Happy July 4th everyone!
Today, I find myself all alone at home. But do not worry, I am sharing my patriotism with EVERYONE that passes by, and trust me there are a LOT of tourists. Today, I've turned up the woofers and the tweeters, turned them towards the port and consequently the bars, restaurants, cyclists, pedestrians, the boat traffic, the dogs, the cats and the pigeons have had the pleasure of
1. The Battly Hymn of the Republic
2. The Star Spangled Banner
3. The Marine Hymn
4. The Army Song
5. The Navy Song
6. Various Marine cadences
being blasted into their ears whether they like it or not, but OF COURSE they like it. Tonight my music will be replaced with music from the bar directly below me, so it's fair.
This is one day of the year where I'm putting all my political grievences aside and being simply proud of being an American!
Peace!
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Dick and Jayne go to the farm.
It's looking like I might end up a farmer after all. I lived all that time in Iowa and I never caught the fever. I had to come to France to get my first tractor-driving experience under my belt. I'm at my in-law's farm house in the country and Laurent has to help out with the corn. This is something he's done many times, but this year, there's a special new twist. His Dad bought the life-size version of the plastic excavator he played with when he was little! You can consider it the ultamate poney.
Laurent has had the joy of digging a ditch with the back hoe attachment for a couple days now. Unfortunately, like all new toys, the shine wears off and what's left is a lot of work to do. But he did let me take the controls for a little bit and I moved some dirt around like when I was in the sand at the play ground. Pretty fun, but it takes some major coordination for all the articulations the machine has and I hadn't mastered it before it was time to hand the controls back over to Laurent . Maybe next time.
The boys just got back from the field, time to go eat some roast pork. Yummy!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Spring is here. Translation: TOURIST SEASON!
Unless you've been living in a cave (you can come out now) or possibly in a winter-generation machine (why??), you've noticed the warm weather creeping back into our daily lives. So as you dream of seeing Paris in springtime, the Parisians start the mass exodus of their city to go visit 'Provence.' Provence (with the accent on the vence) is where EVERYONE who doesn't live in Paris is from. My particular corner of 'provence' is well liked for its sandy beaches, big surf waves, sprawling forests, and relatively quaint cities. The apartments in my building, as well as the streets, the stores and the beaches, are filling up with vacationers . Everything is starting to cost more, too: the ice cream parlor, the grocery store, the gas station, etc all inflate their prices to make our affluent visitors feel right at home.
At school, the kids are getting anxious for summer and who can blame them? They live in a region that was made for summer fun. I must find a way to convert their unharnessed energy into constructive participation in English class!!!
The arrival of spring is also a reminder that my teaching contract is almost up. This means I have to start looking for next year's visa solution, which I'm hoping will not be too difficult to find. Maybe the public schools will be able to do something for me, or perhaps one of the various private language schools? OR, maybe the family I babysit for will be able to convince the French authorities I deserve the right to live and work on their land. We'll see.
As I look across the port, I see the street teeming with bicycles, pedestrians, dogs, roller bladers -- you name it! It's starting to make me ask myself what I'm doing inside.
Off I go to take full advantage of this blessed spring!
At school, the kids are getting anxious for summer and who can blame them? They live in a region that was made for summer fun. I must find a way to convert their unharnessed energy into constructive participation in English class!!!
The arrival of spring is also a reminder that my teaching contract is almost up. This means I have to start looking for next year's visa solution, which I'm hoping will not be too difficult to find. Maybe the public schools will be able to do something for me, or perhaps one of the various private language schools? OR, maybe the family I babysit for will be able to convince the French authorities I deserve the right to live and work on their land. We'll see.
As I look across the port, I see the street teeming with bicycles, pedestrians, dogs, roller bladers -- you name it! It's starting to make me ask myself what I'm doing inside.
Off I go to take full advantage of this blessed spring!
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Progress
Well, hello again! It's been a while since I've last posted. Sometimes I wonder why it's so hard to do something so simple, but I musn't beat myself up about it, only make an effort to do better from now on!
This winter has been a good one. With the children I teach, I feel like I'm making progress with many of them! In my fifth grade class, I have a mix of both the biggest challenges and the most rewarding successes! In this class, there is a boy who arrived in the beginning of the school year from Eastern Europe not speaking one word of French who now manages to make full sentances in both English and French! There is also a boy who is actively trying to get suspended so he can go home and play with his baby brother. You can imagine the sort of problems he can cause. However, in this same class, there is a group of girls who are constantly asking me for more work to do, homework, further expansion on my lessons, you name it, they can't get enough English! One of these girls lives in the orphanage and typically fails all of her subjects, so her teachers are just shocked when they see her getting nearly perfect scores on her work in English. I must say this makes me proud and motivated to do a good job for the ones who want to learn.
