More than I expected

Yesterday I hopped on a bus to Circular Quay and took a ferry around the harbour - it was a little cloudy, so the pictures aren't the best, but it was very interesting and quite enjoyable. I then walked over to the aquarium, where I took lots of pictures - to be found on My Photo Blog. After the aquarium I wandered around the harbour area and then walked up to the Sydney Tower where I did the Sky Tour - an amusement park - like ride that tells you all about Australia - and then I took the ride up to the top (almost) of the tower. Awesome view of Sydney. I then had dinner in the restraunt which goes around and around and around... that was a new one - dinner in the clouds. Literally.
Today I walked around a bit, did a few errands, then headed down to the Opera House. I got tickets for Twelfth Night, which I just got back from. Loved it. They had the actors in modern clothing - with a few other modern changes, but it was pretty true to Shakespeare. And! I didn't know this but Jonathan Hardy, the voice of Rygel from Farscape - mom and I had JUST had a discussion about Farscape! Irony! Was an awesome play - and then... I wound up hopping a bus with one of the lead actors. Uhm who knew actors took buses? *boggle* I kept it on the dl though ;) But it was cool to have a brush with stardom :)
I also have tickets for an opera tomorrow night - The Barber of Seville, an Italian Opera - and I got front row seats!
And now... to bed and to rest - for another days adventures - before I return to New Zealand.

Faking it

I've gotten really good at faking it.
I've adapted the "Don't mess with me kid" - teacher look I've been working on for the classroom – for roaming the streets of Sydney. It seems to work pretty well. Nobody has bothered me yet - except for the Red Cross guy wanting me to donate blood.
I've spent the last couple of days walking around down-town Sydney - amaaaazing the things you see. For example, there is a fettish shop right around the corner from my hotel and next to that is the gay-male strip club. These are things you wouldn't necessarily find in my home town... at least I don't think you would. I’ve certainly never seen them. You need to go into Dallas or Ft. Worth I think.
Sydney is probably a very typical Big City. Though I must admit my encounters with BIG Cities has been limited – much by choice. I was in New York for a week, but I was with my high school, so everywhere we went we were somewhat sheltered.
But yeah, see lots of interesting things here. Keeps me entertained, that’s for sure.

On Sunday evening I saw The Lion King and it was awesome! I love the way they made the puppets become part of the actors. Truly amazing. And the music... /happy sigh
Even had a guy from the new Star Wars movies; JAY LAGA'AIA (Captain Typho) who plays Mufasa. Who knew he could sing? :)

I had dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe today.

Other than that I’ve been taking it easy, sleeping in, enjoying not having to do anything. Being able to decide what to do as I go – VERY unlike me. I must admit.... I broke down today and made a list.
/hangs head in shame
I had to do it! I had absolutely no drive to do anything and there are several things here I’d like to do; Aquarium, Opera House, Tower (like Space Needle), Harbour Cruise – Day and Night. That’s the extent of my list... and I have three and a half days to do it in.... soooo... Time to get busy again!

Did you say Pictures?

I've just posted 20 pictures from the past week.
To see the site go to My Photo Blog
Hope you enjoy!

PS I'm in Sydney now. I slept almost 11 hours last night/this morning. Trying to catch up from a wild and crazy week in Cairns. I really don't have any plans for the next week - except for going to see the matinee of The Lion King tomorrow! Otherwise I'm going to go with the flow. I know I want to see the Aquarium and maybe take a tour of the Sydney Opera House. Oh and they have cruises around the harbour. I think after the past couple of weeks I deserve a nice break. So I maybe I'll head down to Bondi Beach, sit around and do absolutely nothing!

I did it!

/pats self on back!
I did it Aya! I went Parasailing over the Great Barrier Reef yesterday! I caught a boat out to Green Island and went snorkling and then Parasailing. The view was amazing - water, island, reef, mountains!
This morning I went up in a hot air balloon, my favorite activity yet... well tied with helicopter... no better than helicopter. I'd say Balloon, Helicopter, Scuba... yeah... It's hard to rate them though, they've all been amazing. But on the balloon I saw Kangaroo hopping about in the wild - which was just awesome.
I met a guy from Switzerland this morning, Andre and a guy from South Africa, Johan. Both worked for the Hot Air Balloon place, both very nice guys. I had a talk with Andre about living so far from home... *cough* for future reference ;)
I've taken loads of pictures this week, but haven't had a way to upload them yet. I'll do it asap.
I have a few hours to kill now before I catch a plane back to Sydney, time to hit the tourist shops downtown and maybe go for one last drive. I still can't believe I've learned to drive on the left side of the road - scaaaary!

Trains, Buses, Koalas, and Kangaroos - Oh My!

Yesterday I took a train ride up a mountain to the town of Kuranda - very touristy place. I went to an aviary and then hopped on a bus which took me to a rainforest area. I petted a Kangaroo, CUTENESS! Through a Boomerang. Had an introduction into Aboriginal culture; didgeredoo, spear throwing, dance, etc. Took a sky-rail back down the mountain. Had dinner at an Indian restraunt where I met a guy from Wyoming and his Aussie wife & their adorable 2 1/2 year old son.

Found out this morning I have a new baby cousin! Marshall Thomas! Woot woot! Can't wait to see pictures!

Today I'm going to hang out at the beach. Tomorrow is another reef cruise to Green Island - they have sea turtles! Really hope I see some :) Friday morning I have a hot-air balloon ride and then I fly back to Sydney on Friday evening.

Traveling a Land Down Under...

Starting my 4th day in Australia, or Oz as the Kiwi's say.
I spent one day walking around Sydney and then flew up to Cairns. Yesterday I was a major tourist - I went on a bus ride up to Port Douglas, then a boat ride out to the reef, out on the ocean they have this floaty thing with stuff to do. I did a helicopter ride for 15 mins over the reef - front seat! - and then into a semi-submersable submarine, then scuba for an hour! Was far out! My fave would have to be the heli, followed closely by scuba.
Today I'm off to see the rainforest, with a train ride and a sky tram thingy.
Gotta run!

So much to blog, so little time

Almost 6 full weeks in New Zealand, with almost 5 full weeks of Student Teaching under my belt.

What an experience. All sorts of things have been happening; good, bad, and in between. I was sick last week and missed three days of class, Tues-Thurs.
Our school is doing a production this week, well half the school, with over 230 kids involved. I'm working backstage, doing microphones and trying to keep the kids in order, on stage at the right time, and whatnot. It's a lot of fun, excellent experience, but so incredibly tiring. I am always at school around 8 am and home by 6 ish, but with production I have to go back at 6:50 and am not home until after 9:30pm. Makes for a very long day. But! Really and truely, a good experience. I am enjoying it.

The lady I am staying with, Anne, went into the hospital on Sunday morning. She'd been sick all night and was having terrible tummy pains. Turns out she had gallstones and an infection in her galbladder. She's been in the hospital since, it's Weds afternoon here. They may let her out tomorrow night/evening.

I've had several more firsts... Don't think I'll tell about all of them *cough* most have been good though. I've been hanging out with Andrew a lot, but he's going back down to the South Island next Saturday, and I will only see him for two more days.
I leave Saturday morning to go to Sydney for a night - then fly to Cairns for a week, then back to Sydney for the rest of my holiday. I fly back to New Zealand on Friday, October 1st. I'm looking forward to a one-day cruise of the Great Barrier Reef, a rainforest walk, and who knows what else!
I'm sad he's going. We keep each other entertained :) It will be quiet when I get back from my trip. But! I do have several short trips planned around New Zealand. John is taking me to Taupo, a crater lake north of here, to go camping. He also took me out fishing again, last Saturday, on the rocks. A new experience, lots of standing and dodging the spray, but good. I saw dive-bombing seagulls! It's cool to watch them go under, you think they'd need to come up for air soon, but they keep after their prey until the emerge with a juicy fish of some sort.

