Dear Diary,
This has been a ridiculous week, what with the funeral, a 2-hour school delay, another 2-hour school delay turned snow day, a 3 hours curriculum mapping session with my "team," a trip to Loveland for a gardening seminar, Molly leaving for India, choir recording sessions, Mom-Son dance and a jazz concert. I should mention that last weekend I spent 4 hours with my team preparing for the meeting, and at least 4 hours last weekend and 4 hours yesterday (yay, snow day) doing lesson plans and objectives.
Today was the gardening seminar. I go to Loveland (2 hours south of here) to Granny's Garden because it is an awesome school garden and "Granny" aka Roberta Paulo is willing to share her knowledge. The seminar started at 9:00 this morning. I drove the sun up, which was good.
I thought about being too busy, or as the expression goes, "being spread too thin," so I started to list the things that I love and would not give up. In fact, I would rather sing, be on water, listen to music, grow a great garden, write, be healthy and strong, and take a walk in the woods.
When I came home, the dishes weren't done.
Love, Liz
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Insight From A Funeral
My grandfather passed way this January and I found myself morning the loss of an opportunity more than the loss of a person. When I was 10 my father passed away and since then I had little contact with his family. I never felt very upset, or that I was missing out on anything until the birth of my daughter two years ago. This great event in my life has left me wondering what my legacy will be and what my father's legacy should be. So I booked a flight to Cleveland and went to this funeral, and what I discovered was much greater than I had hoped.
It was an odd feeling seeing people who had a strong resemblance to my father. I felt as if I was staring into a face I haven't seen in 23 years. While at the reception following the funeral I meet so many people that I had only heard about. I saw traits in my relatives that I could see in myself and my siblings. It was nice to reconnect.
While it was nice to have this connection, I still feel the same about my childhood. I am very grateful to my mother (Stacie Mund-Sweeney) and all the hard work she put into making sure that we felt loved. I am also proud to be a member of the Mund family. My Nana, Aunts and their families welcomed my siblings and I into their homes during the summers and helped fill the gaps in my heart that where left by the passing of my father, and to them I say Thank You.
Love Always
Melissa Mathews
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Children
My daughter has wanderlust, and she is able to satisfy it in a way that makes me wish I was 22 again. Today she is in New Orleans, playing in the "carnival" before-mardi gras atmosphere that is flowing right now. The pictures should make my skin crawl, but she is young and her boyfriend is large (albeit dressed like a blondie).
Molly's wanderlust will take her to India next week; it is a bit of a leap from New Orleans. Molly will be attending a "yoga academy" in Goa (sp?) for one month. She has purpose. She has a plan, but my heart and my fear and my mama's eye focuses on Cape Town just a few years ago. She was so far away and so unhappy.
Fast forward to this summer: Molly has accepted a position with a summer service-learning camp out of North Carolina that will go to South Africa. Actually, I am excited for her to participate in this opportunity because she will be able to face her past from a new angle. I think and hope that Africa will take on a new face this time.
On another note:
I don't need to establish the connection, but there is one; we know the family in more than one way. Please pray for the DiMichaelangelo family, whose daughter took her own life on Friday morning. Her brothers, Gian, Sonny and Armando survive her.
I cannot think of it at all without thinking of her mom. Without thinking of her bedroom. Without thinking of going to church on Sunday morning with the family. Without thinking of making the grocery list.
I pray for Annette and Laury, her parents, and for any parent who must ask questions about the whereabouts and torments of their children.
Molly's wanderlust will take her to India next week; it is a bit of a leap from New Orleans. Molly will be attending a "yoga academy" in Goa (sp?) for one month. She has purpose. She has a plan, but my heart and my fear and my mama's eye focuses on Cape Town just a few years ago. She was so far away and so unhappy.
Fast forward to this summer: Molly has accepted a position with a summer service-learning camp out of North Carolina that will go to South Africa. Actually, I am excited for her to participate in this opportunity because she will be able to face her past from a new angle. I think and hope that Africa will take on a new face this time.
