Four Days of Failure

"The sea was angry that day my friends, like an old man trying to send back soup in a deli."

"We're like rats in some experiment."

- George Costanza "Lord of the Idiots"

It's been awhile I know, but things haven't been as glamorous as the previous few weeks.  And by glamorous, I mean the last few days seem like they should have been written by Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David for a lost Seinfeld episode.

Let me explain.

Friday

Things did not seem this bleak Friday evening.  In fact, between the sushi, various fried meats, and conversation with colleagues at the Director's Social, I thought the weekend was going to continue to be like my classes- puppies and rainbows.  Haha. [Got ya.]

I now try to photobomb at least one picture I'm in when people take multiples.

Friday night was a good time. Several tables drew and "L" on the top of the junior kinder building where the director lives.  At the top of the "L" was a sound system, singer, and DJ.  At the bottom a great spread, and at the toe of the "L" was the booze.  A south breeze graciously blanketed the roof and people bounced from table to table chatting it up.  While most of the ladies ended up gravitating to the dancer floor to join the likes of David and Morris cutting rugs with salsa and merengue dance moves, I hid.  (I shared with my friends that a tell-tale sign that someone can't dance is hand placement.  If your hand vertically breaches the invisible parallel line from the top of your shoulder forward, I'm sorry you can't dance)

School is cool.

I wasn't afraid of dancing, I just knew that my legal minimum dose to dance was far less than what I had currently consumed (ah beer, yep ah, not a).  Plus, I had started a great conversation with our science teacher Leo, and picking his brain was more important than shaking my tail feathers.  Leo has covered the spectrum of roles in education from teacher to sup.  I wanted to hear his journey and he shared with me some great tales of students and the crazy things that happen. After that I spoke at length with Jon (calculus and physics, yep) about a ton of topics with a lot of it revolving around Big Lebowski quotes and other movies.  Ryan (librarian) joined in as a means to deter the dancing fever that was rising amongst the sea of people.

A good time was had by all, and we left the director's place at just after midnight.  So far so good.

Ryan was making us laugh so hard I was crying.  He however was showing off the guns, and Frank was doing his best Paul Stanley.  

Saturday

Saturday was enjoyable.  Slept in until about 10, hit the gym for a heavy leg workout, had a good lunch, and killed time until going to Lorena's house for a cookout.  Lorena's brother Enrique, outside of being skilled dancer, is an amazing cook.  Their family showed us great hospitality, and cooked an American meal of ribs, corn, avocado salad, and some drinks.  I closed my eyes, smelled the charcoal and thought I was back in the heartland for a bit.  We hung out, listened to tunes, I tried to practice some Spanish, and burn minutes until we left for Aye Carumba.  

A plane, a plane!

Some of us, but only Frank is aware of the Chupacabra approaching. 

Smite you Diplomatico.

Aye Carumba is a club where people dance traditional styles (and modern) to a variety of music.  The kids there  sure love Reggaeton.   Tonight was my night to be indoctrinated into the fraternal order of "Gringos who attempt to dance Venezuelan, but fail."  It's a right of passage, I knew I had to, and it was one of our colleagues birthday.

When in Rome right?

Several of us pitched in for two bottles of Venezuelan rum.  Not what you think.  We are not big timers in the club with Crystal, hub, Dom, or whatever the current pop music liqour of choice is.  We also were not making it rain, rather a bottle service is how it works there.  Buy a bottle, buy Coke, get a pale of ice, and then enjoy yourself.

This rum "Diplomatico" was really smooth and hardly diplomatic.  I had no electoral rights on what would happen as a result of it.  Little did I know.

Enrique and David, dancers for hire (not like that-clean it up).

We got to the club (I hate saying club, I'd rather say dive, pub, or bar...) early and got a long row of tables to fit our "cre.." group of people, nearly twenty of us.

Everyone was in good spirits for Diana's birthday.  We talked until the banshee screech made yelling the only way.  Joked around, took pictures (Frank and I photo bomb our own pictures), and danced.  I gave it a good shot and had the help of several friends to show me how to step and where to move.  I'd like to think I do a fair job, but I think it was more of the fact I was laughing at myself and drinking.

I am not Venezuelan, they are.  I can't dance, they can. 

Our huge amoeba started by the tables and later moved closer to the stage that would late be manned by five girls going Miley Cyrus to the voting applause of the place.  I still don't understand this.  Objectification that under normal circumstances would warrant if inquired about, is more or less a "who can out do the others" competition.  No money, prizes or anything.  To each their own I suppose (I prefer cheap beer and a juke, but I digress).

Morris and Frank discussing the paradox of cereal.  "Which was the catalyst of the breakfast staple?  Milk or dry cereal?"

