Next on my reading list

I finished reading Star Trek - Titan. I liked it. I enjoyed the feeling of continuity. It's was nice having the feeling of the characters growing and developing past the series. I started reading the next book in the series "Red King", but this morning I remembered the H.G. Wells book I brought from Barnes & Nobles a few weeks ago. Before jumping into the continuation of Riker's maiden voyage as captain, I should try again at reading a classic. Remember, I tried to read Kafka, but I just couldn't go beyond Metamorphosis. If I can't get through the H.G. Wells book (The Time Machine and The Invisible Man), then I will fall back to Star Trek - Titan "Red King".

At work, I had my formal observation. Here in NYC, teachers have to be formally observed for at least one lesson at least once a school year. The lesson seemed to go okay minus the couple of students who decided to be a bit difficult. Luckily their "performance" was only brief.

Anything else. Well, I did find something interesting. I have yet to join a gym, but I have cut back on eating school lunches. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that I was losing weight without doing much of anything. Currently, I am about 216.2lbs. A few weeks ago, I was 228lbs. I'm going to see if I can lose another 5lbs by next Friday. I will try to join the boxing gym for the month of June.


Post Date - Saturday, May 23, 2009 2:55PM

The Bronx Zoo

This blog entry will be very short. This week instead of summarizing each day, I can basically sum it up with "Sleep, Stress, and Zoo.

This whole week for one reason or another, I slept very little causing me to need a taxi each day in order to arrive on time. Of the 5 days, Friday's taxi ride was the worst.

The driver seem to not know very much about arriving at my destination, he depended on me to give turn by turn directions. He seemed to catch every light, and ride behind nearly every slow car we could catch. On the block of my destination, a woman was trying to park, but she seemed unsure about what to do, and my taxi driver having rode right up to her car gave her no room to maneuver. Even though a van was able to ride past the "parker", my taxi driver seemed nervous about attempting. Finally, the woman pulled to the side and my taxi driver drove past. When he arrived to the school, instead of stopping in front, he kept driving to the corner to pull over to the curb. Oh, and he wanted to charge me $30 for the trip that usually cost between $12 and $15. Since I was in a rush(and not wanting to be late), I agreed to pay $20.

On Thursday, my class along with a few others went to the Bronx Zoo. For some reason my worst behaved students who knew they weren't going stayed home. One student I should have left was the only one who really messed up. I should have known from her "flip flop" about not wanting to go then changing her mind, she should have been left behind. Normally, she hasn't been a problem on trips, but it seemed as if with so many trouble-makers absent, she decided to take up the "trouble-maker" mantle. She argued, she complained. On the bus back, she got into a mustard throwing incident. Five minutes later, she managed to spill milk from a juice box on her clothes and get some in her hair.

Well, I think that is about it. At almost 3PM, I need to get offline. Oh, I took a few pictures at the Bronx Zoo. I will upload those (as well and some of the ones I took at the Intrepid Museum).


Post Date - Saturday, May 16, 2009 2:53PM

Intrepid

Weekend is just about over. I will try to keep this entry brief, since there are several things I should be doing instead.



Monday, May 4th
Exhausted the night before.
Up at 3AM for email complaint, and never went back to sleep.
Went to boxing gym to sign up. I was told that $160 would get me two days per week boxing lessons. I told the owner that I would take the Tuesdays and Thursday classes. I will have to fill in Mon, Wed., and Fri. with some other workout routine.

Tuesday, May 5th
Another late night/early day with 3 or 4 hours of sleep.
Disruptive kid continued his rein. Told by guidance counselor that one of my students "talker" ran about 3 blocks home out of fear of a group of girls in my class that were bothering her. They were made to apologize, with the parents brought in to "talk'. Later, I found out "talker" walked home by herself. There are details I'm leaving out. I left the building at 8:30PM tired. I did not go to the gym even though I dragged my full granny cart and my gym bag to school.

Wednesday, May 6th
Minutes before our class was due to leave the building for a trip to the Aquarium, AP1 had me meet with the parent of "talker" and one of the girls "taunting her. Since that "running" incident, talker seems to be the cat with the canary. On the trip, she had about two arguments and wandered off twice. Since I'm normally in hawk mode, I saw the wandering before it became anything major. The trip day turned okay. I could have been out of the building early for me (4PM), but after talking with colleagues about an hour standing, I ended up leaving about 5PM. I had Chinese takeout and fell asleep minutes after eating and woke up about 11PM. I didn't go to bed until 4:30AM.

Thursday, May 7th
I don't remember.

Friday, May 8th
My principal had some extra tickets to the Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum and asked if I wanted to go. The trip involved using the subways along with a 20 minute walk. However, walking doesn't bother me, so I was eager to say yes. I was lucky to have a couple of parents come along. One parent was "Talker's" mom. Lately, Talker has been acting like a wandering cat with a canary, so I needed her mother to deal with her. Up until the "running" incident, she had been an extremely talkative (but very nice) girl. Now, she still nice, but now I'm seeing a bit of a malevolent edge that I had not seen before. I was out of the building about 8:30PM.

Oh, I took some photos of the trip. I will upload them at a later date. The attached photo is one taken from the internet. I did not take the attached photo. So, how was the Intrepid Museum? I liked it, but since I was in teacher mode, I couldn't enjoy it. I'll have to return on my own (without the kids).

Saturday, May 9th
Sleep, shower, sleep. Later I finally got out of bed to do my laundry (four loads). I also began to do some lesson planning.

Sunday, May 10th Mother's Day
Again, sleep, shower, and more sleep. Since it was Mother's Day, I had to get up and out. My plan was to make a quick run to pick up a last minute gift for my foster father's lady friend. I decided to get her a prepaid cell phone like the one I have. I tried to get a Mother's Day card, but the shelves were picked clean. I mean there was nothing. Nothing!!! I grabbed a gift bag, and matching tissue paper and a matching ribbon. The color coordinating made the gift look a bit less last minute. No problem other than minor annoyances. In one store, the clerk, opened the plastic case, telling me that he had to do it because it was company policy. I told him that nobody wanted a gift that was already opened. The next stores was invisible me. After a clerk came to me and asked what I interested in, he then proceeded to forget about me in favor of a woman in clothes much too tight wearing too much makeup. Then, he moved on to a guy in the aisle. Only after a guy who might have been the manager came out of the back and got me the phone did the clerk say, oh, I forgot about you. Even though I was standing in the middle of the small shop. I think I might have gotten better surface if I were a woman or spoke Spanish. Then again, it could have just been my imagination.

Well, I better go. Hopefully, I will have a better week.


Post Date - Sunday, May 10, 2009 10:11PM

Movie Day

My weekend was okay. Not great. Not productive. But it was okay. On Saturday I had planned to join a social network group to see the movie "Wolverine". However, I was too tired, and moved too slow. I ended up missing a couple of trains(before I even got out of my pajamas), so I decided to cancel going. Then, I realized reservations for dinner were probably made for the group already , so then I decided to join for the dinner part of the group.

Well, I arrived at the movie theater about 6:50PM. I called the group organizer, but he didn't answer his phone. I waited until 8:00PM, then I sent a text message of where I was standing...again, no reply. I finally left at 8:15PM. I was angry (with myself) for wasting my time. I was also angry that I had paid for my ticket in advance (no refund). That was my Saturday.

Today, I was just going to go to my foster father's place and then return home before the rain started. However, once I got on the train, I decided at the last minute to see the movie Wolverine. When the movie was finished, I left the theater, but when I returned to the lobby, I saw that "Monsters vs. Aliens" was showing in ten minutes, so I got on line to get a ticket and saw that movie. The movie "Wolverine" was okay, not great, or good, but it was entertaining. Once again, it seemed to be made by someone who had no idea what the comic was like and kind of made things up as he (or she) went along). They threw everything in but the kitchen sink to provide a back story. I liked "Monsters vs. Aliens" much, much more. The "Monsters" movie was very entertaining, I laughed several times throughout the movie. I also enjoyed the 3D aspect of the "Monsters" movie. In total, I spent about $40 on my movie day:

Movie ticket (Wolverine) $12.50
Movie ticket (Monster vs. Aliens - 3D) $16.50
Hot Dog (plain) & small popcorn - about $8.00

After the movies, I went to Barnes & Nobles. I liked the start of Star Trek:Titan. So, on another impulse buy, I bought a few books in the series. I wanted some filler for breaks between the Sword of Truth series.

