Scandal Fanfiction Stories

I really enjoy writing FanFiction stories and posting them on Fanfiction.net. It has really gotten my creative juices flowing. Please read mine below. Click on the name of the story and you will be taken to where it is posted on fanfiction.net. Please review them on the site or below. You can review as a Guest.

Going in Circles (Complete)

The story occurs 14 days post Olivia Pope’ss resignation. Can Fitz convince her to return to her job at the White House..to continue their love affair? They are going in circles, round and round they go. There’s right and wrong and then there’s what is done when no one is looking. Can their love transcend all the barriers?

Harvest (Sequel to Going in Circles, In Process)

Harvest marks the end of the growing season and the beginning of reaping what has been sown. Fitz and Olivia are ready to reap what they have sown. He is no longer the POTUS and is divorcing Mellie. They are expecting twins. Will their harvest be bountiful or will a revelation about Fitz threaten the very foundation of their life together?

An Education (In Process)

Olivia Pope is passionate about teaching 4th grade at Ambrose Elementary. She is uninterested in a relationship even though her married friends, Abby, Harrison, and Huck, are constantly meddling. Fitzgerald Grant is the newly appointed principal trying to rebuild his life and raise his two teenagers after divorcing their mother. What happens when they meet and sparks fly?

The Ultimate Heist (New, In Process)

Olivia decides it’s time to retire from stealing art and settle down with boyfriend, Harrison Wright. They decide to leave that life to Abby, Huck, and new recruit, Quinn. Special Agent Fitzgerald Grant is appointed as Deputy Director of the FBI, but first he is called to lead one last mission to capture Olivia Pope. After that night, nothing will ever be the same.

 

The Sky Is Everywhere: Why I love to typewrite

Creating. Shaping. Inciting. Emoting. These are a couple of reasons I enjoy writing.

The word, “writing” is a misnomer because it is rare that I take paper to pen to write. Quiet as it is kept I don’t even like to write in the old fashioned way with a writing instrument (pen, pencil) and paper. In college, I made that transition from writing to “typewriting.” In those days, I would write a draft on paper, revise on paper, type the draft, print the draft, revise on the printed draft , edit on the screen, reprint…until I arrived at the final draft. Over time, I moved to finally just typewriting and revising on the screen. I see the value in writing with an instrument, but I think I have been irrevocably changed from a writer to a typewriter. Writing seems so crude and it even stunts my creative process.

Now back to my first sentence: Creating. Shaping. Inciting. Emoting. Evolving. These are a couple of reasons I enjoy writing. A couple of years I quit my job to purse writing. Needless to say I didn’t publish anything aside from this blog. Even though I considered myself to be a good writer, I had a difficult time breaking through the wall of my mind to really create another world. I started writing Fanfictions and through that process, I have opened up the flood gates of ideas. I think I am on the cusp of writing that novel. I enjoy creating another world through my writing. Truly, once the words are on the page, they take on a life of their own. It makes me feel quite powerful. As I walk through the world as a regular person, I feel empowered because I have this other world that I have created that runs parallel to the real world. I borrow from that real world to help in my creation. Creating is related to shaping. I can shape this world and mold it with the words I chose to use. This is word smithing, my favorite pastime.

Since the lion’s share of my writing is done on fanfiction.net, I have a community of people who review my stories. Unfortunately, I have become quite accustomed to their feedback. I enjoy reading about and witnessing the investment my readers make into these characters and the way in which I have written them. Now writing for fanction.net is a sort of shortcut because often the characters and in some cases, the story lines are the creation of another. The fans come with preconceived notions and expectations. The writers can play into those or use them as a catalyst to create new things. My stories are a hybrid of these two approaches. Why did I use the word, “Unfortunately.” My dependence on feedback is sort of a crutch. I am always waiting for it and wanting it. This is not good because writing is often a lonely process. No one gets instant feedback. How will I escape? I don’t know.

Despite my little problem, I am enlarged and my horizon is broadened. For me in my typewriting, the sky is everywhere. I can continue to reach new heights.

 

 

 

Fancy That!

Fancy that! I enjoyed a fabulous week at school. I actually felt like I had the proverbial bull by the horns instead of dangling precariously from the bull while it jerked me hither and yon. What pray tell was the method to this newfound equilibrium? I don’t know, really. I can share some high points.