Morris and I left at Iowa closing time, 2-ish, while many of the remaining DWTS candidates stayed to declare war on the dance floor.  I rushed my 31 year old carcass to bed and woke up 7 hours later with a nice plus in my left temple.

Frank or otherwise know as "El Rey".

Sunday

I shook it off, popped some Ibuprofen, and watched movie until it was going to look for a coffee maker and sunglasses with a friend.

On the way to the mall I asked to stop at a juice bar and get some fresh juice.  I figured, "Hey, some vitamins and minerals will help me feel sound as pound." HAHA.

After just over half of the juice, a mystical unicorn of death materialized just above me, and plunged into my intestines.  In a scramble, we located a bathroom and I sought sanctuary in the most decrepit dungeon of deposits every amassed.  Knowing that the unicorn had connected with a fatal strike, I was returned to my castle to lay in shame.

Now we are just getting started at the week of George (Kellen).

Monday

Woke up late- slept right through three alarms.  Scrambled, showered, and shot out the door to meet Morris and hit the road.  

Arrived at school- forgot keys.  

First hour class off to plan and I can't find the right files to use, missing a few books I need, and my website won't work.  

Second hour, my juniors do ok, but I can see the divorce court in our future.

Third hour, my seniors are have already filed, and are just waiting for attorneys (some of them).  WE start the class talking about some local issues, and end up talking about how ridiculous fighting is.  I share a few CHS stories and then we have a visitor.  I settle them and we start to take our quiz.  I apparently put up the entirely wrong one, not noticing until about seven minutes into it.  The kids erupt with "I knew it," "I thought I was going to bomb it," and "I'm still going" comments.  I bow my head in defeat, change the quiz, and try to redeem myself.  Mind you the visitor was my principal on an unannounced observation.  Cool.

Lunch, my computer shuts off repeatedly and won't connect to the Internet, and my spoon will not cut through my grilled meat.  I was supposed to exchange money last week, but my loss of my wallet had prevented that.  I tried today and have no idea if it worked.  If not someone woke up this morning with a bank error in their favor.

Fourth hour, and two girls who must have "Mean Girls" memorized are totally distracting and slowing down the lesson.  

The ensuing meeting brings up data, numbers, standardized testing, and goals.  I've heard that song before.  I miss intramural and then coach one of my worst practices in nine years.

I lay the king down and go home.  Do not pass go, do not collect $200 (sorry, second Monopoly reference).  Try again tomorrow.

Tuesday

I start off the day by dropping and running into everything.  Ever have a day like that? I do occasionally, but this was perfectly timed.  

First hour sophomore English (and third hour) is still Candyland.  Advisory (homeroom), which follows the "break" consists of a near meltdown.  Every student (sans two) were late and by rule requires them to stay an hour after school for recovery.  

That went over well.

Then we had three different speakers come in to talk to us about fundraising (prom...ugh) and it's details.  You think they wanted to listen?  Nope.  We had to nominate a STUCO (student council for those not used to the acronyms) to which only one person was nominated and no one wanted to vote.  After that class mercifully ended, I time travelled like this: 

Morris and I hit the weights after school where we met another English speaking guy.  His name was Gabriel, he played college ball in Alabama, and was in VZ (his home) to train and wait for winter ball.  He was drafted as a pitcher and will report to spring training in Feb.  He was a super nice guy and wondered why on Earth were Morris and I in VZ.  We explained the situation, cracked some jokes, and he told us he'd heard us speaking English for a few days and thought we were decent dudes.  We told him we were both from Iowa, and to our surprise he said he had friends who played at DMACC and other CCs in Iowa.  Cool guy, but what a small world. 

Wednesday

At this point you know that everything I've been doing has a been a universal challenge.  By no means am I asking for pity or support, I'm just sharing with you how funny it's been. Today, I had to print off nine papers for my seniors to fill out for a unit.  I clicked on the number of copies box and thinking it was going to select the number and I would just have to push my number, I did.  But instead of switching the "1" with a "9" it added the "9".  Yep, 91 copies.  That went over well.  I had two people stop by and let me know what I did (politely) and one of our IT guys to see if my computer was working right.  I offered to pay for the paper and the ink cartridge that was soon to follow, but they said it was OK.  Hope so.  

The rest of the day ended up going like this: 

I hope tomorrow will be better too- it's our parent Open House.  I'm sure it'll be swell time. Me not being able to speak Spanish, many of them not able to speak English and both of us having an awkward smile while sharing a handshake.  Sign me up!

Six Things You May Not Know About Venezuela

Recycle?

1)  Garbage cans look much different here.  

2)  Arm curls and triceps push-downs are the country's national lifts.

3)  I can get you a copy of the new Batman/Superman movie with Ben Afflect right now.  A guy may stand up and get some popcorn, but hey, it's a small price to pay.

4)  The mosquitoes here love gringo blood or maybe just mine.  These little guys just swarm to me and use my bug spray as an appetizer.  

