Thursday, October 25, 2012

Stories and "Now vs. Then" thoughts

Hello!  Long time, no write/read, huh?

Things are pretty status quo here, just pretty busy...all good things, though!

I'm sitting in Panera working on student evaluations, right now, and though I thought I would get less distracted than I would at home (with other things I need to do), there are so many interesting conversations going on around me that it's a little tricky to focus on the task at hand!  haha.  I am making some headway, though, and therefore, am rewarding myself (and you) with a "blog break."

I have a couple stories to share with you, and then a few thoughts I've been compiling for a while:

During the warmer weather, I wore a lot of skirts, and therefore, a lot of open-toed heels.  When the colder weather first arrived a couple weeks ago, I wore flats for the first time in awhile, and one of my little 6-yr.-old girl students noticed.  She has asked why I always wear high heels, before, and when she caught a glimpse of my flats that day, she exclaimed "You're not wearing high heels today!"

Ever since I adopted Charlie, I have fed him twice a day, rather than leaving lots of food out for him to eat at his leisure.  Recently, however, I decided to do an experiment to see if leaving food out for him continuously would help him to be less naughty.  It seems to have helped a little bit, but he has had a hard time adjusting to the new "meal plan."  My roomie (who is usually the first one up and the first one home in the evening, so usually feeds him at those times) has had to walk a crying Charlie to his food bowl each morning/evening and basically stick his nose in his bowl to remind him that she doesn't need to feed him, because there's already food in the bowl!  It makes sense, since he's been conditioned to be fed at those times of day for his whole life; it's just funny that his nose doesn't help him remember food is available all the time, now!  ☺

I don't think I've ever documented my "music librarian" duties with a picture before and had a great example of a day a work a couple weeks ago:
This is the result of two Nebraska Jazz Orchestra concerts in one week.


I've always remembered answering the "Where do you see yourself in 10 years?" question as a 6th grader, and am often reminded of the ways in which I was both correct and incorrect in answering that question 13 years ago.  In thinking about all that, I compiled the following lists.  Perhaps you can relate...

Misconceptions I had of adult life as a child:
-I'll use cursive writing every day.
-I'd always get to live 5 minutes (or less) from my best friend.
-It will be easy to remember the minor (and some major) events of grade school, junior high, and high school.
-I'll always have the same group of friends.
-I'd be married with kids on the way a year after finishing college.
-All adults are the same as my parents and their friends.
-I'll never want (or have) to go to bed.

True conceptions I had of adult life as a child:
-Going to the doctor alone is even worse than having to go with Mom (or Dad).
-I can have an indoor cat!
-It is fun to have (and organize) all my own things in my own place.
-I will always love to travel.
-Moving and transition is not fun...but meeting new people and making new friends is pretty great!
-I can have brownies for breakfast, if I want.

These are not all-inclusive lists, by any means, but just what has come to mind the last couple of weeks.  Let me know if you have any additions!

Ok - time to get back to work.  Have a lovely weekend!

As warmly as possible,
Kensy

Favorites of the day:
gift cards
the fact that MY BEST FRIEND IS (OFFICIALLY) ENGAGED!!!!!
having friends in lots of places and being able to visit and stay with them



Saturday, October 6, 2012

"Singles Night"

Ooook....so, I had one of the most unique and hilarious experiences ever last night.  It was probably one of those "you had to be there" kind of things, but please allow me to try to share it with you:

Various friends and I have been hearing about/talking about going to the "singles night" a local ballroom/dance hall advertises for the first Friday of every month.  This ballroom is known for it's Sunday country/swing/line dancing nights (which I've gone to and thoroughly enjoyed) that are attended by large quantities of college-age-ish people.  So, when a group of girlfriends and I were planning a "girls night out," we thought checking out this "singles night" would be a good option.  It was advertised on the website as "Singles Night (couples welcome)," and though we didn't know quite what that meant, we just wanted to dance, so decided to try it out.

