This summer I will be working as a co-Camp Director at the Oakland YMCA Day Camp near Pitt/CMU. I went into the interview looking for a counselor position and was offered the Camp Director position. It's pretty exciting!! The pay is good and I'd be getting between 30-40 hours per week, which is awesome! And they're good hours 8-5, so no late nights at Kohl's. In fact, I'll just be working on the weekends during the summer if I stay at Kohl's. It's going to be fantastic summer!! The only downside about my awesome new job is that I'm not going to be able to go home for an entire week during July, like I had planned to do. It's okay, but I really wish I could see more of my family. Matthew and I talked about coming home to EC/Mpls in early June inbetween, but we'll see if that actually works out. I have to start doing planning and programming for Camp in late May (after I'm home to see Jake graduate) so who knows. I'm excited to be starting something new, albeit a little bit nervous because I'm really going to be in charge of kids and counselors and makign sure that all of their records/forms/finances are up to date. It sounds a little overwhelming to me. For more information, check out Collegiate YMCA
Lately, things have starting going downhill at Kohl's and I'm really questioning my desire to be there. I don't get paid a whole lot per hour and am busting my butt. And for what? So I can get a piece of paper that says "Yes you did"?! I already know that I'm good at my job, I don't need someone else to give me a note that says I am. I'm doing my job... That being said, I applied for a few jobs at the Carnegie Library in Oakland; the hours are about the same that I work at Kohl's, the pay is MUCH better and I'll be doing something that I actually like. Hopefully I hear back from them soon.
A few weeks ago I substituted at Shaler Middle School for one of the librarians. I absolutely loved working there; the other librarian put me to work pulling books, showed me how to check books in and our and had me do a catalog searching project (something that I'm a professional at from my days at the CLRC). Apparently the librarian I worked with said that she really liked me and my enthusiasm (I was really pumped to be there). That said, I'm going to go back to school at the University of Pittsburgh starting in Fall 2011 for my School Librarian Certificate. I'm not sure if it's a full MLIS (Master in Library and Information Science) but it's what I want to do. The program is fall, spring, summer and I'd be student teaching in Spring 2012. I would start up next Spring 2011, that's an option, but I think I want to have other peers/a cohort taking the same classes that I am in the same order. I'm not sure if there is cohort type group with each start date...guess I should check that out. Pitt's Library School is a high ranked school in terms of MLIS so since we're in Pittsburgh, I may as well apply and attend a great school!
Over the Easter weekend, my friend Laura (from UMD) came to visit good ole Pittsburgh. The first thing she said when she got out of the car at 5:30 was "Wow, this city is screwed up". True story right there, the roads are insane and not set up super logically. I guess that's what happens when the city is built/organized before the interstates were built and where two large rivers converge. That said, we had an excellent weekend! It was fantastic to see Laura since I haven't seen her since August 2008! We're good at being long-distance friends, it works for us. Friday night we cooked dinner and played cards. Saturday we all slept in, walked around Squirrel Hill, went to the Carnegie Science Center (they had super sweet robots). After our exciting and fun-filled day we had a relaxing evening card playing, frosting cookies and dying Easter eggs whilst watching Jesus Christ Superstar. The Easter bunny came on Sunday leaving baskets for Matthew and Laura and bags for Robin, Larson and Emily. The latter came over for an Easter meal and some playing of the Wii. Robin and Larson were in town for about 24 hours and I'm super glad we got to see them. Laura and I went and saw the Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) at the Benedum Center on Sunday night. It was amazing!! I love their Christmas music so their show "Beethoven's Last Night" was as awesome/exciting as expected. I loved it!
Since Easter, Matthew and I have been working, cleaning and enjoying the springtime. Did I mention that when Laura was visiting it was in the 80s? Yeah, insane weather for April.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Oh April...
...you've gotten away from me. I can't believe that today is April 13 already! It's Mom's birthday today, Happy Birthday! Anyway, I have a big update coming due for all you blogosphere readers (if there are any,lol). School's not the best place to get it done so I'll try and work on it after work is over.
