Kumu Kula

Summertime

2009-07-16T17:32:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone!

I know it's been a while...I'm home for the summer! It's terrific. I'm taking two summer physics courses at the University of Pittsburgh, which have kept me pretty busy. These are my last pre-med requirements, so I have also been applying to medical school. I will keep you posted!

Next week I return to Hawai'i for Candice & Ryan's wedding and I cannot wait! Then in two weeks, I move to Madison to start my new job. I'm very excited!

Oops, I have a blog!

2009-03-23T20:08:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone...wow, I totally forgot I had this blog. It has been an intense year, but it's almost over. I am really looking forward to moving on! In the next eleven weeks, though, the following things need to happen:

take the MCAT (May 2)
finish my thesis (same week)
finish all grad school assignments & projects
finish Teach For America commitments (8 hours to go)
move to old house (long story)
sell everything I own out here
ship my car
apply to Pitt for summer classes
teach my LAST quarter of middle school
'graduate' with my improv team & perform

Wish me luck!

P.S. Maya to answer your question, I'll be in Wisconsin starting on August 2 and will be there the whole month. What part of Wisconsin will you be in?

Updates

2009-02-23T02:23:00.000-08:00

Hi, everyone! Sorry I haven't written in a while - life has been pretty intense. My friend Maria is visiting right now and we are having a wonderful time!

I have less than four months left of my Teach For America commitment and I'm really looking forward to pursuing a different career path. Teach For America has really opened my eyes to the inequities that exist in our educational system and has been a tremendous learning opportunity. I want to continue to help children, especially children with disabilities, but I don't want to continue to do that through the classroom. I take the MCAT in April and then will be spending the summer in Pittsburgh, taking physics and polishing medical school applications. Then it will be the waiting game to see if I get in anywhere.

In the meantime, I will move to Madison, Wisconsin in August to work for Epic Systems. I am very excited about this new challenge. I'm not looking forward to trading the HI weather for WI weather, but I can't wait to start the new job, Lizzy & Mike are already in Wisconsin, and I need to be back on the mainland.

Just wanted to keep everyone posted!

On a personal note, I have been having a great couple of months and trying to enjoy Hawai'i more. I love my improv class (Laughtrack Theater in Chinatown) and my swim club and all of my other activities. I recently ran the 8.15-mile Great Aloha Run with a huge group from Teach For America. I love living in Kailua!

Pictures

2008-12-22T13:53:00.001-08:00

So far, I am loving Kailuana Place.

Check out my pictures here.
For the holidays, we have a guest on my street. Ever heard of him?

New House!

2008-12-01T13:54:00.000-08:00

I accomplished my move in less than 3 hours!
Will post pictures soon!

The Best Part of My Job

2008-11-20T19:36:00.000-08:00

I know I complain a lot. I am trying to stay positive, but it's easy to get lost in all the challenging circumstances and frustrating bureaucracy. But here is the one wonderful part of my job: working with kids who are brilliant and creative and funny.

One of my favorite students is a boy who was in my class last year. This year, he has a different teacher for the whole day, but I allow him to come to my room and play on the computer sometimes. This impresses the current 6th graders, who are only allowed in the room for tutoring. This student often asks me if I am married or have children. He is concerned about me, apparently.

This week, he asked, "Ms. Moretti, do you have a husband or any kids yet?"
"No, nothing has changed since the last time you asked me," I told him.

He paused for a moment, then looked at me with an optimistic expression.

"Ms. Moretti, I really hope Santa brings you a husband for Christmas this year."

Airfare Watchdog - super cheap flights! a.k.a. Come Visit!

2008-11-17T01:20:00.001-08:00

Airfare Watchdog!

Cheap Airfares to Honolulu by Airfarewatchdog.com

November Update

2008-11-17T00:06:00.000-08:00

Hi, everyone!
Just thought I would post since I haven't in a while.

Life has been a blur of studying, teaching, taking class, meetings, and working on everything that needs to be turned in - for some reason, I have a lot of things due almost every day.

School has gotten a lot crazier lately. At first, the second year was much better, but there are new challenges every day. I'm just taking it one day at a time, but there's constantly so much to do. There are also a lot of frustrating and overwhelming situations, but that's just part of the Teach For America experience. I'm so much happier when I'm not at school, but it's hard to stay away. There are just not enough hours in the day to lesson plan, support students, prepare materials, track achievement, and also fulfill all the administrative duties of a special education teacher.

This year, though, I have been better about setting limits. I leave work at a fairly decent hour now to go swimming or go to the gym, and I'm a lot happier for it. If I don't set limits, I could easily stay in my classroom til 9 or 10 PM (like last year) and STILL not accomplish all the things I needed to get done.

My students are doing pretty well academically, though. We're doing a pretty fun geometry unit right now. Also, the inclusion students are thriving, which I'm very psyched about because I started the program at my school. My co-teachers are awesome! Okay, time to go finish an assignment for UH.

October Update

2008-10-20T00:44:00.000-07:00

Whew, it's been a while since I last posted. Life has been a little crazy. The wedding was a BLAST! I had a wonderful time and am so happy for Tandrew :) Pictures can be found here.

I started studying improv at Laughtrack Theater in Chinatown with Shannon Winpenny. I'm learning a lot.

I have spent a lot of time thinking about what I want to do next year. This will be my last year teaching, and my commitment with Teach For America and my school is up in June. So I have decided...drumroll, please...

to apply to medical school!

I've been talking about this forever, and now I'm finally going to do it. I still have a LOOOONG road ahead of me, before I even apply, but I'm excited to be working towards one of my goals. I really miss science and research! I am taking a Kaplan MCAT prep course, and the diagnostic this weekend demonstrated that I have my work cut out for me. You might not see blog posts as frequently, because I'm spending a ton of time studying. But I am also going to make an effort to get to the beach more often and visit the other islands - I have been to the Big Island and Moloka'i so far, still need to see Maui, Kauai, and Lanai! (I don't think I'll make it to private island Niihau). So I will try to have cool experiences and take lots of pictures when I'm NOT studying physics, chem, orgo, & bio (not to mention verbal reasoning)!

About to Take Off

2008-09-18T20:30:00.000-07:00

At Gate 25 of Honolulu International Airport (HNL). About to embark en route to Houston-Bush International. If I counted right, this is a 7.5 hour flight. I showed incredible restraint when packing. All I have to distract me are:

-3 books (1 research book, 1 classic, 1 contemporary novel)
-iPod Touch (but I forgot to download pages of my ebook!!! darn...) loaded with 3 new episodes of favorite TV shows (Mad Men, Gossip Girl, and newbie Fringe) and new music
-laptop (only 46% battery remaining, though, since Gate has no outlets)
-journal to write in once my computer runs out of battery (thanks Natalie!)

AND THAT'S IT. (Normally I'd bring a lot more books.) It's going to be a long flight.

But speaking of new music, here's an update on CODY WOOD, who was Treasurer of the Class of 2007 at Case and is just an awesome person in general... His new album "Nothin to It" is now available on iTunes. Check out his site and buy the album on iTunes! It's TERRIFIC!

See you in Pittsburgh!

September

2008-09-11T21:03:00.000-07:00

Wow, I just realized I hadn't posted yet this month. Life has been absolutely insane! I haven't been getting much sleep; there just aren't enough hours in the day for work, class, and everything else. Speaking of which, I'm in class at UH right now. I should probably go and pay attention.

