Is It Me? Or Is It Them?

I've mentioned before that I often try to coerce my students into participation by "offering" extra credit.

There's no way they could think I'm serious when I say things while fiddling around with the computer/projector/TV, like, "Ok, extra credit to the person who helps me figure this out." I mean, they're millennials. They know technology. Sometimes a person will trudge up to help me, but most often they just sit and stare at me while I try to figure it out.

I'm sure you can tell where this is going.

That exact scenario happened in class last week and after a few - probably painful - moments of everyone sitting around while I tried to work things out, a girl came up to the front, messed around with my computer, and got things working. As she walked back to her seat I jokingly said, "See guys? Extra credit to -------!" Ha ha ha we all had a good laugh and class proceeded.

I got an email from her this morning asking why her extra credit hasn't shown up on her grade yet.

It's gonna be one of those semesters.

The Details

They say the devil is in the details, and while that is true, he doesn't own all that real estate himself. There's a lot of small and significant joy to be found in the little things, too.

I spent many a day over the holiday break sifting through our stuff, taking things to goodwill, and deep cleaning all the nooks and crannies of rooms. "Down sizing" is maybe too strong a description of what I've been doing, but just barely. My goal is to move toward minimalism. Kind of like if minimalism traveled a lot and picked up knick knacks and also had a baby bun bun who loved toys all over the floor.

Over the past months I have gotten rid of extra books, organized the ones that are left, and relocated my teaching and school-y ones to a shelf upstairs. This has given us more space in the library for the books that we enjoy and want to be surrounded by. I got smaller shelves to go in front of the bay window, and for Christmas, G's parents gave us the elephant bookend. I like it so much that I bought the giraffe one, too. The microphone-looking stick in the front is from the Maasai village we visited in Tanzania last summer.

Here's a close-up. Isn't it great??

Amazon had such cute book ends that I ended up getting these, too. This is a set of funky, eccentrically-fashioned animals. I put them in the living room. They make me so happy. It's like Alice in Wonderland, the Safari version.

I got rid of our old bowls and replaced them with (fewer of) these Japanese ones. World Market to the rescue.

The details aren't just for the house - here's an infinity scarf that has key quotes from Pride & Prejudice on it. Merry Christmas to me.

And I'm able to showcase my Tanzanian necklaces much more in the winter than I am in the summer. Turtlenecks FTW. Also, it's been too icy for me to bike lately so I've looked like a human rather than a bedraggled mess all day long.

Roo Roo got into trouble yesterday. She destroyed a pillow and then tried to act like she had no idea what was going on.

As soon as I cleaned it up, she crashed.

What details are you focusing on in the new year? Don't leave them all to the devil.

Adulthood

What a Difference a Decade Makes

Some things never change.

Some things change a lot.

Name It and Claim It?

Actual Biblical truths aside for a moment, G and I make fun of false prosperity gospels quite a bit. We do this by using the name-it-and-claim-it notion as a stand in for immediate gratification and wish fulfillment around the house. This has nothing to do with spiritual gifts or even God. It just has to do with our own desires. Which I'm sure makes Jesus super proud.

So, a fly on the wall might hear me exclaim, "Name it and claim it! Pizza for dinner!" as I grab my phone to call Papa John's. G has been known to say stuff like, "Name it and claim it! Hot dogs!" or "Name it and claim it! No grocery store trip for us today!" Now that I think about it, most of our exclamations are about food. And, one could just as easily say "Oh, what the hell" in place of "Name it and claim it". But what can I say? It's how we roll.

But it makes me think of the importance we place on naming things. Or, on not naming them. A few weeks ago as I was getting my hair done, the dresser and I got to talking about how I had biked to work daily for several months. She said, "It's so great that you found your thing!" I nodded, but I immediately thought to myself, I don't know that biking is my thing. I mean, I'm not an expert. I don't know lots about it and I don't push it onto other people and I generally don't even talk about it that much...do I?

Bike tour of Kyoto, Japan.

As fate would have it, I've taken my bike into the shop a couple of times in as many weeks over this break in order to get it tuned up, to put new tires/tubes on it, and to get a rack for my back pack. This is the perfect time to do maintenance because I'm not working (hallelujah) or riding (also hallelujah). I was explaining my daily ride to the bike mechanic and without thinking, I said, "I mean, I'm not a cyclist or anything." I said it in the context of how many miles I ride daily - like 16 vs 100. But later I wondered why I had bothered to differentiate myself like that.

What's in a name? If I ride my bike daily, as a major mode of transportation, as my way to commute to/from work, in all types of weather including sub-freezing temps...what does that make me, if not a "cyclist"? What does that make biking, if not "my thing"?

How else am I over-focusing on rhetoric in my life? What, exactly, do I give myself credit for, or go out of my way to deny myself the credit for? And, is this significant?

Just In Time For 2018

We flew back home last night, grabbed Roo Roo from boarding, and made it home just in time for me to hit the sack two hours before the new year. In my defense, though, I was on east coast time and technically did stay up until midnight. G is crazy and stayed up to ring in the new year here which, if we wanna get technical, was 2:00 a.m. eastern time and is just plain unnecessary. I have no problem drifting off into sweet slumber and then waking up in a whole new year.

This was one of the best holiday/family/friend vacations we've ever taken. It was good, quality time with the people we love and I think we needed that more than we had realized over the last few hectic months. That said, it's so nice to sit in my own house and blog in front of my own Christmas tree which will stay up at least until the middle of January. And I missed Roo a lot more than I expected. I'm sure this doesn't surprise you in the least because I focus quite a bit on fat, furry animals. But it surprised me. She's the youngest, cuddliest, friendliest bunny we've had in years and dangit if I didn't spend an hour on the floor with her last night, sweet talking her and loving her up.

