No work

I waited awhile to post this because I haven't wanted to deal with the implications.

There is no dream teaching job.

Yes, that's right friends, I have no job for next year. Most of you know that I was really hoping for a job in the area because:
A) There was a woman retiring
B) The teachers there wanted me (since I student taught there and had experience and fit in well)
C) They have the best English Department in the world
D) It's my dream job

But the all-important E has trumped all and prevented me from attaining my dream job.
E) Budget cuts in education all across Iowa

Ugh. Are we really going to put a price on education? These budget cuts have cost this English Department 1.2 positions (not to mention positions all over Iowa). This means their curriculum must change because they don't have the amount of teachers to continue implementing their current curriculum (which is great, I must add). Yes, change is good, but I can't help but think this is not a change for the good. They will most likely have to sacrifice some of the great work they do at the school in the English Department. I mean, seriously, I taught juniors and they were learning things I didn't even hear about until my junior year in college. Consider how much more prepared they are for college than students from other schools. And believe me, I can see how much more well-prepared they are just in the college freshman I have this semester.

Anyway, I digress...

Here are the implications of this development: Chaz and I are jobless. We are free. We have no ties. We have no prospects. So what will we do? Here are options:

A) Go overseas—While this is something we've always talked about doing, I can't help but feel that it would be really difficult on our marriage. We've not even been married a year, and we're still learning about each other and about our marriage (as we will be for the rest of our lives, of course). But, I'm afraid if we only had each other and went somewhere without another couple (or at least someone else we know), we'd kill each other. I know it would be so tough if I only had Chaz to be around and didn't have other people to socialize with. I know that we'd meet people and we'd be able to fellowship with friends after we make them, but I would just feel a whole lot better if we went with someone we already knew and had that community already in place. However, this is a good time to do this option seeing as we have no ties currently and it would be wonderful experience.

B) Move—We have a couple of options with this one, however, no jobs. We know that we'd want to move somewhere with people we know (Colorado...Minneapolis...), but we have no job options. There is always the option of subbing, but I would prefer to have a job instead of just subbing for a year. I mean, we could always just sub around the Central Iowa area, after all. Plus, my parents are none to excited about this, but I can't let that stop me, can I? It would be a way to gain a new experience and experience some more of the world (which is what we should do now since we have no ties really....except for the nieces...darn those adorable nieces).

C) Stay and find another job—I love living in Ames, and I know that I'm so comfortable here that it scares me to go elsewhere. However, should I stay in comfort when I have the option of exploration? Probably not, but I'm a bit afraid of leaving my comfort zone. Anywho, we do have the option of staying here and just trying to find other jobs. Chaz could work for a coffee shop....I could find, well, SOMETHING. Or we could always sub.

D) Stay and go to grad school—While it's a little late to apply to grad school, my friend tells me I could probably get in just because I've been around the program for so long (and I'm working for the program right now). I could also have the opportunity of getting an assistantship, meaning I would get paid nearly as much as I would with a teaching job. However, I'm of the feeling that if someone should go to grad school, Chaz should get the opportunity first. Plus, if this is a time where we can just go and explore the world, should I sacrifice that to stay and continue my education (which I'll want to do later, most likely)?

We are leaning no way right now. We have no idea what we're going to do. What are your votes?

Lili & Me

Yay Spring Break!

Spring Break!!

Spring Break!!!
Yeah! *fists in air*

Sooo...here's my Spring Break: cleaning, purging, and grading. Oh yeah....I'm living it up, peeps! I had no idea I had married into a crap-ton of, well, crap. Chaz has been finding love letters from high school. And I thought I was a pack rat. Oh well, it feels nice to get rid of all of this stuff and cut our possessions in half. Chaz and I are also going to have a yard giveaway where people can come take what they need/want and leave what they don't. I think it'll be fun to give it away ourselves instead of just leaving it somewhere for someone to sell.

Well, it's back to organizing I go!

(oh, and I may have stretched the truth a bit. last night we celebrated kim's b-day and st. patty's day, so we are having some fun!)

Unification

It's been a week pretty much without internet, so I blame my lack of blogging on that.

Sunday night we had a Story City Youth Worship Night at The Crate. It was so amazing to see the room packed with tons of high school students at least one more time before we're finished with Shift (for those of you who don't know, Chaz and I are part of a high school coffee house ministry in Story City called Shift...we are the coffee part of coffee house ministry). We've been doing this for two years, and this seems to be the last as most leaders are moving on to other places in life and student attendance has been down. Unlike what you would think, this is a good thing because youth groups in the area (connected to local churches) have been growing. This was a goal of ours in the first place, so it's awesome to see it realized (hence why it's okay that we only have a few students each time).

Anyway, it was really awesome to see The Crate packed once again and students from four youth groups (and their leaders) joined all together. The students also gave the message, so it was great to hear words from them instead of one of us leaders up there talking at them. It was a unifying night, and THAT was the most exciting part.

Idiots!

That's all I'll say to prevent being really mean....IDIOTS!

Unfortunately, I'm far too nice in my emails. Ugh. If I could really articulate what I'm feeling, however, I would quite probably get fired.

On another note....IT'S SUPER NICE OUT!! I biked to campus for the first time this season. Oh man....I'm still sweating profusely.

Chaz's Sleeping

Some of you already know this, but Chaz is an avid sleeper. He could be considered narcoleptic by some. Also, while he is sleeping, he sometimes mumbles about his dreams. If you're lucky, you can actually converse with him and try to understand what he is dreaming. An example:

You're so pretty, you should go to I Can Has Cheezburger and put your face on it.

Yup, that's what my loving husband told me last night as he was drifting off to sleep. I decided to have some fun with this opportunity, and I recorded him talking to me about his dreams. Soon I'll try to post the recordings on here, but for now, I'll just give you a little taste text-style:

K: What about the jack?

C: What? Why are you hitting me?

K: What about the jack?

C: The jack? No, I think they mean a jaguar.

K: Who's jaguar? Is it yours?

C: No! You've seen my car, come on now!

K: What is your car?

C: It's an old, old car. Like 1988 or something.

K: Who's jaguar is it?

C: Justified.

K: It's justified's car? Who is that?

C: He forgot to take his test.

K: Oh, goodnight Chaz.

C: I know, I'm getting there.

That's just a snippet of what went on. What was really funny was I played it back to listen to it last night, and Chaz heard it in his sleep and responded with, "Why do you keep asking me that question? I already told you!"

Turkish

Chaz and I attended Turkish Student Night on campus. My aunt is part of a project that brings 40 Turkish Student Teachers to Iowa to teach in Iowa schools. We've interacted with them a bit (I drove a van for them a few times, and we had a couple students stay at our place for a weekend), so we wanted to go tonight to experience some Turkish culture and say goodbye. As you can imagine, it was sweet. They did some awesome dances, and then we got to eat some amaaaazing food! Yum! My stomach is still super happy from it.

Probably the best part, however, was when Chaz and I walked in (during the awards ceremony that was running late), a bunch of students started yelling, "Mrs. Engelkes!!" They were some students I had last semester. So embarrassing/awesome! Afterwards, they bombarded me and we chatted about what they're doing now, pranks they've pulled on Webb, and, "Are you teaching at Ames next year?" My answer was a mere, "Hopefully!" But we'll see...

It was also sweet to talk to Webb and Schmidt, two teachers I have really missed. Webb informed me that they were reading a book the other day, and he looked down and about seven students had the bookmarks I gave them on my last day and were using them. *sigh* I feel loved! I'm kind of enjoying this "celebrity status," and I may be content to just keep it this way.

But, no, I miss teaching high school too much.

I always wanted a sister....

I just want to give a shout-out today to my new sissy: April. Growing up, I always wanted a sister. Instead, I got two stinky brothers. I love my brothers, this is true, but a sister is different. Well, one of the perks of getting married: I have a new sissy (and a black daddy, but that's another matter)! I love having a sissy, and I know she loves me too because every time I call her she always laughs and says, "You're a nerd." That's sister-talk for, "I love you, you're the best sister ever." Now it's even BETTER having a sister because she has babies which means I have nieces. As you can already tell, I'm obsessed with them. It's amazingly fun because I get the joy of spoiling and loving babies without having to deal with the messes, crying, sleeplessness, etc. etc. WOOHOO!!!

So basically, I love my sister, April, she rocks, and I'm glad that I was made to wait until marriage to get a sister. She's the best.

I want to be genuine.

This is true.

Shows & Showers

Well, I suppose I should relate about my weekend since it was another eventful one.

Friday Chaz and I had a date night. We ate at The Spice (wonderful!) and then attended To Kill A Mockingbird at CY Stephens. My aunt had gotten us tix for Christmas, so we finally got to use them. It was incredibly good. I cried. So did Chaz. Also, we had the most phenomenal server at The Spice (Kara!). She's so good. We were majorly pushed for time (once again, lack of planning), so pretty much we got our food and then had to pack it up in to-go boxes to make it to the show, which we did with no problem.

Saturday was April's shower that I've been planning for a couple of months. The decorations looked SO CUTE! I won't even go into the frustration I had with invitees and group gifts prior to the day, but the shower ended up being super fun. April got a ton of necessities, so she shouldn't have to worry about baby supplies for quite awhile. This is super good as money is tight right now what with Aaliyah in the hospital and Alivia about to be in the hospital. Aaliyah now will maybe get to go home on Wednesday. April will have been in Iowa City for a week and a half. Ugh.

After the shower and dinner with my mom, Chaz and I went to see Rachel in Pal Joey at Wartburg. She's so phenomenal, and it was hilarious to watch her parents squirm with all of the sexual references (and Rachel acting as a harlot). Sooooooo entertaining.

