If Everyday Was Halloween

Well, it's that time of the year again. When ghouls and goblins, princesses, super heroes and other candy fiends take the streets in search of haunt, horrors, and of course that good old sugary goodness. As you might know, I'm currently living in Chile. Although, Chile is starting to embrace Halloween more, and there is candy at the super market, but not to the extent of the US. It's really pretty relaxing to be somewhere Halloween isn't that big a deal. Yes, parts of me are pretty sad, because I really would like to carve a pumpkin, make a costume, and hang with friends and family. But another part of me is grateful, if not relieved. I'm happy to be farther away from the temptation of buying tons of 'things'.

Spring Sing '11

Although we get the day off, it's not because of Halloween. It's for November 1st, All Saints' Day. Yet another 4-day weekend, teaching is awesome! Especially now that it's spring.

It's often said that Halloween is the one day you can dress up in whatever you want. No one can judge you or say anything about it. As I was walking to school, I thought about what I could dress up as or be for Halloween. Well I have this and I have that, I said to myself. No that just won't do. Then I thought, what if I were me for Halloween? If I'm being honest I've worn masks and disguises pretty much every day of my life. Many days it's sarcasm, some times it's confidence, and every now and then it's just me.

What if I was someone with very really insecurities? What if I was the Jameisha Washington who looks in the mirror and sees so many problems? What if I was the Jameisha Washington who, when told by her Chilean host mom, "Eres un poco mas gordita. You've gained some weight", became offended and sad? Since that day, I have talked and laughed about it with my host mom. We even talked about how culture really dictates what's beautiful, and how important it is for parents, teachers, and role models to help youth appreciate more than just physical beauty. What if instead of pretending to be happy, I told people I'm hurting?

This is not a bash on Halloween. I like Halloween and hope you all have the best Halloween ever with family, friends, and complete strangers. As for me though, I'm just going to be me and accept the fact that even though I'm not perfect, I'm perfectly me. Here's to a more honest life.

Happy Halloween!!! Be safe everyone. As for me, this weekend I plan on jumping into the ocean. Wish me luck, it's going to be freezing! Catch you on the flip side.

If human beings had genuine courage, they'd wear their costumes every day of the year, not just on Halloween.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/halloween.html#t6U2EjZcjmo46wFO.99

So going to Robot Food in this photo!

If human beings had genuine courage, they'd wear their costumes every day of the year, not just on Halloween.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/halloween.html#t6U2EjZcjmo46wFO.99

If human beings had genuine courage, they'd wear their costumes every day of the year, not just on Halloween.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/halloween.html#t6U2EjZcjmo46wFO.99

If human beings had genuine courage, they'd wear the costumes every day of the year, not just on Halloween. -Doug Coupland

Stand Up with Radioface

Well dear friends, it seems that ever since September 18, Independence day, the weather has been phenomenal. There are tulips and daffodils everywhere, and we got up into the high 60's F this week. My kids have been relatively tame, so I'm a little nervous that things are going to get crazy in the next few weeks. Only time will tell though. I'd rather focus on the incredible amount of laughter and smiles my crazy kids induce.

There was a parade

3 Things that I thought were funny that I was also a little ashamed to post earlier:

1. Every time I wave at a student and they don't acknowledge my existence, a little part of me dies.
2. I may have told my students that USA national dance is the "Chicken Dance", and they may have believed me, had I not started laughing as I did the dance.
3. My English is getting worse and my Spanish is not improving. For example, I couldn't remember if days of the week were always capitalized in English. Weird. As for Spanish, see below.

Spring flowers

Stand Up
As classes progressed Thursday, I was unsure how the day was going to shake out. I woke up late, after doing a long swim workout and lesson planning late into the night. Completely, forgetting about a morning commitment until receiving a phone call. In turn, I left the house with some pretty ratchet hair and without my soccer gear.

Class one flew by. So far so good. After lunch, the students watched a video called The Origin of Job Interviews from BBC's Armstrong and Miller show.

