Overflow

Mid-day today, I went to use the bathroom and stepped on soggy carpet. Hmmm... suspicious. As I investigated, I discovered that our upstairs neighbors had run their clothes washer and it had backed up into our sink. There was a clog in the sewer line and so all of the water used in a washer (and it's a LOT) ended up on our floor. We had about an inch of standing water in our bathroom. The water leached out into the hall carpet. It leaked through the kitchen and pantry walls as well as the guest bedroom closet. Since this is considered "category 3" water-- they ripped out all the affected carpet and microbanned all of the linoleum. They're testing the walls for asbestos and lead... then they'll have to pull out about 2 feet of the dry wall in all the affected areas. Ahhhhhh... what a nightmare! We're waiting til tomorrow to get a sense of how long this will take. (The picture is our apartment layout with all the water damaged areas.) Egaads.

Pictures from Scared Scriptless

Here are some pictures of John from Saturday's Scared Scriptless show. (There's even one of me-- I volunteered for a game where all I could say was, "yeah", "sure", or "you betcha"... this was the response to "Do you want to give him a hug?")

Stocking Up

Today John and I went over to the Great Outdoor Clothing Company store. They were having a 50% off sale... off everything in the store... which was super. Winter clothes are expensive!-- and this let us stock up on some everyday stuff. In particular, I needed some waterproof gear for Sand Point in late July, and I got it.

A Small Town Moment

You may remember from last summer when we decided to get a subscription to the Anchorage Concert Association's 2010-2011 season. (This was the same time I learned about "Alaska Chic".)

Today was the last day for subscribers to renew with preferential seating. John and I decided to subscribe again. There are some great shows coming-- Capitol Steps, The Blue Bear, Rock of Ages, Te Vaka, Beauty and the Beast, Lily Tomlin, Broadway's Next Hit Musical, the New Shanghai Circus, and Raisin in the Sun--so, we're pretty excited. (I've included some videos from Capitol Steps, Rock of Ages, and The New Shanghai Circus below.)

I took in our "order" today. Since all of the staff seemed to be on phone calls, the Executive Director of ACA came and helped me. How crazy!?! We started chatting about the season (and I got to throw in my vote for Norah Jones, which he said he was working on) and getting to be here for more than a year. Anyway, as it turns out, the Executive Director's dad first came to Alaska as a clerk for the Alaska Supreme Court in the 60's. Pretty crazy... and definitely a small town moment.

or, better yet...

It's 70 degrees--sunny blue skies and green foliage abound... and Arizona-- 100 degrees and hot.

When Anchorage Wins

In the winter, Anchorage definitely loses the weather war. But now, I think Anchorage is definitely winning...



















Although, I do think that Arizona's weather sounds pretty good too. (Maybe I'll need to compare again in June!)

Knik River Lodge and Talkeetna

Earlier this spring we bought a Groupon to the Knik River Lodge. It was about an hour from Anchorage, just off the Knik (pronounced Kuh-Nick) River. We got in there about 7 last night. We checked in, went for a walk, and then had dinner.

Dinner was quite tasty--though we liked the appetizer and dessert better than the entree. We started with a caprese salad and their homemade bread. John had the fillet, and I had the seafood medley, which was really a seafood trio. We shared the orange cognac creme brulee for dessert. The dining room was a yurt, which was interesting all on its own. The service was terrible, but not for lack of effort... our waitress just seemed to be very frantic and confused--she was obviously new.

We had our own, 1 room cabin and, after finishing dinner at close to 10pm, decided to borrow a movie from the office. We watched (well, I fell asleep for the last half hour) One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. We were glad to have seen this classic, even if it wasn't very uplifting.

Breakfast is brought to your cabin. It was a basket with muffins, oranges, juice, toast, and yogurt. We made coffee in the room. It was a nice way to start the day.

We wanted to explore a bit, but didn't have any plans. John suggested we re-visit Talkeetna.
We first went to Talkeetna when Mina and Dodd visited. We decided to go back. We were going to eat at the Talkeetna Roadhouse again and explore some.