Exciting things: I'm going home in ONE WEEK for Tandrew's wedding in Pennsylvania!! I can't wait!! I'll be home for less than 72 hours, but if you're in Pittsburgh, hopefully I'll see you!

Slow Down This is Moloka'i

2008-08-31T13:58:00.000-07:00

Back from a totally relaxing 24 hours in Moloka'i!

We drove around the island, visited Purdy's Macadamia Nut Farm, got food at Paddler's, and ate at the famous Kanemitsu Bakery. Moloka'i used to be the location of the leper colony in Hawai'i, where Father Damien served. Click above to see more pictures!

Updates

2008-08-24T23:40:00.000-07:00

Another week down. We saw our short as part of the 48 Hour Film project - it was a blast!! I'll let you know if it becomes available online, otherwise you'll have to catch it when I get home.

Speaking of which, I'll be home in less than ONE month for Tandrew's wedding. I can't wait!

Awesome weekend: parties all over the island, beach, shopping, and only a little bit of work. Next weekend is Labor Day weekend, so I'm headed to Moloka'i with some fellow teachers. My goal is to visit all the islands I can by the time I leave in June. Speaking of which, I have no idea where I'm going...but it will definitely be off this island. Hawai'i is spectacular but I have island fever :)

More craziness

2008-08-18T23:56:00.000-07:00

I love our new town, Kailua. I am in no way shape or form feeling sharp enough to compose a coherent post, so here is a series of thoughts, in no particular order:

1. I just joined a Master's swim club. Got my butt kicked at practice, but it felt great!
2. LOST Season 5 began filming today on Oahu!
3. Being in two places at once is kind of difficult.
4. The Olympics are just not as exciting now that swimming is over.
5. I will be flying home in 4 weeks and 3 days (but who's counting?)
6. This Thursday or Friday the short film we wrote, 'Gallery 54' for 48 Hours will screen!
7. I created a PowerPoint today for my class, and other people are using it in their classes, too :) I just told them I was telling them a story about a boy, then I used baby pictures I found plus descriptions from his teachers, then explained how he worked hard and applied all his hyper-activity and energy to swimming and a positive attitude...and then showed pictures of him from Beijing 2008 and told them who the little boy grew up to be - Michael Phelps!!
8. I thought I had an 8 but maybe I didn't...

Craziness

2008-08-16T11:35:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been a while since I posted! I have mainly been

Working
Watching the Olympics online (unfortunately I always found out what happened before I watched, so there were no surprises this Olympics...) while at work
Working
Working
Doing school assignments (speaking of which, big paper due tomorrow)

This weekend, however, I'm taking a break! Jenn & I wrote a script for a Hawaii team in the 48 Hour Film Fest. Last night, we wrote a 12-page script, and today, we're going to watch the team film it and help out as much as we can. We're lucky to be working with an awesome team of professionals and I can't wait to learn about how everything is done!

Also GO USA!!!!!!!!!!

My Newest Roommate.

2008-08-04T02:20:00.000-07:00

I am living in a house with six other people, but we recently acquired a new roommate, with a little help from Grandma Annie.

My new roommate likes to read in bed, like me!

He also likes the beach.
The ocean is one of his favorite places to be.

Basically, he's too cool for school :-)

Dr. Randy Pausch

2008-07-25T08:11:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, at orientation, we watched a clip of Randy on Oprah. Our principal bought everyone a copy of "The Last Lecture." Today, I got the sad news that he passed away.

I'm very sad about this, but the message in Randy's life was to celebrate it. So as I go about my day, I will try to be positive and approach those brick walls with a positive attitude and hard work. My thoughts and prayers are with Randy's family, especially their three small children. You can read more here:

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
MSNBC
CNN
New York Times

Edit #1 6:50 AM (Hawai'i time) "Randy Pausch" is the #1 topic on Twitter Search and "RIP Randy Pausch" is the #5 trend. I'm just sitting here, watching the number of results climb, refreshing the page, and seeing how profound an impact Professor Pausch had on such a vast quantity of people. As I've edited this blog post (a few minutes at most), there have been 33 new comments that mentioned Randy.

Edit #2: I went to a meeting for almost three hours. When I came back, there were 374 more 'hits' on Twitter Search for Randy Pausch.

Casa nueva

2008-07-23T18:43:00.000-07:00

Here's the new house I moved into!
It's a little like the Real World:
7 strangers, picked to live in a house...

Except we kind of know each other!

More pictures are here.

Kailua!

2008-07-18T22:57:00.000-07:00

Whew, after a 17+ hour journey, I made it back to Oahu (though I would have rather stayed in Pittsburgh). Now, I'm trying to unpack and get settled into our fabulous new house in Kailua, HI. Our new place is amazing! Pictures and maybe even video later!

End of an East Coast Summer

2008-07-17T15:07:00.000-07:00

This has been one of the best.summers.EVER!
I saw a lot of wonderful people and did a lot of amazing things.

Here are some pictures from my most recent excursions: Philly, New York, and even downtown Pittsburgh :-)

I <3 the East Coast!

Back from B-lo

2008-07-06T19:00:00.000-07:00

Back from Buffalo! L&C's wedding was fabulous. So congratulations to K&T, N&B, and L&C! And of course, congratulations to C&J, who got married in April. The summer of weddings has concluded - at least, until September, when T&A tie the knot. But September is considered fall, right?

I'll be spending the next four days at home, visiting friends & seeing RENT in New York City for a few days, then wrapping things up at home until July 18, when I return to the land of aloha. I'll be very sad to go. I've had an amazing summer. Cleveland was magical as always thanks to my wonderful friends!

Here are some pictures from my summer of weddings. Click the conversation bubble in the lower left corner to see the captions, or click on the photos to view the album/slideshow out full size.

Slightly More Concrete Plans

2008-06-27T19:58:00.001-07:00

My time in Pennsylvania is amazing!
One wedding down - Congratulations, K & T!
Next wedding = tomorrow! So happy for you, N & B!

July 2-4 Cleveland (can't wait to catch up with my faithful Cleveland blog readers :)!)
July 5 Travel to Buffalo for Wedding #3 of the summer
July 6 Return to Cleveland, then return to Pittsburgh

July 11-13 (approximately) NYC to see "RENT" and visit Case friends!

July 18 Fly back to Hawai'i

I don't know if I've mentioned this, but we are MOVING! to Kailua, HI. It's also on the Windward side of Oahu and it's absolutely beautiful. Our new house is 1.5 blocks from the BEACH! It's also only a few blocks away from delicious Lanikai Juice and an amazing used bookstore. It's farther from my school (only about 3 mi farther, though) but clearly, I have my priorities in order.

Back in PA

2008-06-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

I'm back in Pennsylvania for a few weeks! I'll be visiting Cleveland, Buffalo, and NYC before I head back to the Aloha State on July 18. It's great to be home; hope to see you all at some point over break!

Elyse Versus the Volcano

2008-06-11T11:46:00.001-07:00

CMG bet that no one would get the reference in the title of this post but I have faith in my readers...here are pictures from my friends' visit to Hawai'i!

Click on the picture for our Oahu and Big Island photos.

Dude...

2008-06-08T04:13:00.000-07:00

Did I mention that SCHOOL IS OFFICIALLY OVER?!?!??!

Okay I have two more days of training, and a couple more classes for UH, plus online classes when I get home. But the students of Wheeler Middle School have been DISMISSED!

