The Adventures of Kinky Reggae: A Vagabond for Beauty

You know how sometimes you get so excited for things that are going to happen, and then it's a big letdown? The past week was not like that AT ALL. Friday: The district's Christmas gift to us was a half day of school, so I used my extra few hours to get a facial (my first one!), haircut, and manicure. Then I went out to Sangria with Nina and Hannah. So delicious! Saturday: My mom came to visit! We went out to dinner in Little Tuscany, then saw Phantom of the Opera. The main reason we went was because the girl who played Christine was so amazing. The guy who played Phantom was really good the first time I saw it, but he was off this time. But it was still nice. Phantom was the musical that got me into musicals and singing. It's definitely not my favorite anymore, but there are still things I love about it. Sunday: My mom and I ordered take-out from one of my favorite brunch places, Hashbrowns. I drove her back to the suburbs, then came back to the city to go see W

It took me hours to do my homework and make candy tonight. I finished a little while ago and couldn't wait to go to bed. Then, I noticed lots of activity outside my apartment. We weren't able to park on the street in front of my apartment tonight, and I couldn't figure out why. So I went outside and asked someone official looking. She told me that they're filming the pilot for a TV show right in front of my apartment. I Googled the show and found out that it stars Patrick Swayze. So Patrick Swayze is somewhere in the vicinity of my apartment. The lady also said that there is going to be a big explosion, which I'm dying to see. But it won't be for a while; they just started setting up. So, do I stay up super late to watch? Probably not... but maybe. I don't know if I can sleep with all the commotion outside my window. I don't know if I'm excited or annoyed. I think the annoyance will win when I get less than 6 hours of sleep.

Yeah, I definitely am. You would think I'd have learned after the near disaster with apple pie, plus the numerous other fiascos I've had in the kitchen. But it's Christmas, so I thought I'd make candy for my coworkers. I found the easiest possible recipes, and it still all went wrong. All I had to do was melt some freaking chocolate. I put it in a plastic bowl in the microwave for 30 seconds, took it out and stirred it, and put it back in for 45 seconds. (There were 2 lbs of chocolate, so this was not overdoing it.) By the end of 45 seconds, there was smoke coming from the microwave, and my apartment smell disgusting. I figured I was burning the chocolate, so I put the bowl on the stove and stirred it. I went to put it back in the microwave (because the chocolate clearly wasn't burned) and noticed that there was a trail of chocolate behind me- I had burned a hole in the bottom of the bowl. How is this even possible? Maybe I will just buy something for my c

I'm going to... Do yoga (maybe on the beach, if I could find some kind of cool class that does that) Read a romance novel (maybe even two) Eat my uncle's delicious bruschetta Wear my favorite flowy skirt with sandals Do shots of Patron and make out with a random boy Play my Nintendo DS that I'm getting for Christmas Go see the manatees Take my cousin out for ice cream Go to Sonic every day for drinks (we don't have Sonic in Chicago) I'm not going to... Answer my phone Do homework Grade papers Write lesson plans Worry about money Have panic attacks 9 more days!!!!

I came across this quote by Mother Teresa that I really like. It's from her Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance speech: " One of them asked me: Say, Mother, please tell us something that we will remember, and I said to them: Smile at each other, make time for each other in your family. Smile at each other. And then another one asked me: Are you married, and I said: Yes, and I find it sometimes very difficult to smile at Jesus because he can be very demanding sometimes. This is really something true, and there is where love comes - when it is demanding, and yet we can give it to Him with joy."

I have mentioned before that I have a little crush on my financial advisor. So I'm sending him a Christmas card; how do I sound flirty and not dirty? And flirty in a way that if he's totally uninterested, I won't be completely embarrassed the next time I see him?

