A Worthy Attempt at a Gratitude Journal (RE-POST from 12/1/13)

This is a re-post from last year. You will notice the dates don't match the 2014 calendar. Enjoy!

At the church Dan and I have been attending for the past few months, the minister suggested we keep a "Gratitude Journal" this week. As you might remember from last year's "The Obligatory Gratitude Post," I never seem to take these things too seriously despite my initial intentions.

At least I attempted the "homework" assigned by the minister. That's more than I can say about my husband, Dan, who rebels against organized religion by refusing to even fill in the blanks on the sermon notes. For ten years now, the church-homework-related conversations have gone a bit like this:

Me: "Are you going to do what Reverend so-and-so suggested this week?"

Dan: "Pssh! No."

Me: "It might be kind of fun or enlightening."

Dan: "Pssh! That's silly."

If Dan completes church homework 0% of the time, I probably do it about 5% of the time. And I like to fill in the sermon notes, not because of some guilt-ridden sense of duty, but because I am anal and a blank must be filled in or life just isn't worth living.

In honor of Thanksgiving, I decided to share the one church challenge I did finish. I apologize in advance for the superficiality of my gratitude journal. I'm just not very deep.

Sunday, November 24
I am grateful for high Cs and that I can hit one again.

Monday, November 25
I am grateful that my husband doesn't actually hate me like he did in that dream I had last night where he wanted to stay in separate hotel rooms. (A little insight into my neurotic dream issues.)

Tuesday, November 26
I am grateful for enthusiastic sixth graders who actually want to be in a musical this spring. (I must have written this after I spent much of my Thanksgiving break compiling materials and writing a script for this year's production.)

Wednesday, November 27
I am grateful that I did not see a cougar on my run this morning. I am not grateful for yellow air quality. (Boiseans will sympathize.)

Thursday, November 28
I am grateful that my husband is excited about zip-lining today even though I am scared too death for him here on the ground.

Friday, November 29
I am grateful that Dan and I had a quiet Thanksgiving, regardless of Dan's zip-lining.

Saturday, November 30
I am grateful that I boycotted Black Friday.

Yeah, that about covers it. If you want something more philosophical, I suggest you check out Facebook. It's a very thankful place right now. 'Tis the season.

For the latest blog updates, visit and "like" Rebecca Turner-Duggan.

Driving on the Ice and Living to Tell theTale

I am finally getting the hang of this winter driving stuff.

(Look at how at peace I appear to be, stuck in traffic. Of course, this was one of the clearer patches of road this week.)

Last week, I told you all about the crazy, early winter storm that dumped seven-and-a-half-plus inches of snow on our roads.

The night of the snowstorm, I was supposed to drive to an event in a neighboring town. I made my husband, Dan, drive because, as I posted on Facebook, "If we die on the road, at least we die together."

Dan dropped me off, safe and sound.

"It was an adventure getting over here," I admitted, "but not because of the roads, mostly because of me."

Here's a little taste of that night:

"Why is that car so close?" I would yell whenever I saw headlights behind us.

"No, no, no! Don't drive beside us!" I would exclaim whenever a car would approach in the next lane.

"ERRRRR!" (a growl-through-gritted-teeth sound I made whenever Dan attempted to turn.)

I couldn't avoid driving forever though. The weather never warmed up enough to melt the snow. By the end of the weekend, the roads had turned into large sheets of ice. The highway districts in the valley received numerous complaints about the response to the storm, something I don't know how to judge at all. But many of the main roads in Boise seemed pretty neglected.

Eventually, I got used to winter driving, as I do every year.

The first couple of days, I said, "ERRRRR!" from behind the wheel of my little hybrid, every time I passed over icy bumps. A few days later, I quit making the weird growl sound and just held my breath in the really bad spots, exhaling audibly once I hit smoother pavement.

Now, I am proud to say that I am somewhat used to my tires slipping around. I just hold the steering wheel very straight and hang on for the ride.

But fellow drivers, don't tail me. You don't understand. I am just coasting. I am not in control of what is happening here.

"I know it feels that way," said Dan when I explained this to him, "but I think you are more in control than you think."

Okay.

