Fa la la la la

Last twenty minutes of the last day of school til Jan 3rd and counting! I have a Christmas party going on after school til around 8pm but that should be fun. This week has been crazy busy with extra things goin on after work every night. Needless to say I have not gotten much running in as I should have. It is just really hard for me to wake up at 5am to go run knowing that I have til work from 7:15-5:30 everyday. I have only run twice this week and I am disappointed in myself. I look foward to an intense weekend of running along with all of next week off of school. I should be able to get many long runs in and that makes my yule tide behind happy! Blessings to you all. (if anyone actually reads this)

Set out the traps last night but nothing was caught. The cheese was not even toughed. I do believe that these suckers are reading some books and studying up because they are getting smart.
So today and tomorrow in class I am showing the movie Elf (starring Will Ferrell) to my classes. I love this movie and it is nice to give them (and myself) a break. Tis the season ya know. Well with the holidays soon approaching I must say with regret that I have not really gotten my Christmas shopping tapped yet. A couple of things here and there. Some things have really been tugging on my heart lately, which usually this time of year does for people. Let me explain: At Lee we have a program designed for the students called SAFE. This is a place where they can go if they are dealing with things. For example they have classes in anger management and other emotional troubles. Anyway they do a "Sponsor a student" thing for really underprivaleged students who would not otherwise have a Christmas, or any presents to open. I wanted to sponsor someone but forgot about it until last week. Last Thursday I went down to the office and there were only three students out of the entire school who had yet to be picked. I took a look and one of my students was on the list. She is a 7th grader of mine and one of eight children in her single parent home. She is always dirty, and never has any materials needed for schoolwork. I guess I never realized how bad off she was before, I would just get frustrated with her when she asks for pencil and paper everyday. Anyway my heart just really goes out for her because she is definitely got some emotional and self esteem issues because of her family life. Needless to say I got her some things. The coolest thing about this program is that she will ahve no idea that it is I who gave. I hate to say that it has taken the holiday season for me to reach out and help and it makes me sick to think that I am this way. I honestly think that my purpose her on earth is to serve others. Sorry to make this so long but I would like to end with this thought. Please do not just open your heart to others during the holiday season, let it extend throughout the years.

Out of hand

It seems as though my rat problems are getting worse! I picked up the phone in the classroom and answered and thought "That was funny, they hung up".....only to look down and notice that my cord had been chewed by "a certain something". Nice. This is getting out of hand and it looks like I will be having to set out some traps....but people these are no ordinary rats, they are the big ole lake rats that are more like small cats. I am not looking foward to walking in in the morning to see if it has been stuck on the paper. This sucks!

Rat Race

The race this weekend went well. I improved my time by 5 minutes and finished 14 overall female. I was pleased with these results. A new obstacle that I am facing now is at work. There is a rat problem at Lee and it has found it's way into my classroom and is eating my plants!!! I have addressed the issue with the principal twice and I have yet to hear a response back. I really don't want to set traps up in my class. I have had to do it before with a cabin I lived in in college and it is not a pleasant experience. And I do not think I should have to get rid of my plants to keep them away! Any suggestions people?

It's almost Friday!

YEAH! Two stressful things going on this week are over. I was assessed today during first period by the principal. I was not nervous for it but it is a little nerve racking having "an outsider" in your classroom, constantly writing about how the environment is. I just pretended like he wasn't there and went about my business. The class was actually well-behaved. And I got assessed again during 3rd period by a reading coach. She was making sure I was doing the program that we have to implement correctly. She gave me some positive feedback. So now I gotta bust a move to get all my things together and move furniture into my new house. I haven't really started to pack yet. Is it already Thursday?! I run in a 1/2 marathon on Sat morning and for the rest of the day will be moving into my house. I am excited to see if my time improves this year. I had a pace of 7:45 a mile last year and I love this race because their are different people playing music at every other mile and it is nice and cool outside finally. I look forward to this weekend!

