What Resolutions Really Mean

I don't think I could keep a New Year's resolution for my life. If my past is any indication, I can't. So this year, I'm not really trying. I think the problem is that resolutions involve good intentions. Now there's nothing wrong with good intentions. It's just too easy to over look those intentions. Like I should do the dishes tonight is my good intention. But I get sidetracked by my favorite television show, messages on Facebook and playing Candy Crush. Oops, I didn't do the dishes. Good intentions get you nowhere.

Reality check time; it takes 21 days for a habit to form. That habit can be good or bad. Although sometimes I think bad habits don't take so long to develop. So if you want to change your eating habits or how often you exercise, then you'd better set up a schedule for 3 weeks at the beginning. And then realize that 3 weeks will be difficult. But if you persevere those 21 days, it will be much easier.

These shouldn't be called resolutions, they should be called goals. Goals have an end result along with a plan on how to get there. Goals are measurable and require periodic checks on how you are progressing. And they can be altered. Resolutions seems like fluff when compared to real goals.

Now I guess I'll share my goal for 2018 with you. I plan to write more. That's it. Write more. Not write everyday. I've already blown that. Hey, some days I just don't have anything to say or am too busy living to write. I know that I can write more than last year, though. And I will. So let me take this time to thank you for reading. Please share some of your goals or past resolutions. I think we could all gain some insight from successes and failures of others.

The Alphabet Ends at Y

Nothing tastes better than a raspberry zinger after a day of work. Aside from chatting, I love to curl up with a good book while I enjoy my tea. I've been thinking about books lately because my favorite author died a little over a week ago. Sue Grafton wrote an engaging alphabet series that I can reread over and over again. Her characters came to life through her words.

Since my days of visiting the local bookmobile in Springfield, I've been attracted to mystery books. I would tear through the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys series when I was in elementary school. As I got older, I read every Perry Mason book I could find. One cold, freezing day in the winter of 2007 I found a Sue Grafton paperback novel at Walmart. I remember it vividly because it was during the big ice storm. We'd been out of electricity for several days and I was starting to go stir crazy. I thought if I had something to read, I might be able to survive. The book was S is for Silence and it was good!

I didn't realize at the time, but I had a treasure in my hand. Sue started writing this series in 1982. And these books are based in that decade. Her main character, Kinsey Millhone is a kick-ass private investigator in the fictional town of Santa Teresa, California. She's in her thirties, twice divorced and orphaned since she was five. She's as sharp as a tack, knows how to shoot a gun and hates to see the bad guys get away. She's a perfect character. Notice I didn't say she's perfect. Her landlord and neighbor, Henry Pitts is an 80 something year old retired baker who knows how to cook. He's the perfect contrast to Kinsey's can't cook lifestyle. She regularly visits a Hungarian restaurant/lounge a half a block away to get bossed around by the owner. To round it out we've got all the clients and the shenanigans they bring to Kinsey's life.

Here's the majority of my Sue Grafton collection; A-U. The V, W and X are on the shelf below. Y is for Yesterday was a Christmas gift and hasn't made it to the shelf yet. As you can see, my books get a lot of use. I like it better that way. Obviously, I got hooked. Sometimes I'm reading one of these books and I can't put it down. Other times, the plot is so mind bending that I have to stop and ponder the implications before continuing.

I'm now on my second reading of the final book, Y is for Yesterday. And it makes me a bit melancholy. Her final book was going to be Z is for Zero. But alas, that will not happen. Sue never wanted a ghost writer for her work. So the alphabet truly does end with Y. Thanks for all the great reads, Sue. Rest in peace!

How to Keep Warm the Easy Way

It was almost balmy today. No hot tea for me today. :) I've actually been thinking about keeping warm. Well, it's been on the forefront of my mind lately.

If I could give you one piece of advice to help you save money and keep warm this winter, this is the blog for you. My advice?... Open your curtains and blinds! Seriously simple and seriously warm. Hopefully you have some windows on the east, west and south side. If so, you need to use solar power at its most basic.

