It's been a crazy, hectic week, that is not going to get any calmer! This weekend, we've already had Ollie's first soccer game (very cute!); I've got to do some shopping and cleaning; I'm going to try and see my mum; I'm going to an engagement party tonight; breakfast with family tomorrow morning; and then for most of tomorrow I'm going to a music festival called 'Groovin' the Moo'. CRAZY!
But it's nice to be busy. I've mentioned before that I'm one of those people who likes to be busy. And it wasn't a bad week, really. Despite the fact that I barely had time to scratch myself, it was fairly interesting and fulfilling. I'm actually enjoying the library role quite a lot.
It's also kept my mind off Mother's Day, which I have been trying not to think about too much.
As I've mentioned, the Book Fair was on this week, and we were very busy selling books. It kind of reminded me of my days in retail (my first job was at Grace Bros (now Myer) and I worked in a cinema for a long time). We actually sold more than $4500 worth of products, which was amazing considering we had to stick to fairly restrictive opening hours. This means our school earns more than $1500 to spend on resources, which is fantastic. On top of that, I had my regular teaching load, so I was working pretty non stop. I also made about 2000 trips up and down the hill from the library to the rest of the school (my school is set 2/3 of the way up a very steep hill - with a beautiful panoramic view of South Canberra) and the building which houses the library is about 20 metres below the rest of the school).
But the nice thing about working in the library is that even though you're on the go the whole time, it's pretty much over at the end of the day. You can't take books home to shelve them, you can't do the administration at home, and apart from a bit of planning and marking, there's not the frantic preparation that you have as a primary school teacher, planning for (sometimes) up to 4 different subjects in one day. Then you have to mark and assess a lot of this work as well, and plan for the next day.
In the past, I've mistaken taking home truckloads of school work as fulfilling, mainly because I didn't have anything else to do. I told myself that I enjoyed sitting with my computer and working. If we weren't doing 'family stuff' or playing board games together, my boys were generally happy playing video games or watching TV, and I'm not really into those things, so I would tend to work. In the day time, it was easier to find other things to do - I do actually like gardening, but at night, the last thing I wanted to do was watch some mindless TV show. Anthony would sometimes indulge me and have a 'conversation', but he does like TV, and I was happy to let him watch it.
But now I have photography. And boy do I love it! As I've said, I've always liked taking photos, but since I've started getting serious, it's become a little consuming!
So I'm going to go out shortly, and take some photos, because I'm actually having withdrawals! :)
I'm enjoying this new hobby so much! Actually, I can't think of a 'hobby' that I've ever had before, let alone enjoyed this much.
I've certainly tried many things: When I was younger, I collected many things, from stamps to rubbers (the eraser kind) and pictures of pop stars. I still have a nice collection of dragon figurines. I played tenor saxophone for a long time too. I've made clothes; bought a few 'drawing implements' and did a bit of sketching; collected shells with the intention of making stuff with them; made various baked treats... I'm a tragic op-shopper, a fairly passable gardener, and a pretty cook, but none of them have ever made me so interested and excited.
It's kind of nice. I like having something to do. I like the thrill of looking at a nice photo. I feel clever when I notice something that would make a good photo. I love it when people make comments about my photos on Flickr. I want to buy a bigger, better camera and make fabulous photos that I (and maybe other people) would want to display on their walls. I love it when I pull out my camera and people comment on it (this morning I was jokingly called the official team photographer, which was kinda nice!)
Now that I have a hobby, I know there's more to life than that. I guess now that I have my head more tuned in to the whole teaching thing, there's room in my life for hobbies. Perhaps 3 or 4 years ago I wouldn't have had the time to devote to it, but I'm glad that I do now.
So stay tuned, more photos when I come back!
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
So Nice!
I forgot to mention the nice things that happened to me today.
It's so easy to get caught up in this business of day-to-day life, and well, in grief, that sometimes we forget to notice the nice little things that happen. So I thought I'd write about the lovely things that happened to me (and my boys) today.
I had a busy morning at work today, starting well before 8am and going non-stop for a bit (it was hard-going with the headache I had from my sleepless night and tummy ache!). When things settled a bit, and I was just getting into the tidying up, a mum that's been helping in the library turned up with an extra coffee. It wasn't originally for me, but the person she'd bought it for is away, so she gave it to me. It was just what I needed at the time!
