Thanksgiving

Be prepared for a bit longer post this time around. I decided to wait until the end of Thanksgiving week to put together an entry. Lots to talk about.

The photos from my "Science is..." project finally came in the mail; so, first thing Monday morning I made a couple collages and put them up on the wall. Had students checking it out all day. I'm rather happy with the way it turned out. Definitely my favorite project we've done in class so far.

I had a guest speaker in on Monday morning for my Earth and Space science classes. He talked to my students about exoplanets - planets around other suns/outside of our solar system. He knew a lot about the research that is being done and is really interested in it. It was nice for my students hear someone else talk about astronomy (the unit we are currently on) and someone who is really excited about. Some of it got a little technical, but overall it went well. One class was really engaged and asking questions throughout the presentation. These students can definitely be a tough crowd, which I warned the speaker about ahead of time.

Rumor had it that we would be having some sort of "Field Day" on Wednesday, so probably not much for class time. I decided it might be a good idea to wait on more textbook material until the start of the new week and give a fun presentation on my experience working at the zoo a few summers ago. I have so much fun standing up there talking about my experience there, the fun animal facts I know, and why I enjoyed that job. Outreach education! Definitely don't think I am cut out for being a full time classroom teacher. Outreach education is where my passion in science education lies. Whenever people ask me what part of science I really enjoy, my answer always is "Outreach education", which I then usually have to explain. I describe my experiences with the Creature Outreach program I was a part of at Morningside College and my camp counselor job at the Blank Park Zoo.

I had put together a slideshow of photos I had taken at the Blank Park Zoo that I then talked about. I hadn't really realized this before until one of my students pointed it out, but this Grey crown-crested crane from Africa is totally doing the disco.

Dropped the last period of the day on Tuesday for teachers to go vote in the runoff election. They had so many candidates the first time around for Governor and Lt. Governor that they had a runoff election between the top two contenders, which is pretty common here. I grabbed some soft-serve ice cream, finished some grading, and did some reading on my computer before heading to Zumba class. Still doing Zumba class Tuesdays and Thursdays. The instructor that led our small Tafuna class before we joined up with these others said to me," Boy you sure are consistent about coming, aren't you?" You bet I am :-) I told him how I exercise at home the other days, and some times even come home after Zumba and do another little workout. I like to change it up, so it's nice to have Zumba two days a week.

Arrived Wednesday morning to find the schedule of the day to say 1st Period and then Field Day activities. No lunch we asked of the office? Lunch is being served with breakfast. Tell the kids to eat now. We went to breakfast to find that they literally were serving both lunch and breakfast - so twice the food. "Oye," was all Hannah and I had to say to that. haha

So Field Day was practically just a little competition among the different classes. It was funny for me to watch all these darker skinned island kids hide from the sun. Left school about 10:30 that morning as I wasn't finding the competition too exciting.

Stopped at a produce stand on my way home for some banans and a papaya. This was my first papaya I had purchased. I had them at school and liked them, but then as I cut it open I found this little surprise. Fascinating how there is this perfect star shape inside. Biology fascination moment.

Ended up in a spontaneous Skype date with the Stocks - Uncle Ron and Aunt Kristin before I did my workout for the day. Nice to talk with them and catch up :-) Hannah and I were the only ones home for this long weekend, so Wednesday was the beginning of lots of chats about whatever, chilling, and little adventures.

Thursday morning I was able to Skype into the Wingert family Thanksgiving and chat a bunch with my grandparents. My younger cousins all popped in and said hello, and it was cool to see everyone and talk with them even though I wasn't physically sitting in the same room. Gotta love technology for allowing us to come together like that.

Then, Hannah and I went to the picnic Thanksgiving lunch at church. Here's the boys grilling the BBQ chicken. It was cool to watch them use these leaves to spread water and oils as they cooked rather than a brush like I would see back home.

