More Mapping

Kind of a blah, somewhat productive day...

I got up at 8:45, not too far away from my goal of 8 AM. I made myself some breakfast, and ate out on the deck, since the weather was still really nice.

I decided then to do some research into FM Transmitters, to see if there was a better one I can get. I basically discovered that they don't work well in metropolitan areas. They all basically work the same way--you choose a radio station to broadcast on, anywhere from 88.1 - 88.7 and 107.1 - 107.7, and as long as there is no interference, you can get a clear signal from the transmitter. The only problem is most of those frequencies have stations on them around here. The 107 group all does, as well as 88.1 and 88.5. The two remaining work sometimes, but you keeping picking up static and interference from neighboring frequencies, and probably everyone else who is trying to listen to their MP3 player on their car stereo.

So, I've come up with a solution, though admittedly ghetto. I have an extra pair of computer speakers that I am going to put in my car. I figured I'd put them on the floor on either side behind the front seats. I have a DC power inverter that plugs into the cigarette lighter, that I can plug the speakers into for power. Then, I can just hook the Zen up to the speakers. This is probably not the best location for the speakers, but I don't want them to be plainly visible, so there is no temptation for someone to break into my car. Whatever the sound, it has got to be better than the FM transmitter. The only problem is, we can't find the power inverter. We haven't used it in months, and I can't even imagine where it got to. I haven't looked really hard yet, but I don't even know where to start.

The rest of my day was spent working on my curriculum maps and ripping more of my CD collection. I thought I might be able to get 6th - 8th grade finished today, but I didn't even finish 6th grade. The problem was that 3 - 5 and 6 - 8 are very different as far as the way material is presented. Also, what I have taught in the past doesn't necessarily line up with the new curriculum, so I had to get creative. I did make a neat worksheet that I am going to have my kids fill out when they listen to music. Last year, each kid had a 'Listening Log,' which they had to answer questions about the music in. They were hard to grade, and the kids never really got the hang of getting theirs from the back of the room. By the end of the year, I gave up, and just handed them out each class. This worksheet basically does the same thing, but it is more user-friendly, and, I think, more fun to fill out (though most teachers know that students never seem to find fun what you think they will). I can just make a zillion copies of it, and put it in a bin in the back of the room, and the kids can grab a new sheet whenever we do a listening.

Meg and I also ordered out for lunch, which was fun, since we rarely do it. We usually order from this place in Laurel Springs called Bella Vita. It was good food, and cheap too, but the last two times we tried to order from there, no one picks up the phone. I have this feeling they went out of business. So, we tried this place called Pat's a 2nd time. They're a little more expensive, but the food is good. I had a bacon cheese steak, and Meg had wings and onion rings. Next time, I want to try their pizza, because it looked really good when I went in to pick of the food.

Lunch was a nice break, and we watched some more of the Seinfeld DVD's we have as we ate. Then, I got back to work on the mapping and ripping.

Later, we took a swim to cool off. It got progressively warmer as the day went on, but nowhere near as bad as it was last week. After that, I went for a bike ride to get some fresh air, and help get the brain juices flowing in regards to these maps.

Got more work done, ate a late dinner, burgers on the grill, and then worked some more.

Now tomorrow, I am really going to have to make sure I stick to my wake-up time. Meg got a call today from her principal. Apparently there was water damage in a storage closet near her room, so we have to go up to her school tomorrow, and assess the damage, and declare what everything costs, so the construction company can pay for new stuff. We have to do this before our scheduled prenatal appointment, so that means we are out of the house before nine. Whoopie...