The week started off pretty awful as I lost my keys at school Wednesday and didn't realize it until I was ready to go home after practice around 6:30. Needless to say, I literally spent two hours looking for the keys with the only people left in the school, the head janitor and his wife. The keys eventually turned up (locked in the secretary's office) but it made for a horrible night and consequently an awful start to the week. I felt like I was playing catch-up all week because of that one awful night. Throw in parent teacher conferences on Wednesday night and you have one rough week. The good news? Less than 1 week from now I will be in Monterey, California!
I have an awful lot of work to get done before then however. I have a stack of papers to grade that is about 2 weeks old that I need to knock out today. I have to finish cleaning the apartment, pack, plan, get some dry cleaning and ironing done that I've been meaning to do for MONTHS, and hopefully a couple decent workouts in and some lesson planning.
Despite my lack of sleep and planning, I somehow managed to make it through the week with my sanity intact and I even had a couple "smile" moments. The first was the day after the great key fiasco. I apologized to my kids that they had to take so many notes today, but explained that I lost my keys, got home very late and didn't have time to make them a worksheet. One of my students who is an office aide immediately responded, "oh, those were YOUR keys? We were trying to figure it out!" She went on to explain that they were examining my key ring and saw the Army keychain and stopped to think "now what teacher would have an Army keychain?"
Immediately another student in the class responded, "the one who loves World War II!" It seriously made my day. That is indeed my favorite historical period and is pretty much the reason I became a history teacher. I never told that to my kids, but I'm glad to see I conveyed my enthusiasm well. If all they remember 10 years from now about their 10th grade history class is that their teacher 'loved WWII' my life will be compete haha! It definitely also made me laugh that she was trying to figure out what teacher would have the Army keychain. She admitted she thought it might be me 'cos of how I talk to her about her best friend who is about to go to Afghanistan and how much I know. They definitely don't know about JC (I keep my personal life personal) so they just think I know a lot about the Army. I think some of them actually think I served, which is kind of comical.
Another smile moment came Thursady during track practice. I had to work with the distance squad for the first half of practice and then the head coach wanted me to do something with the girls team (only about 5 girls) to get them away from the boys he wanted to work with because, as he put it, they "go into heat whenever they're together". So for starters, in case I haven't mentioned it, I was a distance runner in high school. I have no natural speed and like running long distance because there is so much opportunity for improvement and personal advancement. Well, the 5 girls I had to work with were all 8th and 9th grade girls who - except for 1 - lack any real natural talent. That's perfectly fine with me, but add to that the fact that they have horrible attitudes and call themselves "the Black Mafia", are lazy and are only in the sprinting group because they just don't want to run anything more than a lap and you get an idea of what I had to work with. Now I come to practice every day in running attire. I like to run with the kids when I get a chance, especially the girls, even though they complain the entire time. The kids all know I have a distance background and I think whenever the Head Coach (we'll call him Coach T) says "go with Coach R" they are terrified because they think I'm going to make them run a distance workout.
So he told these 5 girls yesterday to go with me and you would not BELIEVE the complaining he and I heard. When I told them we were going to go run through the woods on the cross-country trails, I may as well have said we're going to fly to the moon. I told them I would run it with them and they seemed to accept it a bit better after that. I fudged the distance and told them we were running about 1 mile (it's really closer to 2200 meters, which is almost 1 1/2 miles). They complained for the first 5 minuets almost nonstop. What if we get attacked by a bear? What if a "wild Cujo dog" runs out and tries to kill us? What if a crazy man runs out of the woods to get us? What if we got lost? What if they got impaled by a stick? Complain. Complain. Complain. After about 3/4 of a mile they all started taking off their sweatshirts (I honestly think it's the first time they've worked up a sweat in track practice). When we popped out by the back baseball field with only about a half mile left they were all in pretty good spirits. I honestly think they couldn't believe they did it and that it was so much easier than they thought. We got back to the track and, for about the first time all season, we stretched as a team. One girl remarked "I really feel better after stretching." AMAZING. Another finally admitted "that was kind of fun." Still another - the one with the worst attitude in the world who scowls all throughout practice - asked, "can we do that every week?"
I was seriously on Cloud 9. The girls found something they like to do at track practice and it involves running more than 100 meters. I'm excited because I think it will be good conditioning once a week to build up some distance. I also think it really helped those girls realize I'm not so scary and I won't make them run 10 miles. I doubt they'd ever admit to it, but I think they liked that I ran it with them.
Another good thing that happened this week: JC's running shoes are now being worn by 2 of my favorite boys on the sprinting team. Like most of the track team, they were running in pretty sorry looking basketball shoes before. I have made it my goal to get them all in proper running shoe and thanks to the donations of a parent and my old pair of shoes I have now outfitted 4 athletes (out of about 30) with lightly used running shoes. Never mind that one of the boys is running in my size 11 girls shoes and has no ideas. Running shoes are running shoes and they're definitely better than what he used to have.
Other smile moments include an exchange with a particularly tough parent at conferences. A father that came in noted the flag on my wall and the several pictures I have on my "Heroes Wall" of people in uniform. He asked where I got the flag and I told him my boyfriend who returned from Afghanistan in November. He seemed to have an interest so I asked if he served. He said, "still do. I'm just on medical leave." I asked what branch and he responded, "the ONLY branch, the Army". I immediately replied with an instinctual "hooah", which just made him grin from ear to ear. It was a very tense conference up until then and after that he slapped me on the back! It was a fun way to end parent teacher conferences. I relayed the exchange to JC later that night and he complemented me on my excellent use of 'hooah' and told me he'd never been prouder.
