Fashion and Fish

Here's Dad's fishing trip from this winter with "the boys". I think he had a lot of fun...gotta love those ski pants!

Picasa is a wonderful thing...
This is the truck Alexis picked out at the Toyota dealership...We all have dreams!

The End is Near

I apologize for how long it has been since I wrote on here. I am swamped with marking (I think that's permanent) and I had my computer in the shop for just over a week. The tech guy at our school is a miracle worker. My computer that once liked to shut itself down whenever it felt like is now a machine with four times the RAM amd Windows XP. Bye-Bye Millenium!

The school year is almost over. I will be sad to leave this school, and I am a bit anxious about the coming school year and the lack of a position as of yet. I know that God will provide, so I'm not allowing the anxiety to become full-blown fear. I'm trying to get my marking done!

On a bright side, I'm excited about coming home to work at kamp for a week in July. Mom and I are cooking for a junior camp. I'm also excited that Mom leaves for BC on Sunday for the first of her module classes in ...I'm not sure. I read the booklet and info, and it sounds really good. She could tell you the proper name for the course. The information has been replaced by final exams in my brain.

For those so inclined: I can be found on Facebook. I enjoy adding people. It's a great timesucker! Me and my procrastinating. I wish I could be paid for doing that!

MAY the Spring Begin!

Rugby. A sport for all seasons, all players. I'm really enjoying the assistant coach position I have going on. These guys and gals are hilarious, and it's really nice to have a mix of student ages. Things I have learned from rugby so far: you can (read: will) play in the snow, rain, sun and sleet. There's also a lot of wind! It's such a good game for teaching respect...if that ref gives you a penalty, you can be forgotten about down at those try posts! Be nice, or else! It's really neat to see these kids work together.

I think the snow might be gone for good. I hope I haven't jinxed it, but I have put away my car's plug-in cord. I'm excited to see my mom's new car...she's getting it from the same dealership that I did, so that should be good for some brownie points with this dealership! She and Alexis fly in tomorrow night, and we'll pick the car up Saturday. I guess I should do some marking tonight, as it definitely won't happen this weekend. I do want to show them my classroom. Steph helped me put up fabric on some of the bulletin boards last night, so things are a bit more brighter. It was strange and hilarious all at once...every different class that came in today had to touch the one very patterned fabric. It seemed like the wall pulled them into it. I guess I have some tactile learners!

I have joined the addictive, interesting, and time-sucking thing they call Facebook. So far there have been few surprises, but it has been interesting to see how many people are on there. It has added to the number of emails I get, which is nice. I like mail, and emails are rarely bills.

I'll be home for convocation in June. I had to book my first substitute. I'll see whoever shows up then!

Report Cards and Weather Reports

April showers bring May flowers...but what does two feet of snow in April bring? I had to pretty much shovel two feet of snow off of my poor little car on Saturday. Heavy and wet, it's perfect snowball snow. Here's hoping it melts by tomorrow. I'm glad I'm not on supervision until Wednesday!

Report cards went out on Friday, and I don't think there were any major surprizes for anyone. Now I just have to get and stay organized so I don't have that week of stress in June...It's amazing how few days there are left...it's really flying by. I do feel like I'm still treading water most of the time, but there are days where I sit down at the end of the day and say, "You know? That actually worked!"

On a completely bizarre note: I've started to help coach the co-ed rugby. It is a lot of fun, though I know very little about the sport. Wayne tells them what to do and I cheer them on. We practice every Tuesday and Thursday outside on the football field. We even went out this past Thursday, though you couldn't see across to the end of the field for the snow falling. For those of you in Foam Lake, please note: I know more about basketball than rugby! This ought to be good.

Now I can Get Home Safely

I have a car. Actually, I have two cars, one of which I'm not able to trust to get me home to Moose Jaw. Never fear, however: I will be able to get home for the Easter egg hunt and Easter Sunday service. I picked up my brand-new Toyota Matrix today. It's "Cosmic Metallic Blue", so in other words, shiny light blue. I'm really looking forward to the drive home, even if it is one of the dullest drives in the country.

