Saturday Morning Coffee

The calendar might say its fall, but fall is rapidly changing to winter. Come inside and have a seat. The coffee’s just about done.

I like these weekend chats we’ve been having, how ’bout you? Good coffee, great friends, and conversation – hard to beat that, isn’t it.

So, what’s been happening with me this week? Well, this week’s been interesting, to say the least.

Something’s always going on at school; this week I didn’t have any junior or senior classes since they were gone on a trip. No extra planning period though: I was the substitute for the chaperones. I found myself keeping one set of students on track with Silas Marner (I’m incredibly sorry, I didn’t choose the book) and teaching another set about renting and mortgages. Really, Consumer Mathematics (or Business Math, or whatever your district calls it) should be required for all students. It’s the most practical math anyone could take.

By Friday I was ready for the weekend (if only so I could talk to you), and I was so pleased to look at the clock and see I was running 15 minutes ahead of schedule. So of course the car wouldn’t start. The batter was dead as dead could be – no ticking, no nothing. I think I may have accidentally left a light on or something. Thankfully I could use Krystal’s car to run to Wal-Mart and get a set of jumper cables. I suppose 24-hour big box stores aren’t entirely useless. When all was said and done I was 45 minutes behind schedule.

So if ever I needed a morning pick-me-up, it was Friday. I used the rest of my Dunkin’ Donuts gift card to get an extra large dark coffee with 2 cream and 2 sugars, a sesame bagel with cream cheese, and 2 blueberry cake donuts. I wanted Boston Creme, but they were all out due to the morning rush. I made it to my classroom 2 minutes before my first student. Still winning.

I’ve also been trying to catch up on my podcast listening this week. Somehow I neglected to update the feed over the last few weeks, and I ended up with almost more episodes than I knew what to do with. It also doesn’t help matters that most of the shows I listen to released special Halloween episodes. The Christian Humanist Network, for example, recorded special crossover episodes on the Twilight Zone. (I’m on one of them, by the way, talking about “The Monsters are Due on Maple Street”, “The Encounter”, and “Deaths-Head Revisited”. So far this week I’ve listened to approximately 20 hours of podcasts, and I’m still not done, thanks to actually keeping my feed updated this week. I’ve actually liked the bingeing.

Of course, I would also discover that the entire run of Monty Python is on YouTube (thanks to Stuff You Should Know). Now I want to binge that, but have to make choices. So I’ve been listening to podcasts in the evening and finishing up with one episode of Monty Python before bed.

Smokey loved my predicament, because he had a warm lap to lay on. While the podcasts played, I graded (and graded . . . and graded) and did all of my Christmas shopping for Krystal. Hooray for online shopping and free shipping. Now to make sure she doesn’t “accidentally” open the packages when the come because she “didn’t know what it was.” I’ve gotten very good a keeping what I’ve purchased secret, and even better at wrapping Krystal’s gifts so that while she might have an idea of what she’s getting, she doesn’t know for certain, and certainly has no idea which present is which.

Speaking of Christmas, I’ve had not one but two students and their parents ask me what I want for Christmas. I’m not sure how to answer that question. Right now I’m leaning to giving them a list of my favorite candies/crackers, the places I eat most often, and a few of the books on my TBR list. This is the first time since I started teaching I’ve been asked for a list.

Oh, I almost forgot. I should give a shout-out to my bank. I was doing my online shopping and they detected “suspicious activity” and blocked my card. I got a text asking me to verify my purchases (text “yes” if they’re yours or “no” to be immediately contacted by a CSR). I replied yes, and within a minute was back to shopping. Good on ya, banking institution.

I’m certain I’m forgetting something, but I’ve talked enough for now and don’t want my coffee to get any colder than it already has.

So, what’s up with you?