Today has been a more productive Saturday than usual. I have been alternating cleaning, organizing and grading (packing will be added in tonight!). I do a little of this and a little of that and the day has flown by. I actually have to run to Kroger to go get my ingredients for my cooking date tonight. We're doing it tonight because JC has a big German test on Monday and I have a fantasy baseball draft. We're making a couple of old family recipes his dad passed along to him so it should be fun. I ate both things we're making back when I met his family back in January and they were delicious. I'm definitely looking forward to having them in my fridge all week.
In other news, my ex boyfriend will be deploying for Afghanistan. I found this out last night via Facebook and my stomach has been all queasy ever since. He is going to a particularly volatile and dangerous part of the country. I talked with JC at length about how I felt about him deploying. It's his 3rd deployment and his first as a sergeant in charge of other soldiers. Despite not being the right guy for me at all, he is a good person with a good heart and an outstanding soldier. Obviously, he is not a part of my life anymore like he used to be, but I still care about him and would ask you to keep him and his soldiers in your thoughts and prayers throughout the year.
Alright, I'm off to go pick up the ingredients for "Burger Puddin'" and "Ro Ro Salad". I do love my South Carolina boyfriend!
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
Still Moovin'!
Well, I've been pretty awful at both posting about and keeping up with Casey's Get Moovin' Challenge...or at least the aspects of the challenge that she set up. As a reminder the challenge for the entire month of March was: #1 No fast food! #2 Workout at least 3 times a week! So here is how I've done so far....
The no fast food part I figured would be super easy. I can count on one hand the number of times I've eaten fast food in the last year so I didn't expect that to be a problem...except that was BEFORE track practice started. Ever since I started coaching and leaving school at 7 and 7:30 I have become a Chick-fil-A junkie. Okay, to be honest "junkie" for me means I went there once during the week, but I did it two weeks in a row. I honestly don't feel too guilty about it considering it IS Chick Fil-A and is not that awful compared to say a Big Mac. I actually check the calorie counter for my chicken sandwiches and I'm doing alright. Maybe it is JC's sad stories about no Chick-fil-A's in California, but I'm definitely starting to become obsessed with the place. I can definitely see myself getting into a habit for the rest of track season of going to Chick-fil-A once a week. I'm not proud of it, but sometimes I just don't have the energy to grade, plan AND cook dinner. The good news on the eating front is that JC and I are doing awesome with our Sunday meals. My interpretation of fast food in this challenge was always fast food in the sense of frozen/microwaveable meals that are fast to prepare. I am proud to say that since I started the challenge I have not had a single frozen meal! That includes my teacher lunch, which is still going strong with a Peanut Butter Crunch Cliff bar and a fruit cup. I recently switched over to the Dole No Sugar Added mandarin orange fruit cups as the Del Monte peaches were just WAAAAAAY too sugary for me and I absolutely love them. I think cooking with JC on Sundays has really helped my mission to eat better. Not only do we cook relatively healthy and balanced meals, but we cook enough to last the week, which helps me out a ton. Last night we made broiled salmon with mustard sauce and steamed broccoli. I just put a little bit of lemon juice and garlic powder on the broccoli (no butter!) and it was delicious. We were both pretty proud of ourselves for cooking such a healthy meal. Not to mention the fact that neither of us had never actually prepared fresh fish before so it was quite the accomplishment
As far as working out goes, I have unfortunately not had the greatest luck there. I had a great first week to start off, but track practice has completely derailed my attempts to get back into running. I have to spend too much of the practice actually coaching (which I really didn't think I would do), timing or babysitting and I don't have time to actually run anything aside from the occasional 400. I'm frustrated because I just bought a new pair of running shoes (my first pair of Brooks, which I adore!), but I think I'll probably only get to run on the weekends the way life is going right now. I honestly can't believe I've made it through two weeks of coaching. My life feels so busy right now. This half hour I'm taking to blog will be some of the only free time I have all day before I get so exhausted I fall asleep at 8:30. Words cannot begin to describe how much I am counting down to Spring Break...but back to my plan for the week.
Monday
B: cereal and banana
L: Cliff bar and fruit cup
D: salmon, broccoli, wild rice
Tuesday
B: cereal and banana
L: Cliff bar and fruit cup
D: leftover thin crust pizza (not the greatest, but it's in the fridge!)
Wednesday
B: cereal and banana
L: Cliff bar and fruit cup
D: salmon on top of a spinach salad
Thursday
B: cereal and banana
L: Cliff bar and fruit cup
D: salmon, wild rice and small spinach salad
Friday
B: cereal and banana
L: Cliff bar and fruit cup
D: haven't decided yet....possibly a take out night...
I know it's repetitive, but I don't mind eating the same thing throughout the week at all. If I get bored with it I will change it, but I never usually get tired of leftovers. I will need to try to resist the urge to run to Chick-fil-A on either Wednesday or Thursday. By then the work and grading starts to pile up and I get super exhausted.
I will also try to run more at practice when I can, though I highly doubt it will be for 30 minutes. If I get one workout in at practice then I can probably can fit in 2 runs Friday-Sunday, possibly even some EA Active action on the Wii on the "off" day. We shall see! I realize I've been awful about posting my updates about this (blame it on track season and my tendency to pass out between 8:30 and 9), but I have been trying to keep up with it as best I can.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Pinch Me Moments
So it has basically been a week since I've updated. Sorry I'm such a bad blogger. Life is going well, it is just very very busy with track season now. We ran an inner-squad 'mock' meet on Friday and it was absolute insanity, especially without the head coach there. It was exhausting, but a whole lot of fun. I had a ton of out-of-body moments during the week where I looked in on myself and could hardly believe it was me coaching.
Do you ever have moments where you have to pinch yourself to believe the life you're living? Lately I've been having a lot of those moments where I wonder A) how the heck I got here? (in a good way) and B) if only my family and friends could see me now...
