My roommate's 48 year-old boyfriend and my 19 year-old roommate.
that's all I have to say about that....

Ugh

Sunday night was a going away "party" for my friend Duncan. Duncan is the Beer Pong guy. So were we all going to play a little B-Pong and drink... now it turned out that the bar wasn't too keen on us playing B-pong so that didn't happen to all of our disappointment, but hey what can you do. After three cranberry vodka's I thought it would be great to move the party to my house. Well it turned out only three people wanted to "continue" the party at my house but hey at that point i didn't care. Don't worry i wasn't driving and I got home save with two people i knew well from high school and one i didn't but I didn't care. I served them Champaign and I had some Mikes mixed with Champaign (I don't know why). And it all got a little crazy (not like that get your head out of the gutter and i can't believe you think that about me!) I remember Adam and Simon leaving and me thinking there is no way they'd find away from my house (I think they made it). Well, Duncan looked at me and asked if i felt nauseous... well it turned out the answer was yes. So i solved that only to be presented with the problem that i couldn't stand up any more. So i stumbled to my bed and passed the fuck out. Poor Duncan had to find a spot to sleep on the love seat but he made it work. Well, the next day was an equal winner of a hang over as was my 22nd birthday. Nauseous until 4pm. It was great... ah now I know why you don't mix your alcohols. Thank god I was better by the time my parents had their BBQ.

My neighbors

One of the things about living on the edge of nature is sometime nature crosses the line. Well, anyway, i drive home from work and here in my drive way are two young fuzzy horned bucks. You have to realize that this pic was taken from my car with my camera phone... That's how close they were. Even after i honked my horn they just turned their heads... Brave little things aren't they. I just hope they didn't eat all my plants.

Showpark

Week two is done. Few.... Well i flew down Wed. night to the cloudy gray (June Glume) San Diego. How i've gone down there six some odd times and never made it to the beach. Well, i guess it's 'cause I'm down there to watch fancy farm animals jump over brightly colored sticks. So this week at Showpark, i'm in the big grass grand prix field. I watch and go to get changed an eat lunch on Thur. and Gustavo (the groom [he takes care of the horses]) is walking Stella around. It turns out see was collicing. Horse's can't throw up so if they get a stomic ache they just roll around. If they roll around too much they can twist their guts or turn their colin and it can get real bad real fast. So the vet comes and puts his hand up her but and says "Yep, she's impacted. I'll drug her and see if it gets better, if not she'll have to go to the clinic." So half an hour passes, she's heavily druged and nothing gets better. So my poor pony had to go to the clinic and get looked at again. The gave her a tube of minieral oil (they shove a tube down her nose into her stomic and pump mineral oil and water [it's horses exlax]). They gave her an IV and we had to leave her at the clinic to "wait for a call". "No, news is good new." The vet told me as we left. Well, i didn't hear anything. Drank half a bottel of wine instead and still no news by 9am. We finally stop by the clinic and all seems well. They give her some food and she passed it all and after 24hr she's back to her normally self (just a bit hungry). So two of the four days of the show are out the window. but my horse is healthy so that's good. So the two days of shows... one rail both classes. I did all the hard stuff GREAT but the easy stuff... that was where i slip up. Oh, well. two weeks off and then a little show up in Sac. local thank god.

Kinders

We've been doing a snails in class. One of the stations was naming, weighing, and racing our snails. This was the result of one of the races. Five snails... this was a few min. in. We had to change stations before the race could finish.

A "job"

Well, I got a "job". I've been working for the last month in a kindergarten classroom 'cause the teacher has a busted knee. Last Tuesday night she found out her knee Dr. Wasn't going to let her come back. When she asked her Dr. If she could come back before the end of the year he said her knee was "like putting an egg back together." I had to go to San Diego for a horse show so I knew i had one strike against me. That and I'm missing the last three days of school (for another horse show [shhh don't tell]). So i knew i wasn't the best choice for them to replace this teacher, but i had been in there for a month already... Anyways, Friday i get a call to have me work on Monday. Monday I'm leaving and they tell me I'm working Tuesday. Tuesday morning I'm waiting for the lesson plans and the principal and another kinder teacher are talking in the hall. The principal turns to ask me if I can do the job. I say yes. She begs to get me to stay for the last three days and i let her know i can't. Well all in all I got the job and am now in a tug between what the teacher wants to see happen and what the teacher wants to see happen... Ugh. But I like the kids, and the class, and the work so.... Yeah for me!

