Movie Days

Everyone knows teachers show movies on days they don't want to do anything. FALSE. There is so much prep that goes into watching a movie in class, especially for languages.

1. Content Finding a film that fits the maturity level of high schoolers, the morality strictures of Catholic schools, and will actually hold their attention is much more difficult than it sounds. 

2. Vocabulary Sure there are context and visual clues that help with vocabulary while watching a movie, but creating a list for the students to look at and fill out before hand will be sure that they know whats happening on screen and not be scrambling to fill in the blanks during the show.

3. Questions Obviously half the kids get excited when they see the TV at the front of the room because they think they won't have to do anything today. Not in Madame's classroom! There's always something to do because I would never be so cruel as to deny my kids a learning opportunity. They didn't appreciate that as much as I'm sure their parents would.

4. Grading Finally teachers now how to grade everything they've already prepared and the students have completed. Just add it to the ever expanding pile.

There's an app for that

This is an unabashed look at this single lady's experience sifting through the interwebs, because no man has yet offered to by me a book in a book store. Because really that is where I would love to meet Mr Right. He'll see me standing there with my historical fiction or travel guide and will lean over to tell me that so-and-so did it better and he'd love to buy me a copy to be proven right. I'll giggle charmingly, we'll walk down the street, new purchase in hand, and spend the next 4 hours drinking coffee and realizing that we were meant to be... But, seeing as the standard meeting place is dimly lit, loud, and alcohol infused, this does not seem likely to happen.

So instead I've joined the 21st century and spent a bit of time formulating the perfect paragraph to show that I'm witty, intelligent, attractive, kind, nerdy, confident, sarcastic and determined all while not coming across as shallow, boastful, lazy, too busy, or obnoxious.  All of that conveyed in under 500 characters from the comfort of my couch because of course, there's an app for that. Then there's the art of the selfie. One gentleman's description even put it so bluntly "are you really that attractive or is your selfie game that strong?" I think I've found my soul mate.

Once you've condensed your life to a few measly sentences and you've found the perfect pictures to showcase your intagram abilities, you sift through people who have done the same hoping you'll find someone. And glory of glories you do! And then you wait. There's this waiting game played, after you've been matched up, of who's going to make the first move. Yea, you've both admitted that on some level you're interested in the other party, but to what extent? It's incredibly daunting to initiate actual conversation even though it's from the relative anonymity of a profile picture and those less than 500 letters and punctuation marks. That little voice in the back of your mind telling you "you're a confident, modern woman! just text him!" is warring with the equally logical "don't f* up." This battle continues in your head until either he's made the first move and messaged you or you finally sucked it up and complimented his tutu. Apparently it's a thing, for a guy to wear a tutu when doing a tough-muddy-paint-thon. I don't really get it either but whatever.

Some try to cover the basics questions such as "what do you do? where are you from?" which shows that he clearly did NOT read the tiny little blurb about your life.Personally, I ignore those guys; if they can't take the 20 seconds it would take to read that, things are probably not going to get better. There are some who ask specific questions about my blurb though. Those guys get what I hope is witty and dazzling conversation. And evidently it is! Because I've had some semi-successful first dates that for one reason or another ("oh good lord that's your voice?!?!", "more than one word answers would be nice", "eh") have yet to lead to a serious significant other. There are a few second dates in the works however, so my avid readers* we'll just have to wait and see.

To be continued when I have more information and/or promising results...


*denotes the use of heavy sarcasm

The Art of the Selfie

I am notoriously guilty of pausing my life to take a selfie. But ya know what? It used to take a lot of talent and months to create a self portrait. Now, with iPhone in hand, I can perfectly capture my mood, my attitude and my day with a half second shutter snap. 

Yes, half of them are silly faced snapchats. And another good chunk of them are deleted because my hair decided to be uncooperative. Actually most are deleted because we tend to be our biggest critics. 

But then there are those perfect pictures, including serious stares, funny faces, or confident smirks. We* all take them at some point. Or have been in one at least.

These are some of my favorites.

 

Luna loves me I swear. 

My nephews who are the coolest kids I know. Also looking into the sun so that's not helpful. 

The Kid and I taking a snapchat. Another awesome tiny human. 

Half the siblings enjoying some canoeing. 

So as you can see, selfies are not all duckfaced, overly tanned and bleached girls. They are just like every other photo trying to forever keep everything you were thinking, feeling, or experiencing; it's just that instead of being behind the camera, you're in front. 

 

A love letter to the Berg

The following is a love letter to the place that has impacted me more than perhaps any other physical location on the planet, and I have been on quite a few continents.

The Bergamo Center is a Catholic Marianist lifelong learning center located on 100 acres in the middle of an otherwise bustling area. The nature preserve on the property host some of the most popular hiking trails. While here this past weekend, I took my trusty iPhone loaded with a photo editing app and found myself snapping away.

Through 12 years of Catholic education, I learned many things about God and Jesus and the religion in which I was raised. But as I've realized is the typical situation for most students in Catholic schools, religion is a class and faith has little to do with our rote answers written on tests. Retreat centers like this one give students the opportunity to grow and develop with Christ in an environment away from classroom pressures. It is on retreats where walls break down...

...where divisions crumble....

...where understanding and friendships can grow where differences once stood.

I began my relationship with Bergamo in high school as a participant in retreats sponsored by my school as well as the center itself. Continuing through college, I returned a few times a year to facilitate the very retreats that had moved me so much, longing to aid others in their own spiritual journey. And now I am here again, this time as a teacher, taking a back seat as a chaperon. This has been my most difficult role, not being an active participant in this process. But I realize that just as I needed the opportunity to grow, I must step back and allow the next generation to flourish.

And so I took my solo hike early in the morning to center myself, sitting on a mossy bench in the middle of the woods with only my thoughts and Pandora for company.

Hopefully in the midst of my ramblings, I'm leaving you with some inkling of the peace I continuously find here. 

 Biz,

Sarah

Inaugural Address

Hello and welcome! This lovely collection of thoughts, experiences, life lessons, and tidbits is a simultaneous adventure into the blogosphere. I'm a contributing writer to A Whole Pan of Brownies. So to the half dozen of you reading this bear with me as I learn the ins and outs of yet another form of social media.

This is me. And my dog.

Luna occupies the foot/most of my bed, snoring rather loudly. Obviously she's taken my lack of a significant other to heart and is valiantly attempting to fill that void. Thanks Lune.

These are the three important groups of people in my life.

My family, except a missing sister-in-law who was also bed ridden last holiday season. I was permitted to leave my quarantined childhood bedroom for the taking of this photograph as evidenced by Luna's surprise to see me amongst the living. 

The girls. Most affectionately known as the sexy six by our more liberal family members and previous/current bfs. Some of our friendships started as early as 1st grade and we continued to grow our group through high school resulting in the 6 best friends anyone could have.

The greatest people you will ever meet. Minus the sassy gay man and the hippy. These goofy, obnoxious mofos (excuse the language but twas necessary) have been my chosen family since before I can remember. The two ladies on either side of me in particular.

So these are my peoples. I love them and sometimes hate them but mostly they're pretty cool.


Biz,

Sarah