Thursday, December 22, 2005

I'm Leaving on a Jet Plane!

Just want to wish everyone a happy holiday season!

I leave tomorrow AM for Chicago so I won't be blogging. I'll be checking email from IL but that's it.

I got all my correcting done so I don't have to worry about school work hanging over my head while I'm on break.

Flightline is picking me up at 5:30 am - yes, you read it correctly, 5:30 am!!! My flight leaves Manchester at 8:55 am and I want to make sure I get at the airport nice and early. Why? Because it's Southwest (open seating) and I would like to try and sit in the emergency row exit (my long legs get very sore when I have to sit in the regular seats).

Stay warm and I'll write in 2006!

Love Ya All!!! :-)

Happies - Day 4

This is it! The last day! I made it! I survived!

1) Today was the last day of school - I'm officially on Christmas break! :-)

2) One more day until I leave for IL! :-)

3) Got some great gifts from my boss at my part-time job and I've only been working there for three weeks! :-)

4) All the wonderful Christmas cards I received from family and friends. :-)

5) Did I say that I'm on break aka vacation???? :-)

Thanks to all that read and commented on my happies the past four days - it's been a rough week with my students. :-)

Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Scary Political Cartoon!


Happies - Day 3

OK, here goes the list:

1) Got some great gifts from my Secret Santa today - lots of scrapbook supplies, a gift certificate for a local bookstore, and some gourmet tea. :-) Thank you Cheryl Z. :-)

2) Two more days until I leave for IL. :-)

3) One more day of over hyper, silly, crazy freshman! :-)

4) Ellie Mae! :-)

5) A great part-time job that I not only enjoy working but also make some extra money! :-)

Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Happies - Day 2

List of Happies:

1) I found out today who my Secret Santa is so I won't be singing tomorrow at the faculty meeting! :-) Yeah!!!

2) Three more days until I leave for IL. :-)

3) I'm so blessed to have colleagues at school that are my friends and so very supportive of everything I do.

4) The washer and dryer were free when I came home today after school so I can do my laundry before I leave for IL. :-) (For some, this may not be a happie but for me, it is a happie!)

5) Today, a student told me what a great teacher I am and how much she enjoys coming to my class. Made me feel good! :-)

Monday, December 19, 2005

Happies - Day 1

The week has just started and my students are off the wall crazy hyper. The joys of the holiday season working in a high school. :-)

So, since I don't want to be in a negative or bad mood for the rest of the week, I will post a list of five happies to help me stay "happy" and to survive the week with 100 teenagers that want Christmas/Hanukkah to arrive early.

Here Goes:

1) On Friday, I fly to Chicago to see my family.

2) Ellie makes me smile.

3) Had my counseling appt today - need I say more? :-)

4) I'm so blessed to have such wonderful friends in my life.

5) I've been receiving wonderful gifts at school from Secret Santa - I find out on Wednesday who he/she is. (I have no clue so I guess I'll be singing this year in front of the faculty).

Sunday, December 18, 2005

Ellie Relaxing on Her Personal Day

I took this picture of Ellie on Friday. I took a Personal Day and it seemed like Ellie was enjoying her Personal Day too!
:-)

Five Weird Habits About Myself

I saw this on another Blog and thought it might be interesting.

Enjoy!

Five Weird Habits About Myself:

1) I CANNOT go to bed unless the dishes are done! I will toss and turn in bed and just finally get up and do them. Bizarre????

2) I have to tell Ellie "Be a good girl and Momma loves her" everyday before I leave for school! I know Ellie is a good kitty. I know she knows I love her. But I just feel like saying it aloud to her. Strange??????

3) I have to talk to my Mom on the phone everyday otherwise my day is not complete! Since I moved to New England in 1994 from IL, my Mom and I talk on the phone almost everyday. It may sound like a strange habit to some (and expensive) but I NEED to talk to my Mom. My Dad finds it strange but Mom talks to both Mandy and I every single day. Mom is my "bestest" friend. :-) Love ya Momma!

4) I am a compulsive neat freak! As a teenager, I was not normal. I would always keep my bedroom so clean. As an adult, I am always cleaning and organizing stuff at home or at school. My students just watch me and tell me, "Ms. Marenda, you are soooooo weird!" I guess I am. At school, I'm always organizing my cabinets or desks and it truly bothers me if things are not in it's place. Ask Lauren - when I temped at her company back in August, she couldn't get over how organized and clean my desk was at all times. OK, I'm a freak!!!

