Day 313 | Friday, November 6 | 2009

The Book Loft...

Today has been busy but great. I taught kindergarden class at West Elementary today and it went well (for the most part). There was a substitute teacher and it appeared that the kids were pretty rowdy because of it (and probably because it is a Friday). I taught the class the alphabet in Spanish and some of the boys just were not able to focus or pay attention. They would just play around with each other and boast "I can burp the ABC's in Spanish!!!"

Good thing was that I was able to get them to focus by this little clapping rhythm I picked up on -- I would clap the little three-step rhythm and then the class would automatically clap it back to me. I have also learned to focus on activities in which the children repeat something that you say right after you say it, a sort of call and answer game. That way, the kids get so preoccupied with the game they forget about drifting away and acting up.

After class, I picked up Caitlin and we went to Columbus to see about getting her computer fixed and also to see her family. It was great to see Mark, Susan, Robin, Derek, and (yes) even Penny just for a little bit. We went out to eat dinner with Mark and Susan and it was great to spend some time with them. After that, Caitlin and I went to the Book Loft for a while too before driving back to Athens.

In Athens, we met up with Evan for a little bit before going to bed. Great day!

Day 242 | Saturday, August 29 | 2009

Fantastic Cat...

I am not sure what her name is but this is the cat that is always hanging around outside of my place. She is incredibly friendly (for a cat) and follows me around wherever I go when I see her.

Today...

What a day! Caitlin's family came into town, my family came into town, and we all met up at Donkey to then go to Salaam for my birthday dinner. I was showered with gifts from everyone -- I am a lucky guy (!!) -- and it was simply wonderful to have everyone there with me. We ended up going to China Panda instead of Salaam because we could not wait to eat. Probably should have put in a reservation but it didn't matter in the end. Dinner was so wonderful. For dessert, we all ordered intricate combinations of ice cream flavors and the waitress was humorously stifled.

Day 63 | Tuesday, March 3 | 2009

Pierogi...

Alas, I am caught up on my sleep and I am back at it.  I did not get some of my papers in on time to my professors on Monday so I am trying to finish the rest right now.  I probably should have turned them in already today but by this point I am just trying to aim for quality completion.

I realized today that I leave in three weeks for Ecuador.  This seems really unreal.  What's going to seem even more unreal with be the actual day -- March 24 -- that I actually do leave to Ecuador.  I still have a various list of items that I need to realize still but it's getting closer.  I still need to find out about malaria pills, complete some formalized membership canceling (cancel my cable service, clean out my locker at the gym, etc.), get my belongings together, read a book and write a report for my field study, read two books (or at least get started) and plan my independent study, purchase an external hard drive, and get well acquainted with my portable digital recorder.

Because I have been so busy, I have forgotten to mention that my Nagra ARES-MII came in the mail this past Friday!  I am really excited about it all.  It came well equipped with a USB 2.0 input cord, a shock-resistant stereo (cardioid) condenser microphone, a mono (omni) condenser cap, two wind guards, a XLR adaptable input cord, a protective case, and a cool wrist sling.  I have used it already just minimally but it sounds great.  Also, my 10' mono hydrophone came in the mail on Friday too.  This is basically a microphone that can record SPL movements underwater.  This will be especially useful when I am collecting data from some of the Ecuadorian water sheds -- rivers, streams, waterfalls, etc.  I am so excited!

Today has been a pretty good day, all in all.  Caitlin and I went to vegan cooking and it was delicious.  It was great to hang out with Larry and Annie too.  I feel like the setup for vegan cooking is not fair sometimes, because I feel like sitting down and talking with a lot of people.  I really wanted to hang out and talk to Leslie, Jamie, Ellen, and Clare but the seating was all cramped and space is just limited in that room.  The food, though, was great.  It was all Ukrainian style food -- pierogi (mashed potatoes inside a noodle-like shell), salad, rice-stuffed cabbage wraps, this really great beet-based soup, a delicious dessert (I don't remember what it was), and a neat lavender-tasting drink.  I got a picture of the cooks making the pierogies in the kitchen (above) before they were done.

Great day!