The Miss Dennis School of Writing (R)

ALICE STEINBACH
journal of descriptions of this week's sightings on the way to school:

November 12
- saw a black cat with a white nose and paws lying on top of a blue convertible
- sunbeams shining in through the bus windows, reflecting off the dust in the air
- three brick fronted houses with black shutters in a row
- an old man in a red bathrobe picking up the newspaper off his driveway
- overgrown bushes, pushing past their reasonable limits and invading the rest of the yard

November 13
- white patio on which germaniums were planted in various sized pots
- woman wearing all black running gear, jogging to the beat coming from her headphones
- a mother walking a little boy in blue jeans and a red sweater to school
- a brick front house with green grass; the next door neighbors with brown grass
- sunshine falling in pools on the sidewalks, blocked in sections by trees and houses

November 14
- two large, brown dogs sleeping lazily under a large oak tree
- three young sisters wearing matching gingham dresses, smiling and their picture taken by their mother
- the houses’ chimneys alternated between the left and right sides of the houses
- ominous dark gray clouds hovering above the town
- the same old man picking his newspaper up from his driveway, though today he’s wearing a blue robe

November 15
- rain running down in streaks on the window panes of the bus
- few people outside; those who are carry large umbrellas in various colors and are hurrying down the street
- flowers in window boxes thirstily absorbing as much rain as possible
- three cats (one white, one orange striped, and one tabby) taking cover under a car
- young man struggling to close the top of his expensive convertible to protect it from the rain

November 16
- sun shining again after the heavy rain yesterday
- two middle-aged women out for a run together are trying to make conversation, but are struggling to breathe
- more cats than usual are outside; several dogs are also outside and tied to trees in front of various houses
- rainbow shining on the left side of the bus
- little girl and her mother are holding hands and wearing mother/daughter green dresses skipping down the street on their way to the preschool around the block

Steinbach, Alice. "The Miss Dennis School of Writing." The Norton Sampler. 6th. New York, NY: Norton & Company, 2003. Print.