Summer Recap: in PHOTOS!

The snow today made me want to remember all the awesome summer things I did, not but a few short months ago.

Let me explain.

No, there is too much. Let me sum up:

First, there was this flock of geese that stayed in my neighbor's yard for two days.

Somewhere in July, Lisa went with us to see fireworks.

The Cabin Johnson's visited Utah, and just as I predicted, Aaron and Greg were Brothers from Another Mother. Here we caught them both wearing old-school arcade game T-shirts.

We pretended we were single and went with the single's ward to a Bee's game.

Oh, and we Moabed.

We played a free game of mini-golf at the Salt Lake Arts Center --- on a course of "art" miniature golf holes.

One Par 3 even gave you a free game of Donkey Kong when you made it in the hole. Aaron was excited to see the real thing instead of just the one on his T-shirt.

Right before school started we road-tripped to California for a wedding reception of one of Aaron's friends. We enjoyed the nicer part of town....

...as well as the lesser-known Hicksville side of Malibu.

On the way home, we found the Hoover Dam has been eclipsed by its gargantuan neighbor bridge.

The Ethel M Chocolate Factory outside Vegas was nice, but the cactus and rock garden outside was much more entertaining. Lisa and I pretended to be Saguaros....

....while Aaron tried to pretend to be another. Didn't work, buddy.

We visited The Strip, but the best part was a little splurge to see the Shark Aquarium at Mandalay Bay.

It was like ...walking through an aquarium!

The spiky Spinefish were my favorite.

Back in Utah, we had a very windy afternoon trip to Dugway with the Bills. It was too windy to even shoot off rockets.

But we did gather for some intense ping-pong back at the Bills homestead.

Austin had to be all gross and find a freaking huge bug. And of course none of us could resist looking at it.

Aaron's family goes to the Sheepdog Trials in Heber every year. We fittingly watched "Babe" on the portable DVD player during the drive up.

It was less like a rodeo than I expected - much more civilized.

Finally, the summer culminated in our triumphant ascent of Mount Timpanogos. Seriously, who built a house at the top!?

Coming back down... we couldn't believe we were just at the top of that.

END of super-long, probably-boring post. But guess what? END OF SUMMER, TOO. Thanks, snow!!!

A Blog About Food (Because Everyone Seems To Be Doing It)

I don't know how I feel anymore. I used to be so in love. It used to be like, "it's a special occasion where we get all fancy and make ourselves pretty and spend a lot of time together but then we go our separate ways." But now it's more like, "here we are again, just like yesterday and the day before, you and me, nothing special but still too important to overlook, so whaddaya say?"

Of course I'm not talking about my husband. I love him dearly, in a much more real way than I ever did while we were just dating. (Cheese warning!! Comin' right atcha! Oh, sorry, too late.) No, I'm talking about DINNER.

You can ask my mom - I cooked before. I did. Or, ask my roommates. We had this each-person-cooks-once-a-week thing going for a good while, and it worked out great. See, when you have a week to plan, and it feels special, you can cook pretty much anything.

But now that we need dinner every day? It's terrifically difficult. It's terrificult!

(Dang...that sounds a little wrong. Like a terrible cult or something.)

I really don't mind preparing food - I've been watching a lot of this overproduced competition cooking show "Master Chef" on Hulu.com lately, so the actual preparation isn't dreadful. It's sort of fun, especially pretending I'm an expert and know what I'm doing.

But the hardest part is deciding. Blankly staring at the stove like it's a piece of paper and I have writer's block. Opening the fridge and everything delicious I remember buying suddenly scurries behind a nearly-empty milk carton or bottle of pickles like a cockroach hides from the light. Canvassing the countertops for anything but that moldy tomato or wilted piece of lettuce. Searching the shelves when all I can see is ramen, peanut butter, and Instant Quaker Oatmeal. I want T-shirts that say "WHAT SHOULD WE EAT".

I know, I know - I need to plan my meals ahead of time. Once I get a good repertoire of recipes I'll be better at performing on-demand. Practice practice practice!

Still, ideas can't hurt. Allow me to pick your collective brains: What did you have for dinner tonight? What do you wish you had for dinner tonight?

Persuasive Essays

"The one thing you can never be wrong about is your own opinion. It's when you start giving your reasons that you lay yourself open." -- Roger Ebert

From a very good blog by Ebert about the film "Inception." Specifically, he addresses how various people are shaming those minority negative reviewers of the film. "How dare you dislike a movie I loved!", etc. Check it out here: http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2010/07/the_myth_of_a_perfect_film.html.

I agree that you can't be "wrong" about your own opinion. That's the "your" part. The opinion part, however, is where "you lay yourself open" as he says.

But you can't very well share your opinion without explanation. Giving only your opinion without reasons is hardly accepted by those with whom you're having a conversation---especially if they're of the opposite opinion.

As I taught my summer school students when comparing FACT vs OPINION, a fact can be proven true, while an opinion cannot. Similarly, a fact cannot be argued, while an opinion can. Would we say that an opinion exists to be argued against? Might we say that an opinion doesn't exist unless there is some way you could argue against it?

* * *

I've had a blast teaching summer school these past few weeks. By focusing on writing a single persuasive essay, instead of trying to read and analyze a novel or memorize out-of-context vocab words, I've seen them reach some real depth of thinking instead of skimming on top of the learning surface. It was inspired for me to let them pick their own topics for their persuasive essays instead of assigning "Should your school get rid of the pop machines" or "What do you think about school uniforms" or, my favorite, "Recycling." Most importantly, those topics would bore ME, which boredom is painfully obvious if you try and teach through.

