Look at my new dress!

Yesterday I went to the Apache Mall to do some birthday present shopping. In the next few days I will celebrate my mother's birthday, my grandmother's birthday, and my dear friend, Linnea's birthday. It has been over a decade that I have had this birthday schedule, and yet I still can't decide if it is very convenient or very inconvenient to have their birthdays so close together.

But the point was, I was shopping at the Apache mall for birthday presents, and it turns out that I actually do know people in Rochester. First off, Ashley was working at the Caribou. At Caribou, I only ever order tea. I didn't know what kind of tea I wanted yet, plus I kind of wanted to chat with the lady behind the cash (Ashley), so I let the man behind me go ahead of me. He was so nice, he ended up paying for my tea. I'm not exactly sure how that happened. One minute I don't have tea, then I do, and he gave Ashley a nice tip as well.

After seeing talking with Ashley as much is appropriate while she is working, I began wandering around the mall pretty aimlessly. During this time, I ran into three families of my students. It seems to me that is quite a bit. Then, when I was in the office this morning, our lovely Spanish interpreter came up and told me she heard me in Herberger's. She said I was on the phone with someone, and she couldn't see me, but she could hear me. She was right. I was definitely on the phone in Herberger's at some point Sunday afternoon. Over the course of the day, two other students came up and told me they saw me at the mall.

It should be said that I went to the mall with crazy looking hair, a jeans and boots combo that just was not working, and an older shirt. Good thing my students, their families, and my colleagues were all at the mall!

On the bright side, I got a new dress. In case you can't tell in the picture, it is a dark purple and black zig-zag pattern. It is too short for work, unless I end up wearing it with pants underneath, maybe. It is also not dressy enough for dress, so I may have to actually live the life of a person in their mid-twenties so that I can wear an informal dress. The best part ever is that it fits exactly right and it was on super clearance, so it was only $6. Needless to say, I was very excited.

Don't worry. I also completed my birthday present shopping.

Now excuse me as I return to sitting in the dark with a cat in my lap while watching sub-par television and drinking tea. Did I mention that I'm awesome?

On The Road to Spinsterhood

It may be a not-so-winding road, or perhaps more of a slippery slope, but irregardless of the analogy you prefer, all evidence points to me being well on the way to spinsterhood.

Very Scientific and Accurate Definition of "Spinsterhood":
A woman who has remained single long beyond the conventional age of marriage who perhaps also holds the occupation of spinning. She probably knits, has at least one cat she treats as her child, prefers to do lame activities, drinks tea, and certainly does not go out carousing on the weekends.

Based on this definition that I half made up based on mostly out-dated stereotypes observed in the media, I am well on my way. I try to knit. I have a cat who thinks she is a person, probably because I usually treat her as if she is a person. I prefer drinking tea and participating in "lame" activities such as playing board games, doing crossword puzzles, reading texts related to my job, and going to movies by myself. I am also of the opinion that going out to bars or dancing in public while scantily clad is not all it is cracked up to be.

Yesterday was Friday. I went in to work early to do some paperwork and cleaning. I stayed late at work to volunteer at the winter carnival at our school. I was gone from 7:25 am until a little after 9pm, and it crossed my mind more than once that my cat, Squeaky, was going to be annoyed and give me an earful upon my return home. She does not like when I am completely absent for such long periods of time without coming home and checking on her.

Once I got home, I immediately put on my pajamas, made tea, and settled down on the couch with pillows and several blankets to watch sub-par television. I'll admit I watched edited for regular TV episodes of "Sex and the City". Then I fell asleep early on the couch with my cat in my lap and had to drag my half-asleep self to my bed. That was how I spent my Friday night.

Today is Saturday. I spent the morning making myself a breakfast of a mocha, a pain au chocolat, and some cereal, and I ate it on my real dishes that even match. Following my breakfast, I putzed around the house for a bit, straightening up, folding laundry, making the bed with clean sheets, etc. Then I took a long, hot shower and vacuumed, fluffed couch cushions, and did dishes while my hair dried.