5)  In all seriousness, the situation here is becoming more challenging for my local friends. I refuse to comment on anything political in my blog (unless a universal shot or statement), but the inflation rate increasing is not making things easy for them.  

6)  They also have Pardon The Interruption. 

Well there you have it, hope you got a laugh out of my antics the last few days.  

I apologize for the delay in posts, but I wasn't the most motivated guy in the world for the reasons above.

Don't worry about me though, I'm still grinding.

Hope you had a happy Hump Day and enjoy the other side of the week.

Ciao, KRS

The Great Juxtaposition

Buenas.

"Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore." Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz"

What could I possibly mean by quoting a movie from 1939... we'll it means understand that things are not always what one thinks they should.  It also means that Venezuela is a different environment than a lowly gringo from Iowa (it's by Nevada and Canada) is used to.

This guy probably had a worse week than me.  His special lady friend was not impressed. 

Good things, bad things, you know I've had my share...

But Kellen, what is this cryptic message you are providing? Are you ok? Yes, more then ok, things are good.  I actually have a new wallet now and a decent phone.  No bank account changes, no crazy charges on cheap booze, prescription drugs, and hookers on my credit card, and no identity theft since the misplacement of my wallet.

Those things = Good.  Could have been a lot worse and I am thankful it was not.

My new roll as middle school softball coach = Good. The other coaches are fun to work with and the kids want to get better.

My classes so far = Good (fingers crossed).  Still on the honeymoon, hoping that the divorce or fighting doesn't start yet/happen.

Doin' alright, doin' alright for sure.

Going to the beach = Very Good.

Nestled in the mountains

DP (Dirty Pizza) = Good.  It's a like the Masters, a tradition like any other. Mainly because I don't know any other staffs that have met and enjoyed pizza/drinks consistently for years (so I'm told).

Rainy season = Good.  It calms the students, especially the crazy middle school kids by my door.  If you teach, are raising, or have raised a middle school student here's to you [puts hand in air for a high five].  You guys are saints.

Finding peanut butter = Good.  Unbelievable find at a small shop, and relatively cheap (about $7 for the small [American small])

Arepas = Good.  Morris' family owned recipe, filled with eggs, cheese, and turkey with Tabasco = Muy bueno.

Frank's mojitos = Good.  The guy is a Picasso of mojito making.  Attitude, originality, and style.  It's like silk against your throat (not literally- you'd choke).

Director's Social = Good.  A solid spread of food, drinks, and ambiance with your colleagues set up and paid for by the director as a thanks for committing to CIC, the students, and our mission.

One hour and fifteen minutes down,  many more to go. 

Not good = driving to and from the beach.  The way there approximately two hours, not bad for a little piece of paradise your saying.  I know, I should be more patient, well explain this: the way home was nearly four hours.  We literally over the course of just over an hour moved 400m (the size of a standard track).  FOUR HOURS! It was so bad I was reading off Uberfacts to pass the time.  The drive from the beach to the little town nearby is maybe three miles.  Those three miles took over two hours.  In fact, once we got out of the beach area we had to sit in another traffic jam where Morris' car got hit by a motorcyclist.  The mirror was ok thanks for asking (the guy didnt' take his hand off the throttle, he was fine).

This guy road down the hill sitting like that (it was slow, very slow).

LA traffic?

Hey you can g... wait a second.  What do I..

Not good = Venezuelan traffic signs/roads.  More confusing than a children's toy instructions and more potholes than Northern Afghanistan.

Ten points if you hit it. 

Not good = Water outages.  I think that one is self-explanatory.

Sing it with me... "You got three hours to use your water!"  (sung to Eddie Money's Two Tickets to Paradise).

Not good = Water rationing.  three one hour blocks for water.  A great reason to not do the dishes, a bad deal for personal hygiene.

Not good = my Spanish.  I'm so bad that I even laugh at myself.

I've found this country to have many great people and things, as well as many things that make me scratch my head.  It really is a great juxtaposition.  Things happen here that really have a dramatic impact on my friends and colleagues livelihood, and it seems that no reason is given (and I don't mean this in a political way). However, I have found a great resiliency among the people of this country and it is inspiring.  We (you, me, people in the States) really do have it good, and living here has let me see tiny glimpses of how trying it can be and is for some.  It's a constantly humbling experience once I leave my bubble of school.

Side note: One night we went out for Sushi (good), then went with one of Morris' friends to an Arabian club/sushi/hookah bar.  I have never in my life ever received the minority stare (getting looked at due to skin tone [I made up that term]), but boy did I get it there.  Cue the screeching record on the juke and whiplash giving head snaps.  It was a good experience though.  It gave me more insight to anyone that has ever received that.  I know it made me feel uncomfortable, but knowing that people all over receive those daily made me really think about perceptions and reactions.  ELE people, ELE (everyone love everyone).