Okay so you see lots of chicken. After church Wednesday night, it sounded like there was going to be a lot of meat at this Thanksgiving picnic. I made some stuffing to bring, and I wasn't super optimistic about being able to eat a vegetarian Thanksgiving plate. Surely someone would suggest I try this or that and I would have kindly obliged. There was sashimi (raw fish), little spring rolls that had meat instead of veggies, turkey, and BBQ chicken. For the non-meat options I found white rice, my stuffing, mashed potatoes, steamed veggies, salad, and dinner rolls. I did it! I successfully ate a vegetarian plate at my Samoan Thanksgiving. Felt pretty good, and I know some of you will likely roll your eyes when you read that. haha All delicious stuff and quite satisfying.

There was some volleyball being played prior to lunch, and I partook in a few games. It was fun, and I think I was a little better at it than they expected.

This is what your feet look like when you play volleyball on a parking lot covered in black lava rock.

Can't forget dessert. Had some rocky road ice cream in a cone and a piece of pumpkin pie. Yes, I did just say pumpkin pie. I didn't really anticipate having pumpkin pie this Thanksgiving. Mmmm. Got Hannah and I talking about some different things we eat back home, some of those things you think about around the Holidays - especially a Holiday away from home. Still not a homesick feeling, just fun to talk about. You'll see me mention that again later in this post - one of these foods I thought of. Then, I spent the afternoon doing lots of reading. Got a workout in, of course. Had to work off some of those Thanksgiving calories ;-)

Friday morning Hannah and I grabbed breakfast at what was Primo's and has now taken on the name Saula's. We've been wanting to try this place out for quite some time and finally did it. I had french toast and fruit. Look, it's french toast made from french bread. How cool is that? Delicious stuff, very friendly staff - the chef even stopped by to see how everything was.

We then took a bus into town. I got off just on the edge of Utulei to go on a little hike. I took the Blunt's point trail, which takes you up and along the mountain past several WWII gun sights. I hadn't been on a decent hike in a while, and boy was I dripping the sweat like crazy. I noticed how wet the strap around my little camera was getting from being around my wrist. Next thing, I know my camera shut off. Appeared some of my sweat must have dripped in by the battery. Ugh. I knew it would be okay after it aired out a bit, but I was having fun taking random photos along my way. Then, I see this crab who was living in a Gerber jar. Yes, the Gerber jar was his shell. Crazies thing, and my camera wasn't working at the time. I'm sure you can picture this for yourself, but man I sure do wish I could have gotten a picture of him.

When, I got to this spot where I could see the harbor below and felt a nice breeze, I decided to sit for a while and read my book. I also let my camera sit out in hopes that it would dry out some. That did the trick, it turned back on for me after that. I almost went back on the trail looking for the crab with a jar for his shell, but I figure he could be anywhere by now. Instead, I enjoyed the nice spot I had found, reading 3 chapters of "Clockwork Angel".

I decided I should head back on the trail as I had plans to possibly catch up with Hannah and grab some ice cream before we headed back home. I kept going on the trail, and then I end up in someone's back yard. I kept going and found myself among many houses up along the mountainside. I always wondered about the houses up there, and now I found them. I almost felt like I was in Greece for some reason walking down the steps in between the houses of Fagatago.

Finally meandered my way out to the main road around 12, which was nice timing as I just received a message from Hannah asking if I wanted to meet for ice cream. I took a photo of the mountains behind Utulei, so you can picture me walking along the top of these. That's what my hike was for the morning. Definitely not a long hike, but I was taking my time, enjoying myself, and sat and read for a while.

After Samu's ice cream - the best on island (it's homemade), we headed home to Pava'ia'i. Did some more reading, researching on the Internet, and relaxing. So, one of the home foods I found myself craving after talkin with Hannah about them, I decided to make some rice pudding. She had no idea what I was talking about. Found myself sitting in the Midwest as I was eating this. Nice bowl of warm white rice, drenched in milk, with a sprinkling of cinnamon on top :-)

I got to talk with one of my mentors from college on the phone for about an hour on Friday, which was cool. Bruce is currently living in Minneapolis on his sabbatical from Morningside. He's working on a book. It was great to catch up on the phone.

