Thursday, August 16, 2007
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
New Project
I've lived in this cute apartment for a year and a half. It has frame moldings on the walls, but everything is white. I told myself that this summer I would try to do some painting.
After loving the Whitsunday Islands, I decided to use that vivid aqua as my main color. I had been thinking about a yellow and a red for trims, but they didn't seem quite right when I played with the preview tool online.
This afternoon I returned to Home Depot (I'd been there, scouting, a couple times before) and bought paint (a pretty near match to the color above, named Mermaid Treasure) and supplies!
So here is what I need to do, in order. [New teachers, this is what educrats call a narrative procedure; you will see it on your standards lists! :)]
First, take down fairy lights and other things on the walls--DONE
Second, move furniture away from walls--DONE!
Tape the edges of the frames (god, that's going to take forever)--DONE!!!!!
Fill and sand nail holes--DONE!
As well as look for and sand any random rough/sticky-out bits.--DONE!
Be sure to wash the walls-they're dusty!--DONE!
Before opening the paint, put down drop cloths--Easy done
Carefully and tediously cut in edges of all frames (also going to take forever)(but I'm really good at it)--DONE!
Finally, paint inside frames with rollers!--ALL DONE!! WOO!!
Stand back, tilt my head, think about whether I should use another color for trim
And of course, take pictures at every stage. Naturally.
Wish me luck, folks. I'll try to update as I progress through my long list.
It is 4.42 in the morning!
It's been over a week now since my return to the States. I figured I would be jetlagged, but this is ridiculous. Every other night I crash for twelve to fourteen hours, and the in-between nights I can't sleep.
Last night I tried to go to bed at 12.30, but got up at 1.15. Back to bed at 3, brain started thinking about school, probably drifted off close to five. Alarm at 9.45 to move the car.
I did not go back to bed after this, thinking that missing out on sleep like that would tucker me out for the next night.
But I easily stayed up until three this morning, polishing off TWO chick-lit novels. After a shower and some flickr, I'm feeling more tired, but not sleepy.
Oh, and also? Four or five days before leaving Australia, my lower left eyelid developed a twitch. It got worse as our departure date came closer, and it was especially bad on the plane day home, but after my complete return it subsided. It flared once or maybe twice a day, and I thought it was gone. Ho, no siree. That twitch has been acting up a lot in the last day or two. And it's freaky. I can feel and also see it; it impedes my vision from the bottom up. It's like an involuntary upside down stuttering wink, sometimes for almost ten seconds at a time.
What the hell, dudes? I can't sleep and my FACE is TWITCHING. I'm a freak!
Last night I tried to go to bed at 12.30, but got up at 1.15. Back to bed at 3, brain started thinking about school, probably drifted off close to five. Alarm at 9.45 to move the car.
I did not go back to bed after this, thinking that missing out on sleep like that would tucker me out for the next night.
But I easily stayed up until three this morning, polishing off TWO chick-lit novels. After a shower and some flickr, I'm feeling more tired, but not sleepy.
Oh, and also? Four or five days before leaving Australia, my lower left eyelid developed a twitch. It got worse as our departure date came closer, and it was especially bad on the plane day home, but after my complete return it subsided. It flared once or maybe twice a day, and I thought it was gone. Ho, no siree. That twitch has been acting up a lot in the last day or two. And it's freaky. I can feel and also see it; it impedes my vision from the bottom up. It's like an involuntary upside down stuttering wink, sometimes for almost ten seconds at a time.
What the hell, dudes? I can't sleep and my FACE is TWITCHING. I'm a freak!
Monday, August 13, 2007
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Friday, August 10, 2007
For Shame!
I saw on a random blog today that this is Blog Against Racism week.
Oh, the irony.
Now, I've only been in New York since 2004, but it didn't take me long to figure out that the Post and Daily News were disgustingly sensationalistic excuses for newspapers. But apparently I underestimated them--the Post is also openly racist. Not surprised? Yeah, me neither. Still disgusted? Yep, me too.
I'm not the most informed of citizens (too much of the news is sensationalized, silly [Lohan and Hilton escapades?], or too upsetting [our President?]), and I'm not the most articulate writer, so I apologize for my bumbling efforts, but even I can't ignore this.
The Post has published two very racist, name-calling articles about the woman trying to open the Khalil Gibran school in Brooklyn.
"Almontaser, a community activist and Muslim, has said the new grade 6-12 public school will be modeled on other dual-language city schools and have no religious component."
"Intifada is a war. Isn't that what Arafat had?" said Pamela Hall, a Manhattan mom opposed to the academy on the grounds that it violates separation of church and state."
So many things wrong in just these two sentences. First, calling her a community activist but then basically qualifying it by referencing her religion and cultural background? This reporter has taken an innocent direct quote from Almontaser, but by invoking Muslim as basically a racial epithet, implies that she cannot be trusted and is wrong or lying.
For who is a better judge and expert on Middle East troubles than narrow-minded Manhattan moms who clearly can't read?
So naturally, the next step is to actually call the educator and activist the 'Intifada Principal.' Read on into the article, and the controversial t-shirts,
"were being sold by an Arab activist group headquartered in the same storefront as a Yemeni-American association that Almontaser heads."
So what exactly did she do to 'earn' this slur? Merely be of Middle-Eastern descent and work NEAR another Middle-Eastern group. Propinquity now determines guilt?
An established educator has been working for years to get this school going, a school that would TEACH future generations about different and foreign cultures and ways of thinking (has that reporter ever even read any Khalil Gibran? Read before you throw stones, please), which, one hopes, would help those future generations to be more accepting and open-minded; instead, the racism she's trying to overcome is thrown right back in her face.
I am literally trembling with anger and disgust. These stories make me sick to my stomach.
SHAME on you, NYPost. SHAME on you, anyone who fell for this racist claptrap.
Something needs to be done about this all-too-pervasive attitude, in New York City and in the United States in general. You know what's 'revolting,' Post? Your small-minded tabloid attitude and its 'tenuous' grasp of ethics and cultural acceptance. Shame on you.
Oh, the irony.
Now, I've only been in New York since 2004, but it didn't take me long to figure out that the Post and Daily News were disgustingly sensationalistic excuses for newspapers. But apparently I underestimated them--the Post is also openly racist. Not surprised? Yeah, me neither. Still disgusted? Yep, me too.
I'm not the most informed of citizens (too much of the news is sensationalized, silly [Lohan and Hilton escapades?], or too upsetting [our President?]), and I'm not the most articulate writer, so I apologize for my bumbling efforts, but even I can't ignore this.
The Post has published two very racist, name-calling articles about the woman trying to open the Khalil Gibran school in Brooklyn.
"Almontaser, a community activist and Muslim, has said the new grade 6-12 public school will be modeled on other dual-language city schools and have no religious component."
"Intifada is a war. Isn't that what Arafat had?" said Pamela Hall, a Manhattan mom opposed to the academy on the grounds that it violates separation of church and state."
So many things wrong in just these two sentences. First, calling her a community activist but then basically qualifying it by referencing her religion and cultural background? This reporter has taken an innocent direct quote from Almontaser, but by invoking Muslim as basically a racial epithet, implies that she cannot be trusted and is wrong or lying.
For who is a better judge and expert on Middle East troubles than narrow-minded Manhattan moms who clearly can't read?
So naturally, the next step is to actually call the educator and activist the 'Intifada Principal.' Read on into the article, and the controversial t-shirts,
"were being sold by an Arab activist group headquartered in the same storefront as a Yemeni-American association that Almontaser heads."
So what exactly did she do to 'earn' this slur? Merely be of Middle-Eastern descent and work NEAR another Middle-Eastern group. Propinquity now determines guilt?
An established educator has been working for years to get this school going, a school that would TEACH future generations about different and foreign cultures and ways of thinking (has that reporter ever even read any Khalil Gibran? Read before you throw stones, please), which, one hopes, would help those future generations to be more accepting and open-minded; instead, the racism she's trying to overcome is thrown right back in her face.
I am literally trembling with anger and disgust. These stories make me sick to my stomach.
SHAME on you, NYPost. SHAME on you, anyone who fell for this racist claptrap.
Something needs to be done about this all-too-pervasive attitude, in New York City and in the United States in general. You know what's 'revolting,' Post? Your small-minded tabloid attitude and its 'tenuous' grasp of ethics and cultural acceptance. Shame on you.
Thursday, August 09, 2007
That was easy
Yesterday I was very productive, so I was worried about today. What would I do to keep myself busy and entertained?
Silly me!
I slept for fourteen hours for the second time this week, so basically, my day was over when I woke up! Awesome!
Yesterday, besides finishing Harry Potter, I did laundry, got my eyebrows done (phew! so much better!), worked out, procured some groceries, and of course, uploaded photos. I felt really good about Getting Things Done, especially as it was So Bloody Humid.
During the night (erm, I mean, during the day, apparently), while asleep, I could feel the difference in the weather--still hot but not sticky and humid anymore, thank god. I had thoughts about going for a walk in the evening sun, but obviously that didn't happen; it's dark now.
Silly me!
I slept for fourteen hours for the second time this week, so basically, my day was over when I woke up! Awesome!
Yesterday, besides finishing Harry Potter, I did laundry, got my eyebrows done (phew! so much better!), worked out, procured some groceries, and of course, uploaded photos. I felt really good about Getting Things Done, especially as it was So Bloody Humid.
During the night (erm, I mean, during the day, apparently), while asleep, I could feel the difference in the weather--still hot but not sticky and humid anymore, thank god. I had thoughts about going for a walk in the evening sun, but obviously that didn't happen; it's dark now.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
The Last
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released July 21st, while I was in Australia. So my first glimpse of the book happened in the Brisbane airport on the 22nd, and I was excited--finally! it's here!--but also sad and disappointed--I didn't want to buy it right away. They were charging AUD$45 and it was a heavy hardcover, so I told myself I just had to wait.
The night I got back to the US, Boyfriend lent me his copy. With the return errands and sleeping, I began reading it Monday night and finished it this afternoon.
Oh. My. Goodness.
On Tuesday, I read until the twenty-first chapter, and holy cow it was like an action film--packed with suspense so that I rather felt on the edge of my seat.
Today I picked it up again and DAMN! I had to read the entire rest of the book. There was really no choice; it was impossible to put it down. She really packed so very much into one book, and in under 800 pages!
The emotional turmoil started much earlier in this one than in five and six, but I guess that's what has to happen in the final installment. There were lots of tears and anguish (ha--from the characters and from me), but I was happy with the way everything wrapped up.
Wow.
Recovery and Readjustment
Returning from a big trip is always a letdown. Sure, you get to sleep in your own bed and you don't have to live in the same three outfits anymore. Sleep cycles are disrupted, of course, but it's bigger than that.
A long time ago, I wrote in a trip journal about how it feels. It's like the normal world is one of those wooden toy boards with different shaped holes in, and each person is a peg that has to fit in their own slot in the board. When you go on a big trip, you do all these new things, you see who you are without the creature comforts of everyday unchallenging life. You grow new bits and pieces, you expand and feel an awakening of the possibilities.
Upon your return, the hammer of life tries to force your now-explanded shape back into your slot. It's uncomfortable, because you've got new things about you that the normal world doesn't care about, wants to eliminate, wants to get you back, complacent with dullness. And eventually, you can't resist and succumb; sliding back into your place.
You never get back to complete normal, though; the scars of your experiences remain as a testament to the new growth that you sought. Sometimes those scars fade until you barely remember them; other times they scab and bleed and they're all you think about. Or they seem to have healed, but flare up and remind you--hey! over here! look what you've done! look what you're capable of! normal life doesn't have to be the end-all be-all!
It's disappointing because other people can never really understand the change that you go through. Too many people never travel; worse, too many people never *want* to go anywhere. And let alone going anywhere alone! If you are lucky enough to go somewhere with other people, you'll share that bond, that brotherhood, forever. You got to see and grow and wonder together, and you'll all understand the difficulty of returning home after an amazing new experience. Most of all, those fellow travelers understand the pull of wanderlust.
You have changed, but when you get home, nothing has changed. Your room is still messy and the city is still dingy. You still have to do the shopping and the dishes and go to bed at a reasonable time. You still have to make small talk and condense your adventure into twenty interesting, yet nonthreatening, words. The alarm in the morning doesn't signal the start of another adventure; it signals Just Another Regular Day. Not something to be looked forward to, not something to document with photos and an internal narrative, not something that holds the potential of New and Different and Exciting.
A long time ago, I wrote in a trip journal about how it feels. It's like the normal world is one of those wooden toy boards with different shaped holes in, and each person is a peg that has to fit in their own slot in the board. When you go on a big trip, you do all these new things, you see who you are without the creature comforts of everyday unchallenging life. You grow new bits and pieces, you expand and feel an awakening of the possibilities.
Upon your return, the hammer of life tries to force your now-explanded shape back into your slot. It's uncomfortable, because you've got new things about you that the normal world doesn't care about, wants to eliminate, wants to get you back, complacent with dullness. And eventually, you can't resist and succumb; sliding back into your place.
You never get back to complete normal, though; the scars of your experiences remain as a testament to the new growth that you sought. Sometimes those scars fade until you barely remember them; other times they scab and bleed and they're all you think about. Or they seem to have healed, but flare up and remind you--hey! over here! look what you've done! look what you're capable of! normal life doesn't have to be the end-all be-all!
It's disappointing because other people can never really understand the change that you go through. Too many people never travel; worse, too many people never *want* to go anywhere. And let alone going anywhere alone! If you are lucky enough to go somewhere with other people, you'll share that bond, that brotherhood, forever. You got to see and grow and wonder together, and you'll all understand the difficulty of returning home after an amazing new experience. Most of all, those fellow travelers understand the pull of wanderlust.
You have changed, but when you get home, nothing has changed. Your room is still messy and the city is still dingy. You still have to do the shopping and the dishes and go to bed at a reasonable time. You still have to make small talk and condense your adventure into twenty interesting, yet nonthreatening, words. The alarm in the morning doesn't signal the start of another adventure; it signals Just Another Regular Day. Not something to be looked forward to, not something to document with photos and an internal narrative, not something that holds the potential of New and Different and Exciting.
