“Every artist was first an amateur”-Ralph Waldo Emerson Mixed media has been an art form that I have stalked from afar from the beginning of my digiscraping days in 2005. Defined as " a visual art form that combines a variety of media in a single artwork. For example, if you draw with ink, then paint over it with watercolors, then add some highlights in colored pencil - that's mixed media!" In the digital world, this is much more easily accomplished than in the real world, so any forays into this area have been digital. That all changed this month when Tangie Baxter offered her "Mixed Media for Scaredy Cats" class. I signed up with a discount from my last class with Tangie and ordered some supplies to start with. I was excited at the prospect of creating something with my hands but scared that I wasn't really artistic enough to do this. Well, after completing the lessons, I am here to tell you that I LOVE mixed media. It is so calming at the end of a day to sit down and make something tangible. I love the freedom of mixing up materials and using whatever I have around to make something meaningful. Below is a gallery of my work. I liked this class so much that I have signed up and stared a second class from "Determined to Shine" called 30 days of art journaling. This was a definite win on my life list! I have a new hobby!
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Today I pushed out of my comfort zone to attend the Teacher Walk out at the Colorado State Capital. I have been inspired by many of the other marches (For Our Lives, Womens March, and Science March) but haven't felt like I was a "marcher". That changed last week when our retirement was put in jeopardy as was our budget for public education. Here is why I marched:
Dear students, former students, families, former families, and friends: I want to share with you why I will be taking a personal day on Friday, April 27 to advocate for K-12 education funding. This decision was not taken lightly-giving up a day of instruction with my students is the hardest thing in the world for me. However, Colorado is at a critical junction—they have underfunded education by $5 billion dollars. Something has to change. I will walk for my students-they deserve to have small class sizes for more personalized instruction. They deserve more access to mental health services and electives. They deserve to have rich experiences including middle school sports, outdoor education, and a wide variety of clubs. However, these opportunities have been taken away over the past 15 years as state funding has dwindled. I walk for my colleagues. Young teachers should not have to choose between a career they are called to or being able to pay rent. Colleagues who have put in a full career molding tomorrow’s leaders should not have to worry about if their pension will still be there tomorrow. I walk for my children. My sons have often dealt with mom “borrowing” items ranging from power tools to race cars for her classroom because she can’t afford to buy all the materials she needs. They rarely complain when mom works at night as they do their homework to grade her students work. They volunteer nights and weekend to help with school events or to help mom prepare engaging lessons. I walk for respect. Teaching is my life’s calling. I gave up a lucrative STEM career to make the difference in the lives of my students. Yet, our legislators fail to respect this profession by funding it adequately. My healthcare has increased in cost and decreased in quality. I spend more than $500 annually to pay for classroom materials and even more to learn new skills to improve my practice. Yet, in my career, teacher salaries have decreased 17%. Something has to change or we will continue to have teacher shortages and people will flee this profession that I love. Several people have asked how they can support education. Sign a petition for Amendment 93 to change how education is funded. Let your legislators know that education funding matters to you. Wear red on Tuesday’s. Give a teacher a hug or write them a heartfelt thank you note. Thank you for your time. With love, Noffy It was empowering to spend the day with other educators. They were passionate, polite, and kids were clearly their focus. It was not as bad as I thought it would be to hang out with 14,000 other people and I am glad I can use this to teach my students that it matters to use your writes to free speech. Here is some of the coverage our march received: Chalkbeat Colorado 9News The fight for full funding is uphill, but this was a great way to launch it. "We set out to become a band for our time. But sometimes if you do a good-enough job, you become a band for all time." -Glenn Frey Loved this album--it was filled with so many songs that reminded me of my childhood when the Eagles played on soundtracks and the radio.
"Take it Easy" and "Peaceful Easy Feeling" totally spoke to my soul. It has been a super busy time in my life at work as we try to finish up the school year as well as try to move into our new school. The happiness that these two songs evoked really helped me to calm down tonight which was a nice treat. "Desparado" reminded me of my Aunt Roxy who lived with us while I was growing up. She helped me learn to love all things western and country music. This brought back memories of listening to her music as we "sunbathed" in the yard. (What were we thinking?) Overall, great album! "If you are not doing what you love, you are wasting your time." -Billy Joel It is a snowy Saturday morning and I am spending it making art and listening to one of my favorite all time albums. I love Billy Joel and have smiled with pride as Blake has discovered his music over the past year.
Here are random thoughts/memories/train of consciousness from this listen: Piano Man "Son can you play me a memory"--Isn't the truth? Our lives are filled with a soundtrack that instantly takes us to another time. Happy or sad, this is one of the most powerful aspects of music. New York State of Mind How many movies has this song been in? It would take all day to list them. I wonder what Colorado's state of mind would sound like? Just The Way you Are Great love song--it captures how I see Luke feeling about me. It makes me smile--just like Luke! My Life I really like this song, but it is never one of think of when it is time to play some Billy Joel. I am going to have to add it to more play lists. It's Still Rock and Roll To Me This isn't really Rock and Roll--so random title. It is right up there for me with "We built this city on Rock and Roll"--not so much Uptown Girl Growing up, I so wanted to be Christy Brinkley in this video with the fancy car, jewelry, and all of those boys singing to me. (This song was also in one of my favorite episodes of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Lets be honest--that matters!) The Longest Time Favorite Billy Joel Song--hands down. It is impossible for me to listen to this song without singing along and smiling. After revisiting the uptown girl video, I watched this one and laughed--as a kid, I didn't get it. Now, after recently going to my own class reunion, it made a Ton more sense. Part III: Spotify had the greatest hits volume 1-3 all lined up on this play list so I got to listen to a new disc too. My favorites were definitely the Duet with the talented Ray Charles and "We didn't Start the fire." Wow! This album, like the previous Led Zeplin Album, blew my mind. I loved it an actually have listened to it 3 times this week!
