Random Musings

This Friday I have my dry run for the Board of Elections Staff, so I'm having to kick my prep into a higher gear this week. I've quit counting how many years I've taught Help Table, but it's enough that a part of me doesn't want to open my binder. I can only imagine how the training team must feel! Thankfully I have two classes to assist before I actually teach a class, so that will give me a little more time to fine-tune and get ready.  We're pushing for time again this cycle, so I have to remind myself to not elaborate but hit the points and keep moving.  I've yet to fit everything into the time slot while I'm practicing. The situation with Ukraine is just as dire today as it was the day of the invasion. My heart is so heavy for everyone involved - the Ukranians who woke up and found themselves at war; the many Russian soldiers who don't want to be there; those trying to get to safety; those in Ukraine picking up weapons for the first time; the Rus...

 Once you've grown up on or near a farm, your view on gardens is very different from that of a modern gardener. Here's some of the viewpoints I've seen the last few years that have made me stop and think. 1.  Sustainable living/front yard gardening - these gardens are in subdivisions, where people who have 1/2 an acre or less have literally made their entire landscaping some form of gardening.  some people in this camp view the current idea of landscaping for beauty as wasteful.  Others do a mixture of both. My biggest objection to that is the amount of weeding and care it would take to have a garden/yard look presentable to everyone driving by is immense.  A few summers ago when our lawn mower tore up in the summer and it took them a month to fix it, I had two different people in our area contact us wanting to know why we hadn't cut our grass or asking if Bobby was sick.  Appreciate their caring, but I know I would get a lot of advice and feedback if I did...

 This weekend most of our family gathered for two celebrations.  One of the many things I enjoyed was a little bit of time with my great niece Lucy. It's been a year and a half since I had seen her in person, which is a long time for a three year old! She is SO tall, which her Mom is average height and her Dad is tall, so that's not a huge surprise. My sister who teaches a K5/1st grade class commented that she was the same height as some of her students.  And she has the longest eyelashes. Mine might be as thick as hers, but are nowhere near as long. We were all very pleased at how well she did adapting to new surroundings and strange people. The first morning was a little tough for her, but once we got past that, she stayed calm. My sister-in-law has worked with many autistic children in school, and she was extremely pleased and surprised with how well Lucy did. I was surprised and pleased to see that her finger dexterity has improved since the last time I saw her. One t...