Star Trek Titan - The Red King
Star Trek Titan - Orion's Hounds
Star Trek Titan - Sword of Damocles
Star Trek Titan - Over a Torrent Sea
H.G. Wells Anthology - The Time Machine and The Invisible Man*


Another attempt to raise my literary scope

I left B&N $38.92 poorer. After B & N, I went to visit my foster father. Now, I have to get ready for tomorrow.


Post Date - Sunday, May 3, 2009 9:43PM

No Show

After finishing my previous blog entry, I had about 15 minutes to get ready to leave for the movie. However, since I was still in my pajamas, I really wasn't in the mood to rush. I decided to cancel, but then thought about the other groups I attended and the "no shows" who make planning difficult. I then changed my mind a settled for joining the group for the dinner portion of the event. I changed my RSVP with the details of where I would be waiting. I showered, dressed and was out the door about 5:30PM. I arrived at the theater about 6:30PM. Believing I had about an hour to kill, I went to Barnes & Nobles a block away. I finished book 3 of "The Sword of Truth". I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series, but I wanted to take a break from Terry Goodkind's world. I settled for Star Trek: Titan.

I went back to the movie theater. I called the organizer's cell phone, but I could only leave a message. I waited about an hour and then sent a texted message about my location. Still nothing. At 8:15PM I left, annoyed with myself. I stopped off at MacDonald's.


Post Date - Saturday, May 2, 2009 11:35PM

Work Week (Brief) Review

Made it to another weekend. Today I'm joining a social networking group to see the movie "Wolverine". Normally, I hate going to a crowded movie, but I have a procrastination problem. I've missed a lot of movies by waiting until the last minute to do something or go somewhere. Mainly, going (despite the crowd) is to get out of the apartment this weekend.

I'll try to do a quick end of the work week summary.

Thursday - After another irregular bed time, I was up and moving slow, so again it was a taxi ride part of the way to work. Problem? I seem to have a "crazy cloud" above my head that seems to (on occasion) to attract craziness to me. The taxi ride was uneventful until the driver missed to "regular" turnoff of the expressway. When I tried to tell the guy the way, he starts yelling at me about knowing how to get there and about the traffic. Well, his way put us right into morning traffic down a very busy street. After a few blocks the street was blocked with school buses and firetrucks, so the taxi driver had to turn off the street. But, instead of going just two blocks and then resume heading south, he passes the street to keep going. Again, he starts yelling at me. Me telling him, I've taken a certain route every day this week (including yesterday), had no affect. Also, telling him I've taken this route many times in the two years I taken the taxi route to work had no affect. The problem is that I tend to get time down to a science -- its that crazy cloud above my head. As long as there is no change in the "regular routine" I tend to arrive on time. I have a bad habit of figuring out the exact (or nearly the exact) arrival time, it then gets locked in my head. I get too comfortable with routines once established. I'm getting sidetracked.


Anyway, The guy refused to change his course. Finally, I had to offer a $20 challenge. I told the guy that if he went my route, and I was wrong, then I would give him a $20 tip. The driver was reluctant at first, but eventually accepted complaining and mumbling the rest of the way...until he realized that he was wrong. Then he was very quiet and fairly polite. Needless to say, my day did not start off nicely.

Thursday was also the day of our school's show. The show was from 5pm to 8pm including a dinner at the end. Since I'm not a party person, I volunteered for the clean up committee. Since I had about 5 hours to kill, I told myself that I would use that time to get organized. However, I quickly realized that since I usually finish shuffling papers about the same time, I really didn't have a lot of extra time. And sure enough, after shopping, classroom set up, and grading papers, there wasn't anything extra done.

Oh, why did I go shopping? My plan is to stop eating those school lunches that do not have some healthy component to it. That means avoiding Pizza Day, Taco Day, Hamburger and potato wedges, etc... I spent $40.11 to have some healthy alternatives for those days, I skip paying for the school lunch. With my mini fridge, I now have more options. Next school year, I plan to buy a small microwave for my classroom. The microwave for the teachers is way at the opposite side of the floor. Even though it is about a minute from my door to the teacher's room, it is often running a gauntlet of distractions. A minute walk often turns into a 5, 10, 15 minutes walk (or longer) after stopping to talk to this person, being stopped by that person, stopping in that room, assist with this or that, or deal with roamers in the hallway.

After killing about 5 hours, the clean up of the party began. This time, there were more teachers still around. I think since this "show" was the principal's thing, a lot more teachers wanted their brownie points. After cleaning up, I was out of the building about 9PM. I should have gotten home and showered and called it a night. However, I wasn't sleepy when I walked in my apartment. I told myself that I would just check my email. Well, I was out like a light in a matter of minutes (clothes and all).

This entry is much longer than I was planning. While I'm typing I'm listening (more watching actually) YouTube videos. At the moment, I'm in the 80's music videos. Martika's Toy Soldier is playing.
Now, I'm watching Alice Cooper - Poison

Friday - The day was stressful, but not extremely. One of the disruptive students seem to have gotten a pass. Thursday, I spoke to his sister (who picked him up at dismissal) about his extremely disruptive behavior. I had also sent an email the day before to the father about the disruptive behavior the since the beginning of the week. Well, at the same time, another parent came up and mentioned how her son was stabbed with by the disruptive student. Since I'm hearing about the "stabbing" for the first time, and I see the reaction of the disruptive student, I don't believe it. However, timing is everything. Since stabbing is more serious than being loud and disrespectful, I suspect the father focused on the stabbing later that day. Since the father probably didn't believe the stabbing story(and neither did I -- even though I didn't challenge the story), the other "stuff" got forgotten...I'm just guessing. Oh, the "stabbing" was a scratch on the leg I couldn't even see, but then my eyesight is going.

Anyway, Disruptive student arrived in school just as talkative and playful as he could be. That behavior told me (what I wrote above), dad probably didn't believe the stabbing story(negating everything else), so he probably told his son to just behave and not cause problems. The end.

I was out of the building about 4PM because I had a delivery from UPS. My boxset of Sword of Truth and my camp stool arrived on Thursday. I'm glad for the delivery, because it forced me out of the building. Without the delivery, I'm sure I would have stayed in the building until about 8PM shuffling papers.


Post Date - Saturday, May 2, 2009 2:50PM

A Reason Why...

Today was an okay day. I woke up tired, so once again it was a slow start. I didn't even try to catch my regular train. I had a breakfast drink and a breakfast cereal bar. I'm glad I went the store yesterday. Usually, my regular breakfast (when I'm not too pressed for time) is instant oatmeal and green tea. However (lately), I haven't even had time to boil the water, so I've been waiting until I get off the train to buy cake or something on my way to work. Yesterday I'm hoping these "breakfast" items are relatively healthy.

Today was a better day than yesterday, but there was a strange incident. A woman came to the classroom to pick up her niece. Well, the school policy is that each child has to be signed out in the main office so that there is a record of who picked up a child(and when). It sounds reasonable.

For whatever reason, the aunt felt she did not have to follow that rule. First her reason was she wasn't going to go down and come back upstairs. Then, she didn't want to sign her niece out, and wait for her niece in the office. She was very, very polite, but in that, "I'll do whatever I damn well feel like, and you're not going to stop me". How did I know? Her statement, "I'm taking my niece, are you going to stop me". There are a few pieces of information, I'm probably better off leaving out(nothing major). I just felt like venting.

I left the school about 5PM. I had Chinese takeout for dinner. I was out like a light soon after eating. Strange part, I don't even remember the time between eating and falling asleep. I woke up about 11:30pm.


Post Date - Thursday, April 30, 2009 2:23AM

Grilled or Fried...Not a big difference

A quick entry...I hope. Of course there was no repeat of yesterday. Even with half the class gone for much of the day, I was still stressed out.

Starting with another (approx.)4 hour sleep, this time I woke up feeling it. I was slow to get started, and rather than even try to run for my train, I just decided to wait for my late train. I arrived to school with about 5 minutes to spare thanks to the taxi ride half the way there.

