Former Expat Teacher Acclimating to the American Way!

First, I am ashamed to admit that this weekend was my first time at Rooftop Rhythms. I think its wonderful that there is a spoken word venue here for us to enjoy.It felt like home.Its been so long since Ive gone to an event like that. It used to be a regular occurrence for me.When we reconvene next school year, I plan on being a regular. I ended up being a judge for the slam competition. It was good and there were some really good artists. The MC, Dorian,had a wonderful piece that made my eyes water.It was magnificent. sn:whenever I see,hear, or think about something that I reeeaaaally like, my eyes water.go figure I had to turn around and wake up way too early, but for a good reason, I went to Dubai for-well two good reasons. First, I took (engagement) photos for two of my friends here.They were so cute together and it was something different from the beach or dessert, which was my aim. Had it not been for the nap I so desperately needed, I would have come home and poured over th...

You would think some of these teachers have decided to leave the comforts of heaven to come down and teach here. What other explanation could there be if everything before this was perfection? Its the weekend. khalas.

I got a message today that brightened my day :-) Hey I jus realized from my "grits" post that you were the one who gave me the helpful advice before I signed up to come here back in 2011. Just wanna say thanks. You really helped me a lot. I'm glad I made the decision to come. I've settled in well and I thought I would miss my family but I actually stay closely connected with FB and Skype and bbm. And the holidays home help too. I love my school and my co teacher. It's a great experience and looking forward to another year. So just wanted to say thanks .. Even if its 2 years later!! 

I remember the first year we were here. It drove me crazy how people would talk through meetings and act as if someone wasnt talking in the front of the room. Someone who was supposed to be a person of authority.Fast forward to the end of the year-it was time for us to each have a PD for the fellow teachers to listen to and participate in. I was DREADING it because my emotions often show on my face and I didnt want to be in the front of all the staff pissed off. What happened that day threw me and I thought that surely it was a fluke. THEY LISTENED! And not only did they listen, they seemed to be genuinely interested and wanted to know more about what I presented. The only problem was that it was at the end of the school year and without another PD to show them how they could do it in Arabic, it didnt quite have the effect Id wanted it to. It was, however, sort of an interview process which I passed to be able to work with the teacher of my choice that following year,lol. Fast forwa...

A few months ago, I ventured into the natural deodorant arena and made my own using a simple recipe comprised on coconut oil, baking soda, and corn starch. The recipe worked but there is a bit of a science to it as not every combination works for each individual. I ended up getting burned on a couple occasions and it wasnt pretty. To make a long story short, this burning led to hyperpigmentation on my arm pits-which does not make for a nice sight! I started looking for a product-or range of products-I could use to help get me to the correct color. All the while wondering why I had to suffer through all of this for trying to make a healthy decision!!!! Insert above product. I saw it in Lulu's and came home to google the product. I found lots of good  reviews  and decided to get some for myself. In addition to a more even complexion, some said they noticed less hair growth and that definitely was a plus. I started using it twice a day before deodorant (and after scrubbin...

I feel like I should have chopsticks to eat my dinner.I'm sure I'll be longing for a fork soon!

Im by  no means a technological person. Downloading videos from youtube seemed like something too difficult for me to bother with. Sad to say that was without me even trying. I am happy to say, though,that I finally decided that I was going to look it up only to be pleasantly surprised by how easy it is with a simple download. MacTubes! It gives you an interface that is like looking up videos while online.Simply click the download button and you have the video in a minute. This is uber wonderful as I have many videos Id like to show in class but couldnt because youtube was blocked (which I completely understand).  This guy  explains so I won't reinvent the wheel :-) He also tells you how to download a program for windows users.