AHHHHH Addendum

In fewer than 12 hours, I will be standing in front of a classroom full of students. My students, to be specific. And I will be teaching them...... what? Unclear. Here's a rundown on my life right now:

The Good:

• The waiting is nearly over. I've sort of been thinking of this day ever since January 7, when I found out about TFA. Of course, I was more preoccupied with that pesky case of mono back in January, but regardless, this day has loomed large for quite some time now. I'm glad it's finally here and will be over and done with soon enough. No more holding my breath.
• My classroom turned out slightly better than I expected. Yes, I'm in a trailer, which leaves lots to be desired (see upcoming section appropriately titled "The Bad"), but the classroom as it exists now is palatable. Pictures will come soon. Hopefully I can snap some tomorrow morning before the kids come in and "work their magic," aka destroy what I have spent the past week creating...
• Labor Day Weekend is five days away.
  

The Bad:

• I don't want to say anything bad about my school, because honestly I'm thrilled to be there. I think it's a great environment to work in, I like the people I've met so far, etc. etc. However, it has been a rather rushed week, what with all the training/meetings (like being at Institute all over again). We couldn't get into our rooms until Monday, and my cozy little trailer is still bereft of technology: no TV for morning announcements, no overhead, no computers, no clock. Must remind self ot bring a watch tomorrow. Oh, and the desks are too short for fifth graders. But I'm sure all this will get worked out over the next couple of days.
• I don't know what to teach. Like, really don't know. The fifth grade team is awesome, but we don't know yet if we're departmentalizing (each teacher taking one subject), team teaching (pairing up in twos, so each teacher has 2 subjects), or being totally self-contained (every man for himself), and we won't know that until we see how the schedule works. Needless to say, this is causing great deals of frustration and stress. Will I be teaching math? Reading? Science? Any of them? All three? As of right now, I have no idea. So, that's fun. Tomorrow is just going over procedures, rules, and the like, so I'll be able to get through that OK, and I'm sure my team will help me with the rest of the week. But still.
• Labor Day Weekend is five days away.

The Ugly:

• Probably me after the sleepless night I'm pretty sure is coming.
  

So, that's an abbreviated version of what's going on in my life right now. There was so much more I wanted to say, but my brain still hurts and I should concentrate all my energy on two things: 1) Preparing for tomorrow and 2) watching the Closing Ceremonies. Mainly the latter. Related note: Up until faaaaar too late in my life, I thought that "latter" was pronounced like "later."

DNS: Have you ever stopped to consider that our national anthem ends in a question? "O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave???" How much cooler would it be if we all did a Scooby Doo-type inflection at the end of it? Home of the brave??? Also: every sentence in this paragraph except this one has ended in a question.

OK, must get to work. For realzies. Wish me luck!

Great success

What a fantastic weekend. I got to escape Institute and go back to Charlotte, Spain won the Euro, and... oh yeah, my awesome roommates and I signed an awesome lease with the most awesome landlords for the most awesome house ever, and it's totally awesome.

Proof:
Yeah. That's ours. All 3 Bedrooms, 3.5 Bathrooms of it. Did I mention it's awesome?

Here are some pictures I surreptitiously took of the inside. Click on the pictures to get a bigger version:

Our gorgeous Kitchen

Our cozy Breakfast Nook

Our spacious Dining Area

Our excellent Living Room

What the pictures don't really show are the following things:

• Fireplace (surely to be used during the bitter Charlotte winters?)
  
• Balcony (hopefully with a to-be-installed porch swing)
• Bedrooms with vaulted ceilings.
  
• HUGE bathrooms and closets. Seriously. If anyone comes to visit, you might get a better sleep in the Master Bathtub than on a couch or air mattress.
  

Every mile we drove on the way back to Atlanta was more painful than the last. We just can't wait to get back to Charlotte. The good news is that it's just about three weeks away. Book your tickets now--the Hotel 1924 is filling up fast!

Semi-related note: Why is it just a breakfast nook? Why can't it be a lunch or dinner nook? Or coffee nook? This is a question I have never asked myself until now. Think about it and get back to me.

Char-What?

Char-lotte!

I'm off to Charlotte to find a place to live. Wish me luck!