Calling all Locavores!!!

Excellent program here (aired this morning) about eating local during the holidays, and in general...

spring!!

I just uploaded some photos of spring at the Oratory to my Google photos...


Here's a link!

Let me know if it doesn't work, please!

Dead Man Walking

Just a quick post about tonight... Sr. Helen Prejean, the author of the book Dead Man Walking, has come to Winthrop University in Rock Hill. She was at Mass tonight and gave the homily, then after Mass a lot of us went to a reception for her followed by a preview of the play, Dead Man Walking. That's a story in itself, because the play was supposed to be held in the black box theater in Johnson Hall, but there was a fire there Friday so they had to move to a lecture hall in Rutledge. (Maybe Em can enlighten us on how difficult this may have been.) I talked with the set designer and the stage manager afterwards and they told us that the play is technologically heavy (did I say that right?) and not having their sound system at all really hurt tonight. The performance was still great, imho... The actors did a terrific job! And the stage manager was really on her toes :-)
After the play I overheard Sr Helen talking with the cast. She told them that acting was a very important vocation, that through their participation in drama they were open to new ways of looking at things, and they opened up their hearts to new ways of feeling. She was so affirming of these young actors, it was really terrific to be there and witness this. It was also touching to see her greet the actress who played the lead (i.e., Sr. Helen)with a big hug... she was just such a loving affirming person.
I get to go hear Sr. Helen speak tomorrow night at Winthrop -- a couple of my students jumped ship because of a CMS break. Yay! (She is also speaking Tuesday night at Davidson College -- fyi, in case anyone in the area is reading this...) This is all very challenging, but I feel like I need to understand this issue better. And it really isn't just one issue...

Sphere

First Math Club meeting for this school year went well yesterday, for the most part. My porch has new screens now. The office is emptier (the porch furniture is back where it belongs at last!) and I'm getting through some backlog of paperwork. Progress -- something to be happy about!
Oh, and about the title of this post: there is a lot more information here.

Cooling off!

Mmmm...it's down to a nice, cool 86 degrees F (feels like 87) here in Rock Hill this evening. If I get up real early tomorrow, it will be down to 69 overnight. Now that's walking weather!

There was another story about Trader Joe's in today's paper. Here's the link, for you TJ shoppers out there...

I finally saw Ratatouille today. It was good, though I think I need to see it again to catch everything. Some of those scenes are jam-packed with interesting stuff. While at the theater I noticed that the Susan Cooper book The Dark Is Rising has been made into a movie. I remember enjoying those books years ago -- I think my kids and I read some of them out loud to each other...?

Oh, oops -- I forgot the other thing I did today (well I did lots of things, but this was a standout): I finished the 7th Harry Potter book this morning. It is the best of the series, I think. Really, really good; a satisfying read.

Random thoughts and links...

***Sylvia : may I please have one of these Cokes next time I take a red-eye???? :-)

***interesting segment on Charlotte Talks this morning about herbs and spices:
Friday August 17, 2007 -- Herbs and Wild Edible Plants
It's our monthly food show with Chef Peter Reinhart and others. We'll discuss wild plants of our region that can be used in raw and cooked meals. We'll also talk about the importance of herbs and spices in cooking.
Guests: Peter Reinhart - Chef-In-Residence, Johnson and Wales University
"Wildman" Steve Brill - Naturalist, Environmental Educator, Author and
Broadcaster [He was very interesting, and funny, too]
Deborah Moore Cook - Master Gardener, Herbalist and college instructor
[She had a great tip about how to save basil if you grow a lot of it: make a slurry in your blender with basil leaves and olive oil, then freeze it flattened out in a ziploc bag, and break off pieces when you need basil in a recipe.]
Find links to past Charlotte Talks episodes here.

***Mission Organization: a TV show that Susie D., who called me this evening, put me onto. I'm checking out the website, since I don't get HGTV, but those of you who can get this channel might enjoy the actual show...

***For all you jazz fans out there, this is a great segment of Talk of the Nation that was on yesterday. It isn't just talk, it's delicious music, so enjoy!

***last, but not least, two new stores opened in Charlotte this week: Earthfare, which already had a store in Ballantyne (south of Pineville) opened up a second store Wednesday very near Southpark Mall, and Trader Joe's opened up a store today off Rea Rd. between the Pink Monstrosity and Stonecrest/I-485. (I think Trader Joe's has another store near UNCC but I don't know if it's open yet or not.) Here's an enlightening story about Trader Joe's from Wednesday's Charlotte Observer. (and another...and some recipes -- this story's a little goofed up--look for the recipe titles at the end of the previous recipe...)

"Ivy Alert!"

I'm thinking about maybe planting some ivy (see above link) right inside my new abode, to cover up the boxes, which are everywhere. It would be a whole lot prettier...probably wouldn't get enough sunlight, though.

Lots has happened in the past month; the fun part is documented here and here and also here... I'm going to try to post some photos soon, too. I finally got mine back yesterday.

I don't have photos of my move (who would want to look at photos of sweaty 50-somethings toting a lifetime of stuff around, anyway?) but rest assured the move did happen, and I am daily dealing with the aftermath. I'm trying to spread the "joy" around as much as possible by loading up my car with stuff to recycle and dumping it various places, though I did the first part of that today but didn't get to the dumping part because I was working too much with students today and ran out of time. Maybe -- hopefully! -- tomorrow.

Oh, by the way, the title of this post was because I thought of our "kudzu alerts" of years ago when I saw the ivy photo. And then thinking of kudzu reminded me, with sadness, of the untimely death a couple days ago of Doug Marlette, who was a wonderful political cartoonist and worked for the Charlotte Observer for many years as well. He also had a comic strip named "Kudzu".

further searching for humor...

