Not Quite

My students and I celebrated Poem in Your Pocket Day safely and at a distance this year. Rather than the usual fun and revelry of everybody reading poetry for a few days before and choosing poems we love, then transcribing and decorating them to carry in our pockets and share throughout the day, this year we posted our selections on our online learning management system, and then read and commented from afar. 

It wasn't the same at all, but it was still poetry and it was still pretty moving. Here are just a few of the poems my students chose, along with part of their explanation why:

Ickle Me, Pickle Me, Tickle Me too, by Shel Silverstein, "because it has been a classic to me all my life, I used to have a lot of Shel Silverstein books in my home" 

Sisters by Lucille Clifton "I liked these lines because they represent a strong friendship, and because I hope that can be me and some of my friends." 

The Road Not Traveled by Robert Frost " I think it sends a message that it is ok to be different. To take a different path." 

Veils by Witter Bynner "I also chose this poem because in one of the sentence in this poem it says “And this of a purple moon ”I wish there was a purple moon it would look so pretty." 

Paul Revere's Ride by Longfellow "It’s really cool how Henry Wadsworth Longfellow makes the entire poem rhyme and how he tells the story." 

Phenomenal Women by Maya Angelou I think that sometimes people are ashamed for who they are. This poem is the opposite.

Gosh, I miss my class!

Stretching those Muscles

In an effort to use my virtual office hours a little more productively, today I planned an online quiz game to review the poetry vocabulary students have been using all month as they write their poems. It wasn't too difficult at all to use screen share so that the kids who showed up for the conference could play the game. Just as we do in school, I was able to praise the knowledge they demonstrated and take a minute to clarify after questions where there was some confusion.

I had just finished explaining the difference between literal and figurative language with a few silly examples and the observation that many people literally use the term "literally" as the opposite of what it means, which is actually using it figuratively, when I looked out at the six faces in their little boxes and smiled. "Wow!" I said. "Was it me, or was I just actually teaching?"

They nodded, and we laughed.

"That sure felt good!" I continued. "I didn't realize how much I missed it!"

Praise the Writers

I've written in the past about the praise poems my students compose as part of our poetry challenge. I've been assigning them since 2013, and every year I am blown away by the honesty and beauty of the writing.

Praise Poems come from Western Africa and celebrate an individual's identity. They are often call and response, with the audience chanting a chorus between lines.

The formula I suggest is to write six lines and a chorus. The first line is your name, the second about your place of birth or ethnicity, the third about your family, the fourth and fifth compare you to natural elements or entities, and the last chooses a positive, defining quality about you and repeats it three times. The chorus is an expression of what you hope might be said of you by your community, and so it is written in third person.

Here are some of the choruses from this year:

Rhythm is in her soul.
Dance skips in her heart.
Her light shines through.
Nature is in her soul.
Competition is in her blood
Animals are in her heart.
Outside for life
Intelligence runs in her veins.
Happiness is her strength.
Determination in every step.
Singing is in her heart.
True to myself.
Sports are in his soul.
Playing with his dog every day.
Happiness in her soul.
Free soul
Friends in her heart
Kindness in her soul
Gymnastics in her veins
A true pessimist at heart
Perfection is what she strives.
Kindness in her heart
Being loud is in her soul.
Drawing is her soul.
Helpful is her heart.

It's a shame my time with these kids was cut short, because they really deserve the praise.

Pandemic Purchases

Here at home-bound, online shopping is always an option. In fact, when I look back at the deliveries over the last month or so, I definitely see a trend, particularly in the items I probably wouldn't have bought had I not been re-thinking the way we spend our days.

an oximeter
face masks
a remote control caddy
a 2" thick gym mat
a standing desk
a play-anywhere ping pong set
a mystery jigsaw puzzle
a Hunt-a-killer subscription
a compost bin
raised bed corners
corn, squash, and bean seeds

Newton's First Law

We grumbled more than a little this morning as we headed out the door and into a light rain to fulfill our promise to pick up a friend's dog and entertain him while she completed an online training session. We had originally planned to walk the mile and a half over to her place, and after a little debate we drew up our hoods and trudged in that direction.

Soon, though, the softness of the day, the cotton-batting clouds swaddling the sky, the pink dogwood and green grass, the goldfinches flirting in a boxwood hedge, and the wide empty sidewalks won us over. Chins up, breathing deeply, our pace quickened, and we were nothing but glad that we had left the house.

