Adios Navidad

I hate this time of year. All of the Christmas lights are coming down, stores are dead, and the good cheer is gone. It could potentially be a very depressing point in time. Fortunately, the depression hasn’t set in. I’m hoping it doesn’t. I have three more days before I return to work.

Speaking of returning to work, I’m sort of scared of going back. There are many tasks to be completed this spring semester and I fear that I’m going to lose some of my me time. The couple weeks before school let out, I was working 12-hour days pretty much every day. I did tell my students that I was done accepting late assignments. At least their homeroom and unbook reports. They are given deadlines for these assignments in advance. Plus, they are given time in class to complete the assignments.

I really thought that this year was going to be way better than the last two. It seems like there’s always a monkey wrench to be dealt with. There is always more that needs to be done. Or a new task that needs to be fulfilled. And it’s not such a big deal if my writing didn’t have to take the back seat to all this. Perhaps someday I will figure out how to balance life, work, and writing.

El Año Nuevo in Retrospect

This morning, I woke up with a longing for a New Year’s Eve day morning with my mom. Although New Year didn’t really involve as much magic and make believe as Christmas, my mom still had some traditions/superstitions she wouldn’t let go of like the 12 grapes with 12 wishes at midnight. Some she got from the morning shows she likes to watch. We would always comment on the new rituals. Which ones we could and would like to do, but never did.

One year, when my mom was working for Mrs. Raney doing the live-in thing, my mom and I completed the following in the first couple minutes of the New Year:

Ate 12 grapes making a wish with each
Toasted with some rancid Champagne
Swept the entrance to get rid of bad/old vibes
Retrieved pennies from the potted plant with our right hand and threw them into the house

I don’t think any of this really did anything, but it was fun. After running around like maniacs, we laughed perhaps at how ridiculous it all was. Still, it was so much fun, and those couple minutes always replay in slow motion when I think of celebrating el año nuevo.

New Year

I’ve never been big on New Year’s Resolutions. They seem like another thing that if I don’t get done I will beat myself up over.

Last year, I made two: work on my writing and be a better teacher. I think I did both. Sure I haven’t had anything published on my own yet, but I’ve been working on it. In fact, I have a lot of new material that I’m working on editing and work shopping. At the start of the school year, I was an awesome teacher, and I know a lot of people believe that my jump from 6th to 7th grade is something that a great teacher does. I think I pull my load and I don’t think I’ll ever really be content because there is always more that I can do in regard to my work.

Since the cana count has been increasing, in lieu of resolutions, I’m making one of those “things to do before I croak list.”

1. Ride a horse
2. Visit the Grand Canyon
3. Spend a day on the beach on the Pacific West Coast and East Coast
4. Go to as many museums as possible in NYC
5. Take a month-long vacation in Mexico
6. Go deep sea fishing
7. Pet a snake
8. Set foot on the eastern hemisphere
9. Publish a book
10.Write a story about Gabi
11.Have the office of my dreams
12.Learn to drive a motorcycle
13.Sit in the audience of a television show
14.Create a soundtrack for my life
15.Donate to a substantial amount to a charity

That’s all I can think of right now. I think this will work better for two reasons. The first is that I love making to do lists and crossing things off. There’s nothing like being able to roll your pen over a task and at the end of the day being able to condense or throw away the whole darn thing because there’s nothing left. The other reason I think this will work is because I have longer to complete this list. Sure, I could croak at any moment, but somehow, I think I’m doing this life thing for a long time.

Enjoy the last leg of ‘07 and the birth of ‘08.

Blue Christmas

I don’t know if my mom loved to or felt like she had to create this sense of magic for me at Christmas time. She wasn’t like some parents now who refuse to allow their children to believe in Santa. My mom let me write letters to him, asked me what I wanted so she could tell him, and insisted that on Christmas Eve, Santa come to visit. The only difference is that I was allowed to interact with Santa.

