Outside Job

"I'd bump that guy off if I thought I could get his job."

So said I on a field trip to our local nature center, as the students dined on the flagstone patio of the main building in the warm sunshine of this cloudless day, spotting deer and all sorts of other wild life, after our tour of the park where the director not only gets to live on the property with access to all the historical nature trails, but his house, which is right next door to a huge vegetable garden and the resident falcon and owl enclosure, is also outfitted with a solar water heater and attic fan.

To her credit, my colleague looked shocked, but I knew she was wondering if there was any way...

Weird Weather

"Ooooh! It looks like snow!" So exclaimed our 10-year-old neighbor today as she spun around, arms out, surrounded by cherry petals swirling in the wind.

Besides the unusual Halloween dusting we got, that is pretty much all the snow we'll see this season, although there is a hard frost predicted for tonight.

Watch This!

We have been watching the new-ish TV show Awake lately. Starring Jason Isaacs (most famous to us as Lucius Malfoy, but very debonair despite that villainous past), the premise is that he is a man caught between two realities. After being involved in a tragic car accident, each time Michael Britten awakes he is in one life where his son survived or another where his wife did. In both lives he is dealing with tremendous loss, as is the other surviving member of his family. Some details cross over; some do not. He is also in therapy in each reality, and the two counselors offer very different insights on how he should cope with his dilemma.

The show is thought-provoking, and so far the writing and plotting have been more than enough to capture both our curiosity and our imaginations. Isaacs does a good job portraying not only the intense emotions of such an impossible situation, but also the logistics of a man juggling two lives.

Seriously? If you've ever looked at one of your Words With Friends game boards and letters and wondered where the heck they came from, then this might be the show for you.

Target Audience

It often happens that I hear a movie or other such media project dismissed as being aimed a little too directly at adolescents. It seems that if something is too accessible to kids, then it must be flawed in some way.

Hm. Maybe the amount of time I spend with people under the age of 13 has distorted my perspective. Or, maybe? Those critics need a little more tween time.

Either way, I thought The Hunger Games movie was super!

The View From Twelve

Here in my corner of the world, it's been a week dominated by ZAP (read my post from last year for a primer on that particular topic), mice in our team area, and The Hunger Games movie. Having my sixth grade students participate in their own Slice of Life Story Challenge adds perspective to it all. Here are a few excerpts of their thoughts:

ZAP

I had no idea what that stupid game Zap was, until today. Basically its purpose is too humiliate boys like me.

OK so yesterday the counselor came in and talked about zapping. And personally, I don't see the problem. It's just a game, and they take it so seriously. I mean everyone says no anyway. They just had to overreact for everything!

It's just a joke, and nobody forced you to do it, so I kind of just ignored the counselor. But then, at lunch, my friends and I were discussing it, and I learned that one of them was told by the person that she asked out that she was ugly and he'd never date her, and that really hurt her. So, I erased everything off my hands.

Our Little "Problem"

Today in homeroom we found out that there were mice in the room!!!!!!!! We all had are feet up and we always were scared. We scared K. like 4 times and she was screaming! It was soooo funny. We couldn't stop laughing! 

THG

I love the Hunger Games, I love it so much that I can't even describe my love in words. For people who haven't read this book or don't read very often this book has more adrenaline then hang-gliding.  Trust me, I know.

HAPPY HUNGER GAMES! AND MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN YOUR FAVOR!  LOL HUNGER GAMES JOKE! I'M SUCH A GEEK!

I'm hungry for the Hunger Games. :)

I'm pretty excited about the movie, except for the obvious concerns. I mean, what if they butcher up the movie so bad, that it doesn't resemble anything close to the original story? I mean Hunger Games is so good, that I kind of doubt Hollywood can produce any thing that is as good as the book.

Friends AND Family

My sister-in-law teaches art at the same school where I work. We have the same last name, so there is inevitably some confusion from time to time. Aside from getting the wrong mail in our boxes, and the odd phone call mis-transferred from time to time, the students are always curious about our relationship, and they don't hesitate to ask questions.

Today was a typical example.

Kid: Is she your sister?
Me: No, she's my sister-in-law.
Kid: What does that even mean?
Me: She's married to my brother.
Kid: So she's in your family?
Me: Yes.
Kid: Are you friends?
Me: We sure are.

We sure are.

Deal Breakers

I know people who refuse to eat tomatoes out of season. When it comes to the hard, greenish-orange variety that used to be a staple of the winter produce department, I'm totally with them, but these days you can get decent tomatoes all year long. One of my favorite things to do in the winter is to roast grape tomatoes to intensify their flavor and then toss them in salad or sauce. Of course, vine-ripened is the gold standard, but I don't see any reason for deprivation the nine months those aren't available.

In general, I try to have a pragmatic attitude toward food and cooking. Despite considering myself kind of a foodie, I try not to be unreasonable when it comes to what I will or won't eat, mostly because like most people, I am constrained by time and money.

I tell you all this to shed a little perspective on my latest culinary line in the sand. Ever since I made my own tortillas a couple of months ago, I have rejected the store-bought variety. Yes. The difference in quality is THAT enormous. Tender, flavorful, flaky, they put the ones that come in a plastic bag to shame.

So take this as a cautionary tale, friends. DO NOT spend the extra time on mixing and rolling your own flour tortillas (even though it really doesn't take that long), because if you do, you may never turn back, either.

Recipe:

12 oz bread flour (or 9 oz bread flour and 3 oz whole wheat or spelt flour)
1/2 tsp salt
3 oz shortening
3/4 c warm water

Mix flour and salt together. Cut in shortening. Add water and stir until a soft dough forms. Divide into 8 equal balls, flatten, and let rest for 30 minutes. Heat a cast iron skillet on the stove, or a pizza stone in a 500 degree oven. Roll each disc as flat as possible (about 8 inches) and cook for 1 minute on each side.