So I have two sons, ages 28 and 30. And the younger is getting married in April.

He was a puzzle, growing up, and it wasn't easy. But then she entered his life, and she has been clearly the best thing that ever happened to him. And visa versa. They've been together for nine years now.

And since engagement pics are apparently the thing now, here ya go. Shot in Ojai, CA.

http://jennaclarkphoto.pass.us/heatheranddaniel/

Thoughts and prayers? You got nothing. Unless you are going to get real, I do not want to hear from your sorry ass.

Just had to get that out.

But one thing lead to another, and I started flash-backing to my childhood.

But seriously it was what it was and it was the best.

Being born in 1951, the '50s were my childhood years. And you couldn't do better than that.

Technically, I wasn't born in Palm Springs, but my parents returned there when I was 2 months old, so for the next 25 years, that's all I knew. We moved into my childhood home when I was 2 years old (all 3 of my sisters were born while we lived there) and my 89-years old mom lives there yet. We got a big lot (sand was cheap) and my Dad was in the construction biz, so eventually we had a big house.

But the summers I remember (125 F, mind you) consisted of my mom kicking us outside (her reading time, mind you). Us 4 girls? in our panties. Why wear more? We roamed our backyard, blonde hair, blue eyes, and brown as berries every one. I invented fantastical plots (being the oldest) and we buried treasure, built castles in the mud under the cottonwood tree, climbed up the tree to escape the witch, and generally rampaged all over the backyard until Mom let us back in.

At which, of course, it was time to settle down with the latest treasure from the library and dream some more.

Do children have lives like this anymore? And what a loss that is.

The Withered Arm and Other Stories, Thomas Hardy

So back when I was a teen, Hardy was totally my jam. Tragic heroines, rural English countryside, what was not to love?

And now, however, I notice that Hardy is the patron saint of Make one small miscalculation, and your life is straight down the tubes, girl. (Heads up, guys, not so much for you.)

Hmmm.

Today was Math Collaboration Day at my school, which is a cool thing. It's a chance for the entire Math Dept. to call in subs, get together on our own, and plan out stuff, resolve issues, and just do math.

I'm on several district committees and such like, and it always tickles me when they pass out some activities we can have our kids work on. And all the teachers are like whatevers, gimme the math. Which we promptly attack, happy as clams.

Not quite the same reaction we get from our students when we pass it out to them, alas.

For the 40th odd year, we were off to the LA County Fair this weekend. It has changed a lot over the decades, but since the county still has a few agricultural pockets, there are still the animals and the various contests. I miss Irene Whatsherface. and her Wall O' Jam. That woman dominated, I tell you what. And then there's my stomping grounds, the Textile Division. AKA Hand-made garments.

Used to be, there were many divisions, and I learned early on how to game them. Boy's clothes? Ain't nobody who does that. But since I had a couple of sons, that was my jam. Until they got old enough to give home-made the side-eye. But basically I stuck with clothes I made for myself, and got many a ribbon.

So for awhile, things got crazy, and I didn't have the time, but I reentered the fray about 5 years back. But alas, it is a different scene these days. First of all, only 2 divisions. Clothes. And costumes. Then it's the Danish judging system, wherein there is more than one blue ribbon, etc. Since there are only 2 categories, I guess. And worst of all, I think they've lost their little old lady judging panel who used to leave little notes for you. "Buttonholes could have been a little straighter, but those were some sweet seam finishings, sweetie."

So the upshot is that the orange linen dress that had a hella engineering got a blue ribbon, and the Halloween dress (Jane Austin meets La Dia de los Muertos) got a red, which I'm chill with since I basically threw it together in a weekend, and a top that I randomly threw in, becuase I always enter 3 things, also got a red. So I'm pretty chuffed. :)

My classs are heavily Latinex (70 %). And yet I have no idea which of my students are documented and which are not. Because California does not require that information in order to enroll a student.

And that's the way I like it.

107 degrees? Well what are you going to do...wait what? Now it's 89 and there's thundershowers?

Okaaay, I'll take that. . . No we were just kidding. Here. Have your 105 back again hahaha.

So we went to see Dunkirk. Visually amazing, but I'd like to have seen a bit more on the gathering the troops together side of it. Plus gratuitous overuse of the Nimrod Variation. I see you, Zimmer.

So we are four weeks in. My 3 Geometry classes are the best. The first progress report goes out next week and nobody is flunking. Major win. (One kid is flirting with it, but he knows why. Fortunately, I had his older sister a couple of years ago, and she is apparently giving him a reality check. He knows what he's got to do.) And a good half of each class have some sort of A.

Because I teach the math-phobic, this is what I aim for. So much of my job is to get them to say, hey, I can actually do this.

The grades will go down over time, as well they should, to more realistic levels. But I aim to start them all high. How far down the grade goes is absolutely up to them.

Tonight, we are all Ann Miller.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WS_YAKZH3lw

And check out her IMBd for quite the life.

*checks back in* Holey moley! I knew her first husband! Six degrees of Beverly Hills.