obvious blog post? check. still funny? check.

Good Lord! (<- click here)



I get cranky after only ______________!
(fill in the blank in the comments section...)

study week!

lots of serious school work going on this week: I'm starting the 1st chapter for my thesis, which I'll be writing this year, and my students are taking the MEAP exam. as the thesis affects my future pay, and the results of the MEAP determine our school funding, it's nerve-wracking for everybody, to say the least.

however, the good news this week is that I've noticed that my class has um.... congealed, for lack of a better term. we're now a cohesive whole, we act as one, know our routines, know each other, and best yet, still get along despite that :) this is a wonderful mile-stone - with so many students in one class, I didn't even know IF it would happen! hopefully this is the start of a wonderful, memorable year......

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meanwhile my grandma is battling colon cancer. she is in the hospital now after a surgery and should be out in a few days :) she is asking for prayers... couldn't be for a nicer lady

the kindness of strangers....

a cheesy title I know, but listen to my story: I was desperately tired and hungry last night, when I stopped to pick up something to eat at the end of many errands..... et voila! I locked my keys in the car! (plus my cell phone was at home)

suddenly, like a ray of sunshine, the good folks at the Chicken Shack called on a AAA card and got my door popped open... for free!!

go visit the Chicken Shack, folks! (especially the one on 11 mile in Royal Oak!)

Tigers win!

yay! yesterday, I went to my 3rd Tigers game of this season and .... we won!!!!!! it was awesome, as any Tigers win is, however it had to be enjoyed purely on its own merits, as its now impossible for us to even earn the wild card berth....

but the craziest thing was I saw this guy there:

el rancho!

that means "the ranch" in spanish - and it's the name of one of many restaurants I can walk to for lunch, from my school in Mexicantown, Detroit...... that's right, you TGIF-regulars and Ham Shack junkies - I can actually eat a delicious and healthy hot meal any day of the week!!!!!

I ate at el rancho today and I had chile relleno, that's a big chili pepper stuffed with seasoned ground beef, breaded and deep-fried with rice n beans and soup and tortillas...... all for $6.13 after tax!!

only thing I forgot was, this restaurant uses some kind of big, huge, authentic, and slightly smelly chili pepper for its stuffed peppers. don't get me wrong, it tastes great, but there is an odor. but I had forgot. and when the waitress leaned over and set down the plate, I got a big old waft of it.... but I thought it was coming from her armpits!!!!!!! hahahahahahaha!! I was thinking "man, she has some serious BO for a woman!" hahahahahahaha!!!!!!

but seriously folks, the food is great.

ps-just now I punished one of my kids by making him write an essay - apparently, the reason not to curse in school is because you could get in chrabull. just thought I'd let you know, anon.

camping #2!

I went camping again this weekend at the same mini-cabin, this time with kda (the artist formerly known as k-beck). we had a great time in Nature! we hiked, we sat at a campfire, we sat on the beach, we went to a nature center, we.... watched a pirated copy of Superbad (hey, it was mostly a nature trip!)

plus, we ate at this place, which was very bougie, but I must be (finally) becoming my age, because I found myself thoroughly enjoying all the bougieness of it :)

thanks for a great weekend, kda!

BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK!BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK!BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! BJORK! AND HER AWESOME BAND!

(shoutout to kda!)
what can I say but: wow!

I've been waiting 10 years to see Bjork in concert and I can truly say that it was worth every moment of waiting!! how amazing is she??!!!!! she is so amazing that I had to oooh and ahh at her concepts & stage effects! she is so amazing that she had assembled an incredible band around her! she is so amazing that her unbelievable voice stayed unbelievable for 90 straight minutes of singing!!!

and then.......

and then there was the truly awesome moment. a spot light was shining from center stage directly out onto the audience and me. suddenly Bjork crossed the stage and ........
the shadow of Bjork fell upon me! praise Jesus!!!!!!!

what a night!

Bjork, the one and only!

wow!