On my forty minute commute to and from school every day as I drive past the now familiar farm stands, tiny train stations, family farms and livestock, I can hardly believe that I've made it to March of my first year teaching. I remember thinking I would never even make it to Thanksgiving back when I first started. JC kept encouraging me and telling me I would hit my stride soon enough and I just didn't see how that would ever be possible. But now I can make up lessons literally on the spot. Obviously that's not ideal, but I made up my history lesson Friday on the formation of the UN and the Marshall Plan on the fly first period. And it was GREAT! The kids were asking all kinds of awesome questions and the graphic organizer I put together in about 10 minutes was PERFECT. Sometimes when I'm up teaching in front of the class, whether it's my seniors or my 10th graders, I just can't believe this is me. I still think it's amazing when I say something and my kids go and scribble it into their notes. They take notes about what I say? I'm a teacher? Seriously?? We had to hand out grades to our homeroom classes at the end of the day yesterday and I remembered how nervous I was the first day of school when I first met my homeroom. I didn't know any of them and wasn't sure what I should even do in homeroom. Now both the routine and the command of my classroom is so natural. It's hard for me to believe this is really me. I feel like I was just in grad school "playing teacher". My school district is kind of a mess right now - much like every school district across the country - and I'm not sure I'll be here next year, but I really hope I am! I can't wait to incorporate everything I've learned this year into next year. In good news, I had my evaluation meeting with my principle and I got satisfactory all around, which is the highest I could get. So yay me!
The other pinch me moment in my professional life has been this past week in track practice. My first week with the team was really just all about getting my feet wet and learning the routine. This week I actually ran practice a couple of days and taught kids how to hurdle and how to high jump and work on their form while running a 400. I honestly cannot believe I am coaching track. I can't believe when I talk to these kids, who for the most part would be labeled 'at risk youth' in today's PC world, that they actually pay attention and seem to care. They are 9th and 10th grade students I have never met, but whose names I know from seeing on the In School Suspension list just about every week. They have behavioral issues in the classroom and many have serious attitude problems. I won't say their behavior issues go away completely when they get to the track, but when I'm coaching them...they listen. It's amazing. I seriously have to pinch myself that little ol' me is able to keep and hold their attention and keep them working for 1 1/2 hours. I started four kids on Thursday on the 300m hurdles and really couldn't believe how I was able to hold their attention. I ran the 400 hurdles in high school and am pretty surprised at how much I remember about proper form and technique. I heaped on praise about specific things they did right and videotaped them so they could see for themselves. I think it really went a long way. I was talking to a friend about this and she was having a hard time coming up with other examples either of us knew about a girl coaching boys (and I hate to play the race card, but a white girl coaching a bunch of black kids). The head coach was out Friday so the distance coach and I ran the practice meet with our team all by ourselves. I was in charge of all 30+ sprinters and spent all day making teams and relays and choosing who would be anchor and who would be in what heat. Of course, two of the best kids didn't show up so my perfectly matched teams went out the window. Running the meet was absolute INSANITY since most of the kids had no idea what to do or where any of the races started. We had students pulling up with muscle cramps and I had to make up new relays on the fly. It was crazy and a serious headache trying to corral all these sprinters and get them to the right place at the right time, especially since we had to finish up before the late bus got there at 5, but it was a lot of fun and makes me excited for the real meets, even though I know they'll be a much bigger headache. It was a great way to cap off my first real week of coaching. It's frustrating. It's time consuming. But it's a whole lot of fun.
My final pinch myself moment occurs all the time outside of my professional life and is all about my personal life. Yes, that's right, I have to gush about the boy (again). I have to pinch myself several times a day to believe #1 that this wonderful man - who calls me every night just to say goodnight, sends me thoughtful texts and emails throughout the day, pays for my $450 flights out to see him, sends me packages full of random stuff that he 'just saw and thought of me' - exists at all and #2 that he is mine. I honestly cannot believe that we found each other and I cannot believe that he has become such a tremendous part of my life. I know that's a little sappy so I guess I'll leave it at that and get ready for Bunco. It's a brunch theme and I have to go buy a quiche from the amazing bakery down the street. Yeah, I'm copping out and not making anything but I totally think it's worth it for this bakery.
Do you ever have "pinch me" moments in your life where you can't even believe this is your life (in a very good way)?
(PS - I still need to pick a recipe out for tomorrow!)
Do you ever have moments where you have to pinch yourself to believe the life you're living? Lately I've been having a lot of those moments where I wonder A) how the heck I got here? (in a good way) and B) if only my family and friends could see me now...
On my forty minute commute to and from school every day as I drive past the now familiar farm stands, tiny train stations, family farms and livestock, I can hardly believe that I've made it to March of my first year teaching. I remember thinking I would never even make it to Thanksgiving back when I first started. JC kept encouraging me and telling me I would hit my stride soon enough and I just didn't see how that would ever be possible. But now I can make up lessons literally on the spot. Obviously that's not ideal, but I made up my history lesson Friday on the formation of the UN and the Marshall Plan on the fly first period. And it was GREAT! The kids were asking all kinds of awesome questions and the graphic organizer I put together in about 10 minutes was PERFECT. Sometimes when I'm up teaching in front of the class, whether it's my seniors or my 10th graders, I just can't believe this is me. I still think it's amazing when I say something and my kids go and scribble it into their notes. They take notes about what I say? I'm a teacher? Seriously?? We had to hand out grades to our homeroom classes at the end of the day yesterday and I remembered how nervous I was the first day of school when I first met my homeroom. I didn't know any of them and wasn't sure what I should even do in homeroom. Now both the routine and the command of my classroom is so natural. It's hard for me to believe this is really me. I feel like I was just in grad school "playing teacher". My school district is kind of a mess right now - much like every school district across the country - and I'm not sure I'll be here next year, but I really hope I am! I can't wait to incorporate everything I've learned this year into next year. In good news, I had my evaluation meeting with my principle and I got satisfactory all around, which is the highest I could get. So yay me!
