The Women: SOL24 Day 24
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I’m a reader. Well…maybe not a refined reader. Like many readers, I read to escape, to learn, to experience time and history from others’ points to view. I read lots of junk–often intense mysteries and crime novels–maybe as a counter balance to all of the professional reading I do.
I’ve also read my share of war novels, many set in World War II, and to be honest, lately I’ve been avoiding that particular genre. But when I saw that Kristin Hannah had written a new novel set in the Vietnam war with a focus on women who had served, I was interested. I’m trying not to buy every new book that piques my interest, more out of space consideration than monetary expenditure. So I went onto Libby (the online library reserve system for checking out e-books) and put a hold on The Women. In the meantime I continued reading a variety of novels, finishing one last weekend.
And then earlier this week, my hold came up. I downloaded The Women onto my kindle and started reading it midweek. It felt a little stilted at the beginning–stiff, maybe even cliche, but it was set in San Diego (Coronado to be specific) and who doesn’t love a book that refers to places you know well?
It was when the book took a deep dive into the Vietnam experience of nurses “in country” (meaning in Vietnam) that the book turned for me. The characters became multi-dimensional and I became invested. I enjoyed the focus on a women’s experience and the struggles returning home to a time and place that was rejecting the war and those who served…and also finding, even within veterans’ groups and services, that women’s service was barely acknowledged if it was acknowledged at all.
If you have read Hannah’s other novels, you’ll recognize her style and likely enjoy this one too. I appreciated the research and attention to detail in this book and was clearly invested enough that I spent too much of my day reading today, finishing the book this afternoon.
If you’re looking for a sometime’s emotional read in a historical fiction novel about the Vietnam war, pick up The Women. I was engrossed–makes me think about my dad and all the other Vietnam war vets who returned from service, whether or not they were in actual combat on the ground in Vietnam, to mixed feelings about their worth as soldiers in a war that seemed never-ending. I feel like I’ve still got some thinking to do on this one.
Quirky Roadside Attraction: SOL24 Day 23
The drive to and from Palm Springs from San Diego is not a particularly pleasant one. One thing you can always count on is traffic–especially through the Riverside area. It is one of the reasons we decided to extend the trip and not drive home on Friday evening.
So today we spent the day in Joshua Tree National Park (more on that tomorrow) and got lucky enough to escape most of the weather (high winds and rain) forecasted for Palm Springs today midday.
Anticipating a not-so-fun drive home today, we decided that we HAD to stop at the quirky roadside attraction not far from Palm Springs–the Cabazon Dinosaurs. We have visited the attraction before, but who wouldn’t want to stop and take photos of a 150 foot long hot pink apatosaurus (formerly known as brontosaurus) and a 65 foot tall T-Rex dressed in a tux?
We’ve learned through the grapevine (and now through personal experience) that the dinosaurs are palnted differently during different seasons. The last time we saw the dinosaurs T-Rex was wearing a bunny suit (in anticipation of Easter, I think) and our son reported them decked out in Christmas colors when they visited Palm Springs in December.
We had relished the 85 degree days during my conference in Palm Springs and enjoyed the day in the mid-60s and sunny up in the high desert of Joshua Tree. As we drove back down from 5000 feet toward sea level we noticed the clouds gathered in a huge pile over the mountains that surround Palm Springs and water splatters began to hit the car window. Suddenly the winds increased and the rain poured as we turned off onto the 10 freeway.
Should we stop to the see the dinos in the pouring rain?
We decided we’d at least pull off the freeway and take a look. Maybe the rain would stop in a couple of minutes.
Instead of being pelted by rain, we were treated to a rainbow. Definitely made that drive home a little bit better! Moral of the story: make time for silly fun–the rewards will be many!
What quirky roadside attractions have you visited? Any that you would recommend to others?
12345: SOL24 Day 22
We’re not fancy people. We seldom go out to an extravagant dinner and really splurge on the experience. Don’t get me wrong, we eat out our fair share, but we’re more likely to grab In and Out Burger after a beach walk or frequent the tasty but not too expensive local Mexican place for taquitos or burritos.
