I wander'd lonely as a cloud

I stayed home sick today, sniffling and adding to an ever-mounting pile of tissues, sucking on a few warm cups of Theraflu, reading between brief snoozes on my couch, and trying not to get too stir-crazy. Hence, this wandering post...

I read the poem "Daffodils" by Wordsworth somewhat recently, but I think that today, as I was housebound, I really understood this perfect stanza celebrating the memory of a host of sprightly golden daffodils:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

Not only do I have to rely on my memory of such lovely plants. I have a few in my immediate surroundings that, through the power of modern digital photography, I will share with you here.

First of all, I have an update on my window garden project that I have been nursing with kind words and daily watering. They are growing! Miracles of all miracles. Basil slowly coming, coriander growing like a weed, and mint slowly poking up out of the soil (thyme has already had its time, coming up quickly and withering away within days). Have a look for yourself.





Violets are one of my favorite houseplants, but I haven't always had the best of luck growing them... that is until I came to Estonia. Ironically enough, the then small plant was a get-well present when I caught the flu during my first months in Estonia. Since then I have repotted it twice and it has bloomed nearly incessantly. This violet is a centerpiece in my home. If only it could traverse the great pond this summer in my bags. I will have to capture its soothing and endearing character in my memory for future days when I need to recall such pleasant environs.



One last sprinkle of color splashes my room with joy. A fitting gift from my students at the university, these gorgeous pink blossoms exude joy, success, and celebration. It will be a fine memory of my Tartu days to store away.




... and then my heart with pleasure fills, and dances with the daffodils. ~ William Wordsworth, Daffodils (1804)

Taking the long way around

My father would not be too excited to hear that I have been listening to the Dixie Chicks (he isn't exactly a huge fan of this kind of "new" country music), much less that I have been sharing their music with new audiences. However, that's exactly what I have been doing lately. It's part of my character, I suppose. I like "new," and I like "old." I am a bit corny. I like to share. At this moment of transition, I identify with this song about making life choices to explore (although not in a pink RV). A quirk of my personal methodology as a language teacher, I like to dedicate songs to my students at the end of a term. Song dedications are infinitely cool (can you remember listening to them on long road trips at night?). This semester as I finish and start, I am dedicating the Dixie Chicks song sharing the title of this blog entry to my students, in hopes that like me, they, too will take the long way around and our paths may someday cross once again. Yes, corny, I know. But I figure that the silliness might be trumped by my sincere intentions. Let's definitely hope so.

My parents have no idea--until they read this blog post--the extent to which I use my family as illustrative examples and classroom material. Today, I talked about a family approach to driving around my small hometown of around 20,000. Admittedly, I have always thought Gillette was rather big in the context of Wyoming, and it is. A more routine driver may assume that there are a few direct routes to travel between home-work-school-shopping in our town. Not in my family. Getting in the car with my mother is a constant surprise. Ignoring a more conventional route, she chooses to take the long way around, checking out new developments in construction, cruising through a less-traveled neighborhood, or driving by pretty flowering trees/lilacs/gardens. A routine trip to the supermarket is never a dull event! Memories of my father are no different. Weekends in the mountains and trips to the big cities often involved skirting off the main road to find out where a mysterious side street emerges. Getting lost was seen as opportunity and challenge rather than a poor risk. I loved those bumpy country roads and winding graveled streets in the mountains... getting lost was part of the adventure.

So, I figure that I have my family to thank for showing me how to choose less-traveled paths and independently maneuver through my surroundings. The truth is that it is more fun for me to get sidetracked... At the moment, I find myself at a point of transition, and I think it is worth remembering the value of such transgressions. Here are a few of my off-track activities, announcements, and celebrations. Some of them are a bit out-of-date, but I want to share. Be patient, I return to the main road sooner or later!

