Christmas!

It is 12:15 in the morning, which means... It's Christmas!!!  My parents and Michael flew down to Dothan to spend Christmas with me.  This is the first Christmas we've spent together since 2007.  They got in on Wednesday night and I've already gotten some of my Christmas presents.  I got a new desk for my spare bedroom, an ironing board, some new cutlery, some TV trays (my makeshift bedside tables for now), and a shelf over my washer and dryer.  You know you're an adult when your Christmas list consists of things like an ironing boad, knives and forks, and a shelf, haha.  I love it, though.  Things are looking like they're coming together.  My laundry room actually looks like a decent laundry room now that I have things up on the shelf and not cluttering up the floor.  And my spare bedroom actually looks like a useable extra room.  It's more than just a futon and a litter box now.  And while I've been trying to get rid of the futon, I went upstairs yesterday to find my parents sitting in there quietly, Dad on his computer and Mom knitting, and it was so nice.  I still need to get a bulletin board, some shelves, and a comfy desk chair for the room.

I am thoroughly enjoying my break from work.  I wish I could access my online gradebook from home so I could update my grades.  And I still have grad school stuff to do, though... That kind of slipped away from me when my depression relapsed and my medicine had to kick in.  I have to catch up big time today and tomorrow.  Not looking forward to it.  I'm hoping that having a desk in my spare room will enable me to keep myself more organized.  Before I got my desk, my desktop computer was on the floor and when I came home, I wanted to lay on the couch, not the floor.  My bills were paid, but they were stacked up all messy on the counter... and in the closet... the dresser... the coffee table.  Such a mess.  I need to make myself a daily schedule that includes work, dinner, grad school reading/writing/studying/whatever, and exercising, and I need to stick to it.  I can plan my time and budget my money until the cows come home, but sticking to it is the hardest part.  I think that is officially one of my resolutions for 2011.  Maybe I'll start on that tomorrow when Mom and I aren't cooking.

And on an unrelated note: Get Him to the Greek is probably THE stupidest movie I've ever seen listened to.  1. Who the hell writes crap like this? And 2. Who the hell reads the script and then thinks it's good enough to hire actors and film crews to actually turn the script into a movie?  Seriously?  All copies of this movie should be burned.  Along with Nacho Libre and Napoleon Dynamite.  Shoot me in the face.

Is it break time yet?

I've done such an awful job at keeping up on this thing lately.  Partly because, up until a couple weeks ago, I only had internet upstairs in my spare bedroom, and I don't have a desk for my computer yet.  I have to sit/lay on the floor and it is ridiculously uncomfortable.  I finally went to Best Buy and got a router and had Andy set it up while he was here on Halloween.

Then, all of last week, my laptop wouldn't connect to my network, and I could not, for the life of me, figure out why.  I did all my email checking and Facebook mess on my iPod.  It was Thursday before I even thought, "Oh, I should go reset the router."  Haven't had a problem connecting ever since. 

There's been so much going on in my life lately; it's crazy.  Between focusing on work, after school tutoring, grad school, and myself, I barely have enough time in the day to breathe.  I always have the best intentions of getting things done after school or on the weekends, but I'm so exhausted when I get home.  I have zero motivation to do anything.  And it's not like I'm exhausted because I don't get enough sleep.  Lord knows I'm getting PLENTY.  I'm sure a lot of it has to do with me having so much going on at the same time, and I want to do a lot really fast.  I come home from school around 5:20 and I'm asleep by 7, as hard as I try to stay up.  I get up around 9:30, and then turn around and go to bed at 10:30 and still struggle to get out of bed at 5:30.  It's times like this where I wish I could take one of those 5 hour energy shot drinks and be wired, but energy drinks do nothing to me except make me have to pee. 

My parents will be here 36 days.  I'm so excited they're coming to me for Christmas.  For the first time, we're having Christmas at MY house.  With MY Christmas tree.  And MY furniture.  We'll cook in MY kitchen.  While I'm on break for Thanksgiving, I'm going to have to go up to Auburn and get my Christmas tree and box of ornaments.  I have some blue ornaments, but last time I was in the storage unit, the box looked smooshed.  I'm hoping the ornaments weren't broken.  I'd love to find some orange ornaments and have an Auburn themed tree this year.

Back!

After several weeks of complete and utter CRAZINESS, I finally have a moment to sit down and catch up on here.  I feel so out of the loop not being able to check in on everyone!  I still don't have internet at my house, but I'm hoping that changes on Friday, seeing as how payday is Thursday. :)

Anyways.  I got offered a last minute 3rd grade job with Dothan City Schools and moved down here a few hours after accepting the position and then started the very next morning.  That first week is a complete blur and I honestly have NO idea how I made it through.  That Saturday, just a couple days before my students came in, I was able to get into the classroom to do some work.  Jennifer drove down from Auburn, bless her heart, and helped me for several hours before having to go back to Auburn to go to work.  We spent close to 5 hours just trying to figure out how to set up the furniture.  I had 30 students on my roster and it was beyond difficult trying to fit 30 desks in there.  We were able to get the desks down to 22 and the remaining 8 were seated at the two small tables, which I did not like at all.

After the first couple days, my numbers settled around 24, so I only had two at one of the tables.  And while that was not ideal in any sense of the word, it had to work for the time being.  As crazy as my class drives me, I love them.  I said that one of the things I liked about Northway was that they challenged me, and I definitely have that challenge here.

About three weeks into school, we were informed that our numbers were high enough to where we were getting a new 3rd grade unit, and that next Monday, our classes dropped by six students.  I miss the kids that were pulled from my class, but I still see them every day.  One of them, regardless of which 3rd grade teacher has bus duty after school, makes a beeline for my door as soon as they are released to go to the bus duty room.  I usually have him sharpen pencils, erase the board, pick up trash, or play on the computer.  Another one gives me a hug every morning on her way down to her new room.  So sweet.

I'm still trying to get settled into my own routine of how I want things to work in and out of the classroom.  And now that I'm doing grad school, I really have to plan all my time carefully.  But unexpected things pop up, and that throws my schedule off.  For the most part, I can fly by the seat of my pants and everything still gets done.  But there have been a couple moments where it throws me for a loop and it really stresses me out.  I need to learn to not take things so personally and to be a little bit more confident in what I am doing in the classroom.  I have been trying to get into the habit of, one day a week, not bringing any school stuff home and instead of catching up on school work, I watch TV or read something for pleasure. 

However, my back is still a mess... So apparently, I don't know how to relax like I should be.  I need to make time to go see the doctor this week or next and set up an appointment with a massage therapist.  I wish I could have packed Helen and all her massage therapy wonders into my car when I drove down to Alabama.

So, to sum it up... School is challenging, but I enjoy it.  It gets a little bit better each week, and I know that by the time the year ends, I'm going to be very welcoming to the summer, but also very sad to see this class go.

We have two more weeks left in the first quarter, which is unbelievable! I can't believe how FAST it's gone by.  After each quarter, we have a break... I think that's such a genius idea.  First quarter, Fall Break, second quarter, Christmas Break, third quarter, Spring Break, fourth quarter, summer.  Love it!  And since there are only two weeks left in the first quarter, that means Fall Break is really close!

The house is coming along very... very... very slowly.  The complex finally installed my dishwasher, so now I can actually see my countertops and not a towel covered in drying dishes.  My dining room table is being delivered on Friday, and I'm hoping to also have the internet company come out and hook that up.  I'm going to go to a furniture store on Thursday after school in hopes that I can find a cheap-ish sofa that could be delivered on Friday, as well, so that my day off is still rather productive.

Employed!

Just a quick update... Because I'm dead tired.

Tuesday, July 27: Took my test for Dothan City Schools
Wednesday, July 28: Was called for an interview
Thursday, July 29: Had said interview
Friday, July 30: Waited...
Saturday, July 31: Waited....
Sunday, August 1: Waited....
Monday, August 2: Waited... And THEN.  At 6:00 pm, I was offered a 3rd grade job in Dothan and through a mixture of laughing and crying, I accepted (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!).  Packed like a mad woman, throwing clothes into bags without bothering to fold them.  Went to dinner with Ron to break the news to him and I cried.  A lot.  Was on the road by 9:00 pm and in Dothan at 12:15 am.

Tuesday, August 3... 8:00 am: First day of work. 2:30 pm: Put down a deposit on a townhouse-type apartment in the same complex as Lauren and Darryn.  8:15 pm: Going to bed to watch last night's Bachelorette finale fall asleep.

Holy shiza.

Interview!

I finally have an interview on my calendar!  Although I'm grateful for the interview and I'm hopeful that it goes really well, I have to admit that I am a little bummed that it's not for a teaching job.  I think I have to allow myself to admit that I, more than likely, will not be teaching this year.  Things will work out.  And I will be back in a classroom.  One day.

After thinking about the whole dilemma with grad school, I decided to stick with my plans of getting my Master's at Walden.  Even though the Alabama State Department of Education won't recognize the program for certification purposes, I will still be able to be paid on the Master's scale, which will be good.  I think getting my Master's in Elementary Reading and Math will help me more right now because reading and math are so important in a child's educational foundation, and I think getting all this extra training in those subjects will enable me to teach K-3 more effectively.  Then, in a few years, I can go back, if I want to, and get my Master's in Elementary Education so that I can teach the upper grades.

One day, I will reflect back on this time in my life.  And I will be so thankful that it's over.

Ah-choo.

Heather, Tony, Katie, Jeremy and I were going to go to Six Flags in Atlanta today.  Since I am still without a job and it was going to cost roughly $50 for the day (tickets, parking, gas, lunch), I felt really guilty about spending that much money to go to Six Flags when I had to borrow money from my parents.  Plus there was a 50-60% chance of storming at Six Flags, so I bailed.  Then the four of them decided to bail, as well, because of the chance of rain.  Heather and Tony decided to drive up from Auburn and we all hung out at the house, playing games.  Everyone went to bed before midnight, so Heather and I watched a movie.  Katie and Jeremy went to get stuff for breakfast this morning at Target and while they were there, they bought a couple of outside games.  We played one of them, Golf Toss, today.  We were only able to get through one game because it was so hot outside.  I wish Mary-Katharine had been able to come up here, too.

I still haven't heard anything about a job.  It's really frustrating.  I feel like everyone in my cohort is getting a job.  It's not like I'm a bad teacher or anything.  Even the bank is taking forever to get back with me.  I feel useless and lazy.  I've been without a job for almost two months, and it isn't like I'm sitting here in Birmingham not trying to find something.  I should know on Friday if the school in Pell City had enough Kindergarten students to register for school for anoher class to be made.  Hopefully there were enough new students and I can land that job.