Do you ever feel like you're not pulling your weight in a friendship? I love doing things to help my friends, but I'm not very good at it. First of all, I'm not one of those people who just intuitively knows what people need. And second of all, I don't have a lot of helpful skills. Last night, Nina helped me with homework until 12:30 a.m., despite the fact that she had her own finals to study for. My assignment was on Excel, and I have no idea how to do anything on Excel. This summer, I had to take a statistics class. Most of those assignments were on Excel as well, and my friend Whitney pretty much did my homework for me. When something goes wrong with my car or computer, I call Dave. He gives me medical consultations too, and last year, he and Ken helped me move (even though I hardly ever see Ken!). When I need encouragement, I call Rachel. She always understands exactly how I'm feeling and what to say (because that's what female soulmates do). Nina i

you're in a hurry and you download the wrong version of a song. Last week I really wanted to hear some Oasis, but I downloaded this stupid live version of Wonderwall instead of the original. And yesterday I just had to hear It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp, but I accidentally downloaded the version with no cursing. And it's so annoying, because you know exactly what they're saying anyway! It's not that I love to hear people swear, but it just makes the song lose its effect. Other random thoughts... Do you ever hear a song that just takes you back to a certain time in your life and the feeling is almost overwhelming? I'm listening to my favorite song from junior year of college right now, and those of you who know me well know what was going on in my life beginning of junior year. Such craziness, but we've all come so far... I think romantic comedies have become depressing to me because I don't think I'll ever have that. I don't want to go to b

This week has been completely unremarkable and just flew by. I haven't blogged because I haven't had anything to say. I hate weeks like this because I feel like I can't get ahead; I'm only thinking about the present. I'm so behind on all the boring stuff that needs to be done, like laundry, dishes, grocery shopping, and cleaning. But that's low priority right now; I have lots of homework this weekend, Christmas presents to finish, and I'm meeting my little sister with Big Brothers/Big Sisters tomorrow. So I just keep getting further and further behind with all the other stuff. Maybe my mom will come clean with me. She used to do that at my old apartment sometimes. She would pretend she was on some reality show about ladies who go into people's messy apartments and clean. Anyway, the good news is that I booked my flight for Florida today. So I have lots of exciting things to look forward to- Martinis and Manicures with my Bible study group on Mon

Yesterday was the perfect day to be all nice and cozy in my apartment with a cup of hot chocolate. I went to World Market before all the crazy weather began to get some fancy hot chocolate and a nice mug. Then, I stopped by Dominick's for marshmallows. And that's when I remembered- I recently learned that marshmallows are not vegetarian (because of the gelatin). So I can't eat them. I am not happy about this. When I learned the truth about marshmallows, I wasn't too upset. Because honestly, who eats marshmallows on a regular basis? But now, I'm thinking of all the ways this is going to affect me. What am I going to do on campouts? S'mores are the best part! How will I drink hot chocolate? And how can I go the rest of my life without eating another Rice Krispie treat? Well, yesterday I solved the problem by drinking champagne instead of hot chocolate. And today, I did a little research and found that I could buy vegan marshmallows online. I'm a l

Things got even crazier today. The boy who made all the crazy threats showed up with his mom today. We had a meeting with the principal, and the boy received absolutely no consequences other than a lecture about how serious it was. Then, at the end of the day, a boy came up to me and quietly told me that there was a knife in someone's bag. Sure enough, there was. And not just a regular table knife, either. So now he can't come back to school until after the next board meeting, which is December 20. And he will most likely be expelled, which makes me sad because I've been working so hard with this boy. His dad is in prison, and it looks like he's on that path, too. I hoped I could change that, but now I won't even be seeing him anymore.

Oh wait, that's not me, that's my new student. He's crazy. Seriously. Last week was his first full week, if you can even call it that, since we only had two and a half days of school. He was the only one in the class to not get Fun Friday because he had three strikes on his behavior chart. He already had to have his seat moved because he kept making fun of the girl next to him. On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, at the end of the day (very convenient timing, since there wasn't much I could do at that point), he told a girl he was going to stab her in the throat with scissors. Yesterday, he got caught using his cell phone in class. He was very angry (because the consequence is that I take it away and he can't get it back unless a parent comes in for it). So he told the girl who told on him that he is going to bring a gun to school tomorrow and shoot her. I just found out about this today. (By the way, isn't it kind of weird that he said he was going