On another note, any one who can teach me how to post pictures up on this site, let me know. I'm sure it tells me how somewhere, but I haven't found it yet.

Four days of school until Spring break...Of course we're working this week! New units plus marking. Report cards are far more work than I imagined! I am looking forward to being home for a few days.

If Dad offers any one of you his new Grapefruit wine...take it and run. It's almost as good as the Blackberry. I may need more in order to solidify my opinion!

Spring, Sprang, Sprung

Alberta in March...I've seen geese flying overhead, walked to school without a coat, heard gophers "frolicking", and heard a meadowlark singing it's lungs out. I'm so glad it's almost spring. I say almost, as yesterday was +16 degrees, and today it's trying to snow. It's a little bit schizophrenic right now, but it will straighten out.

March in a Jr. High School...Everyone at school is looking forward to the Easter break. Two short weeks, and a week off. It will be good for the students to have a break, and get some of the spring wiggling out of their systems. I'm looking forward likely coming home for a bit to see the grandparents and such. It all depends on the car/insurance situation. I've never had to fill out quite so many forms! I'm hoping I can get it all figured out in the next few weeks.

Report cards come out just after Easter, so I'm marking my butt off this next week. My question: why is it so hard to hand assignments in? I know some of these kids are finished, but they can't seem to hand them in to me! The easiest way to pass grade seven is to show up, and the 2nd way is to hand in the assignments. Maybe by June they'll have figured that out. After all, this is the first year they've been asked to be responsible for anything. It's big switch from grade 6 to grade 7, but it is March...not much time left!

I'm really enjoying Strathmore. I've gone into Calgary a number of times. Yesterday I went in ALL BY MYSELF for the first time, and I didn't even get lost. Thank heavens for Google Maps...those are instructions I can follow. If only IKEA wasn't so easy to find...

Well, let the marking begin. Feel free to distract me with an email or phone call...You know my attention span!

Alberta and Snow

Hello everyone who might be checking this site. I have finally had the internet installed in my apartment, and so I am able to access this site. The school had it blocked.

I am now teaching at Crowther Memorial Jr. High School in Strathmore, Alberta. I've been teaching for a week and a half, and I think I'm able to name about 60% of my students, as long as you only want their first names! I've learned that Valentine's Day + Jr. High Students = insanity. Sugar and hormones. Hormones and sugar. The dance is tomorrow, so we'll see how this goes!

That said, I'm already attached to some of these kids. I have some excellent students. I'm looking forward to St. Patrick's Day. I think it will be a blast.

I'm off to plan for the rest of the week. I have to have two days planned ahead for my one class that refuses to work in class. I'm planning on being in MJ this weekend. I'm very excited about CATS. I can't wait to see all the costumes, and how they pull together. Thank goodness for this Family Day holiday! I need to get my bookshelves and another kitchen chair -- that way I can have one at the table AND one at the computer! I'm just holing Little Car makes it home and back one more time. Until next time!

And Ye Shall Find...

I have a job. Last Thursday I mailed an application package to the Golden Hills School Division in Strathmore Alberta, Friday I got mad at Canada Post, Monday I forgave Canada Post. I got a call Monday evening, about 5 minutes after 5 pm, asking if I could be in Strathmore, Alberta for an interview the next day. You bet I could! Dad drove me to Strathmore (he didn't trust Little Car, but I didn't tell her that), I interviewed at 3 pm, and I had the job by 4:30 pm SK time. Thank goodness for that extra hour in there!

I'll be teaching grade seven English Language Arts, Social Studies, and one block of Health at Crowther Memorial Jr. High School. It's a 7-9 school, with over 650 students. My average class size is about 26-27 students, and I start on Monday! I'm in a bit of a panic about planning and packing and moving and such, but I'm so excited.

I know some people who were wondering about where I would end up would be checking this blog, so I've updated it. I think the plan is to move on Saturday, so if I don't see everyone who has been thinking and praying, I thank you now! I hope to be back to catch closing night of the musical, but that's planning too far in advance right now! So, thank you, and we'll talk again.

Still Seeking

I'm back at the library. I'm really hoping there will be a message on the answering machine when we get home, but I can wait. I can be patient. That might be what this is all about. I'm not a patient person. It's good practice, right?