Despite the many positive aspects of this job, I do get frustrated because I know a lot of the parents don't back the teachers at the school and their kids know it. And sometimes I lose my temper. I told one kid that his mother should be ashamed of him. That's probably not good psychology.....but he did grab a pencil out of his classmate's hand and throw it in the garbage without provocation, and when I insisted that he fetch the pencil and apologize, he said, 'Sorry I threw your f***ing pencil in garbage.' His mother would be ashamed!!!!! (I hope.) Whew, deep breaths. Moving on.
In previous posts I have lamented about my failed snowboarding attempts where I spend most of my time recovering from my previous tumble. However, with a little perseverance, I have managed to descend entire blue slopes without falling once! As it turns out, snowboarding can actually be fun! I don't last very long; at the end of the morning I'm pooped whereas the others are just getting started, but I'm happy to know that I can at least hold my own for a couple of hours.
I JUST got my visa finalized, so now I can start looking for odd jobs to supplement my little teaching job. I brushed up my resume in French and English, and let me tell you, if you think resumes are hard in English, just try it out in a second language. Yikes! And I've yet to find out if it's any good or not. I'll probably end up working with tutoring companies that would hire me out to help kids in English. Hopefully these will be older kids. Frankly, the little ones are tiring and it's appealing to get back to more advanced grammar points than telling time or listing colors.
We are currently on our two week winter break and last week I spent babysitting three little boys. This week is much calmer and I find myself wishing there were more people around to help take advantage of the beautiful weather we're having this first week in March! I hope you are enjoying your winters and and taking the time to appreciate the people around you!
Much love!
This winter has been a good one. With the children I teach, I feel like I'm making progress with many of them! In my fifth grade class, I have a mix of both the biggest challenges and the most rewarding successes! In this class, there is a boy who arrived in the beginning of the school year from Eastern Europe not speaking one word of French who now manages to make full sentances in both English and French! There is also a boy who is actively trying to get suspended so he can go home and play with his baby brother. You can imagine the sort of problems he can cause. However, in this same class, there is a group of girls who are constantly asking me for more work to do, homework, further expansion on my lessons, you name it, they can't get enough English! One of these girls lives in the orphanage and typically fails all of her subjects, so her teachers are just shocked when they see her getting nearly perfect scores on her work in English. I must say this makes me proud and motivated to do a good job for the ones who want to learn.
Despite the many positive aspects of this job, I do get frustrated because I know a lot of the parents don't back the teachers at the school and their kids know it. And sometimes I lose my temper. I told one kid that his mother should be ashamed of him. That's probably not good psychology.....but he did grab a pencil out of his classmate's hand and throw it in the garbage without provocation, and when I insisted that he fetch the pencil and apologize, he said, 'Sorry I threw your f***ing pencil in garbage.' His mother would be ashamed!!!!! (I hope.) Whew, deep breaths. Moving on.
In previous posts I have lamented about my failed snowboarding attempts where I spend most of my time recovering from my previous tumble. However, with a little perseverance, I have managed to descend entire blue slopes without falling once! As it turns out, snowboarding can actually be fun! I don't last very long; at the end of the morning I'm pooped whereas the others are just getting started, but I'm happy to know that I can at least hold my own for a couple of hours.
I JUST got my visa finalized, so now I can start looking for odd jobs to supplement my little teaching job. I brushed up my resume in French and English, and let me tell you, if you think resumes are hard in English, just try it out in a second language. Yikes! And I've yet to find out if it's any good or not. I'll probably end up working with tutoring companies that would hire me out to help kids in English. Hopefully these will be older kids. Frankly, the little ones are tiring and it's appealing to get back to more advanced grammar points than telling time or listing colors.
We are currently on our two week winter break and last week I spent babysitting three little boys. This week is much calmer and I find myself wishing there were more people around to help take advantage of the beautiful weather we're having this first week in March! I hope you are enjoying your winters and and taking the time to appreciate the people around you!
Much love!
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Children, children everywhere!
