As far as writing, teaching has kept me hopping too much to be terribly creative. That said, I got a great story idea that will at least be a extended short story, based on a creepy experience that actually happened to me in the last few months. I hope to pursue it this summer, along with a possible polish and submission of a few older short stories. While I'm still holding out for a publisher of another book's worth of poetry, I fear that ship has sailed, so perhaps I'll look at alternate opportunities to get the verse out into the world.
As for school, I've enjoyed creating a semester's worth of lessons for Myths and Legends, a class I never taught before this year. Speaking of school and summer, next year I'll be teaching AP Literature for the first time, so prepping for it in June and July will be part of my upcoming agenda.
Despite hectic lesson planning and grading, April, Ayla and I have tried to enjoy ourselves over the past year. Last August, we made it to Toronto, and despite a sanitation worker strike, had a blast seeing Canada for the first time and visiting with old friends. (Some highlights of the trip: Niagara Falls, Louis Tussaud's Wax Museum, the Ontario Science Centre, Casa Loma, and of course, the CN Tower.) Last fall, we went to the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal -- easily in the top 5 museums we've had the pleasure of partaking. Last but not least, we went to Fort Boonesborough a few weeks ago and really felt like we stepped back in time. Here's a pic:
Gotta love the bonnet, eh? (Ayla bought it from the fort's gift shop.)
I decided the blog needed a minor facelift, so besides its appearance, I added two widgets. The first comes from Grooveshark.com (a fantastic music website -- if you use Pandora, give Grooveshark a chance!). I recently edited Live From Waverly Hills in multiple tracks and uploaded it to their site; listen in streaming audio! (If you want more info on the 2003 show, click here.) I also added a goodreads widget. I created an account at the end of last year, and for the past several months, I've done short reviews for some of the books I've read. It's not meant to be "professional" reviews -- it just captures some first impressions when I finish a book. If you're interested, click on the widget.
Last but not least, April and I saw Iron Man 2 on an IMAX screen this past weekend. I enjoyed the sequel, but not quite as much as the first one. (That's a tall order, though, since Iron Man is right up there with Spider-Man 2 and The Dark Knight as one of the best comic book action movies ever.) The action and special effects were fun to watch, and the somewhat darker tone added some nice character moments; for example, Downy, Jr. struggling with his mortality and perhaps drinking a bit too much, echoing a 1980's comic book plotline -- although I could have done without the "DJ Iron Man" cringeworthy scene. Paltrow and Favreau's characters are given more to do as well, Rockwell was amazing (although not threatening enough), and Rourke was perfectly cast (if a bit underused) as a Russian heavy. I'm in love with Johansson, and although she didn't have much to do as Black Widow, it was worth it just for her scene storming Hammer's headquarters. As much as I'm a fan of Don Cheadle, I missed a bit of the playful spark from Terrence Howard's take on Rhodes, although the script might be to blame. All in all, highly recommended to see on the big screen.
I hope to post a time or two during the summer (I promise!), so until then . . .
