HoCo II: Still loco

It appears that Cas' school has a homecoming week, as well.  Who knew?  They had a whole week of the same sort of thing that every high school seems to have.  There were dress up days and a football game.  I presume there will be a dance this evening.  We're not going.  

We did go to the game, though.  I think he kind of got a kick out of it.  I met up with him and some of his teacher friends at a restaurant beforehand, then we went to the stadium.  He lives across the street from the campus of his school.  We parked at his place and walked to the game.  He seemed kind of happy to have me with him.  I met some of his kids and some of his colleagues.  

I'm pretty sure the funniest moment happened when a teenage girl saw us and said, "Hi, Mr. Dunlap! Hi, Mrs. Dunlap!" He tried to quickly explain we were dating, not married, and I offered, "Whoa- too soon." Heck, I thought it was funny. 

We watched the first half and the halftime show, then we went to the food truck area past the end zone and got a pair of cookies and a pair of cake pops.  We took those back to his place and watched an episode of Key and Peele he had recorded.  

Both of us seem to have a mountain of work to accomplish today, but we're getting together later for the last show of the night at Alamo Drafthouse.  

Anyhow, enough about all of that.  Check out how great Cas and I look in the helmet he painted up for the last spirit day of the week: 

Smart cookies and lots of PuPu

Somehow, Cas and I are on the same page again.  There have been moments over the past few months when we have both been simultaneously exhausted or had the same desire to stay in at the same time. 

I was completely beat on Saturday.  I had gotten up at a reasonable but weekend friendly hour and done a few things for school, but I got right back into bed for a nap at noon.  I was back up and around in the afternoon, and eventually, I got myself cleaned up and pretty.  Okay, pretty-ish.  I was dressed and my hair looked good.  I hadn't made it to the make up portion of pretty yet.  I looked at some movie times- I still have a pair of Groupons that we have to use before too long.  Exhausted, but trying to overcome it, I texted Cas and asked if he wanted to go to a movie later on.  He called back and said he was feeling overwhelmed and without a moment of free time.  I was actually relieved.  That opened the door for me to say I was exhausted and wanted to take a night off, too.  We agreed, though that we had to see one another before the weekend was over.  Sunday night became our answer. 

So that was last night.  We went out for Chinese food at Jasmine.  I love Jasmine.  I usually go with family, and we always get the Pu Pu platter as an appetizer.  It's pretty great, and as a bonus, they put a little pot of fire in the middle of the serving tray.  Something about all of that appeals to the 12-year-old inside my head.  It spins.  There is fire.  It's called Pu Pu.  It may as well come with a side of awesome sauce. 

We had a pretty great dinner, and we somehow scored three fortune cookies at the end of the meal.  We each opened one, and the fortunes were kind of lame.  We decided that the third cookie was a couple cookie, and we each grabbed a side like a wishbone.  No joke, the cookie said this:

If we do not change our direction, we are likely to end up where we are headed.

We laughed at it.  Then we puzzled over it.  Then we agreed to continue in the general direction toward where we are headed. 

All's fair

I was completely exhausted when my head hit the pillow last night. Yesterday was the kind of useless day at work that makes me wonder why so many people go into teaching. I spent the morning reading instructions aloud and carefully monitoring students as they completed the PSAT. Ugh. That came after a department meeting and before an afternoon of classes full of students who were mentally wiped out from the morning of testing.

In case that sounded fun, you should know that I was thwarted by traffic both to and from work. My commute took over twenty minutes each way, which isn't much for most Dallasites, but when you factor in the distance of 3.2 miles, it's a little stupid. I'll spare the details, but know that it was aggravating. 

When I got home, I really wanted a nap. Instead, I had to clean myself up and get ready for the state fair. Cas and I decided a week ago that yesterday was our day. 

I am so happy that I fought the urge to reschedule. I had thought of telling Cas that our fair trip could wait for the weekend or at least Thursday night, but by the time we got to the gate and started the beeline toward a Fletcher's Corny Dog vendor, I knew we had made the right choice. I was very hungry, and that corn dog went quickly. We walked a bit and found a band called The Killdares, who I had seen before, and who Cas used to go out and watch with his brother Chad many years ago. We sat and listened to a few songs before making our way to. Big Tex. We needed the standard Fair photo before sundown. Here you go: 

After Tex, we went to the food building for two things- a bathroom and some less expensive beer. On the way out, I saw the Shiatsu massage chairs I'd enjoyed a few years back on a fair trip with Danny. I know it must have seemed strange, but I insisted that we sit in them. Totally excellent call. I don't have the $6,000 handy to get my own, but they're worth a try if you see one. 

