philly love

yesterday was the 20sb blog swap and i was paired up with the lovely emily so go check out my post on making the best out of life and not worrying about greener grass :)

so this weekend was amazing. i drove down to philly in the yucky rain friday evening and it was mostly dark. there are 2 things i don't like to drive in the dark and the rain. but i rocked out to taylor and she made it all better. it is a easy drive down to jeanne's she lives outside the city near media. so we spent the evening catching up on our lives and teaching/school psychologisting and everything while enjoying some wine. also laughing at travis, who kept falling asleep on the couch! jeanne's boyfriend is kinda an extension of our group, the 4 of us would always go visit him in college. we then watched two episodes of greek, as i was behind. so that was great because it was jeanne who got me into it :)

saturday we were up early and into philly along kelly drive for the head of the schuylkill. enjoyed looking at boathouse row :) and then walked along until we found the team's trailers and boats. saw a few girls on the team who we knew, it is crazy the only people we know on the team are now seniors! eeeeek! made me feel old. saw ashleigh and jumped on her and we sounded like we hadn't seen each other in 2.5 year (oh wait i haven't seen her since may 20,2007) so it was AMAZING to see her. even if we didn't get to talk too much since she had her boys to coach. saw our coaches and they gave us big hugs.. met the new men's coach who i apparently emailed back in 2005 about the chestertown tea party when i was doing a paper on did it really happen. (i just went and found the email! haha!) and also coxed two boats off the trailer for the novice teams. and the weather... well it could have been better, but it could have been much worse! it was low 60s and of and on rain. but it was nice to be at a race and just to cheer and have fun! and after work travis joined us, and we watched a lot of the races from the strawberry mansion bridge, which was a cool viewpoint. it would be even better for 2k races! and then at the end of the day it started to pour! we were there from 9.30 to 4.30 and soaked! so we went back to their apartment with the plans to change and then go out in philly, but on the way home we decided to just stay in media... and after a few minutes at home and it raining even more, we ordered in, drank more wine and we were falling asleep at 10pm! so much for my crazy night in philly, but it was still so much fun!

sunday we walked around media and then i hit the road, so i could go meet a zeta sister to talk about advising a college chapter and then get home to do some work! so it was fun and i can't wait to see her more often. we are about 2 hours away from each other, so we want to make plans to meet halfway for dinner more often. and then i'm super psyched for this weekend in connecticut! YAYYAYAY!

so i've decided i really like philly. i had never been until this summer and the more i go the more i love it. i still need to do most of the touristy things - i've only seen the liberty bell. so yay for new adventures and hopefully getting to explore a fun new city which really isn't too far away!

how was everyone's weekend?

looking up the schuylkill towards the start

boats racing down the course

jeanne, ash and i

john kelly.. one of the best rowers ever... kelly drive is named after him

we hid out under the bridge for a while and watched races!

new laptop!

so first off an AMAZING weekend in philly with my love jclark! much, much more about that later. but in super exciting news - i got a brand new laptop today! a 15"macbook pro! my laptop died this morning, and after the last few months i knew i was going to be needing a new computer. so after when she was doing the same thing she did last month i just said, i'm not dealing with this. and i went to the apple store after work and paid a ton of money, but i am soooooooo happy. i loooove her.

now i just need a name. any good suggestions?

hope everyone had a great weekend!

tswift

on may 12, 2010 i will be seeing taylor swift in concert!

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

sooo excited.

every morning on the way to school part of my routine is to listen to some taytay. my songs right now are fearless and fifteen.

there is something about the lyrics of fifteen that i love.

You take a deep breath and you walk through the doors
It's the morning of your very first day
You say hi to your friends you ain't seen in a while
Try and stay out of everybody's way
It's your freshman year and you're gonna be here
For the next four years in this town
Hoping one of those senior boys will wink at you and say
You know I haven't seen you around, before

(Chorus)
'Cause when you're fifteen and
Somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
And when you're fifteen feeling like
There's nothing to figure out
But count to ten, take it in
This is life before you know
Who you're gonna be
Fifteen

You sit in a class next to a redheaded Abigail
And soon enough you're best friends
Laughing at the others girls
Who think they're so cool
We'll be out of here as soon as we can
And then you're on you're very first date
And he's got a car and you're feeling like flying
And you're mamma's waiting up and you're thinking he's the one
And you're dancing 'round your room when the night ends
When the night ends

