25 Things You Don’t Know About...

25 Things You Don’t Know About…Kelly Duncan

 

This is an assignment I am giving my 6th graders as a "getting to know you." It's modeled after the column in Us Weekly. Or so I've heard. There is no way I am a celebrity-obsessed person. No, not me. Okay, it's true. I read the magazine. And I love it. So there.

 

1.      I’m a complete night owl which means I am not a morning person—weird for a teacher, I know.

2.      I am obsessed with Flair Pens. And highlighters. Really, I’m just a fan of color-coding.

3.      I’m a workaholic.

4.      I legally changed my name from Kelly Lynn August to Kelly August Duncan when I got married.

5.      My dad wanted to name me June July (reread number 4 if you don’t see why that is funny…or so not funny). All of his brothers suggested the same for their daughters. Luckily, none of them won that fight.

6.      I love to keep score at baseball games.

7.      My son is named after the main character in The Phantom Tollbooth.

8.      Reading is as important as breathing to me. More important that eating.

9.      I’m the oldest of five children.

10.  I eat salmon and run for exercise because it’s good for me. I hate both.

11.  My three cats—Liam, Sasha, and Olive—don’t like each other.

12.  I have visited all twenty-one California Missions. San Juan Capistrano is my favorite.

13.  I am planning a party for the 50^th Anniversary episode of Dr. Who; the tenth Doctor, David Tennant, is my favorite.

14.  The last book I read was Wonder. I’m currently reading 13 Reasons Why and The Fault in our Stars.

15.  I saw the last three Twilight movies at their midnight premieres with a group of like-minded moms. TEAM EDWARD!

16.  My son and I share a love of Steampunk. Victorian sensibility and fashion with steam powered sci-fi, alternate histories, and a dash of dystopia? What’s not to love?!?

17.  Great White sharks are my favorite animal. I have never missed a Shark Week because of this.

18.  My family follows the Paleo diet because I am allergic to wheat, gluten, and dairy. My husband and son are troopers.

19.  I watched Grease 2 EVERY DAY during the summer between fourth and fifth grade.

20.  My husband and I spent our first Valentine’s Day at a live WWE taping. I love that man!

21.  I have six nieces and three nephews.

22.  I used to know every word to every song on The Beastie Boys License to Ill.

23.  I love to sing karaoke.

24.   My birthday is in August on the same date as Michael Jackson’s. That was WAY cooler when I was a kid.

25. Take Me Out to the Ballgame and any Beatles song were lullabies in my house when my son was baby.

I Choose Strong

Lately, I have been feeling very unfocused. I've got a gazillion things going in my head (Ayurvedic thinking-one of my new passions-would say my mental vata dosha is out of whack). Arthritis and psoriasis have been the bane of my existence this summer (blame an excess of pitta there...perhaps some kapha, too). I have a ton I want to accomplish, but don't feel like much is getting going. Blah blah blah...yakkity schmakity...wah. Enough! I hate whining. Abhor it really. And I feel like I whine a lot lately.

With the impending arrival of my fortieth birthday, this girl is making some changes and taking on some challenges. The list includes in no particular order:

1. Improving my health with the assistance of yoga, Crossfit, the Paleo Diet, Ayurvedic medicine and acupuncture along with my allopathic medicine treatment, and prayer and meditation. Lame as it sounds, I have psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. They do not have me.
2. Gaining certification as an Ayurveda professional so I fully understand the principals of this health practice.
3. Becoming a National Board Certified Teacher.
4. Implementing the Common Core standards in my classroom and at my school while becoming an effective advocate for the standards to the community at large
5. Increasing the use of technology as a tool for me and my students in the classroom by writing a grant to get a mobile lab to facilitate digital portfolios
6. Helping my son survive, no thrive, in middle school. After all, I know a thing or two about this age group. Maybe it will help us all get through the next three years?!? Please?
7. Getting rid of the clutter in my house...we have more than we need and it's junking up the joint. Once that is done, I can start inviting people over again!
8. Writing more on my blog and in other places. I actually enjoy writing, and as an English teacher, I better practice what I preach! Everyone writes no matter their avocation ($0.50 word alert). To be honest, I have missed this. Publishing a piece can be cathartic; it can be a problem solver. Heck, it can be an ego boost.

Today, my writing is an accountability mechanism. I NEED to accomplish all of the above list. I figure giving myself a public accountability team will get me there. *fingers crossed*

I recently read a quote from a Yaqui Indian spiritual leader named Don Juan Matos.

"We either make ourselves miserable or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same."

I choose strong. Here goes nothing.