Category Archives: Slice of Life

What’s Your Organization Style? SOL25 Day 9

There’s a million books out there professing the perfect approach to organizing your home. You can decide which items in your life bring joy and toss the others. You can work on a zone each day, beating down the clutter before it accumulates. Or you can be like me, and use the pile method of organization.

My piles work…until they don’t. For the most part, I know exactly what is where–as long as no one else touches my piles. In lots of ways they are quite geological, sediment building up over time. The oldest layers are on the bottom, providing the strong foundation for the newer layers. Some piles are piles of reading material: books and articles that I want to read…but cannot get to quite yet. Others are piles of reading I have read, but know I want to refer to or want to share with someone. Some piles need to make their way back to my classroom, some need to be filed away with important papers…

But at some point, the piles reach maximum efficiency and need to be culled. That’s the point where I have to make the hard decisions and either find a permanent place for the item or discard it. I’m at that inflection point right now. It’s time to dismantle the piles, sort them, and get them under control.

Conveniently, yesterday I happened by IKEA–you know the place, where you build your own furniture according to picture-based directions that those of us who are spatially challenged can manage to assemble upside down and backwards. Lucky for me, Geoff is great at reading these blueprints (rightside up) and getting them built in record time! Anyway, while strolling through IKEA yesterday, I decided that a three-tiered rolling cart would be the perfect solution to the teetering piles I need to wrangle. I am limiting myself to keeping only what will fit reasonably in the cart.

Now, I just need to find a bit of time to get started! And find a home for the cart itself! Be sure to ask me about my progress. It always helps to be held accountable.

What’s your organizational style? Does it work for you?

Touristing in Town–a Photo Essay: SOL25 Day 8

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When you live in America’s Finest City, sometimes you need to spend some time re-seeing your place with fresh eyes. Today, since we were meeting a friend for lunch downtown, we decided to make a day of it and headed off to Cabrillo National Monument. Located way up a hill, off the tip of Point Loma, this jewel offers breathtaking views on a clear day. And today we got just that.

After much needed rain earlier this week, this morning came in bright and clear…with the promise of sunshine and hints of spring. After parking, we headed to use the restrooms…and caught a glimpse of a large military ship passing out of the harbor. North Island Military Base is right across the bay on Coronado. Docents pointed out features of the ship as it passed by on its way out to sea.

We headed off to a favorite hiking trail that wanders along the bay. Native plants are just beginning to bud, lizards basked in the pools of sun along the trail, and we could hear the “orts” of the sea lions in the distance.

It wasn’t long before sailboats seemed to come out of nowhere, dancing along the surface of cerulean blue water. Military jets roared overhead as they rose into the sky and red shouldered hawks seemed to float effortlessly in midair.

The second half of the hike is all uphill, adding breathiness to our conversation as our hearts pounded in rhythm with our feet. We added an extra loop around the historic Point Loma Lighthouse and headed out to the overlook on the ocean side of the area.

This place is perfect for watching for gray whales as they migrate–although we have passed the end of the migration season. Looking down you can see the kelp beds and tide pools below, a reminder of another hike for another day.

What a perfect beginning to a very full day! After leaving Cabrillo we managed to get stuck in a protest parade (supportive of the cause–didn’t love the traffic jam), had a lovely lunch with an out-of-town friend that I haven’t seen for a while, pulled over on the freeway onramp while an ambulance sped by slowing traffic to a crawl (again), made our way to IKEA (because–why not if you’re within 10 miles or so) and then headed off to drop homemade sticky buns to my mom and sister before heading home in the dark.

The day was long and so satisfying. A perfect way to spend the day in America’s Finest City!

Quirky Birds: SOL25 Day 7

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For the first time in my teaching career, this year we have been allotted two days (we get a sub to cover our class) to write report cards. We do write report cards three times a year, but two days is better than none since report card writing always falls to “do it at home in the evening or weekends” time. So today was a report card writing time for me since parent-teacher conferences begin soon.

As I was writing report card comments, I found myself thinking about the joy of quirky kids. You know, the one who has a million questions even after I have carefully explained what we are doing. Or the student who can’t resist singing in full voice while everyone else is quietly working. There’s the student who wears the chunky gold chain–an aspiring rapper? Or the one with the cat ear headband (when did those become so popular?).