Livin Large

We've been eating well during these stay-at-home days; cooking fresh, satisfying meals every day has been one of my main creative joys. But yesterday when a neighbor offered to repay a kindness by bringing us dinner from a restaurant of our choice, we enjoyed a delicious Friday night meal of steak and salmon from the Carlyle. And today when I got an email from Clydes offering lobster dinners to go? I barely thought twice about treating ourselves on Saturday night, too. 

A Girl Can Dream

Our neighborhood pool is set to open four weeks from tomorrow, the Saturday before Memorial Day. So far, we haven't yet heard of any change of schedule. According to the CDC, the water and chlorine in a properly maintained pool should kill the virus, but I'm kind of skeptical about keeping social distance and disinfecting other surfaces. What would that look like?

Even so, spending sunny summer afternoons at the pool is definitely something to look forward to on a dreary, homebound day like today. So with that in mind?

I sent in the application for our pool passes this morning.

Stretching Our Legs

I put off my walk a little too long today, and by the time I was finished with school stuff, the rain that is predicted to be with us for the next several days was here. My choice was to sit around or brave the weather, and as tempted as I was to hunker down, I put on my rain boots, zipped up my slicker, leashed up the dog (she didn't get a choice), and headed out.

It was a light rain at first, with an almost pleasant fresh breeze, and the sidewalks were relatively empty, so I took a deep breath and quickened my stride. A little while later, my hood felt a little too warm, and I swept it back and let the rain fall as it might. And that is how we continued. The rain fell steadily as Lucy and I continued on our way without wavering.

And when we got home? We were soaked, but satisfied.

The Missing Piece

Much like last week, my office hours today were attended by lonely sixth graders looking for a little conversation. That's fine by me, though; it's hard to replace the social piece of school, and if being present for an hour is helpful, then I'm in.

This time I split my required hour into two half hour sessions, one in the morning and one in the early afternoon. One of the students who stayed on for the whole hour last week, attended both of the conferences today. He didn't have any questions about the material, and once my 2 minute presentation was over, neither did his classmates, so we just chatted about what their days are like. They gave each other video game, TV, and movie recommendations; a few mentioned books and new hobbies; everyone said they missed school.

At the end of the last session, it was just me and a couple of boys, one of them the frequent flyer. The three of us had just wrapped up a conversation about whether or not we like scary movies in a scary time (nope!) and who's allowed to watch R-rated movies (just me!), and I was getting ready to end the conference. "Ms. S?" my regular attendee interrupted. "Do you have an x-box?"

I had to confess I didn't. "Maybe that should be my pandemic purchase," I laughed.

Watch and Learn

Heidi and I have had our Apple watches for about 5 years now; so long that, not only have they become one of the devices we rely on daily, but we take for granted their ability to track our activity, alert us immediately to the news and weather, answer calls and texts, and oh yes, tell the time. Apple is always pushing down new tweaks and features, many of the look-what-our-watches-can-do-now novelty version, and to be honest, we rarely even notice them.

Recently, more time and fewer choices about spending it, have made our activity and workouts kind of a bigger focus in our daily lives. I always checked my rings, but now I'm looking at my trends, too. I want those arrows by exercise, distance, cardio fitness, walking pace, running pace, and stand minutes per hour to be pointing up, even though part of me knows quite well that no arrow left behind is just a statistical impossibility.

Another feature our watches have offered is the ability to share exercise activity with a friend. The idea seems mostly to encourage friendly competition, but Heidi and I know better than that. We started sharing activity a couple weeks ago with a promise to never compete. So now, any time either of us finishes a workout or completes an achievement, the other gets a notification, even if we're standing right next to each other. But, what could be very annoying, also comes with the perk of being able to shoot off a little prewritten message of encouragement.

And, those writers at Apple are pretty clever: it's rare that we don't get a giggle out of our options, whether we want salty or sweet. For example, after a long walk, we can send Did you miss the bus? or You're wearing out those shoes! 

Some of the other gems:

Oof! Can't match that!
#gifted
Pop and fizz!
Don't hurt yourself.
Numbers don't lie.
Now that's some walking
#micdrop
Feeling more flexible?
You're my favorite runner.

Not only that, but the algorithm is smart enough to give us new choices every time.

Oh, it's a small pleasure, but aren't those the ones that count most right now?

Apples to Apples

One of my go-to dessert recipes is a sour cherry cake published in the Washington Post for Thanksgiving in 2002. I have a well worn photocopy of the original article that I keep on a magnet on the side of the fridge.

