getting in touch with my Indian side

Here I am at the United Nations Cultural Showcase. These are some of my students; I love these girls! The ones dressed alike were wearing other more colorful outfits earlier in the evening but changed for a dance they performed. The girl to my right is wearing the most beautiful sari, it was gorgeous! I can not for the life of me remember what the skirt and top I am wearing is called but I got so many compliments. People kept telling me how pretty I looked so I decided I needed to wear something like it more often! The student I borrowed it from told me she would buy me one the next time she want to India. The night was a success and the kids did great with their performances. I was, and still am, so proud!

hurry up and wait

I have started over on my miles to Blacksburg. I decided to add biking to the mix because I've been taking a lot of spinning classes. I'm also taking a few kickboxing classes but I don't really know how to add that in...I wonder how many punches and kicks equals a mile?

I am so exhausted and burned out. Only 4 and 1/2 more weeks of school but it feels like forever! We are currently in TAKS testing (thanks to "No Child Left Behind"). I feel like I'm losing brain cells as I watch the students test; it is so boring! We are not allowed to read or work on anything, even sudoku puzzles while they work because we have to "actively monitor". I have no idea how kids figure out how to cheat on these tests but they always seem to find a way which means we have to watch them like hawks. This was day 3 and I seriously had the head nod dozing thing going on. Just one more day and then I'll never have to do it again!:)

Still no word from seminary. I feel like I am doing a lot of waiting lately. I read somewhere that we spend a third of our lives waiting; after figuring in that we spend another third sleeping, that only leaves one third for actual living! Bummer.

I know this post is sounding pretty negative but I'm so exhausted! I'm to the point where I just want to cry I'm so tired. I laid down for a few minutes earlier to take a cat nap and woke up an hour and a half later!

La vida es un carnival

I know, I know, it's been FOREVER since I last blogged. Most of you, if not all, have probably stopped clicking on the link to my blog to see if I've updated. This will be an interesting experiment to see who comments first:)


Life is a roller coaster ride with ups and downs. Here are some high lights:


*I'm quitting my job. That's right, I've had enough. This school year has been doubly heinous with disrespectful students and not enough support from administration. Education should be a privilege, not a right, in this country. But I won't get on my soap box here. I've decided that life on this planet is much too short to waste it in a job that I don't love. So, you may be wondering what the heck am I going to do now???


*I'm finally applying for seminary! Yes, after living in Dallas for 2.5 years, I'm finally doing it. The journey to get to this point has been a long one but I honestly believe that it is all God's timing. I wasn't ready before now for seminary; I had a lot of issues I needed to hash out with God and I'm much healthier emotionally and ready for the demands of seminary. I should know by the end of April if I got in. I'll keep you posted...


*I've finally gotten into the Harry Potter craze. Yes, I'm a few years behind but I have never been known to be fashionable. I'm in book #5 and it's taking a long time to get through mainly because I am so busy now and don't have a lot of free time for reading.


*And why don't I have a lot of free time? Well, school keeps me super busy and I'm co-sponsoring a club so we have meetings after school. Also, I started helping with the college ministry at my church which has been amazing. I'm mentoring a young woman who is absolutely precious and such a blessing to my life. And I've been working out a lot lately which brings me to my next high light...


*I've lost 12 pounds since the beginning of January! I'm working out 6 times per week and loving it! I'm doing lots of variety to keep it interesting: eliptical, biking, running, stairs, spinning class, kickboxing, weight training and I just started doing bikram yoga (whoa, do I sweat a lot in that! it's that type of yoga where the room is 100 degrees; literally sweat flows down my body and my clothes are drenched when I leave the 90 minute class but it burns TONS of calories!). I want to add swimming back into my routine now that it's getting warmer. I have so much more energy now and it's such a stress reliever.


*I love the Gilmore Girls! Again, didn't get into the show while it was on tv but I've been getting the dvds from the library. I'm in Season 6 which started out kind of rocky but has gotten way better by disc 4. I honestly believe that Lorelai and Rory are my friends and I want to settle down in Stars Hollow one day...does Luke have a younger brother???


*Speaking of Lukes, my nephew is the cutest thing ever! My sister-in-law sent me the cutest photo of him from his 2nd birthday that I wish I could upload but I'll leave you with this one from his bday party. How can you not love that face?! I hope to be able to see him soon; hoping that I can make it home over the summer although with gas prices the way they are, I'm going to have to sell some serious plasma to make it!