God loves me!

yes folks, it's the second week of school, and we already have a ...... FREE DAY!!!! it's like a snow day, but in September. the electricity was out for several hours this morning, then it came back on right before the first bell, but by then all the parents had been informed to keep the little monsters sweet pupils home, so they just left it alone. HAHAHAHAHAHA!

anyways that allows me to rest up for my big week:

TUES- Bjork concert!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
FRI, SAT, SUN- camping!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

don't hate, players. just keep on wishing and praying you were me :)

Las Chivas!!!

I started the new school year yesterday; I have a class of bi-lingual (Mexican) fifth graders..... a TON of fifth graders!!! and they keep showing up!! yikes!!! but they seem like an intelligent, and more importantly, a cool bunch (see our chosen class name above!), so perhaps la lorider shall survive.....

stay tuned to find out.........

camping! with a photo!

here's a picture of the wonderful mini-cabin I stayed in at Metamora-Hadley state park last week! *sighz* I wish I were still there!!! I hiked everyday and read the rest of the time -- I got a whole stack of graphic novels out at the library before I went, which made for easy reading.......

however, it also made me view everything as if it were an episodic graphic with captions coming out..... my next-door campers who liked to loudly discuss the drug users of their acquaintance... the lady with two gorgeous golden retreivers who kept yelling "Stupid Dogs!" at them each time they- well, behaved like dogs..... the little girl who proudly announced "this is the 4th fish I've caught!" as she brandished a 3" bluegill that looked remarkably like the last one.... the apparantly-too-regular at the local bar engaging in the following reparte:

man: "I heard you got kicked out of XYZ bar last week."

mr. old guy who is always at the bar: "I didn't get kicked out - I walked out! and I'm not going back until I get an apology!!"

man: "did you leave your phone number?"

hahahahahaha!!!!! priceless!

PS-so HAHA anon, I got by just fine with NO spa services!!! (until the drive back)

PPS- GO TIGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Go Tigers!!!

Yay! I went to the game last night with K-Beck and we .... won!!!!! How fantastic, I can't remember the last time I was at a winning game. :D it must have been my lucky tigers-colored manicure that did it -- I'll "be sure" to post a picture of it "real soon".

in other news: Happy Birthday to K-Beck, and thanks again for the best reverse birthday present I ever got! sorry that I won't be able to join you tonight for your b-day bar-hop....

folks, sit tight for more news from tha lorida, I'm heading out of town for a few days to go camping (listening all the way to my new-2-me Ipod!!!!!!!!!!!), but I'll give yous lots of more news when I get back - and of course, "lots" "more" "pix"!

HOW THA LORIDER GOT HER GROOVE BACK

wells, I guess that explains what I did last night :D

apologies, apologies to my many screaming fans who have missed me... I'm happy to say that I'll finally be getting an interneck connection at home so you alls can get semi-regular updates on la lorider's la fabulous life......

the latest, in no particular order: I have a new (old) car - thanks, Gram! I'm currently enjoying my summer vacay, soon to return to (shudder) ... teach! I'm using my vacay time to write my masters thesis. I've re-entered the dating world, to the delight of every red-blooded, unattached male in SE Michigan! and the wonderfulest of all, I got a fabulous new roomie, who is an artiste such as myself, only talented. I think that her code name for my wonderful digital memoirs will be........ Becky. cause her name's Becky. gettit?

practical/philosophical question

is there anything I can actually do to help out with Iraq, or Somalia, or Darfur, or Tibet...?

I'm getting sick of hearing about situations overseas, year after year, and always thinking vaguely that there is something I could be doing. let's consider:

1. write letters to congress or somewhere. sounds very unrewarding. I doubt that would change anything, despite what activist ppls advocate....
2. donate money. sounds unrewarding too. I know that anything I can give is a literal drop in a bucket, compared to what is needed. also, there are sooooo many places that could use donations, just thinking about it is mind-boggling.
3. pray? I heard Pope John Paul used to pray for 7 hours a day. that's a serious use of his time resources - he must have thought it to be a good use of time.
4. make carepacks with a note; just let people know that someone is thinking about them...?