I'm tired, so I'm going to go with a shorthanded summary:

About half the class was eligible for a free trip leaving me with about 10 students.
A visitor with a few days suspension from his school ruined my day...for the couple of hours he was with me. Within about 20 minutes, he was being disruptive, loud, and aggressive with my students. He banged, he shouted, cursed, and threatened my students. Finally, I just had enough. I was lucky that one phone call to AP1 and the student was gone. But the damage was done. After lunch, the computer/tech guy said that I could bring my small class to his computer lab. However, about 15 minutes was wasted on petty bickering and near fights on who started what. Partly the visitor, and partly the hot weather, I was exhausted.

I planned to be out of the building at 4pm, but when I'm too tired to move, I wasted a lot of time shuffling papers from here the there. Before I knew it, it was 5pm, and before I knew it, I was leaving at 5:30pm. My plan was to do my copying at Staples to get out of the building. $24 worth of copies later, I stopped at KFC to try out their new grilled chicken. Once home, I reheated the KFC dinner. I wasn't too impressed. Partly, they were out of the pieces I wanted. Partly, my day was just too long. After my successful (beginning apartment cleanup), I told myself that I would leave school about 4 or 4:30pm to go food shopping. I didn't leaving at the planned time, but I did decide to follow through with the shopping plan.

After returned from shopping, I had one more errand to run. I went to play the lottery. Normally, I'm not really a gambler, but lately, I've been playing the Mega Millions Lotto. I guess you can figure out why. Maybe I'll get lucky. It would be nice to quit on the spot, but knowing the kind of person I am, I would probably continue working to finish the school year.

Until next time...


Post Date - Tuesday, April 28, 2009 11:48PM

Well, I better go. Tomorrow is another day.

A Quick Bit

This has to be very quick. Today was a good day. It has been a very long time since I remember having a good day (not due to being on a field trip). Anyway my day ended with me smiling -- Except when Ms. Across the Hall on her way out the building told me that she lost my umbrella. Another piece of good today was Admin 2 approving of all my trips. Combined with trips already planned, 3rd grade classes will be going on about 9 field trips. I wanted to have at least a trip per week.

Anyway, back to my quick summary. I was out of the building about 4:30pm. The weather here was great! I arrived home about 5:30pm. I ate a Healthy Choice meal then went to do my laundry. I was expecting the laundry room to be empty, but I was wrong. A couple of ladies also had the same idea. And apparently also allowed their weekends to go with the laundry piling up. While my clothes were being washed, I started cleaning up my apartment. I started with the recyclables that have been piling up in the kitchen. I had about 8 empty 1 gal milk containers. Since I drink about 1 gal per week, I guess you can get a good idea of the last time I dumped the recyclables (that includes newspapers, and cardboard from cereal boxes). I was thinking about taking a picture, but I came to my senses. I also finally got rid of my old printer and a 30 gal bag almost full of shredded paper. Finally, I cleared out the hallway of my apartment; I've had books and papers piled there for the longest time. Now for the first time in a very long time, I can walk the hallway without stepping on or over school materials. I have a bad habit of lugging tons of stuff home only to drop it at the front door and not touch it again. After dumping the bags of trash. I decided to take a bath. Another rare thing. After cleaning the tub and filling it, I decided to wash the dishes that have also been sitting around for the longest time as well. I soaked in the tub for almost an hour (mainly due to reading a few chapters of Sword of Truth Book 3 - Blood of the Fold.). I watched the 11PM newscast.

Well, that was my day. Oh, did I mentioned it started with only 4 hours of sleep. However, for some strange reason, I wasn't tired at all today.

I hope tomorrow is another good day.

Oh, and while I was cleaning, I found my prelabeled 1040EZ tax forms which I would have swore I never received.
Post Date - Tuesday, April 28, 2009 12:57AM

Britain's Got Talent

Hollie Steel will be giving Susan Boyle a run for her money.

Back at Work

I've been back at work since Monday. I came in with a plan for getting organized. However, you know me and my plans(not worth the paper I haven't written on). I'm going to try to keep this short so that I can call it a night.

Strange brews. Sorry, a couple of work related things I was going to write about, but I'm trying to not bring work too much into my blog.

Back to my boring life. My new plan was to use the next couple of weeks to try to get organized so that I could start exercising with a monthly membership to the boxing gym I mentioned a couple of blog entries ago. My new plan was to leave school about 4:30PM. Getting home about 5:30PM, I would allow myself one hour of apartment cleaning and one hour of school prep work. Then, about 30 minutes on my rowing machine. I also would stop buying those school lunches that were "not as healthy as others". Results?

On Monday, I did manage to get home about 5:30PM. And, I almost followed my new plan, but writing emails to parents ruined the mood. On Tuesday, the students book order arrived and before I realized it, I was leaving school about 8:10PM. I had to stop off to buying some clogged drain formula. I arrived home about 9:30PM. And between trying to unclog my tub drain and "decompress" from a tiring work day, I ended up going to bed about 2AM. I was up about 6PM (4 hours of sleep). No, the drain didn't unclog. It did a little bit, but not nearly what I was expecting for pouring about a half a gallon of the drain cleaner down the drain.

Today I was tired and in a cranky mood. The four grade classes went on a trip, and Ms. Across the Hall asked if two of her students who were not going on the trip could stay with my class. She ended up sending 5 students. Yesterday, she borrowed my "emergency umbrella", but has not returned it. She also borrowed my paper cutter, but forgot to return it. Sorry, I guess I'm still in a bad mood.

Well, I better end this entry now.


Post Date - Wednesday, April 22, 2009 11:43PM

Spring Break - Day 11

The end has arrived. And as usual, I'm annoyed with myself for not accomplishing anything productive. Now, I will be returning tomorrow stressed out about work, that should have, could have been done. Plus, I'll be stressed with the new work that will be added.
Today was my errand day. For the first time during my vacation, I was able to get up and out of my apartment at 9:30AM. I went to Macy's to buy the pair of pants and the white shirt for work. I also bought a lighter jacket for spring. I spent about $140. I didn't have my digital camera, so I took a couple of photos with my camera. I'll attach on for this blog entry. Macy's had a flower show display. From Macy's I had lunch at a pizza restaurant. Then, I went to my foster father's place to set up the TV I bought him. I felt a bit bad for being cheap. For about another hundred dollars, I could have gotten a larger TV than the 19 inch.

Next it was food shopping and laundry. Now, I better go because tomorrow will be a long day.

Oh, one last thing before I go. Did anyone see the new animation show on FOX called, "Sit Down and Shut Up!" The show was a cartoon about a group of teachers and a principal at a school. Wow, it was unbelievable. And not in a good way. Due to my need to get off line, I have to cut this short. Bye for now.

Post Date - Sunday, April 19, 2009 11:09PM

Spring Break - Day 10 (Watchmen)

Another wasted day and wasted vacation. One more day remaining before I return to work. I started with a trip to the boxing gym to see I could get a idea of the cost, start time, etc... The owner wasn't in, but the person in charge seemed to be doing the exact same thing I mention in a previous blog. Lots of talking, but very reluctant to give specifics. I did get a price tag. Group sessions for a month (3x per week) is $160. I think the other gym charged $180 for a month. Even while the guy was giving me his salespitch, he kept one of his clients waiting the way I was kept waiting at the other gym.

After the gym, I decided to visit another gym that I googled, but since I didn't have the actual address, it was a wasted effort.

After the "bus ride" to nowheresville, I decided to go see "Watchmen". I knew if I didn't go today, I wouldn't be going at all. Again, I was flying blind. Without any idea of when or where the movie was playing, I just rode the train to 42nd Street. One of the benefits to living in NYC. Within one city block there were 3 or 4 movie theaters each showing about 8 to 10 different movies. I was hoping Watchmen was showing. Since I had 2 hours to kill, I did some walking. I ate at a Japanese fastfood restaurant "Yoshinoya". I was about to go to Burger King, but the service was too slow. I then killed more time in a comic shop. I walked a little more before realizing I needed a new pair of pants and white shirt. I'm some piece of work. Eleven days and I do absolutely nothing, than at the last minute I remember. I made it to the men's department in Macy's before I had to then turn right around and walk back to the theater.