It was a bit longer drive than either of us remember, but the scenery was beautiful. When we got to Talkeetna, we wandered the main street and checked out the stores. We were both disappointed... lots of commercial stuff marketed as art. For instance, we went into "The Chocolate Corner" thinking it was an artisanal chocolatier... nope-- all Lindt and other pre-packaged chocolates. We walked down to the Talkeetna river and then ate lunch (well, breakfast for lunch) at the Talkeetna Roadhouse. After that, we went to the Denali Brewing Company, which Tammy and Steve and Andrea and Kirk all recommended. John and I sat outside and ordered some taster flights. John had the Single Engine Red, Apricot Wheat, Mother Ale, and Cleopatra's Kiss. I had their homemade rootbeer, Big Mama (which was a blended black and tan between their stout and Mother Ale), and the Agave Gold. My favorites were the Apricot Wheat and the rootbeer. John liked the Cleopatra's Kiss-- but I hated the spices with the bitterness of the beer. He also liked the Agave Gold and the Apricot Wheat. I guess I'm just not much of a beer girl.

Then, we headed back to town. It was a fun way to celebrate the end of the school year and John's first year in Alaska (as of today).

No Bueno-Bueno

On the No Bueno side... my kids did not soar on the SBAs. I'm incredibly disappointed. We pushed so hard and this snapshot did not capture all our efforts.

On the Bueno side... I had planned a happy hour at Simon and Seafort's with my colleagues to celebrate a long year of hard work. John and Michael stopped by and I was able to have a great chat with many of my colleagues, especially those down my new intermediate hall.

Every State Has Its Acronym

In Arizona, it was AIMS. In Alaska, it's SBAs. For both states (and many others), there are acronyms for state tests. AIMS is the Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards. SBA stands for Standards Based Assessment.

Since the adoption of No Child Left Behind (which has its own acronym), all state tests are important.

And... my results should be available tomorrow... I'm on pins and needles and hoping for the best.

Win-Win

Tonight we saw the movie Win-Win. John and I both enjoyed it. 2 Thumbs Up from me :)

I think a change... will do you good???

Sheryl Crow thinks a change will do me good, but I'm not so sure.

Due to the need to move the extended resource (self-contained special education) classes closer together, I have to switch classrooms [again!!!].

Kristina (my principal) came in to see me while I was in the computer lab with my kids. She looked sheepish, and I knew something was up. She told me about the change. Ugh!!!

Switching classrooms means that I'm moving to the intermediate wing. This will be good since I'll be closer to the computer lab, the other 4th grade class, resources, etc. BUT, I liked being where I was--close to the office, copy room, younger students (for whom my students had to act as role models). AND, I HATE moving!!!

Everyone has been super nice. Shannon (the teacher I'm switching with) has 2 T.A.'s that will help Friday. Also, everyone has a school-chore hour on Friday. (Friday is our workday without kids.) I was signed up to clean the paper room, but have been crossed off and now people are signed up to help me. Plus, the school psychologist and counselor have both offered to help. John was encouraging too, pointing out that "we've moved you once; we can do it again!"

We'll see...

Still More (Courtesy of Joe)

Joe found this information on the Sand Point Community Page and kindly passed it along. I will be going at the end of July. The pictures are culled from online photographs of Sand Point. We'll have to wait until July to get some first person shots :)

Location: Sand Point is located on Humboldt Harbor on Popof Island, off the Alaska Peninsula, 570 air miles from Anchorage. It lies at approximately 55d 20m N Latitude, 160d 30m W Longitude. (Sec. 08, T056S, R073W, Seward Meridian). Sand Point is located in the Aleutian Islands Recording District. The area encompasses 7.8 sq. miles of land and 21.1 sq. miles of water.

