Three days to go.

What do you do when you
have three days left
before you leave for nine months?
Give your dog a bath.

What are friends for?

Recently I gathered wiah my English Larguage Learner
colleagues for a bon voyage. These incredibly talented
and dedicated teachers presented me with a lovely, wrapped box.
Upon opening the box and peering inside I pulled out
a red bandana. Puzzled, I searched the faces of my friends;
"we just wanted to give you a 'gag' gift Jude,
a souvenir of your time spent teaching in Roanoke City Public School.
Jean told me they should have bought two bandanas, one for my
mouth and one for my hands! You see, I just couldn't keep my
opinions to myself regarding my concerns regarding RCPS's lack of
support for teachers and wrote an op ed piece for the
Roanoke Times regarding such concerns.

Thank you ladies. I will bring my red flag to France.
RCPS is truly fortunate to have you in their midst.
I will miss you and deeply miss my ELL students

http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/commentary/wb/289484

Earthquake, Hurricane, who knows what else.

My friend Gilles in France wonders about me.
(read this with a French accent)
"Jude, you arrive in Roanoke from Vermont during an earthquake.
You are about to fly to France and a hurricane comes to VA.
What will happen when you arrive in France?" He's worried.
We pushed back our departure until Thursday, Sept. 1st.
"Alec, do you mind missing the first 2 days of school?" I asked.
"Great!" was his response. C'est la vie.

Home in Virginia

Alec, Piper and I just missed driving through the earthquake!
Actually, I didn't even know VA had an earthquake until my sister
Pati in CA called to tell me. (We don't have a t.v.) We arrived home
around 1 p.m and not long after Alec asked "mom, why is the house shaking?"
After living in Vermont in a cabin in the woods for two months I replied,
"oh it must be a truck driving by." Pati said "I'm not sure I would want
to be THAT disconnected!" Thanks sis for keeping me in the know.

Ten days to go.

One more full day at our cabin in Vermont. I really need to clean this place. Sarah, my neighbour through the woods, came over yesterday to help me clean. Thursday was such a beautiful day I suggested a kayak trip down the Lamoille River to Boyden Valley Winery instead of cleaning. When in doubt, play. Sunshine, kayaking down a windy river, a picnic lunch, and wine tasting. Not bad for a day of cleaning.

Tickets for two.

Brussels here we come. I finally booked our flight. Alec, Piper and I fly out of D.C Monday, August 29th, arriving in Brussels around 6:00 a.m. the next morning. Now I just have to leave this cabin in Vt on Sunday, drive to Newburyport, MA to pick up Alec, then drive 12 hours to Roanoke, Va. The beginning of the end of our sojourn in Vermont.

16 days and counting

Okay Julian, 16 days left until I would like to leave for France;  no tickets yet.

No problem, you say, All Shall Be Well!  

What did I do today instead of search for tickets?;  work in the garden.  

Tomorrow is another Vermont day.

;

Julian of Norwich

Piper Cub

Now I am being bribed to go into my

new airline approved crate.

I'll do anything for treats!

.

Less than 20 days and counting

Okay, count down for France has definitely begun.
No, I don't have our tickets, YET.
Trying to find a relatively last minute, inexpensive, direct flight to Paris isn't easy;
Piper, our dog, dictates the 'direct' part of the flight.
Jude, the procrastinator, dictates the "last minute" part.