What I've been up to...

Sorry that I haven't posted in a while. Some of you have started to give me a hard time! So here's what's been keeping this One plenty busy! It's a long one..........

1. Happy Fourth Of July!

This happens to be one of my all time favorite holidays. Probably because it kicks off what I like to think of as my Birthday Week.

I, along with most everyone else, went to Charleston for the weekend. Alle, Linds, and I went down Thursday and did some shopping. Then Alle and I went out with my family. No, she wasn't there yet. Fun Alle came out in her fullest force Friday night. Thursday night we went to see Tim Reynolds.

We spent Friday morning on the beach. And then went to the Dave Mathews concert (show, I mean. Why does Dave put on a show and every other artist puts on a concert? I guess Widespread is a show. And Phish is probably a show. Why is that?). This was a blast. And this is when Fun Alle made a star appearance. It is all thanks to Firefly Vodka. The only way to describe it is Dang. I didn't know that even Fun Alle had it in her. I have no idea what to say except for this:

How many times have we said that that stuff is leathal!? It is dangerous! You know the saying "too good to be true?" A more applicable statement can not used to describe Firefly Vodka. It is so good. It is so good that my brother tried to order some at dinner last night and the waitress came back and said that they were out and that the vodka is actually backordered right now! The company can't ship enough of it out! I believe this is directly related to Alle's mass consumption on the Fourth of July.

But, what makes it too good to be true, you might ask? It tastes so good that you can't quit drinking it, that's what. For those of you who have not indulged yet (or in Alle's case OVERindulged!!), I can hear what you are asking yourself. "I still don't know why that's a bad thing. Sounds like a good thing to me!" Well, you end up drinking so much of it because it's delicious. And we all know what happens when you drink a lot of liquor. It hits you like a ton of bricks....all at once. Everyone knows you need to drink anything in moderation. Well, I thought everyone knew! Just ask Alle......I fear Fun Alle might hibernate for an extremely long time. I hope not. But, I fear it.

However, the tides have turned. Typically Fun Alle only makes appearances in the absence of said Beau. Not this time! Beau was there! So there is hope yet! Keep your fingers crossed that she'll have a change of heart and come out again this weekend!

Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately for Alle, I have no pictures of this escapade. I wasn't able to take my camera into the concert...sorry, show. So I didn't carry it that day. Never again will I leave it at home when the plans include spending several hours at a bar in the middle of the day! Nothing but good, blog-worthy stories and pictures can come from that! (I'm thinking Saturdays spent on Otter Island...)

I spent Saturday night in Edisto with my sisters, cousin, and a few friends. I happen to (thankfully) be a really big fan of my family. So the night was a blast. We shot bottle rockets out of a can in the front yard and they were decidedly anticlimactic but hilarious nonetheless! I was glad to see some fireworks. Because, Dave, if you are reading this, I was disappointed that there wasn't a huge fireworks show! What a great, missed opportunity! An outdoor venue for a huge concert on the Fourth of July! Come on! So I settled for ratty two-pop bottle rockets. No oohs or ahhs, just a bang or two. But it was fun!

2. Happy Birthday, Emily!

Thank you, thank you! My birthday was yesterday. I am the big 2-9, or as my sweet brother chose to point out, old as hell. I spent the day in class. Nice. But I did sign up for snack duty intentionally. I wanted to make sure I got to eat what I wanted on my birthday! That included strawberry shortcake, pita chips and hummus, and chicken salad sandwiches. Delish! However, I stopped by the Publix on my way to class to pick up a 24 pack of water. I have never claimed to be the most graceful person in the world and here's yet another example of why...

I am picking the water up off the bottom shelf, and no, I am not using my knees. Straight up lifting with the back. The water bottles shift in my hands and I shifted my weight to catch them all while saving the water and inadvertantly pulling my back out in the process. As soon as I put the water down, I felt it. Julianne asked me why I didn't just let them all fall. Come on! Who would do that!? Do you know what I would have done if 24 bottles of water fell and rolled all over the aisle? I'd look both ways, make sure no one else was in the aisle (it was 8:00 am so chances were good I'd have been alone on an aisle), and backed the you-know-what up so that I didn't have to stand there in the middle of 24 plastic bottles. Sorry Publix employees, if you are reading this! You're thinking you want to put my picture on the door and ban me from your stores because I MIGHT wreck an aisle and run away. Well, I might! But look at it this way! That isn't what happened this time. I took the brunt of the impact and have been living with the pain the past 48 hours to prove it!

I am joking some, but it really did hurt! I had a hard time falling asleep!

I did get to eat dinner with my family (sans Alston who was in Charleston for class. We missed you!). We ate at M Vista.....the BOMB! Then walked across the street to meet some friends for a drink at the new Ale House roof top bar. I love my friends! They all came out to celebrate even though they are going to be celebrating all weekend long! Thanks, y'all!

3. Midlands Writing Project

I said a while back that I would mention this in a post. The project is a really neat thing. We spend our days essentially learning how to become better writers so that we can in turn help our students become better writers. I've written a few things, and maybe one day soon I'll post one in particular that I wrote about my grandfather.

However, MWP is also why I couldn't hang out with my friends longer on my birthday! Today, I had to give a one hour long workshop on Interactive Notebooks. It was stressful leading up to it, but I think it turned out quite nice. Way too much to go into here, but for those of you looking to really engage your students, no matter the age or subject, Google Interactive Notebooks and use them! Incredible! Or ask me. I'll send you my PowerPoint.

4. Edisto, here we come again

Amazingly, the house is still standing and the island hasn't sunk yet. I can't explain it. There are forces at work here that are much greater than our destructive capabilities.

We are heading to Edisto on Friday, July 11, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHELLE! We go every year to celebrate my birthday in conjunction with Michelle's birthday, since they are only four days apart and Michelle is the bomb and I can't imagine who else would be as fun to share a birthday with! As always, we've got a full house, plenty of food, libations, and a fun day planned for Otter Island.

This weekend, cameras are allowed because the venue belongs to my father! I promise to do plenty of picture taking and posting when we get back!

Hope your week has been as nice as mine!