Over the years, I have riffed several variations on that cake, including a peach version with chili and lime, which is a delicious finale to grilled fajitas in the summer. One thing I have never done, however, as much as I love that recipe, is bake the second cake from the same piece. But all that changed yesterday when a neighbor put out an SOS because she had five pounds of apples she couldn't use.

We immediately came to the rescue. My first thought was apple sauce, but I decided that I wanted to make something a little more satisfying, since we are, y'know, stuck at home indefinitely. I considered apple pie or galette, and then briefly considered an apple version of the cherry cake, until it occurred to me that there was actually an apple cake on the same page, just waiting for a try. And when I read the recipe? I was sold!

A "cake" in name only, it has a pastry bottom, enriched with egg yolks and a crumbly streusel topping. In between, you boil the apples with vinegar and sugar that bakes into a sweet and sour filling. It's delicious! And, it was fun to make and more than big enough to share with the neighbors.

Satisfying, indeed.

Grab a Bucket and Mop

Another thing that's great about our place, is that the two of us can clean it thoroughly in a couple hours. Six weeks ago, cleaning anything definitely would not have been our preferred way to spend a Sunday morning, but I have to admit, it's up there now. There is just something very gratifying about such a concrete accomplishment.

The Ladies Upstairs

We have lived in our townhouse-style condo since early 1999. Over the years we have considered buying a bigger place, mostly to accommodate more guests, but with 2 ensuite bedrooms and a half bath downstairs, the place, although compact, has more than enough space for the two of us, a dog and two cats. There are a few inconveniences to be sure; probably our biggest beef has been the lack of storage for our bikes, and not having a good place to grill outside is also a headache, but in general, we have been very happy here.

Our unit has two floors, and there is another condo below us. When we first moved in our neighbor downstairs was a quiet architect named Joe who kept the landscaping around our building immaculate. When Joe took advantage of low interest rates in the mid-2000s to buy a house, he sold his place to Steve, another quiet guy who traveled a lot and rode his bike for fun. Steve moved out a couple of years ago, and our new neighbor was Trevor, a young man starting his career as a government employee.

There was something about Trevor's enthusiasm and earnestness that reminded me of some of my former students grown up, and he and I bonded the first morning he lived here when his car was towed and I helped him get it back and get to work on time. After that we would trade text messages almost daily. But Trevor must have been good at what he did, because only a couple of months later he was offered a promotion which entailed a move to New Jersey.

The condo stood empty for a while; the market was soft and it must not have made sense to sell it right away. A few people did move in and out of the place, but they kept such a low profile and stayed such a short time that we only jokingly began to refer to the place as a witness protection safe house. All that changed earlier this week when a guy named Clayton, his partner and their three-legged dog moved in.

It's only been a few days, but I can hear their music clearly enough to tell that they like Paul Simon and several other rocking singer-songwriters from the late 20th century. Their music has been my music all day today, and I can only hope the intermittent banging is just temporary picture hanging and furniture placing racket.

I know that everyone is staying home and we are all in closer quarters than usual, but for goodness sakes! For the first time in 21 years, we might have to go knock on the door and ask them to keep it down, all ready!

Office Hour

I had ten students "stop by" for my first virtual office hours today. Some of them had a simple question or two, but most of them simply wanted to hang out on the video chat, see the other kids, type jokes in the comments, and show us their pets.

An assistant that I work with was there, too, and so we just kind of visited with the kids as they came in and out, asking for TV and movie recommendations, how they are staying in touch with their friends, what they do to keep from total boredom. It was nice to connect, and one of the toughest kids I have in class stayed on the whole time, which was gratifying.

And although I enjoyed the session, at the end of the hour, I was certain of one thing:

An hour?

Is too long!

Next week I'll do 2 thirty-minute sessions.

No Comment

I had a little bit of a shock today when I checked my personal e-mail only to find a comment had been left on yesterday's post on this blog by "Mom".

Regular readers know that my mother passed away last October, but until then? She was my most loyal reader. My mother never was much of a commenter, though. No, she preferred to talk about my writing in our regular phone conversations, where she knew she could get the unedited version of any story, full of juicy details.

And today, I knew, of course I knew, that it wasn't really a comment from my mom, but I lingered over the link for a little, imagining what such a comment might say.

Sharing the Road

I read a report today of a Florida man (yes, really) who threatened a mass shooting in a grocery store because many of the people in there were not wearing masks. I can believe it. Negotiating social distance in public spaces can be harrowing.