Monday, August 06, 2007
Ha! Awesome!
I stayed up until 2.30 last night/this morning, fiddling around on the computer and watching tv. I was fairly sleepy before that; I was just being a lazy stubborn night owl. So with the jet lag and stuff, I figured I might sleep until ten or maybe twelve.
I forced open my eyes after a nice sleep, and checked out the time. I did a double-take squint--it said 4.45pm!
Fourteen hours on my first night back. Wow. I feel a bit swollen and achy, especially in my hands and back. And my throat hurts (but that's been there for awhile already. Also a little restless and lost, as the day is fairly much over by now and I haven't done anything on my prioritous list.
Just now the photos have finally finished uploading, and the final tally is...da da dum...2,033!
I forced open my eyes after a nice sleep, and checked out the time. I did a double-take squint--it said 4.45pm!
Fourteen hours on my first night back. Wow. I feel a bit swollen and achy, especially in my hands and back. And my throat hurts (but that's been there for awhile already. Also a little restless and lost, as the day is fairly much over by now and I haven't done anything on my prioritous list.
Just now the photos have finally finished uploading, and the final tally is...da da dum...2,033!
Sunday, August 05, 2007
The Return!
I tried to post a hello yesterday (the day before?), but it didn't work.
Right now it's half-past midnight. The longest day of my life is ending: awake at 6am on Sunday morning, boarding a plane at 11am, traveling for a full twenty-four hours, then doing the arrival business (bags, car, settling in). Going to bed after midnight, still on Sunday.
That makes a thirty-four hour day! Those of you/us who declare there needs to be more hours in a day, I found the solution--travel eastbound across the international date line!
So our Australian Adventure has come to an end. After three weeks, it's kind of a shock to come to a standstill, after moving every one or two days, living out of my silver suitcase (very proud of myself for that), seeing all new terrain every single day. Now we're back to the daily grind of humidity and preparing for the school year.
I haven't really mentioned much of what we did, but right now I have to gush about two standout places: the Outback--wide open spaces with a harse and spare beauty unlike anything I've ever seen; and the Whitsunday Islands/Great Barrier Reef--the most amazing blue water and glorious flora and fauna. I already miss them both and very much hope I get to return.
There are so many things I need to do right away, but I began with a quick mail sort, booting up my computer, tossing together laundry for tomorrow, and best of all, a shower. Ah, that felt great. Nothing like a shower in your own place after a long time away. For the last thirty minutes or so, I've been going through email and uploading photos (come on, you knew I was gonna do that straight away).
I'm hungry; I'm not sure if I've had a full proper meal today. Qantas had some meals on the plane from Brisbane to LA, but I really couldn't tell you how long ago that was. Possibly yesterday, technically.
Tomorrow I have a lot to do to catch up with normal life again: laundry of course, an eyebrow wax (holy crap! the sun down under must have spurred their growth!), opening mail, balancing my checkbook (ie, figuring out how much money I did actually spend), finish uploading photos, go food shopping (I seem to have a lot of frozen desserts, and cheese.), get the disposable camera developed (an underwater camera from the Great Barrier Reef! Those will be some hilarious self-portraits, and I hope the sea turtle picture came out), SLEEP, eat, begin catching up on recorded television, start reading Harry Potter #7 (eee!!!), and attempt to catch up on blogs and flickr.
Phew.
Right now it's half-past midnight. The longest day of my life is ending: awake at 6am on Sunday morning, boarding a plane at 11am, traveling for a full twenty-four hours, then doing the arrival business (bags, car, settling in). Going to bed after midnight, still on Sunday.
That makes a thirty-four hour day! Those of you/us who declare there needs to be more hours in a day, I found the solution--travel eastbound across the international date line!
So our Australian Adventure has come to an end. After three weeks, it's kind of a shock to come to a standstill, after moving every one or two days, living out of my silver suitcase (very proud of myself for that), seeing all new terrain every single day. Now we're back to the daily grind of humidity and preparing for the school year.
I haven't really mentioned much of what we did, but right now I have to gush about two standout places: the Outback--wide open spaces with a harse and spare beauty unlike anything I've ever seen; and the Whitsunday Islands/Great Barrier Reef--the most amazing blue water and glorious flora and fauna. I already miss them both and very much hope I get to return.
There are so many things I need to do right away, but I began with a quick mail sort, booting up my computer, tossing together laundry for tomorrow, and best of all, a shower. Ah, that felt great. Nothing like a shower in your own place after a long time away. For the last thirty minutes or so, I've been going through email and uploading photos (come on, you knew I was gonna do that straight away).
I'm hungry; I'm not sure if I've had a full proper meal today. Qantas had some meals on the plane from Brisbane to LA, but I really couldn't tell you how long ago that was. Possibly yesterday, technically.
Tomorrow I have a lot to do to catch up with normal life again: laundry of course, an eyebrow wax (holy crap! the sun down under must have spurred their growth!), opening mail, balancing my checkbook (ie, figuring out how much money I did actually spend), finish uploading photos, go food shopping (I seem to have a lot of frozen desserts, and cheese.), get the disposable camera developed (an underwater camera from the Great Barrier Reef! Those will be some hilarious self-portraits, and I hope the sea turtle picture came out), SLEEP, eat, begin catching up on recorded television, start reading Harry Potter #7 (eee!!!), and attempt to catch up on blogs and flickr.
Phew.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Cheers!
I'm at the public library in Charters Towers, Queensland (the Sunshine State!), the first opportunity I've had to grab some internet time. So far Australia is fantastic and I love it. The first two days in Sydney were awesome and now we're in the Outback! The people are great and the scenery is really interesting. I'm taking photos and working on postcards. Can't wait to share more here when I get back!
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Heading Down Under
Get it? Upside down? Australia? Get it?? Ha!
And this is me *before* jet lag. Sigh.
I need to leave my apartment in 2 1/2 hours, so naturally my first step after a shower was my self-portrait, and then uploading it. But now I'm going to go finish packing, I promise.
I shall do my best to keep up the self-portraits on my trip, but no promises, I guess. And I'll bring my cable, so I might be able to upload while I'm away. I"m pretty sure there will be some time for quick blogging and mass emailing. Otherwise, see you all in three weeks! Take care and look for postcards!
And this is me *before* jet lag. Sigh.
I need to leave my apartment in 2 1/2 hours, so naturally my first step after a shower was my self-portrait, and then uploading it. But now I'm going to go finish packing, I promise.
I shall do my best to keep up the self-portraits on my trip, but no promises, I guess. And I'll bring my cable, so I might be able to upload while I'm away. I"m pretty sure there will be some time for quick blogging and mass emailing. Otherwise, see you all in three weeks! Take care and look for postcards!
Monday, July 16, 2007
Update and Stuff
Okay folks, I need to leave my apartment in 23 hours, and I'm so not done.
Things I got done so far? Contacts, table, charge iPod. AND I found the adaptor plug I was looking for! It was 'hiding' on my floor in almost clear sight. Still no luck on finding the official journal, however. I have begun packing, and have most of the stuff taken care of--toiletries, vitamins, wallet stuff. Clothes, not so much. I've pulled two pairs of trousers and a couple shirts and one dress out of the closet, but I need to decide for sure and then make sure everything will fit in my not-very-big suitcase.
Things I will almost surely do today: eyebrows, library, read HP6 (halfway through now), freak out
Things that will most likely fall by the wayside: all cleaning and tidying
Things I got done so far? Contacts, table, charge iPod. AND I found the adaptor plug I was looking for! It was 'hiding' on my floor in almost clear sight. Still no luck on finding the official journal, however. I have begun packing, and have most of the stuff taken care of--toiletries, vitamins, wallet stuff. Clothes, not so much. I've pulled two pairs of trousers and a couple shirts and one dress out of the closet, but I need to decide for sure and then make sure everything will fit in my not-very-big suitcase.
Things I will almost surely do today: eyebrows, library, read HP6 (halfway through now), freak out
Things that will most likely fall by the wayside: all cleaning and tidying
Sunday, July 15, 2007
There is *nothing*...
...cuter than a handful of baby kitties playing and exploring and scampering.
Squee!!
Squee!!
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Caution!
"You are cautioned that any changes or modifications not expressly approved in this manual could void your authority to operate this equipment."
--'operating instructions' pamphlet for Sony Memory Stick Pro Duo
I think I need to adapt this sign for use in my classroom.
--'operating instructions' pamphlet for Sony Memory Stick Pro Duo
I think I need to adapt this sign for use in my classroom.
Lists and Worries
I leave on Tuesday afternoon to go to Australia for three weeks.
List of things to do, not involving packing:
Things I'm worried about:
List of things to do, not involving packing:
- Return library books
- Finish Harry Potter #6
- Get eyebrows done
- Pick up contacts
- Get table out of car and put together
- Find official trip journal (hopefully it's in the car!)
- Find the other plug for my adaptor (I had it three months ago! It's gotta be here, somewhere!)
- Finish packing list
- Try not to freak out
- Start actually packing
- Take out trash
- Clean out fridge so it doesn't smell later
- Tidy my apartment so I can come home feeling happy
- Make some playlists on the iPod
- Charge the phone and iPod
- Laundry
Things I'm worried about:
- jet lag! We fly to LA first, which is five hours, and then go to Sydney, which is SEVENTEEN HOURS
- eating enough
- being a mature, responsible adult for three weeks straight while surrounded by middle schoolers (ie, not being immature, whiny, or too teacherish)
- getting enough rest
- packing just right (I usually tend toward underpacking, because I'm all about easy and comfortable, but three weeks is three times longer than the trips I usually take and pack for)
- taking pictures (I have a spare battery and two 4GB memory cards, but I'm terrified I'll forget/lose/run of space or something)
- keeping iPod charged
- finding interesting souvenirs for friends and family (kind of silly, I know, but still, there you go)
- not spending much money, because money is already a bit tight this summer (but come on, when will I be back in Australia? I don't want to deny myself something interesting because I'm too damn frugal for my own good)
- possibly not being able to email or update blog/flickr
- still taking self-portraits for three weeks, without uploading
- having to hand-write a journal, which I'm so out of practice with
- seeming like a nice, normal American in front of the awesome Aussies
- trying not to pick up the accent
- reading time
- not getting spoiled for HP #7
PS--Seriously? I have come back and edited these lists AT LEAST ten times already. I'll probably do more later, too, as I think of things.
PPS--Who wants a postcard?? You know you do. Email me your address and I'll send you one from Down Under! (Does that get capitalized? Hm.)
Friday, July 13, 2007
teacher gathering!
This Friday, July 13th, meet us at 6pm, on the Great Lawn, closest to the Delacorte Theatre. Enter the park at 5th and 79th or 81st and CPW. Bring a snack.
See you there! (We'll make a sign or something so you can find us on the lawn.)
!!UPDATE: RAIN LOCATION!!
Emerald Inn
205 Columbus Ave Apt 4B
(between 69th St & 70th St)
(this will stay up top til Friday)
See you there! (We'll make a sign or something so you can find us on the lawn.)
!!UPDATE: RAIN LOCATION!!
Emerald Inn
205 Columbus Ave Apt 4B
(between 69th St & 70th St)
(this will stay up top til Friday)
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Mystery Drink
From Wednesday through Saturday, Boyfriend and I went on a road trip to visit Maryland and Virginia. In Maryland, we visited Perry Point and Havre de Grace to relive and reflect on some five-year-old AmeriCorps memories. One of the places I did not revisit on this trip was the Rendez-Vous Inn, a local bar within walking distance of the Point (meaning we could walk there!).
Last time I was in the area was three summers ago, 2004, with some friends from another team, and we did go to the Vous. That time, I finally got a recipe (or at least ingredients) for my favorite drink that apparently someone there made up. And for the last week, I canNOT for the life of me remember what it was called. But here are my notes for what's in it, so I have a record:
amaretto
melon
raz/chambord
splash of cran
sour
Doesn't that sound yummy? Does ANYONE remember the freaking name of this drink?! I hate getting old!
These notes were in a wee notebook I used to carry around. It's a little book I bought at the Louvre, a picture of Nike (winged victory, not a shoe) on the front, with a matching pen that fits in. I kept all kinds of notes in this book, and it's funny to look at them years later, wondering about some of it. I used to keep track of gas mileage; books that I found in stores that looked interesting yet that I could not afford; random notes to myself' lists of games, movies, people, groceries; directions to all kinds of places, like job interviews and friends' houses; people's phone numbers; a random note in Latin (in someone else's handwriting; I don't know Latin); Boggle games; expenses. Here's a couple pages where I tried to list all 50 states and capitals. And then, in different color to prove I wasn't cheating, I noted which ones I had to fix. Nerd alert.
Oh, and the notebook held several bits of paper as well. A few receipts that have completely faded, a notepaper with some dream fragments, a map of QC, an old employee card from the Bon from the 2002 holiday season, a business card from a Bridgeport Habitat staffperson.
I do still keep a wee notebook in my bag at all times. This one is also from Paris, it's like 4x6 inches and is made of graph paper. In the current one, I have many of the same kinds of things: tons of Boggle games; directions; names and phone numbers; book lists; gift lists; packing lists. In this one, I've (we've) kept track of the places we've visited to eat. First it started with nacho ratings, but now I'll include any good spot. That way we have a record of good places to go, what we liked or didn't like, and usually where they're located. Quite handy, actually. The only thing that this notebook holds, so far, is a business card from an art gallery in New Orleans that someone recommended. Something about black lights that change the paintings. I never ended up visiting the gallery, but I still keep the card. I think it's apparent by now that I'm a bit of a packrat.
Last time I was in the area was three summers ago, 2004, with some friends from another team, and we did go to the Vous. That time, I finally got a recipe (or at least ingredients) for my favorite drink that apparently someone there made up. And for the last week, I canNOT for the life of me remember what it was called. But here are my notes for what's in it, so I have a record:
amaretto
melon
raz/chambord
splash of cran
sour
Doesn't that sound yummy? Does ANYONE remember the freaking name of this drink?! I hate getting old!
