I did it, all by myself!

Right now I'm sitting in the hostel in Chicago I'm staying at while I do this 3 day bus tour of Chicago Public schools. I just want everyone to know that I'm QUITE proud of myself at the moment. No, I haven't gotten a job (but that's the next mountain to climb). However, I did manage to make the entire trip here all by myself! This included the 3 hour drive to Nashville (next time you try to fly to Memphis, fly into Nashville and save yourself $300), flight to Chicago, subway train ride, and walk to the hostel. Despite a close call on almost missing my flight, I made it! Now, on to finding a job....

Speaking of which, I have a great one for the summer! The daycare I have worked at for the past two summers hired me again, but this time, I'm a full day teacher! Before, I was an assistant/floater/substitute that they used whenever they needed me. This summer, I have eight 3.5 year olds to singlehandedly conquer and teach. I also get my own classroom to decorate! While this is all really nice and great, it's been more than a little stressful trying to get everything ready for that classroom, while still preparing to come to Chicago and kick butt at this Teacher Fair business. Oh, yeah, and then I'm supposed to sleep. The long weekend sure came in handy. On Sunday, my mom and sister came to help me at school and we spent 6 hours cleaning (mom's job), decorating (Marissa's job), and organizing (my job). BUT, it looks fantastic! Like kids could really learn there and I could be okay there everyday. The dirtiness that it was made me really, really unhappy. Good thing we fixed that.

So, tomorrow, we're going to some schools on the South side of Chicago...we'll see if it's really as bad as everyone says. This is all very exciting, but so overwhelming, too!

Maybe I'm the Mermaid

Today, I told the kids to clean up so we could change centers. One of the children didn't want to clean up, and I explained to her that she had to change centers. Her response: "All I wanna do is be a dog." (she was attached to a leash-sort-of object and was quite enjoying herself). This reminded me of this great anecdote:

Giants, Wizards, and Dwarfs was the game to play. Being left in charge of about eighty children seven to ten years old, while their parents were off doing parenty things, I mustered my troops in the church social hall and explained the game. It's a large-scale version of Rock, Paper and Scissors, and involves some intellectual decision making. But the real purpose of the game is to make a lot of noise and run around chasing people until nobody knows which side you are on or who won.

Organising a roomful of wired-up gradeschoolers into two teams, explaining the rudiments of the game, achieving consensus on group identity - all this is no mean accomplishment, but we did it with a right good will and were
ready to go.

The excitement of the chase had reached a critical mass. I yelled out: "You have to decide now which you are - a GIANT, a WIZARD, or a DWARF!"

While the groups huddled in frenzied, whispered consultation, a tug came at my pants leg. A small child stands there looking up, and asks in a small, concerned voice,

"Where do the Mermaids stand?"

Where do the Mermaids stand?

A long pause.

A very long pause.

"Where do the Mermaids stand?" says I.

"Yes. You see, I am a Mermaid."

"There are no such things as Mermaids."

"Oh, yes, I am one!"

She did not relate to being a Giant, a Wizard, or a Dwarf. She knew her category: Mermaid. And was not about to leave the game and go over and stand against a wall where a loser would stand. She intended to participate, wherever Mermaids fit into the scheme of things. Without giving up dignity or identity. She took it for granted that there was a place for Mermaids and that I would know just where.

Well, where DO the Mermaids stand? All the "Mermaids" - all those who are different, who do not fit the norm and who do not accept the available boxes and pigeonholes?

Answer that question, and you can build a school, a nation, or a world on it.

What was my answer at the moment? Every once in a while I say the right thing. "The Mermaid stands right here by the King of the Sea!" says I.

(Yes, right here by the King's Fool, I thought to myself.)

So we stood there hand in hand, reviewing the troops of Wizards, and Giants and Dwarfs as they roiled by in wild disarray.

It is not true, by the way, that Mermaids do not exist. I know at least one personally. I have held her hand.
----Robert Fulghum, taken from All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten -Uncommon Thoughts on Common Things

What Baseball's All About

With the constant barrage of steroid updates, this story really is what it's all about. Read it (regardless of your baseball knowledge), but not if you're feeling the lease bit emotional.