On another note:
I don't need to establish the connection, but there is one; we know the family in more than one way. Please pray for the DiMichaelangelo family, whose daughter took her own life on Friday morning. Her brothers, Gian, Sonny and Armando survive her.
I cannot think of it at all without thinking of her mom. Without thinking of her bedroom. Without thinking of going to church on Sunday morning with the family. Without thinking of making the grocery list.
I pray for Annette and Laury, her parents, and for any parent who must ask questions about the whereabouts and torments of their children.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Books
Even though I am in graduate school working towards at PhD, I try really hard to find time to read for pleasure. Mike and I don't have cable and don't watch a lot of television, though I am watching "Bones" Thursday nights on Fox. I like it. Otherwise, I don't watch tv very often. I just finished a book called "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro. Oh my goodness, it is very good and thought provoking, but quite sad as well. I really can't say much because it is difficult to describe without giving away a lot of information. They made a movie based on the book that came out last year, but I have yet to see it.
Melissa started me on a series by Diana Gabaldon usually called the Outlander series. It is fantastical, but a good read as the author is very good at researching what she is going to write about. I recommend it entirely.
While in Chile, I finished a book by Barbara Kingsolver called "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" about a year of eating locally. During the fresh veggie months, Mike and I buy our produce from a CSA (community sponsored agriculture). We really like it and have been exposed to different veggies that we hadn't had before. Like the delicata squash which is super yummy. This book is really good at informing the reader of the routes possible toward eating more locally, and organically if possible. I only wish I had the room to buy local meats.
Anyone have any good book ideas? I'm always on the lookout for good reads.
If you want to keep up to date with other Munds, be sure to subscribe on Google Reader or whatever reader you use to get your RSS feeds. I like Google reader because I use Gmail a lot for school. I think Yahoo has a reader option as well. Since you read the blog, you already have a google account and can get the reader very easily.
Melissa started me on a series by Diana Gabaldon usually called the Outlander series. It is fantastical, but a good read as the author is very good at researching what she is going to write about. I recommend it entirely.
While in Chile, I finished a book by Barbara Kingsolver called "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" about a year of eating locally. During the fresh veggie months, Mike and I buy our produce from a CSA (community sponsored agriculture). We really like it and have been exposed to different veggies that we hadn't had before. Like the delicata squash which is super yummy. This book is really good at informing the reader of the routes possible toward eating more locally, and organically if possible. I only wish I had the room to buy local meats.
Anyone have any good book ideas? I'm always on the lookout for good reads.
If you want to keep up to date with other Munds, be sure to subscribe on Google Reader or whatever reader you use to get your RSS feeds. I like Google reader because I use Gmail a lot for school. I think Yahoo has a reader option as well. Since you read the blog, you already have a google account and can get the reader very easily.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Connections
It is a strange discovery. Molly is dating the son of one of the partners from Schwartz, Shapiro, Jamie's first employer in Columbus. Tom Geer was tall, and his wife had a cool name, Tess. That's about all I remember about them. Fast forward to February 2011, Molly has been dating Charlie since last summer - and she went to high school with him - we had no idea there was a link. Now we are back-tracking to remember the faces and the conversations and the visits to Dad's office, on missions to collect paperclips and rubberbands. Was Charlie there with his dad? Did I know Charlie when...?
I am connected to a wonderful group of women at my workplace. I teach, as most of you know, at a Catholic grade school. My teacher friends make this cradle Catholic - 16 years of Catholic education - feel like a newbie. Did you know that Catholic moms group together to share recipes? Check out "Bless Us, O Lord." I've provided the link. The author is a mom at our school.
John Lenarz and I have connected on email this week. And Lisa facebooked me! Yes, the connections are taking place.
John reports that the Lenarz sibs are busy settling Uncle Jim into his apartment after his release from the hospital. They are having to inject some of his meds, but that's ok with them as the agreement to do so allowed Uncle Jim to come home. Uncle Jim, in the meantime, is happy and energized at home. Love you, Uncle Jim. My prayers are for you and your awesome family!