So many incredible experiences, in such a seemingly short time. All the people, the place, the entire feeling of the last six weeks - and I'm sure the next nine. I don't want to leave. I won't want to leave. I must find a way to come back.
I'm hoping that after I have my masters, in two years (please?), I will be back in New Zealand, teaching. A lot can happen between now and then, and who knows if I will ever return. But honestly, I can't imagine not coming back. I could really see myself living here. And I've only been around Wellington. Wait til I hit the South Island, Whales, Penguins, Dolphins, Mountains, Fiordland... /sigh... I wanna go now!

Hope everyone at home is doing well. I managed to sneak a peek at Aya's blog just now. Sounds like all is going well for her! Makes me happy :) I need to talk to you chicky... I'll try to find time to call you during my Aussie trip.
Renee, good to hear from you :) will try to sneak a peek at your blog soon.
Thanks for the bagpipe link too Aya.
Gotta run. Need to eat lunch before the bell!

Week 3

Its crazy being so far from home - so out of touch with the world as you know it.
New Zealand is such a small country, and it seems so very far from home at times. Yet it has an admirable quality about it. It seems younger and more innocent than America. I'm living in a suburb of Wellington and everyone here is so laid back. Many of the daily stressors which affect us in the states simply do not exist here.

How many states are there in America/The United States?
I challenge you to ask this question of every person in every foreign country (outside Canada and Mexico) and see what they say. Every person, except one, has answered 52. Craaaaaaaaaazy!

I've been doing quite a bit of teaching. Some of it has been my own planning and some has been just gradually taking the lead when my cooperating teacher has been tied up with something else. I have just completed my third week of student teaching and I can see an enormous change in the way the students relate to me. I have gone from being the cool foreigner to the cool foreigner who is respected by the students. I love that I have been developing my own teaching style. I am INCREDIBLY lucky that the structure, set in place by my cooperating teacher, fits me so well. She is very strict/stern with the kids, expects respectful behavior at all times, and likes a quiet classroom. She's done all the hard work, in setting the standard of what is expected. All I had to do was come in and learn her cues. The kids have decided that I am someone to be reckoned with! But they also can have fun with me and often ask me about America. Their favorite question is "Do you know (insert name of someone famous)?" Not "Have you heard of __?" but do I know them... they crack me up!

In short, I'm really enjoying my time here. I've started researching what it would take for me to get a job here. It's looking like a real possibility.

Week 2 is Over

Yes! I've made it through my second week of student teaching.

I had my first evaluation, by my cooperating/supervising teacher, and it went quite well. She pointed out a lot of positive things I did and gave me some very helpful recommendations for things I can work on in the future. She's been SO incredibly supportive and because of her I haven't been nervous about teaching or lesson planning. I'm learning a great deal from her.

I'm going to a party tonight. The Deputy Principal of the school is throwing a shin-dig at her new home and she's invited all the staff. I'm excited about that, it should be a blast.

You'd think I'd have loads to write about. Maybe my poor brain is just tired of processing information. I can't think of anything terribly exciting to tell you.

I can say that I'm having the time of my life. I'm usually tired by the end of the school day, but it is a good tired. I think the constant energy of the kids and having to always look around and see & hear all, is the main drain on my energy. But! The kids are good and the other teachers are good. I've had lots of invitations to see other classrooms, though I've only made it to one other so far. There has also been a recommendation that I go see some of the other schools in the area.

I might go fishing again tomorrow night, depending on the weather. I'm definitely going over to J's place to watch a movie - Star Wars Return of the Jedi is on.

The most excitement I have outside of school is a guy I'm living with. Let me rephrase - I'm boarding in the same place as him - the one who loves to give me a hard time. We keep each other entertained.

I finally had time to read Aya's blog. WOOT Metallica & WOOT sleep-overs on the farm :) Sounds like you're having all sorts of fun. Hopefully you find time to sleep during training - as I recall that was a bit difficult last year.

Hope all my American friends & family are doing well. I miss you guys.

Greetings from New Zealand

The last two weeks have FLOWN by and I've been drowning in new experiences.

I spent the first week getting settled in and accustomed to the time difference. i explored the area a bit and learned the train system - since it's my only means of independent travel. I've finally adjusted to driving on the left side of the road... that took longer to get used to than I expected. I bought a New Zealand Oxford Dictionary so I could learn the slang words - there's hundreds of them. I told the lady I'm living with I appreciated her patience in answering my questions... they seemed endless there for a while. There's also another teacher from the school living their and a younger (21) guy who's sole purpose in life since I arrived is to give me a hard time. I think I'm finally getting the idea of what it must be like to have a little brother! His favorite thing is to turn the light off when I'm in the shower - the light switch is just outside the bathroom door. /sigh... He's a boy.

I've posted some pictures of my surroundings on My Photo Blog so feel free to have a good look.

The people have been very welcoming and I've made myself at home.

My first week of student teaching proved to be a bit more adventuresome than I had counted on. My cooperating teacher was out sick Monday - Thursday, leaving me with a sub. At one point, on Thursday morning, I was left alone with the kids for 45 minutes. THAT was interesting! The kids were a bit rowdy, as kids are when their teacher is away... but that's alright. I think they're really a good bunch and I'm looking forward to the next 11 weeks.

Today we're off for a field trip to a local "college," which is like their high school. The kids are getting their first look at a science laboratory. Speaking of, I need to get ready for the day.

I hope all of you are well, enjoy your day!

Today is the day...

Ten hours to go...

To all my friends and family I won't be in contact with for the next four months, farewell! You can always reach me by email.

Take care & enjoy your concerts and what-not ;)

Sleepless in Texas

Ugh! I'm so excited about my trip I can hardly sleep... literally!

Three days left and I'm averaging 4 hours of sleep a night. Not quite the 8-9 my body desires. I have a feeling I'll sleep on the plane and then for a day when I get there.

I called the Graduate Studies office to ask if they received my application online and the lady said they had. She also told me I should be receiving something in a day or two... does that mean by mail or internet? I should have asked but I was shocked to hear her say I would find out so soon. So I might actually know whether I'm accepted in the next day or so... before I leave! Woot!

I just finished a book by Hilari Bell called Flame. It is the first in a new series she is writing called The Book of Sorahb and I rather enjoyed it. It starts out kind of slow but midway through the book it gets going and then she leaves you hanging - big time at the end. I can't wait for the next one to come out! I checked Amazon and they say the next one, Wheel, doesn't come out until next May and apparently it's a trilogy. I'm still waiting for the 6th book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince which they have not set a release date for. Series books are evil! They get you wrapped in and then keep you waiting for the next installment! Hmmm... evil but soooo good!

Check out my About Aspen page for updates :)

Movies, Movies, Movies

I just got back from an advanced screening of the movie Without A Paddle and it was freaking hilarious. Best part was it was free!

I also saw The Village the other day and it was really good also.

Bought Hidalgo but haven't watched it yet, on account of the free movie thing.

4 days left.

Pssst Aya... there are signs all around...

5 days and 1 til Hidalgo

5 days left til I leave.

A list of things to do before I go, though the list is dwindling.

Hidalgo comes out tomorrow and I will definitely be buying that one! Loved it.

Getting nervous about the trip and beginning my student teaching. I think everything will work out but it's a big-important-step, the last in getting my bachelors degree.

Nothing else to report. Just wanted to update the countdown :)

8 days left & The Blue Moon's A Rising>

That's right, just 8 days left until I fly down under.

I also made a huge decision the other day. I had been debating back and forth whether to go straight back to grad school or to go teach for a couple of years and get some real-life experience first. I finally decided to go back to grad school now, while I'm still in the student-mind-set. I have applied for the grad program back in MN at my soon-to-be alma mater.
As soon as I made the decision I was happy - instant weight off my chest. Of course that lasted about two minutes - then I started thinking of all the paper work involved and all the other things I needed to do to move back up north - and I realized I had less than a week and a half to do it in. I'm doing pretty good though - checking things off the lists and such. It will get done.

Now I'm off to see The Village with a friend.

13 Days

The countdodwn continues.

Puppy land is less crazy - Kodi has taken to me and I have been working on potty training still. He's doing pretty well :)

I am down to the last-minute preparations and there are still quite a few of those. My parents are helping because they've agreed to help with the mail and what-not that comes in after I leave.