As we approached the final hour, the day seemed even warmer, and the students were in a good mood. Flies circled overhead in the warm air, and some students were standing to swat at them. I asked them to sit down. They pointed and pleaded about the flies, to which I said, "Yes, I noticed. You guys really need to take a shower." Class proceeds to fall into uncontrollable laughter. They started telling me to take a shower. One student said the flies were there before they arrived so it couldn't be them. I proclaimed, "Yes, same for me." The other teachers happened to be standing, backs turned to me, so I jokingly threw my eyes and thumb in the direction of my teachers. Once again the kids began laughing very heartily.

We moved to the computer lab to work on some pronunciation. (Side note: This is one of the classes I feel really connected to and it has a number of really spirited kids. However, our closeness also makes it hard to keep them in line.) As we went through foods we came to bell pepper. Once we got the bell part down, a handful of my students began confidently mocking the repetition of the word. "Bell pepper," I would say. "Bell peppaa!!" they responded.

Some of my bell peppas

Being the saucy character that I can be, I turned and said, "Alright, listen up! I know this might seems strange but it's important! How would you feel if I walked up to you and said 'ho-la co-mo es-tas a-mi-go'," imagine very exaggerated gringo voice. Another uproar, not a single student kept a straight face, if not because of my ridiculousness, then because of the incredulousness of what was happening. At the end, the game I had went really well and I survived yet another day as a teacher.

 With my comedy career picking up steam, I decided to take to the airways. It just so happens that the appointment I was late to, was making an ad on the radio. The following video is the audio of the ad that will be playing around Coyhaique. PS I sound like a serious gringo, time to go practice Spanish...

How to Ace Life

Why yes, that is a volcano behind me.

Although I wouldn't call myself an avid test taker, one thing I do like about tests is that there is some finality. It's either you passed or you didn't. Skating along the real question of whether testing is necessary, I do think testing has some benefits. It's a great way to sample students grasp of a subject. However, at the same time mastering a concept in a controlled static situation doesn't mean that much in a dynamic world. Both fortunately and unfortunately, life is not a test. There is no equation that can be memorized, nor formula that will work for everybody. Ok, have a good life, I'm out!

Hiking solo through a foot of snow in shorts and climbing trees.

Just joking! There's more, yay! In a time where checklisting, bucketlisting, and "how to..."'s are everywhere, it is easy to be overwhelmed or underwhelmed. As much as I try to resist, I find myself reading them and comparing my life to both the list and to the people I want to be like. Is it any wonder so many of us feel confused or unsatisfied? I did everything just right, so why isn't everything falling together like a Disney movie? Why am I single? Why am I working a job with no prospect? Where are my results?

So, there's still heaps of snow...

Last week was a pretty dramatic return to reality. After a few weeks of vacation, I returned to the classroom with renewed energy and expectations. I thought if I put together dynamite presentations, gave out stickers, and treated students with respect; that my students would love English class and be respectful. Of course this was not the case. My second lesson went horribly awry, and what's more is I didn't know what to do about it.

You could say I tried a wrong solution. After a few minutes of trying to solve the problem, I threw my arms across my chest in defeat,  and turned puppy-eyed to my teacher for help. Now after sleeping on it, brainstorming, and retrieving my brain from my wonderful but raucous teenagers I'm ready to get back at it.

Snow-capped Mountains

But the point is this: We need to get out of this idea that there is a formula for everything. Being in your 20's isn't a test, it's a blessing. It might be a hot mess right now, but it's your hot mess. Reading everything that worked for everyone else and emulating such in our own lives might not yield the same results. And while enjoyable, bucketlisting isn't necessarily a habit we should live by. Goals are great, but we should remember why we made them in the first place and not limit ourselves from reaching our potential. Thinking about life as a test takes away the freedom and dimensionality that makes it all worth while. Everyday, situation, job, and conflict is different. We need to feel free to struggle and navigate life's ambiguity with confidence. Life goes on plan or no plan, but will you?

Stamped in country 07/29/2013, received 10/08/13. Buen trabajo Correos Chile...

The best way to prepare for life is to begin to live.-Elbert Hubbard