"The hungry and the hunted explode into rock'n'roll bands that face off against each other out in the street, down in Jungleland." ~bruce springsteen

I've been listening to recordings of the Springsteen concerts I went to that shut down Giants Stadium last year. Those shows were absolutely magical.

Where to start? School, I suppose. I think it'll be a good year. I'm back in sixth grade and I'm thrilled about it. They're so tiny! I'm a fan of munchkins much more than kids who tower over me. It's amazing how young they look compared to my seventh graders last year. Some of them are really, really sweet. Of course some of them won't be easy to work with (especially my all-boys class), but I feel positive. Yesterday I spent a few hours working on my classroom and I think it looks good. Not perfect, but good.

Nic and I went to the U.S. Open on Tuesday evening, and I had so much fun. I just love being there. My family used to go every year and it feels so familiar and comfortable to me. We saw Clijsters play Stosur and Nadal play F. Lopez. The women's match went to three sets and it was very entertaining. I love both women so I didn't care who won; I just wanted to see a good match, and I was satisfied. The men's match wasn't even close, but just seeing Nadal play live is special. I love him. I liked the fact that it was a match between two lefties. I'm a fan of fellow lefties. It was the night session and I didn't get home until 3am, so getting up at 6am for the first day of school was not easy, but it was worth it. Here are some bad photos (shots of people moving really quickly are impossible for me):
Samantha Stosur:
Kim Clijsters:
Rafa Nadal:
Feliciano Lopez:

So I've finally started reading The Hunger Games. I know, I know, I'm two years late. I finally realized I needed to get with the program and see what all the fuss is about. Better late than never, right?? Jasper likes it, too.
Finally, now that the fourth season is approaching, I'm starting to advertise Chuck again. I've converted quite a few people, and I'm proud of that. Here's a fun video made by the very talented Callie. Catch up on the first three seasons (they're all out on DVD), and then watch season four, premiering on Monday, September 20th at 8pm on NBC.