I'm starting to get nervous. I was laying there trying to go to sleep and I kept thinking of "What if this and that?"

I spent three days visiting my Grandmother in East Texas. She's holding up pretty well, though she still gets sad from time to time. We shared memories of my grandfather which led to chuckles and a few tears.

I have lunch plans in a bit to see some friends and I have lunch plans on Monday and Wednesday to see different friends. Plus a Saturday lunch date with my aunt. I still need to go by and see my friends from the City.

Yeesh! But! I'm glad I'm loved.

22 Days

Less than one month.... EEEEEP!
I've got so much to do before I leave and I'm getting nervous about student teaching and going overseas by myself.

Kodi (puppy) is SO cute and SO lovable but he is SUCH a handful. He's not house-broken/potty trained and ugh is that a mess. It's been over 15 years since we've had a puppy and I had completely forgotten what a mess they are. Like right now - it's horribly hot outside and he just came in from going potty (hopefully) and he's panting away but he insists on laying on my foot and leaning against me - and I'm warm. hehehe Silly puppy.

I've been tearing up the house... not quite literally... trying to get rid of a bunch of stuff - purging is healthy - in an attempt to give us a guest room again. It had turned into this massive storage room with piles of boxes almost as tall as me. Since Aya IS coming to stay this Dec. *nudge* I need to be sure there is room for her - and I won't have the time (nor the energey) when I get back from my big adventure. See what I do for my friends *grin*

Busy Beaver

Oofda!
I made it back to Texas with my mom. We left Friday morning and got home Sunday at noon. There were lots of stops along the way - including the Birthplace of John Wayne. Did you know he weighed 13 lbs at birth?! I told my mom she just THOUGHT she had it bad with me at 10 lbs 10 oz! He wound up being 6'4" too... I stopped at 6' 1"
We also stopped at this huge barn full of dried flowers and saw one of the bridges of Madison County. Who knew they were in Iowa?

With less than a month to go before NZ I'm making the rounds already. When you live in a place for 23 years you make a lot of friends and have a lot of family to say hello and goodbye to. I'm thinking the rest of my summer is going to fly by.

Thanks to Aya and her cousin for helping me come up with more useless facts about myself for my About Me page.

About me

I'm working on a list, like the one Aya has added to her blog under her About Me section. The list is going well, though the linking is creating some problems :/

Friends, Lists & Changes

Our English writer friend went back home last Friday - it was a good week, though both she and Aya were exhausted by the end.

Saturday afternoon I received a call from two of my friendly ra fellows who were here for a visit. Had lunch and dinner with them and they stayed over for fireworks, smores, and fun. Love those two :) I already miss them so much.

Danger... New Hobby!
For graduation Aya bought me a scrapbooking kit... uh huh... addiction! I started on it yesterday and OMG it is so much fun. I love organizing and making things pretty - add to it the fact that I get to do both these things with stuff that means a lot to me and DING DING DING! We have a winner. I could really get into this. You can bet there will be multiple scrapbooks after my Fall 2004 adventures!

I have less than two weeks left in beautiful MN. Beautiful MN... there's something I would never have said five years ago, prior to my first visit here. I love everything up here, the trees, the lake, the weather, the people, the school... For the first time in my life I fit in... in every aspect; school, work, friends... I've had one or two of these at a time, but never all three. Now I'm spoiled. I want this to continue in my life and of course there are no guarantees of this. I hope that makes sense... Basically I've enjoyed my three years here immensely and I'm very sad to be leaving.

Happily I have much to look forward to in the near future - hopefully that will ease my separation anxiety!

PS: trying something new with the link/title options... hope it works!

Meet the Puppy & Ode to Paperwork

Meet Kodiak, aka Kodi. (SEE LINK OF THE DAY)
He's a three month old Belguim Groenendael Shepard, aka Belgium Sheepdog. Isn't he adorable!!!
/loves puppies
I can't wait to go home and meet him!

I just need to keep reminding myself that I am excited about my trip. It seems like every piece of paper I turn in results in another one or two.. hehe they're multiplying! I really shouldn't complain though because people who are going to Australia for their student teaching have a lot more work than I do! Speaking of... I need to see exactly what it takes for me to get a visitors visa/pass thingy to get into Australia since I'm going there for two weeks. Hmmmm.

Our guest is still with us, she's staying all this week as Aya participates in this writer's conference at school. I've been doing paperwork, reading, sorting through my stuff, cooking and cleaning, taking the dogs for walks, etc... trying to keep myself entertained all week while they are gone. I've been doing a pretty good job of staying busy :)
I had this HUGE list of things to do and I'm slowly, but surely weeding it down to nonexistence!
Mwahahaha no list is safe with me :)

And this weekend I have a couple of friends coming up from the cities, very exciting. It's the last chance I'll have to see them until next January or so... when I come back to MN to finish the Praxis II test... Speaking of... ish... I don't want to know the scores of my tests I took a couple of weeks ago /sigh

Oooooh! Some more exciting news. I have it on good authority that I am pretty much guaranteed a job when I go home. If nothing else I can find a substitute or possibly interum position. It's just too bad that MN doesn't need teachers as badly as TX, because I would MUCH rather live up here in MN!

The countdown has begun...

I'm testing a few changes I made to my blog, adding a title and link part to my blog - the link is to Aya's new Master's thesis blog.

I received my new laptop yesterday! Woohooo! It's what I'm using now and it's a nice-a computer!

I've decided to start the countdown to New Zealand today! I leave in 1 month and 3 weeks, give or take a few days. In any event, that's less than TWO months! I can hardly control my excitement.
On the downside that leaves me only 1 and 1/2 weeks left til my dear mommy comes to bring me back to Texas. Those mixed feelings are overwhelming sometimes. I'm excited but nervous, happy but sad, etc. It'll be an adventure though!

Hope your summer is treating you well.

Blog ya later!

Dude! I'm getting a Dell.
I ordered a laptop for my big trip! Weeeeeee!

Oh, and OUCH ! ! !
1 hour outside on a cloudy day + neon-white chicky = BIG sunburn.
/whimper
I know better than that :(
Thank God for Aloe Vera!

Yesterday the local telephone/internet/cable provider put on a big to-do; free dinner, door prizes, guest gifts, entertainment. There was a band, bagpipers, cello group, balloon animals, hair beading, face-painting, magician, Clifford the big red dog, and Mr. McFeely from Mr. Rogers Neighborhood! I got his autograph and my picture taken with him :) I remember watching that show as a child - one of my favorties.

The dreaded test is tomorrow morning and UGH! is all I can say about that.

Aya's mom and grandparents left on a trip to see the Rockies this morning, leaving Aya and I to take care of the house and assorted pets. I'm looking forward to next week, it should be nice and quiet around here. Maybe I'll steal the dogs away to the state park!

Time to go take some pain medicine and pack on the Aloe :/

Have a good weekend all!

In, Out, Up, Down, All Around...

I've been a bit busy lately:

*Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban

*The Day After Tomorrow

(Both well worth my $4.50 :)

*More cleaning and rearranging - going through my things and deciding what goes to storage and what goes with me.

*Enjoying the outdoors, sunning myself and wishing I could move back up here instead of Texas.

*Hanging out with friends and thinking about how I'll miss them and wishing I could move back up here instead of Texas.

*Playing some PS2.

*READING! Finally finishing two books I had started this Spring semester and starting on a few others I've been wanting to read for a while now.

*Studying for the dreaded Praxis II tests which are THIS Saturday - trying not to have a panic attack about them.

*Pricing my trip to Australia, New Zealand, & Hawaii. There is absolutely no way I could do this without the money I received from the accident in which my grandmother was killed. I've known for years that it was coming but never knew what I'd do with it. Now, I have no doubt that my grandmother would have wanted me to use it for this trip. She loved to travel herself and of all the things to use it on, finishing my degree and enjoying an amazing trip have got to be worth it. Though I know this, it still makes me a little sad.


