Tag Archives: writing

Sign of the Week: six-seven

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Monday on the way to work an 8th grade teacher texted me….

The sign outside the parking lot is going to make you laugh this morning!

and it did, the other side made me laugh, too.

the sign I pass on the way into the parking lot….

I made a point to slow down and look at the sign on the way into the parking lot and paused at the entrance to admire the other side, before I parked the car and went into the building to get ready for all day parent teacher conferences.

When we broke for lunch, I walked out for some sunshine and a breath of fresh and of course, to see the signs up close. They are amazing. IYKYK (if you know, you know) or if you have adolescents or know a couple, you know.

In the first few days of school, I learned there is a new craze or phrase middle school kiddos have learned over their summer break – it is the 6-7 thing. Every time I used the numbers, six and seven, in sequence 6-7the,  kids would call out,

sixxxxx – sevennnnn and move both hands up and down in front of them.

The first time they did it I was….flummoxed… but they didn’t stop and now nine weeks later, I have resigned myself to join them and sort of poke fun back. I have surprise for them on this coming Friday for Halloween. heh heh heh.

It’s a middle school thing, bruh.

Last week, a friend forwarded me a photograph of a sign in front of middle school in Minnesota poking fun at the 6-7 phrase\craze used by our students. The photo is at the bottom of the post. On Friday of last week, I shared it with our principal who, shared it with the PTSA, who are in charge of the sign; and ‘presto chango,’ a BLANK SIGN becomes a message to the world or two messages. Ha!

This coming week, I will be taking my classes outside for a class picture and a little bit of fresh air as we try to figure out what we need in order to see the sign. It’s science and the beginning of our unit on light and how we see. It’s also a bit of fun all wrapped up together. There are times when learning is disguised as a trip out of doors.

Sometimes signs are there for us to let us know and sometimes they are there to encourage us to laugh. The sign for me is that I need to read more books, I’d settle for one in a week. Today is going to be an amazing day, in some ways it already is and it could be a million and six times better than yesterday, but the grandies’ first year birthday party might be difficult to top. Making the days COUNT, one day at a time, slowing down to read the signs. 

Can you read sixxxxx or sevennnnn books in a week?

Sign of the Week – season

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This week’s sign is from the ice cream shop I pass on the way to the lake and along the way home. Friday night it was well past closing time when I stopped to admire the message.

Summer season is the high season along the lake and there are few folks on the lane this weekend. Yesterday, I saw a few walkers and a neighbor couple, both of whom I watched grow up, are here with their newborn – their first. It’s hard to believe, but I am the first of three generations that come here now.

I didn’t make it to that ice cream shop this year, maybe I will next year. It all depends on if I get there in time or if the line isn’t too long and I can spare a stop along my way.

It’s Sunday and I’ll be looking for a new sign today but there are signs all around that fall is in full bloom, the weather has a chill in the air and the forecast promises sunshine later in the day. So, I’d better jump up, jump in and seize the day. Making the days Count, one day at a time, making time to take in the season.

How is the fall season looking where you are?

W^2 – October sunrise

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W^2 or W squared for Wordless Wednesday, October 8, 2025

My drive to school usually takes about a half an hour, sometimes a little more depending on the weather or the traffic or both. I’ve been driving the same route for over 25 years and sometimes I take the road less traveled.

Herrick Lake Road service entrance for Herrick Lake Forest Preserve, Wheaton, IL October 2, 2025 7:14 AM

Last week, I took the road less traveled and passed by the forest preserve in full sunrise. It was a humid morning with ground fog which scattered the sun’s light. It was beautiful.

Herrick Lake Road service entrance for Herrick Lake Forest Preserve, Wheaton, IL October 2, 2025 7:14 AM

September was dry and warm, especially the second half of the month. This past Monday night it rained hard, and the earth soaked it up; then yesterday afternoon cool winds, clear skies, and high pressure moved into the area bringing cooler fall weather. It was great sleeping weather last night, but I don’t think I’ll get the same shot this morning. Only time will tell.

