Tales from the third grade

I want to share a few funny story with you:

There is a kid in my class. I will call him Steve. Steve is a bit of a whiner. Everything and everyone seems to bug him. Well, the whole class was practicing how to look up words in the dictionary. All of a sudden, Steve comes up with yet another complaint. He said that another kid, Richard, had called him a crybaby. When I approached Richard, he said he looked up the definition of crybaby in the dictionary and it said someone who complains a lot. He pointed out that Steve does complain a lot so therefore he is a crybaby. The kid had a point. Steve even agreed that he dis complain a lot. I basically told them that though what Richard was saying was true, Steve did not appreciate the title so he needed to stop calling him that.

Belated Blogging

It has been far too long since I have blogged. I am tempted to recap the last two weeks of my life but that would take far too long.

Instead I will just write about today. I got observed by my principal and it went really well. My students behaved and the lesson was good. Then my mood soured a bit because the air conditioning was not working. This made both me and the kids understandably testy. Overall, temperature aside, it was a really good day.

After school I had Young Life. We normally have it on Wednesday nights but this time we crashed another school's club. The other school's group is very different from mine. Mine is primarily lower income black and hispanic kids with a few white kids.

These other kids are very wealthy. I also feel slightly uncomfortable with preppy rich white kids. My own high school was full of well-off students but only a few who would be classified as wealthy. I don't have much experience with the truly wealthy. The girls from the other school were almost wearing a uniform. It was uncanny. They wore a specific style of NIKE running shorts, an oversized t-shirt and brown leather deck shoes.

Those of you who know me, know I must match my clothes. My friend, Britany once dared me to go unmatching for one day and I simply couldn't. My Young Life kids are meticulous matches. If they are wearing black and yellow shoes, they wear black and yellow clothes. If they wear a red shirt, red shoes. These white kids didn't match at all. Athletic shorts and deck shoes? Weird! Everytime I am with those fancy kids, I am glad that I work with the kids I do. I am sure those rich kids are great and I know I would like to swim in their pools and marvel at their mansions, but I know I am where I belong.

Our group "invaded" theirs. They hold their meetings at a local tennis club. I am sure the neighbors were a bit nervous as about 25 of our kids were walking down the street wearing all black and camo. When we got into the club, we sprayed them with silly string. Unfortunately I gave my can away. I just got showered with the stuff with no way to retaliate. It was still fun. After the spraying, we joined them for songs and games and a Jesus talk. Good times were had by all.

The streak ends at Beer Island

The 1993 Houston Rockets championship was the best sports moment of my life. The 2005 University of Texas football championship does come in a close second, though. The reason that the Rockets' championship trumps the Longhorns' is due to my absolute obsession at the time with all things basketball.

I played basketball on a regular basis, papered my wall with posters featuring my favorite players, and wore basketball jerseys. I also collected basketball cards (this accounts for my extensive knowledge of the teams and players of that year). My friends and neighbors also caught Rockets fever after the team won the first 15 games of that season.

We would get together at a neighbor's house to watch the games on Pay per View. My friends and I made voodoo dolls of the players from the other teams. We would rip them apart when necessary. The adults would drink as they got excited and made amazing comments about how one of the other team's player resembled a farmer and how one of our players must buff his head in a bowling ball buffer. And when we played the New York Knicks for the championship, we used to marvel at the enormity of Patrick Ewing's nostrils.

We made many jokes at Patrick's nose's expense. The on-going one was that we could fit a roll of quarters up each nostril. These were not the nicest comments but if you look at the guy's nose I am sure you will see where we were coming from. The great irony of this joke came when I worked at a local record store after college. Patrick was an assistant coach with the Rockets and a regular weekly patron of our store. So here I was, working a cash register with a roll of quarters within arms' reach, when Patrick Ewing- my sworn enemy comes in. God could not have set me up any better to finally determine if Patrick's nostrils could indeed house a roll of quarters. Thankfully or not thankfully- depending on how you look at it, common sense prevailed and I resisted the urge.

When the Rockets won, I was in Heaven. My friends and I celebrated by going outside and banging pots and pans. We held up signs that said, "Honk if you love the Rockets!" and people honked.

So, now that you know a bit of my history with the Rockets; let's fast-forward to today. To be honest, I haven't kept up with the Rockets in the past few years. No other NBA team has stolen my affection, though. I am always a Rockets fan at heart. I recently found out that the Rockets were on a roll again. I decided to become a real fan again. I watched them tie for the second most wins in a row.

Last night, I watched them lose for the first time in 24 games yesterday. Luckily I got to watch it with one of my favorite people and one who was just as zealous as we watched the Rockets in 93, Neha Patel. We went to this place near my house called Beer Island. It looked a lot like a frat party with a hand-painted banner in the front. It was a bar but it did not serve mixed drinks- just beer. The cliental was odd to say the least. Several people brought dogs and for a moment, it seemed that two were going to fight. There was a strange 50ish biker chick with several jump drives hanging from her neck. She was accompanied, quite naturally I must say, by a large biker-esque guy with a mullet. There were some young college-types. There was a lady who was quite loud and enthusiastic, wearing a duct-tape shirt that said 22-0. She really should have updated it to 23. She was obviously excited but strangely alone. She made a lot more sense when her friend came, also loud and also wearing a homeade shirt.

Overall, it was a fun/funny atmosphere despite the loss. And I always love to spend time with Neha. Despite the loss, I am still going to be a fan.... at least for this season.

Spring Break has begun!

My Spring Break has officially begun! Whoohoo! I have already been very productive. I went to the post office, the bank and got a much-needed haircut. I also got a CT scan, which is like a fancy x-ray.

I have had sinus problems since high school but for the last year I seem to have a perpetual sinus problem I can't seem to shake. My doctor told me I had a really bad septum and this CT scan is supposed to show him if my sinus's will need sugery.

The CT scan experience is pretty weird. After reassuring the workers many times that there is absolutely no chance I am pregnant, I had to lay down on a table covered with sheets. Then they put some kind of lead apron on my midsection to protect the baby maker. The CT scan machine looks like a giant donut and is at the end of the table. I don't know if they do CT scans for other parts of your body but for mine, I had to have my head in the middle of the donut. The technician told me not to move. I don't know about you but when I am told I cannot move, despite being perfectly capable of being immobile before, I seem unable to stop moving. Can I breathe? Can I blink? The woman should have been more specific.

The machine flashed lights and moved and made noises while I struggled to contain my movements. I decided to close my eyes in order to no longer worry about the question of blinking. I feared I was moving too much as I breathed, though. Don't they understand that I have bad sinuses? I need to move a bit in order to breathe.

After I went through one cycle of whirring noises and strange lights, I had to do it all over again but in a much more awkward position. I was on my stomach with my head raised and facing forward. They had a little chin shelf to make the not moving thing possible. This time was shorter but definitely less comfortable. Overall, the whole thing wasn't too bad at all. I think about all the weirdly invasive medical tests Sarah has had to go through these past few months and know I have nothing to complain about.

As for complaining, I keep putting off riding my bike even though I know I need to. The MS150 is less than a month away and I have only done minimal training. I am going to try to go to Galveston this week and ride on the seawall. I just get bored when I am going long distances. Oh well. I need to end this blog entry, suck it up, and go for a ride.

Cancer sucks

I am about to go take a nap between school and going bowling with the YoungLife kids. But I want to do a quick little blog first for my random faithful readers.

I hate cancer and it sucks. These things are pretty obvious but it seems that almost daily I hear of someone who is less than the cultural 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon away from me, and has cancer or has died of cancer. I am just getting so tired of it. The latest was Yoon Koller. She was a lady from my church. I didn't know her well but I went to school with her son, Andrew. He's a really nice guy. Apparently she found out that she had stomach cancer two months ago and now she's dead. She was younger than my parents and I believe several of her children are still in high school. It just doesn't make any sense.

I am thinking of doing a reprinting of my "cancer sucks" shirts. I must admit that the slogan is clever and truthful but the reason to reprint is because so many people keep getting diagnosed with various cancers. It does make a great "So I found out you have cancer and I have no idea what to say or do" gift. But I wish there was no need for these. If any of you are interested, let me know your size and color preferences. I wish I didn't know anyone to give one too but unfortunately I know far too many. Cancer sucks!

Full weekend

I had a busy weekend. I have been feeling the allergy burn again lately. It seems I am allergic to those times when Houston weather changes dramatically. That is pretty much constant in the Spring. Despite feeling slightly under the weather, I had a good time.

On Friday, I went to Sarah and John's. Sarah had her mastectomy on Thursday or as I prefer to say; she lost one of her girls. We watched a lot of Seinfeld and ate some lasagna that a nice lady made them. I was also given a quilt by Sarah's mom. I have been waiting for about 15 years for one of these babies. Sarah's mom is a quilting phenom whose work you may have seen in those quilting magazines I am sure you all have subscriptions to. Anyway, I finally got my own and it is awesome!!

Sarah is doing well. She was really sore but in good spirits. On Saturday we even ventured out of the house. We went to the mall so Sarah could buy some shoes she'd had her eye on. We figured she deserved it. The shoes ended up being named "Comfort shoes." Coincidence? I think not. I acted like an offensive lineman to protect Sarah from unwanted bumps from random passer-bys.

Then Saturday night, I watched my favorite mullet documentary and played a lot of wii with one of my friends. I am feeling sore today. I dominated at wii tennis. I am issuing a challenge to anyone who thinks they can take me on. Bring it!

Today my parents and I went to College Station to see my brother and his wife. They were in town from Colorado Springs for their nephew's christening. It was great to see them. I really miss having my brother around. We got to jump on the kids' trampoline. I love trampolines!!! So, basically I had a great weekend. Now, it's back to the land of lesson plans. Thank goodness Spring Break starts in four days!!!!