I run my class like a coporation. I am the CEO. On another note, I am not for those business types that have taken over education in the last 2 decades. They try to treat students like “products” and parents and students like “customers.” They also try to superimpose a business model on education and schools. In any case, in my corporation or better yet, beloved community, I am the grand puba, Mahatma, CEO, GodFather, Mother Earth type figure. I created an election for my kids in which they could run for office. The offices are President, Vice President, Secretary of State, and Parliamentarian. I let them make speeches, campaign, and then we voted. One of the girls running for parliamentarian was uneasy because her opponent seemed more popular. Though a bright boy, he got in trouble a lot more than the girl. I asked her if she thought the parliamentarian should have a problem with discipline. She said no. I encouraged her to use that in her speech. I can’t believe I was encouraging mud slinging, albeit tasteful. It worked. She won. Unfortunately, she has a problem with getting her work done. I am glad she won though. Perhaps it will inspire her. My cabinet has meetings that they take very seriously. I have taught them the to successful meetings: having an agenda and having action items. They have been very helpful to me.

I’ve love teaching as if I am making a soup instead of a plated meal. I don’t like to teach subjects in silos. I like to mix it up. It seems like some unknown force  anoints this kind of teaching because everything begins to fit together as if I planned it that way…let me tell you…I don’t…it just happens. I teach a concept and then it shows up everywhere reifying what I just taught.

I stay away from my colleagues on my grade level. I don’t know if it is a function of me being new at this school or new to teaching or if I am too much of an out of the box thinker, but I am not really accepted by the other teachers on my team. Better said, they are really just indifferent towards me. Maybe they are just tired and don’t want some upstart asking questions like I do. In any case, faculty meetings drain me of my spirit. It is like sitting in a room full of vampires, and not even the sexy ones! I Truthfully, I don’t know them and they don’t know me. I attend the obligatory meetings, but I try to keep quiet.

I stay late once a week…really late to prepare for the next week. That frees up time for the next week. I also try to grade as much as I can with the kids. This serves two purposes. 1) the kids see how they are doing and 2) I get help grading these papers. I just thought of a third 3) we practice converting fractions into decimals and then percents, their grades.

I continue to pursue my loves out side of my day to day school life, writing, reading.

Last week I was comparing my job to an abusive boyfriend who keeps me hooked by providing enough good times and also by reminding me that I need him (paycheck). On the other hand he knocks me about at will. I am getting the upperhand I think.

So Fancy that! I am happy to report that this was a fabulous week.

 

My GASM

I am forever readjusting my approach and outlook about my job, career, and vocation as a teacher. Much of my machinations rise out of my changing emotions: giddiness, elation, sadness, frustration, etc. This makes for a very unstable emotional life. However, from outward appearances, no one can tell. I am a calm, structured, and professional educator. (Cue evil laugh and tap fingers together simultaneously.) Little do they know. I am coming undone…in a good way!

I saw a quote recently and this is a paraphrase: “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf!” Look out world, this is my new mantra and yet another new found approach to my job, career, vocation: teaching. I am learning how to surf. This past week was just another roller coaster that ended on a high note. Sorry for the mixed metaphors!!! I am pleased with the community I have formed in my classroom.

I think I am very good at building excitement, for them and for myself, around what we are learning. I can’t help it because I am sort of high strung and it doesn’t take much to get me excited. I hosted a spelling bee on Friday on 4th grade “No Excuse Words.” They had 2 weeks to study the list and voila, Friday was the day. It was very official and they were so focused and excited. Even the worst spellers were doing well. They were so motivated. The concentration was thick in the room that chills ran up my spine.

I let them listen to an excerpt of Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s NPR interview on the event of her publishing, My Beloved World. This was the activating strategy before my writing lesson. She talked about how she went from a C to an A student in 5th grade and how she became a better writer in law school. They were introduced to the Ivy’s and what that means. They learned the importance of writing well. We launched into how to write an effective paragraph.

We wrote the letter explaining an upcoming project together as a class. It is my hope that they can better explain it to their parents (mostly Spanish speaking) as well as know all the details themselves.

We are having an election. The class offices are President, Vice President, Secretary of State, and Parliamentarian. Election speeches are set for the last week of this month. The election is February 1.

