TILT-ilation on a Friday morning

I fell asleep again, and failed to TILT. Boo. But I fell asleep with an icky feeling midget snuggled up on my lap, so I think I get a pass.

Anyway, onto the love.

This week, I have SO much to love.

I love my birthday. It's Veteran's Day. I love that on my birthday, we stop and say thank you to those that make the freedoms and comforts we enjoy possible.

I love Ninja. He tries every year to make my birthday special and wonderful, and usually succeeds. It's not about the gifts or the stuff, but that he cares enough to try. Although I love that he bought me a Wii Fit, even though the last thing we needed was another game system. It was a completely unnecessary and frivolous purchase, which is exactly contrary to his nature, but he did it for me. And I love it. :)

I love my boys. They were more excited about my birthday than I was. Hearing them giggle and squirm in anticipation while I fruitlessly tried to sleep in was the best present ever. The hugs and kisses and 'you're beautiful's I got all day long were even better.

I love that Oscar has started singing Moto Moto's song from Madagascar 2 "I like 'em big, I like 'em CHUNKY!" It's hilarious!

I love unexpected visits from my mom. She drove all the way down here to see me on my birthday, and it was awesome.

I love my sister. She was sick but still got out of bed to bring me flowers and donuts at school. She even tortured my students by making them sing happy birthday to me before they could have a donut. She is awesome!

I love that Chaska is going to be a mama. That is one of the luckiest fetuses ever! Grow baby, grow!

I love having people. All day long my FB page and my phone were on fire with people telling me happy birthday and that they loved me. I have people! People who love me and aren't obligated by DNA to say so! It's a relatively new thing for me, to have so many people I call friend. It's a kind of security I have not enjoyed before. Thank you, friends!

I love that my favorite student finally got the glasses she needed. She can see now! And she loves her glasses. I caught her staring at people's faces yesterday as if it was the first time she'd seen them, just analyzing the detail and taking it all in. She was so cute walking into the room wearing them yesterday. She pointed to my glasses and then to hers and gave me a thumbs up. I freakin' love that kid!

I love saying thank you. It makes me feel good to acknowledge what others have done for me.

I love mashed potatoes.

I love mint.

I love the smell of chicken baking in my oven.

I love the sound of my boys playing, even when they're torturing each other.

I love my Ipod and all the delicious music it holds.

I love my phone. It keeps me connected no matter where I go.

And I love the absolutely wrong in the head women who keep me going and crack my shit up every single day. Thank you ladies. You know who you are.

And I also love the Assholympics, bringing a 'hole' new meaning to competition. Watch out for gravel, that shit snags!

What are you loving this week, my lovelies?

Peace out, homies,

L

TILTing a little late

I fell asleep before I could TILT last night, so I'm posting a little late. Sorry!
For anyone new to the world of TILT, it's a weekly posting of things I love. Tee, the fabulous Tee, started it a while back, and many of us have followed suit in sending out a little love and admiration into the Universe.

So here are the things I'm loving this week:

I LOVE THAT THE YANKEES ARE WORLD CHAMPIONS ONCE AGAIN!!!!!! Ahem, I mean, go Yankees! Woot!

I love playing games with the boys. Oscar has learned how to throw a ball, and Vic is learning how to use the computer. Watching them blossom while figuring out the intricacies of games, watching their minds work and their faces light up when they finally figure something out is absolutely and amazingly the best sight ever.

I love that Ninja is feeling better. He was really sick last weekend, and I was worried it would become something more, but he's on the mend and getting back to himself. It's pretty awesome.

I love Dia de los Muertos. The tradition, the ofrendas, the thinking and believing that goes into it. It's beautiful and wonderful and a little heartbreaking, but I love it more every year.

I love that it's pumpkin pie and egg nog season!

I love intelligent conversation, logic, respectful and mature discourse. I love people who know how to have that discourse and walk away still friends even if the conversation is heated.

I love my mother. I often don't understand her. I more often don't know how to talk to her. But I love her nonetheless.