These notes were in a wee notebook I used to carry around. It's a little book I bought at the Louvre, a picture of Nike (winged victory, not a shoe) on the front, with a matching pen that fits in. I kept all kinds of notes in this book, and it's funny to look at them years later, wondering about some of it. I used to keep track of gas mileage; books that I found in stores that looked interesting yet that I could not afford; random notes to myself' lists of games, movies, people, groceries; directions to all kinds of places, like job interviews and friends' houses; people's phone numbers; a random note in Latin (in someone else's handwriting; I don't know Latin); Boggle games; expenses. Here's a couple pages where I tried to list all 50 states and capitals. And then, in different color to prove I wasn't cheating, I noted which ones I had to fix. Nerd alert.
Oh, and the notebook held several bits of paper as well. A few receipts that have completely faded, a notepaper with some dream fragments, a map of QC, an old employee card from the Bon from the 2002 holiday season, a business card from a Bridgeport Habitat staffperson.
I do still keep a wee notebook in my bag at all times. This one is also from Paris, it's like 4x6 inches and is made of graph paper. In the current one, I have many of the same kinds of things: tons of Boggle games; directions; names and phone numbers; book lists; gift lists; packing lists. In this one, I've (we've) kept track of the places we've visited to eat. First it started with nacho ratings, but now I'll include any good spot. That way we have a record of good places to go, what we liked or didn't like, and usually where they're located. Quite handy, actually. The only thing that this notebook holds, so far, is a business card from an art gallery in New Orleans that someone recommended. Something about black lights that change the paintings. I never ended up visiting the gallery, but I still keep the card. I think it's apparent by now that I'm a bit of a packrat.
Monday, July 02, 2007
July?!
How the heck is it July already?!
I have to say that summer break is freaking awesome. I've been watching lots of tv and doing some reading. I stay up really late, just because I can, and I can sleep in every day if I want.
Since it's not even been a week yet, I'm not bored. But I will be, because I tend to just sit at home. So I'd like to go into the city and take some dance classes, and visit new places, and I'll have to shop for my upcoming trip (holy crap, two weeks from tomorrow!).
I have to say that summer break is freaking awesome. I've been watching lots of tv and doing some reading. I stay up really late, just because I can, and I can sleep in every day if I want.
Since it's not even been a week yet, I'm not bored. But I will be, because I tend to just sit at home. So I'd like to go into the city and take some dance classes, and visit new places, and I'll have to shop for my upcoming trip (holy crap, two weeks from tomorrow!).
School's out; More time for memes!
Ms M has tagged me for a meme, like more than a week ago, and now I'm finally going to finish it!
Here it is, and I shall tag these 8 bloggers in return: (this is exciting because I might actually know of eight bloggers who also know of me! woo!)
Nancy at Se Hace Camino El Andar
Kelly at Ogretmen [oops, she's traveling. for later, then. :)]
other Ms M at NY Teacher
Ms X at Unaccountable Talk
Miss B at In Pursuit of Happily Ever After
Jen at Quarter Life Crisis
Sam at Clean up on Aisle Life
Mr Lawrence at Get Lost, Mr Chips
The rules are 1. Let others know who tagged you. 2. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves. 3. Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8 random facts. 4. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been tagged.
And here are the 8 random facts. Some of them are in response to other people's facts, and some of them you may already know. Are they supposed to be eight things you don't already know? Meh, whatever. Hope it's not too boring....
1. I am a lefty. My hand stays upright, and the whole side of my hand gets inky and messy. Especially when writing on the overhead. Using manual can openers is really difficult if I think too much. I believe that I use them upside down or inside out or something. And good god, remember those scissors in elementary school? The green lefty ones never, EVER worked. So I suppose out of survival instinct, I quickly learned to cut right-handed. I can cut well with either hand now, but the detail work does require left-hand power. Oh, and I play baseball right-handed.
2. I have never smoked a cigarette, or anything else, for that matter. Not even once, not even to try it. Never wanted to, either.
3. I once saw a blue frog. We were canoeing on a peaceful little river in...Michigan perhaps? Not sure. We all saw this little blue and white froggy sitting on a rock, and figured it was a toy or something. But then it hopped away and we were all, wow! a blue frog!
No one has ever believed about it, which is frustrating.
4. I'm adopted. I'm quite sure I've mentioned it here before, but just in case you didn't know, now you do. :) My family tree is rather complicated, not only with birthparents and half-siblings, but also with stepparents and that. I don't call anyone my "real" parents; that really bugs me. Since I've been lucky enough to have met my birthmom when I was seven, I have sort of compartmentalized everyone and their title, so to speak. So my mom and dad are my mom and dad, and my birthparents are birthmom and birthdad (I met him when I was fifteen). Nobody's "real" or "fake." And add me to the ranks of people who are irritated when the media always mentions someone's "adopted son or daughter," rather than just "son or daughter." Like, that really doesn't have anything to do with anything. Nobody on either side of that relationship thinks it's fake, so the media shouldn't harp on that either.
5. My first road trip was to Yellowstone, with my dad and brother, when I was around eight or nine. My first trip out of the country was to Vancouver, BC around the age of ten. I lost all three of my rings that I wore at the time. My first trip to a non-English speaking country was to Mexico (Mazatlan) in eighth grade. Later that year, I left the continent for the first time and went to France and England for three weeks. I've been hooked on travel ever since. In two weeks, I'll be (cross your fingers) visiting a new country *and* a new continent! Very exciting. If I could travel all the time, I would.
6. My favorite class or subject in school was always science. In elementary school, I'm sure that part of the appeal was that we didn't do science very often and it always involved hands-on activities and fun experiments. For example, I remember one very clearly in either third grade or fifth grade: we had a light bulb, a battery, a wire, and a big blob of blue clay. We had to complete the circuit using the clay (although I would not have called it completing the circuit, just 'making the light go on'). I don't remember if mine worked, but I do remember having a great time with it.
In high school, I was lucky to have fantastic teachers for biology, chemistry and physics. I worked harder for those classes than I did in any other class in school, and though my grades were solid Bs or B+s, I was most proud of myself for them. I aced the stoichiometry test in chem, where you have to figure out the numbers of molecules in reaction equations. (This is possibly ironic because I've never liked math in regular math classes. Science math, however, is totally different and acceptable. Sorry, math teachers. :)) Then in physics, which was a *very* tough class, two girls and I made the awesomest lab report. We were given this long problem about a pulley and a bucket of nails and two nincompoops. The task was probably to figure out the velocity of all the different times it went up and down. Anyway, we had such fun with it--we created a comic strip! We gave them names and made the one hit the other one, and gave them an ambulance at the end. I was endlessly amused. Sadly, we never made copies of it, so I never saw it again after we turned it in.
In college, I had two quarters of first-year chem with a very dull prof, but the last quarter of that and the first quarter of organic chem were much better. Organic chem really kicked my ass. That class was one of the few that I visited the prof during office hours for help. And then, after studying really hard and getting some help/reassurance from the prof, I earned an A on a test! I was really proud. In the class, I might have somehow pulled a B, probably a low one, but I decided to let it go after the one quarter. A week into the second quarter of o-chem, I dropped the course and took no more science after that.
7. I've been an English teacher for three years, but I hating writing in school. It was a pain in the butt and I never felt like I did a good job. It wasn't until college, when I had to write many papers for every class my last two years, that I realized I enjoyed the process of writing and producing a good piece of writing. My favorite part is to get a draft done and then rip it apart in revision and editing. Something about fixing is so satisfying! With all that practice, I became quite a good writer, though you wouldn't really know it from reading this silly blog. :)
8. I'm an extremely picky eater. I call myself a vegetarian, because I don't eat meat (no, not fish either--that's dead animal and therefore meat), but there are plenty of vegetarian things I don't eat either. And it's not a moral issue, it's just dislike or unwillingness. Meat grosses me out, although I would never ever lecture anyone else about eating it. More power to you, really. There are a whole lot of things I don't eat (notice I'm not just saying I don't like them; I really will not eat them), but the things I do eat, I eat a lot. I don't starve by any means. I eat a lot of salad, potatoes, edamame, cereal, cheese, yogurt, and of course I heart dessert (except cheesecake, yuck), especially if it's chocolate.
Here it is, and I shall tag these 8 bloggers in return: (this is exciting because I might actually know of eight bloggers who also know of me! woo!)
Nancy at Se Hace Camino El Andar
Kelly at Ogretmen [oops, she's traveling. for later, then. :)]
other Ms M at NY Teacher
Ms X at Unaccountable Talk
Miss B at In Pursuit of Happily Ever After
Jen at Quarter Life Crisis
Sam at Clean up on Aisle Life
Mr Lawrence at Get Lost, Mr Chips
The rules are 1. Let others know who tagged you. 2. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves. 3. Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8 random facts. 4. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been tagged.
And here are the 8 random facts. Some of them are in response to other people's facts, and some of them you may already know. Are they supposed to be eight things you don't already know? Meh, whatever. Hope it's not too boring....
1. I am a lefty. My hand stays upright, and the whole side of my hand gets inky and messy. Especially when writing on the overhead. Using manual can openers is really difficult if I think too much. I believe that I use them upside down or inside out or something. And good god, remember those scissors in elementary school? The green lefty ones never, EVER worked. So I suppose out of survival instinct, I quickly learned to cut right-handed. I can cut well with either hand now, but the detail work does require left-hand power. Oh, and I play baseball right-handed.
2. I have never smoked a cigarette, or anything else, for that matter. Not even once, not even to try it. Never wanted to, either.
3. I once saw a blue frog. We were canoeing on a peaceful little river in...Michigan perhaps? Not sure. We all saw this little blue and white froggy sitting on a rock, and figured it was a toy or something. But then it hopped away and we were all, wow! a blue frog!
No one has ever believed about it, which is frustrating.
4. I'm adopted. I'm quite sure I've mentioned it here before, but just in case you didn't know, now you do. :) My family tree is rather complicated, not only with birthparents and half-siblings, but also with stepparents and that. I don't call anyone my "real" parents; that really bugs me. Since I've been lucky enough to have met my birthmom when I was seven, I have sort of compartmentalized everyone and their title, so to speak. So my mom and dad are my mom and dad, and my birthparents are birthmom and birthdad (I met him when I was fifteen). Nobody's "real" or "fake." And add me to the ranks of people who are irritated when the media always mentions someone's "adopted son or daughter," rather than just "son or daughter." Like, that really doesn't have anything to do with anything. Nobody on either side of that relationship thinks it's fake, so the media shouldn't harp on that either.
5. My first road trip was to Yellowstone, with my dad and brother, when I was around eight or nine. My first trip out of the country was to Vancouver, BC around the age of ten. I lost all three of my rings that I wore at the time. My first trip to a non-English speaking country was to Mexico (Mazatlan) in eighth grade. Later that year, I left the continent for the first time and went to France and England for three weeks. I've been hooked on travel ever since. In two weeks, I'll be (cross your fingers) visiting a new country *and* a new continent! Very exciting. If I could travel all the time, I would.
6. My favorite class or subject in school was always science. In elementary school, I'm sure that part of the appeal was that we didn't do science very often and it always involved hands-on activities and fun experiments. For example, I remember one very clearly in either third grade or fifth grade: we had a light bulb, a battery, a wire, and a big blob of blue clay. We had to complete the circuit using the clay (although I would not have called it completing the circuit, just 'making the light go on'). I don't remember if mine worked, but I do remember having a great time with it.
In high school, I was lucky to have fantastic teachers for biology, chemistry and physics. I worked harder for those classes than I did in any other class in school, and though my grades were solid Bs or B+s, I was most proud of myself for them. I aced the stoichiometry test in chem, where you have to figure out the numbers of molecules in reaction equations. (This is possibly ironic because I've never liked math in regular math classes. Science math, however, is totally different and acceptable. Sorry, math teachers. :)) Then in physics, which was a *very* tough class, two girls and I made the awesomest lab report. We were given this long problem about a pulley and a bucket of nails and two nincompoops. The task was probably to figure out the velocity of all the different times it went up and down. Anyway, we had such fun with it--we created a comic strip! We gave them names and made the one hit the other one, and gave them an ambulance at the end. I was endlessly amused. Sadly, we never made copies of it, so I never saw it again after we turned it in.
In college, I had two quarters of first-year chem with a very dull prof, but the last quarter of that and the first quarter of organic chem were much better. Organic chem really kicked my ass. That class was one of the few that I visited the prof during office hours for help. And then, after studying really hard and getting some help/reassurance from the prof, I earned an A on a test! I was really proud. In the class, I might have somehow pulled a B, probably a low one, but I decided to let it go after the one quarter. A week into the second quarter of o-chem, I dropped the course and took no more science after that.
7. I've been an English teacher for three years, but I hating writing in school. It was a pain in the butt and I never felt like I did a good job. It wasn't until college, when I had to write many papers for every class my last two years, that I realized I enjoyed the process of writing and producing a good piece of writing. My favorite part is to get a draft done and then rip it apart in revision and editing. Something about fixing is so satisfying! With all that practice, I became quite a good writer, though you wouldn't really know it from reading this silly blog. :)
8. I'm an extremely picky eater. I call myself a vegetarian, because I don't eat meat (no, not fish either--that's dead animal and therefore meat), but there are plenty of vegetarian things I don't eat either. And it's not a moral issue, it's just dislike or unwillingness. Meat grosses me out, although I would never ever lecture anyone else about eating it. More power to you, really. There are a whole lot of things I don't eat (notice I'm not just saying I don't like them; I really will not eat them), but the things I do eat, I eat a lot. I don't starve by any means. I eat a lot of salad, potatoes, edamame, cereal, cheese, yogurt, and of course I heart dessert (except cheesecake, yuck), especially if it's chocolate.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Enfin, la fin!
At last, the end!
J'ai oublie trop de francais; donc il n'ya pas beaucoup je peux ecrire ici. Mais aujourd'hui, c'est la dernier jour d'ecole! Je suis tres heureuse et pourtant, je suis peur d'ennui de l'ete.
I have forgotten too much French; alas, there's not much I can write here. But today is the last day of school! I am very happy and yet, I fear the boredom of summer.
It is such a relief for this year to be over. That one class fairly ruined my experience this year; the last few months have felt like a daily battle. Or at least I lived in anxiety of a possible battle, which is just as bad.