I have not been able to stop sneezing since yesterday afternoon.  Now I feel like my head is disconnected from the rest of my body and I just want to sleep.  Allergies suck like no other.

Mango Mango

I had to go into downtown Birmingham this afternoon to the Regions building to take my teller assessment.  There were about 40-50 people in the conference room taking the assessment with me.  It was an hour long video test where we watched ten different scenarios between a teller and a customer.  Then it gave us four multiple choice options and we had to choose which option was the best choice and which was the worst.  Then we had to compare checks and deposit slips to see how many mistakes we could spot.  The last part of the assessment was a bunch of math problems.  We had 40 seconds to solve each problem.  The problems themselves were easy, but they took a while to solve.  After we all finished, they took our answer sheets upstairs and scored them.  Then they called us out into the hallway, one at a time, to tell us whether or not we passed the assessment.  I was getting really nervous because I sat there for about 30 minutes as other people were being called.  By the time I got called, there were about 12 of us left in the conference room.  I passed the assessment!  And the lady I talked to said I should be hearing from a recruiter in a couple days.  Cross your fingers!!

I have an interview tomorrow evening with a couple about being their full-time nanny for their 16-month-old little girl.  I feel really confident that I could win them over and be offered the job, but if I'm offered a job with the bank, I think that would be a much better job to take, from a professional standpoint.  Plus, if I get offered a last minute teaching job, it'll be easier to quit Regions than it would the nanny position.  The timing of all this, though, is difficult because I don't know when the Regions recruiter is calling, and if passing this assessment means I'm definitely getting a job.  And if it does mean I'll get a teller job, I don't know when I'll be offered it.  I don't want to accept this nanny job and then have to quit later this week or next week.

Ugh.  This will work out.  This will work out.  This will work out.

On a random note, I had a fresh mango for dessert tonight.  It was delicious.  And now I am seriously craving a midnight mango snack.  I've been eating a lot of fruit lately.  And I'm really proud of myself for doing so.  Usually I buy fruit with the intention of eating it, but I would always end up throwing it away because it would go bad.  With the exception of one banana, I've been pretty good about eating the fruit lately.  Now I just need to keep up with the fresh vegetables.  I've been trying really hard to eat healthier since moving down here.  I've lost two pounds and two and a half inches in the three weeks I've been at the gym.  I still have a long way to go, but it's a start and I'm super stoked.

As stressful as this no job thing is, moving down here has been really good for me.  I just have to keep the faith that something will come along job wise and that things with grad school will settle down and work out.

Lucky

Yesterday morning, I got up and was at the gym for 9:00.  I had an appointment with one of the circuit coaches to get set up for the Curves Smart program and to do my first workout with the system.  With the CS program, you have a little card that you can put into each machine and it keeps track of your intensity and the number of reps you do on each machine.  If you're not working hard enough on a machine, a yellow light flashes and you're supposed to work harder until the green light flashes.  After your workout, you put your card into a computer and it tells you how many calories you burned in your workout and whether or not you met your target on each machine.  Yesterday, my first CS workout kicked my ass.  I burned 408 calories, which apparently was impressive to one of the circuit coaches.  She told me that people usually burn around 200 calories on their first CS workout.

When I finally pulled myself off the bed, I got ready to go to Brandi's for her pool party.  We were out at the pool for a few hours with several of her friends.  I had a really good time talking with and getting to know them.  I was only in the pool for maybe the last hour that I was there, and despite my sunscreen, my chest, shoulders, and face got burned.  The redness has gone down a lot since yesterday, but it's still a little bit tender.  I've been putting cocoa butter on my skin religiously in hopes that it will keep it from peeling.

Once I got back to the house, I took a shower and started to get ready to go to my birthday dinner with Jessica, Rick, and Jessie.  Jessie came to pick me up and we hung out for a little bit while I finished drying my hair and getting ready.  Once we were on our way to Olive Garden, I decided I was more in the mood for Mexican food, as I really wanted a margarita with dinner.  We called Jessica and Rick and told them to meet us at Iguana Grill.  The food was delicious and my peach margaritas were fabulous.  Jessie paid for my dinner, and gave me a gift bag with a card, some lotion, shower gel, two fruity candles, and a cute rubber ducky.  Jessica and Rick gave me a card with a gift certificate to the spa I mentioned in my blog a few days ago.  I was stunned that she figured out what spa I was talking about and got a certificate for me!  I have such sweet, sweet friends!

Frustrated

Life is like a beautiful melody, only the lyrics are messed up. ~Author Unknown

Just when I thought things were sort of falling into place with grad school, another hurdle pops up.  I was admitted to Walden on Wednesday morning and on Thursday afternoon I found out that, even though getting my Master's degree from Walden in Elementary Reading and Math would certify me to teach grades K-6, the state of Alabama doesn't recognize that particular program for certification purposes.  However, because it is still a Master's degree, I would be able to paid a higher salary for having the degree.  In a nut shell, that means that I would be spending $13,000 on a degree that would allow me to earn more money, but it would not allow me to teach the upper elementary grades.  Being able to teach the upper elementary grades is the biggest reason why I want my Master's degree.

I called the College of Education at the University of Montevallo to ask about their graduate programs.  I was kind of hesitant to do that because when I applied for grad school at Auburn, they told me that any school I go to in Alabama would require me to get my Master's in Early Childhood Education because that's what I got my Bachelor's in.  But UM doesn't even have a Master's in ECE program, so I asked if they made exceptions for those of us who have our undergrad in ECE.  It turns out that at UM, if I have a Bachelor's in anything education, I can get my Master's in Elementary Education.  Getting my Master's in Elementary Education at UM would definitely allow me to teach the upper elementary grades.

Classes start at UM on August 30th, so that gives me 7 weeks and a couple days to study for/take the GRE, apply/get accepted to UM and get my loan stuff taken care of.  I'm going to be having loans coming out of my ears after this.  But I truly look at it as an investment, and I really don't feel as though you can put a price on your education.

I'm taking the GRE on August 2nd and am already nervous as hell about it.  I called the Graduate School's Office of Admissions at UM and asked if I could be admitted on a conditional basis if, for some reason, I don't pass the GRE.  The guy I talked to said I could be admitted and take up to 12 hours this fall, but before I take classes in the spring, I have to have a passing GRE score on file.

There is still no news on the job front.  I'm not only getting stressed out about it, I'm starting to get scared.  I don't know how I'm going to pay my bills here pretty soon.  I want to ask my parents for help, but I know they can't support me.  Dad has made that more than clear.  Although, technically, I don't need supporting; I just need temporary assistance.  Just until classes start and I get my semester loan reimbursement.  And a job.  I pray to the Job Gods everyt night, but apparently they're busy with other customers.

I applied for a job yesterday to be a full-time preschool teacher at La Petite Academy.  I have a feeling it would be similar to the job I was going after in New Orleans.  But at this point, it's a job.  A job = a paycheck.  A paycheck = something.  And something is better than nothing

Spa'd

I had the most amazing thought today.  And I have no idea why I didn't think of this sooner.

In the past, I spent my birthday hanging out at home with my parents and Michael.  But now that I'm not living at home, I rely on my friends more.  However, since my birthday is so close to the July 4th holiday and my friends are either a) back at work or b) still on vacation when my birthday rolls around, I end up spending my birthday by myself.  I usually go to dinner with a friend or two that night and then a couple weeks later, when more people are back in town, a bunch of my friends and I will go out for a big birthday dinner.  But for the most part, the majority of my actual birthday is spent alone.

And seeing as how I love birthdays -- especially since my brain surgery in 2007 (which, had I not had it, I more than likely would not be here today, and as a result, I have cherished every one of my birthdays since my surgery) -- spending it alone kinda sorta really sucks.

So. I have decided that once I get my Master's degree and land a full-time job, I'm going to save money from my paycheck every month.  And every year on my birthday, I will continue to spend my day alone.  But I will spend it being completely pampered at a spa.  How genius is that?!

Armed with a list of things I knew I wanted for sure on my spa day (massage, facial, mani/pedi), I started looking up spas in the Birmingham area tonight.  Within 10 minutes - thank you, Google - I found a spa that offers a package called the Ultimate Escape.  6 hours, $400... Swedish massage, European facial, spa manicure, spa pedicure, shampoo/hair style, a makeover, and a light lunch.  And a take home spa robe.  Score!

I'm so excited about this idea, I almost can't wait to turn 25.  Although, considering I don't know how exactly my job situation is going to pan out, I may not be able to do this next year.  Unless I talk to my parents and have them chip in and help me pay for it.

It's my goal to be at the spa on my 26th birthday, for sure.  Of course, if i can make it happen for my 25th birthday, you won't hear any arguing from me, as I will have, for the day, ultimately escaped reality.

24

Today is my birthday.  And I'm not doing much.

I can't decide if it's nice to spend the day being lazy and doing nothing, or if I wish I had something to do.  I don't have much money to do anything anyway.

Job Gods... I really need you to help me out.

4th of July

This 4th of July weekend just might have been the most boring and laziest one I've ever had.  Yesterday, I spent several hours making and printing stickers for various things in my planner (I was THAT bored), and then putting said stickers in my planner and writing in birthdays/anniversaries and other plans that I have already made.  Today, I didn't leave the house.  I didn't even change out of my pajamas.  I slept in a lot later than I wanted to -- probably got out of bed just before noon.  I've been sneezing for the majority of the day, and I am just miserable.

Despite all that, though, I was able to be somewhat productive today.  Harley has been scratching at his ears for a while and I finally wrapped him up like a burrito and cleaned them out.  I also finally sat down and wrote my goal statement for grad school and sent it to my enrollment advisor.  I think all that is left now is to enroll in classes, get my loan, and have my materials sent to me.

Eclipsed

It's been a month since I last posted... Oops.  This last month has been madness!

