I feel naked

like someone can read my innermost thoughts and feelings, perhaps more aware of my own motives that I am. How is this possible? Apparently all white people (like me) follow a predictable pattern of behavior. We like the same things and hate the same things, and we have the same hypocritical contradictions. I find it funny, disturbing, and demoralizing all at once.
Please to enjoy: Stuff White People Like
The more I read, the more I find that I am apparently just like everyone else (who is white).

Home!

Aside from a few weekend trips up north, I am through traveling for the summer. It has been realy disorienting to be away for nearly the entire month of June. My summer vacation is 1/3 over and I have done a lot, but it doesn't feel that way. It has been cool seeing how much my garden has changed every time I come home. I think I have about 60 tomatoes out there (although some are grape tomatoes), now I have some peppers growing, and the shallots are getting massive.
My week in Florida was pretty awesome. I spent the time studying Zora Neale Hurston, FL native and Harlem Renaissance author. I am excited to teach Hurston now because I have so many new ideas about how to approach her work. The conference was in Winter Park, a posh suburb of Orlando, on the campus of Rollins College, a small liberal-arts school. The campus was absolutely beautiful. I'll post some pictures soon.
I also have to share this, since I found it recently linked on Vita.mn. Many of you probably know that I worked at Circus Pizza in high school-- a Chuck E. Cheese type place. We had these robots that performed in the dining room, and now someone has programmed them to play recent hit songs. Totally hilarious.

Another funny website

I also first saw this one years ago, and it's still classic. ("Epic" as my 17-year-old brother would say). If you don't grasp the concept of satire, then skip it.

I never do this, but

I have 2 posts in one day. I just wanted to share a favorite website that I've recently rediscovered: I Am With You Always. This website makes me giggle uncontrollably-- especially the Golfer picture (where are Jesus' legs?!?). I think Erin A. may especially appreciate these *wink*wink*
If this speaks to you, please comment, since I'm trying to "witness" to y'all.
hee hee hee

Two Down, One to Go...

I have arrived home for a few days between trips 2 and 3.
As promised, here are some photos from my trips. Unfortunately, I can't share more from Jamaica since my students are in the pics, and that is a definite no-no. If I did this right, there are a couple boxes on the right side with my Flickr photos from the trip. I am new to the Flickr thing, so we'll have to see if my technical knowhow is satisfactory.

I am feeling much more tan, but I haven't seen anyone (except husband) since I got back, so I have yet to compare my bronze glory with any other pasty Minnesotans. Aside from the tanning, here are a couple points to share from my trips:
1. Cruzan Rum recently purchased Absolut vodka, so it's ridiculously cheap in the VI. Anyone want to come over for bloodys and cosmos? I have a fully-stocked bar for sure.
2. St. John is my favorite place in the Caribbean, and it was great to go back. I visited two places that I previously hadn't: Trunk Bay (which has an underwater snorkel trail through a huge reef), and the Annaberg Sugar Plantation Ruins. The snorkeling was great at Trunk, and the sand was so fine-- somewhere between sugar and flour. Annaberg was fascinating; what I find most compelling is the story of the slave revolt of 1633. The island had about 10 times more slaves than white people, so it was inevitable. Slaves held the island until 1634 when the military came in to restore order. Needless to say, it ended tragically: over 500 slaves committed suicide by jumping off the cliffs at Annaberg, rather than be taken alive.
3. In Jamaica, I loved the Bob Marley museum. It is housed in his former home; the recording studio is still used by his children.
4. When I asked my students what they would miss about Jamiaca, they said, "Everything!" I had a great group of kids with me, and the Kingston Rotarians and Interactors were incredibly hospitable. We all were homesick for Jamaica as soon as we landed in MN.

I'm going to sign out for now. My first glass of delicious homebrew is starting to get warm. It's an ESB, and although I would like it a little hoppier, it tastes pretty darn good, if I do say so...

Hello from Jamaica!

I'm currently on the first of my three June excursions. So far, Jamaica is pretty awesome. Apart from the strange silent mosquitos that are eating me alive while I sleep (and biting my inner thighs?), everything is copacetic-- I mean "irie."
Two students and I are staying with a Rotarian named Andre who is something of a local celebrity. For those of you who are from the TC, he's like the Denny Hecker of Kingston, but in his early 30's, and he also has a nightly radio show. We're staying in his house up in the Red Hills neighborhood, which we've been told is the Beverly Hills of Jamaica. The houses are beautiful, but the thing that makes Andre's house amazing is the outdoor living area. He has a huge bar/patio, pool and hot tub, and an upper lawn that provides an amazing view of the city of Kingston and the harbor. It has the same sort of flavor as the Playboy mansion, but without the debauchery.
Tomorrow is our beach day, which the girls are particularly excited about, and I can't say that I'm not eagerly anticipating a morning of tanning. We have also learned that the Rotarians have planned a night of clubbing, and my students are giddy about that, as well.
Well, I had better sign off. I'll be back to MN on Friday night, and on Tuesday, it's off to the VI. When I return home, I'll be sure to upload some photos.
Cheers!

Happy to be a teacher

Here's all the news from Sarah-land that's fit to print.
Just got a new laptop (MacBook to replace our iMac), and it's taking me a while to get used to this keyboard. Fortunately it's not like other laptop keyboards, which I despise. Now I'll be able to take notes with something other than my mass of legal pads when I go to educational conferences and events. Some departments in my school have laptops, but since English is pretty stationary with only a couple of us sharing classrooms, they decided to go with the crummy, gigantic Dell monstrosities we have in our classrooms. God, I hate PCs.

Anywho, I just had the most awesome day ever. A fellow English teacher and I had four of our students win a statewide essay contest. The 25 winning students and their teachers were invited to a private reception with Thomas Friedman since his book The World is Flat was the subject of the the contest. We also got to bring our principal and assistant principal, who were completely thrilled. In addition to the reception for the essay winners, we also attended the educational forum afterward, which was attended by about 900 business and education leaders from around the state, but primarily the TC area. It was a $300 a head event, so the food was pretty darn awesome.

So the students, my coworker, and I got to listen to Friedman speak for a while, and during this time he mostly answered the students' questions. Then we got our certificates and posed for our picture with him. At the big event, we were divided up among a few tables with various business and education people. There were people representing Century College, Winona State, MNSCU, and some businesses at my table. They were very cool people and obviously used to this kind of networking event.

Now to the Friedman speech. I have not always agreed with everything he has to say about globalization and such, but his speech was phenomenal. Although many think he just touts math and science and the idea that all American youth should become engineers, he had some amazing things to say about the need for liberal arts education. He stressed the importance of art and creativity, and the message was very positive. It was not doomsday prophesy like other highly-paid speakers I have heard...

I left the event inspired, and I will definitely view Friedman in a different light from now on. Just as awesome as the event was the ride home. These four teenagers didn't stop talking the whole way back about how much fun they had and how awesome everything was. There's nothing quite like excited teenagers. It reminds me that this is why I went into education in the first place.