TAKS and losing one of the girls

Today was the dreaded Reading TAKS test. If my kids do well, my life is good. If my kids do poorly, my life will suck. It's a lot of pressure on them and even more on me. It wasn't the most fun day because the test takes all day and they have to be quiet all day. It's hard for adults to be quiet that long, let alone 8 and 9 year olds. I am so glad it's over. We should get the results after Spring Break.

Tomorrow is Sarah's mastectomy. She is losing one of her girls. The doctors have told her many things but because she is such a small person all over, it shouldn't be too bad. Please keep her in your prayers. She still has a lot of decisions to make in the future about reconstruction and all that.

Amy's wedding continued

I realize I need to end my account of Amy's wedding weekend.

I think I left off with the wedding day. We all got into the limo and headed to the church, which was convienantly located only a few miles away. My groomsman, Frank and I lead the bridal party procession with flair. Amy's niece-3 and nephew-1, were the flower girl and ring bearer, respectively. Actually Annika, the flower girl, refused to be refered to as flower girl and instead prefered to be called the princess. She even wore a tiara to prove it. She did a fine job walking down the aisle, though her brother, Kai had some trouble. Eventually he made it down with some assistance from his father.

Amy's friend, Karen and sister bawled when she went down the aisle. I was strangely unaffected. I never seem to be able to predict when I will lose it at a wedding. Sometimes I try to make myself cry to feel like I am really getting into it. If Amy and I had just left Maui where we were spending 90% of our free time together, I am sure I would have been upset. But now I figure I will see her just as much, if not more since her husband has a good job.

Anyway, Amy looked awesome and Shawn seemed to have tears in his eyes. Amy's dad definitely did. Amy's brother, Ryan performed the ceremony. I always like it when family members do the wedding since they have a lot of insider info. It's definitely weird when you can tell the person marrying the couple doesn't really know them.

After the ceremony, we were supposed to go immediately to take bridal party pics. Unfortunately Amy and Shawn stood in the hallway too long and an unexpected receiving line began. This delayed the pictures quite a bit as they schmoozed with their guests. Finally we headed out into the wintry weather for some pics. It was freezing. The groomsmen kept lending us their jackets to cover our strapless shoulders. The pictures looked great, I am sure but I was glad to get back in the warm limo.

The reception was fun. Lindsay, Amy's sister, started a little jellybean war. She tried to throw jellybeans into our cleavage. It was a fun game, for sure. The food was excellent and there was quite the array of pastries. Amy's cousin/Bethany's brother, Graeme was the MC. Canadian weddings always seem to have a friend or family member who announces stuff and makes sure things run smoothly. Graeme made up a great song at Bethany's wedding about how there better be gluten-free in Georgia. Bethany is allergic to gluten. It was just hilarious. The song he wrote about Amy was equally entertaining. It was all about how Shawn needed to be prepared because Amy was addicted to lululemon pants. For those of you who don't know Amy, she pretty much only wears pants from lululemon, a Canadian yoga/athletic wear company. The song was very fitting.

The speeches were good- funny yet heartfelt and it's always nice to see a man cry. I was excited about the bouquet toss but was thwarted by Kristy Bartunek. She gave me a hard shove from behind and dashed my hopes of catching the bouquet. I am not superstitious. I have already caught two. I am just competitive. Later Kristy and I made our fun by taking random pics including ones where we were wearing other people's coats.

After the wedding, we helped clean up and went back to Amy's to change. Then a bunch of the former YWAMers went over to Courtney Mowat's house to hang out. It's always interesting to see where your friends live. I called it the Courtney reality tour. Courtney lives in a teenager's dream house. They have a pool, hot tub, pool table, ping pong, huge media room with leather lazy boy style theater seating. And a projection screen with a wii. There also seemed to be endless snacks. It was awesome!! We had a lot of fun. I'd like to have a house like that when I have teenagers so they will want to hang out at home and not get into trouble.

The next day, Amy's dad drove me to the airport and it was back to teaching. Hmmm...

My eighth bridesmaid gig

I have been meaning to write about Amy's wedding all week but I have been a bit of a slacker. Well, I am finally getting with the program after watching the movie, 27 Dresses, tonight. I definitely had some things in common with the main character. We even had the same fav part of a wedding- the groom's face when he sees the bride. I think this is just natural when you spend all day getting ready with the bride. You really just want to see what he thinks of the whole thing. I especially love it when they cry those subtle manly tears. Matt Laskey was classic!

One interesting thing about the movie was that the guy she ends up with is an actor I had a huge crush on as a teenager. So, if the bridesmaid chick is me, then I end up with a hottie!!

Now to real weddings- Amy's. It was so great to get to hang out in Canada with Amy and her fam. I really love those people. I wish I had been able to come earlier but it was hard enough to get permission to miss two days.

Thursday night was the bachelorette party hosted by Amy's sister, Lindsay. It was quite the phallic fiesta. I think a bachelorette party is just more fun when the couple is waiting until their honeymoon to have sex for the first time. Lindsay made an incredible chocolate cake topped with a naked Barbie and Ken who slightly resembled Amy and Shawn. There were rice krispie treats that spelled out "SEX." There were also some strange penis-shaped cupcakes. We played pin the penis on Spiderman and drew penises on paper plates. Good clean fun! There were even penis straws. A funny thing happened with the penis straws. I put one in my purse and forgot about it. The next day, Amy's brother, Ryan was looking for a pen to sign the check for pizzas. Apparently he zoned in on my purse as a potential pen holder. He grabs what he thinks is a pen and tries to sign for the pizza with a penis straw. Awkward! That will teach him to dig through my purse!!

On Friday, we attempted to sleep in. We ended up helping to set up the reception area and sanctuary at the church. After Bethany and Matt's wedding, I am an expert at putting chair covers on chairs. Luckily there were a lot of other people around helping. We soon tired and went back to Amy's house for a nap. That night we had the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. The dinner was at a family friend's house that was huge and cavernous. There was even a part that closely resembled a dungeon. My friend, Kristy from Maui was there and we had fun taking pics in the cavern. The food was incredible. I couldn't get enough of it.

Amy gave the four bridesmaids photo albums and lululemon gear. For those of you who are not Canadian or unfamiliar with 80% of Amy's wardrobe, lululemon is a trendy Canadian yoga clothing line. I feel cooler now that I own more lululemon gear.

We went back to Amy's and hung out a bit and went to bed. It snowed a little that night. This made the snow on the ground look a little nicer. In the morning we went to get our hair done. I had a picture of what I wanted but the lady informed me that she did not know how to do cornrows. I don't think Canadians understand black people because the picture of the hairstyle did not closely resemble corn rows. Oh well.

After the hair, we went back to Amy's to finish getting ready. I am getting tired right now. I will have to continue this tomorrow.

Tastes like a chicken shake

Today at Young Life I had to take one for the team. We did a fairly gross game. We blended three different McDonald's value meals. There was a nugget meal, cheese burger and the unfortunate fish filet. A student was assigned to each of us and if they correctly guessed the ingredients to the shake, the leader had to chug it. Oh, that Cindy!!! Why did she have to guess nuggets. The fact that the shake smelled exactly like chicken nuggets may have been a dead giveaway.

After the successful guessing, we had to chug the contents of our glasses. In case you were wondering fries, chicken nuggets and Sprite don't taste nearly as good as one. It was sick. I was mainly grossed out by the chicken scent. Luckily I didn't have to chug it all. I think I won since the burger guy and fish guy weren't drinking near as much. I have a feeling theirs were a lot worse- especially the fish filet. I couldn't get the pureed chicken taste out of my mouth all night.

What can I say? Suffering for the Lord.

Now I need to go pack for my third Canadian adventure this year. Hooray for a mini-vacation from the TAKS test!!!

Unexpected Emergency Room

This weekend was busy, well actually Saturday was really busy. I started the day off with the dreaded Saturday tutorials! I don't mind the actual tutorials themselves because it seems more productive and fulfilling to work in smaller groups. I just hate coming to work on Saturdays and even more than that, I hate being forced to come in on Saturdays.

After tutorials, my teacher friend, Helen and I went out to eat at the local "Lesbian deli," my mom's nickname, not mine. Then we went to the art museum. It was fun. I like hanging out with Helen. She seems to have a lot of negative people in her life so I like being a positive influence. She is also fun to talk to.

After the art museum, my mom and I drove out to Sarah's house in Pearland so my mom, the nurse, could give her a post-chemo immune booster shot. She wasn't doing so hot when we got there. She had broken her impressive "no puke" streak that she'd been cultivating in high school. For those of you who don't understand the true ramifications of this, watch the episode of Seinfeld where Jerry's impressive streak ends with the fateful black and white cookie.

Sarah also had a fever. When a cancer patient has a fever, they have to go to the emergency room. I dropped my mom off and met Sarah, John and John's family at the emergency room at MD Anderson Cancer Center. It was not crowded since it only serves cancer patients. Sarah got right in. We were there for about 5 hours as Sarah was pumped with lots of fluid, antibiotics, and magnesium. We never really figured out where you would normally get your magnesium quota from. Luckily she got to go home.

Overall, it wasn't too scary though Sarah really looked like she had cancer to me for the first time. Sure she's bald but other than that you wouldn't know she was sick. It was hard to see her sick. I am so thankful that this did not happen until her very last chemo.

The last time I was in an emergency room was in Bangladesh. It was a very different experience. As for my own health, I am having some serious sinus issues. I have been put on a month's worth of antibiotics and three weeks worth of steroids. Not the Schwartzenagger kind. After all this I have to have a CAT scan to see if I need sinus surgery. Compared to cancer, it seems like nothing. I may end up going with the surgery to end my six month streak of back-to-back heinous sinus infections. I will keep you posted as I am sure you are on the edge of your seat for news of my whacked sinuses.

No mo' chemo!

Tonight I went to a "No mo' Chemo" dinner for Sarah. This was to celebrate Sarah's last chemo. One treatment down, several to go. Next is surgery, then radiation and more surgery. At least she's done with chemo. Her hair will start growing back, which is a really exciting thing!!!

