The Interview

I'm exhausted tonight and not feeling super inspired to write (it was a long day and I am still on East Coast time), but I figured I owed it to everyone to update you on my interview today. It went really well and I got a good vibe about the whole place. The school is absolutely gorgeous and reminds me a lot of our campus in Peru - everything is outdoors in terms of moving between classes. The band room is a bit small and dated, but it has good storage and is plenty of space for the program as it is now. Everyone I met with was incredibly nice and seemed very impressed with my resume, which always makes me feel good. It was a long day (8-4) and I met with a bunch of different people and seemed to answer a lot of the same questions. I got to teach 2 classes (Hs advanced jazz band and MS concert band) and they went pretty well. Overall I could definitely see myself teaching at this school and being pretty happy. There are parts of the program that are frustrating: small enrollment in band and orchestra, with more emphasis on jazz, and scheduling conflicts that prevent kids from taking band. But these are fairly typical issues and I do feel like there is a lot of support and desire to grow the program, so if I stay for a while, there is the potential for a lot of great things.

I had a few hours of daylight after my interview, so I wandered around the area of Oakland where I am staying. I had every intention of getting into San Francisco, but I was so tired after the marathon day of interviewing that it just didn't happen. Instead I had a nice walk along the water in Oakland and enjoyed the sights. Plus I had Indian food for dinner, which always makes me very happy. This is the view from the back of my hotel and it is gorgeous. Today was perfect - low 70s and not a cloud in the sky. I could truly stay here forever. I wish I didn't have to leave at the crack of dawn to go back to chilly NH.

All and all, it was a wonderful short trip to Oakland and I am so glad I had the opportunity to come. As I told my new best friend, the guy down at the hotel desk, I'm not even that upset with myself for not getting into San Francisco, since hopefully I'll be moving here in a few months and will have plenty of time to explore and experience the area. :) Keep your fingers crossed!!

California

Okay, I think I'm in love with California already and I've only been here an hour. I decided it was best to do a running update about this trip, as opposed to one big blog update at the end. Plus, great things have happened already that I want to share with you!

My travel today started out a bit rough, but ended up fine. I arrived in Manchester in plenty of time for my 10am flight, which turned into an 11:30am flight due to snow in Chicago. For a while they were worried we weren't going to go at all, since no flights were arriving or leaving Chicago at that point. They had boarded us, thinking we would go, then got word that nothing was coming in or out, so we sat on the plane for an hour or so. Luckily I had a good book and they turned off the AC on the plane so I wasn't freezing. And I had a few hours before my connection in Chicago, so I was hopeful it would all work out.

I got to Chicago with plenty of time to make my initial connection, which, of course, was delayed, along with every other flight in Chicago this afternoon. But while I was waiting for my flight, the snow stopped and the sun came out. Plus I found a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch, so I was happy. My flight left an hour and a half later than it was suppose to, which put me into Oakland at 6:45 tonight. I didn't realize the flight from Chicago to Oakland was over 4 hours - California is far!!!

I arrived in Oakland to a clear, beautiful sky and bright sunshine, then got to watch the sunset as I drove to the hotel. The driving was much less traumatic than I expected it to be (I'm sure the fact that it is a Sunday night was helpful), but I still had some direction issues. I really hope I can find the school tomorrow! But I got to my hotel after a little trial and error and fell in love with it immediately. It is right across from Jack London Square, which is, apparently, the tourist center of Oakland. The square is right on the water and there are lots of restaurants and shops that I'm looking forward to checking out tomorrow afternoon. The hotel is beautiful and the people here are incredibly nice! The guy at the front desk was one of the friendliest people I've met - he asked if I'd ever been to Oakland before and when I told him that it was my first time in CA, he was very excited. I got up to my room and fell in love with it immediately. It is super fun and I wish I could just stay here forever (I love hotels).

I started unpacking (I need to iron my interview clothes for tomorrow) and was poking around when there was a knock on my door. It was the doorman from the hotel who had brought in my luggage and taken care of my car and look what he brought me! He said he and the front desk guy just wanted to welcome me to Oakland and wish me luck on my interview. They wrote a nice note and brought snacks and printed out a list of interview dos and donts and a list of foods that help your brain. Very sweet! Seriously, the last 15 minutes has been the best experience I've ever had with a hotel.

