Halloween

     Today is Halloween. For the second year in a row I have decided to dress in a costume for the day. Most of the teachers on campus don't dress but I have seen some nice outfits on the ones that did.
     There was a witch of course, actually a couple of them. One of the English teachers wore his kilt. One teachers wears a grim reaper every year. It is seriously creepy. One of the science teachers wore a doctor's outfit.
     Last year I donned a 50's outfit complete with poodle skirt in red with a black poodle, a little black sweater, red scarf, saddle shoes with white socks and even a class ring worn around my neck. It was very fetching but the black net crinoline was difficult to sit in all day. This year I decided to dress as a house painter. I found, after two attempts, a company that sold white overalls on the web. I found a little white cap, and dug out my old white sneakers. I already had a white t-shirt that had paint on it from a summer project so that was all ready. I took acrylic paints and splashed different colors on the overalls and hat and shoes. But it's all in the details. I stuck a big paint brush in my side leg pocket, a pair of rubber gloves in my bib pocket, a purple bandanna in my back pocket and hung a roll of painters' tape (the old blue brand) where the straps connect to the bib. Pretty cute, I think. and the best part about this costume is that it is comfy to wear all day!
     This is the first year I have not visited the pumpkin patch at Avila. I was planning on going but it was so hot last weekend that I just was not looking forward to the heat and crowds. The weekend before Halloween is the worst time to go and I had had other things to do the previous weekends. So last Friday night on the way home I stopped at Von's to get a couple of things. They had beautiful, large pumpkins for $6.99 a piece. So I bought 3. I also bought a white pumpkin for $7 (I think I'm going to do something different for my mantel this year), 3 small speckled ones for $1.49 each (not the tiny ones about the size of an apple but ones 7-8" across) with nice curly stems. And I picked up a couple of pounds of apples, all different kinds, also for my fall mantel; I have a wooden compote that Doug's grandfather made that I think they will look very fallish in. And I got all of this for under $35. I usually don't get out of Avila for under twice that amount. and I didn't have to battle the crowds or the heat.
     My pumpkin will be cut today after school and will be ready for trick-or-treaters tonight. And this weekend I will take down the Halloween mantel decorations and put out the Thanksgiving ones. And they will look just fine, even though I broke the long standing tradition of pumpkin patching and saved myself a bunch of money in the process.

Rally Schedule

     Today we are on a Rally Schedule at our school. It is Home Coming tonight and the student population gets the opportunity, during this rally to see the candidates, after all their campaigning, and decide who will be the Home Coming King and Queen. In all things we, as educators, try to bring our students into the current times, stressing technology at every turn. But this is an old fashioned comfort I am glad they have not done away with. It harkens back to the high school days of long ago for me. Yes, my high school days were very long ago, almost 40 years to be exact, for I was a graduate of the class of 1973. Wow, does that make me sound old! Anywhooooo... I think it is nice that some traditions still exist. And sad that some have gone by the wayside.
     In our school, for reasons not quite clear to me, school spirit figures into very few occasions. Not many kids come out for the games (of any sport), yearbook sales are so low they are always in danger of being discontinued all together. School dances get cancelled due to low ticket sales. One can blame the  economy but I don't think attendance at these functions would be high even if the students got in free. Which is really a shame.
     So, today, on rally day, all the students will go and participate. See the funny sketches put on by each of the four classes. (Seniors usually win.) Get a look at the candidates for King and Queen, do some cheers with the cheerleaders, listen to the band do the "Boomba! Hey!" one of the few traditions dating back to the 50's. One class yells Boomba! A different class yells Hey! And so it goes as they try to out-yell each other. It will be a fun time mixed into the middle of our day. But I really think the kids would rather just go home early. Such a shame. Where did school spirit go?