So, how was the movie?

The movie was okay. I thought it was nice. They seemed to really put a lot of effort into the making of the movie. Normally, movies from books (to me) seem to be a disappointment because so much of the movie is left out. Here, the movie still left out (minor pieces) and changed bits, but it did seem a bit too long. Also, the movie was almost ruined by the couple sitting next to me.

The theater was fairly full. Normally, I hate seeing movies in crowded theater. The young couple treated the theater like it was their private living room. They had their shoes off with the young lady stretched out like she was on her couch at home. Yep, three seats in a full theater. And they talked, and talked, and talked. Yes, I think you get the idea. The woman sang, and hummed during the songs. She asked questions through out. They predicted parts along the way. I was so annoyed. I felt trapped. There was no place to moved to. It was a small multiplex theater of about 150 seats. All the aisle seats were taken -- I like the aisle seats. There were only single seating spaces between people.

THE COUPLE WOULDN'T SHUT UP!!!

After the movie, unlike other times, I went directly to the train. I did not want to miss my train. With the weekend schedule, I missed train would have been an hour wait.

Since I arrived in the Bronx with about 10 minutes to spare. I went to MacDonald's. I ordered a regular hamburger, small fries, and a medium milkshake (I should have ordered a small). This meal was my poor attempt to eat a bit healthier by eating in moderation. Usually, I would have the Big Mac Extra Value Meal.

This whole (wasted) vacation, I've been eating healthier than usual mainly due to the fact I was too lazy to get out of bed. Now, with work only a day away, I am already returning to bad habits.

Well, I better go. Tomorrow is my rat race day. I will have to do in a day what I could and should have done in a week.


Post Date - Sunday, April 19, 2009 12:33AM

Spring Break - Day 9

Another wasted day letting the clock run out.

Spring Break - Day 8

I might as do this now and get it out of the way. Plans??? Well, you know about me and my "plans" so I won't bother wasting time with a recount of my plans for the day. So, what did I do?

I went to bed about 12:20am last night. I woke up about 6am this morning, but didn't get out of bed until about 11:30am. I logged online with the "idea" of quickly checking the movie time (which I have yet to do) for the movie "Watchmen". I really want to see the movie, but once again, I've fallen into my "comatose" mode. I went to YouTube and started watching clips from "Oz" and I am only now breaking away. Actually, I watched a few hours worth of clips yesterday. Now it is about 3:14pm I'm still in my pajamas, and strange enough without having eaten anything yet -- I came directly to the computer. I'm only a little bit hungry.

Now, I will eat something. Finish filling out my 1040EZ tax form. Since I'm getting a tax refund, I convinced myself (without much difficulty) to not travel to the main post office in midtown to drop off my tax form.

Well, I've done enough time wasting for the time being.


Post Date - Thursday, April 16, 2009 3:20PM

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I decided to change the post date. It is now 6:59PM and I'm still sitting here in front of my computer having not moved from the time of the above post date. I ended up watching some more of the "Oz" clips.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Yep, I'm still here. And no, I haven't moved from this spot at now 8:51PM. After watching another couple of hours of clips, I think I've gotten my fill of "Oz".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm still here now 10:06PM unmoved. I should just buy the box set.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay now I'm leaving. It is now 10:32PM. It was a long and wasteful day. Bye for now. I hope.

Spring Break - Day 7

Another wasted day. I went to the boxing gym I dismissed a few months ago for being vague with pricing. However, I'm still interested in taking boxing lessons, but at the same time, I'm too lazy to venture beyond my regular commuter routine. I want to try paying for a monthly fee. So, I went to the gym, but the owner wasn't there. One of the guys there called and found out the owner was in small claims court. Not a good sign. Anyway, I was told to come back tomorrow. I was planning to visit my foster father to see if he was able to set up the new TV. However, on my way back from the gym I realized that today is April 15th. Taxes are due! So, I returned home to start my taxes. I will take them to the main post office in midtown which is open 24 hours.


Post Date - Wednesday, April 15, 2009 7:59PM

Amazing

I saw this clip on the news last night. Today another blogger mentioned it, so I thought I would post it here. Amazing! Just goes to show you can't judge a book by its cover. You will have to click on the link below the picture to see the YouTube clip. Enjoy!

Susan Boyle

















Post Date - Wednesday, April 15, 2009 11:52AM

Spring Break - Day 6

Another fairly unproductive day. But then, I'm sure you knew it would be (those who are regular readers).

Today I did try to not return to bed after eating a couple of bowls of cereal. I also started cleaning my living room. Not much but I did at least start cleaning. I'm missing one of my shelving units (brought to school), so I was trying to organize one of the two I have at home. One shelf unit contains all of my fantasy, sci-fi books, and comics. The other shelf unit will be for school related material.

Around 4:30pm, I went to the library to get my 1040EZ tax form. For some strange reason I do remember getting one. While I was out (only planning to get the tax forms and return home), I decided to sign up for membership at the local Y. Well, they told me that they only provided boxing for kids. Or, they provided something called "white collar" boxing. I didn't like the sound of that. That sounded like a weak substitute for the real thing. They told me the guy in charge of the "white collar" boxing program would be available at 7:30pm. So of course, I didn't sign up. I also looked closer at the membership fees. In the past, I've signed up for the "preminum" membership ($450) for a one year membership. The only difference between the "preminum" and the "full" membership is access to sauna and the steamroom. I've never used the steamroom, but I like the sauna. Oh, and the "full" membership is only ($220) per year.

So, what now? I told myself to forget the sauna. I'm going to try to find the boxing gym number I found a few months ago. It is about 30 minutes from work. I'll visit and see what the place is like.


Post Date - Tuesday, April 14, 2009 9:59PM

Spring Break - Day 5

Another wasted day of sleeping and surfing.

Spring Break - Day 4

I stayed in bed for much of the day. Then, I went to my foster father's place. His ladyfriend cooked a very nice dinner. I forgot my foster father's birthday, so I just purchased a TV online. Since it is already a few days late, I paid the extra $47 for express delivery. At the moment his TV broke, and for the last few days he has been using a 13-inch color TV. I'll attached a photo of the TV I just ordered. Sorry, I was being a bit of a cheapskate.

Well, tomorrow will be Day 5 of my vacation. Hopefully, I will break out of the comatose rountine I've been in for I don't know how long. The plan tomorrow? Maybe sign up at the gym around 10:30 and do about 20 minutes on the treadmill and some lite weightlifting -- since I have not been in the gym for quite some time, I want to try to take it easy. Well, that's Plan A. Plan B is to start cleaning livingroom. Plan C is to sleep the day away with usual, "Oh, I'll do something tomorrow" idea.


Post Date - Sunday, April 12, 2009 11:28PM

Before Dishonor

Rather than add this book review with the previous blog entry, I decided to separate it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I finished reading The Star Trek:The Next Generation book, "Before Dishonor". I didn't like the cover, and that should have been a warning. I only got the book because I read online that the book series was trying to do a "continuation" from the TV series. Having been a fan of the TV series, I wanted to read the book.

So, what were some of my reasons for not liking the book:

* starting with the cover. Seven of Nine rarely had her hair down and the expression on the face doesn't fit with the character that was portrayed on the TV show. I'm not sure what the author was going for, but I missed the point.
* Also, a major, I mean "major" character gets killed off as if that character was one of the original Star Trek series minor characters. Remember how in the original show, whenever a minor character went on an away mission, inevitably that character was killed off just to drive the plot forward.
* I also didn't like the borg attack sequences (for lack of a better terminology). Basically, the borg having been cut off from the rest of the collective had to adapt to survive. However, thay were beaten so badly (according to the book), that they had to evolve. Now they can defeat an armada of starships in seconds. They can also "eat" -- yes "eat" planets in seconds. They could also fly in and out of the sun...well, I think you get the idea.
* The primary plot point is that the borg have been beaten by the federation to the point of extinction and will do anything to end the threat of the federation. So being completing unstoppable, and coming within seconds of "eating" planet earth(and dealing an extremely crippling blow to their "enemy"), the borg decide to stop for what I thought was a rather stupid reason. If you're unstoppable, and you have your enemy on his knees. Why stop and wait for...."someone" who can neither stop you nor really add anything of significance.

