10 things I love about summer
on Tuesday, June 28, 2011
In no particular order, just as they come to mind:
1) Strawberries. Especially the teeny-tiny ones growing in the backyard.
2) Shade as solace. Living this past winter in Seattle, I found myself flocking to rays of sunshine like moths to light. Now it's warm enough for me to sit in the shade and be comfortable! I thought the day would never come.
3) Pleasure reading. And a great book!
4) Peaches. Now I know it is not peach season in Yakima yet, because they still look like this:
The reality that we won't be here for peach season, and for much of the best of the Yakima fruit season, distresses me. I went down and bought some California peaches at Safeway, and they were absolutely delicious. So far, I've made 3 trips to Safeway for them.
5) Quail. Not as food, but friends. I can't wait to see the babies! Especially after I learned that quail young are called "cheepers."
6) Snap-dragons. The stuff of my childhood.
7) A solar clothes dryer. We don't have a clothes line here, but Reuben and I lay all our wet, recently-washed clothes out on the lawn. They're dry in less than 2 hours!
8) Warm nights. There is no better feeling in the world than being outside in the dark and warm.
9) Eating off the bbq. Especially if it's beefalo and fresh veggies from the farmer's market
10) Open door policies. It's a novel concept to open a door and leave it that way, letting the fresh breeze flow through the house. Aahhh, summer.
1) Strawberries. Especially the teeny-tiny ones growing in the backyard.
2) Shade as solace. Living this past winter in Seattle, I found myself flocking to rays of sunshine like moths to light. Now it's warm enough for me to sit in the shade and be comfortable! I thought the day would never come.
3) Pleasure reading. And a great book!
4) Peaches. Now I know it is not peach season in Yakima yet, because they still look like this:
The reality that we won't be here for peach season, and for much of the best of the Yakima fruit season, distresses me. I went down and bought some California peaches at Safeway, and they were absolutely delicious. So far, I've made 3 trips to Safeway for them.
5) Quail. Not as food, but friends. I can't wait to see the babies! Especially after I learned that quail young are called "cheepers."
6) Snap-dragons. The stuff of my childhood.
7) A solar clothes dryer. We don't have a clothes line here, but Reuben and I lay all our wet, recently-washed clothes out on the lawn. They're dry in less than 2 hours!
8) Warm nights. There is no better feeling in the world than being outside in the dark and warm.
9) Eating off the bbq. Especially if it's beefalo and fresh veggies from the farmer's market
10) Open door policies. It's a novel concept to open a door and leave it that way, letting the fresh breeze flow through the house. Aahhh, summer.
Graduation
on Wednesday, June 22, 2011
I didn't go to my undergrad graduation. My parents were overseas, and there was no way that I was going to dress up in a gown and sit in a stadium for nothing. And I'm glad I did, because it rained that day. Something like a Master's, however, certainly merits attending graduation so I suited up in my cap and gown. In lieu of the gigantic campus-wide graduation, I opted for the College of Education graduation ceremony, held in the Quad. I'm so glad I did! I even had a few IslandWood people with me.
Last day of school
on Thursday, June 9, 2011
There's always something thrilling about the last day of school. Come to think of it, it normally consisted of a party, pizza, and half day (sometimes stopping by McDonalds on the way home!). What's the point, academically speaking? Surely the teachers would have preferred the 2nd to last day of school to be the last day of school, because it's the teacher's job to make sure learning takes place, and I don't remember any learning occurring at these parties. I guess they give closure to students.
Anyway, today was my LAST day of school, ending my 20-year academic career. That's not even including a few years I took off. There was no party, no pizza or McDonalds, and it was a full 12-hour day between leaving home and coming back. I had some time to kill in between classes/responsibilities, however, so I made the most of it. My first stop was to the career center at UW. I had them look over my resume because now, of course, I am finally entering the adult world where these sorts of things are important. The career counselor told me that it looked great and I wouldn't have any trouble getting hired. Ha, does he know the job market these days for graduates?
After that encouragement (it only lasted for a little bit), I headed back to Capitol Hill for my last time tutoring at SBOC. I had some time to kill so I stopped and played with Snug, a very friendly neighborhood cat. She followed me for a couple of blocks and I couldn't pull myself away from her she was so playful. She ended up running off after a butterfly.
After wandering around the neighborhood a little bit I stopped at a patch of poppies which are, starting this season, becoming to be my favorite flower. But I think the bumblebees already preceded me to this liking.
My last day at SBOC was rather uneventful. Still working on fractions. And I realized just how confusing teaching North, South, East, and West is to an English Language Learner. Not the concept of it, but which word to use. Yes, California is South of Oregon, but Oregon is North of California. It actually gets quite complicated and the other girl assisting in the classroom had to ask me to explain it to her.
