Monthly Archives: February 2012

“A Teacher’s Lament” by Kalli Dakos

Posted on February 29, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

Don’t tell me the cat ate your math sheet, And your spelling words went down the drain, And you couldn’t decipher your homework, Because it was soaked in the rain. Don’t tell me you slaved for hours On the project … Continue reading →

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Gone bananas

Posted on February 27, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

The soundtrack of our life has lately included far too much Taylor Swift.  Monkey Man’s favorite is the Romeo and Juliet song, while Gorilla Girl loves “Fifteen” and “You Belong With Me.” In the car, Monkey Man exhibits his skill … Continue reading →

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The bicycle thief

Posted on February 26, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

When I was in college, I dated a boy who was an artist. I still have two of his sketches hanging on my walls (EE calls it the wall of honor, or something).  When we hung new art by a … Continue reading →

Posted in biking, class, education, experience, painting | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

“My Father Teaches Me to Dream” by Jan Beatty

Posted on February 25, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

You want to know what work is? I’ll tell you what work is: Work is work. You get up. You get on the bus. You don’t look from side to side. You keep your eyes straight ahead. That way nobody … Continue reading →

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Cheese-topped onion soup: lessons in patience

Posted on February 24, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

Dorie’s recipe for cheese-topped onion soup says you have to be patient while waiting for the onions to brown.  Patience is one of those things that it is easy to have in abundance at the front end, but much harder … Continue reading →

Posted in adoption, cheese, family, family meals, food, motherhood | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments

Exploration — Lewisandclark style

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

Wintery and chilly, with blustery winds, cloud cover, and even sprinkles of rain, today was the perfect day for my class to take its annual “Lewis and Clark” expedition to Washington Park.  In the couple of days leading up to … Continue reading →

Posted in education, experience, inspiration, lessons, photography, teaching | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Baking ugly, and tasting pretty: chocolate truffle tartlets

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

This post could have been titled: Mommy, that tart dough just doesn’t love you. Once again, when given the task of making tart dough from Dorie’s instructions, my first attempt failed — and my second attempt worked, and tasted chocolatey … Continue reading →

Posted in family, food, winter | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Bonnie — a woman who paved her own road

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

My mom’s friend Bonnie  died several years ago. She was only 59,  considerably older than my mom when she died, but still too young. I accidentally discovered that she had died when I posted about Glen Campbell‘s performance at the … Continue reading →

Posted in connection, experience, family, feminism, friendship, inspiration | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

One year ago

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

A year ago this weekend, we celebrated Tet — Vietnamese New Year — with family and friends.  We’d been planning for another Tet celebration this weekend, but both Gorilla Girl and Monkey Man came down with severe colds, missed four … Continue reading →

Posted in family, food, motherhood, painting, Tet | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Rhinestone cowboy

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Necessity is the Mother of Invention

It is uncharacteristic of me to watch award shows, but for some reason, I saw a bit of the Grammys on Sunday night. The Glenn Campbell piece really struck a chord. Not because I am or was a big fan, … Continue reading →

Posted in education, experience, family, memory, nostalgia | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments