PAVEing a Blog

First of all – Paul McCartney LIVE in Mexico – how much better does it get than that?  – Oh yeah, FREE – lol..the Zocolo was amazing – lights, fireworks, nostalgia, perhaps the best concert I have seen – even when I saw The Eagles all on one stage together – this was AMAZING.

Have to say, the students here in struggling have found strength in learning to do it on their own – I so many times wanted to jump in and fix things for them and forcibly pulled myself back – HATED doing it, and they have learned so many things on their own as a result, it is amazing how dedicated and creative they have been and are as they develop our magazine, not just literary but everything artistic you can imagine! I am so proud of them and all the students in my intermingling and diverse career that have helped me stay on track!  They keep removing forward!

Positive versus negative.  I am one of those people that gets wore down by pessimism, and the more I am around it, hear it, feel it, I get bogged down into zones I have never been and never want to remain.  Yet, the more positive and creative, I get this natural energy and adrenaline that can run a marathon without training – that is the power of having powerful and positive people surround you.  🙂  I am grateful I have this opportunity to be in Mexico and enjoy the positive energy so many people generate – this concert brought this out tonight…then there is this to consider…

Bob Dylan for the next two nights, Madonna in all her eccentricity os coming, as well as Def Leppard and Posion, lol!

I originally thought my destiny was to return to Delaware this summer as a working position and a perfect plan, then well, let’s just say people’s conversations occur and I began to realize, if someone wants to do the things they enjoyed when I was there, they need to also pitch in and say, “This is worth continuing” and they will do it, otherwise, it will not be and it never was meant to be continued!  I will always treasure the events that were pulled off and redoing them will not necessarily make them mean the same, I believe the value remind in the times of the past.

I am looking forward to a summer where I return to DE on my own terms, through a different set of eyes, and quietly, to take in things I never was able to see a certain way.  Adding to this, it is so exciting to have a summer that is an open book, for once in my life I get to decide where the road will take me, and this can’t be more exciting than this far of discovering myself and how others have influenced me.

I will not deny “I long for yesterday” and I hope to find some exciting revelations about myself as this summer unfolds as I reclaim much lost time I never had the chance to truly take in!

Paul McCartney’s concert was a journey in realizing all the good things we already have in life too!  🙂

Love this! LOVE!  I will add more as I recall some great one!  Check out the new restaurants too!

http://www.wimp.com/inspirationaltransformation/

Laughing, but so much more!  🙂   A beautiful day, and here is what Cinqo de Mayo truly means  🙂

Origin of Cinqo de Mayo!

Mr. Biden’s mistake….:)  (He did good with making a funny!)

Deb has a great site to stay informed!

http://www.mexicocityexperience.com/news_and_events/upcoming_events

Oh yes, my GOSH Hot – well without humidity but my skin is still hot into the evening – that kind of hot – VERY VERY Hot…okay, you get the idea…:)

While you are trying to say cool, remember, it is STAR WARS DAY!  🙂  

Let’s rewind to my first earthquake feel – oh yes – earthquake in MEXICO – Monday – 2:00 ish, sitting t the tble with friends during brunch…and I swear I am on a roller coaster ride., a minor one, but my feet are slightly swaying from side to side…seriously! 🙂  – I look out and see the streetlamp swaying from side to side…:)  for almost 2 minutes? – That was the queasiest feeling I ever felt and maybe because it is the first one I ever felt, wow – I was a little anxiety ridden – but it was (excuse my choice of words) kind of like, “Yeah!  Finally!  I felt one!” lol.   The rest of the week was just amazing how long a three day week takes – should be short, right?  Putting up pictures and celebrations of the last week’s Book week, contracted some kind of stomach illness and well, needless to say I am still suffering thought that one… but MUCH better than I was a day ago, lol.   I postponed the Dr Betts Vince Morris5k2012 as I wanted to be there,e and I can’t expect others to be there all the time, and run the show, a they have their own responsibilities going on, and I want this to be a GOOD 5k, so thinking of creating this again but near the beach maybe?  Vince loved the beach for his trainings over the summer, and that red umbrella was a staple of Dr. Betts at the Beach, so I think this might be a sign of good things…:)

I need to try and rebuild me strength back this week – my appetite is definitely now coming back the two pieces of broadest night – and warning – NEVER- EVER eat a torta – even if you think it is gong to be okay, and you are hungry, when coming down off an upset Mexican stomach – trust me on this one…:)

SO what did YOU do over the weekend break?  (Can I do it?  or the BRAKE?)

Okay, it was AMAZING! – 🙂

FRIDAY – meeting with my favorite people, the lit magazine staff, and getting forward progress! — then new furniture thanks to the help of Ms Boman, Moct, and Tracy Miller!  🙂    We made it through Friday traffic!

SATURDAY – wow – finishing my Master’s work, then gone to go slack lining at UNUM.  AWESOME.  I am on the yoga and mediation kick to get me back to the running circuit and get my body used to the training.  I loved slack lining!

SUNDAY -chilling with friends on a rooftop terrace apartment with a Texas style SLOW roast (lol) BBQ – YEAH!  –  I brought BACON!  LOL….