It is Wednesday and today is going to be a wonderful Wednesday. I am going to take the alternate route and see what the sunrise brings. Sometimes a diversion is the best way to tackle a Wednesday. Today could be a million and six times better than yesterday. I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, sometimes mixing it up on the way to school. 

Do you mix it up when you drive to same place?

Sign of the Week – pumpkins

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I didn’t find this week’s sign until I was there, I’d been there before, seen the sign, and turned right into the parking lot almost as if the car knew where to go.

My go to sign at the church lists October’s upcoming events and I didn’t find any signs until yesterday evening just before sunset, after I had loaded the car. And there it was, this week’s sign.

Our family has been visiting this farm for as long as I can remember…my first photo evidence is from 2011, that I could find, but that was about the time that Saturdays were filled with kid’s activities of sports and scouts and family and whatever else we could pack in. Now that they aren’t kids any more, we still visit.

The farm is an hour’s drive into the flat plains of northwestern Illinois farming country. Soybean and corn fields lined the road as we drove west. An occasional farmhouse and barn surrounded by trees greeted along our journey. It’s been dry, very dry, and we saw clouds of dust in the fields as farmers rushed to bring in this year’s harvest with their combines.

The farm we visit is a multi-generation farm and the original farmer has since passed on, but his family – his kids, and their kids, and their kids, kids continue the tradition. The daughters run the operation now, and they remember us, even though we haven’t brought our kids in a few years. They grow pumpkins, and the midwestern field crops as well as raise a few head of cattle, too. The farmhouse is decorated with pumpkins and gourds sorted by size and price and there is quite the variety.

the farmhouse and a large tree surrounded by all sorts of pumpkins
this wage has the eight dollar pumpkins

They also raise rabbits and goats’ a few years back we almost came home with a rabbit to go with our pumpkins.

We always arrive late in the afternoon and have picked our pumpkins, visited, explored, and loaded before the sun sets over the fields. We always stop for dinner at a local restaurant on our way home. It’s our tradition and it feels right. When dinner is finished, it is dark, and we drive home. It’s been a full day when we pull into the driveway and unloading the car will have to wait until the morning.

a ‘framed’ sunset – I couldn’t really see what I had until I had taken it….
unframed, the sun seems small
this tree ‘spoke’ to me and I had to take the shot

I woke later this morning, later than normal, but earlier than the rest of the house. I was rested, the country air is always refreshing, and I was ready for the day. I was a reading a few blogs and I came read Dr. Gerald Stein’s post – Our Questionable Progress, and I thought how appropriate it was as I was feeling overloaded starting the day. Sunday is always a busy day for me I never seem to get everything I need to get done. So today, I am going to breathe and get done, what I can and leave the remainder for Monday. No pressure.

It’s my youngest brother’s birthday – all three of us are sequential 61-62-63 until my birthday in November when I will be two to the sixth power. It’s also my 34th wedding anniversary and it seems like the other day when a ray of light beamed in through window above us and illuminated the two of us just as we took our vows.

Today is going to be an amazing day, I am sure of it. So, I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Today is going to be a great day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, being patient, focused, and purposeful.

How is your Sunday going?

Sign of the Week – detours

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I am little behind on my Signs of the Week posts, but school is back in session and it seems I am busier than ever. Sometimes I worry too much about posting when I should be focused on being my best self.

I found these gems on a sign back to back in front of the First baptist Church along  M55 in Prudenville, Michigan over the Labor Day weekend a few weeks back. I found a couple more that’ll have to wait for another week or so, depending on what I find in my travels this coming week.

This is the other side of the sign, it was on the sunny side, facing west.

I was reminded that detours can be good, even if they don’t seem to be at the time.

Yesterday, while volunteering at Loaves and Fishes on my normal Saturday morning shift I got to talking with a fellow volunteer whom I have worked with many times before – at east the past couple of years…..the conversation went like this…….

Me: “What do you do when you are not volunteering at Loaves?”

KS: “I work in IT.” What do you do?

Me: “I teach middle school science?

KS: “Really, where?

Me: “Scullen Middle School…”

KS: “Really, I have 6th grader at Scullen…..”