*I gave up coffee for Lent. Wow, was that a long 40 days! My students kept asking me,"When can you have coffee again?" blaming my grumpiness on lack of caffeine. Little do they know that they are usually the cause of my bad mood! When I found out that Lent actually ends at midnight on the Thursday before Easter, I was so happy! I enjoyed a Frap from Starbucks, light, of course. Yummy!



Okay, that is it for now. I have to get ready for dinner with friends. I'll post more later. I have a whole new my fave things list so be holding your breaths for that one! Besos!

my happy place, texas edition

stressball

I am never going to get caught up! Ever since school started I have been so stressed out. School is busier this year than the previous 2 years (or maybe I've just blocked it all out...). I have countless meetings, I can't get anything done during my planning period because of meetings and duty, and the administration expects more of us in regards to lesson plans and grading. Ugh! It also doesn't help that I'm this stressed out over a job that I don't even want to do. My apartment stays a mess because when the weekend comes all I want to do is hang out with adults and have fun instead of cleaning. And working out? Ha! That has also unfortunately been tossed to the side. Maybe that would help my stress level though. I just hate feeling like I don't have enough time...espeically for the things I find most important.

This is my year to figure out what to do next. There are many options and I'm just trying to narrow things down. One that is in the forefront is going to grad school, finally! I'm also pursuing other options; we shall see where it all leads. One thing I do know is that I do not want to teach next year. I've just got to make it to June 4th...it seems so far away!!!

where are you?

"Wherever you are, be all there."

--Jim Elliot

brokenness

"If my life is broken when given to Jesus, it is because pieces

will feed a multitude, while a loaf will satisfy only a little lad."

--Ruth Stull

obsession

I know I have already posted about swimming, but I am in love with it! Nevermind the fact that my back is wondering where all these new muscles came from, I heart swimming!

I found a cool website called Swimplan.com. Some New Zealanders developed it (I love how favorite is spelled "favourite" and learned is "learnt"). Once signing up (for free, 2 of my fave words in the English language), it will put together personalized swimming workouts based on your level. The workouts are kicking my butt so far and some of the drills leave me feeling awkward, but I know it's improving my form. I'm not racking in any Olympic medals or anything but I like having something to follow instead of just going and swimming a bunch of laps.

One day, when I'm rich and famous, or at least just rich, I'm going to buy a house and install an enclosed lap pool next to the guest house.

"And I never learned how to read!"

I am addicted to the library. I know that of all the things to be addicted to, this is probably one of the safest. This and drinking water, or eating spinach.

One of the reasons I've been going so much is that summer is winding down and I'm feeling the pressure to read as much leisure material as possible before school starts back up. Once school is on, everything, including fun reading (oh, and my social life) go out the window.

Another reason is that the Dallas public library system has an amazing selection of dvds. It's like Blockbuster, except free! I'm almost finished with season 1 of the Gilmore Girls. I am disappointed that the first season of Growing Pains is missing from the shelves, though. And speaking of great shows from my youth, when the heck are the Wonder Years dvds going to come out??? Check out my Facebook page for reviews of movies I've recently watched.

Confession: when I was little, I used to love summer because that meant I could sign up for the summer reading program at the library. If I read the required amount of books, that meant some fabulous prizes like a Pizza Hut personal pan pizza, a card stock book mark, and a sticker with a weird cartoon leopard saying, "Get spotted reading a good book!"

just keep swiming, just keep swiming

I love to swim.

I transferred my gym membership to the one closer to my new place and this one has a pool. I was very excited about this because swimming is probably my favorite form of exercise. I love the way the water feels as I glide through it, the way my hands slice through it as I do the freestyle and the way I feel kind of like a frog when I do the breast stroke. I love how the only things I hear when my head is under water are the bubbles that leave my mouth as I exhale and the gurgle my arms and legs make as I move through the water. I even like the way my skin still smells of chlorine long after I have taken a shower.

When I was younger, around 4 or 5 and living in NC, I took swimming lessons at the Y. I ended up getting pneumonia from swallowing too much water, some of it getting into my lungs. I took lessons again when I was a little older, I think 8 or 9 living in CO. I remember walking the few blocks back to my house, alone, feeling like such a grown up. One time it started to pour down rain and I started to run although it didn't really matter if I got wet. When I was in high school in VA, I would hear about other school's swim teams and long to be on one; yet, my town, let alone my school, did not have a pool. It wasn't until long after I graduated that a Y was built and a swim team formed.