Saturday morning I had a Skype date with the Boschen family Thanksgiving. Got to see everybody there, which was nice. The connection ended up dropping, but it was nice while it lasted and I wanted them to all get to enjoying their time together. Love all of my family, and it was nice of them all to try to include me for a bit on the family gathering virtually since I couldn't physically be  there. I am mighty thankful for my family :-)

Hannah and I met up with Sara, one of the volunteer teachers in town, to help check the mail. I had a few letters. One from my Granny B and one from my friend in Amanda in Kansas. Sending and getting mail is rather fun. Everyone I Skyped with this week asked what was hanging on the wall behind me, and I explained it is all of the mail I get. Covering more wall little by little :-)

We got a ride with a family to drop off the packages at Sara's house for the other volunteers, and then they offered to take Hannah and I home as they were heading that way. Score! Sat in the back of the truck with Krystal, who I discovered is the sister of a guy who comes to Zumba class. I recognized her dad up front. She was fun to chat with and very friendly. We ended up having them drop us off at Saula's, the place we had breakfast the day before, as we wanted to try lunch there and then just relax for a bit. Nice place, good food, friendly staff, plus they have A/C and Wi-Fi. We were both looking for a few hours of sitting in some A/C. A little luxury on the nice long weekend.

I've felt a little sinus infection or cold coming on again, so I was looking forward to enjoying some coffee while we sat in the A/C. I start sweating more when I drink something like this at home. haha I mean come on I sweat just sitting in my room reading at 8am, as the Boschens noticed that morning when we Skyped. I'm used to it, though. Not complaining. Look at how cute and sophisticated my coffee looks. They also brought out some complimentary muffins for us to try.

I ordered the house salad, and then the chef came out and introduced himself asking for our names. He then asked if I was a vegetarian  Yes. He said he's been looking at adding some more vegetarian options to his menu, including a lentil loaf - so like meatloaf without the meat. Kind of exciting that there's going to be a restaurant on the island that has a few vegetarian options laid out. We will definitely be back.

I'd say this little place is about a 25 minute walk from home, but with the beating sun we weren't in the mood for walking all the way home. Grabbed a pineapple at the produce stand before waiting for a bus or ride. I had my thumb out, and this nice chatty guy picked us up and drove us all the way home. Two free rides in one day, gotta love it :-)

I did not pick up a pineapple just because we were interested in some fresh fruit this time. You all know how much I'm loving the fresh fruit here, though. Hannah had the brilliant idea that we should make a little Samoan Christmas tree. We decided a pineapple top would make a good little tree. Then, we added some different pieces of Samoa. Here it is - our little island Christmas tree:

Did some more reading. I ended up finishing "Clockwork Angel" before 5:00. Here's the stack of books that have come in the mail from my mom. Not all in one package - a couple different ones. I have now read the red one, yellow one, and gray one. Started on the one you see at the bottom, then I will be opening the mystery ones. They may be in Christmas wrapping paper, but she said as soon as I finish the others I can open them up. Remember, can't be without a good book :-) I may have to think more about investing in a Kindle one of these days. I just love the feel of a book, but a Kindle might be handy for traveling endeavors in the future. I'm such a nerd some times. haha

We've talked about an official night of bat watching for a while. Just something we wanted to do since they flying foxes are sort of unique here. I suggested we do it one day this weekend.  Sliced up some fruit, grabbed a few cups of yogurt to dip them in, and one bottle of Moscatto. Hannah and I took our goodies up the hill where we knew the bats flew right down and around, plus there's this nice view in the background. We do have bats down by our house, but it was nice to sit up at a different spot, watch the bats, chat, and enjoy ourselves.

It was cool to watch the clouds and lighting change above the ocean.

I'm not much of a wildlife photographer, but this was one shot I got that made me think of Transylvania  haha. Nice way to end a Saturday - some bat watching with my roommate.

Rides, Football, and Surprises

This is a handmade basket that some of the produce stands send things home with you in. The day I bought a pineapple and some bananas, I came home with this one. Woven with coconut tree fronds.

Friday went by really quickly. All of the classes I taught that day behaved pretty well, and then we dropped our last class of the day for a school assembly. This included a presentation by the Class of 2002, who was visiting for their 20 year reunion, and encouragement for the Championship football game.

Hannah and I started walking home and then it begins to downpour only a few minutes from the bus stop. We duck under an overhang of a little store, and then ended up getting a ride home with a guy from there who lived out our way. Some timing, I tell you what.

