Orange Bowl

I'm not a big sports fan. Usually I watch because it's either thanksgiving and THE Game is on, or It's the Rose Bowl, and it is tradtion to watch with my family.

But I've never looked forward to a football game more than KU vs. Virgina Tech. It's gonna be good!

What to do with all that money?

Through the wonders of the web, I read a blog that I got connected with through a short story contest (Wonderful lead in, I know.) Well, it turns out that her super smart hubby has won 37,000+ playing Jeopardy!

here's the link: http://peanutbutterburrito.blogs.com/

I really admire her writing and how she runs her life, so in my superficial judgment, good things happen to good people.

I bet the hardest part was sitting on the news, because of game show reg's she couldn't tell anybody. The shows were taped in September, and are showing now. That's an incredibly long time to sit on good news (understatement that is). I would have been jumping up and down the entire plane ride home, and they would have committed me for insanity as soon as the plane landed.

Now, if only the Scrabble Jackpot was that big!

Today, I'm missing college

I'm missing the really long winter breaks.
I'm missing learning for learning's sake.
I'm missing discussion oriented classes.
I'm missing handling cadavers
I'm missing my college friends.
I'm missing Amnesty International and the belief I was making a difference globally
I'm missing how the only responsibility's I had were towards myself.
I'm missing the debate tournaments where I kicked ass.
I'm missing the Hot biology majors.
I'm missing the Hot Poly-Sci Majors.
I'm missing Truman's Campus
I'm missing the cheap student housing.
I'm missing my roommates.
I miss the occasional feeling of brilliance that comes with an A.

I'm not missing paying through the nose for it all.
I'm not missing Martiz research.

All of this makes graduate school in another topic besides education more appealing.

Intellectual Stimulation

http://www.edge.org

Possibly a good site for inform topics too.

I've done it!

I've survived first semester! WAhooo! Now I get to decide/ revise a couple of things. First on the agenda is a crack down on discipline. I also get new set of kids for my Human Body Class. I can hopefully spend my time getting ready for the next few units.It will be a chance to revise my teaching style and make it better.

I really miss having these really long college breaks. I'm driving home Jan. 1st--I could stand a few days more of break. Here's to a week long spring break in March.

I'm supposed to be starting research on my thesis. Haha. Like past years, it is super hard to get motivated to do anything when there are three other siblings to tempt me to sleep in and watch movies. Which I have, and it is blissful.

Home again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig!

Wish me luck and safe travels, i'm driving home tomorrow to see my family!

The Best Part of Waking up is Flodgers in your Cup!

I skipped church, and slept in at 9:30 in the morning. I wake up to light coming in from my window. (Earlier in the season, I had placed plastic covering over the windows, as an extra form of insulation. The downside is that the shades are permanently closed until it gets warmer.) It is weird that light is coming IN because it's been cloudy and nasty for the past week, making heat and what light can get through the shades OUT and not in.

I had woken up to snow reflecting sunbeams through my window.

YEA!

Somehow, light shining in is so much better than light being sucked out.

Force of nature

My mother is a force of nature. She is a whirl wind for organizing, managing, and telling people what to do in an kind and considerate way. She can organize potlucks with a single bound, rule the USD 373 School board with a fist full of compassion and righteous knowledge. Organize bike rides with hundreds of people in a single afternoon. She get things done and she does them well, and everyone is happy to follow her wake.

Growing up with this, I had certain expectations about myself and my carrier. I would be a natural teacher, with Freedom Writers, Dangerous minds and That one math teacher in Texas, rolled up in to one wonderful boisterous Bill-Nye-the-Science-Guy ball.

This is not the case. One professional development guru said that there are four stages in a teacher's career:
1. Fantasy-the wide-eye college student ready to reform NCLB single handedly
2. Survival- the harried 23 year old sprouting gray hairs by the minute
3. Mastery- the teacher you learned from and enjoyed
4. Impact- the teacher who opened your eyes.

It's safe to say that the fantasy is over, and I'm on to the survival stage.
I pray in an honest and sincere way that I will be able to make a difference.
But for now, I just wanna pay my bills and force F=ma down a few kids throats.

I'm looking for some help

I'm trying to find a techno song called "In the beat of the night" it was popular when I went to high school and I'm trying to track it down. Any body know who the artist is?

Snow Day!

I havn't been this gleeful in a long time!
We'll have to make it up later, but for now...
WAHOO!

So, what do you do in the evenings?

I got asked that question quite a few times today.
And my answer is kind of pathetic...
"Watch T.V, read and play with my chinchilla."

It feels like I should be doing something productive, creating a masterpiece of art, or thinking great thoughts, or saving kittens from tall trees or something...

But instead I'm normal... I watch the Simpsons, read and take a walk in the evening. I guess I should be getting more fulfillment that I am from teaching and hopefully that fulfillment will come in time.

But right now it would be more truthful to say that I spent my evenings wishing for things I don't have.

It's alright... but it feels like I'm missing something.

Ulcer time!

Tomorrow, I take 25 kids to Body Worlds III. When my mentor found out I was leading a field trip by myself. He wanted me to cancel. This was yesterday. After panicked emails to people in charge, we got it all figured out.

My class would have murgatroyed me if we didn't go.

It was also rather audacious of my mentor to request that I cancel the trip. If I had done that I would for sure not get a job here next year. (This alludes to other drama that would be unprofessional to post about.)

High School High

I watched "High School High" when I was in a grumpy mood--that movie made it all better. I must say, it was nice to have a rainy weekend at home. This week I take my kids to "Body Worlds", and we review for the last chapter test before starting the final test review. I have almost survived my first semester teaching!

Someone needs to buy me a drink!

BTW: I had to explain what a "Flaming Dr. Pepper" was to my cousin-in-law.
Thanks Trevor and Tim!