But tonight, after a couple of days at a conference in Palm Springs, we decided to go out. Geoff had traveled with me, exploring the airplane museum while I conferenced today. It’s our last evening here and this town is full to the brim with conference goers, spring breakers, and retired folks who enjoy the desert when it’s not too hot. I suggested a reservation, hoping I wouldn’t have to make the dinner decision. And I hit the jackpot!
Apparently he skimmed the Italian restaurants in the area (last night was Mexican dinner with colleagues from my school district) and made a reservation at the only one who took reservations. Acknowledging it might be pricey but that neither of us had eaten lunch, and that the restaurant was a quick 3 minute walk from out hotel, we decided that we deserved a high end dinner.
Douglas was an excellent server who let us know right away that the owner was also the chef and that the recipes had been handed down from her grandmother, the pasta was made in house, and that everything would be delicious. Douglas was right! We started with a glass of wine, followed by a wonderful caprese salad to share. I had a lovely pasta entree whose name I don’t remember…but was fresh and so yummy. And of course, we had to top it off with some gelato for dessert.
The real kicker was the price–brace yourself, it was no bargain–but the total was such a unlikely and serendipitous number: 12345! (In monetary terms it was $123.45). But how often does that happen? Douglas encouraged us to head off to the casino in town since surely it was omen of good luck. We declined that suggestion–instead we are hoping that the Megamillion and Powerball lottery will come in for us! But if it doesn’t, we had a lovely dinner on a warm, beautiful Palm Springs March evening. Seems we can’t really lose today.
When in Palm Springs: SOL24 Day 21
Hollywood icon
looming larger than life, still
seeking perfect light
Rich Lens of Attention: SOL24 Day 20
I love to take photos–and I take and post photos daily and have more more than 12 years. Some days and weeks I find myself in the doldrums where it seems like I have taken that same photo again and again. Sometimes the photo I see with my eyes just doesn’t come out of my camera no matter how hard I try.
What I love about photography is that it forces me to slow down and pay attention to the moment. I find myself paying attention to shadows, textures, colors, the interplay of light and dark…and then I notice sounds and smells and find myself wanting to run my fingers over a surface that looks bumpy or smooth or somehow different that I expect.
I came across this Mary Oliver poem the other day while scrolling my Instagram…and kept returning to it until finally I just took a screen shot so I could reread it over and over and over again.
In some ways this poem expresses how I feel about taking photos. Through my camera my aim is to be that rich lens of attention that allows me to take in the world, learning along the way. Breathing in and breathing out, slowing down, taking time, and looking with all my senses as I capture an aspect of my experience with a click of the shutter.
Welcome Spring! SOL24 Day 19
If you want to know when it’s spring, don’t bother with a calendar, just walk into my first grade classroom. The energy is palpable. Those babies that entered the classroom at the end of last summer are growing into knowledgeable and sassy almost second graders. They are readers and writers and fact collectors extraordinaire (although fact-checking is not yet in their realm of expertise). So what do you do at the end of conference week when it feels like the classroom is fitting like last year’s t-shirt–way too tight? Head out to the garden…with iPads in hand!
We’d been out in the garden with our notebooks earlier in the week–observing carefully in the spirit of Jane Goodall. So on Friday I asked students to go back to the place where they observed earlier in the week and find three photos to take. I reminded them of the photography techniques we had learned and set them loose to explore. There was the insect on the screen that first caught students’ attention. The lizard almost created a need for crowd control as these little paparazzi swarmed the cold-blooded sunbathers against the brick wall. They photographed strawberries, broccoli, fruit tree flowers, aloe, and who knows what else.
Yesterday, we studied the poem, Things to do if you are Rain by Elaine Magliaro. We noticed her action words (polka-dot sidewalks, freckle windowpanes…) and did not miss the metaphor of the rain tap dancing on the rooftop. After choosing one of their photos as the subject, they set off to write their own Things to do… poems. And since it’s mid March, I asked them to include three things in their poems: action, a comparison, and some metaphorical thinking.
We ran out of time…which I should say was intentional planning on my part. It wasn’t, but I am reminded of the value of time away from a draft if you want the young writer to really take another look and make the piece better. Using my poem as an example, we read it carefully, looking for the action, the comparison, and the metaphorical thinking. Then they went back to their drafts to finish them and to make them better. And they did.
