American Wusses.

One thing I have learned by watching The New American Gladiators (it was accident, I swear!) is that Americans are a bunch of pansies. Not a single contender -- or "gladiator" has anything on a Ninja Warrior.

I know it's harder than it looks, but the stuff on Ninja Warrior looks really hard. None of this running up a conveyor belt with the aid of a rope. In Japan, you must run against the conveyor belt using your own stamina and strength!

Of course, I also would have difficulty doing much of anything requiring physical exertion so...

Back from the Beach.

And we're back! We actually got back last night after a pretty smooth flight -- no delays, no cancellations. We even got to sit behind Jimmy Fallon and his new wife! I presume they were just getting back from their wedding in the Caribbean. They were very lovey and adorable and now I look upon Mr. Fallon more favorably and can forgive the fact that he tends to laugh during every SNL skit.

As always, the Bahamas did not disappoint. It was gorgeous -- of course -- and it definitely provided me with the break that I needed. I only did work on one of my days there. The rest of the time was spent swimming, snorkeling, cruising around in the boat, getting tan, reading, and good ol' family fun.



I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday season and have some exciting plans for the New Year.

There is so much to share about the trip, but it's hard to know where to start. I guess I can let the pictures tell the story instead.

Bahamas Ahoy!

I am officially a free woman for the rest of 2007! Tomorrow, Jamie, Scott and I will be taking the flight to Miami and a final destination of the Bahamas. Most excellent. As the first official Holiday Season as a married couple, Jamie and I will be spending the holidays with his side.

I will take tons of pictures. I will say "hello" to our dear friend, Piggybank Telephone Car. And I will definitely be getting some much needed rest and repose. I hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday season among the ones they love. Check back here on the 31st for some pictures and stories...

Whose Cuisine Reigned Supreme?

Yesterday, was Jamie's Iron Chef birthday party. We played host to a group of 14 people (including 6 judges) which officially made it our largest dinner party to date. I think that 14 will pretty much be our limit.

Jamie -- being the birthday boy and all -- was the Iron Chef along with his sous chefs Leah and Dan. I was the challenger with Mollie and Angie. Our secret ingredients were two of Jamie's favorites: goat cheese and chocolate. It was a fight to the death. And no, we didn't have to incorporate both ingredients in all of our dishes.

The Iron Chef's Menu: First Course (Trio of Appetizers)

• Mille Feuille with Two Goat Cheeses
• Phyllo Knots with Spinach and Goat Cheese
• Mushrooms Stuffed with Goat Cheese

The Challenger's Menu: First Course (Trio of Appetizers)

• Chocolate Stout Ale - sure we didn't brew our own beer, but clever nonetheless
• Pizzettes with Caramelized Onions and Goat Cheese (and homemade dough)
  
• Crispy Potato Slices with Garlic and Herb Goat Cheese

The Pizzettes before going into the oven...

The Iron Chef's Menu: Second Course

• Goat Cheese-Stuffed Chocolate Ravioli with Red Pepper Sauce

The Challenger's Menu: Second Course

• Apple and Walnut Salad with Goat Cheese
• Agnolotti with a Sweet Pea and Goat Cheese Filling

It should be noted at this point that our agnolotti had character. It is hard to roll your own pasta when you have never ever done it before.

Iron Chef's Menu: Final Course

• Goat Cheese Tiramisu with Chocolate Lady Fingers and Homemade "Chocolate Waves"

The Challenger's Menu: Final Course (a quartet of desserts - we are all bakers after all)

• Goat Cheese Cheescake with a Chocolate Sauce and Caramel Doodad
• Chocolate Volcano Babycakes with Brandy Whipped Cream
• Homemade Chocolate Goat Cheese Truffles
• Hot Chocolate

The Goat Cheesecake Birthday Cake.

Whose cuisine reigned supreme??

The Challengers! Despite the Iron Chef team's originality and ability to incorporate both ingredients in all of the dishes (although, it was just a dusting of cocoa powder in some -- ahem), we took it on taste. Just barely.

Poor, poor Iron Chef. Losing on his own non-birthday.

The party was awesome and I had a blast with Mollie and Angie. Despite time-pressure and minor mishaps, we were having giggle-fits pretty much the entire time. Sure we may have set the fire alarm off once, lost an egg to the cold, hard, ground, and had a cheesecake casualty. It was all in good fun. Besides, I heard there was a chocolate explosion on the Iron Chef's kitchen wall.


We also learned a valuable lesson: when selecting a secret ingredient, do not choose one that is uber-expensive. Next time, we're doing potatoes. I also learned that I need to get one of those new cameras with a food setting. Because none of the pictures of our food really came out. Sadness.