6 Word Stories

     It all began: Ernest Hemingway was challenged to write an entire story in 6 words. What he wrote: "For Sale: baby shoes. never worn."
     I teach 6 word stories as part of my "outside-the-box" unit, after poetry and Ttranscendentalism, to my American Literature classes who are juniors. We discuss the ideas and images that Hemingway creates with those simple 6 words. And then I have them create a 6 word story of their own. I give them 15-20 minutes to do this and most of my students not only write one but several 6 words stories. In these stories I get a very realistic view into their life. These 6 words give me more information than the introduction essay I have them write at the beginning of every semester.
     Some of the stories from years past:
          Everything would be better without me.
          Holly, sit, sit, good job mamas!
          Wishing, running, flying. No more restrictions.
          Like stealing, I get it free.
          Marco Polo, where are you now?
          I will continue school at college.
          God called me so I went.
          Music. It changed me, It's life.
          More school, more knowledge, more pay.
          Hot sauce, like salsa, makes dance.
          Happy family. Next thing, it's broken.
          I did it! Proud of me!
          I need to go to sleep.
          Heroes like family: there for me.
          First blur, then view, finally lust.
          We were going to grow together.
          My greatest burden is my gift.
     These and many more are put up on a wall in my class room. I add their initials to them as a tribute, and am careful not to put them up until the students have graduated, because I encourage them to write from the heart, and they do, but they may not want the people in their class to know who said what.
     I have a whole new batch waiting to be put up next year from last year's students and another batch from this year that I will wait for two years to post. But all my students are fascinated by these stories, these glimpses into their peer's lives.
     6 Word Stories. 6 words. So simple, yet so powerful.
 

Gratitude

     I am currently reading a book called The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. It is a book about how she decided to extend her resolutions throughout the entire year, splitting them into monthly concentrations. For instance: January was Boost Energy where she decided to go to bed earlier, exercise better, toss, restore and organize among a couple of other things. February's part of the project was Remember Love where she tried to nag less, fight right and give small gifts of love. And so, on she goes through the year focusing on a new topic each month. Some of the chapters are informative but laborious to read. A lot of what she says comes from her extensive research into the particular topics. And there have been a few moments when I have really connected to what she says. but not for the most part.
     She started to write this, as she explains, to see if she could improve the amount of "happiness" in her life. I mostly consider my life a happy life. I firmly believe that no one has a perfect life but those things that are not perfect within our lives make us who we are. We need those imperfections and the resulting difficulties. So, as I have been reading along, it seems to me that this woman is not really making herself happier. She is changing herself and consequently her life and the lives of her husband and children. But we are now through the middle of the year and she is still trying to fight against the tide that is her life. Just because she won a battle in May doesn't mean the whole war is won, if you know what I mean.
     So, now, we come to August. The author speaks of contemplating the heavens. August is the month where she will delve into religion or religious thoughts to see if they make her more happy. Along with all the reading she has planned for the month, she has also decided to keep a gratitude journal. Hmmmm. Finally something here I can relate to.
     Last year, before I knew I had cancer I was struggling with the fact that I had gone through gastric surgery to "cure" my diabetes and in almost a year's time it had not gotten better but had gotten worse. I had already had one laser surgery to control diabetic retinapothy, and I was afraid I would continue to lose my eyesight. While I had lost 70+ pounds from the surgery, and started walking a mile and a quarter each school day, my blood sugars had become increasingly higher throughout the year. I was mad. No, not just mad; furious! At everything and everyone. I was giving up beloved food and drink and not getting rewarded in return. To make matters worse I have always turned to food in moments of crisis (o.k. so in most other moments, too) and because of my gastric surgery I couldn't do that. Also because of the surgery, I couldn't go back to using some of the diabetic medicines I had used (without good results) in the past. My avenues to solve this issue were becoming increasingly narrow.
     I decided I need to talk to a therapist about all this. I needed some closure but there was no way to put this issue to rest. No one to blame, since they could find nothing wrong with the surgery and no one knew why my diabetes was out of control.
     While I went for 8 weeks to see this therapist, and she offered several options to assuage my anger, the one thing she had me do was create a gratitude list. I thought that would be short and easy. She encouraged me to write it on paper but I quickly discovered that that wasn't going to work. One night as I lay awake in the middle of the night I started my gratitude list in my head. I went on for over a half hour before I fell asleep. Simple sentences like: I am grateful that I have a loving and supportive family. I am grateful that I live on the Central Coast. I am grateful that I have a job I love. You get the idea.
     You achieve a different mindset when you examine a gratitude list. I found the path to letting my anger go. I had too many other positive things to focus on in life. Gretchen had to write a book to figure out how to make herself realize happiness. She even gives you a template to follow if you wish to walk in her steps. I'm thinking that when, and if, I need to feel happier, I will just start my gratitude list in my head.
     Oh, by the way...once I was diagnosed with cancer and had the tumor removed my diabetes has all but disappeared. Seems that cancer tumors eat insulin and that was causing my blood sugars to rise all that year. Who knew?
    