Don't worry. I did leave the house, today. I went to a movie all by myself. I went to the matinee of "Unknown" and had popcorn and pop, because why not live it up, right? The theatre was pretty packed with me, many middle-aged couples, and right before the show, two relatively attractive guys about my age sat one seat away from me. Choosing to ignore their presence, once the show began I ate popcorn like no one was watching. As the Protagitron knows, this means I ended up with about equal parts in my mouth and down my shirt. I am exaggerating a bit, but not much.

After the movie, I went in to work for a while and sat in the computer lab listening to my ipod, doing research on practice TEAE tests and ordering my copies for next week. Now it is Saturday evening, I have no plans or intentions to go out on the town or even meet up with people. In fact, I am looking forward to making Indian food and watching a movie by myself.

It won't be long, folks, before I look like this:

Does anyone know where I can get a reasonably priced rocking chair and a chain like that for my glasses?

Results of the "Most Awesome Canadian Province" Survey

You can't see me, but I am shaking my head and pursing my lips in disappointment. Really, folks? Only five of you could muster up the energy to choose a favorite Canadian Province? Even if you haven't been there, you could have chosen based on which one is the most fun to say, the shape on the map, or base it on the people you have met from those provinces.

Tsk, tsk, friends.

The results are as follows:

In your calm, objective opinion, which Canadian province is the best?

Quebec	(80%)
Ontario	(20%)
Alberta	(0%)
Manitoba	(0%)
BC	(0%)
PEI	(0%)
One of the other ones...	(0%)

In my calm, objective opinion, I would have to choose Quebec. My years living there were amazing. What a mixed up, crazy, wonderful place. They offer you such wonders as the Bloc Quebecois, Gilles Duceppe and his eerily blue eyes, Celine Dion, fireworks shows inspired by Celine Dion, the language police, and stop signs that say "arret". Come on, guys!

Of course I will acknowledge that Ontario has given the world one of my favorite people of all time, so that is one point for Ontario....

Do better this time, people. Remember to vote on the poll.

Groceries are Good

I love grocery shopping. It is definitely my favorite "chore" of all time, and possibly near the top of my favorite things to do. As a person who loves food, it seems only natural that I would enjoy going to a place where the walls are literally lined with food. I enjoy looking at all the brands, seeing what is available and planning future meals or snacks, reading ingredients, and shopping the weekly sales. I even enjoy comparing prices between brands. At Target and Cub Foods, they tell you how much you are paying per unit, and I love comparing these numbers. Don't assume I always buy the cheapest, though. No one should have to eat the no-name brand of Macaroni and Cheese! That doesn't mean I don't take the time to compare the prices, anyway.

It's ok. I know that I am a little bit on the crazier side. I choose to just go with it, though.

The pitfall of loving the grocery store is that even when I make sure to go when I am not hungry, and even when I make a list, I almost always end up with impulse buys. Trader Joe's is a dangerous fairytale land for me where I can impulse buy  delicious frozen dinners, fantastic cheeses, or inexpensive snack foods. While I love this store more than Hy-Vee, it is necessary that I attempt some show of self-restraint and only go every other time.

Today was a bad day for the grocery budget, but a wonderful day for my kitchen and stomach. Not only did I go to Trader Joe's, but I discovered a new little specialty store nearby called Zzest. In fact, Zzest not only sells "groceries" (I put it in quotes because it is, in my opinion, to fancy and expensive to be called "groceries" by us mere mortal folk), but it has a little cafe and wine bar with outdoor seating. Oh boy do I want to go back this spring or summer and sit under their little twinkling lights and have a glass of wine!

So, my first stop was Zzest, and I went in with the intent of just looking around. There were too many delicious things! With so many delicious and exotic options, it is a wonder I managed to walk out with only three items in my bag! I bought some new chai tea, hot chocolate with lavender, and some homemade jam.

Giddy with delight, I went over to Trader Joe's to get the perishables on my list. With the intent of purchasing milk, yogurt, one or two frozen dinners, and ONE treat, I chose to bring in my smallest re-usable bag. I admit I failed, though not as miserably as in the past. I ended up buying some new salad dressing (once I remembered that my other salad dressing was at work), some take-and-bake croissants, coffee, and spinach and artichoke dip.