The other pinch me moment in my professional life has been this past week in track practice. My first week with the team was really just all about getting my feet wet and learning the routine. This week I actually ran practice a couple of days and taught kids how to hurdle and how to high jump and work on their form while running a 400. I honestly cannot believe I am coaching track. I can't believe when I talk to these kids, who for the most part would be labeled 'at risk youth' in today's PC world, that they actually pay attention and seem to care. They are 9th and 10th grade students I have never met, but whose names I know from seeing on the In School Suspension list just about every week. They have behavioral issues in the classroom and many have serious attitude problems. I won't say their behavior issues go away completely when they get to the track, but when I'm coaching them...they listen. It's amazing. I seriously have to pinch myself that little ol' me is able to keep and hold their attention and keep them working for 1 1/2 hours. I started four kids on Thursday on the 300m hurdles and really couldn't believe how I was able to hold their attention. I ran the 400 hurdles in high school and am pretty surprised at how much I remember about proper form and technique. I heaped on praise about specific things they did right and videotaped them so they could see for themselves. I think it really went a long way. I was talking to a friend about this and she was having a hard time coming up with other examples either of us knew about a girl coaching boys (and I hate to play the race card, but a white girl coaching a bunch of black kids). The head coach was out Friday so the distance coach and I ran the practice meet with our team all by ourselves. I was in charge of all 30+ sprinters and spent all day making teams and relays and choosing who would be anchor and who would be in what heat. Of course, two of the best kids didn't show up so my perfectly matched teams went out the window. Running the meet was absolute INSANITY since most of the kids had no idea what to do or where any of the races started. We had students pulling up with muscle cramps and I had to make up new relays on the fly. It was crazy and a serious headache trying to corral all these sprinters and get them to the right place at the right time, especially since we had to finish up before the late bus got there at 5, but it was a lot of fun and makes me excited for the real meets, even though I know they'll be a much bigger headache. It was a great way to cap off my first real week of coaching. It's frustrating. It's time consuming. But it's a whole lot of fun.
My final pinch myself moment occurs all the time outside of my professional life and is all about my personal life. Yes, that's right, I have to gush about the boy (again). I have to pinch myself several times a day to believe #1 that this wonderful man - who calls me every night just to say goodnight, sends me thoughtful texts and emails throughout the day, pays for my $450 flights out to see him, sends me packages full of random stuff that he 'just saw and thought of me' - exists at all and #2 that he is mine. I honestly cannot believe that we found each other and I cannot believe that he has become such a tremendous part of my life. I know that's a little sappy so I guess I'll leave it at that and get ready for Bunco. It's a brunch theme and I have to go buy a quiche from the amazing bakery down the street. Yeah, I'm copping out and not making anything but I totally think it's worth it for this bakery.
Do you ever have "pinch me" moments in your life where you can't even believe this is your life (in a very good way)?
(PS - I still need to pick a recipe out for tomorrow!)
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Long Distance Dinner Date
So I don't have much time to blog (STUPID DAYLIGHT SAVINGS!) since this day has flown by, but I have been told by numerous people that I should share my and JC's new weekend tradition with the world. So obviously maintaining a long-distance relationship is not easy. When your whole relationship for months at a time is the phone, things can get old very very fast. I know many people in LDRs say they run out of things to talk about. JC and I haven't run into that problem yet, but maybe that's because we're pursuing a "strategic theory of preventive action". (Seriously, how much of a military history dork am I?) What I mean by that is that we do things to make our relationship as new and different and fun as possible to avoid the boredom or monotony of phone call after phone call. Last month, we went on a "movie date". We both went to the theater - him in California and myself in Virginia - to see Avatar. Then we called each other and talked about favorite scenes, what we thought etc.
Our newest long distance date has been cooking dinner together from across the miles. We both have set goals for ourselves to try to cook better and eat right and one of the ways we've started doing that is by cooking together. How do we cook together from across the miles? Through the miracle of Skype, of course!
Seriously, Skype has made this distance thing a piece of cake. Whether we're playing each other online in a not-so-friendly (we are both uber-competitive) game of backgammon or Scrabble, or watching the Olympic hockey finals together, we have been able to spend lots of afternoons and evenings 'together' without actually being together.
So onto the dinner date. What happens is that each week one of us picks out a new meal for us to try out and make on Sunday night. We both are super busy during the week and so making one giant meal that can feed us for most of the week is the best way to go. I always TRIED to do this back in the fall, but most Sundays in the fall I am parked out watching football and planning lessons around the clock so I never did. It doesn't take me hours to plan lessons now and cooking with him over Skype is so much fun I love doing it. This weekend he picked out a lemon-poppyseed chicken dish. I suggested adding veggies and roasted red potatoes on the side and so we are set with what we need. Usually, we get that to each other on Saturday so we have plenty of time to go shopping. Now with the 3 hour time difference, it usually happens that I eat late and he eats early, but compromise is a part of every relationship, right?
So we'll usually text back and forth about when we want to start dinner. When we're ready, we'll both sign on Skype and I'll park my laptop on the breakfast bar and position it so he can see everything I'm doing. He'll do the same and then we get to work, chatting with each other as we go. I will say it can get pretty comical. Neither of us are the greatest cooks so there is a lot of: "when did you add in that?" or "how long does this need to cook for?". It's all very amusing though. And we're both so proud of ourselves when we finish. The best part is definitely sitting back - still on Skype of course - and enjoying the meal together. It is a wonderful new tradition that I hope we continue. I get to scratch off so many of my goals for the year - eat better, learn new recipes, become a better cook and do more fun things with JC! So that's one tip out of the Abigail and JC long-distance book of love. We've only been at this long-distance thing about 4 months and certainly don't claim to be experts at this, but it's definitely working for us!
