Elephants

When I was a little girl, my Bubby had a set of wooden elephants that I loved to play with every time I went to her house. I remember sitting in front of the fireplace, stacking and re-stacking them, balancing them one on top of the other in endlessly changing configurations. They were one of my favorite toys, mostly because they were so simply made, and yet so versatile.

Now, those elephants are on top of my dresser at home. Last year when I was visiting my Bubby, she gave them to me. I tried stacking them, but opening and closing my dresser drawers tends to knock them over, so now they're just standing there. I smile every time I see them.

I don't know what it is about the elephants that I like so much. In real life, they are hairy and wrinkly, and ugly, even if they are smart. Next week in class, I'm going to be teaching Orwell's "Shooting and Elephant", and as a pre-reading activity I'm having my students look at several images of elephants. One of them is an abstract piece, which you can see here: http://tomseb1.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/elephant1.jpg

I am in love with this image. There is such beauty and power in it, and the colors are wonderful. I'd love to have this as an extremely large piece of wall art.

I Did, In Fact, Finish

I did, in fact, finish my 30-day photo project back in September, but I never posted the last set of images. Here they are.

Gift

Just Baked

Graded Papers

Sunlight Makes Lens Rainbows

National You-Are-Loved Chalk Message Project

Camera Phone Photo

Storms From The North

Afternoon Rainbow

Hush

This memory
tastes of salt tears and honey
and smells like twilight
in the fall.

This memory
resides in the shadow’s
stark contrast to the white
of her thigh.

This memory -
a keening wail
and the tearing of skin
in mourning anguish.

I have lost the sound of her voice.

I have lost the taste of her kiss.

I have

silence

and memories.

Week 3 of the 30-day Photo Project

Rustic Art


First Hot Cocoa of the Season


Books To Read


Formerly Known As


Morning Fog


Something's Dying


Bedtime

The Second Week of September

This week has really started to be fall-like. We're settling in to the rhythm of school, and my students are taking their first quiz today. Each day has been a bit cooler, and finally last night I put another comforter on the bed. This is one of my favorite times of year, and I am eagerly awaiting the blaze of color on the leaves this year. I think we're going to get a good show.

Finishing Work


Warning: Water Damage in Progress


Six-Kid Randori #6


Memorial Tribute


Teaching In The Library


The Scent of Fall


After the Rain

Updates Galore (w/ images)

It's been a very long time since I've updated, mostly because my summer has been spent trying to stay away from the computer as much as I can. I've enjoyed the break from technology, and instead have spent a lot of time enjoying other hobbies, such as aikido classes, cooking, gardening, and reading. I took very few photos this summer as well, and I've decided to start up my "creative engine" with a 30-day photo project. I'm posting my images daily on facebook and flickr, but I prefer to do a weekly collection on this blog.

Another Brick In The Wall


Curriculum Planning


The Disaster Zone


The Office On Day Two


Mt. Greenwood Cemetery


Structure


Preparation

Firing Range

I had an interesting experience today. I went to a shooting range for the first time, and I discovered that the activity needs a dislike button, at least for me. I tried two different guns, a .38 pistol and a .45 semi-automatic, and didn't particularly enjoy using either one. I learned two very important things. First, I'm not really strong enough to use a gun. The recoil on both of the guns was too powerful for me to enjoy shooting them; every time they kicked back they hurt my hands. Second, I don't particularly enjoy shooting because I find it difficult. I think that, if I'd found a gun that was easy to shoot, I might have liked it better, but I wasn't accurate enough to make slogging through the difficulty of handling the weapon worth it.

On the up side, I know that if I somehow come into contact with or possession of a loaded handgun, I can probably manage to not kill myself with it while I attempt to unload it. That strikes me as a useful skill.

From here on in, I think my shooting will be limited to photographs with cameras, rather than targets with firearms.