There is actually blue sky and sun out that window! The sun feels like an old friend whom I haven't seen for quite a long time. Of course, it's only Thursday; I am sure the sun will go back behind a blanket of thick gray rain clouds by Saturday.
That's okay, because my youngest has the 3 hour band practice thing on Saturday and it gets awful hot sitting in the car waiting for her after I am done with my errands. With Spring Break right around the corner, I don't feel as worried about getting the garden done THIS weekend - I anticipate being able to work on it next week.
I am walking around with a Holter monitor for the next couple of days because about a month ago my heart was skipping beats. It's a little embarrassing, because I am not having the problem anymore and it is also a little uncomfortable because one of the leads is rubbing a bit. I am a bit impatient with the whole thing, I must admit. It makes me feel feeble.
Audrey is still quite rotund and nearly rolling rather than walking. It makes me so glad I am not pregnant. I just feel for her. What I don't get is when I go out at about 8 - 8:30 to check on her and everyone is lying down and there she is - standing, rocking from foot to foot to relieve what must be her aching hooves (teaching while pregnant means a lot of standing - I empathize with Audrey). I wonder why she is not reclining and taking a load off?
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Waiting for Spring Break
I must need Spring Break. I am dreaming of work - I wake up and astonished that I didn't teach the class already. Well, last night's dream was a nightmare - I wasn't astonished this morning, I was relieved.
It's been so rainy for the last couple of weeks, I almost forget what blue sky looks like. It is often like this in February-March, so I am not surprised. I think the nutrients are washing out of the topsoil; we've had to supplement the sheep a bit more with bought food. The grazing gets like water, I think, when it rains this much.
The orphan sheep are doing surprisingly well, growing and holding their own. Audrey, Minnie's mom, is due soon. I was thinking another 2-3 weeks, but she is just HUGE. I was palpating her abdomen yesterday and I could feel what felt like quite a large hoof sliding by - I hope I am off on my dates and she delivers sooner, rather than later. She is certainly bagging up, but she's had so many deliveries, that isn't as reliable. It looks like my young ewe, Niele, has also caught, since it would be about the time someone would be chasing her around. I keep my ram with my flock during the day, and these hair sheep have three births in two years, so sometimes it is not easy to know exact dates. I keep an eye on behavior to get a clue on who's caught and count from there. Thankfully, they do have fairly easy births. The only one who had a uterine torsion and needed a C-section was a different breed.
Audrey is an awesome mom, so I am hoping for a good easy birth and that she will do her usual excellent job at caring for the babies. I am fairly sure there are two, because her girth is quite expansive. I hope everything goes as well as I expect, because the worry over Buddy and then the loss of Minnie was fairly stressful.
I am kind of blathering on here, so I guess I will stop.
It's been so rainy for the last couple of weeks, I almost forget what blue sky looks like. It is often like this in February-March, so I am not surprised. I think the nutrients are washing out of the topsoil; we've had to supplement the sheep a bit more with bought food. The grazing gets like water, I think, when it rains this much.
The orphan sheep are doing surprisingly well, growing and holding their own. Audrey, Minnie's mom, is due soon. I was thinking another 2-3 weeks, but she is just HUGE. I was palpating her abdomen yesterday and I could feel what felt like quite a large hoof sliding by - I hope I am off on my dates and she delivers sooner, rather than later. She is certainly bagging up, but she's had so many deliveries, that isn't as reliable. It looks like my young ewe, Niele, has also caught, since it would be about the time someone would be chasing her around. I keep my ram with my flock during the day, and these hair sheep have three births in two years, so sometimes it is not easy to know exact dates. I keep an eye on behavior to get a clue on who's caught and count from there. Thankfully, they do have fairly easy births. The only one who had a uterine torsion and needed a C-section was a different breed.
Audrey is an awesome mom, so I am hoping for a good easy birth and that she will do her usual excellent job at caring for the babies. I am fairly sure there are two, because her girth is quite expansive. I hope everything goes as well as I expect, because the worry over Buddy and then the loss of Minnie was fairly stressful.
I am kind of blathering on here, so I guess I will stop.
Monday, February 27, 2012
The Weekend Was a Doozy
Saturday was pretty much all kids activities. My younger daughter volunteered to work on the Makali'i, a Hawaiian voyaging canoe - she had to be at school at 7 am and was meant to be back at 9 pm, but the real arrival was closer to 10 pm.