Next week I get to pick the recipe so anyone have a good one to share??
Our newest long distance date has been cooking dinner together from across the miles. We both have set goals for ourselves to try to cook better and eat right and one of the ways we've started doing that is by cooking together. How do we cook together from across the miles? Through the miracle of Skype, of course!
Seriously, Skype has made this distance thing a piece of cake. Whether we're playing each other online in a not-so-friendly (we are both uber-competitive) game of backgammon or Scrabble, or watching the Olympic hockey finals together, we have been able to spend lots of afternoons and evenings 'together' without actually being together.
So onto the dinner date. What happens is that each week one of us picks out a new meal for us to try out and make on Sunday night. We both are super busy during the week and so making one giant meal that can feed us for most of the week is the best way to go. I always TRIED to do this back in the fall, but most Sundays in the fall I am parked out watching football and planning lessons around the clock so I never did. It doesn't take me hours to plan lessons now and cooking with him over Skype is so much fun I love doing it. This weekend he picked out a lemon-poppyseed chicken dish. I suggested adding veggies and roasted red potatoes on the side and so we are set with what we need. Usually, we get that to each other on Saturday so we have plenty of time to go shopping. Now with the 3 hour time difference, it usually happens that I eat late and he eats early, but compromise is a part of every relationship, right?
So we'll usually text back and forth about when we want to start dinner. When we're ready, we'll both sign on Skype and I'll park my laptop on the breakfast bar and position it so he can see everything I'm doing. He'll do the same and then we get to work, chatting with each other as we go. I will say it can get pretty comical. Neither of us are the greatest cooks so there is a lot of: "when did you add in that?" or "how long does this need to cook for?". It's all very amusing though. And we're both so proud of ourselves when we finish. The best part is definitely sitting back - still on Skype of course - and enjoying the meal together. It is a wonderful new tradition that I hope we continue. I get to scratch off so many of my goals for the year - eat better, learn new recipes, become a better cook and do more fun things with JC! So that's one tip out of the Abigail and JC long-distance book of love. We've only been at this long-distance thing about 4 months and certainly don't claim to be experts at this, but it's definitely working for us!
Next week I get to pick the recipe so anyone have a good one to share??
Friday, March 12, 2010
track season = the end of regular blogging
My not so subtle boyfriend reminded me today that it has been six days since I updated my blog. I know it has been a while and while I have intended to blog every day this week, I am so exhausted when I get back to my apartment after track practice that I genuinely am lucky if I remember to eat dinner. Track is incredibly exhausting/frustrating. The distance squad is awesome and I would love nothing more than to help coach them. I don't coach them however. I help coach the sprinters AKA the kids too lazy to run more than one lap who have no natural sprinting ability but call themselves sprinters. The boys team is comprised of incredibly lazy kids with serious behavior problems. The girls team is a bunch of young, lazy, unmotivated 9th grade girls who call themselves "the Black Mafia" (no lie, I couldn't make this up if I tried). They are not fast enough to be successful sprinters and don't have the work ethic to cut it at anything over a 400, but I'll see what I can do with them.
On Tuesday, Todd, the head coach, completely turned the girls over to me. He pointed to a couple hurdles and said "teach them how to hurdle" while he did the high jump with his boys. I was very surprised at how much I remembered about form when going over hurdles. I even remembered a few drills for the girls to practice. Since we only have about 7 girls, they really need to learn to do as many different events as possible. I will give them credit, they seemed to be interested and eager to learn and paid attention to me when I was instructing them about proper hurdling form. It was my first real "coaching" moment and wasn't something I'll forget anytime soon. I'm not sure if I can turn them into hurdlers or not, but we'll see. The following day I helped teach kids how to high jump, which is something I hadn't done since the eight grade! Thankfully, one of my best friends in high school was a high jumper so I was around the pit a lot and have a good idea of the basics.
I'll have to post more later. I'm pretty wiped (which is awfully sad for 9PM on a Friday) and think I will hit the hay soon. I got a new Droid this past week and I am loving it! Will have to post more on that later as well. I wish I wasn't so tired! I feel like I have so much to say about the team, how practice has gone, how my WWII unit is going and life in general. I guess it will have to wait until morning....
On Tuesday, Todd, the head coach, completely turned the girls over to me. He pointed to a couple hurdles and said "teach them how to hurdle" while he did the high jump with his boys. I was very surprised at how much I remembered about form when going over hurdles. I even remembered a few drills for the girls to practice. Since we only have about 7 girls, they really need to learn to do as many different events as possible. I will give them credit, they seemed to be interested and eager to learn and paid attention to me when I was instructing them about proper hurdling form. It was my first real "coaching" moment and wasn't something I'll forget anytime soon. I'm not sure if I can turn them into hurdlers or not, but we'll see. The following day I helped teach kids how to high jump, which is something I hadn't done since the eight grade! Thankfully, one of my best friends in high school was a high jumper so I was around the pit a lot and have a good idea of the basics.
I'll have to post more later. I'm pretty wiped (which is awfully sad for 9PM on a Friday) and think I will hit the hay soon. I got a new Droid this past week and I am loving it! Will have to post more on that later as well. I wish I wasn't so tired! I feel like I have so much to say about the team, how practice has gone, how my WWII unit is going and life in general. I guess it will have to wait until morning....
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Getting in the Groove...