Following that, we took the Texas Skyway, a gondola-type ride over the midway- for a pair of reasons: we wanted to get to the Ferris wheel, and we wanted to skip a walk through the Midway. Great idea. We managed to get into our very own compartment and we enjoyed this view:

Then, of course, the Texas Star: 

After that, I was pretty satisfied that we had accomplished the important things at this year's fair. We wandered around and found a few more food items, and on the way out the door (and since we still had a handful of tickets), I grabbed Cas by the hand and led him into a short line for one of the midway rides that churns your stomach and flips you upside down. Such a smart move. We could have left the fair without becoming inverted and churned about, but why would we? 

On the way home, we appeared to be having a yawning contest. I may have won. 

It was a really long day, but a very happy one. Now, I have to get ready and go to my last day of work for the week. Tomorrow is a day off so students can go to the fair. I'm so ahead of the curve...

King of the world

Yesterday started with brunch with his mom.  I got up and got myself ready to go.  I put on some nice khaki pants and a cute top with some sandals.  Cas wrote me a quick text about 15 minutes before I was going to leave my house and let me know that the brunch was a jeans-and-t-shirt event.  I decided to change my pants and put on some jeans.  In doing that, I managed to smudge the toenail polish on my left foot, big toe.  I had to fix that before I could leave the house.  I sent Cas a text back trying to explain the situation.  I finally wrote that I may be a little late, "because girl."  He totally got that.

Brunch was a good time, and I got to know a little more about everybody.  I think Cas and I will have to go out with Chad and Becky at some point and do a nice double date.  This came up because Cas and I had a double date coming up with Dan and Laurie.  After brunch was all done, Cas and I went back to our respective homes and got a few things ready to go for the evening.  I made up some margaritas and a nice picnic.  We got back together before 6 and went to meet up with Dan and Laurie.  The four of us went out to Lake Ray Hubbard and got on a boat called the Harbor Lights.  We had a semi-private experience, since there was only one other group on board.  It was a loud, rambunctious group and one member of the party had a crazy laugh.  The first time we heard it, I leaned to Cas and said, "...and your little dog, too!"

We had a great time on the boat and really enjoyed the picnic.  I was very happy to get the four of us together.  I think Cas and Laurie and Dan got to know each other a lot better during the evening.  It was a pretty great night, all in all.  I had a great time, and I think everyone else did, too.

HoCo is loco

It's homecoming week at my school. That means the kids and a fair number of the teachers have been dressing up for spirit days. Each day has it's own theme, and I tried to look the part. I think my best move was at the beginning of the week when we had "Morning Monday," and everyone was supposed to be in pajamas. I wore some regular clothes, but topped that off with a Snuggie. Because I have a Snuggie. The third floor of the school was unnecessarily warm all day, and everyone was walking around in pajamas. It looked like a mental ward had let out and the Thorazine was just starting to wear off.

For reasons beyond my understanding, our big game was on a Thursday this time. I know shared sports facilities in a large district necessitate some creative scheduling, but homecoming should be under the classic Friday Night Lights. 

No matter. I went. The kids won. And for extra flair, I took a date to a high school football game. 

Cas and I left the stadium just as halftime was wrapping up. An extra-long second quarter featuring a big time out and a player on the other team taking a few extra minutes to get up after a tackle made the halftime departure pretty late in the evening. I know he has a lot of work to do, but when Cas suggested we go out and get a drink, I was glad to agree. It was perfect football and patio weather, so after we left the stadium, we drove over to On The Border and ordered up a pair of margaritas and the Ulitmate Queso, which apparently is no longer on the menu at On The Border. They made it anyway. Win. 

I'm skipping the dance. I skip all of the dances. I made that mistake at my last school and wound up seeing more than I bargained for. To avoid close up observation of grinding and twerking, I sit them out. Instead, Cas and I are going with Danny and Laurie on a sunset cruise on Lake Ray Hubbard. Much better plan... 

I'm about to head out for the last day of homecoming week. I doubt any actual instruction will occur today. It just feels pretty unlikely. Either way, happy HoCo, everyone! Enjoy the original art I made for the chilluns' theme: 

Going, going, gone, girl

This morning, I pretty much spent my time doing laundry. Thrilling, I know. It did have one rather pleasant side effect. I scored a really pretty bed-in-a-bag set for my birthday from my cousin Holly. Because most of my sheets are blue and the set is tan, I had to buy new sheets to make the whole thing pretty. I washed the whole lot this morning and made my bed up all pretty. It's really nice. I almost don't want to pull back the covers and climb in, but it's after 1am, so the urge to sleep will soon win out.

