StarzAbove

ummm… okay … right…. oy vey!
Read NPR’s article on the topic.

I’m off schedule – that is pretty much the norm for me. I’m going to just accept it and move forward rather than try and play catch-up in yet another part of my life.

With only a few weeks left in the semester I am getting down to the wire on assignments.
Right now I need to take a quiz on the novel we read in English, write a 1st draft of a Literary Analysis – Compare/Contrast essay, do reading in both English & Psychology and start planning the final essays in both Art and Psychology.

And then there is work, and the children’s school and will I EVER get finished settling into my room? We moved here over a month ago.

. . .

I just went and knocked out the quiz on the novel for English. It was easier than I thought it would be – either that or my reading comprehension has weathered the years well. It feels REALLY good both to pull such a good grade in a class that has been a source of frustration and disappointment, and to cross one more thing off of my long ‘to do’ list.
I checked my grade book online and I only have 2 the essays left in that class, the one I need to do the 1st draft of and the exit essay (stop, no use in worrying right now about an essay that you have to write in 2 hours in the presence of a proctor – YIKES!) – oh, and the course evaluation. I’ve been putting off the evaluation because it’s not going to be a great one. And as much as I don’t enjoy giving a poor evaluation, I just have to be honest about my experience in this class – for myself and other students. I’ll probably rant more about that later.

But for now, I think I’ll go to sleep reading the course documents and chapter that covers the essay that I need to do that 1st draft on – tout de suite! Bonne nuit!

When was the first time that you realized that your home was not like other people’s homes? (Guest Post by Catherine Gildiner, author of After the Falls) (This was the NaBloPoMo writing prompt for November 9th)

I’m too foggy-headed to remember anything as detailed or as witty as a ‘first time’ but I can list a few things along the way that make us stand out.

~ We have a family anthem sung to the tune of the Addams Family.

~ The time I wrestled with my then 5 year old son and pinned him and asked him if he thought his friends and their mothers acted like this and he emphatically said, “NO!” (while laughing, of course).

~ The fact that we describe ourselves as Country Geek is probably not average.

~ Doing Chinese Fire Drills as a family probably won’t get us on the cover of Family Circle either.

~ Homeschooling in and of itself put us in a minor category.

~ I’ve stated that my autobiography will be entitled, ‘My life is a musical’, many, many times. (and I’m not a singer)

~ Our children are convinced that our dinner table discussions are enough to qualify us for our own sitcom.

~ Talk has existed about careers for my children that include a belly dancer (my son, is the victim of that one, and deservedly so!), a head-banging rock star, a mad scientist/doctor, and a professional origamist (yes, I looked that one up, people).

Started on November 8th, 2011 . . .

Has anything traumatic ever happened to you? Describe the scenes surrounding a particular event. ~Adrienne McDonnell (guest prompt)

Trauma 1. a : an injury (as a wound) to living tissue caused by an extrinsic agent
b : a disordered psychic or behavioral state resulting from severe mental or emotional stress or physical injury
c : an emotional upset

1. I was once bashed in the knee by the head of a raging, pregnant ewe sheep that was determined to get out of the barn regardless if she had to go THROUGH me. That laid me up for several months. It was somewhat traumatic. And painful.

2. Definitely one of the most emotionally stressful things I have ever went through was having my husband gone for months, serving in Operation Desert Storm in 1990/1991. He left when I was pregnant with our 1st daughter and I delivered her while he was gone. My 2 1/2 year old son got me through. That was very emotionally traumatic for me – especially the weeks in between her birth and the ground war – where we did not have any contact whatsoever, phone or mail (didn’t have email back then) for weeks. Traumatic turned to Thankful when he returned safely to us.

3. The migraine I had this week was another emotional upset – for sure. It took me out of the game for a couple of days, and then took a couple of days getting caught up and back into life. But I’m back, and I’ll go back and do the writing prompts that I missed and catch up.

Making family time is important to me. How do you balance your children, relationship, and work life? ~Rikki Lake (guest prompt)

I’m a juggler, not so much into balancing.

Seriously, I’ll cover this post more later – when I’m not ill.

Yes, it was a crazy, crazy day.

That is all …

To some families this may seem a rarity, but it is only new to me this year – the year my eldest daughter (of 4) went away to college. She isn’t too far away – only about 45 minutes to an hour, but she isn’t here, under the same roof, day in and day out like she was for the past 20 years. She isn’t here in the morning to grumble a good morning to (we are NOT morning people around here), she is not here at the dinner table each evening to share in our chaotic banter, and she is not here breathing in and out, so that I can hear her life, every night, all night.

I am very happy and proud for her – she is an amazing young woman and she is just growing, blossoming and succeeding at everything she touches at the university. She worked very hard to get there, she is invigorated with learning and she is experiencing a whole new slew of people and events. She is amazing.

But I do miss her so much. She has gradually grown from my baby, to my little girl, to my friend. We text daily, talk every couple/few days and she comes home every 2 or 3 weekends, and I’m so glad of that – I’d hate to grow apart from her.

The next born daughter is stepping up into her place in the world. She will be off to college before I know it. And the other two, who will still be around for awhile, thank goodness, are transitioning from little girls into little people more and more each day.

There are so many emotions involved, happy and sad, exciting and scary – all wrapped up into this thing known as watching your children grow up. For all of it’s highs and lows, bumps and bruises, fun and games, I wouldn’t trade being their mother for anything.

When you are writing, do you prefer to use a pen or a computer?

While I do love writing with a pen – at times – I prefer to write at the keyboard.
The main reason? I’m a fairly fast typer and I am more likely to come closer to keeping up with my brain.
I’ve been told all of my life that I “draw” my letters, so writing isn’t fast enough for me. Except when I’m in the mood, to put pen to paper, that’s a different story. At that kind of point speed doesn’t matter as much – it’s more about the journey and maybe slowing down would improve the view.
But for the most part, it’s all about keeping up with my skittish mind – trailing those thoughts that dash from here to who-knows-where at hectic speeds.

Plus, I’m a geek of sorts, and the keyboard IS attached to this fascinating piece of machinery . . .

Can you listen to music and write? What song did you hear today? (NaBloPoMo Prompt for the day)

Let me reverse that – can I NOT listen to music while I write? Maybe, but I honestly don’t know. My girls are the same – whatever we are doing that we CAN have music on in the background usually DOES have music on in the background while we are doing it. Now, there are times when reading or homework needs either quiet, or my preference, simple classical music. And different tasks, different times of the day, different moods all require different music, usually.

Lately, my favorite is Joss Stone. I have a Joss Stone Pandora Station and Joss is who I’ve listened to the most on my Spotify account, as well. LOVE. HER. VOICE. Haven’t heard her? Go – listen – NOW! You won’t be sorry. My recommendation: listen to her before you have a look at her and it’s kind of a fun surprise

So, I heard many songs today, but the one that stood out the most? Probably Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep”. It’s a favorite of mine – love her voice, too!

Take a listen, do some writing, good stuff:

Adele – Rolling in the Deep

Go HERE for the details.

But here is the list of things to photograph (2 different photographs of each item) by the end of the month:

1. Dark
2. Glow
3. Smile
4. Weather
5. New
6. Round
7. Tangle
8. Up in the air
9. Patterns
10. Tomorrow
11. Eyes
12. A sign
13. A Self Portrait

I’m excited about this project! Thanks, Tracey!