I was very tired because my son had both a track meet and a wrestling meet. Fortunately, they were both at the same place, so he was able to do his high jump, run over to wrestling and wrestle three rounds, then run back and do his 400 m run, and his 4 x200 m relay. This is after he was gone all week working hard on various fish ponds and lo'i on Moloka'i with his class. (He lost his expensive shoes and his expensive jacket along the way...). I have no right to say I am tired - if anyone should be tired, it should be him. But I am - track meets wear me out. It was his 7th and final season in Age Group Track, which is amazing, actually. If I were crafty and motivated, I could do some kind of display with his medals and what not - but I am not, so there you go. I will have to go with the memories. Some of the kids I coached when they were in 4th grade will be coming up to high school next year - it's just crazy how time flies.
Running the 4 x 200 m relay in (school) record time was a pretty good way for the boys to end their Age Group career. It's the laaaaassst race of a very long day, so most coaches pack it in before then - there were two teams running - a girl team and a boy team - so they were running against the clock rather than another team.
Depending on my daughter, I may have an 8th season next year, but who knows - this year she had to make some choices between track, honor band, and the Makali'i. She ended up doing a little bit of all of them.
On Sunday, I decided to make stuffed rolls. I cooked up several pounds of chicken thighs in the crock pot with carrots, cooked a kabocha pumpkin and several Okinawan sweet potatoes and started a double batch of whole wheat dough. I divided the chicken mixture in two and seasoned some with curry and the rest with teriyaki sauce. I froze a bit of the kabocha pumpkin and used the rest for the stuffed rolls. I flattened disks of dough and placed the fillings in the middle and sealed them up. So I could tell which was which I shaped them differently - the pumpkin ones were made into crescents, the purple sweet potato version was a ball. The chicken version was also formed into a ball, but I sprinkled it with paprika so I could tell which was which. I guess they were a little like manapua, but whole wheat and baked. It took pretty much all day and for some reason I had a grand-daddy of a headache.
It was worth it, though - I had two for lunch and they were delicious.
I was very tired because my son had both a track meet and a wrestling meet. Fortunately, they were both at the same place, so he was able to do his high jump, run over to wrestling and wrestle three rounds, then run back and do his 400 m run, and his 4 x200 m relay. This is after he was gone all week working hard on various fish ponds and lo'i on Moloka'i with his class. (He lost his expensive shoes and his expensive jacket along the way...). I have no right to say I am tired - if anyone should be tired, it should be him. But I am - track meets wear me out. It was his 7th and final season in Age Group Track, which is amazing, actually. If I were crafty and motivated, I could do some kind of display with his medals and what not - but I am not, so there you go. I will have to go with the memories. Some of the kids I coached when they were in 4th grade will be coming up to high school next year - it's just crazy how time flies.
Running the 4 x 200 m relay in (school) record time was a pretty good way for the boys to end their Age Group career. It's the laaaaassst race of a very long day, so most coaches pack it in before then - there were two teams running - a girl team and a boy team - so they were running against the clock rather than another team.
Depending on my daughter, I may have an 8th season next year, but who knows - this year she had to make some choices between track, honor band, and the Makali'i. She ended up doing a little bit of all of them.
On Sunday, I decided to make stuffed rolls. I cooked up several pounds of chicken thighs in the crock pot with carrots, cooked a kabocha pumpkin and several Okinawan sweet potatoes and started a double batch of whole wheat dough. I divided the chicken mixture in two and seasoned some with curry and the rest with teriyaki sauce. I froze a bit of the kabocha pumpkin and used the rest for the stuffed rolls. I flattened disks of dough and placed the fillings in the middle and sealed them up. So I could tell which was which I shaped them differently - the pumpkin ones were made into crescents, the purple sweet potato version was a ball. The chicken version was also formed into a ball, but I sprinkled it with paprika so I could tell which was which. I guess they were a little like manapua, but whole wheat and baked. It took pretty much all day and for some reason I had a grand-daddy of a headache.
It was worth it, though - I had two for lunch and they were delicious.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Remember You Are Dust....
It's Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Lenten Season.
Lent made a lot of sense in northern climates which lived (and ate) by a agricultural calendar. By the middle of February-beginning of March, people probably started to run out of things that they'd put up at the end of summer and the beginning of fall. It was a good time to use the natural rhythms of the year, to fast and make positive changes in your life with reflection.
When I was growing up, fasting meant "giving up something for Lent." As a kid, that often meant giving up candy or your favorite TV show. I never had the guts to give up reading novels, like one of my nieces did one year... As an adult, I am more likely to try to do something positive rather than giving up something. I suppose I am giving up time.