I wasn't going to write about this, but this past week I've been thinking that I really am thankful for so many things. Although this isn't very original, I'm thankful for my family. I was thinking the other day about how a lot of my friends are under lots of pressure from their parents. Their parents pressure them to go into certain professions that will make them lots of money, to get married, to have kids, and all kinds of other things. I have never experienced that kind of pressure from my parents. In high school, the only expectations were that I go to church and get good grades. They never tried to push me into going to a certain college, or to hang out with certain people, or to be popular, or play sports. They were just completely supportive of the choices I made. I don't think they ever missed a choir concert, even when I was in college (except when I was on tour, of course). When I was in college, my parents never said anything to me about my major

Tonight I went to dinner at J. Alexander's. It was all right, but there was a definite lack of vegetarian options, so I didn't have much to choose from. Anyway, I was meeting a big group of people, so I walked in and said to the host, "Hi, I'm here for Hannah's birthday dinner." And he said her last name and gave me directions to where they were seated. And this very well-dressed middle aged lady standing nearby said, "That was just perfect." At first I thought she was talking to the host, but she was looking at me. I asked what she meant, and she said, "The way you just said that. You were so sweet. You just couldn't have said it nicer." And the host agreed. I was kind of flustered, so I said thank you and headed towards my friends' table. And as I walked away, the lady continued her review of my greeting- "The way she smiled.... and her tone of voice... just so sweet!" Okay, what kind of people does she usual

He's definitely a future Hawkeye.

I think he's the cutest Harry Potter ever. But I guess I'm a little biased.

I was reluctant to blog because now I think the Jesus video won't be on the main page of my blog anymore, and that makes me sad. I want everyone to see it! I went to see Fred Claus on Saturday with Faye. I liked it, but I didn't love it. But I did love Vince Vaughn; I want to marry him. The movie definitely got me in a Christams-y mood, which I feel guilty about. I don't want to just skip over Thanksgiving, but I'm so excited for Christmas! Nina was off work on Saturday night, so we decided to go out and celebrate our fabulousness. We got all dressed up and went to this amazing Italian restaurant called Gioco in South Loop. It was such a nice place, but most people were there on dates, so everyone probably thought we were lesbians. Oh well. Then we went to a martini bar, but we were definitely the youngest ones in there and felt out of place. So we headed over to this dessert bar called Carolina Caramel and had some delicious cake. Then we went to Lalo'

Remember in The Music Man when the ladies are all saying that Marian advocates dirty books? I am afraid I've put myself in the same position as Marian the Librarian, except with paintings. I'm taking my students to the Art Institute in a few weeks because I think they need to be exposed to culture and art. In preparation for this trip, they are researching Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artists (because those are the tours we're going on). Tonight was parent-teacher conferences, and a mom was telling me about her son's research on Gaugin. I forgot that he painted lots of nudes, and her son keeps finding these pictures on the internet and getting all upset. He covers his eyes and makes his mom scroll down so he doesn't have to see naked women. (By the way, this is the student who I think is gay. Another student called him "cupcake" one day, and his reply was, "That's right; with frosting AND sprinkles!") Luckily, his mom is awes

Things have been just fabulous lately! On Friday night I just stayed in and read a romance novel. It was wonderful to read something just for fun! Saturday I cleaned and did homework and went to the mall. Then, that night, I went to a little get-together at Whitney's for her birthday! It was really nice; her friends are so much like my friends. Sunday I went to church and it was a beautiful service for All Saint's Day. I found out I'm officially becoming a member this Sunday. Then Sarah and I went to see Phantom of the Opera, and it was amazing!!!! I did not expect it to be that good. The girl who played Christine was phenomenal. Her name is Sarah Jean Ford. It was so great that I'm planning on going again with my mom over Christmas break. After Phantom, I had a house warming party to go to, which was also nice. Monday was busy busy busy. My kids were crazy, and I had a stupid meeting after school for the mentoring program I have to repeat. But then I met s