The vet had to do exploratory surgery on Lux to find out what exactly was going on with him. Apparently he got into something toxic or ate a pill off the ground... something. His liver is all icky and they're having to force-feed him and praying it stays down. If he makes it through this and they can get his liver settled down he'll be ok... but he has a 50/50 chance of making it through this.... Poor baby :( /sigh


This 8am - 6pm shift with no break is turning out to suck more than I thought. The first six hours flew by as I kept busy cleaning and such. But even I can only spend a few hours staring a a computer screen before I start seeing dots. Add to that the fact that this room, with 40+ running computres, on the 4th floor, doesn't seem to have a working air conditioner.

Yup... all updated now.

Ups and Downs

I've said it before and I'll say it again; Life is a rollercoaster.

I'm so excited about New Zealand, I really don't have words to express how happy I am and how much I am looking forward to this amazing opportunity. I received an email today from my principal and I'll be in a class of 4th-5th graders (by American standards). He gave me an email address for my cooperating teacher so I can beging talking with her and he also provided information about housing.

While talking to my parents yesterday they told me that one of our kitty cats, Luxor, is very sick so that's a big downer. There are other things, but I won't bring it all up now. I'm going to focus on the happy stuff so the other things don't bring me down.

Here is a picture of Lux :)

Bought my plane tickets yesterday and I was floating on cloud nine the rest of the day... until 2am!

I'm going to New Zealand - then Australia for a two-week break - back to New Zealand - then stopping in Hawaii for a week before coming back home.

Sweeeeeeeet!

I don't think the life of relaxation agrees with me. I've been much too bored.
Aya and I have been cleaning house, fixing up a few things around the house, running errands, and playing Scrabble (that was me last night *sigh*). But most and Champions of Norrath on PS2... hours and hours... yes... we've been THAT bored.
Luckily school starts back next week; she has a class and I have a job.
In other news, my mother is flying up here in July so she can drive back with me. She just couldn't stand the thought of her baby driving all the way back to TX by herself :)
I'm excited to show her around - since she didn't see ANYTHING when she was here for graduation :( Being sick suxors.
Ten weeks. 10 weeks... and I will be in New Zealand! It seems very unrealistic. Surely something will happen - I don't have my plane tickets yet - going today to do that. Perhaps they will decide they don't want me... Ugh I hate voicing/writing my fears. It makes them seem that much more likely to come true.
No. Deep inside I know this WILL happen, because it was meant to be. I have worked hard to get to this point in my life and many different choices I have made have led to this possibility. So it WILL happen. And I will have the time of my life and learn everything I can about teaching in those 14 weeks.

Yes! I am going to New Zealand!

Wahoooooooooo!

Now, I'm off to talk to a travel agent about plane tickets!

I made it.
I walked across the stage without tripping and I shook the proper hands... I have officially "walked" in a college graduation ceremony. Now all that's left to get my diploma is to complete my student teaching - in NEW ZEALAND!
Woot! Woot!
I am settling into Aya's mom's house and enjoying the beautiful MN Spring. It sure beats TX!
I think my parents enjoyed their trip up north, except for mom getting so so sick :( She's decided to come back up in July though to help me move home. I'll get to show her all sorts of good stuff then!
I already miss my friends. The reality of leaving is settling in and bringing with it a pang of sadness. I know now why I focussed so much on having my parents come up. That gave me something to think about other than leaving so many people I care for. I made it through dorm check-outs, graduation, sick mother, graduation party, moving, and all sorts of other stresses and now... now I have nothing to do. I don't start work for another two weeks. I'm mostly settled into my new place (for only a month and a half) and I really don't have anything pressing. It's odd, but I long for something to do. It would keep my mind off of people and changing situations.
Don't get me wrong, I'm INCREDIBLY excited about going to NZ, it just seems a ways off and I'm so nervous about it. Anxious and nervous. Sad and happy. Yeesh. Throw almost every emotion possible into a pot and I've experienced it at some point during the past week.
Lots of changes in store.
Ok now I'm just rambling. I'm going to go clean house or take a walk or something. Enjoy this BEAUTIFUL Tuesday!

I'm graduating.

I need to go buy groceries for tomorrow.

I'm walking accross a stage in front of more than a thousand people.

I need to check someone out at 9:30am.

I'm graduating.

Don't forget to fill out the room inventory sheet for next year.

It is finally sinking in.

I hope mom can make it through the graduation.

Don't trip.

I hope it doesn't rain, or we won't get to do the traditional "walk."

Please don't have a boring speaker who drones on for hours.

Don't fall asleep.

I wonder who all I will see, who will I walk with?

Don't catch what mom caught.

I'm graduating.

Yep. These are my thoughts. I can't seem to put more than a few sentences together of the same topic. My poor mind is racing like crazy.

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Life, THE Emotional Roller Coaster...

My parents arrived yesterday, much to my delight. I have wanted them to see where I've been living for the past three years and finally they have. They flew in at 11:30 yesterday morning and I took them out to lunch, showed them around town, and then we had dinner at a friends home. My mom was tired so they left early, but all in all it was an excellent day.

Cut to: This morning my dad calls me to say we need to take mom to the Dr. and three hours later we come out of the office with the diagnosis of a virus. A very nasty virus. She was scaring us all, especially when she passed out for a bit. She's back at their hotel now resting. However, unless she makes a remarkable recovery I'm not sure she'll make it to my graduation tomorrow afternoon - their reason for coming up here.

Now that I've done all I can to help her I need to continue packing and checking out my residents.

Oofda.

Eeep! That's a frightening site... Logging into something COMPLETELY different from what you're used to. Interesting new look Blogger has chosen.

Wowsers
In two days my parents will be here, in four days I will walk across a stage signifying the completion of my education, and in five days... In five days I will say goodbye to some of the most awesome people I have ever met. Without a doubt, this will be the hardest part of my week. (that and not tripping in front of hundreds of people) I am trying to look to the future, to New Zealand and the wonderful adventures which await me, but I must also reconcile with my time here. I must say goodbye to this wonderful chapter in my life and close a scrapbook in my mind and heart, reserved for all the great memories which have been made.

I'm excited, sad, glad, anxious, anticipatory, happy, angry, nervous, and even relieved to be graduating. There was a time in my life when I had some doubts, I always swore I would continue until I graduated, but after being put on academic suspension at my first University I wasn't sure I'd be able to. Coming here gave me a new outlook and a new drive. This place, the people in it, and my family and friends are the reason I have succeeded. My supportive family and friends who were there for me all the way, who wanted nothing but my happiness, they are my support structure and I love them and appreciate them more than they know.

Thanks to my TX friend for calling me tonight :) I'm sorry I missed your phone call and I'll call you back this weekend. I'm doing ok, it's just a nasty cold with fever and sore throat. Not fun, but I will survive!

Four days until my parents arrive and SIX until graduation!

Perhaps I swallowed a gallon of acid?

Ugh, throat hurts, tired... Very fitful sleep last night, even with the Nyquil. Was running a fever most of the night. I really hope I can beat this thing before next Wednesday when my parents get here, and certainly before Friday which is graduation.

I'm very glad to have almost everything done. I just have one final left, on Tuesday afternoon. I need to finish packing and check out all of my residents. Also, I need to find time to clean Aya's mom's house in preparation for the party next Saturday.

That's not too much to do... Thank you God.

I finally did it... I got sick.
I haven't been sick all year - which I attribute largely to my nasal sniffing flu thing my parents insisted I get & my Flinstones vitamins.
Therefore, I must blame my illness on stress and lack of rest.

/sigh
I really didn't want to get sick now, not during finals, not for the RA banquet today which I am helping to set-up for, not for when my parents are up here, and certainly not for graduation.

On the up-side, I'm almost done.
I need to finish packing this weekend.
I have a final next Tuesday afternoon.
Parents come next Wednesday around 11:30ish.
Taking them around town & to the State Park.
Friday is Graduation.
Saturday I finish checking people out and then I have a party at Aya's mom's house for my graduation.

I'm glad all but one of my finals came early. Less stress for the sickly person.

