firetruck conspiracy, stocked on stationery, and census stalkers

alrighty then. it seemed like an ordinary saturday until i got out of the house to go purchase some 'crafty' things. then it was just busy. as i pulled out of the complex and headed west, there was a fire truck blocking half the road; not sure what happened, but there was a car just in front of them, and they were getting back into the truck (did i mention that it was almost directly in front of the fire dept? how convenient! if my car ever catches on fire, may it be in front of a fire station!!)

actually, yesterday when i got home from school, there were 2 fire trucks in the complex at the building next to mine and people outside...that is the one thing that i am paranoid about; living in an apt. complex, worrying about the dogs-if any idiots in the complex do something stupid with a space heater, Christmas lights...candles...so no, i don't mind living next to the fire department at all. i rather welcome the sound of the sirens, knowing that they can be at the apt in a minute.

scariest part about living in an apt...ANY apt!

but i digress. today i was out and about looking for cups, a waffle iron, paint pens, bacon...you know, the fun stuff! so i found some cups that were 'alright' at target, but they didn't have the waffle iron i wanted-the model was out, but there were no boxes on the shelf...i saw that as a sign that i did not need a waffle iron today. then when i got up to the cash register, the man in front of me had the waffle iron that i wanted. the last one...i weighed out all of my possible options, and decided that none of them were legal, so i would just wait another day, or check on amazon.

on the way back, at the intersection near my place there was a major disruption-2 fire trucks and a couple of police cars, so i took the back roads and finally got to the grocery store for-like i said before, bacon. i also grabbed a zucchini and a yellow squash because i purchased a vegetable grinder-thing the other day and want to see if it works as well as it did on 'the chew'. game on-zucchini spaghetti tomorrow!

when i walked out of the store, there was yet another fire truck in the parking lot!! WHAT IN THE WORLD?! perhaps subliminal messages-they are getting out in the neighborhoods so that people will think, "oh, i should get a shiny, red fire truck for little timmy!" pretty sure that's the deal.

this has been a busy month. we were preparing at the beginning of the month for our PERSONALIZED LEARNING (PL)presentation. we had a decent presentation, and then we waited, and waiting is the devil. then-drum roll, please! we were recommended for 'full launch!' umm...i know, sounds like we are a rocket ship or something. so..it's been a busy 6 months planning and creating a framework for the direction that we'd like to go with this endeavor, now that we are in, the heavy lifting begins, and it is going to get real. spring semester separates the wheat from the chaff...the milk from the cream... ok, seriously, training, planning, preparing, learning. that's what it be.

one of the neat things that has come of this is that one of the ladies from the community was at a PL meeting down town and learned that we were applying, and since she lives in our neighborhood, she came by to tour our school! in the process, she noticed our pathetic playground. she came back a few weeks later with a check for about 96k and it gets better, there was a special because it's off-season, so the company matched it and we are getting almost 200k worth of playground equipment!!!! WHAT?! we are blessed! not only that, but our generous benefactress is also on our advisory board, and has some great input, and she is planning to volunteer to read with our students. it doesn't get any better! we are humbled. our kids are going to be ecstatic!

loving this season of JOY!

it's that time of year, and my people know me-i got stationary from my secret pal and some note-cards from my principal

love the elegance and simplicity-

so fun-they will certainly get used!

-all this after i stopped at world market and i shouldn't have but i stopped at the card rack and found these sweet cards...$60 worth...so-i'm stocked for a little bit. my freakin' achilles heal...for some girls it's shoes. for me, it's cards. you can't write on shoes...but then cards on your feet might be kinda' tacky as well...

world market, thank you!

and there were tamales. that makes my Christmas complete! (cue a deep sigh of satisfaction). i will be making a stop at the pupuseria down the street in the next couple of days as well as the panaderia guatemalteca-in hopes that i will find a tasty little snack to go with my coffee.

thank you, mrs. markham-this made my holiday complete!

 and i have already forgotten what day it is-for not keeping track or having a schedule...pretty sure it's monday..nope, tuesday, that's what i meant! my internet has been spotty, so i couldn't finish this last night-grr. so i decided to go to ihop to use the wifi while enjoying a simple egg and bacon breakfast. i walked in and asked for a booth where i might be able to work. i was guided to a booth and when i tried to access their wifi, lo and behold, there was no network available! what? so i asked my lady if they had wifi and she said no they did not. well, that was a first, almost every ihop and denny’s i’ve been to has wifi! i was very disappointed-i tried not to let it show on my face, but unfortunately my body language and facial expressions are fairly easy to read. i still over-tipped (it's Christmas, and breakfast waitresses don't get large tips because the prices are so low on breakfast).. not her fault they don't have wifi -note to self, no business meetings at ihop on beltline...not that teachers usually conduct 'business meetings.' in that case, maybe no e-book-club at that ihop...and the eggs weren't even cooked well, and the bacon had a funky taste...i guess i'm a little picky about my eggs and bacon.

