Paul McCartney!

Ever since I was in the 6th grade and saw The Beatles Anthology on TV, I have loved Paul. I wanted to marry him (much like millions of girls all over the world) and he was definitely my favorite Beatle. I dreamed of finding a time machine and going back to 1964 to go to a concert!

And last night, I finally got to see him! He played last night in Dallas and it was amazing. Over two and a half hours of great music. I heard all the songs I had always wanted to hear: Yesterday, Let it Be, Hey Jude, Something, Jet and I Saw Her Standing There. And a million more. It was so much fun! It was the last night of the tour and he looked like he was having a really great time.

He's still got it.

Goodbye Summer

I can't believe it. I can't believe how fast this summer has gone by. I have only a few more weeks of blissful nothingness to enjoy before it's over (ack). I had quite a few things to accomplish this summer and I think I was pretty successful. Even though some things didn't quite work out how I expected.

First, Spain. Or I should say, Spain!!! I love that place. I had a great time getting to see so many of my favorite Spanish places and faces. And the food. Ohhh...the food. Mmm. It might have been worth it just to eat at all my deeply missed restaurantes. I think Batey and Amber had a good time, I hope they did. We were all pretty exhausted by the end of it. Almost two weeks of non-stop going and seeing and eating and sweating. Yes, Sevilla and Madrid were mind numbingly hot at times. But we survived and we didn't kill each other and ended up having a pretty good time.
Highlights include:

• Tortilla espanola, pisto, patatas alioli, bravas, croquetas, 100 montaditos, chocolate sandwich, gofres...I could go on and on.
  
• Scotland! Really cool place. We kept saying we learned more about the plague and torture than we ever had before.
• Street musicians
• Spain friend time
• Missing our flight - Not really a good time actually.
• Looking for Nessie at Loch Ness.
• H&M
• Our cool apartment/hotel we stayed in.
• The zombie monk we saw running around in the streets of Edinburgh
• and so much more!

After that big adventure, we definitely went to some New Kids on the Block concerts and met the boys! Yes, it was a dream come true. Here, I'll even include a photo of the big moment.So there you have it. Me, next to Jonathan Knight. Swoon.

We also saw Reik in concert (amazing) and I went to a family reunion (good times). Batey and I went to New York to look for apartments and it was possibly the worst trip I've ever taken. Rain, stress and frustration. A recipe for a trip to remember.

So after all that and much decision making, I have decided to move to NYC. Officially. I will be making the journey solo, but I am beginning to look at it as an adventure and not the trail of tears. I will be taking classes to get certified to teach English and I will be living a residence while I look for somewhere else to live. Or until I run out of money and have to move back home. Whichever comes first. Chicken or egg. So I leave the 23rd of August and I will probably be freaking out any minute now. It hasn't really hit me yet. I'm still debating the merits of certain members of my shoe collection but I'm sure I'll realize what's really happening soon. And watch out when that happens.

But for now, wish me luck! I'm excited about this next year. It's definitely not what I thought I would be doing this year but now that I've finally decided to forge ahead with this crazy idea, I think it just might work. Naive optimism? Maybe. But at least I'll get to see some great Broadway shows while I'm there.

The Summer of All Summers

Well, it has begun. The summer of all summers is here and I can hardly believe it. It will the busiest/craziest/most expensive/wonderful summer of all time.

Things going down this summer:

• Spain trip - almost two weeks touring Spain and Scotland with Batey and Amber
• Reik concert
• New Kids on the Block!
• family trip to San Antonio + family reunion
• trip to NYC with Batey to look for apartments
• move to New York!

So, as you can see by this list there are many things to accomplish in the coming months. We leave for Spain in a week and I could not be more excited. I love the Spain and I'm really looking forward to seeing some of my favorite Spanish people friends while I'm there. I'm also excited about introducing Batey and Amber to my former home. It will be crazy I'm sure, but the three of us usually have a pretty good time. Hey, we had a blast in Denver and there was nothing going on there.

I hope to update this blog more this summer so stay tuned for the riveting adventures of me in crazy places. Happy summer!

It's April Time

It has been such a looong time, huh? Let's skip the recap and jump right in.

How about, your fav and mine, in a bulleted list?

