Mining Nuggets: On the tip of my tongue

Each day a blog post is on the tip of my tongue. There was the afternoon while watering my yard that a 24 inch East Ribbon snake sidled out of the ivy and through the flower bed as droplets of water sprinkled its back. That day, as I watched with a type of mesmerized fascination as the snake meandered around the building to the hose, and then proceeded to suck up a tiny frog, legs wiggling and sinking into its belly, I experienced a chill throughout my body, skin crawling uncontrollably. I wanted to write about my traumatic snake experience as a child growing up in Africa and explore innate fears, expounding theories about thus and such to do with snakes, mice and so forth.

Then there was the morning I jumped on the scale and realized that after only one month of dieting and exercise I had miraculously lost 10 pounds. My fingers itched to scribe about feeling lighter and relieved at health-fullness. I longed to write about the return of energy as each morning early I walk out into the sunshine and briskly stride about the neighborhood for 3 miles or so, greeting fellow exercisers, cyclists, runners, or other walkers like myself, and feeling, for the first time in close to four years, at home in Philadelphia. But then the past week even with all the exercise and dieting that I maintain, the scale shows a plateauing and I struggle to hold onto the hope, energy, and motivation I mustered over a month ago!

Working through July starting out as the new Chair of our department has brought up many moments of thoughtfulness and ponderings about the upcoming year's challenges and interesting times ahead. Blog posts have been starting up in my mind over and over again.

Excitement at the thought that within only a few weeks my next book will be born, published, sent forth into the early childhood communities for teachers and professors alike to explore, read, critique, question, and share. I have wanted to write about the growing anticipation as I await its arrival. For, this particular book, has been brewing and hatching, incubating and simmering for all of my teaching life. And just as I thought my writing days were over, I was asked to edit a tome about gender and early childhood education. This is a subject close to my heart for, after all, I discovered feminism only 16 years ago, and there is still so much more to think and wonder about. Just as I was sending out a call to colleagues and fellow early childhood professionals, yet another book was offered me by a very dear friend. He said, "write about anything - from the bottom of your heart to the middle of your mind." These books will accompany me as I start out in a new position this new academic year. I have been wanting to write a blog post about how fulfilling and exciting all of this is - just when I thought my writing days were over.

Oh, and of course, I have been meaning to write all manner of posts about politics, summer as it slips away as fast as it arrived, Ada Mae as she sits close to my back while I pull my body into yoga postures, and especially about upcoming trips to Cape May and Buffalo next week.

All, on the tip of my tongue, edge of my fingers ...

... But, quite simply ... I have not had the time ...

A year ago at Mining Nuggets: Internal ethnography