Autumn
What a busy summer. Just getting ready for school to start on Wednesday. We made it to Disney and back with no problems. Loved it. Today, my family helped me clean my new classroom to get it ready for students. Melissa, I would love to see your t-shirt design. I hope everyone enjoys this last long weekend of summer.


Hi Gang,
School for me starts next Wed., Sept. 5. Had a great trip out West to Seattle earlier this month. We rented a cottage on Puget Sound and spent four glorious days with our kids and their partners. The rest of the two weeks we visited family and friends, asked ourselves why we ever left the Pacific Northwest and how we could possibly return. (Seriously, we love New England, but Seattle is our home.) At school, we are getting ready to welcome our 14 visitors from Burgos, Spain. We will go there in February. Any of you who want more info/advice on taking kids abroad, let me know. This will be my 11th trip in a variety of formats. It is the BEST thing you can do for kids to make the language and culture come alive. Chao, amigos. MERRIE, la vieja

PS Here is a video on YouTube by Justo Lamas. He still has concert dates open (but not many), if you are interested in hosting a concert at your school. Some of the footage in the video is from our concerts at Chelmsford. Too cool.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNVrbMeWD00




Christine
Sunday morning I am heading out to San Francisco to visit with my sister, who is 9 months pregnant! My husband will only be joining me out there on Monday. We are going to spend a couple of days exploring the vineyards of the Russian River Valley (mmm...) while my sister finishes her last days of work. We are looking forward to playing with our soon-to-be two year old goddaughter all week long! And who knows, maybe we will be there when the little one arrives!

Deb
AHAAAA! I finally made the top contributors page! Notice who is mysteriously missing???? Maybe because he's in London...

Hello Deb,
Sounds like you had quite the move! Did your cat get any of the Prozac? We had to drug my husband's cat when he moved here from Canada. The drug worked like a charm. She caused no problems at the border. I hope you are doing well and school, too! -Christine

Melissa
Incredibly I haven't felt even a tinge of Wiki withdrawal since getting home...I have been keeping myself busy visiting my family and friends. Last weekend I went on a camping and rafting adventure with two of my best childhood friends which was incredibly fun...I even have a souvenir--SUNBURN! I totally forgot what the sun felt like after spending three weeks in classrooms. Autumn, I managed to make us some fun T-shirts following your advice, thanks!
Tomorrow morning I leave for a roadtrip with my boyfriend. He is not a teacher and can you believe that he has not actually had a vacation in years? Thank goodness for summers off! Anyhow, we'll be stopping in DC, then heading to Manteo, NC, and then making our way over to Chicago after visiting his brother in Virginia. After that, I get to start really thinking about school and Action Research designs and all of that fun stuff.
I hope that you all enjoy the rest of the summer. Have fun!


DEB
Well, today is moving day. All of my belongings were packed in the moving van on Wednesday and are headed south. My husband, two dogs, and cat are going to cram ourselves in the Subaru in less than an hour and point the nose toward Wilmington. He drives like he flies--no layovers...Can you say Prozac? They tried to make me go to rehab, but I said NO, NO, NO! `~)

Querida Deb, te deseo suerte con tu mudansa y espero que todo llegue intacto especialmente tu estado mental. Cuidate besos y abrazos,
Mari.

My matslly things……..

By Pam Anderson, in the wee hours of the morning of July 28, while reflecting on 3 incredible weeks at Bennington.

WebQuests and wikis,
blogging and linking
IMs, podcasting,
I'm so tired of thinking.
Passwords, and logins
Citation Machine
These are a few of my matslly things.

Data bases and searches
On Eric and Jstor
I don't think that my brain
Can take very much more.
Field notes and first cuts,
What clues will they bring?
These are a few of my matslly things.

Explanation,
Interpretation
And Perspective, too
Just think what self-knowledge can do for you.

Application and empathy
Essential questions
Understandings that endure
I must learn that lesson.
Design it all backwards
What wisdom it brings
These are a few of my matslly things.

Amalia and Shumway
Morel and Alberdi
Project Comprehension
I don't think I'm ready.

Borjes, and Dahlmann
These names have a ring.
They're now a part of my matslly things.

Martin Fierro
Jon and Peter
Deb, Lisa, too.
Without Carol and Nancy
Oh, what would we do?

Isabel and Noelle
And "Le risistance"
What broke our hearts?
"Au revoir les infants."
Desaparecidos
Of sad things we sing
Yet these, too, are part of our matslly things.

I'll miss all my new friends
The laughs and great chow
We'll chat by moodle
When I figure out how.
It's time to go now
What more can we say?
So let's wind this all up
With a great big loud CHE

Guille
Hola, Y'all!!!
Hope life is treating you all well. I've been having a great time myself. Went blueberry picking yesterday, saw a couple of movies (Transformers was pretty good, as was the new Die Hard movie......seriously, it really was good).
I've been doing a bunch of carving..... I finished that spoon from the wood that I found outside VAPA, and I have almost finished my own version of Xul Solar's Casi Plantas [Almost Plants] (Original picture here: http://www.xulsolar.org.ar/obras/40-11.htm). I think it's going to be called "Casi...". It's made from olive wood, which is one of hte most beautiful woods in the world....in my humble opinion. Anyhow, it needs some polishing, but here's a glimpse of how it's going so far.


Guille,
Loved what you did with the olive wood. Very nice. The resemblance to Casi Plantas is eerily "right on." Merrie

Venga! Gille eres fenomenal mira que bien te esta quedando la casi cuchara. Te felicito porque tienes mucho talento, espero que algun dia me hagas el honor de crear algo para mi. Saludos a Emilia y no te pierdas y escibeme cuando tengas tiempo. Abrasos y besos,
Mari.

Wow! Guille, the Casi Plantas is incredible!!!! Beautiful work! Please share when done! -Christine


Lisa B.
Lisa B. is writing to you today from "art camp", the "Holbein VT Art Event", in north Burlington, VT (Colchester, VT). Dozens of professional artists from all over the country teaching art workshops throughout the week. I made my first real oil painting a few days ago (I'm pretty much a water-media girl with a bit of oil pastel and mixed media thrown in, but no oil experience except w-a-y back in undergrad art school). I'm having lots of fun and it is relaxing not to not be the "sage on the stage", "queen of the screen", etc. Today (Fri. 8/3) did a dry pastel class and a watercolor class. One more workshop, tomorrow morning in watercolor figures. Here's a few of my partially finished works (all are just 3 hour exercises).


The Shangri-La Motel, Still Life w/ Pears, 8x10, acrylic
New Smyrna Beach FL
gouache (opaque watercolor)18x24


Garden, Watercolor, 10x12 Track-side, FL, oil pastel, 18x24


Lisa,
The artwork is great. Here's a suggestion....come back to Bennington next summer and do an art workshop with us. It would be so fun, creative and matslly. Think about it. (Carol?) Merrie

Lisa,
I love your artwork I think is Chevere.(is more than great) Take care and continue making great artwork. hugs,
Marilyn.

Hello Lisa,
It looks like you had a fabulous time at Art Camp!!! I agree with Merrie. Could you teach an art workshop with us next year? -Christine