O took one of those infamous lizard photos and wrote a short but sweet piece.
Things to do if you are a Lizard
Climb up walls like a snake.
Climb up on a sun on a bright green stem.
Run fast, fast, fast, fast!
Grow back your tail.
G found a flower in one of the garden beds, stretching a bit further with her words.
Things to do if you are a Flower
Reach for the sun
get picked into a bouquet
Blossom in spring
Be in a wedding and shine like the sun
Enjoy your life
Share life and health and happiness
Shine like the bright yellow sun
Tap dance in the breeze like a bird’s chirp is music
Send invitations to animals far and wide
to pollinate and see you bloom into
the prettiest flower
F is one of those quick-to-get-done students and thought he had finished yesterday. Today’s mini lesson was the perfect nudge to get him to push himself a bit further–although there’s still some room for growth.
Things to do if you are a Strawberry
Be red and shiny.
Let yourself grow!
Don’t let bugs eat you!
Have a big family that lives on a big bush.
Your petals help you grow and get washed by the rain.
The strawberries are like red poinsettia flowers.
Red strawberries shine like rubies.
Red roses are like ripe strawberries.
And of course, I had to get in on the fun!
Things to do if you are a Yellow Broccoli Flower
Shoot towards the bright blue sky
Soak up the sun in your bright yellow flowers
Sway in the breeze like you’re dancing the tango
Send invitations to the pollinators: Party at Broccoli’s house–all are welcome
Shed your petals and become part of a child’s healthy dinner
As I finish this post, the spring equinox announces that spring has sprung. Welcome Spring! (Although the first graders have been feeling your presence all month!)
What’s Your Object? SOL24 Day 18
Writing everyday means looking for an idea for writing every day. I get a number of email newsletters about assorted topics that pique my interest. Today, it was the Art of Noticing newsletter that I was drawn to as I read the subject line, Objects Quarterly. To be honest I haven’t really read through it yet, just skimmed over the topics such as A History of Women in 101 Objects (which is book that I have not read). But as I skimmed that I started thinking about the role of objects in a teacher’s life.
I’m one of those teachers who still uses a traditional paper plan book. You know, the ones with plain brown or blue covers that has each week laid out with the spiral binding in the middle. For many years my plan books were just that, plain, unassuming…sometimes I wrote the year across the front (often once the year was over). Then at some point, my teaching partner and I started to put a sticker on each year that included the year, our names, and an image that indicated the overarching theme of our year. But recently, I started putting stickers on my plan book. Not just one here or there, but wall to wall stickers both front and back.
Where do I get these stickers, you might ask? And what significance do they have? Those are great questions. Some of the stickers are USvsHate stickers, student messaging about equity and inclusion. I’ve received them as a teacher who has submitted student messaging to the USvsHate contest. I’ve even had students whose messaging was selected as winning. And my son–the one who is an artist–designs and produces stickers as “swag” that he sends out with products he ships (he also sends his mom some stickers–and those are featured prominently). Now, I collect stickers from wherever I can. Sometimes the stickers are promotional, like the ones I got from the Rainbow sandals store. Some are from environmental organizations… The list goes on.
I love these stickers on my plan book. When I open it each morning my eyes skim over the images and it makes me smile. When my student gave me (and all her classmates) stickers last week, I carefully found a place for them on my plan book. One of my students noticed the plan book cover and said–hey, where did you get that sticker book? And so I had to show off the covers. (They never see the cover since I keep it opened to the week on a table most days.)
There was a time when my plan book mostly stayed at school, but since the pandemic I find myself taking it back and forth with me from school to home each day. Honestly, it is more of a security blanket since there are many days when I change almost everything that is written in it. But maybe that is what objects are all about–symbols of thinking and planning and preparation with my stickers reminding me of the value of creativity, social justice, nature, and whimsy.
If you were to write about an object in your professional life, what would it be? What is its significance? How do you personalize it?
6 Word Photoessay: SOL24 Day 17
On this day that celebrates all things green, my backyard beckoned. I headed out with my camera, zoomed in close, taking delight in evidence of spring as the days lengthen and temperatures warm.
Nature’s mathematical miracles spiraling toward spring
Thinking Through My Lens 