Overdue Update

So I know it has been a minute since the last entry and I know you are just dying to know what is going on in my life right cyberstalkers :) No but seriously, I think I just didn't really have much to write about (that's a first) or I thought nothing was really important enough.
But a have hit a couple of positive milestones lately. First, I had a very chill Thanksgiving with the rents. All three of us contributed to the meal at I just ate until I fell asleep. Then I had a little moment with myself and started to remember all the past Thanksgivings that I have had away from home but not away from "family". I have been very lucky to have great friends who have taken me in as the "Kimmy Gibbler from Florida". To name a top few: Going to Spartanburg with Sonnie and then heading to Greenville to Mama Mac's with McClure. I am so thankful and blessed that I have never had a lonely Thanksgiving and I owe it all to my lil "family" of friends who have taken such good care of me. Big ups to my girls!
So back to some milestones........I have finally have a place to call my own. I have rented a house in College Park which is the neighborhood in which my school is located. I am super excited because I have never lived by myself before. Nothing against any of my past roommates but I am so happy. I have been living with my aunt and uncle for the past two years....not that I am ungrateful in any way whatsoever, but I feel that it is overdue. And second, I went on a 20 mile run on Friday and felt strong the entire way. I know I am ready for this marathon. Bring it Disney.

Front Runners

The Florida running community rocks. I love fall because it is packed with many road races. I competed in a 5k race this past weekend. I ran a whole minute slower than I usually do but I finsihed 8 out of 526 women runners. This is not good enough. But I felt great so what went wrong. The answer is the fact that I lack confidence to start out in front. I stratigically place myself on the right handside about 7 rows back. This is a strategy I learned in high school. You must pace yourself first and then pass, not start out to fast and be the one getting passed. This will mentally break you down. My stategy this time did not work. For the first mile I had to weave in and out of the slower runners who got up front because they do not realize what they are doing. I will now be starting up front!

Feederbands Forever

So Florida got hit hard by another hurricane. Central Florida did not suffer to much damage just winds and rain from the outer feederbands from Wilma. Although I must say I was a bit worried at first since I would have the house to myself. The best thing that came from it was the fact that we got Monday off from work. That day was crazy because in the am it was really windy and rainy and then in the afternoon it was sunny and cool. I went on a 15 mile run and enjoyed the cool weather. I honestly felt like I could run further, I dont know about 11.2 more miles but it made me feel a little more confident about the Disney marathon (26.2) in Jan. I had been slacking off a little bit due to either being on vacation or not having enough time, rain, etc. But I am ready for the more intense training to begin.

Good times

Back to the daily grind. I am in the middle of my day running on zero quality hours of sleep. I got back into Jamlando at 6am this morning and went to work. ST-rugglin! But Paso was a blast! I got to meet some really great families who have started growing grapes on the land that they live on. I consider this to be one of my dream jobs and I found my new calling in life. To go get a master's in viniculture. The art and study of growing grapes. How awesome would that be! Just seeing all these amazing people who live on 100 + acres of land and gave it a go. I would love to do this someday. My favorite vineyard we went to was called Whalebone. It is on the west end of Paso and it is a family of five who have 4 horses and cows, chickens, 5 dogs, and GRAPES! They just started growing as a hobby and it is so cool to see what they have done. We got to spend all day Sunday riding around and playing on the ranch. We also visited the first Winery I fell in love with the last time we were there in March called Windward and I got to hang out with the owners son, who is in 8th grade. A much cooler kid than I was at 13. He was selling walnuts that fell from the trees around the property, so I bought a bunch of bags and the kids and I helped him collect and crack new ones so he could take his girlfriend on dates.
This vacation was so cool because I really got to hang with the locals and see what life is like living there and not just doing the tourist thing. A great trip, although I am paying for it now with teaching on lack of sleep. But I do get to look at the new poster I got for my classroom all day, it is an old-skool R E A D poster of LL Cool J holding a book. Excellent.

Correction

Correction it is Robles not Robos.Oops!

