Six Month+ update

I haven't written a real blog post since last June - that is over six months ago.

Here's a quick recap of what has happened.

I went overseas with 12 students, four mothers, and two other teachers in the end of June into the first week of July.  We went to France (Paris, Nice), Monacco, Italy (Piza, Florence, Rome, Vatican City).

Me getting into my new
car while in Monaco

It was an awesome experience - my first time in Europe beside stopping through airports.

The kids were great, the mothers irksome - one of them even had the nerve to tell me and another teacher that teaching is easy and that planning and organizing the trip was easy.  It took everything in me to not go off on her.  She also was perpetually late and even had a male guest stay in her hotel room in Paris one night (she shared a room with another mother).

Hotel window view each morning
a small town in Italy

There was a student on the trip who had body odor issues so much that other students, though they tried to be nice to her, got to the point where they did not want to room with her.  Her clothes and body smelled so much that we had to have an intervention. She was only in 6th grade, so perhaps did not understand the body changes and the need for proper cleansing and deodorant.  We teachers taught her how to thoroughly wash her body in the shower.  That did not help, so we teachers then had to wash her clothes in three sinks, a shower, and a bidet one night.  It took us about four hours and so much soap and detergent.  The smell was so revolting and our hands smelled like it for days.  She had been putting her wet towels back into her suitcase each day (we would travel most days).  She had her own towel that was the most revolting, mildewy, molded, disgusting thing I have ever smelled.  She didn't want us to wash it since the smell reminded her of her dad.  I had to walk out of the room when she said that.

Despite my promise to myself when I started teaching 10 years ago that I would never do so, I taught summer school last summer.  Living in NYC is expensive and I wanted to see what it was like. I only taught the second half of the course since another teacher taught the first half.  It wasn't too bad, though the commute was super far each day.

My sister who lived in NYC with me moved to Houston where another sister lives leaving me here in the big city with just the boif as the immediate family.

Perhaps you remember the heat
wave, summer 2013. It was so hot,
I looked like I was lactating.

I moved into a new apartment.  No longer in Harlem. Now just inside the Bronx close to Yankee's Stadium.  What a difference an apartment makes.  The last place was so horrible that I didn't even buy furniture for the living room. Now I have a nice place that is modern, clean, and the floors do not squeak incessantly.  I have bought a couch, I can watch tv, I got Roku, I use the living room for more than a storage place for my yoga mat.  I live in peace - though people in the Bronx have a problem of playing their music really loud at all hours of the day and night.  There are also no convenient places to buy simple food items that don't cost an arm and a leg and the 4 train is slower than dirt compared with the 2/3 that I used to be able to take.

I experienced the hottest summer ever in life.  My sister, her two 1/2 kids, and my brother came to visit NYC for a few days this summer as did my parents for a conferences.  It was nice to see them all.

Kid Sis #2's Kid #2 - So cute!

My parents have decided to move out of our childhood home that they have lived in for over 25 years.  I got to go into it a last time and say goodbye to the memories from there. I also was able to go through old items that I have been storing there such as pictures and track awards and memorabilia.

I got to spend a weekend in the summer with Kid Sis #3.  We went to the Lake of the Ozarks, almost got lost in the-land-where-no-black-people-want-to-get-lost, found our way to the resort, and had a great time. I parasailed for the first time ever, went jetskiing, and went ziplining for the first time ever.  It was so fun and so awesome to get to do so with my youngest sister.

School started back in September.  I am teaching the same classes as well as a zero period computer science class.  Those early mornings are getting to me and making me super tired Monday through Thursday. I love Fridays since I get to sleep later.

Picture I saved from the parent's house
before their move - me as a toddler.

I feel more competent in the classroom this year, but am still working hard planning more and doing better things in the classroom than ever before.

Kid Sis #3's newest son trying on
his mother's wig.  SO CUTE!!