Do I regret my purchases? Not at all. Not even a little, tiny bit.

The spinach and artichoke dip is already gone, and I plan on having coffee and croissants for breakfast!

*Last chance to vote on your favorite Canadian province! Vote now!*

A Very Meaningful Post

This past weekend was a good one, filled with lots of rest, food, and tea. Also, I went to a small used bookstore and bought a new book! I went in just to browse, which is dangerous since I enjoy books in print so much. With much will-power, I managed to re-shelve several books from the Minnesota, children's, historical fiction, and sci-fi. There was no escape from the reference section, however.

I admit here in front of all of you that I could not keep from buying Wilson Follett's "Modern American Usage: A Guide". This amazing text, assembled by who I gather is a crotchety old man and completed by Jaques Barzun, is truly a gem. As an enormous fan of books and a bit of a linguistics geek, it would have been a sin for me to leave this book unused on the shelf!

In a nutshell, Mr. Follett has an issue with "modern" day usage of English. As a "linguist" (please note that I put that in quotes. I try, folks. I really try.), I am of the belief that language is always changing and evolving....bada bada bada.....You English majors with your English Lit degrees can just take a hike. You're wrong, and I can end my sentence with a preposition if I want to. HA!

Anyway, I would love to share a gem from this delightful, delightful book.

"Meaningful. There is no reason in logic or linguistics why one may not freely use the suffix -ful to form adjectives from nouns on the pattern of joyful, painful, sinful, youthful and many other words so familiar as to give us no reminder that they are composed of stem plus suffix. There are, however, reasons apart from logic for why formations make us uncomfortable when they lack this unfamiliarity, especially when their stems consist of more than one syllable. Many of the comparatively recent -ful words call undue attention to themselves as improvisations; they bother the ear and produce effects of deterrent ungainliness. Perhaps the most common is meaningful, a product of the feeling that significant has been overused."

                                       Mr. Wilson
                                       Follett, 1966

So what have we learned tonight? The word "meaningful" sounds stupid - ungainly, even. Stop using it. And if you think the word "meaningful" is a ridiculous use of the suffix -ful, don't even get Mr. Follett started on that disasterous word (actually, he describes it as "hack") "suspenseful".

As in, the wait to see which Canadian province you think is the best is very suspenseful. Take the poll!

A Love Letter (To Minnesota)

My Dearest Minnesota,

There are so many reasons to love you, it is difficult to know where to start, but I will do my best to do you justice!

First of all, the fierceness and unpredictability of your weather never ceases to amaze me. In the Winter, your awesome winds, drifting snow, and freezing temperatures stay for months on end, creating a frozen winter wonderland. In the Spring, you bring in the sun, the warm breezes, and that delicious 50 degree Fahrenheit temperature that has us all basking up Vitamin D outside in only a t-shirt. But then, you again show your power, and with hardly any warning, your temperature plummets, and the world becomes completely white again as enormous quantities of snow fall from the sky and blow through the air, making it impossible to tell if the snow is coming up, down, or sideways! In the summer you graciously provide us with a ten minute warning – an ominous, glowing green sky – before pummeling us with roaring winds, torrential rains, and earthshaking thunder and lightning! Truly your weather is awe-inspiring in all seasons!

Your weather, oh mighty Minnesota, breeds a strong, hearty folk who cannot be stopped by little things such as blizzards, eight foot snow drifts, two inch visibility fog, thirty below or one hundred above temperatures, or blowing winds. In fact, not only are your sturdy people unstopped by your best efforts, but they are obsessed with discussing it. Minnesotans would be content to talk about the weather for hours on end, and we do! And do we roll our eyes or change the subject when someone begins a conversation about the most recent snowfall or temperature change? No! We chime in enthusiastically!

What is more, the sturdy folk driven to strength and confidence love butter, cheese, and believe – nay! KNOW – that a can of cream of mushroom soup can be added to almost any recipe to make it that much more delicious! You have created a people who thrive on dairy products and casseroles! And they are a happy, healthy people!

