Today's the third annual Friendsgiving, a Thanksgiving-like pre-Thanksgiving event for a bunch of people who like each other; hence, Friendsgiving. Thanksgiving's always been my favorite holiday so I'm more than happy to celebrate it twice a year. The first two Friendsgivings took place at my house, but because in the spring I traded my room in a cavernous and amply chandeliered group rowhouse for cozier and warmer digs, the honor of hosting this year falls to two friends who're renting an entire lovely house for themselves up in Pleasant Plains. Sweet.
So much for traditions; recent novelties include starting a new job, about which more another time, but basically, I love it; and getting a lesson plan published in Don't Forget to Write, the second volume of lesson plans from 826. The lesson plan, "Busted," aims to make storytellers out of middle schoolers by having them write about a time they got caught doing something they shouldn't have been doing--a theme first cooked up by the folks who led the Get Used to the Seats book project. I wrote about leading the workshops that ultimately became the "Busted" lesson plan more than a year ago--right around the previous Friendsgiving. Hard to believe it's been that long!