7 month mark

Don’t think that the lack of recent bloggage means that nothing is up. Au contrary, mi friend.
At school, we started using a schedule I’ve made. However, from day one, things like “oh, we changed his class…he left the school…can you see this person and these people…this parent is here…” have popped up. All day. So, while the schedule was a good guide, I’m making another one, and have a feeling it’s something I will have to revise every other week. But that’s okay, because where there’s a schedule, there’s organization. Right?
I’m not sure if anyone is learning anything so far, which is very frustrating. I can say, though, that the students seem to really enjoy coming to my classes/tutoring, and that they’re very enthusiastic about learning while I’m staring at them with my patient smile and laughable American accent.
I started a conflict resolution group with some of the more rambunctious children. Evidently that is not something one with a non-thorough grasp of the language should undertake, unless she wants chaos. Like, fighting before the kids even walk in her office. Luckily, chaos is my middle name. Oh wait…no it’s not… so I’m putting that particular group on hold. That is good for 2 reasons: more time to tutor (we’re talking lots and lots of kids here who don’t know how to read and should), plus I’m thinking of pairing this particular group with a bunch of sciency-engineering activities. You know, to make it educational and fun and interesting. And who doesn’t love science? Plus plus, they don’t really have science here (science class: today it is….”raining!”…good. Who are the fathers of our country?...)
The book club I’ve started on the weekends is a lot of fun, and the kids seem to enjoy themselves. I’m thinking of starting a schoolwide reading program (like the accelerated reader program) where kids get to read books and take tests to earn points and win prizes. Reading here isn’t big (at all) in part because books are expensive. But not because it’s not fun (book club is proof of that). We’ll see how that turns out. All I have to do is acquire books, prizes, write tests, and get the teachers and students on board. Facil. A piece of biscocho.
Also, in other news, I have recruited a few people to help me with the children, which means we can tutor more at one time. This is week one of that particular experiment, so keep your fingers crossed.
Outside of school and book club, life is plodding along. Like an elephant, you could say. My cat, Denny, is great, except when it’s 5 in the morning and he’s scratching my door until it opens so that he can jump on my mosquitero and proceed to attack me until I give him whatever he wants (usually food but sometimes just getting up and kicking him out seems to make him happy). I can understand his former owner’s nickname for him… “diablo”…but besides that he’s great. He plays well with the neighborhood kids who are always hanging around, and he purrs whenever I pet him, which makes me happy. If I’ve managed to help nobody here, at least I’ve made a cat content. Right?
Of my neighbors, there are some nice ones and there are some loud ones, and there are lots of fun children. Here in the DR, the concepts of “privacy” and “alone time” don’t really exist, so sometimes the kiddies follow me home from school and then wait for me by my door. But sometimes I say “I need to be by myself. Remember, I’m a crazy American” and they nod their head in a serious, solemn way and let me be. Good kids.
Finally, you all know how, around hurricane season (Floridians know this) the fire marshals always say “do NOT light candles, they’re a fire hazard.” Well, here in the dr, we don’t have fire marshals, or good electricity, so I have taken to lighting candles. You know, so I can see. Turns out, lighting a candle and then leaving the room and then thinking “wow, my candle is really powerful” actually means that my candle fell over and I lost a chair cushion and a chair in the blaze of march 2010. Oops.
So, without further ado, the thing that I do best:
Ode to the fallen chair
Hard and sturdy, you were not
Your wood was soft and wormy
Nice too look at…not that either
Your cushion was worn and you were ugly
A place to sit….that you provided….and for that, my toosh is indebted
So from my toosh, and from the neighborhood tooshes as well, so long.
Your end was far more glorious than your life.

Live long and prosper…
-alicia
Ps still no visit from sisters to report, but I here that’s in the making. Did get visit with Tio Feli and Tia Patti, and that was lovely.
Pps and also got to visit with Maria T and family, and that was also lovely.