AuburnChick's Adventures

Go ahead and be envious of the creative titles I come up with for my Hodgepodge posts.

heehee

I’m feeling goofy.  Sorry.  It’s been an i-n-t-e-r-e-s-t-i-n-g two weeks at school, and I fear that either pre-menopause or teenage highs and lows are invading my body.

Anyhoo, join in the fun, link up with Joyce, and visit other Hodgepodge bloggers!

1.  It’s that most wonderful time of the year…tax season! Do you complete your own returns or farm that job out to the professionals?

The Mr. was blessed with a math/financial brain, so he does our taxes each year…with a little help from TurboTax.  He’s just about done, in fact.  Now, if only I could find the papers for the cars we bought the kids last year.  Um…see my previous blog post if you’re wondering how I could lose something that important.

2. This next question comes from Kansas Bob…he posed it in his response to something I asked in an earlier Wednesday post and I asked him if I could add it to the Hodgepodge some day. Today’s the day….

Which do you think has changed you more-love or pain?

I think that I would have to say pain.  Last week, during my classes, I shared some of the hard times I experienced during my childhood.  I wanted them to understand that I understand some of the pain they are going through, despite me looking like I have my act together.  I’ve often wondered why I’ve had to endure the things I’ve been through.  Then, I see why later.

The Bible talks about the refining process.  Precious metal cannot be purified without heat lifting the impurities to the surface.

That’s how it’s been in my life, and ultimately, I’m grateful for the times of growth, despite the pain.

3.  Tangerine Tango has been named color of the year for 2012. Your thoughts? Would I find this color anywhere in your house? How about in your closet? If not, will you be adding this color to your life in some way in 2012? If you’re not sure what tangerine tango looks like click here.

While you won’t find this color in my house, you might find it on my fingernails!  What a great spring color!

4.  Are you a collector? What do you collect and does it get admired, used, and/or dusted regularly?

I used to collect Christmas village pieces, but the collection got so large that it takes hours to set up and put away, so I haven’t used it in a while.

Something I do collect that that you will see around my house is…YARN!!

As a knitter, I feel it is my duty to buy it as often as possible and show it off.  Thought I don’t have time to knit much right now, the yarn sits in front of me…in baskets around the house…calling like a siren…”AuburnChick…take a break…knit me into something…”

Yes, I’ve completely lost my marbles.  Don’t judge.  You could be next.

5.  February is National Heart Month…besides a green salad what is one tasty heart healthy dish you like to prepare?

I love the black bean soup recipe I make from the book, The Daniel Fast, which I posted here with the author’s permission.  It’s vegan friendly, which means it’s completely heart friendly!

6.  When was the last time you had car trouble?

I refuse to answer this question because I don’t want to jinx myself.

7.  Have you been more demanding on yourself lately or less? Is that a good trend?

Oh, definitely more demanding of myself!  I’m a perfectionist and a control freak (see my previous post).  It’s my second year teaching, but honestly, I’ve always demanded a lot of myself…in certain areas of my life.

Ultimately, it’s not the best trend because I’m causing myself undue stress.  I’ve cried a lot the last couple of weeks, feeling like I’m letting my students down as well as myself.

It can be quite difficult to live up to unreasonable expectations.

8.  My Random Thought

I’ve reported that I’ve been having some problems with one of my classes.  I asked the advice of my school’s ROTC instructor, and while he asked to mull it over, he did say something that I’ve been chewing on…

“To get respect, you have to give respect.”

I think it’s safe to assume that as adults, we expect…or rather DEMAND respect from those younger than us.  However, how often do we stop to consider if we’re giving those same people…in my case, my students…that which I’m expecting to receive from them.

Oh, it’s not a pretty thing when you look inside of yourself and see another area you need to work on.

A student, one of my favs, called me out on it today too, telling me that I could have told her nicely that she couldn’t go to the bathroom.  Instead, I snapped at her.

She’s been snippy with me, but does that give me the right to snap right back?  What does that say about respect?

I think about my favorite EPI teacher, and I’m reminded how she always addressed us as either “Mr. So-and-So or Ms. So-and-So.”

You know something?  What she did made our relationship formal.  We had business to take care of.  However, it was respectful, and she received respect in return…even from students who had to redo their assignments time after time.

Respect is something I’m giving a lot of thought to right now.

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: Black Bean Soup, Daniel Fast, Wednesday Hodgepodge |