Airport

Well, it has been two weeks already and I am back at YVR waiting to board the plane. My mom got us some rootbeer and onion rings before the flight; it was really tasty.

My time in BC was really busy and I didn't get to visit everyone I wanted. However, I had some awesome bonding and conversations with those I did get to see.

<3

Christmas Morning Brunch

Christmas brunch at the Booth's was awesome. I hope when I buy my own house we get close enough with our neighbors where we can all get together on Christmas morning, have champagne, orange juice and wifesaver. There's always good conversation and everyone just chills out. I usually tell people that we visit family Christmas morning without really realizing it.

Christmas Eve Eve

Work today was odd - people coming in and wondering why our size stocks are low.... it's two days before Christmas. Get a toque and consider yourself lucky.

I have most of my shopping done which is good. However, I am really tired. I also have to be at work for 7:30 am tomorrow. Boo earns.

Thoughts from BC

My flight here was horrendous. I had all of the flights I was on delayed and one of them was cancelled. On my first flight (Kitchener --> Calgary) There was someone kicking the back of my seat for the first 15 minutes after takeoff. I turn around to ask the parent of the obnoxious child to please ask them to stop kicking my seat. Turns out that's difficult to do when it's a 90 year old woman complaining about my seat back hitting her knees. I didn't even have the think tilted - it was in it's full upright position.

I finally get to Vancouver after a delay in Calgary and there is an issue with the baggage carousel. It's one in the morning when I land and I didn't get out of the airport until just after two. I finally got home, had something to eat and went to bed - it was late and I was super tired.

My job at West 49 is working out really well, I am meeting some great people. The staff I have worked with so far have been really awesome! We also have some great new products.

So apparently my family thinks is customary to turn the furnace off at night. The thermostat gets turned down to ten at night.... I suppose after living in Ontario (where it's normal to heat your home at night) I am spoiled and not used to depending on a blanket alone to keep me warm.

I got to go for dinner with Sara last night and that was lovely. We got some sushi in White Rock and had a really nice chance to catch up.

Anyway, I need to get to bed soonish - working tomorrow at 8.

Night! <3

Rudolph - Jack Johnson Style

Check out this song!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UE9Y9pSf-c

Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer

had a very shiny nose

and if you ever saw it

you would even say it glows

all of the other reindeer

used to laugh and call him names

they never let poor Rudolph

join in any reindeer games

then one foggy Christmas eve

Santa came to say:

"Rudolph with your nose so bright

won't you guide my sleigh tonight?"

then how the reindeer loved him

as they shouted out with glee (yippee)

"Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer

you'll go down in history."

Well Rudolph he didn't go for that

he said "I see through your silly games"

How could you look me in the face

when only yesterday you called me names?

Well all of the other reindeers man,

well they sure did feel ashamed,

"Rudolph you know we're sorry,

we're truly gonna try to change"

I love this version of the song. Rudolph doesn't take any of the reindeer sh!t. You go Rudolph.

Mama I'm comin' home

Done Work

So it has been called to my attention that I do not blog enough... I will take this into account and try to write more often :)

The last week has been an absolute blur - but I managed to get everything I needed to done for work. I had my last day on Thursday/Friday (I had to go turn in my keys). I spent most of Friday hanging out with my housemates... instead of packing. I packed my whole life up on Friday night/Saturday morning. Paul's dad came to Guelph to collect me and my things and drove me to Waterloo. After getting all of my stuff into the basement of my place in 'Loo I got a lift to Ryan's house with all of the things I need to fly home on Monday.

Speaking of which, I fly home MONDAY! I am really stoked to see my friends and family. The flight itself is not great - but my layover in Calgary includes free wi-fi so I can grin and deal with it. I am so stoked to be starting my job in West 49* for the two weeks I am home. I am looking forward to that job; the work is tons of fun and I get to meet at work with great people.

So about this whole teaching career thing... I really thing I want to teach once I am done university. Having this goal has brought a lot more direction in my life, which I am stoked about. However, I now need to worry about which teachers college to go to and what I want my 'teachables' to be. When you go to teachers college you have a main and secondary teachable. The cool, and weird thing about Ontario Senior High School teachers is they don't have to teach in a subject that is their teachable. So, I could go to teachers college with Math and Chemistry as my teachables but end up getting a job as a Biology teacher.

Moving all of my things made me really tired... I am thinking nap.... mmmm.... nappp...

All work and no friends makes Jessica something something...

Oh Hai

Yesterday I went out for greasy Chinese food with my housemate and it was pretty awesome. We have quite a bit more in common than I think we do and there's always good conversation.

On another note, I have more work to do this weekend than I am quite sure I know what to do with. I have a TON of data entry to get caught up on. I am also sort of avoiding that work - I have been up for about an hour and even though I am really hungry for breakfast I am avoiding going downstairs because I will have to see the stacks of surveys that I have to enter today. Due to all of this work I had to miss the engineering EOT (end of term) party and I will be missing BOAT racing. Boo earns.

I fly home on the 14th and I am really excited to see my brother. He usually picks me up from the airport and we have the best conversations on the drive home. I miss him - a LOT. Maybe he will bring me a Christmas orange when he comes to pick me up.

Speaking of Christmas oranges, I manages to sneak downstairs to get an orange and a banana without looking directly at the piles. This seems to have worked out for me. However, I will soon go downstairs to make myself a cup of tea and then I will have to start in on the stacks.

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Some good stuff!

I went to a school yesterday (http://www.tcdsb.org/schools/senatoroconnor.asp) and it was absolutely lovely. I was doing my presentation for grade 11 and 12 chemistry and physics students. They were super attentive and had a ton of good questions. I was speaking with some of the Science teachers, and it was so cool to hear about their teaching experiences. The teacher that booked me to come in started my day by making me a nice cup of green tea. The presentations went really well.

Here is an issue I am having - I have been presenting in quite a few Catholic schools. In order to be a teacher at one of these schools you have to be Catholic. From what I have seen so far in my travels, the Catholic schools have better resources and newer buildings. Now, this could simply be the trend in the schools I have seen and may not go forward across Ontario. However, I still find it frustrating that where I teach is limited by what I believe. I also find it frustrating that I can not send my (future) children to these (publicly funded) schools. Thankfully I won't have to deal with either of those situations for a while.

Well, I really need to start working on the stacks of paper down stairs - maybe I will post again later.

Ciao.

Teaching

So I went to a school this week and after I was done I was presented with a toque, lanyard, pocket calculator and a bottle of wine. When the teacher handed me the bottle of wine she said "If you go into teaching you're going to need more of this".

During this co-op job I have seen some very different classroom dynamics. Some classes are so into it - I have had students take note during my presentation. I have also had students lay their heads down onto the desk and pretty much ignore my existence. When I come home though, I always love working with students and love what I am learning from them. Every student and every class is different. Some classed need hard rules and deadlines during the hands on activity to get what they need to done. Some classes I just tell them when testing is going to happen and they have everything ready to go.

Side note: The hands on activity is building a space station with the maximum possible total area of solar panels that still fits into a cargo bay (cardboard - brought in a built by me). Students use paper, pipe cleaners, scissors, tape, rulers and toilet paper tubes to make their space station.

I also found somewhere where I can have Chemistry and Earth and Environmental Science as my teachables (http://www.edsw.usyd.edu.au/future_students/postgraduate/mteach/secondary_prerequisites.shtml). This is really exciting for me. All I have to do is find a term to fit in a biology course. Hopefully I will get in there - could be a really cool adventure.

Love and Peace.