To Update on:
1. Summer Job at YMCA
2. Easter gathering
3. GLEE!
4. Sassy Gay Friend (everyone, including Shakespeare's characters, needs one)
5. Trip to Ohio
6. MLIS, substitute teaching, library job
7. Kohl's
Don't get too excited:)
To Update on:
1. Summer Job at YMCA
2. Easter gathering
3. GLEE!
4. Sassy Gay Friend (everyone, including Shakespeare's characters, needs one)
5. Trip to Ohio
6. MLIS, substitute teaching, library job
7. Kohl's
Don't get too excited:)
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
St Patrick's Day Cookies
No holiday would be complete without making festively shaped cookies. St. Patrick's Day is no exception. From the The Joy of Cooking the recipe is as follows:
Cream:
1 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
Beat in:
1 egg
Combine and add:
2 1/2 cups sifted all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
Chill dough 3 to 4 hours before rolling. Preheat oven to 350. Roll out and cute. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until slightly colored.
Cream:
1 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
Beat in:
1 egg
Combine and add:
2 1/2 cups sifted all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
Chill dough 3 to 4 hours before rolling. Preheat oven to 350. Roll out and cute. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until slightly colored.
It's been a busy busy month!
Well, I haven't updated very much lately but I've been busy with work (both at Kohl's and subbing) and enjoying the warm weather in Pittsburgh. Thankfully, the snow is all gone (except a pile by one of the CMU parking ramps which is in the shade and will probably take until July to melt) and we haven't had tons of rain thus far.
Yesterday, I kicked a kid out of my 7th period class because he wouldn't stop throwing paper crumpled up into balls in the recycling bin and said "you're not a real teacher anyway". He lingered in the hall so a teacher told me he'll get at the minimum a 2 hour detention. My hands were shaking like crazy when I sent him out. It's not really a power surge, like my other friends have said. I'm always nervous because the kids are usually bigger than me, especially in the high school. Subbing, overall, is going well but I'm really looking forward to having my own classroom with kids who know me, know the content that is being taught and know what I'm doing (at least with the academics). Who knows how I'll do as an actual classroom teacher, but I'd like to be at least given a chance with a long-term substitute position
Other than subbing, I'm still working at Kohl's. The plan, since I've gotten more teaching gigs as of late, is to start putting the Kohl's money into a savings account that will be used to pay off the student loan debt (awesome). Currently, I deferred by loans until September because I don't have a full time job or one that pays me very well in the first place. Figuring all of that out was definitely a load off my mind.
My friend Laura is coming to visit for Easter. She currently lives near Dayton, OH and we're also going to see the TSO concert on Easter Sunday. They're performing Bethoven's last symphony so it should be AMAZING! I'm super excited to see her since the last time we hung out was August 2008. I'm pumped to show her my city! She's our first real guest and I can't wait!! I'm also going to Athens, OH April 17-18 to see my brother compete at a Forensics competition. It's only 3 hours away from Pittsburgh so it's totally do-able for a weekend visit. Kirsten and Ross are coming for a visit May 14-16 and I'm going home to EC May 21-23 for Jake's graduation from UWEC. My grandmother is also coming from CT for Jake's graduation and we're meeting in the airport. It's going to be great to see her and see home!
I filled out my NCAA bracket and am doing quite well. I'm in a pool with Matthew's research group and am currently in second place, behind Matthew's advisor's 11-year old son. I'm glad I didn't pick Kansas or Villanova to win the National Championship! I didn't do any research on the teams this year, just picked and chose, which seems to work out the best. I love that Northern Iowa and St Mary's are doing their very best and beating higher ranked teams. It's great to see upsets, since I think that's what this tournament should be about.
I'm still in the search for a summer job but have pseudo-interview on Monday with the Collegiate YMCA at Pitt. I really hope it works out because then I'd be able to ride the bus or my bike (when I buy one) to work (it'll beat driving every day).
Matthew and I celebrated St. Patrick's Day with some wonderful friends from CMU.