• I took a trip to Lahemaa National Park in northern Estonia waaayyy back in March with some friends. It was the first national park in the Soviet Union and is located on the Baltic Sea. Inside the park are many trails for walking, quaint villages, and old German manor houses. Personal highlights included visiting a gorgeous smoke sauna and seeing 40-50 swans swimming in the icy cold Baltic Sea. It snowed buckets, but it was gorgeous! For pictorial highlights, see my web album here.





• My trip to New York was fabulous -- so great to see friends and colleagues and my mom. The city is impressive. I forgot how busy it is... hard to believe that I really managed to relocate there after college in South Dakota. Talk about culture shock!





• A bit more quiet and scenic was my trip to Exeter, Devon for another language teaching conference. I had reunions with other friends and co-presented with a former grad school colleague. The experience was professionally and personally refreshing. If you are curious about what we were up to, you can even watch our presentation by logging into the conference website! We were recorded and broadcast at http://exeteronline.britishcouncil.org.

• As I mentioned, my teaching here in Estonia is finishing up. I have one more week of meetings, and I am beginning to get quite sentimental. Why are transitions so hard?

• For the mere price of 50 EEK ($5), I got a fabulous haircut that did not make me cry.

• At the University of Tartu, students spend one week during the spring celebrating during "Student Days." For one week, there are activities happening everywhere -- boat contests, concerts, dancing, special clubs, sport, volunteering, sauna, food fairs, and, of course, singing. It was warm and sunny this year during this time and I found the energy of campus infectious. I attended a particularly memorable event. In one of the parks in town they have an evening of singing student songs. A stage is set up and the whole area fills up with hundreds and hundreds of students, professors, staff, townspeople, and alumni. Together, they sing student songs, many of them folk songs or traditional songs from some part of the 375-year history of the university. I bought a songbook and sang my heart out along with them and felt swallowed by the power of the event. I can't imagine a similar college event in a place other than Estonia. The singing tradition is such an integral part of just about everything here.

• After months of brushing up my CV and honing my job interviewing skills, I have accepted a position for the fall at Georgetown University. I will work as an English instructor for international students in their intensive English program, Center for Language Education & Development. I am very excited about moving to Washington, D.C. and working at such a fine institution. Worries about finding housing and making the transition stateside are abated by the promise of living in a fabulous, international community. If you take a detour and find yourself in the area... feel free to look me up!
  

BETA Conference



• A couple of weeks ago I traveled to Sofia, Bulgaria for a teachers' conference... I enjoyed seeing the city, meeting up with some old friends living in the region, eating yummy eggplant salad, and thinking a bit more about language-related issues such as European plurilingualism and avenues for professional conversation.
  

• I think that I have mentioned that I have been involved in a book group that has been reading historical novels by the Estonian writer, Jaan Kross. We met last night to discuss all three of the books we read -- Czar's Madman, Professor Marten's Departure, and Treading Air. I have gained so much from the reading, especially when it was paired with sharing insights with others who are also living here. The experience has deeply shaped how I see Estonia and how I understand its poignant history. If you are interested in exploring this small, Nordic country in a meaningful way, these books must be on your reading list.
  

These days I am thinking a lot about transitions. I am not sure what is coming and I am not always sure what has been, but I can be sure of one thing. I will be taking the long way around, at least for now.

Jalgrattaga... by bike

What a fabulous spring weekend. We took off Friday afternoon for a southern Estonian bicycle tour. Sweet smelling flowers, bright new greenness, cute lambs, great friendly company, and good exercise... an excellent recipe for a rejuvenating weekend. Here are some of the highlights.

For a Google map of our 130 km voyage, visit this link or try to decipher our travels through back roads from a map of your own (Tartu - Pangodi - Taevaskoja - Mooste - Tartu)!

Spring lambs in the countryside



Mini-pizzas with the kids (and adults!)



Breath-taking views from Taevaskoja Park



Healing spring/Fountain of youth




Ah! What a great start to spring!
(Click on the album below for more pictures)

May 1 08 bike trip