Then yesterday was spent Shifting (Shift meeting) and churching. Church was super good, and I was inspired to take more time for myself for reflection, so that's what I'm devoting this week to. I'm excited. We'll see how it goes, and what my outlook is at the end of the week.

(this blog took a considerable turn from my original posting plan: week after week of crappy reflections. when will it end? aren't you glad?)

LMGTFY

I just found this hilarious (well, to me at least) website given to me by David Pogue's oh-so-wonderful technology blog. It's called "Let me google that for you." It's for those times when people ask you questions they could have easily Googled the answers instead of asking you. Mostly, I'm thinking this is applicable to those frustrating teaching moments. All you do is go to http://letmegooglethatforyou.com, type in their question, and then email the URL that appears to the culprit. Then, they click on the link and a video shows their question being slowly typed into the Google box, and then a message appears saying, "Was that so hard?" The idea alone makes me laugh. Now I just need to find someone to send it to.....quick, someone send me a dumb question!

Sicky

I took a quick trip to Iowa City yesterday to visit Aaliyah in the hospital. Yes, the healthy baby niece is sick (Alivia was to have surgery a week and a half ago, but it was postponed to March 9 because of a blood clot she developed). Aaliyah got pneumonia on Saturday which has turned into something else which is too technical for me to remember. So let's just say she isn't breathing on her own and has been in the hospital since Saturday. This means my sister, April, has also been in the hospital. She literally went for a quick doctor visit to Waterloo, and then upon finding out Aaliyah had to be airlifted to Iowa City, drove straight to the hospital do not stop at go, do not collect $100. She still has DVDs she was about to return in her car.

I decided I needed to visit April to prevent her from going crazy alone in the hospital with an unmoving, unresponsive child. I went just in time, too. She was pacing around the room, sing, blurting out random words....she's clearly on the path to insanity. I kept her company, we watched Aaliyah, and then I took her out to eat. It was a good time. The good news is that Aaliyah started moving yesterday because they took her off of the paralyzing drug. Also, she opened her eyes for the first time since they put her under. April was incredibly happy. I was too. They were also able to turn down her vent, so she's doing more breathing on her own. Hopefully, she'll be able to get completely off of it today or tomorrow.

Pray she'll get better soon, and then pray Livie will recover from surgery quickly, so April doesn't spend all of her life in the hospital and can have two healthy baby girls.

Valentine's Weekend

Chaz took me on a weekend getaway to Minneapolis for Valentine's Day. It was to be a trip of exploration, culture and fun. It started out so, but then it took "a turn for the worse," (cue creepy chords from Oregon Trail). You see, Chaz and I are both non-planners. And when two non-planners get married and try to non-plan something fun, disaster is inevitable.

Our trip began with coffee with Al in Owatonna. Delightful. After the quick detour for good conversation with a wonderful friend, we finished the last leg to Minneapolis. On the way, we had to decide what we would do first. Being non-planners we just blurted out something and called it good. We first went to the Global Market in downtown Minneapolis. I had been there before and had a good time, so I knew Chaz probably would too (and it was something he wanted to see). It's basically an international market indoors. What could go wrong? Nothing. We ate fish tacos and tamales, wandered among the booths, and then called it good.

What next?

We decided to check into our hotel, which was a real snazzy, trendy hotel in downtown Minneapolis. This place was happenin! We probably should've just stayed in the hotel, but we were determined to ruin the day somehow. Chaz then tells me he really wants to go to the Walker Art Museum. This is at 4:06. The museum closes at 5 (this is where planning would have helped). We decidee to go anyway and at least check out the sculpture garden. We get lost along the way and ended up at Walker at 5. Being -10 degrees, we decide to walk around anyway and take some pictures. In increasingly bad moods, we returned to the car after a quick walkthrough for the next disappointment.

This came in the form of driving around downtown Minneapolis trying to find someplace to walk around/shop. No luck. It was far too cold to walk around, and Chaz was stressed out from driving, so we stayed in the car. Then, we decided to go for dinner, and we desperately needed someplace good to get us out of the foul moods. We took a recommendation from a friend and drove to St. Paul for dinner. When we got to the area, there was absolutely no parking and masses of people as a result of a hockey game. Nice. Needed that. We ended up paying $10 to park 7 blocks away from the restaurant and cried as we walked in the cold. Once at the restaurant, we realized it was not the romantic dinner we were looking for. We waited in line with a million other people, got some "fast Italian food" cafeteria-style (slapped on a plastic plate) and sat at a table surrounded by rambunctious college students. Happy Valentine's Day! The food was mediocre and probably tasted worse than it actually was (as that place is highly acclaimed) due to our mood.

Upon returning to the car after a brisk walk, we drove back to our hotel and collapsed on the bad extremely tired after a depressing evening. Things could still turn up, however. We were invited to a bluegrass show at a local bar by my dear friend Cassie. While tempted to stay and go to sleep, we decided to try to make up for the rest of the day by going. We were not disappointed. I didn't know how it could, but that show made up for the rest of the day. We danced and laughed to amazing bluegrass music by Trampled by Turtles and Two Many Banjos. You have to have real talent to play that kind of music, unlike in other genres. It was incredible! When one of the fathers of a musician joined them on stage to play harmonica, he brought down the place! It was hott! Everyone was dancing because you can't help it to that music!

We ended the trip the next day with a venture to IKEA. How could we go wrong there? Thank you, Chaz, for a wonderful trip despite the downfalls. Thank you Cassie and bluegrass music for lifting our spirits. Thank you Minneapolis for the joy and the pitfalls. This trip was definitely educational. While we may or may not have learned the lesson about planning, we sure learned a lot about each other and our marriage.

At a bluegrass show...

Dear Pink Hair Girl,

Although I like the bubblegum tint to your hair, please refrain from thrusting your hair-sprayed, sticky mess in my face. I appreciate your enthusiasm for the bluegrass music, and we're all joining you in dancing, but I would appreciate your awareness of those around you. Also, no, I do not want your smelly-ass drink all over my clothes. I would prefer to leave this place not smelling like vodka cranberry. So if you would kindly watch your drink while you jerk all over the place to be sure it doesn't spill, I would appreciate it. And so would those around you.

Your friend,
Kate

Another week, another set of papers, another step on the road to bitterness

I began this semester with high hopes and excitement (and a bit of nervousness) about teaching two of my loves: technology and education. I remember posting about how it was so great to be surrounded, once again, by people who were passionate about teaching and excited about the potential of the future.

I have been horribly, horribly let down. I understand that things could change; that this may not be all the potential I see, but I now sympathize with TAs and professors everywhere who must seem as if the future of this country is going down the tubes based on the papers written by their students. I also wonder about where their teachers have failed them. And they have decided they want to teach now?

As an English major, I am horrified by the lack of correctness, shall we say? "All of the grammers and speling was okay on this website." Really? And how would you be a good judge of this? "I enjoyed reading there article. There a really good writer." Hmm...yes, I see.

As a future parent and teacher, I am horrified by the potentially disastrous consequences this could have on my legacy.

I worry of impending bitterness. Maybe it's already onset. Yikes.

Why Teach Tech?

Many of you may not really care much about this, but it's my passion. As a TA, I'm once again surrounded by people passionate about technology and teaching, which is my favorite combination. I hope to renew my sense of why it's important to use technology to teach, and also gain ideas for my future classroom. So far, it's been good. I found a video we watched in lecture especially compelling. Check it out at the link below.


A Vision of K-12 Students Today

If this is an ever-changing world, why do we still teach the way we did 100 years ago?

Meaning to Life

Well, I figured since I hadn't blogged in over a month, I had waited a sufficient amount of time in order to update you on my life (as if any of that really matters).

As I said in my previous blog, my sister-in-law recently adopted twins. These girls basically are the meaning of my life right now. I am, in a word, obsessed.



I love visiting the girls and getting new pictures of them doing the cute new things they do. Aaliyah is now doing "touchdown," but often she does the lazier "half-touchdown" which is still pretty cute. I've also enjoyed hanging out with my sissy and Robert (or Bobby) and the awkward moments we've shared. One time was particularly unfortunate, as I had told Alivia she was, "Nakers," (April was changing her clothes), and Robert had exploded, "WHAT did you call my girl?!?"

Alivia has surgery Feb. 3 to open up a suture in her brain that has closed. We're hoping that this alleviates some problems she's been having. A precious gift from God, she is so sweet, and we pray she continues to develop well after the surgery.

In other life, TA-ing for 201 has been an....adventure? Grading is not something I looked forward to, but my life will pretty much be consumed with for the semester. Being corrupted by the entourage has been....awesome. They have already managed to convince me (or force) to join Twitter, so if you aren't on it, JUMP ON IT! In awkward situations, I looked up "caterpillar" in Google Images and came up with an inappropriate image. Talk about your bad days! I laughed at myself because that's all you can really do. It was a good lesson in narrowing searches and teaching how to search for reliable content. Whoops.

I have also enjoyed my time reading. I recently finished reading The World According to Garp and found it interesting, entertaining, frustrating, and depressing. Basically, a roller-coaster. I would recommend it, however. I also just started reading Moo by Jane Smiley. This is one I am indulging in because it was written with some of Iowa State in mind. I've found it interesting thus far, and it's funny because I can really see the campus as I read. Also, a professor told me a story from the English Department a long time ago, and it appears in the book. I have a long list yet to read, and I plan to keep adding to it. If you have suggestions/recommendations, let me know!

Seasonal Joys

So I began writing a blog a couple of days ago, but I decided against posting it. It was pretty angsty-sounding. Yep, annoying students struck again. So instead, I'll write a little bit more of a happy one.