Each morning I read this great book, D is for Democracy: A Citizen’s Alphabet. This book is the launching pad for many of our class discussions. It helps us to look back at the seeds of democracy as we are now studying the Revolutionary War. It helps us to look forward as we move forward to the founding of the New Nation. It also give me a platform to preach about the importance of critical thinking because they are crucial to the success of our democracy. I tell them that I see a future president, senator, doctor, teacher, lawyer, sitting in the class.

When I open myself up, everything, literally, everything is fodder for a teaching moment. For example, they chuckled once when I read a book in which the pictures were caricatures. I explained that these big headed, big-earred pictures were caricatures or exaggerations of the characters’ facial features. I wrote the word on my easel and promised to bring in a caricature of myself. They were really excited about this. I just happened to have a caricature of myself from a previous job where I sat for a caricature artist at a staff festival.

Daily, these teaching moments occur and it is magical.

Another aspect of my life unrelated to teaching, helps to bolster me up to the task of what I am doing in the classroom. A balanced life allows me to be a better teacher. I enjoy writing. Now I am writing a FanFiction of ABC’s Scandal. This helps to get my creative juices flowing. I want to transition to writing a novel and this is helping me build my writing stamina. Check out my story here: Going in Circles. It helps to do something I love that has nothing to do with teaching.

At this juncture, on my Great American Scream Machine , (GASM…LOL do with that what you will!!) I am having a ball…this week!..at least) Whoop! Whoop!

Existential Angst=Joy…Would Kierkergard agree?

 

Talking myself down…

There’s this quirky thing about me. I try not to get to close to precipices, ledges, cliffs, etc. because of my fear that I might just jump off. I don’t have a death wish, but there is this thing in me that knows nothing is holding me back, so to speak. This quirk extends to other scenarios, but I don’t avoid those situations. For example, when I am in a meeting, I might imagine myself making a spectacle of some kind. I never do, of course. Weird. That’s me.

Now I am on a precipice of a different sort. The precipice is my new teaching career and I want to jump off. I continue in this loop like a skipping record:

this is so hard, I can do it, focus on the kids, just teach, do what you can do, don’t try to do everything, I am in the zone, I can’t do this, I don’t want to do this,this is so hard, I can do it, focus on the kids, just teach, do what you can do, don’t try to do everything, I am in the zone, I can’t do this, I don’t want to do this,this is so hard, I can do it, focus on the kids, just teach, do what you can do, don’t try to do everything, I am in the zone, I can’t do this, I don’t want to do this,this is so hard, I can do it, focus on the kids, just teach, do what you can do, don’t try to do everything, I am in the zone, I can’t do this, I don’t want to do this,this is so hard, I can do it, focus on the kids, just teach, do what you can do, don’t try to do everything, I am in the zone, I can’t do this, I don’t want to do this…

Shake it up, stir, and repeat…

This morning I was talking to a friend before school and I confessed that I was tired of being the one who always chose the hard road…the job no one else wanted… When I tell people, I am a teacher, most of them say, “I don’t see how you do it.” This  sometimes comes from auxiliary staff at the school. Over time my responses have varied, “Teaching is hard, but I love it” or “It takes a special person,”  or “Most folks couldn’t do this,” or “It is hard and they keep piling stuff on us.”  ”It is hard.” Many times I smile and think, “not for long.”

My desire to leap/leave teaching comes out of a deep anxiety that I will never do all that the job requires. Imagine those sticky note holders that produce a new sticky note every time you pull one out. Your job is to pull out all the sticky notes, but you have to make a quota of a certain amount per minute using one hand.  Every hour 10 new dispensers appear. This is my job. Maybe I am filling the dispensers instead of emptying them.Okay this is a bad metaphor.

I dread the job each day until I get there and have to perform. When I am in the teaching moment, I am happy and content. I dislike the lack of the time and resources to do what the job requires. Before the bell…dread…after the bell… dread.. It is crazy.

One of my supreme jobs is motivating the kids to take responsibility for their own education. For the most part, I feel like I am making some headway. There are some students with gaps in knowledge and helping them can be daunting especially due to the RTI process.

So hear I am slogging it out, alone, on my own personal precipice. Don’t get me started on the lack of a team amongst my teacher colleagues. They might have a team, but I am in a silo.