And now for a few reasons I love Houston:

Reason #1- Last weekend I hung out with my friends, Jane and James who live in a primarily black part of town. The neighbors are super friendly and have been very welcoming to Jane and James, despite the fact that they are Asian and Honky, respectfully. Anyway, when we were driving in the neighborhood, we saw an incredible vehicle. It was a goldish champagne colored Buick Regal. In case you couldn't identify the make and model, the owner had it painted largely on the doors in silver cursive. The doors were not the type ordinarily found on the grandma-ish Buick. I think the type of doors are called suicide doors or lamborghini doors. They did not open out but up. It was pretty incredible!

Reason #2- We have a local celebrity called "Mattress Mac" who owns Gallery Furniture Store. He actually achieved a more national fame when he was featured on "Conan O'Brien." Conan was inexplicably only on at 3 am in Houston. He showcased the crazy commercials that are on at that time of the night. There is a furniture guy who uses a real chainsaw to demostrate how he slashes prices. Mattress Mac likes to say, "Save You Money" as he is holding a small wad of cash and jumping enthusiastically. He is often wearins a shirt that looks like it was made out of an American flag. He actually came to my high school and modified the "Save you money" to "Don't do drugs!" Very powerful and life changing for me.

All that was to say that on Monday, President's Day- They are having a search for Miss Gallery Furniture. I can't even imagine what an honor that would be. The store actually opens at 5am that day for auditions. I don't think I want to wake up in the 4's and then teach a full-day of school and tutorials. But wow, what a dream come true! I guess we'll see how I feel on Sunday night.

Wonderful Weekend

For those of you not in Houston, this weekend was exquisite! It was warm enough to wear sandals and shorts but not at all hot. This is not typical Houston weather.

The weekend started off well despite an unnecessarily hard fought battle to gain approval to take off two days to be in my YWAM best friend, Amy's wedding. It was nice to finally get the yes. I had already bought the plane ticket and the dress. I figured if I ended up being denied, I would just wear the dress for those two days of school I was supposed to miss. I really don't think two days is bad for a wedding in another country anyway. Luckily my kids kicked butt on their fake standardized test the day before.

So, I was riding high going into the weekend knowing that I was going to get to be in my eighth wedding. I really am a professional.

When I left school the weather was warm and breezy. I took advantage of this and went for a bike ride. I am trying to start training for the MS150. On Saturday, I had to do Saturday tutorials, which I hate. I mainly hate the concept of being at school on a Saturday. Luckily God was was merciful and made the weather cool and gloomy up until noon when we were dismissed. I called up my friends, Jane and James and we spent the day together. It was great! We played disc golf, road bikes, ate pizza and played video games. It reminded me of being in YWAM where I would hang out with friends all day. After each activity, we'd just try to figure out what's next. I feel like now I mainly hang out with my friends for one activity and one hour. I miss the all-day hang out.

On Sunday, I was treated to a lovely banana pancake breakfast served by the aforementioned, James and Jane. Then I went to church and then played disc golf with Sarah. A great weekend!!! I heard it is going to get into the forties later this week. That's Houston for you!

Sucks to school, hooray for Young Life

I just love Young Life. Yesterday I went to a basketball game for some of my Young Life girls. I am glad I went because it turned out to be their last game and therefore my last chance to use my "D-Fence" in a logical way.

Luckily it was a home game. This made it easy to find someone to hold my fence. It is really done best as a two-man job. A kid I know named Jarvis was my fence man this time. He is the kind of kid who is not ashamed to yell "fence" with gusto. But despite our best efforts, the team lost by almost 30. I considered that n improvement from the game I watched where they lost by 50 to this same team.

Last week I missed Young Life because I was sick. I didn't realize how much I missed it until I came back. I feel like school piles weights on my shoulders and Young Life takes the weight off. I think it's technically Jesus that takes it off. Anyway, instead of feeling more tired after teaching all day and then being a Young Life leader at night, I feel energized and rejuventated.

I don't know what this means. Maybe I was spoiled at YWAM by my incredible boss-type people. The regular world is tough. I wonder often if teaching is for me. It's a big time-consuming job. I really feel I need to try a new school before I make my final decision. 90% of my issues with the current job surround one person so I would like to see what teaching is like without that person. Lately I have been leaning towards getting a master's in school counseling. I am so tired of the hype surrounding our state's standardized test, the TAKS test. I HATE IT! I think you get to bypass most of that as a counselor and hang out and care about kids. That's the part I like best about teaching. I missed the deadline to enroll for next year's masters program. I guess that's a sign I should think about it more. So, those of you who pray, pray that I figure out what I am really supposed to do.

Also pray that I can go to my YWAM best friend, Amy's wedding. I am meeting some resistance even though I am in it. Pray that everything works out. I would be devastated to have to miss such an important day. Also I paid a lot of money for the bridesmaid dress and I have no foreseeable balls to attend in the future.

Shopping with Bing

Today I took my Chinese friend, Bing, shopping. I am emphasizing her ethnicity because she is an international student I befriended through an organization in town. Spending time with her makes me wish every international person who comes here had an American friend to explain things to them.

Today I took her for bbq. I had a fun time trying to explain what bbq was and what the South is. She was confused why the "south" is not actually the states in the south but really the states in the southeast to mideast.

Our goal for the day was to find Bing an outfit she could wear to an upcoming job fair. She is an engineering grad student and wants to get a summer internship. So, we went business suit shopping. It was good to help her but business suits are pretty boring. I am very thankful I do not have to wear one.

She told me some interesting stuff about China. They still have the one kid rule and if you break it, you have to pay an on-going fine. So, only rich people can have more than one kid. She said that the laws are different in rural areas so families have help on the farm.

She also said she has heard that some families have a second child that they keep secret. They would have to obtain false birth certificates for the kid to go to school. I am glad I live in America where people can procreate as they wish.

I am happy to report that we accomplished our mission and purchased a fine business suit. I am sure Bing will wow them with her snazzy new duds and get an internship in no time.

My dad breaks the rules

So, last Wednesday was career day at my school. I don't remember having a career day at my school when I was a kid but they were often part of television shows like Full House. Uncle Joey didn't show up at this career day but it was still good.

The way this one worked was that professionals came to our class in groups of three for three rotations. My dad was in the first rotation for my class. Unfortunately he had to follow a representative from the SPCA and an animal cop. The animal cop was one of the ladies from the show, Animal Cops." She goes where animals are being abused and arrests those doing it. She even remarked on our class turtles, Gary and Susan. I had been told it was illegal to sell turtles that size but how could I pass up $5 a piece at the Flea Market? She said that having them as pets is illegal but you can have them for educational purposes. They are really more like class mascots than educational tools but I wasn't going to tell her that lest she take them away.

So, my dad had to follow the animal cop. Somehow law is not as interesting as animals. He did a good job, though. He tried to use third-grade friendly language and examples. He used some of my kids' names in his examples, which is always a hit. The best part of the whole day was when he called on one of my students. She said that he had broken a rule. When he asked what, she said, "You called Miss Hightower by her first name." She had a point and we all had a good laugh as my dad explained that being my dad gave him the right to call me by my first name.

The other guests were pretty good with the exception of this geeky middle-aged audio/visual technician. He explained his job in technical terms that even I had trouble following. He spent more time talking about Chicago than his job, which was probably good since his job was so boring.

One of my students' fathers came and shared about how he had come to Texas from Mexico and didn't know English. He also told them that he had failed the fifth grade. But despite these challenges, he is now a very successful technologies specialist with a post-graduate degree. This was great for them to hear since many of them have failed grades already. I was glad he shared that with them.

Belated Birthday Blog

So, my birthday was more than a week ago but I thought my blog readers (whoever you may be) would like to know how the big shebang went down.

The kids at school told me, "Happy Birthday" about every five minutes. I got several gifts from them: a big fleece UT blanket, a Dr. Suess book with stuffed animal from story, a fake crystal bowl(they know my taste so well!), a $20 Target gift card- Yay, and a Betty Bop doll a kid won from a crane machine. Betty had a jewelry box taped to her that held a very grandma-ish rose broach. I obviously put on the broach immediately. It was worth it to look silly and make a kid's day.

I left school as soon as possible and took a nice birthday nap. Then I met people at Chuy's. My birthday guests were John, Sarah, Thama, Katie H, Jane and later James. Sarah got me "The Idiot's Guide to Dating." This was a result of my laments over not understanding all the ways of dating. (See earlier blog.) A nearby waiter put out the creep vibe by asking me why I needed that book. He said dating was easy. What a weirdo to comment on my loser-ish dating book. A polite person does not mention such things. Then at the end of the meal he came by to ask where the book was. I think he was actually trying to hit on me using the dating book as some sort of misguided segway. It sure didn't work. Maybe he should read the book.

We then went back to my house for cookie cake and funfetti cake. A dream come true! Oh yeah, and I forgot the part where Katie made me breakfast in bed. I didn't tell anyone at school that for fear that saying "My roommate made me breakfast in bed," would make me sound like a lesbian in denial. In reality, it was a super-nice gesture with nothing lesbian about it. Now I need to go to sleep so I will have patience for tutorials tomorrow. It is very hard to have a good attitude when you are forced to do tutorials on Saturdays against your will. And this is definitely against my will!

Poetic Pooping

I live with two roommates and two cats. The cats aren't mine and I don't pay much attention to them in general. When I got home from Austin on Monday, I discovered that my roommate, Katie's cat, Samantha had pooped on my TAKS workbook. Lately I have felt a lot of frustration about all the pressure put on myself and my students to pass the TAKS test. It was as if Samantha was agreeing with my disdain for TAKS. I couldn't really be mad at Samantha. I would have done the same if it were socially acceptable. Her gesture was almost poetic. Again, I wasn't mad, that is until I noticed that she had also pooped in my bed. Now, there is nothing poetic about that! Nothing!!!!

