Well, it's almost Friday. It's Thursday, and the song is on my internet radio. Speaking of, did you hear about the kid in England or somewhere whose parents named him "Friday," and the government put a stop to it and forced them to name him "Gregory"? Pretty crazy, eh?? It makes me wonder why the government didn't stop my mother when she named me, all doped up on demerol. Truly, I like my name, but it's a pain in the ass sometimes. Particularly when it comes to my last name. Also speaking of names, I just read a story about a woman whose name is Mary and who married John Christmas, so now her name is "Mary Christmas"! Ha.
I got my first TEFL book in yesterday, and it is a whopper. I'm going to try to call up the old college spirits of attention span so that I can actually not fall asleep every time I try to read the thing. I am betting, though, that the material is going to be more riveting than one might expect. There's a dvd that came with the book, so if all else fails I can try to engage with that. Updates to come on any new language teaching tidbits that interest me! (Boy, aren't you thrilled?!)
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Highest Point or State; Culmination
I seem to have reached the zenith of my anticipation, and now I'm experiencing a feeling like the calm before the storm. I feel relatively tranquil and sated with the knowledge that the major pieces of my journey are in place (although I do still have to finish paying my ViaLingua course fees and reserve my room at the hostal). I've stopped really worrying about whether my Spanish will be good enough, whether I will feel ridiculously overwhelmed by homesickness or lack of familiar faces and voices, whether I will be deported (hahaha). I'm banking on an adventure, and using that metaphor helps me in this inexplainable way to anticipate the ups and downs, to keep as objective an outlook on my trip as I possibly can (which of course is easier to do when you're not there yet).
Anyway. I feel a lull in my need to constantly seek out new information about Spain. Don't get me wrong - I'm still reading my Andalucia guide every day, and I've still got a good documentary film coming in every few days. But this is a much-needed lull. It's giving me a sort of confidence that I didn't have before when I was scrambling for every bit of information I could get my hands on. Now I just hope I don't get overwhelmed by all the books and travel gear I asked my parents to get me for Christmas!
On that same note, I've been waiting so long for the "textbook" that I bought for my TEFL course to get here from Amazon that I'm worried now that I've lost my appetite for it. It's a huge book and it cost like $50, so I damned well hope I'm ready to soak it all up by the time Christmas is over.
On a less related note to the Spain trip, I read some poetry yesterday by my old poetry professor at UNT, and it awakened something in me like reading poetry always does. I'd read Bruce Bond's work before, and I had always revered him in this ridiculous way because he studied with Ginsberg, but for some reason yesterday I completely got his writing like I never had before. It made me remember all the critiques and the suggestions he'd provided me for my best work, and it made me hope that perhaps something I had done as one of his students, something I had said might have inspired him or contributed to the work he's put out into the world. I remember once I heard from someone, a friend or fellow student, after finals one semester that Bruce Bond had gone for a beer with another of my professors from the English department, and my friend or fellow student had overheard the profs discussing me and my work/poetry. In general terms, I think what was said was good, but it surprised me how much what they thought mattered to me as a student. It makes me think and hope that my own praise or admiration of my future students will affect them the same way.
I want to write a poem. Several, in fact. I'm going to start cataloging interesting ideas. More on that later.
Anyway. I feel a lull in my need to constantly seek out new information about Spain. Don't get me wrong - I'm still reading my Andalucia guide every day, and I've still got a good documentary film coming in every few days. But this is a much-needed lull. It's giving me a sort of confidence that I didn't have before when I was scrambling for every bit of information I could get my hands on. Now I just hope I don't get overwhelmed by all the books and travel gear I asked my parents to get me for Christmas!
On that same note, I've been waiting so long for the "textbook" that I bought for my TEFL course to get here from Amazon that I'm worried now that I've lost my appetite for it. It's a huge book and it cost like $50, so I damned well hope I'm ready to soak it all up by the time Christmas is over.
On a less related note to the Spain trip, I read some poetry yesterday by my old poetry professor at UNT, and it awakened something in me like reading poetry always does. I'd read Bruce Bond's work before, and I had always revered him in this ridiculous way because he studied with Ginsberg, but for some reason yesterday I completely got his writing like I never had before. It made me remember all the critiques and the suggestions he'd provided me for my best work, and it made me hope that perhaps something I had done as one of his students, something I had said might have inspired him or contributed to the work he's put out into the world. I remember once I heard from someone, a friend or fellow student, after finals one semester that Bruce Bond had gone for a beer with another of my professors from the English department, and my friend or fellow student had overheard the profs discussing me and my work/poetry. In general terms, I think what was said was good, but it surprised me how much what they thought mattered to me as a student. It makes me think and hope that my own praise or admiration of my future students will affect them the same way.