I think the last one speaks to wanting to personally touch the situation, which seems to be more the point than anything for me. looking at it that way, it seems like such an american thing - the exact reason why we're so unpopular anyway, thinking we're justified in poking our noses in....... yet it sounds kind to me - hmmmmmmm.... maybe I'll check out some of the yoga ppls thoughts on this....
YIKES -boring!!!

meanwhile, I've been out shopping this weekend for plants for my classroom and Valentine's gifts for my class (I'm going to bake individual heart-shaped treats with their name on it!), trying to make it a special place for all of us. many of my kids are in pretty serious poverty; maybe just trying to create a safe and nurturing place and going around trying to get better coats for them and the suchlike that I do, is my bit of helping this planet......

any thoughts....?

the expanding o' the family

two recent baby newses:

first, I've yet to mention that my good friends Ximena and Fernando welcomed their new son, Sebastian, to the world on December 29, 2006! he's super-cute and growing like a weed. congratulations to the happy family!

meanwhile, other good friends BRITEW and Anonymous have decided to adopt a lil' kitty-cat. they're thinking of getting a grown-up, reject cat to assuage their first-world, consumptionist throw-away guilt, but I really think they should get a cute lil' kitten, like so:

















awwwwwwwwwwwww!

in other family-expansion news, Marie's wedding-planning is thrilling her SO MUCH that she has begged me for some yoga lessons so she can make it through the summer without developing a permanent one-eyed squint. happy to oblige, Marie, happy to do it.....
NOW MAKE WITH THE FOIE GRAS!!!!!!

yay! going to VT in 2 weeks!

(that's Vermont to you foreigners)

my dad and I have our winter breaks at the same time this year (yeah, you wish you were a teacher... winter break and, oh yeah, I'm at home today because -boohoo- it's too COLD for our kids to go to school.... brrrrrrr!), so I'm going to visit him, my stepma, my grandma, maybe my brother-in-law will be in town too? plus, we'll be moving my grandpa from the cape (that's Cape Cod, Massachusetts to you foreigners - near Boston, you know?). he needs to go to assisted care... :( sad to see, but it's definitely time.

only thing is, nobody's told him yet! (remember - it's in 2 weeks!!) well, he has a whole memory problem and the thinking is he'll forget what the important news is, but remember to be upset.... I dunno. seems kind of strange, but my family's thought a lot about it and is getting advice from specialists.

anyway, my dad and I'll do the move, while my stepma escorts my grandpa to Verde-mont. despite having to catch a 6:45 am flight (does time actually GO that early?) and doing the hauling, driving, & hauling, I'm looking forward to it - I always like to spend time with my Dad. I'm sure I'll learn something - he's a super-smart guy.

well folks, it's grand to be on-line; I'd love to stay and chat... but I have a kitty on my feet who neds some petting....... enjoy your day at work & ciao!

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPY BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRTTHHHHHDAAAAAAAY TOOOOOO MEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

folks, I'm 33!
yikes!

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thanks for the flowers, D.A.D.! they're gorgeous!

I hope your Christmas was merry (even you, senor crappy)

hi everyone!

just wanted to say hi around the holidays and give this status report:
-job safe! (looks like)
-family well!
-Olga went to Cancun!
-painting begun!
-Maria continues furry!
-wireless service promised for February!!!!! so look for more-regular lorider then!!

