Another friend of mine is getting married next month. She told the bridal party (of which I am a part of) that we could wear any long black dress we wanted. Sounds easy, right? I was excited because I got a long black formal dress for my birthday. Actually, I got a casual black and white dress for my birthday but it didn't fit right so I exchanged it for this all-black fancy one. The top was a bit loose but I figured that after I shortened the straps all would be okay. Except it wasn't. So today I bought some "help" from Victoria's Secret to fill out the dress. That "help" certainly wasn't cheap. And I still need to get shoes. You think that getting the dress yourself would lower costs but apparently not for moi.
I survived my first week of school. Overall things went okay. Most of the students seem nice and there's good participation. There are a couple of students who don't seem to want to be there or are afraid it will be a hard class. And there's a general problem with too much side chit-chat, probably partly due to them being seniors, sitting around a big table instead of desks with assigned seating, and it being after lunch. But all of that is no excuse of course. So I did say something and hopefully I won't need to continue to do so. The week ended on a sad note. The teacher I replaced, who had been diagnosed with cancer, passed away.
As I mentioned earlier, teachers get to eat in the cafeteria for free. So even though sometimes I have a class over around 11am or one that doesn't start until 2pm, I go in for lunch every day. I do feel like the new kid at school though. There are several tables where the teachers eat. What table should I sit at? Will anyone talk to me? I remind myself that I'm a grown-up and to buck up. I sat a good chunk of time at one table before anyone spoke to me (I said hi when I sat down - guess I could I have introduced myself but they were in the middle of a discussion). Turns out it was a table of middle school teachers. The school is K-12 but it seems that even amongst teachers there are cliques. Most lunches have been friendlier than that one though.
It a good weekend with friends and family - dim sum and river walking with our friends from Jersey, birthday partying, yummy kim chi risotto (click on the next nigella lawson link for the recipe) and Amazing Race with my sister. At the birthday gathering there was a piano and lots of music and lots of singers...it turned into a singing fest of songs from musicals starting with Fiddler on the Roof, progressing to My Fair Lady, the Sound of Music, and more. I was one of the few non-singers but I still had fun belting it out with everyone.
Did you know: New York in the past year used less water per person than at any time in over the last 50 years. In the NYTimes article they also mentioned water pressure. Our apartment has fabulous water pressure - I miss it when I visit other places. Little did I know it was a city-wide phenomenon:
Talking about water-saving devices:
"Not all of the devices have been popular. Some residents complain that they have to flush twice, and New York’s vaunted water pressure — most of the supply is delivered by gravity — has been weakened in many places by low-flow faucets."
From the grassy hills of Ireland (aka the Irish Hunger Memorial):
2 comments:
Why is it that eating a meal has to be a social event? Very traumatizing for the introverts.
Oh! I feel so honored to be pictured on your blog!
Was talking to a friend who's a first-year H.S. French teacher, and she said the same thing about now really feeling responsible about setting a good example for her students. Even if that means blowing off steam in the restroom (instead losing it in front of them) when none of them do their homework...she teaches public school in Jersey.
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