All of the good things about UCLA

Here is a list of ALL of the good things about UCLA:
1. There is a stretch of Sunset that you have to drive on to get there from here with no stop lights and curves that are big enough you don't really have to slow down. It may be my favorite part to drive in all of LA.

I've failed at writing this...

Here's a list of reasons I've failed lately:
1. I got the layoff notice.
2. Simon came to visit.
3. I've been sick the last few days
4. When my friends post, I forget that I haven't.
5. Some days, when you finish at school, you just need to relax. There was a big fiasco surrounding a conference we were supposed to go to this weekend and then it was off and then on and back and forth SO because I'm still under the weather, and I already have sub plans AND a sub, I'm taking a day off that will hopefully get me back mentally.

List of options for next year

There is a possibility that things will pretty much stay the same next year at school but there is an equally strong possibility that things will be VERY different. Here is a list of those options:
1. We'll start with the worst one: I get laid off. That would stink.
2. I continue teaching 3 of the 5 10th grade classes and 2 drama classes with the added 7th period Academic Decathlon.
3. I take the 3 11th grade classes that aren't AP and keep my two drama classes and the 7th period Academic Decathlon.
4. I teach 4 11th grade classes including the AP Language class and knock down to one drama class (and the 7th period you know)
5. I teach three 12th grade classes including the AP Literature class and keep two drama classes. (and 7th...)
6. Option four but I teach a newspaper class instead of a drama class
7. Option number 3 but one drama and one newspaper.
8. Option number 2 but one drama and one newspaper.
Who knows?

So I'm not in the best of moods

No idea why since I had an entertaining weekend. Doesn't change the fact that today I came to school angry. Here is a list of things I find myself wanting to tell people:
1. I can't take care of your classroom and my own.
2. I can't prepare your lessons and my own.
3. I can't spend the next two weeks preparing the tenth grade students for a high school exit exam.
4. I can't make the review slideshow you gave me to present in homeroom interesting.
5. I can't understand why the conversation you are having with your high school girlfriend is more important than you being in class.
6. I can't get behind your decision to paint graffiti for the rest of your life rather than at least graduate high school.
7. I can't help that you signed up for drama class, have been in it all year and now you decide that you don't want to participate.
8. I can't help you if you don't listen or ask questions.
9. I can't believe that you know everything when I don't even know everything.
10. I can't let you out of English class so you can take care of something for science, math, music, history, art etc. especially when I know you aren't going to make up the time missed in my class.
11. I can't let you work on other work for another class when I have assigned to you a task.
12. I can't give you an A just because you show up for class.
13. I can't let you keep Maus much as I'd like to- it's a $14 book making it the most expensive one in the bookroom.
14. I can't deal with your complete and utter apathy towards acts of genocide.
15. I can't understand why you're wasting my time by wanting to fail.
16. I can't improve this school's tests scores in the next month.

ok... maybe now it's out of my system. Let's hope so, or the ican't list may turn into things I have told my coworkers and students.

My responsibilities for Prom

Yeah so I didn't really get into Prom in high school but now I'm helping prepare it-
1. Making invitations
2. Buying favors
3. Buying 6 tiarras
4. Getting 5 sashes for the prom court males
5. Having my mom ship out a guys crown
6. Coming up with a decoration for the entryway of Prom

Let prom season begin!

Spiritual Guidance

I am a spiritual person, and a religious person. I believe in the power of religion to change the world (both good and bad). But I haven't found a church home out here yet. Yesterday I took some time to find some spiritual inspiration. Here is a list of what I most turn to:
1. The Color Purple:
"Here's the thing... The thing I believe. God is inside you and inside everybody else. You come into the world with God. But only them that search for it inside find it. And sometimes it just manifest itself even if you not looking, or don't know what you looking for. Trouble do it for most folks, I think. Sorrow, lord. Feeling like shit.
...
Yeah It. God ain't a he or a she, but a It.
...
Don't look like nothing... It ain't a picture show. It ain't something you can look at apart from anything else, including yourself. I believe God is everything. Everything that is or ever was or ever will be. And when you can feel that and be happy to feel that, you've found It.
My first step from the old white man was trees. Then air. Then birds, Then other people. But one day when I was sitting quiet and feeling like a motherless child, which I was, it come to me: that feeling of being part of everything, not separate at all. I knew that if I cut a tree, my arm would bleed.
...
God love everthing you love-- and a mess of stuff you don't. But more than anything else God love admiration.
...
[God] not vain, just wanting to share a good thing. I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it.
...
People think pleasing God is all God care about. But any fool living in the world can see It always trying to please us back.

2. From the Bible:
Philippians 4:8-9
Finally, whatever is true,
whatever is honorable,
whatever is right,
whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely,
whatever is of good repute,
if there is any excellence,
and if anything is worthy of praise
dwell on these things
The things you have learned and received and heard in me, practice these things and the God of peace will be with you.

3. Marianne Williamson
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others


May you find the spirit within you this day and with that find peace in the world.

Reasons to Celebrate in February

Who knew the shortest month of the year would have so much reason to celebrate?
1. 6 months ago today, I got in the car and started my trip here.
2. February 6th is the last day of my first semester as a teacher.
3. February 7th I'll be going to an Academic Decathlon event in preparation for me taking over as half of the coaching.
4. February 12th is Lincoln's 200th birthday and because I'm the teacher, we're doing a set of lessons to lead us there.
5. February 16th I get a day off of school for President's day. Being from Illinois, this will be my first President's day off (we always got Lincoln's Birthday.)
6. February 22nd is the oscars and then hopefully the insane commercials pushing movies for the oscars will stop :)