Dissections and Giants Game...

I haven't really had that much free time lately because my weekend are gone due to San Diego. Because of this, I've had to condense all my work in the weekdays and try to get things done efficiently. This week is also Dissection week in two of my classes. A little earthworm, frog, and piggy now have been cut up and demangled- but the students have loved it and I'm glad that I finally got my act together and had them do it. It's been an experience doing all three but a good one for sure. Everyone remembers what they dissected in school and I didn't want my students to be left without doing any.

As for other news, last night, I went to my first Giants game this season. It was freezing outside and thank god for my friend's jacket. The Giants were playing the Dodgers and the big rivalry was in full motion. We were in the bleacher seats and half the time, we were just watching fights happen left and right... Dodgers fans wearing their Dodger blue would come to the game and cause ruckas- and Giants fans were throwing drinks, peanuts, and whatever else at them. Other Dodger fans, sit quietly, don't get harassed that much and are fine just to watch the game. It was hard to focus on the game- but we enjoyed ourselves. I needed a break from the grind of doing work and just other drama in my life.

Other than that, tomorrow, I'm on a plane to SAN DIEGO AGAIN!! whoo hoo- this time, it's the wedding and I'm totally stoked about it. Should be a good time and fun to see all my girls. Hope everyone is having a good week...

San Diego and Wine Tasting...

Yikes, its almost been a week and no blogging- what has the world come to. First/foremost- I apologize. It's been nuts with me going to San Diego and trying to get everything done before hand. I also have dissections next week and so I've been super somewhat stressed about getting the specimens and trying to get a good lab going. The specimens finally arrived(yipee) and I'm all set to go with that. (more on that later!)

So this weekend, was the 1st weekend of my two weekend getaway to my favorite place, SAN DIEGO. Every time I go, I ask myself, why did I leave? I know the reason why but it's even harder when the weather is awesome and my friends live where I was for 7 years. The same places bring back a LOT of memories, you know where you are going, and just in general, the sun is out and I'm feeling awesome. Just to be with my girls was also a treat. I don't get to hang out with them often together so it was great to be just having a great time and not worrying about work.

Saturday was filled with the bachelorette party where we took a limo up to Temecula and went to several wineries. It was crowded and the wines were not that great- but we didn't care. I hadn't had that much wine in a while and i definitely felt sleepy on the ride home. We sang songs on the way up and just got to talk like girls all the time we were together. I haven't been that relaxed in a while and it was just great to get away from the bay and just be with people that I love.

I also got to eat one of my favorite take outs- oh yes, Pick Up Stix. They actually have one in Fresno now(trust me, when I found that out, I went bezerk) but having it in San Diego made it complete. I also got to also go to La Jolla Shores and just sit, read, and watch numerous surfers try to get their beginning wave. It was just reminescent of what I used to do all the time. Most people would be like, hey you have Pacifica and Ocean Beach up where you are... um, COLD... and not the same. The sun was shining in san diego and I wasn't freezing from the wind/fog. I guess I'm spoiled and know what a 'real' beach is too.

Now I'm back in the bay and just catching up on work. Have a lot to catch up on but it was an awesome weekend filled with good times with my girls- I definitely needed it. I'm going again on Friday and more of my UCSD girls are coming for the wedding- so I'm totally excited. It's a small 50ish people wedding so I'll see at least 3-4 of my good friends that I haven't seen in forever and actually get to hang out with them for a little bit.

Ok- me out- hope everyone had a good week and weekend...

Making Decisions...

These last couple of days have been filled with multiple decisions. They say that teachers have to go through with 100s of decisions a day because of student's needs, curriculum, etc... What's somewhat alarming about making decisions is when you have to do them outside work... Should I move to another apartment- cheaper rent maybe- but longer commute? Or stay here because I'm lazy and pretty happy here in my little apartment? Is it worth moving?

Other decisions... dating or not to date?.... teaching yearbook next year or not?... trust me, other bigger ones also but decisions that have come up that I'll figure out soon...

It's hard to really focus on what you are supposed to do- or weigh out options when time is of the essence or you don't know what to do. I did seek help with one of my decisions and it did clear things up which made things easier for that ONE decision. I know other people have more pressing issues but lately I've been wracked with these for example...

Other than that- counting down to San Diego... even though every day I am glad to go to work(because I love my school)- it'll be nice to go back to my 'home'... hope everyone is enjoying the cali sun lately...

Sunny Days...

At last, there is SUN in daly city/south san francisco... it's only lasting till wed/thursday- but hey, i'll take it. I love putting my flip flops on- tank top- and skirt and just enjoying the rare sun we get. It reminds me of St. Martin and how it is ALL the time. This weekend was filled with me working and more working-- boring i know- but the next two weekends- guess where i'm going to be...thats right, my favorite place SAN DIEGO... one of my UCSD girls is getting married- one weekend is wine tasting for her bachelorette and the other is her actual wedding. it'll be a good UCSD reunion of sorts and I'm totally stoked about it. Even my masters class only has a little bit of homework this week so I'm stoked to get a 'break' from it all.