Kid Sis #2 had her third baby late last year - the third boy.  I am looking forward to meeting him in person.

My students at school are great! (Most days)  I had one student bring me some bugs to taste after we practiced reading strategies on an article that talked about edible critters and I said that I wanted to taste some and see what they were like. I tasted them.  They were not bad.  I felt like I channeled my inner Andrew Zimmern.

I feel closer to the teachers at school and for the first time since working at my first StL school, find that I can actually call more than a small hand full of my colleagues my friends.

I went to India to attend a colleague's wedding in December.  It was the first time in eons that I have had a vacation that was truly a vacation.  I had a blast and want to go back to Goa.  It was beautiful and not anything like most of what is seen about India.  We performed a dance for the bride that reenacted the relationship of her and her husband from their first meeting, to their first date, to their engagement where he did a flash mob dance for her.  I felt like I was in a Bollywood production. It was amazing!  On the last day there, I went to a spice farm and discovered that vanilla is the second most expensive spice in the world and that anything vanilla flavored that I have eaten in my life is likely not really real vanilla.

On the way there, I took a flight by myself since I didn't book tickets with any of the other five colleagues who attended. I flew through Cairo and was super fortunate (?) to have a long layover (I concluded that the airline does it on purpose).  I took a tour of the city and saw the Nile River, the pyramids, the sphinx, a perfume factory, and was able to shower, and have a nice dinner.  All this cost me only 30 dollars American.  It has been a dream of mine since high school to get to the Nile and the pyramids, so that was AMAZING!!

Happy New Year!!

Dream come true - accidentally!!

View from the beach on the
coast of Goa, India

Mehndi on my hand for friend's wedding

Me at the spice farm

Back to blogging with pictures

I'm easing my way back into blogging.

It's been almost 6 months.  I haven't even allowed myself to read other blogs because I didn't want to get sucked into those again if I was not going to be keeping up with mine. I know, doesn't quite make sense, but that was my rule.

I have missed reading about all of you out there and am not even sure if I will understand all that you write now since I have missed out on a huge chunk of your blogging lives.

My return to blogging will begin with November photos of the day (promts by Fat Mum Slim - as usual).

Here is a recap of the first week+.

1. Fruit - In my blender - for a smoothie.

2. I did this today -  After talking about eating bugs as I was teaching literacy to a group of students, one of the students said that her mother makes them.  I, of course, said I wanted to taste them.  A week and a half later this came to me in my classroom.  I ate a few at school, took the rest home.  I wasn't sure if they were supposed to be sprinkled on top of the cactus (YUM!) salad or not. I did not.

3. P is for - dance practice in the subway station.  No one looks twice at people who do things like this in the subway. I'm getting used to not making it seem like I think it's cool, but I still sneak pictures occasionally.

4. Table - chili while grading - gotta love my colleagues

5. I collect - a new visa for my December trip to India; process was not that bad after I went all the way back home to get proof of address since it was not listed on the website as something I needed to bring with me.

6. Music - went to a salon for a regular hair style and got my hair washed (by someone else) for the first time in over 12 years; I didn't realize I missed the sensation.  If you look carefully, you can see the little red radio on the right by the door that was playing a huge variety of music.  I was the only one in the shop which made it a much more pleasant experience than I remember salons being.  Didn't leave until almost 11 pm, though.

7. Yes - Doonya - not only have I been a horrible blogger, I have not been attending Doonya as often as I did before winning the weight loss competition last winter. I won free unlimited classes for a year, and have not really taken advantage. I gave out a big old YES when I finished, because I love how it feels to workout and I love dancing to do it.

8. Someone I miss - I can go a long time without talking to family, but I love them dearly and love when I do talk with them.  My dad had back surgery on Friday and I was waiting to hear some good news. Mom's text was nice to see.