Happy New Year!

guerilla blogger

I just saw the movie Unknown White Male. it's a documentary about a guy who got total amnesia. it started me thinking about like what I would want to do if I had just total open horizons about me. I certainly haven't thought about my life like that in a while... I've been so focused on like this job I have now, teaching, and all I have to learn to keep it, the stress as I've been under the gun of being laid-off while watching co-workers get their notices, then being assigned to a new building abruptly, how to deal with all the coworkers, some of whom are big back-stabbers and all the money I'm owing now for when I was in school and how I can never go on a holiday now or do just whatever I feel like day-to-day or even hour-to-hour, cause all the responsibilities... it's not like I regret getting my teaching degree, but it was certainly a lot more fun when I was just a sub. The stress is getting to me ... - some days I feel like I'm just treading water, barely... short-tempered and etc really. I keep making lists of things I could do to de-stress. today I added 'go tanning'... I love the smell of the lotion. okay, I feel better now.

so anyway back to the first topic, I came up with:

-learn to do aerial acrobat stuff
-go up in hot air balloons alot
-spend time with elephants
-make art
-travel in France/drink wine
-there was another one but I've forgotten it already! ohno! early onset of amnesia!!!!?????!!!!!!

anyway, I'd hate to lose/but not lose all my oldest friends like this guy did. they all didn't really know how to relate to each other anymore, and I'd miss our phone convo's brainon, esp. you shouting obcenities in spanish in the background, anon....................

so anyway, hi everybody - I miss you and I hope I get an internet connection soon......

THA LORIDA GETS ARRESTED!!! (for littering) -- UPDATED

okay! stop laughing!

what happened is, I was trying to sell my old car all last fall, but because it's a manual transmission with like 130k miles, nobody wanted it. I kept shifting it around the neighborhood, but one time (I think when I was in Cali) I didn't ask anyone to move it for me while I was away, so the cops tagged it and towed it. I figured I wasn't going to be able to sell it anyway, so I just paid the ticket and didn't collect the car. well, I don't know if they didn't record the payment correctly, but apparently I had a court date (I don't remember getting any notice of it). since I missed my court date, I've had a warrant out for my arrest SINCE MAY!!!!!

I got stopped for going 40 in a 25 (whoops) and the officer says he has to arrest me. I'm like "I've been living at the same address the whole time. is it normal that I would have no idea about any of this?" and he said yeah, he gets people who don't know all the time. he and the other guy were very cool, but they had to take me in and process me, and I had to get bailed out by (the now sainted) Marie.

so I guess I have to stop making cracks about your past, cookie!

anyway, the whole event was actually rather bland. my only worry was if they put me in a cell with unsavoury characters (I'm sure there are some even in my nice little town) but in fact, I was the only one in the entire holding area, and after a while, I wished there were someone to shoot the shit with. instead I amused myself by trying to read the jailhouse graffiti, but most of it was pretty well painted over. the only thing I could make out was an inscription on the ceiling:

"armed robbery: NOT GUILTY!"

hahaha! at least I got a laugh out of that ;D

UPDATE... tha lorider gets off (phew!)
the night before my (new) court date, I still couldn't find the confirmation number I'd received on paying my original ticket and it was way too late to get a bank statement. I was very nervous that a judge wouldn't be at all pleased with my lack of documentation, but in fact, the judge turned out to be away at an important meeting. I went against my nature and was very, very patient and polite with the court officials about the long wait, and it paid off by them making the decision to just let me sign over my bond money ($100) for the court fees and take the whole thing off the books. hurray! maybe I'll try being patient again sometime soon....

tha lorider is displaced

wow!

hi, everybody! I'm at Marie's house and she insisted I use her internet to blog, because she has nothing to read at work.... :D

for the second weekend in a row, I'm over here chez Marie et Aaron because some people are fixing up the apartment downstairs and it is incredibly noisy. it is very wholesomely traditional over here, eg: Aaron watched the U-M/Notre Dame football game while Marie and I went food shopping. actually, Marie shopped and I ate all the free samples :) hey, there was no sign that I couldn't take 16 pieces of parm-reg! mmmmm!

the strike finally ended last week (after 16 days) and I taught thursday and friday. the little ankle-biters were quite cute and I have minimal lacerations on my right ankle only. I'm looking forward to monday! however, something an old hand used to tell me about is true: for some reason, the first few weeks back are quite exhausting until your body makes the adjustment.... I slept 16 hours last night and also took a nap this afternoon!

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sing well tonight, Olga! the university choral society is singing Verdi!
happy b-day, Makini!

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