School's NOT Out For Summer

Contrary to my student's belief....school is not out for summer...unfortunately. Whenever I think of school being over for the year, the scene from "Grease" the movie pops into my head where all the kids are running out of the building and jumping down the stairs & the sun is shining so brightly....

As much as I love teaching, there comes a point in the year that it becomes hard to stay focused when the weather is so warm and all I want to do is grab a good book, a cold drink & sit by a body of water (pool, lake or ocean - ill take any of the three). So, I very much understand how my students feel right now, I can even sympathize with them. However, right now it's my job to motivate them. So, motivate I will....but first I have to find a way to motivate myself. After a wonderful Sunday afternoon at the church picnic with family and friends, I was not trying to come back to work today. But, I trust that the Lord will provide the motivation, patience & perseverance to finish out this school year.

34 DAYS AND COUNTING (down).....

Tyler Hansbrough Can Touch MC Hammer

It could be because I have a small obsession w/ Tyler Hansbrough & the Tar Heels....but I thought some of these were funny. For all you Tyler haters out there, you will think this one is funny at least: "Tyler Hansbrough once ate an entire bottle of sleeping pills. They made him blink. Once."

Tyler Hansbrough is Chuck Norris?

Nothing But the Blood

Today was a pretty tough day at school. I got a phone call from a coworker around 6:30 am telling me that a Ashbrook High School student was an innocent victim of a shooting on Thursday night. Keeaira Pendergrass was shot in the neck and killed when an argument broke out in her home in Gastonia. It goes without saying that the students took her death hard. She was well liked by students and teachers at AHS. I am told by other teachers that she had really turned her life around when she came to Ashbrook last year and had made an impact on a lot of people. Although I had never taught Keeaira, it breaks my heart to see someone lose their life at such a young age. It is also heartbreaking to see my students have to work through the anger, grief, confusion, & fear of losing a friend to such a violent & unnecessary crime. As Norkeithus simply said to me, "Man, Ms. Kleber, it really makes you think. I was just talking to her yesterday. Makes you really think about who you hang out with." I think what also makes it so hard to process & comprehend is knowing that this kind of violence happens all the time and in many cases, violence like this simply leads to more violence. The spirit of anger, hatred & revenge cause people to take matters in to their own hands, simply perpetuating the system. Violence begets violence.

I would be lying to say that I have some brilliant plan to end this cycle of violence, but as I turned to scripture to find some perspective, the Lord so kindly pointed me to Hebrews 12:22-24 "But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the sprits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel." Charles Spurgeon says of this passage, "The blood of Jesus is the life of all vital godliness...We are full of sin, but the Savior invites us to lift our eyes to Him, and as we gaze upon His streaming wounds, each drop of blood, as it fall, cries, "It is finished; I have made an end of sin; I have brought in everlasting righteousness." Spurgeon later says, "...only a current coming to Christ can give us joy & comfort." Here, in this passage, death is so clearly on display, but this death is unlike any other. The blood that was shed was more innocent than we will ever know. Here on the cross is the only man who lived a sinless life, the only life that did not deserve death, but yet Christ willingly gave up his life so that I can commune with my Father in heaven, bringing about joy & comfort. That is the only solution to ending violence & saving us from our sin...salvation in Christ that leads to sweet communion with our Heavenly Father. I think Matthew Henry's commentary gives even more insight, "This is speaking blood, and it speaks better things than that of Abel. First, it speaks to God on behalf of sinners; it pleads not for veangance, as the blood of Abel did on him who shed it, but for mercy. Secondly, to sinners, in the name of God, it speaks pardon to their sins, peace to their souls; and bespeaks their stricktest obedience and highest love and thankfulness." Here we see that Christ's blood did so much more than the shed blood of other men could ever do. The death of Christ was not for the sake of vengeance, but for the sake of MY salvation so that I may be pardoned & my soul may be at peace. I cannot "solve" the problem of death and violence by the worlds definition of problem solving. But I do know that my solution to the problem is the death of Christ on the cross, and His resurection from the grave. Just as Acts 2:24 says, "But God raised Him (Jesus) up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power." When we see the power of Jesus over sin & death, that is when true change happens, and that is when we are freed from the chains of this world.