Somewhere, sometime, someone had acquired a Santa suit, and I think it was Filly, my middle brother, who would always wear it. I don’t know if the suit had come with or without the beard, but it ended up missing the Christmas when I was five. So they ended up making do with a remnant piece of blue faux fur that had been used in the doll house my mom and brothers had made me for me.

I don’t know if it was the beard or that Santa was so tall and lanky and had eyes just like my brother, but that was the Christmas I knew, for sure, that there really was no Santa. Still, I pretended to believe because it was tradition. Being that at five, I already had a niece, I knew I couldn’t ruin this for her.

During my dark years*, I would dress up as Santa and go around delivering gifts for my nephews and my brother’s friends’ children. It was so much fun to see the look on their faces when they saw me. It made the itching below the beard and hat worth it.

So if it was out of obligation, love, or just tradition, my mom’s work churned out so much more than happy memories. If I were to ever have kids of my own, I wouldn’t hesitate to do the same con blue beard y todo.

Feliz navidad!

Three Snapshots of My Mom

My mom sits across from me at the Chinese restaurant in a cramped booth. She puts a cube or wobbly cherry red Jello into her mouth. She tries to push it through the gaps where her teeth used to be, but the Jello is too slick. It slides out the side of her mouth and onto the table. We laugh and laugh.

***

We’re home alone. My mom decides we’re going to bake a chicken. She rinses it off in the sink and rubs salt and pepper on it. “Here, hold the oven bag,” she says.

I stand there, holding the bag just like she asked. She drops the chicken into the bag and it falls through the bag onto the linoleum floor. We laugh and laugh, neither of us can stop. I imitate the chicken several times as if a chicken carcass could have fallen and landed any other way. It is forever our little inside joke.

***

Mrs. Raney comes in yelling at us about something we don’t understand. We sit there and listen to her. Then my mom and I just look at each other. For some reason, a song pops into my head and I start, “Y los muchachos del barrio la llamaban loca!”

Before long, we are both singing together. Mrs. Raney responds with the same crazy look we gave her and walks away.

Gabi: A Character Study

My sister smells of perfectly brewed fresh coffee and brand new books. She sounds like Arjona, Intocable, y El Trí. She looks like a mosaic with her lightning-struck hair, swimmer’s legs, mocha Frappuccino-colored skin, and chocolate chip mole. To me, she represents gall, strength, intelligence, and compassion.

Reading

Today was one of those really long days. I didn’t have an off period because I covered a class for a colleague so that she could observe her mentee and there was a meeting during my other conference period. I ate lunch quickly, so that I could get caught up with some other things during that time.

Right after school, I had a mentor meeting. We did get this really cool gift pack of some photo albums, a journal, and a box for pics and a light dinner.

After that, I went to a local intermediate school for a reading. There weren’t a lot of people there because there was a basketball game, but the audience was quite attentive. There was this one kid there who was really cool. He was taking pics for the year book, and he seemed to be really into the whole thing.

I heard once that Cisneros said at a conference that readings drained her, but for me, they do the exact opposite. It’s so invigorating to talk to people and sign their books afterward. That’s my favorite part of the whole ordeal.

Feeling Listless: Review 2007: Home - "Investigating the difference between is and isn't."

Feeling Listless: Review 2007: Home - "Investigating the difference between is and isn't."

Awesome piece by Annette.

24Hrs of No TV

I've gone 24 hours without TV. I've done it before and for a longer period of time, but it's just so strange to me today.

