having it my way

I've been off the net for the last week due to a friend being here in R'dam for a visit. I enjoy being a tour guide and showing people my adopting country of the Netherlands. This is a good country to be in and with the exception of paying a large part of my salary to taxes, I think things are pretty darn good here.

Today I went back to Schipol airport and put my friend on a plane back to her native country of Lebanon. I actually love going to the airport. Its not because Schipol is such a cool place or that I enjoy taking the train to visit the locale - its because I get a chance to satisfy that urge I occasionally get for fast food, specifically Burger King. What can I say, I am a sucker for a Whoppper with cheese and while there are plenty of BKs in the Netherlands, I only go there when I am at the airport.

Why? Why not?!

So I am home and happy with my tummy filled with all kinds of empty calories that I will have to work off in some form. But that's for another day. A day that I care about those empty calories. Today I had it my way...

racially biased press?

Another tremendous act of violence in an American school. Why is this happening to our youth? Will this generation grow up reflecting back on their high school days as a time when they had to always be on alert for the "Trenchcoat Mafia" or "loners wearing black clothes"? I just wonder how long it is going to take some school district to start offering classes in "How To Avoid Being Shot in School" or "Ways to Disarm Your Psychotic Classmate(s)".

Columbine. Santee. Red Lake. There are others but we all know the pattern. Disgruntled kids get guns, shoot to get revenge, and then turn the gun on themselves. And then the media swarms all over the community and wants to know what happened, what went wrong.

Or do they?

I lived in the US for both Columbine and Santee and the press coverage was unbelievable. It was non-stop for days on end. Talking with kids, interviews with teachers, footage taken from afar. You couldn't escape the blitz of the aftermath.

But now I am living in Europe and the recent events at Red Lake are being treated much differently in the press. CNN International (based in Atlanta) has been sparse with its coverage and the rest of the European press seems to be somewhat on the same page. The great debate over Terri Schiavo and how to let her die takes huge precedent over the senseless slaughter of innocent Native American children. Since when????

And the Bush family is rallying around the Schiavo case (enter Jeb today) without much being said about this horrific act of violence. What a sad day indeed. Forgive me for sounding unsympathetic to the Schiavo family but Terri is going to die sooner or later - let her wish be granted and let her go. But shame on Congress and the Bush family for making this woman's plight such a priority instead of focusing on how to save the lives of people who aren't about to die - our youth.

What about the press? Why aren't they screaming more about this? Why is it that CNN made it the third story last night, behind the Schiavo case and the Arab countries meeting? Is the killing of Native American children not as devastating as the killing of white suburbanites?

As of last week I had seriously considered returning to the US to teach. Now, I don't think so. I used to think that the most dangerous job was a) working on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier or b) being a postal clerk. After the recent events in American public schools, I have come to appreciate that teaching is by far the most dangerous profession. Don't think so? Well, have you got the balls to fail someone if you think that they'll come after you with a semi-automatic weapon loaded with armor-piercing rounds?

If the Bush administration really wants to make its mark in history, I offer this advice. Scrap the current US public education system and start with something new. Something certainly isn't going right with what we've got and its only gonna get worse UNLESS something dramatic happens.

Better yet, here's a different idea - split the country. Maybe when the blue and red states officially become separate nations THEN a new education system will be put into place. But what do I know, I'm just some wacked-out expat complaining about the system instead of trying to fix it.

spring arrives!

Ahh, the joy of spring is in the air! The day was wonderfully sunny, the temp was invigorating (17 degrees) and a general feeling of peace was in the air today.

The vernal equinox. The day when the whole world gets 12 hours of sunshine. For two days a year, we are all equal in our daily dose of sunrays.

And I am glad to have spring here. I missed the change of seasons when I lived in the desert and living in Holland makes you appreciate spring when it does arrive. Temps started being too cold for me back in October and 6 months later, I am glad to feel the glowing sun on my face. Days like this do make me feel glad to be alive. I will miss days like this when I am dead.