So this video keeps appearing on Facebook. I enjoy it because my students do this dance all the time. The other day, I got a performance at recess. They say they are going to teach me, which will be fun. But my question is, does anyone actually do this dance in public? Like, if I go out to a club and hear this song, will everyone start doing this dance? Last year my students taught me how to pop, lock and drop it. But when that song came on at the bar, I didn't see everyone dropping it. The only time I've seen that was at our 6th grade celebration (when my kids made a circle around me and I did the dance) and at Charity's wedding when we did it together. I also wonder where these dances come from and how everyone knows how to do them. My kids are always in the know about music and dances, but I didn't realize that even white suburban kids knew the Soulja Boy dance. Is it the rappers that come up with these dances? How do they spread so quickly? I have to sa

I am so sad. I did not get one single trick-or-treater. I was so looking forward to handing out candy! I got this adorable box with a pop-up ghost from Gooseberry Patch to put my candy in: I even put a big sign on my door that said, "Trick-or-Treaters Welcome!" The only person to knock on my door tonight was the UPS man. So he got some Smarties. On a totally different topic, I was doing a little shopping on the Disney website. I'm getting a really cute Eeyore outfit to work out in (including matching shoes). And I was wishing that it was socially acceptable to wear things like this: Maybe if it was a hoodie. Or maybe when I'm like 40 and married and have 5 kids... no, probably not even then. I need to squash these nerdy impulses! It's bad enough that Disney World is pretty much my favorite place on Earth...

I heart Halloween! I've been doing my best to fully participate in every Halloween activity possible, although my efforts have been hindered by my cold. (I can't believe I'm sick AGAIN!) Friday was a half day of school, and it was also the Halloween parade! I dressed up as Miss Viola Swamp. Although I don't think I did such a good job, because everyone kept asking if I was the wicked witch of the west. It must have been the striped tights. Anyway, I did lots of heavy makeup and eyeliner and I looked all Goth and it reminded me of how much I loved that look. I tried to listen to Goth music on the way to work, but unfortunately, my ipod is filled with country and Christian music. Most of my kids were not that creative with their costumes, but one boy dressed up as mitosis, and it was awesome. He wore his school uniform and had a fake body attached to himself, also in uniform. Friday night I watched An American Haunting. I thought it would be super scary, especi

Today I had issues with two parents. They are upset about their child's grades. I am so tired of dealing with this. Everyone thinks they are VIP and policies don't apply to them. Or, they don't put any responsibility on the child- it's either their fault or mine (and it's usually mine). 6th grade is old enough to write down your assignments every night, don't you think? Anyway, I'm really tired of it all, and I just remembered a story about a teacher at the middle school last year. A parent was all upset that her child was failing, even though he was failing because he had so many missing assignments. There was a meeting with the principal and the parent and the teacher where the parent was making a big fuss and insisting that the grades be changed. Finally, the teacher said, "Fine, your son has A's for the rest of the year, no matter what he does." And walked out. This teacher is my hero. If only I were tenured...

Today my principal called me in her office because she wanted to show me a video. I thought I was in trouble at first, but she said she saw this video over the weekend and knew I would love it. And she was right. I was skeptical at first, but by the end I was standing there crying in her office. I went home and watched it again, and cried again (and you all know I'm not a crier). It just says it all. P.S. I went to the Kapelle reunion this weekend and sang Bach and saw old friends and it was amazing. But I will have to write about it later- it's past my bedtime. :)

8:00 Arrive at school and remember I'm getting a new student. I had the girl's brother last year. He was good, but never did any work. The reason she is just now starting school is because she went to live with her mom in another state, but it did not work out. I have a feeling things are not going to be easy with this girl. 8:25 No faculty meeting! Sweet! A few extra minutes to grade papers. 8:55 Kids enter my classroom. They are being crazy and out of control. I make them go back in the hall and line up. They are not allowed to enter the classroom until they get it together. 10:05-11:00 The kids are at computers. It's my long prep day, and I am very productive. I'm in a great mood when I pick them up. They are being crazy again, and I have to calm them down before we enter the classroom. 11:05 I realize the new girl is not with the class. I'm informed that she went to the nurse. 12:20-12:50 Lunchtime. One of my students comes back from tak

