Going to the hair salon #sol21

I finally got my hair cut after more than a year. I’ve been so hesitant to venture into a hair salon, even after being vaccinated. I’ve continued to be cautious about the places I go. However, my hair was beginning to get on my nerves. It was a long, stringy mess and something had to be done, so I made the appointment.

When I left the salon, I felt like a completely different person. I’m not sure how many inches were cut off, but it felt like several pounds worth of hair! I loved how my hair looked and felt.

However, by the next morning, when I went to style my hair, I just couldn’t get it to look nearly as nice. I tried and I tried, spending more time in front of the bathroom mirror working on my hair than I usually did. I blowed my hair and brushed and brushed, but nothing seemed to help. It had looked so pretty when I strolled out of the salon, but no matter what I did, I just couldn’t replicate it.

This always seems to happen. When I get my hair cut and styled, it looks nice until I have to try to replicate the look. Then it goes right back to how it always looked. I’ve never been able to do much with my hair and it’s so frustrating!

My day in haiku #sol21

Lunch was too speedy

Peanut butter on my mouth

transferred to my mask

Organized chaos

in the pickup line daily

How we get it done

My stomach grumbles

but the snack drawer is empty

must go shopping now

A beautiful day

open sunroof and music

loving the drive home

The grass is greener… #sol21

M and I have been taking more walks since the weather has been nice. I always make sure to have a camera handy on those walks. I’ve snapped photos of deer, turkeys, and the cows in the surrounding pastures. I took the photo below while trying not to giggle. This cow was so determined to get the grass on the other side of the fence. I love how the cow looked directly at me while I snapped the photo. She didn’t seem concerned about me or my camera. It was all about the good green grass!

The Transfer Portal #sol21

I am a huge fan of the UVa men’s basketball team. I love following the team and that’s one thing the M, my boyfriend, and I share. M is not just a UVa fan, but a fan of college basketball. At first, my viewing of games only involved the Cavaliers, but now I’m hooked on watching any ACC team play. If UVa is not playing, I’ll watch most of the other ACC teams (there are two that I really don’t like, but I won’t name names!). As a result, I’ve gotten familiar with many non-UVa players.

This year in college basketball, the transfer portal and the numbers of players involved has been newsworthy. UVa had three players enter the portal and all three are moving to other schools. While I will miss them, I was tuned into the conversations about the players who had expressed interest in playing in Charlottesville. I started following the conversations about the transfer portal on social media and regularly checked for any announcements as well as information about those players. I’ve been studying the process intently!

We’ve picked up two new players, one from Indiana, Armaan Franklin, and one, Jayden Gardner, from East Carolina. I’ve been intently reading up on their stats and getting to know the guys who will be joining the team. Now, I’m hoping to actually be able to go see my team in action when the next season starts! I’ve missed being in the crowd at John Paul Jones arena!

Do you have a Sharpie? #sol21

M was working on a project and needed a black Sharpie to label the different boards so they could be reassembled correctly. He asked me, “Do you have a Sharpie?”

Do I have a Sharpie? Of course! I have Sharpies, InkJoys, multiple Pentel EnerGels, G-7s, and Flair pens, just to name a few of the different kinds of pens. I have just about any color, too. I’ve actually taken over the pencil cup on the desk at M’s house in addition to the bag of pens that I regularly carry in my purse. I also have multiple cups of pens on the desk at my house and on my desk at school. You need a writing utensil? I’ve got it! And, if I don’t have it, it’s not a writing utensil that you’ll want to use! I take my pens seriously!

Poetry Apps #sol21

I’ve never considered myself to be a poet. For a long time, poetry frankly scared me and I just didn’t think that I was capable of writing it. However, during my time as a part of the SOL community and the Teach Write group, my view of poetry and my ability to write poetry has changed quite a bit. One member of both groups, Christie Wyman, has shown me that poetry is not something to fear or avoid. The book Poems Are Teachers, by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater, also taught me so much.