Musically, I love Melody Gardot! I heard her on NPR the other day and can't stop listening to her. I love that she found music while recovering from a traumatic head injury, and then it became her life. She's amazing and so is her voice.
http://www.amazon.com/My-One-And-Only-Thrill/dp/B0027J4SKA/ref=pd_sim_dmusic_1

I love my friends, near and far. Y'all are insane, as Auntie Sugarbush says, not right in the head, but you are loving, amazing, wonderful human beings who enrich my life in more ways that I can list. Thank you.

What are you loving this week, my lovelies?

Peace out, homies,
L

TILTing Baby, One More Time

The fabulous Tee Tee makes us all want to be and feel better! To that end, she started posting lists of things she loves on Thursdays. It's an awesome way to refocus your energy and toss a little love and positivity out into the Universe. So many of us have followed in her footsteps.

Here's what I'm loving this week:

I love that Victor, who is just barely 6, is a voracious reader. As I sit here writing, he's finishing his second chapter book of the afternoon. Awesomeness!

I love that Oscar's favorite phrase right now is "what the BEAST?" He uses it when he doesn't understand or is surprised by something. It's his own little version of WTF? and it cracks me up EVERY time I hear him say it.

I love having grown up furniture in my bedroom! Ninja and I bought a new bedroom set last weekend and FINALLY have furniture as nice as the kids have. :) YAY!

I love having so many friends who are pregnant or with new babies. I love hearing their stories, seeing their pictures, and watching them become mothers to their babies. It's an awesome transition, not always smooth, but awesome nonetheless. Mostly, I love knowing that I can ooh and ahhh and smile and appreciate the cuteness without having to get up and feed it at 2am. :)

I love that I have local friends who love my kids as much as I do and think to include them in little things like lunch at school or trips to the park. That's the kind of stuff kids remember, and it's awesome. Thank you for being awesome!

I love honey crisp apples. They are the bombdiggity, yo. Seriously, manna from heaven. Or a tree. Whatever. Eat them!

I love autumn! The weather is amazing. The smells are so rich and delicious. I just can't get enough of fall.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Halloween! I love seeing the kids dress up, hanging out with my local friends and their kids, seeing kids in the neighborhood meet and greet each other on the street. It's one of the few times during the year that the suburbanites come out of their houses with their kids. It's awesome to see just how many people actually live here!

I love the feeling that comes with finishing something and finishing well. I am surrounded by people who half ass everything they do (at work mostly), and it kills me. I love knowing that whatever I've done has been done to the best of my ability. I'm not perfect. I have my half assed days, but not much compares to finishing well.

I love getting organized. My desk at work was an atrocity until two days ago. Now everything has a place and is in it!

I also love binders and dividers! I couldn't run my classroom without them. Seriously, best organizational tool ever.

I love the smoky thick voice of Mercedes Sosa, a folk-type singer from Argentina :

http://www.amazon.com/Mercedes-Sosa-en-Argentina/dp/B0000015SU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1256862352&sr=8-2

I love, LOVE my students. I had a sub yesterday because I was at the district office for meetings. The sub was apparently a complete asshat, cursing at the kids, lecturing them on their inferiority and the lameness of their home countries, insulting me and my classroom, throwing away or stealing my supplies-a reeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaal doodad. At the end of the third hour several of my kids had had enough and walked out to get another adult to deal with him but not until he started to talk badly about me. I love that they care enough about me and what I do for them to be insulted and upset by what he said. I love that they were willing to get in trouble to defend me. Mostly, I love that they recognized how wrong he was about them, about me, and about what we do every day. They are super awesome kids! (And yes, the doodad will be dealt with.)

I love sarcasm and people who understand it.

I love poke wars with friends I rarely get to see. It makes them seem so close even when they are so far away. :)

And as always, I love the amazing, freakishly intelligent, witty, complex and truly loving and lovely mix of crazy I call my friends. Nothing would be the same without you.

So you, what are you loving today?

