I caught another summer cold. That's two more than when I didn't teach since I normally don't ever catch colds during the summer season. I started feeling it last Wednesday but haven't been able to rest much so I feel worse today instead of better. Three more days of work left with the students and two more days of meetings next week and then...freedom or perhaps just boredom and laziness. They both sound good to me right now.

Finally went to watch "Step Into Liquid" with Joo and Emily this past Saturday. For someone who has never surfed or learned how to swim, I find surfing alluring and beckoning. I own the "Endless Summer" dvd which was filmed by Bruce Brown so I had to watch "Step Into Liquid" by his son, Dana Brown, and compare. I was glad to find that it was a documentary film. I found the narration amusing although I enjoyed the dry humor of Bruce Brown a little more. However, the cinematography was stunning. You could feel the power of the waves even through the screen.

"Who do you think is the best surfer out there?"
**Pause*
"The person having the most fun."

I love that. Achievement measured by fun. Not money, not degrees, not test scores, not fame, not skills, not by the approval of others. And who do you think is the person having the most fun? The person who is surfing of course. Only they can know truly how much fun they are having. The children in the film really showed me how much fun they were having with their open expressions of joy. They couldn't wipe the smiles off their faces.

I read a part of Scott's letter/journal yesterday and was stumped at "Time is plenty here. Almost too much." I tried to imagine what it would feel like to live in that reality. Maybe in the case of time it is better to have just enough rather than plenty.

I'm so ready for my vacation to start. The last two weeks have been exhausting with report cards and parent/teacher conferences. I did absolutely nothing on Saturday which helped me recover physically, but I still feel emotionally and mentally weary. Just need to think about packing up my classroom for the rover to move in by next Friday and what kind of vacation homework I'm going to assign. Yes, I am a mean teacher who gives vacation homework so that while I'm doing nothing at home my students can work their brains out and hopefully not forget everything they've learned in the last three months. Hmmm...vacation homework versus hours of television and video games. It's a lost cause but I still have to try.

A thought occurred to me the other day that my mental and emotional weariness may stem from having to be too practical, too organized, and too planned due to my job. Because I am a natural dreamer, I need time to daydream. I need time to look up at the sky and become engrossed in a drifting cloud or be uplifted by the sight of the beaming full moon. I will definitely head to Borders for some reading of Japanese comic books during my vacation time and escape from this all consuming world of teaching. I wonder if "Millennium Actress" will still be playing in theatres by then. Sleep is more critical to my well-being than daydreaming for now.

Scott has early terminated from his duties in the Peace Corp. I had lunch with him at LAX last Saturday during his layover time. He looked darker and thinner as I had expected. He handed me the longest letter I have ever received. It was a full journal. He also gave me a traditional East Timorese fabric for decoration. I also saw the pictures he took on his digital camera. He has returned safely from another adventure and has blessed me with his presence on my birthday.

My new Mom's 60th birthday is tomorrow. The kids decided to get her a diamond ring because she has always wanted one. Mike and Ann picked it out so that Mom's diamond will be the biggest one out of all of us. I hope she loves it!

I've been thinking about starting a new blog just about my original Mom. I kept a journal while I was going to counseling a few years back dealing with how her death has affected me. I guess I've been thinking about it since her passing away anniversary is coming soon. Maybe I will start it in on that day as a rememberance.

I purchased two new cds: erasure pop! 20 hits and Yo-Yo- Ma and Kathryn Stott in Paris La Belle Epoque. Two very different styles of music but each had a song that's been on my mind - "A Little Respect" and "Meditation" from Thais. It frees my mind up to hear the music from the outside of my head. Sometimes music is amazingly fulfilling.