Liz
I am connected to a wonderful group of women at my workplace. I teach, as most of you know, at a Catholic grade school. My teacher friends make this cradle Catholic - 16 years of Catholic education - feel like a newbie. Did you know that Catholic moms group together to share recipes? Check out "Bless Us, O Lord." I've provided the link. The author is a mom at our school.
John Lenarz and I have connected on email this week. And Lisa facebooked me! Yes, the connections are taking place.
John reports that the Lenarz sibs are busy settling Uncle Jim into his apartment after his release from the hospital. They are having to inject some of his meds, but that's ok with them as the agreement to do so allowed Uncle Jim to come home. Uncle Jim, in the meantime, is happy and energized at home. Love you, Uncle Jim. My prayers are for you and your awesome family!
Liz
Saturday, February 5, 2011
More family news
Again, great to hear from Dawn!
Mom/Nana/Ardyse called this week, as John Lenarz had called with news about Uncle Jim. Evidently Uncle Jim had a health issue during this week which ended with a surgery on his intestine. Unfortunately, he had a large chunk of his inards removed, which leaves him with an exterior bag to deal with. The Lenarz kids are discussing his at home care - schedules, man-power, etc. Sounds like a good place to focus some prayers.
As for the Ryans, we are shoveling the snow off of the ice. Molly, Charlie and I took a hike in a metro park yesterday. It turned out to be a somewhat silly idea, what with hills and remains of an ice storm. Even the park volunteers were walking the roadways rather than the trails! We looked so rugged, and we followed it up with a hearty helping of lasagna and wine. Of course.
Until the next adventure...
Liz
P.S. Cannot seem to light a fire under other family members. Maybe you guys would have some success.
Mom/Nana/Ardyse called this week, as John Lenarz had called with news about Uncle Jim. Evidently Uncle Jim had a health issue during this week which ended with a surgery on his intestine. Unfortunately, he had a large chunk of his inards removed, which leaves him with an exterior bag to deal with. The Lenarz kids are discussing his at home care - schedules, man-power, etc. Sounds like a good place to focus some prayers.
As for the Ryans, we are shoveling the snow off of the ice. Molly, Charlie and I took a hike in a metro park yesterday. It turned out to be a somewhat silly idea, what with hills and remains of an ice storm. Even the park volunteers were walking the roadways rather than the trails! We looked so rugged, and we followed it up with a hearty helping of lasagna and wine. Of course.
Until the next adventure...
Liz
P.S. Cannot seem to light a fire under other family members. Maybe you guys would have some success.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Snow
Buffalo is supposed to get a significant amount of snow tomorrow. A lot of schools pre-emptively closed, including UB. I can't say that I mind because I haven't had a snow day since high school. I also have a considerable amount of stuff to catch up on. Other than the weather, things are going well here. Mike is working at Luvata, a copper/brass production company. He is currently a lab tech but hopes to learn more with time and move up. He is crazy, as usually, and generally rides his bike to work. He probably won't tomorrow. He is thinking about going back to school, but hasn't decided yet.
As for me, I got back from 3 weeks of field work in Chile on 24 January. Talk about epic travels. Getting from our field area to Buffalo took 2 days: overnight bus ride, 8 hour flight to Miami, customs, waiting, 3 hour flight to LaGuardia, waiting, 1.5 hour flight to Toronto, waiting, 2 hour drive to Buffalo. At the US/Canada border, our van was x-rayed because we brought samples back. I've never experienced that before. I've just been trying to catch up since getting back. I am a grader for the large intro geology class. That means I get to read ~300 homework assignments every week. Oddly enough, this is better than interacting with students right now. I'm not teaching a lab, which is good because I need my day time hours to commit toward two classes I am taking and moving forward with my research. The research...ugh. It has been off and on because of very limited funding. Only when I got the fellowship with the Smithsonian last summer was I able to collect the data I need to test my hypothesis. It turns out I need to collect more precise data with a more expensive instrument. Go figure. My friends and I are considering playing the lottery to fund our advanced degrees :P. While I was very lucky to go back to the field and collect more sample and generally visit an awesome country, I have no money to do the analysis at this point. Any ideas? Who wants to do a bake sale?