    

Paper or Plastic?

     Beginning October 1st. San Luis Obispo County instituted a ban on all plastic bags from retail establishments. One can get paper bags to carry your items, but they cost ten cents a piece. I don't do a ton of small scale shopping much anymore, not like when my children were little and I went to the store every week for groceries. I mostly buy from Costco, who only occasionally had bags of any kind; mostly boxes to lug your purchases home. I know, it is just my husband and I and the cat now. One would think it would have been better to frequent Costco when we had kids, which we did but Costco wasn't around when they were little. So, back to bags... I knew this ban was coming. Many counties in other parts of the state had already begun the process. I went to a quilt store in San Jose this past summer and didn't get a bag. and was informed that if I wanted one it would be .25, which seemed kind of high to me. Anyway, like I said, I knew this was coming and I really did not plan for it at all.
     Last week was the first time I went to Walmart in over a month. I had a long shopping list. I have to have a list compiled when I go because otherwise I just don't go and fight the crowd. As I walked into Walmart I noticed that people were coming out with shopping carts full of items not in bags. I looked around and noticed most of the other people walking into Walmart had some kind of reusable shopping bag with them. Great. Now what? Oh, well, I thought, if I have to buy a bag I will. It is amazing how quickly my shopping list got cut down! I left the store with half the items on my list deeming them not necessary after all. And what I did buy I managed to fit into my purse and a container I bought. I felt pretty clever and vowed to put bags in my car when I got home. It's not that I don't have bags; they just weren't necessary until now.
     That was Tuesday afternoon. You think that would have been a lesson learned. No. Wednesday I went to the grocery store. Same scenario, deja vu all over again. But I couldn't cut down this list; I needed certain things. I ended up going through the self checkout and when the machine voice asked me how many paper bags I needed, I honestly punched the number 1. I only used one bag but I am wondering what would have happened had I punched zero and then taken one? Would the Von's bag police come swooping down on me? Was anyone really watching? I doubt it. So it leads me to ask the question: How serious was this ban?
     Thursday I stopped at CVS on my way home. Dang! No bags in the car, again! This is really starting to irritate me. The funny thing is that 2 years ago, as a New Year's Resolution, I began leaving all kinds of stores with my purchases in my hand or purse, telling them I was cutting down on bag use. Ironic? Probably. It just goes to show how hard it is to change a habit, and how much we take advantage of everyday things. Now we are hording plastic bags! We use them for trash under our sink, so it is not like we are just thowing them away when we empty them. But our supply is going to dwindle quickly. The other day I saw my husband taking the kitchen trash to a larger can in the utility room, emptying it out, and using the bag under the sink for a third time. We are faced with having to re-think our entire trash disposal system. I wonder if the voters who passed this ban realized the impact it would have on their every day life?

Ants

     If I didn't know better, I would think the campus is being taken over by ants! We, on the south side of the campus have been inundated with ants in the past month. They are everywhere, but not in places where you would expect them to be. Just killed 3 on my books. I have a bottle recycling bin in my classroom. The kids put all their energy drink cans and juice and soda and water bottles in it on a daily basis. The ants aren't bothering that. 2 down on my pencil cup. I have Tootsie Roll pops in my desk drawer; they are bothering those. They aren't in the trash cans where the students throw away their food wrappers. They are on the walls, the bookcases and my desk; I have killed 7 on my keyboard since I began this blog 4 minutes ago. I am not alone in this siege. The class rooms up and down the row of portables are also having issues. Maybe something sinister (2 more on my in-basket) was unearthed when they put in the pool a couple of hundred feet away? Hmmmm. Hey! got 4 more: two on the phone and 2 more on my desk by my file folders.
     My weapon of choice for ants has always been Windex. Non-lethal, always on hand, it seems to kill the scent trail they are establishing. Even though it works temporarily, the ants seem to just move to another spot and resume their attacks. This is getting creepy. 3 more dead on the keyboard, 2 on my mouse pad. The school gets bug sprayed periodically so the issue will eventually go away but in the mean time we struggle with the ants and try to win the battles if not the war itself.

