Cat Fight?

I found a swollen, sensitive bump on Finnegan's head several days ago and suspect he ended up on the losing end of a cat fight.  After a trip to the vet, a little shave and some antibiotics he's good as new.  Well almost...now he has a weird spot on his head.

Marshmallow Molecules

It's pretty hard for 8th graders to visualize what molecules look like.  In an effort to alleviate some of that confusion, they got to build molecules out of marshmallows and toothpicks.  They weren't told HOW to do it but, instead, were encouraged to build them in a way that made sense to them.  I kept it pretty simple asking them to build some elements and compounds that required only 5 types of atoms (Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Methane, Ammonia, Butane and Glucose ).  A wide variety of structures began to appear.  Needless to say, the marshmallows were pretty beat up by the end of the day.

Car Woes - Part II

Once again, the check engine soon light came on in my car on the way home tonight.  If I could drive my car off a cliff right now, I might do that.  I headed to the Nissan dealership and, once again, drove home another loaner car.  This is getting old but I guess it beats a car payment.

Pileated Woodpecker

Most of you know that I am a bird nerd and never miss an opportunity to take a shot.  As I pulled into my driveway today I noticed a very large bird on the neighbor's feeder.  I knew instantly it was a pileated woodpecker so I ran in and grabbed my camera.  They aren't the best shots but I never tire of looking at these birds.  At a height of 16.5" with a wingspan of 29", it's no wonder they are our largest woodpecker.

"CIP" Meeting

Any teacher will tell you that our field has more acronyms than almost any other on the planet.  With a goal of annual yearly progress (AYP) the State requires us to have a Continuous Improvement Plan (CIP).  We spend time at the beginning of the year working on our science team CIP plan for the year.

Today some of my own best buddies decided to have our own "CIP" meeting at the Three Lions Pub in Remond.  Much more productive.

http://www.thethreelionspub.com/thethreelionspub.htm

Although Eric doesn't look very relaxed we are relaxing by the fire - really.

Anne and I love our dark adult beverages.

If only I had not been rear-ended AGAIN on the way home.  When the 20 something guy got out and said "I think we're good" after looking at the minimal dents, I said "Oh no we're not" and proceeded to take a picture of his license plate and copy down his insurance information.  After I had calmed down, I explained what had happened over the past month and told him I would never leave the scene of an accident without crucial pictures and information even if I doubted I would ever use it.  He seemed skeptical and somewhat frightened.

Rainbow

When I see the right conditions in the sky, namely rain and sunshine, I am the kind of person who is always on the lookout for a rainbow.  When I left school today, there was a lovely, albeit faint rainbow over the elementary school next door.

Crows

I often see crows flying over my house dusk as they head "home" to roost.  This afternoon they were gathering in several trees behind my house.  The noise was crazy and there must have been at least a hundred.  Thank goodness they moved on fairly quickly.