Saying Goodbye to Summer

Here we are, at the end of August.  I start work again tomorrow.  The biggest benefit of working for the school district is the summer break.  Seriously.  I have no problem with days on end to fill as I please.  Tomorrow I start work at a new site, a middle school in San Diego.  I am looking forward to getting to know new staff and kids.  Especially the kids.  I am becoming more "seasoned" as I start my 3rd school in 3 years.  I started at a Middle School (at a brand new site, with crates and crates and crates of brand new books.  Talk about heaven!), then to High School and wonderful co-workers and the creative freedom to do as I pleased (which was to promote Books, Books, Books!), and now I go back to Middle School.  When I worked at one before, I made available  voluntary book reports and the students who did them could pick from the prize jar.  I might do that again, but change up the format to make it more of a "book review" and probably have space for them to draw a picture or the cover or whatever.  I am also a bit nervous, as I only had about a 20 minute tour of the place and I'm not sure what the passwords for the computers are!  Hmmm.  I will survive and fit in.  I always do.

This summer I was able to fly (solo) to Houston, take a houseboat trip with my wonderful family, and I just got back from flying (again, solo) to San Jose, where I spent 5 days with my Aunt in a little town about 45 minutes from the city.  My Aunt is a unique person.  Without giving away any personal information about her, let's just say that if she ever writes a book about her life, it is guaranteed to be made into a movie on Lifetime.  This woman has had more dramatic events in her life than I have ever met.  Her world is like a vortex.  You just get sucked in.  We ate well.  Played a little.  Laughed and cried and talked, talked, talked.  I love her and wish her the best on her newest adventures.  Perhaps the drama will subside for awhile.  Would she know what to do with herself if it was missing?

The hardest thing for me at the end of a break from work is getting back into a "normal" sleeping pattern.  I am a night bird.  I love staying up until 2, wandering around my still and peaceful home, listening to the breathing of my guys and dog.  I watch movies, blog, do that darn farmville thingy, read, raid the fridge for chips and salsa and just enjoy myself.  I was careful not to have any caffeine this afternoon.  I have already warned my son that this week we go back to "school" sleeping hours.  (He still has a week left, but I figure it'll take at least that long to get him back in the groove.)  Wish me luck on that one.  I'll probably just suffer for a week or two, then be back to "normal". 

So, I guess that's about it for now.  Gonna take advantage of the 1 1/2 hours until I get us into bed.  Maybe I'll watch a movie close the blinds and try to trick myself into feeling sleepy.  Talk to you later!