Category: Life

Tweet That, Ms. Kardashian

Posted on November 7, 2011 by

There is something seriously wrong in our world, and it has to do with the Kardashians.  I’m not talking about Kim’s 72 day marriage and what to do with her wedding gifts, or Kris’s blatant exhibition of her ignorance towards politically correct terms for Native Americans.  It has to do with Khloe, and her famous behind.
I’ll admit, I don’t know much about the Kardashians other than what I just mentioned.  Like many people, I first heard of them when their father was the infamous attorney defending OJ back in the 1990s.  I don’t watch reality TV, and never could figure out how someone could be famous for….just being famous.  Like Paris Hilton.  What did she ever do to be a celebrity?  Eat at Carl’s Junior?
So when I saw the AP headline this morning “The price of fame: $10,000 for one tweet” I was intrigued.  I tweet.  I blog.  I Facebook, Stumble, Tumbl and I want to get in on that deal!  On a teacher’s salary, $10,000 could go a long way.
Turns out, Old Navy has paid Khloe Kardashian to tweet about her butt.  I’m so disappointed.  I actually like Old Navy.  So to hear that Khloe is jamming the Twittersphere with pleas for us to find out “…how Old Navy makes your butt look scary good” really bummed me out.  And to top it all off, she and other ‘celebs’ like her are making more money for that less-than-140 –character-phrase than many Americans are making from months of hard work.  What is wrong with this picture?
And the list goes on.  Charlie Sheen and his search for an ‘intern’.  Snoop Dogg selling minivans?  Lakers star Lamar Odom staying at two star motels?  And my personal favorite, Lindsay Lohan tweeting about challenges facing college students.  Excuse me?
Here’s the irony.  These celebrities are tweeting at you.  Me.  Our families.  At a rate of $71 per character.  Why?  Because they get retweeted by us, the consumers.  Not because these people actually use these products, or visit these businesses.  But because Lohan’s 2.6 million fans then send thousands of clicks to the website she is promoting, sending more cash into their pockets.
So the next time you see one of these tweets from ‘I’m famous for being famous’ celebrities, or athletes, musicians or spokespeople, think before you RT.  That $10,000 salary they’re making could go a long way to educate our children, feed our hungry, or care for our sick.  Tweet that.

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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And the winner is….mamawolfe!

Posted on November 6, 2011 by

Do you ever have one of those days when you feel like you just can’t get it right?  Yesterday was one of those days- I was running late for work, my coffee spilled all over the papers I was supposed to be grading, I forgot my lunch, I ran out of handouts for one class, my kids needed to be driven all over town and back again, the dinner was less than Rachel Ray would whip up, and my children would NOT go to sleep!  Days like this just make me feel overwhelmed, unsuccessful and OLD.  They make me wonder how I can keep up with work, mothering, and life in general.  
And have you ever noticed that sometimes on days like this, something happens to let a crack of light in?  It could be an authentic smile from a stranger, or someone letting you go before them in the grocery store checkout line, or your partner surprising you with a clean kitchen when you return home.  At the very least, your dog might be happy to see you after a long day!
Today, my ray of hope came in the form of a blogging award.  My friend and fellow blogger Michael Ann from Thinking In My Head passed along the Kreativ Blogger award to mamawolfe today just in the nick of time! I love being a blogger.  The blogging world is an amazingly supportive community rich with wonderful, talented, funny, compassionate writers. 

The rules for accepting this award are to share a few things about yourself, and then to pass the award along to ten other blogs.  So if your day has been less than stellar, sit back, relax, and let some sunshine into your life!

Seven Things About Me:
1.  I loved college.  It was the hardest yet most rewarding job I’ve ever had.  I wish I had not been so eager to start teaching and had worked towards a masters.  Who knows-maybe that will be my next challenge!
2.  I just received a federal grant from the Department of Education to be a part of the Teachers of Global Classrooms program.  It involves 8 weeks of coursework on global education, two trips to Washington D.C. for seminars, and two weeks in a foreign country! I’m super excited!
3.  I love teaching middle school, and don’t love teaching elementary school.  I don’t like kids tugging on me all day, but I do like the unexpectedness of 12-15 year olds!
4.  I love baseball.  When I was a kid I played ‘Bobby Sox’-oh, so NOT a PC term!  I was a pretty solid catcher, and not a bad hitter, either.
5.  My favorite color is black.  Yep.  Black IS a color.  I wear black nearly every day-at least some part of my outfit.  My second favorite is leopard. I’m not sure that’s a color according to Crayola, but I love it just the same.
6.  I adore the ocean.  Actually, more being near the ocean. I don’t actually like to be IN the ocean-I get horribly seasick, and am not a very good swimmer.  I prefer cold beaches to warm-not a fan of sunbathing!
7.  I have been known to dance like nobody’s watching.  Actually, that’s probably a very good thing.  I’m not quite ready for ‘So You Think You Can Dance’, but I’m getting close!
And now, to pay it forward, please spend a moment to visit my nominees for the Kreativ Blogger Award!
Misadventures in Motherhood
Driftwood Ramblings
The Dust Bunny Chronicles
A Rural Journal
My Inner Chick
Adventures in Alyssaland
Real Army of Moms

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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Blog Hop With Us!

