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Teach Me New Tricks Interruptions
LeilaI put on my painting clothes and gathered my supplies. My hair was pulled up in a wild ponytail that kept it off my neck. I had dunked the tips of my hair in paint too many times. I didn’t want to be trying to pick it out again.Today was the day. I was going to tackle the door once and for all. I hoped the paint was still good. It had been sitting in my shed for a year. I hated that I was such a procrastinator. I told myself it was because I was too busy. I was, but not that busy. I was going to kind of miss having the damn thing hanging over my head all the time.No, I wasn’t.I wanted it done so I could put the next task in that top spot of the task I procrastinated against. I wanted a new tile backsplash in my kitchen. That was going to be something that sat in that top spot for a good long while, I predicted.For now, it was the door. One mountain at a time. I carefully poured paint into the pan and dipped my roller in it. I had spent at least an hour taping around the door
Teach Me New Tricks Over The Moon
Leila“What does that mean?”“It means, I’ve wanted to check this place out because I think this is where they filmed the moon landing.”I shook my head. “What?”“You don’t actually believe Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, do you?” he asked incredulously.I burst into laughter. “Yes, I do. Why wouldn’t you believe that?”He scowled. “I think it was a hoax.”“Oh no,” I groaned. “You’re one of them.”“Them?”“The conspiracy theorists that are convinced it was a big hoax by the government?”He smiled and nodded. “I suppose I am. I’d like to see some concrete proof.”“There is video. It was recorded live.”He scoffed. “Have you seen the quality of TV from that age? Then all of a sudden, astronauts wearing giant, cumbersome suits are taking these killer pictures on the moon. The pictures are crystal-clear and quite frankly, staged.”I couldn’t help but laugh. He seemed like such a rational man. “You surprise me.”“How so?”I shrugged. “Because you seem so normal.”“I am normal.”“I’m que
Teach Me New Tricks Favoritism
ChristopherWe made our way around the center and the many interactive exhibits. I was impressed. It was well worth a visit, even if I didn’t believe half the stuff they boasted about the moon landing. It was interesting, and my lovely tour guide seemed to know a lot about all of it. It was our first real outing together.I occasionally took her hand in mine or placed my hand on the small of her back as we squeezed in front of an exhibit. It was very casual and easy, and very relaxing. It was better than any romantic dinner. I liked spending time with her and picking her brain. She was very smart. She could talk about almost anything and have value to add to the conversation.She made her way towards an area that seemed to be off the main route. There were only a handful of people standing together. It was essentially the timeout area for the tired adults who needed a minute to think without being buzzed by an excited kid.“Do you notice anything about this place?” she asked in a whis
Teach Me New Tricks Hot And Cold
ChristopherI chuckled. “It isn’t so bad. I signed up for a couple of more classes. I am officially a student again.”She bit her bottom lip. “Oh. Wow. Well, I guess I expected that.”“Would you prefer I hadn’t?” I questioned.“No! I don’t want you to not do what you want because of me.”“Look, I like you and I want to see you again, but if it makes you too uncomfortable, then I will back off. You’re sending a lot of mixed signals and to be perfectly honest, I’m old and out of practice. Maybe this is how the whole dating thing is done. I don’t know. I’m more of a guy that prefers a little more cut and dry.”“And you should,” she said, turning on the bench to look directly at me. “You should be able to expect openness and directness. I’m usually a lot more direct, but dammit, Christopher. You are really throwing a wrench in things.”I scowled. “You say that like it’s a good thing but the words, the words are not good.”She sighed, her head hanging down for a brief second before she loo
Teach Me New Tricks There For Him
LeilaI felt a little giddy. I loved the first day. The looks on the faces of most of my students told me they didn’t share that excitement. Most of them looked like they would rather be anywhere but in front of me. I was sure half of them were asleep with their eyes open.I already missed Christopher. He had been such a joy to have in class. He was the ideal student for a professor to have. I loved how engaged he had been and how he had been able to actually have a conversation about the subject matter. I missed him.I glanced down at my watch and cringed. I had done it again. There was so much I wanted to get out and it just never seemed to fit into my class time. No matter how many times I tweaked the first lecture, I was always running short on time. I could talk for hours.“Thank you everyone,” I said clapping my hands together. “Some advice that I know past students would pass on to you is read the syllabus. Pay attention. Read. The. Material.”I didn’t feel like they were liste
Teach Me New Tricks Hiding From the Dean
LeilaI slowly nodded. “Because of things that have recently happened?” I asked softly.His soft, yet sad smile made me want to hug him. “Yes.”“I think that’s smart,” I told him honestly. “I think knowledge is truly power. I love to read and read and read. I’m not all about Greek mythology. I love just about anything. I just love to fill my head with knowledge.”“If more people read instead of playing video games, I would feel much more confident about the future of our species,” he quipped.I giggled almost choking on the bite of the sandwich. “We sound like snobs.”He was unapologetic. “I don’t think it’s snobbish to want more for our future generations. I remember when Olin was maybe ten. He wanted an iPad and a new Xbox and new headphones. I was making good money and I found myself in line at Target with everything he asked for. I looked over at the next line and saw a little kid in a cart, headphones on and playing on a tablet. His mom had a Bluetooth piece in her ear and her ph
Teach Me New Tricks Cooking Together
ChristopherI pulled into the garage and noticed the empty spot. I checked the time. Olin said he would be home right after school. I wasn’t going to panic and start blowing up his phone. I’d give him a few minutes to check in before I hunted him down. I was desperately trying to take a soft approach to parenting, but it went against every fiber of my being.I was used to being in control. Olin was a smart kid and I had to trust him. Giving him the car was the first step towards showing him I did trust him. I got out of the car and was just to the door when I heard the garage door opening.I watched Olin pull the new Nissan Maxima into the garage. “Were you waiting for me?” he asked as he climbed out.I smirked. “No, I just got home. I trust you.”He gave me a look. “Sure, you do.”“How was school?”He shrugged. “Boring.”We walked into the kitchen together. He immediately went for the fridge. “Did you turn in that report that was due?”“Of course.”I chuckled at his confidence. “It w
Teach Me New Tricks Tricks in the Kitchen
Christopher“About my weight?”“Yeah. Mom said you could eat all day and not gain any weight.”I smiled. “Your mom was being kind. She packed me lunches that were very light. I worked out like a dog.”“But you don’t now,” he reminded me.I sighed. “I will. I have the treadmill. I’m going to start using it.”“You said that months ago.”“But this time I’m serious.”He cocked his head to the side. “Why? Trying to impress a woman?”I shrugged. “Maybe. I like feeling good. We could turn one of the rooms into a gym.”He shrugged. “That’d be cool. I’ll need to start working out to get ready for baseball tryouts. I’ve gotten a little soft.”“Eat like that all the time and you’ll be a lot softer.”“Ha. Ha. I’m a growing boy. I need to eat.”I dumped some flour into a bowl. “You’re growing all right, but you might not be growing upwards.”He smirked, stuffing another bite into his mouth, clearly not bothered by my comment. I liked that we could tease each other. It had been a long time since we
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