I've recently gotten a music upgrade with Spotify. It's social music. My little sister is making me playlists and I'm following playlists from my yoga teachers, I LOVE IT! And, discovering new music, too! If you don't have a Spotify, highly recommend. And if you do, let me know so I can come stalk check out your albums, too! Here are some of my fave songs as of late... Leave Right Now & Sweetheart, by Thomas Rhett
Light, by San Holo
You and Me, by The Hunna
Don't Call, by Lost Kings
Drink Up, by Train
Kinks Shirt, by Matt Nathanson
Sit Next To Me, by Foster the People
Mine, by Bazzi
What songs are you LOVING right now? Leave me a comment so I can add to my playlists!
Last Friday, my girlfriends were here, nursing a friend's breakup. We sat around watching YouTube Videos on my Roku for hours. I got a bunch of new music on my playlist! Here are some of my faves from all that Vevoing.
Me, Too by Meghan Trainor
I thank God every day
That I woke up feelin' this way
And I can't help lovin' myself
And I don't need nobody else
(actually I do...)
Hide Away by Daya
Where do the good boys go
to hide away, hide away?
I'm a good, good girl who
needs a little company
Lookin' high and low
Someone let me know
Where do the good boys go
to hide away, hide away?
Broken Arrows by Avicii
We have to tear down the walls
that live in your heart
to find someone you can
call home
Now you see me for me
and my beautiful scars
So take my hand,
don't let go
New Romantics by Taylor Swift
Baby, we're the new romantics
Come on, come along with me
Heartbreak is a national anthem,
We sing it proudly.
We're too busy dancin'
to get knocked off our feet. Baby, we're the new romantics.
I know I'm late to this par-tay, but I have had no time to even think about doing a Currently until this moment! Work is so crazy busy right now...well was, because I'm on Spring Break! I totally need this, too. Not going anywhere, and I'm happy today to just do whatever I want to do! So let's get to it - what am I up to Currently? Check it out!
Listening to....Ed Sheeran's whole album The whole thing is great. I love all the songs on that album.... Thanks Holls for the recommendation! Currently I love Afire Love. I don't know, just love it. Check it out -->
Loving that I'm not at work! I am sitting here, listening to Ed Sheeran, watching Live with Kelly and Michael, and writing a blog. Cup of coffee right next to me and no where to be and no where to go. A cruise would be nice, but I'm also fine just staying home, relaxing, catching up, and cleaning my apartment. I do have lots to do for work - it will only put me ahead going forward, but I want to work on a product for Book Clubs for my TpT store and I need to get ready for our Family Writing Project which begins the week I get back. Be sure to check out BigTime Literacy for deets about that school stuff! Thinking...Scientology is nuts I didn't really know much about scientology until last night, but I watched this HBO special on it and it's crazy. I mean, it isn't even a religion but they pressed the IRS and basically filed all these lawsuits against them - inundated the IRS with lawsuits so the government would declare them a religious group and exempt them from the $1million + that they owed the government. And the Scientology "church" won! Again, I have about an hour and a half worth of knowledge about this, but it's crazy! Wanting a new mayor in Chicago I don't think Chuy is going to be able to pull it off, but it would be awesome if he became mayor. He wants an elected school board, he wants to collaborate with the people of this city, and it doesn't seem like he has quite the agenda that Rahm does. It's a crazy time to be a teacher right now - Pearson is ruling our profession and the state departments are bullying us into taking standardized tests (by telling us they will withhold our funding if we don't administer them). It's even gotten to the point where it's being proposed that Colleges of Education will be judged on the test scores of the children who are sitting in the classrooms of their alumni. Read that again. Colleges of Education will be judged on the test scores of the children who are sitting in the classrooms of their alumni. Ridiculous. I know I'm getting slightly off topic here, but it's just insane that our profession is being run over by money (Pearson and whomever else is profitting on our students and their data) and and as a collective whole, teachers aren't speaking up. Having Chuy as a mayor in Chicago would at least be one step in the right direction to do what is right by teachers and students.
