Well, my adoring public... I am sure that you have missed me! I've been on a bit of a blogging sabbatical while I worked on a task of slightly larger proportions. Yes, that's right; I have been writing a book. Granted, its still very much in the sloppy-copy-with-large-amounts-of-editing-and-additional-writing-needed stages but I thought I would break my blogging fast and just write about a few things here today. And I don't want you all needlessly worrying that I have dropped off of the face of the earth or anything... ;)
What have I been up to? Well... I could break it down very simply for you. My week of late starts on a Tuesday on which I rise early at 0600 and busy myself with general preparations for a day of work. I have found that given the option of wearing pretty much whatever I want to wear to work (within reason and good repair of course) I will never opt for anything but jeans. Over the years of dress codes at other places of employment, I have managed to amass a small plethora of dress clothes which I like to varying degrees... but when I am faced with the question of what will I wear today and jeans is one of the options... I will pick it 99.99% of the time. I guess I have that relationship with my jeans that some people have with their sweat-pants. Like at every given opportunity they will wear them. I will unabashedly admit that I have worn jeans to bed before too without the slightest trepidation as far as comfort.
Anyway... back to me getting ready for work... then I make a lunch, and leave my house by 0700. I drive 30-45 minutes to work. Depending on the amount of traffic and what they are doing with the stupid K-18 construction. I usually get cut off by at least one really bad driver at this point as well. As I drive I have come up with a no music policy. Instead I use that time to think about my day and get my head organized, and I usually pray for the day and for everyone that is on my heart that day. I wasn't sure that I would like commuting to work, but aside from the obvious gas expenditure, I actually enjoy it!
When I get to work I get things prepped at the house, get on the bus with my little buddy and I'm off to another day in the 2nd grade! We get to learn a lot of fun things like how to borrow when we are subtracting, and about reading for plots and main ideas, and spelling all sorts of fun things. A long time ago I wondered if I would like being a teacher, but decided I wouldn't go to school for that because I didn't want to have to deal with a school system that would want me to teach that I am related to a monkey, which I am not really cool with. Now I get to act as a para for my little buddy for about 1/2 the day. Granted, I have no formal training in this, so sometimes my attempts at explaining something fall on flat ears, but I simply adore when I see the eyes light up and I know my student finally understands! Its about one of the best feelings ever really! I could easily understand why people feel that its rewarding to be a teacher.
Usually throughout the course of the day I have one or two simply crazy, either revelations, or conversations with students that leaves me in wonderment of the workings of a 2nd grade brain. For example:
I had a conversation on the playground the other day with two 2nd grade boys about what aliens are like, to which they adamantly declared that they looked funny, they talked unintelligibly, and were ultimately evil wishing to blow up anything in their paths. They were very discouraged when I suggested that since they had never personally met an alien they could not know that they were inherently evil, neither could they know what they looked like, and just cause someone talks funny doesn't mean that they are a bad person. Further illustrated when I started talking in an accent. When they supported their theories about the bent-on-destruction nature of the beasts they were describing by saying that they knew this to be true because they had seen it on TV, I nearly despaired for the whole generation. However, through some skillful questioning on my part I was able to get them to admit that those where only renderings of what another person thought that these creatures where like and they rather resentfully admitted that they had no hard evidence since they were not eye-witnesses to a visit of extra-terrestrial nature. When the bell rang to go in to lunch I couldn't help but feel a smug sense of accomplishment that I was broadening the minds of the next generation one playground conversation at a time.
There are many other conversations both overheard and engaged in which would make you laugh at the candor of these innocent minds. Like the time where they were explaining to me the difference between boy and girl snakes, "This one is a boy. I can tell cause of all the spikes. That snake is a girl, cause its smooth." or the one upping on the playground the other day... it started small and soon escalated to this, "...Well you have to kiss the WHOLE UNIVERSE!" countered by, "Well, you have to pee in an alien's nose!!" at which both boys doubled over in laughter and then both agreed that now they were just being silly. I tell you... sometimes...
And its funny the things I learn sometimes... like blood oranges? Anybody heard of them? Look them up and I'm sure you'll understand why I could only manage to try the taste. They taste perfectly pleasant, but getting past the look is a bit more than my stomach could handle. Also... I don't think that I fully understood about the axis and rotational journey of the earth until we were looking at in class the other day. Armed with my handy-dandy blackberry (or crackberry as its called because of its addictive nature) I was able to look up a lot more information and fully comprehend some things that I hadn't really known before.
I also found a perfect chunk of time during the day where I am able to sit back and ready my scriptures for the day on my phone. This is not ideal always for really in depth Bible study, but it does keep me up to date with the read through the Bible in a year plan that they are doing through church, and then I can search out things later in the evening. Usually there is one small nugget which I can carry with me through the day at school and its very encouraging.
Lest you think that I am simply a playground monitor though, and not actually a nurse... I should state that I thoroughly enjoy my job as a nurse as well. No complaints from me in that department, though I am obviously much more fettered as to what I can post about that on here. Its been nice to deal with a pediatric population I must say. I've always wanted to work in that field since I first started my nursing degree, and its simply lovely how God finally worked it out for me to do exactly that! Man, I love Him!
Needless to say after a busy day at school, we come home, report about our day, finish up some work, and then I get back on the road between 1700-1800. My drive home always seems to be a bit more tumultuous. I usually get cut off at least 3 times on the way home and have started opting to drive all the way around to the next exit for instead of using the dreaded construction route because around that time of day everyone from the Fort gets off duty too and start heading the same direction. Its better for my general sanity if I don't have to interact with them, so I choose to tack an extra 5-7minutes on my trip and just go around.
I get home where I generally have some sort of supper to throw together in a hasty manner depending on what time I got home, and then its off to some activity for church or meeting with a friend.
Now that they days are so beautiful I am really delighting in keeping my windows open all the time and coming home to and sleeping in the fresh air I find rather invigorating. In any case it has only been slightly hampered by my allergies and I think that was in relation to the fields burning and not allergies per say.
On the weekends I have developed a habit of sleeping in on at least one day. Its quite luxurious I know, but I thoroughly feel that I deserve it at times. The rest of the weekend is spent as weekends ought to be. Hanging out with friends, Vintage Faith Church, and of course the infamous laundry.
Other than that, you can usually find me in a local coffee shop with a good book or with pen in hand, furiously scribbling away.
Anyway, so I've been keeping my eye out for vegetarian recipes to try, and I found this one for African Sweet Potato and Peanut Stew that actually sounded like something I would have eaten in Africa. And as you all know, I have a frank obsession with anything African so I knew I just had to try it!
And just like that... Dinner is served (Vegetarian style)! Of course I had to have my brother and sister over to try out the scrumptious meal! My brother brought some french bread for an extra side, and the meal looked beautiful! I would have to say though, that the flavor of the stew was not exactly my favorite. I like cinnamon a lot, but I don't think it goes with vegetables very well, and I would probably leave that out if I make it again. Other than that though, it was very filling, which I find is one of the hardest things about vegetarian cooking, so I'm marking it down as a success!! 