I'm not the most accomplished swimmer. I will never win any awards or medals for speed or endurance. I could use some pointers for improving my strokes. I'd like to learn the butterfly. But I am at peace when I swim, my only thoughts focusing on breathing and form. I wish I could find that peace in life.

thank u

How about me not blaming you for everything
How about me enjoying the moment for once
How about how good it feels to finally forgive you
How about grieving it all one at a time

Thank you india
Thank you terror
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you frailty
Thank you consequence
Thank you thank you silence

The moment I let go of it was
The moment I got more than I could handle
The moment I jumped off of it was
The moment I touched down

How about no longer being masochistic
How about remembering your divinity
How about unabashedly bawling your eyes out
How about not equating death with stopping

Thank you india
Thank you providence
Thank you disillusionment
Thank you nothingness
Thank you clarity
Thank you thank you silence

movin' on up!

In case some of you think I have gone into exile again, I am still here. I have been busy moving. Moving from one apartment to another is quite the task; I can't imagine moving from a house!

I love my new place! It's in a younger, hipper part of Dallas (Addison) and there are young business professionals everywhere. I'm excited to go exploring and find fun places to shop and eat. The apartment itself suits me very well. My last place was okay but it wasn't anything special. The new one is so much nicer and I feel like such a grown-up! I'll see about posting some pics when I get all settled (and you know that will take me a while...) but you can click here to see the complex.

People have been so kind, offering to help in packing and unpacking. It's such a motivator to me to have someone here, even if they are just sitting there and talking to me as I do the work. I am alone a lot of the time (the nature of being an introverted single) so I appreciate the company.

rain rain on my face

Signs on the roadways here in North Texas:

"If water on the road

turn around,

don't drown!"

I think it has rained everyday since April. I feel like I'm living back in Florida. Maybe it's a sign...

working for a living

I found the results to the Birkman I took back in 2003. The Birkman is a personality and occupation assessment tool to help you determine how you work most effectively and what fields you should pursue.

Near the top of the list: teacher. Yet, it also says that I have a high need for respect in my job. Hmmm. I don't know any teachers that feel highly respected...

At the very top of the list? It says I should pursue a career where I am a "knowledge specialist." This means "utilizing personal expertise and knowledge for problem solving; lead by example." Jobs in this family include: public school counselors, career counselors, college professors, HR professionals, ministers, physicians and lawyers. I think it would be fun to be a college professor but I don't think my Spanish is good enough to pursue a Masters and eventually a PhD.

Interesting that career counselor is one of the professions, especially since I should probably see one myself!

penny stretching

Making a budget is one thing. Sticking to it is something else entirely! Now that I have a car payment to worry about, not to mention the fact that my car insurance went up and the rent on my new place is higher than what I pay now, I am having to be very careful with the ol' paycheck. I've decided to think of it as a game, something that I have to beat. My goal is to have some left over at the end of the month; I will put half toward debt and the other half in savings. Exciting, I know.

I have an idea for making a little extra cash. I'm going to hang up some flyers at church for tutoring. Even if I just have one student per week, that will come out to almost $150/month. It would be cool to be able to tutor full time instead of teaching. The only problem would be lots of evening hours. Plus I would definitely miss the interactions I have with my students.

Moms, any ideas for making those pennies go further???

catching some zzzz's

While watching an ad for a prescription sleep aid, the narrator lists possible side effects. One includes drowsiness. Um, isn't that kind of the point?

virginia

This is my happy place.

i'm back

Wow, Blogger is so much easier to update and change around! Makes me feel super techno-savvy. But let's face it, a techno-geek I am not. Although I do seem to waste a lot of time on the computer...

p.c.

On Facebook, if you type in "Christian" under "Religious Views," a list of choices appears. The top choice? "Christian--Amish." Um, how many Amish people do you know have internet access? Or computers? Or electricity for that matter???

blah

I know I haven't blogged in a while and the truth is that I just haven't felt like it. There's a lot going on in my head right now that I just can't write about here. Don't worry, nothing tragic or anything. I'm just a very internal person and sometimes it just all gets clogged in my brain. It's kind of like constipation, I guess...no matter how badly I want it to come out, it won't.

Sorry for the graphic description...