Randomness

Today is weird. I left school early yesterday with tummy troubles, slept all afternoon and woke up feeling so much better. I planned for a sub today, Friday, so although I was feeling better, I stayed with the plan. A very long weekend (we have Monday off) is sometimes good for the soul. I really wanted to sleep in this morning but the City of Lacey has decided that some of us who live in the county need new water lines. Last year they tore up the west end of our lakeside development, now it's our turn. The house literally started shaking about 7:45. With all my Haitian EQ sympathy in over-drive, I was out of bed and looking for my bathrobe very quickly. Once I realized it wasn't an earthquake, I thought the construction crew must be right in front of my house but this is not the case. They are a full block away from us! I hope the house will still stand once they start tearing up the road in front of us.

Coffee... Biblegateway.com... Facebook... coffee... plus my funky music. I like channel 934 on cable. It's a new-agey, eastern-music-type channel and suits my moodiness today. While roaming through the Olympian online, I discovered my high school English teacher's obituary. That made me even more moody and rather sad. Mrs. Campbell was tall, wore long gauzy skirts and big funky earrings. She loved books and plays and was the first English teacher who didn't just pound grammar into my head but brought out one book after another, quietly, mysteriously, as though she was sharing secrets about buried treasure that she found in her backyard. I have always been a reader. Every Saturday of my childhood, rain or shine, my mother took my brother and me to the library. We always checked out a dozen books each. We were "required" to read for an hour every night. We read for hours and hours, with flashlights under the covers or hiding in the bathroom, pretending we needed to be there. All that to say, I've always loved to read. But Mrs. Campbell taught me the nuances of literature. She taught me about themes and symbolism, helped me see inside the heart of the protagonist and hate the antagonist. She was a lovely person. Her obit suggests that memorials be made to the "Friends of the Library" which seems so appropriate. She was 80 years old! Really? I have always thought of her as much younger.

Still feeling moody, I went outside and pulled weeds. The sun is shining. I want to go to Lowe's and get mulch but I'm not at school today because I was sick so my conscience won't let me leave until 3 o'clock. After two hours of yard work, I came in and started laundry, turned on the fire in my fabulous fireplace and read blogs. So many people have really interesting, desperate lives. I read all the Haiti blogs I can find and that intensifies my moodiness! Some of those blogs lead me to others where moms are dealing with challenging children, kids with serious, mind-numbing, energy-draining issues. I'm lying on my couch in my living room with my fabulously warm fireplace burning brightly, feeling a bit guilty and so very grateful for my ordinary life. The truth is that I lived 25+ years of drama and I found out that I actually prefer life without drama. I didn't think that could happen but I really enjoy life without drama. I have all I can handle with my junior high school students' drama; I don't need any of my own.

So my big plan for the day is to eat some soup, buy mulch (after 3 o'clock), and thank God all day, all night, for my ordinary, unexciting, rather peaceful life. I'll also thank Him because Mrs. Campbell taught my high school English class, because my tummy feels better, and because the sun is shining.