Highlights:
Happy Crappy Gluten Day– Break out the lab coats and clipboards!  It was experiment day at the Eureka lab of allergy studies. For one day I ate only bread and pasta to see if gluten was the true source of my horrible sinus headaches and energy-sapping fatigue.  Oy!  Yep, gluten is not my friend. 

Health Hallelujah–  It’s been freakin’ awesome being healthy for weeks on end.  I’ve been parenting, subbing, writing, cleaning, and just generally enjoying life headache-free with plenty of energy. I don’t miss bread or pasta at all. My allergy shots have been quite effective in this high pollen season too.  Yay!

Non-Fiction Books Finished:
Republican Gomorrah: Inside The Movement That Shattered The Party, by Max Blumenthal (*** 1/2) – An interesting look at the key players and events that led to the Christian Right’s ascension into the political mainstream.  [Adult Non-Fiction]

Movies:
Whip It (****) – A rural Texan high school girl trying to escape the pageant circuit is drawn to the rough and tumble world of Austin roller derby.

I really liked this movie. The roller derby plot was engrossing– though it was more an entertaining slice-of-life film than the zany comedy it’s marketed as. It was great fun watching a group women having a good time and bonding together for their own goals.  I also liked that the romance was only one part of the heroine’s life, not her whole storyline and future. I hope Drew Barrymore directs a lot more movies if they’re all this good.

Fried Green Tomatoes (****) – Rewatched this one night and still loved it.

TV- Top 5 Favorites of the Month (In A,B,C Order)

Better Off Ted – Netflix said I’d enjoy this show because I liked Arrested Development and News Radio.  Apparently Netflix is very wise because this comedy has the silly deadpan humor of Arrested Development taking place at the fictional multi-national research corporation Veridion. The pilot was only pleasant, but by episode four everything gels together and becomes laugh aloud funny .  [The entire 13-episode first season is on Netflix Instant]

Doctor Who– So far I like eleven and his companion Amy Pond.

Fringe– Like eyeballs floating to the surface of a lab stove pot, things are reaching the boiling point on Fringe and it’s mighty satisfying.  (It wouldn’t be Fringe if there wasn’t some amusingly gross reference, now would it?)

Parenthood– Winston Churchill once said, "You can always count on Americans to do the right thing — after they’ve tried everything else."  That seems to be the secret motto of each episode on the new show Parenthood. I have a love-hate relationship with this show.  The Braverman family is a little intense for me and their constant togetherness makes me wonder how these characters have any time to work — let alone read a book, perhaps on parenting. 

On the other hand, it’s nice to see Peter Krause (Nate from Six Feet Under) and Lauren Graham (Lorelei from Gilmore Girls) on TV again.  The rest of the cast is just as good and the storylines tend to be fun. Show runner Jason Katims has a child with Asperger’s Syndrome and it  shows in the accurate details of Max Braverman’s life.

Supernatural – I’m enjoying the build up to the big season five finale where I fully expect the writers to pull out my heart and crush it once again this season. 

Sub Jobs:
1 day – Field trip with 2nd grade class at my usual school
1 day – Media Center Specialist at my usual school
1/2 day – 1st grade reading teacher