a million things

to do.
Work officially began on Thursday when I came in to school and set up my kick ass classroom/lab. I'm a very blessed first year teacher since I don't have to move classrooms. In all honesty, decorating my bulletin board was the last on my list o' obligations. My lab looks nice and clean and...a little bare (I'm hoping student work will spruce it up eventually). There's still so much to do and as a colleague of mine said, "Yea, that list of things to do never gets any shorter. Eventually you make peace with never getting everything done." Well, I hope to make a dent in that list before Tuesday rolls around. Although I'm beginning to think that I'll never feel 100% ready to go for my first day of teaching.

on my mind.
Some coworkers of mine have been very sweet and shared their thoughts on my potential. These wonderful women are much more confident in my abilities than I am right now. They bet that of the first year teachers I'm least likely to cry (that's a tough call since I wear my heart on my sleeve). Knowing that these veteran educators have faith in me is very comforting, but I gotta prove to myself that I can do this before I believe any compliments about my teaching.

to share.
Joining the morning commuters is one of the biggest adjustments I've had to make since moving here. Talk about a major test of patience. I leave the apartment at 07:00 to hopefully catch the Manhattan bound 07:15 N/W train. Then it's a transfer to the 5 at 59th and Lex to the Bronx. I wish I was done there! Once I get off in the Bronx I have to transfer to the bus to get to school. That's ~1 hour. It used to take me ~15 minutes to get to the chem part of campus. And, the Manhattan bound train is sooo crowded! It's a bit eerie to be in a full subway car and to hear nothing but the ambient noises. Take note, Californians. NYers aren't rude so much as they keep to themselves. This means DO NOT attempt to make small talk on the train, just pop in the iPod and go about your business.

to look forward to.
"Our work is very much God's work."- My Principal. Now, before this statement gets ripped apart for its political correctness or incorrectness I just want to express my relief that the leader of my school and I have the same sentiments. There are a lot of obstacles facing my students from the South Bronx, but I truly believe that they are capable of ANYTHING. My hope as a teacher is to bridge the gap between where my students are and where they want to go (as long as that destination is a positive and healthy place). In just four days I will begin teaching chemistry to ~75 high school seniors and as I write this the excitement is overcoming the fear. I'm ready to hit the ground running.

and now, for some visual aides

the atrium

one of the reasons why I chose this school


view of my lab room from the door

view of the front of the class

the lab prep room
(I haven't investigated, but that may be a bomb calorimeter in the upper left)

my rocking bulletin board
notice the woven pattern of butcher paper on the right
and the great penmanship on the posters

_______________________________________

So, my superstar friend got to play in the US Open and I got to watch!!!

T. Lin poised for tennis dominance

the final score. she and her partner advanced!!!

I didn't get her autograph, but she got me a discount off a shirt!

I'm proud of you T. Lin :)

community & support

In less than a week I'll greet my students at the door with a smile that hopefully hides my fear of crashing and burning.

For those who know me well, y'all are probably thinking to yourself, "Kristine (or Kris or Arquero) will be fine. She's just overly fearful, like the time she walked out of her p-chem final thinking she failed and ended up just dandy." True, I tend to be a worrier. Every time I enter unfamiliar territory I (constantly) analyze and agonize over the entire situation. Teaching is no exception to such habits.

Thankfully, most anxieties that I accumulated over the summer have been calmed since attending a whole staff retreat with my high school. I spent the past few days on a beautiful estate learning about the culture at school, the community of students and staff, and the support system in place. My high school is equipped with the elements of a professional environment that I thrive in and I am excited to start work.

p.s. Other perks...

• a young, vivacious, convivial staff that enjoys happy hour
  
• free MacBook :)
  

if i can make it here...

...I'll make it anywhere. Frank Sinatra said so.

And, though sometimes I wonder what happens if I can't make it here I am doing my best to stay positive.

It's almost three months since I first landed in NYC; only now am I beginning to feel a sense of belonging. I don't know if that is above or below the average time it takes to be invested in the city. What I do know is that I am excited (and frightened) to start teaching, I have a good feeling about my high school, I really like my new neighborhood, I love my new roomie, and I LOVE my full-sized bed.

On a separate note...

I'm one of seven contributors to a collaBLOG, Sup Teach?, the brainchild of my friend Mr. G. It's a space for other recent Cal alums (teachers and higher ed folk) to share their adventures in education. Your assignment: check it out.

bye bye boogie down

hello Queens!!! (You know, the place where Prince Akeem finds his future bride)

My future roomie will arrive this week!!! Once she's here we'll begin to turn an empty apartment into our home/the sweetest bachelorette pad ever. When there's more to show than bare floors and walls I'll take some pictures.

Apart from doubling my commute time, moving to Astoria has another disadvantage. Don't get me wrong, I am very excited to have my own room (for the first time since 2004). It's just that I feel legit when I tell my students that I currently live in the Bronx (they're always so surprised), but then I admit that I'm moving away...and they nod as if they saw it coming.

On a little tangent...

I'm looking for my voice or maybe I'm developing my new NY/teacher/young "professional"/"neophyte adult" voice. There is A LOT to do before school starts and I am beginning to feel overwhelmed by it all. This is a big factor affecting my inability to articulate my thoughts. Once I find a little peace of heart I will share a piece of my mind.

i'm going going back back to cali cali

yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Thank you AVID for holding training in San Diego! I will arrive in CA Monday, August 4th, mid morning and will leave Friday, August 8th.

Wow. Since when did going to CA become a vacation???