You see, the sun produces radiant energy. This is visible through sunlight, but some is also invisible. When you allow the sun to come in through your windows, you actually trap that energy in your house. I'm not joking here. I'm sure sometime in your life, you've sat in the sun. Even if the temperature was low, sitting in the sun warms you up. Well guess what... it can also help warm your house.

Don't get me wrong and shut off your thermostat and expect sunlight to heat your house to a toasty temperature when it's freezing outside. It won't work. BUT, you can help your house warm up by allowing mother nature's warmth into your house. Another name for this is passive solar heating. You can read more here: Solar energy

When I know the sun is going to shine, before I leave the house I make sure to open the curtains. I also turn down the heat. There's no need to keep the temperature too warm when I'm not here to appreciate it. I did come home today to find the temperature in my house warmer than the temperature at which the thermostat was set. I hope this is information is beneficial to you today. Do you use passive solar energy? If so, post your results and tips in the comments.

Time for Reflection

Today it got above freezing! It's so exciting. The Weather Channel says it was 31 degrees, but my car said 33. I came home and unplugged the heater in the well house.

It's nice to be home again, snuggled up under my blanket on my couch. I've got a pizza in the oven and Monk on the television. So why am I writing? I don't know.

I asked questions of my students today. 'What's the best thing about 2017 being over?" And, "What's the best thing about being in 2018?" They had some interesting responses. Many talked about school being half over and getting a fresh start. Yes, even junior high students recognize a new beginning. A few students had a hard time coming up with an answer. It's like they never stopped to reflect and evaluate their life.

As I ponder on this, I realize reflection and self evaluation are learned skills. Just like making goals and checking your progress toward the goals. All of us need to be asked these questions or we'll never learn to answer them. So I was glad to watch some kids squirm when the random name selector called them. It showed me, this was a question they needed to ponder.

So now I'm going to turn it around on you. What's the best thing about 2017 being over? What's the best thing about being in 2018? Take some time to reflect and squirm, if you need. And if you're courageous enough. Comment  below and let me know what you got.

Final Days of Vacation

Tomorrow I go back to work. Well, actually I go back to being a teacher. For those of you who aren't teachers, I'll tell you it's a strange metamorphosis. For two weeks I've just been me. And now I've got to put my brain back into gear and find my teacher mode.

Let me give you a little taste of it from today. I checked my emails and realized I better figure out what exact dates my students need to take an online test. I went through the duty roster and place mine on my computer calendar. I later checked my calendar to see if I was available for a workshop and messaged my principal that I was available. I searched through last semester's progress reports to make sure I knew which homeroom students were eligible for a reward.

And the funny thing is, that stuff was minor. Tomorrow I have get up during the dark, find some respectable clothes to wear and get out of the house around seven.  I have to adapt to 20 minute lunches and taking a bathroom break between classes. And through the course of the day teach about 100 students. I'm not complaining, I love my job, but what a change from the last two weeks! I've maybe seen two students on my break at the grocery store. We smile and wave and go on our merry way.

We've been working on energy in class. The students have started building paper roller coasters for a marble. We will examine the types of energy involved and calculate the speed of the marble. Some will be excited. Some will be frustrated. My hope is that we will all learn something that we can use later in life.

So as I enjoy this last evening of vacation, I look forward to the challenges and rewards that this next semester will bring. I'm a little excited and a little nervous. Right now I think I'll savor the moment. Until next time.

The Dirty Chicken Secret

Yum, green tea with pomegranate. It's still cold here, but warmer than yesterday. I'll take that. Today I got a hankering for some chicken. I have a few odd quirks about chicken. I love it, but hate dealing with bones. I like white meat over dark and I feel like germs are going all over the place every time I cook chicken.

I took a visit to New Orleans back in 2016. My first meal there was some fried chicken. It was great, even if it did have all the bones. What I really loved was all the sauces they provided. The hot sauce was delicious! When I cook up some chicken, I'm always trying to bring back the taste of New Orleans.

