Time for Reinvention

So once again I've stuck too many irons in the fire. But I intend to rectify this. Let me back track a little...

Started my third school year teaching in August and finally had my own classroom! Worked diligently to get it organized and had a pretty good schedule going until (enter dramatic music here: da-da-DAA) I was "surplussed" an interesting little thing that happens in this disorganized huge school district of shuffling teachers around because they give parents free reign to shuffle their children from school to school on the basis of a school grade derived from a standardized test that even one of the adult legislators FAILED when he attempted it, and other measures of varying irrelevance.

Now I'm at a brand new building (literally this is the school's second year being open) and starting all over again when I'm supposed to be winding down with this teaching thing. This is a major interference with my business's growth and/or development of new career plans.

For instance, I perhaps rushed into a new business venture because I really like the service. I use it personally and would love to have time to share it with others. However, my day gig (teaching) is screwing with this. So now I feel like I have too many irons in the fire once again.

It's time for some reinvention!

2011 Goals Revisited

It's getting close to the end of the year & I've been in a piss-poor mood a lot lately. Have mainly placed it on the nine more years to my sentence and the fact that I'll be far older than I want to be when I finally get the chance to live, as opposed to simply surviving. Even though I haven't checked out this blog or looked at the goals I posted in December, I've thought about posting often and finally got around to it today. So let's see where am I and try to figure out why I'm...whatever I am.

• Auxiliary pioneer at least one month
  Haven't done this yet officially but came close to the reduced hours. Odd I was supposed to try to reach 30 hours this month but became disheartened after a lackluster showing for early morning witnessing at the beginning of the month.

• Pay off my one remaining credit card balance
  This goal will officially be met by February 2011. Had I not been transferred from the Title I turnaround high school that I'd finally began to feel comfortable at, this goal would have been met exactly at the end of the year. But I'm not complaining, because two months isn't so far past schedule.
  

• Meet the man Jah has for me and at least get engaged (engaged? - yes because there's no point in setting my goals low). Also let's be specific: must love Jah more than me and encourage me to do likewise, makes more $ than me (I'm just saying this guy is older than me so there's no reason he shouldn't make at least 40K a year - that's not greedy/materialistic!)
  This is the source of my grumpiness and general malcontent. I still love *him* but can't have *him*.
  I tried finding someone else using a site; it doesn't work for me. Met a creep (not face to face), Africans (call me whatever you want, but I don't want anything directly from that continent because I have the feeling they're looking for a green card), and a guy that I talked to for a while.
  "MR" was nice, employed, encouraged me spiritually, is an elder, made money, was looking to buy a house, and unfortunately I suspect outside of my age range and looking for the mother of his future children. After the one I made the mistake of conceiving, I don't intend to repeat that mistake. Also there was no spark and a lot of the time I got the feeling he had been sent to convince me that the JW dating scene is hopeless...at least for me anyways because I refuse to settle.
  So I'm not engaged and not even close. Every now and then I hear from *him* and he still thinks of me. Which compounded with other people getting engaged & married this year, intrusive individuals making comments about my personal life, and the barrage of other ineligible guys flirting only makes me pray & wish more fervently that I could have him now...

• Stick to my weekly home upkeep routine (it's gotta be nice to rent out once I get engaged and start moving out, lol)
  Well this one is going well except for the nasty neighbor's pest problem temporarily becoming mine & another neighbor's problem and the child's destructive and disobedient impact. I'm cautiously optimistic for more home improvements next year to increase the rental value.
  

• Look like "that chick" everyday (get back to taking care of me like I want to: monthly facials, mani & pedi on the regular, and the hair we can't forget about the hair, lol)
  I must have been doing this because people have been noticing (see the goal on getting engaged) even my students at the new high school keep mentioning how clear my skin is or how I rock my natural hair. The mani & pedi part haven't been so regular though.
  

• Improve the quality of service I provide my customers
  You'd have to ask my customers about this one although I'm considering dropping the Avon line since they've made it harder to make money.

• Renew my cosmetology license
  Haven't done...
  
  
• Start working towards National Board Certification as a teacher
  Haven't started...
  
  
• Write - I must write whether it be on either of my blogs, poetry, songs, a novel or short story...I have to write
  LOL I've been writing more lesson plans than anything. Writing shopping and to-do lists doesn't count, does it?
  
  
• Make sure I study with the asp regularly (this is a really hard one!)
  Hasn't been regular, but it has been happening.
  
  
• Create a circle of true friends, people who I can count on to be there for me because they know I'm there for them and ditch the faux friends be they on FB or in real life who do nothing but the occasional "Hi, how are you?" and then ignore you and show so much interest in someone else while still in your company (or worse yet riding in your car...yes I'm talking about an actual incident)
  Well I have reconnected with my friends and cut off a couple of relatives who sought to censor my Facebook post meant for my friends to know that I lost someone close to me over their concern for their spoiled brat of a daughter who is not even a friend of mine. I spent time over the summer with them which unfortunately makes being isolated in Jacksonville with faux friends even more depressing. Yet I'm eagerly planning my next escapes and my permanent removal from this place that Jason Lazenberry (mini-shoutout) warned me about, lol.
  
  
• Avoid letting my depression immobilize me
  I'm off the meds and still functioning so I guess it hasn't completely immobilized me...

So I guess I didn't do so well on the list (7 out of 12 is not passing), but I'm already thinking of things for next year's list...so if you're interested check back later.

Donald Duck In Mathmagic Land ( Part 1 of 3)

I first heard the term "mathmagic" uttered by my department head (a great guy and mentor). The conversation was about the creative things our students do that have no logical basis; instead of mathematics they use "mathmagic". I'm sure he had seen this before but am I glad Youtube seems to have almost every video you can ask for.