(Chorus)
'Cause when you're fifteen and
Somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
When you're fifteen and your first kiss
Makes you head spin 'round but
In your life you'll do things greater
Than dating the boy on the football team
But I didn't know it at fifteen

When all you wanted
Was to be wanted
Wish you could go back
And tell yourself what you know now

Back then I swore I was gonna
Marry him someday
But I realized some bigger dreams of mine
And Abigail gave everything she had to a boy
Who changed his mind
And we both cried

(Chorus)
'Cause when you're fifteen and somebody tells you they love you
You're gonna believe them
And when you're fifteen, don't forget to look before you fall
I've found time can heal most anything
And you just might find who you're supposed to be
I didn't know who I was supposed to be
At fifteen

la la la la la...la la la la la...la la la la la

Your very first day
Take a deep breath girl
Take a deep breath as you walk through the doors

maybe being near 15 year olds all day just makes me think about what is going on and who knows what will happen to these girls and that all the crazy in their life isn't worth it. but looking back to my freshman year of high school, if you told me this is how my life would be in 10 years and what i would do i wouldn't have believed you. even from my senior year of high school to now.

so yay for blasting some t.swift every morning as a way to start my day!

things have been good :)

i'm so excited for the weekend! i'm headed to philly to cheer on my college rowing team as they race on satuday! and i'm spending the weekend with one of my loves who lives outside philly. catching up on friday night and enjoying some wine and then having fun on saturday night after cheering on our boats and jumping alll over one of my favs who is the novie men's coach!

tomorrow 4 of my 5 classes are coloring (and labeling)... it just so happened that my us 1b kids are doing maps of US expansion and my 2a's are doing maps of asia at the start of WWII. so a nice friday!

and the yankees tonight? seriously?

the usual

so after those lovely snow showers on thursday and then again on saturday the weather has been ok. it was soooooooo cold over the weekend though, like a high of 40. umm not cool. and now it is like 65 in the afternoon today, but like 33 this morning. i hate it because i still need to dress for the arctic because my school is freezing!

but i have some new cute wintry clothes :) the shopping spree with one of my co-workers went fabulously. ny&co had some cute things on sale, and h&m had some cute things and then macy's with my mom on saturday. so i'm enjoying all the new clothes. i still need to get some pants and warmer sweaters. seems like a trip to the outlets is in order soon!

so life is going well :) school is the usual, my students make me laugh on a daily basis, i'm still quirky and dance around the room when i get excited. yesterday one of my juniors asked me, "do you want to go on a double date with another student and our girlfriends to see some movie" i just laughed and said no. but it was pretty funny. and then today he was like we missed you last night. what am i going to do with these guys... the first year teachers went out to dinner tonight and spent two hours talking about students, coworkers and just the funny things at school. it was fabulous :) and i'm also excited, i'm going to be helping out with model congress which we have our first meeting tomorrow and also volunteer coaching for the ski team!

time just seems to be flying!! i can't believe it is the middle of october! this weekend i'm headed to philly to see my college girls row and to meet up with one of my amazing friends, next weekend i'm up to connecticut to see the roomie and all my friends from the spring! but it is halloween, and i need a costume for the party, any good/easy/cheap ideas, so roomie can stop yelling at me? i'm soooo looking forward to the next few weeks and everything!

off to finish grading projects on social security... fun fun!

snow

seriously.

it is october 15.

there should not be snow in new jersey on october 15th.

i was at my favorite part of the day - lunch duty when i heard a kid go it is snowing. i thought he was trying to fool me, until i look and yup, big huge fat flakes. so the rest of the day i had my students going mad... i guess the first sign of snow and the possibility of a delay make it the only thing on your mind at 16.

but i hate snow.

hate it.

but i love skiing.

and the cold.. uugh, i'm not ready for this.

i was just commenting yesterday to myself on the drive home, how pretty it was and how i was loving fall, and then this.

all i have to say is it better not be a cold, snowy winter.

i'm ready to move to somewhere warm, and it is only october.

otherwise school is going well :) and i'm going shopping with another teacher tomorrow and then this weekend i'm working at the restaurant saturday and sunday, so i guess i'm not getting a day off. but at least i get to sleep in!

and happy 111th founders day to my sisters! i love that 9 women created this incredible sisterhood and that it has become something so incredible and something i am so proud to be a part of. so happy founder's day and one of my favorite things about being a ZTA.