No teacher likes being observed. Unfortunately, it is a reality of the profession - and especially of a first year teacher - that administrators and other higher ups will randomly appear in your classroom from time to time to watch you teach and take notes on everything you say and do or don't do. I used to dread getting observed when I was student teaching, and while I don't exactly look forward to it, I do enjoy the post-op where I get feedback on my lessons. I am always my own worst critic and it is great to learn what an outsider thinks of the lessons. I got observed for the 4th and last time this past week. I didn't think it was a great lesson by any means, but the woman who observed me couldn't stop raving about it. Seriously, all I did was use PowerPoints, but she said my use of primary sources in there (photos and political cartoons) was outstanding. Apparently, that's not something she sees a lot in the county (she is the social studies coordinator for the whole county). I was critical of the lesson 'cos I would consider it more of a lecture. It was mostly me talking, showing images and talking about them, but I did give lots of opportunities to ask questions and engage the kids. She just LOVED it. She said it wasn't lecture at all, it wasn't me just talking and the kids taking notes. She complimented me on how awesome the PowerPoint was and said she recognized how much effort probably went into making it. It was a very positive way to end the week.
I haven't talked to JC a ton this week 'cos we've both been pretty busy. His German classes just swung into full gear and it's pretty exhausting. He described it as being like Pathfinder School, which he completed back in January, except it's 'a marathon not a sprint'. He used the ol' baseball metaphor (we do love our sports metaphors) that he used with me at the start of the school year when I was struggling. It's just about "getting out of that first inning. Then you find your groove." I told him the same thing he told me when I'd stress out about figuring out how to manage my time and get everything right, which is "that he shouldn't worry too much about giving up a few homeruns 'cos he has Albert Pujols warming up in the on-deck circle for him." Looking back, it's crazy to think about what a big role he played in my life this fall from halfway across the world in Afghanistan. He was a sounding board for me when things got rough and I needed advice on how to deal with behavior issues. The emails I would read during my planning periods were bright spots in the middle of days where all I looked forward to was the last bell. And of course he sent me the most amazing flag to hang in my classroom. I'll have to get a better picture of it, but here is the best I could do for now. It's the flag in the frame underneath the flag.
(side note: don't I have the worst teacher handwriting ever?)
The certificate under the flag basically says, "this flag was flown on a combat mission over Afghanistan for Abigail on this day...." It is so amazing. My kids really loved it and it helped me make a connection with many who came up after class to tell me their brother was in the navy or the cousin was in Afghanistan. This flag came to me back in September when I was really struggling. JC told me he was sending me something, but when I walked up the stairs to my apartment and saw this huge waist-high box I had no idea what to think. My first thought upon looking at the state of the box was honestly, "what the heck is this? it looks like it's been through a war zone." Turns out it had! I basically melted when I saw it was from him and read the note inside. I can honestly say I think that moment, when I just sat on the floor looking at the flag and reading and rereading the unbelievably supportive note, is when I started to realize I had some serious feelings for this guy over in Afghanistan. He's heard that story about a million times (and if you're reading this, JC, a million and one), but without him I don't know that I would have been able to get through my first year of teaching - at least not with my sanity intact.
Our countdown is at T-28 days and a wake-up until I fly out to see him in California for spring break. I know the time will actually fly 'cos we will both be so busy. To put it in teaching terms, I'm at the Hitler's invasion of Poland and the miracle at Dunkirk right now (yes, I'm teaching Dunkirk) with my history kids. I need to be at the Fall of the Berlin Wall by the time I go see him. I told my kids today to buckle up 'cos we're about to start racing through this content, as much as that kills me. According to the state of Virginia, all I have to teach them about the actual events of the war are the fall of France, Battle of Britain, D-Day, Pearl Harbor and the bomb. Pacing guide or no pacing guide that is just not going to happen. I will not fly through this content. I love this stuff. My kids love this stuff. It's the whole reason I became a history teacher. I will not be forced to "cover" (I hate that word) WWII in a week! SOLs and pacing guide be damned! I'll race through the Cold War if I have to and the African and Indian independence movements, but not the Second World War!
I actually have to say that, whether it's due to JC or not, I have really been enjoying my job much more since Christmas break. I always heard that after Christmas is when it gets better and you start to 'hit your groove', but it really is true. Maybe part of the factor is that I really know and love this content more thaan the earlier stuff, but even government is getting easier (and I'm learning all about appellate jurisdiction on my feet!). I don't stay up EVERY night planning lessons late into the night anymore. I have time to work out, cook actual meals, talk to my boyfriend, do fun things on the weekend. Even better, I am learning what works in the classroom and how to make the kids 'get it' and they are doing much better. I'm learning that, as much as some of them infuriate me, I really do love these kids and I will miss each and every one of them. Yes, sometimes I want to drop kick them out of the room, but even my apathetic seniors have their moments.
I am really looking forward to start coaching Monday also. I've never formally coached anything before and I'm sure it will be a 'learn as you go'/on your feet type of thing, but I really think I will like it. I watched the best documentary EVER on cross-country this weekend called "The Long Green Line".
You don't find many movies about cross-country, save from a couple Hollywood films on Steve Prefontaine, so I was excited to hear about this movie from a college pal. It is an amazing documentary that really hits on what makes running so great. Anyone can be a runner. And if you have it in your heart to be great, you can be. This school has won 24 straight cross-country championships. Somehow I don't think it's because of the water in York, Illinois. They have a great coach and they work hard. That's all there is to it. Here's to hoping I can tap some enthusiasm in the younger grades and get some girls to appreciate that aspect of running.
Okay, I've written way more than I planned. Something about blogging...I just keep going and going and going....
I didn't even get to write about the midterm break that JC found he gets in June! OR my amazing interaction after school with one of my 10th graders! OR the hysterical conversation that took place with my senior government class on Wednesday.
