I picked up the Cecilia & Kate novels by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer as a lark. There was a little Latin and Greek woven into the first one--but the second one has lots of nods to Classics! During most of the day things are too busy to do any leisure reading, but at the end of the day I've been reading them until I'm too tired to keep my eyes open, and then I squeeze in a few pages while drinking my morning coffee. It's nice to feel how the writers of these co-authored books must have been having fun.
I also like reading them because they remind me of a dear former student who loves Wrede's dragon series.
1/30: first results
This evening I read the first submissions of a new kind of writing assignment I'm trying with one of my classes this semester, and I am pleased with the results!
1/29: Nausicaa and Elizabeth
I love teaching book 6 of the Odyssey, and it was part of the reading assignment due today. I think (and hope!) some of the students enjoyed seeing how savvy Homer's Nausicaa is.
Then I finished listening to Kiersten White's Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein on my drive home this evening, another presentation of a young woman and compelling in its own way.
Then I finished listening to Kiersten White's Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein on my drive home this evening, another presentation of a young woman and compelling in its own way.
1/28: helping verbs
On their homework my beginning Latin students did a really good job of navigating all the helping verbs necessary in English to translate all the different tense/voice combinations they know.
1/27: tinkering
...with a flyer I designed last night. This morning I realized how I could re-arrange the words for a little better balance and focus.
1/26: deciding
...mid-morning to go flying in the afternoon with Chris. We've had a lot of rain lately, and the water in the fields reflected the blue of the sky.
1/25: pelicans
The white pelicans that migrate through each winter joined the other birds on the lake this morning. They don't stay long, and I'm always happy when I see them.
1/24: four kinds
...of birds spotted on my way to school this morning: cedar waxwings, a great blue heron, cormorants on the lake, and a quick blur of cardinal.
1/23: resisting
...the temptations of chips mid-afternoon and of a beer (or gin and tonic) at dinner. I love those creature comforts, but I'm better off when I limit them.
1/21: being grateful
...for a holiday today, giving us the chance to mix housework, schoolwork, and a little leisure. (Plus a morning of no alarm clock.)
1/19: 2 inside, 1 outside
Inside 1: Seeing the flowering Japanese quince which Chris bought for us last year, and which he brought inside to protect during this cold snap.
Outside 1: Walking on the ridge as rain turned to snow.
Inside 2: Making chocolate sugar cookies with our little pig cookie-cutter.
Outside 1: Walking on the ridge as rain turned to snow.
Inside 2: Making chocolate sugar cookies with our little pig cookie-cutter.
1/18: hearing
...about a student's winter-break experience with Greek manuscripts at the British Library.
1/17: chatting
...with Chris and our neighbors for awhile this evening. They were gathered in our neighbors' yard around a fire when I came back from the grocery store. I couldn't stay longer than 20 minutes (class prep to do), but it was fun to take an unexpected break with them.
1/16: looking closely
...at the opening paragraph of the first Harry Potter novel today with students, and enjoying hearing their comments on the words and how they work.
1/14: early morning reading
I woke up around 4 a.m. and couldn't go back to sleep. I'm feeling the effects of that this evening---so tired. But this morning it was fun to read in bed until I had to get up.
1/13: progress
...on clearing my home office. It feels like a constant struggle, and I've written about it an embarrassing number of times here over the years. But I'm finally beginning to realize what kind of shelving and storage might really help me to make lasting (and maintainable) sense of it all.
1/12: looking back
...on the past month (almost) of break. It included 18 books read, 63 miles walked, many good meals eaten, and lots of hours spent with Chris and the cats.
1/11: getting my hands dirty
...by making some little clay things with Chris. They'll dry over the next 10 days and then we'll fire them outside.
1/10: good news
A friend got good health news today, and I enjoyed celebrating with her at a distance by talking with her on the phone during a long afternoon walk.
1/9: nearly done
...with my pre-semester reading. I had more than 1500 pages to get through, and I'm in the home stretch of the last 200.
1/8: cr-
I woke up this morning and was immediately relieved that my dream of having a crocodile as an unruly pet was just a dream.
The earliest crocuses are blooming! Lavendar petals with bright yellow-orange stamens.
Chris and I went to Cove Creek in the afternoon to take a new-to-us hike. Here's a picture of the bluffs on the opposite side reflected on the Cadron:
The earliest crocuses are blooming! Lavendar petals with bright yellow-orange stamens.
Chris and I went to Cove Creek in the afternoon to take a new-to-us hike. Here's a picture of the bluffs on the opposite side reflected on the Cadron:
1/7: making
...dinner with lentils which Chris brought back from Ustica, a gift from one of his relatives.
1/6: using
...the sweet pig cookie-cutter that Chris bought me. I decided on a whim to top off the Epiphany jam tart with little pigs rather than the traditional star or lattice-work. (I know pigs don't have anything to do with Epiphany, but it was fun nonetheless.)
1/4: all ways
Reading about writing, writing about reading, reading about reading, and writing about writing.
1/2: designing
...this year's valentine. I know it's a little nutty to be thinking about Valentine's Day already, but once classes start I won't have a lot of noodling-around time, so when the idea came to me I decided to try it out. Once the design is set, making them gradually will be a nice break in the evenings from school work.
And an ancillary good thing: the design uses only materials that I already have on hand--hurray for not having to buy more stuff!
And an ancillary good thing: the design uses only materials that I already have on hand--hurray for not having to buy more stuff!
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