Cup of Coffee with Katie

Ah yes, it seems as if we blinked and here we are in November. Those shiny saddle shoes have dulled and the once-brightly-colored tennis shoes are showing the wear and tear of 3 months of gym classes, recess soccer games, and some kind of zombie apocalypse tag I have yet to figure out. Yes, we’ve made it to that hallowed beacon of light in the world of teaching: Thanksgiving break. It means 5 days away from the stresses of daily life that have once again become so routine. 5 days without worrying about whether an objective is clearly stated or a lesson has adequate closure; 5 days free from remembering to submit attendance, post homework on your website, and to hit the “adjust density” and “hole punch” buttons before you run copies; 5 days to wake up, eat, and use the bathroom without following a prescribed schedule; 5 days free from worrying about which students forgot the proper uniform belt, need to see the nurse for medication, have band rehearsal, have been in the bathroom too lo...

Every so often in an allergen-filled existence, you have moments which excite you, touch your heart, and make you want to hug random strangers.   As I’ve mentioned in earlier posts, my autoimmune journey has certainly been littered with such moments: Mom’s Organic Market (where I really did hug an employee very early in my gluten-free days), Whole Foods (though I still feel like people judge me there because I almost always forget to bring my re-usable cloth bags), locally-operated co-ops, farmers’ markets, etc. There’s nothing quite like that moment of pure joy when you find something you didn’t know existed or a place that offers a new (or even revised to avoid allergen) treat that makes eating fun again…if only for a moment. Of course these joy-filled moments are often tempered by a harsh reality of allergy-friendly eating: a hefty price tag. I mean don’t get me wrong, I will cough up $4 for the occasional gluten-free, dairy-free cupcake…but my frugal, coupon-clipping heart...

To say life has been crazy lately would be an understatement. Well, actually saying “Target dollar bins can be dangerous” would be an understatement. I’m not even sure the category for my life lately. It’s been almost 2 months since I moved and I STILL have a corner of unpacked boxes that haven’t been touched; I’m operating on such a sleep deficit some days that I think I could replace the bunny in the next Energizer commercial; my to-do lists could fill a small novel…and they’re quite eclectic enough that it might be an entertaining one at that. I’ll even admit last week I had a moment when I realized I’d reached an all-time low: I stopped at Target for some last-minute Halloween candy and I put a package of socks in my basket…because I wasn’t sure I’d have time before my weekend trip to do laundry and I’d run out of clean socks. And I’m also not ashamed to admit that those socks proved to be the only useful purchase I made that night…because I was so tired from All Saints’ Day m...