That's all the material I have at the moment.  Dirty Pizza tomorrow, Directors social, and hopefully the beach Saturday, so the chance for a new adventures is high.  Actually the adventure forecast is probably at 60% for the weekend.  Just have a feeling.

Stay safe, hug a loved one, and enjoy the boys of summer.  Fall will be here before you know it, followed by the dreaded frozen stuff.  Soak up the sun and enjoy the dog days.

I'll leave you with so more pictures of the weekend.

Ciao,
KRS

Yeah I had one of these and it was a terrible meal. And by terrible I mean awesome.  The little yellowish chip looking things are flash boiled plantains. Jack pot.  

Beach on the left was us.  I caught some tasty waves. 

Juxtaposition again.  Beauty and graffiti.

The old I was bored landscape shot. 

Taking Away the Moments That Make Up A Dull Day

Hey there...

I'm currently listening to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, writing this offline on my phone in the complete dark (sans my emergency light), and sweating (no fans or ac).

Don't believe me:

When I got home from school the power was low (dim lights) and my water didn't work. Well, now we have zero power and water. As my friend Morris text me moments ago, "Welcome to Venezuela."

My day was much better than that though. Somehow last night between the pizza place and my apartment I lost my wallet and I didn't realize it until this morning. 

Yep. I am Jack's total absenteeism.

I have literally no idea where it went. I retraced my steps (car to elevator to apt), tore my house up, checked my friend's car- nothing.

I was told to call the pizza place, but I had to remind the texted (name will be held to protect the innocent, cough mom). But I had to remind her that this is Venezuela and people are not likely to turn it back in with money and cards in it.

No big deal though it just had my credit card, debit card, VZ bank card (which I waited 3 hours at the bank to receive yesterday!), school ID, emergency contact card, drivers license, and 200BsF. 

Rather that than my passport, but it's less than a satisfactory situation. I just hope I can figure something out before I fly home for the holidays in case something goes wrong and I need to buy a ticket, pay for food, get a hotel, etc. 

But I digress.

Yesterday, we had our first intramural pick up game. It was a riot. Four teachers played (and actually tried) along with eighteen middle school kids. It was a good time, I decided to show the kids (and staff) that I had some game by glove flipping a grounder up the middle to 2nd to start a double play. Hey you gotta ball out to get respect right?

Other than that not much new. School has really been going (not first day stuff), students have been making fun of my terrible pronunciation of spanish names, and the apparently there is Venezuelan's version of a boy band that people are going to this weekend, but I may look for other entertainment. 

Trying some sushi tomorrow night so cross your fingers for me. It's a popular, safe restaurant, but this city/country is unpredictable, so you just gotta go with it.

Here's a picture at the complex across the street. You can see the stores to the left have generators, but not the apartment complexes. We are in total darkness!

Well I hope you are enjoying running water (I worked out and thought I'd be able to shower when I got home, nope), lights, having your wallet/purse (don't worry that ones my fault), and are cool if it's hot and hot if it's cool.

I would also like to take the opportunity to thank all of you that read this. I really enjoy writing, especially when I know I can provide pictures and narratives about this country and experiences that you may not be able to yourself. The website says that in good days 200 people read a post! 200! I couldn't tell you what that would look like in a room, but thank you so much. 

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. 

In the next few weeks/months before break I'll be going to baseball games, soccer matches, bull fighting and a blues club to just name a few. Those stories will be a little more fun than the usual.

I'm going to find a cool place in my apartment to try and sleep.  As Aston as I get electricity I'll post this baby.

Happy Friday, have a great week, and stay safe!

Wish you the best,

KRS

**editors note: the power came back on last night and that, coupled with the water of the toilets filling up, woke me up.  But hey, at least I could shower for school.

A Teaching Duality

Happy Tuesday!

Big day over here for this guy today.  I got a bank account (boom!).  AND it came with a debit card.  I know, I know, I can't believe it either.  Don't act like you're not impressed.  It only took about two hours, seven signatures and seven thumb prints.  Yeah, it's that real here.  But hey, I have an account now, it has literally zero dollars bolivars, but it is a bank account.  So I got that going for me.

Gabes you need to start drinking this and fighting like...

Day two was puppies and rainbows.  There is no way this can continue.  I'm on edge like a thirty zebra at an African water pool frantically scanning the savanna for a pair of eyes that scream lioness.  I will not be caught flat footed! However, if it stays like this I will not complain...ever.

I had two classes today, two preps, our student break, lunch, and an assembly to nominate student council officers.  With my English teacher may that put me about 142mins of teaching, 242 minutes of planning, lunch, and the elections.  Don't worry kids I have three 82 minute classes tomorrow and only 102 minutes of planning time.