Friday morning, as I was waiting for a bus to take to the game, I had my hitchhiker thumb out (as it was also sprinkling at the time). Ended up getting a ride with two nice guys heading into town for political campaigns. The driver was actually a cousin to my principal. He got confused when we entered Tafuna and thought I was going to Vo Tech for some reason. haha. He was funny. "What the heck am I thinking? Guess it's just the day to give you a tour."  Ended up having him drop me off at McDonald's where I ran into some teachers, who gave me the little ride to the stadium from there and bought me breakfast. Everyone can be so nice.

This was the first game I had been to where the National Anthem was sung beforehand, which was cool. Felt more like games I'm used to attending.

Here's some of the Class of 2002 at the football game. It was raining the whole time, so I was stuck in the stands to protect my camera.

Tafuna won 34-6, so here's part of the team with their trophy.

Here's some of the happy boys.

Then, I got a ride with another teacher to one of the shopping centers, where I met up with Hannah to grab a snack quick before heading to the movie theater. We hadn't checked out the theater yet, and Breaking Dawn Part 2 was in - yep, the Twilight movie. It was great! It was also nice to sit in an air conditioned theater and just relax for a couple of hours.

Got a package in the mail from home, which included some surprise books cause my mommy knows me so well, a few clothing items, and this little surprise from my dad - a teddy bear figurine. A christmas one, to be exact. Spent the rest of my Saturday with my nose in a book and relaxing. Between church services on Sunday I did the same thing. A wise woman once told me "You can't be without a good book." :-)

Go with the Flow

Think I may have used this title already, but it fits.

I forgot to mention that Friday the senior counselor ended up bringing a college rep from the University of Portland to visit my senior class. Exciting! They put on a nice presentation incorporating a presentation on how students on the island should look for colleges in addition to promoting the great things about their school. I was impressed and found myself thinking about my days of searching for a college and ending up at the perfect place for me - Morningside College. I have more students than I thought interested in applying for college, which is great. I even emailed Morningside and UNL admissions to check if there is any extra step in the process for these students since they live in a territory. Nope. Looks like we could start working on some college applications. Not sure if any of them would actually move to the Midwest, but doesn't hurt to throw my plug in there. I want them to go to the right places for them, obviously.

Week going by really quickly. Found myself playing some catch with the boys after church Wednesday night and having a nice chat with one of the girls. The adult church members had a meeting afterward, so all the youth (plus me) were outside enjoying ourselves. One of the youth who plans on going to seminary (They use the term "Bible college" here) gave the message Wednesday night, which was cool. My friend who assists the Pastor a lot delivered the sermon on Sunday as the pastor is currently in Fiji, where his sister-in-law recently had a baby.

I found myself saying Wednesday that if you can't learn to go with the flow or have your plans change rapidly, you wouldn't survive well in American Samoa. Prime example Wednesday. I had planned to leave right after school at 3:00 to go home and exercise before heading to church. I received a call from the office 5 minutes before the bell rang saying there would be a JV basketball meeting in my classroom. That ended bout 3:40, and I decided I'd wait until 4:00 to catch a ride with a teacher at least part of the way home. These two sisters I have gotten rides with before (who will take us all the way home) saw me and offered me a ride on Wednesday, and I thought "Excellent. A straight ride all the way home." Then, we stopped at an office where they picked up some papers, stopped at the gas station, and then stopped at another office. Made it home around 4:45. Had some nice chats with them along the way, though. Like I said, gotta learn to just let your plan go and go with the flow :-)

Tuesday class went really well. My seniors have been on their best behavior this week. I've also been very impressed with 2nd period lately, whereas 1st period is digressing. Gotta get that wagon turned back around as we are coasting into Thanksgiving break right now. Some more vandalism - this time with books, one a textbook and one a novel I had sitting on the shelf for students to borrow. I've been having some good discussions about it with my classes, except 1st period. At the end of the period, I had the smile on my face. No matter how much the students may erk me off sometimes, I don't let it get to me. Hope to have this all straightened out one of these days, encouraging respectful adults they know they can be.

