May 16 - Papers finished

Today I finished grading all students' 5-8 page papers --yay! I collected them a week earlier than usual, and this is the earliest I've ever been done.
I'm also trying to write this using my Kindle Fire so that I can use it on our upcoming trips-
more on those later...

Another graduation and reminiscences...

My niece Kelsey is graduating from James Madison University with a Master's Degree in Education in Mathematics. Yay! She also has a job teaching in the fall in Loudon County, Virginia.  Alicia just finished her second year at Immaculata.  Nicole is engaged and made settlement on a house in South Philly yesterday...wow.  These little girls I watched play in the surf and ride the rides on the Ocean City boardwalk are growing up so quickly. 

My year is also winding down quickly.  The kids finish reading Oedipus this week, take a test on it, and then spend 5 of the next six school days either taking Keystones Exams or AP tests -- poor things.  

Grading crunch time!

I just finished 3+ plus weeks working with my classes on writing their first literary critical paper.  The rough draft is due on Monday.  Because I have a set of laptops in my class (cheap and crappy though they are), my kids are able to work on every step of the paper-writing process in class.  Lots of interaction ensues, and often I can just look at their computer screens and give them credit for finishing one part of the process -- sweet! 

I'm also trying to finish a previous set of compositions to return before they turn in their final draft of the critical paper -- this is the first time I've ever cut it this close in terms of having a composition graded before they turn in the next one.  Yikes!

Bob is in Texas right now; he'll be home next weekend for a trip to NYC to see a Rudin-produced play and have dinner at our new favorite New York restaurant, Colicchio and Sons.

Easter!

Easter with the Rybickis

I spent the weekend with my sister Connie and family.  Saturday was a beautiful day, and we took a boat ride on the Potomac -- pretty sweet.


On Easter Sunday, Steven made me breakfast while Connie took an eleven mile walk -- I also graded some compositions.

Note the "h" in sausage -- for our maiden name!

Peppercorn incident just before dinner...

We had beef tenderloin for dinner -- so succulent!

On Easter Monday, I left at 8:30AM and met my friend Theresa for coffee.  I returned home at 1:00PM after a fun weekend in Virginia!

It's February -- Happy Groundhog Day

So we're finally in February - the second marking period ends on Tuesday.  It's been a good year so far in the classroom - my students are really great.

I've been enjoying the countdown to the Oscars - and I remember all the movies that we saw because Sam told us about them.

Reading Jo Nesbo's Phantom, the most recent in the Harry Hole series.  Teaching Cyrano de Bergerac -- so much fun.

I'm fighting with Waste Management - they finally picked up my recycling bin last night after 4 weeks of complaints.

Too busy to post here...

So I've been posting Sam's movie review comments as a countdown to the Oscars, so I haven't been writing anything here.  Thought I'd at least keep track of books and TV/movie stuff.

Reading The Leopard by Jo Nesbo - Harry Hole mystery
Love these books - sometimes a bit raw, but still really compelling reads
They're always about serial killers since Harry Hole is the Swedish expert on the subject.  

Watching White Collar (USA) and Annika Bengtzon (Netflix - Swedish TV series)
Bob and I agreed that the difference between American and Swedish TV shows is palpable when you're watching them one after the other.  I like White Collar because of its smartness, but it really pales in comparison to the Swedish series.  Maybe I should start watching HBO again...

December 29-30 -- NYC to finish out the month!

Saturday morning we drove to New York City to see a matinee and have dinner at Colicchio and Sons (can you guess that this is my new favorite NYC restaurant??).   The weather was supposed to be bad, but we had no trouble on the roads and even in the city.  We found our parking garage, a block and a half from the hotel, and left our bags at the hotel to have lunch and see Golden Boy, a play recommended by Scott Rudin.

Because we had time, we decided to get a latte at Pain Quotidien and then have lunch at the Union Square Rosa Mexicano  - excellent choices, as it turned out!

Bob modeling his velvet jacket

And reading the Pain Quotidien cookbook

After enjoying the best latte in town, we walked over to the restaurant, which was nearly empty!  Our server was a lovely girl who had moved to NYC from Hawaii - she was a one-time lacrosse player (at Temple!!) and coach.  She and Bob chatted about their lacrosse experiences, and we had a delightful meal.

How cute is he!!

A little of the tropics in Rosa Mexicano

Beautifully decorated

And the killer pomegranate margaritas!

Then it was a quick subway ride to Times Square.  We still had some time, and it was ugly outside, so we stopped at Un, Deux, Trois for more -- beer, of course.

Too many choices - I'll have a Bud...NOT.

The Belasco Theater, a beautifully redone space, was right next door.  Although they had some problems with their moveable set and the show was delayed about 10 minutes (NEVER have we experienced a delay on Broadway), once it started, it was riveting -- so well done.

After a quick stop back at the hotel, we braved the snow and cold to walk and take the subway part of the way to the restaurant.  We re-introduced ourselves to the beer expert/manager, and our dinner was again delicious.

Pork belly

Pancetta-wrapped venison

The server was also quite nice as well as being efficient, so we enjoyed another special evening at Colicchio and Sons; even though we tried to leave without ordering dessert, the beer expert/manager sent us a selection of ice creams and sorbets -- on the house!   We also brought home their usual parting gift: homemade muffins.

I wanted my after-dinner drink at Eataly (for some limoncello!), which was on the way home if we took the L and then 4 subways.  As we were getting on the L, a lovely young girl asked us for help in making sure she was taking the right subway.  She had just arrived from a beach town in Mexico, and the directions to her friend's home were written on a napkin!  We got her safely onto the L and then going in the right direction waiting for the express 5-6 -- the next day we were talking about it, and Bob said we should have gotten her a cab and given her the fare; I was thinking that we should have taken the subway with her and made sure she got to the right place... But we didn't say anything to each other at the time...paths not taken.

So we reached Eataly with ease and found the limoncello stand.

Enjoying our limoncello

Cool geodesic dome near Eataly - it changed colors every few seconds

After a successful evening excursion, we went back to our hotel, which was just three blocks north of Eataly!  We had some terrific views during the course of the evening.

Early evening - Empire State Building

Bob catching up on his Kindle Fire!

Later in the evening - an Intstagram edited view of the Empire State Building

The next morning we had some coffee at the hotel and then drove down to Jack, a bistro in the Village where we had brunch.  It was empty - we found out that alcohol can't be served in NYC until noon, and we were there at 11AM.  By the time we finished, the place was starting to fill up - guess most New Yorkers want a mimosa with brunch!!  We were back home by 2PM and had some pizza for dinner at the local pizza place.