• I have almost survived my first year of teaching. I'm quite proud of myself, if I'm allowed to say it. My kids might all fail the TAKS test and actually regress academically, but me, I have survived. Hopefully the former won't happen.
• I do get a little sad when I think about not seeing these kids again. The same thing happened last year with my kindergartners. I wonder how long that will last. Will I miss every year's group of kids? Or will they just all blur together?
• Me encanta el verano. It seems more fitting to express that in Spanish for some reason. It's not just that "I like summer" but a more literal translation, "I am charmed by summer". Many things are charming: snow cones, flip-flops, sleeping past 5 in the a.m., sun shining, reading books whenever I want, watching a movie in the middle of the day, and many more. I could add a million things to my ode to summer.
• Did I mention it's going to be the summer of all summers? Many exciting things are happening. Stay tuned.
• The other day one of my kids said "Ms. Beck, can I get a drink? I have the hip-hops."
  

School's Out for Summer

In case you didn't know, it's hot in Texas. Specifically, it's hot in my apartment. Well, just really my room. Why? No answer to that.

So what are you doing these days? Well, I'm hanging out. Looking for job, not too actively (mental note: Must become more active in job search). I'm kind of in a break between teacher certification classes so I don't really have a whole lot to do. Which is fine by me. I love that I am doing nothing but still getting a paycheck. Yay for schools and yay that they spread your pay over 12 months.

I really have nothing to say but felt like saying it. So, here are some bullet points:

• I want to take a trip. I'm planning something for next summer, but this summer is looking dismally local. Well, there are a few trips to Austin planned.
  
• I have had many sno-cones this summer. Some of my new favorite flavors are raspberry w/ white pina colada and blackberry w/ cream. Yum.
• I could eat mexican food every day.
• I love So You Think You Can Dance. But every time I watch it, it makes me want to take dance classes.
  
• Bullet point.

Ok, that is all. I'll try to do something exciting so that I can tell you about it. Ok?

Will you be my friend? I need more friends.

So....been a long time.

Next Saturday is the big Odyssey of the Mind competition and I cannot wait for it all to be over. It is no longer fun just life-force-sucking and stressful. These kids are driving me crazy with their complete lack of motivation and utter laziness. Were we like this in 5th and 6th grade? I hope not. Kids these days have terrible attitudes and poor work habits. Maybe it's just these kids. I hope so.

So after Saturday, my life can begin again. On to the next big event....Spring Break! I am so excited!! I need a break, I need to get out of this town, and I need to see some sights. How can this all be accomplished? Why, a road trip! On a Saturday very soon, we will be loading up in someone's car and heading off on the Grand Tour of the South. We will be touring 6 scenic states: Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana. Well, I hope they're scenic, as I haven't been to most of these.

Here are things I'm most looking forward to: Elvis paraphernalia, Southern accents, biscuits and gravy, the Nun Bun, blues music, the Nash Trash tour, the Civil Rights Museum, Chattanooga-the home of moon pies, road trip mixes on the ipod, reading maps, and eating some good comfort food. What I will regret: Dollywood not being open while we are there. One day, Dolly Parton, I will come see you and your park of amusement.

So woo hoo! I am counting down the days! Three weeks to go! (I believe.)

I am ready.

Are you?

For Kali or Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.

Since I apparently have not posted in awhile, here's the skinny:

Well, we got through another major holiday with the kiddos. I guess two major holidays if you count Veterans Day, but anyway. We had our little Thanksgiving program and the kids were incredibly cute with some dressed as pilgrims, some as Native Americans (Indians come from India) and some dressed as turkeys. Definitely a photo opportunity.

So that was a great success and now we've begun to prepare for the holiday extravaganza that is Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Eid al Something or other/Saint Lucia Day/ Anything else we can think of. Yes, indeed, we will be discussing and making some sort of art and craft with each and every one of these holidays. And there will be singing and snowmen and snowflakes and Santas galore. We've already had the Santa conversation because one of the kids has been telling all the other kids that Santa isn't real. A few of the kids quickly became panicked when they heard this and came running up to me. "Miss Beck, Miss Beck, is it true? Is Santa Claus real?" I just told them, "Well, Santa Claus comes to my house. Everyone has a different opinion and not everyone has Santa Claus, but he comes to visit me!" What else could I say? I couldn't squash their five-year-old hopes and dreams! So after being reassured, they all responded with a proud "me too! He comes to visit me too!" So take that, you unbelieving five-year-old.

I do have a life outside of work, I promise. Well, at least I think I do. Oh, I just thought of a story I could tell you about a fifth grader that I'm having to cut from our Odyssey of the Mind team, but that would be work/school-related and I'll restrain myself. So in other news, I got a new phone that I'm not entirely sure how to use. I went to the mall yesterday and remembered why every year I tell myself I'm going to buy everyone's Christmas gift in July. Too bad I never remember that when it actually is July.

Woo, ok, maybe I don't have a life outside of work. Two and a half weeks more of school then I can do something else for a few weeks. Like sleep past 5:45 in the morning on a weekday.