I left Alaska on May 28th to start my 7-day drive to New Orleans.  The drive was pretty uneventful.  I am pretty sure I was delusional last year when I drove through Canada, because NOTHING looked familiar, especially while I was on the Alaska Highway.  There was a time that, for about a 2 hour timespan, I was beyond convinced that I had taken a wrong turn and was lost somewhere in the Canadian wilderness.  But I knew I wasn't because I hadn't turned from the Alaska Highway at all, and I was supposed to drive that road until it ended in Dawson Creek.  Finally, I made it to Dawson Creek, so obviously I had been on the right road all along.  I passed a lot of animals, including moutaing sheep and a bear!  The only bear I'd ever seen was the one my dad shot and had hanging in our house in Virginia.  The rest of the drive was really boring, especially through Wyoming, Colorado, and Oklahoma.  I didn't actually start seeing things until I got to Dallas.  And that last day of driving, Shreveport to New Orleans, was the longest day ever... It was only a 5 hour drive, but it felt like it was taking 500 hours.  For real, the longest day was my 3rd day, Dawson Creek, BC to Helena, MT... That was 17.5 hours on the road.  In-freaking-sane.

I made it to New Orleans and Ron's mom called me and talked me through the directions to get to their house.  I ended up staying with Ron's parents for 5 nights.  I love them.  They are so sweet.  We went to see Sex and the City 2 while I was there.  Ron's mom and I had talked about going, but I was upset about something after my interview on Friday, so she, Ron's dad and I went to P.F. Chang's for dinner and went to see the movie afterwards.  I took my car to Goodyear while I was there, too, to get the oil changed, and ended up having to buy 4 new tires because the ones I did have were all chopped up.  Ron's parents told me a lot about what goes on during Mardi Gras, and they took me into New Orleans.  They showed me the Superdome and told me about all the damage that happened during Katrina.  We found a parking spot downtown and went to Cafe Du Monde for some beneigts... Amazing!  Then we went for a walk on Bourbon Street.  That was interesting.  I don't have any desire to experience that during Mardi Gras, though.

I met with the lady at Loyola University about the 3-year-old job, but after talking with her and observing for a day at the center, and crunching numbers with Ron's dad at the house, I just wasn't confident that I would be able to afford to live there.  Plus, after observing there for the day, I realized that I would be bored there.  I would be working Monday through Friday from 9:00 to 5:30.  Three hours of the day, the kids are outside.  Two hours of the day, they're napping.  It's definitely a job that wouldn't kill me, but I like to be challenged.  One of the things I liked about being in Northway was how absolutely challenging that job was.  There were never two days that were the same, and every morning that I went in, I had no idea what kind of day I was in for.  So, I told her I'd think about it and she told me she'd call me, and I moved up to Birmingham on Tuesday, June 8th.  I just realized that I still haven't heard from her... But I'm not exactly heartbroken about it, so all's well, I guess.

When I got to Birmingham, I stayed with Ron for a couple of nights.  We introduced Augie and Harley, and they are not fans of each other.  I decided that I'd keep Harley in the guest bedroom since it was Augie's house; I didn't feel right about shutting her in a room when it's her territory.  However, she kept sneaking up the guest bedroom door and sniffing; she knew something was in there.  Part of me thinks we should have just let them both out and let them hiss and swat at each other... Let Augie put Harley in his place.  Eventually, I think they would have come around to where they could tolerate each other.  Maybe.  I seem to remember talking about bringing Harley over there for little short visits and let them get used to each other in doses... But I might be making that up.  I can't remember.

I moved in with Katie on the 10th of June.  Her parents own a townhouse in Hoover, and it is a beautiful house.  I have my own bedroom and share a bathroom with Adam, one of the 4 people living here.  He's hardly ever here, so sharing a bathroom with him hasn't really been an issue.  When he is here, he's always really nice to me.  He's in the process of finding someone to sub-lease his room until his lease ends in November.

Michael took 3 weeks of leave and decided, for some reason, to spend it all in Virginia.  After a week, he texted me and asked if I was in Birmingham yet and if I had a sofa he could sleep on.  He ended up flying down to Birmingham for 5 days to hang out with me, which was really nice seeing as how we hadn't seen each other since September of 2008 when he graduated from boot camp in South Carolina.  He stood in line with me for almost 3 hours at the DMV while I got my Alabama license, car tags, registration and car title.  I took him to Auburn the day before he left because he wanted some Mike & Ed's BBQ and he wanted to talk to an Admissions Counselor about going to Auburn in a couple years after he has his Associate's degree and has gotten out of the Marine Corps.  He met Ron while he was here and thought he was a nice guy.  I don't think I have ever eaten out so much in my life after that week that he was here.  I am really glad that he was able to come down and visit me.  I'm hoping that I'll eventually be able to go over to California and see him.

As for the job hunt, it's still on.  I've applied for a bunch of different positions at schools... teacher, substitute, PE aide, special ed aide.  And I haven't heard anything yet.  There's one school I really like in Pell City that might have a Kindergarten opening, but they won't know for sure until probably the end of July.  Whether or not the opening is available depends on how many Kindergarten students register for school, and there is another registration day on July 22nd.  In the meantime, however, I've applied for a bunch of non-school jobs... Bed Bath & Beyond, numerous banks, Auburn Spirit, Office Depot, Books-A-Million... I've given my name and phone number to a couple Curves locations.  I've applied to so many jobs now, I don't even remember all the places I applied to.  I'm also working with this guy at a company that matches people with job openings.  He's contracted by big companies who have openings, but for whatever reason, can't fill them on their own... They may be too busy to go through all the applications, or their HR department might not be big enough to handle hiring a bunch of new people.. Whatever.  Anyways, I filled out an application with his company, sent him my resume, and then went to meet with him on Monday.  I had to take four computer tests -- 2 typing tests (66 wpm and 78 wpm), one on Microsoft Word (29 out of 30) and one on Microsoft Excel (29 out of 30).  If he has any jobs that he thinks I can do, I would want to do, and the company would want to look at my resume, he'll call me, explain the job to me, and ask if I'm interested.  If I say yes, he'll forward my resume to the company.  If I say no, he says ok and keeps calling other people.  He's already mentioned one job so far and I told him I was interested.  It's with a bank in the area and if I got the job, I'd be processing mortgages.  It'll be interesting.

I know something will come up... It's just the waiting around and watching my bills pile up in the meantime that is stressing the hell out of me.  It's so discouraging!  I've actually had dreams that there's some national blacklist thing that if your name is on, getting a job in any field or industry is next to impossible.  And guess who's name did I dream was on there?  You got it.

So if you pray, or talk to the Man in the Moon, or whatever... please send some thoughts up for me.

I'm still on for grad school in the fall... As soon as I get my goal statement sent into my advisor.  I don't know why on Earth I keep putting it off.  It's not like it's even that difficult to do... Just a little one page doo-dad about why I want to go to grad school, why I chose the program I did, and what I hope to get out of it.  I think all this applying to jobs and not hearing anything nonsense has sucked the motivation out of me.  Which is not good, because now is the time I should be full of motivation and drive.

On that note, I'm going to go get ready to see Eclipse.  I purposely saved $20 from Christmas just to go see this movie.  I didn't think I'd be going by myself to see it, though.

Done!

My first year of teaching is DONE.  Unbelievable.  The day I thought could not get here fast enough is finally here.  All that I have left to do is turn in my laptop, finish inputting grades, and take my checkout paper to the District Office. 

Then all that's left to do in Tok is to set aside what is being mailed to me later in the summer and pack the rest into my car!  I am aiming to leave the house around 7:00/7:30 am on Friday.  The port of entry into Canada opens at 8:00 in the morning and I want to be there as soon as I can.  I packed most of my stuff into the car tonight.  I was planning on using 4 plastic totes - one big one in the trunk and three smaller ones going across the back seat - but I think I've been able to get it all into the big one and two smaller ones... Which is awesome.  I should be a professional car packer.

We had our all-school picnic today at Dead Man Lake.  It was fun, even though I feel like I spent most of the day walking around aimlessly and just watching people.  Seven of my students were there, and most of them had family members with them.  After the picnic, Kelleigh and I went to the school so I could take down a bulletin board and finish my teacher checkout form with the principal.  I also had to finish report cards for the Kindergarten students since theirs aren't done through the District Office.

34 more hours...

Begin Feeling

I stopped at Chevron on my way out of Tok this morning, and on the gas pump, instead of saying, "Begin Fueling," it said, "Begin Feeling."  I took out my cell phone to snap a picture of it real quick, but the screen changed before I could get to the camera function of my phone.  It was nice to start Monday off with a laugh, and for the whole drive in, I was thinking what a good sign it was to have Monday start off on such a good note.  Wrong.

I've decided that, since I'm not old enough to drive the school district's vans and therefore can't take my students anywhere fun for the end of the school year, we're going to have a Pajama Party on Friday of this week.  We're going to spend the whole day relaxing and having fun.  We'll watch a movie, play outside a lot, do arts and crafts, and read stories, and for lunch, I'm going to have my mom or dad bring down pizza from Fast Eddy's.  Hopefully, it'll be a really fun day and the kids will enjoy it. 

11 more days!

Mother's Day

Mom and Dad are en route back to Fairbanks from San Diego today.  They're not getting back to Tok until around midnight, so I'm staying the night here just to make sure they get back.  Plus, if one of their flights is late and they don't get back until tomorrow, I'll be here to feed Jack.

I was going to go out to Northway to do lesson plans, but I decided not to.  I have almost everything I need here; the only thing I don't have are the titles of the math lessons.  And I can do that in the morning.

I had a whole list of things that I wanted to get done this weekend, but I chose not to do ANYTHING yesterday.  I got changed so that I could go to the grocery store to get stuff for lunch and dinner, but other than that, I spent the day in my pajamas, playing on Facebook, watching movies/TV, and sleeping.

I plotted my escape route for my trip.  Two insanely long days at the beginning.  One of them is really long distance-wise, but the other day is long time-wise.  19 more days... I'm so ready.

So close...

3 more weeks!

:)

Bored

Allergies = FAIL!

I drove back into Tok last night because I have to observe at Tok School at 9:45ish.  I could have gotten up and driven in this morning, but it was easier to just drive in yesterday, mooch a free meal, sleep in a nicer bed, sleep in a little this morning, and drive 5 minutes to school.  I have to turn around and go back out to Northway after the observation, so I'll get back right before lunch, but we are dismissing right after lunch because everyone is going to a funeral in the village.  Our principal still wants to have our weekly Wednesday PLC meeting.  Hopefully it won't last long, because I'm sure one of our teachers will want to go to the funeral.  I forgot the title to my car at my house out there, so I'll be going out there anyway.  I have to go to the DMV to put the Mazda in my name...  I'm going to need it to be in my name in 23 days... =)

Speaking of that...  23 days!!  I'm so pumped.  Like... time cannot tick by ANY slower...

