An extended weekend in New York

These last few days in New York have been absolutely wonderful, a bit hectic (as in busy and crazy), and for sure special to me. This was our final trip to New York state before moving overseas to Brazil and we all knew it. My best friends showed up to hang out and for a party, my grandparents and aunts and uncle came in from out of town, cousins I hadn't seen in ages were at my parents' house for dinner, and we traveled a lot in just a few days. I took advantage of every minute I had with them all.

We left Orlando early Thursday morning, which means that we hadn't slept much and so dropping off our car at airport parking, checking in, and waiting to board were no fun; however, our flights were on time and we arrived early for our layover and our final destination. There was no turbulence and we both slept a little, even if it wasn't comfortable. Once we arrived, we were greeted by my smiling nieces, older sister, and stepdad. I was impressed by how green upstate New York is as a result of all the rain, and the weather was perfect. I was so glad to be home!


Our first day was spent in the company of my parents and two sisters and two nieces. We caught up, had lunch, ran to the bank to open up an account with HSBC since this bank has branches in Brasilia, and then we finally took a 3.5 hour nap after not really sleeping since the night before. That night we met up with friends. I love the first night of sleeping in my parents' house.


While in upstate New York we took a day trip to a state park in a small, quaint town located on Seneca Lake called Watkins Glen. With my young nieces in tow, we walked a 1.5-mile long Gorge Trail. And then we walked back down after reaching the top and resting. The stairs winded up along the cliff, behind waterfalls, and into the shade of gorgeously green trees. We hiked, took pictures, and enjoyed our time talking and walking together. Once we had made it down the "mountain" we hiked over to a local Italian restaurant for pizza. 

That evening, exhausted and with aching legs, E and I went to my best friend's house for a get together with some of my closest friends from high school and college - those that were in town. We chatted it up, drank some wine, and remembered "the good ol' times". Oh, and I laughed like I hadn't in years. E had to drag me home eventually because we had reservations on a bus to take us to New York City the next morning.


Up and at 'em the next day we were. We had breakfast and grabbed the muffins my mom had made so we had something to snack on during the bus ride if we wanted to. We had a fun filled day in Manhattan, packed with sightseeing and walking; the weather was ideal and the company couldn't have been better. E and I went to NYC with our friends Stephanie & O. We started off the day with a trip to Madame Tussaud's wax museum, went to Katz's Deli for lunch, spent some time downtown - shopping, eating, and pushing through the crowds. We also went sightseeing at The Met, the NY Public Library, Chinatown, Times Square, and ended our night at an outside restaurant in Bryant Park. Again, it was amazing how everything was so perfect. 

Salvador Dali

Janis Joplin

Pele

Lenny Kravitz

At Katz's Deli

The Metropolitan Museum

Our final days in New York were spent with family. We BBQ'd and spent valuable time with each other....catching up, taking pictures, eating my parents' delicious lunches, and watching the boys play soccer. That Sunday night my older sister camped out with her daughters in their tent (her husband had to go back home because he had to work the next day) while my youngest sister and I slept in her tent. Camping was fun despite the concerns I had. Yesterday we rode the carousel since my oldest niece kept asking to see the "horsies". Too cute. We also went shopping; can't forget the final items of clothing and small souvenirs.


Overall my extended weekend was unforgettable and I'm grateful to my parents and family and friends for making it all happen. THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts. We love you.


and E

Goodbye May. You were swell.

Ahhhhh! 40 something days left until we leave. I remember when we had 4 months left. I can't believe that it's already the last day of May. This month FLEW BY. 


I'm not just ending a stressful school year, but I'm realizing that I won't have much of a summer vacation this year. Turns out I only have about a month. I finish teaching this week, have final exams next week, and then 2 teacher work days to tie up my loose ends and move out of my classroom by the end of the week next week. That means a lot of grading, putting the finishing touches on my students' final exam, grading the exam (but I'm smart - it's multiple choice on scantron), and saying goodbye to my co-workers and students. Then we know what's next....


Once school's out I can focus on our moving preparations "full time" for a month before we leave. I've made my appointments to cancel our services, take care of the cat's business, and we've sold most of what we advertised on-line. That's what takes most of the time and energy and is not fun. Packing and sorting is not a big pain because I get to walk down memory lane as I do it. We also need to take yet another trip to the consulate in Miami and we have a 5-day vacation, if you will, to New York to spend time with my family and friends.


I want to be careful that this post doesn't just turn into a list of what I have to do before we leave. I  was just thinking about how time flew. Maybe it's because it's the last official month of school. I think that's it. My job was tough this year and part of me can't believe that I survived the school. Makes me really think about what my experience will be at a private, international school in Brazil. I've been working at poor, public schools for years and that's what I'm used to. Leaves me wondering how my experience will change in Brazil....how will I cope with teaching students who are more dedicated? Who come from education parents? Who have educated parents? Who really do want to go to college? It makes me anxious. I'm just going to have to be very observant and learn what I can about the school, the students, and the parents beforehand to try and prepare myself. I just know that if I can survive in an environment like where I'm working now, I can make it anywhere. 