I find it hard to understand the disconnect sometimes that I am witnessing here. My students know that they should respect one another and be grateful for the things they have. They constantly tell me how they thank God and their parents for all they have done, but then they go and vandalize things and show disrespect. Where does that turning point happen? It can't simply be teenagers gone wild. Hmmmm... may continue to be an unsolved mystery. Disconnect. Well, I will continue to model the behavior I expect of normal functioning human beings. I know that I am making some sort of impression on them, no matter if they want to admit it or even realize it.

Thursday morning was "Career Day" hosted by the Vocational Department. All sorts of guest speakers on campus, and a guy who works for the office of Samoan Affairs was in my classroom. He basically just told the students his life story from high school until now. Sounded like there were some cool presentations going on, though. Out early tomorrow for an assembly in preparation for the Championship football game on Saturday. Tafuna lost in the Championship last year, so we shall see if they can keep their undefeated record come Saturday.

Last note: Yay for double workout Tuesday and Thursdays again. I've been tearing it up. haha I also help put all the tables and benches back to where they are supposed to be for lunch after we have Zumba class each Tuesday and Thursday as I wait with Erica. First couple times those things felt a bit heavy or awkward to carry but not anymore :-)

Pageant, Zumbathon, and Waterfall

Friday wore my blue dress. Looked a bit American but very Jessica Boschen. I received compliments all day from my students - both boys and girls. A few of the boys were embarrassed when they complimented my outfit. haha

Had some plagiarism take place in one of my classes. Most of the students didn't even do the paper I assigned them, as you may have figured out from my last post. Anyways, that's gonna be what it's going to be, and we will learn a lesson from it as a class.

Hung out after school as some ladies from the office convinced me to stick around for the Mr.  and Miss Tafuna Pageant. I grabbed some food and then enjoyed the four-hour ordeal. A bit long, but there were entertainment segments (which included some of my students) amid competition. They had traditional wear, warrior wear, talent, and evening wear. Here are photos from the evening wear portion. Made it home about 10:30pm with a ride from JJ, Jeselani, and Zachary's mom. (This family hangs out by the store a bunch.

Woke up around 5am Saturday morning (earlier than I wanted but I must have been too anxious for the two-hour Zumbathon. Yes, we Zumba'ed for two hours with a few breaks. That's one way to jumpstart your Saturday morning. This is me with Erica, one of our great instructors. She is also the one who I have been riding home with lately.

Then, I headed over to the football game. Tafuna was playing Vo Tech in the playoffs. We won 68-0. Playing Leone for the Championship. I took some photos from the sidelines again. Several people at church on Sunday said they saw me on TV. All of the football games are shown on local television and since I spend time on the sidelines guess I show up. Here is a photo of me with some of the cheerleaders.The two on either end are in my Marine Science class.

Ate pancakes at Matai Restaurant for lunch as I had been craving those for a while. Headed home and relaxed for the afternoon before heading to Kokoland for the sending off gathering for three of the volunteers who are going home. Then, I went with Hannah to meet some people she had met through Yoga class. They were all rather intellectual, and it was fun to chat with them.

Monday morning I headed to Leone on a mission to find this little waterfall that had been mentioned to me. Got off at the Catholic church like my friend at church told me to do, and then I walked down the road for a while. Ran across an elderly lady who asked if I was WorldTeach and on my way to the waterfall. "Yes, ma'am." She said I was brave to be going alone with the dogs, so she had her grandson get me a stick. haha. Had some dogs bark at me along the way, but none came close. Several family members were out and stopped any who became agitated. Made it to the last house on the road, and the guy had his son take me back to the waterfall. "Our own private waterfall," he told me. Only took us about 5 minutes to walk to it. Nice little spot, and I noticed piping. He told me that they run it to the village. Cool.

I sat there for a little while and let my mind wander before heading back on the little trail.

Here is the road walked down in Leone to get to the waterfall trail.

Headed back home around 10:30am, worked out for about an hour and a half, did my laundry, and then just relaxed for the day - enjoying my extra day off, but I have to admit I may be looking forward to going back to school to see what surprises may come next.