Another Junior.

A bunch has happened, and I plan on updating the masses soon, but I wanted to share this little thing that happened at school today. I got bitten by a Kindergartner. While this, of course, is an area for concern in and of itself -- what with the various unpleasant infections that could follow -- I would like to focus on WHO bit me. (And before you comment, yes, I did get it checked by a doctor and have taken the necessary blood tests and vaccines).

His name is James Long Jr. Ever since I found out about the existence of little James, I was predisposed to like him, despite all of the horror stories. It should be noted that I have never had a James in my class that did not prove to be the most difficult challenge of the year...in fact, I made a point of not including the one James in 2nd grade on my class roster. Good thing, too, because he turned out to be so difficult he had to be transferred out of our school within a month.

ANYWAY. This James is in kindergarten and was climbing the fence during recess. He had made it halfway up the fence and there being nothing but a long fall on the other side, I immediately demanded that he get down. Of course, he did not like it when I pulled him down and he bit my finger. Luckily my nail prevented any serious damage.

But! James Long Jr.! I know that both James and Long are very common names, but are the chances that we would have a James Long Jr. when the normal names around here are Redeemed and Pristine? Sadly the Junior could use some lessons from my James Long on how to treat me nicely...

Holiday Redux.

I have been meaning to post about the various holidays we've been having, but have been pretty overwhelmed with other things. Before I get back to work today though, I thought I would take the time to post some pictures that I've been holding onto. Here's one of our pumpkin from Halloween...


...looking at the picture now, I see that it is definitely reminiscent of Strong Bad from the future.

Thanksgiving was a blast! We had Scott over and a couple of Jamie's other friends from Law School. All in all, our biggest Thanksgiving group yet! My new endeavor for the year was brining my turkey.


Having heard only good things about the results, I thought it would be worth the trouble. I'm telling you now, it is worth it. I will be brining my turkey for years to come and just messing around with the flavoring because that was one seriously moist turkey. Despite a roasting setback -- I thought the oven was on for two hours when, in fact, it was not -- the turkey was still juicy.

Jamie made some yummy curried butternut squash with a cilantro yogurt sauce, and of course we had the sweet potatoes, some green beans and shallots, buttermilk biscuits, and stuffing. Dessert was pumpkin pie with a homemade crust and an apple toffee cake. Pretty delish. And, having no Thanksgiving decor pieces, we threw together a centerpiece using various fall foods. I thought it came out festive-looking...


Since Thanksgiving we have discovered the XM radio has five temporary channels dedicated to Christmas music and it has been putting me in the mood for some serious Christmas mirth. Consequently, Jamie and I went to get our first Christmas tree! Artificial, of course (don't worry, dad!). So while it lacks the yummy smell, I think it will be a little safer from our cats.

Although, it looks as though Junior is a little scared of the tree for now (but notice it's reflection in her eyes...) and is more interested in its box.

Scene from the Supermarket.

As a result of having to stay at work past 8pm (the day before a holiday break mind you), Man Boo and I didn't get around to our supermarket shopping until around 10pm. I have decided that this is going to be my new favorite time to go grocery shopping as there are not even crowds there in the days before Thanksgiving. Awesome.

What was potentially even more awesome was this mini-scene from the checkout line. Man Boo had to return some overpriced cereal (I swear it said 4 for $10!) so he went back into the checkout when a little blonde in some short short short (!) running shorts came up next to him.

Running Blonde: [checks Jamie out from top to bottom]
Me: [sensing awesomeness pretends to not be with Jamie and "searches" for someone else in the crowd]
Man Boo: [clueless]
RB: [looks at register] $6.50 for a box a cereal!
MB: I know.
RB: [flirty voice] That's crazy. How expensive were the other cereals?? [bats eyelashes]
MB: [not noticing the flirtitude] I don't know.
RB: [clearly trying to find a way to continue conversation -- perhaps regretting the cereal question]
MB: [oblivious]

This continued, but my cover was busted when Man Boo put something in my cart and I was annoyed that the potential for awesomeness was not realized. Later, as we walked to the car:

M: You know that little blonde was flirting with you! I wanted to see what would happened but you spoiled it!
MB: She was not flirting with me. She just thought the cereal was expensive.
M: She was flirting with you.
MB: No she wasn't. You're weird.

[five minutes later]

MB: [excitedly] Wait a minute. She WAS flirting with me!!!

Most of the time, I feel so fortunate that I found Jamie before someone else could. Very rarely, do I feel like he is fortunate too because he would be so clueless on the dating scene. But, this was one of those moments.