My favorite song is definitely "Rock in Roll"--the tune made a great sound track as I tried to check things off my todo list (which seems indomitable this week! However, there were bunches of other great songs too! The guitar riffs in "Black Dog" put me in an instant great mood. After years of not really "getting" "Stairway to Heaven", I now have a much greater appreciation for it! Loved this album--so glad it added to my lexicon. I had been missing out! “Long you live and high you'll fly, and smiles you'll give, tears you'll cry and all you touch and all you see is all your life will ever be” ― Pink Floyd When I saw that this was the next album on my list, I was really intrigued. The Wall has a cult like following and I had never listened. Thus, I was super surprised that it has taken me several attempts to get threw this set of discs. Maybe it is the mood I have been in, maybe it is the fact that this music is from a different time, but it has been by far the most difficult listen on this journey.
My favorites from this album were the series of song "The Wall". Right now life feels kind of tough with lots going on. But the lyrics here remind us that each experience we go through is just one more brick on in the wall of life. It is easy to get hung up on more than that, but it really true. Overall, I didn't get what the hype was all about, but I can now say I have listened to this icon. Moving on! "You're never too old to rock and roll."-Bon Scott Old School rock was a GREAT way to start off my planning period on the first day back from spring break. From the opening bell tolls on "Hells Bells" to the final riff of "Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution" this album gave me energy and made me want to rock out.
Most of this album took me back to the rockin' roller rink and the "cool" boys from elementary school. I remember at the time thinking AC/DC was really out there--today they seem pretty tame compared to what my students are listening too. My favorite two songs on this album are still "Back in Black" and "You shook me all night long". There is something amazing about being able to jam out to every riff as you sing every word. My surprise like on this album was I loved all of it! "Let me tell you what I wish I’d known, When I was young and dreamed of glory You have no control: Who lives, Who dies, Who tells your story?" -George Washington in Hamilton, An American Musical Here are the top ten things I LOVED about this musical:
10. The Purposeful Diversity of the Cast Hamilton is the "story of America then told by America now." Every major character in the play is cast with an actor/actress of color. This reflects the America of today so beautifully and pushes our comfort zones to think more inclusively about the story from the point of view of humanity rather than from race or gender alone. 9. The Surprising Mix of Musical Genres Rap, Jazz, Hip Hop, Rock. There is a little bit of it all in this show. Just when I thought I had heard it all, the DJ started spinning his records and I smiled. 8. King George At various times, the British monarch that the revolution pushed us away from appeared to mock the colonists for their choices. His smart responses where dripping in irony and satire--they provided much needed comic relief. 7. The Engineering of the Set/Lights/Sound Although the set was relatively simple, it was used to tell the story in interesting ways. There was a dual-spinning floor that allowed for motion to go in different directions without the actors having to move so much. The lighting told many parts of the story as well which was brilliant. 6. Challenging our Common History Story We all think we know the stories of our country, but this musical reminds us that there are lots of versions of history and many untold stories waiting to be discovered. Before the play, I had NO idea how much Hamilton had contributed to our capitalist culture and government. I thought he was a loser who got shot in a duel. I was wrong. We have to seek out different versions of the story of the US to get a better picture. 5. Passion that is evident in our Work Through out the musical, Hamilton keeps saying he isn't going to miss his shot. He writes prolifically, chases his dreams and finds his meaning in his work. It made me realize this is how I feel about teaching and made me excited to go back to school! 4. The Reminder that America's story is an Immigrants story Hamilton was an immigrant who started with nothing in life. But he used hard work and dedication to make his dreams a reality like so many other immigrants in our history. Today immigration is a divisive topic for many, but I am proud to be part of a nation of immigrants. We all came here from somewhere! 3. Duels are really, really dumb. There were many throughout the play and they are dumb. But, Everything is legal in New Jersey apparently :) 2. Our Story Matters The play ended with Eliza telling the story of how she spent her life telling Hamilton's story. It was a reminder that we never know how long we will be here so we need to make the most of our lives each day. How do we interact with others and how will they tell our story when we are gone? 1. Time with precious people I had a blast sharing this amazing show with Luke, Blake, and my dear friend Aimee. It was fun to see everyone react to the amazing music and story in their own ways. My heart was filled by sharing this with them. |
AuthorAlmost 40 and tired of the treadmill, I am going to LIVE each day as a new adventure while finishing todo items on my life list. Mom, wife, teacher, geek! Archives
May 2020
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