Friday Five

I don't usually do these "themed" posts, but May is just one of those months. My brain is completely overwhelmed with a million things; a random Friday post is just what I need!

1. Lately I've been kind of addicted to true-crime novels about serial killers. I just find them intriguing! Of course, the downside of this latest reading binge is that I've been a little wary about running alone at night. My head is filled with terrifying, true-life murders!

Killer Clown was surprisingly good despite the corny title. I'm really enjoying Harold Schechter's writing, too.

2. I needed a pick-me-up the other day and decided a new shade of lipstick would do the trick. I rarely wear anything brighter than a berry color, but lately I've been loving this red! I've gotten a few comments on it; the funniest thing is that I haven't changed the rest of my makeup routine at all, but suddenly people are like, "Oh, you're wearing makeup!" I guess a red lip is pretty noticeable.

I'm especially loving that this color stays on through a whole day of teaching!

3. Our gardenia plant is in full bloom right now. Matt has been picking the flowers and putting them around the house. They smell amazing and are just so pretty and delicate. I hope they last all summer!

Who needs to buy flowers when these grow in your backyard?!

4. One of my oldest childhood friends is getting married May 24 and I wanted to buy a new dress for the occasion. After ordering four dresses, I've finally found a winner. The only problem I'm facing now is deciding on my hair! It's time for a trim, and I can't decide how much shorter to go. I'm probably over-thinking this, but if I leave it how it is I could wear it up; if I cut it shorter I could wear it down, but it won't look very formal if I wear it down at its current length. I foresee a haircut in my future.

This is actually a super unflattering photo, but you get the idea. I don't usually wear light blue, but I think I like it! Also, I spy an Archie-bird.

5. The end of the year is looming! My students have been presenting their research this week and their final papers are due today. Their finals for ELA are early next week, we're on the fast-track to finish 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by next Thursday, and the following week we'll be in DC for the 8th grade trip! I need to have all the projects and finals graded before then. I love this time of year but it's understandably stressful and overwhelming. Emails like this from old students really help me remember why it's all worth it.

This student created a surprise for a teacher she loves this year, which is what she's writing about at first, but the bit about the research project is what really made my day!

We 8th grade teachers spend so much time trying to convince our students that high school is a whole different playing field and that we're trying to empower them to be successful in the future; every year current students don't believe us and previous students come back and tell us how right we were. I guess hindsight is 20/20 haha.

So that's it! I'm looking forward to a restful weekend. May is never a big running month for me, and I'm trying to stay active, but I'm also not stressing about missing runs. I'm not in training right now and I'm truly in survival mode; getting rest when I can is my top priority!

What five things are on your mind?

ABK