It’s My Brain and I Can Turn It Off If I Want To

“WALLET!” my husband shouts from the car, as I bound across the parking lot to Walgreens. “Oops!” I say, trotting back to the car to retrieve my wallet. I smile at my hubby. He does not smile back. This is after I asked to go on his errands with him because I needed something reallyContinue reading “It’s My Brain and I Can Turn It Off If I Want To”

Year 15: What I’ve Learned, Where I Am, What I Hope

Tomorrow I begin my fifteenth year of teaching 7th grade English, so naturally some reflection is in order. Last weekend I reminisced about my previous years of teaching on Twitter. (You can see the thread by searching #teacherlife #year15.) But now that the first day with students is almost here, I’m trying to compress allContinue reading “Year 15: What I’ve Learned, Where I Am, What I Hope”

The Eagle Has Ringworm! And Other Things You Don’t Expect to Say at Work

  Several years ago, at 4:10 p.m. on a Tuesday afternoon, I found myself running up some stairs, down a hallway, through a break room, and into an office, yelling, “THE EAGLE HAS RINGWORM!” Why? Because teaching is a really weird job that often makes you say words you never thought would come out ofContinue reading “The Eagle Has Ringworm! And Other Things You Don’t Expect to Say at Work”