T-Dawg’s Blog

There’s no way I can Nano Nano tonight. Leaving school for three days to go be in a family wedding in California. No use trying to force it — I’ll just write double the amount when I’m on the plane. I love what this challenge is doing to my life, so I don’t want to spoil it by making it stressful. Off to do sub plans…Ugh!

I started to think I would bomb out on the NaNoWRiMo word count after one day, but I ended up going to one of my favorite little places after school for a mini writing marathon with myself. I started writing a fictional account of what I thought my father was thinking when he was a young Dad on a weekend getaway with my mother in Palm Springs. He was on my mind because today is his birthday and he’s been gone now for  8 years. It’s amazing how the words add up once you get going. So… I am now at 3414 words for the NaNoWriMo contest, and I’m feeling a real sense of accomplishment. 

It’s nice to just go off and write for awhile after work, even though there’s the initial feeling of guilt that I should be doing stuff for my students. Most of what I wrote was babbling stuff, but there were a few lines/paragraphs I know I will return to once I go  back to edit in December. A friend of mine came and sat next to me and started reading what I was writing. “Wow, that’s heavy stuff,” he said. “Go away,” I said, and put my laptop cover down. He walked away shaking his head and laughing.

I have a few friends and one student who are joining me on this crazy quest. I think there will be some days when it will be easier to churn out more than I did today. I’m heading for a family wedding next weekend in California. The family scene always gives me plenty to write about. Look out!

So…. I’ve decided to participate in a writing challenge for the month of November. Hey, it’s only 50,000 words — a piece o’ cake, right? My goal is actually 30,000 — or about 1000 words per day. That’s what several of my students are shooting for as well.

Some of my cohorts who are also doing this challenge already have 2000 words posted! They began writing last night at midnight. I went to bed.

The clocks were set back last night; I have an extra hour… 

Ok, I’m off to write a novel. Hey, this post alone just gave me  96 words!

   When I lived year-round on the Cape, August was the most awful month of the year. All of us who worked the season had a condition we called August-itis which meant we were tired, cranky, fed up with the crowds, and ready for the end of Labor Day Weekend. However, those of us working in restaurants also knew it was the time we would make most of our money, so we tried to suck it up and be nice to the White-Zinfandel-drinking-”Can-I-have some-more-rolls,” cheap tippers who always arrived early to secure a great seat overlooking the water and then parked themselves there for hours while the sun went down and their checks stayed stagnant. We needed to turn those tables to make some serious cash, and the later diners were always much more generous with their wallets. Still, we bit our tongues and filled their water glasses for the eighth time while fondling the check holder and asking, “Are you all set with this?” 

At night, we partied. With our pockets full of fat bundles of twenties, we paraded down the main drag in our black pants and white shirts with loosened ties, looking for fun. It was easy to find, and because our nights started so late, we often saw the sun brightening the bay on an early bike ride home from the evening’s festivities. Then we slept and did it all over again the next night.

Now I’m a teacher and my favorite month is August (until the end when school starts). I suck the marrow out of every day, floating in lakes or the sea and staying up late to see the whole Red Sox game instead of just the first four innings. Tomatoes, corn, lobster, fresh mozzarella, basil, blueberries — these are the foods of August that grace our tables every evening.  Reading is a daily activity, not something that involves stolen moments or required texts. And rain is just a good excuse to play on the computer all day — no problem! 

August may be referred to negatively as “the dog days,” but my dogs love it because I’m home a lot. They’re going on walks and swimming in rivers. At night they bark at squirrels from the front porch and chew bones on the couch because it’s summer and they can do whatever they want. Yeah, we can do whatever we want…

Admittedly, I am playing with some new Edublogs image improvements — and trying to do them with my Mac. These are rock sculptures that tourists come along and add to. It’s all visible from the “Marginal Way” path leading to Perkins Cove. 

Wow, I have really been a blog-slacker. There’s a movement called “Slow-blogging” — but I have now put a face on “Slack-blogging!” Guess that’s what happens to a teacher having too much fun in the summer… Anyway, here’s one  of the places I’ve found quite relaxing: Ogunquit, Maine. Great waves, lobster, sand, and backyards. Can’t wait to go back someday…

This week our “Day in a Sentence” friends were asked to boil down their week into one “NIGHT” in a sentence. Here’s a sample of what we do when work ends and the night begins…

Ken saw the light…

Lost in a sea of darkness
life stood still,
as still as all the stars set in the sky -
until among those stars I found but one,
the sky alight then, brilliant now
and life’s begun.  