5) I love tomatoes! Love them! Will eat them anyway I can get them! Except: Get this - I HATE catsup! HATE it! Hate the smell. Hate the look of it. Hate the sight of it.

Saturday, December 17, 2005

Busy, Busy, Busy Day


Greetings blog world! It's been a very busy Saturday.

I worked at Pawsitively Best Friends 11:00 am to 4:45 pm. The store was so busy today. It was a gorgeous sunny day in Newburyport and everyone was shopping. The store is so small so when you get a ton of people in it, it feels so smothering. Add to it the folks that bring in their dogs, and it's absolutely nuts! I love it when people bring their dogs into the store. We have treats that we can give them. I gave a treat to this dog and 10 minutes later, the dog lifted it's leg and peed all over the floor and card display. Thanks Doggie! Guess who had to clean it up??????

I met Carla for dinner and a movie. We went to Not You Average Joes for dinner and saw The Chronicle of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe at the Loop in Methuen, MA. Dinner was delicious! Always great company with Carla Lou! :-) I'm not a huge fantasy/science fiction person but the movie was OK. I read the book when I was younger. The animation is amazing (thanks to Disney!). I'm not a huge C.S. Lewis fan to begin with (Carla loves all his books).

I didn't get home until after midnight - late night for me! Very much past my bedtime! :-)

Thank you Carla for a wonderful evening - :-)

Friday, December 16, 2005

Personal Day Recap

I took today as a Personal Day from school. Not exactly the best day due to the ice/sleet storm that arrived in the area around 4:00 am and continued until 9:00 am.

But, I was able to start and finish my Christmas shopping all in one day! I arrived over at Rockingham Mall in Salem, NH around 8:30 am. I made a few stops at other stores in the Salem area and was finished by 1:00 pm! I was so proud of myself! The good thing about the icky weather was that there was no one out shopping. By noon, the weather switched to rain and more people ventured out to shop.

Had a minor issue with my bank this morning. There is a reason why I have direct deposit! I got paid today and knew that I would have enough money to do my holiday shopping. The online services and automated phone services were down (I tried speaking to a human but the lines were so long - no luck!) so I couldn't get any information on why the money wasn't in my account yet. When I went to the ATM, the available balance stated that I was in negative digits! I totally freaked! (Special thanks to Mom for listening to me rant and rave on the phone this morning :-) ) After five hours of not knowing what the heck was going on with my account, I finally was able to get some info through the automated services. I kept saying, "I'm not paying fees for overdraft because the bank messed up!" It ended up being all good and I tweaked for no reason at all. :-)

Did I say thanks to Mom?????? Thanks Mom!!!! Love Ya!

Thursday, December 15, 2005

Observation Good

FYI:

Observation went well. I spoke with Peter after school today.

He noticed that the skill level in the class is really low. He was curious about that - but that is not under my control. This is the group of kids that I have in front of me.

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Informal Observation Today

I was informally observed today by my department chair, Peter. I think it went well. I wasn't able to talk to him after school today because he had a meeting and I had to leave to go to my part-time job.

He observed my A2 class - which is a team taught class with a SPED teacher in the room with me.

The class went smooth. I'll talk to Peter tomorrow and let everyone know how it went.

This wasn't a formal observation. I'm supposed to get two formals a year - one for each semester. The department chair always does one of the observations and an administrator does the other observation. This year, I have my principal, Jim, doing my formal for second semester. Peter will do my formal for this semester.

This is a big year because it is my third year. I will get what they call professional status after this school year. Massachusetts did away with tenure for teachers back in 1993 (Ed Reform of 1993). This piece of legislation also mandated that new teachers get their Masters degree in order to teach (within a five year time period) and pass the Teacher's Test. Veteran teachers were grandfathered into the clause. And, certification for life was taken away from the veteran teachers so know they have to get recertified every five years like the rest of us.

Gotta love those politicians who make decisions for us they have no clue what we work/deal with on a daily basis.

Good thing I adore my job and my students! :-)

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Tuesday - Nothing to Report

Nothing new here. Just cold. And, I do mean VERY cold! BRRR!!!!!

Stay warm kiddies - :-)

Monday, December 12, 2005

What have you been up to lately?