Today I did have an interesting experience. I can’t discern if it was authentic or not. I was working with a challenging student whose home life is very tragic. She is one of 9 children in a single parent family that has been very transient. She has some behavioral issues and gaps in her learning. Despite this, the student has some raw writing talent. I had purchased a journal for her, but hadn’t given it to her yet. I was working with her today and had a premonition of sorts. I felt like she was going to be okay and achieve success one day despite her obstacles. I stopped my one on one lesson with her and gave her the journal. I basically told her that she was destined for greatness and that she needed to write in her journal every day. My student’s face lit up and she kept the journal with her for the rest of the day. I felt compelled to do this.

This is outposts from my second year of teaching. I am still crawling…crawling back from the precipice. I can’t quit because things are hard. I have to continue to work outside my comfort zone. Perhaps more magic will happen now and again.

 

Ode to My Mother

Sometimes I forget the richness my mother added to my life through her creative use of words. She used the most interesting sayings to make a point. I wonder if she was trying to be a sneaky teacher, a teacher who teaches without the student knowing. My most treasured examples are.

When I was grating on her nerves…

“Girl, you would worry the horns off of a billy goat.” 

At the time, I didn’t appreciate the extreme nature of what she was saying. Given the integrity of the construction of a billy goats horns, I can’t imagine anything that would cause them to fall off. I guess I was extremely annoying with whatever I was doing at the time.

 

When I neglected to use lotion…

“Your legs (for that matter elbows, heels, face) are as dry as a powder horn.”

It wasn’t until recently that I learned the identity of a powder horn: a tool used to carry gunpowder, usually made from the horns of a cow or buffalo used mostly in eighteenth century muskets. Now that I teach fourth grade where the Revolutionary War is our focus, I came into the knowledge of this tool. My skin of my appendages…pretty dry I guess.

When I had a stray booger hanging from my nose…(as children are wont to have)

“You have a hostage in your nose.”

My husband has said this a time or two without even realizing he picked it up from me.

These images served to paint a real picture of her words. I hope I have passed on this rich way of using language to my daughter and students.

Her influence extended to math too. From as far as I can remember, she always asked me math questions at the most random times. She would always say, ” I can figure out any math problem if you give me a pencil and paper,” or “I can add or subtract, now.” This latter statement would be in response to someone or some situation in which her “figuring skills were called into question.” She would assert her authority around the fact that she could add and subtract.

As we perused the grocery story aisles, she would ask me to give her the unit price of those two for $ 1 deals or 3 for $5 deals. I used to wonder, why she was asking me. I would figure it out and she’d move on. On the paper goods aisle, she would ask me which deal was the best. As she had taught me, I would look at the square footage of the toilet tissue or paper towels and compare the price based on the amount per square footage. I am thankful for this seemingly incidental learning. It gave me the ability to think on my feet mathematically.

To this day, my mom still asks me these questions. I guess she’ll forever be the sneaky teacher and I, the willing pupil.

Thanks, Mom!

 

 

The Quintessence of Teaching

Merriam Webster’s Word of the day today is: Quintessence

1: the essence of a thing in its purest and most concentrated form

2: the most typical example or representative

Eureka! I immediately thought about my plight as a teacher. My most recent post, “Shaking the Dread,” was my song of lament about teaching. These feelings of dread usually fall upon me after a weekly PLC (professional learning community) or planning meaning. So after an extended break of holiday vacation, my first day back was full of these meetings and absent of the true planning time that I needed to input grades and prepare for my kiddos’ return. One of my gracious commenters to that post, helped me to realize that I needed to shake my focus on the margins and focus on the center, my students and what they need. My second day back when I greeted them, I got my passion back for my job, because it is all about them.

I know exactly what my students need based on what I observe from them each day. They each have varying strengths and weaknesses, idiosyncrasies, and pure genius. I can forget about the “noise” I hear from the powers that be about assessment and accountability. If I focus on that, my job is impossible.

Also, I am very anal. I love to have everything in order. Sorting things calm me so you can imagine my horror to realize that I will never be able to plan consistently like I want. I won’t ever finish everything I want to complete for each of my 24 students. However, when I am in my teaching zone and we are exploring a subject together there is an untold completeness that takes over the room. It is electric! The picture below sums it up for me. Now the trick is continuing to remind my self that this is the quintessence of teaching…the sina qua non. It is about the students and what I can do to bring a love of learning into their lives.