Thanks be to the school gods, I did not have to see that class today. Except, amazingly, for most of the students who had borrowed books many moons ago either returned them or paid for them (I make them pay $5 and then I will use that for buying new books for the class, as well as to make them accountable).
I saw the good class today. We played some games and they goofed around. Some of the boys were interested in watching Indiana Jones. I also visited the afternoon class, the sweet but low and noisy bunch. I took pictures of both classes and generally there was no point to today.
Some of the students did give me hugs. One of my favorite girls from the afternoon class gave me a big hug and said, "Aw, I'll miss you a lot!" I said, "I'll miss you too!" This one boy came to say goodbye, a kid who switched from the bad class to the afternoon class, a kid who can be sweet but too often falls into the the badboy attitudes, yet when I scold him he gives a big grin and says, "I love you, miss!" Even some of the sweeter kids from the bad class said an excited goodbye with hugs before leaving, which was a nice way to leave it. A few of our favorite girls from last year came to visit and say hi/bye too.
I did not cry this year. Of course, I am still in denial/surprise/shock that the year is over, so it's possible that later I may shed some tears of happiness. But last year, I had a good year and a lot of really wonderful kids. This year, I had a tough year and not as many wonderful kids. More pain in my ass kids and more crazy parents, more unreachable parents, and, it felt like, more unreachable students. The year ends with me feeling unsure of my management, not to mention frazzled and afraid for next year, when the level of kids will go down (according to test score, at least)(this year I had one real high level class and one class that was supposed to be high level, but oh my GOD there is no way)(next year I will have some resource-level classes, oh my goodness).
Anyway, back to the here and now. After the kids were all gone, Mr Principal announced and awarded those who are leaving and/or retiring, as well as those of us who earned our tenure. There was a catered lunch after that, but I didn't stay. There are lots of friendly people on the staff, but for some reason, I never have a real place to sit with friends. So instead of feeling lonely and/or headbutting into other people's conversations, I said quick goodbyes to a few people and took off.
Oh, and then I went to the DMV and registered my car! It went quickly and easily, and I got new plates right on the spot. Sweet! Now I just need to get the car inspected, which I'll do tomorrow, and I'm all set.
So now I'm an official New York resident, an official New York driver, and an officially certified and tenured New York City teacher.
I sound way too much like a grown up.
Um, PS? This thunder keeps suddenly cracking REALLY loudly RIGHT over my head and startling the crap out of me. How's that for grown up?
J'ai oublie trop de francais; donc il n'ya pas beaucoup je peux ecrire ici. Mais aujourd'hui, c'est la dernier jour d'ecole! Je suis tres heureuse et pourtant, je suis peur d'ennui de l'ete.
I have forgotten too much French; alas, there's not much I can write here. But today is the last day of school! I am very happy and yet, I fear the boredom of summer.
It is such a relief for this year to be over. That one class fairly ruined my experience this year; the last few months have felt like a daily battle. Or at least I lived in anxiety of a possible battle, which is just as bad.
Thanks be to the school gods, I did not have to see that class today. Except, amazingly, for most of the students who had borrowed books many moons ago either returned them or paid for them (I make them pay $5 and then I will use that for buying new books for the class, as well as to make them accountable).
I saw the good class today. We played some games and they goofed around. Some of the boys were interested in watching Indiana Jones. I also visited the afternoon class, the sweet but low and noisy bunch. I took pictures of both classes and generally there was no point to today.
Some of the students did give me hugs. One of my favorite girls from the afternoon class gave me a big hug and said, "Aw, I'll miss you a lot!" I said, "I'll miss you too!" This one boy came to say goodbye, a kid who switched from the bad class to the afternoon class, a kid who can be sweet but too often falls into the the badboy attitudes, yet when I scold him he gives a big grin and says, "I love you, miss!" Even some of the sweeter kids from the bad class said an excited goodbye with hugs before leaving, which was a nice way to leave it. A few of our favorite girls from last year came to visit and say hi/bye too.
I did not cry this year. Of course, I am still in denial/surprise/shock that the year is over, so it's possible that later I may shed some tears of happiness. But last year, I had a good year and a lot of really wonderful kids. This year, I had a tough year and not as many wonderful kids. More pain in my ass kids and more crazy parents, more unreachable parents, and, it felt like, more unreachable students. The year ends with me feeling unsure of my management, not to mention frazzled and afraid for next year, when the level of kids will go down (according to test score, at least)(this year I had one real high level class and one class that was supposed to be high level, but oh my GOD there is no way)(next year I will have some resource-level classes, oh my goodness).
Anyway, back to the here and now. After the kids were all gone, Mr Principal announced and awarded those who are leaving and/or retiring, as well as those of us who earned our tenure. There was a catered lunch after that, but I didn't stay. There are lots of friendly people on the staff, but for some reason, I never have a real place to sit with friends. So instead of feeling lonely and/or headbutting into other people's conversations, I said quick goodbyes to a few people and took off.
Oh, and then I went to the DMV and registered my car! It went quickly and easily, and I got new plates right on the spot. Sweet! Now I just need to get the car inspected, which I'll do tomorrow, and I'm all set.
So now I'm an official New York resident, an official New York driver, and an officially certified and tenured New York City teacher.
I sound way too much like a grown up.
Um, PS? This thunder keeps suddenly cracking REALLY loudly RIGHT over my head and startling the crap out of me. How's that for grown up?
Sunday, June 24, 2007
It's a Miracle!
We were watching a movie last night, and y'all, I fell asleep! All by myself! Before 11pm! And I stayed asleep all night!
In case you have forgotten, this hasn't happened for nearly three weeks, so it was pretty damn cool. :)
In case you have forgotten, this hasn't happened for nearly three weeks, so it was pretty damn cool. :)
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Good news
1--In one week from today, I (and all you other NYC teachers out there) will be FREEEEEE for two whole months. Hallefreakinglujah.
2--I slept well for the second night in a row! Let's celebrate...with pajamas.
3--Thursdays are always good (well, decent, at least) days with the Evil class, because I get them the two periods before lunch.
4--Today I kicked this one asshole out of the Evil class (for the first time all year!) and it made such a difference. (Don't judge. The rest of the troublesome kids are pretty sweet at heart and as individuals, and even though I don't bother remembering it often, I do know it. This one, however, is NOT a nice person, is a liar and an instigator. His crazy parent is also a liar and not a nice person, so even if technically it's not the child's fault, I still cannot stand him. And the math teacher feels the same way, and she's so much nicer than I am and he's not as bad in her class.)
5--I taught an actual lesson today, and it went well. I handed out sentence strips (they always love using those, so it was a clever ploy on my part to get them participating and interested) and dictated dialogue. They had to punctuate it correctly. I gave several examples of each type (speaker tags before and after), verifying as they held up the sentence strips, and having a student tell me how to write it correctly on the board. They did very well and I was proud of them. Even the Evil class got into it and did well. Still a bit loud and rowdy, but participating.
6--Thanks again for the supportive comments, guys. :)
7--The other day I remembered that it was the time for awards, so last night I made some certificates on PrintShop (it cost fifty bucks back in 2004! I still lived in Brooklyn and I hadn't even started teaching yet! Weird.) Today I made the lists of who will get what. There are several 'good job' ones I will hand out so that all the hardworking kids will get some validation and have something to bring home to parents. I'm also giving out a Most Improved and a Most Potential, for the students who have worked hard but aren't necessarily on grade level, and the kids who are smart but aren't applying themselves, respectively. This is in hope to give them all some positive reinforcement for this year and next year.
Last night I printed out three copies of each certificate on my own printer, but my lists are more than ten each. After school, I drove to a nearby Office Max and made some color copies, so I feel all prepared and satisfied now. Also, for eight freaking dollars, I bought a ream of 100% recycled copy paper. Made me feel proud for another moment. :)
8--Three and a half school days, y'all. God.
9--The itinerary for our Aussie trip is out now and I'm still not positive I'll get to go. But it's exciting to see the places on the list. For now I'm pretending it's not happening (denial is always fun, people), so that I won't be too disappointed when it doesn't happen. It's kind of an unreal thing anyway, flying for an entire day to the other side of the planet. Think good thoughts for me.
10--On my last trip to the neighborhood C-Town I randomly got an Entenmenn's cinnamon danish, heated it for twenty seconds, and holy CRAP it was heavenly. This afternoon I picked up another one and I'm going to eat it soon and I'm really excited.
Hey look, ten things on my lame list. Nice even numbers are our friends!
PS--Three and a half days!
2--I slept well for the second night in a row! Let's celebrate...with pajamas.
3--Thursdays are always good (well, decent, at least) days with the Evil class, because I get them the two periods before lunch.
4--Today I kicked this one asshole out of the Evil class (for the first time all year!) and it made such a difference. (Don't judge. The rest of the troublesome kids are pretty sweet at heart and as individuals, and even though I don't bother remembering it often, I do know it. This one, however, is NOT a nice person, is a liar and an instigator. His crazy parent is also a liar and not a nice person, so even if technically it's not the child's fault, I still cannot stand him. And the math teacher feels the same way, and she's so much nicer than I am and he's not as bad in her class.)
5--I taught an actual lesson today, and it went well. I handed out sentence strips (they always love using those, so it was a clever ploy on my part to get them participating and interested) and dictated dialogue. They had to punctuate it correctly. I gave several examples of each type (speaker tags before and after), verifying as they held up the sentence strips, and having a student tell me how to write it correctly on the board. They did very well and I was proud of them. Even the Evil class got into it and did well. Still a bit loud and rowdy, but participating.
6--Thanks again for the supportive comments, guys. :)
7--The other day I remembered that it was the time for awards, so last night I made some certificates on PrintShop (it cost fifty bucks back in 2004! I still lived in Brooklyn and I hadn't even started teaching yet! Weird.) Today I made the lists of who will get what. There are several 'good job' ones I will hand out so that all the hardworking kids will get some validation and have something to bring home to parents. I'm also giving out a Most Improved and a Most Potential, for the students who have worked hard but aren't necessarily on grade level, and the kids who are smart but aren't applying themselves, respectively. This is in hope to give them all some positive reinforcement for this year and next year.
Last night I printed out three copies of each certificate on my own printer, but my lists are more than ten each. After school, I drove to a nearby Office Max and made some color copies, so I feel all prepared and satisfied now. Also, for eight freaking dollars, I bought a ream of 100% recycled copy paper. Made me feel proud for another moment. :)
8--Three and a half school days, y'all. God.
9--The itinerary for our Aussie trip is out now and I'm still not positive I'll get to go. But it's exciting to see the places on the list. For now I'm pretending it's not happening (denial is always fun, people), so that I won't be too disappointed when it doesn't happen. It's kind of an unreal thing anyway, flying for an entire day to the other side of the planet. Think good thoughts for me.
10--On my last trip to the neighborhood C-Town I randomly got an Entenmenn's cinnamon danish, heated it for twenty seconds, and holy CRAP it was heavenly. This afternoon I picked up another one and I'm going to eat it soon and I'm really excited.
Hey look, ten things on my lame list. Nice even numbers are our friends!
PS--Three and a half days!
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
I hate today
and there's one, two, three, four, five todays left.
Oh, god.
By the end of the day today, I hated my job. I felt incompetent, sick to my stomach (though that was not from the teaching or students), irritated and beyond frustrated.
It's not only today, either. All week I've been dreading two of my classes. I've sort of lucked out; I had the extra-bad class for one instead of two periods the last two days. But tomorrow is another double and I just can't stand them. They can't stand me, either.
My good teacher friend is moving to Texas. My other good teacher friend is moving to New Orleans. My one other school friend will be at home with her baby. We're getting an AP who is...not as awesome as our current one (but at least the good one will still be our EL @ supervisor).
Is it me or does it sound like I need a new job? If I had the energy, I'd cry.
Oh, god.
By the end of the day today, I hated my job. I felt incompetent, sick to my stomach (though that was not from the teaching or students), irritated and beyond frustrated.
It's not only today, either. All week I've been dreading two of my classes. I've sort of lucked out; I had the extra-bad class for one instead of two periods the last two days. But tomorrow is another double and I just can't stand them. They can't stand me, either.
My good teacher friend is moving to Texas. My other good teacher friend is moving to New Orleans. My one other school friend will be at home with her baby. We're getting an AP who is...not as awesome as our current one (but at least the good one will still be our EL @ supervisor).
Is it me or does it sound like I need a new job? If I had the energy, I'd cry.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Double vision
Kooky!
After the long doctor visit on Saturday, I walked a couple blocks to a CVS to get my new prescriptions: Claritex or something, plus an antibiotic, and, finally, Ambien. The antibiotics will kill off bad guys living in my sinus passages, and the Ambien (well, the five dollar generic version) will make me fall asleep and stay asleep.
Except that it DOESN'T! I took it on Saturday night to see how I would react to it. It didn't make me tired and I didn't sleep very much.
Regardless, on Sunday, I felt pretty good--closest to normal that I've felt in awhile. That's good, right?
I took the fambien at 9pm, giving it time to kick in and knock me out. At 10.30, feeling no different, I went to bed anyway.
And I'm not sure if I slept at all.
The alarm went at 6.30 and I groaned, "FUUUUUCCKK MEEEEEE."
But of course I made it to school. This time my body's feeling pretty normal and strongish, rather than weak. But my head is just gone.
I made it through the day pretty fine, though I teetered over once or twice. Made it home to relax and rest. Felt ready to crash around 6, but I didn't. I hope that doesn't come back to haunt me.
Half an hour ago, I took all three pills at once: decongestant/allergy med, antibiotic, and sleeping pill. I began watching Friends, which took on a much more interesting twist when I saw two of everyone.
I lurched up and wobbled to the computer, where my arms don't seem to work too well and my tummy feels icky.
I need to brush my teeth. I hope I can do it without falling over and knocking myself unconscious on something porcelain. Pray for me, people,
After the long doctor visit on Saturday, I walked a couple blocks to a CVS to get my new prescriptions: Claritex or something, plus an antibiotic, and, finally, Ambien. The antibiotics will kill off bad guys living in my sinus passages, and the Ambien (well, the five dollar generic version) will make me fall asleep and stay asleep.
Except that it DOESN'T! I took it on Saturday night to see how I would react to it. It didn't make me tired and I didn't sleep very much.
