Thoughts, rants, news and etc

--Borrowed from a friend's journal --

Go to Google and google your name, plus whatever verb/phrase each number states.

1. Google “[your name] needs”:

Allen needs Letters.

Allen needs new clothes.

2. Google “[your name] looks like”:

Allen looks like Rihanna for a split second.

Allen looks like [she] is barely holding it together.

3. Google “[your name] likes”:

Allen likes idea of NBA expansion.

Allen likes current state of affairs.

4. Google “[your name] says”:

Allen says "forget that."

Allen says "can thousands of warriors be wrong?"

5.Google “[your name] wants”:

Allen wants to be taken seriously.

Allen wants to own everything, including wireless.

6. Google “[your name] does”:

Allen does NOT condone drug abuse.

Allen does some damage at Chanel.

7. Google “[your name] hates”:

Allen hates texting.

Allen hates long bus rides.

8. Google “[your name] can”:

Allen can make time disappear.

Allen can teach us about love.

9. Google “[your name] goes”:

Allen goes shopping in London.

Allen goes shopping with her dog Mable.

10. Google “[your name] is”:

Allen is taking steps.

Allen is plagued by self-doubt.

11. Google “[your name] loves”:

Allen loves jeans.

Allen loves to laugh, celebrate, and enjoy herself with companions.

From Church Ladies by Lisa Samson:

" 'I know this about guilt...When you hang on to it, stroke it, and use it for penance, what you're really doing is taken the crucifixion much too lightly.'

I didn't get what she meant exactly.

'He died once for all sins...All sins. Would you dare to stand before His face and say, "Your pain and suffering was almost enough for me, but not quite"?' "

http://www.criticsrant.com/bb/reading_level.aspx

My LJ showed up as elementary level; my school blog showed up as --

TV Reviews

Go figure!

So, I'm sure you've seen the news about the "Silent Tsunami," or the global food crisis -- complete with watching youtube.com videos from Haiti about people making dirt cookies, which are exactly what they sound like.

For those of us who have always had enough, the rising food prices are inconvenient. However, for people already living under the poverty line, especially in areas where income of under $2 a day is the norm, there isn't money to buy more food. This means people already living on one meal a day have nowhere to go but "without." In addition to starvation and malnutrition, these conditions are causing political instability and riots in numerous countries -- either in demands for food, or in demands for government to provide or give up their offices.

One of the prayer requests Compassion International posted recently was for project workers and volunteers in Bangladesh to have wisdom to deal with the GUILT of the children -- those who currently receive their one meal a day at the Compassion project, but feel guilty for eating that when their families at home are going without.

Some more information can be found here: http://www.compassion.com/sponsordonor/global-food-crisis/default.htm

Please feel free to participate June 25th!

...besides the fact that I had a dream about an hour ago about all of the seniors *not* graduating and getting to have them again next year. (Was it a dream or a nightmare?) Suffice it to say it will be a very full month between now and their graduation.

I received the forward below from a co-worker today. Her version had Jay Leno credited as the author, and while that does not appear to be the case, it is interesting opinion on negativity in the US...

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Made in the USA: Spoiled brats
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http://www.gotoquiz.com/what_american_accent_do_you_have

My results, oddly enough...

What American accent do you have?
Your Result: The Midland

"You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Midland   "You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The South
The Northeast
The Inland North
The West
Philadelphia
Boston
North Central
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Please pray for my family. My grandmother (mom's mom that I was named after) died during the morning of 4/5 their time...late evening of 4/5 my time. Happy birthday to me...

Her funeral is supposed to be a week from today, Saturday 4/12. Since my family has been in and out of my hometown to visit her over the past few months, pray that everyone will be able to safely get there again and that God will give them peace.

I won't be able to go home because I just went home last month for a week. I'm thankful I was able to see her then, and even talk with her some while she had an understanding of the conversation.

Romans 6:3-8 -- "Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with,[a] that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.

Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him."

Yes, I have recently discovered Youtube! = )

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I'm avoiding writing Psychology lesson plans (78 of them to teach in the month of January!) and instead watching videos on youtube while waiting for the clock to roll around for the teachers to go out to celebrate a birthday tonight. = )Such is vacation!

I came across this video fairly recently and thought it had a powerful message.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=7ZscS775ek8

"Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another, it is the only means."
--Albert Einstein

...I tend to write journal entries more often when I'm *not* also trying to send out weekly updates through e-mail. (Or, maybe it's just a summer thing.)

Anyway, I had the list below up on my classroom wall for a while (right next to the one about "you might be from Alabama if...") -- my students read it and approved, but it hadn't quite made it out of the "Draft" stash of e-mail until today.

Top 20 Things a Japanese Person Would Never Say (from ESL Cafe)

1. I just cannot be bothered to say 'itadakimasu' today.

2. Wow it's hot in this train! I'm gonna open that window!

3. Who cares if that's what the rules say and it's how we've always done it? Let's figure out a more logical and effective course of action.

