Back to School

Well, this is it. I have to go back to work tomorrow. Classes don't start for a week, but it's these first days that are hard. I don't know if all teachers are like this, but I work my butt off during the school year, and I keep telling myself that I'll rest or I'll play or what have you over the summer. Well, now I'll have to invest all those thoughts in May, and that's a long time from now. However, I think teaching the fast track earlier this month really got me geared up for the semester. It's not going to be as tough for me as it has been previous falls. I just hope we don't have a rough a winter this school year. Last winter was really taxing, and I don't want to have to go through that again.

Today, I tried to get all sorts of things done. I mowed the worst of the lawn, scrubbed the living room carpet, took Joey for her allergy shots. Right now, I'm cooking. I'm making a double batch of chicken and rice, I made chicken salad, and when I'm done here, I'll make tuna salad. Yep, I'm back to packing daily lunches.

A Light Cool Breeze

The weather here lately has been miserable. It's been very hot and VERY humid, but today, it's just lovely. There's a light cool breeze and the temperature and humidity are very comfortable. I feel like a new person with this kind of weather.

Although I like the summer because it allows me a lot of freedom, I'm not a fan of the weather. I actually can handle the winter cold better than the summer heat and humidity. This is why I'm so fond of the fall and spring.

I wrapped up my fast track class yesterday. That is a very neat way to do a class. It's very intense and the days can become taxing, but it's also fun, and it's so easily accomplished. I'm definitely going to do more of these.

So, during this short interregnum, between my fast track class and the regular semester, which will start for me on Wednesday, I'm trying to get psyched up and I'm trying to take it easy. I think these might be two contradictory goals, but then, I'm a rather paradoxical individual.

I know I've been bad about this blog this summer, but I know I will be much more regular once school starts. I'll be able to diet better, and it'll be easier for me to focus.

Lately, I've really fallen in love with hummus. It's really good with chips and crackers, but it's healthier with veggies, so I'm trying to be satisfied with crudite. Hummus is great for you because it's full of garlic, which of course, is supposed to be good for the circulatory system. It's also got heart-healthy olive oil in it. For lunch, I try to have maybe some veggies with hummus, a tuna-salad or chicken-salad wrap. (The Tuna is probably better for me. It's got all those nice Omega-3 oils.) And a Kombucha. Kombucha is a fermented tea drink. I love the stuff. It's probiotic, but it's hard to find. I have to order mine off the net. After a lunch like this, I feel healthier, although, my breath could kill an innocent by-stander.

I've found a much better hummus recipe than the one I gave you earlier. This one I got from mideastfood.about.com.

Ingredients
1 16 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans
1/4 cup liqud reserved from can of chickpeas
3-5 tablespoons lemon juice or to taste
1.5 tablespoons tahini
2 cloves garlic crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation
Drain chickpeas and set aside liquid from can. Combine remaining ingredients in food processor. Add 1/4 cup liquid from chickpeas. Blend thoroughly till smooth.

Left-overs should be refridgerated, but when next serving it, give it a little time at room temperature to warm up a bit. The olive oil needs to liquify a bit for the flavors to really pop.

Early Morning Walking

This Fast Track Comp.1 class I'm teaching starts at 8:00 in the morning, and it's in a town an hour from here; therefore, I have to get up at about 4:30 a.m. So, I'm back to my old early morning tricks.

It hurts to get up this early, but I enjoy my walk with Joey more than our evening walk. It's cool and comfortable even though it's dark. It makes me think of fall. The air is crisp and clear, even if I can't tell whether that lumpy shadow over there is some sort of plant or a cat.

It's funny while Joey is sniffing everywhere, she rarely sees that cat or bunny up a half a block. She has a much better nose than I do, but I actually seem to have sharper eyes. But then again, I don't have as much hair in my eyes as she has right now. I need to get her in to be groomed.

Well, I better get in gear. I need to make my lunch, shower and dress and be out of here by 6:30.

On the Fast Track

Ken and I got home from a weekend in Minnesota this evening. We had gone to visit his relatives whom we haven't seen in awhile due to Ken's broken hip and other family illnesses. It was so nice to see them all.

Tomorrow, I start teaching my first fast track class. A fast track is a class in which you teach a semester worth of material in 8 days. I'll be teaching Composition I. I'm looking forward to this, but I'm also anxious. Unfortunately, the hardest thing I'll have to deal with at this point is getting up at 4:30 in the morning in order to get to the class on time. I should have been in bed an hour and a half ago. I'll let you all know how it goes.