Friday night camp-out was fun, but didn't get much sleep. We played games, had smores, talked and then six of us piled into Aya's tent to "sleep." It was in the 20's so we were packed in there trying to stay warm.
I gave up at 6am and came home for an hour of sleep and then I was off to try my hand at paintball. I'd never been before and they were scaring me with tales of bruises, welts, etc. I had so much fun though. It was sunny, breezy, and the perfect day for some outdoor fun. There were twelve of us running around shooting at each other. I was only out four out of 7 games and my team won 4 out of seven. I would definitely like to try it again.
I have been running errands today and now I'm off to see Pump Boys & Dinettes to support a friend and have some fun!

pssst... Aya... my archive page is acting screwy...
/puppy eyes errr /kitty eyes
Can you help me please?

Twelve Days!

Yes, I've started the Aspen's-Parents-Coming-To-MN - Countdown!
After three years of living up here my parents are finally coming to see where their little girl has been, and they're going to see their baby GRADUATE! WOOT! College... walking across the stage... even though I won't officially graduate until who-knows-when now, /sigh.
I have calmed down a bit after a HUGE class discussion last night and a talk with my dad. I have a rough plan etched out to include the new test:
Spend 1/2 summer in MN, take the two parts of the test I can in June.
Leave my stuff up here in storage, spend second 1/2 summer in TX seeing friends and family.
Go to NZ in August - end of Nov.
Maybe come home - maybe go straight to Italy.
Come back to Texas after travels and wait for a test date to be offered.
Come back up to MN to see friends, take stupid third part, enjoy my last days of pre-job freedom ;)
Bring stuff back to TX... unless I find a job up here /ponder.
Go back home and search for a job.

Really I'm pretty lucky because I only have one specialty. Some people have two or maybe even three specialty areas and they have to take a test for each one.
I find it interesting that they give us less than six months notice that we will have to take this test and yet the don't have any: a) test dates b) test made up c) information on the test
HA!
I feel more betterer. I just needed a plan!

I should post about last weekend, now that I have calmed down and have time.

I went with Aya to Fargo to watch her present and I must say the topic was terribly interesting; Blogs in the Educational Environment. Renee also spoke along with another girl and their professor. The open discussion at the end also interested me greatly.
We spent the weekend with Aya's brother and sister-in-law and shopped around, played games, ate good food... it was a good weekend, though very tiring.

Warning: /rant on

ARRRRRRRRRRRRGH!

Insightful eh? How about this: Life SUCKS sometimes. Tests SUCK. People who say we need to TEST, TEST, TEST! suck!

/grumble
/growl
/sigh

Today I found something out that has added to my stress factor.

I have to pass (and still need to take) a two-part test in order to be licensed to teach in MN. And even though I don't plan on teaching in this state it would be wise for me to get a license here because it may let me get a job under probation until I can get licensed in whatever state I wind up in. Plus the school has already told me I won't be able to officially graduate until I have completed my license requirements. In class today I found out they have just added a third part to the test. Add this to the fact that I already have to take the first two parts on the same day and I'm pretty sure I won't be able to take the third on the same day... which is the last time it's offered before I go to NZ.... thus I won't be able to complete my licensure requirements until December or sometime next year = no diploma & no license = no job. THUS my frustration.

ok /rant off

Ok... I feel a little better. I know it will all work out, it's just that with all the other stuff I have been stressing about I really didn't need another complication, but then that's life.

Things to do:

- find out when I can take the p2 part 3
- write paper for ya lit
- present in health (tues)
- film imovie (weds)
- edit imovie
- get grad announcements and send (when/if store ever gets more in)
- return stuff to prof
- check mail/pay bills
- call bank to find out what that stupid fee is all about
- rent car for parents
- get addresses for party invites from Aya's mom & send those out
- note to arhd
- ask for days off from hd
- pe test (thurs)
- pe teach (fri)
- pack
- get storage place
- clean room/do dishes

My brain hurts, I know there's more but I'll have to think of it later.

Aya's presenting at a speech in Fargo today so we're about to head out.
Renee's speaking too, woot woot ;)

Aya's mom, Aya, and I will be staying with her brother and sister-in-law over the weekend. I'm excited to see them speak and I am excited to get out of town for a weekend.

Have a great weekend all!

Bah stupid insomnia bug has bit again.

My floor finished our mural in the lounge today. I'm quite happy with the way it turned out.

Played with some photographs I took recently, updated photo blog, surfed for a bit... gonna try to go to sleep...

Have a good Thursday.

If you have yet to check out WWDN then you should at least see his Photo Blog, which is filled with some rather amusing pictures. This is where I found out about photo blogs, a free service available here.

Also, has anyone else had this problem when posting - after clicking on preview your post I find I need to change something so I go back, change it and then post. The result is two or more posts on my blog... Maybe I'm hitting the back button on my browser instead of "re-edit" /ponder

I experienced a wonderful honor last night as Henry Oertelt, a man who survived five concentration camps during the Holocaust. He is a charming man and spoke for three hours of his experiences growing up in Berlin. I bought his book, An Unbroken Chain and he autographed it to me. I also got one for my parents. I am very glad I got to meet him and listen to him speak. He is a remarkable man.

Psst Renee... this is my baby :)

So I was woken up this morning at 6:50am by an extremely loud, very rude, buzzing... yes the fire alarm was going off, and it was one of my residents! As soon as I opened my door I could smell burnt bacon and I heard a series of curses coming from the kitchen, she was extremely upset at herself. The RA's did their thing and as we were wrapping up with the paperwork I felt a searing pain starting behind my left eye. It got worse and by the time I got back to my room I took two pain killers and grabbed an ice pack, praying for sleep. It hurt SO bad. It was sort of like a sinus headache, but worse. The entire left part of my head, face, throat, neck was throbbing :( No fun. I slept until 10am and by then it was gone, but my eyes are still blurry. Strange.

I find myself with many options for this summer. I am torn between wanting to stay in beautiful Minnesota, needing to earn!��5{�������� spend time with my family, debating on whether or not to take summer class(es). I'm not really complaining mind you, I am very happy to have choices, and so many of them at that. I realize I am very blessed. However, it is putting a bit of strain on me, as I always struggle to make the right decisions, fearing failure, knowing I only get one chance. I feel somewhat confident that whatever I choose will work out...

I've pretty much chosen, but a massive problem still awaits it's solution - how do I get all my stuff back to Texas?

How about this choice?

Wooty-woot-woot!
It works, now I can post my own pictures!

Testing... 1...2...3...

Oh yes and D and I introduced ARHD friend to YATTA!!!

I had an awesome day!

I woke up around 10, sleeping in was quite nice. Read some of Lirael. Went shopping for a bit with my bestest bud. Came back home and read some more of Lirael. Found out through WWDN that I can have my very own PHOTO BLOG for free! Set that up and it's AWESOME! Went to Feast of Nations put on by our International Student Office - great dancing, music, comedy, food, & fun! On the way back home an ARHD friend asked me what I was doing tonight... I told her reading (Lirael) and she invited me to come play games with her and a fellow RA. So we went to his room and chatted, played Phase 10 (remarkably similar to Aya's family's Shanghai) and silly stringed each other. I also got my very own secret handshake with the D-man! Good times. Now I have to unwind and go sleepy-sleep. Shouldn't have drunk four cups of coffee at the FON.

Finished Sabriel last night and was not disappointed.

Went out to Applebee's tonight to celebrate a friend's 23rd birthday. Had fun, there were seven of us neatly packed into a booth. Yummy food, good company.

I'm almost done with Sabriel and OMG! It's really, really, REALLY good. I can't put it down. It's killing me that I have about 10 pages left, as soon as I'm done here I'm going to finish it up and then this weekend I'm going in search of the sequels, of which there are two, Lirael and Abhorsen. I'm really excited about Lirael as there is a DOGGIE in it and you should know by now I'm obsessed with puppies! And apparently Abhorsen brings the previous two together... honestly I only scanned the short synopsis for the books on Garth's website. I want to be surprised. I bet I'll like them since I love the way he blends the real-world of old with his fantasy realm. Yep... definitely need to make a stop at the book store this weekend.

New Angel tonight... one of the final six :( It's a sad thing, but I guess each great show finds it's end :( I'm happy to see they are bringing back several of the major characters from the show's history: Connor, Darla, Lindsey, etc.