I had to come back to UW again for my final class /presentation. I took a new way today, walking through the school of forestry section. I can't believe that I've never been here before. I discovered a garden, and I ate from it too. Mmm I need to get myself some sorrel.
My friend Charlie had mentioned to me last week that the Blue Herons had been nesting in this part of campus. I couldn't remember exactly where she had told me they were, but if you were anywhere near that place you would figure out where they were. They're a noisy bunch! There were 2 giant adult Herons and a baby, all in that little nest. No wonder they were making so much noise!
Anyway, that's basically it. It was a day of sights, sounds, munching in community gardens, and animal observation. All of the little things that made up the day far superseded my last class, which was uneventful and anticlimactic. But I headed home a free woman!
Anyway, today was my LAST day of school, ending my 20-year academic career. That's not even including a few years I took off. There was no party, no pizza or McDonalds, and it was a full 12-hour day between leaving home and coming back. I had some time to kill in between classes/responsibilities, however, so I made the most of it. My first stop was to the career center at UW. I had them look over my resume because now, of course, I am finally entering the adult world where these sorts of things are important. The career counselor told me that it looked great and I wouldn't have any trouble getting hired. Ha, does he know the job market these days for graduates?
After that encouragement (it only lasted for a little bit), I headed back to Capitol Hill for my last time tutoring at SBOC. I had some time to kill so I stopped and played with Snug, a very friendly neighborhood cat. She followed me for a couple of blocks and I couldn't pull myself away from her she was so playful. She ended up running off after a butterfly.
After wandering around the neighborhood a little bit I stopped at a patch of poppies which are, starting this season, becoming to be my favorite flower. But I think the bumblebees already preceded me to this liking.
My last day at SBOC was rather uneventful. Still working on fractions. And I realized just how confusing teaching North, South, East, and West is to an English Language Learner. Not the concept of it, but which word to use. Yes, California is South of Oregon, but Oregon is North of California. It actually gets quite complicated and the other girl assisting in the classroom had to ask me to explain it to her.
I had to come back to UW again for my final class /presentation. I took a new way today, walking through the school of forestry section. I can't believe that I've never been here before. I discovered a garden, and I ate from it too. Mmm I need to get myself some sorrel.
My friend Charlie had mentioned to me last week that the Blue Herons had been nesting in this part of campus. I couldn't remember exactly where she had told me they were, but if you were anywhere near that place you would figure out where they were. They're a noisy bunch! There were 2 giant adult Herons and a baby, all in that little nest. No wonder they were making so much noise!
Anyway, that's basically it. It was a day of sights, sounds, munching in community gardens, and animal observation. All of the little things that made up the day far superseded my last class, which was uneventful and anticlimactic. But I headed home a free woman!
the color of spring
on Wednesday, June 1, 2011
I volunteer once a week at the Seattle Bilingual Orientation Center, a public school in the Seattle school district that serves exclusively English Language Learners and helps them transition into the regular school system. I volunteered with them back when I was at Seattle Pacific, because their school was right on the top of Queen Anne Hill, just about a mile from my university. I found out that the school has moved since then, to a much smaller school (and even then, they share it with another school). On the one hand the move was good, because, for heaven's sake, did they expect refugee and immigrant families to live in the Queen Anne neighborhood? It's now located in Capitol Hill, and although this area probably does not house many recently-arrived immigrants either, it's at least on the East side. I have to admit that, despite several years living in Seattle, I didn't often go much to this area. I went back and forth to the Century Ballroom for salsa-dancing, but mostly I just heard of it being where the crazies of Seattle lived (according to people who, of course, attended SPU).
Volunteering at this school gave me a chance to get to know the neighborhood a little bit. It's actually only about a mile and a half from the ferry terminal, but it's up some wicked hills and across I-5. I take the bus. I volunteer in a classroom and help kids with their homework after school until 4:30. I have class at UW at 6, so it gives me some time to wander the neighborhood, and even stop at Trader Joes. There's something I simply love about walking neighborhood, even if it's not mine. My sister and I used to go on walks with our dog, Sable, to see the llamas up on Scenic or to feed the ducks at a neighborhood pond. She said she liked walking best at night, because you could see into people's houses and see how they lived. I feel the same way. When I walk, it's not dark, but I still like to see how people fill their lives. I like to see their gardens, their compost piles and their front yards filled with toys. The sidewalks are lined with grand old trees, some of which have public notices attached that forewarn their impending extraction. They even assign values to trees. $6500, to be precise. How do you come up with a number for something like that?
Anyway, these pictures are of my recent wanders on Capitol Hill. It has certainly been a dreary and gray winter, but the colors of spring have been that much more vivid!
