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CARITA GARDINER

What to Read When You're Avoiding School Work

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“Why”…Wednesdays

113. Why Selena Montgomery

Posted on March 3, 2021February 28, 2021 by caritagardiner

Now that I’ve come out about my love of romance, made a new year’s resolution to read more romance novels, and written to convince you loyal readers that you might want to join me in reading more romance (Both of those posts are linked here so that you can read the earlier posts, but I…

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112. Why Regroup

Posted on February 24, 2021February 24, 2021 by caritagardiner

Sometimes, I look at Tuukka and see a lot of human in him. At the moment I took this photo, I thought about how heavy his head must be, an idea that made me wonder if he’s going through some things. I contemplated what pups do to get over whatever causes one’s head to feel…

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111. Why Romance

Posted on February 17, 2021May 12, 2022 by caritagardiner

I’ve pasted the Google image search results for “cheesy romance novel covers” above. Notice the one in the bottom left, where Colonel Sanders stars in Wings of Desire. I wonder, why not go all the way to “hot wings and juicy thighs of desire”? I’d have to read the vegetarian version, but I Want Tofurky You might…

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110. Why It’s Never Too Late

Posted on February 10, 2021February 9, 2021 by caritagardiner

I recently got a letter in the mail that made me so happy. (Hi, AN, I’m talking about you.) It contained the words, “I wanted to shoot you a quick note (which is probably 15 years overdue) to thank you…” I never expect, require, or time notes of genuine gratitude. There’s no expiration date on…

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109. Why Yoga

Posted on February 3, 2021February 1, 2021 by caritagardiner

It’s not easy to see my legs under my dog in the photo above, but trust me when I say that I was in the pose you can see Ross Rayburn and Kristin McGee doing on the screen when Tuukka decided my lap would make a great pillow. Turns out, my lapdog, updog, and downward…

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108. Why Make a Ta-Da List

Posted on January 27, 2021January 27, 2021 by caritagardiner

I probably start as many of my posts with thoughts that come from podcasts as I do with ideas sparked by Peloton workouts, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who knows my morning routine: workout with Peloton and walk the dog with podcasts. Add in my morning shower, and you’ve described my idea-generation…

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107. Why Enough is Enough

Posted on January 20, 2021January 20, 2021 by caritagardiner

I’m writing this post, as I do all of them, in advance of its publication, just after the attempted overthrow of the government/Capitol building by pro-Trump extremists. The essay will go live on the day that’s supposed to see the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as POTUS and VPOTUS. At this moment, I…

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106. Why I Don’t Need to Hear Your Plans

Posted on January 13, 2021January 13, 2021 by caritagardiner

None of my current students read my blog, so I’m going to share a secret here that they’ll never know. I’m horrible at keeping track of late work. I’ve tried the most common policies for how to handle work that doesn’t come in on time (discounting points, not allowing revision), but honestly, I haven’t been…

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105. Why GSD

Posted on January 6, 2021January 6, 2021 by caritagardiner

I like being a student, so I’ve spent a lot of time in schools. I’ll let you guess which of the degrees listed above I have or am working on. The list comes from a career profiles website I found that offers an amazingly extensive list of the many degrees people can earn. That said,…

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104. Why I’m Done with Guilty Pleasures

Posted on December 30, 2020January 25, 2021 by caritagardiner

When I come up with the topic of a new post, if I don’t have an image in mind, I often do a quick Google image search. When I typed in “guilty pleasures,” the algorithm fed me lots of photos related to music or food, including this one from Nia Shanks’ blog for people who…

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WHAT I DO

I serve as a class dean and teach English to high schoolers at a boarding school in Connecticut. I’ve earned a Bachelor of Arts (Amherst College), an Education Master in Learning and Teaching (Harvard University Graduate School of Education), a Master of Arts in English (Bread Loaf School of English), and most recently a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with a certificate in the online teaching of writing (Southern New Hampshire University).

As a writer, I hope to capture the complexity and joy of life in the New England boarding school world. On this site, I share what I know about trying to write fiction while deaning, teaching English, coaching, and doing the other tasks associated with helping to raise over six hundred other people’s children.

WHAT I CAN DO FOR YOU

Teach                    Tutor

Revise                   Edit

Entertain             Enlighten

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Contact Me

  • cgardine@hotchkiss.org

Read my recent “Why” Wednesday Blog Posts

  • NetGalley Review of Sunny Side Up
  • 337. Why Not Fit In
  • 336. Why SFAH
  • NetGalley Review of The Ripple Effect
  • NetGalley Review of Far and Away
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