But I don't think I'll even know it so I guess I won't miss them! ;)

In any case, what a wonderful day indeed. Me smiles!

proud invitation

A former student of mine sent me an invitation to her college graduation and it arrived here yesterday. It didn't seem like that long ago that I remember her walking the campus of YVHS and her graduation speech that she gave since she was the valedictorian.

But alas, four years have passed and this girl has become a woman. I know this because of where the graduation announcement came from - the United States Miitary Academy. That's my girl! A West Point graduate!

I was so proud when the invitation arrived. I showed it to all of my colleagues here at school and puffed my chest out when I spoke of her accomplishments while at the Point. She not only completed the rigorous training that goes into being a cadet but also continued her martial arts training as she became the captain of the fencing team.

N. has accomplished so much in such a short period of time. I am honored that she would invite me to her graduation from such a reknowned and prestigious institution. While I can't make it back to NY for the ceremonies, I'll be keeping that invitation posted high on my bulletin board to show to my current students what you can do if you put your mind to it.

Moments like this make teaching worth more than any paycheck can give...

st. patrick's day

Its the time of year when people from around the world claim to be of Irish ancestry and don the green, white, and orange. And yes, that includes this blogger.

I have come to find out that my family name is Irish and we have some Gaelic blood in us somewhere. How do I know? Let's just say that the O was dropped off the front of our name and I was fortunate enough to have someone explain that my last name means 'limestone' in Gaelic. Its nice to know that my family has been named for being a rock... Actually, I don't know how to really interpret that! :)

In any case, Happy St. Patrick's Day.

May the Irish hills caress you.
May her lakes and rivers bless you.
May the luck of the Irish enfold you.
May the blessings of Saint Patrick behold you.

military charter school???

As a blogger, I also read what others have to say. There is a blog that I read on a daily basis due to the fact that he updates with such frequency. One of the articles that I read had to do with a charter school (public school) in Florida that has a military feel to it. And there is a waiting list to get in! Who woulda thunk that kids would actually want to go to a military academy but that is just the case in Sarasota, FL. (click on 'military charter school???' for EdWonk's story)

As a former member of the military, I recognize there are many things that the military has to offer. For some, the regimen is just what they need and the order to life is reassuring. For others, being constantly told what to do is an annoyance that they would rather live without. Personally, I was proud to serve my country but I also enjoyed learning how to start making my own decisions.

But the military does have something good to offer to one and all. In a day where disrespect runs rampant in many cultures, its nice to see a young man or woman who has manners and doesn't think that everything is their right to have. Learning respect and discipline through push-ups and whatnot isn't such a bad thing. I can't believe I am saying this but an old adage that my father says is running through my head, "Pain builds character." How true indeed.

My God, I am turning into my father. Help me...

Seriously, I hope that the lessons this school teaches spreads to more public schools. Honor, respect, responsibility for your actions - I can think of worse things to be taught in school.

plus one

Well, its now official - I have a roommate again! After 5 months of paying all the bills by myself, another person (Mo) has moved in and is now helping me out. Thank you Mo!

Personalities look to be a good match and time will tell if Mo and I are good roommates or should go back to just being professionals in the same building. We shall see. In any case, I am glad to have mo people in the house - I was getting tired of talking to the refrigerator...

not average

WOW! Now this is a picture that you really need to look at. Don't forget to scroll right to see the whole thing.

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap050306.html

I wonder what they charge for THAT view...

so endth the week from hell

I wasn't expecting my job to be as hard as it was this week. Needless to say, I am glad that it is over and that I can relax and enjoy my beer (which is due to arrive within the hour). Speaking of which, can I tell you something really cool?

American grocery stores have the same thing but not on the same scale as here. For someone who is transportation impaired (lack of car) and hates going to the store, having your groceries delivered is a god-send. For a few euro extra, the wonderful people at Albert Heijn get my groceries, put them in a crate in the back of a refrigerated truck, and bring them into my kitchen. How awesome! And the best part for those of us who are Dutch-impaired, the website is filled with wonderful pictures so I know what the hell I am buying.