I did like the feeling that I was reading a continuation of the ST:TNG series, I thought the story was a bit over the top.


Post Date - Sunday, April 12, 2009 12:39AM

Spring Break - Day 3

No Change. I think I've just about fallen into my regular comatose vacation mode. Today I was up only to eat a couple of bowls of cereal, then I was back in bed until about 6PM. So, not much to blog about.

I did finally collect all fifty state quarters. I got the last one today. I went out to order a spaghetti dinner from a nearby takeout restaurant. See the attached photo of my quarter collection. Oh, the bill in the photo is a two dollar bill. I don't see them very often, so I have not spent that one.

Tomorrow I visit my foster father for Easter dinner. Hopefully, I will do something productive on Monday.


Post Date - Sunday, April 12, 2009 12:14AM

Spring Break - Day 2

I woke up about 7am. The day started off good, but in the end, I fell back to old habit. I ended up sleeping a bit of the day away. I finally got up (showered) and was out the door about 2:30pm. I dropped off my rent payment and went food shopping. After returning home, I went out for Chinese takeout. Not an exciting day. I will try again tomorrow to be more productive. I'm telling myself that two wasted days out of 11 isn't too bad. Oh, and I did managed to plan another trip for the 3rd grade classes.

I also came to another decision about the gym. My plan of joining the boxing program will have to wait. I think I mentioned here that I'm trying to cut down on my credit cards. Each time I try to become credit card debit free, I go on a spending spree. I'm not going cold turkey, I'm just trying for a bit of spending control. My orginal plan was to pay for the gym membership and the boxing program (which is separate) together. Now, I think I will just pay for the one year membership on Monday, and pay for the boxing membership on Wednesday. I'm sure some of you are saying, "why don't you just sign up for the monthly payment plan".

1. I don't like the "automatic deductions".
2. I think it is more expensive.
3. If I don't use my membership, I'll probably be too embarassed to end it quickly knowing that I won't go. I'll just keep telling myself, "next month, next month, it will be different.

Well, by now, I just you (the reader) figured out that I am a time (and money) waster. Either way, I'll end up wasting money.

Well, I think that is about it. Hopefully, Day 3 will be better and much more productive.


Post Date - Friday, April 10, 2009 10:43PM

Spring Break - Day 1

Spring Break is in full-swing. Day 1? I mostly slept it away. After my usually procrastination to exhaustion routine, I told myself that I was entitled to sleep the day away (after a few false starts). So, what's the plan for the 11-day vacation? I am the plan-maker?....I'm also the dreamer.

My plan is to not turn on my computer (or the TV) until after 5pm. Most of you regular readers know that I tend to vegout when either comes on. Other plans. For the next (now 3 days) I want to try to clean up my living room. The other rooms at one point or another have been cleaned (the most recent being the bedroom and bathroom). I've been stepping over, around and on various piles. It would be nice to have my apartment cleaned for once, especially at the beginning of the vacation, not the (usual) end. I also want to set up my new printer/copier/scanner machine. I think I bought the machine a couple of months ago. Yep, it is still sitting unopened on the floor.....

I just checked the receipt. I bought the printer January 2, 2009. Since my living room is such a mess, I told myself that the best place to keep the receipt was on the box until I opened it, just in case I needed to return the machine. The 90 return policy expired a few days ago. I also have my Iron Gym unopened on the floor as well. The Iron Gym has been on the floor (unopened) longer than the printer.

Anyway, I want to clean my living room. I want to do (at least) a week of lesson plans for my return to work. I also want to grade some of the piles of papers that have been cluttering up my living room for months. I would like to do some (or all) of this by this coming Sunday. Before "vacation mood" sets in. Usually as you "regulars" know, I tend to do things at the last minute. I also tend to go comatose during vacations. Lastly, I want to join the gym on Monday. Hopefully, I can start a routine with the gym that I will be able to continue when I return to work.

Well, it is getting late. I also want to try to get into a regular sleep routine. Being in bed before midnight on non-work days and before 11:30pm during work days. I'm tired of the irregular (regular) sleep routine. Next week, I would also like to see at least 2 or 3 movies - I want to see Watchmen before it leaves the theater. I also want to do at least 2 or 3 touristy things like visit the Empire State Buiding's Observation Deck. Lately, I've missed several movies that I wanted to see, but was too stressed out from work to bother. And I rarely (if ever) do anything touristy. Hopefully, this vacation will be different.

Well, Day one is over. Let's see if I can improve myself this vacation.

Oh, I almost forgot. I need to apply to College to finish my Master's Degree.


Post Date - Thursday, April 9, 2009 11:18PM

Vacation Begins

Not the best start to a vacation. Today was the last day of school before the Spring Break Vacation begins. After my students were dismissed, I made changing my bulletin board a top priority. By the time I finished the bulletin board, it was about 7:30pm. I was out of the building at about 8:30pm. I missed my train by about 3 or 4 minutes. Since I had about 40 minutes to kill, I went to Subways restaurant for dinner. On my way back to the train station, I realized I needed to pay one of my store credit cards. After making the detour, I missed my train again by about 3 or 4 minutes. However, now it is past rush hour, so the train is running every hour. I've got an hour to kill on the platform. Mainly it was me fighting falling asleep know that I might miss the next train. I finally arrive home about 11pm. The strange thing is that when I finally got home, I was no longer tired.

Not the best start to the vacation.

Post Date - Thursday, April 9, 2009 10:29PM

Nothing New

I think the title says it all. I slept Saturday away. I went out for a spaghetti dinner takeout at a local restaurant. I made a quick run to the supermarket for a pint of Ben & Jerry's "FroYo - Cherry and Chocolate" frozen yogurt. I also picked up a couple of boxes of cereal for my breakfast in the morning. While I was watching TV, I saw a boat floating by my window, so I got my digital camera to take a picture. I'll attached the photo.

Well, I think that is about it. Nothing really new to write about. I did plan some trips for my grade level, I also put together a homework pack for my grade level. Everyone else seemed too busy or uninterested in doing either, but seemed to like the results I submitted for both. Next week begins the Spring Recess vacation. I'm really looking forward to the rest.

I'm going to try (I hope) to join the gym sometime next week. But then, you probably can't count how many times I've written that here.


Post Date - Saturday, April 4, 2009 11:48

From Bad to Worse

It is 4:23am. After dozing off throughout the night here at the computer chair, I now have to finished last minute preparations.

Gym? No.
Leaving work before 5PM? No.

Yesterday, I was out at 8PM to go to Staples to make some copies. Chinese takeout. Home about 9:30PM.

Nothing Much, Just Hoping

Another nothing to blog about entry. I fell back to my regular (irregular) routine. I went to bed at 1:30am, and up at 6am. My day was nothing special or different. I got out of the building about 4:30pm. I left the same time Ms. Across the Hall did, so we walked to her train station. The travel time for me is basically the same. It just means changing trains midway. Anyway, there was a bit of a delay with one of the trains and as a result, I missed my MN train by about 5 minutes. I ended up getting home about 6pm.

Well, tomorrow is the first of the month. Hopefully, I will be going to the gym to sign up for a one-year membership. I really should have my workout clothes with me. However, I did tell myself that at the very least, I would sign up for membership and go tomorrow, but a part of me believes that if I don't workout tomorrow, then most likely I won't do it this week. My plan (if I do workout) is just to do about 20 minutes on a treadmill. With my bad knees, I will only be able to walk.

Post Date - Tuesday, March 31, 2009 7:22PM

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

Well, I started the week with a relapse. I left the school building about 5:45PM. The past weekend was another bust. I didn't do any planning, so today was hectic mostly of my own creation. Mostly. I was in bed at about 1AM and up at about 6AM. My students were in a very hyper state. Luckily, I sent off a couple of emails to a couple of parents of my more hypers , so they were not the leaders this time around. I got caught up with speaking with a parent about her son. Then another conversation with a colleague. Also, I heated up the school lunch that I didn't have time to eat during lunch. I used my preparation period to get my homework sheet started, however, most of my preparation period was wasted doing what I call "babysitting duty". I had to use my lunch time to finish up my homework sheet.

