A new post

It's been so long! I really haven't been on the internet (except 10 min.) since I've last posted. Isn't that awful? How does one live without it? And it really doesn't get easier with time. So here are a few rambling thoughts that have/are running through my head:
-I remember when we were kids, my sisters and I played a joke on one of my dad's employees. I'm sure he had it coming. We put a freshly cut chicken head (my mom's doing) on the visor of his work truck knowing that on his ride home he would be facing the sun and therfore pulling the visor down. I don't actually remember the exact details but I still remember the electrifying fear as he slowly pulled out of the driveway. I don't really remember what happened after that because I quickly ran to my bedroom and hid under the bed. I don't know what he did in return either.
-I am really pining for the summer. I keep remember the summer as being a beautiful rich glorious time of the year. To make myself feel better I try to convince myself that I'm probably over doing it and that the summers really aren't all that great. The only problem is that I was just looking through my pictures of this past summer and, oh my, they really do look as good as I'm imagining.
-One bad thing about the warmer weather is that all the poop in the chicken coop will thaw and stink. Who cares... it's good manure.
-I finished my two books that I got for Christmas. The one by Mark Haddon (A Spot of Bother) was a good one again. I didn't enjoy it as much as his first book but he is so good at bringing his readers into the world of his characters. The second book was sooooo satisfying to read. I'm not one for a terribly sad book. I'd rather not be depressed when I'm finished but this one was such a good heart wrencher. It's called Lullabies for little Criminals. It is one of the Canada Reads picks. Oh, I really loved it and can't wait to lend it to someone so that we can talk about it. Listening to the Canada Reads debates this week hasn't really been that great for me so far this week.
-Work has been shitty.
-All I want to do this summer is immerse myself into the garden (or possible gardens?), the animals and the beach. Do you think it will happen? Here's a question: Can we (anyone) afford to be so liesure if it is something that makes us so alive? Or is it more that we can't afford not to be this liesure? I hate that question because I agree with both. I think we can't afford to not live life in a full way but at the same time.... we literally can't afford ($$) to live liesurly. And I don't want to live in the middle either.
-I haven't been to my night class in two weeks. One week was a snow day and the next was reading week. I miss it but haven't done any reading or preparing.
-At work yesterday, I had to unload a truck. The driver was new at the job and didn't know how to use the machines that well so while I was unloading it he was making small talk with me. I think he was a new immigrant from Europe somewhere. His broken English sounded like it had a Russian accent (or something similar). When he found out that I had finished school and was hoping to go to school again he started saying something. At first I didn't really understand him but it sounded like he was trying to translate a proverb from his language: "In life you have friend and you have enemy. And you only have one real friend. That is book. Friends come and they go but you always have book. That is your only real friend." So how do you like that?!
-Here's my list of plants to go in the veggie garden so far:
tomatoes
peppers
corn
potatoes
onions
beans (pole and bush)
cucumbers (some for pickles too)
carrots
brocolli
sunflowers
zinnias
marigolds
tall asters
Maybe: cantaloupe, pumpkins, squash
I can't remember if I'm missing anything. I'm trying to graph out my garden.
-The next book I'm going to read (suggestion of Sarah): The Glass Castle

That's it for now. Thanks for reading!!

Kids

Hey all. For my class tonight I am doing my presentation on the body and spirituality. I really like that topic and. I'm surprised by how much I've looked into this in the past. As I was brainstorming for ideas, past research for other papers kept popping up in my mind that I had used for past papers. Isn't that neat how we are drawn to things over and over? Unfortunately, the procrastination in me has taken over and although I love the topic, I haven't done near enough research. I've really blown it this time. I don't even have an outline for what I'm going to present tonight. And it's just me for 75 min! Yikes. Good thing I also know how to talk.
Before I get to doing some essential reading for tonight, I thought I would just share with you a bit and get some advice.
I have a bit of a lead on a summer job (don't worry, I will keep the part time job that I'm at). Remember Sheilah from a few posts back? Well, She runs this camp (how, I don't know) for kids in crisis. This woman has such huge and (to me) unrealistic dreams and hopes. I sometimes wonder if we live in the same world since a lot her projects seem impossible to me but the woman has faith... and really good skills at getting public money. She is a psychotherapist and got her masters at the same school I did. We've been talking and we have decided to do a trade. I need experience, she needs help. In the summer she can get a grant to pay me for being an assistant manager of the camp. Up until then, we will swap hour for hour of volunteer work to mentoring. She is going to help me put together a proposal to make this camp thing a hands on thesis (so that I can get my honours degree) while I help her out with the farm. The camp is a very holistic camp that tries to give kids a place where they feel like they belong. Animals don't judge kids. They give kids confidence and adventure. The thing is, someone needs to shovel the animals' shit. That's where I fit in. This week I spent 2 hours cleaning out horse stalls and I will probably continue to do this every week. For March break we will have camp for a small number of kids (5-10) and I will use that week to see if this is something I can do for the summer. I don't know exactly what a whole day at camp looks like but I know they have a part of the day called sharing circle where they open up more and this is the time that I will get more of the experience that I need. Something that I will be taking on is two classes that I was hoping I could get all of your suggestions on. We want to teach kids healthly living and lifestyles so I will be putting together a type of cooking class (simplified but the basics) and a gardening thing. We've got lots of horse manure and compost. I love gardening and so this summer Sheila and I want to start a garden. What are some really good plants for kids to grow. We need things that are fun, pretty easy and hopefully edible. (I can't wait to have kids that will weed gardens for me!!) I would love to be able to use the food that we grow in the lunches that we have to provide. And what are some kitchen things to do with kids. I don't know how extensive the kitchen is or what kind of supplies we will have but I want to help the kids learn about healthy food. I might be in way over my head. Kids hate eating healthy, don't they? How do I involve kids in learning what they are eatinig and enjoying it. Most of these kids are going to come from poorer backgrounds with troubled parents. I don't really know the first thing about kids so if anyone has any suggestions, websites, cautions etc. please please send them over. by the way... I'm kind of getting excited about this.