Hopefully all of this bodes well for my interview tomorrow...

Quilting

I've discovered a true love of quilting in the past few weeks. I made my first full-size quilt at Christmas for my goddaughter and it came out well. I've since realized that making smaller quilts is much faster and more enjoyable (I'm definitely an instant gratification kind of girl). My friend Kirstin in Berlin is about to have her first baby, so I thought she needed a baby quilt. I saw this flannel giraffe fabric when I was still living up in Maine and just couldn't resist it. I thought it was adorable and looked so cute with the green polka dot fabric. This quilt came together really quickly and I think it turned out great. I hope it keeps Kristin and William's baby cozy and warm.

My second small quilt is for Jean. Her hospital room is pretty bland and needed a little spicing up. I saw this fabric last week and immediately loved it. It will add some nice color and excitement to Jean's room and is made with lots of love to protect and heal her. I can't wait to bring it to her this afternoon. And after I go to the hospital I'm going to JoAnn Fabrics to buy fabric for my next project. You'll have to check back to see what it is!

The Past Few Weeks

I've been neglecting my blog recently, but life has just been too busy and overwhelming to sit down and actually write about it. The biggest thing in the last few weeks has been the illness of my dearest friend Jean. I've been debating about what to write here concerning Jean and her illness - I want to respect her privacy, but I also want people to be thinking about her and praying for her. My beautiful, amazing, wonderful, soul-mate of a friend was diagnosed with leukemia 12 days ago and is currently in the hospital going through chemo. It was an overwhelming shock to all of us and I am still trying to come to terms with it. Her prognosis is good, but the process of going through chemo is horrible and she needs all the prayers and positive thoughts she can get. Please send lots of love her way.

Reg's 40th Birthday

Sarah threw her husband Reg a surprise 40th birthday party last night and it was a great success. His birthday was a month ago, so he didn't have a clue the party was happening. Here is the birthday cake from Jacques - their dogs Annabelle and Bentley are pictured on the cake and the black dog next to the cake is suppose to represent Jake, their new dog they got a week ago. And look at the picture of Reg when he was younger. Sarah put up tons of pictures of Reg at all different ages, which was really fun.

Here is the birthday boy walking into the hall. His expression was priceless! He was truly surprised - no faking it there. Sarah did a great job of keeping it a secret and making sure he had no clue. Reg isn't the easiest person to pull something over on, so I know she is very pleased she pulled it off. You could see her visibly relax when he walked in the room - no more having to lie or stress about the party. She did a great job!!

Reg seemed to really enjoy his party. Sarah had invited people from all the different parts of his life - childhood friends, friends he had played in bands with, his friend Steve who got him his job with Ani and was best man at the wedding, all the family, and then random friends like me. :) There was a live band and we had a great time dancing up a storm. Reg even got out on the dance floor at the end of the night!

Christel and Faith

I was in Epping on Wednesday and I got to spend a couple of hours with Stacey, Christel and Faith. I hadn't seen them since Christmas (!!) and Faith has gotten so big. She is very animated and completely enthralled with everything her big sister does. Christel was her usual funny self and she kept me entertained for my entire visit. It was impossible to get a picture of the two of them where they were both looking at the camera and smiling, but this one is still pretty cute!

Girls Weekend in Boston

Sarah and I spent a girls weekend in Boston and it was great! Both of us were very happy to get away for a few days and be in the city. We used to go to Boston at least once a year before I moved overseas, so it was fun to start up our tradition again. No matter how many times I've been to Boston, it is always great to go back and spend more time there. I'm definitely a city girl!!

Our weekends in Boston are usually filled with shopping, sight seeing, and drinking wine and this weekend was no different. The bar in our hotel was great and we spent some quality time there. Here we are when we returned to the bar after going out to dinner (we had already been at the bar for pre-dinner drinks too). We also went to a great piano bar and listened to this woman sing show tunes, which was super fun.