After work, I stopped by a Target store. I wanted a new flash drive for my keychain, but Target wasn't selling the kind I wanted. I also bought a pair of slacks for work.

When I got home I had a Healthy Choice microwavable dinner. I ment to call a couple of parents, but once online, time just flew by. It is now almost 9PM. I think it is too late to call a parent complaining about their child's behavior. But, I will send a couple of emails. I will try to aim for between a 10:30PM and 11PM bedtime. That is another thing I will have to work on, getting a regular sleep routine. Well, I better go. I have to send a couple of emails to parents -- Yes, complaining about their child's behavior.


Post Date - Monday, March 30, 2009 9:01PM

Dragon Strike

Quick entry (I hope). I just finished reading E.E. Knight's Dragon Strike (Book Four [of five] of the Age of Fire). It was nice. I'm looking forward to reading the final book. The only problem I had with the book was my poor memory of the other three books. Names were being thrown around that I barely remembered. Luckily, the book was fairly easy to follow for those who have not read the other books in the series. For the Paolini book "Brisinger", I will probably have to reread the previous two before I read the third. I also don't remember much about those books as well. Or at the very least, I should read an online synopsis to refresh my memory.

So, on the home front, is there any changes worth blogging about. No. Not really. I slept Saturday away. Today I decided to get up and out a bit early (for me) before the rain. I visited my foster father and made a quick stop at Staples store. I wanted to make copies of a mini test I want to give my students. I could have done the copies in school, but (as I will mention in more details below) I wanted to get out of the building early (for me). When I returned home on the express train, I met one of the school aids from my school on the train. It turns out she won some kind of lottery and was able to get an apartment (subsidized by the government) in one of the new luxury loft-style near the waterfront apartment. It is a very nice place with a 24 hour gym and concierge. Wow, she is lucky. And would you believe she wants to move back to NYC. I'm getting sidetracked.

Back to blogging about nothing new. There is one thing I'm really proud of (that probably wouldn't make much sense to most of my reading audience). This past week, I believe for the first time ever -- again, with my memory, I can't be sure. I think last week was the first time I've ever managed to leave the school building for the entire week before 5PM. The whole week! By Friday, it started to sink in the strangeness of being in the building so late (again with nothing much to show for it). There were three or four things I thought about doing, but I told myself that if I didn't get out of the building, I would be in there until 8 or even 9PM. So, I threw what I could into my granny cart and was out of the building before 5PM. Fridays have for a very long time been my late day to set up for the next week, but last Friday, I just said the heck with it.

The real test will be the coming week. I think I will need to keep the "early (for me) departure" routine for a couple more weeks before it can truly sink in. Besides, I want to rejoin the gym next week. What's different this time?

The month of April starts in the middle of the week as oppose to starting on Monday. The last two months with the Monday start, I also had to deal with the monthly faculty meeting which occurs on the first Monday of the month after 3PM. The last couple of "new starts" were ended before they started with the exhaustion and the faculty meetings. Now, I'm hoping that I will be able to start on the first of the month with the first being in the middle of the week. I hope. So how did I deal with arrive home about 5:30PM every day last week. It was so strange that I only continued the odd sleep pattern I've recently developed. I get home with Chinese takeout for dinner. And soon after eating, I would be sleep on the couch only to wake up 1 or 2AM, to begin thinking about planning or emails to parents about their child.

I better go. I just went back and added another 23 minutes to this "short" blog entry. Hopefully, this coming week will be the beginning of a new me.


Post Date - Sunday, March 29, 2009 6:33PM

The Cloisters Museum

Below is a slideshow of photos I took a few months ago. I've finally gotten around to uploading the photos.

My Wish...

It has been a while since I've posted an entry. Lately, I been trying to avoid doing work related entries. Unfortunately, with my boring life, without work there isn't much to write about.

Below is an email exchange I had with a parent of a student in my class.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Good Evening Ms. Mom,

Yes, you are correct about the phone. Did Anna tell you that I would have given it to her today? All day like a broken record, I kept telling Anna I would give her the phone just stop being disruptive. It wasn't once or twice, but throughout the day. From passing candy, to conversations to her friend across the room and conversation at her table conversation on line. She walked and talked the way she wanted, when she wanted. Again throughout the day. There was even a spitball incident with two names involved (mostly) Billy and Anna. Her (repeated) response to me saying "if you want your phone, then stop (this or that)" was to smile, stop (for about a few minutes) then resume. Morning and afternoon. The last straw was 10 minutes to 3pm. I needed to finish up a couple of 1 on 1 informal reading assessments. Anna should have been reading (preferably a chapter book), but in that time, Anna chose to sit next to her friend (at another table) talking (I had to stop the assessment to tell her to go back to her seat), continued another conversation at her seat (I had to stop again), She got up (she said) to get a reading response card but she had a picture book opened showing it to her friend then wanted to argue that she wasn't doing anything. When the day was finished, that's when Anna told me, "Oh, I need my phone". I got angry. I had every intention of giving her the phone despite everything she did during the day, but it was that last 10 minutes that really annoyed me. The last ten minutes told me that I was just there for her amusement.

As a teacher, I value the time when I'm teacher or helping students. I thought it was a fair (temporary) trade. Anna withheld valuable instruction time, I withheld (with many reminders) something she valued. I don't have a problem with giving Anna her phone. All I ask is that Anna not take too much of valuable instruction time.

Oh and please do not think that I'm singling out Anna. There were other distractions going on. One less distraction makes my job a bit easier. Example? Another of Anna's classmate couldn't go on the ice skating trip because of his behavior. Since he couldn't go on the trip, he was kept home and taken shopping (the very same day) for a new video game. Much of my day was devoted to dealing with him (and what he told me he will or will not do). There are other examples, but here it is 2:30 in the morning, and I'm still thinking about work and having to do it all over again in a few hours.



Regards,
Jannx


P.S. - Mentioning ice skating. I forgot about Anna's refund. Please have Anna remind me about the refund ($4) in case I forget. And of course, I will return Sironne's cell phone.


-------------------
Good evening Mr. J,

This is Anna's Mom I would like to thank you for finding the phone. I understand that she was mis behaving that is why you didn't give her the phone, but please return it to her @ the end of class tomorrow, being that it is the only form of communication I have with her when she leave school. Thank you and have a goodnight. Ms. Mom

Sent via Blackberry

Wasted 2nd Chance

About my Snow Day.

Would'da
Should'da
Could'da

Nuff Said.

Snow Day

Woo Hoo!!!

Here in NYC, our schools were closed. Again, Woo Hoo!!!

I woke up this morning stressed and annoyed that I was not prepared to go to work, so you can imagine how excited I was when I got out of the shower (hoping I wouldn't miss my train) and heard that NYC schools were closed. Once I checked a couple of TV news reports, I was happy.

So, why wasn't I prepared. This weekend like most others, I sleep or read it away. On Saturday, I slept until about 11AM. I went to the post office to pick up my Amazon.com order, that being a bit of a hike (about an hour walk one way) got me home about 5PM. I spent the rest of the day reading the Watchmen Graphic Novel. When I saw the trailers for the movie, I became interested in reading the book. Once I started reading the book, I really started to enjoy it. Sunday was more of the same, Watchmen and sleeping.

Well, I better go. I've been given a very, lucky break. I really can't afford to waste it.

Oh, I did a Google search to find the attached photo of "Snow Day".
Post Date - Monday, March 2, 2009 7:42AM

I made it to the weekend

I made it to another weekend. Bone tired, but I'm happy. I'm still dealing with the stress of work, and most of the stress is of my own creation. I had a whole week off, but I wasted it sleeping it away. My goal was to get organized, but I didn't doing anything other than sleep. I think I went out only two or three times and it was only to go shopping. When I returned to school, I started off on the wrong foot. On Sunday, I stayed up until about 2AM watching the Oscars and shaving my head. I got about 4 hours of sleep per night almost every night (except Wednesday and Thursday night). By Friday, I was too tired to stay late in school. Actually, that turned out to be a good thing. Usually, I tell myself that I'm staying late on Friday to get organized, but I usually don't accomplish very much. Yesterday, I was out of the building at 5PM. It felt good to be home. It felt even better when I looked at the clock (about 8PM) and realized that any other Friday in the past, I would just be heading home.