Regardless, on Sunday, I felt pretty good--closest to normal that I've felt in awhile. That's good, right?
I took the fambien at 9pm, giving it time to kick in and knock me out. At 10.30, feeling no different, I went to bed anyway.
And I'm not sure if I slept at all.
The alarm went at 6.30 and I groaned, "FUUUUUCCKK MEEEEEE."
But of course I made it to school. This time my body's feeling pretty normal and strongish, rather than weak. But my head is just gone.
I made it through the day pretty fine, though I teetered over once or twice. Made it home to relax and rest. Felt ready to crash around 6, but I didn't. I hope that doesn't come back to haunt me.
Half an hour ago, I took all three pills at once: decongestant/allergy med, antibiotic, and sleeping pill. I began watching Friends, which took on a much more interesting twist when I saw two of everyone.
I lurched up and wobbled to the computer, where my arms don't seem to work too well and my tummy feels icky.
I need to brush my teeth. I hope I can do it without falling over and knocking myself unconscious on something porcelain. Pray for me, people,
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Worn
Well folks, I'm glad I'm not the only one who wrestles with the calling-in dilemma.
On Thursday night, I went to bed at 10pm, after reading in bed for an hour. I felt tired and hoped for some good rest. I began to drift off, but was jolted back to awareness by a fucking police siren.
I continued to lie there, begging my brain to rest. My eyes hurt and I was so frustrated. At 3am I got up, wide awake, and went online for half an hour looking at symptoms and such.
I went back to bed and pretended to sleep. I must have actually drifted off to sleep around 5.30 or 6, because when the alarm went off at 6.30, I was dreaming.
I hit the snooze four times but got up, moaning to myself. I felt sick to my stomach and woozy. Along with the week-old headache, of course.
Thank goodness all I had to do was give a final, which meant that all my classes sat quietly while they worked on the test. Gave me a chance to rest by sitting at my desk and working on papers two weeks old.
In the afternoon, my body perked up and I felt mostly normal for awhile. The headache faded and my energy was closer to normal than it's been for the last week. I even made it to my travel meeting for Australia.
By about nine, though, the headache was creeping back in and my body and energy were fading. I got home at ten, took one tablet of Tylenol PM just in case at eleven, and went to bed at twelve (again, I'm such a nightowl whore, it's ridiculous that even when I'm exhausted and weak, I'll stay up late).
I slept very well all night. The alarm went off at ten thirty and it was a struggle to wake myself. Later I had an appointment for the doctor, and after 'only' waiting an hour I saw him. He told me I had a sinus infection and that was what was causing the headaches. Though I don't have much congestion, my head has feeling lots of pressure, and my ears have been tweaking. So I got some prescriptions for congestion and antibiotics, as well as Ambien.
Oh, and he had someone draw blood for a Lyme titer (sp?) just to be safe. I think the combination of that plus the Tylenol explains why it's now after 2pm and I'm still feeling very sleepy and lightheaded.
I would have loved to stay home yesterday, but with having the final, and already being gone for one day this week, I really couldn't bring myself to call in. Certainly some of it is guilt, and part of it is hoarding--I hate giving things away, even sick days and personal time. Also, sometimes I feel afraid that I'm some kind of hypochondriac and nothing's really wrong with me, I'm just being lazy and whiny. It turned out well this time, because somehow I made it through the day pretty well.
On Thursday night, I went to bed at 10pm, after reading in bed for an hour. I felt tired and hoped for some good rest. I began to drift off, but was jolted back to awareness by a fucking police siren.
I continued to lie there, begging my brain to rest. My eyes hurt and I was so frustrated. At 3am I got up, wide awake, and went online for half an hour looking at symptoms and such.
I went back to bed and pretended to sleep. I must have actually drifted off to sleep around 5.30 or 6, because when the alarm went off at 6.30, I was dreaming.
I hit the snooze four times but got up, moaning to myself. I felt sick to my stomach and woozy. Along with the week-old headache, of course.
Thank goodness all I had to do was give a final, which meant that all my classes sat quietly while they worked on the test. Gave me a chance to rest by sitting at my desk and working on papers two weeks old.
In the afternoon, my body perked up and I felt mostly normal for awhile. The headache faded and my energy was closer to normal than it's been for the last week. I even made it to my travel meeting for Australia.
By about nine, though, the headache was creeping back in and my body and energy were fading. I got home at ten, took one tablet of Tylenol PM just in case at eleven, and went to bed at twelve (again, I'm such a nightowl whore, it's ridiculous that even when I'm exhausted and weak, I'll stay up late).
I slept very well all night. The alarm went off at ten thirty and it was a struggle to wake myself. Later I had an appointment for the doctor, and after 'only' waiting an hour I saw him. He told me I had a sinus infection and that was what was causing the headaches. Though I don't have much congestion, my head has feeling lots of pressure, and my ears have been tweaking. So I got some prescriptions for congestion and antibiotics, as well as Ambien.
Oh, and he had someone draw blood for a Lyme titer (sp?) just to be safe. I think the combination of that plus the Tylenol explains why it's now after 2pm and I'm still feeling very sleepy and lightheaded.
I would have loved to stay home yesterday, but with having the final, and already being gone for one day this week, I really couldn't bring myself to call in. Certainly some of it is guilt, and part of it is hoarding--I hate giving things away, even sick days and personal time. Also, sometimes I feel afraid that I'm some kind of hypochondriac and nothing's really wrong with me, I'm just being lazy and whiny. It turned out well this time, because somehow I made it through the day pretty well.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
I can't take it anymore
I feel like a zombie. The walking dead. The restless sleep has struck again, and the weeklong headache is still firmly encamped in my cranium. Yesterday I think I forgot to eat much and I haven't been drinking water, and last night it felt like my brain was actively withering inside my skull. So today I ate a little bit more at school (meaning not just a cup of dry cheerios but also cheese and crackers) and drank a half-liter bottle of water. This afternoon the headache has increased, even though I took some migraine medicine about an hour ago.
It's a good thing the final is tomorrow; I won't be good for much else. I've arrived at Desperation and could shortly visit CryingFromFatigueLand. I don't know what to do.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Game Day
Today two classes played Review Jeopardy!
It actually went very well, and I am excited about it. The kids were really excited about answering questions and using their knowledge! I spiced it up by having them using the erasable sentence strips (which they always love to play with).
Second class had some trouble answering the higher-point questions, partly because they didn't listen to the directions. Gah.
Plan for tomorrow--did I talk about this yesterday?--is to give them the questions and have them quiz each other. It won't be as fun, and they most certainly will not be as engaged...oh dear. Maybe we'll just 'play' the whole damn thing over again. Certain questions could be redone fairly easily.
...Wish I remembered some of those questions right now to make this post a little more lively. Yeah, sorry about that.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
So So, Meh, Whatever
The Tylenol PM was effective in that it made me sleepy enough to get some real rest last night, which was a huge relief. Unfortunately, I continued feeling drugged and foggy until ten or eleven this morning. And this afternoon and evening, the headache returned.
The return to school was an easy one, much to my relief. My room wasn't messed up, the boards weren't even erased. That's good. It was a half day, which obviously is a great way to come back feeling only half-human.
Upon entering for homeroom this morning, one girl cried out, "Miss! We missed you!"
"Aw," I smiled, then cocked an eyebrow. "Are you lying?"
"No!"
"Oh, okay. Then thank you, I missed you too." :) Heh.
I decided to give my final on Friday, and to do some review in class. I've heard many teachers who played games with classes to review, but I've never wanted to put in the big effort for it, truthfully. Until this week, that is!
So this morning I simply announced that we would be reviewing for the final by playing Jeopardy; they brainstormed a list of categories (big topics/units that we've covered this year); I gave each table one or two categories and then they got to work creating questions of different monetary values.
Then this afternoon, I spent a couple hours making a rough game 'board' consisted of construction paper folded in half and taped to make a crude envelope, and then writing the questions. Many of them were questions I'd already had in mind, but the groups did come up with some good tasks and questions that I incorporated.
The plan is to play the game in groups tomorrow, and if there is any time left, do some play reading. I'm toying with the idea of giving them the questions on Thursday and let them quiz each other in tables to see how they do. Who knows, though.
Next week, the students will do some portfolio and reflection/evaluation work, but not a lot, and then get to work on plays. Not sure if there's time for them to write and rehearse their own, so I'll get some ready for them just in case.
Two weeks from tomorrow, baby! Getting down to the small numbers is very exciting!
The return to school was an easy one, much to my relief. My room wasn't messed up, the boards weren't even erased. That's good. It was a half day, which obviously is a great way to come back feeling only half-human.
Upon entering for homeroom this morning, one girl cried out, "Miss! We missed you!"
"Aw," I smiled, then cocked an eyebrow. "Are you lying?"
"No!"
"Oh, okay. Then thank you, I missed you too." :) Heh.
I decided to give my final on Friday, and to do some review in class. I've heard many teachers who played games with classes to review, but I've never wanted to put in the big effort for it, truthfully. Until this week, that is!
So this morning I simply announced that we would be reviewing for the final by playing Jeopardy; they brainstormed a list of categories (big topics/units that we've covered this year); I gave each table one or two categories and then they got to work creating questions of different monetary values.
Then this afternoon, I spent a couple hours making a rough game 'board' consisted of construction paper folded in half and taped to make a crude envelope, and then writing the questions. Many of them were questions I'd already had in mind, but the groups did come up with some good tasks and questions that I incorporated.
The plan is to play the game in groups tomorrow, and if there is any time left, do some play reading. I'm toying with the idea of giving them the questions on Thursday and let them quiz each other in tables to see how they do. Who knows, though.
Next week, the students will do some portfolio and reflection/evaluation work, but not a lot, and then get to work on plays. Not sure if there's time for them to write and rehearse their own, so I'll get some ready for them just in case.
Two weeks from tomorrow, baby! Getting down to the small numbers is very exciting!
Monday, June 11, 2007
Exhausted
For a solid WEEK, I have not gotten sufficient sleep. Mostly, I'll be in bed for the normal amount of time, but not staying asleep. A couple days last week, with the field trip, I didn't get nearly enough time to be asleep.
As a result of this sleep lack, I've had a headache for five DAYS now. I stayed home from school today in order to rest a little. I did sleep pretty well, and woke up headache-free, but alas, it returned as the day wore on. I did get some needed errands done (such as five hundred dollar brake repairs), but it's nine pm and I'm going to take some Tylenol PM in hopes that it will quiet my mind and allow mind and body to relax, rest, and sleep.
As a result of this sleep lack, I've had a headache for five DAYS now. I stayed home from school today in order to rest a little. I did sleep pretty well, and woke up headache-free, but alas, it returned as the day wore on. I did get some needed errands done (such as five hundred dollar brake repairs), but it's nine pm and I'm going to take some Tylenol PM in hopes that it will quiet my mind and allow mind and body to relax, rest, and sleep.
Mwah! Birthday shout outs
Many happy wishes to family and friends:
--my teammate Seth on Thursday
--my boyfriend A. on Saturday
--my birthmom Kelleigh on Sunday
--my good teacher friend Nicola on Monday
Love to you all!
Edit: It was Kelly's birthday yesterday too! Very happy birthday to you out in Turkey!
--my teammate Seth on Thursday
--my boyfriend A. on Saturday
--my birthmom Kelleigh on Sunday
--my good teacher friend Nicola on Monday
Love to you all!
Edit: It was Kelly's birthday yesterday too! Very happy birthday to you out in Turkey!
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
"Dude, you're not in charge of us!"
This was part of my brief explanation wind-up American Revolution to my students today, and how the colonists felt about unfair British rule.
(It was related to the play we were reading; it was set just before the Revolution. This play is in the one textbook we're 'allowed' to use, and this is really the only time we're 'supposed' to use it, and the intro includes a blurb about the setting, so I wanted to explain it to the kids really quickly.)
Many students have trouble reading fluently and correctly, so 'casting' a read-aloud play is a little difficult, and the read-throughs go a little slowly (especially when all the students are not closely paying attention to where we are on the page). I think I want to do more read-aloud plays, to help with this issue. Good thing, too, because I have like five class sets. We may run out of time for everything, but eh, who cares. I really want to have them read Fools--a word-funny play by Neil Simon that we did in drama class in high school.
In home news, this afternoon I did laundry AND worked out (while laundry was going)! Go me!
(It was related to the play we were reading; it was set just before the Revolution. This play is in the one textbook we're 'allowed' to use, and this is really the only time we're 'supposed' to use it, and the intro includes a blurb about the setting, so I wanted to explain it to the kids really quickly.)
Many students have trouble reading fluently and correctly, so 'casting' a read-aloud play is a little difficult, and the read-throughs go a little slowly (especially when all the students are not closely paying attention to where we are on the page). I think I want to do more read-aloud plays, to help with this issue. Good thing, too, because I have like five class sets. We may run out of time for everything, but eh, who cares. I really want to have them read Fools--a word-funny play by Neil Simon that we did in drama class in high school.
In home news, this afternoon I did laundry AND worked out (while laundry was going)! Go me!
Monday, June 04, 2007
Dude, long time no posting.
Sigh. I'm not motivated lately, for much of anything, really. Except, as you guessed, pictures.
We have less than one month of school. This is terribly exciting and strange and quite a relief.
Our big trip, that I have been planning ALL.YEAR.LONG is at the end of this week. I am very proud to announce that EVERYTHING is all lined up and ready to go. Again, such a relief. I'm now looking forward to reaping the benefits of my labor and worry--FUN with students and colleagues in a different city.
Today was a half-day. ROCK. That means I only saw one class, and I let them watch Indiana Jones, because they've never even HEARD of it. Can you imagine? On the bright side, many students did vote for the Princess Bride, because they enjoyed it when the grade watched it earlier in the year. Hurrah for giving them 80s movie cultural knowledge! I realized that next on the list must be Goonies, which I don't think I own.
I have owned my new pretty camera for just over two weeks, and I have taken over seven hundred photos already. I showed it off today during a baby shower, and people were very impressed with it, and I got to gush about it. Man, do I love this camera. I bought a spare battery this weekend so I won't have to worry on the field trip. I really do miss the ease of AA batteries and stowability of the old camera, but the niftiness and skill of the new one are worth it.