I'm staying in Tok for the rest of the week and will be commuting to Northway and back each day.  Mom and Dad are leaving this evening to head to the airport in Fairbanks to go to San Diego to see Michael.  I get to house/dog sit for them while they're gone.  I'm bummed that I can't go with them, but I have zero days left to take off work.  Sucky.  I was hoping that I'd be able to see him when he comes up here, but it looks like that's not going to work.  He would rather go to Virginia before coming up here, and because I have plans for the summer, I don't know when I'll get to see him.  I did tell him that if he wasn't in Alaska for Christmas, his ass was grass and I was going to be livid with him.  His response was, "Yes, ma'am.  Christmas in Alaska.  Got it."  He better be here.  I'm just sayin'...

I can't believe my first year of teaching is almost over.  It's been a rollercoaster ride of a year, and I definitely learned a LOT this year.  I was put into situations and dealt with things that we never even TALKED about in my classes at Auburn.  And through observing other teachers at other schools, I got a lot of ideas of things to do in future classrooms.  It'll be a bittersweet end of the year.  I really will miss my students, as crazy and wild as they are... But I'm excited to have a break!

TGIF

If things go according to plan, I'll be starting classes for my Master's degree on September 7.  I decided to get it from Walden, like my mom did, and get it in Elementary Reading and Mathematics.  I'd be certified in K-6, which is what I want.  All I have left to submit to my advisor is my Professional Goal Statement, which I'll probably work on this weekend.

The elementary teachers in the district have a workshop to go to all day on Saturday about this Language Arts Four Block thing that the district wants us to start doing in our classes next year.  It's a sucky way to spend a Saturday, but I think it'll be really interesting.

Michael got back to San Diego on Sunday night.  I am so thankful that he made it home in one piece. 

I am supposed to be getting a phone call from a lady at Loyola University in New Orleans about a job.  It's for the lead 3-year-old teacher position at the university's child care center.  I am really hoping I get it.  It sounds like a really good job, and I think it would be a good job to have while I'm working on my Master's.  It'd be from 9:00-5:30, though... So, they're really long days.  But I don't think I would have any papers to bring home and grade or anything like that.

19 days of school left...

Deployment = Over!

Michael called at 3:20 this morning.  He's back in the U.S.A. and was in Atlanta!  He should be on his way back to San Diego now!!  I wish we could be there to welcome him back.  I feel really bad about that.  Mom and Dad are flying down in a couple weeks to spend the weekend with him; I'll be staying in Tok to watch the animals.  I have ZERO days left to take off.  I'm hoping that he will be able to come up to Tok soon.  I haven't seen him since September of 2008, when he graduated from boot camp.  This is, without a doubt, the longest amount of time we've ever gone without seeing each other.  And I am NOT a fan of it!

Break

Yesterday was a pretty interesting day.  I was planning on staying out in Northway this weekend, but I had an appointment at the school district office, so I left school a little bit early and drove in.  After my appointment, I realized that I had locked myself out of my car, which I left running outside the office because Harley was inside.  Apparently, with Mazda cars, if the key is in the ignition and the car is running, the little clicker thing doesn't work.  It took me about an hour to get it figured out and get the door open.  Then I forgot about my massage appointment, and I made plans with Dad to go to dinner.  I was supposed to meet him at the house, but he didn't show up.  That made me nervous because he was out on his motorcycle.  Turns out... the battery on the Harley died.  I spent a good 30 minutes in the garage, looking for this converter thing so that he could plug in the battery charger.  The Harley's battery was too powerful or whatever for the dinky little charger, so we had to wait for his friend to bring his jumper cables.  When we got back to the house, I told him we'd go to dinner and then I was going to head back to Northway in the morning... But I'd forgotten that my car had to be dropped off at Chevron to get the summer tires put on.  And I forgot that I have a massage tomorrow morning at 8:00.

I thought about going out to Northway this morning after my car is done and get some work done in the classroom and then come back tonight, but that's 2 hours I'd spend driving, plus gas... I decided not to do that.  So now, instead of spending Saturday in my classroom, I'm spending it on the couch watching Lifetime movies.  I can't do anything for my lesson plans because everything is in Northway.  Things happen for a reason, right?  This must be life's way of telling me I need a break...

Toothless

Harley is back in Northway with me now.  His surgery went well according to Dad and the notes from the vet.  They extracted his four canine teeth and he is completely toothless now.  They also took a biopsy of his gums to make sure he doesn't have any mouth cancer or whatever.  They did a whole mouth X-ray to make sure there were no leftover parts of bone or roots from his previous extractions.  Nothing showed up.  He is tooth and root free.  His little cheeks are still a bit swollen.  And giving him his medicine last night was a pain in the rear because his mouth is still sore, obviously, from the surgery. 

I'm ready for the next couple weeks of healing to go by quickly so that I can see if extracting all his teeth ends (or at least cuts down on) all of his mouth issues.

In other news... We have 25 days of school left.  And there's an opening at one of the other schools in the district that I'm thinking about applying for, just in case I don't get a job in the South for next year and I'm here again.  I'd have a wider range of grades, but I would be able to live at home with my parents (save money!) and I would be able to have somewhat of a social life.  I think just living with my parents and coming home to them every night would get me out of this funk and would make next year that much more bearable.

Six More Weeks...

I would give my left foot for it to be May 27th already.  And if I had a job offer to go with it, I'd be even more thrilled.  I've contacted several public schools in Alabama and Louisiana, as well as a few private Catholic schools in the New Orleans area.  I'm really hopeful that something works out.

My weekend in Atlanta was a lot of fun, but nowhere near long enough.  My plane arrived in Atlanta about 20 minutes early, and since I didn't have to wait for the baggage claim, I had to wait a while outside for Tyler to come pick me up.  It took us about an hour to get to the hotel because we hit some pretty heavy traffic in downtown Atlanta.  Once I got to the hotel and checked in, I had about 25 minutes to wash my hair, do my makeup, and get changed for the rehearsal.  We headed over to the church, which was beautiful, and I started crying a little when I saw Caitie.  It'd been almost two years since I had last seen her.  One of mine and Caitie's sorority sisters from Auburn was in the wedding, as was one of sisters from the West Georgia chapter.  The rehearsal was really nice, and the rehearsal dinner was wonderful.  It was really nice to sit down and get to know family members of both the bride and groom.  After the rehearsal dinner, Caitie came back to the hotel room with me so that we had time to catch up.

On the wedding day, I had to be downstairs in the hotel restaurant at 9:45 for breakfast with the bride, the bride's aunt, three of the bridesmaids, and the boyfriend of one of the bridesmaids.  I set my alarm on my iPod to go off at 8:00 in the morning, but what I didn't do was change the CLOCK on my iPod.  So when I got up at 9:30, the clock on my iPod said 5:30 and the alarm hadn't gone off yet.  Lesson learned.  Luckily, Caitie was getting her hair done at a salon before the wedding and I had made an appointment as well, so I didn't have to do my hair.  And Caitie was having our makeup done for us at the church, so I didn't have to worry about that either.  All I had to do was shower, get changed, and dry my hair.  Breakfast was really good, and the company was amazing.  The restaurant had a buffet for breakfast, and a guy that was waiting in line got angry because they ran out of scrambled eggs or grits or something.  He walked back over to his table, which was behind ours, and slammed his plate down, breaking it in half.  I mean... Let's just act like children, why don't we?  He sat there and pouted until they brought out a new dish of whatever he was waiting for.  I felt bad for his wife, but she didn't look like she cared that her grown man of a husband just slammed a plate down in a public restaurant and broke it.

Hair appointments came and went without problems.  My hairdresser told the salon owner that I was the "coolest person" she'd ever met because I was from Alaska.  She also told me that my curls "weren't goin' nowhere."  Oh, but they did.  Just like I told her they would.  Caitie's hair looked gorgeous!  We went to the church and had our makeup done... It looked pretty good.  A bit dramatic for my taste, but that's the point for weddings... It makes the pictures look better, from what I've heard.  We all got dressed into our bridesmaids dresses and got Caitie into her dress (she was beautiful!!), and then went outside to do pictures.  I can't wait to see how those turned out.  Before we knew it, it was 5:00 and people were starting to show up, so we had to hurry and get Caitie inside before anyone saw her.

The wedding ceremony was beautiful.  My feet were absolutely killing me.  There were moments where I thought I'd trip and stumble because my feet were in so much pain.  And after walking out with my groomsman after the ceremony and I was out of sight from the congregation, I took those suckers off and refused to put them back on.  Luckily, my dress was long enough that no one could really tell that I didn't have shoes on.  When we got to the reception, I didn't even take my shoes into the building with me.  Speaking of the reception... what a blast!  Mary Katherine (Alpha Xi from West GA) kept trying to get me to drink wine, and I kept refusing because I am not a wine person, at all.  But I finally tried a glass of white zinfandel and after about half a glass, I was hooked.  Three glasses later, I was out on the dance floor with Caitie, Tara, Aaron, MK and Bennett.

After seeing Caitie and Tyler off around 11:00, MK, Bennett and I headed back to the hotel.  We stopped at the bar in the lobby before heading up to our rooms.  While we were there, I met a couple guys from the UK.  I heard them talking to the bartender and recognized their accents, so I asked where they were from.  They said they were from the UK, and I said, "I know! Where in the UK?"  Haha.  Their names were Robert (I think?) and Jason.  One was from Wales and the other was from North Hampton, but I can't remember which one was from where.  One of them (or both... I can't remember) was moving to Atlanta because they were taking over a company that manufactures tires in Chattanooga.  Why he wasn't moving to, say, Chattanooga... I don't know.

The next day, Caitie's sister, Carrie, and I left the hotel just before 11 to head back to their mom's house.  I was able to check my email and check Facebook and then we left to head to the airport.  Heather met me at the airport around 1:15 and we had lunch at the Atlanta Bread Company.  She brought me my camera and an Easter goody bag, complete with Easter eggs filled with chocolate, some coffee cake muffins, and a piece of homemade carrot cake. :)  She's such a sweet friend!