Winding Down

Well, Ker-Joy and Shay-Ray are on their last leg of their Boston adventure; as I speak, Kendra is dutifly packing her suitcase, and I clearly am not. The last 2 days have been full of even more adventure. Yesterday we didn't leave the hotel until about 1:00 - much to the maid's confusion. We made our way over to Fenway Park to see the home of the Red Sox. There was a 1:30 game going on & it was a lot of fun to see the hustle & bustle of the park during the game. {however, I must say that I think Wriglyville in Chicago is even cooler than Fenway} Obviously since Kendra and I wanted to do FREE things in Boston, we did not have tickets to the game. Instead we found a bar right beside the ball park, had a few drinks & a massive plate of nachos, watched the game & chatted with some M.I.T students (one of whom is getting his masters in aerospace engineering - yes, he is a rocket scientist).

We then strolled on over to the public gardens because it turned out to be a beautiful day. It was so nice just to lay in the grass & soak up the warm sunlight. It was also fun to watch Kendra feed a 1/2 bag of pretzels to the ducks. That might have been one of the highlights of the day
Today Kenni got her hairs did. They look most excellent - but will not be unveiled until her return to Charlotte. Therefore, I will not be posting any pictures of said haircut. After the salon experience, we made our way back up to the North End. We had discovered North End on the first day in Boston & fell in love with it. It is very Italian & very awesome. We had lunch at Pizzaria Regina. The only thing this place serves is pizza. Literally. No sides, no pasta, no salad. Only pizza - and when you eat there you will see why. It would be a shame to even try to eat anything at this place that wasn't pizza. One of the best pies I have ever had.
Then we hit up our favorite bakery for one last savery taste of Mike's Pasteries - specifically the cannolis. I wish I could bring one home for everyone. You have not tasted cannoli until you have eaten one of these. I tried the chocolate mousse one today - it was so smooth and creamy & the cannoli shell was perfectly crunchy - seriously people, so good when it hits your lips.
We spent the rest of the day shopping on Newbury Street. It was a great combination of upscale shopping, vintage/second hand stores & stuff that I can afford. Kendra & I went a little bit crazy in the two story H&M - but can you blame us, we don't have one in Charlotte or anywhere in NC for that matter. We also found a vintage cowboy boot store - it was nice to see a little bit of the south in New England.

It feels like I have been in Boston for a very long time - and I mean that in a good way (although I am very much starting to miss my family & Michael). We have had the opportunity to do so much while we are here and I am so thankful for it! Three cheers for Baston, Mass....you were a most excellent host for 2 almost southern girls taking a spring vacation.

Jamaica Plain

I think today was a few things: one of our most adventurous days, one of the most exhausting days & one very big dichotomy. We decided to explore the area of South Boston known as Jamaica Plain. One of the blogs I read (on free things to do in Boston) suggested seeing the Arnold Arboretum. Now, maybe the Arboretum is cool during Boston's springtime (which is not to be confused with springtime in the South) - but right now is NOT springtime in Boston & right now is NOT a good time to go to the Arboretum. In the words of K. Sands it was "hella gay." (and it was hella cold). We decided to explore everything else Jamaica Plain had to offer - which was awesomeness. I think the best way to describe JP to Charlotteans is as follows: JP is everything NoDa hopes to be when it grows up - beautiful old restored homes that function as apartments, homes, and businesses; incredible boutiques & thrift shops; delicious resturaunts; locally owned bookstores & grocery stores and an eclectic mix of people. We finally made our way up Centre St. where we browsed a few boutiques & thrift shops and eventually made our way to a little Salvadorian resturaunt called "La Pupusa Guanaca." We ate tons of traditional Salvadorian food for about $5.oo in this incredible hole in the wall resturant. Seriously, they had the best empenadas I have ever had. So good, that I had to go back for round two.

After walking a minimum of 10 miles (according to Kendra's odometer) we found our way to the Museum of Fine Arts. On Wednesdays from 4:00-9:45 you can get into the museum for "free." MOFA asks for a voluntary donation - but the $5 donation I gave is much cheaper than the $17 ticket I would have had to buy any other day of the week. There were some really cool exhibits, but I think my most favorite ones were the Classical Greek & Roman sculptures, the Renaissance art & the Imperssionist & Neo-Impressionist paintings. I love getting as close as possible to the paintings to see the brushstrokes & then looking at them from far away and getting the whole picture.

