Writing this post from my friend's iPad that she so generously lent me for the time being. Why? Well my computer was stolen on Tuesday night. I don't really want to go through the whole story again but in a very short summation - I was at dinner with some friends when we were about to pay and I reached down to realize that my purse/computer bag was gone. Wallet, computer, all my school things, materials for my private lessons that I do on Tuesdays, medicine, water bottle, tampons (VERY IMPORTANT!), well basically I carried my life with me in that bag. I was in such shock (still am somewhat) that I couldn't even cry. Eventually I did, of course, but I think overall I handled the situation better than I would have ever expected.
A couple things I've learned from this and my unfortunate mishap with deleting all my photos (which now doesn't even matter) are:
1) My awful habit of procrastination has got to change. I bought an external hard drive in the summer because of my fear that my computer was on the verge of death. Slowly I attempted to back things up (subsequently deleting all my pictures at one point) but without any sense of urgency. I kept telling myself I'd get to it later. So because of that, I lost almost everything on my computer - resumes, transcripts, college work, 9,000+ songs on my iTunes, personal writings and notes, etc etc etc.
2) My attachment and obsession with my laptop was crippling, I knew it, but never had any reason to really evaluate it. But now, the feeling I have thinking about the fact that I no longer have my laptop is a conflicting combination of confusion, depression, and relief. I've become so accustomed to having such easy access to Internet and endless time wasting (and of course the ability to do important work-related things as well) that I feel totally lost now not knowing what to do with myself. Bored. Yeah it's only been one day maybe I am being dramatic but that's what I feel when I think about going home after work. However, now I can also see the chance to do a lot of things without having my computer as a constant distraction - looking at the bright side. I can finish my book, I have no excuse not to start working out again, I can be more productive overall (within a certain means. Some things can't be done for work without a computer it's just the way it is now)
So overall, I'm about to get more creative. I hope. I always said that I didn't know what I would do without my computer...but I guess now I'm about to find out.
"My country is the world, and my religion is to do good." - Thomas Paine
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Out with the Old, In with the New
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| Street art posters in Berlin. Fitting? |
While this is coming almost a month behind schedule, I don't think it's ever too late to reflect on the year past. I want to say my proper goodbyes to 2012, a great year full of successes and milestones, but not without its disappointments and trials.
When I look back on myself a year ago, I can see how much I've grown. I was starting my last semester of college, terrified beyond belief of what was going to come next, mentally freaking out as roommates and friends got "real, grown-up" jobs or made concrete plans for the future. Planning for the future is not really one of my fortes, in fact it might be among my top most hated things to do, but now I realize that it's something I will never escape and graduating from college only made it that much more prominent in my life. Moving to Spain helped me see that even if it freaks me out, no matter what happens it will all be for the best and the only wrong move is making no move at all.
Remembering my academic, college year of 2012 already makes me nostalgic and 2013 is barely out of the womb. It was a true year of living in the moment, realizing that many of the things that had become routine and common place in my life would never be the same again after May. I built better friendships with people who had always been close to me, let others fall to the wayside, and lost some completely. Being someone who makes friends easily, it sometimes has seemed that losing friends isn't that big of a deal, but I think 2012 helped me see just how much I carry my friends in my heart, even those who never really were great friends to me in all our years or months together. I want to get better at letting go, and that can apply as much to a lost friendship as it can to anything else in life.
I understand now that the years to come are going to be filled with as many or more goodbyes as hellos, and that what really matters is how we help each other to grow during the time we have together or realize what we had in the time we spend apart.
My biggest story of 2012 after graduation was my move to Spain. I still can't believe I am living here sometimes, and other times it seems like the most normal thing anyone could ever do. I'm learning so much about myself, sometimes I don't even realize I didn't know it before. Before the Christmas holiday, I was feeling frustrated and questioning why I came here, worrying about money, and thinking maybe this was the wrong choice. It might appear to people that I live this amazing life because I am in Spain, but living abroad is hard even for the most open people. I've been more homesick than ever before in my life, had more culture shock than during any of my other travels, and truly had some nasty feelings about Spanish people and Spanish culture. After 2.5 weeks of vacation, and a one week trip to Berlin, I returned to Madrid with a clearer mind and more open heart. I feel more like myself for the first time since moving here. I don't know how, why or when it happened, but I just feel ready to make the best of the next 6 months and not take any more time for granted. I guess the best awakenings happen while we are still asleep.
Here's to 2013.
Monday, December 3, 2012
The Ups & Downs
DECEMBER??? Time, what gives? Where do you go and why do you go so quickly?!
I was pretty negligent to my little blogosphere this month, but that was probably okay. It has been a bit of a rough past few weeks. The honeymoon at school is over, I had my first ever, very serious homesickness (for which there is no Walgreens immunization shot), and then some computer problems. Truly it was probably better that I've waited until now to write something, otherwise it would just be a big ugly pity fest all over this pretty teal page.
School
I have no reasons to be shocked and I really shouldn't complain because I've known that I don't like teaching from the beginning. I didn't choose Education in college for a reason, afterall. That said, I'm seriously passionate about education and my biggest challenge has been trying not to play the comparison game. If there's one thing I hate, it's people who constantly compare their culture to their new one in a way that says "Well, so, mine is better". I've been trying very, very hard to accept the Spanish education system, roll with the punches, and just keep on smiling. But...it's been next to impossible not to compare and not to get frustrated.