Having time to actually plan, prepare, and create is awesome.  I have a series of websites (if you want to see them teacher friends message me- they were really easy to create) for my classes, developed some really cool stuff, and have some material that I think the kids will love.  Time to create/think openly, is the greatest gift anyone can receive, especially as a teacher.  I think I will get a lot better this year.

This my classroom, aka the "House of Learned Doctors".

More about the elections: the principal had an assembly in the comedor (cafeteria, you just learned a Spanish word, well done!)  that allowed grades 6-12 to nominate, second, and third a person to run for the various offices.  If a candidate was nominated he/she could accept or decline.  I thought this was going to be an epic train wreck, but it wasn't.  The kids had fun with it, but they were respectful.  Prior to the voting our Drama teacher explained to the students that we are putting on "Beauty and the Beast" and the place erupted like a Bieber concert (never been, just assuming).  The kids cheered and clapped before listening to directions, during which they were quiet.  I've never seen anything like this.

Students leaving school walking past the comedor on the left.  

Noticeable Differences

I promised to talk about the international school here in Valencia.  These are not judgements, rather how I see things through my unique lens, and I hope this gives you a better feel for what CIC is all about.  

1) Meetings at here are focused and open.  There is no timetable where you have to be in a meeting for "x" time.  We get through the agenda, take care of business, adjourn, and then go back to work.  Also, if you have a sport, activity, or club during the meeting time you are told to go to that responsibility and read the minutes of the meeting when you get them.

2) "Teach evaluations are to help you and I am not a master teacher that knows everything.  There is no such thing as a perfect lesson"- my principal.  Our admin team will use surveys and observations to give you tips and ideas to incorporate into your teaching.  "Our evaluations are us sharing notes, it's non-judgmental, and we are just an extra set of eyes." He said he will present it as: this is what I saw, not this is what you should do.  We also only have to complete a folder that shows that we have touched on the desired aspects of the evaluation tool- no portfolio or long document.

3) The admin is very open and straightforward regarding deadlines (emergency sub plans, website completion dates, etc), tasks (supervision dates, roles, etc) and expectations.  They are very clear with how things should be, but allow you to freedom to do what you need to do while holding you accountable.

4) The curriculum is moving towards the Common Core, but we are given full control what what we feel the students should use (texts/materials) to learn.  Creativity is a must, and innovation is expected.  They view us as content masters and that we should pass that knowledge through texts and methods that we see fit to our students.

5) We have a dress code.  Girls: jeans or dresses/skirts past the knee. Guys: jeans or khakis.  No holes, tears, print, etc on the pants and each school (elementary, middle, and high school) has a particular color polo they have to wear with our school logo.

6) We encourage technology.  Every student can bring their own device after filling out the proper paperwork.  We also have started a iPad initiative at our school.  Each teacher has an iPad 3, Apple TV, and a given amount of credits to purchase and use educational apps.

7)  Credit/Tardy recover.  If you are struggling in a course, you are moved to take it online.  If you are late to class you have an hour reflection time to complete work/reflection on your attendance issue.  If you missed your final exam for whatever reason, you have to pay to take.

8) Late policy here is one day late: 75% possible credit, two days late: 5% possible credit.

9) We have a shared folder with all the needed documents, schedules, forms, and even email templates to request everything from copies to computer issues. We also have a specific form for taking minutes at a meeting.  A lot of things are already designed, you just have to fill them in.

10) All agendas and times are followed, never exceeding the time.

11) Sports are M W F, with an hour of intramural (we are encouraged to play)  and "All-Stars" after that (think varsity) for an hour.  We host a big tournament with VANAS schools (local INTL schools) as our competition date.

12) T TH are teacher developed activities.  For example, environmental club, study help, ping pong, soccer, art, movie club, and many more.

13) No buses.  Nearly every student has a ride, very few walk.

14) Classes can be held outside.

15) No food, gum, drinks, or cell phones in class ever. Not even:

It's healthier than "diet" soda right?

That's all I had from my notes.  I think you can definitely see some differences from schools you've gone to or teach/taught in.  I am not saying one or the other is better, rather, I'm stating what was said in our large staff meetings, trainings, and things taken from our staff book.

Well there you have it.  A little more insight to my little corner of the world.  Tomorrow should be more of a challenge with juniors, seniors, and newspaper class.  Oh well it's:

HUMP DAY!

Tomorrow is also our first intramural pick up game.  These kids have no idea what they are getting themselves into.  I'm going to go Jody Davis (ex-Cubs catcher circa 1987) on them.

That does it for this episode.  Hope you enjoyed it!  Best of luck on the remainder of your week.  I'll check back in soon with a new story/update and some photos.

Take care of each other,

KRS

1/180

Happy Monday. [Sorry no pictures today]

Today marked the first day of the new school year for all of us here at CIC and many of you were back listening to your local state of the union address from your headmaster/superintendent.