It seems simple making the transition from students who fight you when you try to teach to teaching compliant students. I hope that it'll be easy and that I'll be able to modify all of my lesson plans to accommodate my students' needs and the school's expectations. Somehow I believe I will.


Right now I need to get back to grading papers on "The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet", Act II, Scene I.

Mothers and Daughters

There is nothing like the bond between mother and daughter. It is unbreakable. It is strong. It is fierce. Impermeable. Unique. One-of-a-kind. We come from our mother's womb and as a result we have the invisible connection that continues to bond us to her throughout our lives.


With this being said, I have had the honor to witness such a bond between two of my best friends (REAL best friends) and their mothers. I mean where the daughters have respect, love, admiration, and true friendship with their mothers. And these women are not mothers because they gave birth to my sister-friends, but because they were extraordinary women during their time on this planet, and they touched everyone in their lives. They were role models, they were strong, they fought the illness that reached out to hurt them and which eventually took them away from us. And yet they remained beautiful inside and out throughout their battle.


But the sickness only took them away from us physically. It canNOT take away their spirit, their strength, their LOVE. These women will remain with us forever; they will live within us, reminding us to be good people, as they were. To work hard, to treat people with respect, to love our husbands, and to be fabulous mothers like they were.


Today I honor the memory of, the life of, and the legacy of Virginia Surowka and Barbara Bogart. Two of the most fascinating women in this world. Two of the most wonderful women that have ever entered into my life, and who I will never ever forget.  And I had the blessing of seeing them as second mothers, as aunts, as an additional member in my family. God bless these women for all that they did while on this Earth. My thoughts and prayers go out to their families everyday, and especially today as Mrs. Bogart has left the Earth this morning to ascend to heaven, pain free. I love you ladies, and I love your daughters Stephanie and Kim who would not be the women they are today had they not been born by you and raised by you. Thank you for your gift.

Stephanie & Virgina Surowka

Kimberly & Barbara Bogart

Barbara (Babs) and Virginia (Gemini), may you rest in peace, and be remembered for all of your beauty and all that you accomplished on this Earth. These women are truly, angels in heaven.


With love,

It's the little things

When it comes to moving (abroad) it's the little things that you have to take care of being departing. That often means the tasks that you don't think of right away, not because they're insignificant, but because they're not as obvious.

For instance, we had an XM radio hanging around the house that E bought years ago, and discontinued to use not even a year later. So this radio and all its accessories have just been sitting neatly in the box, collecting dust in the closet. So what do you do with it when you're moving to another country and know that you're never going to use it again (even if you could)? You SELL it! And you do so AND make a profit. It's not like the buyer knows how much you paid for it; you sell it for what it's worth (used, of course).

It's amazing what a difference selling the little things can do to help you reach your goal of emptying out your house.

It makes me feel a sense of completion when I slowly notice that I have less and less to do as we prepare to move. We still have so much to do with the shipping, selling our cars, goodbyes, final trip to New York to visit my family, finishing up our jobs, taking care of our bills/finances/mail, etc. etc. that at least seeing a near empty closest and cabinets make me feel a teeny bit relieved and accomplished.

Another of the "little things" that we should deal with before going to Brazil is that of our driver's licenses. In Brazil I've been told driver's licenses are expensive and a long drawn out process to get. In Florida they're cheap and easy (which of course would explain why there are so many poor drivers in this state). On a side note, it's more expensive and more difficult to get a driver's license in New York state - where I got mine from years ago.

We've decided to get an International Driver's Permit (IDP), take our Florida licenses with us, and pray to the Brasilia DETRAN gods that getting a Brazilian driver's license will be relatively painless to get. [For the application to apply for the IDP, click here. The AAA is supposed to be the only legal organization that issues the IDP, or the IADP, for those who will be driving in Central and South America.]

These are the "little things" (among others) that I can't forget to take care of here, if I want to make our lives easier, maybe even while putting money into our pockets - or at least prevent us from having to spend more once we arrive in Brasilia.

Two Week Notice

Although I've known since the first weekend in December that I had the job in Brasilia, I decided it best not to tell my employer. I had a number of reasons for not saying anything, and I'm glad that I kept my mouth shut. In fact, I only confided in two of my fellow teachers who I knew I could trust.

Well, it's now been 3.5 months and the end of the school year is close upon us and I felt like it was the time to notify my bosses. I scheduled a meeting with them this week and although only one could make it, I let her know. This is my supervisor who I respect and have enjoyed working with this school year. In response to my news, she hugged me, told me she'd cry when I leave (and I've only been working there since August!!), and wished me luck. My "bigger" boss, the one who hired me, didn't react in the same way; it seemed like he took it personally, but he did offer to be a reference in the future so that was cool. And of course he also wished me well.

My two week notice, if you will, was given on Monday in person, by word of mouth. Today I received my letter of intent in my mailbox - like all of the other teachers. So I have now put in writing that I am resigning before the 2011-2012 school year. Feels good. Best decision I've made in years. However, I will miss the WONDERFUL, professional, supportive co-workers that I work with. But as we know, all good things must come to an end.