Living the Good Life..

So today was a great day. Paid to get internet....therefore, I am sitting in the comfort of my home, making lesson plans, and surfing the net. I guess I didn't realize how much I took having unlimited internet access in the States.....it's not so here. But now I have it...and I'll be back in business with communication. :) Thanks for being patient.

Other than that...this week at school went much better. We're getting used to each other and to the classroom situations. I spent one hour today re-configuring the seating chart in the room. Until you're a teacher, you can never appreciate the work your grade school teachers did to arrange the room in a manner conducive to learning...and appreciate the headaches he or she went through to make sure that every parent is happy with the seating arrangement of their child...and to pair people with other people...and to get to know the personalities and tendencies of each child beyond just the surface. It's tough. So, thanks, Mrs. Koy, Mrs. Smith, Mrs. Beckworth, Mrs. Stelter, Mrs. Otto, Miss Naylor, Mrs. Humphreys, and any other teacher that suffered through that on my behalf.

I spent the evening at the restaurant yesterday....it was so fun. I never thought I'd get to play "manager"...throughout all of my time at Cracker Barrel, I never thought the day would come that I would get to be the person in charge rather than the server. It's cool working there...and hanging out, though. It's my job to just kind of make sure that people are happy. I like that. I also help out with the bar a little...and I do the cash register whenever I'm standing around. Mostly it's just fun to go help the servers/cooks/and bartender. I really missed the restaurant world. Don't tell anyone, though, please. :)

It's the week of Independence Celebration here in Mexico. That means that there are ALL KINDS of fiestas happening. This is the month of Mariachi (trust me, I'm in heaven!)....so there are lots of Mariachi-type celebrations happening in all of the plazas around the area. Guadalajara apparently has some of the best in the world...I need to go one weekend this month! :) Here, though, there is no absence of Mariachi entertainment. Saw the ballet Folklorico. It's absolutely beautiful. The women dress in these amazing colorful skirts...and the men in their finest suit-type clothing. They dance as a group and as individuals. It's fantastic! So I was able to see that last night...

Also went to visit a little of the area with my friend, Ricardo. So I have included some pics of the lake. He took me to the most amazing "hideaway" view of the entire lake. It was truly breathtaking. The pictures can't capture the afternoon.

So I'll get those up....and get back to lesson planning. Hope that things are going well in your corner of the world.