The flight to Seattle wasn't too bad, other than being uncomfortably warm.  The plane was equipped with Wi-Fi, and I tried it out... $8 and 2 hours later, my iPod died and I was internet-less.  The flight to Fairbanks was much better than I thought it would be.  I was bummed because I had the middle seat and I HATE the middle seat.  Who doesn't?  But, the moment I walked on the plane, I noticed it was significantly cooler.  The two guys sitting on either side of me showed up very late... I almost thought I had the whole row to myself.  And after texting Ron to tell him how nice it would be to have the whole row to myself, they both showed up.  The guy sitting next to the aisle had one of those personal DVD player things, and let me plug my headphones into it and watch a movie with him.  We watched Old Dogs, and it was hysterical!  I must buy that movie!  We started to watch The Hangover, but the battery died.  By that time, we'd started our descent into Fairbanks, so it was perfect timing, really.  We talked for the rest of the flight.  He's been living in Fairbanks for about 4 years and will be moving in September, due to a relocation with the Air Force.  He was coming back from a long weekend in California, where he was meeting his now-girlfriend for the first time.  They met on eHarmony a couple months ago, and this was the first time they met face to face. 

While I was waiting in the airport in Seattle on Sunday, I called my parents to say hi.  Mom told me that, before I headed back to Northway, I wasn't supposed to leave until she got to see me.  She doesn't usually make requests like that, so I asked her if everything was ok.  "Yeah, everything is fine.  I just haven't seen you in a while!  And I missed you!"  Again... odd for her to say that, since she'd see me three days earlier.  Finally, I got it out of her that, while I was gone, Harley had quit eating and she'd taken him to the vet in Fairbanks that day.  His last four teeth have to be pulled out next week.  :(  Poor little guy.  His steroid medicine has been increased to 2.5 cc's every day instead of 2.5 cc's every other day.  And he's been given this painkiller medicine that is a derivative of morphine and is 25-40 times as potent as morphine... according to Wikipedia.  I was wondering what was in it... Considering he acts like he's strung up on cat nip after he takes it.  Now I know... He's doped up on a stronger version of morphine.  Awesome.  Dad is driving him into Fairbanks next Monday, since I'll be at school, and will drop him off at the vet.  He'll stay the night, and have surgery first thing in the morning, and then around 1:00 in the afternoon, Dad will pick him up and bring him back to Tok.  I'll have to drive in on Tuesday evening and pick him up so that I can be the one to take care of him while he's recovering.  It won't be too bad, seeing as how we've done this twice already.  My little one is going to be toothless!  Haha.  The vet made a comment last time I was up there with him about how one of the purposes for his teeth is to keep his tongue in his mouth.... If he has no teeth, his tongue will stick out all over the place.  That is going to rock my socks off!  His tongue sticks out the front of his mouth a lot right now because those little front teeth are gone, and it cracks me up!


29 more days of school!

Relaxed

The snow is melting, and the temperature reached 50 degrees today.  Finally!  I love the snow, but for 7 months?  That's a bit much for me.

This weekend was the first weekend in five weeks that I haven't had anything planned, and it's be NICE.  I caught up on some major sleep last night, after filling up on Thai food, and slept in this morning.  It's sad that I slept in for two and a half hours and was up at 8:30.  And I was still tired enough to take a nap.  Saturday afternoon naps are the best.

The state finally got my paperwork for my AK teaching license.  I'd have been screwed if it had gotten lost in the mail for a second time.  I have to take the Praxis I sometime within the next year.  I'm going to have to wait until the summer, though, because the closest place to take it is in Fairbanks, roughly four and a half hours from Northway.

Mom turned my contract in for me on Thursday.  I'm still looking for jobs in the Southeast, though.  I found a school district in New Orleans I wanted to work for, but they were insistent on having two years of experience.  I emailed a bunch of principals in the Birmingham area and in Opelika.  And on Friday, during lunch, I applied to a bunch of jobs in Knox County, TN.  I almost feel bad for my references because I've been applying to so many places, haha.  But... I really want to move this summer.  I want to be closer to everyone.

I'm leaving Thursday for Caitie's wedding in Atlanta.  I'm really looking forward to seeing her, but this trip is going to be so freaking quick.  Wam bam, thank you ma'am.  Heather is going to drive up to the Atlanta airport on Sunday and meet me for lunch.  Delta pushed my flight departure time from 2:something to 4:something.  Luckily, I was able to get Monday off from work so I can drive from Fairbanks to Northway.

Seven more weeks of school...

FML

I have had a constant headache for the last two days, and I don't know why.  It's on the left side, around my temple and behind my eye.  I don't know if it's because I've been ridiculously stressed trying to figure out what I'm doing next year or if it's something else.  It's nothing like the headaches I used to get before I had my brain surgery, but still... Headaches freak me out because I think something is wrong.  I'm not a hypochondriac about it or anything, though.  I just don't want to have to have a decompression surgery again.

I'm still very much in the dark about what is going to happen next year.  I have three options: 1. Turn in my contract and stay.  2. Turn in my contract and keep looking.  If I find something before June 30th, then I can get out of my contract without the state taking my license.  But if I don't find anything, then I already have a job secured.  3. Don't turn my contract in and move to Birmingham if I don't find a job.  While I'm in Birmingham, I would be working on my Master's online from Walden and hopefully subbing the majority of the week, if not every day during the week.

I was really leaning towards option 3, but after really thinking about it and talking to the guy at Chevron (of all places...), I'm going to go with option 2.  Mom is turning in my contract tomorrow.  That still gives me 3 months to look for a job.  I've decided, also, that I'm definitely going to start my Master's in the fall so that I don't have to pay on my student loans.  I can put that money in savings so that when this time of year comes around next year, if I'm still up here, I'll have money to live on in Birmingham.

If I stay here, I'm only doing one more year.  I can't stand to do more than that.  The honeymoon phase of Alaska is over.  It's gorgeous... it always will be.  And I like being close to my parents.  And I like the salary I get here.  And I love the people I work with.  Those four reasons are the only reasons why I like being here.  But I miss my friends.  I miss Ron.  I miss the South, in general.  I miss a lot of little things that I don't have in Northway or Tok (Fairbanks has some, but that's a bazillion miles away)... I miss radio stations.  And interstates.  Roads with more than two lanes.  Traffic lights.  Rush hour.  Shopping.  Movies.  Jordan-Hare stadium.  Samford lawn.  Weekend get-aways to Atlanta, Birmingham, or Huntsville.  I miss the fact that, if I remember at 2:00 in the morning that I've forgotten something at WalMart, I can get in the car and go get it.  I miss the social aspect of my life.  I'm social here, to an extent.... But not really with anyone my own age.

My laptop is about to peace out on me, and my headache hasn't gone anywhere.  I should go to bed... But I think I'm going to watch New Moon instead.

Spring Break

It's been a while since I last updated.  Becky called me out on it while I was in Auburn for Spring Break.  So, B, this is for you. :)

I want to relive Spring Break ALL over again.  From start to finish.  I had so much fun being back in the South and being with my friends that were my age.  I did not want to pack up on Friday and leave to come back up here.  Recap of the week...

Lauren's Wedding.  Amazing.  She was beautiful.  Darryn is a sweetheart.  I'd never met him before... I had only heard stories of him.  Tons and tons of stories.  I got to Excel later than I expected because I slept in on accident (I really needed the sleep, though, so I wasn't too upset with myself) and I had errands to run in Auburn before heading to Lauren's parents' house.  I got there around 5:30 and got to catch up with Lauren for a bit before leaving for the church for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner.  It was so nice seeing Lauren's parents again, and meeting her sister and brother-in-law, as well as Darryn and his family.  Everyone was so sweet, and they were so glad that I traveled from Alaska to be part of their special day.  Darryn's mom's side of the family is from New Zealand, so some of his family members traveled from there to be part of the day.

After we got back home Friday night, Lauren and I were sitting in her room coming up with a list of poses that she wanted the photographer to take.  She saw my bridesmaid dress laying on her bed, and the expression fell from her face as she asked me, "What is that?"  I told her it was my dress and all she could say was, "No.  No.  No it's not."  I said, "Yes... Yes it is."  Turns out... When I ordered the dress, David's Bridal told me the WRONG COLOR.  Oh yeah.  My dress was Sangria instead of Lapis.  Fuschia-ish instead of a deep, dark purple.  I burst into tears and Lauren burst into laughter.  I was SO upset, but she kept assuring me it was ok and that no one would think anything of it because they'd think it was on purpose.  Darryn happened to call during my meltdown and talked to me.  "I don't know what Lapis is, and I don't know what Sangria is.  But I do know you're going to look fabulous.  And we're just glad that you traveled all the way here to be standing up there next to us."  I felt a little bit better after that, but I still felt so bad.

On the day of the wedding, the dress fiasco had turned into a conversation piece.  "So, you're the one with the odd-colored dress..."  "You're the one who is going to stick out..."  And once I saw the professional pictures on Facebook, I definitely stood out, haha.  Oh well.

The ceremony was quick and beautiful.  Darryn's grandmother blessed them during the ceremony in her NZ native language, while his aunt translated.  I thought it was such a neat way to tie in his background into the ceremony.  Lauren and Darryn also used the traditional NZ wedding bands instead of regular gold or silver bands.  I can't remember the name of their rings, but they look like jade.  It's some kind of green stone.  It's really pretty.  After the ceremony, everyone gathered in the reception hall.  There was a whole bunch of food, which was great, because we were starving!  I left around 4 to go back to Lauren's parents' house to pack up and head to Birmingham.  I was planning on staying in Excel until Sunday, but I thought the reception was going to last longer than it actually did.

Birmingham.  I went to Birmingham to see the boy.  I think the last time I mentioned him on here, I wrote that I thought things were over because he had chosen to date some other girl, and I wasn't going to be the girl he talked to on the side or whatever.  After thinking about it a lot, I decided that I still wanted to have dinner with him, at the very least, because we did talk for so long and whatnot.  Well, then he and this girl quit seeing each other and our conversations picked up again and things were going well.

I texted him as I was leaving Excel and told him I was driving up early because the wedding finished a lot sooner than planned, and I told him I'd let him know when I got to the hotel.  I spent the whole drive thinking about what things were going to be like between us... If they'd be just as good in person as they were online and over the phone.  I wasn't nervous at all.  Even when I let him know I made it to the hotel and he asked if I wanted to go to his place and do dinner.  I was really excited, but not nervous.  Then I got there and rang the doorbell and waited an excruciating 15 seconds for him to open the door... I was nothing but nervous.  But then I saw him and he gave me a hug and the feeling of nervousness turned to butterflies.  And the butterflies didn't leave until I was driving back to Auburn on Monday.