I'm sitting in class listening to someone present how to do iMovie, which I know pretty well, I've done several and I've even taught it and helped many other people edit their movies. Needless to say I'm a lil bit bored, but it's ok, I have been throwing my two cents in every once in a while ;)

On the plus side, I found a place to search for jobs in Colorado.

Word of the Day: Recalcitrant

Discovered this word in Sabriel by Garth Nix. I'm reading it for my YA Lit. class and since it's a series I have the feeling I'll be reading the rest soon... I'm really enjoying this world he has created.

Hmmm...

Welp, I got up early and baked some bisquits for a couple of guys who were headed home over this Easter weekend. I then worked at the front desk for two hours. Afterwards I had my one-on-one with the hall director and for our meeting we went out to the Humane Society where he searched for a cat (or possibly dog) to surprise his family with. Unfortunately, the cat he chose was being spayed next Monday, so he can't bring it home until Tuesday.

I was wearing purple bunny ears this morning - in celebration of the holiday of course!
He told me where he would like for us to go... then hesitantly asked if the bunny ears would be going LOL I asked him if he was embarassed to be seen with me in public while wearing them ;) I got to tease him about it, since when he saw me he asked if my Playboy auditions were today :P
(seriously disturbing... I just looked up the word elves under Google's image search...)

BTW the ears are back on.

Have you ever had "One of those days..."

I'm actually not. It's been pretty good so far. I taught in El-Ed PE again today. I had a bunch of stations set up and the kids were divided into five groups, 3-4 per group. As they went around, playing at each station, I had the music going. I encouraged them to make up their own activities with the equipment provided at each station. At the end they all said they had fun and I know I had a blast. The next person who taught was doing t-ball and I stayed in the "dugout" as the head cheerleader. They really got into it. I let them choose the team names so we had the POPCORNs and the ARMYs! I cheered equally loud for both teams.... I wonder if I'll still have a voice for my presentation tonight.

I'm working in the computer lab now, just finished my self-eval for today's teaching and my book report which is due tonight. I still need to finalize what I'm going to say in my report tonight...

I'm going to Fargo in a couple of weeks to watch Aya present a speech! Woot! Her mom, her and I will all hang out in Fargo for the weekend, with her brother and sister-in-law. I'm really looking forward to it. Time-away!

I have made my final list of who to invite for my graduation party and there's like 60 people! I know not everyone will come, but it's just amazing how many people/friends I've met/made in only three years. I hope I haven't forgotten anyone... if I have hopefully I'll remember between now and then.

Psst... Renee! I need your address so I can send you one ;)

Has your day been a DRAG?

Mine's gone pretty well. Plus I just found out I don't have to work tomorrow - which means my eleven to eleven day has just been cut to five to eleven = WOOT! I'll actually be able to get some work done.

To Do:

Read some of Monster for YA Lit.
Do book report for YA Lit.
Prepare book talk for YA Lit.
Prepare lesson for PE Methods
Buy Cap & Gown!
Buy & start on invitations for Grad party

Aya ROCKS!
Thanks for getting my pages working and aligned!

/dance
/party
doo doo doo!

Renee is it still doing the weird jumpy thing on macs?

:)

For you Renee...

I've changed my blog format, again! I can't get the archive page to look or work quite right, but I think Aya might be stopping by later today..
/wink

/grrr and comment thingy isn't working... hehe ok it's still buggy

I am really enjoying the Dancing Scooby! He is awesome!

The light at the end of the tunnel...

The time is coming for graduation. I cannot believe I will be finished with the classes part at least - I still take one online during student teaching, but it's not the same. I actually did it. Barring any unfortunate occurances I will have a college degree as of December 1, 2004. EEEP!

I've been chatting online with a friend who lives in the next dorm. He's a hoot!

*grin*
Yes... we went to see Hellboy again... great special affects, funny at the right times, a dash of romance mystery of sorts, and KITTENS!

:)

/love Hellboy & Ron Perlman he's a big teddy bear :) and I mean that in the best possible way. I remember his Beauty & the Beast days and what a cute kitty-beasty-thing... never thought he was that beastly though.

I really enjoyed this movie... I went to it with an uncertain feeling. I had never heard of the comic all I knew was what I saw in the previews and that it had Ron Perlman in it = reason enough for me. I am glad I went to see it. :)

Semi-gross analogy incoming...

I've been lying in bed thinking about grief. It's an odd thing, extremely painful and yet you can't touch it or even point it out. There's no miracle pill to get rid of the pain, no limb to chop off, there's nothing inside of you they can cut out. It's buried deep inside of you, somewhere around the heart-lungs-throat region. In my experience (17 years) it never goes away fully - it's like a chronic scab - it heals over partially, but if it gets bumped hard enough it flows again. An intangible wound. I don't know if that makes sense, but it's the best I can do at 1:20 am.

/mourn

/weep

Ruh Roh!

We went out to dinner with her mom and a girl from Aya's floor to celebrate Aya's mom's b-day. Then we took her to her sister's house while Aya, the girl from her floor, a girl from my floor, and myself went to the dollar store and then met up with two more friends to see SCOOBY DOO 2: Monsters UNLEASHED I must admit I had some serious doubts about this one. I was afraid they would have tried too hard and messed up Scooby *gasp at the thought* but it was actually pretty darn funny. Proving further that I should not listen to critics -> because we practically never agree.

I'm almost afraid to look at Aya's blog after tonight. I let loose a couple of very memorable quotes... I'm blaming the 1/2 a migrane I've had all evening/night... my brain hurt and that's why things weren't coming out quite right. Honest.

Sleepy time - enjoy your weekend!

I'm having a hard time today. Grief is a funny process and the nightmares really aren't helping. They're so real and the powerful emotions they evoke don't go away once I wake up. I still feel my heart beating fast, the pre-tearing, clenching feeling in my throat... Result: I start my day in a funky/depressed state. The one last night was pretty bad. I don't know how to stop them, but I need to figure something out before I go crazy or just start balling in a class. It's to the point where I don't function well during the day and I've broken down in tears twice today. UGH! It's so frustrating. Some days I'm fine, almost good as new. I think this is what frustrates me the most. I called my mom this morning and talked to her about it = first breakdown. She said I behaved similarly when my grandmother died. The funny thing is I remember breaking down as soon as my parents told me there had been an accident - before they told me she was hurt - my kiddy senses tingled and I knew it wouldn't end well. I remember crying and crying until I thought I'd never be able to stop. Then at the funeral I was all cried out. I honestly don't remember anything after that... for quite a while. I don't remember how I dealt with it afterwards.. which seems odd to me since I was 8 years old. Maybe I blocked it all out, I have a tendency to block unpleasant memories... don't we all?
This time I cried when mom told me and then I had to pull it together to make it back home. I cried a few tears off and on and then during the funeral I lost it. I had to run outside because I couldn't breath and I just let it all flow. I've cried off and on since then with intermitent days of okness = FRUSTRATION.
I don't know if I'm behaving acceptably according to the grieving process, but it's how I am dealing with it. Maybe if I'm still this way in a couple of months I should go see someone. At this point I think there's a healthy dose of home-sickness contributing to my state.

On a happier note, I found a Cool Link.

And for future/current teachers: For Kids.

Word of the Day: Chapeaugraphy

Careful what you type...

I accidentally typed in: www.aspene.blogpsot.com and boy was that not what I was looking for :)

Minor annoyances:
I'm upset at a certain local "bust"ing video chain who has on their calendar that they would get The Singing Detective yesterday and they didn't have it then. I went back in today to return the ishy CITH and they said they probably won't be getting it :(
/grrrrrr

/sigh

Ugh, just watched The Cat in The Hat and I was not impressed :( sad really, I was hoping it would be good. I went to the video store to find The Singing Detective but got TCITH instead. I don't know much about The Singing Detective, except what I've seen on the website trailer, but I like musicals and this is sort of one, plust it has some great actors in it. Hopefully it'll be better than TCITH.

Word of the Day: Beau Coup - "Chiefly Southern U.S. adj. Many; much: beaucoup money."