Alas, another time. I must make breakfast, do some grading and get ready to head to Charlottesville to reunite with the grad school game for the UVA-Maryland game. Wahoowa!!
I haven't talked to JC a ton this week 'cos we've both been pretty busy. His German classes just swung into full gear and it's pretty exhausting. He described it as being like Pathfinder School, which he completed back in January, except it's 'a marathon not a sprint'. He used the ol' baseball metaphor (we do love our sports metaphors) that he used with me at the start of the school year when I was struggling. It's just about "getting out of that first inning. Then you find your groove." I told him the same thing he told me when I'd stress out about figuring out how to manage my time and get everything right, which is "that he shouldn't worry too much about giving up a few homeruns 'cos he has Albert Pujols warming up in the on-deck circle for him." Looking back, it's crazy to think about what a big role he played in my life this fall from halfway across the world in Afghanistan. He was a sounding board for me when things got rough and I needed advice on how to deal with behavior issues. The emails I would read during my planning periods were bright spots in the middle of days where all I looked forward to was the last bell. And of course he sent me the most amazing flag to hang in my classroom. I'll have to get a better picture of it, but here is the best I could do for now. It's the flag in the frame underneath the flag.
(side note: don't I have the worst teacher handwriting ever?)
The certificate under the flag basically says, "this flag was flown on a combat mission over Afghanistan for Abigail on this day...." It is so amazing. My kids really loved it and it helped me make a connection with many who came up after class to tell me their brother was in the navy or the cousin was in Afghanistan. This flag came to me back in September when I was really struggling. JC told me he was sending me something, but when I walked up the stairs to my apartment and saw this huge waist-high box I had no idea what to think. My first thought upon looking at the state of the box was honestly, "what the heck is this? it looks like it's been through a war zone." Turns out it had! I basically melted when I saw it was from him and read the note inside. I can honestly say I think that moment, when I just sat on the floor looking at the flag and reading and rereading the unbelievably supportive note, is when I started to realize I had some serious feelings for this guy over in Afghanistan. He's heard that story about a million times (and if you're reading this, JC, a million and one), but without him I don't know that I would have been able to get through my first year of teaching - at least not with my sanity intact.
Our countdown is at T-28 days and a wake-up until I fly out to see him in California for spring break. I know the time will actually fly 'cos we will both be so busy. To put it in teaching terms, I'm at the Hitler's invasion of Poland and the miracle at Dunkirk right now (yes, I'm teaching Dunkirk) with my history kids. I need to be at the Fall of the Berlin Wall by the time I go see him. I told my kids today to buckle up 'cos we're about to start racing through this content, as much as that kills me. According to the state of Virginia, all I have to teach them about the actual events of the war are the fall of France, Battle of Britain, D-Day, Pearl Harbor and the bomb. Pacing guide or no pacing guide that is just not going to happen. I will not fly through this content. I love this stuff. My kids love this stuff. It's the whole reason I became a history teacher. I will not be forced to "cover" (I hate that word) WWII in a week! SOLs and pacing guide be damned! I'll race through the Cold War if I have to and the African and Indian independence movements, but not the Second World War!
I actually have to say that, whether it's due to JC or not, I have really been enjoying my job much more since Christmas break. I always heard that after Christmas is when it gets better and you start to 'hit your groove', but it really is true. Maybe part of the factor is that I really know and love this content more thaan the earlier stuff, but even government is getting easier (and I'm learning all about appellate jurisdiction on my feet!). I don't stay up EVERY night planning lessons late into the night anymore. I have time to work out, cook actual meals, talk to my boyfriend, do fun things on the weekend. Even better, I am learning what works in the classroom and how to make the kids 'get it' and they are doing much better. I'm learning that, as much as some of them infuriate me, I really do love these kids and I will miss each and every one of them. Yes, sometimes I want to drop kick them out of the room, but even my apathetic seniors have their moments.
I am really looking forward to start coaching Monday also. I've never formally coached anything before and I'm sure it will be a 'learn as you go'/on your feet type of thing, but I really think I will like it. I watched the best documentary EVER on cross-country this weekend called "The Long Green Line".
You don't find many movies about cross-country, save from a couple Hollywood films on Steve Prefontaine, so I was excited to hear about this movie from a college pal. It is an amazing documentary that really hits on what makes running so great. Anyone can be a runner. And if you have it in your heart to be great, you can be. This school has won 24 straight cross-country championships. Somehow I don't think it's because of the water in York, Illinois. They have a great coach and they work hard. That's all there is to it. Here's to hoping I can tap some enthusiasm in the younger grades and get some girls to appreciate that aspect of running.
Okay, I've written way more than I planned. Something about blogging...I just keep going and going and going....
I didn't even get to write about the midterm break that JC found he gets in June! OR my amazing interaction after school with one of my 10th graders! OR the hysterical conversation that took place with my senior government class on Wednesday.
Alas, another time. I must make breakfast, do some grading and get ready to head to Charlottesville to reunite with the grad school game for the UVA-Maryland game. Wahoowa!!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Getting Lost....
So I am a huge dork and have always gotten way too into TV shows. I was obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer back in high school (yeah, go ahead and laugh, but I dare you to find a list of the best TV shows of the decade that doesn't have that on it). I love Friends, Sex and the City and old reruns of 90210 and the OC are definitely guilty pleasure of mine. Several years ago, sort of on a whim, I started watching the show Alias. I think it was probably mainly because of Michael Vartan (aka the hot teacher from Never Been Kissed!), but the bottom line is I got sucked into it. So much so that I watched two whole seasons over the course of about..3 days. It was the dead of winter and I did very little aside from eat, shower, use the bathroom and watch Alias. Not my proudest moment (or was it?), but yeah, JJ Abrams hooked me. Unfortunately, all the awesome twists and turns and questions he raised through five seasons never got any answers. All he succeeded in doing was killing off my favorite character, introducing new annoying ones and most importantly not answering ANY real questions about so much that was introduced in the show.