Before we left on Sunday, we stopped by Fanueil Hall to have lunch at Wagamama, my favorite noodle restaurant. I first ate at a Wagamama in Amsterdam and loved it! I thought they were only in Europe, so I was very excited when they opened two in Boston in the last couple of years. It is very yummy and it always makes me so happy to eat there!

Sunapee

I realized I haven't taken many pictures of Sunapee so all of you can see where I am living now. It isn't nearly as exciting as Berlin or Lima, but it is still a nice place to live. Here is a shot of the harbor at Sunapee Lake. Everything is closed up for the winter, but I'm looking forward to spring when there is a little more going on around here.

My friend Karen came to visit at the beginning of the week and we took a walk through the harbor and around part of the lake. It was a beautiful sunny day and it was nice to be outside and to show Karen the "sights" of Sunapee.

The three story building up on the hill is my apartment building. I'm really happy living here and the building is in a great location. I'm right up the hill from the harbor, so it will be nice to walk around in the spring and summer. Spring is coming, right??? :)

Newport Winter Carnival

Winter Carnival in Newport is quite a big deal. This is the 93rd year of the Winter Carnival and according to people in Newport, it is the longest running winter carnival in New England. There is a full week of events, including snow sculptures, sports, town suppers, the Winter Queen pageant, and a parade. The sculptures in the town common are pretty impressive - on this one people can slide down the back of the alligator.

My students had to play for the parade, but instead of marching in the parade (don't ask - for some reason the previous band director didn't have them march) we set up on the Common and played as the parade marched by. It actually worked out really well - we got to entertain the crowd on the Common before the parade started and everyone was very appreciative. It was incredibly cold (don't let the sunshine fool you) and windy and my kids weren't super impressed to be out there, but they did a good job and were good sports.

The whole event was actually a lot more fun than I expected. I had forgotten how nice it is to be involved in town events - that was something I missed when I taught overseas. It is always good to get out in the community and for people to see the great things the kids do. And spending time with the kids at something like this is fun. A couple of my kids were super sweet and brought me a strawberry and whipped cream covered Belgian waffle - they had met before the parade for breakfast at a local restaurant and when they were telling me about their plans for breakfast earlier this week I told them how much I loved Belgian waffles. It was such a nice surprise to see them bearing this gift for me and they looked so pleased with themselves for their good idea.

Job Fair = Friends

The job fair I attended last weekend in Boston ended up being a bust. I only had two interviews and both were for choral jobs I wasn't interested in at all. The day was a huge waste of time and it was disappointing not to have it be more successful. I'm not completely discouraged yet - my associate says it is still early in the private school job search process and I actually got two referrals on Monday for instrumental jobs that I am interested in - one in NYC and one in Oakland, CA. I'm still optimistic that I'll find the right job for me for next year.

The best part of the job fair weekend was that I got to see a lot of friends in Boston. I stayed with Rosemary, which is always great. She made me homemade mac and cheese and we made smores in the fireplace and it was just great to hang out with her. The job fair I attended was also the same weekend as the international job fair in Boston that I have attended in the past and that friends of mine go to. Since there were no jobs for me to interview for at my fair on Saturday, I headed over to the other fair to meet up with friends from Peru. I had lunch with Terie and Kelani and heard about Terie's potential new jobs (she decided on Istanbul, which is very exciting). It was so great to see Terie and catch up with her. I also got to see Philip, my principal from Lima. He and his family are moving to Thailand next year. I miss working for Philip - he was a great, supportive administrator for me and I would love to work for him again. It was so good to see him.

I rounded out my weekend of catching up with friends by meeting David, Deb and Isabel for breakfast in Exeter on Sunday morning. They are friends from Lima, but Deb is originally from NH so I get to see them when they are home, which is great. It is always so good to see them and to see how much Isabel has grown. They are headed off to Zambia next year, so I am saving my money for a trip to Africa at some point while they are there.

All and all it was a good weekend. Seeing friends I haven't seen in a long time definitely made up for the lousy job fair.

"You're wild!!"