"To realize that within our grasp, in Zeta Tau Alpha, lies the opportunity to learn those things which will ever enrich and ennoble our lives; to be true to ourselves, and to those within and without our circle; to think in terms of all mankind and our service to the world; to be steadfast, strong, and clean of heart and mind, remembering that since the thought is father to the deed, only that which we would have manifested in our experience should be entertained in thought; to find satisfaction in being, rather than seeming, thus strengthening in us the higher qualities of the spirit; to prepare for service and learn the nobility of serving, thereby earning the right to be served; to seek understanding that we might gain true wisdom; to look for the good in everyone; to see beauty, with its enriching influence; to be humble in success, and without bitterness in defeat; to have the welfare and harmony of the Fraternity at heart, striving ever to make our lives a symphony of high ideals, devotion to the right, the good, and the true, without a discordant note; remembering always that the foundation precept of Zeta Tau Alpha was love, "the greatest of all things."

are you ready for some football?

so it was a football filled weekend :)

saturday my parents, sister and i went up to west point to cheer on army as they played vanderbilt. it was a fun day and gorgeous! army won 16-13 in overtime and the second half of the game was exciting! even though i kept saying go navy! i blame my roomie and going to college in maryland for that! and it seemed like the whole day was the family makes fun of erin day, but it was still amusing! i think a highlight was on the way home my mom, sister and i rocking out to t.swift's you belong with me and my dad was like seriously... this isn't happening.

go army!

the classic fishy face with my sister

me, my sister and mom

and sunday was a day with my zeta's! october is our big month as our main philanthropy is susan g. komen for the cure. so all of our college chapters and many of our alumni chapters do fundraising efforts in october. we used to do a mr. zeta pagent and a battle of the bands - mammojam when i was in college. so one of our big partners is the nfl. there are 22 nfl teams signed up to "think pink" and yesterday i was able to go to the new york giants game and help raise over $28,000! it was awesome and so much fun to see 5 of the local college chapters helping out and a few of the alum were on the field right before the game for the national anthem, but i was helping to collect and count the money from the collegians. it reminded me of working in ireland, counting that much money! but it was a fun day with sisters and so great to be able to raise so much money for a great cause!

and school is going well. i'm really excited about US 2 for the next few weeks. we are starting to look at world war II. and this week is the lead up to the war and everything in europe. so i'm excited to be talking about 1930s germany, italy and russia. but i think what i am really excited about is what is happening in spain with the spanish civil war. i'm doing an art history lesson using picasso's guernica to talk about spain. picasso is one of my favorite artists and after studying guernica in spanish and history classes, seeing it for the first time last january when amy and i were in madrid, was unbelievable. it is gigantic (11'x26') and just so detailed, i loved seeing all the sketches and all the work picasso put into it. i like trying to incorporate literature and art into history, so hopefully my students will like it. i'm just really happy at school and in the classroom. and my mentor teacher is amazing. i came in this morning to a card and an adorable pair of earrings on my desk, just saying you are doing an amazing job and you made it through your first month!

i can't believe i am up this late on a school night. i'm watching the jets-giants monday night game and it is just crazy. we keep bouncing back and forth with who is winning, so i'm like must watch game.

ohhh! and tomorrow i'm headed to a college fair in the area to promote my undergraduate university! i am quite excited and can't wait to talk about it! plus a girl i know from wac works in admissions at a local college and we are meeting up for dinner before and i'm also seeing her in the morning, as she is going to be at my high school!

andddddddddddd it wasn't even worth it, as with 10 seconds left the dolphins score. so the jets loose 31-27. ahhhhhhh! and it is now 11.50... uugh!

bamboozle

a few random things.

i'm really missing cork right now. nothing in particular but with emails from kara who went back to start her phd in history and one of my coworkers in the last few days i just want to walk around campus, giggle at the shopping carts in the lee, walk down patrick street, go for some pints at costigans and listen to today fm.

emails from aer lingus advertising super low flights to ireland do not help. nor do the amazingly cheap flights around europe.

but i am enjoying the fall weather. i haven't had fall in 2 years. you don't get the crisp air, the gorgeous leaves and seeing pumpkins everywhere!

