Honey-Do

There's this thing that is widely known throughout military land; it is called a Honey-Do List. With Hubby's impending arrival back into my life, I have recently found myself spending a lot of time creating my own list inside of my head. Today I thought, what better place to write out my honey-do list than on my blog? So, here it is, for your viewing pleasure.

Dear Hubby,

Welcome Home! I know that you have had a rough 7 months without common luxuries such as indoor plumbing, regular showers, a normal bed, cable television, homecooked meals, etc. I also realize that due to your 24/7 on the job status while deployed, you are very used to staying busy and on the go at all times. I have decided that it is really to both of our benefits that you are used to working so hard... especially because while you were gone, I had some things come up that I really need you to take care of. Of course, I understand that you will probably want to relax your first day back; that is only normal. However, I really think its best that you get back out there as soon as possible and really put your everything into this list. Without further ado, I present to you

THE LIST

1. Remember last deployment when you came back and the backyard was completely torn-up and grassless due to the fact that I had trouble remembering to water it? Well, you'll be happy to know that it's not that bad this time. However, for your first order of business you will most likely want to get the yard back to your standards. There may be some re-sodding involved, but I assure you, there is still grass back there. Just not as much as you might hope..
2. Again, remember how when you returned from your last deployment our pool was green because the pool pump broke as a result of the Wildfires and all of the debris that made its way into our pool? Well, once again, no worries, it's not nearly as bad as that. However, those Santa Anas have been blowing for the past couple of weeks and while the pump is still in perfectly working order, the vacuum itself does not seem to be functioning properly. It's likely that I could figure out how to fix this myself (as I have done many times over the past 7 months), however, since your return is only a short time away I decided it was really best if I left that job to you, the resident expert.
3. Our garbage disposal is broken. It's really a huge nuisance to not have a working garbage disposal. If you could fix it asap, I would be eternally grateful.
4. The shower in our bathroom drips. If you could take care of that right away it would really cut back on our water bill every month...(I say that because I know how much you really hate to waste money).
5. You may have noticed this on your way into the house, but the palm trees... they are in desperate need of trimming.
6. If you could please get our border collie signed up for agility classes when you have a free moment, that would be great.

After you have completed all of the items on this list, I'm sure you will feel much more comfortable being back at home.

With all of my love,

Sarah

venting

Hubby is due back in a month. I mean, I think he's due back in a month. I haven't received a return date or anything yet and have no idea when a return date might be told to me. Hubby did tell me the other day on the phone that he won't be giving me any dates on an unsecure line (translated: all the lines I use to communicate with him are "unsecure" which means I will not be finding out the official date through Hubby).

So. I don't really know. I am preparing for his arrival during the end of February, though. And he damned well better show up then or I'll be one disappointed military wife.

This week, I decided that February is probably going to be the longest month of my life. Which, I realize is completely ironic since as we all know, February is in fact the SHORTEST month on the calendar.

I know I am sounding pretty pathetic today. Sorry about that, but...

I am having a bad week.

What qualifies my week as bad, you ask? First of all, I lost two earrings. Two earrings from two different pairs.. which is extremely devastating to me. Secondly, due to a special school week I've had disgustingly late nights & early mornings at work. And, last but not least, I found out my employer will not give me the money to fund my Masters Degree...

They won't fund it because I would be using the masters to "clear" my teaching certification -- which I totally understand -- I mean, why in the world would they want to fund a masters degree that would get a teacher the credentials to actually continue teaching? I mean, seriously.. what is the sense in that?

I hope you caught the sarcasm in that.

Okay, I'm finished venting.

Tonight, anyway... :)

My 8th Grade Teachers

I'm not sure how it came up, but today in class my 8th graders asked me what my 8th grade teachers were like. Normally, I don't let them get me off track this bad, however, this time it was something that interested me.

So, I humored them.