On Friday I had one of my favorite students ask me if I had ever read some book about an orphan who went to live with these two people, and the man was really nice, and the woman was kind of mean. Oh yeah, and the girl had red hair. "Anne of Green Gables?!" I shrieked. And let my class turn into mayhem as Estella and I talked about our favorite parts. And the great thing was, Estella didn't know there was a movie. I own the videos, but they're still at my parents', so I bought the dvd this weekend. I'm going to lend it to her tomorrow, but tonight I watched it while I worked on homework. I forgot how much I love this movie. I'm not quite sure what the appeal is, but there's something amazing about this movie. And I know I'm not the only one who feels like this. I wish I was Anne. I wish I lived at Green Gables. Most of all, I wish I had a Gilbert. I also love Anne of Avonlea, but what were they thinking when they made the third movie? Wh

Every Saturday morning I wake up and just want to go somewhere. I want to have an exciting adventure. I rarely get to do this. I'm usually broke and have lesson plans and papers to write. My usual fantasy involves going hiking somewhere where there are lots of cliffs or mountains or waterfalls or just anything out of the ordinary. I want to climb and do something slightly dangerous. This is nothing new; remember when I went to Apple River Canyon and had to ford the river? But one silly little hike did not satisfy my craving, so tomorrow, I'm finally going hiking again. I'm going by myself, because it is hard to find friends who are available for a whole day and also want to go hiking. I was originally going to go up to Devil's Lake in Wisconsin, but my friends keeping going on and on about how that would be unsafe or something. More important than that, it's kind of far to go for just a day. So instead, I'm going to Mattheissen State Park , which is d

I have been in kind of a funk for the past few weeks. I don't like feeling like this; it's not who I am. So, instead of complaining (which is what I feel like doing), I'm going to list some things that make me happy. 1. The new outfit I wore today. The dark orange flats from Dillards were perfect for today's fall weather. 2. Since it is cool weather, I can sleep in my Tinker Bell pajamas with my windows open. 3. Today during literature circles, I heard a group having a great conversation about one of my favorite scary books, Coraline . 4. My principal is trying to do more walk-throughs. Today she came in as we were doing body-spelling. It's where we physically spell out the word wall words. She said it was the first time she'd actually seen a teacher using her word wall, and loved that I was doing something to reach my kinesthetic learners. The praise felt nice, although I just got lucky about when she walked in. I'm always afraid she'll walk

I am so excited for Halloween! I've started putting my costume together for our "Fall Parade" at school. I'm going to be Viola Swamp (from Miss Nelson is Missing ). If I end up going out to the bars that weekend (which I hope I do, because I have been so boring lately), Nina and I came up with this plan to get some people together and dress up as the 1985 Chicago Bears. We would each wear different jerseys, and have the black marks under our eyes, and do the Super Bowl shuffle. But if we're actually going to do that, we really should start planning like, now...

It has been one of those long, emotionally draining weeks, which is why I haven't blogged. I didn't want to sound too depressing (which apparently I did in my Martha post; I'm really not depressed, I just give up :)). There were lots of problems with my students this week. Like on Thursday: -L. came back from P.E. crying hysterically and wouldn't tell anyone what was wrong. We found out later that her aunt had died (a while ago), and she really misses her -I found out a little more about why A. is the way he is- all of his male role models are in prison. His behavior has gotten progressively more disturbing. A few weeks ago, he slapped this girl, T., across the face with a rolled up paper. Then he dropped it and demanded she pick it up for him. She did. The first weird thing I've noticed is that T. seems to enjoy being treated like this. She's been hanging around with A. more and more and trying to see what kind of behavior she can get away with. She&#