Lenten Promises are a bit like New Year's Resolutions, because you are gearing up for Easter, a different kind of New.
I find that Lent kind of sneaked up on me this year - I haven't given much thought to either what I could give up or what I could do that would be beneficial to my community or myself this year. In a lot of ways, I feel like I have been living in Lent for the last seven months, since my husband separated from his job (except that he's home and lots of things are easier - like feeding the animals and getting kids to appointments that happen during work). There aren't any new books, or clothes, or anything like that. I even have to think twice about that second gallon of milk for the week.
It's really okay, though. Only one kid kind of whines about it every so often, but mostly because he lived on cereal before I stopped buying it. Otherwise, I point out (and they agree), you have clothes, you have a house, you are not starving (I make lots of muffins and waffles and yummy snacks), you have been able to save up and buy the extra things you want by your own work - you are not lacking.
It does make it hard to "give up" or "add" something for Lent though. I work at work, then I come home and work at home, I say my prayers at night, and sleep, dreaming of more work and wake up feeling like I put in a full day.
I am just going to have to get more creative with this Lent stuff. Maybe making an extra effort to finish that rosary instead of falling asleep in the middle :). Or maybe I can say a rosary in the car on the drive home, instead of thinking about what I should cook for dinner. Or maybe I can go out of my way to be nice to that person who makes me feel so uncomfortable at work. Hmm....that last one is particularly uncomfortable - I prefer to avoid her as much as possible. I guess I found my Lent thing. Arrgggh.
I have to admit, I am really not fond of Lent. The minute Ash Wednesday rolls around, I start feeling somber, and it deepens as the six weeks go on - but I tell you, Easter is always glorious! (I do take a small break for my birthday, which is ALWAYS smack dab in the middle of purple, somber Lent).
Looking forward to Easter, already. Easter and spring - new life in all kinds of ways. New seeds, new garden beds, newly fresh growing things, new chicks, new lambs.....
Lent made a lot of sense in northern climates which lived (and ate) by a agricultural calendar. By the middle of February-beginning of March, people probably started to run out of things that they'd put up at the end of summer and the beginning of fall. It was a good time to use the natural rhythms of the year, to fast and make positive changes in your life with reflection.
When I was growing up, fasting meant "giving up something for Lent." As a kid, that often meant giving up candy or your favorite TV show. I never had the guts to give up reading novels, like one of my nieces did one year... As an adult, I am more likely to try to do something positive rather than giving up something. I suppose I am giving up time.
Lenten Promises are a bit like New Year's Resolutions, because you are gearing up for Easter, a different kind of New.
I find that Lent kind of sneaked up on me this year - I haven't given much thought to either what I could give up or what I could do that would be beneficial to my community or myself this year. In a lot of ways, I feel like I have been living in Lent for the last seven months, since my husband separated from his job (except that he's home and lots of things are easier - like feeding the animals and getting kids to appointments that happen during work). There aren't any new books, or clothes, or anything like that. I even have to think twice about that second gallon of milk for the week.
It's really okay, though. Only one kid kind of whines about it every so often, but mostly because he lived on cereal before I stopped buying it. Otherwise, I point out (and they agree), you have clothes, you have a house, you are not starving (I make lots of muffins and waffles and yummy snacks), you have been able to save up and buy the extra things you want by your own work - you are not lacking.
It does make it hard to "give up" or "add" something for Lent though. I work at work, then I come home and work at home, I say my prayers at night, and sleep, dreaming of more work and wake up feeling like I put in a full day.
I am just going to have to get more creative with this Lent stuff. Maybe making an extra effort to finish that rosary instead of falling asleep in the middle :). Or maybe I can say a rosary in the car on the drive home, instead of thinking about what I should cook for dinner. Or maybe I can go out of my way to be nice to that person who makes me feel so uncomfortable at work. Hmm....that last one is particularly uncomfortable - I prefer to avoid her as much as possible. I guess I found my Lent thing. Arrgggh.
I have to admit, I am really not fond of Lent. The minute Ash Wednesday rolls around, I start feeling somber, and it deepens as the six weeks go on - but I tell you, Easter is always glorious! (I do take a small break for my birthday, which is ALWAYS smack dab in the middle of purple, somber Lent).
Looking forward to Easter, already. Easter and spring - new life in all kinds of ways. New seeds, new garden beds, newly fresh growing things, new chicks, new lambs.....
