap.   Don't you just feel joyous already?   I ordered some bars of Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap, and they came nestled inside bubble wrap.   Two of my favorite things in one box!

So while I was gathering a few odds and ends to throw in my reward drawer at school, I grabbed my new plastic stress reducer to take as well.   I'm cutting it down to 3 x 5ish pieces to make it last longer.

Today we battled our two sentence journals for the amazing reward of BUBBLE WRAP!   Yes!

Apparently there's an app for that, but you can also pop some virtual bubbles here.   Nothing beats the good old tactile experience of smooshing those little cells and irking someone else's nerves though, does it?

I haven't always had a reward drawer.   Kids loved it when I fished around in my old desk or the corner closet until I found something ridiculous and undesirable.   Ahhhh.    I remember when I found a lonely checker and the whole class broke a sweat trying to earn such a enviable trophy.

I don't give out prizes every day, but when I do, they're cheaper than cheap.

Writing Contest: Life Lessons

Sharpen your pencils, writers!   Real Simple is awaiting your entry in their annual Life Lessons Essay Contest.   You may read the official rules here to get all of the details.   You have until September 12 to enter, so get reflective this summer.   Prizes are $3,000, $500 and $250 for first, second and third places.   This link will allow you to read the winning essays from last year to get an idea of what they have looked for in the past.

On a side note, I adore Real Simple.   Flipping through all of those gorgeous shots of clean, well-organized living is like inexpensive therapy for me.   It's like the same feeling I get from watching those house cleaning shows.   All of that sparkling fresh loveliness without having to lift a single vacuum.   I frequently tear pages from the magazine to use them as gift wrap and drawer liners.   Perhaps this magazine will also be a stress reducer for you.   Good luck with your essay!

Stress Relief

This has nothing to do with teaching, or does it?   I'm reminded of Nikki Giovanni's poem "Legacies" whenever I get my metal sifter down from the kitchen cabinet, so maybe it is related to the topic after all.   You may read the poem by following this link http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/177836

I like to bake cornbread when I am feeling the weight of stress.   It's not a family recipe.   I started with the directions on the back of a package of Indian Head yellow corn meal and adjusted it until I felt like it was right.   I have my grandmother's sifter and her sunshine yellow Pyrex mixing bowl.   Like I said before, it's not her recipe, but she sure did love to bake.   I like to think about her standing at her own kitchen counter while I am standing at mine.   It's a simple task that brings me a lot of peace.  

I'm sharing my recipe with you and hope that you also have a few "healing ceremonies" that you use when you need them.   Also, Southerners can't write this long without mentioning food, so I finally gave in to the impulse.

First:
Before you are wild-eyed with hunger, take two eggs out of the fridge to reach room temperature.   Ideally, these eggs should be of the local, fresh variety.

Meanwhile:
Set the oven for 400 degrees F.
Drip a little sunflower oil in your favorite cake pan.

Sift the following into the same bowl:
1 c. corn meal
1 c. cake flour
1 tsp. salt
3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c. sugar

Pour the following in a smaller bowl/ container:
2/3 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. sunflower oil

When your eggs hit room temperature, beat them with a fork and get rid of any whites that seem stringy.
Next, plop eggs in the smaller bowl and beat them to combine with milk/ oil.

Pour into the bowl of dry ingredients.   Mix with your fork.

Make sure your pan is lightly coated with sunflower oil.
Pour the batter into the pan.
Depending on your pan, it will take roughly 20-25 minutes.

It's done when you can press your palm lightly on the top of the cake and the cake springs back.

Top with honey and butter.

Jump back. Kiss yourself. Have mercy.