Finishing up the week with some fabulous finds and final thoughts.

1.       Meet George.  Long story short: just after we moved into this house a cat hoarder was evicted just up the road but all the cats were not collected by the pound.  So the neighborhood found itself overrun with 50+ cats; two of which landed at our back patio.  They must have read the sign, you know the one; it’s neon red with an arrow pointing at our house that reads “Cat lovers/suckers live here!”  Because we were “pet full” we didn’t take them in but I feed them (refer back to that sign).  This was about 8 to 9 years ago.  After ~3 years my husband decided it needed a name and called it “George” (this comes from that quote, “I’ll hug him and squeeze him and call him George.”)  George is one of the lone survivors and there are times when he disappears for as long as 18 months then will just show up again.  I feed him milk and food, scratch him behind the ear and tell him I’m glad to see him.  We don’t know where he “lives” but we know he is a survivor as he is declawed.  He must have a very formidable guardian angel watching over him!

2.      My crazy Christmas cactus decided to send out two more blooms this week.

3.      One of the unexpected pleasures of swapping is building friendships and exchanging passions with people you may never meet.  This wonderful package of fabric arrived this week from Diane.  I want to learn to start sewing in my journal and these swatches will be perfect!

4.      We do not have an IHOP where we live.  With the long days of winter stretching endlessly before us, small road trips help us pass the time.  Last Saturday we decided a visit to IHOP was in order.

5.      It was Educator’s Weekend so we stopped in a Barnes and Nobles.  I found this cute ORBit Relaxation Lamp.  I love quirky, fun stuff like this and with a 25% discount I simply could not resist bringing it home.  I had a difficult time getting a shot of all the different color changes. 

*One extra: I stumbled upon this book at the library.  It is a fun, quick read but rather inspirational.

**A Follow up:  Two weeks ago I commented about the dyer balls.  One of them went AWAL this week.  The mystery continues.

It has been a challenging week.  The students were wild after having that extra week off.  It was difficult getting them to focus on preparing for final exams.  Yesterday alone there were 5 fights.  I found myself getting very frustrated, wanting to teach but not being able to because of the steady stream of interruptions.  Of all weeks, the-powers-that-be decided this would be a good week to have an assembly the second day back!  Seriously!?  Finals are next week!  I remind myself “I just work here” and carry on the best way I can.  It’s a sad state of affairs when teachers are in their survival mode this early in the game. 

I am looking forward to the weekend.  Thinking another short road trip may be in order, especially since it is a 3-day weekend.  I don’t have any ideas as to where to go.  The North American Auto Show is in Detroit but I find myself liking crowds less these days.  Perhaps I will follow Sarah at Paisley Rain Boots  lead and take a photo walk.  Will have to check the weather forecast but getting outside for short hike maybe just what my sanity needs.

What are your plans for this extended weekend?  If you have any advice for me as to something I could do please share it in the comments below.  I would love to hear it. 

Linking up with  Kim's Friday Finds and Nancy's Random 5 Friday