It's not all bad, though. I do still love working with the preschoolers. They are the sunshine in my life -- at least when they aren't peeing themselves, or running around the room in circles (me chasing them) to avoid putting toys away, or punching each other in the face and crying.... Yeah other than that they are just adorable! And they are still innocent and sweet and not nasty and mean like the other kids I have to work with (aka ESO). Last week I felt a little more appreciated by my middle schoolers again and saw a glimpse of why it was that I liked them so much in the first week. I even consoled 2 crying boys with some much needed hugs that they wouldn't have received from my co-teacher (who actually caused one of the boys to start crying in the first place and then just stood there awkwardly as the poor kid sat at his desk in tears while 22 classmates stared at him in silence).
Maybe it's because December is a short month with the preparation for Christmas concerts taking up a lot of time and the holiday break coming up, but after November I've decided that I need to just take a deep breath and go against my nature and take on a new mantra. This battle I am not going to win. I cannot fix the Spanish education system by complaining about it incessantly, nor could I make any significant change in 9 months at one school. But I can help the kids that want help, try to help the ones who would otherwise be ignored, love those darling little 3, 4, and 5 year olds, and not take it all too seriously. Laugh more, frown less...Be more like the guy in this music video maybe?
'Murican Things
As I should have guessed, my homesickness came on Thanksgiving. As much fun as most of our American holidays are (July 4, Halloween...St. Patty's...Cinco de Mayo...and all the rest that we stole from some other country so that we could have another party) there's just nothing like Thanksgiving. Even though I never gave two flying F's about the Macy's Day Parade before, I found myself getting teary-eyed as I played the 2011 intro to 4 classes on Thanksgiving Day. Matt Lauer hasn't looked so appealing to me since the 90's when he copy-catted that sly fox Carmen with his 'Where in the World is..Matt Lauer?' stint on the Today show for the first time. Anyway, let's just sum it up and say that I shed a lot of tears that weekend and ate a lot of chocolate...oh and yeah my lady gift didn't do me any favors that weekend either.
On the bright side of it though, a few friends came to my apartment on that Friday for a Thanksgiving dinner international style. It was just the remedy I needed after Thursday and everything turned out so fabulous. Even though we didn't have turkey, chicken was just as good. And wine, wine, wine.
Then on Sunday, I had my first visitor! My friend Tia's friend is traveling Europe and she stopped in Madrid just for a day/night. It was a really nice dose of home at a time when I really needed it.
I truly have no complaints about how I celebrated the holiday here, I just got a little too caught up thinking about where I could have been, which is no way to spend one's time abroad.
On another note, I've been so happy to keep following The Pack even though no one cares about the NFL here. There's an Irish pub that shows the games on Sundays, except they don't always have the Packers. Between that place and my mom's excellent maneuvering of the coffee table, I've watched more games than I expected I would. And without a state full of Cheeseheads around me, I've converted a Spanish friend and now have someone to watch with. Just need to replace his Miami Dolphins memorabilia with some Green and Gold and then it will be official.
Computer :(
I managed to somehow erase my entire iPhoto library last week. Like actually, delete and recycle trash, poof, goodbye 5.5 years of memories via photos. I wish that I didn't care so much about my pictures, but I just can't help it. I love to look back at old photos and remember something that I had forgotten about, or tell a good story, or let the picture tell the story itself. Pictures are so powerful. As sad as it is, I didn't allow myself to get that upset because thanks to my Facebook addiction, the majority of them are saved there. Only lost are all those embarrassing pictures of me and friends doing unmentionables on Water Street or thereabouts that only an idiot would post to Facebook....It wouldn't be so bad that they're gone now if we knew what had happened most of those nights in the first place. #College
Upcoming
I seriously need to blog more. I hate doing massive updates. I can't even be bothered to read any of this so I don't imagine anyone else will be either! BUT in some exciting upcoming events - I have my 2nd guest visiting this weekend! Andrea, a friend who studied abroad at EC from Mexico, is coming to Madrid from the north of Spain. I love being a host and I can't wait to show off this city.
AND I'm going to Berlin for New Years! I'll be seeing from friends from college who either live there now or who are just visiting. I'm so excited to have my first trip out of Spain and my first New Years outside the US.
Plus, expect an update on the school Christmas concerts in the next few weeks! It's sure to be a cute-fest.
Tata for Now!
I was pretty negligent to my little blogosphere this month, but that was probably okay. It has been a bit of a rough past few weeks. The honeymoon at school is over, I had my first ever, very serious homesickness (for which there is no Walgreens immunization shot), and then some computer problems. Truly it was probably better that I've waited until now to write something, otherwise it would just be a big ugly pity fest all over this pretty teal page.
School
I have no reasons to be shocked and I really shouldn't complain because I've known that I don't like teaching from the beginning. I didn't choose Education in college for a reason, afterall. That said, I'm seriously passionate about education and my biggest challenge has been trying not to play the comparison game. If there's one thing I hate, it's people who constantly compare their culture to their new one in a way that says "Well, so, mine is better". I've been trying very, very hard to accept the Spanish education system, roll with the punches, and just keep on smiling. But...it's been next to impossible not to compare and not to get frustrated.