Actually, I've been working pretty much the entire day. Here is a recap of my day:

6:10 AM Hit Snooze Button
6:20 AM Grudgingly get out of bed because the alarm is so annoying
6:55 AM Out of shower only to find the cats had knocked down the X-Mas tree
7:00 AM Pouring coffee into my thermos
7:05 AM Yelling at cats because they're trying to trip me
7:10 AM Gathering laptop, lunch, crate, purse, and work bag
7:15 AM Leaving complex for work
7:30 AM Arrive at work, sign in, greet whomever I run into
7:35 AM Rewriting daily to-do list
7:50 AM Room fills up with kids for tutoring, I try to work on to-do list
8:10 AM Bell rings, students leave, and I can get to work on fixing sub letter, alphabetizing folders, and inputing late grades for a class.
9:04 AM Bell rings, greet students, teach class
10:42 AM First class students leave, homeroom students start filing in, as I stand in the hallway colleagues asks when would be a good day to come observe my mad teaching skillz
10:46 AM Hand out Technology Survey to students, pick them up, joke around, tell them that they better be good for sub later.
11:06 AM Students leave, I run down to make extra copies of some assignments, return to classroom for meeting.
11:35 AM Meeting is over, check e-mail, each lunch as I delete and print e-mails.
11:50 AM Gather up G/T crate, late work, purse, lunch bag, and sweater and head out
12:00 PM Head to Starbucks for an afternoon fix
12:15 PM Arrive at Admin building for G/T meeting
12:30 PM Briefly discuss G/T issues with lady in charge, break out laptop and get to work on Student list and letters, ask lady in charge questions as they come up and she wanders in.
3:30 PM Head to Panera for dinner date with Dan the Man.
4:30 PM 99 Cent store to find objects for personification lesson
5:00 PM Get home, gather up laundry, check mail
5:20 PM Grade late work, log into grade book, pick up laundry
7:00 PM Work on lesson plans and resources
9:00 PM Send out millions of e-mails hoping to delegate some duties
10:00 PM Check out daily reads (blogs) and talk to Billy
11:00 PM Start thinking about heading to bed

Thank baby Jesus it's almost Saturday! Although I feel so accomplished, it sucks to work so much becuse it takes time away from the one thing I love: writing.

You’ve Been Promoted!

When I’m not being obscured with expectations, I find that statement funny. People think that just because I’m teaching a higher grade that qualifies as a promotion. I have more work because I’m learning/testing the depth of the curriculum I teach, figuring out how to best teach writing for a water downed test, and learning to deal with a whole new animal then it is a promotion. But then when you look at my pay stub, it’s actually still the same. I’m getting less respect in the classroom than before and some of the people that I work with now haven’t even really acknowledged that I’m on their team. In fact, some of them still give me the very strained good morning that I got before.

Mix Ups

I’ll tell ya though, it’s been quite interesting with people getting me all mixed up about whether I’m still teaching sixth grade or now in seventh. Today, a new kid came into my class. So of course, I gave him a seat and gave him his homeroom assignment. Then, I asked him to see his schedule so that I could ask a kid to help him get to his next class and tell him where he sits for lunch. However, when I looked at his schedule, it looked strange because he had PE 3rd period and 7th graders have PE 4th. So I looked at it again, and for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what was wrong. Then, it finally clicked.

“Are you a sixth grader?”

“Yes,” he said meekly.

I’m sure this kind of stuff will continue for the rest of the semester if not year.

Why I Will Continue to Teach Seventh Grade

The sixth graders that I had this year were really a great bunch. They were like no other group of students I’ve had.

So many people complained and complain about them, but the students that I had, man, they were awesome. On reading days, there were but a few who I had to get onto once in a while. For the most part, the others were very interested in reading. Their reading interests were so varied. They knew what they liked to read and made it a point to bring it to class.

Teaching them as like wearing your favorite jeans. They knew where I would give a little; I knew where they would give a little. Things went smoothly in class because I had laid out procedures that worked for both them and me.

Before I broke them the news, the thought of how they would take the news invaded my mind like Bush and Iraq. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t shake off the guilty feeling.

So many of them sent me feathers for the annual NJHS Turkey Feather Sale, and it’s a constant stream of hugs and hellos every time I set foot outside my classroom. At least one of them will visit me daily just to say hello, catch up on what they’re doing, or to tell me that they miss me.

