The Month of May

The month of May has been very interesting for me. I graduated from college, applied for teaching positions AND crappy summer jobs. Sadly I haven't acquired either yet. In my down time I've become something of a bum who enjoys TV and reading a little too much. Since I have gotten back to Texas I have:

Watched a lot of Miami Ink...

Watched the 1st and 2nd seasons of The Tudors. I have enjoyed the show, but it has a lot of sex in it.

And I have read these books. My favorite was The Help because of the characters. I got so consumed with their stories it was sad to finish the book. I also barely finished Black Like Me which was a great book dealing with racial equality in the '60s as well. I would recommend all of the following for some light summer reading.

Graduation!

Well I graduated! I feel like I should still be in school, and I don't know if I'm really ready to give it up yet. We'll see what the future holds. Although I'm missing some good pictures (lack of USB cables) I wanted to post a few of the fun weekend.

We started out Friday night at the Tandoori Oven. It is a fabulous Indian restaurant that shares its home with a sinclair gas station. However unique the restaurant is, we love it all the same. Dan and Cathy drove all the way out to Logan to come to the graduation ceremonies. Roxy graduated as well so they killed two birds with one stone.

These are a few of the friends I made over the years at USU. (Left to right) Shasta Burton (I love her for her cynical, but hilarious attitude), Julie Pederson (I will never forget our laughing/crying fest in an ESL class), me, and Marla Nielsen (the silly freshmen who now has a beautiful baby boy).
My mom truly supported me emotionally throughout my college career. I don't think I could have done it without her :)My sexy husband who wore the new polo we bought him because I said so. I really lucked out with finding Chris! I don't know where I would be if he wasn't in my life helping me stay sane.

My awesome new sister-in-law who I can share all of my funny stories with. She even stood in the dirt so our height difference wouldn't be so alarming on film. I can't wait for the YEARS of memories waiting to happen.

This picture was taken on Mother's Day. Dan and Cathy were on their way back to California, but were kind enough to stop for lunch and chat with my dad. It was even Cathy's birthday!!! If you can see in the tiny picture I uploaded, there is a new addition to my family. Yes that's right! My brother is dating someone! She is awesome and I think a great match for my brother. Unlike his first serious girlfriend (who was a total douche bag) Alyson actually talks and has a lot of goals she wants to accomplish. I think my dad loved her as well...

I have one more picture I want to share from graduation. It is a picture of my dad and I standing on the A on campus. My father is also an Alumni from USU. He came to Utah to earn his Master's degree in communications and to learn/perfect his English. Although my parents did not meet when my father first came to Utah, his experiences in Logan ultimately led him to my mother. Even if they divorced I think their love story is romantic. If only they could remember that and put their differences aside. In all reality if my parents were ever to "get back together" I would have thought that hell had frozen over. Life is just normal with them separated. I believe this is a product of my young age at the time of the divorce and the differences in the cultures of my mother and father. Life is so interesting if you take the time to think about it.

The Jazz Game!!

I was able to surprise Chris with tickets to the Jazz game. I don't know what got to me... but I splurged for some fun. In the end it was really worth it! I let a little hint slip early on in our vacation and instantly regretted it! Chris wouldn't drop it and I thought he would find the email or look at our bank statement. I even temporarily changed my email password to "CHRIS-IS-A-POOP" to make sure he wouldn't find it. He guessed correctly a few different times, and I was forced to buy an eye mask and ear plugs! We drove around downtown for 30 extra minutes to throw Chris off. He thought we were in Bountiful by the time we were in front of the Energy Solutions Arena. Sadly it wasn't the best game played by the Jazz, but we enjoyed it all the same.

Chris in his face mask and ear plugs :)I got my face painted! It was a lot of fun!

Student Teaching

I have had these pictures in a draft for awhile now... I wanted to add another picture but I'm in Utah, and I figure I better post it now rather than wait and forget all about it. I was able to go to Ike 9 on the 30th (my first official free day) and take some pictures.

This is the English Department at Ike 9.

(Left to Right): Ms. Woods, Ms. Simmons, Ms. Burt, Ms. Green (department chair), Ms. Ochoa, Ms. Navarre, Ms. Lenchak, Mr. Michaelson (cooperating teacher), me, Ms. Klukas, and Ms. Natale. Everyone is a Ms. because the students always defaulted to Ms.

Michaelson and I. We both commented on the awkwardness of the photo :)
Ms. Therrell's 5th period class (beginning level ESL).

(Left to Right): Ms. Therrell, Karla, Margharita, Eduardo, Iris, me, Elizabeth, Martin, Fernando, Khamsouk, Sergio, and Leyton in the front row.

These students were the sweethearts of the entire school (all except Sergio... the student who came back from COMPASS). I really enjoyed working with them, but it was one of the most challenging classes to handle.

The ESL teachers at Ike 9: Ms. Watson (has worked for AISD for 12 years now), me, and Ms. Therrell.

Ms. Therrell's 7th period class (the intermediate ESL class).

(Left to right): Ms. Therrell, Fernando, Mari Cruz, Jimmy, Tinairy, and Alondra.

Arturo was sadly missing from the picture... as was I (apparently I failed to upload the correct picture, meh!). The day before I was done Arturo had his legs barring a walkway. I asked him to move and he refused. After the 3rd refusal Ms. Therrell worte him up (a favorite pastime of Ms. Therrell, but he is not undeserving) and he got suspended for 3 days. I was shocked as well.

I also have a picture of Mr. Michaelson's 4th period GT class. They were the most fun to work with because of their maturity level and their actual intelligence as a group. I will try to remember to upload it at some point... but I'll probably forget, let's be honest.

I really enjoyed my student teaching experience even though it was the MOST CHALLENGING experience of my life. The work wasn't bad, but the experience made me think about those questions surrounding life. What's the point?? was the main focus of my worries. I can say I am still the most confused I have ever been, and my life plan doesn't seem to be as perfect as I once thought it was. I feel kind of like I'm living through a midlife crisis at the age of 23 :)

Well that went REALLY well...

This morning Aldine ISD had their transfer fair, and the student teachers were invited to attend. The recession has hit Aldine hard and they can no longer promise student teachers a job anymore because they are in a hiring freeze. I went to Humble ISD last night and had resumes left over. I figured why not save some ink and use the rest this morning. My objective read: to find a long term teaching position in Humble ISD; a district that values each student. Generic? Very much so. However generic it is, I realize that it will not help my chances with Aldine. If only I would have realized that before I left the apartment this morning. I realized it half way through the transfer fair. At my 5 remaining interviews I tried to make a joke of it...