Disturbing.

This has to be quick because I'm running a bath right now, but here is a note that I intercepted from Chawntae:

I Love you you are very sexy! you are my man Boo and I'm have a Bady by You and it is a GIRL [underlined] by your Boo! I Love you! I [heart] U

Despite the fact that this note is very disturbing coming from a 7-year old, "Man Boo" is my new favorite word. Jamie will heretofore be referred to as "Man Boo" on this blog.

Good night.

The Go Ahead.

Finally got the blessing to share the wonderful news...my maid of honor, Abby, just got engaged. ENGAGED! If you knew Abby and her fiance, you'd know that this is a wonderful, beautiful, thing and that this is the best news ever.

So between babies, Bar, and the best ever engagement this has been quite a great weekend.

All-Around Goodness.

So some pretty great things have been happening lately. I have been holding off on sharing much of the great things as they are not really my great things to share. But, people, these are BIG things...and I've gotten the "okay" for most of them now...

FIRST, my wonderful bridesmaid, Eileen, had her baby last Tuesday! A perfect, gorgeous little girl. I finally got to see her today -- I was supposed to last week, but then that whole neck thing happened and I had to reschedule. Here she is in all of her adorable glory...


Never mind that both Jamie and I look sleep-deprived...that is one cute baby. So the birth of Baby Veronica was definitely highlight number one.

Highlight number two from yesterday cannot be shared yet...but check back soon because once I get the "okay" I will be shouting it from the rooftops.

Soon after highlight number two, Jamie and I went to the Opera to see Don Giovanni. During the intermission we learned that JAMIE PASSED THE CALIFORNIA BAR EXAM. So, yes, California and D.C. have yet another lawyer. While I knew all along that he would pass -- it was really great to know for certain that the supercomputer taking care of all the grading didn't crash. It's also a relief to know that all of that studying over the summer paid off...

When we came home after the opera, Jamie set up my new Tivo and it's honestly the most amazing thing. Life is good.

Meant To Be.

The kids today were great. I taught. They learned. So it should have been a good day...except for the fact that a first-grader projectile vomited on me within minutes of the start of the school day. Then there was the fact that it was Picture Day...and I had barf in my shoes.

Thursdays are miserable because I don't have any time away from my kids -- no break, no lunch, no planning period. I didn't go to the bathroom between the hours of 7am and 5pm. So it was a pretty bad day.

Then I got home and was reminded of how lucky and happy I am in other areas of my life. I have a horrible habit of being more excited about giving birthday gifts to Jamie than he is to receive them. When I have what I think is an especially good one, I can't even wait until December. That was the case for this year when I got him this:

It's XM Radio! How much would Jamie like XM Radio?? A LOT. So I was very excited to get it to him -- especially since I thought of it right after his last birthday. That is a full year of waiting, people. So he got it on Tuesday (I'm lame, I know). So, as Jamie and I wallowed in the greatness of this gift, I jokingly told him that he should buy me my equivalent...Tivo. He scoffed.

But inside, he cringed because he had already bought me my birthday present which was this...



It's a TIVO! Jamie assures me that the only reason he gave it to me early was because he didn't want me to think that he bought it as a result of our conversation. So once again, I read his mind (the last time being when he was going to propose to me).

Jamie and I are so in synch. It's almost like the time we both bought each other picnic baskets for our anniversary. Except this is more awesome because -- honestly -- TIVO!

The day is less sucky now. Hooray.

Neck Pains.

Sorry for the long hiatus. Again.

This weekend was a glorious long weekend because of Veteran's Day yesterday. Sadly, I didn't get to enjoy too much of it.

Friday morning as I was getting ready for work my neck decided to spaz out. Literally. My neck made a LOUD crack noise and then I could no longer move my head in any direction. It was painful. After some crying and much stressing over how late I would be, Jamie finally called the boss and let her know that I would be calling in my first sick day.

Eventually I made it to the doctor's office and sat in that waiting room for a couple hours. Only to be told that I needed to get to the emergency room for some x-rays. After several more hours in the emergency room, an IV full of painkillers, and a few x-rays later they deduced that I had a muscle spasm. Apparently, all the stress from work has made me incredibly tense in my shoulders and neck. So much so that my vertebrae is absolutely straight (not normal), rather than curved (normal). Sadness.

But, I quickly learned that sitting in the emergency room can be wildly entertaining -- that is, after they have given you the necessary painkillers. While I know the curtain separations are more of a space-saving/flexible module thing, it also allows for some great eavesdropping. Excellent.