It's not all bad, though. I do still love working with the preschoolers. They are the sunshine in my life -- at least when they aren't peeing themselves, or running around the room in circles (me chasing them) to avoid putting toys away, or punching each other in the face and crying.... Yeah other than that they are just adorable! And they are still innocent and sweet and not nasty and mean like the other kids I have to work with (aka ESO). Last week I felt a little more appreciated by my middle schoolers again and saw a glimpse of why it was that I liked them so much in the first week. I even consoled 2 crying boys with some much needed hugs that they wouldn't have received from my co-teacher (who actually caused one of the boys to start crying in the first place and then just stood there awkwardly as the poor kid sat at his desk in tears while 22 classmates stared at him in silence).
Maybe it's because December is a short month with the preparation for Christmas concerts taking up a lot of time and the holiday break coming up, but after November I've decided that I need to just take a deep breath and go against my nature and take on a new mantra. This battle I am not going to win. I cannot fix the Spanish education system by complaining about it incessantly, nor could I make any significant change in 9 months at one school. But I can help the kids that want help, try to help the ones who would otherwise be ignored, love those darling little 3, 4, and 5 year olds, and not take it all too seriously. Laugh more, frown less...Be more like the guy in this music video maybe?
'Murican Things
As I should have guessed, my homesickness came on Thanksgiving. As much fun as most of our American holidays are (July 4, Halloween...St. Patty's...Cinco de Mayo...and all the rest that we stole from some other country so that we could have another party) there's just nothing like Thanksgiving. Even though I never gave two flying F's about the Macy's Day Parade before, I found myself getting teary-eyed as I played the 2011 intro to 4 classes on Thanksgiving Day. Matt Lauer hasn't looked so appealing to me since the 90's when he copy-catted that sly fox Carmen with his 'Where in the World is..Matt Lauer?' stint on the Today show for the first time. Anyway, let's just sum it up and say that I shed a lot of tears that weekend and ate a lot of chocolate...oh and yeah my lady gift didn't do me any favors that weekend either.
On the bright side of it though, a few friends came to my apartment on that Friday for a Thanksgiving dinner international style. It was just the remedy I needed after Thursday and everything turned out so fabulous. Even though we didn't have turkey, chicken was just as good. And wine, wine, wine.
Then on Sunday, I had my first visitor! My friend Tia's friend is traveling Europe and she stopped in Madrid just for a day/night. It was a really nice dose of home at a time when I really needed it.
I truly have no complaints about how I celebrated the holiday here, I just got a little too caught up thinking about where I could have been, which is no way to spend one's time abroad.
On another note, I've been so happy to keep following The Pack even though no one cares about the NFL here. There's an Irish pub that shows the games on Sundays, except they don't always have the Packers. Between that place and my mom's excellent maneuvering of the coffee table, I've watched more games than I expected I would. And without a state full of Cheeseheads around me, I've converted a Spanish friend and now have someone to watch with. Just need to replace his Miami Dolphins memorabilia with some Green and Gold and then it will be official.
Computer :(
I managed to somehow erase my entire iPhoto library last week. Like actually, delete and recycle trash, poof, goodbye 5.5 years of memories via photos. I wish that I didn't care so much about my pictures, but I just can't help it. I love to look back at old photos and remember something that I had forgotten about, or tell a good story, or let the picture tell the story itself. Pictures are so powerful. As sad as it is, I didn't allow myself to get that upset because thanks to my Facebook addiction, the majority of them are saved there. Only lost are all those embarrassing pictures of me and friends doing unmentionables on Water Street or thereabouts that only an idiot would post to Facebook....It wouldn't be so bad that they're gone now if we knew what had happened most of those nights in the first place. #College
Upcoming
I seriously need to blog more. I hate doing massive updates. I can't even be bothered to read any of this so I don't imagine anyone else will be either! BUT in some exciting upcoming events - I have my 2nd guest visiting this weekend! Andrea, a friend who studied abroad at EC from Mexico, is coming to Madrid from the north of Spain. I love being a host and I can't wait to show off this city.
AND I'm going to Berlin for New Years! I'll be seeing from friends from college who either live there now or who are just visiting. I'm so excited to have my first trip out of Spain and my first New Years outside the US.
Plus, expect an update on the school Christmas concerts in the next few weeks! It's sure to be a cute-fest.
Tata for Now!
Thursday, November 8, 2012
¿Cómo se Bama?
We are 2 days post election and I am still on a high! There aren't really words to do justice to how I feel this week...But I'm going to try to find some anyway! I will try to keep it short because I'm ready for a break from politics too.
It has been a very, very long time since the last time I was proud to say that I'm an American. Actually, I take that back; I don't think I have ever felt that way. Most people who know me know that I am not a patriotic person and in-your-face "patriots" really make me want to vomit. So Obama beat Romney...that makes me happy. Does that make me finally a little bit proud to smile that I'm a US citizen? Not as much as some other things that happened Tuesday night.
WOMEN! MARRIAGE! MARIJUANA! Oh my!
Congress has a record number of women in it now - 20 in the Senate and 77 in the House. Yes, those numbers/percentages are still extremely small (just 20% in the Senate and 17% in the House) but it's something. Rape Rupert Murdouch was defeated!! Elizabeth Warren elected!! And I have never been more proud to be a Wisconsinite because I was floored when I heard that Tammy Baldwin beat Tommy Thompson. I didn't think it would happen. After Scott Walker, I guess I lost a lot of faith in my fellow Wisconsin men and women. What an amazing victory for both women and the LGBT community - the first openly gay senator!! From Wisconsin!! All smiles over here.