Yep, and she’s in my class, my tenth period class which is my last of the day and a great way to finish every day.

It’s a small world and sometimes our detours are really good things.

I am wrapping up my sixth year of volunteering at Loaves and Fishes. I started volunteering because I wanted to be a positive example for my son, who’d landed in a tight spot and needed some community service hours. He volunteered and served the hours he needed, but has since moved on to other things. Things he should be focused on – marriage, parenthood, building his career, and other things a late twenty-something should be paying attention to.

And me a sixty-somethings? I am doing what I should be doing with the detour, practicing for retirement and staying active in the community.  I get as much if not more from my time helping others get what they need to thrive.

I have a few more years before I hang up the chalk for good, but I am always learning, always thinking, and always being curious. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, and trying to look at things differently, even detours.

Have you ever  had a detour that turned into a blessing?

And by the way, if you missed my post about my visit to the Netherlands, check out Operation Market Garden…

W^2 – winding road

adventure, Family, Learning, Photography, teaching, Weekly Photo Challenges, Wordless Wednesday, Writing, , , , ,

Saturday, I took the longest hike in a long time – just under three miles with two dogs in tow. Or rather being towed by one dog and staying out of the way of the other.

In the past couple of years, I’ve gone on shorter hikes but I haven’t been getting out for longer hikes for more than a while. It’s a new year for the Take a Hike Challenge from the forest preserve and I skipped ’23 and ‘24’s challenges but I am back this year.

outward bound Herrick Lake Forest Preserve, Wheaton, IL September 6, 2025 3:53 EDT

Saturday Fern, Nova, and I walked through Herrick Lake Forest Preserve. It’s a favorite of mine, it’s close and a good length with forest and prairie landscapes with just enough up and down to get the heart moving while the feet are following each other round moving me from start to finish.

on the way back to the trailhead. Herrick Lake Forest Preserve, Wheaton, IL September 6, 2025 4:22 EDT

When I got home, I had enough energy to refresh the bird feeders and a few other chores before calling it a day. Fern and Nova were completely spent, too.

It is Wednesday and today is going to be a wonderful Wednesday. It’s the middle of the week and school has a late start with a faculty gathering first thing at 7:30 AM. The bells will ring before I know it, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, one foot after another is way to tackle life.

Is there something you’ve recently re-started that you’ve been avoiding?

sign of the week – blank

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This week I came up blank.

the other side says welcome back, but this side is blank, like me…..

Sometimes it happens. Maybe I wasn’t looking in the right place, or I had so much on my plate I did not see one. The fact is I came up blank.

It’s been a busy week with school and home and the end of summer.

Last night, my daughter and I drove to the lake to put an end to summer for another year. Friday night drives always seem to take forever, but last night’s was only an hour longer than the norm.

Friday night traffic leaving Chicagoland is always a grind, especially on a three-day weekend. Once we crossed the Indiana state line and passed the 65 split, traffic lightened up and we were able to drive the speed limit into the night.

It was pitch black when we arrived and I was too tired to look up at the stars, but I am sure they were there.

This morning, I sipped my coffee and stared out at the fog as it lifted in the early morning light thinking about all we’ll accomplish before the sun dips below the horizon later this evening. And before we return home Monday afternoon.

the fog slowly lifts and yes, those are my toes

August is going to leave us with a whimper. It began hot as blazes with skies shrouded with western wildfire smoke and it finishes with clear skies and chilly fog filled mornings.

Today is going to be a great day. It will be busy with errands, to-dos, and time spent together like so many Labor Day weekends by the lake. So, I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time remembering to be purposeful.
 
How is your August finishing?

Sign of the Week – blink

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The week’s Sign of the Week is a throwback to last week.

I passed by Wiesbrook Elementary’s sign Thursday evening and found a gem and then went back in time to find some old photos.

Time flies…. when I was posting to Instagram, I added the song, Don’t Blink by Kenny Chesney,

Don’t blink, you just might missYour babies growing like mine didTurning into moms and dads

Dads yes, have twin grandsons who are then months old tomorrow. Moms NO, unless you count the dogs, because she is a dog mom to two. But she’s grown and starting to test her wings.