It's that time of the year. The crazy time of the year. You know exactly what I'm talking about. The time of the year where you are running around with your head cut off buying expensive gifts for everyone under the sun, working tons of hours to be able to pay for those expensive gifts, going to those sometimes uncomfortable Christmas parties and just wish you would've stayed home, and my personal favorite: visiting relatives that you only see once a year and there is a REASON why you only see them once a year! :-)

I have to be honest: I really don't like Christmas. I haven't enjoyed Christmas since I was a little girl. Why? Lots of reasons. My grandmother died around this time of the year in 1988. I think the holidays are full of phoniness. This is supposed to be the nicest time of the year, right? People should be kind and considerate of others. Have you shopped at a mall lately? People pushing and yelling at other people. It's such a joke. I have to travel every year on the holidays and it totally sucks to be flying during this time of the year. Again, dealing with people being rude at an airport is not my idea of fun.

OK, enough of the Scrooge complaining. :-)

What is going on in M-Dawg's world?

*Trying to get all my curriculum that needs to be taught before midterm exams (January 17th-20th). Can M-Dawg do it?

*Working at Pawsitively Best Friends in Newburyport part-time for extra money. I usually work around 10-12 hours a week. I adore it - folks bring in their dogs! It's great that I get to be around the animals. Oh, in case you wondering, PBF is a doggie/kitty boutique. :-)

*Working on a few "projects." I can't go into too much detail due to the fact that some of the recipients of these projects read this blog. :-)

*Holiday parties. I don't really like them but I go to be social. Aren't I the party animal?

*Bonus: Getting ready to go to IL on December 23rd. I look forward to going to IL to see my folks and sister. And, having 11 days off of school. :-)

Email and let me know what is going on in your world - make me feel good! :-)

Rough Class A3

My A3 World History class is a unique class. What do I mean by unique? Well, more like a pain in the butt! A few of the students in the class are very difficult to deal with in the classroom. The word seems to have spread that I don't like this group of kids - which is not the truth. The few that are difficult make it tough for the other kids to learn when those with behavioral issues are acting out. Don't get me wrong - most of the kids in this class are wonderful. It's just those few kids that like to act out and be difficult in the classroom. I've tried everything. Detentions. Calls home. Parent conferences. Sent them to the office. I'm know doing straight lecture classes because they can't handle doing any fun activity. Nothing is working. My next step is to put them on a behavioral contract. I feel like I'm back at Timberlane having to do the behavior contract thing. It's so ridiculous that I even have to contemplate this way of thinking.

My patience is running very thin at this point with the class. The time of the year doesn't help. With Christmas approaching, my students are very hyper and high strung as it is. And Saint M-Dawg is no longer patient and kind with this type of crappy behavior.

My goal on Wednesday is to go in with a positive attitude and try to play the game with the class. I will give the class one more chance and if they can't handle controlling their own behavior, out come those behavior contracts.

I do adore the kids individually - but as a class, they are just way to crazy!

As a side note, I'm being informally observed on Wednesday in A2 by Peter, my department chair. It should be an interesting class because I have a SPED teacher in the room that is supposed to be team teaching with me and she doesn't contribute to anything in the classroom. Peter is observing me but I'm sure it will come out of the observation on how my teaching partner does nothing. It is a little frustrating but I've spoken to her about the expectations and she clearly doesn't want to do her part of the job. It's really sad. I got so spoiled by working with Carla and Donna in World Studies at Timberlane. They were the "bestest" teaching partners ever!!! :-) I miss the true concept of interdisciplinary team teaching - especially with the English teachers.

Sunday, December 11, 2005

Ellie and I

Believe it or not, this is the first picture I have of Ellie and I. Thanks Lauren for taking this pic and emailing it to me. :-)

I've always wanted a picture of Ellie and I but just never seemed to get around to having someone take our picture.

Isn't my baby girl a cutie pie? Ellie hates her picture taken - after this photo was taken, she ran away! She also doesn't like to be held either. She's more of a lap cat. Ellie adores to sit or lay on my lap or chest and cuddle. She HATES being held or picked up.

Enjoy the pic folks - :-)

Saturday, December 10, 2005

I'm a Survivor!



Here are pics of the day after the storm -

The first photo is the front of my condo complex. The window to the lower left in the corner is my condo - as you can see, I can't see out of the window anymore. :-)

The second photo is an inside perspective. This is what Ellie looks at when she sits at the window. :-) Not much of a view, is it?

Saturday! Yup! Survived the storm! Hard to believe!