I've worked for a little while now so I can give you an idea of how it's going. I like the other teachers at the school and the Spanish assistant is really nice. I don't know about this whole 'teaching children' idea, though. It's strange that I have 2nd, 4th and 5th grade but not 3rd, and the difference between the two groups is remarkable. The smallest ones are my favorites because they are more worried about impressing me than their classmates. So far, I've accumulated 5 drawings and one bead. I must say I'll take that over the presents from the cats any day.
The older ones are far more of a challenge. Not only do I have more of them at a time, but they really like to assert themselves in really stupid ways. I won't explain but I'm sure you can imagine.
In one of my classes, I have a young boy from Moldova who arrived here two weeks ago after having lived in Portugal for a while. So he speaks Moldovan fluently, Portugese fairly well, a few full sentences of English, and no French. He's picked up a few words but he's not capable of making full sentences yet. He likes to make his classmates laugh by acting out a lot so despite the fact that he can't really talk to his classmates, he seems to be fitting in well. Let's just say he's hard to know what to do with.
So far at the middle school I had been more of a passive observer than a teacher because the school hadn't bothered to get me a classroom where I could take half the class. But, the other day, the inspector came by to make sure Karen and I were working our full 12 contractual hours, and he saw to it that I would have a classroom for the following day. He was far more effective than my or the teacher's attempts to get them to give me a classroom! Also, I have been assigned another school because the inspector discovered that I only had 10 and 1/2 hours of classes. So, I have to go teach a 4th grade class twice a week across town. I don't really have a right to complain but that doesn't change the fact that I'm grumpy about it. And I got a better deal than the Spanish assistant. She only had 6 hours of work, so she also has to go to another school, not the same as mine where I could give her a ride, but a school even farther away. And even with this other school's hours, it doesn't add up to 12, so she will now have to (or get to, depending on your perspective) spend time with the gym teacher and teach kids to play sports in Spanish.
Fortunately after working almost a whole month three days a week/four hours per day, I finally get a well deserved vacation. Yep, it's Halloween break! I've been taking advantage of my extra free time by making travel arrangements for Uncle Allen and cousin Lauren. I've met all the inn keepers in the neighborhood and I now have a few that I can confindently recommend. I can't wait to have the visitors! However, it must be noted that others wanting to come visit will have accomadations with Laurent and I if you so choose. This is an enthusiastic reminder to all friends and family that I would love to host you here!!!
I recently signed up with the music school in Tarnos, not as a teacher but as a student. I'm taking private voice and piano lessons. I was a little nervous to tell Laurent how much it cost, but his reacation was actually extremely positive. He figures he can now spend the same amount on skiing this winter and I won't be able to give him a guilt trip about it. It works, I guess!
The older ones are far more of a challenge. Not only do I have more of them at a time, but they really like to assert themselves in really stupid ways. I won't explain but I'm sure you can imagine.
In one of my classes, I have a young boy from Moldova who arrived here two weeks ago after having lived in Portugal for a while. So he speaks Moldovan fluently, Portugese fairly well, a few full sentences of English, and no French. He's picked up a few words but he's not capable of making full sentences yet. He likes to make his classmates laugh by acting out a lot so despite the fact that he can't really talk to his classmates, he seems to be fitting in well. Let's just say he's hard to know what to do with.
So far at the middle school I had been more of a passive observer than a teacher because the school hadn't bothered to get me a classroom where I could take half the class. But, the other day, the inspector came by to make sure Karen and I were working our full 12 contractual hours, and he saw to it that I would have a classroom for the following day. He was far more effective than my or the teacher's attempts to get them to give me a classroom! Also, I have been assigned another school because the inspector discovered that I only had 10 and 1/2 hours of classes. So, I have to go teach a 4th grade class twice a week across town. I don't really have a right to complain but that doesn't change the fact that I'm grumpy about it. And I got a better deal than the Spanish assistant. She only had 6 hours of work, so she also has to go to another school, not the same as mine where I could give her a ride, but a school even farther away. And even with this other school's hours, it doesn't add up to 12, so she will now have to (or get to, depending on your perspective) spend time with the gym teacher and teach kids to play sports in Spanish.
Fortunately after working almost a whole month three days a week/four hours per day, I finally get a well deserved vacation. Yep, it's Halloween break! I've been taking advantage of my extra free time by making travel arrangements for Uncle Allen and cousin Lauren. I've met all the inn keepers in the neighborhood and I now have a few that I can confindently recommend. I can't wait to have the visitors! However, it must be noted that others wanting to come visit will have accomadations with Laurent and I if you so choose. This is an enthusiastic reminder to all friends and family that I would love to host you here!!!