...turned up the following:

Factorials were someone's attempt to make math *look* exciting.
(I can add this to my post a few days ago on math humor)

And click the title above for a link to, finally, a moving story!

moving is sometimes funny but mostly just a lot of work

Major accomplishments today so far:
Called moving company and scheduled the move
Packed nine boxes so far with lots of help from Marsha
Threw out a bunch of papers
Discarded about a dozen AMC complete results booklets
Called Dzidra to make sure she is still taking students (she is)
Listened to Car Talk (that counts as "learning about cars")
Attempted but gave up on a sudoku puzzle (giving up was the accomplishment)
Read some funny jokes* (click on link above)
...and it's only 1:21 p.m.!

*I was looking for jokes about moving but couldn't find any.

Roy Blount, Jr. on Talk of the Nation

I enjoyed hearing Roy Blount, Jr., on Talk of the Nation last Thursday. I like to listen to Roy anytime, but this was especially good, as Neal Conan is a very good interviewer and gave Roy lots of opportunity to just be himself. Click on the title above for a link to the show.

Changing domicile - for sure!

Just a quick post to let those of you who have been following my quest for a place to buy that I signed the contract on a condo (the one I found Monday) this morning! The closing will be June 8 and I'll move the last week of June. I'm so excited! Thanks to all for your support through this process!

Links of interest...

...some found serendipitously, some searched for...

Carolina moon photos

Jeff Elder's column today in the Charlotte Observer (esp. for Jenny and Curtis)

the making of some really great chocolate

SNOW DAY!!!

Those of you who don't live in the South might not really appreciate the power of the phrase "Snow Day" in the hearts and minds of our local residents -- children and adults alike! All day yesterday as the snow predictions became further, my students' faces lit up with excitement at the mention of snow. Adults I talked with either rejoiced at the prospect of a snow day or pooh-poohed the idea as a real long shot -- but the latter had a wistful tone in their voices. And now it is a reality. The snow is still coming down, although it is gradually getting finer and finer, and will change to sleet. I didn't need to turn on my radio or open the blinds this morning to know whether it had really snowed or not -- the joyous shrieks of the three little kids who live in the nearby apartments woke me up. Not that I am complaining -- it was music to my ears!

I was looking forward to having a snow day so I would have time to organize and clean up my apartment, but I think first I will have to go for a walk in the snow :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)

9:37 am UPDATE: The snow is coming down in really big flakes now!
1:54 pm UPDATE: I guess we're going to have to rename it a "SLUSH Day"...

Okay, everybody can move back to Charlotte now...

It looks like we are going to get an IKEA store here! It won't be until 2009, but that will give everybody time to find a suitable place to live...with lots of room for furniture, bookshelves, picture frames, etc. Then we can all start learning interesting Swedish words. (Well, okay, some of you already had a head start on that!) The store will be in the University City area, and it will be the only IKEA between Washington and Atlanta. (Atlanta has an IKEA?)

In other news, it is precipitating here: sleet and freezing rain, what they daintily call "a wintry mix". It doesn't matter; we all know what they mean... we can hear it falling outside. It makes a whole different sound from rain as it bounces off the trees and roads and sidewalks, kind of a clicking/shushing noise. We always hope that isn't followed by the sound of tree limbs breaking under the weight of accumulated ice, but that isn't predicted to happen...this time. I'm missing my morning walk -- don't want to break any more limbs -- but will be working my usual Thursday schedule. Schools are in session, except for a few of the private and church schools.

NEWS FLASH (7:20 a.m.) -- there's a 12-vehicle accident on the ramp from I-77 to I-485! And I think they just said Independence Blvd. is closed because of ice. Things are sounding worse.

MORE NEWS FLASH!!! History in the making: "Laundry Math" is invented in Charlotte!

long time gone

Hey, it's been too long since I last wrote here... A lot has happened: the holidays w/ lots of wonderful visits with family and friends, a trip across country with more visiting and roller coaster rides, an old year ended and a New Year started, and a week of re-entry punctuated with various episodes of illness...(I'm much better now.)
In addition to savoring many happy memories of the holidays (and of course I'm still enjoying my Christmas tree, candles, etc.), I'm currently...
a. wishing I was in New Orleans at the Joint Math Meetings (MAA & AMS)
b. trying to get on top of prep work (for classes and students) I ought to have done last week
c. napping whenever I can find time (especially easy now that Em taught me about "virtual napping")
d. enjoying a new headset for my cell phone provided free of charge from Verizon (yay!) (they may not be able to tell dollars from cents but they do keep on supplying me with free headsets)
e. rearranging my schedule (similar to nailing jello to a wall) since most of my CMS (i.e., public school) students will be finished with their math courses in a few weeks (translate: a week of exams is coming up!) and I might (or might not) get a few new ones. (I was going to put up a link about the crazy 4x4 schedule, but curiously the CMS website doesn't seem to have any information about it. I scoured this resource for more info but no luck.) A few new students from other venues have already found their way onto my schedule; I probably ought to put a stop to this before things get crazy again!
f. working lots of Mathcounts problems; the Chapter Competition will be on February 3. The team looks good so far!
g. listening to lots of good music (including beautiful Joshua Bell violin music from Joseph & Lorian) on my new stereo, both Christmas gifts of which I am very appreciative.
h. planning more trips... so far Baltimore and Evanston are on the schedule.
i. watching season one of Numbers, thanks to a loan from Jonathan & Frances -- just what I needed, another distraction!
j. trying to figure out what to do with all this Christmas wrapping paper (really, I didn't need anymore, I have plenty of my ever-fashionable green-and-yellow...)
k. continuing my efforts to exercise more, eat better, sleep enough, and, last but not least, pray "at all times"!

Happy New Year to all!