My English teacher was someone who the majority of my friends were afraid of. I wasn't, though. This was probably because my sister had been in her class a few years before me and had only positive things to say about her. This teacher was a grammar nazi. She had long red fingernails that she would tap against the board when she was making a point. She made students stand up behind their desks when answering a question. She had tape in the shape of a square on her floor -- it was called "the box" and it was something that all students feared. Every time we gave a speech or presentation, we had to stand inside the dreaded box. Today, in my classroom, I have a box just like hers. My students aren't nearly as afraid of it as I was when I was in 8th grade.. but that's good because I don't want them to be. She was also the first teacher I ever had who went out of her way to tell me I was a good writer.

My algebra teacher was really tall and really funny. He used to get off topic in class and tell stories about his son, his favorite band R.E.M. , and Bill Cosby, his favorite comedian. He also had quite a temper. One time he caught a few of the boys in my class counting how many times he said the word "um" - an assignment given to us by the English teacher mentioned above - and he blew a gasket. It was the biggest outburst I ever witnessed from a teacher. The finale was him stomping out of the classroom and slamming the door. Besides his temper, he was the kind of teacher that you felt comfortable confiding in. I remember saying that to him once in an off-subject class discussion, and I know it really touched him because he thanked me the next day when he passed me in the hall.

My geography teacher was crazy. She had huge reading glasses that she used to wave around while she was teaching. For some reason, she loved me. In fact, she loved me so much that she gave me an A on everything. At some point in the year, I realized she was just giving me A's without reading my work, so on an essay test I purposely wrote a few random things like "Camels are extinct" to test out my theory. I wasn't surprised when my test came back with a big red A+ on it. I told my students this today, and they were very jealous. I explained to them that it actually really wasn't a good thing, but they didn't see the logic in that.

My science teacher was really nice and a little bit of a pushover. The only major thing I remember about her class was a lesson where we pulled a tablecloth out from under plates, glasses, and silverware. I was one of the people who tried it, and it worked.. to my complete and total surprise. I do remember having to study for the tests that she gave, though. And, studying isn't something I remember doing much of during my school years, so she must have been doing something right.

It's really interesting for me to think back on the teachers I've had and what I remember about each of them. It's even stranger to think that one day 10 years from now my students might be writing a blog or having a conversation about their teacher Mrs. (Sorry) and the things they remember about her.....

:) :(

A fourth person mentioned to me today that I look like I'm losing weight.

That made me happy.

Then, for Open House one of my students drew a picture of me on the board.

Another student came in and said, "That doesn't look like Mrs. (Sorry), the stomach is too small."

Hmm..

What did I tell you? 8th graders sure have a knack for keeping a person humble...

Indecision (what a weird word!)

It's possible that you noticed that in this post I said I wasn't going to be making any plans until Hubby came home and I officially found out where the future (aka Marine Corps) would be taking us. And then in this post - a mere couple of days later - I broke the news that I was probably going to be starting a Masters Program in April.

You also might have noticed that sometimes I write about how rewarding it is to be a teacher. And.. sometimes I write about how exhausting it is.

Sometimes I write as the empowered military wife...

...and sometimes I complain about how dreadful it is to run the house on my own and live without romance.

Sometimes I explain how wonderful it is to live in San Diego...

.. and other times I lament about being so far away from my family.

In fact, more than likely, you've noticed that the only thing consistent about my posts is the inconsistency of them.

I did warn you when Hubby first left for Iraq that I turn bi-polar during deployments. I certainly experience HIGH highs and LOW lows and, of course, some moments inbetween.

But, I think it goes beyond that.

I think there's a possibility that I really just might be the most indecisive person in the entire world. Seriously.

I second guess pretty much every aspect of my entire life. From the big decisions - should I be a teacher? To the small decisions - should I have just said that?

It's a condition that I've learned to live with.

However,

(WARNING: the information that follows contains high levels of CORNY & SWEET)

To tell you the truth - and I think about this often - the only decision that I do not regularly question was my decision to marry my husband.

