Lesson plans again

One thing that I thought I would never have to do again when I retired was writ ting lesson plans. So, now that I am teaching 3 classes, Monday is my lesson plan day. It is 3:15 pm, and I am typing my plans for the week. Unfortunately for me, I teach 3 different classes, so each one requires a different plan. I am lucky that in two of the classes, there is a good textbook which I can follow and embellish a bit. The third class, vocabulary improvement has a text also, but so far, I am not as nutty about the book.
We had a white Easter. It is melting away slowly, but today, the snow remains. I got through the holiday. I went to yoga, and there was a sub, but it was a good class anyway. We had a dinner, but it wasn't the same without my mother. Easter was her favorite holiday, and she made a big dinner, etc. When she got older, I gave the dinner. So, we had ribs--not ham-- and Polish sausage yesterday. My husband and I went to a Polish grocery store in Mt Prospect to buy the sausage, and we also got some coleslaw, which was a bit like the cole slaw that my grandmother made. For some reason, I got very tired. Anyway, I was glad that I made it through the day.

Happy Spring

Isn't March 21 the first day of spring? By the way, these are color pictures. I think we got 6 inches. Today, the sun is bright, but the snow remains.

More snow

Yes, there is a winter storm warning starting around midnight tonight. Over 6 inches are expected and the storm is expected to last all day tomorrow. oh poo.
And today is the first day of spring.
I have been using the pedometer all week and I have learned that I have been spending too much time sitting on my behind. I am walking my beautiful dog everyday. She loves it.
School is back in session and I had to drop several students--one of which showed up today, with all his work completed. He had been sick--so I reinstated him, and that requires paperwork. Oh well.
My new class--vocabulary improvement is interesting--5 people who want to learn more words. Two are Ukrainian ladies, 3 are native speakers. I do love Dictionary.com and Thesaurus .com.
That's all folks.

Opera Review

The performance of Eugine Onegin was wonderful! Everything worked so well--a good story, good music, well staged with good singing and acting. The libretto, based on a poem by Pushkin, is believable, unlike most opera plots. The characters behave like real people and the story made sense to me. Eugene Onegnin is a despicable person, he kills his best friend in a duel in the 2nd act, and in the end, loses the girl--which he deserved. I liked the sets, which were very minimal and depended on effective lighting. The one thing that wasn't minimal were the costumes. That made the staging more believe able. So, this was a performance that I really enjoyed. The libretto was translated and projected on the proscenium. I think this is the one thing that has made attending opera more interesting for me. In the 1970's when I had a subscription, many times the operas were boring, and my attention wandered. Maybe since I am older, I really appreciated the performance so much more.
My lesson plans for next week are completed, I am ready for my new class. I accomplished everything on my "to do" list for my week off.
Weather wise--this weekend isn't spring, but it isn't winter either.

Just an update

It seem that spring is in the air. At the Botanic garden, I did a program at the Japanese garden--Sansho-En to a group of 2nd graders. This is my favorite program at the garden. The students were delightful and very well prepared. We collected a list of nouns and verbs to be used in writing a poem, and they could do this without prompting from me or their teacher. It is just amazing what good teaching and high expectations can accomplish. The sun was bright, and although the plants were still dormant( the students knew what this meant), the snow was melting from the dry garden, and there was a feeling of seasonal change.
Tonight I am going to see Eugene Onegin by Tchaikovsky at the Lyric Opera. My old friend, Bette, invited my to join her, and of course I said yes. This is an opera that I have never seen before and I am looking forward to it. It got great reviews in the Chicago papers. And best of all, David is playing it at Tanglewood this summer (featuring Renee Fleming).
I have a new pedometer. I am still working on getting it to record my steps correctly--like putting it at the right place on my body. I finally tested it by walking around the block--with Alma--and counting steps. It does work. I was hoping the the walking at the Botanic would record--but no.
My syllabus for my 8 week class in complete and e mailed into the division office--before the class begins! A first for me.
So now, I will clean up my desk.

Spring Break

Yes, it is called spring break, but the weather is certainly not springlike. With the exception of the sun, it could be any wintry day.
I went to the gym today, and the street in front of the club was filled with trailers for a movie that is filming in Evanston. It is called Baby on Board, and other than that I know nothing about it. I did walk by the actor's trailers, and didn't recognize any of the names. They are filming a scene at a restaurant called Vat 17--which I have heard has excellent corned beef sandwiches. Someone said that they rival those at the Carnegie Deli in New York.
I have a list of things to do this week on my desk and I have to finish them. So I have a bit of panic about me. Today is the syllabus for the vocabulary improvement class. I am worried about this class, but after asking a lot of questions and reading the textbook, I do have a good idea about how I want to proceed. Teaching a new class is always a challenge. The second time through is so much easier.
My weight is still not moving down. I really want to be done with it and reach goal by the end of the month.

No more winter...please

Yes, spring has arrived-- meteorological spring--arrived on March 1. Yet we have another cloudy cold day. The piles of snow are receding, exposing some soggy grass. It is crusty with grainy dirt, small twigs and other remnants of stuff from the air. And there are predictions of more snow and cold for tomorrow. So, one small request--no more winter weather, please.