Dating

I have recently discovered that I don't really know how to date. What I mean is that I don't really understand all the rules and procedures.

The only real relationship I have had began after over two years of friendship. When you start dating a friend, you are automatically serious because you already know you want to be with them. You also don't have to go through the "get to know you" phase. I understand how to have the friends become more type relationship.

What I don't understand is the meeting someone and then dating them shortly after route. I have gone on a few dates with guys and it's hard to know how long it is supposed to take to figure out if you can actually be with them. I have noticed that you can sometimes figure out on the first date. Maybe you realize that no matter how nice they are, you just aren't attracted to them. Maybe they talk about their pets too much or don't leave a tip.

I went on a couple of dates with one guy but couldn't figure out what to think. He was a really strong Christian and nice guy but not dorky. But he also wasn't very fun or funny. Funny is pretty important. Life is full of crappy stuff at times and I know I need someone who can make me laugh and forget about my troubles. But there wasn't anything bad or wrong with him.

My mom, who used to simultaneously date many men in college, told me I should give the guy at least three dates to decide what I think. I definitely think one date is not enough unless it is just super obvious it won't work for one of you. There is often a lot of awkwardness and nervousness during that first date so it isn't a true representation of one's personality.

But I don't think I subscribe to my mom's theory of three dates. After two dates with the aforementioned guy, I was not dazzled. He was not someone I couldn't stop thinking about. No need to lead him on with a third, right? Also I have been told many times that I am going to marry someone amazing. I sure hope this is true. And even if it isn't apparent to everyone, I should at least think he's amazing. You can figure that out by date two, right?

And then, if you make it past date two, when it is okay to hold hands, to kiss, to say that you are officially dating, etc? It seems to be a lot more straight-forward with someone you were friends with first. I would try to look on the internet for some guidelines but I am pretty sure that the usual advice is not to have sex on the first date- wait until the third. For a Christian woman who will not be having sex until after a fabulous friend-filled wedding, this advice really sucks.

I guess I am really just going to have to figure this out as I go but I wish there was some kind of universal guidelines we could all follow. There would be no hard feelings or misunderstandings. It probably won't happen right? Maybe I should just move to India and get an arranged marriage. Then I would know what to do- you meet, get married and then have sex all on the first day. No confusion there, huh?

Watching Bethany and Matt become Mr. and Mrs. Laskey

I really should be packing for the Young Life trip I am leaving for in an hour and a half but instead I am blogging. Oh well.

So, I want to give the low-down on Matt and Bethany's wedding for those of you who did not get to go.

I got into town on the Thursday night before the wedding. Wayne arrived a few hours earlier and apparently went to David's Bridal with Amy, her mom and her fiance. I wish I could have been there for that experience. I am sure it was priceless. They picked me up and we drove from Buffalo into Canada.

In the morning Matt and Bethany picked up Wayne to attend to some wedding biznass. Later that day, Amy, Shawn and I headed to the place where the reception was being held. It was just a boring empty room at that point. No one directly affiliated with the wedding party was there when we got there. One of Bethany's uncles and his wife were there but they were as clueless as we were about how to properly transform this space to the couple's liking. We decided to set up table and put chair covers on the chairs. This took a lot longer than I would have expected. The chair covers were a bit tedious but they made everything look a lot fancier. Luckily the wedding party arrived before we had to make any further uninformed decisions.

After Wayne and I tried (unsuccessfully) to make snow angels, Amy, Shawn and I took off believing that there were clearly enough workers to handle the job. It was Amy's birthday so we went back to her house for a birthday dinner. The food was excellent and I truly enjoy her family. After my big dinner at Amy's, I went to the rehearsal dinner for Matt and Bethany's wedding. It was at this buffet place that put American buffets to shame. It was some sort of Asian restaurant but they had every kind of food you could imagine and some that you didn't want to. Here is a sample of the fare: steak, sushi, fruit tarts, something called cuttle fish that I made Wayne eat, yam flavored ice cream, salad, and raw oysters, which I set a platter of at Matt's plate. You know what they say about raw oysters.

The next morning, Amy woke up sick. This was unfortunate since she and I were the makeshift florists for the wedding later that day. Luckily, Courtney Mowatt and Amy's mom helped out. We managed to put together the bouquets in time for the wedding. Courtney drove me to the wedding and I ran into Esther Brown in front of the church. How wonderful- another Texan feeling equally ill-equipped for this winter weather. We sat together and I gave her the who's who of the guests to the best of my ability.

Bethany and Matt both looked awesome! Matt's face before she came down the aisle was very uncharacteristic. I have known Matt a long time and I have never seen such a mixture of nervousness and excitement on his face. It was very cute. And when Bethany walked down the aisle, he could barely see through his tears. Don't worry- it was a very subtle manly cry not the weeping I have seen at other weddings.

After they got hitched, they walked down the aisle to a Top Gun song- obviously Matt's choice. Then there was a long gap between wedding and reception. We went back to Amy's house to hang out. Then we went to the reception. The reception hall seemed to have magically transformed since we were there earlier that day. There were lots of white lights and some Christmasy decorations as well. When I saw that there were two lighted reindeer, I knew what must be done.

For those of you unaware of my Christmas-time hi-jinks, my friends and I like to put the lighted reindeer on people's lawns into sexual positions. It was great fun! I convinced Wayne to help me arrange them into a more "natural" position. It was pretty funny if you ask me. I also got into more reception hi-jinks with AMy's mom and sister. Someone had spelled out Matt and Bethany's initials on the gift table using fancy stones. We changed it to say, "Sex soon." Matt had waited 27 years for this. It deserved to be mentioned, right?

The food was good and I was seated with my fellow YWAMers. Bethany's brother sang a song about Bethany's food allergy. It was hilarious. It was called, "I hope they have gluten-free in Georgia." Bethany's dad told the story of Matt accidentally calling his brother, Amy's dad, to ask for his daughter's hand in marriage. So funny!

I was leaving as the bouquet was being tossed. I ran back just in time to see Courtney catch it. I was bummed that I missed out. I love going after those things for the pure competition factor.

That's most of the wedding, I think. I am sure I left out some interesting parts but this is already ridiculously long. After the wedding, Matt left his backpack of important items at his new in-laws' house. Luckily Amy, Shawn and I were on our way to the airport to drop me off. So, we met them at the airport. I ended up hanging out with them a bit before our flights. That just adds another airport to the long list I have been in with Matt. I am really excited for him. He is truly like a brother to me. I am hoping to visit the happy couple in Georgia for a few days when I go to Young Life camp there. Speaking of Young Life camp, I better get packing!

Christmas Down-low

A lot has happened in the last two weeks. This blog entry will focus on Christmas with my family in Colorado.

It was cold! I wanted to die every time I stepped outside. I really have no tolerance for cold weather after living in Texas and Hawaii. I am a big baby.

Shella and Andrew are renting a big house so there was plenty of room for the fam. They even have a basement. I have now been in several basements but they never cease to amaze me. We don't have basements in Houston.

We did a lot of shopping and chilling. It was cool to have the whole family together again. We exchanged gag gifts and I gave Celine Dion perfume. My brother traded for it and promptly sprayed it on us. How sweet!

Andrew got a blu-ray player and an enormous HD tv. It's like being at the movie theater. I got a wii for Christmas so we played that a lot. My mom actually beat my dad at tennis. It was pretty epic. She has never beat him at any sport- real or virtual. I got a lot of wii accessories for Christmas. I now have three controllers and four games. If you haven't played a wii, you need to come over. Those things are so fun!

Canadian capers

It's been too long since I updated this bad boy. I have been super busy with the end of the semester and a ridiculous amount of traveling.

I am currently at Amy's house in Toronto. I really love being here. It feels very comfortable and home-like. I really enjoy Amy's family and friends. I seem to fit in pretty well with these Canadians.

There is snow here, which is intriguing. Wayne(from Georgia) and I tried to make snow angels but apparently the snow was too old and hard. Tonight there is supposed to be snow so I have high hopes for tomorrow. I am bummed to leave tomorrow.

Today we had a shower for Amy. It was good times. It was not a lingerie shower but I brought lingerie. That's just how I roll. I also got her a Friends trivia game. She hates Friends. We can't help but hate the show after someone at YWAM got a DVD box set and it was on constantly at the house we lived in. I gave it to her anonymously. My goal was for her to have to fake that she liked it and I was hoping that some of the ladies would get excited. All my hopes and dreams were realized. It was awesome.

I need to go back to being social. I will tell more next time I write. PS- Matt and Bethany's wedding was fabulous!

D- Fence

Every since the day I first laid eyes on this wonderful pun at a UT football game, I have wanted to create one- the d- fence. I have finally done it. I cut a large D and a mini fence out of foam board. I feel so much more complete. I was super excited about breaking out the d-fence for the high school girls' basketball game I attended tonight. Many of my favorite YoungLife girls play on the team. Unfortunately I FORGOT THE D-FENCE!!!!!! How could I do that?!!! Our girls ended up losing by 30 points. I think you are probably coming to the same conclusion that I have come to regarding the loss- would not have happened if I had remembered the D-Fence. I clearly let them down. The worst part was when the crowd started chanting "Defense. That was difficult to hear knowing what amazing visual pun I could have contributed to the encouragement.

The girls play once more before I leave for Colorado. I would like to pretend that the whole reason I will attend the game is to support my girls but I think we all know it is because I can debut the D-FENCE!!! I will tell you how it goes. I am predicting a landslide victory.

What not to say to someone with cancer

Recently I was with Sarah when she was basically accosted by a random lady. She was a well-meaning friend of a friend. The moment she saw Sarah, she said, "You're Sarah! I've been praying for you!" That is a pretty awkward way to meet someone. It is great that people who have never met Sarah are praying for her. I know that she appreciates it too but it can still be awkward when they loudly announce to on at first meeting.

