Weekly Wrap-up for January 6, 2013: End of Vacation, Classics Club Readathon, and more.

I woke up early this morning to find that it was snowing outside. We still had snow on the ground from the storm that hit us on the 26th, but I am glad that a new, fresh layer is down. I sincerely love the winter and everything it brings-including snuggling up in hooded sweatshirts with warm fluffy socks. So, I decided to stay nestled in bed for another couple hours to finish My Antonia, which I started last night for The Classics Club Readathon. It was nice to settle in with a warm and comforting read while the cold winter winds blew outside my window. The cats were also grateful to snuggle in for some cuddles. It was a great way to spend the last morning of my two-week break from school.

Obviously, I am sad that break is coming to an end. I enjoyed being home with my husband and having time to recharge. I also didn't get everything done that I wanted to, but I guess I have to be okay with that. :) I am excited to get back to school, and the next few weeks will be really eventful. We have a full week this week to get things back in order and finish up content for the first semester. Then, next week is exam week. We'll be reviewing content and testing, so that'll be a fun time. :) After that, we start the new semester!

My classes are changing quite a bit second semester. We run on a 6-period schedule. Right now, I have 2 sections of U.S. History, 2 sections of mythology, and 1 section of sophomore English. My sixth hour is also my planning period. Second semester I have 3 sections of U.S. History, 2 sections of sophomore English, and I will be co-teaching theater. It is going to be a very FULL day of teaching, since I do not have a planning period. I'm excited for the new challenges of the theater class, and knowing that there is another teacher in the room with me settles my nerves a bit. :) I'm also excited to have more sections of the other two classes, since I very much enjoy teaching them!

I've done some plan/prep work this break, and I think that once things get started, I'll be just fine. I've taught the second half of both the core classes before, so I have materials and resources to turn to. I won't be "starting from scratch" like I did this fall (with 3 classes), so it should run much smoother this semester.

I'm hoping this means more time for reading and personal hobbies, since I didn't have much of a personal life this fall. But 2013 is already off to a great start, thanks in part to The Classics Club Readathon that took place yesterday. While I didn't manage to read all day, I did make enough progress that I feel successful. :) I finished the second half of Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey, read all of Tennessee William's Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and read My Antonia by Willa Cather. I consider that a huge success! Starting 2013 with a string of good books makes me optimistic for this year.

I'm not sure what I'm going to grab next. I might stay with a couple slimmer books, but I've been eying a few big titles as well (Anna Karenina for one, Uncle Tom's Cabin is another). If you have recommendations, please suggest away!

I think it also helps that I got a jump-start on a few of my 2013 goals. I spent some time on Wednesday reorganizing the bookshelves in the living room. Everything got messed up a couple months ago when we purchased our new entertainment center and moved the old bookshelves (that housed our DVDs) into the second bedroom. Books have been sitting in piles everywhere and double-stacked on the living rooms shelves, so I re-alphabetized and rearranged my classics. I even managed to move all the "sets" I've been collecting onto one bookshelf, and I very much like how it looks:

 The top shelf has the Puffin Classics series, then the beginnings of my Penguin Clothbounds (Northanger Abbey goes in that open spot-I had it out since I was reading it). The second shelf contains the remaining clothbounds (including the two new titles I got for Christmas from my mom!). The next two shelves are the Penguin English Library editions that I've started collection. I'm up to 56/100, so I'm making good progress. ;) I'm trying to finish up all the Dickens titles (have 3 to go), and then I'll own all his major works.

I also pulled out a few doubles I had to pass along and moved my Shakespeare to a different location. It makes the room look a lot nicer, now that books aren't piled all over. ;)

Anyway, I'll be spending the rest of the day doing more planning and prep work. I finished my unit on The Great Gatsby last night, so today I turn my attention to my U.S. History classes.

Have a wonderful Sunday and happy reading!

Classics Club Readathon Update Post. *Edit x4*

1:15 pm: The Classics Club Readathon is well underway and I just managed to finish my first book, Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen. I started it earlier this week, then set it aside for a couple of days. I got suck right back in and flew through the last 150 pages or so...

Now I'm trying to decide what to do. After being bed-ridden most of the day yesterday, I have a slew of things to do around the apartment, but I really just want to stay curled up and read. I did pull a pile of slim volumes off the shelf as options...help me pick?

• Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams
• Rosencratz and Guildenstern are Dead by Tom Stoppard
• The Time Machine by H.G. Wells
• The Fall by Albert Camus
• My Antonia by Willa Cather

I think I am going to go clean for a half hour, then settle back in with a book. :) I hope everyone else is reading away!