Instead of my angry, angsty blog, I'll list things I am thankful for/joyful about this season:

Being 1 1/2 weeks away from finishing my current college career.
My happy decorations in my happy apartment.
Lights on houses.
Lights in houses.
A wonderful semester at an amazing student teaching placement.
Students that keep my life interesting (the little shats).
A husband who loves me even when I'm difficult.
Friends that care about me even when I'm distant.
Stories that I can share over and over (pretty much daily occurrences at school).
Coffee dates with friends.
Cider and wassail.
Music that warms my heart and soul.
Wonderful co-workers that treat me well even though I'm an underling student teacher.
Being part of the teacher Holiday Pals exchange.
A potential job for next year at my dream school.
And if not....going on an overseas adventure.
Laughter and jokes and smiles and hugs.
A friendly neighborhood with friendly neighbors.
A close family that supports me.
Getting through tough financial times without even really realizing it.
The homeless woman by Wal-Mart teaching me the meaning of giving and noticing the un-noticed.
Friends overseas that I miss with all my heart but think of often.
My Shiftmates who love and support each other through all.
And my soon-to-be nieces (see picture).


As you can see, many things bring me so much joy, and I'm thankful for that. What a beautiful season!

Gross

I'm sick today. Yuck. Felt fine last night, but this morning I woke up with a sore throat and runny nose and it's gotten progressively worse throughout the day. There's nothing more frustrating and difficult than trying to teach while you're sick. Students ask questions and it's hard to form coherent responses. I felt bad that I was snippy with them, especially when they asked frustrating questions or just began blowing off assignments. I'm sorry you don't like the book I chose for you to read, too bad! You've only read 15 pages, how the heck do you know if you hate the book already?? Read it and get the points! I also had to throw down during one period. I made students take out their books, sit down, and read for the last 10 minutes of class. They complied, which I was glad about. Maybe that's how I'll have to run things for the rest of Lit Circle times. I don't like it, but that may be how it has to be. I hope the rest of the week is better.

Crazy Kids

I received my first love letter at school today. It started with:

"Dear Sexiest English Teacher..."

Wonderful. It went on to say all sorts of awkward things (I watch you as you grade my papers.....), and then informed me that today is "Make Someone Feel Uncomfortable Day." Thanks. You succeeded. I found it after 3rd period, and then read it aloud to 4th period. What concerned me at the end was, "More to come..." What does that mean? Weird. I'm nervous.

I also had a student call me "Mama E" today.
Student A: "Hey, Mrs. E?"
Student B: "No, it's MAMA E!"
What does that mean? I have no idea. I informed them I am not a mama and do not intend to be a mama for a very long time. These students crack me up. Even during the frustrating days, there's always something that brightens my time here. Fridays always seem best of all because everyone is in such a great mood. Teachers and students alike are so looking forward to the weekend that nothing can dampen spirits. AP went well, Perspectives went well. Beautiful.

Life continues.....to be amazing!

So....I'm a hypocrite.

I complain about friends abroad not blogging often enough, but I, on the other hand, blog even less than them. I suppose I forget that news from here is probably just as welcome to them as news from abroad is to me. So I'll share the road life is taking me on right now:

Student teaching is phenomenal (which I let everyone know whenever I talk to them). Yes, there are frustrating days when the students annoy me so much I want to throw things at them, and I can only sigh and say, "We're just not having a good day, are we?" To which they'll vehemently deny and say it's a great day. Right. It's great that I want to pound your head on the desk until I get through to you without having to repeat instructions 500 times.

Besides those days, it's a tremendous joy to have students excitedly walk in the room and banter with me about not doing any work and can we please have a free day? Most exciting recently was that I decided to do a Comic Life project with my students. This is something I have looked forward to all year, and was something I was determined to do. (Dennis, it's nice to have the CTLT around for these sorts of things) I borrowed laptops and digital cameras from the CTLT (told my teacher I have the hookup), and had students storyboard, take pictures, and create a comic alternate ending to Of Mice and Men. Not to brag, but they LOVED the project. I can't tell you how many students told me it was the best project ever after they complained the first day, "This is NOT cool, Mrs. E, WHY do we have to write an alternate ending?" The rest of the time all I heard was, "Mrs. E, this is the best project ever!" "Mrs. E, we were talking about this project at lunch and how we couldn't wait to work on it." Yeah, that's right....juniors excited about a school project. I win.

Along with Perspectives, I'm now teaching AP for the month of November. This is providing a much bigger challenge instruction-wise. I spend a lot more time planning for the class, and I need to be sure it's relevant, rigorous, and something that's interesting. This week I'm starting an advertising analysis project that I think will be really interesting, challenging, and a great way for students to work on analysis skills. I could share stories about my first week with AP, but it might just frustrate me, and I may sound bitter, so I'll refrain. I do enjoy the challenge, however, and I'm excited to get to know these students as well as I know my Perspectives students.

In other happy news: a woman in the English Department gave verbal notice that she's retiring this year, so that means a position will be open next fall for my dream job. She's also vying for me to replace her, which would be amazing. She may even put in a good word for me to the principal, which would be even amazing-er. Chaz and I still don't know what we're doing next year. We keep putting off talking about it, saying that we have plenty of time. However, my student teaching is almost over (difficult to believe), so we should at least talk about it. We want to travel and teach abroad so much, but at the same time, this is my dream job that is opening up, so maybe we should take that for a year or two, let me get experience, and then travel. BUT the longer we put off traveling, the more unlikely that it will happen. We just have a lot to mull over in the next few months. Once again, I'll put off discussion of that issue.

So yes, life continues...

Politically Jaded

I know I'm not the only citizen of the United States that feels this way, but I am completely jaded by the political system in this country. I have no idea what I'm going to do on November 4. This year seemed to be a year of promise politically. It seemed as if we would finally have an exciting, promising race between two candidates offering change. While there has been plenty of excitement, it seems almost as if I am watching a circus instead of deciding who will best run our country. I had really hoped that if anyone could break the normal process of slandering, namecalling, and dragging through the mud race we call politics, it would be Obama and McCain. I believed (naively, I guess) that this race would be run differently. Unfortunately, this race has been worse than normal, which has led to my jaded feeling. There are false accusations and lies coming from both sides (it started in the McCain camp, but Obama is responding to it also).

And it's not only with the presidential race that I am frustrated. Corruption and deceit goes all the way down to the county level (as I know is not surprising). But again, it's frustrating. It seems to me that elections are nothing more than digging up the tiniest, most meaningless piece of dirt on the opposing candidate spinning it, and splashing it from here to kingdom come for all to see what a mean, dirty, low-down person that candidate is. It's eye-opening actually. When it happens to people you know, you realize how much spin is really placed on facts to get the desired outcome. The person could be a complete saint, and people could still find dirt to spin. It leaves me with a hopeless feeling, actually.

My mom recently said to me, "If we cannot trust any of our news sources to provide us with accurate, fair information, who can we trust? Just ourselves?" Yes, I believe that's so. It's frustrating that it takes so much work to dig up truth, but it is worth it when we can decide for ourselves who will best represent our needs and desires in the government.

(FYI: I recently learned about factcheck.org. This site is a nonpartisan site dedicated to checking all of the facts (hence the name) in articles, ads, speeches, etc. etc. to ensure validity. If you need a place to go to get truth, check it out to get the facts.)

My Husband

Since Chaz complained that in my last blog, I wrote more about student teaching than about him, I promised him that my next blog would be all about him. So here goes...

Chaz....is a crazy. Which is part of the reason I married him, of course! He makes life fun, and sometimes frustrating...but mostly fun. I enjoy driving him crazy (whoo whoo!), and he enjoys qualifying everything I complain about him. I love the adventures we stumble upon. Last weekend, we went to a barn party thrown by a bunch of hippies. It was amazing! There was food, food, food, dancing, and great live music. What a find! Then last night we went for a walk (which we haven't done very often) and discovered that Main Street was having a music wonderthon (my words)! In front of a bunch of stores on Main Street, a diverse variety of musicians were playing. One of my co-workers played the dulcimer, and it was incredible! There were classical violins, bluegrass bands, rock bands, folk bands, etc. etc.

We love to experience life, and I just hope we can do more of that instead of falling into a slump. It's also been a joy to struggle with money. The past month God has blessed us tenfold. We were really concerned about money because Chaz hadn't gotten paid since June, and his next payday was September. God brought us through it, however, and it almost seems as if money worries weren't a huge issue. He just got paid this morning, so we are incredibly thankful! I love that my man is pretty good with money. He's teaching me budgeting and fiscal responsibility (there's a $10 word for you!).

Besides the frustrations and worries that do occur (and will continue to occur for the rest of our lives together), I just think that it's wonderful to go to bed with the one I will love forever. And once we get an actual mattress (instead of sleeping on an air mattress, which we have for the past two months), hopefully our bed won't break. THAT would be a blessing.

And I know this is mushy...I'll redeem myself next blog.

Updates

At the behest of Kel, I'll write an update...haha! I have such a double standard when it comes to this sort of thing because I'm always reading everyone else's blog and requesting updates, but I'm so horrible at doing the same thing. Mainly because I feel that my life is insignificant compared to the amazing things my friends are doing (Korea...helloooooo!). But I do have exciting things going on in my life: learning about married life, and student teaching.

Married life is great, but tough. It's waaaaaaaaaaay different living with a boy. Ugh. haha! No, but Chaz is good to live with. He helps a lot with keeping things clean and doing the dishes...which we do a lot of since we don't have a dishwasher. Now that we're both teaching, it's hard to be connected since we're so busy. We still try to take time for ourselves, though, and when we do, it's good.