Jon Lester pitches no-hitter (Sports Illustrated)

Prepare Yourselves

It's no secret that I hate talking on the phone. I would so much rather write to people or, better yet, see them in person. However, after only about 4 days away from everyone at Vandy, I've decided that I will have to get over this. I miss everyone. Alot. So, expect a call...everyone. I'm making that my new goal. To use the phone. I think I can do it.

Courtesy

I just got back from a (quite successful) shopping adventure with my mom and sister. While we were in Gap, somehow my sister managed to tell the salesperson that I was planning to move to Chicago and be a teacher. The girl-who was probably a year or so younger than me-then proceeded to come into my dressing room (the door was open, but still) and tell me "You are gonna be so poor." That is an exact quote. Earlier today, my mom told me a story about how someone she worked with told her, "You know you don't make much teaching." All of this prompted me to just let everyone know that these things are inappropriate. I've had people say all kinds of things to me, including:
- Teaching is really the best job for raising a family.
- You'll need to make sure you marry a rich man.
- I can't believe you want to teach inner-city kids.
- When you get summers off, you shouldn't get paid very much.

Now, my friends know that I joke about not making much money in my career. However, if you don't know me at all (or even if you do), it's NOT OKAY to say things like this. Be happy for me. Say that you are glad I'm planning to help others. Tell me that you wish me well. Those things are okay, but any of the things listed above aren't. I've come to a point where I'm gracious enough to just smile and go along with people when they say offensive things....I know that they won't understand that this has been my dream since I was a little girl. But just because I smile and listen to what they're saying doesn't mean it doesn't make me angry. Just putting that out there.

Honeysuckle

Last year around this time, I was preparing to head off to England. I remember posting about how the honeysuckle in Germantown takes over and the whole town smells like it. I had forgotten about that until I got out of the car last night. After many, many (many) tears, I headed out of Nashville around 2:00 yesterday. That should have put me home around 5:00......except for the HUGE wreck about 60 miles outside Nashville. I sat in that traffic for an hour and a half. It took me 5 hours to make a 3 hour trip...that was not fun. When I got home, though, it smelled like honeysuckle, and that made it all okay.

Is this really happening?

This morning is our Senior Day speaker, and the beginning of the formal graduation ceremonies. Last night, we had The Party, where The Commodores (yeah, Brick House) performed. That was okay, it was neat with all of the lights and such on the Peabody Lawn. I don't actually know who the speaker guy is for today, but it is something that I can't get over because going to this thing means that graduation is really happening.

I've come to the conclusion that I'm having so much trouble with this because I don't really have all that much to look forward to in the immediate future. Going home for the summer is going to be great....but it's exactly what I have done for the past three years. I'm working at the same job and living with my family again. I feel like I should be moving to where I am going to be living, like everyone else. Not having a job yet is also not exciting. Boooo! I guess it's time for a reality check and for me to realize that this is my last chance to hang out with my sister and parents for an extended period of time, so I should enjoy this while it lasts.

I'm not ready to leave everybody at Vandy, but I don't think I ever will be. My time is up here, so......I guess, bring on graduation?

Ouch!

This week at Vandy is known as "Beach Week" and a lot of the seniors go down to Destin for a few days for one last hurrah. We have a week break between finals and graduation, so it's perfect for this. Unfortunately, I couldn't go because of having to work and it being a tad expensive. So, I'm here at Vandy with everyone (literally everyone) I live with gone to the beach. It's kind of sad. When I'm sad, I like sports, so decided that driving up to UT to watch Vandy play them would be really fun. And it was! We ended up sweeping the series from them (they might be a football school, but we're a baseball school with smart kids, we like to say). The only downer was that I ended up with one of the more severe sunburns of my life. It's the kind where only the tops of your thighs get burnt because the rest of you wasn't as exposed to the sun. My arms are also quite burnt in an awkward sort of way. For now, I'm on a steady diet of Tylenol and aloe spray gel to make the pain stop. Hopefully the strange redness disappears before all of those pictures are taken on graduation day.....