I spent last weekend visiting Nicole and her daughter Sierra. I hadn't seen them in what seems like a long time - maybe last spring when I first got back from Peru? Sierra is 9 months old and has grown and changed so much since I last saw her. She is adorable and super fun!! It took her a little while to warm up to me, but once she did I was rewarded with lots of beautiful smiles.

Nicole's husband Joshua was away for the day on Saturday, so we had a nice girls day - grocery shopping, playing with toys, reading books. Sierra LOVES to read books and listens intently when she is read to. She is a girl after my own heart!

Nicole and I have been dedicated fans of "Dirty Dancing" since the weekend in 7th grade when we saw it for the first time, and watched it probably 10 times in the course of 2 days. Yes, we've been watching this movie for 20 years! We've often watched it when we are together and we both can quote nearly the entire movie word for word. I found this "Dirty Dancing" trivia game and I couldn't resist getting it for Nicole. We played it over and over again and loved it!! It was so fun and we had a great time answering the questions and acting out the scenes and dances. And then, of course, we had to watch the movie. We decided we will show the movie to Sierra when she is in 7th grade so she can enjoy it as much as we do.

A New Day Has Dawned

What an amazing day! I luckily didn't have to teach at noon, so Christine (the choir teacher) and I headed to the school library to watch the inauguration. I have never been so excited! Watching Barack Obama be sworn in as President of the United States was an incredible moment, one I will remember for the rest of my life. It was inspiring, moving, and hopeful. A new day has dawned for our country and I am looking forward to what our future together will bring. Hope and change are good things!

A Good Weekend

I knew I would enjoying living back in NH, but this weekend was the epitome of how great it is to be here again. I spent the weekend seeing friends and family and it was great!! Friday night I was invited to dinner at the McNallys - Mary and I went to high school together and we've kept in email touch the last few years, but haven't seen each other since our 10 year high school reunion in 2004. I had never met Mary's husband Matt and her kids Emma and Ian and it was great to get to know them and put personalities with the pictures I had seen from Mary's updates. It was a great evening - yummy food (Matt made an amazing tofu/peanut sauce/asparagus dish), good wine, and great company. It was so nice to catch up with Mary and we marveled at the fact that we are both living in Sunapee. A guy we went to high school with lives here too, so it is amazing to me that three kids from Epping ended up in Sunapee, of all places! Thanks to Mary and Matt and the kids for a great night - I look forward to hanging out with you guys again soon!

Saturday was Eloise's 3rd birthday and I headed up to camp to celebrate with the Moore/Fairbairn clan. It is always great to be with them and Eloise was very happy with her birthday party. Here she is checking out the cute Webkinz I got her - yes, I'm up on my popular kids' toys, thanks to the Moore kids. And I'm happy to report that ALL the Moore kids are finally a fan of me. It took Emerson a few years, but I think he is my buddy now. Alex and Eloise have always thought I was pretty fun, but Emerson was never my biggest fan (he didn't love that I would come visit and sleep in his playroom, which meant he had to clean up his Legos). Tides have turned lately and Emerson and I are loving each other a lot more these days. He even told Jean that I was part of the family. I'm in!!!

I rounded out the weekend by meeting my brother for dinner at the Common Man in Concord. Marc and I haven't hung out just the two of us in a while, so it was nice to spend some time together. We caught up on all kinds of things over yummy Common Man food and beer. It was a great way to end a fabulous weekend!

The Countdown Is On

Obama Countdown
created by James Miller

First Day Of School

I survived my first day of school and it went well! I think I might have been a little excited to get started - I woke up at 2am, then again at 4am, and finally jumped out of bed when my alarm went off at 5:45am. I drove to Newport at 6:45 in the ice and pitch darkness and was in my office by 7am. Kids starting trickling in to introduce themselves and check me out - they were really cute about it. And some other teachers popped in to say hi too, which was nice. I had gone to school yesterday to meet the choir teacher - her name is Christine and this is her first year in Newport. She is super nice and answered all my questions yesterday so I actually felt like I was ready to start today. I think she and I are going to work well together and it is nice to have a music colleague again after being the only HS music teacher in Peru.