I'm goin back to Cali

"Put a glide in your stride, and a dip in your hip,
And come on up to the mothership" P-Funk

I leave in two days to go to Paso Robos and I am so excited. Not only for the weather and wine but because I get to spend some quality time with a chill family, the Gangle crew. I have taken many trips with them and are so blessed that they ask me to go with them. But I go not as a babysitter but just as one of the family members. We went out to Cali on spring break last year and we hiked, ate amazing food, visited wineries and just kicked it on the beaches. When I start creating a family of my own, this is the family I will mold it after. They actually like being around each other.
I can't get enough of that down to earth Cali vibe! Hopefully some wine vineyard owner will ask me to come work on their property. Wish me luck!

Friends and Fellowship

I know my blog is ghetto. I am not computer savvy and I just want to write so people can check in and know what is going on in my life. I have friends and family scattered across the globe and this way you can check in and get a glimpse of my life without actually talking with me. Scary thought that others are getting to tap into my dome piece. :)
A good weekend of running and thinking. I spent a lot of this weekend reflecting of my fellowship and friendships and learned a hard life lesson. Sometimes friendship takes work, but what good things in life don't? It is hard to forgive friends when they have hurt you. But I know that covering curtains over my problems makes them worsen. We all want to belong, whether it be a family, a group or organization, fellow peers or someone to love and share life with. In high school I was a floater but still belonged to a tight group of friends. In college I made lasting friendships. I am so blessed to have met amazing people all along life's path. And I want to make sure that they are not just surface level but are deep. We need to accept those who are different than ourselves and celebrate their uniqueness.
So I just want to give a big shout to my friends and family. Thank you for being you!

Time Quality

I realize that I have posted so much on teaching and you are probably thinking: "Get a life, girl!"
But honestly it is consuming most of my time these days and I am not sure it such a positive thing. I am at Lee from 7:15am-5:30-6pm everday and it is physically and mentally draining me. I figured out that during the weekdays I have about 2hrs of "me" time and at least one of those hours is dedicated to running and then eating (of course). So I really do not have much downtime.
A realistic goal I have set is creating more quality time for leisure and spending time with the people I truly care about. Not just expending all my energy on work. We as Americans, have a tendency to do this. I am in a small group and we are studying the book the Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warrren. In it it talks about people who fill time in order to feel as though they have a purpose or to show the world that they are "doing something with themselves." But really we should be striving for simplicity. We shouldn't feel the need to fill in every time slot in our 24 hour day in order to feel important and purposeful. I am working on slowing down my pace in life. I had a great sushi dinner last night with a great friend and it was so nice. Quality food and quality friendships!

Positively Participating

Here is an update on the situation with the student who cursed me out. And I want to get one thing straight first because I do not think I stressed it earlier. I know my role her at Lee, and it is not to be friend. Yes, it is true that I am friends with some of the after school kids, but as soon as they walk into the door to my classroom they know where they stand. It is a line I have clearly drawn for them. They think I am mean and I like it that way.
This morning I could not have asked for a better first period. The kid who cursed me out participated in every aspect of the class and he did not have any rude comments at all, to anyone! But of course I wrote him a referral from yesterday. He needs to know that he cannot treat people that way. They say a good teacher does not write people up. But in this incident, I know it was needed.
I was so impressed with the class today and I let them know that. They do not get enough positive reinforcement, but it goes such a long way!

Living is Beautiful

At 7 o'clock a make my way, out the door to see what is store for the day
Without the slightest idea of what I would encounter, through the rays of the morning sun I found a flower
Blooming and consuming light, but I didn't let it stutter my step, I kept fluttering
Right over left, or is it left over right
With decision on my side and beauty in my sight
And my duty is to exercise, spread my wings and let the stress subside
But my breath just seems to be taken away as I making my way up the pavement
intent on making my day
And the pleasure I receive is beyond measure because I believe I can control the weather, and I choose the sunshine
Even though it rains I never let my head hang in the confines of solitude
I do what I got to do to maintain my attitude for gratitude
For even breathing, what are you believing
And how long have you've been self-deceiving that your helpless
That life is dark and dismal
A thought that I don't resemble and I won't fall into
But all the people I see, all the smiles, all the while I living, I'm free
Life is beautiful
Life