For many years, I have dreamed of being like Martha Stewart. I used to watch her show and subscribe to her magazine. I would cut out useful articles and recipes from the magazine and organize them all in my big Martha Stewart binder. I loved looking at her ideas, and I also thought it would make me a good wife someday. But after today, I think I've given up hope. It wasn't that anything especially awful happened today, it's just the last straw. It seems like every time I try to cook something new, something goes wrong. Yesterday I went apple picking, so today I wanted to make an apple pie for my friends at work and apple crisp for small group tomorrow night. Thank God Sarah (the pastry chef) was here, or my apple pie would be ruined. For some reason I thought the recipe said to preheat the oven to 450. Common sense should have told me that was a bad idea, but for some reason, it didn't even occur to me that that seemed a little high. My crust started to burn,

I think I've mentioned before that I tend to form these unhealthy emotional attachments to fictional characters. Usually this happens when I read. For example, I feel like I am best friends with the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants girls. And whenever I read those books (I've reread them several times), I feel the need to call my friends and tell them I love them. I get way too emotionally involved. Well, this has spread to TV now, too. I've decided that Thursday nights can't get any better: Ugly Betty, The Office, and Scrubs. I think I blogged about the fact that I was devastated when Santos was shot, especially because they just had to go and tie in West Side Story. It was just so beautifully done, I was in tears. It took me all summer to get over it. Well, last night Sarah and I were shouting with excitement when Santos appeared with that bandage on. I was so relieved! And then, to find out that that was all Hilda's imagination, and that he really is

Yesterday our whole small group traveled to Indianapolis for Carla and Ryan's wedding. Here is a bad picture of our small group. (I'm hoping someone will send me a better one; we had like, 5 people taking our picture. We're just that fabulous.) The ceremony was beautiful! I love how Catholics make it such a big thing. I like that it's a longer ceremony with communion and everything. Carla's dress was gorgeous- I love that dark red accent! The fall colors were just perfect. Besides being a really good time, Carla and Ryan also had a " green wedding ." It was so nice to have a vegetarian option at dinner. And their rings are made from recycled gold! Carla is definitely one of the coolest people I know. Whenever I'm trying to figure something out at small group, she's the one with the wise words. In fact, she is the one who came up with the Incubator name and designed our tee-shirts. Can you tell we really love being a group? If you loo

I took up cross-stitching when I was pregnant. I think it's a good hobby when you're pregnant, because it seems like most cross-stitch designs are either for babies or old ladies. So I made Jacob a Tigger cross-stitch, since his room was decorated in Winnie the Pooh. But there are no more babies in my life to make things for, and my grandma has been on the receiving end of my cross-stitching for several Christmases now, so I think she deserves a break this year. I didn't know what to do. I like cross-stitching, but I don't like any of the designs. Then I thought of embroidery. I've always thought it looked better than cross-stitch, but it was a little intimidating. Also, I wasn't sure if there were any cool patterns; I didn't want to have the same issue I have with cross-stitch. Well, last night I found this website: Sublime Stitching . They have the most awesome vintage patterns, and stuff like pin-up girls and tattoo designs. It's designs I wo

I know this is going to be long. My blog is like my journal, and I thought that writing about my thoughts might help me. So this will probably be long and boring. This month, I’ve been feeling very restless. This definitely isn’t an unusual feeling for me. You can tell by my previous posts that there are all these things I want to do, and I can’t decide between them. I know that the way I think about things is complicated, and that it’s silly to be worrying about next year right now. But I can’t help it. The other day at lunch, I decided to ask my coworkers for advice. When I started explaining, Charity told me to be quiet because I was giving her a headache. Michelle just didn’t understand what I was worrying about. But Chad got it. And he said he can totally picture me just picking up and moving and starting an adventure somewhere else. This is exactly what I want to do. But then I start thinking of the logistics of it all, and I don’t know if I co