I can't believe I survived my first year of teaching. To make my biggest understatement of the year, it was hard. I wish I had some eloquent reflections or suggestions to impart, but all I have is pure exhaustion.

Big Island was, once again, amazing, and I will post pictures (and maybe even video) soon!

Maybe once I've had some time to harness and digest the constant insanity of the past year, I'll post a more coherent perspective.

For now, it's bed time!!

Last Day of School

2008-06-06T11:21:00.001-07:00

The last day of school has come and gone. I'm SO happy!! Today is a teacher workday, taking care of last-minute paperwork and everything. Tonight, I'm going to the Polynesian Cultural Center with my friends, then Chinatown for First Friday. On Saturday, we are traveling to Hilo, Hawai'i (Big Island) for the day. I can't wait to see Mauna Kea - we didn't get to see it last time.

One of the 6th grade teachers had a substitute this week who made the students write thank-you cards to all of the teachers. They were really sweet and made me laugh. Two of the funniest:

1. "Dear Mrs. (EVERYONE thinks I am married) Moretti, Thank you for teaching us. I forgot almost everything you taught us. Thanks, Student A."

2. "Dear Mrs. Moretti, Thank you for everything you let us do this year. -Student B."

Points for honesty!!

Friends are here!

2008-06-05T10:14:00.000-07:00

Everyone says that the last week of school is the craziest, and they are right. I've got all my end-of-the-year stuff to complete, plus transition meetings with 4+ elementary schools (incoming 5th grade students), plus UH summer classes started - Mon - Weds. @ LCC 4:30 - 8:15 PM + online work & online 'class' on Thursday, plus IEP business to wrap up, and it's Teach For America Induction for the 2008 corps members. My friends are here from the mainland, but I can't really hang out with them because I'm barely ever home! But we are going to the Big Island Saturday to check out the lava!

So I am a little busy at the moment...

P.S.

2008-05-26T15:32:00.000-07:00

I'm going to continue to write in this blog - www.elysemoretti.com is just the site for my writing. Keep checking here for updates on my personal life (or lack thereof) :-)

Writing

2008-05-25T05:11:00.000-07:00

I am re-launching my website, complete with a new layout, host (WordPress), and clips of my writing:

Check it out at www.elysemoretti.com

TGIF

2008-05-24T00:38:00.001-07:00

Student Quote of the Day: "You know, Ms. Moretti, things today just aren't what they used to be like. The dollar isn't worth as much as it was back then. Today, what used to be disciplining your child is now considered abuse. And keeping an eye on a man is now stalking."

I am really not sure how that was related to our discussion on writing two-variable algebraic equations.

Extra Awesome!

2008-05-15T21:42:00.000-07:00

I had a wonderful time yesterday!! People were definitely looking at me like I was crazy because I was still having fun as we went into hour 13. I woke up at 4:30 AM, did my hair and makeup for a 'nightclub scene,' and arrived at the set earlier than our 6:30 AM call time.

We brought three different outfits and the wardrobe powers that be told us which outfit to wear. The hair and makeup people touched us up. It was so surreal to be hanging out, just feet away, from people I'd only seen on TV! Audrina from "The Hills" has a part in the movie. I checked IMDB, and it looks like the flick won't be out (DVD only) til 2010. But if you see it, I'm the girl in the back/upper lounge/on the staircase in most shots, dancing awkwardly, cell phone in hand.

I was definitely exhausted when I got home, but I really had a blast. It was cool to see how everything was done, and I met tons of interesting and eclectically-talented people. I definitely will try to work as an extra again.

It was definitely the boost I needed after a rough patch at school. Only a few more weeks til school is out; then all I have to worry about are summer classes.

Hollywood, Here I Come!

2008-05-14T02:56:00.000-07:00

I took a personal day today (Wednesday) so I can work as an extra on the MGM movie, "The Reef." According to reports, it's either straight-to-DVD or a movie of the week, but I'm excited since I'm so interested in the industry.

You can read more about "The Reef" on Tim Ryan's Reel Hawaii blog. Photos of confirmed cast members are at the bottom of this post.

My call time is 6:30 AM and the crew parking lot is in Honolulu (CRAZY traffic) so I will be waking up at 4:30 AM to do my hair and makeup (we're filming a nightclub scene) and get off to an early start. The shoot is expected to last all day, so I have a feeling I'm going to be exhausted tomorrow night. I will definitely write more about my experience on the set!

Happy Mother's Day!!

2008-05-11T03:47:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day, everyone!

Thank you so, so, SO much to everyone who sent me cards, presents, brownies, texts, e-mails, Facebook messages, or called me to wish me a happy birthday. You all sure know how to make a girl feel special from 4000 miles away.

Tonight I went to Showdown in Chinatown, a cool short film competition (7 minutes or less). You only have a couple of days to put together the film, and it's a monthly competition. It was pretty cool; there weren't many entries this time but I am definitely planning on going back. The second Saturday of each month, held at NextDoor, 43 N. Hotel Street in Honolulu.

More later!!

2008-05-06T01:18:00.000-07:00

Thank you all SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much for everything You all are amazing!!!!!!!! Will write more later. Love, Elyse

Whew...

2008-05-01T20:26:00.000-07:00

Haven't blogged in a while, stuff has been absolutely insane. I am fine though. Carla, Shocks, & SB visit in 29 days!

Here is one of my windows. My students decorated it with expired Jamba Juice cards.

Weekend

2008-04-27T00:13:00.000-07:00

1. Wedding pictures are up! It was a beautiful wedding and a wonderful time with the family! My terrible photography skills simply can't do it justice :-)

2. It's Candice's birthday this week! We just went to Haleiwa Joe's for dinner (Kaneohe location) and it was gorgeous. Now we have people coming over. Time to stop blogging and be social :-)

Back & Exhausted

2008-04-22T03:41:00.000-07:00

Whew! Just got back from a whirlwind trip to the East Coast (kinda)! Flew into Pittsburgh (via Dallas), saw Grandma & Pap, drove to Annapolis, saw the entire DeSantis side of the family, went to Carla & Josh's wedding (an absolute blast!!), drove back to Pittsburgh, saw Carla, SB, Sarah, & Lizzy, slept in my own bed for one night :-), and flew back to Honolulu (via Dallas and L.A.). It's nearly 1 A.M. which means I need to be up in 4.75 hours...eeek...

FABULOUS NEWS re: summer - we can take some of our classes online!!!! So I will be home for a good part of June & July.

Tomorrow is gonna be brutal, but I'm soooo happy I got to go home and see my fabulous cousin and her fabulous wedding!! (and the rest of the family too of course :-P)

Dr. Pausch Part 2

2008-04-11T23:19:00.000-07:00

I caught the special on Wednesday, then today my copy of "The Last Lecture" arrived. I couldn't put it down and finished it in one sitting. Rarely does a book have such an impact on me that I would recommend it to absolutely ANYONE, regardless of age or background, but this is the book.

For those of you who don't know the back story, Dr. Randy Pausch is a professor at Carnegie Mellon University who is dying of pancreatic cancer. He was signed up to deliver a 'last lecture' - a hypothetical talk where professors imagine what they would tell their students if they knew they were going to die. The twist is that a little while before he was scheduled to speak, he got the news that his cancer had returned and he had 10 tumors on his liver that would be fatal. He went ahead with the lecture, and I've posted the video below from Youtube, but it's also available on Google Video and from CMU. It's heartbreaking and motivating at the same time.