Rainy Season and Fung Shui

Monday had both of my classes work on some individual notes while reading the textbook - good practice for them. This actually ended up being a perfect plan for the day as a thunderstorm was present practically all day. Really loud rain, big thunder booms, and great lightning strikes. No way my students would have heard me even if I tried teaching a lesson at the front of the room. It was easier this way. For the Life Science class I am subbing for during my prep period, we watched part of an episode of Planet Earth - the intro episode. They have some really good footage.

I did have a little writing project for my classes before they worked on notes.Writing about thoughts on the universe, one of my students talked about conspiracy theories - that the government is hiding stuff from us. Interesting... I asked him if he ever watched National Treasure. It's cool to see his brain thinking. I never would have guessed he would say something like that. Then, I had the seniors write about the elections and why they are important. Most of them seem to have a good grasp on the general concept.

So all of this rain. There were students soaking wet when they made it to class, and some asked if it was okay if they came in wet. Uh, of course. Lots of rain is part of life here, why wouldn't I let you into my classroom? Found out later in the day that there are some teachers who did not allow wet kids into their classroom. Seriously? Just some water. Sure I had to sweep my floor really well on Tuesday as a lot of dirt came in with that water, but come on. I could not believe how many students were out running around in the water in the afternoon or went home because it was raining. Raining. Raining in the rain forest. I also find it interesting that they do not have better drainage systems here since they do get a lot of rain. There was a lot of standing water on campus, and parts where it seemed like a foot of it was sitting. The roads are like that too in places. Oh well. The rainiest and stormiest day we've had so far since I've been here. Must have been our official greeting from the rainy season.

Rained all through the night and was a bit cooler than usual. Felt good. Several of my roommates said they even slept under a blanket - it wasn't that cool for me. haha I just had the sheet over me. I also rearranged my room a bit Monday night. Sleeping on a foam mattress on a sheet of plywood isn't doing it for me. I decided I almost slept better when we were just on the mattresses on the floor at orientation, so I figured I would give it a shot. Tipped my bed frame up against the wall, where I am still able to have decorations on it; this leaves my mattress on the floor in the center. Feels very fung shui and open. I was inspired by Hannah doing something similar. Slept really well Tuesday night. I could just feel the hard plywood too easily but not the floor so much. Cheers to sleeping on the floor :)

Hannah and I were discussing on Wednesday that our new fung shui rooms felt very peaceful. Nice to change it up.

No afternoon classes on Tuesday so teachers could go vote, and I just spent some time in my classroom working on a few different things before Zumba class. It's going to be weird when all of the campaign posters come down since there are so many, and they have been up since I arrived on island I feel like. Rained that afternoon again and some through the night. I walked to KFC for a soft serve ice cream cone and ended up waiting there for a bit before I walked back to school as it had begun raining a decent amount. Getting a ride home with Erica (Zumba instructor) and her husband Nate after Zumba class has become pretty regular. They're a cool young couple that exercises regularly together.

Wednesday was a bit of a long day, where I had a few students were giving me some attitude I had not faced yet. Oye, but we had a nice little chat about it outside the room and left the situation in decent moods. I did some ab exercises at home before heading to church. After church Lillian, Richard, and I had trio practice with Miss Heidi. She asked us to do a special together, as we are the three younger adults. It will be fun singing with two of my good friends. I'm singing harmony, and we are singing it at church the Sunday before Thanksgiving.

Thursday - another somewhat long day. I don't feel like I should have to stand up and lecture the students all the time. You would think they would enjoy having a fe days to work on a project where they don't have to listen to me or take notes, but man do they just waste that time (a majority of them do anyway). Disappointing, but I've warned them many times that I will be grading hard on this project so they better come prepared. I'm continuing to sub. Not quite sure where we are at with the teacher returning. The office doesn't know if she's had her baby yet or not. My DH said last time she only took a few weeks off for maternity leave. . I gave a presentation on some photos from my summer working at the Blank Park Zoo, giving them some fun facts about the animals. Went really well.

