Happy Teacher Moment

Today was one of those days as a teacher where, for the most part, things went darn good. One period pissed me off to no end; luckily lunch was right after dealing with them. By fifth period I was back to somewhat normal.

My fifth period class is fun but a challenge. Individually I truly like all the kids in there. As a conglomerate they are a pain in my tuchus. They usually seem to not want to learn. They’re goofy. They’re tardy. It’s right after lunch which is inevitably a harder class. In addition many of the kids in that class have lower level English skills.

We are reading and working on a Literary Analysis unit using To Kill a Mockingbird. This is, as most of us know, the classic of classic American novels. However, it’s challenging. So today, since they already are seeming bored and we are a bit behind schedule, I tried to do in class reading a bit different. I allowed four students who said they do better alone to go read outside silently. The rest of the class voted on reading together in groups of 3. We started that but then there was a little interruption.

A colleague came by to interview me and photograph me briefly. That’s another story: I’m leaving my current school for a new school in September. More of that soon. Anyway, as I stepped out to have the picture taken, I told one of my students who is far from perfect, has been in Juvenile Hall, who lives in a placement/group home, who ditched school Monday (You get the pic); I told him, “You’re in charge”. And so it was. A couple of minutes later I walk in the room and he’s sitting in my chair that sits high, he’s reading aloud to the class. They’re following along. He stops to make comments and explain. He uses southern accents to play the Ewell kid and Walter Cunningham. Damn! That was a happy teacher moment. I got such a kick out of it that I had the other kids come back in.

This student makes bad choices sometimes but man is he good. I can truly envision this kids making a wonderful, and funny, teacher or role model. I hope that the experience is something that lasts. It’s interesting because earlier today I was talking with a good teacher friend of mine, JC. He was saying how O was such a great kid and I was concurring because he is polite, he knows how to win people over, he smiles, and he pretty much behaves.

I wish this student the total best. He has a meeting with his probation officer in a couple of weeks. If he keeps up the good work, I for one will make sure they know what I think.

And so…what are your happy teacher moments?

The Graphic Says it All

Thank you to all my friends, those I know and those who are blog friends, for sending me SO many Happy Birthday wishes. I was so touched between my blog and my facebook that it deserved a post all its own. I’m happy to see I still have readership and fyi, I’m going to make an effort to grow my blog habits again. I’m considering taking up the Blog Challenge.

35 is Mid Thirties…

Yes, today is my 35th birthday.  Seriously, when I look in the mirror, I don’t SEE 35.  I don’t really look 35 though my waistline definitely is more challenging to maintain in my 30’s than in my 20’s. 

Today was a pretty good day.  I went to work. Yes, I worked on my birthday. However, I told each of my classes that because it was my birthday, my gift to them (and me) was light work.  They were given one assignment that is part of my overall unit but not something I would usually take a whole class on.  I explained to them what to do: Read two pages about them in our text then do a simple chart asking them to remember a story they read and to identify theme and such.  It was something they could do without a lot of help from me and while chit chatting and enjoying the day. 

After school today was the first day of a short term tutoring program that I started.  Yes, I stayed, even though it’s my birthday.  One teacher friend stopped by to wish me a Happy Birthday and one student brought me a muffin with a little sign on it that says Happy Birthday and that I’m the best. :)  That was sweet.

After work my hubby and I headed to Cafe Eilat for a nice kosher dinner and some fine desserts.  We started with the Belgian Fries platter that included four different fry dips.  Next we had our entrees. I had Grilled Morroccan Salmon with scalloped potatoes and a salad.  Of course our meals came with baskets and baskets of fresh breads.  We then went to the bakery case to get our desserts which we took home because by then we were gorged and needed a pre dessert break.  I got a SMALL piece of chocolate mousse cake layered goodness.  And some dark chocolate corn flake candy thingies that I love.  Totally NOT a point conscious dinner (yes, I haven’t blogged it but we’re doing the Weight Watcher’s thing which is mostly going well.)

Anyway, even with no major plans I thoroughly enjoyed my birthday.  I almost forgot! I even got a call from my niece and nephew in San Diego singing happy birthday and a bunch of facebook wishes too.

Now I am going into a food comma.

Dear Jack,

Come out come out wherever  you are….you freak!

 

And NEXT TIME, say hi.  We’re sitting here wondering who the heck you were. 

Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?

All I can say is…

• We saw it
• We loved it
• Go see it
• It WILL change the way you view the world
• It may even change the way you see yourself

Oh..and some will find it quite controversial…oh well…it’s a great movie and uber thought provoking. By the way, IMDB only gives it a 6.4; truly it is higher than that. 

