Hooray For Spring Break!

 Last week was BRUTAL!   But I survived.   And only sent one kid to the office....  each day!  (Except Friday... And probably should have then as well. )   But I know the kids are antsy with all that Winter energy ready to explode.   Hopefully, a week at home with their parents will get that energy out of the bottle. 

As for me,  I finally finished entering grades for the Earth Science folks and finished scoring the papers for the Physical Science sets.   Tomorrow I will enter those grades and I'm sure I will get a flood of E-mails from people who did not get the grades they were looking for.  We only have one week left in this third quarter, and people will want to get their grades up so they can play sports for the Spring.  A wee bit of leverage on my part...   ( For the sports people, at least.) 

I still have to grade them though.   And I will probably spend a small portion of this week working on my next weeks classes.   Possibly even researching next year's book and brainstorming ideas.  We shall see how much I will dedicate to recharging my sanity meter. 

In the mean time...  Today was a Wonderfully Sunny Day!   With a high around 56 degrees,  I chose to go out for a run.   And not just any run... a 6 Miler!

Ever since the cold set in, I have not been able to get out and run in the mornings like I normally do.   It has been about 4 weeks since I last ran.   But I actually started back up on Monday.... Running three miles at 3:00 AM.   ( It is wonderfully dark and peaceful then...) I will give the credit to my stress levels.   You see, I normally have to have a fire lit under my butt to get me to do things or break a bad habit.  And nothing will cause me to desire to run off anxiety better than.... Running!  By the time I am finished with 3 miles in the cold and dark... I have forgotten what was bothering me so badly in the first place.  

But the sun was shining.  And it was pleasantly warm.    And I am getting fat and out of shape.    So...  Let's go for a run!   ( It will be fun!  My mind tells me.)  

Running without a purpose seems like an exercise in futility.   So... If you are not trying to run off anxiety;  or are being chased by Zombies.  ( The fast ones!)  Then it is a good idea to have a goal in mind before setting off on an increasingly difficult exercise.  

So what should my Goal be?.... 

How about the Wisconsin Marathon! (May 3rd!) 

Well,  a Marathon seems a little unrealistic at the moment.   But there is a half.   I volunteered for it a few years ago.  And was a spectator last year and  in 2016!  But I have yet to actually run the thing myself.   And since it is in my own back yard,  I might as well make this the year...  It will give me a reason to run in the morning, rather than an attempt to escape depression.  And it will keep me distracted from the crushing panic that I  will face as the end of the school year approaches.  Better to run Towards something rather than away... Right?  ( If that makes any sense, given the confusing logical pathways.) 

Technically,  you Should be able to run 13.1 miles if you can run a full 6 miles without stopping.   And I did that today.   

Well,  Mostly....   I don't want to count the dog encounters, because I figure those are just part of the experience.   I LOVE dogs!   I take every opportunity to try and pet them.   And many owners are cool enough to let me do it!  And since not many people walk cats in the park,  I mostly only have dogs on the pet list.    

And since I did not have any bathroom breaks during this run. I figure the dog visits cancel out.   I mean,  Bathroom stops are part of the running experience, after all.   And since relieving one's self in front of an audience is usually frowned upon by polite society,  I normally have to spend time searching for a private place to go...  Like a tree, or bush,  or playground equipment...  And every now and then, an actual bathroom or port-a-jon.  (But who wants to go in those?)  

So,  I pet the dogs,  listen to music.   And try to run the Parkside route without drawing too much attention.   (I guess I sometimes sing along with the headphones.   But no one seems to care.)  A few of the locals recognize me as "The Mushroom Guy"  so every now and then I stop for a conversation.  (Don't get me started on Mushrooms.) Overall,  it was a good run.   And I'm impressed I made the entire  route without walking.  ( Though, my Glutes and Quads ache now... along with my knees and hips.   Hooray for Old age!)  

I ended up scoring papers for the rest of the day,  taking a small break to head out and buy some dinner.   While I was there,   the girl scouts attacked me and forced  me to buy their cookies.   

Sure!   They look cute and harmless in those little green uniforms, but don't be deceived!   There is a weapon in that cuteness!   And they use it aggressively.     I ended up buying 4 boxes at $6 a pop!   Christina tried to stop me.    She told me it was a bad deal and that they were selling cheaper, better tasting cookies in Sam's Club.   But it was too late.   I was already under the "Girl Scout Charm" and could not save myself... or my money.   

 I do like the minty chocolate cookies, though.   I ended up buying the peanut butter ones because they looked like Reeses peanut butter cups.  But they are not as good as I thought.  In fact,  I don't even think they taste like peanut butter much as all!    They just taste "sweet"  not even much like chocolate.   

In hindsight,  I should have bought the nutter butter looking ones.   They look like little peanut butter sandwich cookies.  

This post is getting long!  And it is getting late.   I have to remind myself that One:  I have an entire week where I can blog "unfettered by Time!"   And two:   My students actually READ this blog.   Meaning:  I have to keep things "G-Rated" from now on.   Or maybe "PG"...   Since I'm sure there will be Parents that will want to find out what their kids are reading.   

Not that there was anything bad on this blog to begin with.   Nothing I would not read to my Grandmother, at least.  (She had an odd sense of humor.)  But now I have to be aware of some of the topics I choose to write about. ( They say my blog is full of .... Drama?  I must not know what drama is, because I usually go for humor.)  

Regardless,   I need to sleep.    And send out a prayer thanking God for this day and all of the things, moments, and adventures I was able to experience.  He has blessed me with a week of peace and rest for a reason.   I hope I can recharge and continue to do His will to the best of my ability for the remainder of this year.  ( And hopefully,   for years beyond!)   I can't possibly overstate just how grateful I am for this opportunity to be a called worker.   And though the fear of failure is always present,  I know God will be beside me all along the way until the end of time.  

And every second counts