A Little Clarification

I was so surprised...I made myself sound like a whimsical goof yesterday...

So I realized that I told you people yesterday that I'm thinking about moving to Oregon after I graduate, but I didn't really explain why. Now, this may not be a completely, thoroughly though-out plan, but I do actually have some good reasons for choosing Oregon:

1. My starting salary in Arizona would be about $30,000 and my starting in Oregon would be about $33,000. Not only that, but the average salaries for Arizona and Oregon are $44,000 and $50,000 respectively. I would start out with a better pay, and increase to an even better pay.

2. The average class size is 22 in AZ and 20 in OR. I get paid better, handling fewer kids.

3. Oregon teachers are given comprehensive health care and a basic life insurance, whereas Arizona teachers are given options...

4. Now, I'm not all about money, but the cost of living (depending on the city, of course) seems to be generally lower than in Mesa, too. More money + spending less money. Wow!

5. It's really pretty.


















6. It's really, really pretty.








7. Shut up, I wanna move to Oregon.



So, if you have any suggestions for me--like cities I should move to--please let me know. If you have any questions, well, I might not know the answer...But I sure will Google it and find out, or make something up for ya. :]

So, yes, I am still a fairly whimsical goof, but I do also have some solid reasons for choosing Oregon. ALSO, I would like to thank everyone for being so unexpectedly supportive! I really was expecting everyone to call me crazy and dismiss the whole crazy idea as a strange waste of ambition. It's definitely been quite a different experience than I predicted, and I love you all for it. :] So thanks, and any help/advice would be greatly appreciated, of course!

I ain't gonna live forever.

I was so surprised...my random ideas could become an actual plan for my real life after college.

Well, if you didn't already know this, I'm graduating this May. I recently made the decision not to pursue a major in Spanish, due to the fact that I would be ridiculously stressed this semester with the completion of my education classes AND my Spanish capstone. So, there goes my second trip to Spain. I'm bummed, for sure, but I made a choice that should benefit my mental health.

So anyway, with this in mind, I've been thinking a lot about my future: where I want to live, what I want to do with my classroom, etc. Oddly enough, I think I have the basics all figured out already. And I am extremely excited about it, so I decided to document a little for you.

With regards to the where, well, I do not want to be in Mesa. I know that if I even start out here, just to make it easier on myself, I'm gonna end up stuck here forever. I settle too easily. So I knew I had to get a plan going, figure out where I want to live. For some reason, I got hooked on the idea of Oregon. Why? I really don't know. But I did a whole lot of research one day, and I began getting really, really excited about it. It actually started to sound like a place I could want to live.

And so, my mother began spreading the word, as mothers do, and we've gotten nothing but positive feedback. I just think about it and I'm happy. I'll be setting off on my own, starting my own life, on my own two feet. It's insane, and I'm terrified, but I can't wait for next summer to get here!

Granted, I have a TON of work to do to make this a reality, and more research to do (anyone know anything about Bend? I've been recommended to that city...), but I don't like to worry about the little details until I have to. So, packing and moving, finding an apartment, finding a summer job, finding a teaching job, and getting silly things like furniture all take a back seat to my grand plans to move to a completely different state and start up a life for myself--away from everyone I know.

It's crazy. Why am I so bent (ha) on being completely independent? Where the heck did I get this trait? Regardless, it's clear that I have some insane notion that I need to be independent, and there's nothing I can really do about it but hope that someone is making sure I think things through enough before totally changing my life.

My mom, I'm pretty sure, would prefer I live closer, at least at the beginning of real life, so she can help me out a little (and she told me this yesterday, actually). But even she's said that she agrees that it would be difficult for me to "get away" once I start to settle in down here. And I'm sure some friends and family won't be too thrilled with me, but, in the immortal words of Bon Jovi, "it's my life, and it's now or never." So I hope you can all understand and use your frustrated energy to help me prepare myself. ;]

Hopefully this all pans out, because I really hate abandoning my own plans...but I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

UPDATE: I also think I may try to establish a RIF (Reading is Fundamental) program at the school I move to...but that'll take a little more time than simply moving and getting a job, oy.

Tiny, Baby Earth

I was so surprised...the earth is so inconsequential.

That tiny dot is the earth, viewed from the edge of the Solar System. That still leaves the rest of the universe.