Our final destination took us back to JP to a resturaunt called "Doyle's." There were exactly 2 reasons why Kendra & I wanted to have a meal here: 1. it is one of a few places in Boston that serves Sam Adams Boston Red Brick (which I highly recommend - too bad they only serve it in Boston) and 2. it was used in the movie The Departed (one of our all time favorite movies ever). We had one of the most delicious meals evern since being in Boston. I got clam chowder & fish cakes - absolutely incredible. The resturant was exactly as I hoped it would be - perfect end to an exhaustingly... perfect... day. (which was also the first day that we got lost & our feet got so tired that we took a taxi 4 blocks to get to Doyle's from the T).

I Make It Wayne

Ok, let's recap the last 48 hours shall we? On Monday morning Kendra & I rushed to over the Harvard Yard to catch the 10:00am tour of Harvard's campus. It was a rather dreary day but that didn't take away from the beauty of the campus. Harvard very much reminded me of UNC's campus - old brick buildings & beautiful architecture, mixed in with the unfortunate architecture of the 70's, a green grassy quad, old sprawling trees, and the bustle of a college town. Being on campus made me want to go back to school so bad. I can't lie, I love acedamia. Kendra & I were so inspired by the academic spirit at Harvard that we decided to bust out Dicken's Nicholas Nickleby and read.We spent the rest of the afternnon strolling through Harvard, visiting the book store & walking down Mass Ave. We also had lunch at this excellent burger joint called "Bartley's Burger Cottage." Each of the burgers was named after a famous person - most of them were politicians. I think it was one of the best burgers I have ever eaten - maybe because it was the Tom Brady burger, maybe.

Now to the best part of Monday - The University of North Carolina Tar Heels. My Heels played in the National Championship game against Michigan State. We played one of the best first halfs of basketball I have ever seen & refused to give up the lead. I am so proud to be a Heel!! Roy Williams has now won 2 national championships in only 6 years of coaching at UNC. I am the most happiest for my baby Tyler Hansbrough. He the kind of player that you love if he plays for your team & hate if he doesn't. He plays for my team, I love him. The only letdown was knowing that I couldnt be on Franklin Street to celebrate. Click here for the Daily Tarheel Slide Show pics. Click here to view the celebration on Franklin.

Today we took our time getting ready since we had a rather late night celebrating the Tarheels victory. We somehow managed to find our way to Sam Adams Brewery. If you are ever in Boston, I highly recomment going. It was really cool to learn about the ingredients & brewing process. At the end of the tour, we were given Sam Adams tasting glasses (which we got to keep - I love free stuff!) and sampled three different Sam Adams beers. We sampled the Boston Lager, Summer Brew & some other one that neither Kendra & I can remember (prolly cuz it was our least favorite of the three).

On our way back from Sam Adams brewery, Kendra & I found the men of our dreams - sorry Michael :/

After our beer tasting experience, we went over to the Warf & walked along the piers & looked at the boats, ate dinner at a little pub, watched the end of the BoSox game (opening day).

Not All Who Wander Are Lost

Before I go into Sunday's adventures in Boston, let me just say GO HEELS! Last night we went to an alumni viewing of the Carolina v. Villanova game at Tommy Doyle's. I met up with two UNC class of '04 friends who live in Boston to watch the game. I also ran into another friend of mine who just recently moved to Boston. It was great to see all those UNC folks cheering on the Heels and singing the alma mater after winning the game. I can't wait til monday night!!! GO HEELS BEAT STATE!

If I could summarize our Sunday in 3 words it would be: wandering, leisurely, & relaxing.

We started off by waking up slowly & taking our time getting ready. We then took the T to the Prudential Center - there is seriously everything you could want inside the center. Food, shops, things, bathrooms, stuff.....Antyways, we went up to the 52nd floor of the Pru building to a resturaunt called Top of the Hub. They were serving sunday brunch for $40 a person. So we decided drinks would be a better option. We sipped momosas & enjoyed the view of Boston on the 52nd floor. It was absolutely gorgeous. There was a guy on the piano & another on the saxaphone who played while we sipped our champagne with a splash of orange juice (which we decided to call the unCoda - Bethany will know what we mean). Also, our waiter was a delight - further proving that Bostonian men are super nice & Bostonian women are super un-nice. Just a side note, don't drink momosas on an empty stomache in a classy resturaunt - could lead to serious trouble.

We pretty much spent the rest of the day wandering around Boston because we had no agenda & didn't really know where we were going. Case in point - we somehow wound up at the Christian Scientology Church, even tho we specifically said we didn't want to go there. We also strolled through the financial district & saw some beautiful churches. We then spend the rest of the afternoon wandering through the Boston Public Gardens & somehow found our way to Beacon Hill (which makes you feel like you are in colonial New England) and had an early supper.