things i enjoy right now:

mugs of hot tea and digestive biscuits

the automatic starter on my car - i used it the first time today and it is going to be a nice winter

glee is on tomorrow

the episodes of gossip girl and one tree hill i need to catch up on

going to connecticut over halloween weekend!

the funny things we talk about at work

my US 2 kids first period who are going to make a bamboozle review game for class

sleep

we played jeopardy as a review for their test and a girl says something about bamboozle and i said a line from friends, and my favorite show. so here is a little friends love.

field hockey and fall

today after school i stopped by my high school's field hockey game. the girls were playing our rival and if there are any field hockey games that are are super intense, it is when we play this team. so it was fun to go and watch! funnily enough i've never seen my field hockey team play as an alum. i was never home in the fall to be able to watch a game. and so 6 years after graduation, i went back to watch my first game, and 10 years after i first stepped on the field for my high school. so they won in a pretty awesome game. i arrived later than i had planned (i went to watch the boys soccer game at the school where i teach as a few boys asked me to go) and there was 15 minutes left. and it was still 0-0. and with about 12 minutes left, we scored our first goal, with a nice deflection, and then with about 8 minutes left, they scored an even nicer goal. so it was a well played game on both sides and just fun to watch. i also ran into a few parents of girls i played with, who haven't had daughters playing since 01 or 03, so it was awesome to see parents who love the game and the team even though it has been 8 years since their daughter played. that is why i love my field hockey team.

we have been a strong team in the area for long time, winning half of the league titles since it was started over 30 years ago, including 2 times when i played, and 5 of the last 6 years. it was awesome when i subbed at my old high school last spring to see the field hockey championship banner the only sport with 2 banners because the first one was full, and to see it from the 70s to today with strong teams. we have a saying, "tradition never graduates" and it really is true.

but the weather and the leaves changing reminded me of how fall isn't fall without field hockey. and it made me really happy.

what random things remind you of fall?

an oldie of my playing field hockey my sophomore year of high school

meet the parents

last night at school was back to school night. so i met about half of my students parents last night. it wasn't too bad, except the fact i was at school from 7am to 9.30 pm. it was nice to meet the parents, and my supervisor kept telling me throughout the day, just talk straight for the 10 minutes. don't stop talking. and i seemed to get a good reaction from most of them, especially when i talked about my background and living abroad and how i was teaching the class. and i had a few tell me they were excited to meet me, as they've heard good things from their child. so yay!

and then progress reports are due at 9am on friday, so i spent an hour after school tonight getting those done. and i still need to do my lesson plans for next week and write a study guide and figure out what section of the grapes of wrath my us 2 students are reading tomorrow to talk about the depression. so much for an easy night tonight, because i am exhausted! and i still want to watch grey's tonight! oh and sleep.

so on the way to work i flip between a bunch of radio stations trying to find a good song that will put me in a good mood in the morning. and so every single day i hear taylor at least once. and because i have xm i'll usually hear her 2-3 times between like 6 stations. and usually different songs. so for the first time since school started, i did not hear any taylor on the radio :( i was sad. luckily i always play parts of 3 songs on the road that the school is on to pump me up. and right now it is chicken fried by the zac brown band, single ladies by beyonce and maps by the yeah,yeah,yeahs. and today i added fearless to get my taylor in. (yes i realize i'm crazy)

at school between 7.30 and 7.35 before first period the media tech kids pick a song to be played over the loudspeaker before they do the morning tv broadcast. and this morning they played somebody to love and don't stop believing by the cast of glee. i was pretty excited and i'm pretty sure i did the happy dance. luckily my first period kids are great and didn't laugh too much at me. but definitely started my day out right :)

oh and apparently my observation went well, i haven't met with my supervisor to discuss but my mentor said he said it was good :) so yay! and we are doing model congress in my us 1 classes and i miss the summer and being in dc.

but i'm quite excited for tomorrow at 2.27 and sleeping this weekend!

oh, and i hadn't been to any of the national parks until the summer of 2007 when i went to 4. but i've actually been to more than i was aware because there are a lot of smaller ones such as the all the monuments and the mall in dc, ellis island, statue of liberty, the delaware water gap, the appalachian trail.... go to the department of the interior to find a list of national parks in your area :)