I was so nervous last night that I think I got a total of about 3 hours of sleep before I finally got out of bed at 5 this morning. We have to leave the house by 6:15 a.m. in the morning to get our dazed/tired bottoms to school every morning by 6:40 a.m. as the first class starts at 7:00a.m. This normally wouldn't be so bad except I didn't arrive home from the school until about 8:30 p.m. this evening. The story that occupies those almost 14 hours is as follows: Arrive at school at 6:40 to a classroom already [View Full Entry]

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Saturday was a very chill day. Sarah and I went in search of a shoe store for giants a.k.a. people with a shoe size bigger than 6. However, I was given directions to look on (translated from spanish) commercial avenue. Unfortunately, the streets do not have names here. So, we took a break and stopped at a pastry shop for some cake. With my brilliant command of Spanish, I told the woman behind the counter that I was looking for shoes and asked where could I find them. She looked confused as if to say, "I don't know where your shoes [View Full Entry]

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Okay, a second to breath. Sorry this is so late. I honestly haven't really had a spare moment since last Friday. And even though it is Tuesday, I am going to pretend that it is still Friday. We'll just call it Honduran time. After a long day of final touches at school, we came home to get ready for the staff party that was going to take place at 6pm at Morgan's new bar. Well actually, its not quite a bar yet. Morgan is the high school literature teacher who has been teaching here for a couple years and recently married [View Full Entry]

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Remember how I said yesterday that meetings were word of mouth information? Well today I had a very exasperated principal come to my room to inform me that we were meeting in the library like "now". I asked him when he told us about the meeting and he said he told so and so to tell so and so to tell me. I didn't get the message sorry. I suggested memos so he didn't have to chase down everyone every time we have a meeting. What a fantastic idea says the principal. Yeah, I doubt it'll happen :) I have finished [View Full Entry]

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What a day. Yesterday we were informed by word of mouth from other teachers (there is no such thing as memos here), that we would be having an 8 hour inservice today at the school. We arrived at 8 in the library, but word of mouth had not informed us that the eight hour inservice training would be in Spanish without translators. For the first two hours before the break, all the teachers who did not speak spanish were forced to just sit there. Needless to say at the break there was a revolt and they did not return for the [View Full Entry]

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Alright...I was all over it tonight. I actually got into the game. I tried to Settle Catan, but it was to no avail. I'll have to get some experience in. I just settled places that looked pretty. Apparently not the best strategy. Fun none the less. So, we've decided against the goat named Shakira. We feel like it would be too much work. I think that I'm going to get a hermit crab for my class. Yay for teaching responsibilty. I'm going to let my class name it as well. Hopefully it goes better than last year, when the Head Start [View Full Entry]

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My decorating is coming along slowly but surely. It is true that everyting takes a little longer here, especially when all of your classroom decorations are home-made, and in my case home-ly. Luckily for me however, Karen has mailed me some decorations all the way from Madison (Cottage Grove), Wisconsin to help out. I am very excited for their arrival. Karen informed me that mail sent by plane will take about 3 weeks to arrive, while on the other hand, mail sent by boat will take about 3 months. Sounds about right for Honduras :) After finishing the remainder of my [View Full Entry]

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Before anything else, I have to state my profound respect for elementary school teachers out there past or present. I spent eight hours today doing lesson plans for the next two weeks and I'm still not finished. Planning eight different subjects so that they have some overlap, aren't mind numbing, and keep the kids engaged is exhausting. And I haven't even met the kids yet, so who knows if they will even be relatively close to the pace that the class moves. Head Start part year employees went back to work today. I really miss my old job. We'll have to [View Full Entry]

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This morning I woke up at, what I like to call "the ass crack of dawn" (mom, cross that out before copying it for grandpa and nanny). For some reason unknown to me (except for the fact I slept until like 4pm yesterday or the dogs barking or the roosters or the geckos between our ceiling and roof), I woke up at 6:15 this morning. But I was able to get quite a bit done in the morning before going to the soccer game. I washed two loads of laundry and went grocery shopping. The check out guy at the grocery [View Full Entry]

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This list was compiled by Sarah and I last night. I copied and pasted it from her blog. Enjoy. #1. Stray Dogs are not uncommon. #2. We are told stray children are about as common as stray dogs. If you feed them, they will not leave you alone. #3. Things like "Hey white girls, we love you!" are heard on a regular basis. #4. When you go to a soccer game and chant "Hon-du-ras!", you will be made fun of for pronouncing the 'H'. It should be pronounced "Own-doo-rus". #5. Wearing a Honduras jersey to a game will not make you [View Full Entry]

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