Putting up the fruit

One of my favorite things about fall is bottling grape juice from our own little vineyard. Our grapes make the sweetest yummiest juice. Last week Hun (my sister Cass) and I were picking grapes when Pete and Jennie wondered out. How fun is it to have them living right next door! We talked and laughed as we harvest our crop of grapes. We felt very domestic. It was a moment to cherish.

Vote NO!

Vote AGAINST Referendum 1!

Yes I am using my blog to push a political issue :) As a public school teacher I am highly against Referendum 1! Let me give you a few facts ....

* Private school vouchers will give you UP TO $3,000. There is not a private school in Utah (that I know of) that you can go to for $3,000. I think Waterford School is somewhere around $15,000. What does this mean? It means that this voucher DOESN'T really give lower income people the opportunity to choose private school. My tax dollars are then going into the pockets of people who can already afford to send their kids to private school. Why am I paying for people to go to private school?

* This program DOES take money away from public schools and DOES NOT lower class sizes. School budgets are based on student enrollment/attendance. If you take students away from a public school their budgets go down. When their budgets go down they have to let teachers go. If you can't afford more teachers your class sizes don't go down. I hope that makes sense.

* The private school voucher people lead you to believe that the additional money allotted for students will be reallocated into the school system. This simply isn't true. Their adds are very misleading!

* 96% of Utah kids attend public school. Is there any question where the money should be going?

I want to say that I am NOT anti private schools. There is definitely an argument for attending private school. My little sister went to private school her junior and senior year. I saw first hand the advantages and disadvantages of private school. I just don't think I/we should be paying for! If you want to send your child to private school ... great! But that is your choice so you should pay for it!

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me. You can also get more information from http://www.utahnsforpublicschools.org/ This is such a big issue that public school organizations in Arizona and Wyoming are getting involved in fighting against Referendum 1.

What can you do? You can VOTE and VOTE NO on Referendum 1!

I am now stepping down from my soap box. :)

Update ...

As I am sure you are dying to hear what happened with "George" ... He called! He called Ty that is. Through a very short conversation Ty found out that "George" (I still don't think that is his name) smokes! '

Ty, "You smoke! Sorry George, this is NOT going to work. She will never go for a smoker. I gotta go."

Ty hung up and that was the end of "George"!

Never a dull moment!

For most of you the principals office, attending assemblies, fire drills and prom are a distant memory. For me however, it is all in a days work. Teaching high school is a unique job compared to most. This was my 4th period class a few days ago.

Let me set the stage for you. Miss Christensen's ceramic class. Ty (the token gay student of the school) enters the room.

Ty, "Miss C. I am so excited! I think I found you a date!"

Miss C. "Oh really?"

Ty, "I was at WalMart last night and I saw a guy in the card section picking out a wedding card."

Miss C. "and you asked him if he wanted to go out with your teacher?"

Ty, "No I thought that sounded weird. So I kinda lied to him at first. I went up to him and told him I was doing a survey on whether or not people would date a school teacher knowing their income."
WalMart guy, "umm yeah, I guess."
Ty, "well then would you like to go out with my ceramics teacher? She really needs a date!"
Walmart guy, "did she put you up to this?"
Ty, "no, I have just made it my personal goal to find her a date by the end of the semester."

Alec (the boy who sits next to Ty), "Miss C. has never been on a date?"

Let me intercede at for a moment. Can you imagine what this guy was thinking? This poor, desperate teacher!

Miss C., "Ty! Oh my gosh!"

Ty, "So then I asked him who he was buying the card for. It was for his best friend who was getting married the next day. "Do you have a date for the wedding?"
WalMart guy, "No, but I am suppose to be meeting some girl there."
Ty, "So what do you do for a living?
Walmart guy, "I am a lawyer."
Ty, "How old are you?"
WalMart guy, "30"
Ty, "Is that too young for you Miss C.?"

Miss C., "So how did this end?"

Ty, "I gave him my number and he said if things didn't work out with this girl at the wedding he would get in touch with me. Oh and his name is George."