The Last Lecture

2008-04-09T17:58:00.000-07:00

100th post! And it's an important one. Hopefully, you see this before it's on where you live - tonight at 10 PM ET (which is in approximately one hour) and 9 PM Hawai'i time (approximately six hours) ABC will air a special featuring Dr. Randy Pausch of Carnegie Mellon University. A few days after his now-famous "Last Lecture" in September, I found an article about it via Slashdot and watched the entire lecture online. You can watch the whole thing on the ABC page here.

Dr. Pausch is a truly amazing person and has deeply inspired me. No matter what I've gone through in the past eight months, there is so much that I take for granted. But "brick walls are there for a reason" so I'm going to keep working hard and finding ways to have fun, following his words of advice and indomitable spirit. Be sure to check out his day to day page - this guy has scrimmaged with the Steelers, acted in the new Star Trek movie, met the Police, swam with the dolphins, and lobbied Congress - in the past few months - pretty impressive for a terminal cancer patient, no? I hope you get a chance to experience this dynamic person and his story!

More LOST Connections

2008-04-04T00:23:00.000-07:00

One of my TFA friends wrote us an e-mail today to let us know that LOST was filming IN HER CLASSROOM! Sooooo jealous!!!!! Once it airs I'll write more :-)

No One Is Safe

2008-04-02T19:09:00.000-07:00

This morning, shrill screams filled our apartment. One of my roommates, while getting ready for school, had a gecko IN HER SHIRT.

NO ONE IS SAFE HERE!!!!!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Big Island!

2008-03-30T04:24:00.000-07:00

Whew, Jenn and I did the Big Island in 40 hours, and it was crazy! I am exhausted but we saw a lot of cool stuff. My favorites were probably the LAVA from the volcano - Kilauea exploded on March 19 for the first time since 1924! We were lucky to be able to see this recent set of eruptions - and the Black Sand Beach, pictured below.

Check out the rest of the pictures here.

New Car

2008-03-27T17:43:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged about it, but I got a new car...

I love it! It's a 2008 Toyota Corolla and it's fabulous!

Tomorrow my roommate Jenn and I are going to the Big Island. I'm very excited. Our other roommate Candice has been there a few times and loves it. We're leaving tomorrow (Friday) morning around 5 AM and returning on Saturday at 9 PM. I can't wait! I am (gasp!) not bringing my computer. I'll have my cell on in case anyone needs to reach me, but other than that I am attempting a media blackout.

More LOST beach set pics!

2008-03-26T22:56:00.000-07:00

Today we didn't get to see any filming (they were about to start up again in the early evening, but we have dinner plans in HNL) but we got some great up close pictures of the beach set!

Now off to dinner @ D&B's to celebrate Maggie's birthday!

See more pictures here.

Bernard waved back!

2008-03-24T20:39:00.000-07:00

Aloha all! Spring break continues to be the BEST TIME I'VE HAD since college graduation (and Christmas of course, but that's kind of a given). A lot of the TFA people were talking, and we feel like this is the first real 'break' we have gotten. Fall break was kind of a whirlwind "what do I do next?" type of thing, Christmas was traveling, and now we finally have a chance to catch our breath. (Though we still have university coursework and classes to keep up with).
Today, Jenn & I visited the set of ABC's LOST. As many of you know, this is my FAVORITE television show (edging out "The Office," also a passion of mine) and my two goals in moving to Hawai'i were:
1. Visit Pearl Harbor
2. See LOST filming at least once

I can officially say that I have completed both of these things!
It was hugely exciting for me to watch the magic that is LOST being made. We weren't as fortunate as our roommate Candice, who met Josh Holloway (Sawyer) and some other actors and crew members last Thursday, as well as observe lots of cool things being filmed at another North Shore location. But I was thrilled to see my favorite show in action! The only actors I recognized (we had to keep a certain distance) were L. Scott Caldwell and Sam Anderson (Rose and Bernard, respectively).

When I saw Sam Anderson, I was super excited because the Rose and Bernard story arc is one of my favorites. I waved, and he waved back! He seemed like a really friendly, jovial guy. In general, the sense was very happy. No one treated us (there were a decent amount of tourists, I met a really nice German family) like we were annoying or in their way, they were really polite and just asked us to move whenever we were getting in the shots. We weren't allowed to take pictures close up, but I got some from far away. It is a gorgeous, gorgeous, amazing beach! It also wasn't very crowded, even though filming was going on. I definitely hope to get to see more LOST!

You can check out the rest of my pictures here.

spring break

2008-03-16T01:03:00.000-07:00

All I can say is, Thank God spring break is here. It has been an intense and trying year. I am very frustrated in many ways, and it doesn't look like that is going to change any time soon. I just have to learn to make the best of it. The good news is that I'll be home in April and that is veryyyy soon. Also, my friends are coming to visit soon.

This tree-branch-looking thing is actually a Palm. In Hawai'i, for Palm Sunday apparently you get this instead of the palms I am used to. Go figure. Also it's cool cause every guy wears Aloha shirts to church.

Pre-Party [also known as My Lit Review Is Still Not Finished]

2008-03-08T22:55:00.000-08:00

Re-arranged my room, cause I love changing things up. Realized that I have an unhealthy relationship with books. It's a sickness!

Although I only brought ONE of these books (What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy) with me when I left Pennsylvania last June, I have somehow acquired this collection of books (and this is not including the ones at school). They are organized by category. Far left: current library books. Mid-left: reference books (mainly for University of Hawai'i master's classes and writing). Mid-right: books I have finished. Far right: Books I am either currently in the middle of (I get distracted easily) or haven't started yet.

Here is my Dr. Curious George Grandma & Pap got for me. He lives on my bed! Who loves my dinosaur blanket?

My roommates and I are having a party tonight! Most of our fellow Teach For America corps members live on other parts of the island, so tonight, they are coming to the Windward side for a change. It should be a fabulous time (and infinitely better than researching and composing a literature review on the impact of different types of instruction of mathematics problem-solving in students with learning disabilities)!

So Cute

2008-03-05T04:41:00.000-08:00

Student: "I am so glad I was born in this century, because we have math and calculators and Xboxes. Well, except for that TV [points into corner of classroom, where our old-fashioned school TV is]. That is like from George Washington."

Writing a research paper...

2008-03-02T20:33:00.000-08:00

Research papers are no fun...

Found a church

2008-02-24T20:13:00.000-08:00

It only took me seven months, but I managed to find a great church really close to my house. It's called St. Ann's on Haiku Road. I wanted to go there and check it out, and I loved it - it's big and beautiful, and all the people seemed really nice. I guess that generic description could fit any Catholic church, but trust me, it's awesome!

Reading Log: Hawai'i

2008-02-22T00:28:00.001-08:00

Yeahhh, Kaneohe Public Library!

I thought it would be fun to keep track of the books I have been reading since coming to the Aloha state. Some are from the library, some are not. I was originally recording the dates, but have given that up. I also didn't start recording until February 2008.

Completed Books
Bass Ackwards and Belly Up by Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain
Get Well Soon by Julie Halpern
Anatomy of a Boyfriend by Daria Snadowsky
Boy Toy by Barry Lyga
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Gone Baby Gone by Dennis Lehane
Atonement by Ian McEwan

Currently Reading
A Whistling Woman by A.S. Byatt
Elements of Style by Wendy Wasserstein
loosing my espanish by H.G. Carrillo

Voting in Hawaii

2008-02-21T02:47:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I voted in the Hawai'i Democratic Caucus. It was pretty crazy! A ton of people showed up.
So two precincts, including mine, had to vote outside.