The woman, who had the best intentions, trapped Sarah in conversation and pumped her full of cheesy Biblical slogans. I fully believe in what the Bible says but it can come off a little weird when a perfect stranger tells you that your difficult situation will be good in the long run. While I believe that good will come out of this, it is hard to focus on that when there is still so much unknown concerning Sarah's future.

So, for those of you who have been praying for Sarah without ever meeting her, I sincerely appreciate it. Please keep it up. I admit that sometimes it hurts too much for me to pray for her like I should. But, if you do get lucky and get to meet Sarah, don't greet her by saying that you have been praying for her even if it is true. Don't look at her with sad eyes that say, "You are the girl with cancer." Treat her like a regular person. That's all she wants.

Sad stuff

I don't know if you have been following the news. In case you haven't, here is the deal:

A young guy went into a YWAM training center in Denver and shot four people, killing two of them. Then he went to a church and killed two teenage girls before he was killed by the church security guard.

YWAM is a funny organization because even though there are over 10,000 people working with YWAM at any given moment, we all feel like a family. You can meet a fellow YWAMer for the first time and talk for hours with no pauses or awkwardness. I am no longer on staff with YWAM but I will always be part of the family. And this tragedy hurts. These young adults were doing exactly what I was doing a year ago and now they are dead. I never met them but I know I would have liked them. It hurts that someone ended their lives.

It should probably make me scared of further YWAM involvement but it really makes me want to drop everything and join it again. I believe so much in how God uses this organization. I am thankful that their lives were not in vain and I pray for their families. It is all too easy to put myself in their place. So many of the people I love are YWAMers as well.

Pizza Olympics

Tonight was Young Life and as usual, it lifted my spirits. Those kids are so funny. We did this activity called the pizza olympics. At the beginning of club, three kids call three different pizza places. The first pizza man to get there, gets a cheesy gold plastic medal. It is really funnny but ours did work out too well. Only one pizz guy showed up. He seemed a bit mentally challenged and was definitely confused. When he arrived, we played the Olympic theme song very loud and screamed and yelled for him. That part went well, but the other two pizza guys didn't show up. We kept singing song after song, trying to stall before the big Jesus talk. Finally we had to just go for it. The kids all had fun even if it wasn't very smooth.

During the Jesus talk, my fellow Young Life leader friend, Bethany and I were trying to figure out what was going on with two of the girls. They were sitting awfully close. We thought they might be lesbians. Slowly our suspicions were confirmed as they continued to behave in a way that I never would with a female friend. They were pretty much sitting on each other and there was clearly nuzzling going on. If that was not enough, one started to lovingly smell the other's hair. Oh well, I am glad that the are coming to Young Life. We seem to have a decent number of lesbians. Maybe it is because we have a lot of sporty kids.

I really miss my old boss, Tom. I guess it is not too surprising to find a good boss when you work in a Christian environment. He was just incredible. He was humble yet commanding. He always pointed out people's strengths but wasn't afraid to confront when necessary. I am learning that a good boss can really make or break a job experience. I have moments every day when I just ache to go back to Maui and work with YWAM. It was just amazing. But alas, I know this is where I am supposed to be right now. I am really hoping that I am supposed to be in Maui over Spring Break. I am praying and saving so it can work out.

Afterwards, a bunch of the guys and girls started fake fighting in the parking lot. I guess it must have been a bit too convincing. The cops showed up just as we were starting to leave and told us to get on our way. Little did he know that Young Life is actually a really good influence on these kids. I got out of there before I could explain. He didn't seem in the mood to talk.

Tales of a Third Grade Teacher

I am absolutely exhausted right now, which is sad since it is about 8pm. I stayed up later than I should have last night on this scientific research website. It sounds boring but it isn't. The site tests your reaction time to a series of pictures and uses that to compute how you feel about issues. I had heard about one about race but I ended up taking some about religion, homosexuality and girls and boy stereotypes for science and math. In each case I was moderately biased in one direction. I didn't fully agree with the girls sucking at science assessment since I really don't think they suck. Anyway, if you want to check it out, go to-https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/research/

Today was a much better day at school. I have been praying a lot more for school stuff and I think it is working. Teaching seems to be full of highs and lows. Some of my kids have very difficult home lives and it hurts my heart. One boy today said he couldn't do his Science project because his electricity got turned off. Several of my kids have brothers, mothers or fathers in jail. I pray that they will rise out of their working class poverty and bad parenting and become successful. I try very hard to make them feel special.

I think I have mentioned before that there is one kid that I know has a crush on me. It's pretty cute to have a third-grader crushing on you- especially a short, chubby one with glasses. Today this particular kid gave me a hug and said, "Miss Hightower, you're my best friend." This was flattering but turned slightly awkward when he wouldn't let go. Luckily in third grade, they are all short enough to hug below the extremely awkward boob area. I finally pried the kid off of me. Now, if only I was that irresistable to men my own age....

Laughing at the nudes

Look, I am a blogging machine! Life felt easy in Maui and it feels hard here. I am still having problems with my principal that I will not foolishly elaborate on this public and anonymous forum. As can be expected, conflict at work makes life way more stressful.

Thankfully Christmas is coming soon. I am definitely looking forward to it. It is bound to be amazing! My brother will be home from Iraq and I am getting Nintendo Wii. Now if only Santa could bring a funny, sporty Christian man and a cure for cancer....

On Thursday I took my class on a field trip to the Museum of Fine Arts. The field trip only lasted an hour, which was far too short to see much of the museum. It definitely piqued my interest and I would like to go back soon. The kids were broken up into smaller groups and distributed among the docents- fancy word for volunteer guides. I strategically formed a group with some of the kids whom I was afraid would make trouble. Our guide, Blaine (who was curiously an older white man and not a gay black man as my In Living Color experience would dictate), showed us a good time and the kids behaved well. The funniest part to me was the way the kids responded to the nudes. I had joked to another teacher before we left that I was going to wrangle the kids and keep them away from the nudes. Well, the nudes were unavoidable and the kids acted exactly as I had anticipated. They turned red. They giggled and they pointed. It was pretty funny. I told them to act mature but that's pretty difficult to do when you are eight and looking at naked people.

One kid asked me why anyone would want to paint or sculpt naked people. I didn't quite know how to respond. I told him that some people think naked people are beautiful. The kid just looked at me like I was crazy.

This whole incident reminded me of visiting an art gallery in New York. My friend, Lucy's dad was part of an art exhibit along with a few other artists. We went to see his show. We walked around pretending to be part of the snooty art community. One of the other patrons looked very familiar but I couldn't figure out why. Soon, I realized that the woman was the model for a life-like nude painting hanging in that very gallery. I am sure I turned red and I think I giggled. How can I expect my third graders to keep their composure when I couldn't? How could that woman walk around a room full of strangers who knew exactly what she looked like naked? Eek! What a weirdo!

Maui Synopsis

Here is the lowdown on my recent trip:

On the day I landed, I got picked up by Joshley- Josh and Ashley. The weather was strangely stormy. I went to the base to have my third turkey dinner. I had already had two at school. This year, noone got sick, unlike last year. When I got to the base, I felt like a celebrity. All my old friends enthusiastically greeted me and many of the new people seemed to know who I was as well. (This could be due to the fact that I put pictures of myself up on the refridgerator before I left.)

I slept at my friend, Kristy's house. Three former staff girls live in what used to be one of our staff houses. It looks a lot nicer now that people with real jobs live there.

In the morning, we went to play soccer. I wasn't that into it at first since it is not my best sport. I like to be good at things. It turned out to be super fun. I did not suck and definitely made some good plays. I got to be team captain. I only knew about a fourth of the people so I had to make my decisions based on external clues. I picked all people wearing cleats or soccer jerseys. I also picked anyone I knew was European. This turned out to be a great strategy and my team won hands down. The other team was a lot more competitive despite their lack of jerseys and cleats, so it was funny that we won. The game ended up lasting for over two hours because the other team didn't want to quit until they caught up. Only our team seemed to know that was not going to happen. We won 8-5.

Later I had my fourth turkey dinner at the Bartuneks' house and then we had an after-party there as well. I was getting slightly socially overwhelmed. After that, a bunch of us went to Kaanapali (the tourist side of the island.) Leah, a YWAMer, had been blessed with a $3000 a week villa at the Marriot for free. It was so much fun! The place was super-fancy- hopefully for that price, right? It had three LCD TVs, enough bed/couch space for eight people, balconies, a full kitchen and a big whirlpool tub that three of the boys got in together. You get pretty comfortable at YWAM.

I was only going to spend one night there but I ended up staying two because it was just so fun. We spent the day lounging at the pool, going in the hot tub and going down the waterslide. We had dinner in Lahaina at Cheeseburgers in Paradise. I was afraid we'd have to pay a ton for food because we were on the tourist side. I forgot that I was staying with frugal missionaries. People brought pancake mix for breakfast and mac and cheese for lunch. So smart!

I barely went to the beach at all. I was too busy hanging out in the hotel pool and catching up with old friends. I had an incredible time! It was painfully normal to be in that setting with those people. It would have been a lot easier to come home if I had felt weird or out of place. But, no such luck. I was sad to leave.

I am going to start saving up to go for Spring Break. Being with those people rejuvinates my heart and lifts my spirits so much. I feel so lucky to have those people in my life. And it doesn't hurt that they live in paradise.

The plane rides back involved a lot of sleeping so I wasn't even jet-lagged when I got home. The odd thing that happened was that on my first plane, I didn't have a seatbelt. Somehow one half of the seatbelt was missing. It really made no sense. I had to move to another seat. Who steals half of a seatbelt? When was it stolen and had the last person just defied all the warnings and lighted signs to go without one? I guess I will never know.