My classes went well today, for the most part. I really enjoyed the HS band and I know I am going to have a great time with them. We sightread some music and I am anxious to receive the other music that I ordered yesterday (the existing music library is filled with crap that I refuse to subject them, or me, to). The kids were nice and very helpful. The MS band was a bit of another story. I've never been a huge fan of middle school and I think these guys are going to be a challenge. There are some very nice kids in the band and they weren't horrible, but there were a couple of kids who were just crappy. I know it will get better as they get used to me, but I was EXHAUSTED after the MS rehearsal and, of course, it is the last period of the day every day!

All and all it was a good day and I am looking forward to going back tomorrow so that is a good thing! School finishes at 2pm everyday (so early!) so it is nice to have some time in the afternoons that I can spend in my classroom and get things done so I don't have to bring a lot of work home. I love setting up a classroom and getting things organized and it appears that the man I'm replacing wasn't very tidy or organized, so I have lots of work to do!

Thanks for all your good wishes for my first day of school. I appreciate the love and support!

The Year In Photo Review

Here is a recap of 2008, month by month:

New Years Eve

I am so happy to be back in NH! It is great to be so much closer to my friends again and not feel like I am a million miles away. I spent New Years Eve up at Wanakee, visiting with Jean, Mike and the kids. I headed over there pretty early on Wednesday since it was snowing and I didn't want to get stuck alone in Sunapee for the night. We had a chill day and then Lisa and Erin came over later to help us ring in the new year.

Our evening consisted of Trivial Pursuit, Bananagrams, a couple of bottles of wine, and brownie sundaes. What more could you want for a festive New Years Eve?? Here is our picture at midnight, just a few minutes before Erin went home, Jean and Mike went upstairs to bed, Lisa crashed on the living room floor, and I snuggled onto the couch.

I wish you all a wonderful 2009. I am looking forward to a new year and a new chapter of my life!

Newport MS/HS

I spent a few days this week in my new classroom at Newport Middle High School. When I walked into the room on Tuesday, this sign on the board greeted me. I think I am really going to like these kids! :)

The band room is incredibly large and only a year old. I have never seen such a great space and I am really looking forward to getting settled in and start working. I am a bit nervous about starting on Monday morning, but more excited than anything else!

Update

I've been feeling some self-imposed pressure to write posts about the past few weeks and all the holiday fun that has been going on. The idea of documenting everything that has happened seems a bit overwhelming, so I've opted for an abbreviated version. We spent Christmas in NH and it was great to be with family and friends. Our time together at Marc and Megan's house was spent watching Ralph open his gifts, in addition to opening some of our own.

I visited the Bellens on Christmas night and had a good time playing with Christel and holding Faith. Christel was the recipient of the quilt I was working on and while she, at 3 years old, wasn't super impressed with it, Stacey loved it and was very happy to see that her hard working teaching me how to quilt had paid off. I am very pleased with how the quilt turned out and I know Christel will treasure it in years to come. Here were are snuggled underneath the cozy quilt.

All and all, it was a great Christmas with family and friends!

Christmas Festivities

The month of December seems to have flown by! I can't believe we are only 2 days away from Christmas. There is 15 inches of snow on the ground in Corinth, so it definitely looks like Christmas. I've been busy the last few weekends with the usual holiday performances. I finished up my work at Foxcroft Academy with our winter concert on the 13th. It was sad to leave those kids, but they were very sweet to wish me good luck in my new job. I feel very fortunate that I had the chance to work with them and get to know them the past few months.

In addition to performances at FA, the choir at Mom's church had a big performance this past weekend. I've been directing the choir this fall in preparation for their Christmas Cantata. We've had a great time rehearsing every Wednesday night and I've enjoyed getting to know this group of church people better. They did an amazing job on the cantata and it was so fun to stand in front of them and conduct them in their performances this weekend. We all had a great time and I am so thankful to all of them for their energy and commitment. Here is a (bit blurry) photo of me and the choir as we warmed up before the performance on Saturday night. We sang to packed crowds both Saturday night and Sunday morning and it was great! Mom and I also had the choir over to the house for a party after the performance Saturday night, which was very fun. Lots of yummy food and good fellowship!