The Writer Writes

After taking time away from the friend (and foe) my almighty computer for the better part of a month an a half, I still found myself writing, armed with pen and paper in hand (something that I am never without). I am writing a book -- well actually, a novel (of all the hair-brained ideas -- yes I know what you’re thinking). So even when you don’t write, you write. It may be in your head, it might be in your dreams -- I daydream in the shower, on occasion. But never the less when you write, wow do you write (I am starting to think it’s an illness).

As of late, my daughter has caught the bug of writing, making up stories about her favorite things and writing for assignments at school. She is in the fourth grade this year and writing becomes a major part of that grade’s homework makeup, not only in English (Language Arts as they call it now) but also in mathematics, which I found a little unusual to say the least. You now have to write your process for logic in math. Things have changed since I was in school. I wonder if it’s for the better.

The latest project of writing -- something she does every week -- is to use her spelling words to write a story. They receive 20 standard spelling words for the week and 5 additional challenge words. This past week had the word eerie. Eerie is a great word with Halloween just around the corner, it draws up all kinds of interesting images that I could write about. However, we live in Pennsylvania, we have a town called Erie, this was the definition my daughter equated with eerie… It became a place not a feeling. I had to laugh when she wrote in her story that the Tiger had gone to Eerie. I guess definitions aren’t part of the curriculum accompanying spelling words these days.

All that aside, I think that Erie should change their name for the Halloween holiday, just for fun. Wouldn’t that be a blast. Then we really could go to an Eerie Erie.