Checking in...

Hi!

I'm still alive! I am almost there! Only a few weeks left of student teaching. You guys, I am really getting the hang of this too. It's amazing how much teaching is actually really just psychology. It's about convincing a room full of kids that they are amazing and capable, that you are worth listening too for a hour, and that what you have to say is worth learning, studying, and retaining. It's a one-woman show every single day on the topic of biology and your audience doesn't really want to be there. Oh, and no refreshments provided.

I have learned SO MUCH in these past few weeks. I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't be relieved once it's all over, but I have confidence that once the classroom is my own, I will be prepared to provide my students with what they need and deserve.

Reeeeaaaallly looking forward to summer though :) If you haven't seen me in several months, I should be back as a normal-functioning member of society by the end of May. If you hear of any nice summer jobs let me know. I will be unemployed come June and won't be teaching until next fall. I am also sharing the awesome and oh-so-true video that I discovered on my friend Ali's blog. You rock Ali :)

Educational Television

When I was very young, my Dad and I liked to watch certain shows together. When I say young, I mean we have photographic evidence of my early fixation with MacGyver at the ripe age of about 4 months. That's right people, forget the Baby Einstein - that stuff can't teach a kid to disarm a missile with a paper clip or make a fishing lure from a gum wrapper! I actually have a poster signed by one of the producers. What can I say? I was a HUGE fan - and really, what toddler doesn't love Richard Dean Anderson?  I still have a scar on my finger from when I was pretending to be Macgyver and closed my Dad's Swiss Army knife on my finger in the fourth grade. Luckily,  Macgyver also taught be how to elevate and apply pressure...

Although Macgyver was my main obsession, we also watched a lot of Mash, Night Court, Cheers and for a while, China Beach. That's normal t.v. for a little kid, right? I don't remember much about China Beach besides the intro and the fact that I LOVED the theme song. It was a "We Gotta Get Outta This Place," by the Animals. I remember singing along and, oddly enough, I also remember thinking about how the lyrics described the Vietnam War. Yeah, that's right people, lemme see your Baby Einstein get your kid to conceptualize that business! China Beach went of the air in 1991, according to IMDB, which means I was tossing around those deep thoughts before age 8! I know, right - completely non-intuitive parenting strategies, but go ahead and be impressed, you know you are.

So, anyway today I was humming this song to myself at work and it just took everything in me not to sing the chorus out loud... unfortunately, there was never an episode where Macgyver gets his way out of doing data entry with only my scotch tape and bic pen...

True Confessions of an Ole Alum

This is a video that a friend shared on Facebook recently. It's a slide show of images accompanied my music from the St. Olaf choir and orchestra. Watching it puts a huge lump in my throat. I miss it deeply. There is something about St. Olaf and my experiences there that have forever changed me and will always stay with me. I probably get more homesick for that small community on "the Hill" than I get for the home I grew up in. Walking across the gorgeous campus and through it's castle-like buildings is just as fairytale-like as they look in photographs. The beautifully wise old trees have quietly witnessed the stories of generations of Oles. Every limestone brick holds a dozen secrets of the past. The knowledge and rich experiences on the Hill are densely saturated and endless, but you only get four years to gather and absorb as much has you possibly can. The people there are some of the highest quality people I have ever met, and as I continue to encounter Oles in my life, there is some inexplicable connection that seems to bond people all members of the St. Olaf community. Even inhaling is comforting, as the Malt O' Meal factory down the road fills the air with scents of cocoa and cinnamon. There is just no other place like it.

... I don't know, maybe I drank too much of the Kool-aid in the caf. I find it difficult to admit such a deep connection to something. I am always fearful of falling too hard for anything, but I'm not going to lie - I am an Ole, and I love it.

Um Ya Ya :)

It's Blitz!

It's Blitz! is currently my favorite album. It's hard to explain why, but I listen to it constantly and never seem to get sick of it. Dragon Queen and Heads will Roll are my favorite tracks, but there actually aren't any songs that I ever skip, which is kind of rare. I always dislike at least one or two songs on an album. I remember when I got Fever to Tell freshman year and my roommate wouldn't let me play it when she was in the room because she thought it was so bizarre. I feel like the YYYs have gotten a lot less "out there" though. Some of the songs on the album are actually sort of sweet sounding. Here's the video for one of my favorite tracks. It's kinda crazy. What do you think Ali?