We’re back & prepping for Passover (Pesach)

Hi readers, whatever few I have nowadays

We spent the last 3 days on a mini vacation in Big Bear.  We did some very light hiking, some relaxing, walking, meandering about the mountain.  But now, we are on flat level ground and Pesach preparations are in the works. 

I’m a little behind this year in preparations.  I need to make up for lost time so on our way home from Big Bear we went to Kosher Club to pick up some basic Pesach stuff.  Tomorrow we’ll go to a regular market for fresh veggies and such.

Cleaning has not officially begun. I know, crazy with Pesach practically here!  In a bit we’ll do the bedroom.  That won’t take more than an hour.  If I’m up for it, I’ll then clean our living room. Tomorrow will be the beginnings of the kitchen.  I’ll start with my cupboards of non-food items. Everything will come out, be wiped down, replaced, and then that cabinet gets taped shut with painter’s tape.  The next thing I’ll do is clean out the fridge of any already opened goods and old stuff.  The remainder of the contents will then be removed and the fridge will be cleaned with hot water, cleaner and rag.  Fun I know! 

The few items that I don’t discard for Pesach will be sealed away in an aluminum foil section of the fridge; the same goes for the freezer.  The pantry will be cleaned out in a similar fashion to the fridge and then foiled as well.  I of course get rid of all blatantly non kosher for Pesach foods like pasta and loaves of bread.  I don’t get rid of all my spices or frozen unopened foods. I simply store them in a foiled off section of the fridge, freezer or pantry and then “sell” them until Pesach is over. 

The final, and most fun absurd thing I do is foil most surfaces of the kitchen.  The countertops, stove top, etc.  They ALL get foiled during Pesach.  THEN I will take down the few items we have for Pesach like our casual set of Pesach dinnerware and silverware, our Pesach Toaster and Coffeemaker.  Our one set of pots. And whatever other few odds and ends I’ve accumulated the last few years. 

Yes, Pesach is a lot of work. But it’s good and different and sets the week apart from others.  Now I must do some reading to refresh my memory on some preparatory logisitics. 

I hope everyone has a wonderful and meaning filled Pesach. 

Hike #6: Paradise Falls in Wildwood Park

Today we took this hike. It was 3 miles long, about an hour and a half. The area of Wildwood Park in Thousand Oaks is just lovely. The trail was considered easy though there are some short bouts with hills and inclinations. The waterfall at the bottom is quite a suprise. 70 Feet! Unfortunately, we didn’t get any good snapshots of the actual waterfall, go figure!The trail was lovely with tons of flowers and plants in bloom. We saw a snake, crawfish in

the stream, birds, bugs of cours e, mallards, butterflies, and squirrels. A totally worth it day. OH! And my dad joined us which was a real treat for me since my dad and I don’t get chances to spend this kind of time together often.

More pics can be seen on my flickr page, CLICK HERE.

end

(Updated with some photos) I’m Famous, I’m a Star…

No, this is not April Fool’s Joke. Today Avi and I went to Universal Studios for the day. We got there before 11am and stayed more than six hours. Universal is less than 15 minutes from our front door which is quite convenient. Last year, when my mother in law was in town for a visit, Avi and I purchased year round passes. It cost us 10 extra dollars for a year pass; now we need to make that money worth it.

Why am I a star? Well, my darling husband volunteered me to “assist” with the special effects show. Oh yes, Tamara, the one who is comfortable with herself; or so it may seem. You see, most people think I’m not shy, or scared, or anything of the sort. Sure, I teach high school. Sure, I can talk in public. But come on! Volunteering me to be on stage in front of more than a couple of hundred strangers was frightening. All I could think of was, “What if I look fat? Or stupid? Or giggle?”. But I had fun.

First I had to stand at a fake window while another volunteer, a Jewish kid from Costa Rica, clawed at me with a giant fake paw. The way the audience saw it on the big screen was like the famous scene of the cat in the window of an old movie.  I can’t remember which one. 

Next I had to stand on some high scaffolding and move giant (foam) bricks into a pile while I built a pyramid. Us Jews and pyramid building! Oh yeah, and I wore a “ahem” lovely hospital like/Egyptianesque gown for that. NOT FLATTERING.  (That’s the 3rd pic)  In another scene I had to stare at two tennis balls, pretend they were people, and speak to or react to them on cue. I even had to fake gorge a giant turkey leg. This is all from the scene from Eddie Murphy’s movie, I think “The Nuttty Professor” but I’m not sure. You see, I was up there making a funny fool of myself while the audience saw me but also saw the final product, as in how it looks with the special effects. At one point I was also screaming my lungs out, but I don’t know what the screen showed going on behind me.