It's JUNE, people! How did that happen?
This morning one of my students suddenly called out, "Miss! You put 2004!" I looked over at the "Today is" part of my board, and sure enough, I had written, June 4, 2004. I suppose because I have no subconscious and I'd already written a 4. Oops.
This date in 2004, I had not even quit my temp jobs to move to NYC. Weird. And now I've been here three years (officially next Saturday) and am a real teacher and, like, I'm an actual adult and stuff. How time does fly.
Erm. Is it summer yet?
God, I hope the next few weeks aren't too difficult to get through. Give me strength to deal with hyper and obnoxious children.
We have less than one month of school. This is terribly exciting and strange and quite a relief.
Our big trip, that I have been planning ALL.YEAR.LONG is at the end of this week. I am very proud to announce that EVERYTHING is all lined up and ready to go. Again, such a relief. I'm now looking forward to reaping the benefits of my labor and worry--FUN with students and colleagues in a different city.
Today was a half-day. ROCK. That means I only saw one class, and I let them watch Indiana Jones, because they've never even HEARD of it. Can you imagine? On the bright side, many students did vote for the Princess Bride, because they enjoyed it when the grade watched it earlier in the year. Hurrah for giving them 80s movie cultural knowledge! I realized that next on the list must be Goonies, which I don't think I own.
I have owned my new pretty camera for just over two weeks, and I have taken over seven hundred photos already. I showed it off today during a baby shower, and people were very impressed with it, and I got to gush about it. Man, do I love this camera. I bought a spare battery this weekend so I won't have to worry on the field trip. I really do miss the ease of AA batteries and stowability of the old camera, but the niftiness and skill of the new one are worth it.
It's JUNE, people! How did that happen?
This morning one of my students suddenly called out, "Miss! You put 2004!" I looked over at the "Today is" part of my board, and sure enough, I had written, June 4, 2004. I suppose because I have no subconscious and I'd already written a 4. Oops.
This date in 2004, I had not even quit my temp jobs to move to NYC. Weird. And now I've been here three years (officially next Saturday) and am a real teacher and, like, I'm an actual adult and stuff. How time does fly.
Erm. Is it summer yet?
God, I hope the next few weeks aren't too difficult to get through. Give me strength to deal with hyper and obnoxious children.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Oh, the drama
Tee hee, that's a double entendre, see, because today we just barely began our drama unit.
Ha ha, I'm so funny.
We began with a free write so they could get their own ideas out and I could suss out their existing knowledge. They already knew a lot, so we came up with a paragraph describing and defining what a play is and has and involves. I taught them the word "playwright." Well, I told them that the person who writes a play is called a playwright. Not sure if that counts as "teaching," but whatever. None of them knew that before, so there's that.
After the defining, I asked them about their own experiences seeing and being in plays. They brought up memorizing lines and acting like what you're supposed to be. So then I got to play. I asked, "Okay, so watch me, I'm a good actor, look, I memorized my line. 'I'm so angry.'" (while standing with a slight slouch and a dead face and a quiet voice)
The kids were all, "No way! Boo!"
I said, "What? I knew my line!" More amused cries of protest. "Okay, okay, so what do I need to do for you to believe me?"
"You have to change your face!"
"Aha! Facial expression is really important in acting. If I say "I'm so angry" like this (happy face), does that make sense?" Hysterical laughter. "Everyone make an angry face." (they growl and grimace and scowl)(which is funny, because I bet you five bucks they don't know those last two words AT ALL even though they can do them)
"Okay, so now, do you believe me? 'I'm so angry.'" (now with an angry face but still with a slack posture and dead voice)
"NO!"
"So what else do I need to do?"
"Make your voice angry!"
"Right--intonation! Make your voice sound like what you're feeling. Also, you have to be able to project your voice--stand up straight and use your diaphragm to use all your breath (I'm such an awesome bullshitter!). All right, so now how's this? 'I'm so angry.' (now with scowl and deep, angry voice) Is there anything else I need to do so you believe me?"
"You've got to move your arms or something!"
"Okay--body language! If I say 'I'm so angry' while moving like this (growling and hopping about like a happy leprechaun), does it match?"
More hysterical laughter.
"Of course not! I have to show the audience that I mean what I say, since maybe they can't see my face, and move like an angry person would. So how's this? 'I'm so angry!'" (finally with the voice, the face, and the body)
Phew.
I like to play with my classes like this. I did more when we reviewed our verbs. In fact, and I meant to write about this last weekend, we had a good time doing verbs on Friday. For the warm up, they had to replace the boring verbs in "I walked to school" "I ran home" and "I got out of bed."
After a couple minutes, I told them, "Okay, we're going to share what you came up with, but in a different way. You'll come up here to this makeshift catwalk, and act out your verb, then the class will guess what verb you're using."
I demonstrated with a stomp, a tiptoe, a skip, and later a trudge (because they don't know that word and it's such an evocative one). And I totally exaggerated my face during each, asking them to tell me what mood I was in based on what I was doing. Explained that interesting verbs not only tell you how the person moved but also can tell you how they might be feeling.
Then it was their turn. They were so excited that a couple students wanted to go again. A couple were shy at first, but then completed their run. Many students couldn't help themselves calling out their guesses, and then a couple students did their verb and SAID what they did. Sillies.
After a litte bit of that, we got into the text and looked at action verbs versus linking verbs. Today we (tried to) review it, and I asked them for sentence examples. For each, I asked them, "And is it something I can do?" jogging exaggeratedly across the front of the room. The kids rolled their eyes but mostly seemed to get it. In fact, they even seem to mostly understand the purpose of linking verbs, which is so exciting and relieving for me. This kind of stuff is where I know I am TEACHING and they are LEARNING.
Do you know, because I keep harping on the parts of speech, bringing it up every couple months and throwing them onto poetry quizzes, just about all the students can name seven or all eight? Not necessarily define them, and they definitely can't identify them (I put application tasks on the quizzes too--identify the part of speech of each word in this sentence--they did very poorly). But! Knowledge comes first, it is the basis of everything else. I am thrilled that they are making improvements in at least this. After tomorrow we will tackle adjectives and adverbs, and that will be tricky. And actually, based on those quizzes, we'll need to do more pronoun review. Ack. Not enough time!
Anyway, back to drama. My next activity for introduction is to have them discover the elements of a script. I've done this all three years, actually. I have a class set of an old play anthology, and they work in partners to examine one of the plays and see what's there. Today each class only had like five minutes to start on that, so we'll continue more tomorrow, and they'll need heavy guidance and note-taking. The good news is that the longish play we're all supposed to read in the lit anthology (by the way, this is the ONLY sanctioned activity we can officially do with the anthologies) also makes note of these structural elements, so we can reinforce it with another example.
School's over in one month from tomorrow. Our two-day trip is next WEEK. JUNE is on FRIDAY. Holy crap! We may not have time for performing and writing and performing skits, but I'd much rather run out of time than be scrambling. Regardless, how in the world has the time gone so fast? And how in the world will we all make it for another month, since the students and teachers will just get more squirrelly from here?
Ha ha, I'm so funny.
We began with a free write so they could get their own ideas out and I could suss out their existing knowledge. They already knew a lot, so we came up with a paragraph describing and defining what a play is and has and involves. I taught them the word "playwright." Well, I told them that the person who writes a play is called a playwright. Not sure if that counts as "teaching," but whatever. None of them knew that before, so there's that.
After the defining, I asked them about their own experiences seeing and being in plays. They brought up memorizing lines and acting like what you're supposed to be. So then I got to play. I asked, "Okay, so watch me, I'm a good actor, look, I memorized my line. 'I'm so angry.'" (while standing with a slight slouch and a dead face and a quiet voice)
The kids were all, "No way! Boo!"
I said, "What? I knew my line!" More amused cries of protest. "Okay, okay, so what do I need to do for you to believe me?"
"You have to change your face!"
"Aha! Facial expression is really important in acting. If I say "I'm so angry" like this (happy face), does that make sense?" Hysterical laughter. "Everyone make an angry face." (they growl and grimace and scowl)(which is funny, because I bet you five bucks they don't know those last two words AT ALL even though they can do them)
"Okay, so now, do you believe me? 'I'm so angry.'" (now with an angry face but still with a slack posture and dead voice)
"NO!"
"So what else do I need to do?"
"Make your voice angry!"
"Right--intonation! Make your voice sound like what you're feeling. Also, you have to be able to project your voice--stand up straight and use your diaphragm to use all your breath (I'm such an awesome bullshitter!). All right, so now how's this? 'I'm so angry.' (now with scowl and deep, angry voice) Is there anything else I need to do so you believe me?"
"You've got to move your arms or something!"
"Okay--body language! If I say 'I'm so angry' while moving like this (growling and hopping about like a happy leprechaun), does it match?"
More hysterical laughter.
"Of course not! I have to show the audience that I mean what I say, since maybe they can't see my face, and move like an angry person would. So how's this? 'I'm so angry!'" (finally with the voice, the face, and the body)
Phew.
I like to play with my classes like this. I did more when we reviewed our verbs. In fact, and I meant to write about this last weekend, we had a good time doing verbs on Friday. For the warm up, they had to replace the boring verbs in "I walked to school" "I ran home" and "I got out of bed."
After a couple minutes, I told them, "Okay, we're going to share what you came up with, but in a different way. You'll come up here to this makeshift catwalk, and act out your verb, then the class will guess what verb you're using."
I demonstrated with a stomp, a tiptoe, a skip, and later a trudge (because they don't know that word and it's such an evocative one). And I totally exaggerated my face during each, asking them to tell me what mood I was in based on what I was doing. Explained that interesting verbs not only tell you how the person moved but also can tell you how they might be feeling.
Then it was their turn. They were so excited that a couple students wanted to go again. A couple were shy at first, but then completed their run. Many students couldn't help themselves calling out their guesses, and then a couple students did their verb and SAID what they did. Sillies.
After a litte bit of that, we got into the text and looked at action verbs versus linking verbs. Today we (tried to) review it, and I asked them for sentence examples. For each, I asked them, "And is it something I can do?" jogging exaggeratedly across the front of the room. The kids rolled their eyes but mostly seemed to get it. In fact, they even seem to mostly understand the purpose of linking verbs, which is so exciting and relieving for me. This kind of stuff is where I know I am TEACHING and they are LEARNING.
Do you know, because I keep harping on the parts of speech, bringing it up every couple months and throwing them onto poetry quizzes, just about all the students can name seven or all eight? Not necessarily define them, and they definitely can't identify them (I put application tasks on the quizzes too--identify the part of speech of each word in this sentence--they did very poorly). But! Knowledge comes first, it is the basis of everything else. I am thrilled that they are making improvements in at least this. After tomorrow we will tackle adjectives and adverbs, and that will be tricky. And actually, based on those quizzes, we'll need to do more pronoun review. Ack. Not enough time!
Anyway, back to drama. My next activity for introduction is to have them discover the elements of a script. I've done this all three years, actually. I have a class set of an old play anthology, and they work in partners to examine one of the plays and see what's there. Today each class only had like five minutes to start on that, so we'll continue more tomorrow, and they'll need heavy guidance and note-taking. The good news is that the longish play we're all supposed to read in the lit anthology (by the way, this is the ONLY sanctioned activity we can officially do with the anthologies) also makes note of these structural elements, so we can reinforce it with another example.
School's over in one month from tomorrow. Our two-day trip is next WEEK. JUNE is on FRIDAY. Holy crap! We may not have time for performing and writing and performing skits, but I'd much rather run out of time than be scrambling. Regardless, how in the world has the time gone so fast? And how in the world will we all make it for another month, since the students and teachers will just get more squirrelly from here?
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Update: Congrats, Me!
Woo! It is now twelve noon, and GUESS WHAT?
I FINISHED the poetry books!
I graded THREE sets of quizzes! (that's all I'm gonna do, folks.)
I updated and finished inputting grades, and have printouts for them!
WHEE! I did it!
Still to come: the bubbling, oh, the bubbling...
I FINISHED the poetry books!
I graded THREE sets of quizzes! (that's all I'm gonna do, folks.)
I updated and finished inputting grades, and have printouts for them!
WHEE! I did it!
Still to come: the bubbling, oh, the bubbling...
I love long weekends, but...
this time of year ALWAYS means that I have to worry about and do grading, because they're due on Wednesday. Dammit.
Right now it's 8.41, and I've been up for approximately forty minutes, reading blogs (as you do). This is not normally a bad thing (though it's probably a little sad), but actually it is, because what kept me from further slumber was the thought of all the grading I still have to do. So I decided to actually get up and start working on it...
Oops.
Add to the fact that it's been a long time since I updated, which means if I have something more important to do, I'll post first, and I might have a problem for the next day and a half.
The weekend at camp was a lot of fun, and relaxing. I took a LOT of pictures. Shocker, right? And they're all with my old camera, since I bought the new one right after coming back to the city.
And now I just spent ten minutes on gmail replying to incoming fellows who want to visit. See how well I can while away the day while doing nothing of substance?
Anyway, here's the link to my camp weekend photos. That old little camera takes pretty decent pictures, but now I'm firmly in love with my gorgeous Sony, and can't think about going back. As with all big purchases, I was debating whether to keep it. (I bought a shiny new laptop two Christmases ago but took it back because it was so much money. Which it actually wasn't, for a laptop, but I talked myself out of it. Because I'm just that frugal.) But it's just so awesome, and I'm excited about learning the manual settings (the biggest reason for springing the extra money as opposed to the tiny and lovely Canon SD1000), and plus it's a great new toy. I'll have it for years, I'm sure, and it should take me many beautiful photos.
So now it's 9am and I still haven't done any work. By the way, Boyfriend helped me yesterday by inputting some of my grades! Isn't that the sweetest? I made some mojitos for us and then I worked on grading poetry projects (I've been working on them all week--I completed the first two classes' work in just two days! But the last class is the biggest and with the most actually turned in, and I also had to work on grading the three quizzes I gave to each class this week, so right now I've got fourteen more poetry things to grade, and then several quizzes for each class, and then I need to finish inputting, and then begin the bubbling. EGADS.).