As you know, my paternal grandfather died about two weeks ago. I was lucky to see him at the wedding. I was also very fortunate to meet an entire branch of family that I only knew of vaguely. The tough part will be to develop meaningful relationships with them. I have a hard time with that, even with people I keep in relatively good touch with.
By the way, this is a great idea!
As for me, I got back from 3 weeks of field work in Chile on 24 January. Talk about epic travels. Getting from our field area to Buffalo took 2 days: overnight bus ride, 8 hour flight to Miami, customs, waiting, 3 hour flight to LaGuardia, waiting, 1.5 hour flight to Toronto, waiting, 2 hour drive to Buffalo. At the US/Canada border, our van was x-rayed because we brought samples back. I've never experienced that before. I've just been trying to catch up since getting back. I am a grader for the large intro geology class. That means I get to read ~300 homework assignments every week. Oddly enough, this is better than interacting with students right now. I'm not teaching a lab, which is good because I need my day time hours to commit toward two classes I am taking and moving forward with my research. The research...ugh. It has been off and on because of very limited funding. Only when I got the fellowship with the Smithsonian last summer was I able to collect the data I need to test my hypothesis. It turns out I need to collect more precise data with a more expensive instrument. Go figure. My friends and I are considering playing the lottery to fund our advanced degrees :P. While I was very lucky to go back to the field and collect more sample and generally visit an awesome country, I have no money to do the analysis at this point. Any ideas? Who wants to do a bake sale?
As you know, my paternal grandfather died about two weeks ago. I was lucky to see him at the wedding. I was also very fortunate to meet an entire branch of family that I only knew of vaguely. The tough part will be to develop meaningful relationships with them. I have a hard time with that, even with people I keep in relatively good touch with.
By the way, this is a great idea!
Updates
Yay Dawn!! Glad to see that you've blogged-on.
The Ryans have just returned from a NY get-away weekend with the Diehards. We were able to stay at Beck and Bill's family condo at the top of the black diamonds. It was really awesome to be able to strap on the skis,scoot out a few feet, and shoosh on down! The lift would bring us right to the back door. PERFECT! Plus, it snowed like crazy on Saturday, so all was well.
Pete and Ross skiied their brains out. They skied at least 7 hours on Saturday and 4 hours on Sunday. They had lots of time on the terrain parks and slopes. Charlie took a two hour lesson on Saturday morning and then, amazingly, kept up with the rest of us for the rest of the weekend! Molly looked like she never missed a beat. Skis like a beauty queen. Jamie and Nancy Z-Spicuzza hit the tubing hill. Hilarious stories about "rolling out" at the top. (???)
Hope everyone had a safe and happy weekend. No school for me today! Love those ice storms.
The Ryans have just returned from a NY get-away weekend with the Diehards. We were able to stay at Beck and Bill's family condo at the top of the black diamonds. It was really awesome to be able to strap on the skis,scoot out a few feet, and shoosh on down! The lift would bring us right to the back door. PERFECT! Plus, it snowed like crazy on Saturday, so all was well.
Pete and Ross skiied their brains out. They skied at least 7 hours on Saturday and 4 hours on Sunday. They had lots of time on the terrain parks and slopes. Charlie took a two hour lesson on Saturday morning and then, amazingly, kept up with the rest of us for the rest of the weekend! Molly looked like she never missed a beat. Skis like a beauty queen. Jamie and Nancy Z-Spicuzza hit the tubing hill. Hilarious stories about "rolling out" at the top. (???)
Hope everyone had a safe and happy weekend. No school for me today! Love those ice storms.
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