I know that once my inherited students and I get into the swing of things, I might build the relationships (I already have with some), have smooth-running procedures, and they will learn to meet my expectations, but I still feel like my sixth graders and I were robbed. Today, when one of those sixth graders, who I really just clicked with, stopped by to say hello and chat, I knew that there is no way I can leave seventh grade the upcoming year. I’m going to have to stick to it one more year. Then after that, I can move back down, especially if I’m still convinced that I was born to teach 6th grade.

An Update for Those Who Insisted

The Day of the Dead lesson was awesome. I really, really enjoyed the last week with my 6th graders. They seriously are, by far, the best group of kids I’ve had.

My first week of seventh grade ended pretty badly. The kids were worn out from testing and I was worn out from covering classes for teachers who were out. I don’t mind covering a class here and there, but twice in one week, that’s a bit excessive. Anyway, there were many times that I thought, why did I decide to move up again?

This week has been better. I hope I don’t jinx myself by saying that. It has though. I also like my schedule. I used to get a break after every class which was sweet. Now, I have all of my breaks in the morning and then I power through the afternoon. For some people this would suck, but for me, since I’m not exactly a morning person, it’s perfect.

November 1st, I got to attend a reading by Tato Laviera. That was the most amazing thing ever. It was so cool. It was even better that I got to go break bread with him afterward. If you haven’t read any of his work, you seriously need to go out and find one of his books. I highly recommend reading his poem titled “Graduation Speech.”

This weekend a group of girls from work and I are going camping. Well, we’re going city slicker camping because we rented a cabin. It should be really fun. That’s been my motivation to not leave my grading done until the end of the week. I have to stay on the ball now that I have athletes in my class. The coaches constantly want to know their grades.

Last Hurrah

This week is my last week as a sixth grade teacher. Yes, normally people wait until the end of the year, but since the last time I wrote here, a 7th grade teacher has resigned her position “effective immediately.” This has, of course, left a large group of kids up a creek without a paddle. Sure, they have a sub whose been filling in with lesson plans other teachers have put together, but they’re not lesson plans for those kids. They’ve been winging it, and honestly, I don’t blame them. I mean, it’s very time consuming to plan for yourself, much less for someone else.

Anyway, as you can imagine, my do-gooder self decided to take on the challenge. Do I regret it? At times, yes, very, very much, but I can’t back down now, and I know that those 7th grade kids need a familiar face.

A new teacher has been hired to take my place in sixth grade. My current students were pretty upset over it. I told them Friday and their response was either, “Noooooooo” or “You’re a traitor!” Some of them seem to be consoled with the possibility of having me next year and others were happy to hear that I’d still be around in case they needed me. Still, telling them was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. I’ve really taken the relationship of this “Rigor, Relevance, and Relationship” theme to heart and built a relationship with more kids than ever.

It seems very fitting that my last week with my students I get to work on the Day of the Dead unit. I can’t wait. I’ve been thinking about this week for about a month. This year, many of my colleagues and I have ended up in the lower part of the dip a lot earlier that November. I think many of us have made ourselves at home there (It's not true that it's just for new teachers, we all feel it). We just sit around slinging back “coffee” after “coffee.” So it’s given me time to think about Día de los muertos a lot. Tuesday we begin the preparations. I’ll try to get some pics of the altar to put up.

Low Point

I’ve started monitoring comments again because of comments like the last one in my last entry. I’m happy people have religion in their lives, just don’t post it on my space…bastards.

I woke up this morning in a very reflective mood that quickly put me in a very negative state of mind. I started thinking of everything I hadn’t done and all of the things I currently can’t change about my job. At this point, all I really want is to be able to spend time in my classroom, working with my students, and planning their instruction. I’m not interested in attending another meeting or another staff development to learn another strategy. I have learned plenty of strategies in my 80+hrs of staff development this summer; I really don’t need any more for now. I promise, I’m golden.

