Hmmmm... Holidays...

Gonna make this quick because it is beautifully rainy, and it is holidays and I am dying to play some music before I head over to Anne's house for my belated birthday pizza feast. YUM!

I guess things were busier the last two weeks than expected! It was a whirlwind at the end- exams, graduation painting and slideshow prepping, marking, cleaning up the classroom, picnic race, ordering for next year, report cards, etc. etc. Needless to say, I am FINALLY finished and am super duper happy. I cannot express the relief I feel. Sure having a month and a half off is a super nice benefit to being a teacher, but heck, one can barely rest and relax your mind in that time from the amount of stress that we go through with deadlines, the hormones and emotional drain we go through...

The graduation was a definite highlight of this year's finish. Three of the students from my very first Secondary 1 homeroom class were graduating. They were three superstars from that class and I was VERY proud to see them make it. I'm not gonna lie to you, they never had it easy, but they worked hard and made it, and now I will miss seeing them at school daily. It's kind of bittersweet, I'll be sad not having them around, but it is exciting to see a few success stories from the kids I taught.

I have a little less than a week left of holidays, and I am getting rather excited to go south. The blackflies are INCREDIBLY bad already and it is making it almost unbearable outside. I've having fun, catching up on pastimes I haven't found time for for quite a while, and going out by boat with Mark, Nancy and their fam. I've also gotten back into my music a bit- playing some guitar and singing a little, recording some tunes on the computer for fun. I've also started planning my visit to Ottawa and Toronto a little bit. I'll be in Ottawa for a little less than a week then to TO for a few days with Nancy and the girls. I booked tickets to "Dirty Dancing" the musical, and Nancy is taking care of choosing and booking the hotel right smack dab in the downtown. Plans so far include shopping, swimming and supper at an Italian restaurant... I'm sure other things will fit in as the date gets closer...

Well, the rain is still pouring down and I am really eager to play a few more tunes before supper... Will post some more recent pics soon... (check out my Facebook page since I have been putting many new pics the past few days!)

Need to do something...

So, I don't have my students right now.

But ever since 12 noon I have had the most spliting headache. I don't get headaches very frequently, but when I get one, it is killer, and it proves to me that I do not handle pain with the grace that you see in the faces of most people on "the Baby Story". Equally, I suspect that child-bearing might be something that I am not strong enough to handle as well! haha!

Also in an attempt to slowly get in gear for the posts I NEED to do regarding my parents voyage to Kangiqsualujjuaq, here is a teaser pic from the day they came with my class on a dog team excursion.



To get my mind off of the headache I am writing a quick note. Wish I had an accompanying picture, but never had the time yet. The big story this week is PAVEMENT! You might think that is an odd topic to put in bold with an exclamation mark, but it is SUCH a big deal right now. Last year we were told our roads would be paved, but it just never happened over the summer for some reason. We were told they were waiting till the spring. So, here we are.

On Tuesday, we could see from my classroom windows that the pavers were FINALLY starting their work on the new road beside the newest houses. My students were looking with as much excitement as they look out when a goose or other hunt-able animal strolls or flies by. The planning also began, "I am getting my roller blades and playing hockey on the pavement after school", "I'm going to play road hockey with my friends tonight on the pavement", "I want a skateboard now that there is pavement", I'm gonna ask my mom to get me heelys so I can go on the pavement."

I haven't heard the word pavement so many times in one week before. Tuesday night was rainy but the students(and some adults) were not put off. I watched out my window as bikes, hondas and kids travelling on foot went to "the pavement" as if to a Buddhist Shrine. It was hilarious, and cute all at the same time. The next day the students all had their own stories about the pavement. Wednesday the road, a slight downhill near the Nursing Station, was the next section to get paved. Again kids were out in droves as soon as the 3:30 bell rang. One of my secondary students told me to feel how cold his iPod was. When I asked him how it got so cold, he said he was lying down on the pavement to see what it was like. Thursday they started on the road in front of my house, and the bikers were out again, They would drive up to one end in front of my place and then drive down past the northern turning on the paved side street and going down as far as the Nursing station. They came to class this morning showing new bruises, cut knees and elbows and scratches. They are learning the evil contrast to dirt roads now, but it has not decreased their enthusiasm. Tonight one loop should be complete, so the races will begin- bicycle versus rollerblades- Wayne versus Jeremias(from my biology class). Oh how exciting pavement can be!

Have a wonderful weekend!

I'm a maniac, maniac on the run....

Gosh, do I ever hate that commercial where the car saleman is running like a freak and doing odd hip girations as well as getting water dumped over his body... enough said. It's just disturbing and clearly burned in my mind far too much.

I decided to write again. I mean, I just did my supervision, taught a class of biology, started the exam review sheets and now I need a reason to procrastinate on the pile of papers that need a mark in my backpack.