Student teaching is phenomenal, but challenging. The students are amazing, and I know now more than ever that this is what I was made to do. Things will start to pick up work-wise, however, as I'll start to take over at least one of the classes. I'm a bit nervous as this means I'll have to plan things myself, but really excited by all of the possibilities open to me. Oh, and Kel, there are two Chinese girls in my classes, and they're incredibly adorable! I'm sure you know how much I love them! Yes, I love teaching, and each day I see the value in investing in the future generation. A lot of these students just need to know that someone does care about them, and that they can succeed as long as they try. I love watching them come out of their shells and learn to be honest and open with those around them. I only hope that I can instill some life lessons in them, if not the love of reading and the joy in self-expression through writing.

Back Again

Chaz and I are back in Ames after three weeks of adventures. The end of our honeymoon consisted of visiting Andy and Ashley in Denver and staying a couple of days in Omaha with Papa Chuck. It was good to spend time with him, and I know he was glad to have visitors. We went to the Omaha Zoo, which was sweet, and enjoyed losing to Papa Chuck playing pool and eating amazing tenderloins. We spent Saturday walking around downtown Omaha and managed to find some good deals while shopping, and then headed back to Ames. It was good to get back and see everyone, and even better that we finally got to see Batman: Dark Knight. Incredible! I cannot describe how amazing I thought this movie was, especially Heath Ledger's performance, except to say that I would definitely definitely see it again and again.

So now it's back to the real world: bouncing between two different places, beginning to pack, finding a place to store stuff as well as ourselves until we can move into our apartment, and trying to relax a bit more until we begin school. Time to begin our life together.

I know the meaning of exhaustion...

Today Chaz and I decided to go on a hike in the mountains. We knew of a beautiful hike from Lake Brainard to Isabelle Lake that Dr. Thompson told us about. When we got to the park, we were unable to drive to Brainard Lake because it was full, so we ended up hiking 2 miles just to get to the beginning of the trail. We then started on the gorgeous 2 mile hike through the mountains. The surrounding nature was magnificent! We got to Lake Isabelle and decided to press on to hike up to Isabelle Glacier. This next section was 1.5 miles and was the toughest part of the day. We passed over snow in our Chacos, freezing streams from the glacier, and up perilous mountain slopes. The farther we got up, the harder it was to breathe. We pretty much made it to the glacier and got some amazing shots of the place we started. Both of us were exhausted on the hike back and didn't think we'd make it. When we got out of the trail, we knew there was no way we could hike back 2 miles to the car, so Chaz stuck out his thumb. The first car that passed us pulled over and gave us a ride back to our car, which we were so thankful for. Total mileage: 9 miles. Total time: 7 hours.

Back home: medicine to relieve headaches, a long shower, and huge burritos to satisfy our hunger. Then, falling soundly to sleep to await waking with incredibly sore muscles tomorrow. Oh joy.

CO, what do you know?

Yup, we're in Colorado right now livin it up with Titus and Jolene. They have been gracious enough to host us as well as take us to all the sweet digs in the area. After seeing Wicked in Chicago (my dream of 2 years now), Chaz and I headed home to get the radiator changed on the car. We ended up staying there Sunday night and most of Monday waiting for it to get switched, and then when it finally was in the process, we found out the company had sent the wrong radiator. After some frustrating moments, we decided to put the old radiator back in and pray my car would make it the rest of the trip (HUGE thanks to Sam and Dad for helping us out on that one!). At 6 pm we started our trek to Chicago. We got stuck in a horrible storm and ended up stopping a few times to wait for it to lighten up. We also ended up sleeping for three hours in the car at Kearny, Nebraska at 2:30 in the morning. Finally, we made it to Denver at 10:00 their time. What a trip!

We've been having a great time here. We hung out with some of Titus and Jolene's friends Tuesday night, Titus has been making us great food, and Chaz got to fulfill his dream of eating at Chipotle. We also were fortunate enough to make it to Fort Collins and go on the New Belgium Brewery tour. Ahhh!! It was amazing! What a cool operation with a great philosophy: be stewards of the environment and the brewing industry, find peoples' loves and help them live them, and have fun! We also did the Anheuser-Busch Tour (stuffy). Today we did the Coors Tour in Golden, CO. We took the "short tour" and drank a Blue Moon for Katie. We also got to shop for antiques! Hooray! Needless to say, we're having a great time with more to come. We just ran into Andy McKinley on the streets of Denver, and now we're drinking absolutely phenomenal coffee in a coffee shop. Tomorrow I think we'll head to Dr. Thompson's cabin, which will be incredibly fun.

We are so thankful for the many blessings God has provided us on this trip, and we continue to be in awe of them: friends & family who provided funds for us to fulfill our dream vacation, friends and family who provide places to stay and food to eat, fellowship, beautiful scenery, and loads of adventures.

the adventure continues...

well, everyone, i can honestly say i married quite the interesting man...adventure has continued to follow us on our trip. it started on wednesday. chaz had said we were going to american players theatre to see "a midsummer night's dream." i was so excited because i'm a shakespeare fan, and i absolutely love "a midsummer night's dream." the theatre was romantically set on a hill in the woods with lanterns lighting the path on the way to the outdoor theatre. it was magical...the perfect setting for the play. we got to the top, however, and the ticket man informed us that our tickets were for "a midsummer night's dream" yesterday. we had to trudge all the way down the hill, exchange our tickets, and ended up having to see "henry iv: making of a king." a good play, but definitely not as exciting or cute as "midsummer."

it doesn't stop there...thursday we left to go to chicago for our next leg. chaz had been in contact with my cousin to possibly stay with them. we were playing phone tag, however, and hadn't gotten a chance to confirm everything. we traveled to the windy city anyway, and once there, we finally got ahold of bridget. unfortunately, her and ben had left for wisconsin that morning and hadn't left a key because we hadn't been able to get ahold of each other. so there we sat...supposed to be in chicago until sunday, with no place to stay. we called a few hotels, but they seemed shady (one only allowed men, and another was $70 a week). after many tears, i finally said, "maybe we should just stay in the car." we were debating on whether or not to leave and find a place to eat when we got a call from another cousin, heather. she said bridg had told her our dilemma and she commanded we go to her place right then. it was perfect! we stayed with john and heather and baby adelia the past couple of nights, and it was great!

then yesterday, we hung out at taste of chicago downtown, saw a super long show (including old 97s and gomez), visited a three-story forever 21, rode the navy pier ferriswheel, and ate bbq. the best, however, was that chaz and i were walking around holding hands, and a young guy walked up to us and said, "you know what's really great? platonic relationships." we were kinda like, "yeah." then he said, "you know what else is great? stuff white people liked." we started laughing and said, "yeah! we love that blog!" to make a short story even shorter, we ended up winning a free copy of the "stuff white people like" book, and the guy we talked to was the author of the blog! it was AWESOME! and hilarious.

today we relocated to waukegan in an AMAZING suite in a ramada, and we're traveling downtown chicago to see wicked!!!!!!!!! AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!! i'm so excited! it's unbelievable! EEK!

the adventures will never cease...

honeymooning

married life is amazing thus far, and i know it will only get better. chaz rented us a cabin in wisconsin, so we have been staying there since sunday. we're in spring valley, a nice little town near lots of fun places. we've gone to the house on the rock, saw wall*e, canoed for 10 miles on the wisconsin river, ate at small town restaurants, made our own breakfasts, and enjoyed paying $1 for five minutes in a shower...jerks. tonight we're going to an outdoor shakespearean theatre called the american players theatre. we're going to see "a midsummer night's dream," so i'm way stoked about that! apparently, this is why chaz chose this place...what a great man! tomorrow we head off to our next destination, which i think is either chicago or madison (but i think it's chicago). we'll be back in eastern iowa on sunday before heading west. i'll try to keep updated on the trip!

Life's Adventures

The purpose of this blog is for me to record the adventures I take in my everyday life. You see, in the book I'm reading for my pre-marital counseling, Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts, it talks about the importance of attitude for creating a good life, as well as a good marriage. You can choose your own attitude everyday, and you don't have to succumb to the negative surroundings that bombard us nonstop: people getting everything they ever dreamed of while you struggle with finances, world happenings such as war, genocide, famine, etc., dealing with bad people at work, etc. etc. etc. Let's face it...we could live every day more miserable than the one before. However, by choosing to let things not bother you, living life not comparing it to someone else's, and giving everyday a chance to be a good one, we can significantly improve the quality of our life.

I know all of this sounds like a bunch of cliché, spoon-fed, motivational crap, but I'm starting to believe it's true. My life is taking on an adventure that will change it forever. Planning for this adventure has been trying, and I've wanted to throw in the towel and just elope more times than I can count. I've been miserable and not looking forward to the celebration, which made me incredibly sad. I didn't want to dread my wedding day, or be miserable the entire day when the most exciting thing was happening to me. So a couple of days ago, God revealed to me that I was the one making myself miserable. Yes, things were happening that were out of my control, but I was the one obsessing over them and making myself miserable. I was being selfish, and realized that this was an opportunity to celebrate with friends and family and that was why we were doing the ceremony and reception. Chaz and I could get married much easier by eloping, yes, but then we would miss out on celebrating with friends and family. As soon as I realized this, I swallowed that pride and called and apologized to my parents. They had been enjoying this entire process, but I had been a wet blanket at every moment, so that's what I apologized for. Ever since, I have been looking forward to this day more and more. I'm excited for the fellowship, fun, friends, and family. Things that don't go quite as planned don't bug me, and I'm actually having fun deciding what to do and what not to do. Most of all, I'm excited to embark on this exciting adventure with the love of my life. The one of my life. My help-meet. My friend, and the one who will remind me of God's love for me every day of my life.

And that exciting adventure is beginning sooner than I can even believe.

