Tag Archives: writing

Day 82: Chicago, Wrigley Field, the Cubs, and Hello Kitty

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An ‘L’ flag flies over Wrigley Field after each loss.

Wednesday was a day of anticipation. It was the day I had been dreading all summer – the final day of summer vacation and my last day of ‘freedom’ until next year’s summer vacation begins. The kids had been waiting for the day since I told them about my planned trip to the city and the Cubs game, and Beth had been looking forward to it as it meant my ‘home invasion’ was over! Nevertheless, it was here and it was gonna be a great day, a million and six time better than the day before. Continue reading Day 82: Chicago, Wrigley Field, the Cubs, and Hello Kitty →

Day 81: Tuesday – shopping for school supplies

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I have seen a new Wal-Mart commercial, recently. It opens with a well-dressed mom walking in her front door and calling to her kids that she has returned from shopping for their school supplies. The kids come running and root through the packages with glee – just like Christmas. The kids, a girl and a boy, thank their mom for getting just what they wanted. It is way overdone and an announcer voices over the action and says, ‘We know your kids don’t act like this about their school supplies, so why should you pay too much for them? Come to Wal-Mart for your school supplies this year.’ It is a good commercial and it drives their point home, few people enjoy shopping for school supplies, mainly because what it means going back to school. Continue reading Day 81: Tuesday – shopping for school supplies →

Day 80: Monday, the moon, and Olivia’s glasses….

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Readicide by Kelly Gallagher

Monday to start the week, that is normal but not the normal I have grown accustomed to since summer began. Monday was just another day, like any other day, nothing special, nothing different. However, this Monday marked the beginning of a new week and the impending return to school, and work.

I woke early to find Ivy, as usual, waiting and I started the coffee. I had resumed the Chicago Tribune and now I had a newspaper to add to the routine. It was going to be great day and the weather would be, too. The heat and humidity disappeared Sunday for a few days. We slept with the house open and just before I woke, I needed to cover up with something more than just the sheet. This is the best sleeping weather, with more to come. There will be nights when I do not want to uncover, yet that kind of weather is far off, and unthinkable. Continue reading Day 80: Monday, the moon, and Olivia’s glasses…. →

Day 78: A Final Saturday

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Ivy let me sleep late this morning and greeted me eagerly wagging her tail when I came downstairs. She has transitioned well from her days as a puppy. She has not had a wetting incident in quite a while. I contend these are more a function of being tuned into her needs. She is a good advocate for herself and has a special bark to let us know when she needs to go outside. However, lately her bark to go outside to check for rabbits is getting close to this bark and it is confusing. Either way, she goes outside on her tether. Sometimes I sit with her and other times I just go back inside. Continue reading Day 78: A Final Saturday →

Day 76: A visit to school…

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courtesy Chicago Tribune.com – Tom Skilling’s Weather Page

Thursday was hot, very hot. So hot the National Weather Service called for an excessive heat warning and urged people to stay inside and avoid strenuous activity. Ivy and I were more than happy to comply. But, I wondered how in the world did I ever survive growing up in Sugar Land, Texas? I do remember summer in my youth, but I do remember staying indoors quite a bit, but I also remember swimming in the pool or in the lake. But, that was then and I was used to the heat, now I am not. This type of heat is uncommon for Chicago. Continue reading Day 76: A visit to school… →

Day 75: This means one week to go…

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Summer Reading is Killing Me by Jon Sciesczka

The number of days remaining in summer vacation hit single digits earlier this week and now I am down to a single week. I am left with spending time getting ready for school and wrapping up loose ends before school starts.

Teachers view the end of summer much like students do, I am certain. We view it with a sense of sadness that our time to rest, relax, and rejuvenate is over. Our time of dressing casually will end, as well as sleeping late or staying up late, they too will come to a halt. It also means some activities will need to curtailed or stopped altogether. I had not really planned for summer to end so I had not planned what to do with the blog, I do want to continue but I cannot keep the pace of writing daily and maintaining my sanity and grip on class all at the same time. I have some thinking to do on this matter and I hope that – if you are reading – you continue to stop in and read along on my journey through the year. Continue reading Day 75: This means one week to go… →

Days 73 and 74: The Doghouse in the Nile

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...it just says it all...

Monday and Tuesday were much the same: I stayed home and worked in the basement and walked Ivy occasionally. It was too warm and muggy to want to be outside, though I did sit outside and read Monday afternoon. I had Ivy on the tether and she was barking so, I went outside and sat down and she stopped. She was content to lie beneath the chair while I read. Otherwise, my sole outdoor activity was simply walking Ivy. Continue reading Days 73 and 74: The Doghouse in the Nile →

Day 71 and 72: Sillybandz, Nemo, and Mosqitoes!

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Marlin and Dory encounter Bruce the shark - "fish are friends, not food."

The purpose of this blog was to chronicle what I was doing to make the days count. It is a philosophy that I have used with my students at the end of the year. I challenge them with the statement; “We can all count the days, but can we make the days count?” Hence, why I named the blog: Making the Days Count: A Summer Well Spent. In some ways, I have answered the call. I have reported what we have done as a family, what I have done individually, but I have failed, in some cases, to connect the dots to why it counts. With the days dwindling a summer has been well spent and the school year will soon be upon me. Continue reading Day 71 and 72: Sillybandz, Nemo, and Mosqitoes! →

Day 70: Friday at home

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It has been ten full weeks of summer, seventy days, with twelve more days remaining. Eighty-two days of summer vacation are a bit short of the ’…hundred and four days of summer vacation…’ promised in the song that inspired this blog:

There’s a hundred and four days of summer vacation,
‘Til school comes along just to end it,
So the annual problem for our generation,
Is finding a good way to spend it
Like maybe…
From “Today is Gonna be a Great Day” by Bowling for Soup (click to play) 104_days_clip

I am beginning to feel that school does come along just to end it. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to getting back in the groove and having a regular schedule. Continue reading Day 70: Friday at home →

Day 68 and 69: Home to Wheaton, back to reality

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This is the day I had not been looking forward to, return to Wheaton and ending summer at the cottage. I had been back for a two day trip and a three day trip, but this was final, it signified summer was over and a return to a normal schedule.

I did have a schedule: wake up, take Ivy out, make coffee, and write. This would be different though. It would mean I would have to accomplish more in a day than rest, relax, rejuvenate, water, boat, cook, and campfire. It is also a good thing as well because it means getting ready to go back to school and being alert and ready to go for a new school year. Continue reading Day 68 and 69: Home to Wheaton, back to reality →