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
It's Raining, It's Pouring...
Apparently, there is quite a bit of snow on the mountains (Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa), but I can't see it because it is pouring rain - the clouds obscure the view. Too bad. It's so pretty when there is a lot of snow.
There was a terrific thunderstorm on Saturday night. It was so loud and so close, it was quite hard to sleep. Apparently, it also caused issues with our internet provider, because we were without the internet for most of Sunday and Monday. (So Mom and older daughter, I am not quite done with the FAFSA, but I will be able to finish tonight, assuming the internet is still functional).
Because of the rain and because I really needed to catch up on rest - I didn't do much this weekend. I was blessed to see two good friends: on Sunday, one of my best friends from high school was in town for a baby luau so I was able to see her for an hour or two, and on Monday, my dear friend from my old job took me to lunch. I honestly needed that, even though the tomato seedlings didn't get transplanted...and the animal stalls only got a cursory doing. (I did do the baking, but not the laundry).
It's an odd thing to take time off. I was inclined to feel a bit guilty about what was not getting done, but I consciously decided to discount that tendency and just enjoy that I got to see my friends. I so rarely do anything but work, home chores, and church. It was interesting to walk around in Hilo and see all those people shopping and just buying food for fun. If I could avoid shopping of any kind for the rest of my life, I really wouldn't mind. I have always sort of hated clothes shopping - I like new clothes, but hate shopping - and when I think back over the last 15 years or so, what I remember most is shopping, mostly for groceries - not so long ago, dragging for little ones with me. I know a lot of other things happened during those years, especially since living 20 miles away from the store meant I would go about once a week, but, right now, in my recollection, I am walking around the grocery store or standing in line at the feed store (actually, the feed store is the highlight of my social life these days). It's a rather sad realization.
There was a terrific thunderstorm on Saturday night. It was so loud and so close, it was quite hard to sleep. Apparently, it also caused issues with our internet provider, because we were without the internet for most of Sunday and Monday. (So Mom and older daughter, I am not quite done with the FAFSA, but I will be able to finish tonight, assuming the internet is still functional).
Because of the rain and because I really needed to catch up on rest - I didn't do much this weekend. I was blessed to see two good friends: on Sunday, one of my best friends from high school was in town for a baby luau so I was able to see her for an hour or two, and on Monday, my dear friend from my old job took me to lunch. I honestly needed that, even though the tomato seedlings didn't get transplanted...and the animal stalls only got a cursory doing. (I did do the baking, but not the laundry).
It's an odd thing to take time off. I was inclined to feel a bit guilty about what was not getting done, but I consciously decided to discount that tendency and just enjoy that I got to see my friends. I so rarely do anything but work, home chores, and church. It was interesting to walk around in Hilo and see all those people shopping and just buying food for fun. If I could avoid shopping of any kind for the rest of my life, I really wouldn't mind. I have always sort of hated clothes shopping - I like new clothes, but hate shopping - and when I think back over the last 15 years or so, what I remember most is shopping, mostly for groceries - not so long ago, dragging for little ones with me. I know a lot of other things happened during those years, especially since living 20 miles away from the store meant I would go about once a week, but, right now, in my recollection, I am walking around the grocery store or standing in line at the feed store (actually, the feed store is the highlight of my social life these days). It's a rather sad realization.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Is this week over????
I literally have felt like it was Friday every day this week since Tuesday. You can appreciate that this would make the week quite long.
Last night, my 8th grader played Macbeth in "I Hate Shakespeare" (Actually, he was "MacBuh" since it is bad luck to name the "Scottish Play" on stage - a little joke). I got to sit with my college classmate, which was pretty fun. Even though we've both moved to Hilo and our kids are friends at school, we so rarely get to see each other. It was very enjoyable, but the combination of being out until 8:30 and then having to stay awake until my son got home from a special dinner with his girlfriend's family....well, I am extra tired this morning.
I am sleeping in to at least 7:00 am tomorrow. I know there are a lot of things around the farm that need to be done, but there are no track meets, band practices, or other school/church/community activities - I am going to sleep. In spite of my own inner conscience and the unspoken, mild disapproval of my early-waking spouse, I am going to be lazy. I will probably curse myself later in the day when I don't accomplish as much as I have planned, but I fully intend to recharge my sleep batteries.