So happy and healthy have you built your population, that there is a term – Minnesota Nice – that rings true more often than not. Your people are excellent at making eye contact and smiling at each other. They chit-chat pleasantly at the check-out and let people with fewer items go ahead. They good naturedly say please, thank you, and excuse me while waving one another into a better parking spot, seat at the theatre, or spot in line.

One of your pleasantly polite folk stopped today to help me out. Unstopped by the onslaught of snow, I attempted to leave my parents’ home and return to Rochester so I would have time to do some work around my apartment. Unfortunately, I was got stuck right at the bottom of the long driveway. As I got out in my weather inappropriate shoes and began assessing the situation, a nice man in a Subaru pulled over and asked if I had anyone coming to help me. When I replied that in fact, no, no one was on their way, he hopped out of his vehicle with a shovel, not missing a beat. After a few minutes of both of us shoveling and scraping, he pushed while I drove out of the driveway. I got out to thank him profusely, but this man simply waved me off, laughing, and offered to help me clear the driveway more, so that upon my return I could enter more easily. When I told him I was actually on my way out of town, and thanked him again and again, he tossed his shovel in the back, and drove off. Where else is such kindess and help provided to selflessly?

Another amazing thing about you, my dear, dear Minnesota, is your shape. Of all the states, your shape is one of the most unique, and it is one I enjoy drawing. Even with my lack of art skills, I manage to pull off a recognizable Minnesota.

You also provide us with such wonders as the Minnesota State Fair, one of the most wonderful, amazing public gatherings in the world. With all you can drink milk, cheese curds, and chocolate chip cookies, any delicious food one can imagine is available! You even bring us such delights as the butter heads! And such is this beautiful state that I have actually had the opportunity to meet former Princess Kay of the Milky Way candidates and question them about the butter head process! And there are tractors! Need more be said?

The entertainment you have inspired and provided is also incredible. I was privileged enough to attend a Prairie Home Companion show over the weekend, and it was even better live than on the radio! The humor and personal touches are beyond what one could possibly desire. As Garrison Keillor entertained us with tales, songs, and jokes about you, Minnesota, I clapped and laughed along with the rest of the Minnesotan audience.

I must confess to admiring your extreme devotion to valuing education. You have instilled in your people a desire for education and a passion for higher and ongoing education. Learning is a way of life with you, Minnesota, and you provide so many opportunities for your people!

While certainly not the last of your great attributes and reasons for my love, I must end with how impressed I am that you manage to provide the lifestyle of small towns while bringing in the culture and worldliness available in larger cities. We have a strong sense of community, farms, farmer’s markets, orchards, hay rides, and people that can identify a field of crops, but you also give us the opera, the orchestra, art museums, and wonderful entertainment from around the world!

And so, my lovely Minnesota, I remain infatuated, delighted, and devoted to you. Should my life take me elsewhere for any period of time, please know that you will always hold a special part of my heart all to yourself.

                                           Lovingly yours,

                                                   Ivy McDougalhopper

Results of the "Preferred Grocery Store" Survey

The students may have finally won. Despite the fact that I bit the bullet and got the seasonal/H1N1 combo flu shot this fall, despite the fact that I have even been drinking and eating food with Vitamin C, despite the fact that I have been trying to get a reasonable amount of sleep each night, and despite that against all odds I have accomplished the amazing feat of lasting until the end of February, I may finally be coming down with something. I just need to hold out for a little less than 24 hours, though, because then it is a three day weekend (Thank you America-land for choosing one day a year to celebrate those presidents!)!

Ideally I would like to be healthy for the three day weekend as well, but you do what you have to do. The only symptoms I have right now are fatigue, incredible achiness, a little bit of the chills, and an aversion to any sort of delicious food. But there is no headache, sneezing, coughing, or vomiting yet! I can make it guys! I can do this!