Blair and I went up to Foam Lake this past weekend to say good bye to people I didn't get a chance to before Christmas. It was a good thing we went when we did, since the weather has turned downright nasty since we got home. I'm kind of glad that I don't have to leave the house more often than I have. Our roads here in the south aren't bad at all, but that wind is brutal.

Dad finally has a new truck. It's a basic GM Value leader. V6 motor, manual shift, came in from Winnipeg. The most important thing, of course, colour: it's a silvery grey. I think I'll call it the Grey Ghost, or maybe the Silver Streak 2. Blair hasn't even seen it yet, so I'm making sure he knows I've sat in it. Because it's just that important. With Dad buying this brand new truck, he's a little vehicle crazy. I'd better find a job soon, since the next thing he wants to do is see me buy a new vehicle. Here's hoping.

Ok, I only have 15 minutes left of my one hour allotment, so I had better get everything else done. God Bless!

Seek...

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! I'm here in Foam Lake, making sure I've said goodbye to everyone at church, and playing with Abigail. I cannot believe how fast she's growing or how much I miss her and Nathaniel. I would be sad, if I wasn't so excited about the future.

I have finished school. It's official. I have handed in my application to graduate, my application for my teacher certification license, and my application for a teaching job...I'm noticing a trend. I am seeking, and I'm praying, and I'm trusting.

I'm looking forward to the next week or so. Mom and Blair are back at school tomorrow, and that leaves Dad and I at the farm. I'll be sleeping, reading, cross stitching, scrapbooking and organizing what seems like a million pieces of paper I brought home with me. My room is finally liveable...kind of. You don't have to jump over many things, and nobody needs into the other closet anyway. I think the resident mouse even moved out.

I hope everyone has a blessed New Year, with many joys, and a few "growing opportunities". They make the good so much better. I will do my best to keep in touch, and to let everyone know when the sought is found. (If only we had internet on the farm...(sigh) Dad will never read this...)

By the Way...

I'm home. I'm home. I can't believe I'm home already. December has flown by. Christmas is past, and New Year's is only a few days away. I don't have a job yet, but I am catching up on some sleep. I don't think it has sunk in yet that I don't have to go back to school in January. I'm so used to going to school that this "life" thing will take some work.

I find myself missing Foam Lake. I miss the students that drove me nuts, and the students who became special to me. I miss living with Erin and Adam, Nathaniel, but especially Abigail. I wish I could have seen her on Christmas morning. I bet there wasn't a safe (or dry) piece of paper in the house! I'm looking forward to one more trip north, to pick up my stuff, and say goodbye one more time.

If you need, or want, to get a hold of me, I'm at the farm. I don't have the internet out there (Thank you Brandie for letting me use yours!), but I will be checking the email randomly, likely at the library. How cool am I.

Who knows where this road is going? I'm glad I have a really good navigator.

Snow and Basketball

I cannot believe that it is already the 7th of December. It feels like just yesterday I was preparing for my full-time teaching block, yet here I am, almost a week after dropping two classes. My final evaluation is due in tomorrow, and, barring an opinion at the university, I have passed. I am all of two weeks away from being qualified to teach...now to find a job.

When I moved here in August, Adam advised me to buy some Sorels for winter boots. Once again, I didn't take him seriously. How could there possibly be enough snow before Christmas to warrant a purchase of a pair of those classy clogs? He wasn't kidding. Once it stopped raining here, it began to snow. On the day (yes, that is singular) that it doesn't snow, it blows. There are now drifts higher than my car. It's one thing to talkto a friend in a foreign, warm country and have them rub in the nice weather, but to have someone from REGINA rub in the fact that they are warmer and dryer than us...that's just wrong.

I am now almost done the teaching aspect of my internship, though I am picking up a grade seven English class next week. I have to get caught up on my marking so that I can learn a bit about this strange sport my seniour girls are calling basketball. I know a bit about the sport, but I stopped playing about the same time the teachers were trying to get us to bounce the ball without looking at it. My ball always got away. I've become the tempory assistant coach to the seniour girls basketball team. This is a nice way of saying I don't know anything, but the girls are willing to teach me. I nearly had them in tears of laughter after my first foul shot the other night. I must add, in my defence, that it did go in the basket the first time. Not the second, third or fourth, but who's perfect? I'm really enjoying the girls on the team as students as well, so this was a good opportunity to learn a sport and support them at the same time.

