"8 Things" Meme

I've been so slow in responding to this meme. No real good excuse, either. Just been in a bit of a slump lately.

Eight Things About Me
1. I'm an Army brat. My family moved a lot when I was growing up. I hated it, because I would just make friends and then we'd move. The longest place we lived was in Lincoln, Nebraska (6 years). The next longest was St. John's, Newfoundland (3 years).

2. Now that I'm grown up(?), I love to travel. My husband and I do really well together on car trips. We also do well hanging wallpaper.

3. I didn't do so well when it came to spacing the births of my four daughters. I wanted children as soon as I got married. For several years I couldn't get pregnant. Then, in less than 3 years, my first 3 daughters were born. Eleven years later our 4th daughter arrived when I was 39 years old.

4. I graduated from college when I was 43 years old with a biology major and a chemistry minor and a secondary teaching certificate.

5. I married my husband 2 days before my 22nd birthday on Dec. 28, 1972. That means that Christmas, my anniversary and my birthday all take place within a 5 day period. We've been married 35 1/2 years.

5. I would like to move to the Northwest USA when my husband retires, but my children and grandchildren are in Utah, so we'll be staying put.

6. I have 4 brothers and 2 sisters. I was the third child and first girl.

7. It's become a tradition to have a big 4th of July party at our house every year. All my family and my husband's family who live close by are invited. Everyone brings a pot luck dish. We barbecue hamburgers and hot dogs and I make 2 5-gal containers of home-made root beer. When it gets dark we haul the chairs to the front lawn where we watch the fireworks that are shot off in the nearby park. It's always great fun. This year we will miss that because we're leaving on our trip July 2. My youngest daughter is not happy, but I told her they ought to go ahead with the tradition. Hope they will. Hubby and I will be in Ashland, Wisconsin watching the fireworks on Lake Superior.

8. I was the first granddaughter in my mother's family and my grandpa spoiled me rotten. I loved it and loved him. He bought me my first hula hoop and took me in his old beat-up pickup truck to a drive in movie. I remember standing on the seat next to him mesmerized by Debbie Reynolds singing "Tammy's in Love" in the 1957 movie, Tammy and the Bachelor. I was 6. My grandpa died when I was 10 or 11, but he told Grandma to give me the big bible they'd bought from a traveling salesman years before. I used to sit and look through it by the hour.

Perfect Timing

Jenclair posted a link to some great quotes by Kurt Vonnegut. I thought this one was perfect for me as I contemplate our upcoming trip:

"Peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from God.

Another one that is worth pondering:

"I urge you to please notice when you are happy, and exclaim or murmur or think at some point, 'If this isn't nice, I don't know what is.'"

My Map

I posted this map a year ago on A Reader's Journal, but it's relevant again. Did you get that - it's relevant! Hot diggity dog diggity! We're taking a trip this summer! I'm so excited in case you couldn't tell. My husband called an hour or so ago and told me he will be able to retire earlier than he originally thought and asked me if I would like to take a month and go on a trip. A month! I said I thought 2 weeks was plenty. After two weeks I'm usually ready to be home. Of course, if he's retired and I don't have to teach until the last week of Aug, we could be flexible. Flexible, that's good.
Of course, my first thoughts were of the Northwest. I love Washington, Oregon, British Columbia and Vancouver Island. Then I thought of New York City. I pulled out the atlas and started looking at Central Park, Manhattan; thinking about seeing a couple plays. Then my daughter asked if we would be driving and I thought about 'my map'. If we drove we could get some of those white northern states. We really enjoy road trips so that could be a fun possibility.

DH has always wanted to visit northern Michigan ( Sault Ste. Marie). I would love, love, love to go there. The question is where to from there? I'd like to see Toronto, Montreal, Quebec in Canada. Maybe we need 2 months and a million dollars!

The main thing is I wanted to let you know that M is retiring this summer and we're taking a vacation. Maybe a cruise? My mind won't be still. oh, but it is almost as much fun thinking and planning as making the trip. I did say, ALMOST.