The results of the last survey are as follows:

Cub Foods	(0%)
Rainbow	( 0%)
Target	(20%)
Trader Joe's	(20%)
HyVee	(0%)
Elsewhere not listed above	(60%

I must admit that I am again disappointed at the turn out, although my good friend (who happens to be Canadian and houses the other half of my brain) pointed out that my survey was biased towards Americans (or "United Statians" as I like to call us since it makes us sound a bit like space aliens....I have always been a little jealous of "Torontonians".) For this reason, I apologize to all my international readers, ESPECIALLY the Canadians!

But it looks like "None of the Above" won, indicating that some of my Canada-land followers participated anyway. For what it is worth, I do most of my grocery shopping at Target, although it is a dangerous, dangerous place where non-grocery items are irresistibly close to the food. For this reason, I sometimes go to HyVee just to curb any impulse buying or to save time so I don't wander around the store. Also, Trader Joe's is always a nice treat. Their candy and juices are delicious!

Now to be fair to my Canadian friends, please everyone participate in the new survey!

Tremendous Tennis Tom-Foolery

Tonight was the first night in a while that I got to sit and relax while eating dinner in my own home. It was difficult to pry my cheesy risotto and meatball stuffed self off of my couch to go to tennis, but I somehow managed.

Tonight at tennis, two extra women joined us. These two very tall Brazilians are surgeons at the Mayo. At first wary of them (since they came in late in the game and they seemed with-it and I worried they would judge my uncoordinated efforts), I soon relaxed.

One of them insisted that she only played once or twice when she was 13, so they put her in our group where she dominated. It was ridiculous. She could return almost anything with grace and form, and she had an incredible accuracy rate. I was almost ashamed to take my turn at the net. It came out later that she forgot that she might have taken some sort of tennis lessons one summer more recently. That explains it.

The other surgeon was hilarious. She was giving it her all, but that darn tennis ball just would not land on the blue side of our court on the other side of the net. She ended up doing a lot of squealing, swearing, and flailing about, and as someone who usually (I imagine, anyway) looks like a flailer while attempting any sort of sport, I appreciated that.

I myself was a bit squirrely having been away from my students the majority of the last week. Sitting in meetings and conferences is very draining.  Plus, I just miss my kiddos!

Tennis Instructor Mark kept telling us to settle down and not be so rambunctious because we were going to get in trouble. He said it with a smile on his face or while laughing at us, though, so none of us took him seriously. I do feel a little bad for the advanced group on the other side since we were laughing, teasing each other, and running around. Then there was the occasional squeal or screech from our side of the court, sometimes followed by a stray ball flying over the divider and landing on their side.

I'm glad we work with Tennis Instructor Mark, though, because I doubt the other guy would put up with our ineptitude and tom-foolery. In my opinion, however, we look like we're having way more fun than the other side of the court, even if they are playing the game of tennis "correctly".

Things I Love*

I love...

