We're BACK!!!!

The first day back from the holidays is always a challenge for kindergarten students. They have to adjust to the school schedule and the school routine again. Half my class told me they were sleepy at 9:30 AM. "Sorry! We can't go to sleep. We're here and we have a lot to do. " Lunchtime is at 10:50 AM and then recess. It rained a lot early yesterday morning. It left the ground very wet. We couldn't go outside for recess. We had to go to the room instead. Someone had to cry. Not me, one of the students. Kindergarten lives for recess; even after two weeks of holidays. Rest time is at 1:00 PM after Music. By 1:30 PM 4 students were asleep and the rest said they were hungry. "I know! We'll have a snack after Social Studies."

The teachers also have to adjust to the school schedule and routine. The biggest challenge is adjusting your body to the restroom opportunities. Or actually the lack of restroom opportunities. Don't stand in front of the restroom doors after the students are gone. I am certain the water pressure in Waco drops drastically at school dismissal time. Fortunately dismissal times are staggered between elementary, middle, and high school.

Our campus uses the Voyager Expanded Learning Universal Literacy System for English/Language Arts in the early grades. One of the components of the system provides for highly structured and scripted lessons. In order to prepare for the daily lessons the teacher has to gather materials each afternoon for the next days lesson. I didn't remember if I had prepared for the lesson before I went home for the holidays. As soon as I got to school Tuesday morning I grabbed my teacher's guide and looked at the lesson and my materials. It didn't look as if I prepared so I set about to gather and organize. I finished and felt good. Later, I discovered I looked at the Wrong page in the guide and unknowingly prepared for next Monday by mistake. OOPS! I had already prepared for the lesson before I left for the holidays. Now what is it they say about the best-laid plans of mice and men?

© 2008 Barry T Horst


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WSO + Garfunkel = You Can Call Me Al

Last night I was watching TV. There was an ad for Art Garfunkel coming to Waco to appear with the Waco Symphony Orchestra (WSO) on January 11, 2008. Of course, in my mind the first thing I thought of was Paul Simon. After all, there was a time when the two were synonomous. Albeit, a long, long time ago. Then all of a sudden the words, "You can call me Al!" came forth from my mouth.

This song was released in 1986 as the first single from the Paul Simon album Graceland. Paul Simon and Chevy Chase recorded a video of the song when Simon appeared on an episode of Saturday Night Live.

Naturally I had to look up the video. This is what I found.

Doing some research I found that the title "You Can Call Me Al" is a reference to a Depression era song, "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" by Yip Harburg and Jay Gorney:

Say, don't you remember, they called me Al,
It was Al, all the time,
Say, don't you remember, I'm your pal!
Brother, can you spare a dime?

And what is it with these lines?

I can call you Betty,
And Betty, when you call me,
You can call me Al!

According to an entry I found on Wikipedia, Paul Simon allegedly wrote the song after attending a party with his then wife Carrie Fisher. A man at the party kept calling Paul "Al", and Carrie "Betty", inspiring Simon to write a song. Who knows? At least it sounds good.

Another interesting fact is that Al Gore used the song during the 1992 presidential campaign as he stumped alongside Bill Clinton. I also found this on Wikipedia.

© 2008 Barry T Horst


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Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Little Plate, Big Meal

I went to one of the Goodwill Stores in town yesterday. It's fun to go occasionally and see what there is. Yesterday I picked up a small collector's plate. You know the kind. The type that folks get while on vacation as a reminder of their trip. The plate I bought is pictured below and measures approximately 4 inches in diameter. There is a sticker on the back that says "Original ARTMARK Made In Japan." I suppose it is from the early 60's or thereabouts.

It came from Zehnder's in Frankenmuth, Michigan. The history of the establishment is very interesting. Read some about it here: Zehnder's History. They started in 1856 as the Exchange Hotel. In those early days, a weary guest could buy supper, breakfast, and lodgings for himself and his horse for 75 cents. Nowadays, the All You Can Eat Chicken Dinner costs $18.95. And for those with a little extra room, you can add a side of Chicken Livers for $1.95. There is no mention of a drink. I suppose that is extra. I reckon the hotel lodging is extra also.

Zehnder's may have begun it's life as a hotel but it appears to be a destination unto itself now. Of course there is the restaurant. There is also The Fortress Golf Course, Zehnder's Splash Village, Retail Shops, and Online Shopping. If you're headed to Frankenmuth, Michigan anytime soon Zehnder's also has some coupons for use at their restaurant. If you go in the future or have visited Zehnder's in the past let me know about it. It sounds like the kind of place I would like.

© 2008 Barry T Horst




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Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

City Cleanup Beginning?

Chris and I got out this afternoon. We decided to take a drive and just take in the sights. I drove downtown to check out the construction on the square. This is the area of downtown that many people are hoping that Waco can duplicate the success that Sugarland has had. Imagine my surprise when we drove by the fountain in front of city hall. I guess someone believes that the city needs to be cleaned up and they have taken definite action to that end. Witness the slideshow below:

The domed building going up in the background is part of the new development taking place.

© 2008 Barry T Horst


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Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Happy 7th!!! ; )

Today is the 7th Anniversary of my son and daughter-in-law, Scott and Jessica, getting married. January 6, 2001 was the happy day. For those that do not know, they also live in Robinson with their son Jace who is 5 years old.

CONGRATULATIONS Scott and Jessica!!!!

© 2008 Barry T Horst


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Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Seed Catalogues Are Beginning To Arrive

I have been getting the new seed catalogues over the past several days. Just before the new year I received my catalogue from Baker Creek. They deal in rare and heirloom seeds. they have a lot of fine products and many seeds that I would never have the time to grow. I would sure like to though. Wouldn't be grand to grow long red beans that are up to 18 inches long. You can if you grow the Chinese Red Noodle Bean. They also carry some great tomatoes. If I counted correctly they carry 109 varieties of tomatoes which include green, orange, pink, purple, white, yellow, and striped. Oh, they also carry 66 varieties of red tomatoes. Take a look at them on-line. they have a wonderful selection of heirloom vegetables, fruits, and flowers.

On January 2nd I received the Burpee and the Jung Seed catalogues. I spent a good deal of time looking through them and trying to decide what to put in the garden for this upcoming spring. I still like marigolds, zinnias, gazanias, chrysanthemums, and snapdragons. Both catalogues have many fine flowers this year. I might try the Showtime Dahlia or the Fireball Marigold from Burpee. A new product from Jung that caught my eye was the selection of new Echinaceas or Coneflower, like the Green Envy and the Coconut Lime. Both companies are great. I have done business with them in the past and will do so in the future also.

Yesterday I got a catalogue from Stark Brothers. Going through it I discovered two apple trees that I would love to get. They are the Cinnamon Spice Apple and the Chenengo Strawberry Apple. Imagine an apple that already has the cinnamon flavor in it and an apple that tastes like strawberries. Chris said I should just buy some strawberries. The wonderful thing about these two trees is that each one will pollinate the other. Great! I don't know yet if I will get the trees since it will cost more than $50 to buy and get them shipped here. Oh well, I can dream.

Yesterday afternoon Chris and I took Jace down into the back field in the truck. We were looking for an old horse trough that was there. I found it and loaded it into the truck. I took it up to the house to use. NO, we don't have horses at the house and we are definitely not going to use it as a bathtub. I plan on using it as a raised garden in the front for some of my flowers. As I develop this and get it growing I will post some pictures for you to see.

Visit some of the links for the nurseries above. I am sure they will appreciate your visiting and taking a little look see.

School starts tomorrow. I will be getting back to my early schedule. I will see you then.

© 2008 Barry T Horst


This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.