9. Mine - In my new place (not that new - been here since August) I actually have a couch.  Haven't had one since moving away from StL.  Last place was too gross to bring in decent furniture.  It unfolds completely flat and is actually really comfortable for sitting, grading, napping, watching tv (which is fairly new since I didn't do that much when I was at the other place since sitting on the yoga mat was not conducive to tv watching. I must say, that most of my tv watching is on the laptop or tablet with Hulu+, though.  Need to get a device to allow me to watch them on the tv.

Tomorrow, I wear a haz-mat suit to school

Today started wonderfully!

Since the kids are doing state testing (required for graduation in NY) I am proctoring.  The exam I was proctoring went from 1:15-4:15, so I didn’t have to be at school until 10.  I woke up, went to the gym, stopped to get some fruit on the way home, took a shower, took a nap, got up, went and had breakfast at a place that is normally closed when I go to work at the normal time, got to work by 9:15.

I sat from 10-12:45 cleaning, organizing, packing, and getting a travel list ready for my upcoming Europe trip, which somehow keeps getting closer and closer.

Kids started arriving to my room around 12:45.

Sample test I found online

 We started the test on time.

Even with all my years of experience teaching, there are still days that I see things I have never seen before.  Today there were two such events in the three short hours that I proctored the state science exam.

First, students were not allowed to leave sooner than 90 minutes into the exam.  One girl called me to her table 28 minutes into the test and said she was finished – with all 60+ multiple choice and 13+ short answer, written responses.  I looked at her multiple-choice sheet and saw that she had marked each answer with 3 (instead of a, b, c, d they do 1, 2, 3, 4).  I told her to double-check her answers since, “I’m pretty sure every answer is not three and also that you may be able to answer some of the short answer questions.”

She continued to call me back to her in 12 minute intervals until I finally told her that she could not leave until at least 90 minutes into the exam and that I would not let her leave if she was not trying on the exam. 

In the end, she did not change her 3’s, but did complete 3 short answer questions. 

Second new teaching scenario: Later, as students who cared about and actually tried on the test started to finish, turn in their work, and sign out of the testing room, I noticed something on the floor.

I do not allow food in my classroom since NYC is a city of rats and mice and other critters. 

But, I saw some jelly on the floor in three places.

I didn’t want to get upset since the culprit had probably left the room since the other students were still testing and had not gotten up from their seats.  I figured a student must have dropped one of those fast-food condiment packets on the floor and stepped on it.  I gathered several napkins from my desk and quietly bent over to wipe up the mess – first the smaller one and then the larger one.

After the first wipe, I realized that it may not be jelly.

No, it was definitely not jelly.

It was way, way worse.

It was way, way, way worse than jelly.

It was an excretion.

It was blood and chunky mucous from a menstruating girl.

It was on the floor of in my classroom, and on a napkin I was holding in front of me.

Complete shock and awe!!!!

It took a lot for me to take the napkin quietly to the trash, calmly open the classroom door, and quietly signal for the hallway proctor to come to my door so that she could watch the students while I went to find the nearest chemistry lab to take a full body shower.

I only found a bathroom, and had to settle for hand washing scrubbing as though prepping to perform surgery.

I went back to the room and immediately emailed the administration about the incident and requested that my room be haz-mat-ed (I’m not sure if that is an actually term, but that is what I would like done to my room!)

I’m still trying to wrap my head around how this huge chunk and two streaks could have fallen out of a person wearing clothes.  Did she not notice?  Did she realize it was going on and just let it happen   Did she see the mess she left?  How did it get out of her underwear and onto my floor?

I wanted one of these

anyway?  Did she see the mess she left?  How did it get out of her underwear and onto my floor?

Sorry if you are sensitive to the grossness of this, but I really don’t understand how a person could just let this happen.  How she could not tell this was going on and not request to go to the bathroom.

I get that the test is required for graduating, but this was a situation that should have superseded the exam for at least a little while.

She needed to give this situation some immediate attention!

I may need to start keeping a suit like the one pictured handy in my classroom.