Becoming a reading icon for children ... Pete the Cat; Read Aloud Delaware event in Wilmington this late afternoon

Tuesday, 18 July 2023 

Should check my calendar on my iPhone more carefully as I assumed that my volunteer time for the pre-K class at the daycare on S. Chapel Street was for 10:30. It was not and Ms. Lula, who celebrated a birthday yesterday, expected me at 9:30 for the 7 children she leads, two of whom were missing today. So, getting there at 10:40 due to construction delays around Newark gave me only a short time to read. One, a boy, was cut short and another I promised to start with next week. I will not be late next Tuesday, 7/25. Elizabeth, a rising 4th grader, acted as the class assistant. She knows all the times and served as a gatekeeper when I asked for the next student to be read to. 

Cut the lawn, did some trimming and blowing, my hands are grass-strewn and my white socks dirtied (wearing my hiking boots, bought down at the Delaware shore at an outlet with Peg when we went camping and kayaking while mom was in in-hospital hospice care for a few days ... 2015?). The Asbells were on their front porch and Dwayne was watching as a lawn service employee cut his yard with a riding lawnmower. It was an historic and yes, painful, moment to see him relying on a service that he has done all his adult life ... cutting and taken care of his yard. 

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Wednesday ... 7/26/23 ... So, WTH, why can I not write in this online blog at least for a few minutes of the day and then share it with those close to me. Yesterday was a transformative day for me and Elizabeth, 10, the rising 4th grader in the pre-K class at the Christian Daycare I read for on Tuesday mornings; and later a phone call to Nick who received the birthday card and check today. He was truly appreciative as it came at a needy time financially. Back to pre-K with the announcement from this engaging young lady that she could not read chapter books. Here I am reading "Trucks" and "Spot Goes To The Beach" to these 4 and 5 years olds and she can't read. We'll have to remediate that I told her and promised to read a chapter book next week (8/1) to her. Already have "Stuart Little" in the car and ordered a paperback from Amazon for her to have. 

It's a gorgeous Wednesday morning and within the hour I'll be back on the trails (rode last night until light feel on the unseen roots and depressions before Smith Mill Road ascent) with Maryann set to arrive from NJ at 9:45 at WCP. 

What a ride with the girl from NJ this Wednesday morning that extended into the afternoon as we road trails, the Pomeroy, the reservoir, Redd Park and the asphalt downhill to the intersection of Polly Drummond and Paper Mill Rds. Over 20 miles (my Strava gave out as always but I did register mileage of over 13 at one point at the turnaround where with Maryann's tough ascent of a hill beyond the house remains in Pennsylvania that I'd always walked in the past ... she inspired me to reach the top). 

Last day of the year service and Kwanzaa lesson at UUSMC ... led by Anna Hull and festival teachers Gladys Smith and Michael Slater

 December 31, 2023

Well, here we go again. Another year closes shop, a new one beckons and like the deranged person repeating a failed path, many times over, I once again hope to make a positive change(s) in my life as I seek physical and spiritual wholeness.  

Gladys Smith and Michael Slater 
helped out UUSMC attendees with the 
history and meaning of Kwanzaa as she lit
all 7 candles representing the days of the festival. 

Seeds for the New Year was the title of today's service, the last day of 2023, and Anna Hull gave the homily and it connected directly to the padded insert like papyrus that I thought might be the writing pad for our resolutions for 2024, but no, they contained within their fibers, seeds of meadow wildflowers that when buried and then covered with soil will, with patience, sprout in the weeks ahead. It's something you can take to the bank when Professor Hull, who teaches biology and environmental science at Lincoln University, one of the first predominantly African-American schools in the United States. 

Micro elements of our existence ... from 1/137 to quantum dynamics to crith or the weight of a liter of hydrogen

Judy Burns blows out the candles after Associates' rehearsal at Rachael Vernooy's home on Monday, 3 October 2022. Judy turned 80 years of age. 

 Back to Brilliant.org to learn about the basics of physics and mathematics, the foundations of our world. I've lost mine lately and I'm entering a dangerous phase where I need to make a turnaround. In a few minutes I'll drive to the Delaware State Police station new Glasgow to get fingerprinted for Read Aloud Delaware (for free) and request a criminal background clearance for Kelly Services/Education ($65 charge). I'm anxious and yes, even scared for I've felt let down by my former "colleagues" in the school system after my abrupt firing  by ESS over an email where I was hoping to have some honest dialogue about student behavior. It turned out horribly wrong and I have yet to recover. Not doing myself any favors by my destructive behavior and escapist activities. Why is it that nurturing your spirit with knowledge and exploration is such anathema when it is all restorative?

Fifth Grade Virtual Field Trip: Ecosystem Exploration

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80eakJGlaPs

A virtual fifth-grade field trip with Walking Mountains Science Center in Colorado! Ecosystem Exploration- Take a virtual hike with our educators through different ecosystems at the Walking Mountains Science Center Tang Campus. What do you see? Use your observation skills to find and discover.

24 May 2022 ... my goodness, it's been a LONG time since I made a post, but here I go once more, it needs to be more regular

 

The scythe was a bit rusty but Peg sharpened it quickly and it made quick work of flora in the back corner of the yard where we planted a Columbine. 

My Facebook post comments: "Before you start, “Here’s Peg’s lesser half posting on FB while she does the work of scything a corner plot in the backyard”. Well, I’ll have you know I finished the hole (at her request as she'd started it) for the Columbine and filled it with soil (mostly) some of which invaded the inside of my knee pad. Now that's true sacrifice ."

This is a good start. I can't comment on it all, there are trillions of neutrinos and you can't count them all, so are the experiences in a day. In its ultimate, a writer can turn it into a work of art for the ages, Ulysses.

Citing the positive, no matter how miniscule, to build back my spirit. This should not be a temporary fix. My

 30 June 2022, a beautiful Thursday in the Pike Creek Valley of New Castle County, Delaware on 15 Cook Road in Deacons Walk ... 

A list of those positive accomplishments, no matter how slight, that have made this day a step forward rather than back toward a sense of despair. 

1. Took tool sample to UPS for next day delivery for colon check. 
   
2. Used clasping tool to pick up Dutch tile behind the bookcase at the front window in the living room.
3. Getting set to do the lawn and plan to weed trim also (with Peg's assistance to start it).
4. Help Peg to get the chainsaw to start after its inability last evening in the meadow where I learned  about some of the invasive plants and did some pulling up of some with Jamie Kegerise's expertise. 
5. 
   

1.15.19 ... Floater at Mote (Megan Jolly's 2nd graders ... WOTDs taped to Smartboard)