Then, when I finally got a chance to check my pigeon hole, I found this;
along with a little card that had a nice little 'cheer up' message. It came from a lovely new teacher that I have only known since I got back to work (6 weeks + holidays ago), and it was a really touching gesture. She said later that she had noticed that I looked a bit 'down', so she thought she'd give me the 'Sunshine Bear'.
When I got home, my brother-in-law was there. He had bought Ollie a little lego car (To say that Ollie is TOTALLY addicted to lego woudl be somewhat of an understatement), and some hot chips for the boys to eat for afternoon tea.
Then, another friend arrived at the house at the same time as me, with some nice beer that he proceeded to share with me. I don't normally drink during the week, but I didn't mind a beer or two. In fact, it went down quite well.
And, just as I was starting to think 'what the heck am I going to cook/eat for dinner', my mother-in-law called to say she was going to make dinner for us. She brought over some yummy stuff for us, and I didn't have to cook! Now that Sam's gone :( I am the sole cook in our house (Anthony does the odd jaffle or reheated pie, but I cook the meals. I don't mind really, he does a lot of other things - and he cleans up afte me in the kitchen!), and while I enjoy cooking most of the time, there are times when I really don't want to! Today was one of them.
These things probably don't seem like much, but it's these thoughtful; kind gestures that just mean so much. It's not that uncommon around here I guess (we do know some very nice people: my mum and dad dropped a meal off for us last week, and people quite often give me little chockies or pop in to visit), and it's been even more common since we lost Sam, but it's really these little things that make my day sometimes.
I wanted to make a point of mentioning it, because these things get overlooked so often.
So thank you to those lovely people. You made my day. I want you to know that I'm grateful you are in my life.
It's so easy to get caught up in this business of day-to-day life, and well, in grief, that sometimes we forget to notice the nice little things that happen. So I thought I'd write about the lovely things that happened to me (and my boys) today.
I had a busy morning at work today, starting well before 8am and going non-stop for a bit (it was hard-going with the headache I had from my sleepless night and tummy ache!). When things settled a bit, and I was just getting into the tidying up, a mum that's been helping in the library turned up with an extra coffee. It wasn't originally for me, but the person she'd bought it for is away, so she gave it to me. It was just what I needed at the time!
Then, when I finally got a chance to check my pigeon hole, I found this;
along with a little card that had a nice little 'cheer up' message. It came from a lovely new teacher that I have only known since I got back to work (6 weeks + holidays ago), and it was a really touching gesture. She said later that she had noticed that I looked a bit 'down', so she thought she'd give me the 'Sunshine Bear'.When I got home, my brother-in-law was there. He had bought Ollie a little lego car (To say that Ollie is TOTALLY addicted to lego woudl be somewhat of an understatement), and some hot chips for the boys to eat for afternoon tea.
Then, another friend arrived at the house at the same time as me, with some nice beer that he proceeded to share with me. I don't normally drink during the week, but I didn't mind a beer or two. In fact, it went down quite well.
And, just as I was starting to think 'what the heck am I going to cook/eat for dinner', my mother-in-law called to say she was going to make dinner for us. She brought over some yummy stuff for us, and I didn't have to cook! Now that Sam's gone :( I am the sole cook in our house (Anthony does the odd jaffle or reheated pie, but I cook the meals. I don't mind really, he does a lot of other things - and he cleans up afte me in the kitchen!), and while I enjoy cooking most of the time, there are times when I really don't want to! Today was one of them.
These things probably don't seem like much, but it's these thoughtful; kind gestures that just mean so much. It's not that uncommon around here I guess (we do know some very nice people: my mum and dad dropped a meal off for us last week, and people quite often give me little chockies or pop in to visit), and it's been even more common since we lost Sam, but it's really these little things that make my day sometimes.
I wanted to make a point of mentioning it, because these things get overlooked so often.
So thank you to those lovely people. You made my day. I want you to know that I'm grateful you are in my life.
I'll be glad when this week is over!
Well, the ankle ended up being OK. By the next day, I was pretty much walking normally again. I have no idea what weird stuff was going on! It was almost like it needed to 'click' - you know, like you click your knuckles?