 

Oh, and this pic I just found on some photos Avi sent me via file sharing , and since I actually look NORMAL, I’m posting it

Hike: Sturtevant Falls

My husband and I have taken up hiking and city walking for exercise. We started taking hikes about two weeks ago as part of our goal at getting healthy. We’ve done a few local hikes in Griffith Park, which has some AMAZING hikes. We hiked from Ferndell up to the Observatory, we took the Hollyridge trail, and we’ve done a couple other little walks.

Today however, we took a more serious hike to Sturtevant Falls. Sturtevant Falls is located in the Angeles National Forest. The hike in total was 3.2 miles round trip. This is a beautifully forested area in our local mountains. The hike takes hikers upstream along an actual stream with a decent flow. The first .6 miles are downhill and of course that means that last bit is uphill, which sucks for someone like me with asthma but I did well with no serious problems :). The end of the trail is a lovely waterfall that drops a fantastic 60 feet over granite rocks.

Where did I find this hike? Great question! We purchased the Foghorn Outdoors “Easy Hiking in Southern California” book. It’s filled with hikes all over the place. A handful are in our local mountains including: Griffith Park, Angeles Crest Forest, Santa Monica Mountains, Agua Dulce, Ventura County, Catalina Island, Cleveland National Forest and Big Bear. Additionally there are hikes located in Sequoia and Kings Canyon, Death Valley, The Southern Deserts, and San Diego County. It’s a well laid out and easy to follow book. We also like the idea that the hikes will bring us out of our usual area and exploring new, but close by places; not to mention good hikes for beginners or old timers who are out of shape .

Single and Jewish? Do Something Different! (a.k.a. My unsolicited advice for the day).

I just read a very interesting, and thoroughly researched article by a fellow Jewish blogger, Chayyei Sarah regarding Jews, dating, marriage, and the whole crisis in Jewish men and women finding each other in time to marry within the Jewish faith. The article is quite interesting, a tad long, but worth a read or at least a skim through.

Go take a read! It’s important to support our fellow bloggers. Oh, and if the author reads this, thanks! I was just out with a single Jewish friend who is having a VERY challenging time meeting eligible and compatible Jewish men. This leads to some other areas that perhaps need to be researched further.

My husband and I were speaking yesterday about the whole Jewish dating thing and what are some “other” reasons many young Jews, in their 30’s specifically, aren’t meeting people. My husband made some good points. One thing that came up in our conversation is that there are many secular Jewish men and women who are single. They say they want to meet fellow Jews but don’t necessarily have much to connect with Jewishly speaking. For instance, there are many single Jews who grew up in Jewish homes, went to Hebrew school, did the high holidays; they would preferably like to meet someone Jewish. But when asked what kind of Jewish man or woman they would like, the answer is pretty vague. Mostly it’s just the fact that the person is Jewish, but not specifically observant. This, as my husband pointed out, can cause some issues. First, if there is not something to connect with, where does one go to meet that type of person?

Specifically I think of a friend I just spent the weekend with. She’s single. She’s Jewish. She’s educated. In her 30’s. And yes, she can’t seem to find the right guy. Forget pickiness and all the reasons she might not be meeting someone. The bottom line is that when brainstorming how to meet a nice Jewish guy OUTSIDE of the singles scene. For the record, I used to do the “singles circuit”. I went to all the dances, the parties, the social events…and nothing. I kept going and made friends but it was always the same singles who showed up to these things. What could I have done differently back then? This is what my friend and I were discussing. I came up with ideas of Jewish hiking groups, a Jewish concert, an event at a synagogue or attending a young adults group regularly at a synagogue. The problem is that, like my friend, many young Jews are connected culturally but not religiously to Judaism. Culturally, many people connect in their homes; whether it’s lighting candles, hanging a mezuzzah, making traditional foods, having a menorah out; these are beautiful ways to connect but you aren’t going to meet someone connecting in these ways.

Now that I’ve rambled on my final point or unsolicited piece of advice to my fellow Jewish friends who are single and struggling to connect. I believe it’s time to go out of your usual zones. Forget JDate! Forget poorly attended singles events! Find a synagogue, a group of Jewish hikers, a book club. Or, if you’re like me, use the Internet. Start blogging. Write about being single. Connect with people. Join message boards. Join social groups like ChosenNet or even Facebook. Perhaps changing it up a bit will help. It did for me, my husband and I met through our blogs, not solely Jewish themed but strongly Jewish themed. It can work!

GO FOR IT and GOOD LUCK.