The Sun Was Shining....And I was Inside

But I was inside attending (interesting) workshops.  I was tired to the point of moroseness in spite of the extra coffee and the fact that I LOVE digital storytelling.  I worked with two other teachers on the story of "Aloha the Mongoose" who goes to the mainland for college - we were going to get into how he gets mistaken for chipmunk, but since he takes where he's from with him where he goes, he is still a mongoose, but it was beyond our time limit.  The assignment was to make a story out of random objects picked out of a sack.  We picked an odd collection of objects - an Alvin the Chipmunk figure, some kind of 3-d puzzle game, and a Phillies cap - so Aloha the Mongoose gets to go to Phillies University for small furry animals.  I felt like the other two teachers were in high speed, while I wallowed through molasses.  I gave a few ideas and then let them run out and take pictures of kalo and stuff. 

It was fun, though.  And they bought Bento for lunch (yum, even though I didn't eat the rice).  My Maui meeting was really good - and I resisted the Krispie Kreme doughnuts even when we stopped to buy.  (I was proud of myself).

My "hat" this week, and into the weekend, was the teacher hat - and it was firmly in place.  I hope that I can put on my garden and horse hat, for at least tomorrow.  There are only four more weeks until the end of the school year - four more weeks until my son graduates.  The kids are getting spring-y with the excitement of it all, and the teachers are getting mildly snarky (me included) - it's definitely the long slide into Final Exams. 

Although the adult interactions (meetings, workshops) were the most interesting this week, the funniest moment was a kid-moment.  I have a dramatic young lady in one of my classes.  She came into class with the most comical look of accusation on her face.  "You," she said, "I know it was YOU who wrote that test for Mrs. V.  It was, wasn't it?"  I admitted that it was indeed me that wrote the test.  She said,  "Everyone was groaning at it - but I just know your tests."  She looked thoughtful, "It wasn't that bad - because I know how you think now! But everyone else was having a hard time."  It gave me a little chuckle that they could tell it was me - it shows me that they are thinking about their reading - even if the reading is a test. 

But as far as my "farmer hat":  it would be just my luck if the skies cloud over tomorrow.  I came home in the afternoon today and my 12 year old said, "It was sunny!  We could have ridden!  You weren't here!"  - you know how, occasionally, 12 years talk in exclamation points?  I yawned at her, "Yup,  it was sunny and I wasn't here - you should have come to my workshops and made movies with me."  (She likes doing that kind of stuff - I have taken her before.)   Then, I went upstairs and took a nap.