Check out the other parts after watching this clip.

2011 Goals

In no particular order:

• Auxiliary pioneer at least one month
• Pay off my one remaining credit card balance
• Meet the man Jah has for me and at least get engaged (engaged? - yes because there's no point in setting my goals low. Also let's be specific: must love Jah more than me and encourage me to do likewise, makes more $ than me (I'm just saying this guy is older than me so there's no reason he shouldn't make at least 40K a year - that's not greedy/materialistic!)
• Stick to my weekly home upkeep routine (it's gotta be nice to rent out once I get engaged and start moving out, lol)
• Look like "that chick" everyday (get back to taking care of me like I want to: monthly facials, mani & pedi on the regular, and the hair we can't forget about the hair, lol)
• Improve the quality of service I provide my customers
• Renew my cosmetology license
• Start working towards National Board Certification as a teacher
• Write - I must write whether it be on either of my blogs, poetry, songs, a novel or short story...I have to write
• Make sure I study with the asp regularly (this is a really hard one!)
• Create a circle of true friends, people who I can count on to be there for me because they know I'm there for them and ditch the faux friends be they on FB or in real life who do nothing but the occasional "Hi, how are you?" and then ignore you and show so much interest in someone else while still in your company (or worse yet riding in your car...yes I'm talking about an actual incident)
• Avoid letting my depression immobilize me
• etc...

Capricious Thoughts

I saw a link to this awesome Cleveland Show clip on Jorge Garcia's blog (Dispatches from the Island) this weekend. And wouldn't you know, I am still singing the song in my head. Check it out!







Everytime I watch it's still funny. And yes, I know I'm like a month late with this. But considering that I don't watch TV much anymore (I hear the shocked gasps) except for Lost (hence my following Jorge's blog), Dirty Jobs, and Deadliest Catch (R.I.P. Capt. Phil Harris [:.(] ) I miss a lot. But most of the time, that's a good thing; as this world gets worse and worse there are fewer and fewer things worth watching on TV. (I'll probably rant about this in a later blog.)

I must definitely enjoy my job because I woke up this morning and it was one of the first things on my mind. The very first thing...well I can't talk about that. (Too much like a guy that way, lol.)

But back to my job...I hope this feeling lasts and I never become one of those jaded teachers. You know the type, show up for the check, out the door before the kids when the bell rings, you can't tell them nothing because they've been 'teaching for _ # of years.'

Hmm...what else? Since I'm blogging again, I guess I'll export my other personal blog to this one so there will be some redesigning and a lot more content coming in the next few months. Besides Myspace is so dead!

Probably should combine my business blogs too...

Oh yeah and started working out again (finally) and evidently I either terribly out of shape or just worked out too long because I felt naseous for the rest of the evening. Oh well, the benefits outweigh the costs so I guess I'll have to stick with it.

Ok so I misspoke

I took a few moments and read my previous postings & decided not to procrastinate. True I still have "a million and 10 things" on my plate but this is therapeutic and seeing as I'm in therapy...why not get more on a more convenient schedule.

(Yes, I did say therapy; more on that later.)

As is obvious from the months delay to post the PC battle and my post minutes ago, I'm teaching. I was passed over by every middle school and ended up being hired at a high school on the Thursday of the week before school began. (AAGGHHH!!!!) But Jah knows best (as always :D ) and high school is the place for me and the schedule works out very well. I'm still learning the ropes and now my EPI classes, while still very helpful, can't be over soon enough so I can have my weekends back.

This weekend classes thing only added to an underlying problem that's been going on for months now and recently blew up in my face. So that setback along with some unreconciled issues from my past (which I guess I have to stop avoiding and deal with to move on with my plan from an earlier post [not guess, know]) explains the therapy...and the meds. Ok maybe TMI. But hey at least I'm not like this guy all the time anymore...

I call him the "Suicidal Orange"; he's gonna juice his brains out, lol.

I'm a teacher!

That's the only new and good news.

Lots more to follow this summer...perhaps ;)

Quick updates

I have a million and 10 things on my plate right now and no desire for seconds. Yet I'm taking a second to update a blog, that no one reads, with some info about what's been going on since the last post.

The jumpstart of my professional educator classes went well. I had to miss one day due to the day job which I hate. Oh yeah, and I got sick; I had terrible headaches and nausea on and off for the past couple of weeks.

I'm closer to teaching but I feel farther away due to being passed over by a couple of middle schools. On top of the career change stress, had PC drama which will be posted here, probably next week unless I get the position I'm interviewing for tomorrow. Here's hoping that post won't make it on until September.

Life Changes and the First Week

So my focus shifts every now and again.



First week of EPI classes were wonderful.

News Bulletin

I leave for my grandparents this weekend. Yeah!
My EOC classes start next week. Yeah!
I'm planning an event for the single sisters that hopefully will become a monthly event. Yeah!

Let's see more random headlines:
I watched a portion of CNN's Black in America 2 last night. I saw the part about this principal (of course I'd see the portion about school seeing as I hope to be teaching next school year) who is highly involved in the lives of the students at his Connecticut prep school. Seriously, this guy was waking up at around 4AM to pick some of these kids up! Talk about commitment and structure. I admire that kind of structure and part of me wants that. But then there's the other side...How to reconcile the two sides is a mystery to me. Anyone else who has a suggestion please send it my way.

School Dayz

Yesterday I spent the whole day @ a middle school & I still want to be a teacher. Take that naysayers!

More info later!!