Got a knock on my door last night to move my car so that the plow could clean up the lot. I've already moved my car twice - here goes a third time. I was told to move the car to the back of the complex lot with everyone else. I sat in my car for over 45 minutes until the plow moved all that snow. Everyone sat in their car waiting. We looked like we were all in line for the car wash - except it was winter time! :-) Finally, I could park my car in my spot. I'm so glad of where my parking spot is located. Some folks lose their parking spot in the winter because people don't know how to park correctly so it messes everyone else up. I have no one on either side of me so I don't have to worry about it. My second parking spot in the back of the building is buried under a huge pile of snow right now. Good thing I don't use that spot.

On a positive note: the roads are clear. Everything is open again. I don't feel stranded anymore. Yah! :-)

Friday, December 09, 2005

Over a foot of snow in Amesbury!

Make it go away! I can't see out of my windows (My condo is at ground level). White out conditions. Roads are horrible. The parking lot is a parking lot of craziness because there is no where for folks to park their vehicles.

Ellie doesn't know what to do. She looks out the window and sees snow. She hears new sounds - a snow blower and a snow plow. Ellie doesn't like these new noises. Poor Ellie!

I've unburied my car twice today. And, I can guarantee that I will have to unbury it on Saturday too. Good thing I don't work tomorrow until 2:00. Hopefully, that will give me enough time to dig myself out again. I guess I should invest in a snow shovel like other folks in my complex.

I never thought to take photos of this lovely weather we are having here in New England. Tomorrow, I'll take some pics and post them so all you folks out there that don't live here can see all the excitement that you are missing! :-0)

The good news is that I got a ton of stuff accomplished today. The bad news is that at some point I will have to leave the comfort of my home and risk it out there in the cold.

Is it too late to move to Florida? :-)

Still No Contract

Negotiations did not go well on Tuesday night. We are still without a contract. The meeting ended at 12:30 am.

Still trying to keep the faith -

We will do another rally on December 19th at the next school committee meeting. We will continue doing this until the contract is established.

Special thanks to Susie, our union rep from the high school, for all that she is doing for the interest of the teachers of Newburyport. Go Susie Go! :-)

Snow Day!


I have my first official snow day today! It seems too early in the winter to already have a snow day. According to Channel 7 News, there are over 325 school closings in the Boston area! Crazy stuff!

I got the phone call at 5:25 am - the snow hadn't even started yet and the superintendent already made the call to cancel school.

So, what is a gal to do on a snow day? I'll do some school work (correcting World Religions Exams), laundry, and some scrapbooking. Oh, and at some point, I'll probably have to dig my car out of the parking lot! :-)

For those of you that are out driving in this crazy weather, be safe!

Janet & Lauren - be careful going into Boston tonight for the Bon Jovi concert! Give Jon and Richie a hug for me! :-)

Thursday, December 08, 2005

Pearl Harbor

December 7, 1941. A day that will live in infamy.

Of course, the history teacher will remember this day. Such a vital date in our history. The beginning of the US entry into World War II.

I watched the movie Pearl Harbor last night. OK, the romantic in me loves the film! The historian in me doesn't like it due to the inaccuracies. The 45 minute bombing scene in the film is actually pretty decently done.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of loved ones who lost someone at Pearl Harbor. There are still a few veterans floating around from Pearl Harbor.

And, my thoughts and prayers go out to our men and women overseas - those that won't be able to get home for the holidays. My cousin Danny is in Kuwait as I write this blog.

Stay safe cousin! Love Ya - :-)

Wednesday, December 07, 2005

Quick Post

I trust everyone had a good day???

It's Hump Day!!!

Had a Department meeting after school today. Nothing too exciting there.

One of my colleagues (Aileen) is remodeling her loft and asked if it was OK to for me to watch her cat, Buddy for the evening. Aileen didn't want Buddy to be in the mess of the construction and noise. Poor Buddy! He was not a happy camper at my condo tonight. Buddy was also traumatized from the car ride over here. We kept Buddy in the second bedroom with the door closed to separate Ellie and Buddy.

Ellie didn't like having another cat in her house! She hissed at Aileen and me! Poor kitties! Aileen just picked up Buddy - he's going home.

Ellie is now really pissed off at me - how dare I bring another cat into her house? So, her momma is on the shit list for the time being - ughy!

Tuesday, December 06, 2005

Teacher Contract Negotiations Continue

My union has been in negotiations with the School Committee since March to work on a new contract. We are currently working without a contract.

Tonight, the NTA (Newburyport Teachers Association) had a rally to support the negotiating team. We met at the Elks Lodge for a meeting and buffet. At 5:30, we all drove over to the Middle School (which is where the School Committee has their meetings) and rallied our support for the contract negotiations. We had over half of the entire teacher population of the City of Newburyport show up for the rally - it was so cool!

