"My hips felt like they had just given birth to a beer keg."
— My dad describing how he felt after running his first 5K a few months ago.
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I need a chair or one like it VERY, very badly. I live in Florida, I love to read, and I have a beautiful lanai. If my family were the type to do house warming parties and/or gifts, this is the ONLY thing I would want.
"I love teaching. It is who I am. […] It’s just that being a teacher was all I ever, ever wanted to do."
— New Girl or my exact words when I lost my teaching position a few years ago. Happy that everything worked out.
Hey tumblr peeps!
I figure I might as well give this a go, right?
Next Saturday, October 6th, my family and I will be participating in the St. Louis area Walk4Hearing.
Walk4Hearing not only raises awareness of hearing loss, but works to get all sorts of support for those with hearing loss. One of the big, continuous ways is getting closed captioning in ALL movie theaters. Think about it - if you have hearing loss, seeing a movie in theaters is out for you. Even with the ongoing efforts, those with hearing loss have extremely limited choices when it comes to movies. Some show only one movie in their theater with captioning. Others have one day of the week in which they have captioning - and that’s if they have captioning at all. It’s ridiculous.
As some of you may know, my Grandpa Bob died this past May. He fought leukemia on and off for the last 30 years - and one of the effects of his treatment was that he totally lost his hearing. He became a tireless advocate for hearing loss. With his death in May, we decided to help continue his fight.
On top of that, in 2005, my little brother Timothy was diagnosed with hearing loss. They’re not really sure how, or why, but based on how quickly his hearing has been going, it looks as if he may be totally deaf by the time he’s 40.
We’ve been trying to raise money, but since we’re in Indianapolis, and the walk is for St. Louis, we haven’t found any places around here that will help us do fundraisers or anything since the walk doesn’t directly benefit the Indianapolis area (which, can I just say, is such a load of crap. Pardon my French.)
If you would like to donate (and anything would help!) you can check out my fundraising page (http://hlaa.convio.net/goto/fostermonster).
If you can think of a way I can thank you, let me know :) Whether it’s a shout out on tumblr, or whatever (within reason!), I’ll do what I can!
Money is super tight for me this month — I’m over budget in every way, but I can signal boost!
I have known Sal Pulito since I was in the third grade. His sister, Aurora, has been best friends with my sister since they were in Kindergarten. Sal was born with Pulmonary Atresia, which means that there is a lack of blood flow to his lungs. It has become a life and death situation for him. Sal is one of the most kind-hearted people I have ever met. He is probably the only one that understand the difficulty of dealing with the antics of “Salt and Pepper” as our sisters called themselves.
His insurance covers a very small percentage of the medical costs, and the deductable that he has to reach first is huge. Obviously, this explains my passion for the recent Health Care legislation, as I know it has been for many people on tumblr. But this story is so personal to me, I wish I could paint you a better picture of the Pulito family, but I will do my best below.
Sal’s parents are first generation immigrants from Italy. They speak Italian and English. Sal’s dad loves Elvis, and admittedly, looked a little bit like him when we were all younger. Sal is a phenomenal key board player, and has been in a band that performs at local restaurants and parties. In recent years, due to his medical condition Sal has had to move back home with his parents. Sal is a year older than me, and I can only imagine the freedom in addition to the good health Sal is hoping to have with this surgery. Sal’s older sister Jackie has a spirited daughter who is 12, and Sal is such a good uncle to her. Nina is the oldest, and for all you Chi-town people I know, she lives in Chicago with her husband and is book sniffer like many of us. Aurora has a little boy who Sal entertains with his music, and Vinny is adorable when he dances along. I have to say Sal’s mother is probably my favorite in the family. Her Italian Flag cookies and homemade spaghetti sauce have been a favorite in our household. Mrs. Pulito is one of the warmest people you could ever meet, and seems to take you into the family as soon as she meets you. She wants the best for everyone, and is always there with a hug and a kiss.
I can only imagine the financial hardship Sal’s condition has added up to over the years. But, what is stuck in the back of my throat is imagining this family without Sal. It is my every hope and prayer that all goes well for them. It would mean a lot to me if you could make a donation, even $1 donations help. I know money is tight for many, so reblogs are very much appreciated as well.
Please click the link above to visit his donation page. The Donate Now button is at the top of the screen.
Student teaching was quite the experience for me.
It was over 5 years ago, and in addition the adventures of being a student teach I also had the adventures of someone studying abroad. I didn’t have any family or friends there when I left the U.S., and am proud to say I still keep in touch with some of my host family, several teachers from the school I was at, and the other American that student taught at the same time as me (we had the same host family for part of our time there).
In fact, this friend is the same one whose bridal shower I am going to next month in Chicago.
Some of the things that were stressful about my trip, I can laugh at now - a supervisor whose constructive criticism generally focused on items from the school’s curriculum that I wasn’t allowed to change, a host family who paid a lady with “big boobs in a bustier” to do their ironing while some of them watched, and embarrassing use of language with words like pants, fanny, and recess meaning something different on the other side of the pond.
Most of the journal was written so that I could remember the places I went, and what I thought of them when I got there. So, most of the entries wouldn’t interest anyone. I have saved the mass e-mails I sent out from England to friends and family. Maybe if it would amuse people, I’ll post them here.
