drops

Our roses and azaleas--even the forlorn peony--were in full glory right before the rain started. Fully bloomed flowers don't like hard rain.

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The first exam I graded today: 44. ulp. The second: 53. yay! improving!

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Speaking of exams, one of my students used the phrase "Phoenix Downs" when referring to Redcrosse Knight's miraculous (sacramental) regeneration during his fight against the dragon. I wrote WIN in the margin. Reminds me of playing FFVII--what a great game that was, sitting in that spartan room in Odum Village, staring at a little bitty computer monitor.

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Little Red is tearing up our house. Honestly, we've given up storing anything in the drawers in our bathroom. The other day, he brought a (glass) bottle of aftershave all the way into the kitchen.

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The Big Brother is blossoming in all sorts of ways: all of a sudden, he's drawing & painting & reading (attempting to, anyway) & writing, which he hadn't been doing in ages. He's even started putting arms on his people along with the legs and feet and ears and hair. He's also become quite argumentative, and seems to want to interrupt me or his mom any time we start talking. The other day, he said it was "Daddy's fault" that he had his "barking cough," and last night, he grouched that the Wii was "annoying" him. We surmise that it has something to do with all the attention Little Red is demanding at the moment.

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I left them all peacefully sleeping this morning when I stepped out the door.

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The Big Brother told me on Saturday that he'll marry me because we have to marry our friends, and he doesn't like girls. Later on he allowed that he could marry Mommy, because he likes her even if she is a girl.

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It's bittersweet to say goodbye to the students. Well, to most of them, anyway. You may be surprised, but it has very little to do with the eventual letter grade they earned. For example, the most pleasing paper I read this term had some pretty glaring imperfections, but it was such an ambitious, well-planned essay. The student actually tried to do something instead of just going through the motions. She always does good work, but this was . . . different.

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I'm not particularly looking forward to Saturday.