My Brother

Tao, is my eldest brother. He's a artist down in LA. My brother and I's relationship is still in the building stages. I mean he left home for school when i was 8 so part of him still sees me as an 8 year old. Being the youngest has that fall back, I'll always be irresponsible, reckless, ect. Well my brother. He's a artist and he just had an opening (third) at "his" gallery in China/Korea town (?). Well, my brother was in a LONG TERM relationship that fell through a few years ago. Well the name of his latest instillation (this recent opening) is "It's not me... it's you." How awesome is that!

The candle

Dear God I must be burning the candle at both ends. It's a good thing i don't have much of a social life 'cause if i did i'd be burning the candle on three ends. I've been working everyday i've been home this month and the last two weeks last month. I've had two weekends taken up by horse shows and one where i had a friend in town too (the last time i had a social life). I do laundry while i'm working with my father ripping up my deck. I do my prep work for the next day at school when i get my tv time and eat dinner. I go to bed at 10 wake up at 6 or 7 EVERYDAY. I'm four months behind on my book keeping. If it wasn't for on line bill pay i'd be getting late notices from EVERYONE. Tomorrow, I'm up at 6:30 out the door at 7:15. With kids from 8-12:15. From 12:15-2 I call the real teacher, prep and make sub plans for the other sub for the next two days, eat lunch and prep for the next group. I have the next group from 2-2:50. Next i have a job interview in Berkeley at 4ish. After than i have to pick a fellow rider up to drive to the airport to get another flight back to San Diego. Where i won't get as much sleep as i want and will be sitting on my ass far too long. Maybe durring my Preps i'll copy the teacher's manual so i can be ready for when i have to work next week. RUNNING RUNNING RUNNING

Del Mar Horse Show

I've just come back from my first of two weeks down in San Diego. This week was at the Del Mar horse park. There are three rings and only major classes. Now all the jumper classes are in the big arena. It was carnage in the ring. On Saturday night there is the $100,000 Grand Prix (mostly perfesionals). It was such a hard course only three people didn't knock down rails. The winner had one time fault (being slower than the time the the course designer allows). The winner on his second horse fell off. In the class before horses were stopping out, people falling off, people knocking down 8 rails. It was insane. One out of every 5 people in the top classes looked like they should be in the class. These amazing horses being punished left and right by these riders who CAN'T ride.
Well, so now you know how hard it was. I had 50+ people in my classes (Low Jr./A.O. Jumpers). I got 4th on Thur., two rails Friday, one rail Saturday, and two rails today (around 13th or 14th place). I'm not HAPPY with how i rode but i'm not NOT happy. Today Stella slipped and pulled herself together and we finished the class (with our two rails). But hey I did better than 75% of my class so I'm happy... i guess. But I have another chance next week. Wish Me Luck

Teenage Pot Heads

I'm sitting in the Dr.'s office waiting room. My allergy office, full of young children who have allergies, all the kids who are there after school, LITTLE kids. Okay well these two guys around 16 or 17 walk in being loud. They sit down and loudly talk about how much it would suck to be allergic to pot. The one kid gets his shots and walks back out and is like "Man, we have to wait 20 min." "What?" the one sitting there yells, "That sucks." Loud once again. Loud. These guys talking rudly and loudly. I was like shit man who is eager and bold enough to get stoned before they go to a Dr. office. It made me realize how stupid people are when they are stoned. It made me want to go up to them and be like... "Hello, you do realize there are kids here. You do realize you should take your stoned asses outside to talk like idiots."

Woodside Horse Show

I have recently finished my third horse show of the season, Woodside pre-spring horse show (or something). Now, I didn't do well ribbon wise like Indio (a couple first and a third out of 50 some horses) but i rode the best I've ridden in my life. I rode so well... god i don't even know how i rode like that but Lindsay, my trainer, compared me to Mandy Porter

Yeah MANDY PORTER!!!! Mandy Porter is one of the top show jumpers on the West Coast. With her 11 year old Belgian Warmblood mare Summer, owned by Wild Turkey Farm, Porter has posted wins in the 2004 Del Mar International Grand Prix, CSI-W, the 2005 Del Mar Palms Classic Grand Prix, and the 2005 Pebble Beach Grand Prix. They had multiple top five finishes in 2005.

No NOT Stella...

Porter lived and rode in Europe from 1993 to 1999 and represented the United States Equestrian Team at many international competitions. She also rode for the United States on three NationsÂ’ Cup teams in Gijon, Spain, Linz, Austria, and La Baule, France.

Ah, but then it went away on Sunday... so i need to find my inner Mandy by the time i get down to San Diego, this next weekend oh and next weekend.