Today (Saturday), I didn't get out of bed until about 11:30AM. I have to go to the post office to pick up my Amazon.com delivery. Then, I plan to return home. This weekend will be just relaxing and recovering. Hopefully, to be fresh and ready to break this crazy sleep cycle I've created for myself.

Next week, the students in New York State will be taking the Math Exams. I also want to make a change in my routines, but since I've been saying that for years (time really does seem to fly) I won't mention it here. Problem, the monthly faculty meeting is on Monday until 4PM. I will also need to get my classroom ready for the State Math Test (removing teaching information from the walls, sharpening pencils etc...). If I don't let stress (in one form or another) get to me, I will be out of the building at 4:30PM or 5PM (at the latest).


Post Date - Saturday, February 28, 2009 1:06 PM

Stress of my own creation

Vacation's over. 4 hours of sleep yesterday, and now four hours today. I can't keep this up.

And, I have no one to blame but myself.

My Homestyle

While procrastinating. I visited another blogger's page. Max had a link to a web site that lets you take a quiz to see your Homestyle. I took the quiz three different times and got three different answers. The answer I liked the best was having a contemporary style. Here is the link - Sproost

The attached photo is one of the photos that showed my (relative) style.

A Day Off

Another entry collecting dust in my draft folder.

Tuesday, October 7th

I started the day by waking up from exhaustion on the couch at 2AM to type up my sub plans. A quick summary became a three-page report. About 5AM, I tried to get an hour of sleep. Today I was chosen to attend a workshop on the pilot program my principal wanted us to try. The workshop began about 9:15am. It was an interesting program. Not great, but interesting. The workshop finished at 12pm. While in the building, I took a photo of the World Trade Center Construction Site across the street. After the workshop, I walked to a local electronics store. I was looking for a special cord splitter. The Smartboard in my room would still be not working if I waited for our tech/computer guy. For some reason, the Smartboard was designed with only one way for me to connect it to the CPU. The cord for the Smartboard is the same cord as the computer monitor. With the cord splitter, I would be able to have the Smartboard and the computer monitor on at the same time.

From downtown I walked up to 14th & Broadway(about a 2 mile walk). I had pizza for lunch. I returned home about 4pm. It was a nice day. Now, I'm watching the Debate.

Completion - October 7, 2008 10:22PM
Post Date - Thursday, February 19, 2009 4:52PM

Oliver Stone's "W"

This entry has been sitting in my drafts folder for several months.

It has been a while since my last entry. Today (November 2, 2008) I attended another online social networking group. This is my third time with this group. The group's focus is dinner and a movie. I didn't want to see the movie, so I signed up for only the dinner afterwards. The rest of the day was me wasting time as usual. My Saturday was basically online and sleeping. The movie finished about 8PM. From the theater, the group walked a couple of blocks to a local diner. I must say, the food and the service was nicer than the Waverly restaurant. After dinner, I walked to 34th street.


Post Date - February 19, 2009 4:29PM

Corona Park Queens

Below is a slidshow of a walk I went on in Corona Park Queens, New York City. I went sometime in October 2008, but I never got around to posting the photos.

My Belly Button

This is a rather strange entry, I probably should have deleted it.

I had a bit of a revelation about my...belly button. For those that don't know me, I am a bit overweight. And as a (now) 40 something year old, I've taken some things for granted. My belly button is one of those things. I have always assumed that my belly button was an "inny" not an "outty". With the way my belly hangs out over my belt, and with not really thinking (or examining) my belly button over the years, I just assumed that my belly button was an inny. So, when the change or realization?

From time to time the topic of "buttons" comes up. And over the years, without a second thought, I would say with absolutely certainty, that my button was an inny. I've even imagined how strange it would be if my belly button was an outty.

Well, recently while chatting online, the topic came up. Since I had my digital camera, I even took a picture and posted it during my IM chat. To my surprise, I was told I was mistaken that I had an outty belly button. A couple of days later, I purposely started the conversation with someone else, and again I posted the picture while chatting online. And again, the comment was the same. Outty not Inny.

The strange part -- other than posting this entry. The strange part is being 40 years old and not knowing what kind of belly button I have. I told myself that I would probably ask my doctor. However, on an unrelated note, my doctor months ago(before this "button" topic started), mentioned that on my next visit, I should probably have a prostate exam. Now, I'm thinking mentioning my belly button would make an awkward situation much more awkward.


Completion Date - Friday, November 7, 2008 3:57AM
Post Date - Thursday, February 19, 2009 5:20PM

Slumdog Millionaire

Today was Valentine's Day. I joined one of those online social networking groups. There are many different kinds of groups. This group was a dinner and a movie group. I thought the event was nice. Once again, the group organizer went well above the call of "hosting" duties. A gift bag was given to each attendee.

About the movie. There were about 6 of us, we went to see the movie Slumdog Millionaire. I'm not really a fan of dramas, but I enjoyed this movie. There were parts that were a bit intense, but there was an over all positiveness to the movie. I also liked the cultural aspect. I learned a bit about Indian culture. The theater was packed with only a couple of seats available. The buzz seems to have gotten people's attention. The restaurant pricing range was moderate to a bit expensive. They changed the menu, so I could not order my regular. There was not much of a selection, so I fell back on "ol reliable"; I had a hamburger, fries and a 12oz. orange juice. My bill came to about $15. Oh, I almost forgot. We were lucky that we had a couple of no-shows. The restaurant had a very "narrow" view of space reserved for 9 people. It was a tight squeeze for the 6 of us. About the attendees. Again, the group was a nice friendly bunch.

The host of the group offered to drop a couple of us off at the train station, at first I said yes, but then I changed my mind. I should have accepted the ride. The result? The trains were on a work schedule. I took the express train, but the final transfer station was closed so I had to stay on the train to the next stop, then transfer to a train going back downtown two stops, and then finally take a local train. It took me about two hours to get home.


Post Date - Sunday, February 15, 2009 2:51AM

Stone of Tears

Not much to write. Another weekend recovering from the past work week. I spent most of Saturday in bed. I spent most of the day reading the second book in the Terry Goodkind series "Sword of Truth". I'm now about halfway through the book 2 "Stone of Tears". So far I'm enjoying the book. A few bits are a bit creepy, but I suppose that is the adult edge to the story. I think I like the adult edge more than the "kid on a quest" of books like the Percy and the Olympians series. I think I'll get the next book in the Terry Goodkind series "Blood of the Fold", then I will start buying the sets of the series. I think the sets for the series are sold about 3 per set. There are 9 or 10 books in the series. However, the next book on my commuter reading list will be either E.E. Knight's "Dragon Strike", or "ST:TNG - Resistance". After the heavy read (for me) of the adult edge to Sword of Truth, I want a small break from the series. I know I will read some (or all) of the Sword of Truth books, but a brief break from 800 or 900 page books will be good.

Post Date - Sunday, February 8, 2009 11:51AM

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans

Weekend is just about over. This weekend I decided to do something (other than sleep my Saturday away. I went to the mall. My plan was to buy a new pair of shoes. Lately, my right foot has been hurting. I'm thinking (and hoping) that the cause of the pain was the shoes.

I also wanted to go see a movie. To many times, I waste my weekends away with the worry about things that need to be done for work. I worry (and procrastinate)to the point of accomplishing nothing. This weekend, my goal was to do something fun (like see a movie), and spend Sunday doing my regular Sunday errands.

I arrived at the mall about 12:15pm. The only movie playing at a good time was "Underworld: Rise of the Lycans". Since I took the bus there, I had to make sure that I would be able to be at the bus stop in time.

I bought the 12:30pm ticket. Then, I went the Barns and Nobles. I bought about $65 dollars worth of books
Thunderbolts
Shadowpact
Teen Titans & Outsiders team-up
Human Anatomy (a book of Four 96-piece jigsaw puzzles)*
*I might go back and get the Mythical Monsters puzzle book next time.

