The press, depress, pre surgery worries

Hello all, I am very excited to let you know that I have begun writing for another newspaper. Hurrah! I am currently working on a piece regarding cochlear implants, which is soo fascinating! Did you know that people with cochlear implants don't hear through their ears like we do but hear through the electrodes that are passed to their brains through channels. There are 12 different channels of pitches so hearing tonal languages like Mandarin or Khmu. It's quite fascinating. I need to do an interview today for that article.

Amidst this excitement, I find myself enjoying my coffee, quiet mornings, and a happy completion of my final classes, hip hip hooray! After basking in my success for a day or two, I reflected on what to do next. Deciding on huge life choices is a big deal and nothing to shake a stick at. I have a lot of ideas the most realistic of them being to get a full time job. Which, coincidentally a day after the completion of my degree I was called for an interview for a FULL-TIME job. Crazy how Gods providence works sometimes.

So I find myself in something of a quagmire in my current situation. I am stuck between a rock and a hard place, so to say. I am having a major foot surgery in December. Therefore, making it quite a struggle for me to continue my degree. Yes, you just heard that pin drop. However, I find myself more and more thriving against struggle. I'm one of those people who likes doing things others might think are impossible. Nothing extravagant, really I'm quite an old-fashioned quirky girl really when it comes down to it. I like reading, canning, and writing letters. I love writing letters! My dad says it part of my charm.

Wishful thinking wants to complete my bachelors degree and work part-time or full-time. The completion of my bachelors will completely be off my own paycheck so I need to have a stable job to fund it. My parents are kindly funding my surgery, which I'm very grateful for but which leaves me to figure out the education side.


Backing up a couple steps. About this degree completion; my goal with having a bachelors degree led me to pursue a search of online degree and certifications. My counsellor also urged me to look at the possibilities of taking an online class. This is a very good idea as far as I see it. In fact, I have found that I actually thrive in an online classroom. So now, the controversial "egg hunt", of finding which online college is right for me begins.

Arggh..
I need solutions. I just have to remember everything will be accomplished in God's timing and to trust in his way.

Aside from all this I have been quite busy running the proverbial library card "slots." I love reading and the more information I read the more intrigued I become. Currently, I'm reading a delightful little book called Refuse to Choose, by Barbara Sher. Quite a thought provoking book. I like books that challenge me to think outside the box and question the reasonings and direction of my life. It's a thought-provoking, soul searching book to say the least.

Well, I hope through this post I at least gave you a good book suggestion or encouraged you in some way. If nothing it brought a little clarity to my mind. I hope all of you are having a rollicking Monday and not falling asleep at your desks or wherever you might be reading this.

Always in words,

Maggie

Inspiration and Peaches as an Alleviation for Thunderstorm

                             The rain clouds whispered their love notes to me as the puddles gathered on my porch. It had been a bright morning.

Do you ever get a sudden impulse to create something tasty? Well, last week I did just that with fresh peaches from my peach tree. I never thought Kansas peaches would be so good! They were delicious. The peach varieties I planted were clingstone. The fruit clings to the pit in these peaches. Which, all in all, is kind of annoying but quite tasty! Did someone say jam?

I had planted two cherry trees in the same area, one a Montgomery and the other a sweet.

These sadly enough do not produce hardly anything.

Since it's summer, biking is quite popular in my area. Though a small town I think the numbers of bikes gliding through town are increasing. I have a mountain bike myself that is in sorry distress. Yes, the gears are unbalanced and the bike chain needs greasing and whatever else.  Oh Lord, it is in my "mechanic shop." Haha, my laundry room. I, honestly, am learning on the job with this bike repair stuff, though I do find it fascinating. Hopefully,  my efforts won't be in vain.

My nighttime hobbies have changed since my sweetie left. I am learning to crochet better and watercolor. My efforts thus far have been something to laugh at but the show must go on.

Sounds like an awful thunderstorm is rolling in.

I am happy to have picked up another freelance newspaper job that gives me the flexibility that I need. The structure of freelance work fits nicely into my schedule, especially as my online classes are finishing up. The first economic development article I completed through the medium of photojournalism. Published online at the Belleville Telescope.




I am slowly eeking through application processes for 4-year colleges. It is quite a tedious task but I'm sure the rewards of doing something great are well worth the wait.  Though I have had multiple opinions---strong opinions offered to me. AHEM-AHEM. I am following the famished writer pathway, at least till I get a Bachelors degree. Heehee. It's quite a leap of faith but I do hope someday to create a work (in this case book) that will be shaping the minds for centuries. With my English degree, I have considered traveling abroad and teaching ESL through secondary education. This would require me to pick up an ESL license and a secondary education major or minor accompanied by a foreign language-- I'm shooting for Italian. Italian culture and Italy has always fascinated me. It's all very confusing but I'm sure it will all work out.

In the meantime, I'm keeping up blogging, making delicious cups of coffee, reading, writing, painting, and my new favorite PLANKING!!

One of my inspirations for planking comes from XHIT, which my morning routines have become entirely obsessed with. I'm not all that strong but I held a plank for nearly a minute and twenty seconds. I was pretty proud of myself. 

So through this post, I hope I've told you a little about my day and maybe inspired you to pick up some new hobbies. PLANKING? KNITTING? CROCHET?

Whatever, inspire you to invest in your imagination and set the world on fire! 🔥

addio!

Coffee Shop, Dinner Thoughts

 The hum of the espresso machine strummed out its sharp soothing lullaby. People gathered in front of this machine daily almost like a golden cow, a different concept I guess, but still. The soft drone of quiet voices echo their replies as the soft drone of background music fills the empty cracks of the shop. My favorites at coffee shops are Cortados but in a pinch, an Au Lait will suit. It's a nice refresher after teaching at the preschool.