But then, on Monday night, Oliver woke at 1.30am and started vomiting. He then vomited every hour for another 4 hours. Poor kid. By 4.30, he was so frustrated. He said, "I hate vomiting! It stops you doing what you are trying to do!" (in this case, sleep). He then got up and watched TV. I guess it's good he knows when it's a lost cause!
Anthony had one bout that night too. I was OK, but last night was awake most of the night with pains in the stomach. I didn't vomit, but felt like crap. I felt pretty crappy all day today too.
So we picked up a very powerful (and quick) virus, which now, hopefully has moved on...
Because I can't afford to get sick this week! The Book Fair is so busy, and I've had too much time off already!
Not that I'm minding the Book Fair too much. It's very nice to see kids (and their parents) excited about books (my god, I sound like such a geeky librarian!), and we made a fair bit of money already.
Sometimes it feels like the librarian job is a bit of an 'add on', so it's nice to feel like I'm contributing to the school. I am enjoying the job too. My boss asked me if it might be a career path I'd consider, and I must say, I probably wouldn't mind! It would have to be one of those progressive, Technology-rich libraries, where books and computers have equal standing though!
So I've been very busy. It's not so bad, I do like to be busy, and it helps keep my mind off things that get me down, but it is very tiring (especially when you're not 100%!). And I haven't been able to get out and take photos either! :(
But then, on Monday night, Oliver woke at 1.30am and started vomiting. He then vomited every hour for another 4 hours. Poor kid. By 4.30, he was so frustrated. He said, "I hate vomiting! It stops you doing what you are trying to do!" (in this case, sleep). He then got up and watched TV. I guess it's good he knows when it's a lost cause!
Anthony had one bout that night too. I was OK, but last night was awake most of the night with pains in the stomach. I didn't vomit, but felt like crap. I felt pretty crappy all day today too.
So we picked up a very powerful (and quick) virus, which now, hopefully has moved on...
Because I can't afford to get sick this week! The Book Fair is so busy, and I've had too much time off already!
Not that I'm minding the Book Fair too much. It's very nice to see kids (and their parents) excited about books (my god, I sound like such a geeky librarian!), and we made a fair bit of money already.
Sometimes it feels like the librarian job is a bit of an 'add on', so it's nice to feel like I'm contributing to the school. I am enjoying the job too. My boss asked me if it might be a career path I'd consider, and I must say, I probably wouldn't mind! It would have to be one of those progressive, Technology-rich libraries, where books and computers have equal standing though!
So I've been very busy. It's not so bad, I do like to be busy, and it helps keep my mind off things that get me down, but it is very tiring (especially when you're not 100%!). And I haven't been able to get out and take photos either! :(
Monday, May 3, 2010
Don't go away, we'll be right back!!
I've done something to my ankle! Stupid body!
This afternoon all of a sudden, I stood up and my ankle really hurt! It was hard to walk. I disn't step on it weirdly, or fall over, it just hurt all of a sudden. Now it's a bit swollen and sore! I just can't seem to catch a trick!
This week we are having a Book Fair at the school, and as the librarian, it's my job to set it up and run it. It's not a problem really - it's quite user-friendly to set up (although I still think I'm going to miss something, or muck something up!)
But it's time consuming, and as part of my new approach to work and work/life balance, if I'm spending extra time at work (and I will have to for a couple of days), then I am going to have to cut back on some online time, so that I can hang with my boys.
So my posts are going to be short and sweet, or missing for a couple of days. I hope you'll bear with me, as I'm really loving having some regular readers and commenters!
In the mean time, check out some of the blogs in my side bar!
This afternoon all of a sudden, I stood up and my ankle really hurt! It was hard to walk. I disn't step on it weirdly, or fall over, it just hurt all of a sudden. Now it's a bit swollen and sore! I just can't seem to catch a trick!
This week we are having a Book Fair at the school, and as the librarian, it's my job to set it up and run it. It's not a problem really - it's quite user-friendly to set up (although I still think I'm going to miss something, or muck something up!)
But it's time consuming, and as part of my new approach to work and work/life balance, if I'm spending extra time at work (and I will have to for a couple of days), then I am going to have to cut back on some online time, so that I can hang with my boys.
So my posts are going to be short and sweet, or missing for a couple of days. I hope you'll bear with me, as I'm really loving having some regular readers and commenters!
In the mean time, check out some of the blogs in my side bar!