Last week, when Heidi made a wide arc around three young men walking toward her as she ran with Lucy, one of the guys yelled, "What would you do if I touched you?

To which my wife replied, "I'd let my dog bite you!"

Well, he did ask.

The next day, we were hiking in a regional park with my sister-in-law and nephews. A fellow hiker was very upset that the guys were standing too close to each other and their mom. He stood by the side of the trail and bellowed at us that we were peeing in the pool. "It's all ruined now," he moaned, as if in physical pain. When another family walked past us in the opposite direction, he shouted that the distance they chose was not six feet. Obviously disturbed, he huffed and groaned and sighed along behind us for some way, until at last he shouted, "Passing! Passing! Clear the trail!" Which we happily did.

And then just tonight our neighbor was out running when she stopped at a traffic light alongside a family of three on their bikes. "That is not 6 feet," the mom scolded her.

"That is not the bike lane," our friend snapped back. "You're on the sidewalk."

It's hard to cut each other slack when we are all wound so tightly. Normally one might recommend taking a deep breath in any of these situations, but these days?

Even that seems dangerous.

Mic Drop

A lot has been written lately about the etiquette of online meetings, but I don't think everybody has gotten the message. The basics are to mute your microphone unless you are speaking, especially in a large group. It is probably also wise to the same with the camera, or at least I intend to do so after sitting through an hour and a half meeting of 35 people watching folks scratch their heads, walk in and out of the frame, and drink coffee. Then the conversation came to an awkward halt when the unmistakable sound of farting blasted through the speakers. Props to the person facilitating, though, for her poised response. "We need to take a moment to remember our norms of muting the microphone unless we are speaking. I think we are getting some, uh, feedback, on the line."

I'll Try Not to Sing Out of Key

Just like after any break, I wasn't excited about getting back to work today. Perhaps there is some cold comfort in that, and to tell the truth? Yesterday, I couldn't have said if online teaching made it harder or not. But knowing today was a work day did cushion the landing a little.

And as it played out, having time to reestablish connections and collaborate with my colleagues before getting back to this tele-teaching thing we are inventing together day by day was immensely energizing and comforting, too. With texting, e-mail, GoogleDocs, MSTeams, and (shhhhhh) face to face communication, they pulled me out of the self-involved funk that has been so easy to fall into, isolated as we all are.

At the end of day, we have some fun and engaging activities all set for the kids tomorrow; in fact, I can't wait to see what they do!

Easter, Again

Usually Easter Sunday comes at the end of spring break, and sometimes knowing that we have to go back to work the next day drains more than a little of the joy from the holiday. In fact, over the years we've definitely minimized our celebrations, especially with no young kids nearby. And I thought that this year would be the same, except? Nothing is the same right now.

So, Heidi spent the week baking cookies to make little Easter bags for the local family and dog pack buddies, and at the grocery this morning I added white eggs and a dye kit to my cart. And then there were the plastic eggs we bought, long before the stay at home order, for Heidi to use with Lucy on nose work training.

And this morning? We rose in a golden dawn to deliver Easter treats, dye eggs, and have a couple of doggy egg hunts. This afternoon we visited with family, outside and ever mindful of distance, and tonight, there is lamb for dinner. 

A Different View

In an increasingly challenging attempt to kill two birds with one stone by getting in some steps while actually going somewhere, I walked the three miles up to my brother's house this afternoon. There, he and my sister-in-law and I spent a pleasant hour sitting six feet apart outside in the warm afternoon sun.

When it was time for me to come home, I ducked around the corner to a bike share station to take advantage of the downhill route. Perhaps it was the wind in my hair, but as I was pedaling, it seemed like a fine idea to pursue a more meandering path, and so I cut through the neighborhoods and past our school.

Once there, I could not simply ride by the deserted brown brick building that has been my work place for so many years. No, I steered the bike past the garden and around to the front and paused on the walkway in front of my classroom. The window faces west, and the golden April afternoon sun shone on it like a mirror. I squinted to see the bookshelves, the chalkboard, or something else inside, but all I saw was me on a borrowed bike remembering how the light used to fall across my desk at just this time of the day.

Stuck in the Middle

After several days of mild weather and many spectacular hours spent outside, the sunshine and blue skies today are such a tease when north winds gusting up to 30 mph bluster out there as well. Oh, we took our daily walks, but each time, streets transformed into howling wind tunnels turned us back in disappointment.

At home, I pulled out a the turtlenecks, fleece, and flannel for what could be their last turn of the season, put on a big pot of soup, and there will be a fire crackling on the hearth before dark. Such are the comforts of a cold day!

