Movie Review: The Queen

Ok, so apparently I didn't pay any attention to the previews of this British film starring Helen Mirren, because I naively thought it would be about Queen Elizabeth I, - you know, the one who was Queen during Shakespeare's time, the woman after whom the "Elizabethan period" was named, then woman I adore?

Yeah, not so much. It was about Elizabeth II, the current Queen, and the way things went down after Diana's death.

It was interesting. I wouldn't say it was good, or a wonderful film, but it was an interesting look in British politics and the life of the royals. And it once again brought up the question: Why in the world does Britain still have a monarchy? They don't do anything, they have little to no power. The Prime Minister is elected by the people (apparently Tony Blair was elected at the same time Diana died), but the Queen has to ask him to accept or give him her blessing or something.

Anyway, I thought it was interesting, if a little slow, but I have no idea how accurate it was. Heck, I can hardly keep up on the current politics of my own country, let alone the past politics of someone else's!

New computer, woohoo!

Well, it's good and bad. I really like the new computer, a lot. And things were going wrong with the old one - as in, the S didn't work anymore, "o we frequently wrote entence like thi." And when it did work, it went "a little somssething like thiss." It was awful. And the mouse was starting to give out too, and, well, it was four years old, which is ancient in computer years.

But the kicker was that it got broken. I mean, really broken. We got into a bad habit of leaving it in the living room. Usually I was good about shoving it under the couch, so it wouldn't get stepped on or whatever, but apparently one day I didn't because we opened it up and there were a bunch of little cracks. Over time, those turned into dark black specks, which grew into black holes.

And then one day Ricky left the thing on the couch, and it got covered with a blanket and I sat on it. So not my fault - he never should have left it on the couch where I couldn't see it!!

So we decided we needed to get a new computer. It's pretty wonderful, actually. A 19" wide screen flat panel display, a keyboard on which all of the buttons work, and it has a number pad which I missed. And Ricky is excited that it's a full size keyboard rather than a laptop one. His fingers are a bit too big for the laptop keys.

Now I just have to call Comcast to see about high speed internet and we'll be in business!

Movie Review: The History Boys

Only one thumb up for this one. Ricky hated it, I really liked it. Another artsy film. It actually started off as a stage production, which I kind of wish I hadn't known because I sat through the whole thing trying to figure out how they'd done it on stage. Stage and screen are so incredibly different.

Anyway, maybe the reason I liked it is because it's about the relationship between students and teachers, and how it can be hard to not cross the invisible line, and how as a teacher you get to caring about your student, and how as a student it can be hard to remember that teacher does not equal friend. I don't know, I really liked it, but I'd guess I'm in the minority.

I GOT A JOB!!!

Not much time to post details, but I'll be teaching full time - most of my classes at the middle school and one class at the high school - and every single class is drama! yeehaw!! I'm in a district that pays really well, and the administration seems to be really supportive of the arts. And my commute is cut in half from my last job (and current summer program). It only took me 20 minutes the other day, all freeway driving.

It's a tough area, lots of ESL and poverty, but I tend to thrive in those areas. I know there will be really hard times, but I also know how rewarding it can be. I'm excited and scared to death at the same time. Finally - my own classroom, my own program...a full time, permanent position. Woohoo!!

And Aunt Robin, I finally managed to beat out at a man for the job :-)

Updates

1) I did not get the job in Central Oregon. Once again I lost out to a man. Once again, I was a "strong second" and they "really enjoyed your interview." So frustrating, but at least now we don't have to worry about moving there.

2) I am waiting to hear about two other positions. One is a .8 high school drama position and one is a 1.0 middle school/high school drama position. Although I heard today that someone else that works with the same theatre company as me is going to be (or already was) offered the .8 position. That's just a rumor though, nothing is confirmed.

3) Ricky is 100% for sure graduating on Aug 18. Woohoo!! We're so excited.

4) My exchange students came in really late the 9th or very early the 10th, depending on how you look at it. Their plane landed around midnight and it was about 1 by the time we got them delivered to their host families. So now my college roommate and I are in charge of 23 Chinese high school students and one Chinese teacher. We're having a blast, and I'll post some pictures of our activities tomorrow.

5) We started softball on Thursday. We were playing well - up 4-0 going into the top of the 5th - but then got rained out. Grrr. It actually started thundering and we saw lightening in the 3rd inning or so, but our umpire didn't call it until the top of the 5th. Anyway, it's just a fun league. A bunch of former college players, 4 teams in the league, everyone plays one game every Thursday for 6 weeks. Our team name is "It Hurts." :-P We have these fantastically tacky yellow shirts with a pink and black logo. We love them!

I think that's about it for right now. Just been doing a lot of working in the yard and trying to stay cool. It's finally starting to cool off, but has been somewhat humid. Hopefully we'll get back to our normal weather soon.

Ok, Ok

Geez people. It's only been a week since I last wrote. Give me a break!

Actually, I've been so silent because my exchange students came in this week. Yes, someone was crazy enough to put my college roommate and I in charge of a group of 23 Chinese high school students and their English teacher. They were supposed to be in late Monday night but they got in an hour late and this arrived very early Tuesday morning. The past week has been a whirlwind of getting ready for them and, now that they're here, spending time with them and checking in with their host families to make sure everything is going well.

I have a lot to tell - interview things, pictures to share of activities with my exchange students, and softball! However, it's late and I need to sleep. Friday night or sometime Saturday should be a good time for me to update. Definitely look for something by the end of the weekend.

Whew. Off to bed with me!

Ps - did I mention it's been ridiculously hot here? 102 officially yesterday. And our school has no air conditioning. It's awful, but we're managing somehow.

Good news!! We're not moving to Bend

Bad news - I didn't get the Bend job.

At this point, I honestly don't know why I'm surprised when I don't get hired, this being the 4th year I'm trying to get a job and all.

Well, hopefully Woodburn will come through for me. I had a great interview there and really like the educational philosophy. It's a large school that they've split into several small (like, 300 students small) schools and it seems to be working. It's a challenging demographic, with lots of ESL students (50%!!) but I think it'd be a good challenge. I should hear sometime next week.