What Does a Teacher Do on a "Dangerously Cold Windchills" Day Off?

What Does a Teacher Do on a "Dangerously Cold Windchills" Day Off?

I'm up early.
The house is quiet
except for the tick and clong
of two old clocks
that are impossible to synchronize.

At my end of the couch,
I am surrounded in a bubble of warm light.
My tea steams.
I finish a book I've been meaning to read,
then flip open my computer to read blogs
and Tweet new learning.

I nearly freeze driving to school
to feed the fish
but at least the car is warm when we go out to lunch.

I set the timer and write for forty-five minutes,
just like I'll ask my students to
next time we meet.
(Tomorrow? Next week?)

I plan a writing lesson,
what we'll do next with division,
and I'll play around with a photo.
(Again, just like I'll ask my students to.)

Later, I'll go to my water aerobics class
--BRRRR--

After dinner,
I'll watch a little TV.

©Mary Lee Hahn, 2015