Handicapped Parking

     Every day I park in the teacher's parking lot behind a row of portables where my class room is located. I don't have an "A" block, which starts at 7:30, so I am never the first one here, arriving at approx. 7:50. I park my car and walk the 200 feet or so to the gate at the end of the parking lot that is locked so students don't come through our parking lot. It gives a small amount of security for us but the drive way gate is open so it is not completely locked up. Anyway...beside the point; I ramble.
     As I walk to the gate I walk across the Handicapped parking spaces (2 of them) that are nearest the gate. We used to have a teacher that would park there every day. Her name was Trishawna. Trishawna and I were hired into this school district on the same day. I was sent to Righetti High School and she was sent here, to Santa Maria High School. I didn't get to know her well until my second year teaching when I was also moved to Santa Maria High School. She was also an English teacher and her room was close enough to mine that I would see her at breaks in line for the bathroom and we struck up a friendship. We had dinner a couple of times and I visited her when she would be out of school. Trishawna had Sickle Cell Anemia, and was often out for a day or two to get blood transfusions. Last September she passed away in childbirth; leaving her husband of 8 years and a son: Dorian.
     She drove a brown sedan; I can't remember the make or model now but on the back window she had a sticker that read "Got Grace?"
     . Even though we weren't best friends and not long term friends I still miss Trishawna. A nice person, a strong woman; she would have been a loving and wonderful mother. Everyday I walk across that empty parking space and think of her. It's funny how some of the silliest things make such a big impression. A piece of asphalt marked in blue and memories of a friend.

Here Lives a Very Fine Cat, Indeed

     A little plaque, made out of terra cotta clay and engraved by hand, hangs outside my front door. It is about 5" square. On it reads "Here lives a very fine cat indeed". It has a picture of a cat sculpted from the clay and other imbellishments also carved into the clay before firing. I believe it was handmade by someone who took great pride in their cat or at least loved him/her very much. I found it at an estate sale; no cats were around, and paid $2 for it.
     I thought it was a fitting sentiment to put on the outside of my front door to let the world know that yes, we do have a very fine cat, indeed. His name is Jerome. We didn't get Jerome as a kitten. He came to us 5 or 6 years ago relocating himself from the young woman who lived in the condos behind us. He had issues with her and her boyfriend and made it known that he wanted to be the alpha male in her life, which did not sit well with her. She always told us he was "stand-offish." to make a long story short, he eventually came to live with us.
     We could never understand why his old owner thought him so unfriendly. He has liked and paid attention to everybody, save one salesperson we were trying to get an estimate on a sun room from (we didn't use him because of it). And usually one can't get him off their lap or bed or quilt. Arms have gone numb, legs have gotten cramps but he is so loving that no one wants to disturb him. Hardly stand-offish. He's also handy for making sure fabric is laid upon and papers don't fly around. Boxes are to be sat upon so they don't roam and if empty must be slept in at least for a time.
     He does "cat" well. Better than any cat we have had in the past (and we've had more than our share but that's for another blog some day when I have much more time.) He works hard at being the cat in the household. And his naps. At any given time you can find him napping making up for all the time he spends taking care of us and the house. A very fine cat, indeed.

ACK! Computers

     I tried blogging today and very quickly realized that something was wrong with my screen. I got to my blog but there was no place to sign in. I just signed in and blogged yesterday and now today it wasn't working. I dislike it when things change overnight for seemingly no reason. I didn't do anything different and now my computer at school is not letting me sign on to post. the same computer changed my e-mail screen four days ago. Now, when I log in to read my e-mail I can do anything I want except exit out of the site. I have to do a control-alt-delete and log off and relog on. This makes no sense to me. Part of the problem is that I don't understand how the computer works, but really, this is ridiculous! So now I am trying to blog on a tiny laptop and it is taking forever. I'll try again tomorrow. I think I need a nap.