Teaching is certainly not for the faint of heart! I love the little ones though, they're so sweet. Today's play agenda at recess largely consisted of making me very very tired. 

I was scrambling from swing to swing. My arms are so worn out! 

Hee hee, they also love climbing to the top of the jungle gym then crying for help because like a cat in a tree they've gotten stuck! 

Oh, Lawd let me tell you, I have figured out the heavier ones ;). But they all certainly fly high!... And I got in an extra arm workout :)

Center time today consisted of playdough and little rubber slippery gravel rocks. Quite a mess! They both wanted to be construction workers. Great boys!

When I got home I arrived at the dank smell of the canned salmon I thought I could remedy something eatable. OMG never again!! I did not buy the salmon, but improviser that I am, decided to take a crack at the canned salmon. TERRIBLE IDEA!!!!!

To make things worse, as I tried to throw it in my trash can, the mass dropped on my floor! Splashing salmon grease over my rug! Uggh Uggh. To make things worse the smell is haunting my house. 

On the bright side, I have kale! I know random, but quite delicious. I think it will go into a salad tonight for dinner. The day is rather grey though, so perhaps a kale soup might be more appropriate. 

Hawthorne and Teaching

As I lifted the plastic octopus a small boy squinted and enunciated oc-to-pus. The kindergarten boy was learning the enunciation of sea animals. It had been a long day already and it wasn't even half over, poor kid. After settling back in with his classmates I was assigned three books "The Quack Song (I don't have a picture of ducks so I used a chicken picture I took earlier this year at the school)," "Princess Party", and "A Quiet Dog." Four different rotations of students came to my table. Including a mischevious little boy, for the point of this post we'll call him Wilbur. Wilbur was having so much fun at the para's table being a complete distraction by farting, talking obscenely and shouting whenever I even glanced at him. This added to the three recesses I monitored was quite a fiasco! Quite a day let me tell you!

After a nice sunny stroll home I began making a refreshing cup of iced joe and sprucing up my blog. But just when I thought all the stress of the day over, my phone buzzes. My SO's car is on fire and his pants were splashed with battery acid! Thankfully he didn't get hurt. But made sure I got a video of the whole incident. My goodness, gracious. 

Faint Whispers of Spring

So the Midwest is a harbinger of blowy snowy weather. Pictured above is a vase of my favorites: roses, sage, and delphinium. It's a bit of hope on such a blustery cold day! Pictured below is Kansas today. 

Coffee, words, and yarn are what's on today's agenda. Haha! 
I started a new knitting project last night a scarf. It's a chartreuse color, which I absolutely adore, mostly because WHO DOESN'T LOVE SAYING CHARTREUSE! It's a neat color too, I think. 

As I write I'm wearing a knitted hat, I made, with a cabled ring in the same yarn. Quite a topical color I think! I also like periwinkle, which again is a beautiful color but oh so fun to say! 




Now that I've surely confused my readers about odd sounding colors I'll proceed with the core topic of this post-- the paradoxical weather and the harbinger of Spring. 



With this Spring comes a completely new feeling as the creeping white periwinkle drips the dew of a brisk morning in my new city. This new feeling of independence is so reviving like a sweet summer wind full of the faint smells of flowers and harvest. This Spring is full of so much promise as I dream about my honey and I dancing in the moonlight or visiting our favorite art museum. My heart is full!






I have found a very nice place to stay that I'm inquiring about, fingers crossed. Maybe, just maybe, I will be in my new city within the next week. Goodness gracious that would be a dream come true! I would be in a location stockpiled with jobs and the modern convenience of a grocery store, coffee shop and bookstore within walking distance. Funny how dreams work. I can't even count the songs I've listened to about dreams just staying dreams. It's quite a battle to dream freely. 

My readers make me happy as well! It is so nice to see that someone is reading my writing and that I'm not just throwing my words at a brick wall. So thank you! Cheers to a wonderful day! 

Morning Has Broken

As I cracked an egg into my mug of Vietnamese coffee I scanned the Classified's job section. Vietnamese coffee is made with eggs. In fact, the whole egg, shell included! Relaxing for me includes watching coffee videos on Youtube. 

                                Vietnamese coffee has a rich flavor of tiramisu. It's a great variation to the ordinary cup of Joe. Its layers are similar to custard and the taste is absolutely exquisite. Besides,  eggs have protein. If you're looking for that extra protein boost plus caffeine in the morning, then this might be your answer. The eggs used in this coffee are processed in boiling water so there is no need to be intrepid about the raw egg factor. 

Tasting coffees from all over the world is a favorite activity of mine. I have been experimenting with everything from Mexican to Vietnamese coffee preparation styles. Drinking coffees with preparation styles from all over the world is an exciting way for me to begin my day. I enjoy reading the paper in the morning, knitting and reading my Bible. I wake up way too early, generally speaking. Which, in a sense is a blessing and a curse. My mornings I try to be productive but recently I've been in rather a glitch. It seems that I'm stuck on trying to escape my ordinary life. I want a change of pace but I want to make an epic move in life. My grandmother, who's an amazing lady!, has a refrigerator magnet that says "Ordinary women did not go down in history." 

                                              Is being unordinary bad, I think not! So with my quirky early morning waking coffee habits, and my endless flame of new ideas and inspirations I'll travel on through this life being grateful for every day I'm blessed with. Thank God for Vietnamese coffee and early mornings!