80 degrees + 21 junior highers + Latin + small room = sweaty armpit stains. Super attractive!! I’m writing a letter to Secret. That product is bologna.

9 hours at work + silly busy work = needed Cheetos for lunch at 12, a mocha at 1:30, ice cream at 2:30, retail therapy at 6pm.

Mustard yellow coat + unexpected gift of 30% off taken at the register because she said I was friendly = super happy Raquel.

New XfilesDVDs with an episode where Mulder  and Scully kiss (albeit under the influence of time travel) + shiraz + borrowed laptop = happppyyyyy!!!!!

150 posts in a year…pretty stoked on that. I have my first day of school for my credential on Saturday, and my first day with my students on Monday. I hope that number doesn’t drop dramatically….I missed writing whilst I had no laptop. This is a borrowed one, but its so nice to feel the “click click” under my fingers and see what people are doing on facebook :).

Yesterday for staff bonding, we headed down the Martinez Marina to learn how to play bocce ball. It was actually really fun. I always see old people whooping it up at Newhall park in the evenings…the wine flowing, the balls rolling, and I think to myself “when I get old, I think I wanna handle that game.” And it is a great game for those with minimal mobile powers. I also felt like there was an untapped theological metaphor in the game.

Bocce ball is the only sport besides mini-golf that you don’t want to be the strongest or the fastest. The first player throws a tiny white ball, called the pallino, down the court. Then each team tries to get their balls as close to the pallino as possible. You’re not only trying to get closer than the opponents, but also hoping the opponents don’t knock you away from the pallino.

It requires concentration. You want to be slow and thoughtful and gentle with the ball. I’m extremely competitive, and, while I am definitely built for comfort and not for speed, I am not a thoughtful or gentle person in sports. And that means you lose at bocce ball.

To truly win, you have to slow down and be weak and intentional. You have to take in all the surroundings, know the layout, think about your opponent, anticipate their next move.

And that’s kinda like being a follower of Christ. He’s the pallino, and we’re trying to get as close as we can. And I usually want to do it all my way, to be in charge and be strong and move fast. But its when I’m weak that He is strong and pulls me closer. I have to be thoughtful. And my “opponent” in life is satan and the things of this world that try to get in between me and God. That try to knock me away. Especially when I get close, things heat up, and the competition gets fired up and tries to knock us out.

In the end, I rolled my ankle. Which is a reminder that life is messy, even when we’re focused on the right things. But we can’t stop trying.

So glad Robyn woke up today…PTL. Happy Friday tomorrow everyone!