One thing from the journal that I wrote seems every bit as much true today as it did then. Towards the end of the journal I write, “It has been hard, fun, scary and exciting. Coming to England was the right decision for me.”
If anyone is reading this and is interested in student teach abroad (no matter the country, no matter your college) and is willing to do it after graduation or during the summer following graduation, let me know and I’ll pass on the information of how I did it.
My ever growing bucket list
I’ve been adding and changing this list since 8th grade …. thought it was time to post it on here (again?) Striked items are ones I’ve done. Feel free to ask any questions about this!
1. milk a cow
2. catch a fish
3. Ride a zip line.
4. Ride in a gondola in Venice.
5. Stay in a hostel with strangers.
6. Hitch hike.
7. Provide a nice Christmas for a family going through a rough time.
8. Teach in an inner-city school.
9. Run a 5 K
10. Go on an African Safari
11. Go whale watching.
12. Go to Stonehenge.
13. Finish Grad school with 4.0
14. See the Mona Lisa in person.
15. See the Pope.
16. Meet a president.
17 .Spend part of a summer volunteering out of state.
18. See Anne Frank’s Attic
19. Meet Armando
20. Make Creme Brulee
21.Meet a service member I have supported.
22. Go to the movie or a bar alone just because.
23. Kiss the Blarney Stone.
24. Own a beer Stein.
25. Stomp grapes to make wine
26. Participate in a protest or a rally for a cause I am passionate about.
27. Kiss a man in a foreign country
28. Attempt to surf.
29. Sleep in a castle.
30. See a show at the Moulan Rouge.
31. Tour Windsor Castle
32. Go to Greece.
33.Go to the Holocaust Museum
34. Go to NYC - see Times Square and a Broadway Play
35. Be published.
36. Get married.
37. Be a mom.
38. Win the Family Texas Hold ‘Em Tournament
39. Go swimming with the dolphins.
40. Water ski
41. Ski down a black diamond hill without falling
42. Pay off all school loans.
43. Move out.
44. Own my own place. —— All I need is the bank to approve my mortgage and everything to go fine with the appraisal and inspection!
45. Buy a brand new car.
46. See the Rosetta Stone.
47. Spend a day without saying a word.
48. See the Colosseum in Rome.
49. See the large Mayan ruins.
50. See the Egyptian pyramids.
51. Go on a real dog sled ride. (Sort of did this, but we didn’t use an actual sled).
52. Learn to knit.
53. Go to the Olympic games.
54. See Shakespeare’s birthplace and the Globe replica.
55. See RENT.
56. Learn to drive stick.
57. Sit on a jury
58. Finish my Europe Scrapbook.
59. See the statue of David.
60. Own a SLR camera.
61. Learn to use a sewing machine.
62. Make pulled pork.
63. Pay for the people behind me in the drive thru
64. Finish re-reading my favorite YA series.
65. Cook a 5 course meal.
66. Beat my dad at poker.
67. Drive a wave runner by myself.
68. Go on a romantic carriage ride.
69. Visit San Francisco.
70. Learn more sign language and use it.
71. Have my own “library” room in my house.
72. Make my own hummus.
73. Grow my own aloe plant and use the aloe.
74. Get a mud bath at a spa.
75. Go to Barcelona.
76. Love a “difficult child”
77. Go to the Superbowl
78. Buy and drink an very expensive bottle of Ice Wine.
79. Buy a piece of furniture and “update it” myself.
80. Successfully use free cycle.
81. Be awesome at recycling.
82. Go scuba diving.
83. Volunteer at an organization for Veterans.
84. Be a glass half-full kind of person more often.
85. Play Texas Hold ‘Em in a real casino.
86. Sponsor 10 Kiva projects (check out kiva.org) —- 7 down!
87. Write a children’s book.
88. Take a digital photo class.
89. Get photoshop and learn the basics.
90. Learn how to emboss things.
91. Ride in a hot air balloon without freaking out.
92. Go to Oktoberfest in Germany.
93. Learn to play chess.
94. Donate blood.
95. Host a dinner party.
96. Go to a murder mystery performance.
97. Play whirly ball.
98. Watch turtles hatch and go to the ocean. —- I’ve gone to the beach during the season for this, but no luck so far.
99. Have fondue in Switzerland.
100. Learn how to chop vegetables fast and properly.
103. Wear red red lipstick for a full day without feeling too silly.
104. See the Hollywood Sign up close
105. Do a shot ski
106. Take a bunch of friends down to Florida. —- Ha! I moved to Florida, and I have friends there, so I am crossing this one off!
107. Go to a drive-in movie.
108. Go to an oxygen bar.
109. Make fruit salsa.
110. Hang glide.
Keep Calm and Carry On Luggage tags
These are the tags I ended up purchasing for my friend’s bridal shower. I figured since we met in England, and both her and her fiance are big on traveling it would be the perfect personal touch to the gift card I am buying her.
Bridal Shower Present
I am going to get my friend a gift card to one of the locations where she is registered, to help purchase some of the must-have items that don’t get picked up by someone else.
I like to do personal type gifts in an era of gift registries, so I thought since her fiance and her love to travel and I met her while student teaching in England, I’d get them luggage tags. I just can’t seem to find ones I like. There are map ones on Etsy where you can pick the location, but the price is just too high for me.