Then Minnesota, Washington, Maine, and Maryland all passed same-sex marriage amendments. In the case of Minnesota, they voted "no" on an amendment to officially define marriage as between a man and a woman and in the other states same-sex marriage is officially legal! Today I looked at an article with photos of couples' reactions as the news was announced and my heart just felt too big for my body.
Marijuana. Oh Mary J. I had no idea some states were even voting on anything having to do with her. All I have to say is - Tax that shit.
We can't win them all of course as California did not vote to end the death penalty nor did they approve a law requiring GMO labels on food.
Today I feel new and I feel so much more hope than in 2008 and it has absolutely nothing to do with Obama. The last year has been a political roller coaster for a lot of the country, and especially us Wisconsinites. I had been quickly growing more and more depressed about the ability of my country to truly move forward as it seemed that people's answer to hard times was to revert to mind-sets that I thought we'd left behind 60 years ago. Tuesday's results have left me speechless and restored a little faith in how I think about the American people (hey, just a little though...we still got a long way to go).
All in all, it was such a successful night beyond the Obama/Romney race. The choice for president is always a choice for the lesser of two evils. The system needs to change. The two-party system is what makes my country divisive, not the two people who represent one side or the other. I agree with everyone who says that we are too divided right now, and I am just as guilty as the next person when it comes to rejecting someone just because they aren't a "democrat" or vice-versa, so I will be the first to admit that a change begins with me. I just hope the Romney loss won't leave my "republican" friends feeling the opposite.
Some photos from the Election Party I went to, organized by Democrats abroad:
It has been a very, very long time since the last time I was proud to say that I'm an American. Actually, I take that back; I don't think I have ever felt that way. Most people who know me know that I am not a patriotic person and in-your-face "patriots" really make me want to vomit. So Obama beat Romney...that makes me happy. Does that make me finally a little bit proud to smile that I'm a US citizen? Not as much as some other things that happened Tuesday night.
WOMEN! MARRIAGE! MARIJUANA! Oh my!
Congress has a record number of women in it now - 20 in the Senate and 77 in the House. Yes, those numbers/percentages are still extremely small (just 20% in the Senate and 17% in the House) but it's something. Rape Rupert Murdouch was defeated!! Elizabeth Warren elected!! And I have never been more proud to be a Wisconsinite because I was floored when I heard that Tammy Baldwin beat Tommy Thompson. I didn't think it would happen. After Scott Walker, I guess I lost a lot of faith in my fellow Wisconsin men and women. What an amazing victory for both women and the LGBT community - the first openly gay senator!! From Wisconsin!! All smiles over here.
Then Minnesota, Washington, Maine, and Maryland all passed same-sex marriage amendments. In the case of Minnesota, they voted "no" on an amendment to officially define marriage as between a man and a woman and in the other states same-sex marriage is officially legal! Today I looked at an article with photos of couples' reactions as the news was announced and my heart just felt too big for my body.
Marijuana. Oh Mary J. I had no idea some states were even voting on anything having to do with her. All I have to say is - Tax that shit.
We can't win them all of course as California did not vote to end the death penalty nor did they approve a law requiring GMO labels on food.
Today I feel new and I feel so much more hope than in 2008 and it has absolutely nothing to do with Obama. The last year has been a political roller coaster for a lot of the country, and especially us Wisconsinites. I had been quickly growing more and more depressed about the ability of my country to truly move forward as it seemed that people's answer to hard times was to revert to mind-sets that I thought we'd left behind 60 years ago. Tuesday's results have left me speechless and restored a little faith in how I think about the American people (hey, just a little though...we still got a long way to go).
All in all, it was such a successful night beyond the Obama/Romney race. The choice for president is always a choice for the lesser of two evils. The system needs to change. The two-party system is what makes my country divisive, not the two people who represent one side or the other. I agree with everyone who says that we are too divided right now, and I am just as guilty as the next person when it comes to rejecting someone just because they aren't a "democrat" or vice-versa, so I will be the first to admit that a change begins with me. I just hope the Romney loss won't leave my "republican" friends feeling the opposite.
Some photos from the Election Party I went to, organized by Democrats abroad:
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| Hanging with the Prez |
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| Prepared for an all-nighter together |
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| 5:30 am Celebrating |
Monday, November 5, 2012
Meandering Mind
Leave it to a puente* to get my sleep schedule all out of whack. Usually I'm dying to be off in dream land by this time at night, but I had 4 days to get into bad sleeping habits (a.k.a. up until 4 or 5 am and sleeping until 2 or 3pm). As I'm laying here awake, I started to think a little bit...as one usually does when there's nothing else to do and I can't allow myself to do anymore useless Facebook stalking and I've already watched too many episodes of Downton this weekend (I'm thinking to myself in a British accent if that tells you anything)...
I was thinking about dreams. Seems odd to think about dreams when I can't fall asleep, but anywho, for some reason I recalled a question I had to answer in my interview for the Americorps job last March about what my dream job and aspirations were. I was so stumped by this question and I still am pretty sure that my answer was the reason why I didn't get the job. I said that I didn't have a dream job. I remember that as the words came out of my mouth, the interviewer immediately wrote notes down on her paper, and I knew that what I had said wasn't the answer they were necessarily looking for. But tonight I'm thinking about this again for whatever reason, and I'm wondering to myself why this is such a big deal? It's not just a question you get randomly in 1 out of 100 job interviews. It's a pretty important thing to people, and it seems like something we need to know about others in order to get a really good sense of who they are.