oh, and a few weeks ago, i received this census form in the mail and thought i could just not do it. then i got bombarded with reminders and "if you missed the first mailing, we will send another. you are bound by law to fill this out. if you don't, we will send another. if you still don't fill it out, we may send one of the gitmo detainees to 'encourage you' to fill it out. we KNOW you haven't filled it out; in fact, we know that you threw the first one away....do the right thing. we just want to pave your roads better." Perhaps that wasn't verbatim, but close enough.

wonder if mary and joseph got one like this in the mail.

so, yes, i did fill it out to be done with it. i'm just glad i didn't have to do it the way mary and joseph did back in the day...riding a donkey up to illinois would not be ideal (even not being great with child).

and of course, i would be remiss to not mention the staff party-we had a great time. papadeaux is always delicious! i sat with jeri, abby and her husband and there is a crazy connection. when i mentioned that i wasn't going to mo. for the break, he asked what part of mo. when i said north of springfield, he asked where, and when i said buffalo, he knew EXACTLY where i was speaking of-he proceeded to tell me that his grandparents live in halfway. if you recall, i've spoken of halfway before..tiny town of 2...perhaps i exaggerate, but still, the coincidence of anyone in dallas being familiar with halfway is somewhat comforting. smile.

we were especially happy this evening because of the news of PL!

oh, and i wasn't planning on going anywhere this year, but some friends are gathering in oklahoma, and it's been awhile since i've seen them, so we may be having a last-minute, impromptu reunion, and the boys are excited because they will get to see their friends/family! they were just saying they wanted to work on their social skills, so basically what is going to happen is that reagan is going to put chaco in his place, and bruno is going to wander off and do his own thing, trying to avoid the others and thatcher is probably going to chill and try to hide from chaco.

so this is where i halt for the day and wish you all the merriest!  be back after Christmas!
julie

target practice on Christmas eve...new tradition? i could go for that

today i woke up and mom made waffles and bacon-yum! it was farmer's bacon, so it was the real deal-nice and salty. again, if you didn't hear me the first time YUM!

yesterday we left dallas at 7:05, made 4 stops and arrived in buffalo at about 2:30, and pretty much dropped the dogs off and went to their pastor's house for a Christmas open house. there were several people whom i had met during the summer, so i at least had some recognizable faces. when i was getting something to drink, one of the younger men there said, "you look like a doctor or something...you just have that...intelligent look about you." for a split second, i thought maybe there was some hidden candid camera in the kitchen.  i explained that no, i was a teacher, but it was good that i had an intelligent look so that the students would find me credible! (i was wearing jeans and a fleece...i guess that's the new intelligent look, in case you fashion folk were wondering!)

i love holiday get togethers that involve tables loaded with cheese, crackers, sausage, cookies, and all sorts of other goodies! festive, i tell ya!

when we got home, i was tired, but i was able to finish the remainder of my Christmas reading-the hobbit.

this morning after breakfast, i finished a couple more Christmas cards (which of course will arrive fashionably late), then mom and i went to walmart in springfield-because the little one here in buffalo is a little one here in buffalo. (it may have sounded redundant, but purposeful).

i especially wanted to find a game i had heard about on talk radio-random, but it sounded like a winner-we shall see!

supposed to be a riot...

 and i may have stopped by the seasonal aisle for kisses, but guess what. Christmas has not even passed and already, they are stocking the valentines candy!! boo.

on the way home, we came around the long way because i wanted to get  a picture of the sign:

if you recall, i wrote about this place over the summer when i came to visit the first time....

such a unique little place, but before we drove through all 5 seconds of it, we went through bolivar, which is the other town it is halfway between to mail my cards...we found a post office, but we couldn't find the way to get to the drop boxes-which were actually just a hole in the side of the building with slots...there was only one way in-it was on the back side of the post office, and didn't have any signs that said post office, weird...but i got them sent none-the-less.

when we got home, i had mentioned to my dad that i was interested in purchasing a gun, but i didn't know what i wanted, so he called his buddy to see if he could give me a quick lesson on guns and let me shoot one out at his place. so we went over to their place-out in the country and around the hills in mo. and he had everything out and lined up. i mean to tell ya, i got my fill of handguns today! i found the one i want, and i am actually a pretty good shot (although i was aiming at a big burn barrel, and i wasn't that far away from it). he and his son-in-law were really good about explaining to me all about the different types, and i think i have decided on a revolver-type.

then on the way home, we were talking about the difference between a shotgun and a rifle, and dad told me he had an antique rifle that was passed down from his grandfather. when we got home, he pulled it out and let me check it out. it seemed rather small like a toy cap gun. so i saw a small quart sized paint can and we set it up and i shot twice and hit it twice. yes, i am a markswoman...just call me sniper jrob!

the first shot went through the front, ricocheted through the back at an angle and went through the dryboard behind.

the second shot went through and knocked the can right off the barrel and the dryboard fell into the burn barrel which was burning stuff at the time, so we let it burn.

and then i was done, and decided that i really enjoy shooting. hmm.