I SWORE when Lost came out that I wouldn't watch it and I listed those exact reasons. I know JJ is not in charge of it anymore, but I still consider it the brainchild of JJ Abrams. So aside from an episode here and there I stayed away from Lost entirely...until last year when those damn preview for the new season (you know the ones with Matthew Fox yelling "we have to go back!") hooked me in. So in a matter of weeks I caught myself up on all the seasons and sat glued to my TV every Wednesday night last year and every Tuesday night this year. But Lost is starting to lose me. Make no mistake, with only 10 episodes left I will certainly keep on watching 'til the end, but I have lost all faith that they will answer so many of the questions that kept me watching for years. Sure the current good vs. evil or dueling gods/whatever the heck Jacob and Smokey McKillsABitch are is interesting and it does give an overall blanket explanation for what's going on, but it makes entire SEASONS worth of questions nothing but filler. The reality is none of the content of this season seems at all relevant to the developing story that attracted so many of us and kept us watching.
Things I DEMAND answers to (but highly doubt I will ever get)
- where is Desmond??? seriously, it is so uncool to introduce this incredible character that everyone loves and then basically ignore him for 2 seasons.
- will Desmond's time traveling ever be explained or do we just accept that he is some super time-traveling man?
- what are Widmore and Eloise all about?
- WAAALLLLLTTTT!!!! Seriously, remember the episode where the bird flew into the window? or when he appeared all dripping wet and speaking backwards to Shannon? Now he is like...18 and 6'0 tall so I doubt we'll see him again.
- why can't babies be born on the island?
- why did Locke see the smoke monster as "beautiful white light" when everyone else sees it black?
- what's the deal with Christian? Sun's father? the fortune teller? Libby?
- what the heck happened when the hatch imploded?
- who were the people in Antarctica when the hatch blew up??
- why did Cindy and the kids get kidnapped?
- why is the statue broken? who broke it? why does it have 4 toes?
- why was Sayid in Australia? (did I miss this?)
- Jack's tattoo?
- random black horse in the woods?
- who did Locke talk to in the cabin?
- how could Christian appear on the freighter way the heck off the island?
- why did Sun, Ben and Frank not flash back to 1977 when the plane crashed?
- what did blowing up the bomb accomplish (since that was the whole focal point of season 5)?
- Adam and Eve?
- why do the others whisper and then appear?
- who was shooting at Sawyer and co. last year in the outrigger?
- what is the deal with Richard?
- who is Ilana and why does she know so much?
The list could go on and on and on...
I honestly don't think many of these will ever be answered. I don't think in the current direction the show is going that there is even a role for most of these questions to get answered. But we watch on.
Are you a Lost fan? What do you think of the new season? Do you really think they will answer all those questions? Do you have any nagging questions?
I SWORE when Lost came out that I wouldn't watch it and I listed those exact reasons. I know JJ is not in charge of it anymore, but I still consider it the brainchild of JJ Abrams. So aside from an episode here and there I stayed away from Lost entirely...until last year when those damn preview for the new season (you know the ones with Matthew Fox yelling "we have to go back!") hooked me in. So in a matter of weeks I caught myself up on all the seasons and sat glued to my TV every Wednesday night last year and every Tuesday night this year. But Lost is starting to lose me. Make no mistake, with only 10 episodes left I will certainly keep on watching 'til the end, but I have lost all faith that they will answer so many of the questions that kept me watching for years. Sure the current good vs. evil or dueling gods/whatever the heck Jacob and Smokey McKillsABitch are is interesting and it does give an overall blanket explanation for what's going on, but it makes entire SEASONS worth of questions nothing but filler. The reality is none of the content of this season seems at all relevant to the developing story that attracted so many of us and kept us watching.
Things I DEMAND answers to (but highly doubt I will ever get)
- where is Desmond??? seriously, it is so uncool to introduce this incredible character that everyone loves and then basically ignore him for 2 seasons.
- will Desmond's time traveling ever be explained or do we just accept that he is some super time-traveling man?
- what are Widmore and Eloise all about?
- WAAALLLLLTTTT!!!! Seriously, remember the episode where the bird flew into the window? or when he appeared all dripping wet and speaking backwards to Shannon? Now he is like...18 and 6'0 tall so I doubt we'll see him again.
- why can't babies be born on the island?
- why did Locke see the smoke monster as "beautiful white light" when everyone else sees it black?
- what's the deal with Christian? Sun's father? the fortune teller? Libby?
- what the heck happened when the hatch imploded?
- who were the people in Antarctica when the hatch blew up??
- why did Cindy and the kids get kidnapped?
- why is the statue broken? who broke it? why does it have 4 toes?
- why was Sayid in Australia? (did I miss this?)
- Jack's tattoo?
- random black horse in the woods?
- who did Locke talk to in the cabin?
- how could Christian appear on the freighter way the heck off the island?
- why did Sun, Ben and Frank not flash back to 1977 when the plane crashed?
- what did blowing up the bomb accomplish (since that was the whole focal point of season 5)?
- Adam and Eve?
- why do the others whisper and then appear?
- who was shooting at Sawyer and co. last year in the outrigger?
- what is the deal with Richard?
- who is Ilana and why does she know so much?
The list could go on and on and on...
I honestly don't think many of these will ever be answered. I don't think in the current direction the show is going that there is even a role for most of these questions to get answered. But we watch on.
Are you a Lost fan? What do you think of the new season? Do you really think they will answer all those questions? Do you have any nagging questions?
Monday, March 1, 2010
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