4. I'm tired of saying, "Irasshaimase!" today.

5. "You know, we could probably solve that whole falling birthrate thing if we just brought in some more Koreans. After all, we're basically the same."

6. "5:00! Time to go home!"

7. "I guess you could say that I was number 1, top of my class, the best of the best!"

8. "I'm way too old for a Doremon toy on my phone."

9. No way would I read on the train!!

10. "Hey, wait a minute. Maybe foreigners aren't really responsible for all the crime in Japan."

11. "Let's discuss the 2nd World War"

12. [in class discussions] "I understand what you're saying, but personally, I don't agree. "

13. "You look like you need a hug!"

14. "Hmm. Maybe I should keep a closer eye on my kid."

15: Natto stinks and tastes bad........

16. "Isn't she a little too young to be wearing that?"

17.. "Errm, I don't actually like Disneyland. I just go because my friends do."


18. "I'm not feeling well today. I'm going to call in sick and take the day off."

19. "Dude, those shoes totally don't go with that suit."

20. "I just heard this great joke about the emperor ... "

Hello everyone!
As some of you may know, with the price increase on May 14th, USPS decided to also do away with the lowest price international mailing option, without announcing this decision to customers (also unmentioned in their press releases on their webpage from that time period).

Basically, surface mail is no longer available, and air mail is the only option. Although air mail is much quicker, it is also much more expensive -- presenting difficulties to people who are trying to move overseas, donate items to charities or humanitarian aid projects overseas, or mail textbook purchases to schools overseas.

I wanted to invite you to read over and consider signing the petition to reinstate the option of international surface mail here: http://www.petitiononline.com/USPSISM/petition.html .

Of course, USPS has their own site, including a contact form for e-mail and a list of phone numbers, here: https://hdusps.esecurecare.net/cgi-bin/hdusps.cfg/php/enduser/std_alp.php?p_sid=L9bbfAFi&xssl=1

...three of your students freak out when they don't get their final report cards, and immediately upon hearing about their grades, they all become ecstatic (for very different reasons with the same result) and jump around the cafeteria, regardless of how many people are wondering what in the heck they're so excited about.

...your younger students, who are not happy they won't be having you next year, visit your new classroom and state "the books are better up here!" and you look at them and explain, "they're the same ones you had downstairs...I just moved the ones that are mine."

...your students (both the current ones you have in summer school, and the previous ones from school semester in somebody else's class for summer school) ALL seem to want to insist that school is fun (quite seriously, I might add).

Of course, probably about a third of the kids are IN school, so they're saying it more for the friend aspect than the academic aspect, but still...

Welcome to my world. = )

...how much more tired I get in HALF a day of 5th graders than I get in a FULL day of middle/high schoolers.

On top of that, this was a *good* day for them -- at least they didn't have a bad one!

I think the first few days require more talking out of the teacher than the rest of the year, but I certainly have a sore throat while it lasts!

Yay! = ) I now have a VCR-player that doesn't eat tapes!

This is a definite improvement.

Unfortunately, I acquired it through my neighbor who is returning to the States for a year, so that's not such a good thing.

But, I now don't have to depend on one channel of AFN (American military news, courtesy of all of the American bases here in Okinawa) for my full range of English television -- I can play movies too!

As you may have guessed from the quote, I just watched "The End of the Spear" for the first time.

For me personally, the biggest surprise of the movie was how much sympathy I had for the people responsible for the spearing deaths of each of the men... and how much miscommunication played a role in creating a crescendo of chaos that led to murder, but then the forgiveness God enabled the families to show afterwards.

The movie was well worth the watch. I don't think I'd be able to watch it again, though.

I went to sleep around 12:30, and was up again at 5:00 am, due to kids up at either end. Since I'd acquired two transplanted 7th graders from the next room over, I ended up with 10 kids and my tatami mat next to the door.

So, around 11:30 pm, the (three) conversations in the room sounded like...

"she is even skinnier than -----------!"

"I have lots of hair."

"DE DE DE dededede! LA LA LA la la...!" (from probably two of the quietest girls in my 8th grade class at school!).

Quite interesting...! I joined one of the conversations for the next hour, so I stopped listening for blurbs after that.

Then, the volleyball team members from another room decided to wake me up at 5:00 to ask where their teammates were sleeping (early morning practice). So, I hunted some room assignment paperwork and joined them in the hall (the only lit area) to look for names. They said, "we didn't want to go in any of the other rooms until we were sure because we were afraid we'd get in trouble! And you're the nicest teacher here." I was like, "oh THANKS -- you mean I'm the pushover teacher, and therefore I get woken up at 5:00 am!" Apparently the kids in my room slept through this entire interchange, though.

...whenever I have a bad day *again,* a phone call to a good friend and a very timely e-note from a former student entitled "wo0ow!!! ur awesome!"'s arrival are just the thing to raise my spirit.

I'm in Japan. = ) More later when I get internet in my apartment.

Please pray for Loreen and her family in the loss of her mother.

Moldova updates:
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