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Sleeping Beauty's got nothing on me.

Last night I slept 12 hours. TWELVE HOURS! Normally, this would not be a big deal for me. In my teens, I could easily sleep 12-15 hours a night. And enjoy it. Boy, would I enjoy it.

To this day, there are few things I like better than sleep (though chocolate is a close contender). But now that I am working woman with a career and bills to pay, sleep has become a luxury. Something to enjoy only on the weekends, if at all.

I'm the kind of person who functions better at night. A night owl, if you will. (Hoot, hoot.) So it is damn ironic that my job requires me to be fully functioning by 7:30 AM, when my first class begins. (If you're just joining us on this here blog, Hello, nice to meet you. I'm a sleep-deprived teacher.)

Let me give you my typical workday: My alarm rings every weekday at 5:30 AM. My dad comes in and wakes me up around 6:00 AM (nope, don't hear the alarm). I'm at work around 7:15 AM, 15 minutes before my students all traipse into my classroom. My last class finishes at 2:30 PM. I go home and waste time on the interwebs and hang out with the boyf. So what's my bedtime? 12:00 - 1:00 AM. The alarm rings again a scant 5-4 hours later and the vicious cycle begins anew.

I guess saying I'm sleep-deprived is a bit of an understatement.

You know how I know "Sleeping Beauty" is a fairy tale, at least in my world? Well, let me tell you. In the story, the only thing that can wake up our slumbering girl is a kiss from the prince. Well, here's the problem. Say I've been sleeping for a long time. How long? Oh, I don't know, how about 12 hours. That's a long amount of time. Say my "prince" (AKA, the "boyf") shows up after 12 hours has passed and attempts to wake me up via a kiss. Now, that's a very sweet gesture. It is. But it won't do a thing. I promise you. You can even ask the boyf. Nothing short of firmly shaking me by the shoulders will ever wake me. Not even my alarm wakes me -- my dad is my alarm clock every morning when he hears my alarm clock ringing from his room and has to come wake me up. I'm a super deep sleeper. I can sleep through hurricanes. Possibly even atom bombs.

Sorry, Charlie, but this girl's out for the count.

At least now that Spring Break has begun (YAY!!!!!!!), the alarm clock can remain off for a whole blessed week and I can revel in my night-owl-ness. I can sleep to my heart's content.

The boyf and I still don't know where we're going. Normally we plan a little get-away for this time of year. Last year we went to Tokyo, Japan. Trip of a lifetime! This year, we've got a few possibilities: London, England; Disney World; Mexico. We won't know until the last minute, as usual. And that's fine with me. I used to be the kind of person who liked to plan everything out and hated leaving things till the last minute. But the boyf has taught me to loosen up.

Have a great weekend everyone! If I don't blog again for another week, don't worry. I'm probably just sleeping.


ETA: Thanks to everyone who voted for me as "Top Female Twilighter" in the Dazzle Awards 2009. I didn't beat my friend Lauren, but I did manage to squeak from last place all the way to second place. :-)

ETA 2: I got a job as an "Examiner" for Examiner.com. I am their new Book Reviewer and will be posting literary-related articles once a week. I'll let you know when I post my first article. I'm excited because I will have my own byline and even a picture. It pays peanuts (roughly $10.00 for every 10,000 hits), but whatev. It's experience.

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All content on this site is the sole property of Ana Cristina Simon, unless otherwise stated, and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

A little book by the name of "Twilight"

I'm sure by now you've heard of the phenomenon that is Twilight. You are probably more familiar with the film than the book -- chances are, you've seen the film but haven't read the book.

Since I'm a high school English teacher, I was bound to hear about the book sooner or later. I first saw it in a sophomore remedial reading class last school year. One of my female students kept lugging around this big fat black book everywhere she went. I remember repeatedly having to ask her to put it away during class-time. I was curious as to what a remedial reading student was doing reading such a lengthy book, so I asked her about it.

"It's about vampires," she replied. "You probably won't like it."

Little did she know her teacher was a secret Anne Rice freak. I've read all of Rice's vampire novels. (My personal favorite is Queen of the Damned. I refuse to see the film because I don't want to sully my mental image of that book.) I have always been intrigued by the mythology surrounding vampires. How they exist in seemingly every culture. Their historical significance. Their impact on literature, primarily Gothic Lit.

So yeah, I thought to myself in that moment, I probably would like it. I resolved to check it out.

It wasn't until months later, while I was hunting in Barnes & Noble for some good books to take with me on the long flight to Tokyo last March (trip of a lifetime!), that I encountered Twilight for the second time. It filled an entire table in the center of the store, books upon books, a whole tower of Twilight . Must be good, I thought.

Well, Twilight traveled with me all the way to and from Tokyo, Japan. I will be honest -- I didn't so much as crack open the front cover the whole trip.

It wasn't until at least a month after I'd returned from my trip that I first picked up the book. It was on a night that I had insomnia. The book caught my eye. So I started reading, thinking it would help lull me to sleep.

I stayed up the entire night, feverishly reading it all the way through.

