STRUGGLING WITH SERENDIPITY
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new everything

1/30/2019

4 Comments

 
Picture
John and I searched for simple, sparse furnishings for our new Massachusetts apartment in many stores. I shopped with Maria, too, and we checked sales and clearance racks for good deals as always. John teased about metal shelving units in all the rooms, and made do with just one in the garage.
 
We displayed family pictures everywhere.
 
Our furniture matched for the first time, and I got a kick out of shopping for kitchen towels with a red theme. I found some with brightly-colored poppies, complimenting a set of red bowls with white polka dots.
        
Medication kept the lid on my depression, but failed to stop the headache. The pain level cycled, as always. with my heartbeat throbbing in my head during peak times. The base level had continued to increase very gradually since the onset. Even so, I appreciated the fact that the base level of the headache was manageable.
        
I walked up and down Bear Hill for exercise and helped John get his classroom ready. He had extra work to prepare to teach in a new school system in a new state. He reviewed the curriculum, all new to him. He also had to schedule and study for the teaching tests Massachusetts required, despite his National Board Certification and 30 years of experience. I debated about when to apply for a job. John suggested I postpone job applications until after the Beijing Paralympics, a year away. That was an event I wouldn’t miss, and I planned to stay in China for an extended time.
        
We talked to Beth on the phone from her team camp at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado as they prepared for another adventure in another country.
 
Next: Brazil! 
4 Comments
Jason Rhode link
2/1/2019 12:01:25 pm

Ah, it's fun to shop for a new pad, isn't it? Of course, the other stuff's stressful. I love when you throw the bad with the good, Cindy, it makes your words human. Bravo.

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Cindy Kolbe link
2/1/2019 09:24:11 pm

Moving is always interesting. Thanks, Jason!

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Amy Henry link
2/5/2019 08:26:33 am

Sorry to hear your headaches continued to trouble you, and even bright red bowls with white polka dots could not allay them. Your tales of John having to take the MA teachers test brought back memories, Not only did I take that test, but my M.Ed. director then hired me to tutor other prospective teachers. I know that test better than I'd like.

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Cindy Kolbe link
2/5/2019 11:03:40 am

Agreed, Amy! If only. Wouldn't it be nice if fun material things could take away chronic pain? But then, I'm not sure it's possible for American consumerism to be any higher. ;-) Thanks for sharing your experience with the MA teaching tests. My daughter Maria also went through those, even though she had already passed all the Ohio teaching tests. The Massachusetts ones were harder than Ohio's, but she passed the first time. John did, too, but it was more stressful for him--30 years after his first teaching degree!

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