An Interview with Me

Alison from "We're all mad here," said the Cheshire Cat to Alice asked me these questions and I'm finally getting this interview posted. It was fun to do.

1. Have many books do you read a year (on average)?
Even though I have recorded and reviewed every book I've read in the past 4 years I've never added them up at the end of the year. I'll estimate between 45 - 60.

2. If you could travel back through time and view any moment, what would it be? And why?
Wow, Alison this is a power-punch question. I would like to be witness any time people have been granted their freedom, when they have overthrown an oppressive rule, or when hope has been realized and freedom experienced. How can I pick just one? The more I think about this, I can't pick just one event. I guess the thing for me to do is keep my eyes and heart open for everyday victories, when people repent of sins, or behave with integrity, when they say or do what's hard but what will bring freedom, when someone breaks a bad habit, tells the truth . . . It's all about freedom, isn't it?

3. Who do you want to win TAR: All-Stars, and who is your all-time favorite TAR team?
I feel so silly! It took me the longest time to figure out what TAR meant. The Amazing Race - Duh! Who do I want to win for this season (the All-Stars)? I was hoping the coal miners would do better than they did. I was sad when Joyce & Euchina and Rob & Amber were eliminated. The race went downhill fast. If not for the beauty queens, I would have stopped watching. Now that there is only one more race and only 3 teams I am definitely cheering for the beauty queens.

My all-time favorite team? Well, I've only been watching for 3 1/2 seasons, so I'll choose from those only. I think Joyce and Euchina who won the million one or two seasons ago are my favorites.

4. What is something you like about living in Utah, and what is something you don't like?
I like the clear, blue skies and being able to see the stars in the night sky. When we lived in San Diego, I never saw the stars because of cloud cover or too much light from the city. I also like being relatively close to most of my family.

I don't like the dry, desert-y areas.

5. I know you attended a science convention in Florida once, but I don't know anything else about your science vocation/avocation. Can you fill me in a bit?
I went back to college with four children and a husband at home helping me through. I intended to major in Elementary Ed, but every semester I wanted to take all these science classes that I didn't need. So I changed to Secondary Ed with a Biology Composite major and a Chemistry minor. I graduated in 1994 at 43 years old. I was hired at my only local high school that summer. That was quite an unexpected surprise because high school teachers settle in and don't move very often. So I was very lucky.

I taught 1 year at the high school then transferred to the alternative high school. I felt like that was my 'calling' in life to work with troubled teens. They rewarded the teachers with hugs and appreciative praise - it was unbelievable. Of course, it was also hard. I taught 8 different science classes and 1 study skills class. Sadly the alternative high school was closed 4 years ago, so I moved back to the regular high school where I taught only Biology. Last year I quit teaching full time. This year I teach two study skills classes for 'youth in custody'. My schedule is a killer! I teach for 3 hour every other school day. Am loving it.

Open Your Eyes To Reality Moments

This phase popped into my head today when I was making a comment on a post. I liked it and decided to write a post about it.

One moment that opened my eyes to reality was some 30 years ago when store-bought diapers were rarely used. I had 2 babies under 19 months, lived in a little college apartment with a husband who was gone all day and evening attending classes or working. I remember being extremely tired, probably suffering some postpartum depression while sitting on the side of the bathtub rinsing out a messy diaper before wringing it out and tossing into the smelly diaper pail. I thought to myself, (imagine a sob or two and a high-pitched groan) "This is what I've been dreaming about for the past 20 odd years? To become a wife and a mother?"

Sounds pretty trivial, I know, but it was definitely an "Open Your Eyes To Reality Moment". What is a moment that forced you to come out of fairyland and get-a-grip? Or a moment when you realized you needed to face life front on? Or a time when you got more than you bargained for? When you had to radically change your way of thinking because the old way wasn't working? I'd love to hear your "Open Your Eyes" moments. Sounds a little bit like Oprah's 'Aha Moments' but there is a noticeable difference in definition. An Aha moment is more like a cleansing breath, a refreshing breeze and an Open Your Eyes moment is more akin to a heart attack.