Baby it's cold outside!
It is quite cold outside, which means in my classroom full of windows and doors is freezing. In the afternoon, when the sun is no longer shining into the windows, we pull down the shades in the hopes of keeping the heat inside and lessening the drafts. The children still mention that it is chilly in the room, which is something I've never heard children say before!
Life in my new kindergarten teacher position is lots of fun. I am getting used to my new later-morning schedule, although I still get up at 6 and enjoy the 2.5 hours I have on some days before I have to leave. It's nice to have the chance to sip some tea and either quilt a line or putz around on my keyboard. Once I'm allowed to open and close, during the week my day will start anywhere from 7:30 to 10, and end from 3 to 6. It will be very interesting with that kind of range, but since it will be on a pretty-much set schedule, my body and brain should get used to it.
My sparring gear should be in soon! Mr. Wong told me it was supposed to be in today, but that it was missing an elbow and knee pad. I guess they're express mailing everything so it should come just in time for class on Saturday. I'm a little excited and scared too. When I fenced, I had a hidden, guttural dread of competing against another person. There just seemed to be too much they could do, and it was tough to feel prepared for whatever the person would bring. Even in jiu jitsu, I was usually on the defensive. Tae kwando seems to emphasize offensive actions, in points and in overall usefulness of actions. I've been wondering if learning this particular martial art will give me the confidence to be more aggressive and take more offensive chances.
LASTLY! The reason why I really wanted to write this post :) I made a bento box that actually looks like something!! I called it "rainy day bento" - snow pea grass, broccoli trees, water chestnut clouds, carrot sun, and black sesame seed raindrops.
It's not particularly varied in ingedient types, but I figure this is putting my foot in the door of creative lunches. I boiled some eggs tonight so I can use them in my bento tomorrow. I'm thinking another simple motif - flower with carrot center and egg petals, snow pea stems, nori leaves, and possibly some peanut satay sauce for a sun.
The upcoming months are so exciting! They are filled with all sorts of fun plans. I feel like I'm at the start of wonderful things, and that everything will fall into place over the next couple of months in the best way possible.
Oh, and also: I just bought Paul Simon's album Graceland the other day. IT IS GENIUS. I could dance to it all day. Superficially it's a bouncy and ecstatic album that forces me to move spontaneously, but listening to the music levels and lyrics reveal how deep and insightful Graceland is as a project. Reading the liner notes is fabulous too - they tell the story of how Simon was inspired by different musicians and types of music to create this masterpiece. If you have never heard it before, DO IT. You won't regret it, I promise!
Life in my new kindergarten teacher position is lots of fun. I am getting used to my new later-morning schedule, although I still get up at 6 and enjoy the 2.5 hours I have on some days before I have to leave. It's nice to have the chance to sip some tea and either quilt a line or putz around on my keyboard. Once I'm allowed to open and close, during the week my day will start anywhere from 7:30 to 10, and end from 3 to 6. It will be very interesting with that kind of range, but since it will be on a pretty-much set schedule, my body and brain should get used to it.
My sparring gear should be in soon! Mr. Wong told me it was supposed to be in today, but that it was missing an elbow and knee pad. I guess they're express mailing everything so it should come just in time for class on Saturday. I'm a little excited and scared too. When I fenced, I had a hidden, guttural dread of competing against another person. There just seemed to be too much they could do, and it was tough to feel prepared for whatever the person would bring. Even in jiu jitsu, I was usually on the defensive. Tae kwando seems to emphasize offensive actions, in points and in overall usefulness of actions. I've been wondering if learning this particular martial art will give me the confidence to be more aggressive and take more offensive chances.
LASTLY! The reason why I really wanted to write this post :) I made a bento box that actually looks like something!! I called it "rainy day bento" - snow pea grass, broccoli trees, water chestnut clouds, carrot sun, and black sesame seed raindrops.
It's not particularly varied in ingedient types, but I figure this is putting my foot in the door of creative lunches. I boiled some eggs tonight so I can use them in my bento tomorrow. I'm thinking another simple motif - flower with carrot center and egg petals, snow pea stems, nori leaves, and possibly some peanut satay sauce for a sun.
The upcoming months are so exciting! They are filled with all sorts of fun plans. I feel like I'm at the start of wonderful things, and that everything will fall into place over the next couple of months in the best way possible.
Oh, and also: I just bought Paul Simon's album Graceland the other day. IT IS GENIUS. I could dance to it all day. Superficially it's a bouncy and ecstatic album that forces me to move spontaneously, but listening to the music levels and lyrics reveal how deep and insightful Graceland is as a project. Reading the liner notes is fabulous too - they tell the story of how Simon was inspired by different musicians and types of music to create this masterpiece. If you have never heard it before, DO IT. You won't regret it, I promise!