I recently signed up with the music school in Tarnos, not as a teacher but as a student. I'm taking private voice and piano lessons. I was a little nervous to tell Laurent how much it cost, but his reacation was actually extremely positive. He figures he can now spend the same amount on skiing this winter and I won't be able to give him a guilt trip about it. It works, I guess!
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
The new school year
After being home in Clinton and successfully getting a new visa, I am back in France. Laurent picked me up from the airport in Toulouse, and instead of coming straight home, he took me on an RV trip to the mountains. Not the most restful trip, but definitely one of the best ways to get over jet lag fast! On Saturday, we went hiking on a trail that was supposed to lead us to a lake. However, in the beginning of the trail we decided to cut through a patch of forest where we saw the trail on the other side. About an hour later we were back at the parking lot very confused. It turns out that by skipping that small portion of the path we also skipped the part where it forks off towards the lake. Oops....so we start again. The trail to the lake was very beautiful but very steep! I pretty much had to drag Laurent up parts of it, but I did let him rest a couple times, I promise!
On the way back down, we stopped at a shepard's outpost and bought some sheep cheese. To get there, you have to walk through his pastures aroung his pigs and cows and I must say that these animals are very, very big in person. None of them tried to stampede us, even though I'm pretty sure they would have if we made any wrong moves.
That night we parked the RV on the Spanish side of the border where there was an old train station. In it's hay day it was a magnificant structure serving as a major tranportation hub for the Pyrenees. Now this station is closed and there is only a tiny one-room cabin to serve the few passengers who still come through.
On Sunday, we decided to take a smaller hike seeing as how we were sore from the previous day. In the gorge carved out by a small mountain river, we saw people going 'canyoning,' where they go up and down the waterways of the mountains. We thought it looked hard, so we took a picture!
Then, this trail was beautiful, but the most interesting thing about it was the hiker's refuge that we found. It is a small but equiped cabin provided to any and all who may come across it in need of protection from the weather or just a place to sleep. There is a cabin like this every 6 hours of hiking along the Pyrenees Trail. I was amazed by how thick the walls were and the woodburning stove that people still use, and also the sack of potatoes on the wall left there as an emergency store of food. This cabin is always open just with signs asking people to leave it as clean as they found it and to shut the door on their way out. Amazingly, the place was clean and the door was shut. Aparently there are still people that can use the honor system reliably!
Now, I'm back on the coast and I have gone to visit the school where I will be working. It turns out that I'll have kids aged 7-12. I don't know a whole lot more than than, and I start next Friday after I'll have had my training session. That's it for now!
On the way back down, we stopped at a shepard's outpost and bought some sheep cheese. To get there, you have to walk through his pastures aroung his pigs and cows and I must say that these animals are very, very big in person. None of them tried to stampede us, even though I'm pretty sure they would have if we made any wrong moves.
That night we parked the RV on the Spanish side of the border where there was an old train station. In it's hay day it was a magnificant structure serving as a major tranportation hub for the Pyrenees. Now this station is closed and there is only a tiny one-room cabin to serve the few passengers who still come through.
On Sunday, we decided to take a smaller hike seeing as how we were sore from the previous day. In the gorge carved out by a small mountain river, we saw people going 'canyoning,' where they go up and down the waterways of the mountains. We thought it looked hard, so we took a picture!
Then, this trail was beautiful, but the most interesting thing about it was the hiker's refuge that we found. It is a small but equiped cabin provided to any and all who may come across it in need of protection from the weather or just a place to sleep. There is a cabin like this every 6 hours of hiking along the Pyrenees Trail. I was amazed by how thick the walls were and the woodburning stove that people still use, and also the sack of potatoes on the wall left there as an emergency store of food. This cabin is always open just with signs asking people to leave it as clean as they found it and to shut the door on their way out. Amazingly, the place was clean and the door was shut. Aparently there are still people that can use the honor system reliably!
Now, I'm back on the coast and I have gone to visit the school where I will be working. It turns out that I'll have kids aged 7-12. I don't know a whole lot more than than, and I start next Friday after I'll have had my training session. That's it for now!
Monday, May 18, 2009
Motocycle touring
Hello everyone, I hope spring is treating you well. Summer is right around the corner and I'm so happy to have everything green and warm, even if it is all a little damp.