Speak to me

At my practicum yesterday, the students were buzzing about a speaker they had come in who talked about bullying. The thing they were most shocked about was that words truly hurt people. The speaker read a letter from a woman who is older who still remembers exact phrases people used to say to her in middle school. These were all told to get students thinking about how they affect people with what they say and do, and that those things can affect people in the future. My cooperating teacher shared that she remembered in the seventh grade a boy in her class (she was able to give his name) said she was fat. She still remembers that. But what she said was putting that aside, she was afraid to think about who she could have hurt with a slighting comment that she didn't even think about. Maybe she was that verbal abuser she remembered.

I have to agree that words do hurt. I definitely remember specific instances from my past when people have said things, probably not even thinking about them, that absolutely crushed me. My dad told me that I was annoying and no wonder I couldn't keep a boyfriend after a guy dumped me. In 10th grade, the guy I was dating at the time and one of my friends talked to each other about how I was annoying, and then they told me that. Yeah, I'm sure I was behaving stupidly at the time, but they talked about it behind my back, and then when I insisted, they told me to my face that I was annoying. To a girl who was going through major self-esteem issues at the time, this was world-shaking. And, crazy, I still remember it distinctly. Down to the place we were and the time of day.

But just like my cooperating teacher, I wonder how many times I have said things to people that hurt them, and I didn't even realize it. I know that my dad didn't truly mean what he said about me. Heck, I'm getting married, and he thinks that I am deserving of Chaz, and that Chaz is so deserving of me. And I'm sure my friend and boyfriend in high school didn't think I would take what they said so severely. But both of those instances were major barriers in my life. So when have I said things to people? What have I said? What pain have I caused people to go through. The first part of Ephesians 5:20 says, "Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs." I know that I've hurt people in the past, and I know that I may not be able to do anything about that, but I really want to try to be conscious of what I say to people now.

I want to be uplifting with my speech.

Things I love Tonight

Eating Asian cuisine with chopsticks while listening to instrumental music with my future husband. Cupping tiny teacups in my hands and bringing them to my mouth to sip hot, jasmine tea while closing my eyes letting the world erase and my senses fill with the warmth of tea and music. Memories of China and breakfasts and lunches and dinners. Potstickers and Lo Mein and Green Onion Pancakes. Iowa wine and Across the Universe. Sleeping peacefully until morning.

Fellowship

Fellowship is good for the heart. Last night was amazing! Being in a house with 11 people, most of which I had yet to meet, eating, laughing, storytelling was intimidating initially, but wonderful. This is a group of people with which I look forward to continued interaction. We put down guards and brought our stories to the table. Worship was grand and broke down shyness and embarrassment. Stories were shared from the heart, and we all didn't want to part. Chaz and I had to be the first to break it up due to work, but I feel like we could have stayed there all night chatting. I'm so thankful that this opportunity has arisen. It's just what I've been desiring.

Oh, and for you fellow tech-nerds that read my blog, here's a little something for you to enjoy. This is the most recent blog on David Poague's blog...oh man, it's hysterical! (check out his blog: http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/)

March 6, 2008, 10:39 am
Tech Support Gets a Reprieve While Users Take a Hit

On my blog recently (nytimes.com/pogue), I’ve been making fun of bad tech-support reps. Actually, not just recently—they’ve been one of my favorite topics for years.

Deep inside, though, I have a lot of sympathy. By definition, the tech-support job entails talking all day to angry and unhappy people, which surely can’t make you feel like skipping home from work. Meanwhile, at most tech-support centers, you have to fulfill an hourly quota of calls processed—so the job is stressful, too. No wonder the burnout rate is so high (and so many of these jobs are moving overseas).

So today, equal time. It’s time to place half of the tech-support blame where it belongs: at the feet of Them. The Users.

Several years ago, I had the chance to visit a tech-support call center for one of the big computer companies. The technician gave me a second pair of headphones so I could listen in on his conversations with the hapless users.

I learned so much that day. I learned that all computer companies outsource tech support to dedicated call-center companies. I learned that the Users can be outrageously rude to these hapless tech-support reps, taking out their built-up frustration on somebody who had nothing to do with causing the problem.

And I learned that when they say, “Your call may be recorded for quality assurance purposes,” that’s only partly true. They also record your calls so they can pass around recordings of the funniest ones.

They actually gave me one of those “Best Of” disks at the end of my day in the call center. Herewith: a few actual calls from that disk or that I heard about from the agents themselves.

—

Caller: So, I’m having a problem with my mouse? It’s, like, squeaking?

Agent: I’m sorry, did you say squeaking?

Caller: That’s right. The faster I move it across the screen, the louder it squeaks.

Agent: I’m sorry—are you pressing your mouse up against the screen?

Caller: Well, sure! There’s a message that says, “Click here to continue!”

—-

Caller: Hey, can you help me? My computer has locked up, and no matter how many times I type eleven, it won’t unfreeze.

Agent: What do you mean, “type eleven?”

Caller: The message on my screen says, “Error Type 11!”

—

On one call, the caller seemed to be taking an inordinately long time to complete each instruction she was given.

Agent: Ma’am, I can’t help noticing that every time I give you an instruction, it takes a really long time before you get back to me. Is your computer that slow?

Caller: Oh, no, it’s just the stupid, stupid design of this computer. Every time I want to click something, I have to unplug the keyboard to plug in the mouse. And then every time I want to use the keyboard again, I have to unplug the mouse. Because there’s only one jack.

Agent: Ma’am, you do realize that there’s a jack on the keyboard itself? You’re supposed to plug the mouse into the keyboard, and the keyboard into the computer.

Caller: Are YOU KIDDING ME!? Oh, wait a minute—yes, I see it now! Oh, holy cow. That’s going to be so much easier!

Agent: Just out of curiosity, how long have you been using your computer that way?

Caller: Six weeks!

—

A Canadian customer was calling to find out if there was a faster way to trigger menu commands than mousing up to the menus.

Agent: Certainly, sir. There are keyboard shortcuts for many of those commands. For example, suppose you want to trigger the Select All command…

Caller: Yes, I use that one all the time! How do I do it?

Agent: Well, you just press Control-A.

Caller (after a pause): Well, that’s not working for me.

Agent: Do you have a text document open in front of you?

Caller: Yes, I sure do.

Agent: OK, now press Control-A.

Caller: I am, but nothing happens.

Agent: The text isn’t highlighted?

Caller: No, there’s no change at all.

Agent: That’s odd. If you press Control-A, the whole document should be highlighted. Try it again. Press Control-A. Tell me exactly what’s happening.

Caller (nearing his Canadian breaking point): Listen. I’m pressing Control, eh? And nothing’s happening, eh?

—-

So there you have it, folks: a little equal time for the downtrodden reps on the other end of the line.

But I waaaaaant Oonnne!

I want a hedgehog.

Isn't he cuuuute?

But seriously, hedgehogs are adorable. My love for them goes back to elementary/middle school. Ms. Bredekamp had a hedgehog (I'm pretty sure Sonic was his name, but I'm probably mistaken). Anne and I went to her apartment a couple of times and got to play with him. Gosh, he was cute. I wanted one then, but my mom obviously turned that proposition down.

Then, last night, I got to see the second hedgehog of my life, and I was reminded of how cute they are. The little guy was all curled up in a stocking cap, trying to keep warm. He was pretty grumpy when we woke him up, but adorable all the same.

So, basically, I want a hedgehog. Not a dog. Not a cat. Not a fish. Not a bird. Not anything else....a hedgehog.

Pleeeeeaaaaaazzzzeee???

Screw the System

I need a middle school placement.

But why?

I don't want to teach middle school. I all ready know this. And while yes, maybe someday I'll change my mind. Right now, I don't want to. I am choosing not to student teach in middle school, so why do I have to do a practicum in middle school? Everything would work out so much better if I could just do a practicum in the high school with the teacher who has all ready so graciously said, "YES! Yes, Kate! I want you to come and share with me the joy that is teaching!" Gah. So this is what I get for opening my mouth and speaking my desires. Why didn't I just sit idly by and let this university determine my fate as it always does? Then I wouldn't have to screw up the system as I apparently did by raising my hand and saying, "Uh, wait a minute....this doesn't work for me." I'm a burden. A hassle. That's exactly what this change has said to me. If people were more anonymous, then I wouldn't have a problem with this. But they aren't anonymous. I'm screwing up my classmates'semesters through this. Ugh.

A little melodramatic? Yes, I know. But it's Valentine's Day...I can do what I want.

Hungers

Man, I feel like getting a flying burrito. Doesn't that sound excellent? I know exactly what I'd get too:

Garden Tortilla
Wild Rice
Black Beans
Beef
Cilantro Lime Sour Cream
Chipotle Salsa
Lettuce
Cilantro
Black Olives

Mmmmmm.....my mouth is watering and my tummy is rumbling.

p.s. this is not a hint to anyone.

p.p.s. or is it?

Grumbly Gus

I'm a Grumbly Gus. School sucks, people suck, period sucks. Gah! Why do I get in such a funk once a month? Thank you, nature.

My New Life

I have recently had some complaints that I have not blogged about the most recent news in my life. So, Anne, this one's for you.

