The Little Things

Yesterday Girls' Prep began their Thanksgiving Vacation. As is tradition, every year the final event before vacation is a Thanksgiving Convocation where representatives from each grade read a short poem or story around the theme of giving thanks. So in the spirit of the season, here are the things I am thankful for. Some are big, some are small, but all are important in my life:

My family, my friends, my job, my health
Petunia greeting me at the stairs when I come home from work
On-campus housing
My proximity to a great city
Arriving home to find dishes done (SHM)
Butternut squash soup at the Dining Center
Dinner at the Cottage on a Wednesday (or Tuesday) night
Watching DVR with SHM and Tunes on a winter night with wine
Mornings with coffee and my book
My Iphone
Having my whole family live within driving distance
Having most of my friends in the same state as me (MOST.. not all:(
Hearing one of my soothing songs on the radio
The opportunity to have travelled to 17 countries on 4 continents
Thanksgiving Brunch, followed by Thanksgiving Dinner
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

The Music That Soothes Me

When you work at a school, time is very much on a cycle. There are ups and downs, peaks and valleys of commotion, stress, excitement and activity (depending on who you ask). In terms of peaks, I would say we are at the top of Mt. Everest right now. The trimester is ending and grades are due, fall sports are ending and winter tryouts are beginning, the high school is taking exams, vacation is around the corner, but not QUITE here yet. In times like this, I find I am often talking to my girls about relieving stress. How they can help themselves feel better. I noticed last week, as I was pulling out my hair and biting down my nails, that I needed some of this stress relief. That's when I turn on my Ipod and put it on shuffle. More than anything else, music has the power to soothe me. Not all music, mind you,some music makes me feel considerably worse, but when I am typing away at my computer and a certain song comes on, I am instantly at ease.
Since I think we all could use a little relief from the stress of life, I have listed below the 4 songs that have most recently had this soothing and wonderful effect on my poor frazzled self. Enjoy!

Jackopierce- More Than This
John Mayer- War of My Life
She & Him- Lingering Still
Norah Jones- Feelin' The Same Way

Splice

Last night SHM and I went to the Parental's for dinner. After the most amazing salmon EVER (thank you, Pedro), we were joined by Julipe (celebrity name of my brother and sister-in-law) for a movie. Most of us had had very stressful and intense weeks, so originally we were looking for a comedy. However, after going through A LOT of movies, we realized the chance of finding a comedy that was actually funny, was slim, and we changed genres. Eventually, we settled on one called Splice. We watched the preview and it looked like a mix of Sci-Fi/scary and we decided it would be fun to watch a scary movie all together.

What we got was a comedy mixed with disturbing, and haunting. I won't give it away, because although I would never want to be the reason for someone seeing this movie, it makes me uncomfortable to recount the plot. Let's just say, the movie was based on the scientists pushing the envelope with genetics and mutating, and there are some highly inappropriate relationships between the scientist and the experiment.

I wikipedia'd it to provide you with a link, and thought the following quote described it well: "Splice is funny, frightening, and shocking all at once. It’s a disturbing commentary on where science is heading, and it is not easily shaken off once you leave the theatre."

Still, I think Jules summed it up the best: "I need a shower for my brain". If only she could. If only we all could.