mural blues and costa rican memories prompted by a switchblade and towelettes

yesterday morning i was not planning to go to school today tow paint murals, but ms. camacho caught me in the afternoon and said that she and tony were going in today from 9-12 to paint and dr. hughes told her to let me know in case i wanted to come up. as much as i didn't want to, i decided to go ahead and go in because the week is going to be busy with a monday meeting and tues/thurs tutoring.

so today was a blues day...i fixed water around the world(s).

they were a straight, flat, dark blue, so i decided to lighten it up so that when we go in and add the tropic lines and the equator and the ocean names, they will be legible.

 there is still so much left to do! boo.

while i was painting i remembered a story shea told me over spring break about buying a switchblade in mexico and it reminded me of when we lived in costa rica for our first year. i was in 5th grade and my brother was in 7th. he bought a switchblade when we were there. it was an interesting year of transition. i remember loving it when we were downtown and got to stop at kfc...they had the best-smelling moist towelettes to wash your hands with. i think it was the familiarity that i loved more than the chicken. well, once they started serving breakfast in the classroom here at our school(which, if i haven't mentioned it before...even if i have, is a waste), one of the bags had moist towelettes that smelled just like the ones of old...great memories!

and of course that memory took me back to a couple of others, like being in downtown san jose and smelling the helotes-corn on the grill. i also remember being on the bus and seeing the sign that said 'no fume' but i thought there were plenty of bad fumes on the bus. and more than once while we were on the bus, people would touch my hair if they were sitting behind me (that kinda' freaks a kid out..what am i, a lucky charm?)

oh, and the church we went to when we first got there was way across town. i remember one sunday they had a birthday party after the service and they scooped ice cream into cups. no problem-i have no problem with that. what i did have a problem with was when they ran out of spoons and just waited for someone to get finished and wiped off the spoon and re-purposed it into the cup that was handed to me. gross. pretty sure i "accidentally" dropped the spoon and just ate it like a cone. (i didn't eat the styrofoam cup like a cone, i just kinda' drank-ate it).

other costa rican memories...my brother had a texas instruments computer and the coolest game-a space ship that moved up and down and straight forward with a burst of speed...thriller...total eclipse of the heart...box turtle named relampago (lightning), playing charlie's angels in the apt. courtyard-behind and around the banana trees...strange new fruits including the star fruit and mamones...punta arenas and limon beaches....amy and billy my best friends...gaither band....school bus driver with creepy goatee that looked like a child molester and once in awhile he would stop at a push-cart vendor and get us all ice cream-cicles...thanks costa rica, you were fun!

all of that because of shea's switchblade and our towelettes!
julie

if i were a puppet, i'd for sure want to be merlin! blimey!

today we rewarded our students with a field trip! gigi took care of our field trips before she left to go to the sunny state, so today we got to go to the dallas children's theater for young king arthur. we got the kids all hyped for live theater, and every one of the students was there (except a sickie and one who withdrew yesterday).

when we got there, we were a little surprised to find that it was actually a puppet show! but not like sock puppets or anything like that...and not a silly little marionette stage like julie andrews used in the sound of music...they were rod puppets (czech with some japonese elements) it was great. and since the kids were expecting a live performance, we hyped it up by explaining how lucky we were that we got to see puppets because we NEVER get to see puppets!

these are the puppeteers!

thank goodness the haze was non-toxic! that was the first concern i had when the smoke began...

 

so, here are some observations from young king arthur:
 1. young king arthur resembles shawn cassidy.
2. the puppets seemed to side step a lot (which means they'd be good at country line dancing).
3. apparently king arthur and merlin started out in dallas and then made their way to london because merlin told arthur to go up over the grassy knoll.
4. baby dragons sound a lot like real babies gurgling and playing with bruno's squeaky toy.
5. blimey is a word i want to begin working into my vocabulary.


on the way home i decided to stop and get some biscoff to make fudge for shannon and the other office ladies, and while i was at world market, i also found the cutest little shortbread cookies, so i called bruno and chaco and they said i absolutely should get them and say that it was their idea...so i did (because i recall around Christmastime she had said that she loves shortbread cookies). 

i know, adorable!

i may have found some other things that i really needed!

awesome tea!

delicious chocolates! (only one piece on days it's absolutely needed!)

oh blimey, but it seems to be getting late and i should be ending this and going to bed!
jrob

step updownupdown...1,000!

aaaaaand DONE! for this week. the reading/science will be sneaking up on us shortly!

today i had to think about what in the world to do to remain active while monitoring the test. i was going to slip into walmart and get some of those little bitty dumbell weights to carry around, but i was running a little late. so i looked around the room for awhile until my eyes landed on a mini step stool...about 6 inch i think...so i grabbed a small rug and took it with me to the room i was testing in, and i set it up in the back of the room so that while the kids were testing, i could do steps in between my rounds! (it actually gave me a better view of them as well!) 