After my vigorous laundry session, I got myself cleaned up and ready so Cas and I could go out. We had our Netflix night on Thursday, and we met up for happy hour on Friday, but tonight, I felt I needed to dress up a bit. Netflix night is a t-shirt deal, and happy hour on Friday usually features a school spirit shirt. He had seen me in jeans and a t-shirt too much lately. I can't have it look like I have stopped trying, so I put on a dress and some eyeshadow this evening. I don't want to become the t-shirt slouch who used to dress pretty. 

We went out for dinner and a movie. Pappadeaux and Gone Girl. Pappadeaux was fantastic. We shared an appetizer and an entree, as we often do. I ate all of his mushrooms as I often will. Good food, good drinks and excellent company. We walked out just in time to make it to the Alamo Drafthouse the recommended 30 minutes before the start of our movie. 

I had used a pair of Groupons (because duh, Groupons...) and pre-selected our seats. We walked in, handed the lady at the counter the printed reservation confirmation and were handed a pair of tickets in under a minute. So smooth. 

The movie was as good as the book, and since I read the book over a year ago, a lot of the twists and turns of the plot were surprising (again) to me. Heck of a film. He said on the way to the car that it was a great movie, but it would have been a bad movie for a first date. Nothing like watching a sick relationship blow up on screen to throw the brakes on something new. I agreed, but added that it provided a nice piece of contrast. Nothing like watching a terrible woman and a terrible man to make you appreciate your very nice date all the more. 

That's it for the evening, though. I actually have a lot of work to do tomorrow, but it can wait. I think the best thing for now would be to peel back the corner of this new bedding crawl under the blanket and close my eyes. I'm going going gone (girl) to bed. Good night. 

Every time I step into the building, everybody's hands go up

I have a system.  I developed this entirely in my own head about a year ago.  The question was: how do we get 2,500 newspapers to 2,500 students in an hour? It starts with the idea that they all have to eat lunch, and that they are all in classrooms near the time when they eat.  Find out when they are in the classrooms, and you can get the papers to them while they are contained that way.  Find out who has students at that hour of the day, when those kids eat lunch, and how many kids are in which rooms at what times, and you can start to build the plan.

I start with a listing of teachers.  I determine when they eat, and put that information together with the number of kids they see during that class period.  The papers are counted.  If you are teaching 28 kids and you eat the second of three lunches, you get 28 pre-counted papers handed to you during the first lunch period.  You can give them out whenever you think is the best time.  Your classroom; your call.  The three lunch periods are referred to by letters.  The first one is A, the second is B and the third is C.  My class has B.  We deliver papers to everyone who has B and C lunches during the A, then we eat, then we deliver the remainder in C.

It's remarkably efficient, and it gives the kids on the newspaper staff a great feeling to personally hand their work to teachers in classrooms.  They get into it.  I get into it.  We ended our distribution today with a playing of the DJ Khaled song, All I do is win.

True story.  All I do is win, win, win- no matter what.  Got money on my mind, I can never get enough.  And every time I step into the building, everybody's hands go up.

And they stay there.


I hit up happy hour after work today.  Cas was there before I was, and we stuck around for exactly two beers.  A friend of a friend brought a date.  An aggravating date.  We left- mostly because the lady was a complete drag.  She was honestly doing the best with what she had.  She had her little boobies hanging out and her miserable squeaky voice kicked up to top volume.  She was making her very best effort to put her very best self on display, but honestly, her best self was not all that great.

Cas and I left as still more people were arriving.  We walked across the street to a different place and had a better time without the group.  Rather than sitting across from a lady who was a drag, we sat next to someone who was in drag. I was quite puzzled. This fella wore a wig and dangly earrings. He had on a blouse and a pair of dangerously short Daisy Dukes. He was in full makeup and heeled sandals. What he didn't do was make any effort to talk, walk or sit like a lady. Picture a slender, tall white man in lady clothes with a deep, James Earl Jones voice. When he left, he had the most manly walk you could do in a heeled sandal. It was bizarre. I know I am supposed to refer to people who are physically male but who present themselves as female by feminine pronouns, but this was such a "he" that I can't bring myself to say "she."

Either way, I had Cas with me. I was glad to be with him and not the lady who was a drag or the lady who was a man in drag. Cas is pretty good company.  I felt like I was winning.  I felt like every time I stepped into the building, everybody's hands went up.

And they stayed there.