Okay, so this is just something I thought was really cool, and I just wanted to share it with my little world...If you have about three seconds of spare time, click here and look at the picture and caption: http://blog.jmlynch.org/2010/02/13/pale-blue-dot/

If you have just a few more minutes than that, you should read the quote below it. The words are really quite true, if you think about it. Our whole civilization, and every civilization that came before us (not to mention the dinosaurs, and the creepy things that came before them!), exists on that little speck!

It's crazy to think about just how vast the universe is, and just how little we matter in the grand scheme of things. Even just on Earth it seems one life doesn't necessarily mean much. Even humankind itself, when we're gone, will probably not have made such a huge impact on the earth as we'd like to think we will. So impossible it is to think about things like this--to put them into perspective. Even the history of the earth is difficult to imagine, let alone the history of the universe. Just insane. Humans are too narcissistic to imagine the world without us in it, really. I don't think we ever really will be able to understand it all. It's just not in our nature.

As for me, I'll just keep "Stumbling Upon" pictures and articles about space...trying to wrap my little head around the enormity and longevity of the universe. And there's my two cents for the night. ;] I swear I'm done being philosophical...for now.

Click Your Heels Together Three Times

I was so surprised...WE LEAVE TOMORROW!!

Well, in case you were wondering, we're all finished with our finals and our classes! We received our certificates and everyone did really well! Hopefully that amounts to some credits with NAU. ;] 

This weekend, Caroline got to visit both Astorga and León. She says, "They were awesome. Well, mostly Leon. Leon was having a festival, so it was cool. Um, there were a lot of flowers all around...and some guy was on stilts in a priest costume, with a big plaster head, and he chased me around. It was scary. And then, the cathedral was beautiful, cause I love stained glass windows. I saw a cool basilica, too. Isidore's body was in there. (Not that I really know who that is--I don't really know my saints at all) And then, also, it was just a really beautiful city. Astorga was not as beautiful, but it had some cool stuff, too. We can leave it at that. I think that is it. Yeah. Oh, and I saw a really cool carousel. It had a submarine on it, instead of horses, and it had dragons and a lot of cool stuff on it. Carousels need to be like that in America." "That's it?" "Yep. Thanks." You're welcome, friend. 

All that day, Giana and I took our German friend, Peguy, to the city pool. It's been ridiculously, unbearably hot for about a week, so we thought it would be a nice treat--and it was. We took a bus that some nice old lady pointed us to, and ended up in some strange, sketchy area. Luckily, we followed other swim suits to the pool. It was a little strange--there were two pools, each fenced off around the pool deck, and then surrounded by grass. I'd never seen a grassy pool area before, but it was interesting at least. The water was freezing, and so refreshing. It was a very nice, relaxing day.

We went out both Friday and Saturday nights, as well. We danced and had a lot of fun, chatting with random people as well. Nothing too exciting or out-of-the-ordinary happened, so I won't give you any more details unless you want them. :]

Sunday morning, we went to the flea market we'd been told about a few times. It was hot and sticky, and Giana wasn't feeling too well, so she sat down for a while in the shade--though I personally thought it was hotter under that plastic tent, ugh. Caroline, Peguy, Michael and I perused the little vendors, and found mostly a bunch of clothes. It was a little awkward to see underwear being sold in the middle of the walkway, but hey, whatever. Caroline and I both bought some pretty fans--practical, cheap, and a Spanish tradition (they really, seriously use them). They helped a TON. 

Anyway, we walked around there for a while, checked out the interesting things, and finally went home. Later that day, we spent a long time souvenir shopping, checking out almost every shop around the Plaza (which is a lot, let me tell you). We were hot and tired by the time we finally dragged ourselves home, and slept terribly in our un-air conditioned room. Apparently Spaniards don't believe in air conditioning? I don't even want to know how ridiculously hot it must be in the south! It got to be about 100 degrees here, and it's been fairly humid, as well. Ugh. I feel like at any minute I'll melt into a puddle of sweat and humidity. Hopefully that doesn't happen tonight, because

WE ARE GOING HOME TOMORROW!! We're so excited, it's ridiculous. I love Spain, but home is calling. Oh! And, we went to an American restaurant yesterday, to be ironic. The food was good, but not a delicious American hamburger. Bring on the calories, please! Who knew I'd miss the fatty fast food of home?

We're hopping on a bus out of here at 7 am tomorrow, driving back to Madrid, and saying goodbye to Giana at noonish. Then, Caroline and I ship off at 1. She and I will be getting into Phoenix around 11 pm, 8 am Spain time. It's gonna be a long day, and I'm sure the flight from Atlanta to Phoenix is gonna be torture, but I can't wait to touch ground at home again!