Nina and I are on a new mission to meet boys. Before, we would just complain about how hard it is to meet someone, but not really do anything about it. Well, except the speed dating, which actually was somewhat successful for Nina. So we're doing it again next week. But we have made a list of other options as well, and we are going to try at least one a week. Honestly, I don't think we'll be all that successful, because I think when you're looking for a boy, you're not going to find one. But I think our mission will be fun, so I'm willing to try. 1. Speed dating 2. Matchmaker (Nina and I are going to pool our resources and send her to a matchmaker. Because first of all, I think she is more likely than me to find a good match. And second of all, I'm at the point where I don't think I even want to get married. I really can't picture myself feeling that way about someone AND having him feel the same way about me. I just don't think it

So the day after the Spy Bar vs. Sound Bar incident, we all had tea at The Drake. Here is the infamous Tripod and Tabletop, reunited at last. (Girls, we really need to think of a better name. Tripod was good for the three of us, but it can't be fun for Sarah to be the Tabletop.) And here is Rachel with her delicious birthday dessert. I am truly at my happiest when I am with these three girls.

I have a cold. But I hate saying this; it sounds so harmless, like it's not a big deal. My head feels like it's going to explode, my face hurts, I had a fever the other night, my throat hurts, and I feel like I'm going to pass out. Doesn't that sound worse than just a cold? I actually called in sick yesterday, which I was not happy about. First of all, my students can't subtract- I can't waste any time I have with them. Second of all, I hate taking a sick day because I'm sick. Usually I use them for mental health days. I end up staying home and cleaning and grading papers. Yesterday I graded like, 5 papers and that was it. But the weekend has not been a total waste. Faye and I went to the Garfield Park Conservatory today, which was gorgeous. And Sarah might come over tonight to watch the new Pride and Prejudice with me. Tomorrow I'd really like to go to the Sandwich Fair, but first of all, I can't afford the gas money to go all the way ou

So I left work in a bad mood because that boy who fought yesterday and should have been suspended was not suspended and started another fight at the end of the day today. I couldn't wait to get home and relax. But I needed to stop at the library downtown really quick. It's only about a 5 minute drive from my apartment, and I needed to get a book I was going to use for school. I parked at a meter on State, like I usually do. I found my book quickly, but then I went up to the 10th floor to hang out with my friend for a few minutes. By the time I got back to my car (in a downpour with no umbrella), it was gone. There was a sign on the meter that said you couldn't park there till after 3:30. But I missed the other sign that said you couldn't park between 4 and 6 p.m. I stood there in the pouring rain and tried to figure out what to do. Oddly enough, my biggest concern was that my library books were getting wet. Luckily, some people at the Pacific Garden Mission acr

What a day. First I had to deal with A. and A., who I found out were bullying this sweet girl, T. And it was the nasty, subtle bullying, like the kind I read about in Odd Girl Out . (Awesome book, by the way.) They have been making fun of her hair. That's such a big deal with my girls. And when you look at this poor girl, you just know she can't afford to get her hair done. So anyway, I really went off on these girls, and now I think they're kind of scared of me and they know I'm not playing around. I also talked to the most popular girl in the class (who is also the nicest girl) and let her know what's going on, and she's going to look out for T. It's never the popular girls that I see doing the bullying. They're secure in themselves and nice to everybody, which is why they're popular. It's like the not-so-popular girls think that if they put someone down, they'll look better. So upsetting!!!! Then I had issues with this boy, L.

Seriously, what are the chances that there would be two bars down alleys on the same block, right across the street from each other? My friends were all at Spy Bar. I wasn't excited about meeting them in the first place because I knew it would be a hassle to get there and I'd have to pay cover. But it was Rachel's birthday, and since she is my female soulmate, I'd do just about anything for her. So I drove by this bar that I thought was the one I was supposed to be at. I thought this because it was on the right block, down an alley, and there was a line and bouncers and everything. I paid a $20 cover to get in, and Nina texted me and said they were right in front of the dj. They totally were not. So I'm looking and looking and starting to get panicky because I have anxiety issues anyway, and being all alone in a crowded, super trendy bar was about to put me over the edge. And I'm feeling bad because I know I'm ruining Nina's fun because I'm

Has anyone else noticed the Porta-Potty on Lake Shore Drive? (I actually had to look up that word to make sure I spelled it right.) It's on the median on Lake Shore just north of Chicago Avenue. I'm completely baffled... there's no crosswalk or anything there, and even if there was, who would stop and use the bathroom in the middle of a busy street? There is usually traffic in that spot; wouldn't that be weird to come out of the bathroom and have all these random people looking at you? It has to be a prank. I know they put up a bunch of porta-potties for Venetian Night; someone must have stolen one and put it on the median. Pretty funny. And it's been there at least a week. I wonder if anyone else has noticed...