I did get my hands on some Life Science textbooks so I have some topic ideas to discuss with them. He said not to stress out about it and just give them some work to keep them busy, but I feel since they've been with me a lot that they should be getting some Life Science. Plus, I hope these weeks they have spent with me have maybe shown them why I enjoy science and learning. It's a bit hard to make them undersand that I am holding them accountable for the information I am presenting them, we aren't just doing it to waste time. No one asks me to submit grades for these weeks I've been subbing - just the attendance, so I understand why it doesn't seem like they should be held accountable from that perspective (a bit sad that it is that way). They paid pretty good attention today, and I said they might be with me for a while. Definitely one major difference of the system here when comparing to the system back home - substitution. Ready for my Zumba workout by the end of the day Thursday to reenergize, that's for sure :-)

I also had an interesting conversation with a few of my students on Thursday - like I said despite bad moments, they do not overpower the good ones. They were asking me all sorts of questions about how I manage to live here on my small stipend and make do with what I have. I told them I signed on for being a volunteer, and what more do I need? I'm content with the food I eat, we experiment some, and I have plenty of adventures. They also commented that I have gotten skinny since I've been here. haha Yes, I've lost some weight. I'm bound determined to keep it that way, too. Not that I was unhappy before, but I really do enjoy a healthy lifestyle.

Princess Fiona and Fruit

First, I did find a way to make the video size smaller; so, here's the video I have of the traditional tap tattoo.

Second, school was there and gone before I knew it on Friday. No classes after lunch as I had predicted for the MTV Showdown class competition.

Here's a video of the part of the dance that Shrek and Fiona were a part of for the Junior class. I'm the one in the green dress with the red hair.

Here's Josh and I in our costumes. I got to keep the dress (since it was tailored to fit me and all), which I may be able to tweak and wear again for other occasions.

Stopped at a fruit stand on my way home for a fresh pineapple and the best little bananas they have had so far. I have been wanting to stop and get a pineapple ever since I saw them start appearing at the stands. Pineapple season :) All day I was thinking about a pineapple, banana, and apple salad for dinner.

There it is. Yum yum yum.

Nothing too exciting Friday night. Went and chilled at one of the hotel lounges for a while with the guys and my roommates. Just a chill night. Saturday morning, I woke up earlier than I thought. Had some pancakes at the KokoBean, walked to the volunteer house in Kokoland, and hung out with one of my friends there for a bit. Actually got some movie files from him for my computer. Then, I headed home, exercised, and had lunch. 

I had been looking forward to my plan for lunch on Saturday as I finally picked up some apples. My friend Richard at church told me about his sandwich speciality - apple, peanut butter, honey, and American cheese on toasted bread. I couldn't wait to try it. May sound like a weird combination when you add in the cheese, but good stuff.

Then, I made a peanut butter and banana sandwich for lunch after morning church Sunday. Fruit, fruit, fruit. You all know I like my fruit. One of our fellow teachers at school, who has given me rides home from Zumba before talked about maybe bringing us some of her leftover food on Sundays as she goes to church right next to where we live. She brought over a nice salad on Sunday. Had some for dinner. There was a business meeting after church, much like what I've sat through at home. 

Finally, van ride home at 8pm Sunday night. I made the mistake of telling some of the boys at church earlier that I was going to be Princess Fiona, then I showed them the photo Sunday morning. All the way home they were calling me Miss Fiona. "That's Princess Fiona to you", I replied. haha Those boys.

Spirit Week

Spirit Week... more like where whatever you want week. I didn't really take any photos of my students who dressed up for Spirit Week- some were just absurd. I saw a lot of cross-dressing this week. I'm not used to boys being so confident and willing to dress like that - and not just the fa'afafines either. I had boys that even stuffed their shirts to form a bosom. Oye. Monday was mismatch day - mismatched outfits and crazy hairdos. Some pretty skimpy outfits, too. Tuesdsay was masquerade day - students were supposed to wear masks with ball gowns or tuxedos. Some pretty skimpy dresses again, not quite what I would consider a ball gown. Then, to see boys I would have never pictured wearing dresses - like some of the punks wearing dresses. It was crazy. Wednesday was support breast cancer day - wear all pink. I put on the one pink item of clothing I have here - a top. Thursday - twin day (I remember doing that one in High School). All of us WorldTeachers wore our official WorldTeach uniform for that one. Friday is go Green day - so green outfits or outfits made out of recycled materials.