A little chaotic, but we got the job done!

Fired up & Ready to Go!

Quotes from Class

2008-02-19T13:18:00.001-08:00

"Hey you're fat!" (One student totally randomly poking another student (who is quite skinny, btw) on the stomach)

"We like you as a teacher...it's just, you make up some WEIRD dances"

"It's not what your teacher can do for you, it's what you can do for your teacher" - Student X (I laughed for 10 minutes)

"We can prevent global warming" (in response to what we can do to have better behavior in class)

:-)

2008-02-11T22:23:00.001-08:00

I am so lucky, I got ANOTHER amazing care package in the mail today! Thank you Aunt Tami, Pap, & Grandma - I looove all the cool stuff, and my students do, too :-) This is perfect timing cause I was just starting to run a little low on pencils and paper, and I looooove the dice that lights up!! Soooo cool!!! And the socks, bandannas, and everything. I have the best family ever :)

super tuesday 08

2008-02-06T23:36:00.000-08:00

School is kind of crazy right now, but I forced myself to leave early on Tuesday to go to a watch party in Honolulu for the Barack Obama campaign. Since I saw his speech at the 2004 DNC and then read Dreams From My Father (and later his second book, The Audacity of Hope), I have been an Obama supporter. I saw Obama speak in Cleveland last spring, and was totally inspired. Even though he wasn't there, this event was no different - I left feeling re-inspired and motivated.

When I arrived, I signed in, registered as a Democrat in Hawaii (I had already registered to vote at City Hall, but I didn't register as a Dem yet) and saw a line for phone banking. Two other young girls were looking for a place to sit in the already-crowded restaurant and bar, so I joined them. They were making phone calls, so I decided to, too. A middle-aged man offered us seats at his table, so we joined them. It turns out the girls were actually high school students, not even old enough to vote yet! This was our first campaign. The man was a professor at a local college. Throughout the night, I saw a crowd composed of people young and old, of all different ethnicities, of all different backgrounds, but we were all there for the same reasons. As I waited in line in the women's room, an older woman told the rest of us, "He's SO much like Bobby Kennedy." I had known that some friends were planning on going, but we also ended up seeing even more people we knew. One of my friends told a story of an Obama volunteer who is a registered Republican, working to get Barack elected. "That doesn't happen," we remarked. But with this campaign, it does. I know I'm young and don't know much about politics - but even I can see that this is not a traditional campaign.

My own phone banking experience was pretty anti-climactic - it was early afternoon, and most people weren't home from work yet, so I left a lot of messages. But it was cool to do something, even though it was very small. Obama's sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, was there, and spoke to the audience briefly about the campaign and what the support of Hawai'i means to the candidate. She was extremely gracious and friendly, coming around to greet almost everyone in the packed bar with a hug and a kiss.

The best part was seeing CNN put up the names of the states Obama had won, and all of us getting even more excited and hopeful. YES WE CAN!

Mo' car troubles

2008-01-30T20:18:00.001-08:00

I think most of you know that I recently had to get my radiator & all associated parts replaced, which reallllly burned a hole in my pocket. Well, the hole is getting bigger: my car wouldn't start last night, so I took it to the Good Year. Apparently, I need a new alternator as well. And guess what? There are no alternators for my 2002 Dodge Intrepid on the island. Sweet!

So my car is at the Good Year for the next 5-7 business days...and I have a rental car from Enterprise. More money. Eeeeek.

On the plus side, while I was waiting for my car, I finally joined the Kaneohe library. :-)

CHEGG!

2008-01-19T12:57:00.000-08:00

I just "rented" my textbooks for this semester from Chegg.com. It seems like an awesome website; they plant a tree for every book you rent. My trees will be planted in Guatemala. Fun!

So now, at the end of the semester when I have a ton of education books I will never open again cause I'm way too overwhelmed by all the OTHER materials I have for school, I can just send the books back, cause they're just rentals. And I saved a ton of $$ cause I didn't buy them, just rented them. Yay!

Also, my students LOVE all the new toys I brought back from the mainland. Thank you Pap & Grandma for the fun math & phonics toys and games!

Aloha

2008-01-11T02:03:00.000-08:00

Aloha everyone! I made it back to Hawai'i last night around 6:30 PM.

Today was errand day, but all I really had to do was get my oil changed and deposit a check at FHB. The Jiffy Lube attendant said the wait time would be about 1 hr & 45 min, but I was prepared, and set myself up at Starbucks. I started working on a project I had been thinking about.

Two hours later, I picked my car up and decided to go back to the Starbucks before going to the bank. This was at 2:30 PM.

Seven hours later and twenty minutes later, one of the Starbucks baristas came up to me to let me know that the 'bux was closing in 10 minutes.

That's right. I spent 9.5 hours (minus the 10 minutes it took to walk back to the Sears, pay for the oil, and go back to Starbucks) at Starbucks today, and I never made it to the bank. But I did finish a feature-length screenplay! It came in at 81 pages, formatted in Final Draft, the screenwriting software. That's a little short (I've read that average feature-lengths are 90 - 120 pages) but I am excited that I actually finished one, and told a whole story. Then I registered it with the WGA and sent a copy to an independent producer. So who knows, maybe some day it will be on the screen! Although I'm working on a lot of projects, this is the first feature-length screenplay I wrote totally by myself.

Other exciting developments are underway for my other projects, but I'll talk about them later.

HOME was soo much fun!!! Thank you to my family for some amazing Christmas presents, for me AND my students (and my Steelers-fan-neighbors!!) When we start school again Monday, they will be very pumped!

Tomorrow we have a work day, then I have two meetings. Also, I'm super bummed because I wanted to go to a Barack Obama meeting on Saturday in Honolulu, where his sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, will be speaking, but I can't go. Unfortunately, I will be in Honolulu, but I'll be at the University of Hawai'i taking two PRAXIS tests about special education law. Ughhhh. I already passed the general PRAXIS last year, but these ones are content specific, and I have never learned most of the topics that are on it. So this should be interesting.

So far I have not seen a gecko, and I have taken 1 shower, been in three different rooms, three stores, and a mall. So this is exciting. However, I see the most geckos in the classroom, so I will let you know how that goes.

Also, I want to let everyone know that Ms. Lora Doleh and I received Honors in Psychology at Case Western Reserve University, but our names were inadvertently not asterisked in the program during Commencement. So I'm just putting that out there, for the world to know, that Elyse and Lora got honors for our senior psychology theses. Lora actually wrote TWO theses, one in Religion (which she also got honors for) and one in Psychology. My thesis was not as awesome, but it still got honors, even though you would not know that from the program. We aren't bitter at all. So I just wanted to put this public service announcement out there.

Wow. That was a really long post. Thanks for reading! Love y'all! (I no longer say 'you guys' as we're moving away from that in education). I wonder if y'inz is gender-neutral...not that I would ever say that, though.

P.S. How awesome was Obama's Iowa win? If you are on My Barack Obama, friend me!

Test Post

2008-01-02T20:08:00.001-08:00

This is just a test!

Also, I am home for the holidays for a few more days.