So in just a matter of a few minutes, my food will end its journey to my house and make its way into the lovely confines of my icebox. Too cool...

gotcha!

Click on picture for larger version.


I just really like the way that Tom Toles got his message across in this one. And what about the little one in the bottom corner of the screen? Mmmm wicked, eh?

blunder

So today was my first field trip that I organized for my school. And after the events of today, I doubt the director will ever let me organize another one. Here's the scoop:

My 8th grade science class and I (along with another middle school teacher) got up at an ungodly hour and left school at 7am. Destination - the Euro Space Center in Belgium (linked with 'blunder'). I checked ahead of time and found our approximate time of travel to be a bit over two hours - no problem. Leaving at 7 and not starting until 9:30, that gave us some time to play with. Little did I realize that the margin of time that I was expecting to be extra was gone in short order and the 2 hour ride turned into 4 hours. The construction around Antwerp is enough to drive anyone crazy and it did for S. and I who were driving these 14 lovely kids to the Space Center.

So after the ordeal of construction and then missing my exit (blocked by all the trucks who were at a stand still in traffic), we continued on to our location - "just south of Brussels" as the website says. Bull shinto! Try like an hour south of Brussels! Its in the middle of the Ardennes forest for crying out loud!

So we arrived at 11:30 to start our abbreviated tour of the facility. The kids got to ride on the motion simulators which they enjoyed immensely. The moon gravity chair was fun but the really enjoyed the multi-axis chair (rotates in all 3 directions while they have to trace a picture on a paper in front of them). Even S. and I enjoyed the rides, fun for even adults. But with time in short order, we buggered outta there at 2:30 to make our trek back to R'dam.

We saw traffic being a horrible mess on the way down and thought that it would be equally as horrid on the way back, possibly even worse with rush hour in full effect. We were wrong and my initial estimates were correct. We made it back in a hair over 2 hours. Go figure.

S. is a bit irritated with me for really screwing up her day, my director will undoubtably have some words for me tonight at the school board meeting, and I am sure that the entire staff knows of my blunder and will graciously tease me about it for the rest of my time here in Holland.

Anyone got a spare hole for me to crawl into right now?

privacy

Teaching can be a blessing, and a curse.

The great thing about my job is that I get to work with young people.

The worst thing about my job is that I get to work with young people.

Today it snowed (actually it still is) here in R'dam, which is a strange sight here in March. The kids all think that its really cool since it doesn't snow here much and love to go play in it. My students bugged me to go out and play in the snow but I was Scrooge and said no. I knew that there would be plenty of it for them to play in when they got home. And boy is there enough for them to play with out there.

I got home and cooked dinner, watching the snow fall outside and praying for enough that we would have a snow day tomorrow (unlikely but I can hope). I sat down to eat my food and heard the not-so-gentle thumping of snow balls on my house. Its to be expected I guess, I am a teacher and juveniles do so enjoy hurling things at their teachers' houses. So I ignored the first volley since its usually what kids are looking for - attention. I didn't even flinch as I ate my dinner and watched TV.

Then came the second volley; ignored. Third, ignored. Hey, I am in my house and a few snowballs aren't doing any damage. As long as they don't break a window... The intermittant barrage continued for about 3 hours, waking me up from my gentle slumber on the sofa incurred while watching 'Mythbusters' (great show by the way). So when the last volley hit at around 9:15, I had decided that I had had enough. I got up off the sofa and headed upstairs so that I could identify the perps when I noticed that a large amount of snow had been piled on my front door. A front door that opens in. In other words, all of that snow is going to fall in when I open the door next. How happy that is going to make me.

So my kids can be a great source of joy and also a royal pain in the ass. I guess they are no different than if they were my own children. But at least I could beat my own for doing annoying and stupid shit like this. Forgive my language but I really dislike it when my privacy is disturbed in my own house by juvenile pranks like this. I can deal with this at school - its to almost be expected to some point. But my home is my castle, leave me alone while I'm in it.