Peace out, homies,
L

TILT the 3rd

Again, following in the footsteps of my awesome friend Tee Tee, I'm here to declare my love and adoration for the following people and things:

I love evening walks with the boys in the crisp autumn air. Mostly I love that the Ninja and I have given them a life that allows for evening walks together. It's a luxury many families cannot afford, and I am grateful.

I love snuggling in the frosty mornings with both boys. They still nestle in when I curl up next to them and let me hug on them and sniff their hair, tickle them awake and wish them a good morning. I love that. I will miss it when they are too big for snuggles and tickling in the morning.

I love that Victor has discovered Tai Pei and Shanghai, puzzle games on the computer. Watching him try to work through the tiles, focused and so serious, makes me giggle and delights me to no end. He's becoming a man so quickly.

I love that Oscar, so independent and feisty and ornery, tells me I'm beautiful at random times and for no particular reason, but when I most need to hear it.

I love healthy babies and happy mamas. "The Best Doctor Ever" had her little boy earlier this week, and it makes me giddy with glee to know that she's a mama now. Luckiest little boy ever, right there. :)

I love that my favorite student got to go on a field trip to a pumpkin patch today. She had never been on a school bus, seen a pumpkin up close, or seen hay before. And she got to drink fresh apple cider, pick a pumpkin off the vine, and go on a tractor ride. She was so excited this morning when I saw her waiting for the bus. It made my eyes tear up. Still does. I can't wait to hear how her day went when I see her tomorrow.

I love that I work with people who care enough to include her in their activities, even though they have no reason to feel obligated. They are just that awesome and caring and compassionate. Truly remarkable human beings.

I love seeing my former students doing well for themselves. Pham, shut it. 3.7 at Berkeley is amazing. And if you want a 4.0, stop going to brownie parties and crack those books! ;0)

I love the smells of autumn. Spicy and warm, a little smoky, but oh so comforting.

I love scarves.

I love the interwebs and all of the wonderment they bring to my life, not the least of which is:

http://projectrungay.blogspot.com/2009/10/tim-gunn-is-tired-of-your-bullshit.html

I love cooking. Food is love, y'all. I love making dinner for the family and hearing them say they love it too. I don't love the dishes or cleaning up after cooking, but that's for another list. ;0)

I love those whores I call friends. Still. Always.

I love being tagged in TILTs. It makes me smile and warms my heart to know that my peeps love me as much as I love them. But it still always surprises and humbles me that they think to include me in their lists of beloved things and people. You honor me, bitches. Truly.

What are you loving today?

Peace out, homies,
L

TILTing 2.0

It's Thursday again! Yay! Time for some unsolicited and unconventional love!

Things I'm loving:

*Watching Victor ride his bike. He just learned to ride without training wheels. He's so confident and proud as he zips around on two wheels. I can see the silhouette of the man he is becoming and it makes me so happy to know that that man will be a good one.

*Listening to Oscar talk. His language grows by leaps and bounds every single day. At two he can articulate his wants, needs, likes, and dislikes, better than some adults. His perspective is so funny sometimes. I absolutely adore listening to him and his stories.

*That my husband will come home from work early to take care of the boys so I can go sit in a meeting and support my friends who are potentially losing their jobs. That he recognizes how important they are and how important my being there for them is, makes him awesome.

*That my sons like each other. You can hear their laughter pealing off the walls wherever they go. It is one of the most beautiful sounds in the world and it makes my heart happy.

*Blustery weather. We had thunderstorms the likes of which I'd never seen earlier this week. It was awesome and frightening and so damn cool. It was as close to a typhoon as I've ever been, and about as close as I'd ever like to be. :)

*My principal. I've worked in a lot of places and for a lot of people. But I've never worked for a person anything like Eick. He is an awesome and amazing human being, and he's damn good at his job. He makes you want to do yours better just by being around. He's taking a beating, we are all taking a beating, over the current budget crisis and impending cuts. That part sucks, but what I love is that even in the face of so much sad and angry, he's an upbeat and positive guy making everyone around him feel the same way. It's an honor, a privilege, and a sincere pleasure that I get to go to work with him every day. (And he's not on my page so it's not like he'll read this-no sucking up. All truth!)

