Recommendations and Regrets

I was at the grocery store shaking it up with Lynie, and looked over and saw those chapsticks that come in a little round ball. Let me just confess, I have always wanted one of those. All the cool girls have them, and once my friend got one, and wouldn't let me try it. And if you are anyone who is anyone, you have to have one, so I tossed it in the basket.

Number One: Who ever thought to take the convenient shape of chapstick and turn it into a bulky, awkward roundness, was cray cray. It fits quite awkwardly anywhere in my bag or my pocket, and its nicely just about nowhere. Plus, there is no graceful way to apply it. I can't glide it along my lips, I have to fumble trying to smush it against the corners of my mouth. Round chapstick should be a nogo.

Number Two: It last all about three seconds. Then I might as well reapply. In fact, I guess I could just hold it in the palm of my hand all day; that is the one place it kinda-sorta-not-really fits.

Number Three: I maybe just a little bit feel like a poser.

So if you are wondering, I wouldn't buy one.

On another note, this week I discovered the sweetest app evs. Duolingo. I am strengthening my French, learning Spanish, and I passed level one in German and Italian. This one, is worth it.

Number One: I am addicted. I just want to learn Spanish/French all night long. I love learning languages, and I love this app because it forces you to actually use what you are learning.

Number Two: I have studied in school how language is best acquired, and this app has the research in its pocket. It relies entirely on context clues, and does quite a superb job of scaffolding.

Number Three: It strengthens  listening, speaking, writing, and reading skills. Wow, that is pretty much the lot.

So if you want to learn some other language, or even if you are just bored, or even if you are as busy as superman, try the app. I am recommending it.

Hard Things Are Cake

When I was a wee lil senior in high school, I really wanted to run for BYU. Dream came true when I looked at the ringing phone's caller ID: Patrick Shane. Only there are lotz of crazy NCAA rules about recruits, so when there was a mess up with the plane tickets or the dates for the official visit, Coachie couldn't call me, but I didn't know that. I was scared to call him, intimidated. I remember holding the phone, sucking in, and telling myself I was holy-cow not going to let this chance pass me by. Turns out he had just postponed the dates, n even a bd.

Okay so maybe we did have basically all the ingredients we needed.
We still make a pretty huge cake.

When I first started substitute teaching, some of the junior highs would hand me a free lunch pass for subs when I checked in at the front office. If walking through a crowd of middle schoolers in a lunch room, waiting in line with them, and eating their food doesn't sound uncomfortable to you, then buy me a box of chocolates. Honestly, it really wasn't that hard, and it tots def for sure's not a big deal. I mean you just walk into the lunch room, grab your food and leave. Why do I sometimes think some of the easiest things in the world are hard?

Like yesterday. I bought a plane ticket for myself. I have flown around quite a bit, but someone else - my mom, BYU travel, random people off the street - have always arranged my travel. And don't ask me why, for some reason I thought buying a plane ticket would be hard. I've purchased a few train tickets in my lifetime, but planes? Different story. That is why people used to hire travel agents isn't it? Well guess the penny, buying a plane ticket is easier than scooping ice cream.

And reading 30 books in half-term? Easy. Planning out how to teach an entire school year to eight graders? Easy. Running 10 miles in the snow when there is icicles forming on your eyelashes? Easy. Just one foot in front of the other. Baking a giant cake, without flour or sugar or eggs or milk or frosting? Easy. Easy as cake actually.

So ya, sometimes easy things seem hard, but they're not. After the fact, I always look back and laugh at myself for ever stressing. And I blog about it so you can all see the awk little quirks of mikeln.

*I have never, and would never, let someone random off the street buy me a plane ticket.