Other than that, nothing much in my life that is exciting or that I can share here on this blog. I did watch "I love you man" and that was decent- which I thought was going to be lame but ended up surprising me. Movie6.net if you haven't seen it.

Ok- hope everyone had a good weekend...

Day of Silence

So today was "Day of Silence" at our school and many students and staff(including me) wore T-shirts with this imprint on it. The description of the day follows: "Imagine losing the Power of your Voice for an entire school day. . . Now imagine hundreds and thousands of students robbed of their Voices throughout our schools, school day after school day, year after year. . .
The GSA's Day of Silence exposes the fact that School is not Safe for many Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) students; it is not safe because LGBT students are harassed about their sexual orientation and/or their gender expression, (which is whether or not somebody looks or acts more like a “boy” or a “girl.”) Use your Voice to Break the Silence! The Day of Silence is a day to reflect on what each of us as Individuals Can and Will Do to Break the Silence. The Power of Individuals standing up one by one, Raising Our Voices can create positive change in our schools!"

So I think this is an awesome program and many of my students decided to come to school and not talk the entire day to show their voices being lost because of bullying/teasing/harassment of other people. Some teachers(a good 4 of them) did the entire day without talking and every year I'm like, next year, I'll do it... um, it's just rough and I'm too scared to do it. Oh well... I did support with my shirt and my rainbow band and reiterating what the day meant. I think students get a good grasp of what its about and respect students around them that are doing it. Another reason why I love my school- just the mutual respect and how tolerant students are in general.

Other than Day of Silence- it was a pretty normal day. Rushing around and now I have a whole weekend planned full of catching up on things that I've been procrastinating on and enjoying the 'sunny' weather that has now hit the bay. I still haven't seen it- but apparently its on its way... we'll see... hope everyone had a good Friday! :)

36 Years and Counting...

So today, April 16th, is my parent's anniversary. It's been a good 36 years and I only hope that I have even half of a solid marriage as much as my parents. They are still in love with one another and just make me think that in this world of where more than 50% of marriages end in divorce, my parents marriage based on love(which is rare in india) is still holding strong. So happy anniversary to my mom/dad(and the other couple-who happens to be a close family to us-celebrates on this day as well!) and many more years of happiness! (I hope this doesn't jinx it...)

Singing, Drinking, and being Merry

So today, I got my new keys from our secretary and yes, they are officially lost. SUCKS. She was really nice about it and I got a new lanyard care of the leadership team- so i'm all set to go. Today, was an interesting day in many regards. First/foremost- I read an article on msn.com(my source of news- yes, i know not cnn but it gets my info for me) and there is this lady named Sara Boyle who went on britain's got talent. She's amazing and if you haven't heard it/seen it- she made me cry- she's awesome. She's one of those people that a) never been kissed- age 47- but can sing like a broadway/opera singer. Here is the link- Sara Boyle.

Also, today at school a local program called "every 15 minutes" came by and they simulated a drinking/driving accidents. Everything with the cops, the fireman, the coroner and about 6 students who were involved. It was really powerful and seeing things that you see on TV- the jaws of life, them taking them out on stretchers, the whole gig- was really intense. It was good to get a reminder of what drunk driving does to innocent victims and I think my students got a lot out of it.

Ok, hope everyone is having a good wednesday! (I know this was a random post!) :)

The Case of the Missing Keys

Today was the 1st day back from spring break- I was ready to go to school, show off my new tan, and see my kids again. Then, when I got to my car, I was like, hmm- where are my classroom keys? um, not in my bag, not in my car- oh they must be in my apartment. I go back into my apartment and I do a mini search to no avail...great...no keys today- now have to ask for spare. So yes, this was how I started my day....sucks and it was already hard enough to get back to school...

Then, I think, wait- they must be with the stack of papers that I took out of my car--> maybe thats it... um, no- got home- no avail- maybe in my suitcase that I haven't unpacked yet- um, unpacked everything and to no avail. Now, I'm thinking misplaced is becoming LOST... SUCKS... I think i'm going to have to go to Home Depot and copy some keys during my prep... great.

The question becomes- how do you misplace a big red lanyard that says my school name- with a BIG keychain that has a big UCSD alumni keychain on it and three keys... well, i did it. It's just frustrating because I'm usually the really responsible one that has everything together/pretty clean and now, I can't find my keys- SUPER annoying...

Hopefully, they'll turn up- otherwise, I'll be going to get some new keys...blah...

Wedding Dresses and Poetry...

So yesterday ended up being a really busy day. You know those days where you're like, oh, it'll be relaxing- I'll get a lot of rest/catch up and then BOOM- really busy- where did my day go? thats the day I had...

One of my many UCSD girls is getting married in October and she was in my area shopping for a dress. I got to go and help her pick out a dress. I've gone before and I love it... It's always fun to see your friend in a gorgeous dress and be so happy for them that they are taking the next step in their lives. I also love it because I'm never going to have the opportunity to wear a white dress down the aisle(since indians wear red) and so it makes the experience even more unique for me. I'm not a good friend when it comes to saying my opinion on dresses, I've realized. I'm just so enchanted by each dress that I'm like, oh- its soo pretty- that I can't really come down with criticism unless its a really ugly dress. It was a relief that her other friend was there and was more verbal on that so I could be the gushing friend...

