Jail or free-wheeling inbreeding

So today I went back to school.

In the midst of the horrible job I was working last spring, I had forgotten just how much I really love everything to do with teaching. I was so excited to be back at a school that I *enjoyed* the introductions and orientation. Crazy, eh?

What's also crazy is that in the course of one year the standards for Georgia education have been thrown out and completely revamped. I must have missed the memo. Regardless, I'm excited. Our new state standards were voted number 7 in the nation in some educational study. It missed being higher because our claim that every student will read 25 books or 1,000,000 words by graduation was misunderstood to mean only in English classes. It is actually across the disciplines. They thought it was too lofty a goal.

Also crazy is that I am in a county where each teacher is given a laptop and each classroom has a smart board. This is a white board which is hooked up to a computer and a projector and has the capability for multi-media lessons *everyday* not just when you can get the computer lab. These things cost around $3k each. It is the result of their raising the sales tax 1% and using the funds for education.


Wow.

I'm so excited and grateful to God. He's really given me WAY more opportunities than I ever deserved.

Finished the 6th Harry Potter book (don't condemn me to hell, please, I think Rowling is a genius). It is the best/most frustrating of all of them. I won't spoil anything for anyone planning to read them, but WOW. It is the only book that's ever brought me to tears and put me in a funk for a whole day.


Thursday night I had yet another strange dream. I was veil shopping and all the veils were ugly. I mean butt ugly. I couldn't find a single one. In my moment of lament and desperation, what should happen to me...? I turned into a table. Was I a magical talking table, maybe one with super powers, you ask! Why NO, I was just a boring, regular table with no hope of un-tableizing myself. I'm not sure why I dreamed that, but I can only guess that it was destiny. It put me in the mood for furniture shopping.

I took the advice of one of my best buds, Sara (Hill) Cola (you can read her blog at ) and went to IKEA in Atlanta with Matt Friday night. It is awesome! I reccommend it, free fun activity. They also have a cafe and snack bar.

That is all for now, I'm on my way to have lunch with my hunny (yes, I'm referring to Matt as that now, it's no longer my pet name for John Cusack).

Well, I'm back in the good ol Georgia... Ah... I hate to admit, but it feels nice to be back. I never thought I'd actually like Georgia this much. Florida is just... Florida. The people were ok, let me rephrase that, SOME of the people were ok. The ones I became friends with were wonderful. The strangers were nuts. Also, they can't drive.

I'm adjusting to my new living arrangements. The upstairs apartment is big and will fit my stuff (yay!). I still look forward to the very short time period when I'll have my very own space prior to the wedding. Ah... the last few months of freedom. Don't get me wrong; I love Matt and am ecstatic to be marrying him. It's just that, as many of you know, I'm a lover of my freedom. It's not exactly hard to let go of it, but it's not easy either. It's just kind of... weird... The upshot is that I don't actually have to give up my freedom per se... It just morphs into a different kind of freedom. The kind where you don't have to wonder who you will marry, if you will always be alone, etc.

Anyhow, I suppose I have rambled enough. Just know that I am safe, slightly weirded out and overwhelmed by all the simultaneous life changes, and happy.

Well guys, this is my final post from Florida. I am moving to Georgia today. It's not nearly as easy as I thought it would be. Not only is it physically demanding, but it's also a little more bittersweet than I imagined. Oh well, if you get a moment, say a prayer for us on our trip. My mom is heading up with me.

Well, I had another odd dream. I'll try to recount it as accurately as possible. It involves several of those folks in the blog ring. Enjoy:

Imagine if you will that the building beside the post office in Franklin Springs is a cute white house/coffee shop/gas station (yes, gas station). In this dream, i'm co-owner of this establishment with Amy, Emily, Fawn, Mel and Iris. We are running this place. At some point in the dream I realize that I am the main owner because I complain that we are charging $2.50/gallon on gas. One of the girls goes, "Well, change it!"

So I lower our gas rates and we are having a nice little time running this coffee house. I get the idea to head over to the gym on campus. I walk in and it is like the gym at my old middle school. Wooden bleachers that, when pushed up against the wall, have that one bottom row that sits out. The basketball team is practicing. I look over to the bleachers, and in them, nonchalantly sprawled back leaning on row behind him with legs draped over the the row in front, is Matt, wearing sagging cK jeans, boxers out from the top and no shirt, Marky Mark style. I look over and see that the entire team is dressed that way. Being the state champs, they are really good, but they play street ball. Apparently they are the state champion street ball team. (!?!?!?).

I will add here that even though this is all involving folks I knew in college and is at my college, we're all high school aged. I have no idea how that could logically happen. *shrug*

At some point, the entire setting changes from being at Emmanuel to being at the South Carolina Assemblies of God campground in Possum Kingdom, SC (and yes, that IS a real place). I went outside only to see my sister there, running the Screaming Mimi (a zipline there that drops kids into the lake). Jealous of my successful business, she begins charging people to ride it and becomes successful herself.

I don't remember there being a plot or anything to this dream, just a lot of juxaposed images from my adolescence. The mind is a weird thing. Very weird. Definitely the Manson version of "Sweet Dreams" and not the Eurythmics.

Ok, so this might seem small and dorky to most everyone, but I found it to be wonderful.

Matt and I made our first housewares purchase last night. We were on the way back up from apartment hunting and we stopped by Crate and Barrel in Dawsonville. They had these really great glasses, with blue and yellow (kitchen colors) on them. They were on sale for like 70% off. So, six glasses and two irish coffee mugs later, we've made our firse housewares purchase together.

This is going to be fun.

Also, I feel very slighted right now. We went to Moe's for dinner and those people didn't yell at us when we came in. I am hurt and disappointed. And by that I mean, "I still love Moes and would eat there all the time if calories were of no consequence."

Ok, so Matt and I think maybe we have an apartment. We will know for sure tomorrow. To see the lovely abode, go here:

We got a sweet deal on the place. I LOVE the gym and pool. We're in the 2 bedroom deluxe with a sunroom. OOOOOOOHHHHH. You can click "virtual tour" and see 360 angles of the rooms in the apartment. :) We will be pre-leasing it until october. I will then move in and then he will move in a.w. (after wedding). I'm so excited! :)

Being a grown-up is more fun than I thought. Ah, now to begin saving for a down payment on a house... scary...

Sorry for the lag in updates. I promise to do a real update later today sometime. I am in Gainesville right now. I'm at Matt's currently and am about to go check out some places to possibly have the reception. Otherwise, things are quiet. Will add more later. :)