I’ve written more and more poetry over the last year or so. Recently, I discovered two apps for my iPad that stimulated my poetry writing. One is the poeTree app and the other is the Instant Poetry 2 app. I’ve enjoyed playing around with words and creating a variety of poems. I think that I appreciate these apps because they don’t insist on one correct way to write a poem. I have freedom to write whatever is in my heart or on my mind.

Ten on Tuesday #sol21

Today’s slice was inspired by Tammy Breitweiser, who blogs here. Tammy’s post was based on a prompt called the “Ten on Tuesday” list.

10 Things I Love To Eat

1. Cheesecake
2. A Super Supreme pizza from Pizza Hut with a Thin and Crispy crust
3. My grandmother’s macaroni and cheese (especially when it’s fresh from the oven, but it’s good any time and at any temperature!)
4. Ribeye steaks cooked on the grill with Tony Chachere’s seasoning
5. Crinkle-cut French Fries from the air fryer
6. Mom’s oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies
7. Mom’s brownies
8. Biscuits and gravy
9. Hash brown “junk plates”
10. Bacon

Creating this list made me so hungry! Now I need to see what’s in the pantry!

My Personal Vacuum Cleaner #sol21

Every day, I eat breakfast and lunch at the desk in my classroom. I’ve rarely eaten in the lounge because I use the time to either prepare for the day or to work on something. As a result, I have a small carpet sweeper that I use to pick up crumbs or anything that I might have dropped during the course of a meal. However, since we’ve had Lass, a therapy dog, at school, I’ve had to spend less time sweeping the carpet because she’s become my personal vacuum cleaner. Every morning, Lass comes to visit and today, she made her rounds as the day was getting started. She likes to check on all of us, especially those teachers who have treats for her. Our music teacher and fourth grade teacher usually have dog bones for her. Every morning, Lass makes a beeline to my desk and gently encourages me to scoot my chair over so she can reach under my desk. Once things are clean, she wags her tail and heads out to her next stop.

After lunch, Lass is back. Again, she heads straight to my desk and if I’m sitting, gives me a look that says, “Move over!” Again, she investigates the area around my desk and sometimes I hear crunching. Then, she trotted over to the door and headed on down the hall.

When I looked around my desk, there wasn’t a speck of anything on the carpet. Lass is better than any vacuum cleaner! I just have to make sure that I haven’t had anything that could harm her, but that’s not been a problem.

Thinking about procrastination #sol21

I’ve been thinking a lot about procrastination. I’ve been sitting here, trying to write. Sometimes, when the words aren’t flowing, I have to deal with procrastination. I decided to write about the different ways that I can procrastinate, especially because more than one applied to me this evening!

1. Social media is one of the top ways in which I can procrastinate. Before finishing this post, I checked out Facebook. Social media is such a rabbit hole!

2. I sometimes get something to eat, whether I’m really hungry or not. Right now, I’m thinking about a snack and contemplating what is in the snack cabinet.

3. I find something else to work on, even if it’s not high priority. I’ll even stop and pay bills as a way to procrastinate!

4. Sometimes I search for funny videos or memes. Then, I have to share my findings, especially with M. He and I always try to find the funniest videos and memes to share. We love to laugh over these things together.

5. I’ll open the puzzle app on my phone or iPad and or on a puzzle. I love this app and find it so relaxing!

6. I’ll sneak a peek (or more) at a book. I’ll tell myself just a few pages, but…

Currently #sol21

I love writing a “Currently” post when writer’s block strikes! I’ve started several posts about my day, but I think those ideas have to percolate a little more. I may need to spend some additional time to find the words that I need.

Currently I am…

Drinking water when I’d love a big glass of sweet tea.

Thinking about…the ice cream in the freezer.

Waiting for…my iPad to charge so I can read a book.

Dreaming about…traveling somewhere…anywhere!

Wondering…what I’m going to read next.

Needing to…spend some time on the treadmill.

Reading a draft of an assessment report.

Battling writer’s block—I’ve started and deleted three different posts.

Thankful for…friends and family who provide a listening ear.