Hope you're all jacked up after the rah-rah speech and ready to go.

Today was a different type of schedule for us.  We run an A/B block with four classes per day, and Tuesday holds our "advisory" period (think homeroom).  Today was pretty cool, it was nice to not see 30+ students per class, but seeing 8 in my Newspaper class was kind of weird.

The day started off with a speech by our principal which explained changes in policy, new teachers, and new facilities/additions to the school.  I thought about breaking out my Miss America wave when my name was called, but went for a wave and a salute instead (street cred in tact).

I did notice how well behaved the students were during the speech.  The cheered the points Mr. Chicas was making, the other speakers, and especially the new facilities.  The new cafeteria (with AC).  The kids roared.  

At this point, I thought I may have had hallucinogens in my coffee.

After we broke out of the assembly we shuttled the students to our respective advisory rooms to get them schedules, planners, and materials.  We talked shop, the kids asked about me, I neglected their request, and got the itinerary accomplished much to their chagrin.  I told them next advisory I'd clue them in on me, and the metropolis known as Clinton.

I did show the students an aerial picture of Clinton and one thought it was Detroit.  I said yeah, I know Eminem.  He looked puzzled.  I broke the news to him that the body of water was the Mississippi and the town was Clinton.  He laughed.  

The classes flowed in and out.  I presented my procedures, expectations, syllabi, and philosophy the kids all listened, or at least weren't looking too spacey.  If the kids think the first day is boring, try being the teacher.  It's like a continual Ground Hog Day. I asked how many students had completed the summer assignment that is due Thursday (about 85% had).

Yeah, a summer assignment.  I know, I know- it's almost too much.

The juniors were chatty, the sophs were excited, and the seniors were in senior mode.  Overall, it was a solid day.  I think the kids are excited to hear more about me tomorrow and know more about this tie-wearing gringo.

The twenty-five minutes went quick, but the results of the litmus test were good.  Obviously the first day is like a new toy and it always seems great right away.  I was worried about how I'd feel in the the classroom around these bilingual students, but it was like riding a bike.

They have to speak English in school and specifically in class to help their skills, but sometimes they switch to spanish when they are unsure or casually talking to a friend.  I told them that it was unfair and that if I couldn't be a part of the conversation, even if it was making fun of me, than we shouldn't have it.  The laughed and thought it was fair.  We'll see.

I just got home from the gym and got beat up during the TRX class.

I'll have a better write up tomorrow analyzing some cultural differences in the school.

Until then, take care.


KRS

1 down and 179 to go (haha).

Preparation Fades to Performance

Hello from a rainy mountain day in VZ!

I think it's been my first gray day since I got here (reminds me of Iowa).  Great day to watch movies and mentally prep for tomorrow.  

Lazy day with no football.

I know many of you teachers are heading in for meetings and such this week.  I hope those go as painless as possible.  Notice I didn't say back to work, as many districts have multiple weeks of summer work, training, and extra-curricular activities (aka work) that really erode the thought of "summers off" as many think.  

Here's to your upcoming state of the union (district) depicting data and firing up the ole motivation machine!

Not for an update...

Staff Development Day

This past Friday we took part in a CIC tradition of heading to the beach with our whole staff (anyone teachers/associates can attend, but some stay and work).  We met at the school at 5:45 and hit the road by 6am sharp.  The ride there was a little over and hour due to some traffic issues and a few cars that had accidents.

Naturally, after about ten minutes of getting the coolers and people off the bus, the skies opened up and the rains came.  It didn't last long, but the worries of an overcast, rainy beach day were seeping into conversations.

The waiting (for the beach) is the hardest part.

From there we took a 15min boat ride out to the a series of keys that held the beach that was our destination.  The ride out was eventful.  The scenery was beautiful, like something from a travel pamphlet.  There was heavy boat traffic out to the beach, so the waters were rough (which added a sort of white water aspect to it).  We bounced around the waves that concealed the various shades of blue bellow.

Finally, the horizon rose and the clouds opened up and revealed the beach.  That site alone made the early wake up call worth it.

Palm trees and white beaches are cool, but clouds are not.  

I know what your thinking, "Kellen, that beach doesn't look that nice.  In fact, the "Riv" crew back home would claim Coney Island to be cooler."  To each there own, but I'll take this:

This is a real picture that I took.  

Yep.  I will say that the beach "attire" was much different than I have seen in the states, and that goes for both genders.  Some things that I thought should be used for jazzercise classes (ladies) or swimmers (gents) littered the beach front.  A few times, I had to hide my raised eyebrow.  To each their own I suppose.  

We hung out the beach, threw a football, had some beverages, ate some great traditional and local food, while enjoying the company of our staff, principals, and their families.  

Morris, David, and I embracing the umbrellas from the rum drinks. 