Just as the season can't make its mind between winter and spring, I guess I can't either.

Socially Distant Urban Adventures

Over the last several weeks I have expanded my knowledge of the immediate neighborhood, discovering places and paths I like to call "super secret" between and behind the historic garden condos right up the hill. I've found meandering 3-5 miles routes through the adjoining neighborhoods as well, up steep hills and past all manner of tear-downs and renovations.

On some days, we pile the dog into the car and take off for nearby places, too, as long as we're confident they won't be as crowded as the bike trails and running paths that everyone is desperate to use. An early hour is always helpful, as is a cloudy day, and this morning we made our way to the Washington Harbour at the foot of Georgetown.

At 8:45 AM traffic was light and we were there in 10 minutes, an amazement of its own. From there we walked the boardwalk south toward the boat house, crossed a bridge over Rock Creek and entered the C&O canal at its origin and followed it a couple of miles north counting the turtles basking in the sun, where we turned down some stone steps to pick up the Capital Crescent Trail.

By then the bike traffic was a bit heavier, and it was time to turn back toward the city, so we followed the river on a paved path lined with vetch, wisteria, dewberries, honeysuckle and purple dead nettle, past a sycamore tree garlanded with a dozen crested cormorants perched high above their usual watery domaine, under the old stone aqueduct, and through a landscaped park to our starting point.

Pandemic Productivity

The other morning I was lying on the floor trying to find the energy to put my sneakers on when my gaze landed on the top of the closet door. I'm not exaggerating when I say that we have been muscling one of the two doors open and closed for ten years, because its track is bent. It's just one of those things that never quite rises to the level of "need to repair immediately!", and there you have it.

But on this particular day, I saw how simple it would be to remove the faulty track and replace it with a functioning version. It literally looked like a six-screws-out, six-new-screws-in job. Still on the floor, I searched for the part at a nearby big box home improvement store, and saw that it cost about 18 dollars. And so, a project was hatched.

The new parts sat in the corner for a few days, but yesterday I was determined to get that repair done, but I found that the battery on my cordless driver was dead. This afternoon, battery charged, I headed upstairs to conquer that closet door.

Despite my awareness of how heavy they were, getting the doors off was harder than I thought. Once they were propped against the foot of the bed, I climbed the step ladder to remove the bracket. Unfortunately, those screws had been in there for thirty-five years and a couple of paint jobs, and they did not yield to me like the hot knife through butter I imagined. Thank goodness I have been doing some arm exercises, because it took some over the head muscle to get those suckers moving.

Once the old track was out, I eagerly unwrapped the new one and read the directions. It was a straight-forward installation, and I lifted the new piece to the top of the closet frame. Except... it didn't fit. I angled and re-angled and pushed and tapped with a hammer, but despite being standard-sized, the dang thing was literally a quarter inch off.

Sighing, I looked at the toolkit and my eye fell on the hacksaw.

Could I?
I could.

Thirty minutes of brute finesse later, I had SAWED THROUGH METAL and was ready to continue the project. And this time, everything went according to plan. The track went up; I replaced the hardware on the doors, I swung them into place, and installed the bottom track. For the first time in a decade, our closet doors open as they should.

Perhaps there is a better way to fill my pandemic isolation time than with long put off do-it-yourself home projects, but what would that be?

Another Silver Lining

We met a couple of friends for a walk this morning. Ever mindful of social distance, we planned to meet early at a place we hoped would offer more than enough space for the four of us (and 2 dogs) to walk and chat. That's how we found ourselves in front of a deserted Natural History Museum right around 9 AM.

"It only took me 10 minutes to get here!" Mary reported gleefully.

"And parking was a breeze!" I replied, just as enthusiastically.

It may have been the overcast weather, but the wide gravel paths were practically ours alone as we strolled first up to the Capitol and around the grounds, but the sun was shining and the skies were blue by the time we turned toward the Botanical Gardens. It was hard not to feel anything but lucky to be able to enjoy one of most beautiful cities in the world on a day like this.

After that, it seemed impossible to do anything else except walk the full loop down past the Washington Monument, to the Lincoln Memorial and back. By then? There were a few more people and a little less parking, but we were ready to head home.

Age before...

I got up early, drove to the grocery store, and put on my mask, but when the first set of glass doors whooshed open, I was stopped by a burly young man, also in a mask, his arms crossed.

"Are you open?" I asked.