Needing to fix my car Last saturday I smashed my car into the posts of the El Tracks. My car is a hot mess - cracked windshield, smashed back bumper, and my front bumper also has some issues. Plus it's a mess inside. So embarrassing....this is one thing I have to get attended to over this break. EGGS-plain your name This was actually my first blog - before BigTime Literacy. I named it after that song Good, Good Life by One Republic. I do have such a good life and wanted to keep a record of all the awesome things that this life has to offer me. Some personal stuff goes on my literacy blog, it's most of that stuff will be here. Now that the March Slice of Life Story Challenge is over, I'm hoping to write on this blog at least once a week, in addition to the writing I do over on my other one!
Alright well that's all for today. If you like what you've read here, be sure to follow me! and Happy Easter! I hope you have a great weekend (and that it's a long weekend!) and thank you to Farley for hosting us once again!
I've been MIA here because I'm immersed in a month long writing challenge over at BigTime Literacy with Two Writing Teachers. I've written every day in March - okay every day minus two. But, it's been great to see that I can balance all the writing with work, with my personal life, and with my extra job teaching grad school! In April, I am hoping to write at least three days a week - two days on one blog and one day on the other. We'll see how that goes! Okay so anyways! I am home on a lazy Saturday but being very productive. I'm doing laundry and working on my grad school class for Tuesday. I've got a Taylor Swift bio providing a little background noise that I've been halfway watching - until it got to the part when Kanye went and stole her mic in 2009. This led me on a YouTube treasure hunt - to find the video of the incident, which took me to a few more. Check out the few I've watched: When Kanye commits the mic-stealing:
And then Beyone's response when she wins:
I just got to thinking what a class act that Beyonce is. She was obviously mortified when Kanye did what he did (even though I'm sure it may have been for good intentions), but to give Taylor her time back was just amazing. The background noise show I was watching talked about how different Taylor and Kanye are, and pointed out that they are "raised" in different communities...the hip-hop community and the country community. I couldn't agree more. I mean, I love a little rap now and then, but that community has just gotten so explicit, so dirty, and I don't even know all the drama that goes on - there or anywhere else. Nashville, on the other hand, just seems to have a better set of values. I'm just a proud fan of Taylor Swift. I'm going to her concert this summer with one of my best friends and I can't wait! What's your take on her?
Well hey there! It's time for my fave linky of the month, Farley's Currently! It's such a great time to share what is going on with each of us and make new blogging friends! Good, Good Life is new to Currently, but the blogger behind it isn't. You may already know me from BigTime Literacy! What you don't know is that my blogging roots started here - I began writing as I was completing a Whole 30 food challenge. I loved blogging, but after the challenge ended, I struggled with what most writers do: What do I write about now? I realized I wrote a lot about teaching, which is how I started BigTime Literacy, but I wanted to continue to write here too, sharing my personal stories and pictures of my family and friends. And honestly, writing with less of a filter. My teaching blog is linked up with my school district so I need to keep that much more professional, but sometimes I just want to be funny and drop an F-Bomb - I did get my beginnings teaching in middle school, after all! I just had the blog redesign done by Kassie at Designs by Kassie and I love it! I hope you'll follow my more personal stories here at GGL! And now, without further ado, let's get on with Currently!
Listening to...Sugar by Maroon 5
This video has made me absolutely LOVE this song. It's so so so so good (and how how cute is Adam Levine with those glasses?) Last weekend Hektor showed it to me and I seriously watched it like 10 times before the weekend ended. Check it out, I promise you'll love it too! Loving my new blog redesign! So I love Kassie - and now that she's done two blogs for me, she totally knows my style! I love the pink and gold, I love the Chicago reference with the little heart, I love glitter - totally cute! What do you think? Thinking about hosting a book club! So I was thinking about hosting a virtual book club - it will probably be over on BigTime Literacy, but I heard about this great book at a conference a few weeks ago - Visible Learning for Teachers: Maximizing Impact on Learning. Hattie, the author, did a huge analysis of 1,000s of studies and found the highest-yielding strategies that teachers can use to maximize learning. So, anyone interested? I am doing the Slice of Life writing challenge all of March, but maybe in April or May? Or perhaps summer break? I was thinking we'd all read, and then I'd host a linky every week so people can join in with me!