Tough Situations

Ok so this blog is just for venting. I am in the middle of my planning period of the day and I have a ton of things I "should" be doing but instead feel like I need to get some things off my chest. Today has been a challenge and I intend to face it head on and stay strong. Let me explain. My 1st period class is my roughest, behavior wise. So I got a new student a couple of weeks ago and he seemed quiet. Well this morning he let all of it out, on me. Who drops the f-bomb before 10am. He does apparently, and to his teachers. I wanted to cry. I felt the tears forming in my eyes, so I just sent him out of the class to another teacher. This is giving up and I hate to admit I did it but I had lost control of my clasroom and no student has ever used such words on me before. Come to find out that he has been arrested 5 times before for battery and is #1 on our list of the "bad kids". Help, what do I do. All the other teachers say write a referral. But what good does that really do other than him getting more angry with me. And on top of all this I had a girl help me out during my planning period yesterday and she was skipping the whole time. I don't think I will get in trouble for this but I could. I feel taken advange of.
Anyway with all of this said on a wonderful Wednesday I will take these obstacles as a chance to learn and grow. It is humbling and shows that I need some practice on the curve balls. If any of you have creative suggestions for how to handle the above situation let me know.

Go Shorty

Everyday at school I have a constant reminder of how short I am. Throughout the course of the day I hear comments like "Ms. Nolen you sure are short!" or "Aren't you ever going to get any taller" or some students just come up in my personal space and measure how much taller they are than me with their hand showing me in a a salute like fashion. But the best was the other day a returning seventh grader came up to be so innocently and muttered this classic line....."Ms. Nolen you really didn't grow very much over the summer." Kids say the darnest things!

I teach, therefore I better care

I love my job! I am an inner city middle school reading teacher. I know, I know you are probably saying to yourself, "Yikes-what is she thinking." But I love the challenge and I like being a different kind of mentor to these 8th graders. I know most of the kids from doing a before and after school program for a couple of years and I also worked at the summer camp at the school. But what I mean by being a "different" kind of mentor incorporates many things. My students did poorly on their Reading section of the FCAT testing and this is why they are having to take the class. I am not racist but the fact is that most of my students are black. So what I mean by being a different kind of mentor is that I have friendships with most of my students outside the classroom. They all think I am crazy but it is cool for them to have a mentor of different race. This helps tremendously inside the classroom as well. I know I am not the best teacher in the world by any means, I am a terrible speaker and I literally take it day to day, but it does help that I care about their lives. It is hard for me to see other teachers who are worn down from dealing with them. So with all of this said I am trying to be a positive light at Lee Middle. Whether it be giving another teacher a smile in the hallway or practicing patience with my students. I am growing daily and I want make every second count.
Please hold me accountable to this.
My run this evening was a quick 8 miler. I felt great due to the fact that the sun was setting and there was not much humidity. These are the runs that make me happy that I am a runner. Word to your mom.

I heart music

I think I need a t-shirt that says just that! Preferably thin and with 80's likeness

Thank the Almighty for music! I don't know how I would get through the day without getting excited to listen to the smooth sounds that caress my eardrum. :) Lately I have been stragically picking what I listen to, with what would be an appropriate theme at that point in time. For example, this morning while getting ready for work I put on Outkast "So Fresh and So Clean" while brushing teeeth, etc. Then while driving to work I have been hooked on Kanye West's new album "Late Registration", that man has saved main stream hip-hop! And for the past couple of weeks,I have had in heavy rotation while lesson planning at night, has been Prefuse 73's "Surrounded by Silence", which on Sunday evening I had the previlege of seeing live. It was awesome! He had his turn tables and two drummers also played the same beat along with him. Diggity Dopeness!

I am now officially a blogger

Outward Bound (which is a outdoor school for youth) has a motto. It is "Leave no Trace". So I thought I would be clever and have my motto be "Leave a Trace"
Since I will be scripting my thoughts and interpretations of life online, leaving a trace. And since my name shortened is Trace. So this is it-I have given in to the blog world. Actually I thought it might also help with my training log for running.
So here it goes...............