Volunteering at this school gave me a chance to get to know the neighborhood a little bit. It's actually only about a mile and a half from the ferry terminal, but it's up some wicked hills and across I-5. I take the bus. I volunteer in a classroom and help kids with their homework after school until 4:30. I have class at UW at 6, so it gives me some time to wander the neighborhood, and even stop at Trader Joes. There's something I simply love about walking neighborhood, even if it's not mine. My sister and I used to go on walks with our dog, Sable, to see the llamas up on Scenic or to feed the ducks at a neighborhood pond. She said she liked walking best at night, because you could see into people's houses and see how they lived. I feel the same way. When I walk, it's not dark, but I still like to see how people fill their lives. I like to see their gardens, their compost piles and their front yards filled with toys. The sidewalks are lined with grand old trees, some of which have public notices attached that forewarn their impending extraction. They even assign values to trees. $6500, to be precise. How do you come up with a number for something like that?
Anyway, these pictures are of my recent wanders on Capitol Hill. It has certainly been a dreary and gray winter, but the colors of spring have been that much more vivid!
the end of several things
on Sunday, May 29, 2011
It seems that my entire year culminated in this past week. I presented my capstone project for my int'l dev't certificate (in front of the Gates Foundation people, no less!), I stood by my super lame tri-fold poster that I was forced to make for my education colloquium (that's right, to earn a master of education from the University of Washington you have to present your work in a way that uncannily represents my 8th grade end of the year project). Besides a few classes that I have to sit in and attend, and one small paper to write, I'm pretty much DONE with school. Finished.
Other parts of my life came to an end this week as well. American Idol, for instance. Yes, Reuben and I were faithful followers, even through the never-ending two-hour episodes every week. It was a great season, but had a horrible ending. I'd rather not talk about it.
Not to sound like a Fox network fanatic, but another show that ended (for the season) this past week was Glee. Love. And of course they didn't win nationals, so that guarantees that they will have to come back for another season. They have to win at some point.
The other thing that ended this week was Oprah! Forever. I was thinking this morning about how I used to come home from school in high-school and do my homework while I watched her show. She became part of my daily routine in college. And even in the seasons when I didn't watch her show (which were many), I always had this nagging thought that I had something to do at 4 o'clock in the afternoon. Even though she'll live forever in syndication, it just won't be the same.
Other parts of my life came to an end this week as well. American Idol, for instance. Yes, Reuben and I were faithful followers, even through the never-ending two-hour episodes every week. It was a great season, but had a horrible ending. I'd rather not talk about it.
Not to sound like a Fox network fanatic, but another show that ended (for the season) this past week was Glee. Love. And of course they didn't win nationals, so that guarantees that they will have to come back for another season. They have to win at some point.
The other thing that ended this week was Oprah! Forever. I was thinking this morning about how I used to come home from school in high-school and do my homework while I watched her show. She became part of my daily routine in college. And even in the seasons when I didn't watch her show (which were many), I always had this nagging thought that I had something to do at 4 o'clock in the afternoon. Even though she'll live forever in syndication, it just won't be the same.
Month of May
I have to say that, despite the lack of spring around here, we have had a few beautiful days. We spent most of these days outside, of course. Primarily in our backyard, which is actually very a very pleasant and peaceful place to be.
We discovered a bird nest in some of our forget-me-not flower bushes.
Mommy bird wasn't too happy with our discovery.
This apple tree is the sunniest spot of the backyard, so it dries our clothes for us.
We got a new bird-feeder - which apparently is attractive enough for our resident squirrels to climb up the side of the house to try to leap onto it. It has succeeded several times, and ruined our screen door in the process.
We also ate most of our meals outside.
We went on bike rides - but sometimes Reuben biked and I drove to the beach to meet him there :)
I read a really great book
We went to the Farmer's Market.
After these few glorious days of sunshine, it basically went back to winter. Blah, in the high 40's, rainy. Having tasted a bit of the good life, I now can look back and know that we wouldn't have had the beautiful days full of green if it wasn't for the rain. No more complaining for me.
We discovered a bird nest in some of our forget-me-not flower bushes.
Mommy bird wasn't too happy with our discovery.
This apple tree is the sunniest spot of the backyard, so it dries our clothes for us.
We got a new bird-feeder - which apparently is attractive enough for our resident squirrels to climb up the side of the house to try to leap onto it. It has succeeded several times, and ruined our screen door in the process.
We also ate most of our meals outside.
We went on bike rides - but sometimes Reuben biked and I drove to the beach to meet him there :)
I read a really great book
We went to the Farmer's Market.
After these few glorious days of sunshine, it basically went back to winter. Blah, in the high 40's, rainy. Having tasted a bit of the good life, I now can look back and know that we wouldn't have had the beautiful days full of green if it wasn't for the rain. No more complaining for me.
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