• Popcorn with extra butter and salt
• I am talking about popcorn you make in the air popper, then pour real melted butter over. Right now, I really enjoy putting the salt on the popcorn, because my salt shaker is a little yellow bear, and that makes me smile. Popcorn is so ridiculously delicious. Sometimes I have a large mixing bowl full of popcorn for dinner. While I prefer the air-popped popcorn smothered in butter, I occasionally enjoy the microwave variety, and it is practically impossible to see a movie sans-popcorn!
• Tea
• Earl Grey, Lady Grey, Mint, Orange Pekoe, Green, White, Darjeeling, Chamomile, they are all wonderful. This year, I have really been experimenting will loose teas, and I believe there are about five varieties of loose tea on my shelf right now. Tea is good in the morning, afternoon, or nighttime. Tea is just amazing. If  you don't drink tea, you should start immediately! I think I drink about 3-6 cups of tea per day.
• Playing with Squeaky
• My cat is awesome. She is 16 years old and still loves to play and run around. She also has the most attitude I have ever seen in a cat, and she things she is a person. Squeaky will try to hold a conversation with anyone who comes into our home, and I think she can understand what we're saying, because if someone makes fun of her, she glares at them for a while. Tonight I got her a new tunnel to play in and a new feathery toy on a stick. She enjoys them both.
• My Friends
• I am pretty sure I have some of the best, most amazing, talented, hilarious,unique, intelligent, kind, generous, down-right fantastic friends in all of the world. I love them all.
• Ice Cream for Breakfast
• I prefer to eat it with a spoon right out of the container while checking my email and sitting on the couch. There is nothing like a little chocolate chip cookie dough or mint chocolate chip ice cream to start your day off right.
• My Family
• My family, while absolutely crazy, is a great bunch of people. Good job, guys!
• Singing Aloud Really Loudly in the Car
• Especially now that I am listening to my ipod in the car, this has become a once again frequent activity. Songs that are super-fun to sing along with include, but are certainly not limited to: "I Can't Get No Satisfaction", "The Little Things You Do", "Luckiest Guy on the Lower East Side",  "Jessie's Girl", "Resistensen", and "Someday" (Leo Laleo).
• Dancing Like a Maniac
• I'm a maniac! MANIAC on the floor! And I'm dancing like I've never danced before! This can be done in the car, in the kitchen while cooking, in the living room, while cleaning, before bed, or in the classroom. Usually I try to refrain in more public places - such as the grocery store - where such activities are generally frowned upon and may cause security to come have a chat with you.
• Mittens
• If you don't agree that mittens are amazing, then I don't know that I can trust your opinion on anything. They are so fun! And they come in so many colors and designs and fabrics! Plus they keep your hands, fingers, and wrists toasty warm through the 132,004 days of Minnesota Winter!
• When the Leaves Change Colors in the Fall
• Autumn foliage can be breathtakingly beautiful, especially if admired while on the water. Plus I just enjoy the smell, feeling, and temperature of fall.
• Playing the Piano
• This is one of my favorite de-stressing activities at the end of the day.
• My Job
• While incredibly stressful, and I am overworked, under-payed,  unappreciated, and quite often thrown under the bus or verbally abused by children, I love my job. I love working with my students, even if they are hooligans! They are my hooligans! We sing songs, read books, dance, discuss, practice our pronunciation, and talk about our cultures. They make me life and teach me so much! I can't imagine doing anything else with my life!
• When Squeaky Curls up and Snuggles Me
• She always prefers to curl up and sleep near my knees. I appreciate this, and I like knowing she is there. In her older age, she stay longer with me, and doesn't get so upset when I move around in the night.
• Crossword Puzzles
• I like to think that this will help me prevent or delay Alzheimer's or make me smarter or something.  While not particularly good at the New York Times Crossword Puzzles, I have a book of them in every room in the house, almost, and one in my car. It is a good way to spend the time with a cup of tea and a cat.
• Going to See Any Kind of Live Performance
• It can be a play, opera, orchestra concert, musical, a magic show, Rick Springfield concert, a couple of banjos - it doesn't matter. I will probably enjoy it.
• Playing Board Games - Especially ones that have to do with words or words play
• Maybe I am super lame, but I love playing board games! My favorites are of course games like Bananagrams, Boggle, or anything that allows me to manipulate words and letters, however I enjoy strategy games such as Othello as well or games that encourage social interaction, such as Curses, Imaginiff, Pictophone, or Fact or Crap.
• Going to the Cabin
• The cabin is a wonderful place. Ideally I would like to have a home in the woods on the water someday. 
• Reading Signs Out Loud
• This is just really fun. When I am in the car alone, I love reading signs aloud. "WANA - mingoooooo!" "Super Soup This Way!" "Demolition Landfill" "We Do Cows!" "Karaoke every Tuesday at 7pm". The sign doesn't always have to be particularly interesting or shocking, but I really enjoy reading them out loud. Sometimes I even do it when I am in the car or walking with someone else. Occasionally I will even stop mid-sentence or interrupt a friend to read a sign out loud. This odd - but I hope charmingly quirky - habit might be contagious, because I have caught some of my friends doing it more recently as well.

*A small sampling of the list in no particular order

Now quick! Take the grocery store survey!

Results of the "Hot Chocolate Topping" Survey

In an interesting twist, this time I let people choose more than one answer. I tried to choose things that I myself enjoy while drinking a mug of hot chocolate, so if you have a favorite that didn't make the poll, let me know.

