Looking Forward to Spring
Well, I think I've had enough of the cold weather. I'm getting excited for spring.. looking forward to the warm air hitting my face, the SUNSHINE (it's amazing how happy it can make me feel), green grass, the sound of lawn mowers..etc..
I went skiing first thing last Sunday morning. It was GLORIOUS. The BEST day ever! The weather was superb, the conditions were pretty good, all the trails were open, and there weren't that many people. It was awesome! I was on a high... so much that we decided to go skiing at Poley Mountain on on Friday. We went for a night skiing session on Friday, and boy, was it ever the opposite to what I experienced last Sunday. Freaking cold and bad conditions. It was really hard to even turn at times because there would be big patches of compressed icy spots. The snow was really compressed, not very much fresh snow left at all :( Anyhow, it wasn't really worth the effort to drive all the way there and back.. we only got to go down the hill three times.. sigh. (Plus, Poley mountain can look super freaky at night, with it's drop offs .. shiver)
I had my first supply teaching gig last Thursday. It was only half a day, but it was good. I was with a grade one class at Garden Creek. There was a student teacher in the class, so I didn't really have to do much except make sure the students didn't get too out of hand. Had a couple of really distracted children, but all was well. Nothing in comparision to my own practicum experiences when supply teachers were in with me ;)
I took my resume around to a couple of schools yesterday in hopes of meeting principals. No luck. I did talk with the VP at Connaught Street, and I think it's looking good.. afterall, I told her that I was a previous student there and that I was in the band program (Connaught is really big on their Music program, in fact, the VP is a music specialist, so it helps that I have 7 years piano teacher experience). It's funny, I've gone all the way from hoping to get a contract job, to getting excited that I may get called in to supply teach.. hmm.. is it getting pathetic? Am I lowering my standards, or is it just that I'm excited to be back in a teaching environment??
CCANB is having a dance teacher fly in from Toronto for March Break (which is next week). It's all very nice, but it's a lot of work. Especially with me being the program director, I'm feeling a tad worried that we don't have everything organized. I must say though, I have a great crew behind me.. a crew that actually gets things done when they are suppose to!!!
I do think I'll learn a lot from this experience, mostly in terms of people management. It's a bit of an awkward situation as many of them have watched me grow up and are people we consider "elders" of the community.. how do you boss people like that around?? There are/will be times when I will need to "crack the whip" - it's already apparant during meetings.. but a-w-k-w-a-r-d!!!!!
Just got an email from two of my teacher college friends this morning saying that they are engaged! Wow! Again, it's amazing how much can change for people over a course of a year...perhaps next year whoever you are, you will be in a new job? getting married? having a baby? travelling the world? ooo la la.. the possibilities!
Alrighty, that's it for now!
Ciao.
Lost: Motivation, Please Return to Owner
Ahh.. I still have a ton of boxes sitting in the corner of the room!! Everytime I attempt to clean them up, I always just get this feeling of.. What am I doing!?
It's really hard to part with your own "stuff". If, no when, I get my act together and clean up my "stuff", I'm going to try extremely, extremely hard not to hoard things. Hmm.
Anyways, I had a meeting with the principal of Garden Creek Elementary school on Monday morning. I walked away from that meeting pleasantly surprised. He was extremely nice, friendly and helpful. I'm not sure if he liked me, or whether he's this helpful with all supply teachers? Anyhow, he already scheduled me in for one day as a methods and resource teacher - though it's questionable as to whether I can fulfill the commitment given that I'm still waiting my paperwork. I say he's helpful because he is going to try to help me push my paperwork through faster. Nice of him, eh?
I always feel so incredibly appreciative whenever I meet people like that. There was also another principal in Calgary that I spoke to that was extremely kind and supportive towards me. I will never forget it as it really feels like it's a cut throat "industry". 80% of the time, I meet people who can be of no use to me - well, maybe it's that they don't try to go out of their way to help. Understandable, but at the same time.. ahhh.. !!! Again, hopefully this is just a matter of patience :)
Chinese New Year is just around the corner. This coming Sunday in fact. The year of the Boar. I heard that if it is the sign of the year is the sign you were born under, it's suppose to be a bad year for you. SO, my year is going to be over in a matter of days.. come'on pig, bring me some luck!!
I'm not really planning on celebrating this year. I think mostly because I've been so busy with other things I haven't had time to really even think of Chinese New Year. Probably just the traditional dinner with my family, and that will be it. Last year, it was also pretty low key - just dinner with my friends.
That's all for now. Just wanted to update you on my meeting at Garden Creek :)
JY
ps./ Heard some lucky place in Eastern Canada is going to get a dump of 50cm of snow!!!!
Trying to Stay Warm
It's still bitterly cold these days.. can't say I'm getting used to it either!
Anyhow, I just finished my first teleconference with CCNC. At times, it felt a tad surreal because the topics on the table weren't just about the typical topics discussed at meetings I tend to have to attend. They were talking actual things such as human rights, Headtax redress concerns, etc. So far, I still don't really know what my role is as a member of the CCNC board of executives, but I guess that it will come.
