desert pilgrimage - first leg

Our neighbor gave us two baby aloe plants as a final going-away present.  Anderson was careful to hold them up to the window during the car trip to Nebraska so they could get light.  We're going to think of good names for them.

Goodbye, Farm!

Goodbye, Lake Amelia!

We made it to Nebraska, first leg of pilgrimage south.  Great fun unloading harp from car at 2:00 a.m. (no picture).

name it

Bean...jerky?  crisps?  What do you think?

packing for the move

Does it fit?  Does it fit?

IT DOES!

a good deal

Anderson is always on the lookout for a good deal.  When we were on a date one time, we calculated the price per square inch of the 12-inch versus the 18-inch pizza, so we could get the better deal.  Who knows what the waitress thought of our napkin scribbles.  Anyways, per usual he was on the lookout the day I asked him about black beans.

"Anderson is there anything you want from the co-op when I order today?"
"How about some black beans."

I send him the link.

Andy:  I feel like 5 lbs isn’t that much…Would you be ok getting the 25 lb bag?

Caroline [tactfully]:  ​We sure could.  Maybe two smaller bags would be better, though?  25 lbs is a lot to use before Arizona..

Andy:  … In my mind, I see us making black bean burgers all summer long… I may be deceived though… AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH… What if I just want to see what a 25lb bag looks like? Is that reason enough?

Black Bean Soup

Black Bean Hamburger Buns

 

Black Bean Burger

Bedtime Stories With Black Beans:

Unfortunately I did not get a picture of Black Bean Pancakes.  Maybe there will be another time.  Or maybe not.

That's all so far folks!

A Rusty Weathervane

Get your pen and paper ready!  You are going to write a poem.

Instructions:

1.  The poem will consist of 2 couplets (rhyming pairs of lines).  Rhymes may be imperfect.

2.  Every word in the poem must count.  If you have "the" or "a" in there, you'd better be able to explain why.  Efficiency is everything.

3. You will have 15 minutes.

4. The topic of the poem:  "A Rusty Weathervane" (selected at random from Creative Writing Toolbox)

This is the project Anderson and I did this morning.  in 15 minutes he came up seven and I came up with one.

(some of) Anderson's:

A Rusty Weathervane

Dust

Must

Blow

Bill

A Rusty Weathervane

Iron oxide clad,

The stoic chicken had

Pointed its bill south

To keep warm its frozen mouth.

Caroline's:

A Rusty Weathervane

Going, going, gone! Still spinning,

Sold! - that baccy geezer, grinning.

Once fortune's bronze-topped finish,

Now junked (yet mystic) cynic.

Now YOU can write your own and submit it!

totes holding a python baby

The Stomach of Doom

Short story by one of my students, based on a true story:

The Stomach of Doom

       It seemed like a normal day for the kids, but they did not know what was coming. BOOM BOOM BOOM.  

“What is that?” asked Katrina.

“I do not know,” said Bailey.

“I thought earthquakes can’t happen here?” asked Lily.

“They can’t!” said Trevor.

 “I thought they could,” said Blake.

“UGGGHHHH!” growled Makayla.

 “I am going to cry,” said Lily.

“Be brave,” said Katrina.

“Where is the bathroom?” asked Lily.

“If I were you, I would not leave,” said Bailey.

“But I have to go,” said Lily.

“Then go risk your life,” said Blake.

“We have to hide,” said Katrina.

“Agreed,” said Makayla.

“Let’s go to the basement,” said Bailey.

“No, they know we will always go down there if there is something wrong,” said Makayla.

“True,” said Lily.

BOOM,BOOM, BOOM!

“It is coming closer,” said Blake.

“Oh thank goodness the parents are here,” said Trevor.

“Wait, where are they going?” asked Bailey.

“They must’ve heard the noise too,” said Makayla.

“Well then, I am not baking my dad brownies tonight,” said Lily.

“Wait, we are forgetting someone,” said Katrina.

“Mrs. Clare,” said Blake.

“OHHHHHH,” said the whole class.

“Is it possible that the noise is her STOMACH?” asked Makayla.

“OHHHHH,” said the whole class again.

“I feel really dumb that we did not know that was her,” said Bailey.

“Well, let’s get her some breakfast,” said Katrina.

“Now I feel great,” said Ms. Clare.

“So now we can do MATH,” said Ms. Clare.

“Noooooo,” said the whole class.

“A lesson for the day: always feed your teacher,” said Makayla.

Also, who knew, but earthquakes do happen in Minnesota.  My student brought me a link and said we're along a fault line:

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/states/events/1975_07_09.php