I think I may be drawn to the quirky birds. I know when I am walking on the beach, I notice the birds that stand out in some way. It might be that shore bird that hops along on one leg with the other tucked up tight against its body. Or the osprey that swoops down and then rises up with a fish firmly clutched in its tremendous talons. But more than likely it’s a snowy egret.

I love snowy egrets. There’s something about these tallish birds with long graceful necks and long beaks…and wait for it…bright yellow feet–that always make me smile.

Just last week I saw this character.

And fell in love!

That wind ruffled hair…and that foot! A bright yellow foot in action. Snowy egrets use those quirky feet of theirs to stomp around and stir up fish and shrimp and other seafood delicacies from the tide pools. I’ve learned to creep up quietly with my camera in hand to take photos of these beautiful and often quirky birds. I love to capture them in action…somehow freezing the movement into a still that still shows their liveliness.

So here’s to quirky birds and quirky kids…celebrating all the differences that make life lively and interesting.

In the Trees: SOL25 Day 6

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Phew! It has been quite the day. This blustery, rainy day began with an early morning mammogram (just routine). I love the mammographer at our local Kaiser–that woman is efficient! I was in and out before my official appointment time and arrived at the university at my usual time. Thursday is my work with adults day–and there was much to accomplish today. But right in the middle of a meeting this morning the fire alarm went off in our building. Ugh! For someone who is only there one day a week, I have had more than my share of fire alarm evacuations in the last couple of months! So after milling around in the chilly windiness around our building (no rain at this time), we got the all clear from the firemen and were able to head back in to resume our work.

I struggle a bit with an office day. My usual work is wrangling first graders–which means that I seldom sit. Instead I am constantly moving, crouching, leaning in, keeping life in the classroom on an even keel. On my office days with too much sitting, I feel called to head outside and walk the campus just to keep my head clear and my body in motion. I think so much better on my feet! So after some work, I bundled up and headed down the stairs for that much-needed walk!

UCSD is a beautiful campus with a very special feature: The Stuart Collection. The Stuart Collection is public outdoor art installations located throughout the campus. I often walk by Nikki de Saint Phall’s Sun God, the Snake Path that leads up to the iconic Geisel Library, and stop to photograph Fallen Star, a house perched atop the engineering building. But today I felt pulled to go in search of the Red Shoe. I headed in the direction I thought I would find it, enjoying the smell and color of the purple black sage in bloom along the way. As I got closer, I pulled out the navigation on my phone and found myself wandering through the Theatre District and into a stand of eucalyptus trees. The trees called me closer until I glimpsed the bright red of the sculpture of an enormous red, high-heeled shoe.

As I headed back to the office I remembered that the Sound Garden was nearby so I made a short detour and soon heard the music of the wind through the trees. Here’s how it was described in an article about the installation.

Thirty-two eucalyptus trees have been fitted with motion and light sensors that translate varying forces of wind and changing light patterns into sound instantaneously using sophisticated software. Speakers high in the canopy above project the sound, louder during strong gusts and sunny, summer weather; while subwoofers at ground level emanate more subtle, deep tones as darkness descends and winter prevails.

I stood and listened, feeling the wind on my cheeks and my ears filled with the symphony of a eucalyptus grove in full and beautiful voice. Calmness settled over me, I took a few photos and then made my way back to the office feeling refreshed and ready for work.

I wish I could say that the rest of the day proceeded without a glitch and that I was productive and settled. Unfortunately, in the midst of a working session on Zoom, the UCSD wifi failed, cutting off my video conference, dropping my connection on the Google slide deck we were working on and I was forced to use my phone to complete the meeting as a phone call…and to head home afterward to have internet access to get my work done!

In spite of the fire alarm and the wifi failure, my walk was uplifting and energizing. It is probably why I ended my day feeling productive in spite of losing so much work time! Note to self: take more time to listen to trees!

Weather Conundrum: SOL25 Day 5

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The calendar says that spring is a couple of weeks away, but the weather seems to be putting us all in a state of confusion. Of course I made it worse on myself by heading to Kona, HI during our February break and feeling all the summer feels: warm water, warm weather…no need for a jacket, even in the evening. Flowers were in bloom, the landscape was lush…no wonder people call it paradise.