I'm moving home, crafting up a storm for Christmas presents, and marking. Anyone up for a little marking party? I'll bring ALL the material! RSVP, ASAP, ok?

Prelude and Beyond!

It's 10:53 pm, and I've just taken out my eyes and washed the makeup off. Prelude is over for another year. The Gospel Fellowship Church community has put on a great dinner once again, and the turnout was really good. The tables will come down this week, the food will be parceled up and taken home, and the Advent season is almost here. I enjoyed this evening, but I'm glad it's over. I am my harshest critic, but being honest, tonight wasn't as strong as I'd have liked it to be. I still received compliments and praise, as did Erin for her playing, but that isn't as powerful as knowing you did a good job yourself.

My block at the high school is nearly over. By the end of this coming week I will have dropped a class, and will lose another class the next Monday. The sixteen, seventeen weeks that I started counting down have disappeared. I only have nineteen DAYS of school left (by my calculations...I'm not teaching math, remember). I'm realizing that I will miss some of the aspects of small town life, but I don't know if I could count this experience as "living" here. I'm not sure you can be from a small town if you haven't lived there at least three years. The community is so active, and I will miss that if I move to a larger centre. I do look forward to having more options in a larger centre. It really is a decision to be made, about what sort of life I want to have, and teaching I want to do. I'm just about ready to think about that. Not quite right now.

November in the "North"

I've never lived this far north in Saskatchewan before. It's not like Foam Lake is SOOO far north, but it is further than Moose Jaw or Regina by a good two hours. You wouldn't think this would make a big difference, but driving away from Foam Lake and coming back to town after a weekend away is like entering another season. Here in Foam Lake, the roads are icy and it has snowed ALL DAY. When I left Moose Jaw yesterday, the weatherman was calling for a high of 5 degrees that day, and 8 degrees on Wednesday. We'll be lucky to get to zero here. There's almost no such thing as snow at home, yet here it's boot weather. I don't like winter in southern Saskatchewan...guess how much I'm appreciating the snow now!

School is going well. I'm into the second week of my block, teaching all day every day. It has come to the point where Patti can take a day off for appointments or whatever reason, and it's not likely there will be a substitute called in. I'm getting the swing of things here, though it's hard to imagine that I only have six weeks left, if that. As much as I'm looking forward to being finished, that means leaving some of these kids that I've really grown to appreciate. I guess that's what it means to move...there has to be something and someone left behind.

I was home last week, for my "long change"; there was a teacher's conference I wasn't required to go to. Thursday found me at the Goo Goo Dolls concert with Merle. That was an awesome show. So worth the tickets. They are now moved from my "to see" list to my "see again" list. I went, I saw, and yes, I bought the T-shirt. (I actually bought the shirt before the concert, but hey. That's just splitting hairs.) Stacey cut my hair on Friday, and it's wonderful. My students actually noticed, and complimented me. It's shorter than it has been, which means it's in my eyes, but it looks good. That's what matters, right?

Saturday saw me at the Foam Lake Panthers-Caronport Cougars 9-man provincial football game. I know very little about the game, but as long as I was cheering at the right time, it was all good. We won 43 to something...it was all our game after the first half. Man, it was muddy. I'm glad I didn't have to wash any uniforms. I feel sorry for the Caronport players - not only did they lose on home turf, but they have white jerseys.

Sunday I was able to get together with Brandie and do some Christmas scrapbooking. I was able to get so much acomplished, and it was wonderful to hang out with her after so long away. I miss my friends! Email just isn't the same, especially when we're all so busy. I hope to do some more with her this coming weekend when I'm down for Carolyn's wedding. I can't believe it's already the middle of November!

Speaking of November, the end is in sight. Prelude is next weekend, and I have some practicing to do. Most of the pieces are traditional carols, but there are a few that will require some words and notes learning. I'm off to see if Erin is free to practice tonight. There are still people sleeping when I leave in the morning, and kids arrive before I've left, so mornings are not a popular choice. We'll see how this goes!