It was the first weekend of the school year, and it was everything I wanted it to be. One of my favorite friends was in town Friday night, so I went out with her and some other friends from high school. It was so great to see these girls! We just went out for dinner downtown and had great conversation. I really enjoyed myself. Nina and I went whitewater rafting on Saturday. I think I have found a new hobby. At first I was kind of nervous, because it was just the two of us in the boat, and we are definitely city girls. We'd never done anything like it before. I was afraid we'd miss the spot where we get off and end up in the Illinois river. We kind of sucked at first. Okay, we really sucked at first. We hit every tree and rock we could possible hit. And there were these two guys in a canoe we kept seeing who must have thought we were crazy- they actually pulled over at one point to shout instructions at us when we went through rapids. But there was only one time when

Today was the first full day of school. It felt so good to be teaching again. It's just like with singing. I didn't do it for a while, but the singing I did this summer just felt so right. How do I describe it? It's like you're doing what you were made to do- there's nothing that feels better. You hit a certain note a certain way, and it's like you just want to sigh with contentment; you know, like when you finally get in bed after a really long day and you think there's nothing better than your Egyptian Cotton sheets and soft mattress. I realized today that teaching gives me the same feeling. I had a great summer. I loved sleeping in and doing whatever I wanted. I actually was not looking forward to school starting. But then, I stood there looking at my class, and they looked at me, and it just felt right. And I know I'm not the only one who feels this way about the things we love doing. I met the owner of the art gallery across the street,

Instead of watching boring Powerpoints about test scores, we had a Challenge Day . I'm too tired to write much about it, but it was pretty awesome. I guess it was even on Oprah last year. She was skeptical at first, but then after participating, she said, "This is how you change the world." At first I thought it was going to be all stupid and touchy feely, and it reminded me of something from The Office. Well, it did end up being touchy feely (lots of hugging and crying), but not lame at all. We did a lot of great activities that helped us get to know each other better. I really wish these presenters could come in and do this for my class. It was just so much better than I thought today could be.

Definitely one of my new favorite movies. At first I was disappointed, because Colin Firth wasn't as hot as he usually is, but then you get to know Mr. Darcy, and you can't help falling for him. I *love* movies like this. How did it take me so long to watch this one? I felt like the 5 hours wasn't enough. I actually just went on the Blockbuster website and added Sense and Sensibility, Emma, and another version of Pride and Prejudice to my queue. I know I read the book back in 5th or 6th grade, but I had obviously forgotten it's awesomeness. It reminded me of Anne of Green Gables. I kind of wish things were still simple like they were in those movies. That men still treated you like a lady; the biggest drama was Josie Pye daring you to walk on the roof; for fun, you and your friends acted out The Lady of Shalott; and the thing that would make you happiest in the world would be a dress with puffed sleeves. Although, in Pride and Prejudice, some people were such

Today I finally found out why the gangster tour always stops across the street from my apartment. The big building on the corner is a old brewery that Al Capone and his gang used to use to make liquor that would supply the speakeasies. How cool is that? Now I've just got to scout out a way to get inside, and figure out how to get in there without being arrested for trespassing. Also, I was very disappointed by High School Musical 2 tonight. The story was kind of cute, but the music was completely awful. I really liked that Ryan had a bigger role, but I felt like Ashley Tisdale was really overacting. Although maybe that wasn't her fault; the role was pretty ridiculous. Anyway, I'm still a huge fan of the first one, but I was not impressed with the second one.