Orchid and tropical plants in bloom in Hawaii in February

Here at home in Southern California, we’re often accused of having only two seasons: spring and summer. Where I live it never snows, but I’ve been zipped up in my down puffer jacket all week. When the highs are in the low 60s and wind is blowing hard off the ocean, it feels cold. Rain (rare in these parts) is beginning as I write and expected for the next few days. I know, I know…weather is much rougher in other places and I acknowledge that I have it easy here.

I started this post because I had noticed that it seems that spring has sprung around here. Our blueberry plants in the backyard are in blossom with fruit beginning to ripen. Trees are beginning to bud and Trader Joe’s has their daffodil bunches piled up so we can all have a vase of sunshine in our homes. I just heard on the news that the Carlsbad Flower Fields are open and the ranunculas are in bloom while the meteorologist reported a winter weather warning and the snow level down to 4000 ft (which means we’ll have snow in the local mountains)…and just to add to the weather conundrum, Daylight Saving Time is back on Sunday and we spring forward!

So tonight we have hunkered down with chili and cornbread while the rain begins a gentle pitter patter, a backbeat to the sound of my keyboard. I’m going to enjoy this little winter interlude and sip hot chocolate while wrapped in a blanket for a few more days before barreling full-speed into spring and all the craziness that is spring in schools. Is my weather conundrum solved? Probably not!

That Magical Buzz: SOL25 Day 4

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Some days in the first grade classroom chaos rules. It seems that everyone needs help at the same moment and a single word (think birthday, soccer, lunch…) makes every voice rise in frenzied simultaneous conversation.

But today was different. We had started a writing project on Friday, but ran out of time (and focus) before we got it completed. And since it is March and I had some time this morning after our class watched another first grade class perform a play, I gave my students a list of four things to do.

Reread the writing from Friday and finish, making sure all five senses are represented
Use voice to text (something we have done before) to type the writing into Pages
Meet with me for a quick review and a reminder of how to share the document with me
Go onto a particular app for independent math practice

When we started this, I wasn’t sure I would be able to meet with students with others working independently. But…my students proved their maturity today and that magical buzz settled over the room. Students focused on completing their writing. They helped each other navigate the iPad and reminded each other how to make the technology work. If I was working with a student, others waited patiently for their turn with me. And those on the app worked without needing reminders to stay focused. It wasn’t quiet, but the noise was productive. Most students were able to complete and share their writing and everyone had meaningful learning work to do.

I love when this breakthrough happens. Now I will stay alert for opportunities for students to exercise this independence and work as a team. That magical buzz is priceless!

The Road Not Taken: SOL25 Day 3

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The city has been threatening to resurface our street for months now. Those triangular sawhorse-like structures have held signs shouting: “No parking December 23rd from 7am-5pm.” And then nothing happens. We had many changes of dates announced in December…and then with both relief and the frustrating anti-climax of streets that need work but don’t get work, we just assumed that road repair was not happening.

Most of the signs were picked up (I’m not sure how they miss a sign here and there, just to find them leaning against a tree or face down on the sidewalk) and no communications were forthcoming from the city…until about a week ago.

Suddenly, the signs were back! This time accompanied by a doorknob hanger explaining that we needed not only to not park on the street, but to also know that the street would be closed to ALL traffic until the sealant was dry. Our first date this time around was Friday, so we dutifully made sure we were out of the neighborhood before 7am (not a problem for me on a work day) and made plans for alternative parking at the end of the day. But on Friday it seems that the only work completed was the application of some kind of plastic over the manhole covers…and the work was done well before I arrived home before 4pm so I could head back out for a beach walk. (Lucky for me, my husband was home and clued me in on the availability of the street so I could avoid all the detouring.). But they did warn, Monday would be the resurfacing day…so again be out by 7am and plan not to return on the street until after 5.

So this morning, we were both out before 7, as instructed. According to my husband, we he returned home around 9:30 or so there was no road work or road closure. As he went about his business, he continued to check on the progress (or lack thereof) on the street. By mid afternoon he had decided that once again the road work was not happening. But then, after hearing some truck sounds sometime after 2pm, he went out to discover that indeed the street was closed off and resurfacing had happened!

So instead of driving home to my street, I had to take the secret back door detour through another neighborhood, through a gate that has been locked tight for 20 years (you can walk through it, but it is ALWAYS closed to cars), to park alongside my house. As I write, the street is still closed to traffic. But on our walk, we did notice that perhaps a couple of neighbors got caught by surprise and trapped in their driveways. We saw some evidence of car tracks through the freshly resurfaced streets–and in one case a neighbor out with a power washer scrubbing asphalt from the sidewalk.