So...sorry for the not posting, sorry for the lame update.
Oh, I'll leave you with an amusing anecdote. On the third day of getting a quiz, a student in my top class said, "Man, I've got to get a pop-up blocker for these!"
Right now it's 8.41, and I've been up for approximately forty minutes, reading blogs (as you do). This is not normally a bad thing (though it's probably a little sad), but actually it is, because what kept me from further slumber was the thought of all the grading I still have to do. So I decided to actually get up and start working on it...
Oops.
Add to the fact that it's been a long time since I updated, which means if I have something more important to do, I'll post first, and I might have a problem for the next day and a half.
The weekend at camp was a lot of fun, and relaxing. I took a LOT of pictures. Shocker, right? And they're all with my old camera, since I bought the new one right after coming back to the city.
And now I just spent ten minutes on gmail replying to incoming fellows who want to visit. See how well I can while away the day while doing nothing of substance?
Anyway, here's the link to my camp weekend photos. That old little camera takes pretty decent pictures, but now I'm firmly in love with my gorgeous Sony, and can't think about going back. As with all big purchases, I was debating whether to keep it. (I bought a shiny new laptop two Christmases ago but took it back because it was so much money. Which it actually wasn't, for a laptop, but I talked myself out of it. Because I'm just that frugal.) But it's just so awesome, and I'm excited about learning the manual settings (the biggest reason for springing the extra money as opposed to the tiny and lovely Canon SD1000), and plus it's a great new toy. I'll have it for years, I'm sure, and it should take me many beautiful photos.
So now it's 9am and I still haven't done any work. By the way, Boyfriend helped me yesterday by inputting some of my grades! Isn't that the sweetest? I made some mojitos for us and then I worked on grading poetry projects (I've been working on them all week--I completed the first two classes' work in just two days! But the last class is the biggest and with the most actually turned in, and I also had to work on grading the three quizzes I gave to each class this week, so right now I've got fourteen more poetry things to grade, and then several quizzes for each class, and then I need to finish inputting, and then begin the bubbling. EGADS.).
So...sorry for the not posting, sorry for the lame update.
Oh, I'll leave you with an amusing anecdote. On the third day of getting a quiz, a student in my top class said, "Man, I've got to get a pop-up blocker for these!"
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
My new Significant Other
Everyone, I'd like to introduce you to the lovely and talented Sony H7. Isn't it just gorgeous?Squee!
Look what I bought yesterday! 
Whee! This camera has a remote control, so I can do jumping pictures much easier now! 
Check this out: the top two photos are from the new camera (8.1 megapixels and 15x zoom!). The bottom two are the same angle from my old camera (3.2 megapixels and 3x zoom). What an incredible difference, eh?
The camera was twice as much as the small Canon I was considering, but I decided to get this one so I can start learning how to manipulate aperture, shutter, and exposure manually. Plus, did I mention the remote control?
Check this out: the top two photos are from the new camera (8.1 megapixels and 15x zoom!). The bottom two are the same angle from my old camera (3.2 megapixels and 3x zoom). What an incredible difference, eh?
The camera was twice as much as the small Canon I was considering, but I decided to get this one so I can start learning how to manipulate aperture, shutter, and exposure manually. Plus, did I mention the remote control?
Monday, May 21, 2007
Back.
I'm back from the woods and the driving around. I'm very tired and not very excited about returning to school tomorrow. I AM excited about the new toy I bought today! I will upload photos and descriptions tomorrow!
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Looking forward to a Walk in the Woods
This weekend, I'm going to New Jersey!
Yes, on purpose, and yes, that's a good thing.
I'll be visiting Trailblazers, the decentralized camp where my AmeriCorps team worked in 2002. This is the weekend that the staff begin setting everything up for the summer. (One thousand acres of bear-populated forest; eighteen small camps that need beds, linens, canvas, bear barrels, etc; structures that need rebuilding or repairing; only two or three rickety vehicles and only one manager: it all adds up to a very Herculean task that took eleven of us two full months to work on.) Therefore, this first kick-off weekend is important, because the more that volunteers get done now, the less that they'll struggle to do later. I was realizing recently that with most of NCCC in New Orleans, camps like Trailblazers may not be getting teams. That really worries me; I don't know how they can do everything without an extra ten to twelve people!
I'll probably be taking off Monday to hang around with an out-of-town Amerifriend, which is a nice joke on my students. I've assigned a final poetry project due on Monday, so this way they'll actually get an extra free day to finish it.
Those damn Hydras have been off just enough to piss me off; I gave them a good half period today to start collecting and reviewing their work to get it ready for the final project. However, almost all the class decided that they could just talk and get up and be loud and totally off task. So, because they weren't taking their classtime seriously, I decided to make them see how important it was, and I told them the project is now due on Friday, two days from today.
See, all the poems that will be in this project have already been done, either in class or as homework. So they've gotten all their work back, and many of them did things wrong, or incomplete, or not at all. The secret is that the students who kept up and did all their work correctly will have very little work to do for the project--merely recopying or typing and putting together nicely. But many students in that class do little or no work at all, which means they'll need to do a lot of work. Which is what today was for. But they ignored it.
I had to laugh that they got all pissy in response, whining that it wasn't fair for me to change the date. I said, "Not fair? NOT FAIR?! What's not FAIR is that most of you all are STILL right now not doing ANY WORK. I'm giving you time to work on these things in class and you're deciding not to. So yes, now I'm going to move the date so you'll take this classtime seriously!"
Three or four minutes later, things quieted down--somewhat--as most of the class buckled down, going through their homework folders. Harrumph.
I *may* give them a reprieve depending on how tomorrow goes. But if they act like they did today, then Friday it will be. I won't grade the 'presentation' of the poems as harshly, but it will be due.
Take that, irresponsible ones.
See why I'm looking forward to getting away? And why it's gonna be dangerous for me to start thinking about only thirty school days left in the year?
Yes, on purpose, and yes, that's a good thing.
I'll be visiting Trailblazers, the decentralized camp where my AmeriCorps team worked in 2002. This is the weekend that the staff begin setting everything up for the summer. (One thousand acres of bear-populated forest; eighteen small camps that need beds, linens, canvas, bear barrels, etc; structures that need rebuilding or repairing; only two or three rickety vehicles and only one manager: it all adds up to a very Herculean task that took eleven of us two full months to work on.) Therefore, this first kick-off weekend is important, because the more that volunteers get done now, the less that they'll struggle to do later. I was realizing recently that with most of NCCC in New Orleans, camps like Trailblazers may not be getting teams. That really worries me; I don't know how they can do everything without an extra ten to twelve people!
I'll probably be taking off Monday to hang around with an out-of-town Amerifriend, which is a nice joke on my students. I've assigned a final poetry project due on Monday, so this way they'll actually get an extra free day to finish it.
Those damn Hydras have been off just enough to piss me off; I gave them a good half period today to start collecting and reviewing their work to get it ready for the final project. However, almost all the class decided that they could just talk and get up and be loud and totally off task. So, because they weren't taking their classtime seriously, I decided to make them see how important it was, and I told them the project is now due on Friday, two days from today.
See, all the poems that will be in this project have already been done, either in class or as homework. So they've gotten all their work back, and many of them did things wrong, or incomplete, or not at all. The secret is that the students who kept up and did all their work correctly will have very little work to do for the project--merely recopying or typing and putting together nicely. But many students in that class do little or no work at all, which means they'll need to do a lot of work. Which is what today was for. But they ignored it.
I had to laugh that they got all pissy in response, whining that it wasn't fair for me to change the date. I said, "Not fair? NOT FAIR?! What's not FAIR is that most of you all are STILL right now not doing ANY WORK. I'm giving you time to work on these things in class and you're deciding not to. So yes, now I'm going to move the date so you'll take this classtime seriously!"
Three or four minutes later, things quieted down--somewhat--as most of the class buckled down, going through their homework folders. Harrumph.
I *may* give them a reprieve depending on how tomorrow goes. But if they act like they did today, then Friday it will be. I won't grade the 'presentation' of the poems as harshly, but it will be due.
Take that, irresponsible ones.
See why I'm looking forward to getting away? And why it's gonna be dangerous for me to start thinking about only thirty school days left in the year?
Monday, May 14, 2007
Um.
So, like, I was totally meaning to write something. I swear. But...
I did laundry and I took pictures and then I had to keep checking for comments, and then finally eat something and then remake my whole bed and half-watch a movie, 3/4 watch a sitcom, and catch up on the Heroes recap before watching the new episode, and keep checking flickr...
and now it's already after ten!
Today I gave a quiz on the poetry stuff from the last two weeks. Even after all my prompting last week about studying, methinks they all bombed. Again. Whatever, dude. It's called LEARNING from your MISTAKES. Look into it, kiddies.
I introduced the final project for this unit, a poetry book. The last two years I've done a group book, but they no longer sit in groups and they can't really be trusted to work together very much, so I'll have to bite the bullet and grade one hundred books of fifteen poems each. Egads.
The rest of this week we'll be learning some new and interesting forms of poetry. Today was tanka, which is similar to haiku but expanded in form and in topic. I handed out old nature calendar pages to give them some inspiration, and they wrote a poem in groups, and then some had time to begin their own.
Later we'll do some odes, and cinquain and diamante (I know, but it'll be something new for them...), and perhaps something called hexaduad (six couplets that tell a complete story! interesting, right?).
The end of last week, we did simile and metaphor poems. To warm up, they had to list five things they felt strongly about and some traits of each. I put a poem up on the overhead and asked them to identify what tool the author used. They got that it was a bunch of similes, and we briefly talked about how the author felt about the topic, and how they knew. Then I put up another poem called "I am a Sword." It took awhile for them to realize that the topic of that poem was not, in fact, a sword. But they did see it was a metaphor.
Their task was then to begin writing simile and metaphor poems of their own. Easy peasy! It continued into the next day, and some of the kids' work was amazing. I really want to put some up here, but this great work doesn't always get collected, and I have next to no memory.
The field trip is coming together really nicely and we're all relieved and happy. We've already got transportation and lodging arranged and paid for, and this week we'll pay for our dining and tshirts, and that'll be just about it! Hurrah!
Last night I had this very long complicated dream that a bunch of mobsters were chasing me and trying to kill me. I kept hiding and running away, but they were everywhere. I/we could also somehow fly in the treetops. I got caught at one point and was injected by a bright blue tranquilizer. While I was nearly passed out, when there was a quiet moment the bad guys weren't paying attention, I somehow got the strength to run away and escape.
I think the alarm went off while I was still in mid-dream, so it was another very sleepy morning today and maybe that's why this stupid post is so disjointed and poorly written. At least that's the excuse I'm claiming for today. As always, check out the flickr for some neat photos.
I did laundry and I took pictures and then I had to keep checking for comments, and then finally eat something and then remake my whole bed and half-watch a movie, 3/4 watch a sitcom, and catch up on the Heroes recap before watching the new episode, and keep checking flickr...
and now it's already after ten!
Today I gave a quiz on the poetry stuff from the last two weeks. Even after all my prompting last week about studying, methinks they all bombed. Again. Whatever, dude. It's called LEARNING from your MISTAKES. Look into it, kiddies.
I introduced the final project for this unit, a poetry book. The last two years I've done a group book, but they no longer sit in groups and they can't really be trusted to work together very much, so I'll have to bite the bullet and grade one hundred books of fifteen poems each. Egads.
The rest of this week we'll be learning some new and interesting forms of poetry. Today was tanka, which is similar to haiku but expanded in form and in topic. I handed out old nature calendar pages to give them some inspiration, and they wrote a poem in groups, and then some had time to begin their own.
Later we'll do some odes, and cinquain and diamante (I know, but it'll be something new for them...), and perhaps something called hexaduad (six couplets that tell a complete story! interesting, right?).
The end of last week, we did simile and metaphor poems. To warm up, they had to list five things they felt strongly about and some traits of each. I put a poem up on the overhead and asked them to identify what tool the author used. They got that it was a bunch of similes, and we briefly talked about how the author felt about the topic, and how they knew. Then I put up another poem called "I am a Sword." It took awhile for them to realize that the topic of that poem was not, in fact, a sword. But they did see it was a metaphor.
Their task was then to begin writing simile and metaphor poems of their own. Easy peasy! It continued into the next day, and some of the kids' work was amazing. I really want to put some up here, but this great work doesn't always get collected, and I have next to no memory.
The field trip is coming together really nicely and we're all relieved and happy. We've already got transportation and lodging arranged and paid for, and this week we'll pay for our dining and tshirts, and that'll be just about it! Hurrah!
Last night I had this very long complicated dream that a bunch of mobsters were chasing me and trying to kill me. I kept hiding and running away, but they were everywhere. I/we could also somehow fly in the treetops. I got caught at one point and was injected by a bright blue tranquilizer. While I was nearly passed out, when there was a quiet moment the bad guys weren't paying attention, I somehow got the strength to run away and escape.
I think the alarm went off while I was still in mid-dream, so it was another very sleepy morning today and maybe that's why this stupid post is so disjointed and poorly written. At least that's the excuse I'm claiming for today. As always, check out the flickr for some neat photos.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
Boyfriend's fifteen minutes (more like twenty) of Broadway fame!
He got chosen to be an onstage speller at The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. It was so exciting! He was up there for quite a while; all the other audience members got out before he did. Then after the show, random audience members as well as the cast were like, 'Hey, great job up there!'
Last June, he bought us tickets to that show as a surprise, but I couldn't go. It was the first day of that online math-for-dummies course, and there was an assignment to do. I had to drive all the way to UPS to pick up the text, and there wasn't enough time to get into the city to see the show.
It was a huge bummer, because what a lovely surprise! But we both love Mo Rocca, so it worked out very well to see the show now. And Boyfriend got to be part of a Broadway show, and take a picture with an awesome celebrity!
Last June, he bought us tickets to that show as a surprise, but I couldn't go. It was the first day of that online math-for-dummies course, and there was an assignment to do. I had to drive all the way to UPS to pick up the text, and there wasn't enough time to get into the city to see the show.
It was a huge bummer, because what a lovely surprise! But we both love Mo Rocca, so it worked out very well to see the show now. And Boyfriend got to be part of a Broadway show, and take a picture with an awesome celebrity!
