How to get three days off in the middle of a week

So this past week, I went to work on Monday - and that's it. Friday (tomorrow) is a day off for us. How did I manage such a feat, you ask? Well, without going into great detail, I decided to stay up all Monday night re-living my dinner. Not pleasant and really not by choice.

On top of the unpleasant reason for staying home, when you realize at 2:30am that you need to call in sick and then email teacher-on-call notes to school, it's really quite a chore. So in addition to being sick and tired (quite literally), you have to have enough brain power to write up plans for the day in between the bouts of - how should I say - "discomfort".

So that was Tuesday. I was hoping to go back to work on Wednesday, but after being up all night on Monday, I could hardly keep my eyes open. I slept most of Tuesday and was hardly drinking water. Wednesday was now out. Trying to write TOC plans on Tuesday (for Wednesday) was almost a bigger chore than the ones I wrote in the middle of the night.

Finally, yesterday, in the afternoon, the Lab TA at our school - she's awesome - phoned to tell me to just stay home one more day and rest. I followed her advice and have now been home for three days. I finally ate some soup today. Yay! It's a small victory, but I'm so tired of texturally devoid liquids - water, powerade, stale gingerale (because you leave it too long and it goes flat).

I realize this is an odd post after such a long drought, but it's what has been happening lately. And when I'm teaching, I feel like I have no time for anything else. Just about everything I have goes into doing a good job in the different aspects of my life - at home, with my husband (my first priority), and at work. Such things leave me little time to blog. To be honest, I don't even get to read blogs as much as I would like anymore. I need to find balance and perspective.

Maybe that's why I'm home right now. My body said "You're done. Deal with it." So after six days off of school, I will go back on Monday for just two more weeks before Christmas break. Two weeks of break before the big push to the end of the semester. Which gives me one more thought... Christmas... I should be buying presents...

Still a bad blogger

Well, at least no one is hassling me about my lack of posting. However, maybe this just means people have given up on me. . . Anyway, I haven't even really been reading any blogs lately. I feel like all of my time is being taken up by school work and the gigantic pile of marking that I always seem to have. It's this neverending pile of student work that I have to go through. And there is always more of it. Fun, fun.

In the remaining time that I have, I have been teaching first year confirmation at the church (over for now - starts up again in January), co-leading a youth girl's bible study, and trying to see my husband as much as possible. We are getting away next weekend and going to Leavenworth, WA. Since we are so close to the border, getting away to the States is actually quite easy. The irony is that this is the first time since moving down here that we are doing that. Leavenworth seems like it will be a fun place to visit - it's a small Bavarian village in the Cascade mountains with lots of neat little shops. I think we will have fun.

bad, bad blogger

I've decided I'm a terrible blogger. I never feel like I have anything to say and then I never have the motivation to write when I do. But here are a couple of stories from my first three weeks of school. Just so you know, am back at the same school and I have two Science 8 classes and one Science 9. Although teaching sci 8 again, the government implemented a new curriculum this year, so I have to develop everything myself and the teacher resources that correspond with the textbook are on back order. And I haven't taught sci 9 before BUT a colleague gave me a CD with the ENTIRE course on it (his notes, worksheets, tests). It's awesome. I love computers. But back to the stories:

1. "Is kryptonite real?" - an actual question I was asked in the first week of school. First, I clarified that she was, indeed, asking about the bane of Superman's existence, and sure enough, she was. Then I told her that no, kryptonite is NOT real. She replied, "You mean, they make stuff up?" At this point, I am crying on the inside about the future of our society and ask her if she means that comic book writers make up the things they write about. "Yeah, they make stuff up?" she says again. Apparently flying men in tights are a normal occurrence in her world. So I assured her not to believe everything she sees and changed the subject back to lab safety. On a side note, there IS an element (number 36) on the periodic table name Krypton, but it is a noble gas, NOT a green glowing rock that is the remnant of some distant planet.

2. Busting a skipper - Do you know how satisfying it is to catch a skipper? I do. This past week, I had a student missing from my class. It was the last block of the day and it was a miserable day outside. Raining buckets. This comes into play later. I had a suspicion that he was not supposed to be missing, checked his attendance for the day, and sure enough, he had been at school for all his other classes. We happened to be having a quiz that day, which he knew about, and missed. Now I had a logical consequence (see those uni-ma-versity edu-ma-cation words?) to apply. Did not write quiz + no good reason to be missing = no mark on said quiz. So that afternoon, I phoned home about 5 minutes after class ended, and his mom picks up. Perfect. Long story short, he had no ground to stand on and neither did his mother. It was a somewhat frustrating conversation, but I can't really get into that here. Apparently rain is an ok reason to come home from school if your mom thinks you have phys ed in the last block of the day. Ugh.