We are trying to show the School Committee that there are human faces to this contract. The negotiating team has done an amazing job and has worked so hard to get this far for us. Two major issues of the contract: increase in salary and health care.

Keep your fingers crossed that all goes well tonight - :-)

Great Night Out w/ the Girls


Had a fabulous time last night with Janet and Lauren. It was wonderful of them to drive up to my neck of the woods for the evening. This was the first time they've seen my new place so I gave them the tour.

Afterwards, we headed to Newburyport for dinner at The Grog. Had a yummy dinner - started out with Clam Chowder - for dinner, steak tips with garlic mashed potatoes and green beans. For dessert, I had a slice of pumpkin pie - just can't resist that pumpkin. Janet had the chicken caesar wrap and Lauren had the lobster roll. Both meals looked so yummy!

Thank you ladies for the nice evening out -

I Love Ya's :-)


Comments on Silly Kitty



This is Sadie - my friend Cheryl's kitty. Sadie is almost nine years old and she lives in IL. Isn't she an absolute doll??? :-)

Thank you to everyone that commented on my blog regarding silly kitty! I'm so happy to read that Ellie is actually a normal cat. I don't know what is normal since Ellie is the first cat I've ever owned. It's so reassuring to know that her crazy behaviors are normal. :-)

No - I won't commit Ellie to the Funny Farm! :-)

Sunday, December 04, 2005

My Silly Kitty!



Ellie is obsessed with my bathtub. And, I don't know why. Ellie will sit in the tub and play and pounce on"things." I don't know what "things" she pounces on but it is cute. I think she likes the sound of her claws on my tub! She also likes to sit in the tub after I have taken a shower. I think it's because she likes the warmth of the warm shower. I decided to capture the moment - after the photo was taken, she ran and hid under my bed.

Has anyone ever heard of such a thing? Please let me know so I don't have to send Ellie to the "Funny Farm. "

She's such a silly kitty! :-)

Saturday, December 03, 2005

Rob Thomas


A special comment to my sister: Enjoy the show! He's amazing in concert!
http://www.robthomasmusic.com/

She is seeing Mr. Rob in Concert on Monday with her friend Jen in Chicago. Mandy has seen Rob with Matchbox Twenty and on his solo tour as well. Mandy has wonderful seats - 1st row!

Take lots of pics sis and send them my way so I can post them on my blog! Love Ya! :-)

Learning a new thing is good.


Last night, I took this scrapbooking class (http://www.ascrappersheaven.com/) at a local store. I can't go into too much detail about the actual class itself (Remember, it's a gift!), but I learned so much from it! Learning all of these techniques is such a good thing - I own so much stuff and I don't know how to use a ton of it. The instructor showed us how to do all of this cool stuff such as eyelets. For you veteran scrapbookers out there, you are probably thinking that this technique has been around forever. It has. However, I've never done it and I have all the materials for it. When I first bought the materials, I went online to see if I could get the directions on how to use eyelets. The web sites weren't helpful at all. I guess I needed someone to show me how to do it. That's my learning style anyway.

Scrapbooking is so much more crafty and creative today compared to back in the day when I used to do it as a young girl. I find the hobby very relaxing and fun. The best part: making beautiful gifts for loved ones!

FYI: After I give the gift to that special person, I will post photos of the finished product. :-)

Friday, December 02, 2005

TGIF Baby!!!!

YES! FINALLY! It's Friday!!

It's tough to work a full week when you haven't worked a full week in over a month.

Positive thoughts for the Day:

*TGIF!

*Pay Day!

*Scrapbooking Class tonight!

*Get to sleep in tomorrow morning - hopefully! I tend to have an automatic alarm clock of waking up at 5:30 AM!

Thursday, December 01, 2005

Grateful!

Went to that Seminar today in Boston on the Bill of Rights. Can I just say how grateful I am for having my car?

Let me explain. There was this girl that I met today that had her car stolen in Cambridge! At first, she thought the car was towed by the city (she was illegally parked). After calling around, she finally realized that her car was stolen! Can you imagine? I feel so badly for her. She's only 24 years old and she's only been teaching for 1 year. She makes no money because she works at a private school and still lives at home. She called her insurance company and they told her that they can't do anything about it until 48 hours!

So, she has to wait two days until she can even get a rental car so she can at least drive around and get to work.

Ughy!