I went to Cleveland on Dec. 28 and it was AMAZING! Details to follow soon, hopefully?
Lunch with some Case people on Saturday, I also did this a few weeks ago with the gals - Val, Lauren, Cassie, Jenna, and Jenn (me and Jenn couldn't take 48 hours apart, haha). It's amazing to be home, I kind of don't want to go back.

another student x story :)

2007-12-13T23:12:00.000-08:00

Student X: Did you know that Tutu means grandma in Hawaiian? My mom told me that.
Me: Oooh yeah!! I forgot about that, but I read that in one of Barack Obama's books. Wait...I wonder how you say grandpa. Do you know?
Student X: I don't know - oh wait, I got it - it would be funny if it's wonwon.
Me: How do you know that?
Student X: Haha, do you get it?
Me: Uh...
(not getting it at all)
Student X: If Grandma is Twotwo, Grandpa is Oneone...

hahahahahahha...this kid cracks me up!!

2007-12-07T18:38:00.000-08:00

This week we totally lucked out. Not one, but TWO days off! Due to fallen trees & the power outages, school was canceled on Wednesday and Thursday. Today, there were tons of absences in every class because a lot of families still don't have power or thought that school was closed again - two of our feeder elementary schools were closed again.

Coming up - quarterly math assessments, WINTER BREAK!!!!!!, a meeting in the CLE, and Carla's visit in January!!

Blackout in Kaneohe

2007-12-05T20:38:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I was completely and totally spent. When I got home from work around 8:30ish, I went into my bedroom and passed out. I woke up around 1:30 AM to complete darkness. I figured it was just because it was the middle of the night, but then when I went to find my computer, I realized that the power was out - everywhere. Raging winds were slamming up against the sides of our house, and I couldn't get back to sleep. Finally, sometime around 4:30 AM, I fell back asleep. Since I live about 30 miles from where I teach, when I woke up again, I figured there was no chance my school was closed. I got ready clumsily (still in the dark) and just as I was about to step out the door, the EA who works with me (and a living godsend for all the amazing work she does in my class!) called me to tell me that school was...
CANCELED!!!!!!!!!!
Needless to say, I was very happy. We got our power back around 4:30 PM, but before that, I read TWO BOOKS. There was no Internet, my laptop battery died pretty quickly, cell reception was spotty, and the traffic lights were out, so I thought it best to stay put. So I read.

Later, when one of my roommates, Candice, came home, we went to take pictures of this giant tree that was overturned during the storms. It's on Hui-Iwa street, the street that leads to our road, Hui-Kelu.

Intense.

And the news said to expect more heavy storming tonight...eeek...

I have to record this for posterity

2007-11-29T15:02:00.000-08:00

"How bad do you have to go the bathroom?"
"Ehh..."
"I know! I'll say 20."
"20? That's like pooping and peeing at the same time!"

"You know what you have to do? This will relax you. Go to Walmart. And then get a LOT of cases of Budweiser."

"Student T, I don't know where you came from..."
"He came from his mom!"

feliz dia de accion de gracias

2007-11-22T12:28:00.000-08:00

happy thanksgiving!! a bunch of people have commented on my dearth of posts over the past couple of weeks...life is definitely pretty crazy with IEPs, meetings, paperwork, university stuff, TFA stuff, and of course, school! not much is new, though...I am going to my friend Maggie's house and her mom, who is in from Texas, is making us Thanksgiving dinner. I'm also webconferencing in to the Moretti family Thanksgiving celebration :) and right now we've got the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV...it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!

John you will think this is funny...

2007-10-30T23:22:00.000-07:00

It's slightly awkward teaching Spanish when I don't know the language very well. It's even more awkward that some of my students are fluent Spanish speakers. Actually, it's awesome in most cases - they are really great and help the students. But today, it ended up causing a minor commotion.

I was reading aloud our pen pal letters from Prof. Josue Sanchez de San Pedro, Costa Rica and his class. Some of his students were being little tricksters. They wrote about their life in the Tipton Hotel. I thought this was a little strange, but didn't make much of it. I read one letter from a little boy named Zack who had a brother named Cody and a friend named Maddie. As I read it out loud, my students started laughing hysterically.

It turns out, those little pranksters were impersonating the characters of the Disney Channel show "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody." Not only did I have two letters from "Zack", I also had another one from "Cody"...ayiyiyi. But it was even funnier because one of the letters said the Tipton Hotel was in London, and another said it was in NYC. My oh-so-observant students wrote in their replies, "Nice try- we know the Tipton Hotel is in BOSTON. In English, we call that being a poser."

Oh yeah - the minor commotion wasn't about that. The minor commotion was when I didn't understand a part of a letter (they came mostly in English, since Prof. Sanchez's students are learning English, but there was also some Spanish) and asked a native Spanish speaker to translate. He started to read it out loud, and all the Spanish - speakers started to gag. Basically, the sentence said "I like to eat boogers and vomit" in Spanish...and I had NO IDEA! I guess I need to figure out how to screen the Spanish more carefully.

ay de mi...

2007-10-25T15:30:00.001-07:00

Today in math class, I just started cracking up. I could not stop laughing. This is a typical sequence of events:

Me (explaining that I had to go to a training tomorrow): I'm not going to be here tomorrow.
Student X: Was it something we said?
[Student Y jumps out of seat, runs into the wall, flies into the air and crashes down onto the floor.]
Student Z: That's our Student Y!

Sundayyyyyy

2007-10-21T20:38:00.000-07:00

I just got a math CD from 1998 to load on my computer (yaaaaaaaaaay!!! it has been giving me troubles) and now I can generate assessments very easily :) I might stay here a long time tonight, hahaha. Tonight = unit planning, long-term planning on the calendar, assessment-making, and finally fixing up the Under the Sea Assessment stuff.

Updates on Life:
U of Hawaii stuff - big project due this week, 2nd observation by my professor (eek)
School stuff - ALLL of my students moved to the island of Kauai!! This means they mastered their individual goals for the first Quarter. I'm so proud of them :) IEPs are still kicking my butt. As is everything else. But I still have the best kids. Also, Spanish class is going a little better, I think (I hope!)
TFA stuff - Also kicking my butt. But I have an awesome program director :)
Home - I will be home on Friday, December 21!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Island Fever - I didn't understand it when I moved here. But now, I get it. I really get it.

COME VISIT ME!!!!!!!! :) Email me for details!

Things I Miss About Mainland Living, Part 1

2007-10-15T21:26:00.000-07:00

Returning to your desk, taking a shower, or just simply being in any room and not having to worry about geckos who are EVERYWHERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

update

2007-10-11T23:48:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I left at 5:20...not quite 5. But I'm at home now watching "The Office" and I am seriously cracking up sooooooo hard I barely have time to breathe...if you haven't seen "Launch Party" you need to go to nbc.com and watch it NOW :-)

5 PM!!!!!!!

2007-10-11T19:21:00.001-07:00

I'm probably jinxing myself by posting this, but it's 4:21 PM and signs point to me being able to LEAVE BY 5 PM TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ALSO WE HAVE TEXTBOOKS :-D And they're really, really awesome ones too!

"Computers are about trying to murder you in a lake" - The Office

2007-10-05T22:57:00.000-07:00

Some of you may have been wondering how I still manage to get lost even with a GPS. Like Michael Scott, I sometimes lack common sense and put a little too much faith into machines. Fortunately, I have never driven into a lake...yet.

