Filed under: Odds and Ends
Questions via Willowtree
01. What does your headline mean? My Way of looking at and thinking about the world around me.
02. Elaborate on your default photo: A picture of my Grandma T. holding baby Songbird.
03. What’s your middle name[s]?: Tamar. It’s a biblical name.
04. What is your current relationship status?: Happily divorced.
05. What are you wearing right now?: Black sweat pants and a green sweatshirt.
06. What is your current problem?: Hmmmm…..getting off the computer and going to bed at a decent hour.
07. Who do you love most?: My mom. And all my human family, animal family and friends.
08. Who makes you most happy?: I am solely responsible for my own happiness. People and events affect my happiness, but I alone control my feelings whether they are positive or negative.
09. Are you musically talented?: Yes. I have a God given talent for singing. I began private piano and voice lessons in third grade. I am certified to teach both vocal and instrumental music as well as elementary music.
10. If you could go back in time and change one thing, what would you change?: I wouldn’t have gotten married that second time!
11. If you MUST be an animal for ONE day, what would it be?: An Arabian stallion. Just like the Black Stallion in the movie.
12. Ever have a near death experience?: No.
13. Can you dance?: Well, I call it dancing though some folks might not agree.
14. What’s the name of the song that’s stuck in your head right now? True by Ryan Cabrera. One of my students was playing it on his guitar earlier today and I began singing along. A couple more of my students exclaimed, “Wow! Ms. T, you should be on American Idol!” So I’m practicing for my debut.
15. Who did you cut and paste this from?: Willowtree
16. Name someone with the same b-day as you. Peter Jennings and Booth Tarkington.
17. Have you ever destroyed someone’s property?: Yes. I was really mad at that second husband!
18. Have you ever been in a fight?: Yes. I am embarrassed to say that I got in a fight with a girl in high school over some dumb guy.
19. Have you ever sang in front of a big audience?: Yes. Lots!!
20. What ATTRACTS YOU TO THE OPPOSITE sex?: Hormones.
21. What do you usually order from Starbucks?: Nada. I don’t drink coffee.
22. Do you have a crush on one of your myspace friends?: Ok, this question makes me feel like I am in junior high!
23. Ever had a drunken night in Mexico?: No.
24. Has anyone ever said you looked like a celebrity?: Well, a student once told me that I looked like Wonder Woman. I wish!!
25. Do you still watch kiddy movies or TV shows?: Movies.
26. Did you have braces?: Yes, from age 14 to 16.
27. Are you comfortable with your height? Yes, I’m comfortable with 5′ 4″, but I’d rather be 5′10″ .
28. Do you consider yourself adventurous?: Intellectually adventurous, but not so much daredevil physical adventure.
29. Do you speak any other languages?: No, but I can sing in many different languages.
30. Whats your favorite smell?: The smell of the woods, fresh cut grass, apples, cinnamon…the list could be much longer.
Filed under: School Buzz
A Room With A View
I begin the school day at the high school building. The choir/drama room is at one end of the building and has no windows. The walls are covered with a carpet-like material that is supposed to absorb sound. I leave this building at 9:00AM and drive across town to the middle school. The choir/band room is at one end of the building and has no windows. The walls are covered with a carpet-like material that is supposed to absorb sound. Yes, I sometimes feel as though I am in a padded cell with 50 to 70 students! I leave the middle school around 10:00AM and drive back across town to the elementary school. The music room is in the far corner of the building. There is only one “padded” wall because I only share one wall with an adjoining classroom. Most important to my sanity, there is a window. Aaaaahhhhhhhh………
This is the view from my elementary classroom. I have actually seen deer grazing in the shade of the pines and bunnies and squirrels are common sights. The cares and frustrations of the day melt away when I take a moment to gaze at my view. Maybe I should enlarge this picture to poster size and hot glue it to the padded walls of my other rooms.
Halcyon
Have you ever been enthralled with a word? For some reason, I find myself captivated by the word halcyon. I had often read about “the halcyon days of summer” and “the halcyon years”. I guessed that halcyon meant “golden” or something akin to “the good old days”. Finally, I looked the word up.
Halcyon: 1. A fabled bird, identified with the kingfisher, that was supposed to have had the power to calm the wind and the waves during the winter solstice while it nested on the sea. 2. Poetic. A kingfisher. —adj. 1. Calm and peaceful; tranquil. 2. Prosperous; golden.
Halcyon days: 1. Days of fine weather occurring near the winter solstice, especially the seven days before and the seven days after, attributed by legend to the magical powers of the halcyon. 2. A period of peace and tranquility.
I walk pretty much every day down the country road I live on. My wanderings take me by a large pond and across a river. I see these incredible birds quite frequently. Often, I hear their raucous call before actually seeing them. I’ve watched them dive head first into the water and emerge with a fish in their beak.
I’ve seen a pair of kingfishers sitting on a tree limb overhanging the river. I’ve seen four kingfishers engaging in what appeared to be a game of aerial chase. Upon researching the bird, I discovered that the pairs are very territorial so what I actually witnessed was probably one pair chasing another pair out of their territory. I’ve always liked the fact that the kingfisher is one of the few bird species in which the female is generally more brightly colored than the male. I like kingfishers. I have a little resin female kingfisher sitting on a shelf near my computer.
And the point of all this…..well, it seems fitting that a word I am captivated with is related to a bird I am equally captivated by. And, in reference to Julie’s Quote of the Day, I have added another pebble to my little island of knowledge in the great sea of life.