So, hopefully I will start being a little more regular about blogging. We'll see.

Not much to say

Now that I'm home from vacation, I don't really have a lot to say. Andrew is posting about all the adventures we had - from crazy bus lady to driving to O'Hare. I really enjoyed our time away. It was relaxing and exciting at the same time. I had never been to the States longer than an evening (to have dinner in Lindon) so seeing anything different from here was cool. Now that we have our passports, I think I will feel more comfortable crossing the border. It is WAY easier to cross the border with a passport (at least that has been my impression so far) even if my passport picture looks like I am a hardened career criminal. Seriously, it does. Anyway, I'm now glad to be home, trying not to think about school just yet, but realizing that my days of freedom are slowly dwindling.

I am having one last summer adventure too. My Nanny (my maternal grandmother) is turning 90 in November. My aunt and her daughters thought it would be nice to have everyone gather in the summer time to celebrate the event. For the longest time I didn't think I could go, but just discovered that I can! I am very excited. I haven't seen my cousins in 3 years and one of them has a two year old now, whom I've never met. Unfortunately, Andrew can not go because he is preaching that Sunday and he needs to save his remaining holiday time for spring break (I think). So I get to go home this summer after all! It will be very fun.

I love meatloaf - but not of the beef variety.

A while back Shannon asked people to comment on her blog with secrets from their past. I could only come up with a really lame secret that isn't much to be embarrassed about. In reading Neal's latest blog regarding inappropriate song lyrics, I thought of a much more personal, secret guilty pleasure that I have. I have dubbed it "Secret Shame Music". It's the music one listens to but would tell nobody else about. It's the music you enjoy but you feel too embarrassed to share it with anyone else lest they call you a freak. For some it may be Backstreet Boys, for some it may be Black Sabbath, for some it may be Barney's Greatest Hits, but for me, you ask? It is Meat Loaf.

At this point you are probably asking yourself, "Why?" Well, when I was a child, we used to take long, roadtrip vacations during the summer and this was the music my parents listened to. My brothers and I would ride along in the back seat while my parents sang the tunes from "Bat out of Hell". When you are seven, you have no idea what any of the lyrics mean, you just remember thinking how cool you were to be listening to "grown-up" music. What is so wrong with the lyrics? Here is a small sampling and you can judge for yourself:


Paradise by the Dashboard Light (a song for young lovers ;)

ain't no doubt about it
we were doubly blessed
'cause we were barely seventeen
and we were barely dressed

Radio Broadcast (Bjorn and I thought it was actually talking about baseball)
ok, here we go, we got a real pressure cooker going here,
two down, nobody on, no score, bottom of the ninth,
there's the windup, and there it is, a line shot up the middle,
look at him go. This boy can really fly! he's rounding first and really turning it on now, he's not letting up at all, he's gonna try for second;
the ball is bobbled out in center, and here comes the throw,
and what a throw! he's gonna slide in head first, here he comes, he's out!
No, wait, safe-safe at second base, this kid really makes things happen out there. batter steps up to the plate, here's the pitch-he's going, and what a jump he's got,he's trying for third, here's the throw, it's in the dirt-safe at third!
holy cow, stolen base! he's taking a pretty big lead out there, almost daring him to try and pick him off. the pitcher glances over, winds up, and it's bunted, bunted down the third base line, the suicide squeeze is on! here he comes, squeezeplay, it's gonna be close, holy cow, i think he's gonna make it!

Then later on in the song - it was probably seven minutes long:
I couldn't take it any longer
Lord I was crazed
And when the feeling came upon me
Like a tidal wave
I started swearing to my god and on my mother's grave
That I would love you to the end of time
I swore that I would love you to the end of time!
So now I'm praying for the end of time
To hurry up and arrive
'Cause if I gotta spend another minute with you
I don't think that I can really survive
I'll never break my promise or forget my vow
But God only knows what I can do right now
I'm praying for the end of time It's all that I can do
Praying for the end of time,
So I can end my time with you!!