Flash forward almost an entire year. I've read all four books in the series. I discuss the merits of the book with my students (female and male!). And oh yeah, in case you didn't know, I run another blog, one entirely devoted to Twilight. It's called The Danger Magnet after the main character, Bella's dangerous attraction to perilous situations. I started it just as a way to work out my questions and thoughts on the book and it became what it is today: a time-sucking monster that drains me of all productivity. ;-) (Don't tell my boyf -- or my boss, for that matter!)

(You can read my full book review of Twilight on my Examiner page.)

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All content on this site is the sole property of Ana Cristina Simon, unless otherwise stated, and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Lolcat of the Week

Reader, I laughed so hard at this, I think I broke a rib. These Lolcats just keep getting better and better...

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Meet my cat, Tigger.

This is my cat, Tigger. He likes to "hide" when I'm changing my bed sheets.

He also likes taking naps, especially on top of the boyf.

What he doesn't like is any form of collar. Not even this pretty green bow that perfectly matches his eyes. It lasted about 30 seconds around his neck before he kicked it to the floor. It's a miracle I was even able to take this picture. Tigger = rebel.

What Tigger likes best is cuddling. This is an assortment of stuffed animals I've had for years. I threw them on the bed and the next thing I knew, Tigger jumped on the bed and nestled himself among them. Tigger = cuddle machine.

I love my cat and can't imagine my life without him. For all those who say cats are not affectionate, I strongly disagree. I raised Tigger from birth and was always very affectionate with him, resulting in him being a very friendly cat. I can honestly say I like all sorts of animals (except for spiders!), but my favorite animal will always be the cat. I think they are such beautiful, mysterious creatures. Plus they're great fun. I can watch Tigger perform his zany antics all day long.

My Favorite Poem(s)

So my good bloggy friend T.L.C. asked me what my favorite poem was the other day. And that got me thinking.

One of them you've seen here on my blog before: "somewhere I have never travelled, gladly beyond." That's by one of my favorite-ever poets, e.e. cummings.

But I couldn't stop at just one! I have another favorite poem. It's by Pablo Neruda and it's called "Tonight I can write the saddest lines."

Tonight I can write the saddest lines. Write, for example,'The night is shattered and the blue stars shiver in the distance.' The night wind revolves in the sky and sings. Tonight I can write the saddest lines. I loved her, and sometimes she loved me too. Through nights like this one I held her in my arms I kissed her again and again under the endless sky. She loved me sometimes, and I loved her too. How could one not have loved her great still eyes. Tonight I can write the saddest lines. To think that I do not have her. To feel that I have lost her. To hear the immense night, still more immense without her. And the verse falls to the soul like dew to the pasture. What does it matter that my love could not keep her. The night is shattered and she is not with me. This is all. In the distance someone is singing. In the distance. My soul is not satisfied that it has lost her. My sight searches for her as though to go to her. My heart looks for her, and she is not with me. The same night whitening the same trees. We, of that time, are no longer the same. I no longer love her, that's certain, but how I loved her. My voice tried to find the wind to touch her hearing. Another's. She will be another's. Like my kisses before. Her voide. Her bright body. Her inifinite eyes. I no longer love her, that's certain, but maybe I love her. Love is so short, forgetting is so long. Because through nights like this one I held her in my arms my sould is not satisfied that it has lost her. Though this be the last pain that she makes me suffer and these the last verses that I write for her.

Le sigh. Basically the more lovelorn and melancholy the poem, the more my heart swells. Violins have a similar effect on me. If you can read in Spanish, I highly recommend reading it in its original form.

Sixpence None the Richer created a song using the lines of the poem in Spanish as the lyrics. I personally love it:

So what are your favorite poems? Let me know in a comment! :)

An Apology and a Poem

I am so sorry I have not written much lately on this here blog. Blame my students. Well, actually, blame me for giving so many assignments!

You see, this 9-week grading period ends tomorrow and grades have to be in by Friday morning at 10:00 AM. I spent the last two weeks previous to this one studying for my ABCTE exams and so I am two weeks behind in grading.

Woe is me.

But I'm the masochist that assigns so many grades. Teachers are required to have a minimum of 18 grades per grading period. I have, um, about 40 per class. No lie.

So pretty much: WOE.

Despite all this, I still took the time to visit my little blog and leave my loyal readers this note. Oh, and I wrote a poem (yah, I know, I should be grading, but when the Muse pays a visit, you can't exactly kick her out! :p). I have no idea where this poem came from as I am very happy with my boyf, thankyouverymuch.

Thoughts & comments greatly appreciated.

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I dreamt of water

The night you left, I dreamt of water

Rippling, undulating sheets of blue

The same exact color of your eyes.

The sun glancing on it like an afterthought.

I carried the memory of you

Into my unconscious state:

The sugar-sweet cadence of your voice.

The bitter taste of your name on my tongue.

What happens when the whole of love suddenly disappears?

Is there anything left in its absence?

What happens when time ceases to matter?

Do the seconds fall away to oblivion?

Maybe I am like the after-image burned black onto a white wall

After the calculated obliteration of an atom bomb.

Maybe you are the forgotten ocean residing

In the barren recesses of my dessicated heart.