After a few hours it is tradition that all of the new hires (both foreign and local) go to this section of water in the center of several islands (about 15mins away) that is shallow enough to stand up in.  I'm told it goes back many years and our crew was no different. 

This is what we floated up on.  I don't even know how you describe it. A mini floating festival?

We spent about a half hour there taking in the scene, capture a few photos, exchanged pleasantries with some vendors, and then had another fun boat ride back to the beach.  If we would have brought some Bs we could have purchased some food, drink, or goods, but no one remembered so we just hung out in awe.  To think a year ago this week I was about 6K miles away on a football field for camp, and now I'm in Latin America.  Crazy. 

The boat with the flower sells fruity cocktails.  You'd never would have guessed would you?

Here is where the magic happens.

Hungry? Try some lobster..fresh with lime. 

Another lobster vendor. 

Notice the back left where the color darkens and the waves break. 

Yours truly with bunny ears (and white tank), Christie, and David.  He carried her all the way out to the island.  The dude can swim. 

After getting made fun of the umbrella, Frank joined us for some street cred.  Here we are doing the opposite of the duck/deuces combo that the young people do these days.  

After we returned to the main beach, we did more of the same.  I didn't apply sunscreen once...rather three times (I bet my mom got nervous) and still got a little red.  Hot, hot, hot.  They call the place the best kept secret in Latin America (it's a state park which eliminates hotels and too many tourists) and it was a very calming and restful place to spend a day after eight days of training, meetings, iPad 3 initiation (every teacher got one to use in his or her classroom with an app allowance), and planning.  

Around mid-afternoon we rounded up the troops, reloaded the boats, and journeyed back to the mainland.  We then funneled to our buses and hit the dusty trail.  

People were making plans to meet for dinner and hangout, but by the time everyone got home and showered that was it.  I watched a movie and fell asleep.  The sun took it out of me, but it was worth it.  

I can say with all honesty that this has been a great few weeks.  I have never felt more apart of a teaching family and a school community then here.  Now don't get me wrong, I felt a part of a school community at my last school, but this school is smaller and international, so it has a natural advantage and wants to insure our success (and stay all year, as we are an investment).  Again, I am constantly reminded about how outgoing and nice teachers, staff, and administration are here.  They have made this "country" (not in the Jason Aldean sense of the word, rather location) boy feel at home in a new city, in a foreign country, and on a different continent.  

I am definitely nervous for tomorrow, and the unknowns that lurk in my first day of my international education experience.  I'll just be me and try to do my best, all I can do right?

I'm going to try and rock the shirt and tie (nearly) every day [props to Halac].  I just hope I don't get caught in a downpour like we had today, because being soaking wet on the first day would not be cool.

We don't start our sports season until next week, but I'll talk more about that tomorrow when I try to give you a better insight to the school and differences in the states/international school settings.  However, I hope all of you starting your respective seasons have been blessed with healthy athletes, good weather, and the motivation the preseason brings (everyone is undefeated!).

If you have some comments about anything I've written, things you want to hear about, or just want to say hello, use kellencobain@yahoo.com and I'll try to do my best to respond quickly.  I should have more time (weird huh?) with school starting, so I hope to increase the quantity of the postings.

That's all from down here in VZ.  Hope your Sunday was restful, I'll see you on down the trail.

Thanks,

KRS

Keep on a Chooglin'

Day 2

After the excitement of the previous day, I was expecting Wednesday to be a day with a little less pace.  

Turns out I was right, or 66% right.

The morning of the second day was filled with breakfast with the office staff so we could all introduce each other and put names to faces.  It is a different kind of conversation when you have been in email contact with a secretary or employee throughout the summer and have never seen or met them.  To finally shake their hand or give them a hug and thank them for their diligent work was the least we could do.

If you have no frame of reference the process of working for an international school takes weeks upon weeks, nearly fifty documents, notarization, appostille-ing (google it), and lots of patience.  Factor in the passport and work visa, and it is nearly a six month process.  These people know there stuff and if it wasn't for them, many of us would not be able to work here [lifts a fake glass in the air to cheers those who do the paperwork].

After the morning meetings and another traditional Venezuelan lunch, we had three more hours to work in our room.  The amount of time we have been provided to work in our room is astronomical (more on school specific details in another post).  

After work we gathered at the rental van, met security, and headed of to Epa (think Home Depot) to pick up some housewares.  

The shopping was pretty tame, and the lines were the same as Kromi- few open registers and snails pace clerking.  The store also replicated Kromi with its odd lack of specific items.  Many of the aisles in both stores have the looks of a store preparing to restock its shelves, however they typically leave some goods in that form.  Long spurts empty shelves are found sporadically throughout the stores.  One day toilet paper and sugar (with a restriction of number of purchase) a day or two later, nothing.  