Friday, May 11, 2007
Friday sweetness on IM
B: hi ms just in case im not on saturday or sunday i wanted to wish u a happy happy HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!
ms: aw that's nice
ms: i'm not a mom or anything, but that's nice of you :-)
B: yes you are you are you tought alot of kids to grow up and be the very best they can be you thought me that and you was my mommy for 9 moths
B: months
ms: aw, how sweet!
ms: thanks so much!
B: your welcome you deserve it
ms: aw that's nice
ms: i'm not a mom or anything, but that's nice of you :-)
B: yes you are you are you tought alot of kids to grow up and be the very best they can be you thought me that and you was my mommy for 9 moths
B: months
ms: aw, how sweet!
ms: thanks so much!
B: your welcome you deserve it
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
I know you've been dying to know!
On Sunday, I did indeed stay in pajamas all.day.long! It was very exciting....In that, it wasn't.
Also, it came to my attention that my throat was actually hurting, and the touch of congestion meant an actual bout of illness was coming on.
Monday, teaching with a sore throat was less than ideal. I read them Casey at the Bat and reviewed some comprehension issues. They started their own ballads, but with very little time. So today we read Dorlan's Home Walk--I read it to them and then a couple times they all read it aloud together. Most of the students did well. I kept the rhythm, nice and slow, and they were able to work through all the lines, even the tough ones, like "if mischance ye fain would shun." Then they had some more time to work on their own poems, and I went around asking students to read me their stanzas while I clapped rhythm. That way they could hear if a line was too short or too long.
Naturally, there wasn't a lot of time to do the work in class, and I just know that the little work I get tomorrow will be total crap. I'd like to do another day of reading and understanding (and Sam McGee was one of the other ballads I found! I love the internal rhyme and all the repetition), and perhaps I'll give them the bulk of the class period to touch up their work if they need it. Maybe. Eh.
We can go on to cinquain and quatrain, but those are so boring, man. Who cares. Really, I want to quiz them again to make them see that they have to pay attention in class. We need to do limericks again too, and I could probably spend one day on haiku, even though they've done them before. And I really like having them read poems aloud together.
Oh, all three classes did pretty well today! Not really perfect, necessarily, but I think mostly stayed in the 4-5 range for class points. I've been keeping the lights off after lunch, and I think that really affects them. They are noticeably quieter and calmer, but I'm pretty sure most of that is because of the lunchtime outside play, and the lack of light encourages that sleepiness. Which, at this point in the year, I'm mostly okay with. Sad, I know. But I'm human too, not just a teacher robot!
Today the throat is better, and the congestion is steady. The Airborne is working decently, but all the talking during the day sort of clogs up the sinuses, you know what I mean? Somehow I feel dampness in my sinuses but my throat is dry, which is an odd and uncomfortable combination.
A number of my students are also blowing noses, and today we officially ran out of kleenex in the classroom! Whoopee! Except, not. The last couple days I've pleaded with the students to bring in some more, for all of our sakes. I hope some of them do, because otherwise we're in trouble. I'm low on paper towels, too, which is a first.
Also, it came to my attention that my throat was actually hurting, and the touch of congestion meant an actual bout of illness was coming on.
Monday, teaching with a sore throat was less than ideal. I read them Casey at the Bat and reviewed some comprehension issues. They started their own ballads, but with very little time. So today we read Dorlan's Home Walk--I read it to them and then a couple times they all read it aloud together. Most of the students did well. I kept the rhythm, nice and slow, and they were able to work through all the lines, even the tough ones, like "if mischance ye fain would shun." Then they had some more time to work on their own poems, and I went around asking students to read me their stanzas while I clapped rhythm. That way they could hear if a line was too short or too long.
Naturally, there wasn't a lot of time to do the work in class, and I just know that the little work I get tomorrow will be total crap. I'd like to do another day of reading and understanding (and Sam McGee was one of the other ballads I found! I love the internal rhyme and all the repetition), and perhaps I'll give them the bulk of the class period to touch up their work if they need it. Maybe. Eh.
We can go on to cinquain and quatrain, but those are so boring, man. Who cares. Really, I want to quiz them again to make them see that they have to pay attention in class. We need to do limericks again too, and I could probably spend one day on haiku, even though they've done them before. And I really like having them read poems aloud together.
Oh, all three classes did pretty well today! Not really perfect, necessarily, but I think mostly stayed in the 4-5 range for class points. I've been keeping the lights off after lunch, and I think that really affects them. They are noticeably quieter and calmer, but I'm pretty sure most of that is because of the lunchtime outside play, and the lack of light encourages that sleepiness. Which, at this point in the year, I'm mostly okay with. Sad, I know. But I'm human too, not just a teacher robot!
Today the throat is better, and the congestion is steady. The Airborne is working decently, but all the talking during the day sort of clogs up the sinuses, you know what I mean? Somehow I feel dampness in my sinuses but my throat is dry, which is an odd and uncomfortable combination.
A number of my students are also blowing noses, and today we officially ran out of kleenex in the classroom! Whoopee! Except, not. The last couple days I've pleaded with the students to bring in some more, for all of our sakes. I hope some of them do, because otherwise we're in trouble. I'm low on paper towels, too, which is a first.
Sunday, May 06, 2007
I'm a good but subversive teacher
Somehow, I'm known as a really good teacher at my school and in my department. I think I've duped somebody somehow, but I suppose I don't really mind. After all, I'm not an idiot, I know my content, I'm very stubborn, I insist on high standards, and I have occasional interesting and creative lessons.
What I don't do, however, are mini-lessons.
Take Friday, for example. I think it was a fun and effective day, but according to balanced literacy theory, it was crap.
After doing a quick review of limericks (in which I solicited the rules from the students), I read The Ballad of the Pirate Queens by Jane Yolen aloud to the class. (Teachers, also check out Encounter for a moving twist on the Columbus story.) While I read, I stopped to ask questions and point things out.
The governor has sent his ships
With cannon all a-bristle
And on the silver sea they sail
Just like a stinging thistle.
What I don't do, however, are mini-lessons.
Take Friday, for example. I think it was a fun and effective day, but according to balanced literacy theory, it was crap.
After doing a quick review of limericks (in which I solicited the rules from the students), I read The Ballad of the Pirate Queens by Jane Yolen aloud to the class. (Teachers, also check out Encounter for a moving twist on the Columbus story.) While I read, I stopped to ask questions and point things out.
The governor has sent his ships
With cannon all a-bristle
And on the silver sea they sail
Just like a stinging thistle.
Hey, what's that? The students fairly easily identified the alliteration in the third line and the simile in the fourth.
Now one small sloop that flew the black
Was Rackham's Vanity,
And it was manned by twelve brave lads
Upon the roiling sea.
I told them that a sloop is a kind of ship. But what does "flew the black" mean? They understood it was referencing the black pirate flag. And isn't it so much more poetic to drop hints and descriptions like that, instead of simply saying, "There once was a pirate ship"?
When it was far and far from shore
Those twelve brave lads were ten
For only on the sloop was known
That two of them weren't men.
The story continues by telling about these two female pirates and what happens to their ship. One stanza ends with the line, "The rest, below, did play." Once again, I pointed out the word rearrangement to allow for rhyme and for prettier construction. Another few stanzas reference "maids." Does that mean they're housekeepers? No, and the students totally understood that it was another way of saying girl or woman. Isn't it much easier to rhyme, too?
At the end of the story, I asked them what they noticed. They noticed that it rhymed, that it was written in stanzas, that it had repetition (I'd already had them practicing looking for rhyme, repetition and syllable patterns in poetry), and that it was a story about two people. (They needed some guiding through this; for example, I showed them a page again and asked, What form is it written in?) Et voila, these are all characteristics of ballad poetry, which is right in the title! Ta da!
I gave them some notes to take about ballads, and that was about the end of the time. To continue, I will do a guided reading of Casey at the Bat, several actually. First mostly to read and then again to ensure comprehension. Together, the whole class will read the poem aloud, to continue getting a feel for how poetry should sound, and wrapping their mouths around big words and long stanzas. I found another baseball ballad to echo Casey, called Dorlan's Home Walk. We'll all read that one too, and I have a couple other random ballads I've found. I also have a ballad that I started writing about Little Red Riding Hood. It's only four stanzas, and it's all exposition and foreshadowing. It won't be easy to have the students write a complete ballad, but I think they could get started at least, especially if they do what I did, and use an existing character and story.
Anyway, my point is that this was nothing like a mini-lesson. It wasn't purely a reading workshop, and it certainly wasn't a writing workshop. But the students got to hear a fantastic story, they discovered a ballad through listening, they learned some new words, and they heard poetic language and rearrangement. In Bloom's Taxonomy, they observed, they interpreted and inferenced, classified and explained, and next week they will create their own work, applying this knowledge and experience. While writing their own ballad, they will have to assess their language, select words, and arrange rhymes.
And these are all pretty entertaining and educationally demanding lessons, don't you think? Yet no mini-lesson in sight.
go me
For the last three weeks, Saturday has been a rough day for me--I feel exhausted and run down. I actually took a nap yesterday for about half an hour. Which is unusual; half the time when I wake up to go to school and feel SO tired, I reassure myself that soon I'll be home again and can take a nap or go to sleep really early. Naturally, neither of those things ever happen. So as you can see, to actually take a nap means that I was really out of it.
Not only do I not keep those nap promises to myself on a regular basis, I also usually stay up too late on the weekends, because I'm a night owl. So last night I went to sleep after midnight.
This morning I found myself half awake at 6.45am, which is roughly my normal wake-up time. Boo! I tried to keep sleeping, but finally got up around 7.30.
Happily, I worked out for about 40 minutes soon after (Gilad's workouts are my friend!), and that makes three times in the last week. Lately I've been a bit lazy, exercising only once or twice a week. But in the last week, I've felt such a difference; I was only a little sore after Tuesday's 40 minutes, and not at all sore after Thursday's 20. And my abs come back pretty quickly; I can really feel the muscle definition!
Now it's still not even eleven, and I'm chilling in my pajamas (if I'm at home, I'm wearing sweats or pj's. Does anyone really wear actual clothes sitting around at home?) catching up on tv. It's another lovely day, and I should probably go out and enjoy it. But...I don't think I really want to. Later I may be able to convince myself to get dressed and walk the few blocks to the library, but don't count on it.
Not only do I not keep those nap promises to myself on a regular basis, I also usually stay up too late on the weekends, because I'm a night owl. So last night I went to sleep after midnight.
This morning I found myself half awake at 6.45am, which is roughly my normal wake-up time. Boo! I tried to keep sleeping, but finally got up around 7.30.
Happily, I worked out for about 40 minutes soon after (Gilad's workouts are my friend!), and that makes three times in the last week. Lately I've been a bit lazy, exercising only once or twice a week. But in the last week, I've felt such a difference; I was only a little sore after Tuesday's 40 minutes, and not at all sore after Thursday's 20. And my abs come back pretty quickly; I can really feel the muscle definition!
Now it's still not even eleven, and I'm chilling in my pajamas (if I'm at home, I'm wearing sweats or pj's. Does anyone really wear actual clothes sitting around at home?) catching up on tv. It's another lovely day, and I should probably go out and enjoy it. But...I don't think I really want to. Later I may be able to convince myself to get dressed and walk the few blocks to the library, but don't count on it.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Oh, I'm supposed to update this thing?
I'm so obsessed with flickr now that I update there every now instead of here.
Also, it's kind of been a busy week, with after school appointments and trying to finalize the field trip stuff.
We've been working more through poetry, reviewing f!glang and working on looking for patterns, then using those patterns to write our own poems. I'm keeping it slow but not exactly simple. Today I introduced limericks. The way I do that is to show them a couple examples and have them figure out what the patterns and rules are. You know, inquiry-style. With prodding, they do get all the components. Then comes trying to compose one, and that, of course, is more difficult. I think we'll need more practice with them.
The two troublesome classes have had some good days this week. Perhaps it's the getting to go outside and play, so they're a little calmer and more tired, so they're not causing as much ruckus. Which doesn't mean they've all been angels all week, but overall a little better. Sort of. Except for the two whose parents I called yesterday in class (they were better today) and the two whose parents I called this afternoon (we'll see how tomorrow goes). My point is that there have been level 5 days~two for the PM class and one for the middle class. That is significant progress!
On Tuesday, I did an hour long workout, and this afternoon I did a half-hour one. I feel good! Also, strangely, I finally decided not only to clean my bathroom, but also to clear the floor for a long-overdue vacuuming! Hurrah me!
In other news, I bought some long-lasting lipstick, because my pale-ass face needs some color after the first fifteen minutes of the day, and I don't have time or effort to reapply during a day of teaching. I tried it today, and it worked!
Hey, guess what: tomorrow is Friday! Isn't that neato?
Also, it's kind of been a busy week, with after school appointments and trying to finalize the field trip stuff.
We've been working more through poetry, reviewing f!glang and working on looking for patterns, then using those patterns to write our own poems. I'm keeping it slow but not exactly simple. Today I introduced limericks. The way I do that is to show them a couple examples and have them figure out what the patterns and rules are. You know, inquiry-style. With prodding, they do get all the components. Then comes trying to compose one, and that, of course, is more difficult. I think we'll need more practice with them.
The two troublesome classes have had some good days this week. Perhaps it's the getting to go outside and play, so they're a little calmer and more tired, so they're not causing as much ruckus. Which doesn't mean they've all been angels all week, but overall a little better. Sort of. Except for the two whose parents I called yesterday in class (they were better today) and the two whose parents I called this afternoon (we'll see how tomorrow goes). My point is that there have been level 5 days~two for the PM class and one for the middle class. That is significant progress!
On Tuesday, I did an hour long workout, and this afternoon I did a half-hour one. I feel good! Also, strangely, I finally decided not only to clean my bathroom, but also to clear the floor for a long-overdue vacuuming! Hurrah me!
In other news, I bought some long-lasting lipstick, because my pale-ass face needs some color after the first fifteen minutes of the day, and I don't have time or effort to reapply during a day of teaching. I tried it today, and it worked!
Hey, guess what: tomorrow is Friday! Isn't that neato?
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