Back to Square one!

That's right folks. Annie is back to square one without a job for next year.

Today I was told that I am one of TEN teachers in my school to get put into 'excess.' Excess means that my school has no bugeted room for me. BUT I am still offically a 'teacher' in the NYC public school system. This means that I get the pleasure of looking for a new job.

This technically puts me exactly where I was last year, minus the NYC experience. But I am at a disadvantage because I have not HAD my own classroom. This is where the cluster position comes to bite me in the ass. O well. So back to the issue at hand. I now have to find myself a job! How exciting is that?

On one hand, I get to start fresh again. WOOHOO. On the other.. there are people in the building who will, for one reason or another, leave between now and August. Thats how it work every year. Hopefully as they leave they will fill their positions with people who already taught here. That would be amazing. But that's where the year of classroom experience vs the year of cluster comes into play. So we shall see.

The other thing that worries me... if I am put into excess for next year are they REALLY gunna hire me for summer school?

ON TOP of this I take my NY state licenecing test tomorrow. How amazing is that?

UGH

I hate being sick. anyone want to make me feel better?

A Great Weekend

It was a great Memorial Day weekend in the city. There was lots to do in the city, and I enjoyed a lot of it.

Saturday was painting my new table. I got a table off the side of the road for my kitchen. The only problem with it is that it is green...my kitchen stuff is red... needless to say I didn't want to have a Christmas kitchen so I had to paint it. It is now 'apple red.' Very fitting I think. Then when the paint was drying I had to get out of the house other wise I was going to try to paint again before it was dry. Don't worry... I was out back painting so I totally was not painting around the Suz! So... out I went. I figured since it was SUCH a nice day I would go to Central Park. Well..ok. So I had never really seen the upper part of the park so I got off at 110 street and walked down to 59th street. If you have never been in the city...that's a lot freaking WAY!... So in the park I...walked though the forest, saw a wedding with only 6 people attending, saw a street performance with a crowd of like 300 people, a Marine band play the national anthem, and a random group of hula hoppers.
Sunday came. So did laundry. Apparently there are less than normal people doing laundry on holiday weekends. Then another coat of paint on the table. After that... I needed sun. Must head to Central Park. I headed down there and fell asleep! I was laying on my stomach so my back took most of the sun and it really wasn't that bad. After that I needed to cool down and I know I have my test this weekend so I headed to Borders to study a bit. They always have study guides. Though I think I will be ok the book scared me a little with the world history and art history. Those are going to be the only ones I am going to worry about.

Then Monday came! 80 degrees and beautiful!!! I decided I was going to hit the Museum of Modern Art. I have wanted to go for a while so I went! O how I love my non-expiring UO ID. Student price is only 12 dollars! The coolest thing in the museum was the area that turned you into black and white. The yellow lights wash all the color out of everything. It was so much fun to watch people go in and out of color. The design area was cool with the chairs from like the fifties and sixties. And the most of the art itself was really cool. Somethings I just don't understand... like the video of the girl hula hooping with barbed wire. But .. what is art? The last thing I did was to walk by the theater that I love and see a person handing out tickets to a free movie screening.

Tuesday came back to work and lots movie parties for my 4th graders. As long as I don't get sick I should make it through the week. Then I went to my free movie screening. To make it downtown in time I had to ride Metro North down to Grand Central. It is a REALLY nice train. SO much better than the Jersey train that I took back from the airport over there one time. So off I was to see the new Get Smart movie. Being that you had to be in line by 415 and I got there at 410 I was worried I was not going to get in. The guy stopped taking people FOR SURE two people ahead of me. As I waited I really wanted to see it but I wasn't sure. Finally with 5 minutes to spare I was let into the VERY NICE theater. It was the 15th floor of the HBO building that the private screening room was on. It was AMAZING! It was plush seats and carpeted floors. The BEST movie theater I had been in. It was SWEET!

Now it's Wednesday and I am sick. Isn't life grand?

A nice long weekend

It should be a nice long relaxing weekend. I am going to do nothing but enjoy the sun and possibly enjoy some sailers. That's right ladies... its Fleet Week here in the city. I plan on doing some r and r in the city ... possibly while getting some much needed rays in the sun in my new bikini. And hey.. if there just HAPPENS to be cute sailers around.. bummer right?
Wish me luck!

Trying to stay awake at work

During my prep there is nothing to do. Yes.. there are things I COULD do but I dont want to go through and grade just yet and I dont want to transfer all my stuff over. Maybe I will do that tomorrow during my double prep. But that means going onto EACH of my ten computers and pulling off information from each. Between the Ducky videos, to the Ducky missing posters and then the step by step projects that I have to grade. I have to go onto the computers and pull them off by myself. And while that sounds like WAY fun... I will save it till tomorrow, but that means that I have nothing to do today. Ah... falling asleep sounds like a plan but they seem to frown on that here for some reason.
O well.
Back to thinking about what days I have left to do with what students.

Birthday Wishes

SO. Just incase yo8u are wondering... I am super excited to get birthday wishes from everyone.

Just to give you an idea of stuff to get me.. heres a list.
-gift cards
+ target
+ bed bath and beyond
+ container store
+ itunes!!!
-Envy phone. In green of course
-and whatever you feel like

I didnt win

Ok.. so I didnt win the lottery. Back to the real world.

Stupid Computers

Don't you hate it when your computer DIES!!! Dead. Gone. No one can fix it.

