madameblogalot

I just finished reading Tom Sawyer today. I have been having my daughter do some writing activities over the novel, which she finished reading about two weeks ago. So I thought I’d better finish it. She said she did not enjoy it that much. She went on to say that she doesn’t like any book I make her read for school. That both this book and Tuck Everlasting would probably have been more enjoyable if it was not “required” reading.

I guess I know how she feels. I did not really enjoy most of the things we were required to read in school. The only one I remember enjoying is To Kill A Mockingbird. And I think Tom Sawyer was a little different than anything she has read before. I know it is good for her to stretch herself, even if she doesn’t realize it now!

As my son is putting together his Christmas list he mentioned wanting an Ed Hardy shirt. I hadn’t heard of Ed Hardy, so I asked what it is. He said it just has some cool artwork on it. Hm, now I was not expecting the Mona Lisa or Starry Starry Night, but neither was I expecting tattoo art!!

I looked up Ed Hardy clothing and Hardy is a well known tattoo artist. “Don Ed Hardy is known as ‘the godfather of modern tattoo’, for his sophistication, depth and sense of experimentation. California native Don Ed Hardy is recognized around the world for his technical brilliance and mesmerizing imagery. ”

I guess it could have been worse. I guess he could have asked for a tattoo.

No, this is not a post about differing political parties! This last Sunday, my husband brought up some facts about “left brained” people and “right brained” people. He started with a little experiment. He said to clasp our hands together. Then we were to look down and see which thumb was on top. Which ever was on top, the opposite side of our brain is the one we tended to use more. Then he read a list of traits exhibited by the “lefties” and the “righties”. The right brains tend to have great ideas, tend to see the big picture, also get distracted and drop the ball on these great ideas. They seem less organized. They can be perceived by the lefties as being less smart. There were many others that he read, but I knew as he read that he was describing himself. The leftties are the opposite. Like lists, can’t come up with creative ideas, but can take a righties idea and follow through with it. Not as easily distracted. Seen as more organized, etc. The lady next to me asked my husband if he knew what I am. Based on the lists, he knew he is a rightie and I am a leftie. The thumb experiment did not really work for every one, but based on the lists, it was easier to tell which side of the brain one tends to rely on more often.

This weekend I am taking my son to the play Frost vs. Nixon. It is a reenactment of the televised interview between David Frost and Richard Nixon. I am looking forward to it for a few reasons. I don’t know much about the Watergate scandal; it’s something I’ve never really understood too well. My son loves history and I think this will be the kind of show he will like. And of course, spending time with my son is good.

But in preparing to see this show, I think I missed a great opportunity. There is a study guide available. I read through it when I first ordered the tickets, but decided I just would not have time to go through it with my son since he now attends public school, though we would both enjoy the study. I did think about printing it out and letting him read through it before and/or after the show. I think it will help answer some questions and help to understand that era better.

But I had the perfect opportunity to use this guide and to spend the time studying with my son while he was out of school for two and a half weeks due to Hurricane Ike. I did have him do some studying every day he was home, but this would have been the perfect study for him. It would not have required a lot of time each day and would have set up the performance perfectly. It would have been the kind of thing we did when he was being homeschooled. What kind of a homeschool mom am I that I would let such an opportunity go to waste??!! I do regret that I did not think about/remeber it at the time! I did print out the study guide today for him to read through, but it would have been just right to have him do the assignments while he was home for those 12 days! I am lamenting the missed opportunity to have homeschooled with him again, if only for a couple of weeks!!

My son was thrilled to find out that Halloween was on a Friday night this year. I was not really sure why. After all, he is nearly sixteen years old! He said it would be so much fun going around the neighborhood with his friends and they could stay out later. I said “Aren’t you a little old to be trick or treating?” He said “No way, you are never too old!”

This gets me to thinking. I think he is too old. But he thinks it’s all in good fun and if people are offended or don’t want to give the teens candy, they don’t have to; they (the teens) aren’t doing anything wrong by trick or treating. Still, I wonder.

And then I see ads for Teen Halloween Costumes and I know that at the
Halloween Costume Stores there are costumes for all sizes, from newborns to adults. And I know plenty of adults that love to have fun and celebrate on Halloween. I don’t have anything against a good pirate costume or a gladiator costume, or a beautiful medieval costume. And I know we are never really too old for candy. I guess what I feel is, are the teenagers too old to dress up and go to neighbors’ houses asking for candy? I know some in our neighborhood will oblige and others who may not. I guess that is ok. After all, these teens are just big kids and still love their candy! And they don’t take away from the littler kids. They either go with the younger kids and help out and take what the neighbors will give them, or they wait til later when most of the littler kids have gone in and then they go around toget whatever is left…

So I guess pretty soon we will be looking for a good costume suitable for a teenaged boy, possibly Captain Jack Sparrow or something simple like Indiana Jones. And if he knows exactly what he wants, it is just as easy to order it online. I guess part of the fun is finding a good costume. And hanging out in the neighborhood and eating candy from friends and neighbors is not such a big deal for teens to do on a Friday night. I can think of a lot worse things they could be doing!

A few posts back you see where I talked about my daughter reading Tuck Everlasting. One of her assignments was to post a review on Amazon.com. You can find her review of the book here . Although she did not really review the book outside of saying “good book” and filling in four stars, I do like how she summed up the story.

I got this in an email today. It is written by a group of homeschooled students.

IKE

Tall waves warning doom
Ikes unexpected mercy
chaotic echoes….

- written by the Clear Lake Literary Club

We will likely be visited by hurricane Ike within the 24-30 hours. Many people are choosing to stay and “hunker down” through this one. Nearly all of our neighbors have decided to stay. My husband and another neighbor worked putting up boards over the windows today. Then a few other neighbors decided to as well. One lady’s husband had to work a full day today, so all the guys pitched in and helped her as well as finished up a couple of other family’s homes as well. It was just like an old fashioned barn-raising! But instead of us women frying up some chickens, we actually found a pizza delivery place open so we all pitched in and ordered about ten pizzas, added some fruit and brownies and had a regular hurricane party!

Everyone was so pleased by the camaraderie and the pulling together to help each other out. One man said he’d never seen a neighborhood pull together like that. My son said he hopes to live in a neighborhood like this when he gets to that age. It was really great to see everyone working together (although there were a couple of moments when it seemed as if there were “too many cooks in the kitchen”!) I am sure that the feeling of community and counting on each other and helping each other along is what those old fashioned barn-raisings were all about!

My son found a towel in his closet the other day. There is a date on this towel. He found it amusing that the date corresponds with this week’s date, Sept. 3. I showed him why the towel is dated. We had painted his feet and he had walked all over the towel leaving his foot prints. (This corresponded to a shower curtain we had that was a “paint splattered” design.) He compared his foot now, fourteen years later, to the foot prints he made as a little guy.

I have written before about our family’s tradition of reading a scripture and saying a prayer together before our son heads out for his day at school. We feel this is an important way to share our values and a great way to start the day in focus.

My neighbor just started junior high this week. As I ran by the bus stop this morning, he showed me his school ID and as I came back by on my cool down, he was reading a text message on his phone. He said his mom sends him a prayer every morning!

I love it! his mom has to leave early for work and junior high starts the latest of all the schools here. So, even though his mom can’t be with him in person before he gets on the bus, she is making sure to send him a message to help him keep his focus and know that he is thought of, cared for and loved. His mom has found the perfect way (especially for teens!) to keep in touch and to help springboard his day on the right foot.