Spring is in the air and I find myself wishing I lived someplace where I could grow a garden. I haven't had much gardening experience, aside from picking strawberries in my mom's garden, but what more experience do you really need? No, really, to be less humble I have dug a hole with a shovel, put in a plant, and mounded the dirt all around it ...

I just hope I will be good at gardening ...

Over the course of the year I have had a beautiful flower (though the name escapes me!), Heather, and Rosemary. They have all died. But can you blame them? I wouldn't want to live in an apartment either if I had roots. I even sang to my flower, but it just made it die faster (no jokes, please) ...

What I'm getting at, in a very round about way, is that, regardless of my current gardening limitations, spring is in the air. The smell of flowers (hay fever for some) is mixed in the breeze and I find myself more interested in walking around the block than in studying. Which brings me to my next point: school.

You should be delighted to be informed that in two and a half weeks I will be on summer break. Summer break in April you might say. Yes, yes, it is a bit early, but the "kicker" is that my final phase of the program is two quarters of student teaching, and after careful thought and prayer I have decided this will be better done in September. My reasoning is work/money-related, as well as the need I really have for a long summer break. This really affects little in the long run. Instead of achieving my Master's and credential by the end of November 2010, it will be by the middle of February 2011 -- a mere two and a half month difference! And while I would like to be done sooner, for many reasons I am confident extending it a couple extra months is best. This has really been on my mind, so making this decision is really a blessing.

I look forward to the long summer and what the break will bring. I have been so engrossed in doing well in school that I feel I have not breathed properly since September. Not to mention the new opportunities a break will bring. I'm excited to start volunteering for a really cool low-income after school program in Santa Ana, writing, and start subbing in schools on my days off from Mariners. Maybe a vacation, too. Wooohhoooo to breaks!

When life is busy, and time is minimal, I find an excellent pastime to be: The Onion. Anyone with me? Whether it's the very sight of Hilary Clinton offending Pakistan, Obama lip syncing his speeches, or, my personal favorite, the Ford Taurus -- it brightens my day. Hope this adds a little flair to yours --

http://www.theonion.com/content/video/ford_unveils_new_car_for_cash