Posted on November 4, 2011 by

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Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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Friday Blog Hop: Getting to Know You

Posted on October 28, 2011 by

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Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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9_11 started as an ordinary day

9/11: It Started Like Any Ordinary Day

Posted on September 11, 2011 by

9/11: It started like any ordinary day. 

 
After maternity leave, I’m still getting the hang of getting out of the house on time each morning. I’m up early enough to have some ‘me’ time – 5:30 a.m. – before the pitter patter of my 23-month-old boy’s feet signal the start of mommy-time.  Must plan Cameron’s birthday party for next weekend, I think. Coffee made, candles lit, I start up the desktop as part of my morning ritual, eager to check email and read the news.   Having children broke us of our TV news habit when we realized they were transfixed with images of stark reality we were trying so desperately to shelter them from.
 
 
A breaking news alert flashes into my inbox – “Plane crashes into building in New York.”  Hmm.  I’ve never been to New York.  Worlds away from my cozy study.  I hope it’s nothing serious.
 
Pitter patter pitter patter…here comes my boy, blankie, and book in hand.  My heart thrills at the sight of his big round head.  “Make sister juice,” he chimes with a smile as big as any Cheshire cat.  I switch off the computer, eager to start the morning snuggle and reading time.  It is just another ordinary day.
 
The 11-mile commute to school is nothing unusual.  I drive past the harvested tomato fields, crop dusters skim the highway.  Lesson plans fill my mind.  Exit right, then left, then straight down the walnut tree-shrouded road towards Douglass Junior High, where my 7th grade English students stand lined up, waiting for me.
 
“Hey, did you hear about the plane crash?” they shout as I open the door.
 
“Yes, I did,” I answer, and switch on the lights.  “Let’s get started.”
 
“But, can’t we watch the TV?  I have an aunt that lives in New York, and I’m worried,” a child pleads.
 
“TV?  When do we ever watch TV in class?” I respond with a smile.   ‘Let’s get started – it’s grammar day everyone’s favorite!”
 
Moments later, an announcement is delivered by a TA telling us the grim news.  Not one plane crash, now it’s two.  What???  The Pentagon?  Three planes?  Buildings collapsed?  People dying?  But it’s just an ordinary day!
 
Why don’t I have my cell phone?  This ancient classroom has no Internet; the only technology is the old TV mounted in the corner of the classroom.  Where are my babies? Did Lily make it to kindergarten?  What the hell is going on? I want to go home…
 
Thoughts flash through my head as I try to process what to do.  Thirty sets of eyes stare at me, searching for comfort.  I’m the teacher.  I’m in charge.  I know what to do?  Frantic thoughts of my own children race through my mind.  Are they OK?  What will happen to us?  Are the terrorists on their way?
 
Then I realize-someone is taking care of my children, just as I’m taking care of someone else’s.  I know what to do.  They need me to make sense of it.  That’s what I would want my child’s teacher to do.  Reluctantly, yet desperately, I turn on the TV.  I have to know. I can’t wait all day.
 
After two hours, no word from my family, I switch it off.  Business as usual – that’s what educators do.  Keep them calm, keep them busy.  I know it’s only going to get worse, and it’s only 10 a.m.
 
Two more hours and I’m done.  As I jump in my little gold Escort wagon, I’ve never been so relieved to only work part-time; 11 miles fly by-not enough time to decide how to explain the unexplainable to my 5-year-old.  The radio news drones on and on.  Thousands dead.  The children.  The mommies and daddies who will never commute home again.  The parents who will never see their babies again.  The young people who will never have the joy of holding their child in their arms.  It’s more than I can bear.  The tears stream down my face as I safely reach home.  It’s clearly not just an ordinary day.
 
‘Mommy, why are you sad?  What happened at school today?” Lily whispers, her big blue eyes boring into mine.  How do I answer?  She’s only five.  Far too young to have to learn about such horrors. I tell her a story about a plane crashing and good guys trying to stop the bad guys. “Did the bad guy go to jail?” she questions.
 

“No, he died,” I reply, choking back tears at her innocence.

“I’m sorry he died, Mommy.  But I’m glad that we weren’t on that plane.”
 
“Me too, baby.  Me, too.”  I realize it may never be an ordinary day again.

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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