HA!

I treated myself yesterday - Aya and I went out to Perkins for a big breakfast and then we went shopping. I bought a GameBoy Advance SP and a few games, then we headed over to see her mom and grandparents for a while. I think I spent pretty much all weekend hanging out with Aya... making up for our non-existent vacation and not really getting to party-harty on her birthday.

Saw a couple of movies on Friday:
Dawn of the Dead - Trippy to see the little girl from Avonlea in a freaky movie, I know she's done other things, but I hadn't seen anyof them.
Taking Lives

Couple of creepy movies... first was Aya's choice and second had looked interesting to me. I still want to see a few others, but I'm guessing I'll have to wait for them to come out on video/dvd.

LOL
I just saw a funny quote. It's kind of bad, but oh well: Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines. I can see a deeper meaning.
Don't get me wrong I love eagles, they're majestic creatures and whenever I see one I stop to bask in their beauty.

Thanks for posting the link about trees Renee. I think it's interesting to see how many "tree cities" there are, whether they do indeed act as such.

Word of the Day: Unkempt

I ordered a ring today... it's my "college ring" though you'd never know it. I opted for buying a beautiful ring instead of a clunky ring with lots of writing which I will wear for a year or two max and then stuff in a jewelry box. And yes... I ordered it from John Christian and the design is named..... Aspen! Ironic, yes?

I watched a good movie last night Good Boy. It was really quite cute and great for dog-lovers, which I am. There was one part when I was laughing so hard I was crying. Loved that!

Off to teach 4th & 5th graders a PE lesson.

LOL I was just called Voluptuous!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AYA!!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!

I love helping people figure out computer problems. When they get what I'm saying or when I figure out how to solve a new problem... It's a good feeling to help someone and for some odd reason I have a knack for computers.

I ran into Renee today /wave Renee. Was good to see her, it had been a LONG time.

Grief-wise, I'm doing a lot better than I was, even since Sunday. It's helped to get back into my daily routine. Plus all my friends have been so supportive and sympathetic. I'm getting better at not being shocked when I realize I'll never get to see my grandfather again.
I decided I'm going to start a journal for him.... a scrapbook of sorts. I can add pictures and stories, things I remember, how he used to call me "Hun" and the monkey face he made that always made me laugh, his goofy sayings like: "It'll feel better when it quits hurtin, I've had worse things than that on my eye and I didn't even blink." When I would ask where we were going he'd reply "All to pieces..." When I would be looking for someone he'd say they were "Up on the housetop flying a kite." He was a character! Yep... I have so many memories of him, much more than I had of my grandma who died when I was 8. I'm really glad I had that extra 17 years with him. I want to remember everything I can about him.

I had forgotten how much pain you could be in, without having any physical malady - the heart-wrenching pain which comes from the loss of a loved one.
When Aya and I reached Miles City, MT I called my parents to let them know we’d made it that far and found out my Grandaddy had been rushed to the hospital. The next morning my mom called to let me know he had passed away. I had to pull myself together and drive back 6 hours to Fargo, ND where I caught a plane for home. I was so afraid I wouldn’t make the flight and without Aya’s help I wouldn’t have. She helped me keep it together.
It hurts more than I can express. My only comfort comes in knowing he’s with my Grandmommy now and he is no longer in pain. Being with my family has helped, but I leave for MN Sunday morning. Hopefully returning to the routines of my school and work schedule will help to ease the pain.

Booming resumed, sleep remaind just out of my grasp for another hour last night.

Now I'm up, but gonna need a BIG cappacino to keep me going today.

Excited mentally bout trip though :)

Time to check people's rooms, pick up Aya, and hit the road!

Have a great Spring Break All!

Hmmm 2 am and still not asleep... what's wrong with this picture?

Speaking of, went to see Hidalgo tonight with Aya and one of my residents. I was very pleased with it, but then I LOVE horsies! And kudos to Viggo, the man does look wonderful on a horse.

So tired... had to go downstairs and ask someone to turn their music down at 1:20am and still here random boomings from their bass. Wish I were sleeping, long drive tomorrow. /sigh

Got a new camera, lil baby one like Aya has to take random digital pics. Quality isn't that great, but love the way it distorts pics! It's abstract-y. Gonna have fun with it.

Hmm... booming seems to have stopped. Dare I try again to capture the blissful, yet elusive, REM cycle?

Aya and I are leaving tomorrow for the mountains! We'll be back next Saturday night, so no blogging for a week.

I still have The Little Mermaid song stuck in my head, so I broke out the cd and I'm listening to it now.

Oops Aya's here... blog ya later!

I love my life.

Frustrations abound but all in all I am unbelievably fortunate. I have family I love and who loves and cares about me. I have friends that make me laugh, care for me, and with whom I can share the ups and downs of life. Plus, I love the surprises that come my way. You never know who or what is going to surprise you... uhm thus the surprise part... but anywho... I find it refreshing. Like when a male friend starts singing Part of Your World from The Little Mermaid out of nowhere. Learning someone's a big nerd who you thought totally wasn't. Doing really well in a class you thought you were doomed to fail. Having the opportunity to go across the world to a beautiful country, having the opportunity to learn first-hand about them, and getting school credit for it! When you find someone who, after five minutes with them, has your face hurting from smiling so much.

Yep. Life is great, wundervoll even! Hundreds of little blessings we recognize and millions we don't.

Today I feel: Exhausted!

I didn't get to sleep until after 4am and I had to get up at 8:30 am.... 4 1/2 hours of sleep doesn't cut it for me, I need my eight or I get cranky. Lord help anyone who grumbles at me today, they may find their "Momma" to be a bit grumpy, too.

If I haven't explained before I have been dubbed the dorm "Momma" by my fellow RA's. It happened sometime around late Nov. during a staff meeting. We were writing positive postcards to each other and one of the guys said I was very motherly.... well it took off from there. They assure me it's a compliment in the - "Sweet, caring, looks after us all" way and not the "Nagging, annoying, go away and let us grow up" way. So I just smile and answer when the words "Hey Mom," "Momma," etc are uttered.


Link of the day: Drawings with funny sayings

UGH!

I was having trouble getting to sleep... again... but I finally passed out about 1:30-1:40 am.... just in time for a 2 am wake-up-fire-alarm! After getting everyone out, locating the problem, getting everyone back in, and filling out the paperwork... I came back and now I can't get to sleep again /whimper
Maybe if I stare at the computer screen for a while my brain cells will get tired of working overtime :/

Oh, and I have a song stuck in my head.... hehehe it's a good song. Reminds me of one that a friend keeps singing...

Picture: This is what I feel like right now...

Trying something...

Pain, sleep, and Scandals & Life...

I woke up in the middle of the night from the pain in my wrist... this is a new event, one I hope won't be repeated. I'm a very sound sleeper, so that should tell you how much it was hurting. I woke up almost crying, I could feel the tears about to spill out and my throat was clenched. I moved it around, it popped a bunch, then started feeling better and I went back to sleep.

Aside from wrist-issues I've been doing better about getting to sleep at a regular time... no more 2 am's.

Aya posted some links about Colorado and Scandals... ish.... It doesn't bode well for my attending the school, but then again I know that every place has its problems...

I haven't made any official decision as to where I want to go to grad school. I'm not even 100% sure I'm going to go. I've got over a year to decide :) First comes: Graduation, Summer, New Zealand, Italy, and then who knows :)

"Acheeewwwwwww!"

/eyes Aya suspiciously

I've been sneezing all morning and I'm all snuffly.... Did you share your germs with me? Sharing is a good thing... but not when it comes to germs.
/sigh

Oh well I'm still on a high from finally knowing I've been placed in New Zealand. I can't wait to contact the people at the school and find out which grade and where I will be living, etc. So much left to do and so much left to find out... YEY! The excitement never ends.

Aya and I spent most of the day Saturday planning our Spring Break trip where we will be checking out:
Boulder, CO
Ft. Collins, CO
Bozeman, MT

And who knows... maybe Aya will fall in love with one of them and she'll decide she'd much rather go to the Rockie Mountains than England ;)

I've found a place to host comments, though I'm having trouble working it into my template.