.........to clarify, I also am NOT one of those people who can't make up my mind about what I want to eat at a restaurant. (I only mention this because I truly despise that quality in a person.)
Oh yeah, and I also never question my decision to add my border collie to the family. The husky on the other hand......

Okay, so maybe I'm not the MOST indecisive person in the whole world, afterall. I do think I could probably make it into the top 10, though.

Moooving On...

This has been a pretty good week. Want to know why? Well, too bad, I'm going to tell you anyway.

First of all, three, I repeat, THREE people noticed that I'm losing weight. Each time one of them said something, I did a silent cheer inside my head.

I've been working really hard to lose weight. Throughout this process, though, the scale has not been my best friend. But I feel better and thinner, and was therefore completely excited that other people are noticing (and thus it is NOT just all in my head). I'm contemplating throwing my scale out the window tomorrow. I'll keep you posted on that.

Second of all, one of my students wrote the awesome Mrs. (Sorry) is... that I posted for your viewing pleasure in my last post. I love, love, love to receive unexpected compliments like that.

Actually, it's been a pretty good week for compliments from my students. (This MIGHT have something to do with the fact that report cards came out this week, and they were all trying to put in a little bit of last minute butt kissing.. but I will choose to pretend that is NOT the case).

Today, one of the 5th graders brought me a picture that she had drawn for me. It was a picture of a flower, and it said, "Mrs. (Sorry) is a lovely flower inside my heart". It was so sweet, I could have cried. (or was that the pms talking?) And the kicker... today an 8th grader.. yes, I said 8TH GRADER.. said, "Mrs. (Sorry) you're such an enthusiastic teacher." -- I gave him a wary look.. waiting for the punchline.. and said, "I'll take that as a compliment." To which he responded, "That's how I meant it." Wow. Needless to say, I was shocked. (and having a party inside of my head.. but I played it cool so as not to scare him off)

Other than that, it's just been minor stuff.. you know.. like.. I'm probably going to begin a Masters Degree Program in April. But, I'm not going to write about that because I really don't want to jinx myself. Currently, I'm fully on board with the idea and am deathly afraid that at any moment I'll chicken out and come up with some great excuse why this is not the best time.

So Mooooving on...

Today I made a joke in class with my 8th graders.. none of them laughed.. so I laughed and said Moooving on.. then they laughed. Then they explained to me that the funny part isn't me making jokes.. it's me responding to their lack of response to my jokes. Did you follow that?

Good.

Well, I'm off to bed to go read the book The Lovely Bones. I really need to stop reading it at night because it completely FREAKS me out, but I am just dying to know what happens next.

Mrs. (Sorry) is...

In my literature classes I regularly give my students a writing prompt, and they spend the first 7 (or so) minutes of class writing. Today, my student who wrote the date on the board also wrote Mrs. (Sorry) is... This was NOT the writing prompt (partially because I would be extremely frightened to see what the junior high students would write if it were), however, one of my students came up to me after class and wanted to read her prompt to me. She had used the Mrs. (Sorry) is... and it was so neat that I had to make a photocopy of it to keep.

Here it is:

Mrs. (Sorry) is...

super, awesome, cool, nice, kind, glamorous, smart, young, good, creative, fun, funny, a teacher, fashionable, fabulous, joyful, a good writer, a good influence, pretty, married, a superhero, a Twilight fan, happy, helpful, a role model, a dog lover, a candy-giver, composed, an actress, rocking, cheerful, content, sunny, likeable, a woman, confident, nice-shoes-buyer, agreeable, amiable, fun to be around, delightful, charming, festive, jolly, cheerful, sociable, calm, peaceful, friendly, pleasant, faithful, clever, a peacemaker, intelligent, fair, imaginative, living in San Diego, active, modern, lively, good-mannered, focused, an American, good-natured, independent, a leader, talented, a good reader, puzzling, prayerful.

How cool is that?

I think I'm going to fold it up, put it in my wallet, and get it out any time I'm feeling not-so-great about myself.