He showed me around his house (which is really nice, by the way) and we talked for a bit, and then we went out for dinner.  We went to a Japanese steakhouse called Sumo (or Sumo's?).  He was such a gentleman... Opening the doors for me and everything.  So sweet.  I thought our conversations went well, although I think I was a bit quiet.  But I think part of that was because, after a year of talking, I was finally sitting next to this wonderful man and I had a circus of butterflies in my stomach.  After dinner, we went back to his house and watched a movie and some TV before I left to go back to the hotel.

On Sunday, I went over to his place around 1 and we watched the Mississippi State-Kentucky basketball game on TV and then went to Moe's for lunch.  I still couldn't believe he was right there in front of me, and the butterflies were still kicking... So much so that I couldn't finish my lunch.  After lunch, we went for a drive around his area of Birmingham.  He showed me the schools he refs at, the country club where he was working and the one he was hoping to get a job at, the neighborhoods he looked at for houses when he was looking last year... We spent maybe an hour and a half doing that, and it was wonderful... I really just enjoyed being in his company.  Our last stop was the grocery store.  We went in and picked up some things for dinner and then headed back to his house.  We watched TV for a bit before making dinner since we'd had a late lunch.  He had said he was going to make me dinner, but it ended up being the two of us making dinner together.  I loved that.  Again, it was just being in the same room with him... It was calming and comforting, and something just felt right.  We watched The Hangover as we ate our teriyaki shrimp and chicken.  After the movie, we did dishes and he took the trash out while I was watching something on his computer upstairs.  When he got back from taking the trash out, we stayed upstairs and watched things on YouTube and a couple comedians on CMT.  Around 2:00 in the morning or so, I left and went back to the hotel.

On Monday, I let him know when I was heading downstairs to check out of the hotel.  I was supposed to be in Montgomery taking the GRE, but decided that, since things between us were going so well and I didn't want to leave him and I had already decided on getting my Master's from Walden (where I don't need the GRE), I was going to skip the test and spend some more time with him before I had to go back to Auburn.  We met up for lunch at Cracker Barrel (my favorite restaurant) and enjoyed one last meal before I had to get on the road and he had to head to the golf course.  When we were leaving, we gave each other a hug and held each other for a bit.  For that moment, I wish time could have stopped.  I want a lot of things in life, but leaving him was not one of them.  It was awful and I hated it, and I started crying as soon as I turned around to walk to my car.

Auburn.  I loved being back in Auburn!  Heather and I hung out for a little bit on Monday when I got there, and then I went to dinner with Sara and two of her friends at Niffer's.  Oh, how I miss that place!  No meal at Niffer's is complete without corn nuggets, fried pickles, and fishbowls.  We played a little bit of trivia before we left.  I went to get ice cream with Heather and Megan after dinner because Megan was leaving the next morning.  However, while eating our ice cream, we decided to meet up for brunch with Megan and her boyfriend before they left for the lake.   We met at IHOP for brunch and had a nice meal.  I'd never met her boyfriend, and he is so sweet!  Heather and I had dentist appointments right after brunch.  The rest of the week was spent hanging out and not doing a whole lot.  I went shopping for some clothes and things I needed for my house up here, and I bought so much stuff, that I had to buy a box and mail some stuff back to Alaska because it wouldn't have fit in my suitcase.  It should be here this week, hopefully.... I stupidly packed my outfit for Caitie's rehearsal dinner in the box instead of in my suitcase, ha.  I went with Becky to buy her a new bed on Wednesday or Thursday.  Her mattress was so old, it had bed bugs, and she'd had an allergic reaction to them.  Bleh.  We found her a nice, soft mattress, and it really wasn't even that expensive because it was on sale.  On Friday, it was SUCH a nice day out, Heather and I took the dog she was watching, Begley, for a walk on Auburn's campus.  I took a bunch of pictures, and then when I got to the airport in Atlanta on Saturday morning, I realized I left my camera in Heather's car.  She's driving over to Atlanta in a couple weeks while I'm down there for Caitie's wedding, and she's going to bring my camera to me.  Since my plane doesn't leave Atlanta until 4:something on Sunday, she's going to drive over so we can eat lunch together at the airport, lol.  What a sweet, sweet friend she is. :)


All in all, the week was amazing.... in more ways than one.  I've already contacted several principals about job openings and I'm hoping to get called for an interview.  I know that staying up here another year is a possibility... I have until June 30th to find a job down there so that I can get out of my contract here for next year without the state revoking my license.  I am looking all over AL and in the New Orleans area.  Pray and cross your fingers that I find something for next year...

Ugh.

OMGWTFBBQ.

I hate when I have days like I did today. 

Blaaaaah.

No AU

It seems as though getting my Master's at Auburn is out of the question. :(  Because my undergrad is in Early Childhood Education, I would have to get my M.Ed. in ECE as well, regardless of what school I go to in Alabama.  It has something to do with the way the state does certification.

So, now I have four choices:

A.) Go to Auburn and get my degree in Early Childhood Education.  (I'm not keen on this choice because I don't want to spend another $25K on a degree that isn't exactly what I want.)

B.) Find a school in GA, TN, or MS that will let me get a degree in Elementary Education like I want.

C.) Find a teaching job in AL and get my M.Ed. online.

D.) Stay here at WNS and get my M.Ed. online.

I hate this...

Indecisive

True story:  I completely SUCK at making big decisions.

Geez.

Longer days

I would just like to take a moment to tell you how HAPPY it makes me to be able to leave school at 4:30 pm and be able to walk across the parking lot to my house in the DAYLIGHT.  I'm at home, almost 5:00, and I don't have a single light on.  For real, I cannot wait until the sun sets around 7:30/8:00.  I would much rather have the curtains open and the let the natural light in.

And not only are the days getting noticeably longer at a pretty quick pace, the temperature is above zero.  AND, it's a two-digit number.

Flighty

Between booking my flights for Atlanta last week (or two weeks ago...?) and today, I can't tell you how many changes have been made to the flight.  I get an email notification with every change, which is good, but I got four emails just today saying that my departure time from Seattle to Atlanta changed by one minute.  A notification email of the big changes -- like when my flights going from Atlanta to Fairbanks got pushed back two and a half hours and all the times changed -- is fine.  But really?  For one minute?  Ugh.

On an unrelated note, I pushed my kids today all through their bad attitudes and not listening and made them get their work done.  And we finished everything on my lesson plans for today.  We made a cute sign for the basketball game tomorrow -- it's the big game, WNS vs. Tok -- and while I was making it, I kept thinking about all the signs we made as a sorority for various functions:  Pep rallies, football games, good luck signs for girls trying out for different organizations, telling girls to go Greek... If I get into Auburn for grad school, I'm going to be so excited to see all those cute signs again.  I'll have to remember to bring my camera tomorrow so that I can take a picture of our sign.  Kelleigh's class is jealous because they're not doing anything like a poster or a sign for the game. :)

I have a massive to do list for things I need/want to get done in the classroom.  And there is so much on there, I was here for eight hours yesterday and I feel like I hardly made a dent in my list.  It seems like I scratch one thing off and remember two more things that need to go on there.  I can't wait for Spring Break.  I leave in 31 days.  And I'm taking the GRE five weeks from today.  Ahh.

GRE

I registered for the GRE this afternoon.  After realizing that the test is only offered on Monday through Friday and, in the state of Alaska, it's only offered in Anchorage and Fairbanks, I decided that it'd be a better use of my time to take it in Montgomery while I'm in Alabama for Spring Break.  So, I'll be taking the exam on the Monday of my Spring Break at noon. 

5 weeks is enough time to study.... Right?

Yikes!

War Eagle!!

Round 2 at Auburn it is!

I applied to grad school tonight, and tomorrow morning I have to get up early and call some places in Auburn to get some more information.  Then I need to register for the GRE and talk to my principal about a letter of recommendation.  That's going to be a tough conversation because I know he wants me to stay for next year.  But I just have to stand firm that this is what I need to do for me.  I can always come back to WNS if I want to.  But for right now, I need to do this.  I want my Master's degree more than I want to be here next year.

Plus, if I'm going to take a year off from being in the classroom so I can be a full-time student, I'm going to need health insurance.  And right now, I'm on my mom's health insurance plan until I'm 25.  So if I'm going to have health coverage while I'm a full-time student, this coming up school year is the year I should do it, because I lose that coverage in the summer of 2011.

I'm just crossing my fingers that I get my study materials for the GRE in a timely manner so that I can study and do well on the test.  I need to look on Auburn's website about what scores I have to get on each part of the test.

War Eagle!!

Master's

I couldn't get to sleep until 2:30 this morning... I don't know what was up.  I was still able to get up and get over to school before 7:00.  How that happened, I have no idea.

I made the decision last night to go back to school for my Master's in Elementary Education.   I haven't made the decision about where I'd go to get it, yet.  So far, I've looked at Auburn, UAB, and Alabama.  The only decision I have made is that I need to buy some study guide books for the GRE.  I still need to play around with the dates of everything, but I'm hoping to take the exam in May.  The only thing I'm nervous about is whether I get pass the GRE and get accepted to the school/program in time to start classes this coming Fall semester.

I thought about getting my degree while still teaching, but the more I think about it, the more I'm inclined to take a year off from teaching and go full-time.  The degree is only 30-33 semester hours, so I can easily knock it out in one year.  And while I'm going full-time, I can put my student loan payments on hold. :)

Plus... going back to school can be a good excuse to get back to Alabama over the summer if I play my cards right.  Haha.  I can't get my Master's while living here unless I take it online, and I'd much rather have a face-to-face class.

Crazy

Ohhh.... it is definitely Monday.  Only 15 more Mondays left until the end of the school year after today.  15 more weeks.  It's coming to a close quickly!

This week is Spirit Week, and today is Hippie Day.  Do I own anything hippie?  Of course not.  My "outfit" consists of a fringed flowery scarf worn as a belt and a peace symbol on my necklace made out of pipe cleaners.  And I threw my hair up into a low messy bun to the side.  Ha.  Only one of my kids came to school today with something hippie, and when they saw my pipe cleaner necklace, they all wanted one.  Hopefully that'll count as wearing something hippie... If so, then we get 100% participation for the day, which will put us in the lead for winning Spirit Week. :)

Tomorrow is Mustache Day.  I'm going to get some white paint and make a milk mustache.  Wednesday is Hat Day and I'll be rocking my camo Alpha Xi hat.  Thursday is Jersey Day... Where is my jersey?  In my storage unit.  In Alabama.  Too bad I can't overnight something. :(  Friday is Red, Black and White day, and luckily I have already bought a WNS shirt, so I have that day covered.