Of course I have dreams and aspirations about my life (which I did try to explain in the rest of my answer, fyi) but I don't understand why there has to be such a focus on them. I guess what I mean to say is that sometimes I feel like there is too much pressure to be a success and to have a dream and to do anything and everything in your power in order to achieve that dream. Don't get me wrong because I believe that this can also be a great thing. But what if you're like me and you have an idea of where you want your life to go...but you accept the fact that life is crazy and sometimes it finds us before we find it? Doesn't this seem much more logical of an answer than "Well my dream is to spend 2 years in a Master's program studying this amazing topic that I have been passionate about my whole life, and then after that to land my 'dream job' doing this very specific thing that I have already been living in my mind for my whole adult life". That sounds robotic and droll to me. But for me to say "I have no dream job" sounds lazy.
In the end, I know that I have never dreamed about a job (Work? Gross). I've dreamed about seeing things and learning more and growing up and meeting wonderful people and making a difference. I never imagined myself doing any of these things in a specific career, just in any way that life allows me to. That is what would make me happy, and isn't that what our dream job is supposed to be afterall?
*puente - Spanish word basically meaning a long weekend due to a holiday
I was thinking about dreams. Seems odd to think about dreams when I can't fall asleep, but anywho, for some reason I recalled a question I had to answer in my interview for the Americorps job last March about what my dream job and aspirations were. I was so stumped by this question and I still am pretty sure that my answer was the reason why I didn't get the job. I said that I didn't have a dream job. I remember that as the words came out of my mouth, the interviewer immediately wrote notes down on her paper, and I knew that what I had said wasn't the answer they were necessarily looking for. But tonight I'm thinking about this again for whatever reason, and I'm wondering to myself why this is such a big deal? It's not just a question you get randomly in 1 out of 100 job interviews. It's a pretty important thing to people, and it seems like something we need to know about others in order to get a really good sense of who they are.
Of course I have dreams and aspirations about my life (which I did try to explain in the rest of my answer, fyi) but I don't understand why there has to be such a focus on them. I guess what I mean to say is that sometimes I feel like there is too much pressure to be a success and to have a dream and to do anything and everything in your power in order to achieve that dream. Don't get me wrong because I believe that this can also be a great thing. But what if you're like me and you have an idea of where you want your life to go...but you accept the fact that life is crazy and sometimes it finds us before we find it? Doesn't this seem much more logical of an answer than "Well my dream is to spend 2 years in a Master's program studying this amazing topic that I have been passionate about my whole life, and then after that to land my 'dream job' doing this very specific thing that I have already been living in my mind for my whole adult life". That sounds robotic and droll to me. But for me to say "I have no dream job" sounds lazy.
In the end, I know that I have never dreamed about a job (Work? Gross). I've dreamed about seeing things and learning more and growing up and meeting wonderful people and making a difference. I never imagined myself doing any of these things in a specific career, just in any way that life allows me to. That is what would make me happy, and isn't that what our dream job is supposed to be afterall?
*puente - Spanish word basically meaning a long weekend due to a holiday
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Perdona the Interruption
One of my personal goals this year was that I wanted to try to “roll with the punches” of my job/work environment. Why? Well, with some reflection I realized that in almost all of my previous jobs, I spent a lot of time focused on what goes wrong and how I think things would work better. It's true that some of my former places of employment did need a lot of improvement (such as South Shore...which closed down before the summer even ended). That’s not to say that I haven’t liked things about those jobs, but it just seemed that I spent more time focused on the negative than the positive. So I thought ‘This year let’s try something new…’
Well.. I tried...but I'm freely admitting there's one thing that I am really struggling to take a positive spin on.
But I will get to that in a second. First, I want to talk about how great
things are! I’m enjoying being at
school more than I ever imagined I would, despite feeling like I’m living the
life of an old woman when the thought of staying up until 11pm on a weekday
makes me want to cry. The kids are
great and I’m shocked to admit that my favorite class is the equivalent to a 6th
or 7th grade class in the US (*GASP* after I’ve practically sworn on
my life that if I were ever a teacher the middle school classroom would be my
living nightmare).
This week I was given my SEVENTH revised schedule, but I think the 7th time’s the charm; hopefully there won’t be any more changes. I can't keep them straight anymore and I've grabbed the wrong schedule at least three times when I head out of my apartment and end up going to all the wrong classes! I’m working with 3 of the 4 high school grades (basically ages 12 – 17) and then 3, 4, and 5 year olds, with one or two primary classes thrown in the middle. It’s kind of funny having to switch from high school students to preschool, but then I realized that a 17 yr old’s brain isn’t that much different from the 3 year old’s…
This week I was given my SEVENTH revised schedule, but I think the 7th time’s the charm; hopefully there won’t be any more changes. I can't keep them straight anymore and I've grabbed the wrong schedule at least three times when I head out of my apartment and end up going to all the wrong classes! I’m working with 3 of the 4 high school grades (basically ages 12 – 17) and then 3, 4, and 5 year olds, with one or two primary classes thrown in the middle. It’s kind of funny having to switch from high school students to preschool, but then I realized that a 17 yr old’s brain isn’t that much different from the 3 year old’s…
So the kids are great, the other auxiliaries and I are
getting along splendidly, and I like the teachers I’m paired with…what could I
possibly have to complain about?