However, I have seen at least two slide-offs per day on my way to work. One of my colleagues ended up stuck in a ditch when she tried to pull into the school. And one parent was late to pick up her kid from choir because the student's sibling ran into a pole and totaled her car. In fact, there have been several news stories about drivers running into poles recently.

So . . . I'm not sure how in control I am. But I feel much more Zen about my time behind the wheel this winter.

For the latest blog updates, visit and "like" Rebecca Turner-Duggan.

Well, That Didn't Last Long

This picture does not do justice as to the amount of snow we actually received.

Last weekend, I wrote about my "Top Five Fall Faves." This weekend, I am holed up in my house, braving a freakin' blizzard. (Slight exaggeration.) In fact, I am sitting at my kitchen counter, watching the fluffy flakes fall as I type. I feel like a real writer. This crazy snow day is the only reason I even have time to update my blog.

This could possibly be karma for bragging about Boise's four seasons last week because fall sure didn't last long.

It's the earliest snow day since I started teaching. I mean, it's not even Thanksgiving yet. Sometimes, we get a mild snowstorm around the week of Thanksgiving . . . sometimes.

I teach in a district where we never got snow days at all, until a couple of years ago. But the weather seems to have gotten more severe in the last decade. Even I, not-a-climate-scientist, can see this.

On Thursday, as the first flakes started to fall, I told my fifth graders not to expect a snow day. At the time, a winter weather advisory had been issued, and only two inches of snow was predicted in the valley.

Pretty soon, the advisory turned into a winter storm warning, and one to two inches turned into two to four inches, then later, four to six. By noon, it was six to ten. One of my Facebook friends posted a pictured that measured seven-and-a-half inches in his yard.

Freezing rain was added to the forecast. The storm warning, originally set to expire at 11:00 a.m., was delayed to 2:00 by the time I finished writing this. (The snow has four more minutes to go.)

My husband, Dan, went to work in the morning. When he arrived home later that day, he told me the roads were bad but fun.

He also said that the barista at the coffee stand asked him, "Do you like the snow?"

And he exclaimed without hesitation, "Yeah!"

"About half of the customers today have liked it," she said.

By lunchtime, I called Dan at work because hadn't answered my instant messages.

The conversation went something like this:

Me: "Why is anyone even on the roads? Get off the roads! Oh my gosh, there is a sedan turning onto the street. It's not going to make it. Oh no, there's another one trying to turn left. Eeeee!"

Dan: "Stop watching the cars, Becky."

It was then decided (mostly by me) that Dan should come home from work early.

Dan: "Do you want me to bring you a coffee?"

Me (absentmindedly): "Sure!"

Dan: "You want me to come straight home, but you're okay if I drive through the coffee stand first?"

Long pause.

"I'll let you use your best judgment."

(That Snowy Mocha from Human Bean tasted really good.)

For the latest blog updates, visit and "like" Rebecca Turner-Duggan.

Top Five Fall Faves

I am one of those fortunate people who lives in an area with four distinct seasons.

And fall is here.

It's okay if you're jealous. I would be jealous too. Except, I live here . . . in a city . . . with fall.

Fall comes at the perfect time, right around the time I am getting tired of braving sultry afternoons and looking at people wearing not-so-sultry tank tops.

Here are some things that make the beginning of fall awesome:

1. Honey Crisp Apples
The first time I bit into one of these, I exclaimed out loud, "These really taste like honey! Apples and honey mixed together!"

"You sound like a commercial for honey crisp apples," said the person sitting next to me.

2. Pomegranates
It may be slightly messy to prep a pomegranate, but it is totally worth it in the end.

3. Pumpkin Spice Everything (e.g. lattes, breads, butters)
I occasionally indulge in pumpkin spice stuff regardless of the added sugars and syrups. I mean, there just comes a time when you've got to have a pumpkin spice latte.

4. Running
Running in fall weather is amazing. The air is crisp, not too hot, but still sunny. And the colors of the leaves are beautiful on the trails at this time of the year.

 

Minor confession: I seek out piles of fallen leaves on my path so that I can hear that crunchy sound under my feet. It probably arises from some subconscious, unmet need in my childhood.

5. Not having to mow the lawn anymore (says my husband)
This was Dan's contribution. I'm sure I'll hear complaints about raking up leaves in the next couple of weeks though.

For the latest blog updates, visit and "like" Rebecca Turner-Duggan.