Bat out of Hell (a song about commitment - I think my parents used to fast forward this one)

like a bat out of hell
I'll be gone when the morning comes
when the night is over
like a bat out of hell I'll be gone gone gone
like a bat out of hell I'll be gone when the morning comes
but when the day is done
and the sun goes down
and moonlight's shining through
then like a sinner before the gates of heaven
I'll come crawling on back to you


Two Out of Three Ain't Bad (for the true romantics in the crowd)

And all I can do is keep on telling you
I want you
I need you
But there ain't no way
I'm ever gonna love you
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad


So there you have it. If for no other reason than sentimentality, I love Meat Loaf. It is oozing with cheesy goodness, it is smarmy in a good way (if that is possible), and the dude looks like he could sweat an ocean into existence, but I love Meat Loaf. The second Bat out of Hell didn't really do it for me, and apparently there is a third one coming out this fall, but for me it's all about the first one.

So on that note, let me end with a challenge - what is YOUR Secret Shame Music? What do you listen to that you want no one else to know?

And then they made me their chief

Andrew and I watched Pirates of the Caribbean last night (the first one). Such a great movie.

Anyway, I am glad that I am finished for the summer. And BC teachers also have a negotiated contract! An improvement over the government imposed contract that we got last June. I get to go back to my school in September too, which I appreciate. It's nice to have some continuity.

Here's to a great summer!

Two more days!

That's right folks! I have two more days of class and then two days of exams and then no more kids for this year! I have really, really enjoyed my job but I am so tired right now and can't wait for summer break. I still have to be at school until the 30th but that week is going to be so relaxing.

On another note, there is a movie being filmed here in Cloverdale on Main Street. Andrew and I walked down there the other night to look at the set. The whole main street is dressed up to look like a Christmas festival. There is fake snow everywhere, Christmas lights, fake fronts on a lot of the buildings, and a "skating" rink in the middle of the street. It's really cool. Apparently the movie is called "Deck the Halls" and stars Matthew Broderick and Danny Devito. It's supposed to come out at Christmas time (go figure). At certain times, the public is allowed to wander down amongst the sets and just look at everything. There is a table in front of one of the stores that is FILLED with chocolate bars (just a set piece) and a big sign that says "Don't eat the candy - It's very old" - made me laugh. Some of the people from our church are also extras in the film. Just right place at the right time, I guess. This is probably the biggest budget production that has been filmed here (and there have been quite a few - Slither, Muppets Wizard of Oz), and Cloverdale also plays home to downtown Smallville. It's quite fun living so close to a common movie location. Andrew was almost in Dr. Doolittle 3 but he isn't actually shown in the crowd. He spent an afternoon one day watching a "rodeo" at the Cloverdale fair grounds but I guess you can't actually see him in the crowd. I haven't actually checked for myself, though. It would mean watching that movie, which I'm not really wanting to do.

Wow, this post has turned into quite the stream of consciousness jumble. I should end it here and go work on the PILE of marking I have left to do before Tuesday.

While the iron is hot

That's right. Strike. It's never really a word that teachers want to hear (at least not me). We would like our democratic (i.e. bureaucratic) bargaining system to actually work - the first time. We would like to see adherence to class size limits, adherence to composition limits, and we would like a fair salary. And we would like all this to occur, in a timely fashion, where the two negotiating parties come to an actual agreement. But maybe I'm being a little idealistic.

I am talking about the BC education system. In the fall (before I was hired), teachers fought for students' learning conditions and teachers' working conditions and won. Now, we are trying to reach a fair salary settlement. At the maximum level on the scale (11 years) with 5 years of education (what most BC teachers have) BC teachers are currently making $10 000 to $12 000 LESS than teachers in Alberta and Ontario. In a few years, we will likely be making less than teachers in Saskatchewan. The problem? In the lower mainland, living expenses and inflation are out of control (and I don't see that changing in the near future - we filled up with gas two days ago for $1.22/L) and BC is a HAVE province. There IS money in the budget. We would just like to be closer to what Alberta and Ontario teachers make.

As a result of stalled negotiations, the BCTF is taking a strike vote tomorrow. This means there is a possibility of "job action" (going on strike) in September if a settlement is not reached by June 30. The last time negotiations stalled, the government legislated a contract and then extended it without going back to the bargaining table. That is what made teachers angry in the fall. Hopefully, we reach a solution this time. I guess I'll see what happens.

I should be working...

Do you remember being in school? Do you remember feeling how the last possible thing that you wanted to do in June was go to school? Well, this feeling is not limited just to students. So, instead of doing something productive for my job, I'm blogging. Not that I have anything to say right now.