it's been a productive Christmas eve day.
julie

stop thief! an electronic game of cops and robbers...and going halfway

well, yesterday i did it! i went to check out 'the dark knight rises.' i decided to drive down to springfield for it, and i'm glad i did-i went alone and watched it in the imax...PHENOMENAL! if you have not seen it, i highly recommend it! and yes, at the end i did have tears-which i tried to blow on to dry them up and since that didn't work real well, as soon as the credits began, i was the first one to the door (the advantage of going alone- no waiting on anyone else!)

i don't know if i've ever mentioned it or not, but my parents are big game people (not like safari elephant big game...more like game board and cards), so the other day we played an old family favorite (one that we played back when i was in 3rd and 4th grade)...STOP THIEF! the electronic game of cops and robbers. my students would be better off in the critical thinking realm if they had the opportunity to play games like this and have family game nights in which they were using their thinking skills. this one was especially good in helping to learn to focus and draw conclusions.

we got through one crime scene and i arrested the bad guys and got the reward money, but then when we began the next scene, the electronic gadget went berzerk on us and it wasn't the battery-just an old machine..about 30 years old...it's held up well until now.

today mom and i went on a little drive around town so that she could show me around. down in the town square (i love old towns with town squares!) there was a mural, which was pretty good-the buffalo probably could've been a little darker brown, but other than that, very nice.

everybody loves a good mural

 then, after sightings of the fire station, the clinic, the police, the water tower...we stopped at the pharmacy-where i found a great little card, and then i wanted to see halfway, the town with a population of 137...it is half way between buffalo and bolivar-creative name, i know.

i got out to take a picture of the population sign, and 3 of the cows were looking at me very curiously...there's one of them...somehow, i must have deleted the picture of the sign. boo.

 but in a town like halfway, you make up the joke...here's halfway elementary, and i think this is where they send the mediocre teachers so that they have an excuse for being mediocre...

i say that in jest, i am sure that the teachers here are probably amazing.

that is basically what i did today-and continued reading in the book that has captivated me this week-the one i mentioned yesterday: the founders on the founders...you get the most accurate portrayals of people by what their own words to others, their diaries, words by their spouses and colleagues as well as mere acquaintances from abroad and even their enemies or opposition have said. the book is interesting because it is more about their character (be it good or bad) rather than their politics...which i would have enjoyed just as much.

staying at mom and dad's is dangerous-it's impossible to say no to mom's cooking and baking, and when they want to grab ice cream..what can i say? (although, i did bring the bullet with me and have had several breakfast concoctions...but it doesn't make up for the other!)

well, i think it's time to get ready for pizza hut...
julie

not so much booing and hissing as barking and hissing..

ok, so..i'm a little frustrated because i had this post half done, but it didn't save, and it wouldn't publish. boo. i'm at my parent's home in buffalo, mo. but, before i left, guess where i went!? that's right, i had to stop by school to drop off some of my summer school supplies that i had taken with me that were crowding up my car!

i covered up the room as tastefully and colorfully as possible...actually i had asked a couple of girls to grab me 4 long strips of paper and of course they got one of each.

i was going to buy a baby shade for the back window, but i decided to try something else, and they now have a $218 shade. yes, creative as i may be, i took the mri films and wedged them in the back windows...i suppose it's legal. if not, i could always pretend to be a radiologist late for work, so i thought i'd read the films on the way to work...because impersonating someone is not a felony and all.

as i was driving up to missouri, i had mapped out my path thinking i might have to stop in tulsa (a little out of the way) to use the restroom because they have a petsmart, but fortunately there is a pet place in mcalester (which is almost the halfway point), and they allowed pets in. i have never seen it before, so i was quite amused..and so thankful that i bought knees of some kind of animal for the boys. that's right...knees. 

i did also get them yet another thinking toy-keeps the brain sharp-no time for alzheimer's...their lives are much too short!

 chaco didn't exactly work the lever as he was supposed to, but he figure out how to get the treat nonetheless, so i give him kudos for improvising-he is a survivor!

 when we got in the car to continue our journey, bruno got in chaco's seat, forcing chaco to get into bruno's. then bruno proceded to get out of his seat (i didn't buckle them in for that segment), and lay most of the way on the bean bag, then about an hour from our destination, bruno wanted back in his own seat and jumped in with chaco, who was looking at me with that 'what am i supposed to do now?' look. but they did just fine the rest of the trip.

one of the worst things about the trip is that all along the way through oklahoma, it is sprinkled with little towns, so i had to keep slowing down to go through the towns. quaint and adorable, but not so much when you're trying to qualify for a big race...right? regardless, we made it in record time. i may actually have qualified for the indy 500...no tellin'. i decided mom and dad don't need to know exactly how fast we were going...

i think the trip took everything out of bruno-he was exhausted. now that we've been here a couple of days, i am hoping that the dogs and cats start to get along, or at least tolerate each other. right now we're all in one room and the boys are laying quietly with scamper sleeping on the opposite side of the room. there has been quite a bit of hissing and barking, and a little bit of chasing. the cats are twice the size of the dogs, so it would probably be all cat.

and that's it for tonight-hopefully i can publish this thing!
julie