On Saturday, Laurent and I went on a motorcycle trip through French Basque country. His
friend Romain organized the outing and there were five motorcycles all together. The idea was to go to the top of a particular mountain on the French-Spanish border. The roads twisted and turned through the mountains and hills spotted with picturesque (read: touristy) Basque villages. Despite the beauty of our surroundings, we couldn't help but worry about one of the members of our group who was particularly daring, which translates to 'particularly dangerous' when on a motorcycle. Every time we stopped, the guys would 'jokingly' tell him he took a turn a little too fast, or passed when he really didn't have enough time, or tell him 'hey man, the road's not a race track!' The day went on like this, we ate a nice pic-nic by a mountain stream and met plenty of other motorcyclists who wanted to chat about their bikes, their experiences, this or that. It was fun!
The five riders Saint Jean Pied de Port
Our pic-nic area at lunch time
A dam with graffitti that reads "we've reintroduced beavers (into the wild)"
Then, five minutes from the summit, BANG!
Julien, the daredevil, passed a car too fast on a curve, hit a rock, and continued in a straight line where he should have curved with the road! He was so far ahead of the rest of us no one saw him fall except the car he passed. When Laurent and I got to the scene, we saw our buddies waving their arms indicating that we should pull over. When we stopped, there were several men with a rope pulling a motorcylce out of the ravine. I didn't understand what was going on, I thought it was someone we didn't know and we were helping out an unlucky stranger. But no, it was our friend who had skidded across the the scenic viewpoint and over the edge! He and his motorcyle only fell about six feet before getting stuck in the mud. He was extremely lucky- he walked away with some scrapes and a broken toe.
Pulling Julien out of his predicament.
Looking up from where the motorcyle and rider landed
The unfortunate state of the bike; post crash
Coasting down the mountain
He was shaken up, as were the rest of us, but we had to do something about the motorcycle. Even with all the damage, they were able to put it into neutral and he rode back down the mountain to the nearest town. Julien's brother-in-law came with a trailer to load up the bike.
Apparently this guy had bought this motorcycle one month earlier after wrecking his last one, and it was his third time falling after having his liscense for only a year! Some people never learn!
After this exitement, we went home, never making it to our destination, just five kilometers past the crash sight. But you just don't leave a man behind!
On Saturday, Laurent and I went on a motorcycle trip through French Basque country. His
friend Romain organized the outing and there were five motorcycles all together. The idea was to go to the top of a particular mountain on the French-Spanish border. The roads twisted and turned through the mountains and hills spotted with picturesque (read: touristy) Basque villages. Despite the beauty of our surroundings, we couldn't help but worry about one of the members of our group who was particularly daring, which translates to 'particularly dangerous' when on a motorcycle. Every time we stopped, the guys would 'jokingly' tell him he took a turn a little too fast, or passed when he really didn't have enough time, or tell him 'hey man, the road's not a race track!' The day went on like this, we ate a nice pic-nic by a mountain stream and met plenty of other motorcyclists who wanted to chat about their bikes, their experiences, this or that. It was fun!
The five riders Saint Jean Pied de Port
Our pic-nic area at lunch time
A dam with graffitti that reads "we've reintroduced beavers (into the wild)"
Then, five minutes from the summit, BANG!
Julien, the daredevil, passed a car too fast on a curve, hit a rock, and continued in a straight line where he should have curved with the road! He was so far ahead of the rest of us no one saw him fall except the car he passed. When Laurent and I got to the scene, we saw our buddies waving their arms indicating that we should pull over. When we stopped, there were several men with a rope pulling a motorcylce out of the ravine. I didn't understand what was going on, I thought it was someone we didn't know and we were helping out an unlucky stranger. But no, it was our friend who had skidded across the the scenic viewpoint and over the edge! He and his motorcyle only fell about six feet before getting stuck in the mud. He was extremely lucky- he walked away with some scrapes and a broken toe.
Pulling Julien out of his predicament.
Looking up from where the motorcyle and rider landed
The unfortunate state of the bike; post crash
Coasting down the mountain
He was shaken up, as were the rest of us, but we had to do something about the motorcycle. Even with all the damage, they were able to put it into neutral and he rode back down the mountain to the nearest town. Julien's brother-in-law came with a trailer to load up the bike.
Apparently this guy had bought this motorcycle one month earlier after wrecking his last one, and it was his third time falling after having his liscense for only a year! Some people never learn!
After this exitement, we went home, never making it to our destination, just five kilometers past the crash sight. But you just don't leave a man behind!
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