Quite a week

Whew, it feels like this has been a very long week and it's not even finished yet. I'm trying to think back to what has happened and while some of it seems a blur, certain moments stick out like a bruised toenail. (Not that you'd be able to tell on my freshly pedicured toesies, they're purple!)

- I missed 4 days of work: last Friday, Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I managed to go on Tuesday, mostly because I was expected to present a writing lesson to my first hour class and eight of my fellow teachers/bosses. They were all evaluating me and while I wasn't necessarily nervous, I wanted to do it and do it well. I went and I presented and then somehow read the final 2 chapters of The Outsiders to each of my 3 classes before collapsing in bed for a 2 hour nap. The good news is I passed my evaluation with a perfect score.

- The major highway between Yuma and San Diego was shut down for 24 hours yesterday due to SNOW. Yes, that's right, SNOW. In sunny southern California. Mother Nature's gone looney.

- I have read 2.5 books this week and every magazine in the house. This is terribly exciting to me. I finally got through Prep which was very good, just like the New York Times said, and then read Meg Cabot's Queen of Babble which is addictively good, and now I'm almost done with Kristen Gore's Sammy's House (a follow-up to Sammy's Hill which was great and so is this one, a great comedic peak at the White House and Capitol Hill from someone with insider knowledge (she's Al Gore's daughter) and the comedic chops (she won an Emmy for writing on SNL)).

- There was a shooting last night, at the Yuma Palms Mall. The mall Ang and I frequent on a weekly basis. It happened about 8:30pm, outside the movie theaters, on Valentine's night (tons of restuarants right there) when there was no school today. It's a wonder only one person was killed and another injured. Apparently a 16 year old shot an 18 year old. Gang-related. Yes, I feel safe in my own backyard.

- Ang and I attended Yuma County's Professional Day for Teachers today, which really wasn't a good use of an in-service day. I could have been developing lesson plans, lessons, putting in grades, figuring midterms, reading sub reports, mapping curriculum, ANYTHING else. But no, I was there. Listening to grand ideas and things I already knew. Yep yep.

- Oh yeah, did I mention the writer's strike ended?!?!?! (Yay!)

- Ang and I treated ourselves to pedicures today, which is the best 20 bucks ever spent can I just tell you. It's so relaxing to sit there reading, having someone pamper you so. This signals 2 things. One, summer is near in Yuma; it's sandal season! And two, we're heading to Vegas tomorrow morning! There are 6 of us going and word on the street is we've got our names down on the VIP lists at several hot clubs which essentially means we pay for drinks but not a cover (which I understand can be 50 bucks and up). We're so money baby! We'll be back Monday (assuming we don't hit the jackpot!).

- Happy long weekend everyone!