Right after dinner/ice cream with my wedding girl- I went to a "Youth Speaks" Event. What is that? Well, its a program for high schoolers for doing poetry slams. It's an amazing program and they have it at my school where they do many events. This event was the FINALS for the whole ENTIRE bay area. The event was at the Opera House across from the Civic Center- um, hi 3000 people showed up- and it was SOLD out. I got in only because my friend had a spare ticket. It was amazing- the poetry/spits/etc was deep and just powerful. I guess you had to be there- but two of my school's students were in it and then one even is going to go to NATIONALS in chicago to represent the bay. It was just a cool even to come out and support and I'm grateful that I went and got to see something different yet very mind blowing and inspirational...

Ok, now going to enjoy my Sunday... hope everyone has a good weekend!! :)

Back in the Bay...

Hey all... long time, no post. We got back last nigh at 6:30 after going on multiple flights- st martin to puerto rico, puerto rico to miami, and then finally puerto rico to SFO. it was nuts and i was exhausted. The rest of my break was awesome- we ended up going to St. Barth- yes, the snobby island of life. All day long, I was like, where are we??? oh yes, St. BAAARTTH... i guess you had to be there. if you ever watch House Wives of New York- Simon and the blond chic always go to St. barth because the hamptons are lame...whatever. it was nice- just lounging- but everything was ridiculously expensive. I got a key chain for 6 bucks and called it my souvenier of the day...

Now, just relaxing at home and debating what to do with my three day weekend. Lots of grading, people to see, phone calls to catch up on... maybe go kayaking, biking, etc also... who knows?

Can't say i'm glad to be back- but its good to be back in reality also...

House

So today, my sister and I went to 2 beaches and laid out in the sun- got a nice tan and it was awesome. I'm reading my Kindle and just hanging out- its awesome. Just relaxing and hanging out in the sun...such a difference from the fog that is the bay area 

I've also been watching a LOT of 'House' episodes. I got them from a 'secret source' and now I'm addicted. I have even shown them to my students because my advanced students are learning about physiology. Maybe I like it because it has all these biology references that I know about and it's a smart drama. Dunno- maybe its going to the part of me that wanted me to be a doctor... but then, I hated my physiology course that I took last quarter so thats not it.

It's been fun- i'm only on season 2..but once I'm done with all the seasons- what am i going to do? I guess I'll have to find another show...

hope everyone had a good weekend...

Finally in St. Martin!! :)

So after a good day delay, we're both finally here in good 'ol St. Martin. The weather here is awesome- 75-80 degrees. We got off the plane and literally got out of our hoodies into more summer time clothing. My legs and other parts of my body were like, wait- this is the sun- where have you been all my life? After we settled in to my brother's place, me/sister went out to go find some towels and groceries. This island isn't that hard to maneuver since its one road all the way around the island. Reminds me of how Kauai is... island living. We're also getting used to all the French and just the random accents we've been hearing around here. It's been somewhat of a change but an interesting one.

After going shopping, we headed for the gorgeous beach and full on laid out and read. It's always nice for me to just do that since I never get to do that back in the bay... weather was awesome and beach was clear blue. You gotta love it...

Ok, more updates later- but we finally made it... peace out from St. Martin. :)

Jersey Girls...

So my sister and I are stuck in Jersey. Oh yes. Fun times. Our flight from SFO was delayed and even though we ran to our next flight- it was gone. SUCKS! In all my traveling, I have never missed a flight and I guess there is a first to everything. We did get some food comps and a hotel room so that was nice. It just sucks that we're not going to be there today, but we're trying to make the best of things. We have some family friends in New York so we might go out to the city and meet with them. Who knows? If not, then we'll just chill in the room and hang out. Better than working right? In these situations, it's better to just stay positive and roll with the punches.

Ok, hope everyone is having a good Friday... and not stuck at an airport like we are- haha...

April Fools!!!

So today, I got PLAYED by my 3rd period class. They played a prank on me and this was my first really 'gotcha' moment. So, I have two students that a month ago, got in a big argument about how dissections are good/bad for students. One of my girls is a big PETA student- really into animal rights and got upset when the other student really went off on how it wasn't a big deal to do dissections.

Today, one student asked me about the upcoming dissections and then the argument started up again. This time, it got really heated with the PETA girl even starting to cry. I was at my wits end and telling myself- is this referral worthy? or is it a heated debate? By the end of it, I was about to kick one of the students out and then they both said 'gotcha' and it was a big APRIL FOOLS on me. CRAZY. It was an oscar worthy performance and I'm glad that they just understand one another and can do this 'fake' fight in class.

April Fools everyone... hope everyone had a good start to the month! :)

P.S. As a ucsd alumni, right smack dab on msn.com is an article about how a 'college' sends out an invite to tour the campus to rejected students. I'm thinking to myself, what idiot college did that? oh yes... UCSD... NICE. And i know the admissions lady that was featured in the article...doh!!! UCSD Article