History: Sand Point was founded in 1898 by a San Francisco fishing company as a trading post and cod fishing station. Aleuts from surrounding villages and Scandinavian fishermen were the first residents of the community. Sand Point served as a repair and supply center for gold mining during the early 1900s, but fish processing became the dominant activity in the 1930s. The St. Nicholas Chapel, a Russian Orthodox church, was built in 1933 and is now on the National Register of Historical Places. Aleutian Cold Storage built a halibut plant in 1946. Today, it is home to the largest fishing fleet in the Aleutian Chain. The City government was incorporated in 1966.

Culture: Sand Point is characterized as self-sufficient and progressive, with commercial fishing activities at the heart of the local culture. There is a large transient population for fishing and cannery work.

Economy: Sand Point is home to the largest fishing fleet in the Aleutian Chain. The state provides sub-regional services through public safety, fish and game, and the court system. rident Seafoods has a major bottomfish, pollock, salmon and fish meal plant, and provides fuel and other services. Peter Pan Seafoods owns a storage and transfer station. In 1991, New West Fisheries moored a floating processor near the City dock for Pacific Cod processing. 116 residents hold commercial fishing permits. In 2000, gross fishing revenues of residents was nearly $13 million. Two exploratory mining operations are currently underway nearby, namely Battle Mountain Gold and Alaska Apollo. Locals participate in subsistence consumption of fish and caribou.

Facilities: Water is derived from Humboldt Creek and is treated. The City operates a piped water and sewer system, serving 170 households and 22 businesses, and all are fully plumbed. Trident Seafoods has first water rights. Funds have been requested to develop a new groundwater source. Relocation of the landfill is currently under design. Trident recently built its own power generation facility.

Transportation: Sand Point offers a new State-owned airport with a 4,300 foot paved runway. Direct flights to Anchorage are available. A runway expansion and airport road paving is planned. Marine facilities include a 25-acre boat harbor, with four docks, 134 boat slips, a barge off-loading area, and a 150-ton lift. A harbormaster building is under construction. A new boat harbor is scheduled to be constructed at Black Point by the Corps of Engineers. Regular barge services supply the community. The State Ferry operates bi-monthly between May and October.

Climate: Sand Point lies in the maritime climate zone. Temperatures range from -9 to 76. Snowfall averages 52 inches, annual precipitation is 33 inches.

More On Camp

Based on the general camp descriptions given to all participants, activities will include: fishing, set netting, preparing fish, Aleut dancing, drum making, traditional arts and crafts, etc.

I'll let you know as I learn more :)

More Information on Sand Point

Here's some history about the Aleutians. A more brief history was found at U.S.A. Cities Online and explains:

Popof Island, on which Sand Point is located, is part of the volcanic Shumagin Group. At one time it was covered with ice. With the movement of the ice, the land was ground out creating quite a rugged landscape. Eons of erosion and weathering have smoothed out some of the roughness, but much of it remains, particularly on the coasts. There was on early settlement at Red Cove, but a fishing station wasn’t developed on the north coast until Thomas W. McColam began a fishing station at Pirate Cove. Sand Point was founded in 1897 by Lynde R Hough, a San Francisco company known for its marine-oriented businesses, as a cod fishing station and trading post. The site had already been named Sand Point by the government. The little settlement began to draw people from surrounding areas. Though shortlived, there was a gold mining era in 1904. By the 1930s, fish processing had taken over as the main emphasis of the local economy. About this time, a herd of Bison was brought in and continue to thrive in a remote area of the island. A fox farm was begun by Andrew Grosvold around the same time and employed many local people. When mining and the fur industry dwindled in the entire area, fish processing began to step up. It remains today as the main economic factor for the entire borough. For a brief time in the 1960s, the harvesting of King Crab, Tanner crab and shrimp expanded, but due to restrictions and low prices, the industry has dwindled greatly. The growth of the area was stopped for a time due to the decline.

Final Week

This is my final week with the students. Their last day is Thursday. We have Friday to work. I will likely come in next week and work some to get things wrapped up... but am looking forward to the time off.