MOVIES

Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed looks pretty funny!

A handsom man from Australia --- Hugh Jackman's new Movie! Should be interesting... and if nothing else he's drool-worthy ;)

Horses! It's about time for another wonderful action movie with lots of HORSES! /love horsies! Thanks to Viggo I think there's one coming soon!

One I really want to see but will have to wait til it comes out on video because I live in a rinky-dink town (that I love) but they don't show all the movies that come out... In America.

And one more which I'll probably have to drag Aya to - kicking and screaming - Jersey Girl.

hehehe
I dunno Aya... I'm going to have to go with Grease because he used my favorite song.... although I like to ride chickens sometimes. But honestely, major kudos for using the word dirigibles in a song.
Some of them are pretty naughty... his sense of humor is warped :)

Oh yeah, one more thing, this Independent Woman is going to NEW ZEALAND!

There's a certain sub shop with a disturbing new ad campaign... some find it scary, others humorous. I found an article on msn in which there is a link to the creators site.

I've also been researching the town I'm going to in NZ. It's just outside of Wellington, on the north island and it's a costal town - woot! It looks beautiful and I can't wait to contact the people at the school. I'm lucky to have found out so early, from what I had heard I didn't expect to find anything out until July!
WeeeeEEEeeeeEeeee! Life is good :) Life is great :) Life is something to appreciate :)

Wahoooooo!

I just received confirmation of placement in New Zealand and another email with the dates of my time there. I'll be in NZ for 14 weeks, 12 weeks of student teaching with a two week break in the middle in which I'm free to travel!

I've been so giddy all day I could barely sit still in class.

:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

Today's Mood: Ecstatic!

Today's word describes somebody I recently met to the t... Word of the Day: Overzealous

This weekend's staff selection went well. I had as much fun on Sunday as I did on Saturday, minus a minor injury I sustained while eating a carrott. Yes, only I could injure myself in such a way. Maybe I'll find someone who finds my klutzyness irresistable?
I can hope...

I stayed up way too later last... er this morning, despite my tiredness, to finish a YA book I had started yesterday: Ella Enchanted. I must admit when I first started reading the book I was not THAT impressed but it did capture my attention enough to keep me up until 1:30am. The problem is I figured out halfway through the book where the author was going, or at least I thought I had it figured out... so I had to keep reading and yeah uhm it was a vicious cycle... but enjoyable. Kinky? Vicious and enjoyable ;) Anywho, I recommend this book if you're into YA lit. It was funny and enjoyable and apparently being made into a major motion picture.

I'm trying to figure out how to put my imood back on my blog. Until then I'll just post it:

Today's Mood: Anticipatory

First day of RA Staff Carousel process is done! Woot! It was actually prety fun. I chose to do the group part today where I sat with eight other RA's and watched the groups perform in teams and it was really fun. Tomorrow I've chosen to do the two-on-one interviews where another RA and I ask questions of an applicant. I just hope I don't get tired of asking the same questions over and over :)

I'm tired, but content.

Word of the Day: Mollify

Have you ever really wanted to blog something, maybe just to vent... but you can't, for whatever reason? Yeah... me too.

We have RA staff selection this weekend. Translation: All day Saturday and Sunday interviewing and observing candidates for RA positions for next school year. It should be fun-ish, as most RA things are, just there goes my entire weekend :(
/mourns the loss of her weekend

I've been having the oddest dreams lately... and nothing I can post because they involve people I know. Nothing bad, mind you, just wierd stuff happens when the subconscious takes over. Not going to bother trying to analyze them... think they're just the result of a tired brain :)

Here's something I haven't done in a long time...

Word of the Day: Diabolical

Pictures of the Day: Puppy1 & Puppy2

Found on this site

LOL
*falls off chair laughing*
Wowsers... I had no idea... I mean they do tease me about being the dorm mother... but this... hehehehe

What Famous Leader Are You?

LOL
I've never even seen it....

What Classic Movie Are You?

Working out a few bugs, but so far I'm really liking my new blog format.

Baby was so cute and one of Aya's cousins spent the night at my dorm.

I've tried to apply for Italy three times now and I can't get the form to go through. I emailed the people and she emailed me back that she would put me in touch with their tech person. I'm not going to give up. I WILL go to Italy!

I am the queen of procrastination.


We're going to see Aya's new 2nd cousin today. ::heart:: babies!

I'm working on another color scheme and design for my blog. I was actually getting tired of the purple! This mint green isn't much better ;)

During last nights RA Staff Meeting we drew pictures of each other. Steve had us pick someone, at random, and draw them on a piece of paper. Then he held them up and we had to guess who the picture was of and then the artist had to confess. It was a fun activity and two different people drew me. One drew me with huge feet *cough* and a skirt (which I never wear) but I looked "motherly" and since everyone calls me "Mother" everyone knew who it was. The other picture had me holding a ball of yarn, this was really funny to me. I always bring my crochet with me to meetings so of course everyone knew it was of me :) I thought it was cute.
Again I was reminded of how much I love my fellow RA's.
There's the "Class Clown" who's always an inch from getting in trouble because he's being too rowdy... marking me with pens or smacking me, etc. The "Terrible Twosome" who also make trouble by stealing things from me, ie: my scarf last night. Their sense of humor is a bit off... sometimes they're funny, but usually they're mildly annoying - all in good fun though. And now that an RA from last year is back in Linden they've got another conspirator. She encourages them! Yeesh, just what they needed, more incouragement. There are the quiet ones, and then the one who is always asking questions. And our ring leader, the "Boss Man." What a group :) ::heart:: RA Family.

I've been feeling homesick already. This is very unusual. Usually I don't get that way until a few weeks before I go home. I think it's really a blend of emotions about ending my time here. I am looking forward to having my parents come up, finally, and see where I've been living for the past three years. I'm looking forward to graduating and a summer of luxury in the northland. And I'm especially looking forward to going to New Zealand. What I'm not looking forward to is having to leave this wonderful place, school, home... I've made so many friends here and Aya's family has taken ahold of a huge chunk of my heart. There are definitely going to be tears when the time comes for me to leave.... probably end of July. *sigh* /love MN

I have been thinking more about grad schools. This one is on the top of my list, followed closely by CSU, U of Colorado, and Montana State University in Bozeman. All three states are places I love to be and I know people here and in Bozeman... well my dad's friends are in Bozeman... but I'd have connections :) Of course I've always felt at home in Colorado too. So many options! What a wonderful life I'm leading. I have so many choices and so many great choices, just the choosing part is hard. I'm still wanting to stay in New Zealand or possibly Australia to teach for a year or two. If that doesn't work I'm going to look into going to Italy for eleven weeks to help a teacher over there perfect their English.... Weeeeee!

Almost a month since my last post.... Wowsers.

A lot has happened since then. :)

School is going well, but too quickly. I can't believe I'm graduating in three months. To prolong my return to Texas I have decided to stay in MN this summer. I'll go back for a week or so when my parents come to move me back, but I'm coming back up here asap. I don't want to go back to TX during the hottest time of the year. Aya's mom said I can live there again this summer, so I'm very excited. I love MN summers.

We had an RA staff retreat two weekends ago and OMG what fun! We went to a resort about two hours from here and rented out two giant cabins. We had a meeting which lasted about 4 or 5 hours and the rest was play time. We cooked together, swam, played air hockey and pool, played Taboo and an interesting card game called BS. I love my fellow RA's, they're great people, so funny, so much fun to be around. I wish we could do this retreat again. I'm going to miss them all so much.

Last night one of the dorms had a Bachelor/Bachelorette Auction. The proceeds went to their hall council and St. Judes. Aya, another girl, and myself wound up bidding on two guys who went up together. I knew one and the other I've seen around. Aya also got another guy *cough* but at least she's sharing ;) I have no idea what we're doing but it should be interesting.

I'm still on my crocheting kick. I've done four scarfs and I'm working on a blanket now. I don't know why, except that it's kind of theraputic - very relaxing. I love to do it in the evenings to relieve stress.

Time to get to work. Blog ya later.