I know it’s not anything anyone can help right now, and I’m okay now. The strategies that I can implement from today’s staff development have already been discussed and the rest are going to sit on my bookshelf until I get to them or need them.

Anyway, I had a rough couple of weeks in regard to time and Friday was just one of those days where the monkeys fling their fecal matter at the ceiling fan and it ends up all over your nice things. I decided that afternoon that this weekend I would dedicate it to my mental sanity. So I slept, read, and watched movies.

Saturday night I spent it on our new sofa reading Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. I read it until I was finished because I knew that otherwise, it wouldn't happen. I got it from one of the staff developments I had to attend last week. It was really entertaining. I loved that it had illustrations. I thought about not putting it on my bookshelf because it gets a little edgy, but after the conversation I had with my department head today, I think it needs to go up there. (The narrator mentions masturbation once and it’s got a few curse words.)

Saturday afternoon, we ventured out to see 3:10 to Yuma. I really enjoyed it. I’m not one to watch westerns so I was surprised that I really liked it. It also helped that Christian Bale was in it. He’s pretty easy on the eyes.

We also watched Halloween, the Rob Zombie remake. It was pretty good. I liked it a lot better than the original. Fraility was pretty good, too. Hostel left a lot to be desired. Hollywoodland was pretty unclimatic for me. I think I took a nap while it was on. Lastly, we watched a mocumentary that follows a first-year-teacher, administrator, and some three-year-teachers during a school year titled Chalk. That was really pretty good. Dan the Man was a little upset when he found out it wasn’t an actual documentary. But it was dead on with its portrayal of the first year. I was having flashbacks watching that poor teacher struggle with his students. When it was over Dan the Man asked, “So you’re still within that crucial first three year period. How likely are you to quit?”

I guess that could be one reason why I woke up acting like a grumpzilla. It could also be that we’re hitting that low point in the year. Whatever it is, I’m planning on having many more relaxing weekends. Regardless of whether I bring work home on the weekends or not, I’m still not getting home until 6 or 7 and doing more work at home, might as well start enjoying my me time. It's just one of those life lessons I need to have to collect.

Nuevas

I sort of disappeared off the face of the planet after last time. I’ve just been, well, busy, as usual. It’s like it never ends. I’m not complaining, just saying.

Yesterday, my brother’s wife gave birth to their second kiddo. His name is Jorgito and he weighed 8lbs 1oz, rather exciting. She wasn’t supposed to have him for another week, but she was losing fluids so they were forced to go through with a C-section. He kept saying how he’d wished she was going to have him while I was there so I could see him, and sure enough.

So yeah, I’m going to El Paso this weekend. I’m going to read at the Great Southwest Book Fair. I’m pretty psyched. Here are the details in case you happen to be in El Paso:

Date: September 29, 2007
Time: 1:00 p.m.
Place: El Paso Public Library
Address: 501 N. Oregon, El Paso, TX 79901


Tomorrow is parent night. One of the veteran teachers came into my room and said, “I love the way your room feels. It’s so bright. I think you’re ready for tomorrow.”

All I did was slap up some student work this morning. I’ve been having them do a ton of projects with the novel we’re reading (My Father, the Angel of Death). Currently, they’re creating their own wrestler. It’s been pretty cool. Today, my appraiser walked into my room. The kids were working on their wrestler and I was organizing some folders. One kid came up to my desk to ask me a question and said, “Mrs. W is in the room.”

She walked around and talked to the kids about their wrestlers and went along her merry way. Yesterday morning, she also walked into my room as I was telling the kids that they had to read their own book (we’d just finished reading a chapter from the novel). The kids were begging for me to read them another chapter. Then they asked if they could read another chapter on their own to which, I of course, said yes. Then someone near the front told her how great the book was and I heard her say, “Yeah, I know, I’ve read it.”