Blue Man Group

John and I went and saw the Blue Man Group tonight. I was very impressed! I was expecting Blast!, which is great... but this added comedy to the mix. We both thought it was really fun.

Sand Point, AK

I have been assigned to visit the culture camp at Sand Point, Alaska in the Aleutian Islands. All I currently know is from Wikipedia. I'll keep you "posted".

sooo sleeeeeepy

I just got home from the first portion of my orientation/training for the RURE program. It was really interesting, but I'm so very tired.

Today was field day and report cards were due. This week was just crazy. John was gone and then the bustle for him of returning to work after vacation. A nuts week for all. It's that time of year!

Ugh! I'd be fine if I didn't have another full day (8:30-5) training tomorrow. I'm sure it will be really interesting...I just hope I'm present mentally to absorb it all ;) If I wasn't tired, I'd think it was awesome!

I do have John's show to look forward to tomorrow :)

Off to bed for me.

Passed

I got my Praxis 1 test results today... I passed... Woo hoo! I have basic skills ;)

Barefooty Glove Shoes

Today was a long day.

In addition to all the regular end-of-year hubbub, we had a collaboration meeting today to review student data. It was really difficult.

On the one hand, fourth grade reduced our lowest (intensive) reading group from 50% of the grade level to 28% of the grade level. That's a huge change-- especially for those students that have become readers.

But, on the other hand, we looked individually at all the students that remained in that group. This is what we need to do... but, it's also what we do all the time as professionals on our own.

Today, maybe I'm just tired (or super jealous that I'm not "Soarin' Over California" with John), but it was just really hard to do. The series of questions-- what interventions have you done?, have you recommended them for summer school?, have you communicated this to their parents?, have you looked at their Phonics-Decoding screener?, have you... --just felt very accusatory.

Interestingly enough, Elaine (my fellow 4th grade teacher) thought they were attacking me more, and I felt they were attacking her more. I think that's because we both really "own" our data. So, when someone is implying you've not done enough, you just think-- "yeah, I probably didn't". But, when someone implies a co-worker, who you know has worked SUPER hard all year, hasn't done enough, it seems really egregious. The bottom line is that we both did everything we could think of to help "move" these students.

We did celebrate the victory and progress (with sparkling cider), which was wonderful. However, they teach teachers you have to say 3-5x the number of positive things to negative to have a student remember the positive at all. I guess teachers are the same way.

On the plus side, I wore my barefoot shoes all day today... and they were EXCELLENT!

Student Writing

In honor of having only 8 days left with students (not that I'm counting), I'm posting a link to a website called Sh*t My Students Say. My brother sent this. While it's not G-rated, it is very funny... particularly if you've ever read less-than-stellar college student writing.

It also reminds me of this book I loved when I was in middle school or early high school. It was called Idiot Letters by Paul Rosa. He wrote a bunch of letters to "corporate America" and posted their responses. This review by Robert Sobel gives you an idea. I might have to buy another copy; although...

When I was in elementary and middle school, my favorite sandwich was the 4 inch round with pepperoni and mayonnaise. I decided to try it again in high school... and, I have to say, that was a BAD idea. Yuck... the adult translation is oily meat on top of oily cream on top of white refined carbohydrates. Sometimes things from our youth are best NOT revisited.

Barefoot...kinda

New shoes

Yesterday I went to Skinny Raven, which is Anchorage's primary running store. Last week was Teacher Appreciation Week. Skinny Raven offered 20% off and was open just to teacher's yesterday, which was pretty cool :)

I picked up a pair of shoes for John and one for myself. I was torn between the Merrell "Barefoot" shoe and the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 11 running shoe. I finally decided to go with the Brooks shoe, thinking that it was more versatile.

But then, I left, and I just kept thinking... since I don't run, I just walk, then I can probably find another "all around" shoe... but the "Barefoot" shoe is super unique. Plus, I've been super happy with my Merrell boots that Dad and Margo got me for my birthday. So, crud... I had chooser's remorse.