Essays

     Essays are a necessary evil in my job. They are an integral part of any high school English class. I hate assigning them. I spend approximately 6 weeks teaching my 11th grade students how to write and format an essay. You ask why I spend so much time teaching an essay. they have been writing essays since they were in 5th grade. I know this because I subbed in a 5th grade class when I was getting my credential. I had a friend who taught 5th grade. She taught essays and it was standard curriculum for 5th grade.
     So, one would thing that by the time they get to me they should know how to construct a 5 paragraph essay. I begin by teaching them brainstorming. They get that. I follow that by teaching them how to outline. We start by doing one together on the board. I teach them the rules: the roman numerals, if you have a one you must have a two and so on. I have them choose an author from their literature book and have them outline the one page biographies. Then I have them outline a newspaper article. Then we go to the computer lab and type them according to the rules. Once they type their own they practice by typing 3 more, just to get the format in their head. they haven't even been told at this point that they are going to do an essay.
     After the outlines I teach them all about the MLA Works Cited Page. I have a practice exercise that involves finding the correct information they need for thirteen pieces of information they might cite: a song from a CD, a book with two authors, a map from an atlas, an article from a magazine, a letter to the editor, an advertisement, a cartoon or comic strip and six others. There is a handout that gives them exactly what information they need to compile for each item. then we take all this information to the computer lab, again, and learn how to type it up in MLA format. I model it for them, I give them examples of what it should end up looking like and we discuss the rules regarding formatting. I also introduce them to Easybib which is a free website that allows you to put all the information into boxes under the categories and it will format the citation for you. A miracle.
     We go step by step into choosing the topics (a persuasive essay), getting backup, parenthetical citations, formatting the paper on a whole, how a 5 paragraph essay is constructed and what goes into each paragraph. then they write a rough draft. We read them out loud to each other. We do peer editing. then they type it up and have a tutor edit the first final draft. then they put it all together, make corrections, and type up a final paper with citations and Works Cited page. Comes out to be 4 pages, tops. Easy Peasy! Right? One would think so.
     But every year, even though I do get a couple of A papers, and not always from the best students, just the ones who cared enough to try and learn how to do a good job, most of the papers never get a grade above an F. And I think about giving up. Just giving up on these kids because it is part and parcel of their make-up not to care too much. They can't see how important this all is. They will need this stuff when they get to college. Sadly, many of them will remember my class and regret not learning more. But it won't be because I didn't try. I hope they remember that. 

Jobs

     I am currently holding my last job. I hope. I have been working since I was 15 and if you do the math, ACK, that is over 41 years now! I'm tired. I did take a couple of years off before I started teaching to finish my degree and get my credential. But that maybe was the hardest work of all. Brain work at an age when most people are settled into a daily routine, working at a job, having kids in high school, and would never consider going back to school. I am an over achiever I guess, or maybe just plain dumb to struggle so much so late in life. Hard to say. But I know at the time that I did not want to do what I was doing for the rest of my working career. so I thought I would take this opportunity to see if I could list all the jobs I have had, paying jobs that is, besides being a mom and wife, officer of my quilt guild, etc...
     Here goes: (Note: some of these I had overlapping as in 2 or more part time jobs) 1. Salesclerk: The Broadway Dept. Store, 2. Bookkeeping Clerk: Santa Barbara Savings, 3. Temp Office: Manpower, Inc. 4. Payroll Asst.: Manpower, Inc., 5. Delivery: Brundage Flower Shop, 6. Asst. Manager: House of Fabrics, 7. Delivery: Santa Maria Valley Garden Center & Florist, 8. Designer: Santa Maria Valley Garden Center & Florist, 9. Designer: San Luis Floral, 10. Designer/ Floral Shop Manager: Dairy's Madonna Gardens, 11. Secretary: Waterway Irrigation & Pipe Supply, 12. Salesclerk: TG&Y. 13. Manager/Fabric Dept.: TG&Y, 14. Bookkeeper/Payroll: TG&Y, 15. Designer/Manager: Cramer's Flower Shop, 16. Owner: Diet Center, 17. Salesclerk: Gottschalks Dept. Store, 18. Janitor: Central Coast Janitorial, 19. ATM Servicer: Diebold, 20. Ad Inserter: Five Cities Times Press Recorder, 21. Route Person: Five Cities Times Press Recorder, 22. Morning Weekend Grill Cook: Jack in the Box, 23. Teller: HomeFed Bank, 24. Vault Teller: HomeFed Bank, 25. Operations Supervisor: HomeFed Bank, 26. Salesclerk: Welcome Home Retail Store, 27. Teller: SESLOC Federal Credit Union, 28. Salesclerk: Betty's Fabric Store, 29. Vacation Rental Manager: Dolphin Property Management, 30. Vacation Rental Manager: Sea Wave Property Management, 31. Data Processor/office help: Pismo Coast Management & Realty, 32. Substitute Teacher: Lucia Mar Unified School District, 33. Substitute Teacher: Santa Maria Joint Union High School District, 34. English Teacher: Santa Maria Joint Union High School District.
     THAT was an interesting excercise. I think I got them all. I'm tired. When can I retire?