Two main things: Interruptions and Nuns. Or... maybe it can be consolidated into one – a nun who interrupts a lot.
Let’s clear something up though: Interrupting ain’t no thang
here. What I mean is that it’s as
normal as the morning announcements or recess or socializing in the hallway
before school starts (all things I associate with my US school
experience).
Students from other
classes will interrupt a different class just to ask someone in the room for a
ruler or a pencil. I mean they
literally open the door while the teacher is in the middle of the lesson and
say “Perdon!…Does anyone have a ruler??”
Other teachers interrupt for any number of reasons: to ask a student a
question, to give a book back to someone, to ask the teacher they are
interrupting a question, etc., etc.
And yes, they do knock. However, a knock in this case doesn’t mean “Can
I come in?” it means “I’M COMING IN!!” Oh, but they are always courteous enough to say “Perdon” when they interrupt. They are really sorry and haven’t realized that they would be such a
disturbance, so the fact that they have said ‘excuse me’ makes it all just
dandy.
Now the Nun, well she is actually the headmistress of the school. And being the headmistress AND a nun I guess gives her the right to interrupt and do whatever she pleases. Two weeks ago she interrupted a class I was in with 10 minutes left to make the students clean up papers off the floor and take signs off from the wall that they had made for their class elections because it was the “parents’ meeting” that evening. God forbid parents see that anything fun might be happening in these classrooms! Then last week she interrupted a class I have in the most awkward classroom in the history of classrooms (it doubles as a short cut to the teachers’ lounge and a classroom, so when the doors are shut that means you cannot walk through because there is class going on, but when they are open then it is basically an extra wide hallway. I don’t think I even have to say at this point that the door being shut doesn’t stop anyone from continuing to use it as a hallway). She came in with a man who looked like a sales person of some kind, said “Perdona” and then went to the back of the room and began to open cabinets and closets and talk to the man about whatever it was they so urgently needed to discuss while 8 year olds were attempting to have English class. She also interrupted one of the other assistants and I the other day when we were talking during our break in the teachers' lounge. She stared at us while we talked and then just suddenly said “No te entiendo!!” [I don’t understand you!] in a tone that suggested we should have been speaking in Spanish. It was a pretty confusing situation considering that 1) we weren’t having a conversation with her and 2) we are ENGLISH LANGUAGE ASSISTANTS, hired by the school and paid for by the parents to SPEAK AND TEACH IN ENGLISH!
Now the Nun, well she is actually the headmistress of the school. And being the headmistress AND a nun I guess gives her the right to interrupt and do whatever she pleases. Two weeks ago she interrupted a class I was in with 10 minutes left to make the students clean up papers off the floor and take signs off from the wall that they had made for their class elections because it was the “parents’ meeting” that evening. God forbid parents see that anything fun might be happening in these classrooms! Then last week she interrupted a class I have in the most awkward classroom in the history of classrooms (it doubles as a short cut to the teachers’ lounge and a classroom, so when the doors are shut that means you cannot walk through because there is class going on, but when they are open then it is basically an extra wide hallway. I don’t think I even have to say at this point that the door being shut doesn’t stop anyone from continuing to use it as a hallway). She came in with a man who looked like a sales person of some kind, said “Perdona” and then went to the back of the room and began to open cabinets and closets and talk to the man about whatever it was they so urgently needed to discuss while 8 year olds were attempting to have English class. She also interrupted one of the other assistants and I the other day when we were talking during our break in the teachers' lounge. She stared at us while we talked and then just suddenly said “No te entiendo!!” [I don’t understand you!] in a tone that suggested we should have been speaking in Spanish. It was a pretty confusing situation considering that 1) we weren’t having a conversation with her and 2) we are ENGLISH LANGUAGE ASSISTANTS, hired by the school and paid for by the parents to SPEAK AND TEACH IN ENGLISH!
So anyway, that’s that. We will see how long I last but my patience is already paper thin
at this point and I will soon be slamming doors in people’s faces when they try
to interrupt me, whether they be nuns or not.
School Stories
I’ve already shared a few anecdotes on my facebook, but for those
who don’t check their Facebook or don’t have one or just missed out completely
(and also so that in 5 years I can look back and laugh), I’d like to share them
here as well.
Working in the Pre-K one day, a 4-year-old boy would not
put his shoe back on. So, the teacher took his shoe and put it in the garbage
(yeah I don’t know why either, must be a Spanish thing?). He said to her “If you throw my shoe
away, my grandma’s going to hit you!”
After school, I saw Stevie, a 3-year-old going on 30. I
was teasing him a little bit when he turned his back, walked away without a
word and stood behind his older brother. He looked at me and said “No tengo tiempo
para tus tonterías”[I don’t have time for your foolishness].
The middle school girls are obsessed with Justin Bieber
and Robert Pattinson. I was not surprised, obviously. But they get quite
offended when they ask me what to them I’m sure is the most important question
in the world: “What kind of music do you like?… JUSTIN BIEBER???” and I have to
bring their world crashing down around them when I answer no. Or an even sillier question: “Justin
Bieber or Brad Pitt?” The fact that I even have to answer that is an insult to
the beauty of the male form. Ah,
but then I remind myself:
This generation’s Bieber is my Timberlake, their Pattinson my DiCaprio.