Mini Marshmallows	(16%)
Regular sized Marshmallows	(16%)
(Real) Whip Cream	(50%)
Reddi Whip	(33%)
Cinnamon	(33%)

I thought it was interesting that real whip cream won overall. And I believe (but you can go back and check and tell me if I am wrong) that this is the first poll where nothing has 0%, so that is exciting. To be honest, I am shocked - SHOCKED - that cinnamon came out ahead of either kind of marshmallows. Who doesn't like marshmallows? Of course, you are reading something written by the person that munches on marshmallows while cooking dinner or boiling water for tea, so perhaps I shouldn't be considered representative of the average population.

In other news, some pretty awesome things happened this evening. While volunteering with my (because they belong to me) old people , I got the quote of the day. We were all doing charades and trying to guess what the leader was doing. Then we played a modified version of "Jive" where one person had to do an action, and all the others had to do it, too. One sister got very confused when another was pretending to milk a cow. She looked at me and in her slow, drawn out voice asked me, "Now what is she doing?"I responded, "She's pretending to milk a cow! Now you pretend to milk the cow!" She looked at the other sister, looked and me and made a big O with her mouth. "OooOOh!" she exclaimed, "That's not how you milk a cow! The cow would be angry!"

Once home after volunteering, I started to go about my decompressing routine (take off my glasses, turn on the computer, pre-heat the oven, etc.). I received a phone call from an unknown number in the area. Usually I only get calls from telemarketers or people I know. And I will tell you I don't know many people around here. "Hello this is Ivy." I answered.* The person promptly hung up.

The phone rang again as I was about to flour the cutting board to roll out the dough. It was one of my students (We'll call him "Oliver")! After a pause from "Hello this is Ivy", I heard in a small voice, "Is this Ivy McDougalhopper?"

"Yes, it is. Who is this?"

"Can Oliver come to the basketball game?"

"Of course. Is this "Devon" (name changed)?"

"No, this is Oliver."

"Didn't your brother tell you you were invited?"

"Yes. But I mean the other Oliver. Can the other Oliver, my friend, come?"

"Yes, of course!"

"Ok. Good. Devon wants to talk to you."

And it only got more interesting from there as Devon proceeded to ask me what I was doing and what kind of food people eat at basketball games and did I know he likes Mountain Dew? I gave my phone number to a couple of families so they could contact me whenever they needed, and some families have it because I call them from my home phone since they won't answer when the caller ID says our school. But I guess I hadn't anticipated it falling into the hands of the students and having them call me on a Tuesday night!


And finally, for the last bit of awesomeness tonight, I made cheesey calzone-esque things for dinner. The one I ate tonight was delicious, and I am already looking forward to lunch tomorrow! YAY!


*Did you see this week's episode of "How I Met Your Mother"? People make fun of me for the way I answer the phone, but Marshall does it, too! Someone must know that we Minnesotans have some sort of polite phone answering patterns.

Weekend Headlines

So much to tell you! There is no way I can do it justice! Instead of writing paragraphs and paragraphs about my awesome weekend (full of further successes), I am going to mix it up and give you headlines, as if my apartment were its own city and had its own small town newspaper.

Dinner at Mac’s Diner Success:

Onion Rings Consumed in Skyway System

Rick Springfield Concert Awesome!

Not at all lame!

Scandal! Rick Springfield Drunk?

21 minute rendition of “Don’t Talk to Strangers” raises eyebrows

Mac’s Makes Marvelous Pancakes

Premier of the New Living Room Rug!

Cat seems to enjoy it

Exorbitant Spending:

Trader Joe’s and iTunes drain income

Invitation to Super Bowl Party surprises and delights!

Super Bowl Party Fun:

Beer Boiled Brats served!

Packers Victorious Super Bowl XLV

Residents have mixed feelings

Now take the Hot Chocolate survey! Quick! Before time runs out!

This Week's Successes

There have been many successes this week, and I feel the need to share them. Please be warned that you may read them and roll your eyes or wonder what I am so excited about, but really it is all about the little things in life.