It was fairly light out this morning at 8:42 -- I only remember the time because I was writing an email and had looked at the clock.  It seems like we're gaining daylight hours back quicker than we lost them.  Which I am completely ok with.  The sooner we get that daylight back, the happier I will be.  And the sooner the snow melts and temperatures get above +32 degrees, I'll be even happier!

And when I get to Alabama (38 days...), I'll be over the moon. :)

Sleepy

My observation here in town went well.  I was there to observe reading groups, and they do something similar to Walk to Read in Auburn.  She does a lot of cute things in her room that I am going to try and do in my room, if not this year, then in future classrooms for sure.

Apparently, the teacher I'm observing tomorrow wants me out there all day.  I wasn't planning on that long, but whatever... But I think I'll learn a LOT from her.  She's one of those amazingly cool and level-headed teachers, and she teaches multi-grade like I do.  After I observe there and drive back, I'll probably take a nap and then start on the insanely large and towering stack of papers I need to grade.  And driving back into town today, I realized that I left about a third of the papers at my house...  Oh well.  I have to go back relatively early on Sunday because I didn't bring anything home with me to do lesson plans for next week.

Speaking of next week, we're doing our first intruder drill on Wednesday.  I was going over the procedures of what they're supposed to do while I lock the door and turn the lights off and they're freaked out.  I told them it was just a practice drill, like our fire drills, but that the principal and the trooper are going to be listening to make sure we're being as quiet as we can be.  Of course, they started talking about the secret phrase that is said on the intercom when there is an intruder, and a bought of "what if" questions started.  "What if I'm in the bathroom and he has a gun and he comes in there?"  "What if he smashes in the glass in the door window and lets himself in?  And then holds a gun to your head, Erica?"  What if, what if, what if.  Wednesday morning will be very interesting, that's for sure.

So this entire week I haven't been able to get to sleep worth a sack of beans.  But now I'm home at my parents' house.  And what is the first thing I did as soon as I finished dinner?  Well, after I perused Facebook for about 30 minutes.  I fell asleep on the couch.  Wrapped in my blanket, glasses still on (I finally got them today... They're pink and have little pink jewels on them and just overall fabulous!).... I slept for close to two and a half hours.  Dad woke me up to clean up a mess that Harley had made in the kitchen.  "COR" he calls it... Cat Owner Responsibilities.

Mom's 51st birthday is on Saturday.  Dad has a couple tricks up his sleeve, and I can't wait to see how she reacts.  Hopefully she won't be sick on Saturday... She's been hacking up her lungs today.  She drank two hot toddies and then went to bed, and I think she's taking a half day at work tomorrow.

I think keeping up with this blog is the only resolution of mine that I've successfully kept so far.

Exhausted

I. Am. Exhausted.  I don't know what it is about this week, but I am emotionally and physically drained!  Last week I couldn't stay up past 9:00... This week, I can't get to sleep if my life were depending on it.  What the hell?  This week is no different than last week.  Nothing is different.  Even things with the guy haven't changed much... I think I am going to go to lunch with him, at the very least.  I do care about him and we've been talking for so long now... I think I'd regret it in the end if I pass up this chance to see him.  Something about the two of us together feels right.  It's beyond crazy on so many levels, but deep in my gut, it just feels right.  I don't have any other words for it.  I guess that's why this whole situation is so heartbreaking.  I'm not going to beg him or try to talk him into wanting to be with me, but at the same time, I wish he'd realize that I'm worth waiting for.  At least for the next 6 weeks until I get there and can see what things are like when we're right there in front of each other.  But until then, I have to settle for this gut-wrenching feeling that something wonderful will end before it ever had it's chance to really start.  Damn life...

I'm only at school for a half day tomorrow.  I have to go into town and observe the 1st grade teacher, and then on Friday I have to go another school on the other side of town and observe the K-6 teacher.  Mom's birthday is on Saturday, so all this planning worked out really well.  I stayed at school until 8:15 tonight to get ready for the sub.  Setting up for a sub would be so much easier if I only had one grade... It took me forever.  Copies to make, plans to type up, materials to get together, procedures to explain, blah blah blah.  There are a couple more things left to do, but I can do those in the morning.  Hopefully I will be able to get up and get my rear in gear so that I can be over at the school around 7 or 7:30.  So far this week, I've been strolling in right at 8.  Which leaves 45 minutes to prep before school starts... And I spend half of that talking to Kelleigh, haha.

Leaving in 6 weeks!!

Frozen

The water at the duplex is frozen.  Again.  It’ll be out for a while, too, from the sound of it.  The maintenance guy said that the water below the water pump is what’s frozen.  And since that water is frozen, no water can flow into the well and the water pump is whirling away in mid-air.  Our rent should be reduced for every day that that stupid well is frozen… Seriously.  I can’t take a shower or wash dishes, and I can’t give Little Man his foot soak without going over to the school.  It’s a huge inconvenience.  There’s always something wrong with this place.  The septic tank overflowed again because my toilet wouldn’t stop running.  As if Lake Frozen Shit wasn’t big enough last week…  Now it’s a MASSIVE frozen mess.  My car is stuck in the ice again.  Thankfully I know how to get out of it.  Even the back wheels of the principal’s truck are frozen in ice this time. Ha.  All I can do, really, is laugh about it.  It’s not going to be fixed tonight.  Or this weekend.  And whining won’t get it fixed any faster.

And the Internet is out again.  I’m going to talk to the principal and see if I can leave pretty much as soon as the buses leave so that I can physically go into the internet company’s office and complain.  I’ve already packed up everything and in the morning I’m going to load up my dirty dishes and laundry into the car.  That way, as soon as the buses leave, I just have to run over and start the car, then go in and grab Harley and my other bag, and we can be on the road.

For some reason, every night this week, I have not been able to stay up past 9:00.  I don’t know why.  On Tuesday, the girls’ basketball game ended at 7, and by 7:30, I had already gathered my stuff at school and walked home and had dinner.  Fifteen minutes later, I was falling asleep on the couch, so I went to bed to read a book, and after I got off the phone with my mom at 8:15, I was out like a light as soon as my head hit the pillow. Even though I went to bed early on Tuesday, I still slept in on Wednesday until 7:00.  I don’t know what’s going on that has everything all out of whack.  The only thing that’s different is the whole situation with the guy.

On a brighter note, I’m leaving 7 weeks from today. :)

Excited

Everyone I have talked to about the recent decision I’ve made about calling it quits with the boy has been really supportive.  Part of me hopes he’d call and say this is all a huge misunderstanding.  But I think the realistic side of me knows he won’t.

Little man’s toes are still swollen.  I had to pick gunk out of three of his toes and nailbeds.  He was not too happy with me (luckily he only hates me for a short period of time).  But they’re looking better.  It’s a slow ordeal.  And it’s so intense!  In the morning, he gets two medicines, his food, and a fourth of a teaspoon of this amino acid gel that is supposed to help with his immune system.  And in the evening, he gets one of the medicines, his food with some fish oil, the amino acid gel, and I have to soak his feet in a watered down iodine mix in the sink and clean each individual toe with a baby wipe.  I wish I could feel what he’s feeling… I hate that he’s in pain.  And I wish that the histology report came back showing something relating to his immune system, just so I could know the reason behind all his toe issues.  I’m against declawing, but if it doesn’t get better, I may get it done for health reasons.  Especially it this is not cleared up by the time summer gets here.

I had my first eLive class for this supplemental math curriculum I’m doing in my classroom.  It’s based on the Yup’ik culture and it is really involved in the sense that there is a crap ton of planning!  But… all the data from the curriculum in recent years shows that it works.  And I’m all about doing things to help my kids learn.  I’ve been talking with my aide to see how we can make some Athabascan connections, even if it’s just learning the Athatbascan word for the different berries we’re learning about.

I leave for my Spring Break in Alabama in seven weeks and two days.

Decisions, decisions

Between my last post and now, things have changed.  I may not be going to Birmingham during my Spring Break trip to Alabama after all, because I think things with the guy are over... Whatever "thing" it was.  And "over" as in I don't think we're not talking anymore.  Things went from great to crap in 27 hours.  I went into this thing head on, put my heart on my sleeve from the get-go and was the most honest with him than I've ever been with a guy.  But apparently we're not on the same page, like I stupidly thought we were.  I'm not going to be the girl he's "talking to" while he continues to look around.  And I'm not letting him put me on the back burner to some other girl he "doesn't know" if he wants to date or not.  He's already told his parents about this girl... His mom knows about me.  The rest of the family "might" know about me.  So I texted him and said he had a decision to make -- date the other girl and quit talking to me or realize that I'm worth waiting the next few months for.  I never got a response from him... So I took the silence as his answer.  His decision was made.  The end.

I wanted to see where things went with him, and I knew for that to happen, it would be better for us to be closer to each other, instead of being a million miles away.  I knew that he'd never move up here, and all my friends are in Alabama, so it made the most sense for me to move, which I was totally fine with.  I had already started looking for jobs in the Birmingham area. 

Since things with him are obviously going nowhere, there is no hurry to move back to Alabama (except for the fact that I miss my girls tremendously).  I'd love to, at some point.  And, one day, I will move back.  But for right now, I've decided that it's better for me, financially, to stay up here and keep my job for next year.  After next year... Who knows.  I have a long time to figure that one out.  I won't be here forever.  I know my friends in Alabama will be disappointed because they all want me back, and I feel really bad that I'm so far away now.  But at the same time, I'm making really good money here, I'm learning a LOT that I'd never learn in the South, and most important, I love my students.  They need me to stay another year.

Haha

I only have four students today (a lot of them left with their families yesterday to go to Tri-Valley for the HS basketball tournament this weekend).  In my class, the kids can earn a star each morning and a star each afternoon if they have good behavior.  When they get to 25 stars, we have a party/"free time" afternoon on Friday after lunch.  Today is one of our party days.

2nd grader: "Erica, can we listen to iTunes during our party if we're good this morning?"
Me: "We'll see... I have some music on my computer that we can put on."
2nd grader: "No, I mean the iTunes on the class computer."  (I deleted the music because it was not appropriate for school.)
Me: "No, that music was deleted off.  The computer guy from the school district came and deleted it all."
*brief pause*
2nd grader: "CURSE him!!!!!!!!!  Why would he DO such a thing?!"

A lot of funny things these kiddos say is really a "you had to be here" kind of thing, and you have to know the kids.