Yesterday I gave
awesome nicknames to 2 boys in my 7th grade class who are both named
Nacho (short for Ignacio): Nacho Cheese and Guacamole. Needless to say, they’ve caught on
pretty well.
Today a different 7th
grader from the other section presented me with a bracelet he made for me out
of soda can tabs and blue ribbon.
Not to be outdone, another boy said that now he has a great idea for a
gift for me on my birthday. Yes!
Shower me with gifts, young ones.
Photo Updates
I also haven't posted any pictures here yet which I usually try to do. I know a lot of the very few who read this probably could look at the pictures on Facebook if they want, or maybe already have, but it makes for a more lively blog this way I think :)
I also haven't posted any pictures here yet which I usually try to do. I know a lot of the very few who read this probably could look at the pictures on Facebook if they want, or maybe already have, but it makes for a more lively blog this way I think :)
My Casa
 |
| Hallway-ish area - one bedroom is to the left, other two to the right and then the bathrooms there in front |
 |
| Kitchen |
 |
| Bathroom 1 |
 |
| Bathroom 2 - The Forgotten Bathroom (we hardly use it) |
 |
| Living room |
 |
| My very orange bedroom |
 |
| With some friends at the very first international Rock the Vote event |
 |
| A protest at the end of September |
 |
| Hanging out at the park |
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| 'El Rastro' - Huge market on Sundays |
 | |
Monday, October 1, 2012
Planet of the [Toddler] Apes
Time is absolutely flying by! I can hardly believe today is the first day of October. I'm so used to noticing the change of the seasons by the colors of the trees and that crispy cool walk across the Bridge to class that it's hard to grasp that Fall is here. The weather here is a little like home -- in the fact that one minute I'm huddling inside a warm jacket and the next I'm sweating so much I'm practically a stripper as I walk down the street.
So I have conquered the first week and a half in my school, and it is definitely safe to say that other than teachers and students, there's not a whole lot the same about La Inmaculada (the name of the school I'm working in) and the schools I grew up in. Today was the first day of the "full schedule". Hey Scottie Walker, are you listening? I have a wonderful budget cut idea for you for that "expensive" little gnat buzzing around your head (AKA the thing the rest of us call education). The schools here started on September 10th(ish) and the first 3 weeks of school are on "summer schedule" which basically means they start at 9am and the day ends at 1:30, just in time for lunch. In other words, it is just incredibly silly to expect anyone to complete a full day of school coming right off of summer vacation. Genius?!
Maybe it's the uptight, schedule-obsessed American in me, but from what I saw in a week and a half, it's basically a waste of time the first 3 weeks of school. But it also seems like Spaniards need a little more time than us Americans to get organized and on track.
Speaking of getting organized...
I am still waiting for a complete and accurate schedule of the classes I'm supposed to help with. It's been a chaotic mess. It seems like no one really wants to take the responsibility to organize the 3 Language Assistants (me and 2 others) and no one communicates with each other, just complains that things are unorganized.
I also spent the first 7 days like a lost little lamb in my school. My first day, I met the director of the school, Carmen Jesus (a nun), who asked me some awkward interview-like questions about who I am and then dropped me off in a classroom with one of the English teachers. From there it was a giant question mark. I didn't know where any classrooms were, who to talk to about what, and I wasn't introduced to any of the other faculty, and actually if it wasn't for the fact that the students have to wear uniforms I almost wouldn't know if a few of the other teachers were part of the high school classes or not. There is no dress code. Basically it's casual Friday everyday, only not even as dressy as that. And forget about trying to figure out who the gym teacher is since so many people wear track suits.
I have been going to 2 classes pretty consistently: Infantil, which is Preschool ages 3-5, and one of the high school English classes. The preschool is interesting. I've been in all three classes, 3, 4 and 5 year olds, and they are all doing the same thing. Repeating the types of weather and seasons, the days of the week, and vocabulary of the classroom (pencil, chair, table, and schoolbag). Here's a link to "The Weather Song" that we've been singing everyday:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcW9Ct000yY
The 4 and 5 year olds are a little more attentive to what they're repeating, but the 3 year olds are just parrots. They repeat everything the teacher says, even in Spanish. Today she dropped something and made a noise to herself like "Ohohohh!" and it was like a wave through the classroom starting with the kiddie closest to her mimicking the sound until the whole room was filled with "OhOhOHHH!". They haven't quite figured out what "Kate" means yet either since when she says "Who is Kate??" they all repeat "HOOESKAE". And the recess. Ohh my the recess. In the classroom they are fairly calm. Obviously they have the attention span of a fish and spend most of the time gaping at me trying to figure out who this strange new person is speaking in this weird language in this odd accent ("PERO quien es ESA!?" 'But who is SHE!?")... but when it comes time for recess they go absolutely insane. The first day I experienced it I wasn't sure what I was witnessing. The play yard is pretty small, but there is a fake grass area for "soccer" (or rolling around on the ground which is what I've mostly seen), a slide and monkey bars set in sand, and then cement all closed in by a metal gate. The minute they exited the classroom half of them ran for the gate, started climbing up, screaming and shaking the bars like they were a bunch of monkeys that had just escaped the lab. Others climbed onto the windows outside the classroom and started banging on the glass. Basically like a scene from Rise of the Planet of the Apes...the one where James Franco plays the hot monkey scientist. I'm like the female James Franco in this school of Monkey Children... minus the genius part and the dashing good looks
I'm enjoying the high school class for the most part because I can joke around with them and have actual conversations, even though today they were so awful and I was reminded that they are a bunch of immature teenagers.