So, I'm gonna be honest and tell you that we upgraded our flight home to first class. I'll say that this was only possible because we were flying on New Year's Eve, which ended up not being a desirable or busy time to fly, and thus the upgrades were cheap. I couldn't believe it. Permit me, if you will, to ramble just a bit more.

I've always thought of first class only as it pertains to the air plane. But, the experience begins way before that. Here's a view of the United check in area of the airport:

And here's a view of the premiere access check in. We bypassed all the holiday chaos, walked right up to the counter, were greeted by a pleasant, friendly representative, and had checked our bags in under five minutes.

I'll say, too, that the Dream Liner is no joke. We've flown economy in this plane before and the difference is remarkable. It's quieter; it has ambient lighting; it's smoother; and it's roomier. We had warm nuts and Prosecco before take off. NBD.

OK, thanks for letting me get that out. Part of me wants to take the time to reflect on how nice it was. G pointed out that it was the difference between "getting somewhere" and "traveling." I agree. Part of me, though, is focusing on the importance of mentally moving on so that I'll be able to face a lifetime of regular (read: plebe) flights that await me. (shrug emoji) But, it was nice. It was civilized.

We're going to a New Year's brunch at our friends' house later this morning. These introverts are just about peopled out at this point, so I think I'll spend the rest of the day staring at the tree, finishing The Crown, and taking down all the other Christmas decorations (except the tree, of course, because I haven't enjoyed it enough yet and need a few more days).

(By the way, check out yesterday's post, G's Reads of 2017, if you haven't already. While I spend an inordinate amount of time with my face in a book, I've dropped the ball when it comes to blogging about good reads, and it's nice to see that he picked up a bit of the slack.)

Happy New Year! I hope today is relaxing and rejuvenating for you!

G's Good Reads of 2017

It's that time of year again, folks. Christmas trees and decorations adorn our house, family and friends are visiting (or are being visited), and B has allowed my one post a year on "our" blog. She really is quite generous, don't you think? :)

So, the moment I know you've all been waiting for all year, the one blog post without which the year would not be complete: G's Good Reads of 2017. Without further ado, here they are, in no particular order.

1. Terra Incognita: The Edge of the World, by Kevin J. Anderson.

This one is a bit of a departure for me, as I'm not much for fantasy novels. The Edge of the World is the first book in Anderson's Terra Incognita trilogy, a sweeping, large-scale story about the religious and political conflict between the nations of Uraba and Tierra, both of whom are convinced that their particular interpretation of their shared faith is the only correct version (sound familiar?). There are many characters and many locations, but Anderson does a good job of weaving all the individual threads of the story together into a great tapestry. I listened to this one via Audible, and the narrator did an outstanding job portraying each of the characters.






2. Invasion Rabaul, by Bruce Gamble.

Most of us are probably somewhat familiar with at least the generalities of World War II's Pacific Theater: Pearl Harbor, Midway, the island fighting, the bombings of Japan. Invasion Rabaul focuses on a small portion of this conflict--specifically, the Australian garrison of Rabaul in the Southwest Pacific, the Japanese takeover of this strategic location in early 1942, and the Australians' fight to survive in the jungle while being hunted by the Japanese. Rabaul became a key logistics and operational base for the Japanese during the conflict in the Pacific, and Gamble does a fantastic job of illuminating this (to me) little-known theater of the war. This is also the first book of a trilogy; I've already read the second, Fortress Rabaul, and intend to finish the trilogy in 2018.


3. The Short Victorious War, by David Weber.

Weber continues to deliver in this, the third book in his Honor Harrington series. The People's Republic of Haven has decided that they need a "short, victorious war" to shore up their economic problems back home, and end up in a fight with Manticore in the process. Honor Harrington, now commander of a heavy cruiser, is (as usual) right in the middle of the action. I continue to thoroughly enjoy Weber's description of space combat, even if it is a real departure from other sci-fi stories like Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica. Weber always adds a good layer of political intrigue (and in this case some social/political commentary as well), which gives depth to the fleet engagements.





4. Abbadon's Gate, by James S.A. Corey.


The continuing adventures of James Holden and the crew of the Rocinante find them dealing with the fallout of the titanic events at the end of Caliban's War. Holden (haunted by a ghost from his past who drops obscure hints about what is going on and what it means) and a few new faces are confronted with a new situation that affects all of humanity and could either increase or relieve the pressure between Earth, Mars, and the Belt. I know this all sounds vague, but this is a good series and I'm really trying not to drop any spoilers. If it sounds interesting, start at the beginning with Leviathan Wakes.







5. Pacific Crucible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-1942, by Ian W. Toll.

It never ceases to surprise me how much I think I know about World War II, and how little I actually know. While I feel that I have a good handle on the Pacific conflict, Pacific Crucible illuminated and connected some events in ways that I had never considered. While the main focus of this book is on the actual combat between the attack on Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Midway, Toll also delves into the Japanese political and military situation that led to the Japanese attack on U.S., British, Australian, and Dutch holdings throughout the Pacific in December 1941. This is another book that I listened to via Audible, and again the narration was top-notch. In particular, Toll's description of the fight at Midway is superb, and had me on the edge of my driver's seat several times (even though I know how it ends). This is the first book in a planned trilogy; I plan to read (or listen to) the second book, The Conquering Tide, in 2018, and the third book is coming out later in 2018.




There you have it! My good reads for 2017. In 2018, I'm looking forward to finishing Gamble's Rabaul trilogy, advancing the story in The Expanse series and the Honor Harrington series, and trying to finish the Temeraire series. Oh, and the next Gaunt's Ghosts book is finally here--The Warmaster, by Dan Abnett. Definitely need to see where Abnett is taking the Tanith First-and-Only in this latest adventure.

Happy New Year!