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Relief

I discovered the most delightful medicine last night for my "tune out" blues.

A HIGH SCHOOL HOMECOMING FOOTBALL GAME!

We still had 4 buckets of carnations left over and decided to sell them at the homecoming game last night. One of my dear colleagues volunteered to stay and help. We had an amazing enchilada dinner at my favorite Mexican restaurant in town. (Mexican food is sort of like barbeque...the best food is always at the smallest, low-key joints.) Then we peddled our wares at the gates.

I saw several of my students from last year, each of whom called out my name and ran over with their arms wide open. We laughed and cooed over babies and gave away the broken flowers to little Mexican pre-schoolers.

Two girls who aren't even members of our club offered to sell flowers for us. We gave them the last 30 flowers and told them they could do whatever they wanted with them. (They sold most of them!)

We stayed through the half-time show to see the crowning of the homecoming king and queen. It felt SO GOOD to sit in the stands surrounded by people who weren't demanding anything from me or sucking up what energy I had left at 9:00.

I made it home without any "tuned out" detours and had a brief chat with my dear one. Very brief. I just looked at him, apologized, and went to bed. Then I took advantage of the Saturday morning to SLEEP IN until 7. That alone was sheer bliss.

The funny thing is that it dawned on me just a few minutes ago how much I've actually accomplished today. I've been to the grocery store, made copies at Staples, burned a pile of papers in the back yard, cleaned up most of the computer/book room that has been a dump site since August, made a homemade pizza dough, done laundry, planted some tomato seeds, staked my squash plant, paid bills, set the December budget, worked on lesson plans, set up my fantasy football team, and finished the Thomas Jefferson biography I've been reading.

And it feels SO GOOD to be a part of such mundane experiences.

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