Success #1:
I had my mid-year observation from the assistant principal. I was a little nervous because he wanted to come see my fourth grade groups, and those groups tend to be on the noisier, distracted (and distract-able) side, and we are in a small room generously lent to me by a colleague. Sometimes we leave messes or move things around a bit, but she has been very gracious about letting us learn in there when she is gone. The successful part of the story is that the lesson on cuttle fish went really well! The kids were noisy and excitable as usual, but they were ON TOPIC and respectful towards each other! Score Ms. McDougalhopper!

Success #2:
My second tennis lesson went well, although I did not feel nearly as awesome at tennis as the first week. We started actually doing some game play. Unlike in drills, when we are playing for points, the teacher is not hitting the ball directly at us at a nice speed. Suddenly we are running around, hitting it into the net, bouncing it off the ceiling, trying to get out of the way and still make contact, etc. But still, I had fun with other Ivy and Julie (previously referred to as "Pink Sweatshirt"). Then, after class, they invited me to meet them at Whistle Binkie's next week before tennis! ROCK ON! I am making friends who aren't teachers!

Success #3: 
I wore my cephalopod shirt to work. What, now? 

Success #4:
I went out on a Wednesday night with Ashley (my colleague I share a room with....the big room). We went to Baker Square for Pie Rush Wednesday. While we were a little disappointed with this particular Baker Square location for a variety of reasons, and the pie I ended up having was not as delicious as I had hoped, I got to chat with my friend and eat out with someone after 6pm on a weeknight.  And I had left overs for lunch today! SUCCESS!

Success #5:
I totally steamed beef tamales for dinner tonight. Purchased frozen from a Mexican grocery store up in the Twin Cities, I had one with rice (and a piece of na'an - I mix all my cultures together. Like Canada, I am the melting pot) for dinner tonight, and the other is or lunch tomorrow! It was kind of fun to peel off the corn husk.

Success #6:
Tonight at dance class, I danced with someone my own age! Also, the man that kind of groped me was not there, so there was no super-uncomfortable-ness. Also-also, the people in my dance class are warming up to me and we can chat and even joke around a little bit. This whole swing dance class is turning out to be really fun!

And the biggest success of the week is yet to come! Oh, Boy! Do I have an amazing evening planned with Ashley and Dani tomorrow! We have many things going on, but the main event is Rick Springfield. That's right! RICK SPRINGFIELD! The tickets are in my purse! SUCCESS!

Interested in the cuttlefish? They are pretty amazing animals! Watch this short "How Stuff Works" clip (towards the bottom of the page) on (cuttlefish, and tell me they are not completely awesome!

My students asked me if I could get one for a pet and bring it in so we could play with it. It picks up the subtleties in the rocks so well, I wonder if it would do stripes or plaid? Leave a comment about how awesome the cuttlefish is!

 
Don't forget to take the most recent poll! It is about what you like on your hot chocolate! You all like hot chocolate!

Results of "From the Mixed up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" Survey

This most recent poll was inspired by the children's novel "From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" by E.L. Konigsburg. Most children read how the youngsters in this novel ran away and deem the adventure too much work. The effort these kids put into living in the Metropolitan Museum of Art is impressive. Even now, as an adult sitting on her couch eating artificially flavored Christmas tree marshmallows, I dream of running away and living undercover somewhere cool.

When I asked you where you would run away to, the results are as follows:

A la "From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler", if you ran away as a kid, where would you live?

The Aquarium	(14%)
The History Museum	(57%)
The Science Museum	(14%)
Orchestra Hall	(0%)
Chuck E. Cheese	(14%)

It looks like the History Museum is the winner. It would definitely be interesting to live there, and at night you could touch all those exhibits and artifacts you can't during the daytime. I just want to feel for just one second how that mummy feels!

I am a little disappointed in the person who chose Chuck E. Cheese. Really, friend? Have you been there ever? The place is scary!

Now, if you haven't read the book, I insist you run out and buy it and read it twice in a row.  I can't find the exact book cover from when I first read it as a kid, but here is a similar one on Amazon:

By the way, I would choose the aquarium. How cool would it be to fall asleep to the sound of waves every night and to watch the whales and penguins whenever you wanted?