Family
Ahh family...I've been involved in enough online (and other) discussions to know that families are far from perfect at the best of times, and some families have a lot of trouble getting along. Actually, I think the only perfect, happy families exist on TV shows, and there are always going to be some crazy antics going on.
I'm not going to say I have one of those perfect families, but on the whole, they are pretty awesome.
I've just spent the weekend hanging out with my family, and I must say they are quite fantastic.
Anthony's brother Tim visited from Queensland over the weekend, and I must say I just love it when Anthony and his brothers get together. They laugh, they have fun, they joke..they just get along well.
It's a nice place to be, and I'm glad we're all seeing a bit more of each other. Not happy about the way we got here, but liking the outcome.
I'm not going to say I have one of those perfect families, but on the whole, they are pretty awesome.
I've just spent the weekend hanging out with my family, and I must say they are quite fantastic.
Anthony's brother Tim visited from Queensland over the weekend, and I must say I just love it when Anthony and his brothers get together. They laugh, they have fun, they joke..they just get along well.
It's a nice place to be, and I'm glad we're all seeing a bit more of each other. Not happy about the way we got here, but liking the outcome.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Saturday's Sensational Six
Things have been pretty, well, crap lately. And sometimes when life's getting like that I lose all my motivation and don't feel like doing anything. I must say, I had a day like that yesterday, with very little accomplished; and it's taken me a bit to get moving today too.
I still feel yucky, with a constant headache and that horrible sinusy feeling, but the antibiotics seem to be kicking in, so hopefully that will change soon.
But one of the places I do like to escape to is my little online world. I'm going to write about it again soon, but today I'm glad it was there.
So I thought I'd do my six for today. Here goes:
I love the look of concentration on Ollie's face.
An Interesting Photo
This is an alternative to the one I entered in the photo of the week challenge. I love how the tree with leaves seems to be 'reaching out' to the tree without.
This was taken on Urambi Hill, not far from my house (about 7km or so).
I love this photo. Everything just 'worked'.
Today was also the start of a photography scavenger hunt that I'm taking part in. Soooo much fun! You can see my entries in my Flickr photostream.
I still feel yucky, with a constant headache and that horrible sinusy feeling, but the antibiotics seem to be kicking in, so hopefully that will change soon.
But one of the places I do like to escape to is my little online world. I'm going to write about it again soon, but today I'm glad it was there.
So I thought I'd do my six for today. Here goes:
A great photo of Sam
On Thursday, when we got that 'news', Anthony and I went and sat in Sam's room for a while. I picked up his phone and turned it on. Months ago, when I'd turned it on there had been nothing coming up on the memory card. I had thought it was just empty, but there must have been some kind of glitch, because this time, all his data was there. So we found three new photos of Sam that we hadn't seen yet. This is one of them:
On Thursday, when we got that 'news', Anthony and I went and sat in Sam's room for a while. I picked up his phone and turned it on. Months ago, when I'd turned it on there had been nothing coming up on the memory card. I had thought it was just empty, but there must have been some kind of glitch, because this time, all his data was there. So we found three new photos of Sam that we hadn't seen yet. This is one of them:
A great photo of Oliver
I love the look of concentration on Ollie's face.An old photo
This is another photo of Anthony and I at my 21st. When I posted the other one last week, Mum went looking and found this one. I don't think I've ever seen it!
It's funny, mum said she at first didn't recognise Anthony. He does look very different now I guess!
This is another photo of Anthony and I at my 21st. When I posted the other one last week, Mum went looking and found this one. I don't think I've ever seen it!It's funny, mum said she at first didn't recognise Anthony. He does look very different now I guess!
An Interesting Photo
This is an alternative to the one I entered in the photo of the week challenge. I love how the tree with leaves seems to be 'reaching out' to the tree without.This was taken on Urambi Hill, not far from my house (about 7km or so).
Morguefile Lesson Photos
This week was the last week of the first lesson in my 'Morguefile' course, so I haven't got any for the new lesson yet (it started today).So I've decided to show you another of my abstracts. You can view all the photos I take for the course on my Flickr, but here are the first two assignments:Lesson 1: Composition
I love this photo. Everything just 'worked'.Today was also the start of a photography scavenger hunt that I'm taking part in. Soooo much fun! You can see my entries in my Flickr photostream.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)