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Monday, January 09, 2006

Before I fall into bed

Rebecca has learned how to do short division in her head if she can only remember it tomorrow. She's been going through this long, involved, unnecessary process for much longer than she should because she thought that she must. No wonder 50 division problems take 3 hours. She still needs to memorize those pesky times tables but that will come. In the meantime, I drew up another chart with larger numbers.

She had been drawing arrows and subracting like numbers even though she knew the result would be zero. That's fine for starting out but I kept trying to tell her she would confuse herself totally when she got to 2 and 3 digits.

Same with carrying and borrowing. Stop writing all that down and just remember it long enough to get to the next step. Eureka! Light goes on.

I finally got bright enough to put a pillow behind her on the chair. She's so little and she was sitting right on the edge. Terrible. She perked up and we may have solved another problem.

I replenished their homework supplies today when I couldn't (once again) find my stapler or paper clips. Now I'll probably locate both but it was easier at that point to replace a stapler than a broken window as a result of the hole punch I flung through it. Sometimes, I'm not a nice person.

It got me out of the house for a few minutes.

Thanks to everyone who commented yesterday and today about my contretemps with the educational system and others things.

The Principal and I exchanged a few additional emails today, each more cordial than the last. We are now on a first name basis. However, it dawned on me that my URL is at the bottom of all my email. I wonder if he'll come and lurk. At least my rant was never directed at him. It was at one individual and the bureaucracy. If you're reading this Joe, I hope you realize that.

Ray's asleep in his chair and I'm relaxing for a while. This really is relaxing although I wouldn't have believed it before I started the blog. My arm was twisted nearly from my shoulder to do it. Oops, he's awake again.

I'm listening to an excerpt from Carmen (or was, it just ended). Now we're into Tosca. I put together a playlist in no order at all so I'm constantly surprised at what turns up. I think if I had to pick a favorite, it would be Tosca. No modern soap opera can compare. Tosca has it all.

Beckster has new recipes. I'll post one or two later. It's wonderful having all these cooks around.

We have a new visitor. Hi Matthew. Matthew is the proud father of twins and I've run into him several times on Blogging Baby and some of the other blogs. His blogroll contains some names I recognized immediately. Until we can add him to the blogroll, he can be found at childsplayx2.com .

Elcie had a good afternoon and evening. Not a single snit. Rochelle is still glorying in her newfound womanhood. She's in transition - one minute playing kitty (meow) on the floor and the next carrying on an adult conversation.

One word about lurkers. No one can possibly comment on every blog they visit every time they visit - even me and Lord knows, I try. I got lots of practice on Blogging Baby. We have to eat and sleep sometime. I don't even check for lurkers. It isn't lurking to be busy, it's life. Just say hi from time to time and I'll say hi right back. On the other hand, the more comments the better.

Vicki says it's 36° (F) in Michigan. I think she's on the U.P. but I'd have to check to make sure. From what little I still remember of Detroit, that's a heat wave for this time of year. Positively balmy.

If nothing intervenes tomorrow, I'm having lunch with a couple of friends from the local moveon.org group. I wonder if we can get through an hour without politics. Probably not. PFLAG tomorrow night with a video about GLBT teenagers and the problems they face. Isolation, shame and guilt, fear, persecution, the whole gamut. I go from sad to angry and back again.

Rebecca started her after school instruction classes today. Three days a week for six weeks. She was so motivated tonight, it was frightening. She even polished the table before she began work and lectured me about a well organized work area. My tongue is still burning from biting it so hard. This from the child who reminds me of Pigpen, leaving a trail whereever she goes.

Aha - La Forza del Destino which contains what may be the only accidental death in the history of opera. It's all downhill from there. Love it.

Maybe tomorrow I can put the rest of the holiday decorations away. I said maybe.

Back to Tosca - E Lucevan e Stella. How someone can sing while they're awaiting the executioner I don't know but it makes excellent drama. He says "never have I loved life so much".

Good night everybody.

10 comments:

lindsaylobe said...

Giacomo Puccini is my wife’s most popular composer and I am not far behind in preference.I have seen Tosco performed at our Opera House in Sydney and listened many times, preferring Carreras in the main tenor role.

Funny stories on Opera performances.

Dogs will be Dogs

They used dogs with make believe manes as lions for AIDA, as in the dress rehearsal it’ worked well (just walked them through without music).

They looked magnificient.

On the opera night debut with music, the dogs all howled and had to led off in disgrace, to the howls of laughter from the audience


A Soprano's Debut

A young soprano was making her debut. They brought in extras as solders under the supervision of a “Prompter”, below stage and audience view who told them where to stand.

Do exactly as the “Prompter” commands, otherwise you will be sacked said the Producer just before the curtains opened!!

During the performance the nervous soprano fluffed her top C. The prompter pulled an awful face and covered his ears with his hands, the on stage solders did like-wise, and the audience burst out laughing.

Our poor talented soprano thought they were laughing at her, and had to be escorted from there stage in shock disbelief.

But she recovered to sing another day.

Granny said...

Funny.

I'm fond of Carreras as well, he fits the part, does all Puccini well,and I admire the man's personal courage. I have serval versions on tape and one dvd (Domingo). I haven't been lucky enough yet to see Tosca live - San Francisco sells out as soon as it's announced. True of all 12 of the the Puccini's, at least the ones that are still performed. He's a hero in San Francisco. There is a cafe in North Beach named for him which plays his music exclusively.

I have seen La Forza though. The San Francisco Opera has a rain cloud hanging over its head when it comes to Forza and my night out was no exception. Pity - they do so many things well.

Tina said...

Wonderful entry, Granny. You impress me constantly with the scope of your interests and abilities and everything you accomplish and sustain every single day.

mreddie said...

Don't you just love it when you see the light come on as you are helping with homework? ec

ipodmomma said...

hope you had a good sleep.. :)))

neat about Rebecca... I hope it continues... and Elcie's good mood too...

I love watching J go from this girl to a young woman... especially now that she's 1/4 inch away from my height!

very odd, these children growing up...

Sp00kalot said...

"Just remember it long enough to get to the next step"??? Oh boy. Thats what my problem is. I cant do that. I cant even remember what the question was. What was the question.

Anvilcloud said...

Until September, I lived for many years on the border with Michigan. Ottawa is colder, but this winter isn't bad. It's been relatively mild in Ottawa today -- went slightly above freezing.

The Rainbow Zebra said...

Looooooove Tosca! I remember crying at the end when I saw it.

Overture to La Forza rocks too.

Unknown said...

Granny, I'm posting here because I know you check your blogs first rattle out of the box, or almost anyway, and I'm too tired to go back to yahoo again. I went back to Progressive and found that he did answer me. Nice lad. A witty sort.
Your taste in opera is superb.

Unknown said...

P.S. How can one sing while awaiting the executioner? It is amazing that one can sing while dead, or at the very least in the process of dying. But great drama.