The rest of my weekend sped by as I puttered around with my neck brace and heating pad. We hosted a yummy brunch for Jamie's singing group (Lawcapella -- *sigh*). I made homemade bagels and cinnamon buns and we had lox, fruit, and eggs and then I got treated to a free concert as the group rehearsed.

Okay. Now my shoulders are dying. Time for a bath.

I promise, I'll actually write about interesting stuff soon.

Because Jamie'd Appreciate It.

Keep on it until the very end. I have not watched SNL in a very, very long time.

4 Minutes and 36 Seconds.

That was the length of the phone call I just received. And that was all of the time it took to erase all of the trepidation, exhaustion, and regret of the past 3+ years of teaching.

Dre'Kwon's mother called me to thank me for changing his life.

You may remember Dre'Kwon from here or here. Needless to say he is a character and was easily one of my more challenging and exciting students. Anyway, Dre'Kwon's mother told me that when he was held back in third grade two years ago, she was certain he would end up in jail. He had been involved in fights, had failed all of his academic subjects, and had been suspended too many times to count. Then he was in my class and all that changed (albeit, not immediately) and she told me that now he's an honor student.

She had gotten a letter in the mail at the beginning of the school year, saying that Dre'Kwon had gotten top scores on the MSA (the big standardized test). She told me she got a letter today that said that Dre'Kwon is now categorically "gifted" after further testing. She told me that I believed in him before even she did and that she would never make that mistake again.

When I spoke to Dre'Kwon he told me the first person he thought of when he saw the letter was me. Then he started to cry. And then I couldn't stop crying. (I still haven't).

At the end of our conversation, Dre'Kwon's mother told me that I not only made him a better student, but had made her a better mother. She actually said "you was the best teacher he ever had. And, you was the best teacher I ever had."

Seriously. I'm a wreck right now.

Maybe I'm a Little Tired...

...but I laughed and laughed when I saw this.

There is nothing better than Japanese T.V.

And now, for a little snippet of dialogue from today...

Joevontae: Halloween is my favorite part of the year! It's even better than my birthday!

Class: [sounds of agreement]

Christopher: [moodily pouting]

Mrs. Long: What's wrong, Christopher? You don't like Halloween?

C: No!

Mrs. L: That's okay, but why not?

C: Because I do all the work but my dad eats all of my candy.

Probably true and sad -- in a hilarious way. When I told this story to Jamie, he rubbed his hands together in preemptive glee at being able to raid his unborn child's candy sack...

Weekend Round-Up

Last weekend, Jamie and I made the trip up to the Big Apple. While we were there for less than 24 hours, we got to see a lot of people and have a lot of fun. We went up for a wedding -- which awesomely took place on a farm in the middle of Queens. Seriously. How awesome is that?




















The wedding was beautiful and I may have cried during the ceremony. Just maybe. And of course it was great to see some of our old friends...


In an effort to save some cash, Jamie and I looked for a cheap motel somewhere near the wedding site. Of course, we neglected to consider that that would mean the motel would be located in Queens, NY. QUEENS of Coming to America fame. I didn't think of this until just before we arrived in NY, at which point Jess assured me that Queens was a big, big place.

She was right. And our motel was adjacent to the Police Station -- which could be a good or a bad thing.

The next morning Jamie and I got up bright and early [give stink-eye to Jamie] to make the trip into Brooklyn to meet some friends for brunch. Despite the fact that we had planned our brunch for 11am, Jamie made sure we left our motel at 9:15am "just in case there's traffic". Sure enough, we were in Park Slopes at 9:40am. So we wandered around and took in the sights.

Sadly, I used up the battery in my camera before meeting up with Jess and Anne Louise so I don't have any pictures of that part of the trip...but it happened! Really! And we ate a delicious breakfast with bottomless mimosas! So great.

We had to return to reality and it was back to work. Today was especially eventful because I had my very first annual throw up. It could have been worse. Poor Cornelius had been complaining of a headache all morning, but managed to do all of his work despite clear discomfort. I was proud of him. As he had not complained of any stomach discomfort, I didn't think twice as he delved into his lunch. I was happy to see him feeling better during recess and running around. Then, during our science "exploration" he worked well with his team as they investigated air bubbles. It wasn't until we had passed in all of our materials that he unleashed the most vomit I have ever seen come out a 7 year old. Ever.

Poor Neal. Still, he managed it like a champ: ignoring the other kids' exclamations of disgust, somehow avoiding getting anything on his clothes, and not even shedding one tear. It was truly the very best situation that could have possibly been. The class was on the empty playground doing an experiment that involved basins of water (good for floor cleanup), paper towels, and none of my classroom or carpet.