Ok.. so someone could fix mine. It died on Wednesday and no idea why. Just started working REALLY slow and then shut down. After a MAJOR freak out I took it to BestBuy's Geek Squad and they said.. mam... your harddrive is SUPER DEAD!!! Like.. out computer wont even start it up. SOOO another 160 dollars down the drain and I have a new harddrive. Now all I have to do is wait the 7-10 days for my recovery disk from Sony. Then go through the process of downloading all my stuff again. Sad times.

MOM-see I told you it was a good thing to get me that external hard drive. I didnt lose any of my work from college or pictures from the last couple of years!~

Sick Day!

Yesterday was my first official sick day! i felt sick and I didnt go to work! How crazy is that?!

When I got up I just didnt feel well.. a continuation of Monday's not feel well. So I sat in my living room from 630 to 7 and said screw it... and called in sick.

After catching up on my tv from Monday night, I was feeling better. I decided that the best way to make myself feel better would be to go into the city and enjoy the beautiful day instead of sitting home and feeling horrible. So I did. I got on the train and decided Chambers Street would be the place to get off and start looking.

Aparntly I ended up in Tribeca and all the beautiful restruants down there. After window shoppng a couple of places, I landed in a restruant called Stakes and Burgers on Grenwich (sp?) and Franklin. It was SO good. I sat and read my book and enjoyed the quiteness of the restruant. The waiter was funny, at one point asking if I wanted my book READ to me! Umm...no but thanks. Then I walked until I found a subway station and headed up to Central Park. I layed in the sun and read for about an hour. Then headed home. Man my feet hurt from wearing my heals!

After that I stupidly bought the game Roller Coaster Tycoon. Addiction... that's all I have to say. O well.

Now its Wednesday and back to work for me. Trying to figure out if I totally messed myself up by skipping work yesterday. All should be ok.

Wish Me Luck!

I bought a lottery ticket today. Well..five of them. BUT!!! In my defence the jackpot is 145 million dollars!

Ok... So I really don't expect to win but.. it would help. Each time I buy a lottery ticket I spin off into the 'what if'...' world.

I would...
buy an apartment in the city
buy a plane and a piolet.
buy computers for my school (with everything)
buy a house on the oregon coast. (thinking of summer break)
go to vegas
invest for my future and the kids (neices and nephews)

all the usual stuffs.

UGH!!!

DUDE!!! My friends just need to come now!!!

I cant wait for them!

David... get your ass over here.
Morgan. Im SUPER EXCITED.
And Debbie... bring some going out clothes. Bc We hitting the town!

Even more craziness.

So. Aparently I have a life. Well..sorta.

Right now I have three friends on the lst to come visit in the next couple of months. I am going to Denver in June (skipping two days of school!!!). I am (hopefully) teahcing summer school... Then I will go home for two weeks. Then back to the grind but I am not thinking of that right now.

I am jsut so excited for a GREAT summer...boyfriend or not (not at this point) I dont care. I am gunna enjoy lots and lots!

Routines for next year

Routines

1. Each class must clean up. Kinder (please say I dont have...) crayons go away. Kids are sitting down on the rug before they can go to the computers.

2. Rules for each class on a chart.

Craziness

It has been crazy around here.

Last Saturday I went to see my TEAM!!! (Seattle Mariners) play the Yankees at Yankee Stadium. It was GREAT! We had some pretty cool seats in the bleachers.. right along the railing so we could see most of the feild (minus the camera next to us blocking the first base line). The Yankees killed 6-1 but o well. If I am not rooting for the Mariners it's the Yankees so it's all good.

After the game I went to Aurther Ave, which is the Little Italy section of the Bronx that is better than Littel Italy in Manhattan. It was so much fun. I got some fresh cheese and used it in my speghetti on Monday so that was GREAT! (dude, as I wrote "GREAT" tony the tiger was in my head saying. gotta love advertising right?!)

Sunday I went to the city to shop! I had to get a dress for Jess' wedding. I went to Banana Republic and retried on a dress that I tried on last week. It still fit, still fits into the 'conservative' side of the wedding, and it was ONE SALE!!! (I know you'll love that mom). So I HAD to get it. It was a GREAT steal from Banana Republic. Now I feel all growed up and stuff that I got a dress at Banana Republic!

Then it was back to the grind here at work. BUT! Monday after work a friend and I went out and had drinks after work. It was AWESOME bc she showed me a new part of the Bronx. It is the Irish part. I looked around and there were like 5 pubs on the same block. All authentic and all AMAZING looking inside. They really take care of their bars. Totally not like Kell's at home where it's 'authentic' .. no no no.. this is ... walking into Ireland. Everyone has accents and the paper for the area told of all the Irish businesses that the Irish people should patron. It was SO funny and GREAT. Definately not Manhattan prices for drinks! And it will only take me like a subway and bus to get there. Finding new places is one thing that makes me want to have a car. Its a lot easier to find new places without having to ride a bus. O well.

Now it's time to head to my next class (its lunch right now). But I did have SUPER amounts of fun this morning tryng to plan out the rest of the year. Baring any unscheduled misses, I think I did it. We shall see.

Ideas on routine for next year

A routine is something I really need to work on for next year.

Ideas: Laminate everything!!! group folders.. aim sheets...

Each day should have a routine.
-say hello
-intro/recap the project
-lesson (?)
-get out computer by group number.
-raise hand to get my attention

The important thing is to get the routine down and keep to it. Get info on every student at the begining of the year. Telephone numbers for home. Full names and classes. Grade book for each class. Checking off how they are doing each day.

These are just some of the things I am thinking about for next year.

PS BUY LAMINATOR!