Woot Woot for the Sun

So my dentist appointment on Saturday went fine. Apparently I have very nice teeth (said to me by both the dentist and the hygienist) and very strong enamel. That's nice to know. Since my appointment was finished early, I was able to get a couple of errands done before I was supposed to meet my friend for lunch. Long story short: we didn't end up having lunch as she got "detained" elsewhere. Actually, it really ticked me off as we were supposed to meet at 2 and she didn't end up calling me until close to 2:30 to tell me that she was running late. Since she just left a message on my voicemail, it was almost 3 by the time we actually talked and I was STARVING! Needless to say, I was more than a little irritated to find out that she was going to be able to make it after all. Grrrr.

How glad was I to finally see the sun on Sunday?! I have to say, I had no idea just how depressed I was starting to feel until the sun came out! My two favourite seasons are fall and spring. Both tend to be cool but not freezing cold. I love fall because of the changing colours and the excitement of "back to school" (well, before I started teaching year round). But, I love spring because of the feelings of renewal, birth, and the emergence of the sun! I love how seeing the sun again brings a fresh bounce to my step and a new lightness to my heart. In honour of the sun, I wrote this haiku today:

Saw the sun today.
Will it be back tomorrow?
I sure do hope so.

In honour of spring (and the rain forecast for later this week) I wrote this spring haiku:

The rain falls gently
As I walk around the town.
I am soaking wet.

Can you tell that the theme this week in my afternoon class is poetry? Tomorrow we'll go over the poem "In Flanders Field", which is a poem I happen to really like. I still remember most of it from when I had to memorize it in sixth grade (typed as I would say it):

In Flanders Field the poppies blow between the crosses row on row that mark our place and in the sky the larks still bravely singing fly scarce heard amidst the guns below we are the dead short days ago we lived felt dawn saw sunset's glow take up our quarrel with the foe to you from failing hands we throw the torch be yours to hold up high and . . .

Just for reference, here's the actual poem:

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

(Turns out my memory ain't all that bad after all!)

Ugh

I have a dentist's appointment today. When I was younger going to the dentist never bothered me, but now . . . I'm sure it was the cause of last night's mild insomnia. I'm sure the constant rain isn't helping either. It's pretty much supposed to rain all week, which is too depressing to really put into words. So let me just say again, "Ugh!"

The Many Faces of Kim

I got this way cool idea from the way cool Vesper!

Kim . . . The Botticelli version.

Kim . . . The Manga version.

Kim . . . The Modigliani version (my favourite!)

Old Kim.

You can transform yourself here. Be careful though . . . as you can see, the results can be scary!

The Zzzzzzzzzzz Report

I don't know what did it, but this week I finally managed to get a decent night's sleep without any sleep aids! Ever since Thursday night I've had no problems falling asleep . . . or in getting a full night's sleep! I pretty much feel back to normal now, which is a relief. I'd forgotten how nice it was to be able to go to bed and fall asleep :-) Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Sleep Review

Well, I tried the sleep CD last night. I can see where it would be helpful for people who have a hard time letting go of their worries or anger. It goes through certain steps to help a person relax, so it talks about deep breathing and relaxing your muscles. The spoken word is combined with relaxing music designed to help a person fall asleep and sleep deeply. Since I didn't have any worries or anger and felt relaxed, I don't think the CD particularly helped me. I listened to it for about an hour before I switched to one of my books on tape. All in all, I had a fairly decent night's sleep - it took me just over an hour to fall asleep, and then I only woke up once during the night to use the bathroom. I think I'll take a sleeping pill tonight and then that's it. I'm putting the pills away and only using them in an emergency.