Oh, Lance. Think of the good. Rejuvenating the sport of cycling. The Livestrong association. Donations to cancer research and cancer treatment. Bringing attention to a major sponsor, the USPS.

Does the good mitigate the bad?

The bad is damaging. The bad that’s coming to light now ranges from dishonesty and poor sportsmanship all the way to criminal rule-breaking and intimidation of teammates and now, witnesses.

Between the good and the bad we have the ugly: the Too Big To Fail attitude. The I’m Too Cool to Lose or I’m Too Important to Get Caught syndrome.  The I Am This Team and Don’t You Forget It outlook.

Lance, you let a lot of people down. Not just those in cycling and those in your immediate family, either. You’ve let down people who knew and trusted you, those who thought you were the world. You’ve let down people who never met you, but knew you through the ubiquitous yellow bracelets and all that the bracelets represent. Wearing a Livestrong bracelet right now invites arguments to which there are no resolutions.

Then we have the seemingly random quotes that keep getting you in more deeply. Cheating? If you really didn’t know what the word meant, you weren’t in competitive sports. And the argument of Everybody Did It? That doesn’t fly with parents of teenagers, and it doesn’t fly with the enforcers or with the fans – of any sport.

Maybe that’s where the conflict is. It’s not the good vs. the bad or the generous vs. the selfish. It’s the idea of being too cool, too important to follow the same rules and laws as the rest of the world. In that way, Lance, it’s simple.

Daisy’s desk on a big grading day – note that all the papers in the stacks need to be graded, the grades entered in the gradebook, and then the papers get mailed back to the students. Three tasks before I can call the desk “clear”.

The Before Picture

How did I avoid taking an After Picture? The desk looks much better now. I’ve updated the gradebooks for all of my students, mailed back copious numbers of portfolio papers, and even took a few wet wipes to the desk surface. It’s so much easier to work now!

We were advised to keep the mailing envelopes for progress reports in a safe place. I stored mine in plain sight. With Fluffy and friends on guard, no one will mess with my envelopes.

Fluffy and friends on duty

I showed you the office fashion show of the fingerless gloves.

But then the temperatures took a dive below the zero mark and added a wind chill, so we really pulled out all the stops. Here’s Daisy’s cube in the drafty office in below-zero weather.

Gloves and warm sweater – oh, and snack, too.

Snuggie!

Blankets and snuggies abound in our cubicle world. Mine is from the Packers Pro Shop, of course.

Mug Shot

Warm beverages help, of course! The challenge is drinking it before it cools down.

Meanwhile, progress reports call. Time to warm up the gradebook!

‘Tis the season – the season for massive amounts of grading. You know a family packs an awful lot of work into one  envelope when they have to seal it with duct tape.

Yet another use for Duct Tape

Okay, world, here it comes. Amigo is now 21. To celebrate, one of his friends came to visit. We gathered, opened presents, ate cake, and then went out to eat at a local family restaurant.

                                                             Amigo

                                                     Amigo and friend

I admit it; we had dessert first. Well, life is short. In all honesty, I think we grown-ups had as much fun as the teenagers. We all know about taking life in stride and adapting as we go.

When I finally got around to taking the photos off my phone, I found some interesting shots that brought up some interesting thoughts.

Butter-ed Popcorn?

Buttercup the bunny had just escaped from getting trapped in a microwave popcorn bag. And on to the topic of shoes…

one practical, one fun

Cinderella, of course, is proof that the right pair of shoes can change a woman’s life.

My desk before I attacked it

My desk after I attacked it – and won.

Calendars for Moms?

I took this while waiting in line at the Pharmacy That Shall Not be Named. Let’s see: Mom’s Family Calendar, Mom’s Manager, Moms can do Anything…. and around the corner (no photo, sorry) was a day to day calendar containing “Meditations for Women Who Do Too Much.”

Come to think of it, I can change my own life, with or without cute shoes. It’s just more fun with the shoes.

Bows and flows of angel hair
And ice cream castles in the air
And feather canyons everywhere
I’ve looked at clouds that way.

–Joni Mitchell, Both Sides Now

Clouds look different from an airplane window. As the traveler climbs into the sky en route to a new place, the clouds look a lot like stepping stones on the path to a new era in life.  Such is the route for Eleanor, who renames herself Aiyana as she climbs the clouds to begin her young adult life in Washington, D.C.

In Climbing Urban Sky by Denise Taranov, readers see the world through Eleanor’s eyes as she pursues adult life after college. The everyday happenings in her twenty-something experience seem exactly right; dramatic,entertaining, yet perfectly appropriate in real life.

Finding a job almost seemed too easy for Eleanor, but then I realized her willingness to accept an internship for next to no salary was the key to getting her foot in the door in her field. She entered the world of adult life sharing a house with three other women, walking and using public transportation, and otherwise starting out independence with a practical and frugal attitude. Don’t think she’s a total homebody, though – she’s a normal young woman who enjoys exploring all that the big city of D.C. has to offer, including restaurants of every ethnicity and new friends from all over the U.S. and outside of its borders.

I didn’t see my young self in Eleanor as much as I saw my daughter, now 26 and seeking her own niche in the world. The big city adventures rang true as I compared them to La Petite’s adventures living and working in Milwaukee. Beyond finding housing and work, the young Eleanor had to learn her way around the city, find go-to locations like grocery stores, and get to know the city culture and social expectations. All of these happenings are typical, and yet the author takes us along on a ride that feels more charming and fun than average.

Climbing Urban Sky is a quick and enjoyable read. The ups, the downs, the parties, the friendships forged and broken along the way, create a story that pulled me into its pages. I couldn’t put it down.

Petunia? Leah? La Petite? Who’s next? It’s an autographed copy and a wonderful story! 

Daisy’s cane decorated for the playoffs

Now where’s my lucky sweatshirt?

Go! Pack! Go!