I want to write a poem. Several, in fact. I'm going to start cataloging interesting ideas. More on that later.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
the backpack
It just arrived today, my very own Women's Deuter Futura 50+10 Vario Trekking Backpack! I bought it on ebay for a steal, brand new with tags and all - and it matches my lavendar luggage set, to boot. I'm totally stoked.
Now if only I could open it up at work and fill it with files and walk around the office with it all day...that wouldn't seem suspicious, would it??
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
The flight plan
Monday March 10, 2008
British Airways Flight Number: 2026
Depart: George Bush Intercont, TX 8:30 Pm March 10, 2008
Arrive: London Gatwick, United Kingdom 10:25 Am March 11, 2008
Total Flight Time: 8 Hours 55 Minutes Non-Stop
Equipment: Boeing 777
Meal Service: Yes
Tuesday March 11, 2008
British Airways Flight Number: 2466
Class of Service:Coach Class S
Depart: London Gatwick, United Kingdom 2:10 Pm March 11, 2008
Arrive: Madrid, Spain 5:30 Pm March 11, 2008
Total Flight Time: 2 Hours 20 Minutes Non-Stop
Equipment: Boeing 737-400
Meal Service: Snack
Total Cost (in case you're curious): $734.60/Round-trip
What a great birthday present, eh?? I will be crossing the Atlantic on the very eve of my 26th birthday. My friend Matt, whose birthday is also March 10, will be at my side. We will leave NOLA on the Friday (3/7) before the flight, to drive to Houston and spend time with my parents and my bff, Lauren (whose birthday is ALSO March 10 - strange, isn't it?? It's like our own little holiday!), who will hopefully drive down from Denton.
My basic itinerary:
We will land in Madrid and spend 1 day there. I will 1) eat paella, 2) drink a Spanish mojito, and 3) see Guernica at Reina Sofia, and perhaps 4) stroll in the parque de buen retiro. Then, we will head by bus or train to Granada to get acclimated, spend 1 night there and find a place to stash my larger luggage items for a few days before hopping another bus or train south to Malaga, Ronda and then Tarifa. At Tarifa, we will camp on the beach, eat pulpo and calamares and drink sherry, then take a ferry to Tangier, Morocco, where I want to spend just a day and maybe ride a camel, but Matt wants to stay the night (I will see how I feel about this, if we can find a place outside of the tourist danger zone). I also want to do some street shopping for souvenirs, but with only a backpack to carry stuff in, it may be difficult to buy much. After returning from Morocco to Tarifa, we will head back up the southern coast, hopefully seeing some good Flamenco on the way, making our way back to Granada for Semana Santa.
After Semana Santa, I will settle in and meet my ViaLingua peeps, get ready for studies and six full months in SPAIN!!!!
British Airways Flight Number: 2026
Depart: George Bush Intercont, TX 8:30 Pm March 10, 2008
Arrive: London Gatwick, United Kingdom 10:25 Am March 11, 2008
Total Flight Time: 8 Hours 55 Minutes Non-Stop
Equipment: Boeing 777
Meal Service: Yes
Tuesday March 11, 2008
British Airways Flight Number: 2466
Class of Service:Coach Class S
Depart: London Gatwick, United Kingdom 2:10 Pm March 11, 2008
Arrive: Madrid, Spain 5:30 Pm March 11, 2008
Total Flight Time: 2 Hours 20 Minutes Non-Stop
Equipment: Boeing 737-400
Meal Service: Snack
Total Cost (in case you're curious): $734.60/Round-trip
What a great birthday present, eh?? I will be crossing the Atlantic on the very eve of my 26th birthday. My friend Matt, whose birthday is also March 10, will be at my side. We will leave NOLA on the Friday (3/7) before the flight, to drive to Houston and spend time with my parents and my bff, Lauren (whose birthday is ALSO March 10 - strange, isn't it?? It's like our own little holiday!), who will hopefully drive down from Denton.
My basic itinerary:
We will land in Madrid and spend 1 day there. I will 1) eat paella, 2) drink a Spanish mojito, and 3) see Guernica at Reina Sofia, and perhaps 4) stroll in the parque de buen retiro. Then, we will head by bus or train to Granada to get acclimated, spend 1 night there and find a place to stash my larger luggage items for a few days before hopping another bus or train south to Malaga, Ronda and then Tarifa. At Tarifa, we will camp on the beach, eat pulpo and calamares and drink sherry, then take a ferry to Tangier, Morocco, where I want to spend just a day and maybe ride a camel, but Matt wants to stay the night (I will see how I feel about this, if we can find a place outside of the tourist danger zone). I also want to do some street shopping for souvenirs, but with only a backpack to carry stuff in, it may be difficult to buy much. After returning from Morocco to Tarifa, we will head back up the southern coast, hopefully seeing some good Flamenco on the way, making our way back to Granada for Semana Santa.
After Semana Santa, I will settle in and meet my ViaLingua peeps, get ready for studies and six full months in SPAIN!!!!
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