After we were done checking out, we made our way to the van with our security guard parked adjacent to us, but he was standing outside.  While we waited for the others to finish shopping Dave noticed a mall security guard and been inching closer and closer to us with walkie-talkie in hand.  A few minutes later the security guards boss came over to the guard and prompted him to say something to us.

"You guys are congregating around a car that has purchased goods in it and you are speaking English" (horrid translation from yours truly).  

To that our security guard replied, "If anyone tries to give this people trouble I'll take care of them.  I'm packing"

The face on the young security guard seemed to loose up and droop as his eyes widened.  He then told us that three grocery stores were robbed this afternoon.  Our security guard told him not to worry, he has it under control.  The younger guard slithered back behind a few cars several stalls away and said nothing.

Friday

Friday was another day of am meetings and three hours of work time.  Very good day to get some things done as we all started to feel more at home.

At the conclusion of the work day the school took us to a traditional Venezuelan restaurant for a family style meal.  We enjoyed some fried appetizers and salad, before our meal of beef, sausage, and chicken cooked on a small grill nearby turned from mouth watering gas to grilled goodness in front of us.  The salad is basically sliced veggies: onion, lettuce, tomato, avocado, carrots, beets, and quail eggs (hard boiled)- it was really tasty.

We shared good conversation and were welcomed again by the headmaster and the administrative team.  The meal concluded a week of mixed emotions, unknowns, and uncertainties, but the CIC team did a great job of making us feel not only at home, but as accepted members of their family.

After the meal the new hires and our coordinator, Andrea, left to meet up at a local pizza place to meet some of the staff and teachers out having pizza and beverages.  We were introduced to a group of employees with a variety of years of experience at CIC, but all were really cool, open, and accepting.  We stayed for several beverages, before heading out to get caught up on sleep.

I thought, in the famous words of Ice Cube, "Today was a good day,"

Saturday

I woke up in a stiff sweat, and not the kind created from a nightmare.  The power was out. No fans, no ac, and to add to it, no water.  Nice little Saturday.  I tried to add a few more minutes of sleep until my phone rang- it was David wondering if I wanted to join a group of people going on a hike.

Why not? No power, no water, and nothing to do.

We decided to go hike a nearby mountain/foothill (I forget the name) in the morning.  It by no means is the size of the Rocky Mountains, but it was a challenging climb.  The trail was packed.  People of all shapes and sizes, wearing everything from jeans to workout clothes and fanny packs drove up the mountain.

It was hot, but the breeze was beautiful. The entire up and down took just over an hour.  The rock looked like petrified wood, with wavy ridges moving north and south on the mountain face.  As we climbed a little boy called me a gringo, but David told me in VZ culture it a nickname, like many others, and means no harm.  We letter encountered a man climbing with his sons and he welcomed us to VZ and thanked us for coming.

I'm still in awe of the kindness I've seen so far.

Maybe there is a chance we can turn this whole thing around.

It definitely elevated the heart rate, but the view was magnificent.  After we made it back down we enjoyed freshly squeezed OJ from a local vendor.  By fresh I mean they take each half orange, place it on a strainer press and squeeze the juice out.  Over and over again to just make on large glass.  It was glorious and the perfect end to a good hike.

It's not the Sacto/Austin urban sprawl, but it's cool looking isn't it?

Can you see the second mountain behind the furthest buildings?

David and I putting the city to scale.  He's buff.

Told you he's jacked.  He carried his wife up the whole way.

Valencia, my current home. 

You can take the boy out of Iowa, but you can't make him stop sweating in South America.

David directing traffic (or pushing a mountain down) and explaining how he once ran up it in 14 minutes.  

Valencia at night from David and Christie's apartment this building in the lower right corner is Kromi.  

After I got home the power/water was back on, so I promptly took a shower and then a nap. 

Later that night David and Christie had me over for tostadas -they were awesome.  David then hooked up his tv to his computer and we streamed the NFL preseason game.  The first few tries were dicey, but he got it going.  We made it three quarters before I threw in the towel.  The long week had beaten me and I needed some REM.  

He gave me a ride home (no car for this guy) and I barely remember taking my contacts out before I was counting sheep. 

The first week had come to an end, and I wasn't too homesick or suffering culture shock yet.  Maybe I'll be able to pull those off...we'll see won't we.

Well that has gotten everything brought up to speed, now I can drive the blog machine on a more relevant path.

Not my best piece today, but I'm gassed- I'll get better though.  I told Mrs. Adkins I would write daily and I have, just not in the blog form.  But have no fear, It'll get better.

Stay safe, have fun, and don't drink eat too much cereal (I want to eat a popcorn bowl full of it when I get back.  I won't drink the milk here, and the cereal selection is worse here than it ever was for my sister growing up in a house of three boys).

Fin.

KRS