Last night, my 8th grader played Macbeth in "I Hate Shakespeare" (Actually, he was "MacBuh" since it is bad luck to name the "Scottish Play" on stage - a little joke). I got to sit with my college classmate, which was pretty fun. Even though we've both moved to Hilo and our kids are friends at school, we so rarely get to see each other. It was very enjoyable, but the combination of being out until 8:30 and then having to stay awake until my son got home from a special dinner with his girlfriend's family....well, I am extra tired this morning.
I am sleeping in to at least 7:00 am tomorrow. I know there are a lot of things around the farm that need to be done, but there are no track meets, band practices, or other school/church/community activities - I am going to sleep. In spite of my own inner conscience and the unspoken, mild disapproval of my early-waking spouse, I am going to be lazy. I will probably curse myself later in the day when I don't accomplish as much as I have planned, but I fully intend to recharge my sleep batteries.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Moʻolelo
Moʻolelo are stories - especially stories that make you who you are. What I like about this word versus the English word "stories" is that it contains the word ʻōlelo, defined in one dictionary as: speech, word, quotation, statement, utterance, term, tidings; to speak,
say, state, talk, mention, quote, converse, tell; oral, verbatim,
verbal, motion (in early House of Nobles regulations). I like the emphasis on words and conversation.
Think of the stories you have for yourself - the stories about your family, about your place, about your own personal history. Aren't they like a conversation with the past, with your own past?
Sort of ludicrously, I have been asked to talk about my experience of the Hawaiian Renaissance in music. I was only in middle school/high school. I am not a musician, not really - even after 7 years in various band programs as a kid and various experiences on church choirs. To prepare to face the ninth graders with my "thoughts", manaʻo, I have been looking at YouTube videos, thinking about the major themes of love of place, protest, identity - thinking about what songs to share and what to say.
I guess, even though I am not a musician and my only claim to any kind of anything on this topic is having grown up with and loved the music, I did hold this music very dear to me. I went away to college to the mainland. I was, in retrospect, ridiculously homesick - a lot of us were, those from Hawaii. We used to gather in my dorm room and sing for hours - that music was an anthem for us. Our Hawaii Club t-shirt one year had a high school-ish line drawing of a breaking wave, a girl with a tear in her eye, and the slogan "Far Too Wide For Me", which was a song back-in-the-day about having to leave home, missing Hawaii. I think the girl had the silhouette of a palm tree in her eye. I could be mistaken. It was maudlin, yup.
I know I am not the only 18 year old who boarded a plane and cried as "Honolulu City Lights" by Keola Beamer played in our Walkman. There seemed to be a whole slew of songs about home - about leaving home, about appreciating home, about how home was the best and most beautiful place.
This old music has become the background of my life - it gets played less and less on the radio as new trends come up, so really searching out resources and remembering has been pretty eye-opening. I am feeling distinctly sentimental this afternoon, but I am also seeing the themes and ideas through English teacher's eyes and it is pretty interesting. Off to finish my presentation!
Think of the stories you have for yourself - the stories about your family, about your place, about your own personal history. Aren't they like a conversation with the past, with your own past?
Sort of ludicrously, I have been asked to talk about my experience of the Hawaiian Renaissance in music. I was only in middle school/high school. I am not a musician, not really - even after 7 years in various band programs as a kid and various experiences on church choirs. To prepare to face the ninth graders with my "thoughts", manaʻo, I have been looking at YouTube videos, thinking about the major themes of love of place, protest, identity - thinking about what songs to share and what to say.
I guess, even though I am not a musician and my only claim to any kind of anything on this topic is having grown up with and loved the music, I did hold this music very dear to me. I went away to college to the mainland. I was, in retrospect, ridiculously homesick - a lot of us were, those from Hawaii. We used to gather in my dorm room and sing for hours - that music was an anthem for us. Our Hawaii Club t-shirt one year had a high school-ish line drawing of a breaking wave, a girl with a tear in her eye, and the slogan "Far Too Wide For Me", which was a song back-in-the-day about having to leave home, missing Hawaii. I think the girl had the silhouette of a palm tree in her eye. I could be mistaken. It was maudlin, yup.
I know I am not the only 18 year old who boarded a plane and cried as "Honolulu City Lights" by Keola Beamer played in our Walkman. There seemed to be a whole slew of songs about home - about leaving home, about appreciating home, about how home was the best and most beautiful place.
This old music has become the background of my life - it gets played less and less on the radio as new trends come up, so really searching out resources and remembering has been pretty eye-opening. I am feeling distinctly sentimental this afternoon, but I am also seeing the themes and ideas through English teacher's eyes and it is pretty interesting. Off to finish my presentation!
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