I used to worry so much about the walk-thru’s and observations my first year. Last year, I stopped caring so much, and this year, I just don’t care. I have so many great kids, and I’ve become so much better about keeping them busy and entertained. There’s still the whole issue of finding fun assessments for parts of speech, but hey, I think I’m in this for the long run so maybe this coming summer I’ll focus on parts of speech.

I’m off to pack and prepare my fancy outfit for tomorrow. If you’re in Houston this weekend, don’t forget to go check out the Latino Book Festival at the George R. Brown Convention Center.

Bueno, have a good weekend.

Good Day

Today I met with mom from previous post. She okayed for her kid to read two novels A Long Way from Chicago and The Watson’s Go to Birmingham—1963. She said her daughter didn’t feel comfortable reading any of the other novels. That’s fine.

In the meantime, my students are begging me to keep reading to them from My Father, the Angel of Death. Today, I had them do this activity that helps them learn to draw connections. I typed up a list of names, words, etc. from the text. Then, I had them cut out all of the words and glue them onto a large piece of paper. Tomorrow, they will have to draw lines to the words that have something in common. Some of the kids were able to start on that last step. I heard many of them saying it was fun and I even had to go over and take away an assignment from a student because we had to leave for the library.

Then, in the library, I completely lost track of the time one period. One student came up to me and said, “Ms. Baeza it’s already 1:18.”

I gathered up all my kiddies. When we were standing by the door, I said to the student who reminded me about the time, “Thank you so much. I was having such a good time I forgot about the time.”

“I know, I was having fun, too,” he replied.

It made my little teacher heart smile. I love our new librarian. I love my job, too. I like being around these kids. When we go the libaray, I dismiss from there. So I end up in the 8th grade hallway and I love standing there. So many kids say hello to me. And yesterday, the 8th grade boys had their first game (they were my students my first year) and I was so proud to see so many of them in their jerseys.

Last teacher story of the day, I promise. I have a student, who came to me about a week ago, and he’s been in all sorts of trouble. Apparently, he’s got a past or whatever. Monday I was out for a GT meeting and the sub left me his name, so I gave him detention. Anyway, after lunch some teachers asked me for his name because he’d apparently had a confrontation with another student. Earlier that day, I’d asked him to fix his pants and shoes (they like to leave them untied and show off the front of their shows; the untied is a problem b/c they might fall and the other stuff I don’t know why they tell us to tell them to fix it); he fixed them right away.

When I get everyone working, I pulled him aside. “What’s the deal?”

“Nah Ms. It’s just that the sub…”

“Look, do you want me to change my first impression of you? That first day of school, I went home and talked about you because you were so respectful and I was so impressed. You know teachers talk don’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“When they say stuff about you, I always say you’re great in my class. I don’t want that to change. Can you please be the guy I remember that first day? For me?”

He looked back at me with his eyes shiny with tears and nodded his head yes. I really hope he stays out of trouble. He’s a bright kid who has it.

I write all this because this morning, I went by the store to get some flowers for my friend. Today marked the 7th anniversary of her mom’s death. On my way to and from my car, I got soaked. My shoes were wet, my pants soaked up the water up to my mid-calf, and my shirt got wet. I felt so icky. My feet hurt and the blisters on my feet from the shoes I wore on Monday were killing me. I also didn’t have a chance to get breakfast because my shopping trip took longer than planned. But I was rewarded, I made my friend smile, the cafeteria manager prepared breakfast for the staff, and I felt like I actually made somewhat of a difference today.

Parents and the New Addition

If you know me in the “real world,” this will probably all be old news to you. Nonetheless, I still want to talk about it.

School has been going well. Talking with one of my good friends at school, I realized what it was that seems so off about this year; I don’t have a class that I dread. I really hope it stays that way. It makes the days go by so much faster and I think I do a better job. There are a couple kids that are difficult, but it’s all about staying calm and sticking to the consequences I’ve laid out.