December 24, 12:30 a.m. Chaz and I had just gotten back to my parents' house after Landers Family Christmas. We'd had a great time laughing, chatting, and playing games. Chaz and I lay on the couch dreaming of the future and acting like lovebirds at Christmastime. "Why don't you two go to bed so you can get up at a decent hour?" my dad grumbled. Instead of obeying, Chaz asks me to go on a walk with him like he had been trying to all weekend. We bundled up and headed out into the crisp, clean, Christmas Eve landscape. The nearly full moon shone brightly on the crystal landscape as we walked along the creek by my house. We talked about nature and Creation and the beauty of it all. We talked of our relationship and of how we made each other want to be better people. Love better, serve better, reflect God better. We walked hand in hand for awhile until reaching an old tree I had played around as a young girl. Here we stopped and used the trnk to shelter us from the wind. Chaz began to talk, "I like this place because here I can see the past, present, future here. In the past, you played here as a little girl, in the present, we're here together, and I want to see us together in the future as well." I merely shivered and agreed with him. He continued, "So Kate, on December 24th, I want to tell you something that I have never told any other girl. I love you." I began to cry, "I love you, too." You see, Chaz and I had never said that to each other. He always said that he only wanted to say that to his wife. At this point, Chaz went to get on his knee and slipped and fell on the ice. I'm talking face-first, flat on the ground. I helped him to his knee (metaphorical of our relationship? I don't know). He then pulled out a ring box, opened iit and asked that fateful question, "Kate, will you marry me?" "Yes!" I responded and we hugged and kissed and cried. Finally, very smoothly Chaz said, "Put this ring on, my hands are freezing!"

So that is the story of how my life is to change forever. On June 28, 2008, I am to bond forever with the love of my life. I'm his helpmeet, and he's my rescuer. I hope that we continue to adventure and live a life abundant.

It's the Most Miserable Time of the Year...

Sooooo....Dead Week sucks. I've been exhausted, I have a headache, and I'm stressed. I don't have a lot of school work to do, which is nice, but I've just had a lot of other stuff going on that distracts me from the work I need to do.

Monday my car was towed, and that was bad enough. Once I got to the towing place, they revealed that my car was damaged. I'm pretty sure that it wasn't me, even though they blamed me. In fact, I'm very very sure it wasn't me. So now it's either I try to fight it and get compensation, or I spend money fixing my car on top of the ridiculous towing fee. Money that I don't have. Money that I needed for Christmas presents.

So now I am stuck gathering evidence and going through a process that I don't want to go through. This on top of the bit of school work I have left to do for the semester. Needless to say, I'm stressed, miserable, and tired. And unable to go anywhere with my car out of commission.

Where's the joy?

Inconceivable!

The idiocy of people never ceases to amaze me.

The Birds and the Bees

I was watching Tyra today (ugh....daytime television is definitely lacking in quality. Why can't I just turn off the tv??). She had an interesting show, however. She had around 10 teenagers and their parents on to talk about sex. These young'ens all had sex at an incredibly young age. One girl was in 5th grade! According to my calculations, that means she was like 10 or 11 years old. Oh my. Her mom couldn't believe it! I was appalled too. The students had all sat down earlier and talked about issues with sex, as well as if their parents had talked to them, knew they had sex, or if they wanted to talk to their parents about sex. Most of them said their parents knew they had sex, but all of them said they wished they could talk to their parents about it. The parents responded with shock that their teenagers wanted to talk to them about sex, as well as shocked that they did not know much about sex (especially STDs). When talking about STDs, the students knew virtually NOTHING about them and how to contract them.

HELLOOOOOOO parents!!!! Who's going to talk about sex with your kids if you don't? Who do you WANT talking about sex with your kids if you don't? Do you expect schools to do this? Let me tell you from experience, they won't get all of the facts from most schools. Plus, students don't listen anyway. Do you want their friends telling them about sex? This isn't the most reliable source for your kids to get information. Do you want a boy/girl pressuring your kids to have sex and THAT'S how they learn? Parents, talk to your kids! Seeing this kind of show and hearing how parents are neglecting to talk with their kids about facts of life makes me cry! And we wonder why we have so many young boys and girls with STDs, young pregnancies, etc. etc.

So, I actually learned a lesson from Tyra today. Parents: talk to your kids.

I was intrigued by the show until they got to a portion where Tyra and a sex-ed professor started role playing as a father/daughter talking about what sex is. Theeeeen I had to change the channel. TMI, Tyra. TMI.

Patience

"I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end."
—Margaret Thatcher

I have realized lately that I have been too impatient with life. I am constantly thinking and worrying about the future. I guess senior year of college makes you do that because I have talked to many other peers who are having the same issues. Scenarios run through my head constantly:

"Okay, so if I go to China and teach right away for two years, what's going to happen to my teaching license? If I stay and teach for two years until I get my full license, and then I go to China and teach for two years, that's a large chunk of my 20s gone. Do I really want to go teach overseas for two years? I have so many ideas for teaching right now, shouldn't I stay and teach here while my ideas are fresh?....."

On and on and on. Riding the bus, working, sitting in class. Scenarios go through my mind constantly. And that's just one of the things I'm contemplating. I'm also anxious for other unmentionable happenings in my life that I shouldn't be worrying about yet. So basically, I need to have patience. I need to just enjoy my time right now. Enjoy my friends. Enjoy my family. Enjoy this season of life that I can never get back, and not worry about the near or far future. That will eventually take care of itself. *Sigh* I feel better.

No Ordinary Driver

I wait impatiently at the bus stop. Where is the stupid bus? It was supposed to be here at 9:31! It's 9:36....grrrrrrrrr. I had looked up the bus schedule earlier, so I would know when it was to be at Kildee, so I could get home after class and relax. You see, my bike, my way of transport, my love, is broken. My tire got a hole in it after class last week, and it has not been fixed as of yet. So I am forced to take the dependable Cyride bus system. Cyride is good, don't get me wrong, but my bus is less frequent, and it takes about twice as long as a bike ride, so I would prefer to not wait hours for a way home. But this morning, I wait at the bust stop. I wait, and wait, and get more and more frustrated. I text Chaz my frustration at my late bus. I watch person after person board their buses and take off, but still not Blue 3.

Finally, at 9:41, my bus ambles up to Kildee and comes to a screeching halt. I board the bus, and at this point, the bus drivers change stations. Up the steps comes this smiling, bespectacled, older woman. However, this morning she is attired in a white wig, skull police cap, and skeleton gloves along with her Cyride coat and pants. This, I think, is no ordinary bus driver. As the bus takes off and heads home, I still am grumbling in my head. Man, I could've been home half an hour ago. Each screeching halt makes me more and more impatient for home. The bus driver, however, is sweet. She wishes everyone "Have a good day!" in a bright voice as they get off the bus. Most ignore her. I just continue to pout. At one stop, however, a woman on the street peaks into our bus, and tells our bus driver, "Lookin' good!" The driver replies, "Yup! From biker to bones!" It's at this point that I smile and realize what a jerk I'm being. This is a driver who has fun with her job. No matter the mood of others, she is true to her self and tries to cheer everyone. I am thankful for this woman.

As I approach my stop, I pull the chord, the bus stops, and I start to head down the steps. She tells me, "Have a great day!" And I reply, "Thank you very much. You have a wonderful day."

I Wanna Dance With Somebody...

I spent a morning last week watching television and doing Engl 420 homework. While watching a completely worthwhile show on fox (HAH!), there was a sitcom episode on about dancing at weddings. It was funny and entertaining, but the end particularly caught my eye. The large husband started dancing with his skinny, beautiful wife, revealing to her that he actually was a good dancer. He spun her around the room, seducing her with his fluid dancing movements. I was jealous. I want that. As a woman, I have no idea what the appeal is, but there is something sexy about dancing with a man. I don't mean grinding, dancing to hiphop, anything like that. I mean, dancing to old, big-band slow music, or a slow jazz, or some of that other good, old-timey music. Gliding as one body across a room, being only aware of each other and no one else. I don't know why, but I found that part of the show just, well, sexy. And it made the big, bumbling husband seem incredibly attractive and desirable.

What I'm saying is, I'd like to know how to dance like that. Not that I'm giving suggestions to anyone or anything, but it'd be nice.

Rocky Mountain High

Once again...I love road trips.

We drove 16 hours to Durango, CO Thursday night, and arrived at our hotel at 5:30 am their time. Then we got up for a 10:30 am wedding on Friday. I was completely paranoid driving through the mountains because I was exhausted, the road was curvy, and there were numerous signs warning of deer, moose, and mountain sheep. Not to mention the various blood stains and skid marks on the road from unfortunate animals. Oh my.

The wedding was gorgeous. Pale yellow leaves and brown grassy fields leading up to the majestic Rocky Mountains provided a beautiful backdrop for the wedding. The bride was gorgeous in her white gown with a white, 3/4 sleeve dress jacket overtop (for lack of better words). The men all were dashing in brown vests and vans. It was fantastic to meet a lot of Chaz's friends that have moved from Iowa to the wilderness of the West. It was even more fantastic to get to spend with weekend with Titus and Jolene. They are absolutely delightful.

After the wedding, we headed back to Denver to spend the night and spend the rest of the weekend with Titus and Jolene. That took off a large chunk of our driving for Sunday, which was really nice. Denver was fantastic...I really like that city. We were able to hike in the mountains at Red Rocks State Park, and then head to downtown for the evening to check out what the city had to offer. The perfect combination of outdoors and culture. We found an amazing little locally-owned café where we sat and had some Fat Tires...mmmmmm. This made me seriously think about moving to Denver. It would be a good place to have life adventures (after China, of course...which Jolene and Titus are going to come with us for...haha!).

Sunday brought a surprise. We had just been hiking in 80 degree weather the day before, but upon awakening at 9 on Sunday, we found a completely white world awaiting us, and more huge, wet flakes coming down. The drive home provided us opportunity for singing, dancing, faking paralysis, arguing, and seeing dads that haven't been seen in too long (Chaz got to see his dad in Omaha).

I love the mountains.

Wakelessness

Wakelessness. This is my word for the period when you are between sleep and being awake. The fog you feel after staying up until 1 in the morning doing laundry, and awaking for class at 6:30 in the morning, after a pumpkin spice latté, and walking into class to sit in your seat. The weird point in the day when you're aware of what is going on around you, but you still feel as if you're in bed and need sleep.

