That’s me on the left.  For a weekend, I was a biker chick.  Well, without the bike, but whatever.  Minor detail, really.

Unlike most families, I don’t have a good ol’ standby tradition when it comes to the 4th of July.  Sometimes I’ll travel to South Dakota to stay at my parents’, because South Dakota is one of those fun states that still trust its citizens to put off fireworks all by their little lonesome; sometime I’ll travel to Minnesota to spend time with my in-laws or my sister and her family.  In Iowa, we are relegated to sparklers or a handful of other lame fireworks, or having to find a local show to watch.  I can’t even sit on my porch and steal a glance at some of the local shows, either  – too many trees.

This year I did something a little different. Read the rest of this entry »

A few years ago, while I was discovering my love of retro design, I also began to appreciate music from the 40s and 50s.  I had always been a fan of the “oldies,” as I became an Elvis fan in my early teens, and I frequently made mixed tapes of oldies that I’d play as my friends and I would cruise around town.  No, it wasn’t the “hot” music, but it was unique, and we had fun singing along to Elvis and many others.
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Remember that last post when I whined about how busy I was?  Yeah, I’m still in that frame of mind.  The spring semester is always busy, but it seems especially crushing this year, for reasons I haven’t quite determined.  I think it has something to do with going paperless in composition this year with Google Docs.  Yes, it makes things easier because the papers are portable, but I spend a lot more time grading things because it’s so easy to highlight and make comments without trying to squeeze it all in between margins.  More time spent grading = good feedback for my students, I know, but the clock and calendar have not cooperated by giving me any more time to catch up on my other obligations, i.e. things I like to do to unwind.
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A few weeks ago I took my sons to see Diary of a Wimpy Kid.  I was not familiar with the books at all, so I had no idea what to expect. The bottom line is that the movie is adorable and the creator(s?) obviously remembered middle school all too well.
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