As I mentioned before, I also am sitting on the 30th anniversary committee. At the last "program" meeting (the group that is in charge of the performance), I was unofficially nominated (appointed rather) to be the program director. A role that they consider to be the most important in the entire gala. YIKES! I'm not really feeling that I can't handle it, I'm sure I can (if I have enough time), but I mainly feel flattered that they have confidence in my abilities. The only thing I feel a bit weary about is that I have to "manage" people who are suppose to be my "elders" - people I have seen me grow up, people that have known me since I was a baby. Can you saw AWKWARD!?
I went to a job fair at UNB this past week. When I first heard about it, I was sort of skeptical that anything would come of it. Then, people kept telling me things like.. "oh yaa.. they are going to be interviewing candidates" and "don't forget your lesson plans and portfolio, they'll probably want to look at it", SO, I sort of got a tad more excited about the whole thing. My original sentiments were right. They were only interviewing French teachers and most of the fair consisted of school boards that were from really remote areas or were companies recruiting teachers to teach overseas. I find that most employers at job fairs are there just to convince the attendees that they have a shot at getting a job at their board or that they are a great board. They aren't really drawing a true picture of what the employment scene is like. Can't say I walked away from the fair with any new information or any real great contacts. I did talk with the man from the Durham school board for quite a while but I doubt it'll help my job search with that board. I had a mixture of sentiments after talking to him. The negative - bitterness that I can't even get an interview, the positive - hopefull that if I do land an interview, I'll do well as I think my ideas and my experiences align with what they are looking for in teachers.
With all this being said (or written), I was watching Oprah the other day. She was talking about a video called "The Secret". NO, it's not some sort of R rated movie. It's actually a philosophy that our attitudes make us who we are and dictate what will happen to us. I'm not really all that into the whole "spirituality" thing, but I'm also not against it - I just don't think it's necessary to revolve your life around being spiritual - it's just not realistic. Anyways, I do agree with the idea that our attitudes and our outlooks affect what will happen to us. If we have a positive outlook in life, it will affect our attitudes and our behaviours, opening doors for new opportunities. SO, I think I need to stay focused on believing.
Speaking of Oprah, she had a really powerful show on yesterday. She had Lisa Ling do a special report about Ghana's fishing children. It was a powerful documentary. It wasn't one that made me feel like I hated the people who used these children as labourers - I can understand that it is part of their culture. All the same, it was still difficult to watch and imagine how much suffering those children went through. At one point, I found myself thinking of some of the children that I taught during my last practicum. The expressions on the faces of those children when they had the opportunity to learn - priceless. It would be every teacher's dream to have students like them.
Last thing about Oprah: why do people mock her!? I know some of her shows can be a bit too much for some people, but think of all the humanitarian acts that she has committed! Not only does she invest a lot of money helping others, but she is providing an invaluable source of education to the fortunate - that our world isn't all peaches and cream, but that there are many people out there suffering who need our attention. Anyhow, I think I'm starting to sound preachy, so I'd better stop :P You get the idea of what I'm saying...
Alrighty, that's it. Time for dinner soon. Ciao.
Brr.. It's Cold In Here!
I'm finished at the daycare and I miss the children!!!!!!!
Ok.. no dwelling on that, I have to move on to bigger things, right?
Well, on my first day post daycare, I recevied a call from the Early Childhood Centre asking me if I would be available to work a few hours to help them sort out their electronic files (which were in a complete mess). It's now turned in to working 2 days a week for them. SO, if all is well, I could be working full time! That'd be absoluately great - I've been beginning to worry about the whole money issue. Of course, this means, I'll be working at three jobs... mmm
Besides work, I've also become a tad overwhelmed with all that I have to do. CCANB (Chinese Cultural Assoc. of NB) is now into our 30th year of operations, with it, brings a celebration. I have been asked to be on the chairing committee. It was hard to say no considering they only asked a select few to begin organizing. I'm now officially working on that, along with the "website workgroup" and the "program workgroup". Chairing both the program and the general planning committee. AHHH!!!! Oh ya, have I mentioned I've also been recruited to be on the executive of the CCNC?
CCNC stands for Chinese Canadian National Council. They run from Toronto and include chapters from all over Canada - basically the umbrella association of all Chinese associations in Canada. Their main goals are to promote Chinese culture as well as advocate on issues such as the headtax redress, immigration and racism issues, as well as stress equity and diversity. I'm not really sure what my role is in the whole thing, but I'm a tad intimidated at the moment. From my understanding, many of the people who are on the executive, are pretty important people and are quite respected amongst the Chinese community...
Chinese New Year is just around the corner (February 18th for those that don't know), but I haven't really thought about it much. Probably because there are just too many other things on my mind. I think it'll be pretty low key this year.. may not even attend the performances at CCANB or the dinner. Actually, I highly doubt I'll go to the dinner, many of my friends from youth group have moved away, so it'd be pretty sad for me to attend.
Speaking of the youth group, for those that are "alumni", you'll be happy to hear that they are going strong. I guess the few years that they were "lagging" are behind them (for good, hopefully) and things are popping. I have been hearing some gossip about "fatal attraction" and about "giggling" going on between the girls and guys. LOL.
I was actually thinking about it yesterday, and I still believe that the original youth group cannot be beat. Though we were from all over and may not have been the closest pre-youth group, we all managed to form friendships that are still going, even after not being together for so many years. I will always hold my youth group memories near and dear. :)
Alright. That's all for now. I have things to do!!
JY