I am having trouble with one parent though. Our school asks that each kid have a permission slip for each novel that we read as a class. It’s a pain in the ass, but it has to be done. After having to chase after kids all of the time last year, I decided that this year, I would send home a letter with the novels and films for the whole year at the beginning of the year and we’d be done with it. The novels we will be reading this year are My Father, the Angel of Death, A Long Way from Chicago, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963, The Westing Game, and we’ll be watching Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Selena.

I got back most of the letters right away and almost everyone’s parents were okay with my choices. There, as always, was that one parent that just couldn’t do it. She marked no on every single novel and yes on both films. When I asked the kid why, she said she didn’t know. I was pretty upset because well, it sorta threw off my plans. I had an idea of a backup, but I didn’t think I’d have any opposition until The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. And I could handle a novel or two, but all of them. So I had to call mom.

She told me she wanted to meet with me in person to talk about it because she felt that the novels went against her teachings. I told her I’d be available after school and she was more than welcome to stop by my room so we could talk. In the meantime, I talked to the assistant principal and grabbed a copy of all the novels for her to take if she desired.

So mom comes by after school and I try to explain a little more what the novels are about and the whole process of selection and yadda yadda. And she says, “Es que esta niña tiene una imaginacion. Aveces me asusta con las cosas que me pregunta.”

Now mind you, this kid is pretty bright and she’s a good kid. She’s one of the brightest in that class. So I don’t think that the things she’s coming up with are terrible.

Anyway, mom keeps talking and saying she’ll think about it. In the end, she takes the novels. I haven’t heard from her. I’m going to call her sometime next week and see if anything has changed. I doubt it.

At first, I was really upset. I thought, fine, if she wants her to get that kind of an education whatever. But now, that I’ve had some time to think and reflect, I can’t let the student have that kind of education. She loves to read and I need to continue to inspire her and most importantly, I have to help her keep her imagination alive. Sure it’s going to be extra work on my part, but I have to do it if I want to be half of the great teacher I aim to be.

The other thing I wanted to share is that we’ve made an addition to our little family. He came to us about two weeks ago and his name is Smokey.

First Day Part Deux

I had a good first day. My kids were all sweet and nice and tried to pay attention. Some of them cracked me up. One kid was very cordial. When I went to get my homeroom class, he ended up at the front of the line. As we walked down that walkway, he said, “How has your morning been Ms. Baeza.”

There was also the kid who told our principal we’d been making collages. She walked in just to see how the kids were doing. She was impressed that they said they’d been having a great day. They were right though. It was a great day—if only I could find shoes that feel like clouds and all will be well.

One of the best things about the first day of school is seeing all the older students. Seventh graders are the best because they’re the ones that always come back. All of my former students, who I refer to as old sixth graders, wanted to come by to say hello and see the new sixth graders. Half of the ones that came by wanted to be back in my class. It’s nice to be able to turn them away because they deserve to be in a 7th grade class.

First Day

Tomorrow is the first day of school. I was a little nervous this whole weekend, and then I met one of my students today. She’s the younger sister of one of the 8th graders. She came by with her dad and her brother. I told her she’d be in my homeroom and talked to her dad a bit. He saw my poster of Cesar Chavez and told me about having met him in California. It was really cool.

I have to constantly remind myself that this isn’t my first year of teaching and I know a lot more now. My biggest fear is having students like the ones I had my first year—some classes are more challenging than others. But if I make it about building relationships before completely focusing on instruction, I think it will make all the difference. At least that’s what I learned last year.

I’m sure that once I get into super star mode tomorrow all will be great.

Don't Label Me Anti-American

Because I am a proud Chicana, a lot of times I get labeled as "anit-American" or "unpatriotic." This really bugs me. I say the Pledge of Allegience, out loud, every day with my students. When 9-11 happened, I was just as shocked as the rest of the country. I went out and bought ribbon to make bows and put on our fence and I also light candles for those lost in the attacks and the soldiers that have died. However, at the same time, I will wear an anti-war t-shirt and I won’t support Bush.

