Camoflage

One thing that I love about my parents' town of Billings, Montana is that even the stores offer merchandise to help you feel a part of nature.

Things I "Loved" About Teaching Today

1. The heater in the classroom that spewed scalding, hot air out at us.
2. The student who seemed to think that she was the only one who was uncomfortably hot as was evidenced by the following comment she made 30 minutes into class: "It is SO hot in here!"
3. Having to hike up the hill to the building with the free printing and copier so I could make copies of the slides my students did not print out so that we could then change classrooms.
4. The fact that the city library doesn't open until 10am, making it impossible to pick up the books I need in the morning, requiring an extra trip from campus to my neighborhood.
5. The closure to an email from a student: "Thanks for your patients."
6. The lack of parking on campus for students; the ample (and empty) parking for full-time staff and faculty.
   
7. After two hours of class and a lively discussion, a student asking, "So what of all this do I need to know for the quiz?"
8. Another student informing me that she was leaving class because she had a quiz in another class she forgot about. Did I mind if she left?
9. And yet another student telling me that she didn't see how international children's literature applied to her as a wanna-be teacher.
10. Planning 12 hours of instruction per week is already wearing me thin. Eight more class sessions to go.
    

Persecution

I think this picture shows oh so well someone who was terribly, terribly persecuted over the Fourth of July weekend. I mean, she's practically sobbing in this picture.

It's really too bad that she couldn't show more excitement or enthusiasm, since earlier she watched a bear chase down an antelope and saw a Grizzly only feet from the car in Yellowstone Nat'l Park.

And I think those two things alone represent some serious persecution.

Family Bonding Time

True, my parents moved to Billings, MT almost four years ago. And I was pretty upset about this move when it happened--no more warm weather Christmases, fantastically good Mexican food, THE BEACH, and opportunities to see old chums.



But the more I come to visit, the more I like it here. (Of course, I'm writing this in July and not December in the dead of winter. Talk to me then).

Target shooting as an entire family was never an activity that happened while we lived in Carlsbad, CA.

And I'm pretty sure Miriam and I never shot a bulls' eye before either. For all of Miriam's complaining about being a bad shot, she did very well for herself.

But don't worry, I'm not planning on packing any heat myself, although if I could have "Charlie Angel" hair, I might reconsider.

Vay-Cay

You know, it's not really a vacation when you have to squeeze in work.

Question to the Universe

Why do I always have one student to whose comments I can think of no other response than "OMG!" or "WTH?"?

Such is my lot yet again.




It's a good thing I have such a good poker face.

The Harrowing Mt. Nebo Bench

I think the Universe is trying to teach me something lately. It keeps placing me in situations were I feel completely vulnerable and dependent--two feelings I like to avoid as much as possible.

But Saturday morning, I was completely unaware of and ignorant to the state of the terrain I was about to cover for the next 12+ miles of wilderness.

We were all content and full of bliss due to the fantastic scenery we enjoyed the night before: the sunset, the green, the rolling fog, the star-gazing. We were also full of Scum-playing, mint Oreos, and fruit-by-the-foot.

It was a happy state of affairs.

And then we slowly began to discover that a leisurely stroll with our packs on was not going to be out fate. Instead, we spent a lot of time carving steps out of the sides of mountains--


mountains complete with killer shoots and lots and lots of snow pack. And since my scare in White Pine Canyon a couple of years ago where I slid more feet than I care to remember down a snow patch, I honestly have a rather intense fear of crossing these snow packs. So being faced with having to cross 20+ snow packs in one day really tested my limits and made me feel completely vulnerable. But the mind really does drive the body and while I hated crossing each and every snow pack, I stopped myself from reverting to my toddler-self and sitting down on a rock to pout--as tempting as it was at times.


The hike would have also been much easier if we hadn't gotten lost and had to bushwhack through mud and bushes or had frightening, tense, hopeless moments watching Kristina and Ryan slip and fall.

Eventually, we were not as happy or fresh as we were at the beginning of our trek. Seeing a big horn sheep was a bright spot. As was the company.

The dog, Diego, definitely mirrored all of our feelings when we got off that mountain. We were exhausted--both body and soul.

And yet, Kristina and I are already discussing our next trip. I'm voting for a leisurely stroll in the mountains. I think she may second this motion.

I'm hoping that it doesn't exceed these expectations.