5:19 pm: Well, I've been productive, but not with my reading. I did manage to take a shower, read a few pages of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, go over to my mom's to pick up a load of laundry I left there, tweeted some readathoners, posted over at The Classics Club, and started dinner (have zucchini and butternut squash roasting in the oven as we speak). I really want to dive back into the Williams' play, so as soon as dinner is done and in my tummy, I am hiding out in the office to read away.

I'd really like to finish the play and start My Antonia before the night is over. I do need to get some school stuff in order tonight (to make tomorrow less daunting), so I'm planning on calling it quits on the reading at around 10 or 11pm. We'll see. Maybe I'll get sucked in. :)

Let me know how all of you are doing!

7:22 pm: I just finished Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and really enjoyed it! So full of luscious drama! It reminded me quite a bit of Lillian Hellman's Little Foxes. It had that same Southern charm and fire.

Since I finished that a bit earlier than I thought, I am definitely going to dive into My Antonia, inspired by Adam and his read of O Pioneers! earlier today. I haven't read it since I was a freshman in high school (13/14 years ago), so I am excited to see it with "fresh" eyes. I definitely want to read more of Cather, and she is one of a few options for a "Complete Works" project I may tackle this coming year.

Anyway, I'm going to go grab some fresh water in my water bottle and snuggle back into my chair to read. Matt is in the living room watching a movie, so he's been letting me have my reading time today, which is MUCH appreciated. :)

10:33 pm: I jinxed myself by saying that Matt was leaving me alone. He proceeded to annoy me for a solid hour after my last post. :) After I finally got him shepherded off to bed, I browsed twitter for a bit, procrastinated washing dishes, brushed the cats, washed the dishes, and made myself a snack before settling in to read My Antonia,

Cather's novel was the perfect choice. I settled right into it, and I am loving it. I'm up to page 115 (about halfway through) and to be honest, I could finish it tonight. However, I know I am going to regret it tomorrow if I don't get something for school done tonight. So, I think I am going to work on something school-related for an hour, then go to bed (the only school things I have are prepwork, so it's fun school stuff, not grading!). I'm hoping to get up early in the morning (to get back in the swing of things), so perhaps I will settle in with My Antonia for another hour or so then.

If you're still reading tonight, good luck!

12:42 am: Well, I sat down and decided that I needed to get some school things done before I headed off to bed. And work I did! I managed to revise the lessons and sheets I had made for a unit on The Great Gatsby. It lifts a big weight, since that is what we'll be starting in the beginning weeks of second semester. I also did a couple other nit-picky things. And then I look at the time and freaked out a bit! I planned on being in bed an hour ago!

Anyway, while I am tired, I am going to take My Antonia to bed with me and try to read another chapter or two. I will see you all in the morning.

Classics Club Readathon Starting Post.

The Classics Club is hosting our first Readathon event today, and I am planning on participating for a good chunk of time. I do need to get my sleeping schedule squared away before school starts on Monday, so I'm hoping to be a good participant for a good 8-10 hours. We'll see how that goes. :) I was in bed pretty much all day yesterday (sick), so there are some things that need tending to round these parts!

As for my book choices, I'm really not sure WHAT I'm going to read. I am definitely going to finish Northanger Abbey, and I've been eying a few other titles, but I'm not sure what I'll grab. I want to make some progress with both lists, so I think I'm just going to take a walk by my shelves and see what jumps out at me.

If you're participating, please let me know so I can stop by and visit during the day.

And, to kick us off, here are my answers to the starting point questionnaire!

1. Name and Blog: Allie at A Literary Odyssey
2. Snacks and Beverages of Choice: I'm going to stick with water for as long as possible. I'm trying to reduce my caffeine intake for health reasons, so I'm going to be good! As for snacks, we have a lot of fruit in the house (pears, clementines, and apples) that are calling my name. I'll probably snack on some pretzels too.
3. Where are you reading from today? Michigan, but more importantly, my couch. Probably under a pile of warm cats.
4. What are your goals for the Readathon? I just want to make some progress on my list! Ideally, I'd like to finish a book or 2, but I'm taking it easy. I'm not sure how much I'll update, but I imagine every few hours?
5. What book(s) are you planning on reading? I'm still not sure! I'm probably going to gravitate towards some smaller titles, but a chunky book to sink my teeth into also sounds good.
6. Are you excited? Very. :)