I decided to do some Halloween related lessons - more so fun information than anything. Monday we talked about vampire-like creatures - meaning animals that eat blood. Several fun facts, and I enjoyed our discussion. Then, came Tuesday. After i had done more thinking on it Monday night, I was really excited for Tuesday's class. I decided we could talk about the ancient Egyptians and their beliefs on the afterlife - tying into mummies and the mummification process. As I thought about it more, I thought we could have a good discussion about our current beliefs on the afterlife. 6th period took the cake for best discussion on the topic. It was awesome! Since I was a Religious Studies minor at college, I love to learn about different denominations and religions and make connections between the varying belief systems. I had some students who are Mormons stand up and explain their belief of a three kingdom heaven, and a few of my students who go to the Assembly of God were then presenting how their belief was different. Some even referred to Bible verses. So exciting that I got them talking. Great lesson :-)

I have not had my prep period all week, and I hadn't had it the last few days of last week either as I was subbing. The teacher who is gone was having some pregnancy complications, I believe. I'm not quite sure when exactly she's due, so I may be subbing for a while.  My department head actually came in and told me the other day I will probably still be subbing during that period again next week. That means in addition to the five classes I already teach, I now also see a sophomore life science class. Since my lessons this week weren't particular to my subject matter, it was easy to teach them the same lessons. Have to keep them occupied. I can probably throw some life science lessons together - we'll see.

Wednesday and Thursday I decided I was going to take it easy and not worry about a lesson plan - nice break for both me and the students. We watched Halloweentown - a classic from my childhood. One I often watched year after year as it always aired on the Disney channel. Was a bit weird watching it 6 times in one day, though. haha. Makes me want to find Halloweentown 2 and maybe even 3 and watch those now, as well.

There is some trick or treating that goes on here, but it doesn't seem to be quite as common as I saw back at home. I went to church Wednesday night, and as we were pulling in Richard pointed out some chickens climbing up a tree and asked if I ever saw those before. "Samoan chickens do that," he said. It was a funny little moment in the van as continued to say something about those pulagi chickens. Oh yeah, pulagi vs Samoan chickens. That's new. Can't say I've ever seen a chicken up a tree, though. He also explained how they catch them at night. Something like a coconut trap on a long stick. Oh boy. haha Then, I chatted with Lillian and Richard (they are my two friends that are my age at church) for a while, which was nice before the van took me home.

That reminds me, I got a ride home with the Zumba instructor on Tuesday and Thursday night. We had a fun cut, and now I know that I always have that option after class rather than trying to book it to the bus stop if the teachers who live that way don't come to class. Yep, I'm still working out. You don't need the play by play. I heard my parents are starting to exercise a bit more back at home, too, which is great to hear. Exercise is good for you and a great way to take your mind off things if you ever need it.

Wednesday after school I was taken by a few Junior students to one of the sewing shops to be measured for my costume on Friday. Can't remember if I mentioned yet that they asked me to be Princess Fiona for their MTV Showdown - another competition, which means we probably won't have afternoon classes on Friday. Some sort of dancing competition with these characters on stage with them, which is where they ask some of their class advisors (I'm a junior advisor) to put on costumes they put together. We also attended practice after school on Thursday. Should be interesting and fun. Josh, one of the other WorldTeachers is being dressed up as Shrek. I'll definitely have a photo or two, I'm sure. Otherwise, no big plans for the weekend yet. We'll just see what happens.

Gave my room a good sweeping Thursday during lunch. Just look at that dirt pile - ugh. A never ending battle with that one here.

Another thing that is different living and teaching here is how many students are wandering around during class time. My field director noticed that when she visited. Some students claim that they have no teacher, which I don't really buy since here a teacher is gone and I'm filling in. I also have several students that just walk into my classroom and think they can sit here while they skip class or whatever. Absolutely not. You cannot just hang out in my room when I am having class, especially when you have somewhere you are supposed to be. Some lack of common sense here, I tell you what. I've found myself thinking that many a times these past few months. Here it is already the beginning of November. Time's a flying.