Stuck

I went to dinner with the principal's wife and their kids at the librarian's house down in the village tonight.  It was nice once we got there... Getting there was another story.  My car was frozen to the ground.  Literally.  The sewer tank overflowed (nasty, right?) and since it's on my side of the house and it overflowed as much as it did, and then the temps got to -34 the other day, all of the nastiness froze.  I have dubbed our driveway as Lake Frozen Shit.  Anyways, the Suburban got stuck in said lake and wouldn't move when I tried to put it in reverse.  Finally, after trying to rock it out, I put it in reverse and gunned it out of there.  Luckily the brakes worked, because I went flying backwards out of my spot.  There are now four little tire holes in the ice where my car was sitting.  On one hand, the whole thought of my car being stuck in the ice is disgusting, considering what that ice is... But on the other hand, the whole thought of my car being stuck in ice period is hysterical to me.  Not only was the car frozen to the ground, but the extension cord I use to plug it is also stuck in the lake.  I'm going to have to see if my parents have something I can chip the ice away with while I'm home over the weekend.

I am SO excited to be going home this weekend.  This has been a crazy week.  I only had half my class today (I'm down to eight students now), because there is a basketball tournament in Tri-Valley.

I noticed that there were more pictures posted on the 04 Throw Down event on Facebook for my sorority chapter's 30th reunion weekend.  Looking through them made me sad because there is no way I'm going to be able to be there and I REALLY wanted to go.  I'm too far away from the good things when I'm up here.  Things like that make me feel like I want to go back to Alabama for sure next year... But then I think about the day I had today with my kids and the pictures we took on Monday and how cute they are, and how good it would be for them if I stayed up here, and I start thinking about staying up here for another year.  I can't think of the last time I was in a dilemma like this.  A lot of good things can happen if I move back to Alabama... Not as many good things will happen up here, but I'll be making good money to pay off loans and build my savings, which will be good in the long run.

I don't like decisions like this.

Humored

Highlight of my day:  For whatever reason, the 1st and 2nd graders went on a cleaning FRENZY in the room after snack break.  They were wiping down all the tables, including my entire desk (while I was sitting there - they took things out of my hand and moved them), with Clorox wipes and picked up all the trash... I didn't argue it at. all.  However, the best part was when one of my 1st graders was cleaning the sink area, and all of a sudden, I hear a scream.  Followed by a brief pause.  Followed by, "Holy crackers!!  That's freaking HOT!"

Moments like that make me love being a teacher.  Especially with these kids.

Hopeful

I meant to post this earlier, but time has a habit of escaping me these days.  2009 was an utter whirlwind, to say the least.  As good as it was, though, I'm definitely hopeful for a better 2010.

In January, I started my student teaching in a Kindergarten classroom in Auburn.  The kids were wonderful, but the teacher was a nightmare, and for the next four months, I was in internship hell.  No one heard more about it than my sorority little sister/roommate... bless her heart.  I couldn't have made it without her.  Countless days I came back frustrated out of my mind or on the verge of tears because I couldn't fathom how someone who is supposed to be helping me and being a mentor to me could be so deceitful and hurtful.  I learned a lot from her, but it was a lot of things not to do.  Thank God I was working at a gym... I took out a lot of frustration on those machines, ha.

In February, I was in my second wedding and watched one of my best friends marry a fabulous guy in Huntsville.

After the wedding, while sitting on the couch, bored out of our noodle one night, the roomie and I saw a commercial for eHarmony and decided that we were both going to sign up to see what happened.  At first, I wasn't going to pay for it (expensive!), but then I decided I was going to pay for one month and take it seriously.  At the end of that month, I realized I had forgotten to cancel my subscription and was signed up for another month.  I made sure to cancel it before March was over.

At the beginning of March, I was matched with a guy in Birmingham and started talking to him at the end of the month.  Nine months later, we are still talking and I'm planning on going to see him while I'm in Alabama this coming March for a wedding.

Also in March, I spent my entire Spring Break at Curves working while everyone else went to the beach.  It was the most fabulous week ever because 1.) a lot of members were parents of kids in the school system and they went on vacation, so it was quiet at the gym, 2.) I got to catch up on internship stuff, 3.) I got to read several books because I wanted to read them, and 4.) my paycheck was fabulous!

April was pretty quiet... I spent the month applying for countless jobs throughout Alabama and Georgia and was preparing for the end of my internship and graduation from Auburn, all while trying to pick up some extra hours at Curves.  I also found out that one of my really good friends in the sorority got married and was expecting a baby!  I was BEYOND thrilled to hear this news!!

May was big!  I finally finished my nightmare known as internship.  I took my list of things not to do in a classroom and walked across that big stage to receive a handshake from Bo Jackson and my diploma.  Tyler graduated the same day with his Master's degree, and luckily, was in the same ceremony as me.  It was the first time both parts of the family had been together since I don't know when.  The only people missing were Kimmy, who was going to her Senior Prom, and Michael, who was in California doing his Marine training.  He had to start a new class the week of graduation and they wouldn't let him take a day or two to fly over and watch me graduate.  I slept in for about a week after graduation.  I spent the summer working at Curves, applying to jobs, and spending time in Auburn with friends.  I knew I wasn't going to be offered a job in Auburn or Opelika, so I started preparing myself early for the day when I had to drive out of town, not knowing when I was going to be back.

June was really quiet.  Applying for jobs, getting no responses, spending my time at the gym working... Blah, blah, blah.

July was bit more eventful than June.  I turned 23 and spent my birthday in Tennessee with a friend from my high school in Alaska.  Two days later, on the 8th (07/08/09), I was the maid of honor in her wedding.  I loved hanging out with her and her now-husband, her mom, and his family.  Her mom has not changed at all.  I started to really look at jobs in that area, but, as we know, nothing panned out.  Later in the month,  my parents surprised me with the best birthday present ever!  They sent me a box in the mail with strict instructions not to open it until they were both on the phone with me.  I opened the box and opened things in the order they told me to.  First up was a Yup'ik sewing kit that my mom had made for me, and inside was an iPod touch.  I had been wanting one for SO long because I needed something to listen to in the car on my long trips.  Flipping through 200+ CDs while going 80 mph on the interstate does not equal a good idea.  The best part of the box... A room for me and friend at the WindCreek Hotel & Casino in Atmore, AL along with room service for dinner and breakfast, $200 to spend in the casino and tickets to see REBA!  The only words that were able to form in my brain and come out of my mouth were "Wow!" and "Whoa!"  After having a housekeeping issue with the first room we were put in, we were put in another room that was even better.  The view was fabulous.  We went to the casino and had NO idea what we were doing.  After losing $60, I quit and decided to save the rest of the money.  The concert was AMAZING.  We were fairly close to her and she was just... amazing.  She's beautiful.

After getting back to Auburn, I got a phone call from a principal in Mississippi about an emergency hire special ed position.  I thought my luck with all this job applying nonsense had turned around (ironic because this particular position was one that I never applied for -- I had just randomly called the school asking if they had any openings).  I packed up my apartment and loaded stuff into my storage unit, a friend's garage, and my car and headed to MS to meet with the principal and assistant principal.  Once I got there, I found out they couldn't give me the job because someone with special ed certification had just shown up the day before and because he was certified, and I'm not, they were required to give him the job.  I was so angry at that guy the whole drive back, and for the majority of the 6 hours, I was in tears.

I got back to Auburn and had nowhere to live because my apartment lease had expired that day.  It was not the kind of start to August as I had been banking on.  Graciously, one of my sorority sisters let me and Harley stay with her.  But we only stayed one night because she wasn't allowed to have animals, and seeing as how Harley likes to sit in the window and the landlord was walking around the premises due to it being the transition season, I was not about to risk getting her in trouble.  So, I went and stayed with my cousin's at-the-time ex-girlfriend, now current girlfriend (I'm a much bigger fan of the current situation than I was of the August situation).  Her brother wasn't back in Auburn yet, so she put me up in his room, and our cats formed a feline BFF relationship.

Mid-August, I started to prepare for my move back home.  I had no job and nowhere to live permanently, and had no choice but to go home.  On a Tuesday, a few days before I was supposed to leave, I got a phone call from my mom up here in Alaska about a long-term sub job for a K-3 classroom that the superintendent was prepared to give me.  Just like that.  I had about 30 seconds to make a decision whether I wanted it or not.  I said yes and then she told me that school started the following Tuesday.  I had about 9 hours to load up everything for a cross-country drive, plan my route, and make hotel reservations for hotels along the way.  The next day, I had to take Harley to the vet to get his health certificate and sedatives and then we hit the road.  We drove from Alabama, across the US, through Canada, and into Alaska in six days.  I tried to take as many pictures as I could, but when you have six days to drive 4,500 miles, that doesn't really allow time for sight-seeing.  I got home on a Monday evening and started work as a K-3 sub that very next day.  When Friday evening rolled around, my head hit the pillow and I was out.

I continued driving the 58 miles each way everyday through September and October.  At the end of October, I was told that there would be a possibility that it could be offered to me as a full-time position if I was interested.  Of course I was interested... I had applied to over 300 jobs in the South and got no response, and then drove like a bat out of hell to get there in time for the first day of school.  That possibility turned into a reality and at the end of first quarter, I signed my contract for the rest of the school year.

At the beginning of November, I moved into the teacher housing in the village at the school.  It started off quite nicely... I spent a lot of money in Fairbanks buying stuff for the house, most of which I already have but had left in my storage unit in Alabama, and I spent most of my evenings after school decorating and setting up.  And by "decorating," I mean I hung three things up on the wall and put curtains on the windows.  I didn't want to buy too much wall stuff, because I have a bunch in my storage unit.  In Alabama.  In the two and a half-ish months that I've been living out here, I can't tell you how many times our water has frozen.  Or how many times our sewer tank has overflowed.  Or how many other issues we've had with this place.  And the water is smelly and rusty.  It took me forever and a half to get phone and internet and I'm still without TV.  While I am grateful beyond words for this house and this job and all of the opportunities I've experienced here that I can't in Alabama, frozen smelly, rusty water is not my cup of tea.  I'm more surprised when the water IS flowing than I am when I find out it's not working.

December went by really fast... probably because there were only three weeks of school followed by two weeks of break.  A very much welcomed and needed break.

And that, my friends, brings us to 2010.  A year that has a lot of possibilities, a lot of things to learn, and things that I couldn't be more hopeful for, without getting my hopes up.  I'm in two weddings, and am spending a week in Alabama, and could not be more thrilled about that Spring Break week.  I don't know what's happening after May, but if I have any choice in the matter, I'll be going back to Alabama.