Originally written 3/14/04

So I'm staring at my box of Crayola crayons tonight, wondering what color to use next, when the thought comes to me that certain colors that get absolutely no use whatsoever. Their points are as clear and sharp as the day they popped out of the crayon machine at the Crayola factory. I wonder if the crayons that don't get used every get their feelings hurt? I mean, there's your rasberry red and your robin's egg blue that are worn down to flat tips, and then there is your burnt sienna and apricot and melon and peach and salmon that are precise and sharp, even if your box is more than 2 years old. Why is that these colors are shunned by coloring fanatics world wide? Could it be crayon racism? Or Crayon prejudice rather? Colorism would be a better word for it I guess, or bias of the colored kind. Or not. But do you tink the apricots and the sepias of the box feel inadequate because they don't get used like the others? I imagine that they feel self-conscious sticking head and shoulders above the others. Like an overgrown girl at a seventh grade dance. But when it comes right down to it those are the colors no one, or at least me, would never dream of using. They just aren't as satisfying as the other colors.....(12:30 pm) 

As promised, old writing

Originally "published" February 25, 2004

The Soundtrack of My Life: Songs that Tell the Story of Me 

Compiled by Jennifer Rose for ELAN 4120 (Writing instruction for Elementary Teachers) 

Welcome to the soundtrack of my life. I chose to represent my culture musically because music means a lot to me and has always been a part of who I am. I have been playing the piano since before i could ride a bike. I loved anything that made noise before that. My family always had a large record, tape, and CD collection and I don't remember a day that went by when something wasn't on the stereo. 

I chose to do this assignment the I did because there is always a song in my mind for any situation I am in. I can't think of a time when I wasn't mentally singing a song. I wanted to showcase a few of those songs that I am constantly singing to myself here. 

Broadway musicals, as you will see from my selection, are a genre of music that mean a lot to me. They are as much a part of my culture as the house that I live in. I had a hard time narrowing down the selection of songs from musicals for this project, so the ones represented here are just a tiny fraction of the musicals I adore. 

In fact, I really had a hard time choosing just 20 of the songs that represent me in all my glory. (Or non-glory, whatever the situation may be.) I chose 20 because it was a nice round number that wasn't too big or too small. I could have chosen much, much more than I did however, I really did not want to dedicate any more time to this project than I already have. (As it stands, I have spent a total of 12 hours writing and formatting this book.) 

I hope, by listening to this tape and reading the notes that follow each song, you gain an insight to me. I hope you get a general idea for how I define my culture and what it means to me. I hope you are not bored. I hope you have fun. Happy listening! Happy reading! 


I then go on to list the songs, their lyrics and a description of why I chose that song. Here is a listing on the songs I chose for my life circa 2004, almost ten years ago!


1. In My Own Little Corner, from Cinderella
2. Far from the Home I Love, from Fiddler on the Roof
3. Circle Game by Joni Mitchell
4. I'll Be Okay by Amanda Marshall
5. Whistle a Happy Tune, from the King and I
6. Gypsy by Suzanne Vega
7. Someone to Watch Over Me (the version from Mr. Holland's Opus)
8. I Will Pass This Way Again by The Small Potatoes
9. Master's Degree by David Roth
10. Rondo alla Turca from Piano Sonata No. 11 in A Major K331 by Mozart
11. Back in the USSR by the Beatles
12. Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da by the Beatles
13. It's a Perfect Relationship from Bells are Ringing
14. Happy Girl by Martina McBride
15. All Star by Smash Mouth
16. Many A New Day from Oklahoma
17. The Devil Went Down to Georgia, performed by Mike Rayburn
18. Hallelujah by Rufus Wainwright
19. The Windmills of Your Mind from the Thomas Crown Affair performed by Noel Harrison
20. Variations on Pachelbel's Kanon performed by Mike Rayburn

I suppose I owe my reading audience YouTube videos of these, and they are to come, along with a description of what I wrote then and how my views have changed now. Piece by piece, I will be writing again. :)

College nostalgia

I was going through some old writing class notes and I came across a project I did senior year where I selected songs to represent my life so far. Boy have I changed since 2004! And what kind of college program asks for this you might ask yourself? Remember, I was an Early Childhood Education major. I may not have learned anything in college, but I did a whole lot of reflecting on myself and my teaching and everything else in life. For kicks, I'm going to post some of that work here. Don't laugh too hard. :)

Also....

Currently watching TED Talks about sex and love and totally connecting.

WTF?

WTF is wrong with people?

Is this really necessary?

This is what my Friday looks like

Every since I dropped my morning client a month ago for an English language teaching job in Gwinnett county I have had Fridays off. Yes, that is correct. I pick up the occasional companionship case with my company but for the most part my Fridays are free. Which means Thursdays are my Fridays. Last night Cameron joined Renee and I for trivia at North River Tavern and we sucked, but we had fun and drank beer. :) I stayed the night, woke up this morning and did some grocery shopping for the weekend and got some lesson planning done. Then, I went for a four-mile run down to one my favorite Sandy Springs park and encountered this:

Does this or does this not look like a postcard? Who knew there were such pristine places in Atlanta? I spent my entire high school years, college years and beyond hating my hometown. Is it true that being in a relationship you actually like can change your mood that much? I have re-discovered how much I love running again (yay runner's high!) and just how gorgeous this town can be. Can you say shoot me now? Have be come one of THOSE women? One of those women I hated in college and in my twenties? And yet, I find myself leaving again. I always leave at the moment when I start to feel settled. But this time it's for my own good. For my education, for my personal growth.

I can come back in a year and a half if I choose to as well. But for now I think I chose to enjoy the moment. Enjoy the summer, enjoy the boy, enjoy the job, and enjoy the peace. :)

It's my summer

It's officially summer, right? I mean, I am out of school for the semester, and can devote my time to my ESL teaching job. (All 19 hours a week, right?) Truth be told, life is pretty sweet. I have a summer off, someone to pal around with that I actually like, and a fresh start in a few months in a new state. I'm going to forget the fact that I am scared shitless to be starting over again, but I think things will work themselves out. They have a way of doing that.

Two dads

Beautiful Jeanne on her wedding day, with both of the fathers that helped raised her. She couldn't stop from tearing up before she started to walk down the aisle. Such a beautiful ceremony!

Wedding love, early April 2013

This picture was taken at the end of April at my cousin Jeanne's wedding. Jeanne is 27 and an elementary pre-K teacher. Her new husband is a doctor and will completing his residency at Emory soon. The girl far off in the picture is my cousin molly, 13, and really excited to be a jr. Bridesmaid in her half-sister Jeanne's wedding. Molly is the offspring of my mother's sister. We grew up with the crew, and it is very exciting that Jeanne is the first of us cousins to tie the not. Beautiful wedding ceremony in April 2013 near the river in Augusta, GA. So happy for her and Aaron. :)

May, so far, in pictures