*That my favorite student can now tell me good morning, goodbye, ask how I'm doing and tell how she's feeling each day. I love that she is gaining language every day, and that she's comfortable enough now to give me high fives and small hugs. I love that she looks for my signal to tell her she's gotten something right, and that I can see when she doesn't understand just by looking at her. I love that she WANTS to learn and WANTS to do what everyone else is doing and is willing to try even if she doesn't have the right answer. And I love that she draws and colors me pictures every day and says thank you when she pins them to my wall.

*I still love that I get to do this every day.

*Hebrew. Awesomeness.

*Change. Sometimes things get stale and stinky. Sometimes they get old and boring. Change is good. Change is necessary. Change keeps things alive and interesting.

*Bean soup.

*Helping the people I love understand each other. It doesn't always work, but I try anyway just in case.

* Being crafty. I suck at crafts, but it's fun to get my hands sticky and colorful in the name of pointless crafty fun.

*NPR and PRI.

*My peeps. All of 'em. You keep my heart happy and my feet on the ground. I will never be able to thank you enough for the rich and varied ways you make me better.

Peace out, homies.

L

Fasting

This year, I decided to fast in observance of Yom Kippur. I've attempted it in the past, but have never made it through the entire 25 hour period of fasting. It was a fascinating experience. I don't enjoy being hungry. It wasn't a particularly pleasant experience. But it gave me a sense of clarity and appreciation I've not experienced before. I take a lot for granted. I indulge too much in a variety of vices and luxuries that don't exist for many. Every pang of hunger, rumble of the tummy, and wave of dizziness reminded me how fortunate I am that this is not my every day existence. It brought into sharp relief the abundance of good fortune in my life and made me think about how often I take that for granted. It caused me to consider how desperately I need to make some changes, how irresponsible I've been in some regards, and reminded me how much I have to lose if I don't.
It was a quiet day of contemplation and consideration that I don't think I'd have had otherwise.

TILTing For The Very First Time

TILT stands for Things I Love Thursday.

My awesome friend Tee Tee started a tradition. Every Thursday she posts a list of things she loves. I'm a fan of public declarations of love and a huge fan of hers, so I've finally decided to hop on board and post a list of my own.

I love:

my kids. der. :) They are wicked tough to deal with somedays but they make my life exciting and colorful in ways I'd never imagined possible. They also remind me how awesome it is just to be alive on a daily basis.

my husband. He's a class act. He's not perfect, but neither am I. He tolerates my shit and still respects me in the morning. I call that a win.

my job. That I have one in this ecnomy is enough to love, but that I GET to go to work every day and do what I love is amazing.

my students. They don't realize how much more they teach me every day. Their stories are inspiring and heartbreaking and some days the progress they make takes my breath away.

that I have the luxury of fasting. I fasted in observance of Yom Kippur this year. While I fasted I thought a lot about why I was doing it and what it meant. I realized that for some people, that gnawing, aching hunger I felt in the middle of the day is an every day reality. For me it was a choice, a self imposed restriction, a luxury. It made me extremely grateful for the abundance of comforts I am privileged to enjoy.

my friends. No matter what, my friends know who I am and where I stand. They don't all know each other. They don't all love each other. But they all know and love me, and for that I am eternally in their debt.

the freak show that is my school's neighborhood. It never fails to provide me with the entertainment I need. Today I saw a nearly naked woman in a car full of filthy children shaving her face and neck with a bic razor parked out front. I am stiiiiiiill laughing!

the delete button and knowing when to stop myself. Some things should stay inside my head. I love that I have the self control to keep them there.

Cakeob (my friend Jakob) and his crazy music/lyrical status updates that bring me new and awesome music to experience.

days like yesterday that are the perfect mix of instruction and advocacy. They let me know I'm in the right place, doing the right things, and making a difference on this big round rock.

I'll stop. I could go on for days because things are just that awesome. :o)

Peace out homies,

L