And now, since we're awesome & don't want to go out and party with David the shuttle van driver, we will spend the rest of our eveing blogging, facebooking, twittering, texting, entouraging & lucky charming. The End. Stay tuned for more updates tomorrow.

"And I Quote..."

This will be an on going list of our favorite quotes from the week:


lady on the phone on the T: I bought new haih colorh for fiveh dallahs...

guy at Harvard to us: you two ladies looks sufficently locally grown...

guy at the Sam Adams tour, sitting next to his dad: what are you ladies doing tonight? (then later when the tour guide suggested a bar) You ladies want to go there?

the waitress telling Kendra where the bathroom was: It's down tha staihs.

pub owner after he found out we were from NC: Ah, i have gawwwn to Naaarth Caarolinah... (doing a horrible southern accent, with a hint of bostonian)

*phone rings on airplane*
SK: *in jon shea voice* helllo?

SK: If Charles Wesely was on twitter I would totally follow him

Jared (via text message): *in response to me denying buying a bosox hat* Save it for the judge. I saw the video.

French Guy in Pastery shop trying to sound american: OMG! I want to go there! (instead he sounded like a gay black man - head bob & all)

Girls on subway in reference to Jon Cleveland: *under her breath* dang, he's three years younger than us

Doubletree Time

Kendra and I finally arrived in Boston at about 10:15 PM on Friday evening. Our flight went very well, until we actually landed on the ground & tried to procure a shuttle to the Double tree hotel. We called when we got our luggage & were told that the shuttle would be there in 20 minutes. So we lugged said luggage out to the curb & waited & waited & waited & waited. No shuttle. I called the hotel & asked where our shuttle was and a nice man (who we later came to know as Jose) told us that the driver had been by two times & couldnt find us. I called him a liar; Kendra said something else. Finally, David arrived. Double Tree time should never be confused with "Double Time." Here are my two most favorite quotes from David.
#1 - "My favorite thing to do in Boston is drink & party." (thanks David, you can do that anywhere, and we're wholesome girls, and you dont look like much fun to party with anyway)
#2 - (Kendra asks why there is a cookie on their shuttle van) "uuuuhhhhh chocolate chip cookies are what we stand for, I guess." ....good David, good answer.....

On Saturday we decided to just explore the city & get our bearings of what was around us. We began by taking the redline to Boston Commons, which is the start of the "Freedom Trail." This trail takes you all over Boston to visit historical sights & was totally awesome b/c there are literally bricks to walk along and direct your path....and its free. Kendra & I plan on seeing everything in Boston that is free.

Some of the best things we saw - The King's Church. Absolutely gorgeous.
Paul Revere's House (which is in Little Italy - and I find that kind of hillarous). Old North Church - where the laterns signaled to Paul Revere "One if by land, two if by sea."

Clam Chowder from Quincy Market.

Walking through Haymarket - perhaps some of the best produce I have ever seen for an incredibly cheap price. 4 oranges for $2, 4 apples for $1, and Kendra got us a bunch of cilantro to much on - yes to much on.

Watching these breakdancer guys do some amazing stunts in front of John Hancock's statue. (watch the video below)

And last but not least, I ate the most incredible cannoli I have ever had since moving south of the mason dixon line. If you ever go to Boston, you MUST go to Mike's Pastry Shop in Little Italy. I will be eating the Napolitan I got there for dinner tonight. So in case you were keeping track - my meals today were a breadbowl of clam chowder, cannoli & Napolitan. Delicious & nutritious.
Go to http://www.kendrasands.blogspot.com/ to read a lovely story about how we saved a small girls life today :) we're awesome

Well, Kenni & I are off to watch the Heels in the final four at an alumni viewing in Kendall Square (Cambridge) with some Carolina friends of mine who live in Boston. Go Heels!

I will post pictures tomorrow, when I can borrow some wifi from Bruggers & not have to be on this rediculously slow hotel computer!

Old School

For all you tarheel faithful out there - thought you would appreciate this picture of little Ty Lawsom & his AAU team @ 7 years old (which includes Dante Cunningham - power forward for Nova). So cute!

Kendra & I are getting ready to leave for Boston tonight. I'm really excited about the trip. We are hopefully going to get to watch the Carolina game on Saturday w/ some friends that I graduated with. There are Tarheels everywhere :) and I love it! I will (hopefully) be updating my blog throughout the week - if you care to read about our adventures in Beantown.

GO HEELS! BEAT NOVA!