"outside the box, dang it!"

well, i'm posting a quote from my head.

for those of you who have known me for a while, this won't surprise you, but I definitely think too hard sometimes. and when is this not necessary? that's right - mad libs.

let me tell you...if you're having to tell yourself to think outside of the box, it's too late. you're already wrapped, packing-peanutted, and packaging taped firmly inside. coaxing your brain to let itself go makes it seize up even harder.

so jonathan and lynsey have been driving around the country for a few weeks now, and they've been whiling away the driving hours with mad libs. but not any mad libs - no, these are long stories that jonathan writes himself, and lynsey fills in the blank. so since they've been here for the weekend, late-nights in our kitchen are mad libs times. ha! and when it's my turn to fill in the blank with a part of speech, this is what you would hear in my head....

"Ok, a noun. Hmm....a noun. Something not in this room - too unoriginal. Something clever, not like 'a spoon' or 'a car'. Like....'a muskrat'! Umm...or 'a toaster'! Nope, that's in the room. Dang it! Something witty. Think, think, think."

What's ironic is that, with mad libs, it matters precious little what you end up saying. Even if I did say 'a car' or 'a spoon,' the story would still be just as comical. Yay for good friends who love you, even if your brain is wrapped in its own special packaging tape.

I promise - we really don't watch that much t.v.

"It's like they have hooves!"

Josh saw a girl on American Idol wearing gauchos and tall boots, and he's just not a fan of that look. I think he went on to say that she looked like she had llama legs. Ha!

I'll give you a prize...

...if you can name this dog!

My family has acquired the cutest collie/chow mix that you have ever seen! And if you know my family (die-hard cat family to the end), this is a pretty big step. Problem is, no name they've tried has quite...fit.

The front-runner right now seems to be Buddy, because he's so kind and gentle-hearted that he tries to be everybody's best friend.

So...look at the pictures, and if you come up with the winner, seriously, I'll give you a prize. Not sure what yet, but know it will be fabulous!


(For those of you who've never met my family, he's with my brothers Jonathan and Joel in these pics.)

tourette's

According to Mary Wilsford, that's what we teachers that are leaving are getting. We're all feeling a little ....stretched. And that makes us scream stuff out - not really words, just random sounds of angst.

Don't get me wrong - I love love love this job. It just seems like they're trying to squeeze every last bit of time and energy and help out of us before we go. :o Hence, the uncontrolled noises, often heard up and down the hall.

poor baby

One of the things about autism is that it traps you in a world of your own - where movies, t.v. shows, computer games, and tape stories play on repeat at who knows what volume or intensity. Needless to say, it makes learning to communicate like learning English as a foreign language, as an 80-year-old, in a loud stadium, while having rocks stuck in your shoe. And you don't want to learn it anyways.
The phrases that do come out are often as hysterically funny as those product warnings written by non-native English speakers.

(heard today from my little redhead who is on the autism spectrum....)

"Oh no! Oh no! I'm stuck in my class!"

He really really really didn't want to write, but I was making him. What a cute cry for help! If only it helped him get out of his work like he'd hoped.

give the guy a break

heard this weekend while watching the olympics...

"You know, Bob, he really just needs to relax.."

Ok, this was said about a man lugeing (luging?) down the track at 85 MILES AN HOUR! I guarantee you anything that the commentator would not be 'relaxed' if he was hurtling downhill at speeds faster than he goes on the interstate with nothing between him and certain death but a bodysuit. Please.

toeing the line of smart-mouthing

Me: "Why are you out of your seat?" (to the kid wandering around the room)

Child: "Why, I'm just getting some exercise."

Hmm....I better keep an eye on this one.

Guys get through seminary...

...by the sweat of their 'frau!' ha ha ha! that's a quote straight from Dr. Curry about the women like me that pay their husbands' way through seminary. Just classic.

The other great quote of the day comes straight from one of my student's daily journal entry:

"I must tell the truth. I broke the eggs!"

Apparently, he not only broke them, but tried to repair them and hide them back in the carton so he wouldn't get in trouble. :) And that's why my job is still fun, even on the hardest of days!