I was definitely in wakelessness this morning. It was so surreal because I was definitely tired, but I had sucked down that pumpkin spice latté so I was also awake from the caffeine. The result? I was antsy. Antsy in a way that I haven't been for a long time. I could not concentrate in class, and time was moving slower than it ever has in the history of time. Check out my notes from class....all doodles. Mostly attributed to antsiness. So yes, wakelessness=misery for morning classes.

On another note...I'm off to CO!!

Road Trippin' Once Again

I can't wait. Chaz, Josh, and I are headed to Colorado this weekend. That's right! Who goes to Colorado for the weekend? I do. I have so much to do before we leave, but the trip is in sight. We leave Thursday. Ah! I love it!

I love the anticipation of a road trip. Getting everything done and preparing to leave. Making sure you have everything you will possibly need in any situation on the trip. Awaiting the long stretch of road, uncomfortable sleep, hours of music, laughter, and stories. There is nothing like it. There is nothing like the chance to escape reality for a weekend, leave worries and life standing still, and drive away to lands unknown and unexplored. A blank space in the map waiting for you to fill it with memories and stories...which I will inevitably come back with.

While I'm so excited for this road trip, the best road trips are with girlfriends (which will be lacking until I get to Colorado). Oh my: Scorty on the hill, East Dubuque debauchery, Scorty roadtrips period, Tourist Trap Tour of Iowa, To Hell and Back, C-stone, various trips to Ames/home/CF/D-port/etc.etc....Good memories.

I hold dear memories of hundreds of road trips, and I look forward to the memories from this roadtrip as well. Colorado...here I come!

Giving In

It's indescribable.

The way how I know for certain that this is the way God meant for a relationship to look. To work. To breathe. To function as an organism. The way He wants me to be cared for. I will never settle for less than this because this is what I know God wants for me. What I don't deserve, but He says I do anyway. I can feel it everyday. In the way he wants to provide for me. In the way he listens to my pointless stories, and actually says he cares about them. And I can tell that he does. In the way he never complains when I talk too much, when I know I'm talking too much.

It's not perfect, but I know this is right. We fight, yes. We argue. We're stubborn, and we miscommunicate. But then we reconcile. We talk through issues and speak our needs. Knowing that we need to hash them out before they take root in our selves and our relationship.

I'm probably the most stubborn of the two of us. I so love to hold on to the hurt and pain I've experienced in the past. To grasp hold of the anger and bitterness and harbor it in my body to fester, silently letting it eat me up until I'm mute and emotionless. But he doesn't let me. He comes after me, never forcing, but always willing. Pursuing me in a way that I can't resist. Gently and silently persuading me to give up my urge to deal with things myself (when I know I never will), the way Jesus pursues me daily to give up my sins and my issues.

It's hard. It's hard to be honest and it hurts. To have to tell someone what is wrong and what is hurting you. To let them know that they've done something to cause this pain. The initial yelling and the silent treatment are easy. They're just buffers I know I put up to avoid dealing with the real issues. I expect him to give up and let me be mad until my silence passes and then the issues blow over. But that never happens. He waits, yes, but then he wants to talk. He comes to me when I'm not ready to unmask the wound, but he waits anyway. And after my initial blunderings and excuses, I eventually give up my burden. And he accepts it. And he truly listens. Will things change immediately? Probably not. I can't see anytime soon that he'll stop falling asleep every moment he can. BUT he listens, and I know he cares and desires to change. And as we hash out problems, I realize that I need to change too. And this means everything.

Is he perfect? Not a chance. But am I? Not even close. But there is one who is perfect, and He's the one who holds us together. He makes up for the imperfections in the both of us, and no matter what road our relationship takes us on, He will be the one guiding us. He'll be the one gently persuading the both of us to give in more to each other and to Him.

Provisions

How is it that God always knows just what we need and He often provides it when we least expect it?

Today, for example. I worked at ITEC. Got 5 hours of sleep. Woke up at 5 am, and worked until 7:30. God provided energy for my entire day. Don't know how I made it through, but I did.

Driving to Des Moines. Rain. Scary. God provided safety for our drive.

Money short for the day. My mom was here. God provided her joy and company...and she bought me supper.

Cold room to sleep in (I'm staying in the creepy vendor booths). Didn't bring socks or a sweatshirt. God provided a vendor booth giving away socks (not even kidding), and extra blankets given to us by the Marriott.

How sweet is that?

Oh yes, and I saw Steve Wozniak speak twice today. If you don't know who that is...you should.

For my Intelligence

Last night, Chaz, Katie B, Renee, Tommy, Matt and I went to a high school homecoming game. It's fun to go to the high school events since Chaz is a teacher now. It's also fun to make fun of him about all of the high school girls being in love with him. Which is true. Then, it's fun to hear them ask if I'm his girlfriend, and have him respond with a resounding yes and a smile.

Going to the restroom last night, I walked into the bathroom and stood against the wall, waiting for a stall to open (since it always takes forever in girls' bathrooms. Well, there were two cute, high school girls standing by the mirror. One primping, one waiting for the primper. The non-primper whispered to the primper, "That's Mr. Engelkes' girlfriend." The primper responded with, "Where?" Then the non-primper proceeded to non-chalantly nod my direction. I smiled to myself, knowing full-well that these girls are checking me out. The primper turns around (completely obviously) to look at me. I merely ignore their game and continue to wait for the restroom, chuckling to myself and thinking about how I'm going to tell everyone about this. The primper gets finished and the two girls left the bathroom. Right outside the door, however (well-within earshot), the primper turns to the non-primper and says, "He must like her for her intelligence."

WHAT?!? I mean, I know I'm not this knockout, complete babe or anything, but I didn't think I was bad enough to get the, "He must like her for her intelligence," comment. Even from high schoolers. Now, no worries, people, I didn't take this to heart or anything. I'm not going to let my self-esteem be determined by some jealous high schoolers with a thing for their teacher. I actually think it is quite funny. This is what I have to look forward to in teaching. And I had forgotten what high school was like.

Oh high school.

Cop Show Addiction

I'm addicted to cop/law shows:

CSI, CSI: New York, CSI: Miami, Without a Trace, Shark, 48 Hours Mystery, Law & Order, Law & Order SVU...And right now, I'm watching Matlock. Oh Andy Griffith.

Even if the show is of poor quality, I can't help it. I get hooked. And once a cop show starts, and I start watching it, don't even try to talk to me. I'm hooked trying to find out what is going on. I need help with this terrible addiction.

The solution: Turn the TV OFF!! (but i'm having trouble...HELP!)

A year of memories

A year ago, September 19.
You and I embarked on a grand adventure.
What has resulted?
A year of memories.

You helped me to remember those memories on our "special day." I came home to a string of memories captured in pictures and words across my room...

fireworks at the State Fair

Kate and Chazland

2 a.m. at the bridge

sunset at Ada Hayden

wedding dances

bike rides (and doubles biking)

late nights at Stomping Grounds

road trips

adventures in Rwanda

Many more memories to come. Maybe we'll move to Carolina, own a cute cottage, and travel up and down the coast, having adventures everywhere we go. Maybe we'll travel to distant lands, teaching and loving people. Maybe we'll live in the Iowa countryside and co-teach English. Whatever we do, all I know is that I'm thankful it'll be with you.

The Art of Being a Woman

This one is probably not for the fellas, but eh, we have to learn to laugh at ourselves, right? So I'm going to share this story anyway...

I sit down at a table today, ready to start another wonderful class in the world of Hagge and History of the English Language. I plunk my bag on my lap to gather my materials to enhance my learning, and all of a sudden, my wallet starts to fall out of one of the font pockets. I catch it and say, "Ope...that would have been unfortunate, haha." Chuckling to myself (and to the stares of people around me), I get my book, notebook, folder, and pen out, hang my bag on the back of my chair, and begin class.

Well, I begin to while away my time in class. I'm fidgeting, I'm shuffling my feet, and all of a sudden, I step on something. I check under the table to be sure I didn't step on my friend's foot, and I see, there, laying on the ground, packaged neatly in white and yellow wrapping....A TAMPON! Yes, I had dropped a tampon on my classroom floor when my wallet almost fell out of my bag. I try and play it cool, but my heart is beating rapidly in my chest. I can't believe this is happening. Play it cool. No one's noticed. Just keep this up for the rest of class...oh no! There's still an hour left of class! Oh please, God, don't let anyone see it! Wait, there's nothing to implicate me. No worries. They'll think it was someone else's...yeah....someone else's.....Still, all I can imagine is that KATE'S TAMPON is scrawled in giant, black permanent marker on the tampon, or that THAT'S MY TAMPON ON THE FLOOR is scrawled on my forehead for all to see and gawk at. Oh my...miserable.

I barely managed to survive class without looking at it (I did check around to see if anyone was staring a few times). Then, I forced myself to ignore the feminine hygiene product lying on the floor as I left, and left my mark laying on the ground for the next class to deal with...I wonder what happened to it....

Hope that story made you laugh...how embarrassing, eh? That kind of stuff always happens to me when I'm having one of those "bad days." Ugh. Oh the art of being a woman...

Diligently Working

Yes, I'm diligently working. Diligently getting my schoolwork done. Diligently doing my reading. Diligently writing my responses. Diligently working on my online courses. Diligently getting everything done.

....And diligently procrastinating. I'm diligently working, just not until right before things are due....

Oh the inhumanity!

More Rwandaness

Check it everyone:

http://www.dewittobserver.com/

Click on the article to read the full thing.....oh wait, I'll just post it here. But still, go there to see the pics.

9/5/2007

Trip to Rwanda instills students with sense of spirituality, hope

By Kate Howes
Staff writer

When three area college students decided to help citizens of an impoverished, third-world country, they never expected to get so much in return.

