Swamp Girl Run Amok
June 2010
38 posts
THINGS
- TFA: still mad stressful and sleep depriving.
- Actual conversation with my father yesterday: “How’s Institute?” “Tiring.” “Oh, so you guys are going out every night?” …. “No, we’re all up until one in the morning writing lesson plans.” I don’t think he entirely gets it.
- Worlds colliding all over the place from Duke, home, TFA. Awesome. I love when my social networks bump up against each other.
- I now want to read every article I come up against about education and education reform. Then I wiggle my toes with happiness about going to NOLA where all the most interesting shit is going down.
- Shikha put up late LDOC pics and I was sad for a bit about the fact that I do miss Board tremendously and FBLFL and all that. But then I could look through pics of last night’s GNO social and remember last week’s school social and I am suddenly reassured that my life is still ridiculous and fun and full of exciting, crazy people.
- I am sometimes so scatter brained I wonder how they are going to actually allow me to be in charge of chilluns with no FA in the back of the room.
- Dinner with my two mommies and G on Thursday, which was excellent. They are all amazing people.
- Wrote my first corny mnemonic for my kids, in regards to inequalities word problems. “Goal is greater than, limit is less than.” One of them tried to tell me, “Goal, less than,” and my response, “Seriously, did you miss the part where they are supposed to have the same letter?” LIGHTBULB.
- “IN ANY CASE…” My TFA girlies have already started picking on my verbal ticks. I’m doomed once they figure out the other ones.
- Does anyone speak Spanish?
- Yes.
- Does puta mean bitch?
- Yes.
- Could it be the beginning of something longer?
- No, he DEFINITELY called you a bitch.
Andrey Ternovskiy’s Web site, Chatroulette →
newyorker.com
“There is, for example, the video of the dancing banana, crudely drawn on lined paper, exhorting people to “Dance or gtfo!” (Dance or get the fuck out.) The banana’s partners usually respond with wiggling delight. There’s also something liberating in the protection that the “Next” button provides. Striking up a conversation with the person next to you on the subway is risky, and potentially time-consuming. On Chatroulette you can always just disappear.”
Things to Amuse Myself in Lesson Plans
I am drawing infinite numbers of triangles for Guided Practice for a lesson about the Pythagorean Theorem.
(AN ASIDE: To all of my math teachers who told me again and again and again to SHOW MY WORK, I am so sorry. I had no idea how frustrating it was until this work. WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO GRADE IF THERE’S NO WORK? SHOW ME YOUR THINKING!)
After having spent two days asking which ever poor soul is next to me to supply me with a letter to use as the first and then making the other two the next two letters, I have now started using three letter words and abbreviations. Thus the GP tomorrow will be using triangles FRI and MEG.
You gotta do something. :)
Follow Up
- Caryn: im surprised it doesn't say something about how '06 alum, megan foran helped build congres up to the truly spectacular team that it is today.
- (and i'm still judging that you were on french team. that's almost as nerdy as math team)
- me: its nerdier than math team
- lets be honest
- i was a competitive vocabulary test taker.
- Caryn: yeah
- that's bad
- i wish that i still did away messages because that would be an excellent one
- but that's so middle school
- and AIM
- me: you could start again
- or have a status generally
- Caryn: this might just be worth it ;0
- Caryn's new status message - Meg: its nerdier than math team, lets be honest i was a competitive vocabulary test taker. 11:29 PM
“Even though Eastside is known for its IB, Institute of Culinary Arts and Entrepreneurship Magnet programs, the school also has a strong focus on foreign language programs. BOTH THE FRENCH and Spanish teams were STATE CHAMPIONS at their ANNUAL CONVENTIONS.”
—
America’s Best High Schools: Profiles of the Top 20 - Newsweek
YEAH, THAT’S RIGHT, WE ARE GOOD AT COMPETITIVE FRENCH (that would be Eastside, #17). Looking at that mad awk picture I was oddly nostalgic for the mall/courtyard with it’s international flags and odd concrete blocks and pits.
Oh Eastside. We didn’t even HAVE flat screen TVs to steal! (Long story.)
(Note: no mention of the gang activity, moderately average FCAT scores and just barely 50% graduation rate, which includes the 120 IB kids who always graduate.)
It’s grrrreat to be… An Eastside Ram!
Derek Abbott's Animal Noise Page →
eleceng.adelaide.edu.au
This is officially my new favorite thing. “The cat said meow?” Don’t be such a plebe.
“What’s a nice way to put, “Sally’s father beats her up?”
—Lesson Planning. Again.
Was walking down the street on GaTech campus and see a cop car with lights on a two cops plus some TFA GNO kids staring up into thr trees. I was mildly concerned that perhaps someone had cracked under the pressure and was trying to jump so I politely inquired as to what was going on.