Anne knows how to relax after work…

Night is falling earlier now as daylight saving has finished and so, when I come home from school, I first have a cup of coffee, read the paper and before night falls, walk around my garden to see any new flowers in bloom but then it is usually time to get the tea and think about my school day tomorrow.

Mathew did what our students think all teachers do!

When the students go, I pull out my bed and curl up in the corner of my classroom to go to sleep, refreshed and ready by morning for another day of instruction.

Elizabeth had her thoughts in the trees…

Last night the storm blew in darkening the mountains around my home, as the last glimmer of sun shone on the row of palm trees along our avenue, their fronds waving and dancing in the breeze like a series of aging Rockettes.

Shaun left it all behind…

End of term, relief and exhaustion set in; for once I get home and leave my laptop closed, quiet, like my classroom.

Art experienced some solitude…

At night this week I am coming home to a quiet house, waiting for my family to return from their Spring break, and writing a poem a day for NaPoWriMo.

Sara had an olfactory experience… 

The days lengthen, the sunsets streak orange and pink across the wide river sky, and the smell of onion grass tickles my nose; it is spring.

Delaine  is on a cycle…

After leaving school around 4, I run errands, fix dinner, watch a little recorded TV, fall into bed, and rest up for the next day so I can do it all over again.

Mary  is ready to get her hands dirty…

While perusing the garden before dusk looking for signs of rebirth I happened upon a small ball that had to be tossed to Rose.

 Bonnie is making the most out of her evenings….

I’m really a morning person, loving the day when it’s fresh and new, but as we finally move to the spring and summer, the night opens wonderful possibilities, reminding me of childhood.
Just a walk, in a t shirt, shorts and sandals and I’m in heaven.

How fun to watch the Red Sox win their opener from my couch, with a friend, on a school-day afternoon.

Thank you to all of you who participated this week. It was really cool to receive all of your thoughts about the night… Cheers! Tina

Welcome to the weekly “Day in a Sentence” activity that Kevin usually hosts on his blog Kevin’s Meandering Mind

Hi! This week, while filling in for Kevin, I’m going to mix it up a little and ask you to boil down your week to one “Night in a Sentence.” Many of us work hard during the day, but what happens after we leave our jobs? Conjure up a sentence and let it rip. I’m looking forward to your masterpieces! (You can leave them in the “response” spot on this blog.)

Slice of Life Story Challenge: Day #31

I’ve always wanted to be a writer. At “Career Day” in 3rd grade, my best friend, Ginger, and I stood up and declared that I would write the books and she would illustrate them. We were convinced that our future was in the bag.

I didn’t waver and went on to major in creative writing in college.  Years (and a lot of fun) later, I landed a job as a photojournalist. The pay was so horrible that I had to work nights in a fancy restaurant to support my writing habit. Then ten more years passed and I started thinking I should go for my masters degree and  get a “real” job, so I became an English teacher and my own writing was relegated to weekend journaling when I bothered to make the time for it.

This past month of writing “Slices” has made me feel like a writer again. It has given the month of March (which I usually hate!) a purpose, and I have spent many a day pondering what “slice” would eventually materialize. I have turned my introspection toward writing and made it less about lamenting the cold and ice. And somehow, during that time, all the snow melted and the sun came out. And I made some new connections…

Thank you, TwoWritingTeachers, for helping me navigate the transition from winter to spring. Thank you to all of the writers who put their thoughts and comments out there every day in March. I am sorry to see it end. I am proud that I did it. And I am humbled by the community of writers who accompanied me on this beautiful journey.

Peace out, T-Dawg

Slice of Life Story Challenge: Day #30

     I can’t really “slice” about what’s on my mind right now. Even though it has all those juicy elements — poignancy, melancholy, bittersweetness, and hope — it’s just too private to go into in this way. So, I’ll just say that on the drive home I noticed how the birches in March are so much whiter than they are any other time of the year. And that I love what I love, just like the poet Mary Oliver said I should. The door will always be open. That’s what I heard. That’s what I’ll remember…