Let's hope that will be the last of these.

The Month That Was.

Oh goodness. I've been bad about updating lately. And it's not that I don't have fun things to share with you all -- I really do! It's more about the lack of time and the fact that I have been doing most of my work from my "work" computer and therefore do not have access to my digital pictures. Sorry friend(s).

Work has been hectic and I am definitely feeling overworked and underpaid -- the resting state for most public school educators. Still, I'm hoping that I will see some real growth from my students this year.

But I'll post about them later.

Instead, I want to talk about the shining beacon of light in each of my weeks...the weekend. A few weekends ago (I know, so bad that I am just NOW posting about it) I got to see my lovely friends Abby and Samir in Cleveland. Despite the fact that it took us a good long time to get there by car, our gracious hosts made good use of every minute of our stay and we got to see a lot. We even got to eat some uber-tasty food at Momocho (which, Abby and Samir, is categorically "Modern Mexico" food).


















The weekend after, Jamie and I braved a backpacking trip on Assateague Island. Which kicked my ass (a-teague). While Jamie had assured me it would be a flat, easy hike, neither he nor I knew that it was actually a flat, "easy" hike on sand. Friends, sand is not easy to hike on. Not with hiking boots and a heavy backpack. To make matters worse, it was a beach that people could drive to with their OTVs so there were enough people frolicking in the surf with their Diet Cokes and puppies to make me hate my life a little.

BUT, as we hiked we got further away from the crowds, and we eventually found a place on the bay that was very nice -- if not infested with the largest mosquitoes ever. We got to make a campfire and sleep under the stars in our new tent. It was quite beautiful.

And! There were wild horses meandering around! Sure they liked to stay by the car-camping sites and not so much in the backcountry, but we got to see a few. In the end, the miles and miles hiked on sand was worth it.

Last weekend we had the last BBQ of the year before the weather changed. Which it did, sort of...and this upcoming weekend, Jamie and I are scooting to New York for a wedding and to see some of our old friends. Cannot. Wait. I will try to be much better about posting in upcoming weeks.

To conclude, I would like to share with you a video for some new "you tube" baby that I am actually sort of in love with. Her name is Marie Digby.

Maybe it's because she's of mixed Japanese descent (like me!), or maybe it's because she's from the San Fernando Valley (like me!). Or, maybe I just like that she is able to take ultra-poppy songs and play them with actual talent. There is something slightly hilarious about an acoustic version of Britney Spears' "Gimme More". And yes, she write her own songs too, but I wanted to really hit home the poppiness.

Scrabble Queen.

As a testament to a woman's ability to multitask, I have always found that I am much more productive when it comes to lesson-planning when I am watching something. Today, I watched a few episodes of Felicity and finished up all of my lesson plans for the week of the 24th by 3pm. This left me relatively free for the rest of the afternoon.

As it was a glorious day outside, Jamie and I opted to walk to the park and play Scrabble. Amid the many, many children riding around on bikes with training wheels (which are different from tricycles as Jamie pointed out) and dogs running around playing with stuff. Seeing all the kids running around and people with dogs made me feel less old -- which is a blessing since I've felt really old ever since getting married.

After I kicked some tail in Scrabble, Jamie had to buy me dinner so we went to Cuban Food.

All in all: it was a good Sunday afternoon.

Good Intentions.

So I was very excited that this might be the first Saturday in over a month when I wouldn't have to go to school/work. I got all of my copies done and my classroom ready for Monday. I wake up bright and early this morning, have my breakfast, read my news...at 9am, sharp, I'm ready to start planning and...

I forgot my freaking Teacher's Manuals at school.

I had assumed they were in my bag because I had every single other book in my bag. But no. They are sitting at school. I called to see if anyone was at the building, and no. There is the possibility that some construction people may be there this afternoon so I am going to have to stake out the building. On my used-to-be-free Saturday.

In the meantime, I will work on the progress reports for my students...the ones that are due on Monday after 11 days of teaching. This school is hard core.

Burning Question.

I promise I will stop posting videos soon -- but Jason's comment reminded me of a question I had been wanting to pose for a while. Since Jamie and I don't have fancy cable, the only access we have to Flight of the Conchords is what they give us on YouTube.

I don't know what the premise of the show is -- but I gather that it is a random assortment of music videos strung together loosely by some vague storyline. While I am a fan of pretty much every song, the following two are my favorites. (I know these videos are nothing new, but you know you want to watch them anyway because they are always funny).

I cannot decide on which I like more, though...opinions?

And of course, the classic:

Okay. Done with the videos for a while. I promise. Unless there is a gem.