MAY DAY!  MONDAY – “breakfast for dinner” with friends and board games!  I LOVE BOARDGAMES!  LOVE THEM! – and almost love the time spent with such fun and relaxing friends…and breakfast for dinner is AWESOME!  A W E S O M E!  🙂 Stuffed to the hilt BOTH days!

TUESDAY – Brunch with friends, good food good times, and a great way to start the week going into a three day week!  🙂  Life is good.  Enough said right?  🙂

Whew.  Take in Battle of the Bands from Delaware in Mexico, a happening environmental week 2 weeks ago, a active packed Open Mic Night, but what else could you possibly want in the month of April?  Well, good you asked…

BOOK WEEK!  🙂

That’s right, take all this in…Monday kicked off the Hunger Games Trivia using Google Docs to keep the next question ready to roll (Thanks Helen!) – Gabriela Garcia heading up awesome cadets and students reading all over campus all week! – Mrs Flynn’s class rocking the book reviews and cafeteria poetry, did we mention the mastermind Trivia that occurred on Thursday? Oh, do not forget the Caught reading pictures you will see next week – the teacher trivia during Advisory on Tuesday, all the events utilized technology in some way, it was GREAT!!  The great display of student projects in the front of the library?  More more more…:)  Moct had a great Twitter poem created, and we just need to work on getting everyone their own Twitter account…not to mention we need to work on the literary dress up for Friday – but whoa!  Was the library rolling and rocking through Book Week or WHAT?  🙂

So where does Slippery Rock fit in all of this?  — 22 students here from Slippery Rock are here in Mexico student teaching…I finally got a chance to meet the advisors – Dr. Jodi Katsafanas and Thomas Gordon that accompany them to Mexico each year.

I was able to stop for 30 minutes (lol) and tell them the story from my graduation in 1998 to present.  Is that possible?  LOL…It is obvious, ever since I graduated from Slippery Rock University, went to Mansfield for the National Writing Project Opportunity, participated in the Journalism Program in Kent State, and so may other additions to education, but starting at Slippery Rock…I was lucky to have a GREAT education, great experiences, and who knew we would meet up again 14 years later in Mexico?  🙂  It did come full circle but thanks to the many qualified educators, my future was set from day one.  It was exciting to see how much Slippery Rock had to do with my future…a debt I could never repay!

April 18th!  ECO FAIR day!  I have to go back and cover THIS!  🙂  We set up shop in the lower multipurpose gym – booths everywhere to celebrate Eco Week, and wow – we had in mind to do the same project we did at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C., taking recycled bottles and turning into wind socks…however….the bottles were taken to be recycled!  LOL…Good and bad, sooo..plan B!

Plan B – Soda bottle Cherry Blossoms! take the bottoms of soda (or pop!) bottles, use the protruding parts (great word) to dip into pink paint, and on a sketch of an already drawn tree, dip the bottle onto the paper for Cherry Blossoms.  Honestly, I had my doubts, it sounded like alot more work than you would get a product….but, ohmygosh!  A Hit!  We were swamped!  SWAMPED.  The US library cadets were AWESOME – they kept pushing through students like crazy, and it was nonstop….I mean NONSTOP….:)

The cadets were awesome, and we even had a few books from the library showing how interdisciplinary the arts, ecology, and the library/literacy can be!  Kudos to the US cadets and Mr Alaniz for creating this opportunity! (We exited just as the 5th graders learned they could combine dirt, soil, (yep!) with paint to get an interesting painting…:)

Mic night Cover

Okay, blast from the past, but the “Gray Poupon” of April 24th was the talent within the Upper School Library.  Lined with laptops previewing the art that would be within the ASF art magazine ““, attendees could view a virtual art gallery, as well as a library full of art from third grade on up.  The catering was excellent, the poetry, short stories, classical music, and look into what ASF has to offer on a level of artistry from 6th grade on up is amazing!  Thanks to the ahead thinking request of Ms Fong, we had a talented young lady there playing violin, which made the night perfect.

I could drop names, but I think in lieu of protecting the students’ identity, you will just have to see the magazine!  🙂  I think it is important you see the cover, at least the cover of the program for this first, and more to come mic night…

I am excited to think, this truly started back when Mr Hamilton and Jack Little, (check out his magazine!) who started by inviting us to a reading at the Mexican City American Legion in Condesa, and it became even MORE popular with the attendance of our students Camila and Ana.  I always wanted to open a bookstore/coffeeshop that appealed to the senses, yet, having the library serve as a meeting place of art and literature was well, it worked and felt perfect!

Mr Hamilton and Sakina were both a hit with French and English translations, (opposed to his poem, “Spanish Translation”), and he as MC was a hit of popular  personality, the speakers were an honor to be around (6th grade to 12th!) , and coming right off a busy and crazy week, the night being a success was more than anyone could ask for.  When we get our art magazine in our hands, we will be incredibly proud and excited to look back and see this journey we have been on blossom into an event that brings all into the fold!  Meeting Justin Smith in Condesa and hearing him read was a gift of the night! We hope that we can get ECC, Lower School, AND MS and US involved next time!  This was a magical night and one to not be forgotten!  We are looking forward to May to present and even more spectacular mic night and showcasing the ASF magazine that will represent all our hard earned work.