We arrived about an hour and a half after the event had supposedly kicked off.  The dulcet tones of a Frank Sinatra tune met us at the door...and the person usually checking ID's and taking money did not (this should've been the first red flag).  As we made our way further inside, we were greeted by a 65+ couple sitting at a table with a white table cloth (quite possibly covered in confetti) taking money and putting admission tickets into a raffle ticket cage/drum thing.  We looked to the dance floor, and saw a scene similar to this:
...except add more tables with white table cloths, balloons, and lights only partially dimmed.
 It reminded me of jr. high dances...and this scene from Napoleon Dynamite:

Our only regret is that we didn't capture the moment via picture or video...both of the scene we happened upon and of our own reactions.  Pretty sure we stood there with jaws to the floor in shock/surprise/disbelief for a good 15 seconds before looking to each other and backing away.  We were not able to contain our laughter before making it out the door and back to the car.

After containing ourselves and wiping away the tears of laughter, we went on to find a place downtown where an '80s cover band was playing...and doubled the dance crowd there - haha.  We sure got our dancing in, though, so all was not lost!

Moral of the story (especially for those of you living in Lincoln): Unless you are over the age of 60 and/or want to step into a time warp, stay away from the Pla Mor Ballroom on "Singles Night."

In other news...Go Big Red!

Still laughing,
Kensy

Favorites of the day:
two of my favorite dances at Zumba today! (Jai Ho and The Cupid Shuffle)
Shirley Temples (and cherry Dr. Pepper)
Roasted Red Pepper and Artichoke Tempenade from Trader Joe's
blueberries


Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Another smile (or two), courtesy of some sweet little ones

Hey there!

I have a few kiddo quotes that can't go without sharing:

One of my students was getting ready to play a song titled "Chimes."  He read the title (silently), and said, "Aren't those the green things you put on baked potatoes?"  I wasn't sure where he was going with that, until he said, "Oh wait - those are chives.  haha - that would've been a silly thing to write a song about!"

While driving downtown on our way to the Children's Museum, we passed a man in a suit.  My 3-yr.-old friend said from the backseat, "He looks like church!"

Another "funny" from the same little girl: 
We were eating at Noodles after visiting the museum, and after our waiter asked if everything was "noodletastic" (the kids got a kick out of his word choice), she asked, "Does he have underwear on?"  I wasn't able to keep a straight face in this situation, but composed myself enough to explain that it wasn't necessarily appropriate to discuss such things, especially in public, but that yes, it was probably safe to assume that he did.

I am increasingly amazed by the generous and talented people I am so blessed to have in my life!  This weekend, I did a small (and fun!) favor for a family whose boys I teach, and this is how they thanked me:
It's a homemade Peanut Butter Cup cheesecake with pretzel crust...and it was delivered as a surprise during a long evening of teaching.  (The other half is in my freezer.)  Though their kind words and hugs would've been thanks enough, this wasn't something I was going to turn down...  ☺

Lastly, I have a couple additions to my birthday post:
-I forgot to mention that my actual birthday started with "birthday cake" pancakes made by my roomie before she headed to work in the morning!  I'd been craving pancakes for awhile, and these were "funfetti" ones...and really yummy!
-My brother sent me a very thoughtful b-day package (that arrived after birthday week and weekend...thus prolonging the celebration ☺) that included, among other meaningful things, a capo for my guitar!

I hope this finds you all well...and gearing up for the supposed cold front!

Loving fall,
Kensy

P.S. I don't know what the highlighted background is all about...and I'm not going to retype all this to try to get rid of it.  So...enjoy it, for now!  haha  ☺  Thanks for reading!

P.P.S. I'm potentially in the market for some cowgirl boots.  Any suggestions as to where to get a fairly quality pair at a reasonable price?

Favorites of the day:
new clothes
catching up with old friends (and making new ones)
the song "After All (Holy)" by the David Crowder Band