Back from Paradise and onto the skating rink

I just got back from a Young Life skating party. I had about 3 hours between arriving home from my trip to Maui and attending the skating party. With an overnight flight in the mix, it has been a long day. For that reason, this update will be short. I will tell more of my trip in my next post.

For now I just want to talk about my feelings. I didn't know exactly what to expect when I visited Maui. Unfortunately, or fortunately (depending how you look at it), it felt amazing to be there. It was not just amazing because of the things you can read about in a Maui guidebook or see in a movie. Maui is a beautiful, wonderful place. But the real reason I had such a great time was because of the incredible friendships I have with people there at YWAM Maui. It was definitely great to hang out with them in paradise but I think it would have been just as good if we'd been hanging out in a garbage dump. Although I guess I wouldn't have gotten a tan.

I just miss those people so much. There is nothing like the true Christian fellowship you get at YWAM Maui. In what I like to call the "real world," people often approach other hurting people by saying that they should suck it up because they hurt too. That's not how it has to be. I felt so at home and at peace in Maui. It was very difficult to leave. I am already counting my frequent flyer miles to see when I can return.

Now- must sleep so I don't kill third graders!

Teaching white kids to dance

It's pointless to start this by saying I will try to write more frequently because lately it simply isn't happening. Wow that was a lot of adverbs. Eek- I really am a teacher.

I might as well talk about my weekend. I don't remember doing anything on Friday night. I think I did some pre-pre Christmas shopping. I love Maui but the mainland is the place for Christmas. It's simply everywhere even before Thanksgiving.

On Saturday morning I had to go to the post office. It was an odd experience. I went to one near my house and the mixture of people there was odd. There was a ten-year old kid playing a guitar as he waited in line with his dad. He was actually a lot better than I could ever hope to be.

There was a woman with a small child and infant who was interacting with them oddly. She was very childlike and missing a few teeth.

Most people were getting money orders or wiring money to Mexico. I had to wait with these people for 30 minutes so I had plenty of time to create inner social commentary.

Then I helped my dad move my sister-in-law's belongings into a UHAUL. She is moving to Colorado Springs to await my brother's arrival. (That's where he is stationed.) It took some creative manuevering but not much time.

I was supposed to go to my friend, Bethany's birthday party. Her Elvis-impersonating cousin-in-law was scheduled to perform. Apparently he just performs by default without much provocation. I got too scared about the freeway closures and long distance and didn't end up going. I was sad to miss Elvis. Jason and Jocelyn Fowler were in town so I went to dinner with them and Joce's parents, who are essentially my second parents. It was great times as we reminisced about my youthful highjinks. This included the time I sent a bunch of those collector's figure and plate order forms that you find in magazines to various neighbors. I don't know why I did it but the victims were certainly surprised to receive unrequested china plates featuring delicate birds.

On Sunday I went to church and ran into my friends, Jane and James Chastant and Elizabeth Austin. They didn't know each other. We all went to Katz's to eat and it was lovely.

Afterwards, I went to our Young Life banquet. That's where we serve people dinner, tell them about Young Life and ask for money. It was a good chance to hang out with the kids. I also like to watch my urban kids interact with the super preppy white kids at Memorial High School. They always want my kids to teach them to dance. Weird.

Black God

This weekend I got to have Sarah fun day. I wanted to have a really fun day with Sarah for her birthday. We went to Galveston. I was a little bit sick still but I tried my best not to blow my nose on her sleeve, so hopefully her few red blood cells will do their thing.

We went to Galveston, which is Texas's version of Maui. Ok, it's totally different but there is a beach. First we sat on the beach and read magazines. In true Houston fashion, after a couple weeks of cold Fall-type weather, the day was sunny and warm. It was good for a beach day. Then we ate some amazing hamburgers. Unfortunately Sarah has discovered that her taste buds have become dull. Food no longer has as much flavor as it used to. This is a shame since as I just said, the hamburger was a-mazing! Apparently the taste buds thing can be a side effect of chemo. Thankfully the chemo is working to shrink the cancer so I guess taste is an ok sacrifice.

Then we did a little shopping. During our shopping, we found out that the UT game was on tv an hour earlier than we thought. We decided to return to Sarah's house to catch the rest of the game with her husband, John. UT played pretty well and a fun time was had by all. Then we had dinner and more shopping. It was a great day!

And now a funny story from this week:
At Young Life on Wednesday night, Andres, a fellow leader, was giving a talk about sin. He used a visual where he poured a small amount of black food coloring into a mason jar of water. The water quickly turns black. He was trying to make the point that God can't be near sin. But instead he announces with great flourish that, "God cannot be black!" This causes a small uproar in our predominatly black group. Andres's face turned so red as he stammered to correct himself. It was pretty hilarious.


black God

Cheese decisions

I think I am getting sick yet again. These kids and their germs!!! It seems to be some sort of sinus thing. I am going to use tylenol, ecchinecea and orange juice to hold the illness at bay. I need to be completely well by Saturday because Sarah and I are going to have a day 'o' fun in Galveston. I can't hang out with Sarah if I am sick because of her low white blood cell count. She did get a check-up and they said the cancer is responding to the chemo and shrinking. Yay! Definitely an answer to prayer!

This weekend I hung out with my Chinese friend for the first time. Her name is Bing and she is from Beijing. I can definitely see the need for International students to have American friends. It took her a really long time to figure out what kind of hamburger to order. She couldn't figure out what she would like and I had to try to explain the six different cheese options to her. It's a lot harder to explain cheeses than one might think. You should give it a try?

Her English was very good but she did need a clarification on some words during the movie we watched. She wanted to know what the word, "bookie" meant. I made sure to explain that the average American has no business with a bookie. She also asked me if my high school experience was like the movie- Mean Girls. It was hard not to laugh at her question. I explained that high school is not actually like that and I really enjoyed my experience there.

Actually I drove by my old high school this weekend. It made me feel a little weird. A lot has changed but it felt the same too. It made me miss the time in my life when so many of my friends lived so close and my personal life wasn't complicated by cancer and war. I know that this stormy time in my life will end but sometimes I want to hit the fast-forward or rewind buttons. Wouldn't that be great?

the thorn in my flesh

In the Bible, Paul talks about the "thorn in his flesh." Theologians have speculated about what this means but as far as I know, there isn't a consensus on what this was for Paul. Well, I too have a thorn in my flesh. It doesn't sound too serious but it is driving me crazy. Literally. There is a weird humming, buzzing, vibrating noise in my car that occurs constantly at speeds above 35. I can't figure out what it is. I try to turn my radio up really loud to drown it out but I can still hear it. I know it is coming from somewhere near the passenger seat. Because it only occurs when I am driving, it would be too dangerous for me to launch a full investigation into its cause. The only passengers I have had lately have been my Young Life kids and they weren't too interested in finding the cause of the noise. They certainly noticed it but I don't think it would drive the average person as crazy as it has been driving me. Hitting the dashboard and glove box doesn't seem to be working. I really want this noise to stop and soon!

Life is a bit tough right now. School is pretty stressful. I can't go into detail because I have heard too many stories about people getting fired for things they write candidly on their blog. I will say that my principal and I have a difference of opinion on things but she's my boss so I need to do what she wants, regardless of what I think. This is not easy as I was given a hefty dose of the Hightower pride at birth. Luckily my HISD-appointed mentor has been an enormous help. She helped rearrange my classroom for about three hours yesterday. I am thankful to have someone looking out for my best interests.

On a lighter note, tonight I am hanging out with my new Chinese friend, Bing. She is an international student attending the University of Houston and we were assigned to each other through a student friendship program I found out about at my church. It is not supposed to be an evangelistic thing. The point is to befriend an international student and expose them to American life. Many students come from other countries and spend 4 years here without ever going into an American's home. THat is such a shame. We are definitely more wary and less hospitable than most other nations I have been to. In Bangladesh, people you meet on the street beg you come into their homes. We could use a little more of that in America, for sure.

Weekend of Sickness

I keep trying to write in this thing but it doesn't happen often enough. This weekend I am sick. I started feeling sick on Friday but I went to school. I had no patience with my students. Poor things. I am feeling better right now but still weak and achy. I was supposed to hang out with Sarah today but we couldn't risk it with her low white blood cell count. Hopefully I will be better by Monday for my students' sake and so that I can hang out with Sarah.

So, as long as I can remember I have been prejudiced FOR black people instead of being prejudiced AGAINST black people. I distinctly remember writing a story in 5th grade for the TAKS test in which I named the main character, Rodney, so that they would think I was black. I also used to love to watch American Gladiators and I also rooted for the black contestants. I suspect that my deep love of black people is rooted in my wonderful experiences as a child with our black babysitter/maid, Betty. Anyway, because of my love of black people, I have a soft spot for the black kids in my class. There is one kid, "Vince", who I just really like. Obviously he's black.

I am also a big fan of playing and watching sports. "Vince" is an incredible little athlete. Several kids in my class are clearly better than the others at sports but "Vince" puts them all to shame. He is just incredible. If he does not end up on the wrong path, I could totally see him as a professional athlete one day. He is also very funny. He can do backflips so I asked him if he took gymnastics. He said that he didn't. I started calling him "Gymnastics Boy." One time he was acting up in class and I called him on it. To which he replied, "Me, Gymnastics boy?" It was super cute.

There are a lot of clues that "Vince" has a rough home life. I don't know that he's being abused but he doesn't seem to be well taken care of. Lately he has been making some strange comments about me adopting him. He sometimes refers to me as his mama and says we are about to sign the adoption papers. This is definitely strange no matter what. But it is a lot more strange given my history. I have thought for a long time that I might end up adopting a child someday. I don't exactly know under what circumstances but I know that there are many kids out there that need someone to care about them. I was also once given a prophecy that I would have two kids of my own and then have another kid that I don't give birth to. I am not sure that is what will happen. The weirdest part about this is that upon meeting "Vince", I thought that he was the type of kid I would like to adopt. He is likable and good at sports. What more could I ask for? I obviously never told him this but it makes his adoption comments even stranger. I really don't think I am supposed to adopt "Vince" right now. I am not prepared to take care of a dog right now, let alone a kid. It still is something to think about.