"We are," he nodded, "but only to shoppers 60 and over."

"Dang!" I said. "I'm 58." (Or... I will be in June.)

"Really?" he replied.

"Yep," I answered, pulling down my mask.

"You can go in, then," he told me.

Inside there were several shoppers all politely keeping social distance. Some wore masks, some did not; most were loading up on produce and lean proteins. I think I fit right in.

Rejoice and Be Glad

The sun was shining in a brilliant blue sky streaked with just a few high clouds this morning when I took the dog out. Cherry blossoms have subsided to pink crab apple and red bud, and the tulips are in full bloom. I even saw azaleas and lilacs that were close to flowering. The air was cool, but the sun was warm, and the birds were going nuts. It was impossible not to feel happy and even a bit hopeful.

Just then we ran into a neighbor and her dog. "This is the day!" she hailed me.

"What day?" I asked. "The day the Lord made?"

We laughed, because it was true, but we both knew it wasn't what she meant.

"This is the day that turns the corner from winter to spring," she told me. "I don't know... I just feel it in the air."

I had to agree.

Banditos' Masquerade

How strange it was to go into the grocery store just a few days ago and see all the folks wearing masks and scarves and what not over their mouths and noses. These were the early adopters of what the CDC is now recommending for us all when we venture out in to public places. Already the price of bandanas has tripled on Amazon, if you can find them in stock at all. Here at home we have a couple of buffs, courtesy of Camp Jefferson, our end of the year activity for the sixth graders (and another casualty of the pandemic). We also have a few bandanas, lots of cloth napkins, and the hair ties to transform those into masks for when we go... not outside (yet), but indoors to public places, when we must.

Could this situation get any more surreal?

Wise Beyond Their Years

Since today was the last day of *school* before *spring break* rather than give my students a quote of the day to respond to I asked them to post their own. In many ways, their replies to that task reveal more about how they are than anything else they've written in the weeks since our world turned upside down.

"You will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory" ~Dr. Seuss 

What lies behind us and what lies before us are but tiny matters compared to what lies within us." -Henry Stanley Haskins 

“The way I see it if you want the rainbow you have to put up with the rain” -Dolly Parton 

"The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall." ~Nelson Mandela 

"Do or do not, there is no try." ~ Master Yoda 

“Fortune favors the bold.” ~Virgil 

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” ~Confucius 

"You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have." ~Cayla Mills 

“For a valiant heart nothing is impossible.” ~Jacques Coeur 

“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”~Mahatma Gandhi 

“A diamond is just a chunk of coal that did well under pressure.” ~Henry Kissinger.

I think they've got this.

Language Please

Admittedly late to the party, we have started pandemic-watching The Mandalorian, and yes, I totally see what all the baby Yoda fuss is about. There was an even more memorable moment in the first episode for me, though.

In our school district we have a lot of students who are English Language Learners. These kids have the formidable task of learning both a second language and the curriculum content at the same time. As their teacher, I have been to lots of training sessions that provide strategies to help me help those learners.

When it comes to training, teachers can be a pretty tough audience. We expect you to engage us, but please! No cutesy icebreakers or trite introductions. We do appreciate a good empathy activity, though. If you can give us just a sliver of what our kids might be struggling with, you have a captive audience.

And that's where The Mandalorian comes in. (Did you think I'd forgotten?) The show takes place in the Star Wars universe, a place I'm somewhat familiar with, but not a native by any means. Since it was a first episode, I expected to have to pay attention and learn my way; I know how important exposition is, and I was following right along until this bit of dialogue:

"A pauldron would be in order. Is your signet revealed? This is extremely generous. It will spawn many foundlings."

Uhhh

I know 18 out of 19 of the words in those sentences, but I'm not sure if 3 of them (signet, spawn, and foundlings) are being used with a meaning that I am familiar with. As for pauldron? No idea. And I couldn't figure it out from either the language context or the action context.

In short? I was lost.

But I did what most kids do in the same situation. I decided it wasn't that important right then and kept watching.

I just hope it's not on the test!

I Know it Well

On April 1, I'm the loneliest blogger around. All my other slice of lifers have packed up their  white hot keyboards and amazing writing for the year. Sure, there might be a new post here and there, but that month of connection is gone.

Of course, so is the pressure to write something better than just okay. Even so, I'll tough it out for now and continue with my daily writing, because like I told my students (remotely, of course) as they embarked on Day 32 of their 100 Day Writing Challenge: A bad day of writing is better than a day of no writing at all.