We were at Lowes today to obtain a pair of channel lock pliers on the advice of Greg the Plumber. I didn't see why it was so necessary, but it is so clear to me now. Best Tool Ever. But I'm not merely writing in shameless support of my new pliers.
Despite it not being yet Halloween, Christmas is nearly in full swing at Lowes. I wouldn't normally have paid the displays any mind, except that I saw there were several of those mechanical tabletop decorations with moving parts that I thought Alex might enjoy seeing. It was great fun to watch him take in all the sights and sounds. He seemed to really enjoy the rocking Santa figure and the flying sleigh.
I started to believe that maybe it's true -- maybe the holidays are more magical with children around. I'm really quite excited for Christmas, now. Alex will be a whole two months older and I can just imagine the leaps and bounds he'll make between now and then. What fun!
I taught a class on iconic short stories this spring at our homeschool co-op. I don't know how many of my former English teachers may have passed since, but any that have are rolling in their graves at this news. I find teaching especially stressful but this class exceeded my expectations in basically every way and that might have made it worthwhile. We read 20 short stories, which I was free to choose primarily on the basis of how much I liked them. I organized them based on loose associations. Table of Contents (We never officially read this, but it was so short, I included it in case I needed to read it aloud during that first class.) One Summer Night , by Ambrose Bierce Short Story Elements To Build a Fire , by Jack London Irony The Necklace , by Guy de Maupassant The Gift of the Magi , by O. Henry The Ransom of Red Chief , by O. Henry Irony - American The Veldt , by Ray Bradbury The Lottery , by Shirley Jackson Setting - Irony - Foreign The Sniper , by Liam O'Flah...
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