I always try to keep some frozen chicken in my freezer. I pull it out and defrost it in the microwave. While that's going, I heat up the fry daddy and mix up flour and seasonings along with an egg mixture.

Once the chicken is defrosted, I carefully remove it from the microwave. I say carefully because I freak out if some juice spills. I'm going to admit, I hate touching raw chicken. It's not because I'm grossed out or anything, but I can't stand the thought of raw chicken germs anywhere. I like my chicken cut up into bite sized pieces. I put them in the flour mixture, then the egg mixture and then back in the flour mixture before I place them in the hot oil. Then I immediately wash my hands. And then get them dirty again as I cut up more chicken. I swear I must wash my hands five to six times or more before I'm done with about 20 pieces of chicken.

In my attempt to get some cajun flavor, I make my own special dipping sauce. I put ranch dressing in a bowl with some hot sauce and cajun spices. Then I stir it all together. I don't really know how do make a blackened ranch, but it's a pretty good sauce if I do say so myself.

 

It was tasty. Now that I got my belly full, I had to rinse all the dishes with hot water and put them in the dishwasher. Because of all the germs I had to wipe down the counter with disinfecting wipes, toss my hand towel in the hamper and wash my hands again. I think my chicken is worth all the fuss. I just wished I wasn't so freaked out by raw chicken. Have you got any great chicken stories or recipes?I'd love to have you comment. Thanks for reading.

Now back to my tea. 

A Day of Life

First let me admit- I had no tea today. There I said it. That doesn't mean I can't share my thoughts and then have some tea. Let me just admit, it's been a day. I should start with the cold. I think it got down to zero last night. I know it's an arctic blast for a good chunk of the country and I should be grateful I'm not digging myself out of a ton of snow.

I got up this morning to find I had no water. I have a well and my well house is on the north side of my house. I should stop here and let you know I did have water dripping last night, but didn't bother heating up my well house. So I know- my bad. And I shouldn't complain. I went to the extension cord by my back door and plugged in the well house heater. I used to have a heat lamp plugged in, but a few years ago during some nasty weather I bought an electric heater for the well. I connected the heater and went to check that it was going and got myself back inside where it was warm.

 I made sure to turn on a couple faucets so when the water turned on I would know it. I spent the rest of the morning watching the Psych marathon and taking down my Christmas tree, decorations and cards. Morning was coming to an end and I still had no water. I started using water from my tea kettle, then resorted to a couple two liter bottles I keep in my utility room. The temperature was still really cold, so I wasn't too concerned. I should have been, though. Most other times within 3 hours I usually have water. Ever the optimist, I just kept hoping for the best.

One o'clock, then two o'clock went by and still no water. I told myself I wouldn't panic until 3 o'clock came with no results. I moved my snowflake tree into the living room and even carried my big Christmas tree and accessories into the garage and 3 o'clock came. So I decided it was out of my hands. I called Pedro who has cows in my field. I knew lack of water wasn't good for his cows either. He came over and when he opened the well house (which can be a chore by itself) I was shocked to find my heat lamp glowing. Crap! This whole time I thought I hooked up my heater and instead it was just the heat lamp going. Once again, it's all my fault. Pedro got out his propane torch and heated up the pipes. Still no running water in my house. After about 20 minutes outside with the torch, it ran out of propane. We hooked up my heater and closed up the well house. Pedro brought square bales of hay and placed them on the north side of the well house and was going back home for his "big" heater around 4:30. Before five o'clock, I had water running in my sinks. Hallelujah! What a welcome relief. First thing I did was flush my toilets.

I'm still running water in a couple sinks and keeping the heater-yes- the heater turned on.  The first day of 2018 wasn't the greatest for me; I'll admit that. And I get that it was all my fault for not actually checking that it was the heater I turned on. So as I sit on my couch covered by a warm blanket after a hot shower and in warm pajamas watching another episode of Psych I realized the importance of being thankful for small things. Running water, a car that starts, a roof over my head and food in my kitchen- these are blessings for which we should be thankful. Thanks for reading my blog. Tips and tricks for wells are welcome.