i started with sets of 25 per leg, then as time was ticking by, i went to 50

i was getting really worried that i wouldn't make it to 1000, but i got there while the last 5 minutes were ticking down (i kept getting interrupted by students finishing their test, and having to pick them up and check to make sure everything was filled in correctly.

then, i was planning on going over to the rec center-you may not remember, but that was one of the things i won during our biggest loser contest-i went in yesterday after i had my oil changed (i only got it changed because i needed my windshield cleaned-stupid green pollen trees)...so i have the membership until sept of this year.

only i decided not to go to the  center this afternoon because i stopped in to talk to another teacher for awhile after school.

so instead i went home to the apt gym and worked on some weight machines for a little while. the entire time there were two other nurse-types in there discussing their jobs and who was being fired and what masters they were pursuing and what to do after their contracts expired....no music was on, no t.v. no background anything and i forgot to take my headphones, so i was stuck just listening to their conversation. epic BOO. (they weren't even really working out)

there's also this intense self-defense training-krav maga- i want to find out more about. it's legit, but i need to find out what the cost will be and see if i can work it into my budget! it would for sure be a great work out!

i forgot to stop by the store earlier, so i must go now to get some laundry detergent and truvia...off i go.
julie

only a man would come up with cut grass and old campfire smells as cologne...although i may like the smell, i don't find it attractive

ven though i'm pretty certain my students aren't going to fare very well on the test tomorrow and wednesday, i really am just relieved to be at this point and get it over with! we are going to jump into poetry for a few weeks, beginning on friday! can't wait!

saturday i spent a lot of time thinking mean thoughts toward some of the growers who sell their goods at sprouts. my spinach and kale had lots of soil still on them, so there was much washing to be done. then yesterday i spent a good amount of time standing in front of the food processor chopping up the green and red chard and the kale. the only fun thing about this was that after i chopped the kale it smelled like fresh-cut grass.
 (i would insert picture here of the food processor with kale, but unfortunately i left the usb connector at school).
remember when gap used to smell 'manly' colognes back in the early 90's? they came out with cut grass and fireside...and it really did smell just like the two...i guess that's so that if the guy wanted to go do something with his buddies and the wife asked where he was, he could say he was out cutting lawns...for needy old ladies in the neighborhood? or if he was having an affair he could say he was on a camping trip with the boys....?

one of our favorite apt office girls is moving. sad day. moving about 3 hours away (which obviously means that she won't be commuting to work)! shannon will be missed-the boys love her! she usually keeps the extra pupperoni treats in her desk!

i just went downstairs to drop of some crayons and a coloring book and disney reading comprehension book for my neighbors downstairs. i don't even know them, but i've seen the kids playing through their screen window many times when i get home from work. yesterday i got a call from shannon asking if i had been home around 2 on saturday when the ambulance came. well, i was at school, and she let men know that one of the little twins (3 or 4) had fallen out the window because he was going for a bug and leaned against the screen. that made me worry because i didn't know if they were okay or not. so i just met them and their mom a minute ago. they are so cute! they showed me their fake tattoos and as soon as the little girl heard my name she said, "hi, julie!" she is not shy at all, but he is. it was the boy who fell, but God's protection is an amazing thing. he had no broken bones (again, he fell from 2nd floor onto cement drive), no concussion...minor bruising and scrapes on face. God is good!

i told bruno and chaco about it and chaco said, "mama, if you can put the puppy gate back up at the window when you open it again...i would like that." well said chaco, well said.

good night! boo on the test, i am not losing sleep over that tonight! (i've done my part, now it's up to the students)
julie

mural, mural on the wall, who's the worst painter of them all...

today i got up early once again on a saturday. boo. i had to get juice for our volunteers and arrive early to finish a couple more pictures for our mural walls. then people began arriving. they were shown around and allowed to choose the pictures they were interested in painting.

some people chose to start on the drawings that did not have colored masters with them as a guide, and they did not quite turn out as planned. many of the volunteers brought children with them, and 5 year-olds just aren't professional painters...unless they're art savants...which none of these were. don't get me wrong, we certainly appreciate all the help we get...even if we have to go back and paint over and change things and spend more time on them. some of them came out great and some of them came out worse than terrible...and there is still work to be done.

the cement tubes on the playground got redid...and the bench out front was painted, as were the grates on the cafeteria windows (they had gotten so rusty)! i will have to take pictures of it all for gigi to see-i would've been great to have her help today (and moral support-laughing). it really does transform the building! i meant to take some pics today, but i just got so busy.

now we have to cover all of them on monday afternoon and our classrooms for the test on tuesday and wednesday! great timing. not looking forward to the testing at all. (even if it is only 4 hours....still too long). i am excited about the field trip on thursday, though. even if it is a short one, sitting in a theater watching a play is just the thing we need to unwind.



have a colorful rest of the weekend,
julie

i'm so glad the city finally realized that there was no school there...

