Dating a Teacher...

So, a fellow "Blogger" posted this and I think it's fantastic. For the most part, it's true. But, being a teacher is kick-ass...and I am pretty stoked to do the job I do. Many of these statements are true though. Now, I must get back to making a master copy of a colour-coded highlighter graffiti-ed math curriculum document while I watch a Christmas movie! :)

Love, Teach Blog

Things About Living Abroad...

I just saw this on Facebook and wanted to share and comment. It's very true, what's written, and one of the most frustrating things I find in being an expat and living away from home, is my ability to discuss my experiences with my loved ones at home. Many of them can't relate. Many of them just don't care. Some of them even think that my stories are only being told to make them jealous. So, what ends up happening is that I just revert back to my 21 year old self and fit right in like I never left. Don't get me wrong, part of this is amazing - I love having this relationship with my friends and family where I feel time hasn't changed us...but part of it's a lie as I've grown so much, I've experienced the world and I can't share these experiences with them. So, I keep them bottled up. This is part of the reason why I started a blog but as I haven't had many of these life-changing experiences recently, I've not been so active. So, for all those of you out there who have a loved one living abroad, take a second to ask them something about their life abroad. I know you appreciate them and you probably even admire them for the courage they have to make such a big leap across the pond or the planet, but think about the day-to-day things they're faced with and don't forget to drop them a line to let them know you're thinking of them...since they're probably always thinking about you! :)

http://thoughtcatalog.com/rachel-rae/2013/11/10-things-about-living-abroad-no-turning-back/#Cb4S9IzD0P2Mls6p.01

Remembering to be Thankful... :)

Tomorrow (11/11) is Remembrance Day in my native country, Canada. As a teacher at an international school, I strive for my students to be globally-minded learners. It is also my duty as a representative and employee of MIS and the international teaching community, that I embody being globally-minded myself. I should be open-minded and responsible to learn and experience the traditions and cultures of my colleagues, my students and the world around me. While in Canada, tomorrow is a holiday to commemorate those who lost their lives fighting for Canada's freedom in various battles/wars, it's also a time to be thankful for what we have. Thank you to all the troops who fought and are still fighting to make the world a better place.

As we as individuals embody a variety of cultures, beliefs and diverse backgrounds, we all have one thing to be grateful for - the gift of living another day. Be it a rainy, cold Sunday or a difficult Monday full of challenges (and maybe even snow!), it's another day; it's another gift that we're lucky to have. So, as we celebrate Remembrance Day however we will and wherever we are, I hope that you make the most of your day, this gift, and that you take a minute to be grateful for all that you have; sometimes it's easy to forget! If you have 10 minutes, this is an uplifting video that will help you do just that:

I love Halloween!

Halloween rocks! I always loved it growing up because I always got to celebrate - big time! :)

My friend's birthday was on Halloween so we often celebrated with a Halloween theme one or two days before the main event which involves trick-or-treating with pillowcases and coming back with two full of candy and treats. Sidebar: I'm realizing this isn't PE teacher-ish at all to talk about copious amounts of treats, but when your parents control/limit your intake, it's okay...it's Halloween! :P

This wasn't Halloween but a kid's parade during the Pictou Lobster Carnival...I no doubt rocked this space girl as a Halloween costume at one point though! :)

As debatable as the candy bit is, Halloween is a cultural celebration in North America. In Nova Scotia, I loved my traditions of carving pumpkins, having Halloween parties at school and just getting to show people how awesome (or ridiculous) your costume might be, even with a giant snowsuit on underneath it! As I got older, my love for this crazy celebration grew stronger. I often babysat and then eventually worked at the store owned by the family that I babysat to make a little cash throughout middle and high school. I would save money from these two jobs and when Halloween stock hit the shelves, I'd buy an array of decorations - pumpkin lights, black lights, garbage bags to make the basement all black, scary music (cassette tapes), these awesome, flickering green skeleton lights...so much awesome Halloween paraphernalia! I decked out my parents basement to try and give trick-or-treaters a fun, and maybe a little scary, experience...who doesn't love a scare?! I also planned a few Halloween parties back in the day and at previous schools and I have to say, I'm a big fan of the haunted house business! :)

Now, the only thing that I really get to do as an adult living a foreign country that doesn't really celebrate Halloween, is to dress up and go out and find other people in the same position - you can usually find them as they're dressed up! The following video showcases my best Halloween costume result ever...I still marvel at how great it is...and my sick dance moves! I LOVE HALLOWEEN! :)

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=96346580286

Same costume as in the video...the school was all decked out in decorations as well, there's a shop called "Halloween" in Korea and was I ever pumped to find it. I'm sure I also spent a chunk of my pay there as well! :P

Last year's idea...and my friend Toya was a Ghostbuster. I'm not usually a fan of 'store-bought' costumes but this one looked great! :)

The Perfect Cookie...

This past week, MIS teaching staff (sorry Lydia) had their fall break and it was well deserved for many. I dedicated a large chunk of time working on activating my employment website...but not before experimenting in the kitchen!

Living in Germany has finally afforded me with an oven. A regular sized, regular heated oven...as opposed to a large or glorified toaster oven. It's been years and I've so been waiting for an oven! So, I took up baking. I bake for my teammates in the PE Department and I've mastered a carrot cake and a caramel apple cheesecake. They're my best tasting efforts, no fail! I also make a mean moist nd dense chocolate cake. But, my cookies, quite frankly, suck. By cookies, I mean, my chocolate chip cookies; chocolate chip cookies are THE cookies (Reference: The Cookie Monster, Sesame Street, Cookie of Choice, 1984...ish?). The thing that Germany does not have, however, is packable, finely ground brown sugar. Here, it's in bigger chunks and it has to be melted first, to allow the cookies any chance of being chewy (Reference: +Jayson Bowerman). But, even with the sugar melted, my chocolate chip cookies have not been very good. I needed to take action, so, when I went home two weekends ago, for one of my dearest and bestest friend's wedding, I made a point of getting some packed brown sugar, even if it meant a couple extra pounds in my luggage. It'd be worth it...On Tuesday evening, I discovered just how worth it!

I use allrecipes.com for my baking recipes - it's amazing - so I'm posting the recipe I used (a new one, but obviously chose it for the rave reviews and the product lived up to its namet!):

The link to the recipe is also here: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Best-Chocolate-Chip-Cookies/Detail.aspx

Paired with some TollHouse chocolate chips (thanks Courtney) and the 'good' brown sugar, these cookies turned out awesomely! I shared with mates the next day when they weren't fresh but they were still a bit chewy which is a big improvement compared to the rock hard (but still delicious) cookies I've been formerly producing. It was a great feeling of success! So, if you've got 'good' brown sugar and like THE cookies, then try out this awesome recipe! :)

Cookies...nom, nom, nom!