This morning I tumbled outta bed and stumbled to the kitchen, poured myself a cup of ambition, and opened up iTunes. The very first song that came on was by the Barenaked Ladies. Man oh man do I ever heart them!! I threw on the whole album and proceeded to dance my way through the dishes, sweeping the floor (because, Ant, that shit doesn't clean itself), drinking a zillion cups of coffee, my shower, and the rest of my morning routine.

Hearing the BNL tunes totally reminded me of the time we (we = me, Sal, Kristy, and T-Ray) took a roadtrip from Allentown to Boston to see them play live. You can consult a map if you don't believe me, but Atown and Boston aren't exactly close to each other! We listened to BNL the whole way. Then we had a freaking blast at the concert. Then we climbed back into my dearest friend Sal's trusty Suburban and he put on BNL again. I made it about halfway through Connecticut before I sent a text to my buddy T-Ray, who was half asleep in the back seat: "If I hear one more BNL song somebody is gonna DIE!!!!" Luckily, he came to my rescue and piped up, "Hey! Why don't we listen to something else for awhile?"

But anyway. I haven't thought about Sal too much lately, so it was nice to have him pop back into my thoughts. In his honor, and because I like adding a little culture to all your lives, here's a poem he sent me a while back.



your little voice...



your little voice

Over the wires came leaping

and i felt suddenly

dizzy

With the jostling and shouting of merry flowers

wee skipping high-heeled flames

courtesied before my eyes

or twinkling over to my side

Looked up

with impertinently exquisite faces

floating hands were laid upon me

I was whirled and tossed into delicious dancing

up

Up

with the pale important

stars and the Humorous

moon

dear girl

How i was crazy how i cried when i heard

over time

and tide and death

leaping

Sweetly

your voice



ee cummings



So...where were we? Oh yeah...I was dancing my way through the morning. I continued shaking my ass through the subway and out onto the streets of Hwarangdae, heading off to mold and shape the young minds of the future. It was a perfect day. Sunshine and flowers lined the path of the park I walk through, I was wearing my favorite sneakers, I had awesome music and happy memories of great friends floating through my brain, I was having the most perfect day and was totally in love with the world. I can't be sure, but I might have been glowing with happiness.

And then I got clotheslined by a tree.

As in knocked over backwards, ripped the headphones from my ears, left me completely reeling clotheslined by a tree.

HEY UNIVERSE, WHAT THE HECK'S UP WITH THAT?!?!?!?

Dude. Total buzz kill.

So I regained my balance, brushed myself off, and staggered the remaining 200 yards or so to school. My very first conversation of the day went something like this:

Students: TEEEEAAAACHEEERRR!!!! HAIR AND...LEAVES...AND...WHY????
Me: Uh....Why are there leaves in my hair?
Students: Yes!!! WHY?!?!?

What could I say??? I suspect my kids are already catching onto the fact that I'm a total moron. I couldn't tell them I got attacked by a tree on my way to school - that would totally confirm their suspicions.

Me: Oh, in America, it's a really popular style. Everybody does it. You didn't know that?!?

And just to prove it, I quickly googled some weird couture fashion stuff with anorexic girls on runways dressed like trees and vines and crap. They totally bought it. SUCKERS!!!

Students: Ooohhhh...Teacher! Beautiful!!!