this morning as i was driving, something seemed very different as i was driving down the stretch past the savoy...ever since i have lived at this apt, the entire stretch has been a school zone (even before the george bush school was built). not sure why because that i know of, there are no other schools in the area, just some apts. anyhoo, this morning, there were no flashing lights. and as i drew near to the place where the END SCHOOL ZONE sign is, it wasn't there! i figured maybe i missed it or something...so i made sure to double check on my way home today, and lo and behold, i was not seeing things! i will no longer be encumbered by the silly school zone of nothing!

a couple of days ago, i came home and saw all of this stuff out in the walkway. the neighbor had suits, some bags and some other items sitting out. it seemed almost as if he was having a small garage sale. i have no earthly or otherworldly idea why he had it all out there, but it's been a few days now, and it is still out there. it has been raining out, and even though the landing is covered, the stuff is going to get mildew and what not...not to mention, it looks a little trashy.

my neighbor has aspirations of becoming a thrift store owner...

yesterday we had a field trip to the dallas museum of art. i love the dma, but i do not love dma + 17 students who cannot keep from touching things and leaning on the walls and talking about 50 decibels higher than need be (those of you who work in decibels, don't bother correcting me because i don't know the measurements and quite honestly, i don't care, i just liked the sound of it!) because it = misery. (i know, you almost forgot it was an equation and that an equal sign was coming!) 

one of my favorite things in the museum is these guys made out of bronze.

they are truly fabulous.

and i'm sure that with all of the nagging, my students thought i looked something like this

then after we got back, we had to prepare for our parent/teacher conferences. they went from 4-8 and it was almost as much fun as the field trip! by the time we left, i was beat! i'm sure everyone else was as well!

i stayed for a minute after school and worked a little on the mural pictures for the walls- there were a couple of extras that we were needing. i got the gallon man up on my end of the hallway by the girls restroom...because it always feels like that's how much water is coming out of my body! i need to stay tomorrow and finish the rest of them. thankfully there aren't too many.

 when i got home and told the girls at the office that i had ordered 2 dozen tamales because they said they wanted to buy some the next time she was selling them, which was today. they were pretty excited. so i might have to leave right after school to drop of the tamales and then go back to finish up the drawings because our volunteers come on saturday. another busy weekend.

oh, and tomorrow we're starting round 2 of the biggest loser. i don't know how many people are actually going to get involved this time, but i think i might just for accountability's sake. i need to turn in my rec center voucher and take advantage of it for the next 6 months since our equipment is all down right now...i'd love to start a kick-boxing class...that'd be fun.

alright, time to color some drawings,
julie

start pedaling, said the bike...stop yankin' my chain! i yelled back...(in my mind)

i'm tired. i need to get my sleep tonight-tomorrow is a long day of art museum/field trip and parent conferences at night. ew.

this morning we woke up to crazy thunder and some rain and lightning. very very frightening....(not really). but i decided to wear brown shoes with my khakis instead of my chacos because i didn't want wet cold feet today. well, the shoes i had were cheap and the inside pad that your foot sits on was sinking below where it was supposed to down into a hole in the heel of the sole. it bothered me like the pea under the mattress with the princess and the pea...so when i got to my classroom, i cut an eraser to size and filled in the hole so that it didn't bother me as much! janky fix, but it worked! i'll have to share the pic tomorrow because i left the cord that hooks up to the computer at school. boo.

today i came home to the gym at the apt, and there were lots of men in there using the weight machines, so i looked and the elliptical machine was out of order (glad the sign was on it because last time, it squeaked with every round)...and on of the 3 treadmills was not working either...and 2 people were on the other two. so i got on the electric stationary bike and the pedals felt kind of like when the chain comes off the gears....well, i kept trying to set it and the screen kept flashing to start pedaling. in my head i was shouting at it, "I HAVEN'T STOPPED YOU DUMMY!"  and so i kept pedaling and some guy got on the bike next to me and started on it- he went for a few minutes to warm up, and then he went to the weights and i was still pushing random buttons the whole time thinking that i was doing something wrong. i'm sure he probably wondered what i was doing and when i was going to start riding the bike. and i'm sure everyone else in the gym was thinking i didn't know how to work the bike because it was beeping so much and turning off and back on.... finally i switched bikes and instantly i was riding and feeling the burn-the piece of equipment i was on had been out of order as well with no sign...apparently our equipment needs some maintenance.

then i came home and threw some chicken, quarter of a cooked sweet potato, some kale and a little spice into the food processor and made some chicken salad-it was actually better than i expected!! before i did that i threw some asparagus into the oven to cook. well...i kinda' forgot about it until i smelled it quite awhile later. when i pulled it out, the tips were crispy (which is fine because i actually like the texture, and the stalks were soft and easy to cut through). and i'm not gonnna' lie, just gonna' put it out there: i almost licked the spices off the baking sheet it tasted so stinkin' good!!!!

anyhoo, that's what i got tonight!
julie