Their mission began at the suggestion of University of Northern Iowa (UNI) student Nancy Umuhire, who originally is from Rwanda in east central Africa and has not been back to her homeland in three years.

Nancy often had spoken of her dream of returning home and taking other college students with her in an effort to help the residents of Rwanda.

When fellow UNI student Kelly Keegan of DeWitt and her good friend, Iowa State University student Kate Schmidt of Delmar, heard about the idea they wondered what was keeping Nancy's dream from becoming a reality.

"We said, 'Well, let's go to Rwanda,'" Kate recalled. "Nancy asked if we were sure and we said, 'Absolutely, let's go.'"

Over the course of the next year, a group of 13 students from various area colleges volunteered to go, including Kate's younger brother and fellow Iowa State University student, Ben.

The group worked diligently and was able to raise over $30,000 to cover expenses for their trip.

"It was amazing," Kate shared. "Just to have so much affirmation from people. We had a lot of people telling us, 'It's so great you're doing this.' We just thought it was great that we could be doing it."

So, in mid-July, the group traveled to Rwanda where they would stay for two weeks, helping to build a new home for three orphan siblings, ages 15, 20 and 22.

In hopes of being taken off the third-world country list, Rwanda has launched "Vision 20/20," a plan designed to help move poor people out of the capital city of Kigali and into their own homes.

The orphans' new home was part of that effort.

Although their main objective was to build the house, Kelly, Kate and Ben came away from the experience utterly amazed by the progress the people of Rwanda have made since the 1994 genocide and truly inspired by the sense of unity and hope which binds them together.

Welcomed to the family

Members of the group lived with different host families during their stay in Rwanda, all of whom warmly welcomed the students with open arms.

Kelly and Kate stayed with a mother and her four daughters, while Ben stayed with the Mubiligi family whose son, Eugene, is a student at Iowa Wesleyan in Mount Pleasant.

"The hospitality they showed us was amazing," Kate related. "They let us invade their homes, fed us, did Bible study with us. We felt such a connection with them."

In addition to helping build a new house in a small village just outside of Kigali, the students were able to take in a lot of the city's historic sights and culture.

Some of the stops on their itinerary included the famous Hotel Rwanda and Kigali's Genocide Memorial Center, which pays tribute to the nearly 800,000 people brutally murdered in 100 days by way of machetes and guns during the genocide.

"That was really heart-wrenching to see," Ben shared. "They had a children's section where you could see pictures of kids who died, learn how they died . . . that was really intense."

They also visited two orphanages, including the first such facility to open after the genocide. The orphanage is home to 180 children, with whom Kelly, Kate and Ben played games, teaching them American classics such as "Red Rover" and "Duck, Duck, Goose."

"Meeting the children was a great experience," Kelly shared. "We taught them games, they taught us games, we sang songs . . . the relationship we were able to build with the people in the village and the children was awesome."

"The kids all just seemed really happy," Ben noted. "We gave them bubbles to blow and they loved those. We also gave them a football, bags of school supplies, stuffed animals and candy."

The students made a positive impression on the older members of the village as well.

To build the new three-bedroom house, the college students worked with a crew of construction workers whose tools consisted of only shovels, pic axes, a wheelbarrow and hammers.

Ben made an instant connection with the workers, talking to them for hours at a time and not letting the language barrier stand in the way.

"We didn't speak the same language, but we were still able to communicate," he explained. "They wanted to learn English. I hated to say good-bye to them. They wondered when we were coming back . . . we told them, 'Hopefully soon.'"



A lesson in forgiveness

Many of the students who visited Rwanda, including Kelly, Kate and Ben, would like to return someday.

Known as the "Land of 1,000 Hills," the group found themselves fascinated by Rwanda's picturesque landscape.

Yet, more than the country's unexpected beauty, the students truly were amazed by the friendly and compassionate nature of the people.

Although it was just 13 years ago when over half a million people were brutally murdered - neighbors killing neighbors - the country has made tremendous progress and has gone on to become the most stable country in Africa.

Knowing how far the citizens of Rwanda have come and how much forgiveness they have shown one another has forever changed the way Kelly, Kate and Ben will look at the world.

Although they completed their mission of building a new home, the students believe they came away with far more than they gave.

"There's a huge need there, but they've made huge steps," Ben related. "It really was a spiritual thing for me. It helped me to see how God can do so many great things. There's so much hope there. The people all are trying to make things better - they're really united in what they're doing. They all work so hard together . . . together, they can do anything."

"Being there really expanded my world view," Kate shared. "The way they've forgiven each other has helped me realize I need to show more forgiveness and to be thankful for what I have. I'm going to try to be more giving and thankful for my family . . . after all, it's something so precious."

"It was really inspiring to be there and see how much those people have come together," Kelly noted. "They're setting a great example to other countries in Africa. It gives a person a lot of hope to see that. It definitely changed me. The poverty you see there; you can't see it and not want to do something about it. It makes me realize how truly blessed we are in America."

A night for amazements...

I witnessed an amazing experience tonight.
Steve and Chaz had recently both gotten the new Tegan and Sara cd, so Steve started listening to it, and then Chaz did as well. Then they spent minutes trying to get the songs to play simultaneously on their computers. They'd try and miss, and then try and miss again. And again. And again. Then, finally, they got the song playing in a seemingly sound-system harmony across the room. Such victory, screams, and fist pumping I haven't seen since the World Cup. Wo-ow.

I also had my first experience Skyping in "Skype Me" mode tonight.
After being propositioned for sex three times (after which I promptly blocked the creeps), I talked to a guy from New Jersey, Italy, Yemen, and a woman from Malaysia. How amazing that we have the world at our fingertips to communicate and share cultures. And just to have fun chatting.

rain, rain, go away

It rained today...again. For about the twentieth day in a row. I knew it was probably going to rain because, let's face it, rain has been predicted for the past two weeks. However, this morning as I was contemplating whether or not to bring my blue rain jacket with the sweet, gray-striped sleeves, I opted not to take it. After all, I only had class until 9:15. If it was raining later, I could always bring my rain jacket to my afternoon class.

At precisely 9:15, as class was letting out, rain started pelting from the sky. dang.

Fortunately, there was an umbrella in the lost and found in the CTLT, so I borrowed that and biked my merry way home looking much like Mary Poppins but riding a bike instead of floating down from the heavens.

Then, after work tonight (after bringing my rain jacket with me to avoid the same mistake as earlier), I began to bike in the cool, calm night air. About halfway home, once again, rain began to soak me. I stopped my bike, whipped on my rain jacket, and biked the rest of the way home, joyfully biking through puddles and lightly splattering my ankles, happy to be mostly dry.

While I was fortunate to have my rain jacket tonight, I do not wish to continue to lug it around with me everywhere. So please, rain, go away and stop bringing humidity to frizz my hair to bits.

Culturality

I love hearing about other countries...and I love sharing my stories as well. Not that I have a whole lot. I have yet to travel the world, but China and Rwanda are exciting conquests. One of the things I love to hear are stories about cultural faux pas people have made.

My co-worker Matt told me stories from Australia today. The best one was when he and some fellow Americans were sitting around the supper table and one of them mentioned, "I'm stuffed." Immediately the small children of the family clapped their hands over their ears, and the family went silent. The parents merely responded, "So, um, that's how you say it?" Then Matt and his friends were explained that "I'm stuffed" means a certain four-letter-word in English. Matt and his fellow countryment then assured them that they actually meant they were full and the meal was delicious.

Delightful! What a wonderful world we live in where we are able to experience awkwardness with other cultures that are so different from our very own. I love it!

I wish we all experienced culturality more often.

Oh glory of glories!

Second day of class....yessssssssssssssssssss.

I don't have a really big class load, which is sweet. However, the classes I do have will probably be a substantial amount of work. I'm winding down in credits to take, which is really exciting. 13 credits this semester, 15 next semester, and then student teaching.

But the most amazing, wonderful, fantabulous news is that I have class, yet again, from the fantastic Uncle John Jack. Oh yes, my friends. I am delighted to hear more jokes, laughter, and puns from this jolly human being. Unfortunately, I am unable to describe such a man. As Melanie said to me today, "John Jack is more of an experience." And it's true. All I can say is, I am filled with immeasurable joy at the prospect of his class this semester. And what makes it even better is the fact that the class is full of amazing people I have had the pleasure of being in other classes with. Oh my...it will be gloooorious!

zombies, vampires, and schoolness

I'm a zombie.
Kim's a vampire.

Well, not really, but sometimes we wish we were. But then again, not, because we get scared (well, I do anyway).

I watched "Shaun of the Dead" the other week, and I loved it. It was hilarious, scary, and sad all at the same time....which is a weird set of emotions to experience all at once. Ever since then I've been on a zombie kick. I've researched zombies and dreamed zombies...scaring myself. Kim and I watched "28 Days Later" the other night...and then I slept with her. I was too afraid that one of the infected would burst through my window and bite me. It was a good thing I slept with her too, booming thunder had us scared silly in the wee morning hours.

Likewise, Kim is obsessed with vampires. She read the first book in the Twilight series, and now she's on a vampire kick. Mostly because they're sexy. So last night Kim, Kenz, Sarah, and I watched "Interview with a Vampire." Sexy.

Basically, Kim and I are in a disturbing love affair with the undead. And we're going to have an undead party...which will be sweet.

On another note....school starts today. I only have one class today, which will be awesome. Chaz started school last week, which is way exciting. His classroom looks great, his students are sweet, and I think he's going to have a lot of fun. I'm so excited for him (as well as the prospect of helping him)! Hooray!

"As Mr. Sloan always says, there is no "I" in team, but there is an "I" in pie. And there's an "I" in meat pie. Anagram of meat is team... I don't know what he was talking about."