Yarn - Wine - Chocolate and Friends

This past Friday evening I was transported from my everyday worries and able to relax with friends at a very fun event! My work life as a 3rd grade teacher has been very difficult this year. What I went into teaching for 25 years ago- the love of learning-helping kids grow emotionally, intellectually and creatively has turned into test scores, goal setting and all about a number! I have had to adapt to a new model which really is going against what my core believes is best for kids. I should LOVE going to work. I work with precious, adorable, full of life 8 year olds. There should be JOY in everything which I do for them and with them. I've lost that Joy and it makes me really SAD....I am bogged down with the demands of unrealistic expectations that children need to have  "target growth points" for a computer generated standardized test. It is no wonder that I have 3rd graders dealing with anxiety disorders, teacher friends resorting to medication and a constant feeling that I am not doing anything right!
BUT- after another long week of staying late at school, sleeping less than I should and worrying about students....I attended a Friday evening Yarn Tasting. I met 2 of my knitting friends for dinner before the event. Since I have been bogged down at work I have not been able to visit with friends-so that was a LOVELY treat. We then went to a 2 hour "Yarn Tasting" at our local yarn store, String Theory in lovely downtown Glen Ellyn, IL. The owner-Janet had put together a Skype adventure with a yarn mill rep in Wyoming-Mountain Meadow Wool. We learned that this company was started by 2 women who felt it was important to try to help their local sheep farmers make a living. It was a fascinating story and another example of women taking a leap. We then got to play with the yarn from their mill. Janet had also organized a sampling of 2 wines from our local wine store and fair-trade chocolate from Ten Thousand Villages. I FELL in love with a luscious green yarn which I immediately had to have. I left the event having laughed with my friends, excited about a new knitting project and for a short time I was calm.
Saturday morning I woke-up thinking about the shrug which I stayed-up till midnight working on....instead of trying to figure out how I am going to cram the measurement unit into the next 2 weeks at school!

The Yarn tasting's supplies.

Participants engaged in the knitting process.

                              

That is me on the right....engrossed and calm.