It breaks my heart that young kids, who can’t even have a beer, are dying for this stupid cause. As I told my friend Shelley the other day, this fight is over an abstract noun, an idea. It’s like if I were to go on a rampage to end Catholicism. Sure, I can burn down churches and bibles, smash saints, and kill priests and their followers, but will I ever really end it? Probably not.

Would I prepare care packages to send to the troops? Drive them home if they don’t have a ride? Cook them meals? Host one in my house? Of course I would, but will I support this fight against terrorism? Hell no. Quit wasting young lives and really protect our country by bringing them home. Take care of them when they come home and they can’t sleep because they’re remembering the horrors of war. When they get sick ten years down the line due to something they were exposed to when they were in your war, don’t schedule their appointment for six months later or pass it off as something they probably got somewhere else.

And now, the irony of it all, illegal immigrants, the ones that we don’t want in this country because they broke the law to get into this country and we will rally together to get them all out, are giving up their lives for this idiotic war. They’re proving that they, indeed, want to be part of this “American dream.” And hey, why is not making the news? Why is the only place I can find a link to this is on a Spanish-speaking news station? Oh, and if they die in battle what about their illegal wife and/or child? Will you give them amnesty? Perhaps after a long, drawn out fight, right?

So if I don’t wear the U.S. flag on my sleeve right now or applaud the monkey for the way he handled 9-11, don’t call me anti-American. It’s just really hard to support the administration that has made me lose hope in the U.S., a very difficult chore.

Thank you President Bush.

Lo que quisiera...

Ricardo Arjona
Adentro
Adiós melancolía

Tengo un domingo en stand by, por si algún lunes te deprime,
Y en la cartera un ánfora que guarda olor a ti,
Tengo boletos de primera fila, para verte despertar por las mañanas,
Tengo la firme convicción, de que si estás me consolido,
Y la sospecha de que ni sospechas cuanto te amo,
Tengo tu foto puesta en la pupila,
Y con tu voz baila el estribo, el yunque y el martillo.

Tengo risas, tengo llantos, tengo un termostato,
Que me enciende cuando estás,
Y que me apaga si te vas
Pa` no morir de la nostalgia.

Adiós melancolía,
Gracias por la compañía,
Pero aquí ya no hay mas sitio para usted.

Adiós melancolía,
Le agradezco la poesía,
Que entre versos hoy me deja confesarle a esta mujer,
Que me saque la lotería cuando la vi.

Tengo una dosis de perdón, por si haces algo que me duela,
Y una canción de más por si algún día la echas de menos,
Tengo un stock de besos sin estreno,
Y un camión de amor del bueno, para ti.

Tengo risas, tengo llantos, tengo un termostato,
Que me enciende cuando estás,
Y que me apaga si te vas
Pa` no morir de la nostalgia.

Adiós melancolía,
Gracias por la compañía,
Pero aquí ya no hay mas sitio para usted.

Adiós melancolía,
Le agradezco la poesía,
Que entre versos hoy me deja confesarle a esta mujer,
Que me saque la lotería cuando la vi.

Hoy cuelgo mis sueños en el pearcing de tu ombligo,
Mientras la melancolía observa y es testigo,
Quiere estar segura, un poco por ti,
Un poco por mí, un poco por celos.

Adiós melancolía,
Gracias por la compañía,
Pero aquí ya no hay mas sitio para usted.

Adiós melancolía,
Le agradezco la poesía,
Que entre versos hoy me deja confesarle a esta mujer,
Que me saque la lotería cuando la vi.

Tengo agua de mar en la bañera, y en la cama aire de cordillera,
Tengo sol de mayo en la nevera, y flores de abril en la escalera,
Tengo un cuarto lleno en primavera, y un beso esperando en la trinchera,
Un jarrón que llora cuando espera, y te tengo a ti por donde quiera.
Y te tengo a ti por donde quiera.