Random thought #1 - My cat has multiple personalites, I think. Or OCD. He can't decide whether he is an indoor cat or an outdoor cat and as a result, I have to get up from whatever I'm doing every 20 minutes to let him out or let him in. He also has a weird habit of walking across a room, stopping very abruptly to lick his hind leg twice, and continuing on as if nothing had happened. At least that part is entertaining.

Random thought #2 - We went to an advance screening of Cars yesterday. It was free. It was more entertaining than I thought it was going to be (I'm not much into talking machines - especially robots) and I laughed out loud a few times. Pixar's trend of making quality movies continues. Very funny credits, too.

Random thought #3 - I realize that a lot of my blogs about teaching seem really negative. I actually do like my job but I guess I use my blog to let out some of my frustrations with students, the system, or "the man." There are still a lot of positives to my job. The other day, a student brought me a cupcake from cooking class. He was very sincere about bringing it especially for me and would have put icing on it except they are not allowed icing. Of course now I have to decide "Do I eat the cupcake or do I pretend to eat the cupcake?" Well, I ate the cupcake. It's three days later and I have suffered no ill effects. It was very sweet of him to share.

Random thought #4 - Now I really have to go get some work done. Two weeks and two days left of classes followed by two days of exams - I can do that. After that, it's just working around the school, cleaning up my classroom, and then wondering what to do until June 30. Then two months of freedom.

A post for Neal

Teachers are really busy towards the end of May and beginning of June. The last two weeks have just been a smidge crazy. Therefore no blogs.

For all you math people out there, here's an equation for you:

Lots of marking + very full weekends = No blogging for me


Oh, and a word of wisdom to any students out there... The beginnning of June is TOO late to start caring about your mark. I could say I told you so... over and over and over and over...

"Do you know what you are doing to my mark?"

This is a comment I have heard from a few students. My response? "I'm only marking what you give me, so you are responsible for your own mark. If you don't hand things in or put in any effort, that's not my responsibility."

I find it sad and disturbing how much people need to blame someone else or something else for their problems. Take responsibility for yourself because excuses will only get you so far... and with me, excuses don't get you very far. You know, I understand that you have a learning disability, but you still have to hand in SOMETHING. I understand you have a crappy home life, but you still have to behave in class and be respectful to your classmates. At a certain point in time, people have to realize that they are directly responsible for what happens to them and they are responsible for what they happen to do. Truth is not relative no matter how much you have deluded yourself into thinking so. I just hope that my students can learn this earlier rather than later.

Thought this was cool

The Keys to Your Heart

You are attracted to those who are unbridled, untrammeled, and free. In love, you feel the most alive when things are straight-forward, and you're told that you're loved. You'd like your lover to think you are stylish and alluring. You would be forced to break up with someone who was insecure and in constant need of reassurance. Your ideal relationship is lasting. You want a relationship that looks to the future... one you can grow with. Your risk of cheating is zero. You care about society and morality. You would never break a commitment. You think of marriage as something precious. You'll treasure marriage and treat it as sacred. In this moment, you think of love as commitment. Love only works when both people are totally devoted.

What Are The Keys To Your Heart?

Val says...

We have a science teaching assistant at our school. Basically what she says, goes. Period. And I'm ok with that.

She is awesome. She knows the science store room inventory like the back of her hand and if I say "Do you know where ________ is?" she always has an answer for me.

It's quite a luxury, though. Not all science teachers have the privilege of having someone to set out lab equipment, set up labs, yell at children who are playing with fire, etc. I feel very lucky to have someone to do that. My students get to do more labs because it frees up some of my time.

Our TA also listens when I'm frustrated with my students. For instance, I related this scenario to her today. I gave an assignment and had 4 handed in out of 18. Now in my opinion, that's pathetic. You probably agree with me. But what am I to do? I gave time in class, let students take it for homework, and even gave them an extra day. If they choose not to do their assignments after all that they deserve the 0 they get. If they want to be lazy, there is nothing I can do to change that.

But hey, I look at the bright side. Assignments sure are easy to mark when I only have 4 to do.

Scaredy Class?

So today I was told that one of my classes is scared of me. Really?!? I found out this tidbit from a student in one of my other classes. She apparently has friends in this class and they say that I am strict and mean and that they are scared of me. To anyone who knows me, does this make sense? Do I really come across as terrifying? I mean I breath fire like a dragon, can roar like a lion, and shoot lasers from my eyes, but is that really all that scary?