I called Skinny Raven and explained. I asked if I could exchange the shoes (without losing the discount)... and they let me! They have my running shoe allegiance! Now I think I'll maybe get a pair of Nevados cross trainers... because I loved them in the summer.

And so, I have these barefoot shoes now... and I'm pleased... they're perfect for the summer here.

Arizona Dog

Despite being born in Alaska (we assume) and living her 2 years in Alaska, Hayden is an Arizona Dog. She always finds the patch of sun in our living room to play or sleep. Today I caught a few photos of her luxuriating in the sun.

Finally the Details... Next Weekend

I think my phrase is probably, "What's the plan?" I say it about a half million times whenever things are up in the air. I hate not knowing what's going to happen whether it be a small plan for a day or a broader plan.

This has made waiting to hear all the details for the RURE trip to a Native Alaskan cultural village nearly impossible. So, it is with great joy that I announce I will have all the details... in just one more week.

Mother's Day

This will be the first Mother's Day I've spent apart from my mom. Boo. It's not like having to be apart for Christmas or Thanksgiving... but, it's a bummer. I've had to be away from Dad for Father's Day due to one or both of our travel schedules. But, I've never been away from mom. I hope that, even though I'm far away, she knows how much I love, appreciate, and miss her. Happy (almost) Mother's Day, Mom.

Vega$ & L.Hey

John's gone for a long weekend to Vegas with some law school friends and then to L.A. to catch up with a few friends there. He's going to Disneyland (grrr... I'm super, super jealous) and going to see Jon, Tamar, Jordan, Chad, Alexis, Adam, and baby Amelia. What a great way to celebrate!

At least the weather here is beautiful mid-50's and super-duper sunny!

Big News-- HUGE

Two and a half weeks ago John interviewed for a position in the Alaska Attorney General's Office. This past Monday, John interviewed with Alaska's Attorney General John Burns. John was very impressed by Attorney General Burns, and, apparently, he was with John as well. He offered John a position as Special Assistant Attorney General. This is an incredible opportunity for John. I'm very proud of him!

While we both wish we weren't so far from home, we're excited to continue our Alaska adventure. I love teaching in Anchorage and am excited that John will get to use a wide-range of skills in his new position. He won't start until his clerkship ends-- so likely early fall or late summer.

So, that's the news...

9 Days

We have only 9 days left of school. Kind of nuts. It's been hard to see my fantastically sweet class get spring fever and go a little nuts. I'll definitely be ready for summer.

Field Trips

In the past week, we've had 2 field trips. (My lucky kids!!)

Last week we went to the Campbell Creek Science Center. We went there in September for their water program and had lots of fun. This trip (for the "Dynamic Earth" program) was supposed to be on April 11th (a Monday), but was canceled because of the (anticipated) government shut down.

It was rescheduled for last Friday. The program was super fun and the weather here is beautiful, which made it even better!

Here are a few pictures:

































Our second field trip was this past Thursday. We went to the Performing Arts Center to see the Asian Cultural Performance. It was sponsored by the District's Bilingual Department. It was organized as a "tour" through Asia. They had different performing groups representing Japan, China, Korea, the Hmong culture, Nepal, and the Philippines. These were not professional groups, but they were great-- very varied--drums from Korea and Japan, a dancing dramatization from China, and dancing/singing from the rest. It was awesome... dynamic and fun. But then, the professional came out... the Thai Performing Arts Group from Los Angeles. The performance was so sedate. They did three numbers. One of my students fell asleep. I almost fell asleep (you know when people start blurring together). When I mentioned this to another chaperone, he said he was also nodding off. Alas, they can't all be winners.

Siiiicccckkkkkkkkkk

It seems to have hung on forever! I'm so sorry I haven't written. I was sick from Friday, April 15th until this past Tuesday. Tuesday was the first day I didn't have to take the cough syrup with codeine to get through the day (that's right-- day). This virus was going around school and making everyone miserable. BUT, I'm finally better. So here come the posts...