Wizards, An Owl and Pell Citians

Typically, a Thursday evening blog is not all too exciting. Typically, it's a Thursday, so you know, there's teaching, but nothing all too special or out of the ordinary. Well, today was very special and very out of the ordinary.

This morning I started the day with an unusual routine. Rather than straightening my hair, I did my best to frizz my hair. In Alabama humidity this usually takes no extra effort, but here, even though the weather is often dreary, my hair rarely curls. Then I tied on my tie (yes, I watched a YouTube video to help me), put on my robe and headed off to school. It was World Book Day today and we were encouraged to come dressed as our favorite character. When thinking of my costume, I thought about my two favorite books: Harry Potter and Pride and Prejudice. Since I teach at a middle school, I opted for the former. I usually like to be creative with costumes but as time was a bit of a constraint, I ordered a child's Hermione costume that worked out perfectly.

The kids looked great! I was not the only Hermione, nor was I the only teacher who accepted the challenge. There were lots of Alice in Wonderland, Where's Wally (Waldo) and Diary of a Wimpy Kid costumes. One of my favorites was an Oliver Twist who carried around a bowl! (Please sir, can I have some more?)

Charlotte (aka Wendy) and Me (aka Hermione)
After a fun school day, I rushed home to change before my evening excursion. Checking the mail, I found a spectacular gift from a mom of a former student. What a heartwarming gift to receive a hand-made gift from home! Gini knitted a purple (the color of royalty and as such also my favorite color) owl (my home school's mascot) cap to keep me warm! It is just beautiful and I can't wait to wear it! As there are chances of snow this weekend, I'll be wearing it soon!


I raced to catch a train, something I have not done before on a weekday. A few of our family friends from my home town of Pell City make a yearly mission trip to Belarus. This year, they stopped in London on their way. They were in town for just a few days and I was thrilled timing worked out so that I could make the journey down and join them for dinner. We had a lovely meal at a pub I had gone to with some fellow Fulbrighters in January. It was so much fun to catch up, hear stories of back home and hear of their site-seeing in London! It was a treat to see some familiar faces and hear those familiar southern accents.

It was a truly glorious day full of wonderful new memories and connections to memories of home!



Comments

  1. AmeliaMarch 7, 2013 at 6:05 PM

    Hey! Was Gary Yarborough in that group?

    ReplyDelete
  2. RebeccaMarch 11, 2013 at 5:52 PM

    Not on the London portion of the trip - perhaps in Belarus though!

    ReplyDelete

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