The cop gestured to the sidewalk. “We found a baby bird on the sidewalk. We’re trying to find the nest.”
Sometime people are really decent. Or silly.
“
I am extremely disappointed to see that we have used practically no pearls at all in the past few issues. In fact, many necklines could have been helped by pearls worn inside the dress that show inside the cutaway sides and back of most ordinary dresses on top…
I speak of this very often - and as soon as I stop speaking the pearls disappear.
Nothing gives the luxury of pearls. Please keep them in mind.
” —Diana Vreeland, former editor of Vogue in a memo to her staff, dated December 9, 1966
published in Visionaire Magazine
(Pearls were never part of my aesthetic until they were, AKA college happened. They are the perfect thing for everything though!)
(via preppywithatwist)
“The problem is the monkeys!”
—Julie, dictating her Key Points. LPs FTW!
“You could just use TWO trees…
No, I already have a problem about blades of grass and acorns.” —TFA LESSON PLANNING. AGH.
No, I already have a problem about blades of grass and acorns.” —TFA LESSON PLANNING. AGH.
PS...
Yes. We have a new theme people. I did love “Band Full of Hippies,” but a more grown-up life required a more grown-up blog appearance.
I also think this one is way more readable. Everytime I clicked out of dashboard over to the blog itself I kind of wondered why anyone read this ridic looking thing.
Play on, playas.
The Answer? The World May Never Know.
- Priya: oh my god you guys are raping my wall
- me: I KNOW it's kind of amazing
- Priya: how were you two ever in charge of anything semi-important??
- me: it becomes more and more amazing in retrospect every day
- and now i'm going to be a teacher and he's going to be a doctor!
- people's lives are being entrusted to us!
- Priya: oh dear
- i am concerned
Princeton President's Commencement Remarks →
princeton.edu
“It is much harder to throw epithets at a group when the group has the human face of your friend or classmate. By living and studying together, you are able to see beyond difference to the common humanity that binds us together. And so, as you walk, skip or run through the FitzRandolph Gates today, as educated citizens of this and many other nations, I hope you will carry forward the spirit of Princeton and all that it has sought to teach you — an openness to the other point of view and the courage to stand up for what you believe, all informed by the highest standards of integrity and mutual respect.”
This is great (almost as great as Dickie B).
“JSH@gmail.com: INSTITUTE!!!
INSTITUTE!!!!
INSTITUTE!!!!
INSTITUTE!!!!
WHOOOOO HIOOOOOO
GET PUMPED YAAAAAAAAAAAAAY” —Jinsoo is more excited about me and Chrissy starting Institute than we are. That’s why we keep him around. JSH— The World’s Best Energy Drink.
INSTITUTE!!!!
INSTITUTE!!!!
INSTITUTE!!!!
WHOOOOO HIOOOOOO
GET PUMPED YAAAAAAAAAAAAAY” —Jinsoo is more excited about me and Chrissy starting Institute than we are. That’s why we keep him around. JSH— The World’s Best Energy Drink.
My suite door will not unlock. Even with the master key. I am embracing zen.
However, I do love new roads. There is something incomparably exciting about a highway you’ve never driven on before.
I despise traffic jams with no discernible cause.
Listen
John-Michael and his excellent band play Maple Leaf. J-M is one of our local CMs and is awesome. Gotta love NOLA.
Just spent the morning digging grass/weeds out of a baseball field. Very hard core.
So,
I have clearly dropped off the face of the blogging earth a bit. Blame, obviously, TFA, which has been and will be keeping me super busy for a while.
I still love all of you, obvi, and will be back when I am not trying to find my ass with both hands anymore. In the meantime I will be trying to update as much as possible.
I will say this: I already feel in my bones that TFA was the absolute right choice for me and GNO was the perfect region. I am so, so happy.
Listen
Live from Maison on Frenchmens.
Sometimes NOLA just feels like coming home to the best home ever.
FACT:
With this super timely LAX national championship (these seniors are the kids who decided to honour their Duke commitments when it wasn’t certain there would be a 2006-2007 season!), I think it ought to be official—
If you didn’t/don’t/won’t go to Duke—
If you thought you couldn’t possibly have top tier academics, upper echelon athletics, active extracurrics and superactive social scene— oh and a beautiful campus and fabulous weather—
(YOU CAN HAVE ALL OF THOSE THINGS!)
Then it is time to recognize— Duke is better. Than everyone. Period, hallelujah, amen.
(plus no one on the corner has swagger like us.)
If you would like me to be less obnoxious, just wait for this second championship to age a bit. The fact remains.