Yesterday, I kicked a kid out of my 7th period class because he wouldn't stop throwing paper crumpled up into balls in the recycling bin and said "you're not a real teacher anyway". He lingered in the hall so a teacher told me he'll get at the minimum a 2 hour detention. My hands were shaking like crazy when I sent him out. It's not really a power surge, like my other friends have said. I'm always nervous because the kids are usually bigger than me, especially in the high school. Subbing, overall, is going well but I'm really looking forward to having my own classroom with kids who know me, know the content that is being taught and know what I'm doing (at least with the academics). Who knows how I'll do as an actual classroom teacher, but I'd like to be at least given a chance with a long-term substitute position
Other than subbing, I'm still working at Kohl's. The plan, since I've gotten more teaching gigs as of late, is to start putting the Kohl's money into a savings account that will be used to pay off the student loan debt (awesome). Currently, I deferred by loans until September because I don't have a full time job or one that pays me very well in the first place. Figuring all of that out was definitely a load off my mind.
My friend Laura is coming to visit for Easter. She currently lives near Dayton, OH and we're also going to see the TSO concert on Easter Sunday. They're performing Bethoven's last symphony so it should be AMAZING! I'm super excited to see her since the last time we hung out was August 2008. I'm pumped to show her my city! She's our first real guest and I can't wait!! I'm also going to Athens, OH April 17-18 to see my brother compete at a Forensics competition. It's only 3 hours away from Pittsburgh so it's totally do-able for a weekend visit. Kirsten and Ross are coming for a visit May 14-16 and I'm going home to EC May 21-23 for Jake's graduation from UWEC. My grandmother is also coming from CT for Jake's graduation and we're meeting in the airport. It's going to be great to see her and see home!
I filled out my NCAA bracket and am doing quite well. I'm in a pool with Matthew's research group and am currently in second place, behind Matthew's advisor's 11-year old son. I'm glad I didn't pick Kansas or Villanova to win the National Championship! I didn't do any research on the teams this year, just picked and chose, which seems to work out the best. I love that Northern Iowa and St Mary's are doing their very best and beating higher ranked teams. It's great to see upsets, since I think that's what this tournament should be about.
I'm still in the search for a summer job but have pseudo-interview on Monday with the Collegiate YMCA at Pitt. I really hope it works out because then I'd be able to ride the bus or my bike (when I buy one) to work (it'll beat driving every day).
Matthew and I celebrated St. Patrick's Day with some wonderful friends from CMU.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Homeward Bound
Yesterday I bought my tickets to go home to Wisconsin for Jake's graduation from UWEC. It was fairly inexpensive which I'm very grateful for. I called my granmda to see if she had purchased her tickets yet or if she was even still considering going. She gave me her information, I bought her tickets for her and she and I will be meeting at the Minneapolis airport on May 21 around 3pm! I can NOT wait! It will be wonderful to see her, my family and my friends, especially Ms. Emily! I can't wait to see her ring in person and give her a HUGE hug!
Jessi, my fashion consultant and personal shopper, and I went shopping yesterday at TJ Maxx. I got a bunch of great stuff for less than $100. I got some much needed sweaters, dress pants and a cute blouse with a belt that I loved. Jessi has such a great eye! I'm so glad I have a girlfriend to go shopping with; Matthew is completely useless.
We also played/danced Just Dance last night and it was amazing! I'm totally going to buy it for myself. It's a great workout and something that I actually have fun doing, which makes the idea of working out that much more appealing!
Subbing today, which is DVD watching and book work! Hopefully I can at least get an interview for the Long-Term teaching job that I applied for; any interviews will be GREAT practice for the future, even if I don't get the job. Practice makes perfect.
Happy Monday!
Jessi, my fashion consultant and personal shopper, and I went shopping yesterday at TJ Maxx. I got a bunch of great stuff for less than $100. I got some much needed sweaters, dress pants and a cute blouse with a belt that I loved. Jessi has such a great eye! I'm so glad I have a girlfriend to go shopping with; Matthew is completely useless.
We also played/danced Just Dance last night and it was amazing! I'm totally going to buy it for myself. It's a great workout and something that I actually have fun doing, which makes the idea of working out that much more appealing!
Subbing today, which is DVD watching and book work! Hopefully I can at least get an interview for the Long-Term teaching job that I applied for; any interviews will be GREAT practice for the future, even if I don't get the job. Practice makes perfect.
Happy Monday!
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