On With the Show

It has been a full two weeks. I'm teaching almost every class, and I begin my three week block on Wednesday next. With all of the days we miss in November, this means that my "three week block" is really a month. I appreciate starting earlier than later, as this means December will be less stressful, but starting this week means that I can't procrastinate any longer. I'm teaching To Kill a Mockingbird and Hamlet right now, and I start The Secret Lives of Sgt. John Wilson on Wednesday. Tuesday my grade sevens write their very first French exam, and heaven help them, the first exam I've ever had to make up.

Tonight is the Breast of Friends' Fundraising Dinner at the Community Hall. Mom is coming up to attend, and Erin is coming out as well. I've just come back from rehearsal for the fashion show that will end the evening. What a wide range of ladies! Size, age, everything...we have it on stage. It was a hilarious rehearsal, as no one in charge has ever really rehearsed a show like this before. We got through it, but we didn't try it with our fancy clothes on...I think we'd better have a gong ready for tonight. At least it promises to be entertaining! And the food will be spectacular from what I understand.

I'm also very excited about coming back to Regina in November. On the 3rd, I'll get to see everyone from school as we're called back for an internship seminar, and the next week I'm back in town because of the teacher's conference in Saskatoon. I'm not being required to attend, so I'm coming home. I've bought tickets to the Goo Goo Dolls show on the 9th, and I cannot wait. I swore I would go see them if they ever came to the province, and it's worked out really nicely. I"ll be a new woman after that weekend, as I'm going to visit Stacey as well. I just have to decide what we're doing to the hair this time...

Other than that, life up here in Foam Lake is just fine. Abigail is hilarious, Nathaniel is forever "Erin, you play monkeys with me?" (He hasn't figured out that I kill the characters more often than he does.) I can't believe I'm almost two months down, but that's the way it goes. I'm sending in my application for my visa on Monday, if the post office is still open when we get back from Wadena (CIF "Teacher" day), Tuesday at the latest. I'm hoping I haven't left it too long, but I really doubt I'd be ready to live and teach in England by January 3rd. That's seems a little quick, considering I'm not finished here until the 22nd. In my mind, I'm aiming for leaving in the middle of the month, but it's not really my plans that have precedence here. I can't even see the reins of this life.

Mom is supposed to be here in about an hour and a half. I'd better clean my room...it's just something you do when moms arrive. I'm now thankful it's not an entire apartment!

Turkeys of All Shapes and Sizes

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and I am looking forward to going home for the long weekend. Nevermind that I was just home. This is a LONG weekend, so it's supposed to feel important. We will be celebrating my birthday, Grandma Walter's birthday, Auntie Fran's birthday, Grandma and Grandpa Graas' anniversary, and, oh yeah. Thanksgiving. We do have much to be thankful for, especially that we are all still able to be together and celebrate these events. Our household will likely be serving turkey, but I expect there will be a Turkey or two in residence regardless!

I'm at the school as I write. My students in my Creative Writing 20 class have a major assignment due tomorrow, and I've opened the computer lab to allow them to type their final drafts. I don't think they realize the sacrifice here! Grey's Anatomy is on, is over! Not that I can't catch up of course. I am getting much more official class "stuff" accomplished here at school anyhow. This evening work period might become a weekly thing. After all, if students are expecting me to show up, I have to show up.

I'm debating how much to write here. I've been in touch with a teaching company out of the UK, and it sounds promising...I do not want to jinx it or get my hopes up...but there is a good chance I will be moving to England in January to teach. I've just started setting it up this week, but the question seems not to be "if I can get a job", but "when can you get here to start?". Those in a praying mood: this would be a very appreciated topic. I'd really like to do this, but I've learned the hard way that it needs to be God's will, not my own.

Anyhow, must mark. It's amazing how quickly that can become backed up. One more thing for my logbook, I guess. I really should start that thing...

Happy Birthday!