"The Office"/Spanish Presentations/So Much Work

2007-09-27T23:38:00.000-07:00

We don't have a working TV right now and I was at school anyway, so I am currently watching "The Office" Season 4 premiere...and I CAN'T STOP LAUGHING. It's hilarious!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My favorite part of Spanish presentations today:

Student X's group members elbow him as they deliver their cultural presentation on Argentina onstage, in the auditorium, in front of the principal and other teachers, letting him know it's his turn.
Student X: The food of Venezuela...
Me (from the audience): Pssst! Student X! ARGENTINA!
Student X: Huh?
Me (pointing at the screen next to him): ARGENTINA! You're doing Argentina!
Student X: Ooooh! Right! The food of Argentina...is very tasty. I haven't actually had it, but I think it's very tasty. You see, I forgot to research my topic last night because I was-

Students in audience: STOP Student X! We don't want to hear your whole life story!

It was amazing...haha...

Fall Break starts tomorrow...except I just got a billion more assignments...ick. Countdown to Christmas?

JKJ to answer your questions, I feel like it's going awful, haha. I have no idea what I'm doing and I don't know if they're getting anything...they seem to be doing okay on the grade tracking though so that's good...thanks!

Regarding a Westinghouse Pencil

2007-09-26T02:06:00.000-07:00

"Miss, where did you get this?"
"Oh, that's from my family."
"Where's it from?"
"Oh, that's from where my grandfather worked. He sent it to me."
"Miss...no offense, but how do you have a grandfather who's still living?"

FALL BREAK...

2007-09-23T14:02:00.000-07:00

So close I can TASTE it...

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, & Friday are teaching
Wednesday is some kind of day where only teachers go in...

then Oct. 1 - 5 are FALL BREAK! AHHHHHH!

Ayiyi...

2007-09-20T20:35:00.001-07:00

Female Student: He said women should be in the kitchen! But I know PLENTY of great chefs who are MEN!

North Shore Pictures

2007-09-16T15:30:00.000-07:00

Click on the picture for more!

amazing day on the island

2007-09-16T01:31:00.001-07:00

Today I realized something: no matter how hard I work or how many hours I work, there is still more to do. So I need to take SOME time off, and just keep working really hard the rest of the time. So after another late Friday night at school, I decided to hang out today with Candice and her friends from CA who are visiting for a few days. We had an awesome day all around the island - pics soon!

I have to share an excerpt from one of my students' essays. I assigned him a 3-paragrah, 5-sentences-per-paragraph essay on why we need to respect both men and women after he screamed out, "WOMAN" to the EA in my classroom (education aide). The student still insists that he was asking how to spell woman and I misheard him, but regardless, the way he said it needed to be addressed!

"Even if you are not a female you still should respect them because you could of ended up as a girl. Besides if you dont respect your mom you will get in trouble. Men are the same as women because they have similar things like heart, lungs, and all that stuff. That was one reason why you should respect men and women. . . Yesterday I did not show respect. I did not show respect because Mrs. Moretti thought I offended a women by calling her women. Next time I should speak loud and clear."

Somehow, I don't think he quite got the point...

MAKING GREAT GAINS!

2007-09-14T01:28:00.000-07:00

This was the document we signed today as a class :-) I seriously have the best students ever. They are amazing and they are what keeps me motivated...but it's been pretty rough. Soooooooooooooooooo much to do...sooooooo exhausted....today was another pretty long day, 5:45 AM - 9 PM.

2007-09-13T12:23:00.000-07:00

No, you may NOT do construction on my room DURING OUR TEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1st Math Test

2007-09-13T00:14:00.000-07:00

First math test tomorrow!
I'm way more nervous than I have ever been about one of my own math tests...ayiyiyiiiii

another birthday!

2007-09-11T02:59:00.002-07:00

Happy Birthday, JKJ! Now when are you and Megan gonna come visit to celebrate? :-)

wild friday night

2007-09-07T22:25:00.000-07:00

It's 7:25 PM Hawai'i time. Just grabbed dinner with two veteran teachers and I'm staying for a few more hours to do some work. According to them, it doesn't get easier. You just get used to the work. Oh, man...

Seriously, they are amazing. They've been doing this for years, but they still are giving it their all. I really respect them and I'm lucky to have them as my mentors.

But yeah, that's my wild and crazy Friday night :-)

2007-09-07T20:31:00.001-07:00

I GOT KEYS :)

2007-09-06T05:36:00.001-07:00

Still no keys...

Happy Birthday, Dad! And Happy Birthday, Julie (yesterday)!

Hmm...

2007-09-04T22:55:00.000-07:00

Now I have a door.
But I have no key to my new door.

Um...

2007-09-04T16:57:00.002-07:00

Today I walked into my classroom and I didn't have any doors.

John - My first Cleveland connection!

2007-09-01T12:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday at UH orientation, I met two of my professors who used to teach at Kent State! Then I met a woman who lived in Cleveland for 18 years and DJed at WRUW...

I'm actually in class right now...I need to start paying attention.

the three-ring circus

2007-09-01T12:34:00.000-07:00

At any given moment, my class is a three-ring circus. You've got construction noises blaring through the unfinished windows, rain or sunlight pouring in through the unfinished windows, either drenching us or making it difficult to see, students coming in and out at the wrong times because their schedules keep changing (and sometimes no one tells the kids), math and Spanish papers flying around because of the wind coming in through the windows, which need to be open even when they are finished, since we are in a sweltering portable classroom, problems going on, office aides coming into the wrong room, and phone calls for the wrong person since I've switched classrooms so many times.

ay de mi...

still overwhelmed

2007-08-28T23:37:00.000-07:00

Still pretty overwhelmed...conducted my first IEP meeting today...I think it went okay...now time to write it...eeeek.

My New Classroom!

2007-08-22T20:37:00.001-07:00

I loooove my new classroom! Today was Wednesday, advisory day, which means we don't have class and instead do educational activities. Every teacher gets a random mix of students from a particular grade, so they are all big general ed groups. There are schoolwide activities, and then activities the teacher gets to plan, so we had a mini-creative convention: math challenge, perform a song, build a structure that can support the most pennies/books, and Presidents questions. I was very impressed by my creative students! They had to write a song that incorporated India, video game makers, and recycling. My students are obviously the best :-)

Here's a sampling of the lyrics:

Push it, push it, to the limit, limit

Cause we're in it to win it

Oh yeah,

We need to recycle, everyday

Don't litter

What, what, we gotta show them now

We gotta show them how

we recycle

Put it, put it

In the garbage,

Garbage

Oh yeah

(to the tune of Disney Channel's "Push It to the Limit")

and

We recycle

With our bycicale!

We bake cake

With our brakes!

and

Hi my name is Ruem and I live in Purem

I make video games all day

I guess it's a delay

cause that's what my wife says

and

Da na Da na Da na Da na

Somethin somethin somethin

Video game tester in India

and

Here's a rap for you and me!
Let's go to India and see what's happening!

It's the game house, yo yo yo

I'd like to see what's in da game house!

Oh! datz sweet!

There's a game tester it's hard to see!

Oh my God it's Halo 3!

Let me play!

So I can be out of my misuri!

Fun Times!

2007-08-19T07:59:00.001-07:00

After a long day of errands, grading papers, planning, and TFA work, I went out with Maggie and Jenn to Moose McGillicutty's in Waikiki--very fun! Then when we got back, we 'talked story' (Hawai'ian term for talking and chatting) with our awesome neighbors until right now. It is 5:00 AM.

TIME FOR SLEEP! Tomorrow = more planning and prepping...