It's important for me to pick interesting things to teach so THEY will have interesting things to learn. I basically gave them half a day on the iTouch to muse around news sites online and find a topic that really interests them. They range from the existence of aliens to texting while driving to the legalization of marijuana to the fairness of Arizona's now-infamous new law.

I'm happy I didn't shy away from topical, relevant issue of immigration. I'd debated whether to bring it up in class but I knew they were all thinking about it - this was the same week "The List" came out (leaked list of 1,300 names, addresses, and SSNs of allegedly illegal immigrants in Utah). It was filled with mostly Hispanic names, and I have mostly Hispanic students. And they were worried. (I never asked if they were worried for themselves or for family members - I don't feel like it's my place to know, or even if it's legal for me to know, whether they are here within or outside the law. If they're in my classroom, I'm going to teach them.)

So I was pleased to see that they weren't scared of such a big topic, either. One student is writing on the treatment of immigrants in general; another is arguing that Utah should not adopt an Arizona-like law; and another narrowed the topic down to: Those 2 workers who leaked that "list" information should be criminally charged for violation of privacy laws.

It's still a question in my mind how much I let them know my opinion, and how much I stay neutral to let them form their own. Usually I'd bring up a topic---like "Should euthanasia on animals in shelters be performed by lethal injection or with poisonous gas?"---and discuss both sides, the facts and reasonings for both sides, and how each side might try to prove the other side false. Ultimately, the discussion will come to, "Well, what do YOU think, Ms Sheffield?' (The summer school people didn't get my new name in time.) I'll be honest - I usually hedge away from that question. I change the subject, or just say "That's not the question. The question is what do YOU think, and how can you back it up?" or "We don't have to pick a side. We're looking at the pros and cons of both." Am I pansying out? Or should I continue to stay behind a professional veil and not reveal my personal opinions?

And now we're back at the beginning. Because usually when I have an opinion, it's rooted deep in my religious foundation. So if they get my opinion, and they inevitably ask for reasons why.... well, I probably don't need to ask if I should share those or not. . . . Do I?

One last thought on the Ebert quote: You definitely need to have some kind of reasoning for your opinion. And to have considered both sides. One of my students wanted to write about the new Jazz lineup - specifically, how wrong it was for them to sign Raja Bell again. "He's a terrible player, we don't need him, they should've picked someone better" were some of his reasons. So I had him look up evidence, player stats and expert analysis, that sort of thing (that I could give more opinion on had I any lingering interest in pro basketball). The next day he raised his hand and informed me he was switching his topic. Now he's writing on why he supports the Jazz in re-signing Raja Bell. And he has the facts to prove it. I hope.

The More Things Change

A few things are different since the last time I blogged. First of all, this one kid came to my house to watch a movie and fell asleep on my floor.

Reader, I married him.

(I have used

the famous line

that I got from Jane Eyre

and that you

were probably saving

for breakfast.

Forgive me - it was delicious

So sweet

though so old)

Second, I moved to our new apartment, and I have a new last name.

Side note: So I'm not sure what to do about this blog. Options are as follows:

• Ditch it and make a new one, probably with both our names in the address, and talk about our new life. Downside - I doubt Husband will be writing on it much.
• Keep it and make it a Work-Only blog. If I take out all personal references I could use it for my classes, to check homework, etc. As you can see, I haven't been updating it regularly for personal reasons anyway.
• Keep it and repent of my non-writing ways. I may be married but I still have thoughts to share!

Speaking of thoughts to share....

Getting a new last name is a hassle and a half. I'll get there in a second. Because now that I think of it, pretty much everything about getting married is a hassle and a half. The easiest part is being in love. (Just being. Because falling in love is a hassle, too. As we all know.)

I've been married for two weeks. Half the time has been in Hawaii, half here. I will not attempt to euphemize: Hawaii was way better. It came at the perfect time---stress had been building up as the school year came to a close, I had one week after school ended to plan my reception (AND wedding AND luncheon AND vacation AND new house AND....), I was packing for a trip and putting together new house, and as I was getting an ulcer from the anxiety of it all, all I wanted to do was be with Boy Who Fell Asleep On My Floor, all the time.

So the weekend smacked into us, and we collapsed into the arms of Hawaii.

These pictures are already on the Book of the Face, of course. I know my posting priorities! But the whole beach-sunset proves my point - It was a haven of escape. We woke up each morning thousands of miles from home, literally an ocean away from our troubles. No stress, no problems, no worries. For a whole week. It was bliss.

Now, back at the ranch, we have to deal with Life again. A couple of examples:

• Boy-who-fell-asleep, now Husband-who-goes-to-work-everyday, ditched his old bank to sign onto mine, but they won't give him a debit card until both our names match.
• I've been to the Social Security office to get a card with my new name, but it's going to take 1-2 weeks for it to arrive.
• Then I'll still have to go to the DMV, of which I'll admit I'm quite frightened, and get a new license.
• Not to mention my church records!
• After that I need to talk to my school district so they'll change their paperwork - my paycheck, work email address, etc.
• Which brings me back to this blog. Yesterday I set up a new Gmail address with my new last name. But with any kind of moving, I have to wonder what to keep and what to throw out. Old archived emails, mailing lists, contacts??

My intention is not to burden you with my burdens, nor am I attempting to solicit pity or offers of help. I simply want to re-enter the Blogosphere without apologies but with lots of details about my life.

Because that's what I enjoy about reading YOUR blog. : )