Fog, dark:30 & Scarecrows

     Woke up this morning to fog at last. That means the days of severe heat are gone! Yea! Please! It's October already! I am not a hot weather person. I would rather have it cold everyday than hot. I love our weather here on the coast. It ranges between 65* and 75* most of the year. Perfect. But the downside of this is that we forfeit the seasons. Without notification in the news or on a calendar we would rarely know when Autumn or Spring start. It always comes as a shock to me when the nursery puts out their selection of bulbs that need to be planted in the fall for the next spring. I have to plant some ranuculus this weekend if I have time.
     And it doesn't matter what time of year it is; I get up at 5:30 most of the year and it is dark. Dark:30. That's what I call it. I don't know where I first heard that expression but it is certainly fitting. I have never liked this. I feel like I am being robbed of sleep. If left to my own devices I usually wake up naturally about 7:30ish. and it doesn't seem to matter what time of the year it is, at 7:30ish it is light outside.
     Looking forward to this weekend. We are going to Cambria to look at Scarecrows. All of the businesses and many of the private citizens make and display scarecrows for the entire month of October. I heard about this several years ago but have never actually gone to see them. It should be a nice drive. Doug and I can stat a new book. We just finished one of Clive Cussler's and I think we are going to start Water for Elephants.

Hot, Hot, Hot!

   We are in the middle of the yearly heat wave! It was 100+ degrees yesterday in Santa Maria, where I work. And 98* in Grover Beach, where I live. I was not prepared for the heat. I wore jeans and a black 3/4 sleeve tee with my saddle shoes. Boy, bad choice. What was I thinking? Well, we got up yesterday and our t.v. cable system was out. They had power outages and wind damage in Nipomo and all over so I suppose we were the victim of weather. So, Doug and I pulled up Sunday Morning off our DVR and listened to that while we ate breakfast. I never thought to check the temps for the day, although we have two computers and a smart phone and an iTouch within reach. It had been 73* on Friday at school and even though they said it was going to get warmer I had no idea it was going to jump 30*. My only redeeming grace is that I am in a portable classroom with air conditioning. Many parts of this school are so old (first graduating class was in 1893; there were 3 seniors!) that they were, of course, built before air conditioning and the district has not taken the time or money to update those buildings. And usually it is o.k. as we pretty much stay in the high 60's or low 70's all year round. Except for a fluke like this week. 100* yesterday and supposed to be 97* today but it doesn't feel like it will get that hot. There is a nice morning breeze happening. and just wait...next week we will be wearing our winter coats and scarves! Autumn is supposed to be cold not hot. I want my season change and I want it now!

Late Start Monday

     Every other week at school we have these late start days. they are used to get together as a staff and/or department to discuss, visit, work on projects, etc... The kids come in late on those days; for most of them the day starts at 9:55. You would think that because they come in later that they would be more rested and ready to work. But no. They know they don't have to get up as early so they tend to stay up later than normal (although I continually amazed at just how late teenagers stay up on school nights), and consequently they come in dragging. Most of the time our staff meetings run a little shorter than the prescribed time which is nice as it gives us the opportunities to get things done in our rooms.
     I had a very productive weekend. Doug and I went to Costco and did some major shopping, although I guess any trip to Costco is considered major shopping. Sometimes you see people who just pop into Costco for a bottle of wine or a box of cereal. Here they stand - in lines 6-7 people and baskets deep to get one item. Is it really that much cheaper? People don't value their time! We then took a turn around Home Depot picking up a couple of item we needed. On the way home we got sidetracked by an estate sale. Got some lamps for Doug's shop, a very nice plant hanger that stands independently and hold four plants, and of all thing we got a flamingo ceramic plate for a friend that collects flamingos. Normally I try not to encourage other's collecting but this plate was a large serving plate and very nice. For $2 how could I go wrong?
     I finished Nancy and Jerry's quilt blocks. Now they are nice and neatly piled in rows on my sewing table covered with a piece of fabric because I know Jerome will find them. and I started to put Smitty's quilt (guild President) on my design wall. Looks good. Can't wait to get it finished so I can move on to something else. I really need to work on my neighbor's bedspread. She's been sick the last 2 weeks. Every time she gets ill and lands in the hospital I feel a need to get it done for her. I am so afraid I will not get it done in time. She has been able to get well each time but they have told her it will not get better (she has COPD) and I do want her to enjoy her quilt, the longer the better.
     Bells, bells, bells. Students. Gotta run! The day has finally begun.