So, Detroit pulled of a Stanley Cup win last night and Newfoundlanders everywhere are excited that there is finally a Newf's name on the Cup. It's as if they should really just engrave "Newfoundlander" instead of Dan Cleary since that is what his name will represent to many! Good on you B'y! Way to represent! Congrats to the team, who just dominated the games and seem to be 100 times faster than anyone else on the ice. I do have to mention my proud of NS native, Sidney Crosby. He doesn't seem like a young punk kid, he's really grown and filled the shoes that his reputation created for him, and more than anything I am proud to have someone with soooooo much intensity, right to the last minute of the series. I mean, it seemed like many of the Penguins had given up, started looking lethargic like they never had a chance. BUT Crosby kept hustling, fighting and playing with an intensity that couldn't be shaken. He's got heart and just never seems to lose it, even if things look impossible. I LOVE it! I hope you are proud of yourself, SC!

On to other news, I am starting to get rather excited to travel south for holidays. Going to see my friends in Ottawa first, hopefully meet up with April and Krystal (last years teachers who left us this year), maybe meet up with a few of my new Hip-hopper friends, see my friend Sherry's newest addition, Liam, and HOPEFULLY see Sex and the City Movie...

Then in mid July off to NS, and home sweet home, for some TLC from Mom and Dad, some home-cooking from my gourmet brother, and seeing my nephew for the first time, Landon, who I have heard is growing like a weed and is hardly "newborn" anymore! No big plans for that part of my trip, but I hope to get back in my routine of biking, hoping to visiting Aussie's Nan's house for some kayaking, which was OH so excellent last year, and maybe visit some pals in Halifax and take in some of the nightlife up there.

As for now, I am have discovered a new passion. Stunt kite flying. I have dreamed for years of getting one, since living in Germany where my host mother, Johanna Becker, was a kite freak. And finally this year I found one on E-bay and promptly bought it. The wind is wild up here, and giving other people a chance to try it took its tole quickly so I have ordered four more so I can start my very own kite enthusiasts club. It is such an incredible way to relax after a frustrating day. You can divebomb annoying kids (or colleagues, hehehe) you can go fast or slow, you can do tricks and feel the thrill of saving it on after a risky potential crash move.

I have also been lucky to have friends with a boat. We went out by boat twice last weekend now that the pack ice has moved out of the river towards the sea more. (See photo below- one of Mark and Nance's family down by the breakwater on the river in May, and the other one of our most recent boat trip.)





This photo was when we drove out towards Ungava Bay by boat to the place where the pack ice was. Quite a ways out of the mouth of the river, we weaved left and right between the iceberg chunks and then went back to "The Magic Spot", one of the best fishing spots on the river.



Last weekend, we were fishing on the low tide (mudflats) and a black bear started approaching. Mark fired a few warning shots in the air, but it was not put off and kept approaching, so unfortunately we had to shoot it. At least it will help feed the dog team, so it isn't going to waste. It was pretty exhilarating and scary all at the same time. I think I will be a bit more nervous sleeping out without a gun now... YIKES!



Well, almost lunch time. Two posts for one day? Wow, hope I can be more regular now that I am getting into this. I still owe some people LOTS of pictures, so I will try to find time to do some retroactive posts about my parents visit and hiphop week, etc. when I get a chance.

Trying to get back into this...

Making this short...

Trying to get all of the courses I teach wrapped up but students are losing momentum at an alarmingly fast rate. Well, I take it back, it has actually improved this week over the previous month, but it seems too little too late. I am, likewise, READY FOR HOLIDAYS!

May was warm. Unseasonably so! May's long weekend found me travelling to the Hudson coast (Kuujuaraapik)for my last, at least for now, time at Tundra Trot regional running meet. My team did VERY well again and I feel proud in how the little whipper-snappers represented our school and town. they ran their little butts off this year in training and really showed a maturity beyond their years. Here is a pic of the ENTIRE team after we came home and showed our banners and medals to the rest of the school.



Otherwise, I have been busy with project proposals and school organization meetings for the class schedules and student lists and blah blah blah for next year... A part of me thinks a year off might have been nice, but now that I have determined to come back, I really can't imagine finding someone to fill my workload next year and not make the program I am involved in slightly go backwards. The students I have in my homeroom class are very special students, and MOST of the other teachers (even the ones who are here already, know the kids and are good teachers inherently) cannot teach/motivate them in even easy course content with any success. I have a relationship with these students that makes a lot of stuff possible in the classroom. They can take tough criticism from me in many cases, and not get their backs up like in other classes. We have mastered the dance of the give and take, and frankly I don't think the administration wants to even consider putting a new teacher into that setting... It'd be like putting a blind person in front of a blood thirsty firing squad... They'd have no chance of a clean get away...

Well, recess bell rang. I have to go supervise... I will TRY to get back into regular thought sharing... Bye for now.