B4...and After!

You may recall, back in January, I mentioned the chair I was re-upholstering. Well, I actually finished it! A while ago. Then, slightly less of a while ago, I received a digital camera for my birthday. Yes, I've finally upgraded from the cheesy plastic camera I've had since I joined the Peace Corps in 1995. And so, I present you with one of my greatest personal accomplishments to date.

First, the before picture. Notice the sagging seat, which I had to completely rebuild twice, because the instructor had me do it wrong the first time. I'm over it now.

And here it is, the after photo. I know, floral? But somehow, it works for me. I wanted to keep it feeling like a grandmother's chair. And I got to use purple trim!

So there you have it. Quite possibly the last major craft-like project I will ever attempt. But I have to admit, it was fun.

We'll Never Succeed

My sister & I went to Portland for the weekend, with the intention of seeing 'The Mystery of Edwin Drood.' It's a really fun musical that I've never actually seen, but I played in the pit for it during college.

What we were unaware of, until we got to the hotel and examined the tickets, is that the performance was in Lake Oswego. Not, in fact, in Portland at all. OK, no big deal, we had a car. So I called the theater to get directions & was told to take Highway 43, but NOT to take Terwilliger Boulevard, because it would be confusing. (On a side note, if there isn't a Dr. Seuss character called Mr. Terwilliger, there should be!)

The concierge gave us Mapquest directions which instructed us to take Terwilliger. The valet gave us alternate directions, also instructing us to take Terwilliger. We set off, finger crossed, with plenty of time to get lost and still make it to the theater by 8:00 PM.

Not so much.

We finally found the theater at 8:20 PM. It looks lovely from the outside.

We chose not to go in late, having already missed the beginning, and drove back to Portland. On Highway 43. WITHOUT taking Terwilliger. It was much easier.

Then we ordered drinks and dessert. We had earned it.

You're Right, You're Right, I Know You're Right

Yes, I know, I'm not so good at keeping up with posts. I'm not sure if I just don't have much to say, if I don't have the time, or if I just don't think about it. Maybe a combination of all three.

The only interesting event going on lately is that I'm learning how to upholster a chair. Really. It belonged to my great grandmother, and I remember spilling grape juice on it when I was about four years old. At the moment, it's completely torn apart and I have no idea how long it's going to take me to finish it, but I'm really hoping it'll turn out well. I'll be posting before & after pix when it's done (provided it looks decent).

My classes are going well, although one of my groups won't speak. I've stood at the front of the room for minutes at a time, waiting for someone to answer my question. Three minutes can feel like a very long time when no one is speaking. I'm trying something new, involving bonus points, and I'm cautiously optimistic. We'll see.

I'm not going to make any promises about posting more often, because I hate to end up looking like a liar. Let's just say I'll try.

What's the Diff?

Now that I've almost survived the first quarter at my new teaching job, I've had ample opportunities to observe the subtle differences between teaching English in Poland and in the USA. I have to be honest, Poland is suffering by comparison.

When I started my current job, I was informed that I'd be receiving lots of information about the courses I'd be teaching. I had no idea that would turn out to be an understatement. I was given calendars, syllabi, books, and access to computer files full of lesson plans. I found myself in the presence of colleagues who continually ask how I'm doing and offer me their own expertise any time I'm stuck.

In Poland, I was given a teaching schedule, class lists, and, after repeated requests, copies of old final exams.

Since September, I have attended weekly meetings with all the instructors who teach the same courses I do. We discuss what we've covered, what we're going to cover, what should be on the upcoming tests, and who's going to write which part of said tests. We generally all give the same test, within a day or two of each other, and compare our results to see if anything needs to change for the next test.

In Poland, I remember having a few meetings where we discussed what we might want to cover before the end of the year. The final exam was the same for everyone, but it was up to me whether I gave any other tests, and whether those tests were reliable or completely random.

Having said all that, I really don't want to give the impression that everything in Poland is bad, and everything in the US is good. I'm working more hours here than I ever had to there, and commuting almost 2 hours a day. There's a lot more accountability, not only to my bosses but also to my students - after all, they're paying a rather large sum of money to be here.

But overall, I have to say that I'm really enjoying this job, not least because of the well-organized program I've managed to find myself in. I would definitely consider returning to Poland at some point, but for the time being, I feel very lucky to be where I am.

Where Ya Been, Marv?

OK, it's been a little longer than I expected, but I think things have finally settled down somewhat. I've moved into a friend's house in West Seattle, and am s-l-o-w-l-y getting settled in. I keep looking at my pile of boxes and wondering what might be in them - some of them have been in storage for the last 4 years.

I greatly enjoyed my first family Thanksgiving since 2002, even with 4 pre-teens sliding down the stairs and fighting all day. I'd forgotten how much I like the whole process, from the food preparation all the way to the next morning, when we spend hours making traditional Norwegian Christmas cookies.

The job is going really well, despite the lack of time to do anything other than work. My students are really great, the other teachers are wonderfully helpful, and I've been invited back for winter quarter.

Overall, everything's good at the moment. Now I'm just hoping the Cougars can shape up and win the Apple Cup. Go Cougs!

I'm Not Wigging! I'm....Regrouping!

I know, it's been a while, and it'll be a while longer before I can start posting regularly. My housing situation is still on hold, and my current dwelling place isn't exactly conducive to extensive typing sessions. Also, my job is taking up a large portion of my time. I hope that'll eventually be less true, but I'm trying to get into a rhythm and figure things out right now. So something has to suffer, and it's going to be this blog.

Just give me a month or so, and I should be back to my semi-regularly posting self. Until then, rest assured that things are good in all the major aspects of my life. I'm just really busy.

I Don't Want to Buy Anything, Sell Anything, or Process Anything

I got a job!

OK, that's not such a huge deal, I've had lots of jobs. But this one is a better job than I expected to find. I actually managed to land a full time teaching job at a community college, something I had been led to believe was rarer than the dodo bird.

I have to admit, I'm a little nervous. It's more teaching hours than I've had in the past, and from what I've been told so far it's going to be a challenge. But I'm really looking forward to only working one job - it's been a while since I've been in a position where I didn't need a supplementary income.

I don't start for a couple more weeks, so I have lots of time to stew over it & freak myself out. And attempt to get an official copy of my transcript from my university in Poland. Something tells me that's going to be a long, slow process. I knew I'd never really be free of that place.

In other news, my I-am-an-idiot moment of the month came yesterday, when I realized that it's possible to play CDs on a DVD player. I've only been carrying the new Indigo Girls CD around with me for a month, hoping to remember to play it during the rare moment when I'm in a house with a CD player. Don't ask, just enjoy a chuckle at my expense.