Universe: 1, Elyse: 0

2007-08-18T15:50:00.000-07:00

After spending 1.5 hours of the school day on Thursday and a considerable amount of time on my day off yesterday at the bank, after every customer service representative imagineable that the checks were somehow lost (and after one even insinuated that my roommates may have stolen them) and that the best course of action would be to open a new account, guess what arrived in the mail today?

The original checks. Thank you, Universe.

More Good Times in Sixth Grade

2007-08-16T19:54:00.000-07:00

I accidentally incited a major panic in my 6th grade Spanish class today. Every day, as they come in and work on the first activity, I play a different type of Spanish music. Today, one of my students brought in a Selena CD. As I was explaining what Selena's music was known for and how her life was celebrated in a movie starring Jennifer Lopez, one student raised her hand and asked, "Didn't she die? Didn't her best friend kill her?" and I started to explain that yes, it was a very big tragedy and that one of her managers and friends killed her, but that she is remembered for her music. Hands shot up and immediately people got very upset.
"JENNIFER LOPEZ IS DEAD?!"

So then I had to establish that Jennifer Lopez is alive and well. And then we wrote to our pen pals in Costa Rica! And then I went to the car inspector so I could get collision insurance and then I went to the bank so I could close my account because my checks were lost in the mail and I need to get a new account number but it took way too long so I have to go back tomorrow and then I called the free clinic so I can get a TB test so I can send in a complete form to UH - Manoa so I can register for fall classes so I can send in another form to get health insurance. And then I got papers notarized so I can send in papers to the DOE so I can finally get paid sometime soon. And then I attempted to search for a post office so I could send the letters to the pen pals in Costa Rica but failed miserably so that will have to wait til tomorrow.

Hurricane Watch 2K7

2007-08-14T18:57:00.000-07:00

So far, Oahu isn't expected to be affected at all by Hurricane Flossie. So I'm good :-) No worries! And the earthquake happened on the Big Island, not here, so don't worry about that, either.

I need to express my excitement that a bunch of LOST scenes were filmed RIGHT NEXT TO OUR HOUSE (before we lived there, though).

Please note the similarity of my pictures to the LOST pictures:

http://www.lostvirtualtour.com/lost/filming_locations/byodointemple/index.html

I KNEW that temple looked familiar! (Okay, actually I had no idea. But it's so beautiful I had to take lots of pictures!) And there is a picture on the website of the entrance from the Kahekili highway--that's literally the turn right before the turn to our street!

Also, one of the teachers at the school my roommates both work at has a son who is one of the babies that portrays Aaron (Claire's baby) on LOST. So crazy!

Still at school...lots of work to do...

Sunburn

2007-08-13T20:43:00.000-07:00

While trying to teach a math class...

Student raises hand.
Me: Yes?
Student #1: Miss Moretti, did you get burnt this weekend?
Me: Oh, yes, a little bit.
Student raises hand again.
Me: Yes?
Student #1: Did you go to the beach this weekend?
Me: Uh, no, I was just in my house.
[I was trying to say that I stayed in this weekend but laid out on our deck.]
Another student raises hand.
Me [hoping the next question is about math]: Yes!
Student #2: Miss Moretti, I think you need to get a new light in your house if you get burnt from it.

2007-08-10T02:24:00.001-07:00

I've been really busy lately...everything is going okay, just really tough. I can't believe the amount of work I have to do...my kids are rockstars though :-) It's really tough to be the teacher and authority figure though, because they are all so interesting and creative and diverse. I just like talking to them and getting to know them. But we have a lot to cover and not nearly enough time!

I'm definitely learning a lot.

Reasons Why Monday Was A Good Day

2007-08-07T03:15:00.000-07:00

1. Less than 40 kids in 8th period
2. Productive classes all day (six periods)
3. Only got lost for two hours
4. It's trash pick-up day (pictures coming soon!)
5. Thanks to #4, I now have a new lamp, chair, and our apartment has a BBQ, air hockey table, lamp, and lots of items for our classroom.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh sOOoooo much to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tomorrow I have to miss school for mandatory Special Education training with the district. And I just finished four papers for U of H as well as an assignment and midterm. Ahhhhhhh.

All Around the Island with Uncle Jimmy

2007-08-05T21:26:00.000-07:00

Another beautiful day in the neighborhood! I don't think I have mentioned yet how FRIENDLY Hawai'i is. I can't even describe how absolutely wonderful the people we have met are. But there are always some people who go above and beyond to REALLY make you feel at home, and Uncle Jimmy is one of those people. One of my roommates' great aunt and uncle gave her the number of a college friend who lives in our town. She called to ask his advice, and ever since, we have been blessed with soooo much from Uncle Jimmy. I have a bed and a dresser all thanks to him. We have all the appliances and furniture and miscellaneous items we need. And today, he drove us all over O'ahu, bought us lunch and ice cream, and took us to lots of cool places. We had amazing Mexican food at Rosie's Cantina on the North Shore, saw some beautiful views of beaches, the Mormon Temple, and Waikiki, ate delicious ice cream at Bubbie's, and explored the Valley of the Temples, which is right down the road from us. Even though Valley of the Temples is practically in our backyard, we had never been inside, assuming, like most outsiders, that it is simply a cemetary (albeit a beautiful one!) In fact, in the back there is a gorgeous Japanese temple, a giant bell, and lots of scenic views.

It was a fabulous day on the island, and definitely helped make up for yesterday, when I wrote 4 five-page papers for my master's class. Tonight = another assignment and finishing my midterm (it's a summer class), planning ahead for this week, filling out mountains of paperwork for school, university, insurance, etc., grading diagnostic tests, and more fun...

And it's Jenny's birthday today, HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENNY!

More pictures here.

T.G.I.F.!!!!!!!!

2007-08-03T23:16:00.000-07:00

whoa...kind of overwhelmed at the moment, but keeping a positive attitude.
GREAT CHOICES GREAT GAINS!!!!

This weekend I'm going to make the great choices of catching up with all the assignments, planning, paperwork, etc. that have been stacking up. . . eeeeek. I also need to grade the diagnostic assessments of my math class and figure out what areas we need the most work on, and how I can get my class, who are all on dramatically different levels to sixth-grade math.

Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!

Tonight I got to see Meagan, someone I worked with in the I-triple-L last summer at Carnegie Mellon. She's off to Indiana to start a Ph.D. program, but she's from Hawai'i, so she was back for a few weeks before leaving. We went to Bubba Gump's at Ala Moana, and it was way fun! I love Forrest Gump.

I'm going to spend the night in tonight--I need a break!

I also can't believe how exhausted I am after only 1/2 a week of teaching!

Oh and funny story: today I ended up with over 40 sixth graders in a tiny, sweltering portable classroom that only had 35 desks. A lot of them were in the wrong place because of renovation craziness and a confusing schedule format, and I didn't have an up-to-date list so I couldn't bounce them if they didn't belong, because I had no idea. I ended up taking them all outside and I'm not sure what all went on, but I don't think I mentioned a word of Spanish, and the class is Spanish class. Also, since we were outside, I released them when we heard the bell. But it was the elementary school's bell, so I let them out 7 minutes early, and they got sent back...hahaha...craaaaziness.

<3

2007-08-02T22:27:00.001-07:00

I love my kids!!!!!
I'm extremely overwhelmed and going a little crazy but my advisory class is super!!! Tomorrow we start the actual classes, so I'll have my first day of math and world language (Spanish) :-)