Overall I really like being at the school and getting to know the teachers and all the kids at all the grade levels. I think once things FINALLY get organized and I am consistently with the same teachers and the same kids, it can only get even better. Who knew I would enjoy the classroom? Scary.
Next I'll have to update everyone on my first protest experience over the weekend (Me, at a protest? Never!) as well as my new reality show obsession 'Quien Quiere Casarse con Mi Hijo?' 'Who Wants To Marry My Son?' which is the most perfect combination of The Bachelor and that stupid MTV 20 minute long scripted show Date My Son or Date My Daughter or whatever it was where the parents comment on everything. It's so terrible, but so hilarious. I'll be sure to let you all know who gets kicked off next week!
So I have conquered the first week and a half in my school, and it is definitely safe to say that other than teachers and students, there's not a whole lot the same about La Inmaculada (the name of the school I'm working in) and the schools I grew up in. Today was the first day of the "full schedule". Hey Scottie Walker, are you listening? I have a wonderful budget cut idea for you for that "expensive" little gnat buzzing around your head (AKA the thing the rest of us call education). The schools here started on September 10th(ish) and the first 3 weeks of school are on "summer schedule" which basically means they start at 9am and the day ends at 1:30, just in time for lunch. In other words, it is just incredibly silly to expect anyone to complete a full day of school coming right off of summer vacation. Genius?!
Maybe it's the uptight, schedule-obsessed American in me, but from what I saw in a week and a half, it's basically a waste of time the first 3 weeks of school. But it also seems like Spaniards need a little more time than us Americans to get organized and on track.
Speaking of getting organized...
I am still waiting for a complete and accurate schedule of the classes I'm supposed to help with. It's been a chaotic mess. It seems like no one really wants to take the responsibility to organize the 3 Language Assistants (me and 2 others) and no one communicates with each other, just complains that things are unorganized.
I also spent the first 7 days like a lost little lamb in my school. My first day, I met the director of the school, Carmen Jesus (a nun), who asked me some awkward interview-like questions about who I am and then dropped me off in a classroom with one of the English teachers. From there it was a giant question mark. I didn't know where any classrooms were, who to talk to about what, and I wasn't introduced to any of the other faculty, and actually if it wasn't for the fact that the students have to wear uniforms I almost wouldn't know if a few of the other teachers were part of the high school classes or not. There is no dress code. Basically it's casual Friday everyday, only not even as dressy as that. And forget about trying to figure out who the gym teacher is since so many people wear track suits.
I have been going to 2 classes pretty consistently: Infantil, which is Preschool ages 3-5, and one of the high school English classes. The preschool is interesting. I've been in all three classes, 3, 4 and 5 year olds, and they are all doing the same thing. Repeating the types of weather and seasons, the days of the week, and vocabulary of the classroom (pencil, chair, table, and schoolbag). Here's a link to "The Weather Song" that we've been singing everyday:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcW9Ct000yY
The 4 and 5 year olds are a little more attentive to what they're repeating, but the 3 year olds are just parrots. They repeat everything the teacher says, even in Spanish. Today she dropped something and made a noise to herself like "Ohohohh!" and it was like a wave through the classroom starting with the kiddie closest to her mimicking the sound until the whole room was filled with "OhOhOHHH!". They haven't quite figured out what "Kate" means yet either since when she says "Who is Kate??" they all repeat "HOOESKAE". And the recess. Ohh my the recess. In the classroom they are fairly calm. Obviously they have the attention span of a fish and spend most of the time gaping at me trying to figure out who this strange new person is speaking in this weird language in this odd accent ("PERO quien es ESA!?" 'But who is SHE!?")... but when it comes time for recess they go absolutely insane. The first day I experienced it I wasn't sure what I was witnessing. The play yard is pretty small, but there is a fake grass area for "soccer" (or rolling around on the ground which is what I've mostly seen), a slide and monkey bars set in sand, and then cement all closed in by a metal gate. The minute they exited the classroom half of them ran for the gate, started climbing up, screaming and shaking the bars like they were a bunch of monkeys that had just escaped the lab. Others climbed onto the windows outside the classroom and started banging on the glass. Basically like a scene from Rise of the Planet of the Apes...the one where James Franco plays the hot monkey scientist. I'm like the female James Franco in this school of Monkey Children... minus the genius part and the dashing good looks
I'm enjoying the high school class for the most part because I can joke around with them and have actual conversations, even though today they were so awful and I was reminded that they are a bunch of immature teenagers.
Overall I really like being at the school and getting to know the teachers and all the kids at all the grade levels. I think once things FINALLY get organized and I am consistently with the same teachers and the same kids, it can only get even better. Who knew I would enjoy the classroom? Scary.
Next I'll have to update everyone on my first protest experience over the weekend (Me, at a protest? Never!) as well as my new reality show obsession 'Quien Quiere Casarse con Mi Hijo?' 'Who Wants To Marry My Son?' which is the most perfect combination of The Bachelor and that stupid MTV 20 minute long scripted show Date My Son or Date My Daughter or whatever it was where the parents comment on everything. It's so terrible, but so hilarious. I'll be sure to let you all know who gets kicked off next week!
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