But then I remember... the class who apparently thinks I am scary also thinks that I mark too hard, I give them too many assignments, too many tests, and the the list goes on and on. The whining never ends.

I never take stuff like this seriously, though. If I did I'd already have a complex and I've only been teaching for 3 months.

Evening rendezvous in the church parking lot?

What a romantic way to spend an evening with a special someone and on Easter Sunday no less. I'm referring to the spectacle that Andrew and I witnessed as we drove home from Easter dinner on Sunday night. We had forgotten to take videos back to the store so we first stopped at home, picked up the videos, and went to Rogers. On the way home, as we tend to do, we drove by the church to do a security check. We noticed two vehicles in the parking lot and thought that was odd. Usually, the parking lot is empty, especially on a Sunday night and this was EASTER! So, we drive into the parking lot to take a look.

Much to our surprise, there were people in one of the vehicles. (An SUV) First, we saw a female face looking back at us in shock and as we turn our car around in the parking lot, I see a bare-chested, half-nekkid dude turning off the interior light. Not really something I was expecting to see. Hmmmm... What were you doing in there people? A little sump'n sump'n, I think. My first question: Why have the interior light on? My second question: Why a church parking lot? Honestly people, WHY? But perhaps you've done it many times before and not been caught. Who knows?

Anyway, Andrew and I are left in a bit of a pickle. What do we do? If we stop and try to "talk" to these people, what if we know them from the church? If we don't, how do we politely ask them to leave and never do that again? I think we were both so surprised we didn't think to get license numbers. I mean, really, it's not that often you catch people in a potentially very awkward position (take that how you wish). Anyway, there is more to this story, but you can read about it on my husband's blog. See the full account there and if it's not there yet, it's on its way. Be patient.

And yes, this is a true story.

Really amazing medical story

I was reading the news today (online because we can't get newspaper delivery where we live) and came across this article. The human body is so amazing... I just see this as more evidence for our Creator.

Five years ahead of my time...

You Are 32 Years Old

Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

Donut or doughnut?

You Are a Powdered Devil's Food Donut

A total sweetheart on the outside, you love to fool people with your innocent image. On the inside you're a little darker, richer, and more complex. You're a hedonist who demands more than one pleasure at a time. Decadent and daring, you test the limits of human indulgence.

What Donut Are You?

Weekends

I really like my weekends. I like the freedom to do what I want, I try to get some sleep, I like to spend time with my husband, and I try to get at least a little bit of school work finished. I don't always get to have my weekends to myself, though. It feels like this weekend went by way too fast.

Friday nights are already taken up by Friday night alive. By the time I get home it's already almost 10:00pm. At least it's been almost ten the last two weeks because people don't pick up their children on time. It's over at 9 o'clock people!!! I am not a baby-sitter. I am a volunteer who would like to go home on time.

Yesterday, Andrew and I had invitations to two different events. I ended up going to only the afternoon event because I was just too peopled-out and I needed to do some marking. Anyone who knows me, knows that I am an introvert who gets stressed out by being with lots of people for too long. It's really the noise that gets to me. Anyway, I did not attend the evening shin-dig but at the same time, people were asking Andrew where I was. I know that people appreciate when both Andrew and I attend their special celebrations, but I can't possibly go to all of them. Especially now that I have started teaching. I don't think that people understand how much work it is to be a beginning teacher - unless they have done it and even then I think that some of them forget. I like what I'm doing a lot and I really want to do a good job but it takes up lots of time.

This morning I went to church and I discovered there was a meeting after church that I didn't know about. I also wanted to stay to listen to the Bible study that Andrew was leading for the young adults on the Sacraments. But this meant that I wasn't home until 4:00pm. I was supposed to go play softball at 5:30pm but I just couldn't bring myself to go. I have school work to do and I am stalling right now.

I guess the point of the story is that I wish I could do it all, but I can't. I just hope that people understand that I have my own life and can't do everything that my husband does. It's not that I don't want to, it's that I just physically can't...

Thinking makes me feel sick...

So I had a student the other day who actually told me that. The funny thing is, I think she was serious. At that point I'm thinking "Why were you able to eat a giant plate of poutine at lunch, then?" Apparently, students think that teachers lack the ability to detect lying. OR students think that teachers will believe anything they are told. Hmmmm. I'm sorry but go sell crazy someplace else. We're all stocked up here.