How it all got started

I started this blog for several reasons. Mostly to say that I have a blog but hey it's almost like tattoos these days, almost everyone has one. But what really got me started was a friend and her sharing her blog. Now, one day this friend called me and said, "You haven't commented on my blog!" And I said no I haven't I don't really do the whole blog thing so much. Well, now I have my own Blog and all I want to do is call my friend and tell her, hey why haven't you commented on my blog recently... but instead I'll write a blog about it.

Now i know she's trying to make eggs change color but will drinking the die make her change colors too?

A Knit Tank

And i thought Tasha had too much free time, or that chick who knit the thing for the tree, but this... well at least this can have some political commentary!
Knit Tank

Really...

Really I've had moments when i thought this was going to happen to some kids in class. Damn Kids!

My Brother's Show!!!!

Evil Job Interview

So yeah I've been bitching about this job thing for a while but i did have an interview this morning with Sycamore Valley Elementary School in San Ramon CA. Now, it started off all good and sweet. I got there early and was able to start the interview early, a good foot to start with. The principal was a very nice man, in dark jeans, a Ralph Lauren button down and a bad yellow tie (but he did have neat glasses). He started the interview by saying how i was a very strong canidate, like everyone he was interviewing today, and he was sure we would all get jobs, if not in the San Ramon Schools district somewhere else (great dude... that doesn't change much that just tells me that if you don't like me well i should still feel good about myself... whatev!). So the interview started and it was one of those interview where they ask you a question that is a big question like "You know reading a a big part of first grade, how would you teach that?" and stair at you. How would i teach it, i would use all the resources avalible to me... blah blah... pause to breath... doesn't look like they are happy with my answer (i'm not happy with my answer) some more blah blah (good god he's twiddling his thumbs i need to wrap this up). Each question felt like a trick. After I answered them i wondered... did i leave something out... was he looking for a different answer. Now, i will say i didn't BOMB any of my questions, every answers was more or less on point and did answer the question (as veg as the question was... that's what they get back a big veg answer...) i mean really "How would the children you've taught describe you?" Which kids. The kid i had to bench for recess for like a whole week... or the kid who i worked with to control her ADD or the kid who love the fact i let her be creative... which kid? I don't lie, i let them know about each of the kids, about the fact i will not be loved by all 120 kids in the grade level. I will have kids that think i'm the greatest and others that think i'm mean as hell and that's fine with me... shouldn't it be? AHHHHH, it's like second guessing hell!

PS> I didn't get it. He had a long term sub who he had lined up ie: it was already filled but he had the interviews set up so he had to go though with it.

MFing Orinda

So i'm in the teacher's loung of the Orinda school where i've commited a week of my time to teach a rough group of kindergarteners and an other sub, whom i've meet before, looks at me and goes "You're fully credentialed right?" I say "Yes." "Oh," she says, "because one of the first grade teachers is retiering and there is an opeing." "That's funny," I say. "Because Juanita just told me there weren't any opeings or interviews going on. Well, maybe they've already filled it."
Than later durring lunch I hear an upper level teacher talk about how she's moving to Vermont. "It's so hard to find a house when you live 3000 miles away." Oh so wait i think i'm decent at math (much stronger than my spelling) and that adds up to two(2) opeings. Two openings at one school... that i heard about in one day. Mother Fuckers!

My Bedside Table

No this isn't dirty. This is my To Read pile. These are all the books friends have sent, told me to read, that i have bought while bored and not at working (why i always find myself spending money when I'm not making it... God knows).


Gregor and the warm bloods (third book of a series i was reading to the third graders)
Around the World in 80 Dates (that's Tasha's recommendation)
Middlesex
Sex, Murder, and a Double Latte (Bought in a weak moment)
Lessons In Duck Hunting (Bought in a weak moment)
Between Boyfriends Book
Life a la Mode (picked it up at the Teacher's lounge)
The Sunday philosophy Club (Given to me for my b-day by Emily[that was in Feb...])
Washington Story (Emily's recommendation, I read the first)
Everyone Else's Girl

Orinda

I have given three months of my life, more if you count up all of the other subbing I've done, oh and the aid work I did for three months. The getting up at 6am being at school at 7am and there until 4 to get $85 a day. I did this for over a year and today I call the head of human resources to find out when they will be interviewing and she tells me there aren't any k-5 job opening. Out of 4 schools there are NO k-5 openings. I gave them my sweet and tears literally and this is what i get... no god damn jobs.

I know... I know she had no control over any of it. And i know i shouldn't be planning my Tanya Harding moment... NO JOBS!!!!
Dear San Ramon Valley Unified Schools,
PLEASE hire me. I am a wonderful teacher.
From,
The desperate "teacher"