Wanting Chuy Garcia to make Rahm a #OneTermMayor It's no secret that Rahm is a 1%er guy who doesn't think with the middle and lower class in mind. Kinda like a lot of the people running our government and it's particularly clear with education in mind. The reformsters want to do away with public schools (Rahm closes 50 and then has plans to open 22 charters in their place?) If you've done any reading of Diane Ravitch, you know all about the downfalls of charters and beginnings of the hopes to privatize public education. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, get Ravitch's book, follow her blog, and look up the Badass Teachers Association. And check out Chuy's education platform here! Needing the weather to warm up! I'm so over the cold and crappy weather. Days of no sunshine and grey skies - I want them behind me! February in Chicago has been so cold, so I'm hoping for a warm up in March. I feel like spring and summer are so far away...how will I ever make it to Spring Break (which doesn't start till Easter!)
Spring Break Plans No plans to travel - so I'm happy to be home and relaxing and spring cleaning! Just found out that I'm going to Spain in 2017 with a former student and my best friend and her students - so as far as travel plans, I'll take that! And before I go, just have to share a super funny meme I found on Instagram:
If you don't follow @teachermisery, get on it. Whoever runs that account posts the most hilarious things! Seriously though, what a complete waste of web space and news! Did you know this made World News last night? Really....there's nothing better going on? I hope you'll follow my blog! And make sure you head over to Farley's blog and link up your Currently!
So a long time ago when the Merry-Go-Round song came out, I totally thought it was so annoying. I would always change the station if I heard it, and the thought of buying her album never crossed my mind. Then, Bobby Bones (he's on the morning show I listen to) talked about how she was kind of a brat at an award show, so I really didn't like her or have any interest in her music.
Fast forward like six months, and I guess Bobby made up with her, because then he was talking about how her album was so good. She had another song - Follow Your Arrow - that had to grow on me, but then I liked it. One morning Bobby was talking about how the album was so good - so I finally downloaded it, and he's so right. It's awesome! So today I share with you my top 5 from her album! Enjoy, and then go download it!
Blowin' Smoke
If you've ever said you'll do something or quit something and then you didn't exactly get around to doing it so quickly, well then this song is for you.
Well, we all say that we'll quit someday
When our ship comes in
We'll just sail away....
Stupid
Ever frustrated that you can't find a great relationship? That you find one then it doesn't work out and then you're back to square one? Yeah, so is Kacey...
Stupid love is stupid
Don't know why we always do it
Finally find it just to lose it
Always wind up looking stupid
Stupid
Follow Your Arrow
A song about being yourself. Love it.
Say what you think
Love who you love
'Cause you just get so many
trips around the sun
Yeah, you only
Only live once
Keep it to Yourself
If you need a breakup song - this one is good. Basically, the ex needs to keep their feelings to themselves when they feel like drunk dialing or it's late and they want to talk.
Keep it to yourself
If you think that you still love me
Put it on a shelf
If you're looking for someone
Make it someone else
When you're drunk
And it's late
And you're missing me like hell
Keep it to yourself
Keep it to yourself
Step Off
At one point or another, we all deal with negativity from those around us. This song is so clever and will make you feel better if you're in that kind of situation.
Step off, step off
Yeah you're getting too close to me
With all your negativity
Just.....get lost
Just try to make a little difference here
So why you gotta interfere?
Just keep climbing that mountain of dirty tricks
and when you finally get....to....the top
Step off.
Do you already have the album? Favorite track? Please share! :-)
If you don't have it, it's totally worth the 10 bucks it costs in iTunes!
