Dear Friends,
Earlier this morning, I had some ideas about what I wanted to write about today. After sitting here, relaxing, enjoying the last couple of days of my winter break, the reality of getting back in the classroom on Monday kind of took over my thoughts and I started thinking of all the things that need to be done in the first week back. The first couple of hours of the day on Monday will be key to getting everyone started properly and back in the swing of things.
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Yesterday I took Teresa and a friend of hers, Ace, to the Phoenix Art Museum and it was awesome. I hadn't been there in years and I am now regretting that mistake big time. I have seen ads for different displays that looked great and just blew them off for too long. They still do the free admission thing on Wednesdays from 3pm to 7pm, so if you are in the neighborhood during the week, check it out.
Currently they have some awesome exhibits celebrating Japan, India, and Africa. Perhaps celebrating is not the right word, but I find art museums to be a source of celebration. As we walked out, I told Teresa that I have a new goal for this year.
One museum (at least) per month.
Teresa seemed to like this goal and she and Ace immediately requested a visit to the Arizona Science Center. I suppose that will be okay. I was there with about 100 second graders last January. Perhaps later in the year I will be able to stomach it again. I definitely want to get another trip to the Musical Instrument Museum in this year, too, but that leaves 9 museums to check out.
Luckily, there are a lot of options both here and in New England, so it shouldn't be hard to meet my goal. Any place with a Georgia O'Keeffe or a Picasso should count as two, but I won't sink to that depth. I happen to love looking at their work a bit more than most others. Picasso constantly fascinates me and O'Keeffe has been a favorite since I sat down to rest on a visit to the Art Institute in Chicago under a huge painting she did of clouds.
I have a reluctance to learn about Picasso and O'Keeffe in great detail. I like a bit of mystery when it comes to visual artists, for some reason, and I'm not sure why. Maybe because Pablo Picasso was never called an asshole. Well, at least according to the great Jonathan Richman. Granny bought me a wonderful book that features a ton of O'Keeffe's work in it that I treasure but confess I have never read. I like to look at the pictures, though.
See you soon.
A little poorly shot Georgia from the Phoenix Art Museum.
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