Yes, they warned us. But how many “wolves” do you get before no one really believes the messaging? I can imagine the neighbor who went out to get in the car to pick up the kids from school only to realized the car was trapped. Then what decision do you make? With all of the technology we have today, why is it that simple communication seems in decline?

Here’s hoping the resurfacing holds up, the streets look good, and no one has too much asphalt carried into their homes on tires, shoes, or doggie paws! (And phew! I hope that’s the end of all the street signs and warnings of road work for a while!)

How to Take a Photograph: SOL25 Day 2

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Have you read Kwame Alexander’s picture books? I love How to Write a Poem and use it with my first graders to help them understand metaphor and metaphorical thinking. Last week I read How to Sing a Song first to remind my students about metaphor and its power in writing and then again a few days later to use a mentor text.

I had taught my students some photography techniques (bird’s eye view, bug’s eye view, and rule of thirds) and then we all headed out to our fairy garden (as they kids call it–adults know it as the pollinator garden) and the playground to try out the techniques. Once back in the classroom, each student picked a favorite photo and studied it carefully.

That’s when that second reading of How to Sing a Song came in. We looked at the text carefully, noticing how the writing was working to describe music. Then came the challenge. Students (yes, first graders) set out to write a How to Take a Photograph version of these books we love. I also suggested that my students consider using their senses to help them come up with their metaphors.

Here are just a few of my students’ works in progress:

First, make a target then decide if you like or not, then take a deep sniff of the blazing violet flowers.

The snap of my iPad is like thunder in the forest, the sound of birds chirping as if they are instruments.

The wispy chews on the leaves look like they got beaten up by a caterpillar. It sounds like the green leaves are talking to me.

I took this photo on our playground.

And alongside my students I wrote this draft with them as my audience:

How to Take a Photograph

Step out. Breathe in everything you see like a cool breeze. Zoom in close like a magnifying glass. Tilt and find the perfect diagonal where the palm tree overlaps with the climbing structure. Taste the cool of the silvery metal and frame it in the lower third. Listen with your eyes and hear the sounds of children playing, hanging from the braided ropes. Push the button….slowly, carefully, purposefully. Your photo will sing for others to hear and sing along.

If you haven’t had a chance to read these books (there’s another called How to Read a Book), I highly recommend them–even if you don’t have a class of children to read them to! What are your favorite picture books that every adult should know?

Writing a Hope Kit: SOL25 Day 1

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This week has been packed to the gills, overflowing with meetings, a flight to SFO on Wednesday (after leaving a meeting early) for a conference on Thursday, another flight home late Thursday for a full day of teaching on Friday and then capped this morning with the 17th annual San Diego Area Writing Project (SDAWP) Spring Conference.

As you might imagine, I was not excited that I needed to be up early this morning and on the road before 7am to be present at the university, helping with set up and preparation. Today’s hiccup was catering not showing up! (What! No coffee for teachers who are up early navigating UCSD parking for our half-day conference?). After several calls we were assured that coffee and pastries would arrive–not when expected, but before it would have been too late.

And as always happens when I am in the presence of writing project teachers, I forgot how much I didn’t want to get up, how much I would have loved a morning with a leisurely start, and was immediately engaged and stimulated by presentations and conversations…and just seeing colleagues who are brilliant and caring and always looking after what is best for their students.

Sessions like Writing for Change: Empowering Student Advocacy Through Project-Based Learning, Academic Writing with Heart: Centering Student Voice, and Hope Starter Kit: Writing Our Way to Resilience (to name only a few) offered inspiration, intellectual stimulation, ideas for classroom implementation, and an opportunity for writing. It also offered an escape from all that feels wrong right now.

As part of my hope kit writing, I had to figure out who (someone real or imagined, still living or long dead) to address a problem I was grappling with–the idea that each of us could tap our inner wisdom through this letter writing/response (inspired by the book Ask Baba Yaga: Otherworldly Advice for Everyday Troubles by Taisia Kitaiskaia). I decided that I would channel my cat, Phil, who died quite a few years ago, but who my husband is convinced still hangs around the house. Here’s my letter and response:

Dear Phil,

How do I manage the guilt of not doing enough to take action in light of all of the chaos and destruction in our current government?