So, how was the movie. It was okay. Not great, but the movie was entertaining. I didn't like the ending. Without giving away the ending, I'll just say that it was one of those typical "B Movie endings". The vengence fight ends "half done" and sloppy at that. I was also a bit annoyed at one of the movie goers in the theater. The movie theater had about 10 people in it. The guy arrived and the very first thing he does is put his feet up on the chairs in front of him. He was about 4 rows ahead of me. Later, that same guy waited until the end to talk on his cell phone. since he wasn't getting good reception in his seat, he stands in the aisle to finish his conversation. Problem? I was sitting in the back row to the left of the aisle, meaning the guy was right in my line of sight. When I call out, "excuse me", the best the guy could do was crouch and continue finishing his phone conversation. I ended up missing the end monolog of the movie.

After the movie, I was planning to eat at Panda Express only to find that it was gone. No more Panda Express in the mall. those who have read my previous blog entries, know how much I like Panda Express. I settled for buying lunch at a Japanese place at the food court. I think the place was "Oishii Japanese". I ordered the day's special Shrimp Tariyaki. The food was okay. I left feeling not full.

After lunch, I want to Modells (a local sports equipment and apparal chain). I bought a pair of sneakers. Then, I went to JCPenny to buy a pair of dress shoes.

Once home, I stopped by the local Chinese food takeout restaurant for dinner. And with a pint of Haggen Daz, that was the end of my day.

Post Date - Sunday, February 1, 2009 10:44AM

Shopping at the Mall

Another weekend that is about over and not much to write about. This weekend, I wanted to do something other than my usual "comatose" weekend recovery. I knew I wasn't in the mood for socializing, but I didn't want to do the "sleep away the weekend" thing. I started on Friday by starting my lesson plans. I only started but it was enough for me to feel comfortable with taking a day off to go shopping as oppose to spending the weekend with the cloud of "disorganization and I'm gonnas" only to have accomplished nothing.

With my lesson plans started, I felt comfortable about leaving the apartment to head to the nearby mall. The plan was to just see a movie, hit Barnes and Nobles, and eat a meal at Panda Express.

First stop was the movie theater (Loews or IMAX), however, there was nothing playing at the time frame I had. Since I have to travel by public transportation, I have to pay attention to schedules. The bus to the mall does not operate on Sundays, and only about once per hour with a couple of two hour gaps in the afternoon and evening. So, no movie. I had lunch at Panda Express, then I headed to B & N.

B & N was one of the reasons for me going shopping today. I finished reading Wizard's First Rule by Terry Gookind. I enjoyed the book so much that I read the last 1/3 last weekend, however, that left me without reading material for my workday commuting. The plan was to buy the third book in the Eragon series from the Target store on my way home, but I turned cheapskate at the last minute. I didn't want to buy the hardcover book. I also wanted to by the second book in the Goodkind "Sword of Truth" series. I ended up buying the boxed-set of the Rick Riordan series "Percy Jackson & the Olympians". It started off okay, but my first impression was that it was really written for kids. Halfway through the first book in the series, I started liking it a bit more. I like the "Olympians Gods are still around" theme. I will finish the first book in the series, and then save the other two books in the box-set as backups for when I need a replacement book between the other books on my reading list.

Anyway, In B&N, I ended up spending way more than I was planning. I also finally broke down and brought a membeship to B&N. When I left B&N, I was $98.24 poorer.

I brought:
Civil War: Fantastic Four
Green Lantern Corps: Ring Quest
Teen Titans: Beast Boys & Girls
E.E.Knight Dragon Strike (Book 4 of the Age of Fire series)
Star Trek TNG: Resistance
Stone of Tears (Book 2 of the Sword of Truth series)
B&N membership fee ($25)

Next, having already spent more than I was planning, I was going to call it a day, but decided to take a quick stop in JCPenny for another sheet set. A few months ago, I got tired of shopping at the imitation 5 & Dime store. I wanted better quality in the sheets. In the past, I would buy bed sheets for $3 or $4 only (tissue paper thin) that would start unraveling with the first wash. Anyway, When I finished at JCPenny, I was about $274.05 poorer.

I brought:
2 jeans
2 white dress shirts
1 pair of black Dockers
1 pack of socks
2 pair of pajamas
1 flannel sheet set
1 coin-counting bank
1 catalog

Final stop was Staples. I only needed a couple of packs of markers (one for home and one for school). And $106.79 poorer, I brought:
2 packs of markers
1 16 ft. printer cable
1 box of chalk
1 heavy duty stapler

The Staples stop was for work related items. The printer cable was so that I could hook up my copier to the classroom computer. Now, I won't need to set up my laptop when I just need to print one thing. The heavy duty stapler is for the holiday homework packs and multi-page packs that can't be handled by a regular stapler.

Well, much more than I was planning to write (and more than I was planning to spend).


Post Date - Sunday, January 25, 2009 3:18PM

Happy New Year. Yep, it has been a while since my last posting. I haven't been in a posting mood. Nothing interesting, or different in my life so I haven't felt the need to post. While I'm waiting for my honey on toast snack to digest, I thought I would post something quick.

Today was the beginning of a three-day weekend. Instead of doing my usual comatose "sleep the day away" routine, I spent most of the day finishing up reading Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind. I got interested in the story once I saw a few of the episodes from the TV "Legend of the Seeker"(based on the Sword of Truth book series).


I liked the book. I'm planning to buy the next book in the series. If I can get through the first three books, then I will start buying the reminding books in boxed sets. I liked the book better than the TV show. However, I believe I probably wouldn't have gotten into the book without the TV show.



Post Date Sunday, January 18, 2009 12:53a.m.

Social Network Video

I thought this was cute.

Random Thoughts

More Random Thoughts

* Thanksgiving
Okay. Since it was the day after schools closed for the Thanksgiving holiday, I did what I usually did, I slept most of the day away. I went to my foster father's place. He was asleep, and other than the conversation taking place while I was eating about which "faggots" in the neighborhood were dead or dying of the AIDS, my Thanksgiving dinner was okay. I avoided saying anything. After dinner, I stayed in the kitchen reading the newspaper and playing Tetris on my cell phone.

* I finished reading Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials(933 pages). When the "Golden Compass" movie came out, I thought those protesting the movie were just religious fanatics who had nothing to be angry about. But having read the "Materials" trilogy, I can now see why they were angry. I'm not a religious person, but if I was, I would be highly offended at the book. Since I'm not religious, I took the book as a fantasy read. But still,...

The images and ideas really, I mean really didn't put the church in a positive light. In the story God, was a senile old man, who met a somewhat gruesome end. One character decided to take it upon himself to kill god. Angels were weak easily longing for "human contact". I could go one, but I think you get the idea.

If you are going to take the story as a strict fantasy with no personal offense of the "religious angle", then you might like the story. However, the ending wasn't very good. I like happy endings. Although, the ending was pleasant, it wasn't happy. It was a kind of "for the good of the universe, you must make a sacrifice" -- not the payoff I was looking for.

* Thanksgiving Holiday
I had 3 days to be productive, but here it is Sunday evening and I am wasting time on the computer with nothing to show for a four day rest. Now you see why I haven't been blogging for a while now. Nothing to blog about. Sleep and stress, the cycle continues....


Completion Date - Sunday, November 30, 2008 4:28PM
Post Date - Sunday, March 15, 2009 1:48PM

Popcorn Hoax

A very interesting (if not scary) video. Popcorn being popped using cell phones.

It turns out to be a hoax. I got so excited that I posted the video here without doing any (online) research. About a 30 second search revealed not only the hoax, but how it was done. I was tempted to delete the video, but I think it is a good lesson learned. Normally, I don't like to forward what I receive without doing some kind of (online)research. I'll have to be more careful in the future.

On second thought, I am going to delete the video from this blog entry. Hopefully, no one reading this blog was taken in by the video due to me being a bit lazy about doing some varification before posting the video. If anyone was taken in by the video posted here, I do apologize.


Reposted - Sunday, March 15, 2009 1:46PM

Behind the scene Obama Slideshow

I haven't been in a blogging mood, but this slideshow helped to put me in the mood.



Post Date - Tuesday, November 11, 2008 8:37PM
Reposted - Sunday, March 15, 2009 1:44PM