Miss C., "Ty, I can't believe you did that!"

Ty, "well I have to admit that it isn't the first time. When I worked at Old Navy I use to see guys there all the time and ask if they wanted to be set up with you. One of these days one of them is going to show up with flowers! It is going to be so exciting!"

In the midst of all this happening Zach is at my desk.

Zach, "Miss (pause for a minute, over the course of my five years of teaching my name has gone from Miss Christensen to Miss C. to Miss) I will rock, paper, scissor you for your diet coke."

ALL IN A DAYS WORK!

Things I am Loving

AUTUMN
The changing season is one of the things I love about Utah. There are things about each season that would lead me say .. this is my favorite season. Autumn is truly breath taking here in Utah. I love the crisp air, the reds, golds, purples and greens that spot the majestic mountains. I love the smell of my parents house as we can grape juice. Wearing socks for the first time in months, and the smell the first time the furnace is fired up. Yes, Autumn IS my favorite season!

A FINE FRENZY
I am loving the album A Fine Frenzy (thanks Karley). You all should check it out!

PHONE MESSAGES FROM CLOE
I was going through some saved phone messages the other day. I have a message from my niece Cloe from at least a year ago. Every time I listen to this message I just have to smile. Anyone who knows Cloe knows that just the thought of her will bring a smile. She is a funny little girl! Amazing how something as little as a phone message can brighten a cloudy day.

PRINGLES, CHOCOLATE RAISINS, DIET COKE Yes ... all at the same time. These three make a perfect combination! You've got the salty, the sweet, and the bubbles to wash it down. Try it! You won't be disappointed.

MY HOUSE
One of the things I love about my house is how cozy and homey it is. I spent the weekend getting out my fall/Halloween decorations. On Saturday I had one of those rare afternoons where I was home for a few hours. I had the fireplace on, candles lit, bread sticks baking. It was so nice and cozy.

Stop and Smell the Roses

Last night I received some heartbreaking news. Josh's best friends wife, Joy, got a sore throat over the weekend. The day after her sore throat started she noticed random bruising on her body. She headed into insta-care where they took some blood test. The next day the insta-care called and told her to get right to the hospital. She has a rare and very aggressive form of Leukemia. This kind of cancer hits very quickly with no warning. She is now in the hospital undergoing treatments. At this point she has a 40% chance of survival. Everyday that she makes it her odds go up. Every minute counts. If she does survive she will be in the hospital for at least a month. Joy and Kenny are wonderful people. They have 5 children, the two youngest are twins that I think are about a year old. Every day for this family is a gift at this point as Joy literally fights for her life. Our lives can change in an instant. In my busy life I know that I spend so much time looking ahead and not cherishing today. I challenge each of us to "stop and smell the roses" today. Give your kids an extra hug. Enjoy the crisp fall air. Call that friend you have be meaning to call. Live today to the fullest! My heart goes out to Joy and Kenny and their family. My thoughts and prayers will be with them as they go through this challenge.

Warning!!! Nintendo Wii may cause bodily harm!

Sunday night was my Dad's birthday party. After most of the people had left my Dad, Peter, Mom, Jennie, Minni and I went downstairs to play a little Wii. Peter introduced me to Boxing. Round after round I slaughtered my opponent. 6 TKO's in a row. I discovered it was kinda like Tao Bo but with a person to hit. I was all worked up. After my amazing performance I took Peter on in a game or two or 10 of tennis. He killed me. I believe my dad's exact words were, "you suck!" Jennie finally dragged Peter out of there so it was down to the three of us. How about bowling and then baseball. Two hours later I finally headed home. I arose Monday morning and to my dismay ... I can't move my arms! Holy crap I am sore. This is from a girl who swims and does pilates. I would dare brag that my arms are pretty strong. But they are in no shape for the Wii. Well today is Tuesday and I am even more sore than I was yesterday. Lifting my arms to do my hair .. impossible! Putting on my sweatshirt ... not happening. So player beware ... the Wii just may disable you for an undetermined amount of time.