Working Weekend

I am still a bit of a blogging slacker. I say that I will try to update more but we'll see if that actually happens.

Sarah update- Her white blood cell count is getting low. She definitely seems to have less energy. It's hard to see her not acting like her usual self and unable to do as much as usual. I am sure it is frustrating for her. She is still able to disguise her hair loss with thick head bands but that obviously won't last long. It will be hard when she is first bald. I am sure we'll all get used to it. I wish we didn't have to.

I had a full weekend. On Friday night I went to a high school volleyball game followed by a high school football game. And no, I am not a weirdo. I went to see my Young Life kids. The volleyball team they played was all black. That is why I was confused when an adorable old couple came into the gym wearing the other's teams' shirts. It seemed odd that a little old white couple would be die-hard fans of an all-black high school volleyball team. Soon, we discovered why. The old man came up behind the coach and whispered in her ear. She turned around and very obviously mouthed the word, "Grandpa!" Apparently they were the coach's grandparents. They were just so cute and even brought her dinner in a plastic sack.

It was homecoming so there were mums aplenty. For those of you not familiar with mums, they are fake chrysanthemums that are decorated with ribbons and teddy bears, and other random things. I saw one that had a huge teddy bear on it. I think there should be a law against having something on your mum big enough to hug. Three out of the five girls on the Homecoming court had been to Young Life. I thought we had pretty good odds of having one of our girls as queen. But alas, some girl I didn't know won. Our girls looked really pretty and it was fun to see them with their dads. One girl's dad had a sweet mustache. I have come to appreciate a good 'stache.

Then on Saturday, I had stupid teacher training all day. It should be a crime to make people stay inside and learn about stupid teacher crap when the weather is nice. I realized that I have only been around for changing seasons once in the last four years. The other times I was in Maui or Bangladesh. I forgot how nice it feels. It makes me want to play outside and ride around with my windows down. I think I will even enjoy cold weather for a few days but I will soon be feeling too cold.

On Sunday, I finally went to church. I hadn't been in a few weeks. I am glad I went. I had been lazy. I am at that point where I know a few people by name but I don't know anyone well. I also don't like the worship that much. But I love the diversity and I really like the pastor. He is so intelligent. I think I will keep going. I am sure if I can just stick it out, I will feel more at home.

Then I went to the Art Festival with Sarah, Katie and my parents. It was cool to see all the art. Unfortunately most of my favorite stuff was over $1000- not really in my price range. My mom was really cool and bought me a small painting/picture with a bamboo-looking frame. It remind me of Maui and makes me happy. I can't wait to go visit in November!

Too much training

Complaining alert. Be prepared!

I found out this morning that I have an all-day new teacher HISD training to go to on Saturday. I hate trainings on Saturdays! I wanted to go to the Houston art festival that day but now I guess I will go on Sunday. At least HISD trainings are usually so big and boring that you can read a book or grade papers in the back without getting in trouble.

After finding out about Saturday's training. I was told that I must also attend another training all day on Wednesday. And then at 2:30 I was told that I have to go to some training tomorrow as well. That is far too much training!!! Three days in one week! I stayed late at school today getting everything ready for a sub. I just hope these weekday trainings are not full of cheesy stuff where we have to act like kids. I am so over that. I let you know how they all turn out.

Emotionally Athletic

This weekend Sarah and I, along with many of her loved ones, participated in the Race for the Cure. They walked a 5K, while I ran it. I was impressed that I actually ran the whole way.

All these race things have lots of free stuff, though you have to get there early to maximize it. Sarah's sister-in-law, Thama snagged a mini gelly boob with a lump. I totally missed out on that one. If you are a breast cancer survivor, you get even more free stuff. Sarah counted as a survivor even though it would be a lot more accurate to say that she is surviving.

This event was much larger than the bike ride some of us participated in about a month ago. There were tons of people there. Many were wearing the pink t-shirts that signified that they were breast cancer survivors. It was cool to see so many women who had survived but it was a bit weird since they were almost all at least 20 years older than Sarah. She is now a part of a club made up mostly of much older women. It doesn't help that Sarah doesn't even look 26. I think she could easily still pass as a high school student.

At the finish line, they have the survivors separate from the rest of us and go down a special path. They hand them free stuff and cheer for them. It was hard to watch Sarah separate herself from us and walk alone down the survivor path. It seemed very symbolic of how we all want to help her and be there for her but there are certain parts she has to walk alone. Ugh.

When I was running, I ran by myself. Actually I ran with thousands of people but I didn't know any of them. When I was running, there were several times when I almost broke down and bawled. I think these cancer benefit things will be a lot easier when Sarah is healed. They seem really hard if you have lost a loved one or have one who is still not out of the woods.I am not so sure I can do another one anytime soon.

These events have signs where you can write who you are racing for. They are a great way to honor or remember someone but seeing them is a big part of what makes the experience so emotional. I wore one in honor of Sarah and one in memory of Mrs. Pilgreen. She was the mom of my friends, Lee and Erin. I didn't have the chance to get to know her well. But I know she was a really fun woman. I also know how hard her death has been on her husband and four kids. You can't help but wonder why some people die of this and some people are fine. I wish I could just do a certain number of breast cancer benefiting athletic events and Sarah would be guaranteed to be okay. Unfortunately that is not how life works.

One woman had about eight people on her signs. She had listed a sister, three aunts, three cousins and an uncle as survivors and victims. She herself was a survivor, as well. It seemed clear that her family carries the breast cancer gene. How terrible that this disease has killed and sickened so many of her relatives! Sarah recently got tested for the breast cancer gene, herself. The doctors don't think she has it since no one else in her family has had it. They want to test her because it is so unusual for her to get it this young. They are sending her blood to Utah and she should get the results in a couple of weeks. We have been joking about how the Mormons are testing her blood. I think it's because they are so into genetics. Please pray that she does not have the gene because it will mean the chances of the cancer returning are very high. It also means her kids, esp daughters would have an extremely high chance of getting breast cancer.

I am a bad blogger

So, I have been terrible at updating this sucker lately. Life is pretty full lately. I haven't even had enough time for my stress relieving work-outs. I am running in a breast cancer 5K this Saturday and I hope I don't collapse with a charlie horse like that woman Yvonne on Golden Girls. That reference was for my friends, Erin and Jocelyn.

Breast cancer seems to be everywhere these days. It's so weird that Sarah gets this disease right before breast cancer month. We try to pretend everything is normal sometimes but it's hard when they are shoving those pink products down our throats. They even have breast cancer m&ms. I am not anti-pink products but it definitely makes it hard to pretend Sarah doesn't have cancer.

Speaking of pretending, I sometimes pretend that my little brother, Andrew is not in Iraq. Sometimes it is easier to pretend that he is off at some training in the mountains of Washington than in the line of fire in Iraq. Today I stopped by my parents' house to pick up some mail. I went into the downstairs bedroom and I saw my brother. It wasn't actually him but a life-size cardboard cut-out of him that Shella had made for a friends' wedding. It scared the crap out of me and made me feel a little sad. Life will be easier in January when he is back safe and sound. He will also be in Colorado in the winter so I can go snowboarding. Bonus!

I have been meaning to write about last weekend. Sarah and I drove to Austin to relive our glory days by going to a UT game. The trip started off a bit bumpy like most areas of my life these days. We stopped at our usual stop- a great little gas station/college paraphenaila/scrapbooking store/knick nack shack/kolache bakery called Hruskas. We noticed that Sarah's parents were there. They were also on their way to Austin. In my excitement to surprise the Stojaniks, I locked my keys in the car while it was running. This was the first and hopefully last time. It makes sense that it would happen during this period of my life. Sarah and her rents didn't make me feel dumb and even chipped in to pay for the mechanic guy to inflate my window open with a blood pressure cuff thing and unlock the door.

We got tickets to the UT game from a scalper. I hadn't been to a game since I was a student five years ago. I was almost giddy with excitement. There was burnt orange as far as the eye could. Just beautiful unless you are an Aggie, of course.

Unfortunately the game didn't go so well. Colt McCoy through an incredible four interceptions and the Longhorns generally stunk it up. At half time, it started to sprinkle. Sarah and I decided to be hardcore and stick it out. We laughed at the wusses that had to go inside the stadium for cover. Soon we weren't laughing anymore. We were completely drenched. We feared for the safety of our electronics and sought cover with the other wet, slightly stinky fans. The rain let up and we went back out to watch the Longhorns continue to stink it up. It was still fun. It started to downpour again right after the game. Sarah and I sought refuge in a dorm until we happened upon some lovely UT ponchos. Then we trekked back to our car. Not my perfect game but still fun.

The worst part about the rain was that it made Sarah's hair fall out worse. She is at the stage where she can hide it with a large headband but she is trying to hold onto as long as she can. The rain did not help that mission. It was really hard to see Sarah going through this. We knew it was inevitable but that doesn't seem to make it easier. As lovely as Raquel, her wig is, I think we all hoped deep down that she would never have to use it. No such luck!

House Hunting...again!

We found a potential house to move into. Since our landlord, Norm, is going down, we've decided to abandon ship or rather house. We found a possible place that is literally right around the corner. If everything works out, we'll move at the end of October. We are hoping to have a Foreclosure Fiesta where people can help us move. We will bribe them with Mexican treats such as: fajitas, margaritas, beer and queso. Who could resist? The house is so close that if we have enough people, we could do some sort of giant assembly line. That could be pretty sweet.

Tomorrow night at YoungLife, I am going to be in a skit where I play a weirdo Kindergarten teacher. I scoured the local thrift stores today until I found a couple of gems. In fact, both outfits are so great, that I had to buy two. Maybe it will have to be a reoccuring character. I thought about wearing one of these teacher ABC jumpers for my school picture but I think I will regret it later.