Distraught Citizen

Dear Distraught Citizen,

Screech and roar and scratch…and even pretend to mark the walls and furniture with the scent of your body and beliefs in your spaces. Don’t let your perceived inaction silence you. Rub your scent subtly, weaving in and out of the pant legs of those who are near. Find pockets of comfort, places where the rumble of your inner motor can vibrate, offering moments of relief and contentment for you and others as well. In addition to comforting one another, find the small cracks for action, even if they seem to be big enough for only the tiniest grains of sand.

Phil

Channeling Phil reminds me (and maybe you too) that action can manifest in many different ways. I will keep seeking out all the small spaces where I can make a difference. You likely won’t find me on the picket line or the telephone bank, but that doesn’t mean I don’t care or won’t take actions to right the wrongs that are happening. Thanks to my colleague Stacey for the inspiration and to Phil for the advice.

Seastar Luck

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I woke up on this first day of 2025 to a blog post written by my friend Molly. She talked about the ways she invokes luck and good fortune at the beginning of a new month–and a new year. She woke this morning saying, “rabbit, rabbit, rabbit,” a sure sign of good things to come (and heard her husband muttering it even before she was fully conscious). And then she talked about paying attention to the first bird, and essentially “reading” it to determine what qualities it might portend for the new year.

I didn’t wake up with the word rabbit on my mind, and the idea of birds flew out of my brain well before rising from my cozy bed this morning. Our plans for the day were to meet family at the beach around noon–when things began to warm up a bit. Only it really didn’t. Our short drive from home to the beach took us from the sunshine into a thick coating of coastal overcast–and it was downright cold! (At least by SoCal standards)

After a couple of vigorous games of beach paddleball, 8 year olds chasing waves in puffer jackets, swim trunks, and bare feet (typical winter beach attire), a tidepool mishap that resulted in a painful scrape and tears…and an early exit from the beach, we were left to our own devices. So we headed out to lunch where we discussed our need to still fit a walk into our day. We had resigned ourselves to walking our neighborhood until Geoff suggested heading back to the beach–one a couple of miles north of where we were earlier–to do our walking.

The tide was heading toward low–and a good negative tide that would leave tidepools uncovered–my favorite condition for walking. The sun began to peek out as it headed down closer to the horizon. The best tidepools are about a mile from the parking lot where we parked (you can get there from a closer lot–but we needed the walk). Loads of people were out at the beach today–maybe for their own New Year’s traditions.

I walked out onto the reef, noticing the usual sea anemones and tiny crabs. My attention was drawn by a conversation overheard about an octopus, and I headed in that direction. I noticed a tween girl with a large seastar in her hand–and also noticed several other smaller seastars in the pool where she was standing. I frequently look for seastars in the tidepools and seldom find any, so this felt special. The young girl was quite enthusiastic and encouraged me to take a photo of the seastar in her hand. Of course I obliged and took a number of photos of those gorgeous orange echinoderms.

As I observed the seastars and took my photos, I couldn’t help thinking about the good fortune of seeing this elusive creature on the first day of the year. Google offers that seastars represent a striving for peace and harmony and the ability to accomplish great things when you set your mind to it. For me, seastars embody flexibility and the superpower that allows them to regenerate when faced with hardship–a certain kind of resilience. All of these seem like qualities our world needs right now.

And to add frosting to the cake, as I walked away from the seastars (the the young girl carefully settled them back into their tidepool habitat), I noticed a couple peering closely under the ledge nearby. He was shining a flashlight, pointing out where a small octopus was hunkered down. I moved closer and he shined the light again so I could see–and to be honest, I wasn’t seeing anything. So I asked, “What am I looking for to see the octopus?” He then pointed out the eye and the way the octopus was wrapped around the ledge. Then I could see that expertly camouflaged creature–even if it wasn’t in a position to be photographed! Sometimes you just have to look with your eyes and snap that memory into your mind–and maybe blog about it to remember it again later!

I’m holding that seastar in my mind and heart as a symbol of good luck on this first day of 2025 and reminding myself of the power of wonder and curiosity…and playfulness. Let’s push back against darkness and strive for peace, empathy, and care as we continue to move through this new year.