This week flew past and when I blinked, it was Friday morning, the Saturday.

School’s back in session and I really made this last week count. It’s Saturday morning and I am off to Loaves and Fishes to serve others, but I’ll be home to make the afternoon count with the ’21 grad and dinner and maybe a walk with the dogs at one of my favorite forest preserves.

This could possibly be the best day ever
And the forecast says that tomorrow will likely be
A million and six times better
So make every minute count
Jump up, jump in and seize the day

Making the Days Count, one day at a time, looking back to see where I’ve been, but keeping my feet firmly planted in the present.

What are you doing today?

W^2 – storm

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W^2 or W squared for Wordless Wednesday, August 20, 2025

Monday afternoon was hot, humid, and still.

Then the atmosphere exploded, and the temperature dropped 15 degrees (9C), the wind picked up, lightning and thunder flashed and crashed, and the rain fell.

And it didn’t stop.

I was volunteering at Loaves and Fishes, and we decided due to lightning to close early. I think our clients new it was better to go home and try another day.

The storms came in two waves and by the time it was over, we had gotten 3.5 inches of rain at my house and some places around the area got up to 7 inches. One of our neighboring schools had to close Tuesday because their a few of their schools had been flooded.

Tuesday morning was our first day of school with kids this year and even though the skies were cloudy, it was a bright sunny day inside.

This could possibility be the best day ever!
(This could possibility be the best day ever,)
And the forecast says that tomorrow will likely be a million and six times better.
So make every minute count, jump up, jump in, and seize the day,
And let’s make sure that in every single possible way,
Today is gonna be a great day!

It’s Wednesday morning and we’re headed back for day 2 and building routines, remembering names, and spreading kindness. It’s going to be a great year, and the sun is going to shine today!

my first day photo for my 27th year as a teacher, Wheaton, IL August 19, 2025 6:57 AM CDT

Today is going to be AMAZING. I know it and I can feel it, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, making new friends, learning new names, and spreading kindness.

What’s new for you lately?

W^2 – great hall(s)

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W^2 or W squared for Wordless Wednesday, August 13, 2025

The Great hall – Union Station, Chicago, IL Sunday, August 10, 2025 5:10 CDT

Summer break is finished. Every year when I get to this point, this day on the calendar, and I ask myself the question,

Did I do enough?

This year, I can answer yes.

Of course there are things I didn’t do, but I did a lot.

This past summer I passed through several train stations – Paddington, Swansea, St. Pancras, Gare du Nord, Amsterdam’s Schiphol, Central, and North, and this past Sunday – Chicago’s Union Station.

Sunday, I used public transit to attend a baseball game on the southside. It was a good game and getting to the city and back was easy and efficient.

After the game, I sat in the Great Hall of Union Station waiting for my train and mind wandered and I thought of another great hall, the main hall of the Musée d’ Orsay, which was once a train station. As I sat and took in the hall, I went back to look at the photos I took when I visited Paris. There were similarities.

Musée d’ Orsay main hall, Paris, France July 17, 9:50 GMT-1
Union Station, the Great Hall, Chicago, IL August 10, 2025 5:03 PM
Musée d’ Orsay the main hall Paris, France,July 17, 2025 9:55 GMT-1

While the Musée d’ Orsay is significantly larger the two stations were built in similar time periods at a time when train travel was the only way travel long distances.

Musée d’ Orsay, Paris, France July 17, 2025 10:00 GMT-1
Union Station, Chicago, IL 5:14 CDT

I wondered what these stations might have looked like in their heydays.

Musée d’ Orsay, Paris, France July 17, 2025 10:07 GMT-1
Musée d’ Orsay, Paris, France July 17, 2025 10:07 GMT-1

I am partial to the black and white, which do you prefer?

It’s the last day of summer break and I am going to finish strong and be ready when the alarm rings early tomorrow morning. Today is going to be like the last sixty-nine days have been – AMAZING. I know it and I can feel it, so I’d better jump up, jump in, and seize the day. Making the Days Count, one day at a time, especially when a last day leads to a first day.

How do you do with “last days?”