Third time’s a charm, or so I’ve always heard. In this case, “third time” applies to my decision to retire yet again from the field of education. And maybe knit a bunch or sweaters, or stare anxiously at my kids, or grow asparagus, and try not to lose my ever-lovin’, blue-eyed mind. And let us […]
Of happy hens and homemade bread
Have you ever water glassed an egg? My husband pioneered this process in our family, and it allows you to store eggs unrefrigerated for as long as two years. Here’s what you do. First, get some eggs fresh from the hens that have not been washed (the eggs, that is; it doesn’t matter if the […]
The Flood
Chapter Fourteen in “Decades with the Squad,” by my late father, William Palmer Jervey, Jr. Firemen frequently rescue cats from trees and dogs who have gotten their heads stuck somewhere. Rescue squads are not ordinarily involved with animal rescue. The major exception to this, in my experience, was when we rescued a herd of cattle. […]
Watermelons are idiots
If ever there was a plant to “take a notion,” as the old folks in my family used to say, it’s a watermelon. In exploring this issue, allow me to present two modest case studies: Exhibit A: During my most recent teaching gig, a third grader came back to class after lunch with a single […]
The Freeloader
Chapter Thirteen in “Decades with the Squad,” by my late father, William Palmer Jervey, Jr. The central figure in this one could be quite a few different people. Getting hooked into hauling someone to the hospital who doesn’t need an ambulance is an ever-present possibility. Under the law we are not required to respond to […]
A trick of the light
I learned recently that my eyes are blue only in the sense that the sky and the ocean are blue. That is, they aren’t really. There’s a spot towards the front of the iris that, for most people, holds a bit of brown or other color of pigment. This section of my eyes, apparently, has […]
Writing it out
Picture this: I’m twenty years old and I’m writing in longhand. I’m homing in on a brilliant conclusion for a college writing assignment. My topic is to draw an analogy between the seasons of the year and the phases of a person’s life. I may be a baby who knows nothing of metaphorical evenings, but […]
Space-time continuum
Just a flick of the wrist, a click of the mouse, and one can fast-forward in time. A fifth grader showed me how. He approached my desk, eyes crinkled almost shut with the delight of discovery, and showed me the calendar app on his iPad. The display showed the month of April 2124. He waited […]
Here, there will be tables: The last leg (of the journey, that is)
Where was I? The Snowmachiner returned from his surveying trip and told me that he was ready to start for Togiak. I hastily called the Forklift Operator, who said he would have his employee Freddie meet the Snowmachiner there. I called the Snowmachiner back and gave him the green light, whereupon he hooked up his […]
Here, there will be tables: Part three of four
OK, so we were talking about my struggle to get two state-of-the-art classroom tables for Twin Hills School. We paused my most interesting narrative with the box of tables having arrived in Anchorage. Since there was apparently no way other than a snowmachine/sled combination to get said box directly to Twin Hills, I made it […]