To all our friends and family: We love and miss you! Can't wait to see you so soon! Until then, ¡adios!

'Cause It's a Bittersweet Symphony, This Life.

I was so surprised...our time here is almost done. 

It's a bittersweet feeling, having the end of our month creeping toward us. On the one hand, I'm so fricking excited--I want to go home, share a room with only one person, eat whenever I want to, stuff my face full of American junk food, watch movies for a couple days, read, be lazy, never, ever go outside again. Sure, there are some things I definitely miss about America (Friends and family, for one; English, for another), but really, I know I'll miss Spain once I'm back in the States. I wish I could spend an entire year here--with an unlimited budget, of course. Spain is so full of history, and has such a strange, different culture. I absolutely adore many of the Spaniards I've met, and wish I had more time to meet more. 

One of the only pictures I've taken since Madrid...Sangria night 3.

Aside from all that idle prattle, I'd like to detail the most interesting things we've encountered this week. First, we went to our favorite sangria restaurant, plopped down at a table in the Plaza, and began our chatter. About 12:30, one of the Jersey boys that joined our host family comes marching up to us. He's drunk, he tells us, and the other one is even worse. He needs someone to help him get Gabe (the really drunk, 15-year-old one) home. Being the kind, responsible adults we are, we agreed. Since Giana had just ordered another sangria, we had to wrestle Gabe into a chair, keep him quiet and calm, and listen as Andrew (the more contained, 16-year-old one) vents his anger with Gabe. "I just can't stand people who can't hold their alcohol," he tells us. Sad, thinks-he's-so-mature kid. Anyway, Caroline and I linked arms with Gabe and walked him separately up the long road home, letting Andrew continue to vent his frustration to Giana and Michael a ways behind us.

When we finally made it home, Yolanda (our host "mom") flipped out. Apparently, Jersey boys were due home at midnight, and it was now one. Also, they'd signed wavers saying they wouldn't drink, and Yolanda's no idiot. She stormed past us, tore into their room, and ripped a hole in them. Needless to say, they haven't been allowed to go out after dinner all week. 

The boys are alright. They're so typically Jersey sometimes, it's ridiculous. But they're entertaining enough. They absolutely love Peguy, and he cannot figure it out. It's hilarious. We told him it's because he's so fly (he loves that word) and he just said, "I haven't even done anything cool yet." It's funnier in a German accent...We love hanging out with Peguy, really. He just says the funniest things sometimes--and he's so frank. He literally talked about how stupid the boys were with Yolanda, while they were at the dinner table. Awkward. And still funny. 

Unfortunately, Giana and Caroline have convinced me to show off my creepy/weird walks to both Peguy and Michael...and also in the park we were playing soccer in one night. Oh well. They can think I'm weird. At least Peguy now remembers my name's not Brittany...

On Tuesday, we got to go to a wine tasting for T&E. Surprisingly, they had some good wine, and it was a really interesting lesson. We actually learned how to be wine tasters--how to pour it, smell it, check the color and everything. Giana had to leave a little early to finish a group project, but Caroline and I came to the conclusion that we both prefer the Reservada, which means it's been in reserves for more than three years. Good stuff, and so smooth. We also concluded that wine is quite affecting, but that it wears off pretty quickly. Maybe I'll have to take up drinking a glass every now and then--red wine's supposed to be good for your heart, too. 

In other news, exams started on Wednesday, and we've been plowing right through them. Aside from a few road bumps, they've been pretty easy, as expected. Spanish professors seem to be more interested in the fact that you've learned something than that you can answer questions on a test--weird. We all have our last finals tomorrow, so there that goes. Then we just have this weekend, two days of filler classes, a farewell dinner on T&E, and flights home. 

So strange to think that we'll be leaving all this so soon. It's been such an experience, and I can't even explain what it's meant to be in Spain, practicing Spanish, living with a real Spanish family. Of course there have been some annoyances, but what's the good without a little taste of the bad? All in all, this has been a great first experience with traveling, and I know that I, personally, have been bitten by the travel bug. (Darn German guy has been to Greece! And he knows Ancient Greek and Latin. I'm so jealous of him. But that's not important.) 

Sorry this post is lacking in pictures, but there haven't been many picture-worthy events lately. Just funny memories. Hopefully we get some good pictures in this weekend to round it out, and I'm sure Caroline and I will be awkward on the plane again, so don't worry. :] 

Until then, ¡hasta luego! ¡Echamos de menos a todos! Por lo mejor... ;]