I just bought a rolling pin. I do not have plans to make cookies, nor do I know where to put the marble weapon, but it is my birthday present to myself. As long as I have the pin, I will know how old it is since I bought it on my twenty-fifth birthday. What does it say when you buy kitchen utensils for yourself? It says there isn't a clothing store within an hour's drive.

I'm also trying to figure out a way for everyone in the world to have their birthdays off work. So far, I'm able to shoot holes in whatever scheme I design. Suggestions are welcome!

One Month Down, Three to Go

October 1st. I've finished one month of my internship, I'm almost twenty-five, and I have a phone call to answer on Tuesday about possible "career options" in the UK come January. I think I have the right to feel a bit overwhelmed at the moment.

I had a lovely, if full, weekend these past two days. Mom and I went out to Kamp to cook for the fall supper. We arrived in separate vehicles Friday night, and I lef the kamp shortly after Mom on Saturday evening. The fall colours are amazing. I don't believe there is an artist alive or dead who could rival the Master's touch. My camera could not capture the day, though I tried, and words cannot come close to examining the individual leaves and masses of trees as they turn in the autumn air. God's artistry is awesome and inspiring, yet humbling. How can we as humans even think that we could create something "God-like"? We often forget we're to create works that honour our God, not attempt to rival his. Sure failure leads down the path of rivalry.

My classload is getting heavier, yet I'm attempting to add more extra-curricular at the same time. Things are going well at school. I'm feeling more and more comfortable about the expectations of the school and the university, and about the rituals and traditions of a rural school. Go Panthers Go! I'm really enjoying many of the students, and I believe the students who have been challenging me thus far have really come around. There will always be a few jerks, as there are a few in every classroom or boardroom of life, but those aren't my concern...yet. I still have to get it in my head that I have the power to send them to the hall, or to the office, or to detention...and have them go. I always thought that would be the easy part of teaching: If you're an idiot in class, get out. Now I realize that if I have a firm control of the class, there are very few idiots. As a student, you don't realize how much work teaching is. I mean, all they do is show up and talk, right? Even taking homeroom attendance stressed me out for a week. Administration? Teaching? Planning? Marking? They try to warn you at university that this will be a lot of work, but there can be no warning for this. I expect I'll sleep over the Christmas holidays. Holidays...that's a new thing!

Happy Birthday to Grandma Walter, Wade, and Marilyn. Hope the day is well. I blew out one candle today, and the rest I'll save until next weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadians, and to those who aren't, go cook a turkey anyways. It's good for you.

God Bless.

10 Days Later...Still Alive

I cannot believe where the time has gone. September is already more than half finished, my first assignments to mark came in yesterday, and I'm still feeling a little out of place. I'm thinking that the first year of teaching anywhere will be a lot like this, only minus the cooperating teacher there to back you up.

I was in Regina for almost a week. I left Tuesday right after school for our internship seminars, learned some pretty funny (yet lame) jokes, ate a lot, and didn't come back to Foam Lake until Sunday afternoon. Mom's birthday was on Friday, so it was nice to go out for supper with most of the family. Mom and I went shoe shopping on Saturday, and I found some lovely shoes...now if they would only stop rubbing the skin off my feet, they would be perfect. I only have one blister so far, but there is very little skin left on my baby toes on either foot. I'm hoping it won't take them long to break in. We'll see how this goes. I should already own shares in the Bandaid corporation, so what's another reason to use them?

Everything is going well way up north here. Yes, I mean that sarcastically. It has frozen here a few times, once quite hard according to the gardeners in the staff lounge, but there isn't any snow yet. I'm hoping that isn't a jinx on the whole matter. I'm not ready for the white stuff yet.

I'm not at the school tonight, though it's becoming clear that I will be a regular fixture after 7 pm most evenings. I needed a few hours away, and tomorrow is planned. I even know what I'm wearing since tomorrow is Hawaiian Day. Those bright orange shirts mom and dad had have really come in handy! I'm learning more classroom management by the day, and I'm starting to figure out just who is playing me. I'm also seeing patterns emerge. It's really quite interesting, so we'll see if I'm reading things right.

I'm off to mark. I always disliked teachers who took three months to return assignments. I should at least get off on the right (fast) foot. Maybe bed before mindnight...that would be nice.