Rickshaw

I have a crush on Vanessa Paradis and her Heartbreaker Chanel wardrobe, especially the wedding dress.

I survived my third first day of school! Perhaps next year, I’ll remember to load up on cough drops and tea cause my throat is hurtin’. So happy to see familiar faces, not so happy about the huge zit that popped up (Something me and the kids can bond over?).

A few things that have made the day easier: a new haircut after almost a year, surprise back issues of Lula B ordered, a frozen lasagna warming up in the fridge from Trang, and hearing Eastbound & Down playing downstairs.

Sometimes I say things like if I was going to get married again*… usually when I eat a really delicious piece of cake or see a nice dress. But what I really mean is if we were to get married again then …

This piece from Steven Alan would fall into the “this is what I would wear to our backyard reception in Yakima next September” category. But I will probably get some more wears out of my other dresses and add a cardigan or sweater. We’re super excited for our trip back to B’s hometown as well as spending a short bit of time in Seattle.

*It’s okay, he’s amused.

photos by Todd Cole

We also enjoyed  reading about Rodarte’s Top 10 picks for Criterion. Beautiful just like their work.

50% off Criterion Collection at Barnes & Noble until August 1st.

This is what I plan to do after July but maybe with two arms behind my head instead. B thinks my sleeping position is pretty strange. I noticed my dad and younger sister sleep the same way.

hatip: design*sponge

Yelena Byksenkova’s Private Lives Series.
Lots more beautiful work to see in her blog and shop. Check her out!

#10005 why I <3 BJ- He can make invitations for theme parties like the Lost series finale tonight. So excited!

Inspired by this redesign of the boarding pass.

++++

It’s okay. You can say it … we’re nerds.

BJ got his knife sharpened outside of T’afia this weekend and spent all day Saturday testing it out. I cracked up when I saw this cut-out couple standing on the counter. Two cuts and tons of thinly sliced paper later, he finally gave it a rest.

Soon this is where we’ll be for the next year! Fortunately, our place receives the sun towards the late afternoon and evening, making the Houston heat much more bearable. I’m so excited to make it our own and to share it with our good friend Ben and my sister. There’re lots of places to eat and plenty of stores to explore just a bike ride away.

We began looking for ties for the groomsmen and dads over the weekend. Seven more to go …

I think this sums it all up!

Quick recap of my/our weekend: looked for places to rent, fell in love with a townhome with rooftop balcony, put in an application, stressed, crossed our fingers, saw Local Natives, listened to LN outside because it was so hot, visited with cute baby cousins, stressed, and dreaded going into work. I’ll be so relieved once things settle down!

Happy Birthday to my older sista Trang!

We also stopped by Uncommon Objects in Austin and I picked up some vintage photos and lace. The bottom one reminds me of a Lewis Carroll photo. If I had more time and money, I would definitely make a trip back and buy a few industrial lamps and the the boar’s head for BJ! This weekend, we’re going to look for our first place to rent together. Wish us luck!

While BJ was organizing his books, he handed me a copy of Fires in the Bathroom by Kathleen Cushman. The first line in the preface read like this:

It’s a safe bet that in random high schools all over the United States, some kid has just set the bathroom wastebasket on fire. And deep down, all of us know why.

I was hooked. Someone is always setting the trash on fire down the hall! This happened at other schools too?!I’m only through the first two chapters, but I am certain this will be an invaluable resource for teaching. During my graduate studies, we were assigned more than enough books about pedagogy and what-have-you, but this gathers advice and insight from students themselves who tackle sensitive topics with honesty and directness that is hard to get from “experts.” In a way it makes me want to travel back to the first day of school and do some things a little differently.

I didn’t realize how consuming a teacher’s job can be until I became one. Students, lessons, and endless lists of tasks linger in my mind well past the end of the school day. Lucky for me, BJ has always been understanding about all the work I have to do during the weekends and all the things we have to pass over. Heck, he even pitches in and helps me with the workload. And I’ve got to be thankful for my cohorts (hehe, do you guys remember hearing that word all the time?) and teacher friends like Andrew (whose calisthenic detentions we’ll cover in their own post) who continue to challenge me to reflect upon my own teaching practices and who allow me to vent about extremely short class times, overcrowded classrooms, and all the crazy things that go on in a school.

Mmkay, That’s all. If you are an educator, I highly recommend picking up this book if you haven’t already. I’m off to the rodeo to enjoy the last few hours of break before I start grading again.