Life has gotten pretty busy lately with Office parties, YoungLife and college football. My school is really into after-school tutorials for the struggling kids. I am all for helping them but I don't like cutting into my Miss Hightower time. This is similar to Miss Lippy time except that I don't put paste on my face. We get paid to do it but it kinda sucks since it isn't something we do by choice. We are pretty much forced into it. I think I will be doing them twice a week. I am also trying to get an art club started one afternoon a week since our school doesn't have art. It's pretty lame. The kids have P.E., library, computer lab and then Science experiments and Science vocab. Instead of art or music, we have two extra Sciences. I just feel so bad for those kids who are only good at art. I feel the need to look out for them.

waffles

Today I figured out why I have been eating waffles for breakfast every morning for the last two months. I thought it was because of the delightful taste of the Eggo Nutri-Grain low-fat waffles with low fat syrup and spray butter. I don't think so anymore.

This morning I woke up to my roommate, Katie, crying. I was afraid someone had died and indeed someone had. My roommate, Sarah's cat was found dead on our front lawn. With the non-existance of kitty CSI, we were left to assume that she tried to go under the fence and choked herself with her collar. As a child I had numerous pets pass away in the prime of their youth. But I know this is really sad for Sarah. She is new to Houston and Bea (the cat) had been the only constant in her life for a while. She is also one of those people who gets really attached to her cats. Poor thing.

This morning Katie (thank God she's a nurse) donned gloves and wrapped the cat in a garbage bag and then dropped it into another as I held the second bag open. Then we put the dead cat in a cooler with ice. I am not sure what will happen to her as my experience with dead pets always resulted in my dad burying them in a field or our backyard.

After this ordeal, I went inside and ate my usual waffles. Then it hit me that it really isn't about the waffles. I need some kind of normalcy and stability during this crazy time in my life. I think this is why some people become anorexic. They want to control some part of a life that feels out of control. Luckily I am not anorexic, I am just eating waffles. I hope they don't stop making those waffles anytime soon. I need them.

Blathering

Hi blog readers- you random people who read my public thoughts,
I have recently remembered that I told people I would give Sarah updates on my blog. I have been doing decent at that but I think I will try to write them at the beginning of each post so that people who just want to know about Sarah and don't want to read as I blather on, can do just that.

Sarah update-
Last Friday Sarah had another allergic reaction to her chemo. The week before she had a reaction and they gave her lots of Benydryl. This time it was worse. She started to feel hot and couldn't breathe. They stopped the chemo and sent her to see her doctor. Sarah was scared about all this (who wouldn't be?) but the doctor said that some people just have a bad reaction to some of the other drugs that come along with the chemo. They are going to try to give Sarah another chemo that has different other drugs with it. It is actually more expensive but your insurance will only pay if you are allergic to the cheaper kind. So, I guess she'll be getting fancier chemo but it also means she will go a week longer since last week's didn't happen.

Her hair is still in tact so there has been no need to bust out Raquel. Despite all the preparations and build-up, I think it will be really hard on us all, especially Sarah, of course, when her hair does start to fall out. Thanks for your prayers for Sarah. She definitely needs them. I also found out that my friend, Keri (used to be Narramore) McDonald's father-in-law was diagnosed with leukemia. Stupid cancer! It feels like some sort of scary movie where a monster attacks people when they least expect it.

I read a good verse in Psalms today and I am too lazy right now to go find where it is. It said that God, "daily bears our burdens." That is a powerful statement to me. I have had to bear burdens for my friends and walk through hard stuff with them during different seasons of my life. Right now with Sarah is a prime example. But I can't say that I have born someone's burdens daily. And as a human, sometimes I break down and I can't do it. But God can take everyone's burdens at once and he does it every day. That is so amazing!

The house stuff is not looking good. Our landlord is financially strapped. It looked like some guy was going to buy the house and offer us a deal to move early. Well, after the inspection, the guy backed out. This leaves us with the great possibility that the bank will foreclose on the house and we will have to move, presumably without our deposit. This means we'll have to find a new place and pay a new deposit. This just sucks. I can't even really think about what's going to happen since my life seems to be one new thing (mostly crappy) after the next. We are looking for a new place to live. Please pray. I am trying to stop hating change and uncertainty but it would be easier to do if it would just stop happening so often. Oh well, God says he has my back or my burdens, right? Here's some more, big guy!

Lots o' school

Last night I went a high school volleyball game. As a Young Life leader, I am supposed to do "contact work." This means making contact with kids. I am always good at going to our weekly club meeting. I am not always as good at making time to see the kids outside of that. On Wednesday, we had a mini-Young Life meeting with some of our main kids. I was dreading the extra time commitment but when I got there, I totally remembered why I do this. The kids are so much fun. I had most of the girls in my cabin at camp. They were really excited to see me, which felt really good. One thing I have learned about myself is that I don't feel right if I am not doing some sort of volunteer work. I need these kids as much as they need me.

Anyway, back to the volleyball game. Six of the girls on varsity and two on JV, as well as the manager are regular Young Life kids. It was cool to see them play even though we lost. I had also forgotten that my girls aren't the only ones on the team. I also forget that there are white kids at their school since our Young Life group is almost exclusively black and Hispanic. Watching them play made me miss high school and high school sports. I even missed the smell of the gym. I think that makes me a little weird. Who was I kidding? Of course I was supposed to be a teacher- I even like the way schools smell. What a dork!

Life is better lately. I am not letting the big unchangeable stuff get me down so much. Even though that stuff hasn't changed and in some cases, has gotten worse, I can't let that affect my mood. I have been praying about it more too, which I know helps.

We found out that the buyer of our house has withdrawn his offer. This probably means our landlord is going down in the near future. We have started looking for a place to move and it is likely it will happen within the next month. I love change!

The Daily Grind

So, life is starting to fall into a routine- I guess. I finished my second week as a third grade teacher. I need to get more organized. There is so much paperwork and logistical stuff. I don't think I fully realized the magnitude of this part of teaching. I am not really letting it stress me out but I would have less work to do if I was more organized. Slowly I am getting organized. I think I could knock it all out if I would just stay at school late one day but I can't bear staying after 4:30pm. Hopefully I can get more organized this weekend but I will probably just hang out with my friends.

Today was go Texans day at my school. For those of you who don't know, the Texans are the local NFL team who are really stupid because they passed up their chance to get Vince Young, my favorite player ever. Because of their extreme stupidity, I am a Tennessee Titans fan and not a Texans fan. Needless to say, I did not dress in Texans' gear even though it meant I could have worn a t-shirt.

My car problems seem to be working themselves out after a series of daily phone calls to a woman named Javanna at Geico. It looks like I will be paying about $250 instead of $450. Yay.

The Office Season 3 came out on DVD and brightened my week quite a bit. I can't wait for Season 4 to begin! I am looking forward to having weekly Office parties. All Houston Office fans are invited.

I think life will make an upswing and I hope this happens soon. This weekend I was supposed to go to a concert with Sarah Sto-Gregor, but she doesn't feel up to it. I hate seeing her suffer and I hate that she can't do all the things she wants to do anymore. Please continue to pray for her.

Also I am doing a 67 mile bike ride on Sunday morning called the TOur de Pink. It raises money for breast cancer research and a bunch of us are riding in it in honor of Sarah. I haven't been on a bike in a month so I really don't know how it will go. I rode in the MS 150, which is 160 miles in two days under worse conditions. I didn't go to sleep until 4am, I had ridden a maximum of forty miles before that and I was riding a hybrid bike instead of a road bike. If I could finish that, I think I can do this. I have also been working out a lot but not on a bike. Pray that I survive all that time on the seat.

Curve balls 1004 and 1005

So, I have been feeling a lot like Job in the Bible lately. At the beginning of Job, The Devil tells God that Job has been faithful because his life is so easy. The Devil gets permission to start "testing" Job but he is forbidden to physically harm him. I feel like this. I am physically ok but everything around me seems to be chaotic and stressful. I don't like change and yet God keeps throwing curve balls at me, both big and small. The best friend getting breast cancer has obviously been the biggest and hardest one but other smaller ones keep coming. I thought the crazy DtS I led last summer would have been enough testing for me. Apparently it was only the beginning. So here's the latest:

The day Sarah found out that she really had cancer, she and I got in a car accident in the Target parking lot. Another woman and I simultaneously backed into each other. The damage on my car was minor and cosmetic. I wasn't going to get it fixed until Geico said they would pay for half. I went to a Geico place to get an estimate. There was a tiny scratch on the large part of the bumper. It would be about $300 more to fix it. I could barely see the scratch so I told them not to fix it. The estimate was for about $240. Then they told me to go to a certain car place. This guy from the car place came out with me to look at the car. I made sure to show him that I didn't want the big piece fixed. He said he understood. Yadda Yadda Yadda. I pick up my car and they say I don't owe anything even though I am expecting to pay half. Later they call me and say I do owe half, which comes out to over $450!!! I obviously freak out. I would never have gotten it fixed if I knew I had to pay that much. Apparently a second estimate was made that I was not aware of and they factored in the piece I told them I didn't want to fix. Now it is a huge mess. I really don't want to pay that money for something I didn't want fixed. I am trying to fight it but it is very annoying and complicated and stressful.

So, today we found out that we will probably have to move in the next few months. Our landlord is facing bankruptcy and is going to quickly sell our house. The new owner is making a fair offer of returning our deposit, giving us one month's rent as well as $1500 in moving expenses. The problem is that we don't want to move. We are happy where we are at and now we have to find a new place. Ugh!!! What next??? I don't know how much more of this I can take. I am actually not stressing about this house thing as much as I should. Maybe I am becoming more resiliant to change. Probably not. Maybe I am just numb.

On a brighter note, I am now the proud owner of two turtles. They will live in my classroom and I will keep you posted on their names.