Take Two

I’m back!

Okay, I wasn’t really gone. I still live in Texas; this is my last year. God willing, I will move in June of 2016.

A few things have changed:

I have one dog, a Chihuahua named Zena. Nanna crossed the Rainbow Bridge on 21 August. She was 17 ½; she had been with me 16 ½ years.

I still teach Theatre Arts and direct the one-act play. But I am no longer a high school teacher; I teach 8^th grade English. It was not an easy transition, I will not discuss it, and my schedule this year is fine. I only despise one person.

I have two other blogs: ivebeenthinkingandnow.blogspot.com and singularlyme.blogspot.com

That’s all for now.

Wren

I'm still here-- for a limited time only!

I will soon (as in 1 November) begin posting on my other pages. Look for me at:

www.singularlyme.blogspot.com
and
www.ivebeenthinkingandnow.blogspot.com

the other one

My new blog is www.ivebeenthinkingandnow.blogspot.com

(I've been thinking and now I'm writing it down)

Not feeling it

I'm putting this blog on hold. I might not post more than one or two times. The reason is in the title. I'm not feeling it.

I don't like Texas. I'm there for the job and I like many of the people I have met. But I'm not a Texan and don't want to be. I am an American. I am not too thrilled with my country at the moment.

An unexplainable situation at work is making my life much more stressful than I care to think about. I can't really talk about it in part because I can't get information from the one person who is behind all the trouble. Let me say I do want to finish my two years and retire.

Paris is never far from my mind. Whether I go and stay forever or only for a few months at a time, I still plan to go there, be there, live there. Viva la france!

I will start a different blog. The new one will be my thoughts and reviews. I believe in equal rights for all and that certainly includes gays. I am  opposed to everyone and his grandmother owning a gun; rarely does a day go by without an innocent person getting killed by a legal gun owner. Don't give me the stupid argument that guns don't kill people but that if I think they do then we need to outlaw hammers, cars, knives, etc. And the government is NOT going to kill you.

Of course, education is a big deal with me. Testing is NOT the way to determine if students are learning or teachers are teaching. Cumulative data is more accurate on both accounts. A paragraph or two about each individual student, detailing learning styles and achievements and areas for improvement, would be much more accurate and worthwhile. More work? Yes. But more worthwhile.

I like the president. I liked George W. Bush as well. I was a Republican. Their ideas and policies are foreign to me now. Not thrilled with Democrats either. Maybe I'm a socialist. I've been poor, without insurance, and worried more about the bill than the illness. That is wrong.

So, if you want to hear me ramble on, then follow me. If you want to argue and call me stupid, don't bother.

Until whenever,

Wren

Recently I asked several people to sign an online petition against the locks on Paris bridges. A few did; thank you.

But many didn’t.

Maybe some pictures will help explain the problem.

A bridge on the Seine in March  19, 2009.  (Picture by me.)

It’s all about love. (Picture from an online events planner.)

(Picture from a Google search.)

This is NOT love. This is vandalism. Placing a lock on a bridge and throwing the key in the river will not make a relationship last.  Remember, take a picture—it will last longer.

So, please, go online and sign the petition. This same thing is happening in cities all over the world. I shudder to think of this in Pittsburgh—the city of bridges.

http://www.change.org/petitions/the-mayor-of-paris-and-the-city-council-of-paris-ban-love-locks-in-paris-now-save-our-historic-sites

search for ‘Love Locks’ or city of Paris. 

The Cheap Season

This time of year is one of my favorites. It's the cheap season; no air conditioner and no heat needed.

I've been away from posting for a while. This weekend I will be completing 4 essays with my classes and I plan to publlish them here. Curious?

I'm crying; okay, I was crying

If I had been asked a week ago what movie last made me cry, I would have said Schindler's List. On second thought it was The Hours which was so depressing it could make anyone cry. But I'm talking about one whose purpose is not to make me cry but to make me think. Usually, this is a movie based on truth.

This past Wednesday, the 15th, that movie was Lee Daniel's The Butler. (So named because someone owns the rights to The Butler, a short released in 1916! Could NOT name it just The Butler. Hollywood and copyright laws!)

Anyway, the story touched me at my core. I do not like anyone being disrespected, especially when it is for no good reason. White America's past treatment of Black Americans is a shame. There is a scene at a lunch counter where respectful but determined young black people are horribly abused just because they want to be served in the 'white' section of the counter. The courage of these people, like the others who did the same thing, is inspiring. Why should any group of people HAVE to fight for their right to be respected? Because nothing will change until someone says, "This is wrong. We won't stand for this treatment anymore."

I cried for the injustice of the past, for the pains of the people involved, for the hurt so many contributed to.

While this movie was overlooked in the Oscar race, I believe this is one movie I can recommend to everyone as a moving piece of history. Fine performances all around. Go see it.

Pork and Saurkraut

On New Year's Eve Mom and I decided to be traditional for once. We prepared pork chops, mashed potatoes, and Saurkraut. This was the first time I ever mashed potatoes. Usually we whip them with the mixer. In all, I will say it was good, but I'm not a great Saurkraut fan. It needs to be served in small doses and cut with some shredded apple. 

Anyway, this was in Pennsylvania where I always spend Christmas. When I move to Paris full time I don't expect to fly home every year. One reason for moving to Texas was so I could work at a job that would allow me to drive home or fly home for the holidays. And I have. And I'm not sorry. 

Only time will tell. 

Cold

The news is full of stories about how cold it is right now. Yes, it's cold. Maybe the temp got down to 15 the other night. It was 20 when I went to work today. For central Texas, that is cold. But...

Really, that's not too bad. Bad is 20 below, ice covered sidewalks, and walking to class while in college. Cold. I wore sweats and my boyfriend's extra coat. I wore dainty white gloves with heavy knitted ones on top. I wore a scarf wrapped around my face and looked out through a peephole. Cold.

Today I wore a sweatshirt with a tank top underneath and a pair of pants. No jacket or coat. I had to walk to my car (not far.) Then I walked from my car to the door of the school. (Again, not far.) So, no, I don't think it was that cold. I didn't wrap pipes or drip them. And the water lines are fine.

I have left my plants outside to freeze to death. Mission accomplished. The aloe vera is wilted. Airplane plant is sadly deflated. Only the cactus has survived.

Now my house is cold. Yesterday the high inside was 60, up from 55. The dog wears her sweater and does not try to wiggle out of it. Work is warmer than home.

Hmmm. Maybe that's why I don't mind being back at work.

Paris in snow

The wind blows fiercely and the temperature drops but sure as I'm sitting here tonight, tomorrow I shall be at work. It rarely gets cold enough or windy enough to cancel school. Only snow can do that. Central Texas gets very little snow. Some years we get none at all.



I complain about the summer heat. Temps may reach 100 degrees or more. Even with the air conditioner on I am too hot. I'm told that I'll appreciate the summer in the winter and vice-versa. Not so. I'll take more of the winter and less of the summer. One day soon in Paris...

(picture by Jennifer Gerrardi, found on the internet.)