30? Nope, 29 Again!

I am approaching…thirty.

Gah.

It hurts to think it, let alone write that number down. In just a few months, I will be in an entire new decade of my life and I am not handling it well … At least, based on the mini anxiety attacks I feel swelling in my chest anytime I think of the impending date…

When I turn thirty…

I will no longer be able to say that I’m in my mid- twenties… okay, more like late twenties but it makes me feel good to fudge a bit…

I will no longer be considered “the youngest” teacher in my school…Newer, fresher, younger teachers have taken over the role that I once coveted proudly for several years…

I will no longer be able to blame my lack of common sense as a youthful discretion because, hey, when you’re still in your twenties you’re not really a grown up just yet. I’m pretty sure brains don’t stop developing until around the age of twenty-six- ya know, your late twenties…

Sigh.

When I enter my thirties…

I hope it means that I will still get carded… just enough to still make feel young and that I look young…

I hope it means a family of my own… my own children to spoil and love on as much as I do my nieces now…

I hope it means a house that I have purchased as a result of teaching full time, teaching summer school, and working a part time job…

I hope it means adventures and travel…exploring places in the world that I have yet to wonder through.

I hope it means that someone still asks me what college I’m attending when I mention that I am on spring break (this happened to me last night and boy oh boy did it make my week…nope, more like my month! This individual would not believe that I was almost thirty and man, I sure did love him for that!)…

I hope turning thirty means that I never truly lose my kid self, because she’s pretty fun and my students seem to like her a whole lot…

But mostly, I hope turning thirty really just means turning twenty-nine for a second, or third or fourth, time…

 

 

 

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What The Fork?!

I love to drive…I love the feel of the rich leather steering wheel underneath my grasping hands…

The quiet thumping of the tires hitting the gravel…

The music blaring through my speakers, thump- thumping my way down the highway…

My foot on the gas pedal… heavily pressing down…

My car racing forwarding, zooming along the wide open spaces…

The speed gauge climbing up, up (I swear I was a race car driver in a former life)…

When…

The swirl of red and blue flashing lights quickly brought me back to reality as I glanced in my rear view mirror to see that ever dreaded police car…pulling me over….

Quickly moving to the shoulder of the road, I pulled out my license and insurance card, rolled my window down, and hung head my head in shame to greet the police man…

Who wasted no time in issuing me a ticket with a mandatory desk appearance to court. Sigh…

A few weeks later, I made my way to appear for my ticket- dressed to the nines… Dress clothes, heels, and my teacher bag that contained basically my life ( ya know…everything and anything a teacher could need in the world)… Placed my bag on the conveyor belt to be shuffled through the x-ray machine, to be examined on it’s own as I stepped through the security gates.

“Ma’am,” I remember hearing, “What is this in your bag?” “Ummm…” I really had to think- there were really so many possibilities to that question. Upon closer inspection, my mom and I broke up laughing…” Is that a fork in your bag?”

Needless to say, that fork did not make it into the courthouse… But I did get out of my ticket (with a little supervision though of course)…

Spring Break Dreams…

In a perfect world, my spring break might consist of a bright, sunny sky hanging high in a clear sky as blue as the ocean…

Lounging in a beach chair facing the ocean, listening to the gentle waves lapping on the shore, an ice cold strawberry margarita in hand…

A book open on my lap, my always too pale skin tanning perfectly (haha, fat chance…I usually go from translucent to a ripe cherry tomato- no in between)…

The gentle ocean breeze cooling the hot, beating sun while carrying the ripe scents of blooming flowers cascading through the air…

OR…

My spring break might consist of exploring new places… visiting friends who have moved around the country, like to New York. Exploring Central Park, visiting Times Square with every other tourist in the world…

Getting all dolled up to dine at the nicest restaurants in Manhattan, wine tasting on hotel rooftops, meeting new friends…

Exploring Ellis Island- visiting the hub of immigration in the 1800’s, climbing the stairs of The Statue of Liberty, or paying somber tribute at the 9/11 Memorial…

BUT…

My spring break reality is cleaning my house… Going through each and every closet, shifting through belongings, out with the old so there is room for the new…

Scrubbing the floors and moving furniture to deep clean, essential oils diffusing in the background to purify the ear, my patio doors opened slightly to allow the chilly, slightly spring weather to flow into the room…

Running errands, meeting friends for breakfast and early movie showings, forcing myself to kickboxing class and out to run as I restart my Couch to 5k app…

My spring break is catching up on life…spending time with my nieces, shopping for spring clothes, reading from my ever growing pile of books I need  to read while sipping wine, lounging on my couch, no early bedtime needed for a week, alarm clock free wake-ups (so, so sweet)…

While a spring break spent laying on a beach or touring New York might be nice, catching up on everyday life isn’t quite so bad… and I’ll have a nice clean house to relax in as a result.

 

Wanderlust…

Growing up, I hid myself in books…

Piles of books full of characters I could embody- to take on adventures and to travel to far off lands…

And, for as long as I can remember, all I’ve ever wanted to do was travel the world… See history come alive…

• To walk the halls where Marie Antoinette once said, “Let them eat cake!” To stand in awe at the paintings hanging from the wall of the Louvre… To picnic in front of the Eiffle Tower…
• To stroll through Kensington Gardens… to stand at Buckingham Palace to observe the change of the guards, to visit the crown jewels at the Tower of London…
• To ride bikes along Amsterdam’s city canals…climb the stairs to Anne Frank’s hideway, to visit her home for so many years during WWII…
• To meet and visit my family in Poland, to travel to Auschwitz Concentration Camp… to silently honor those who perished so many years before…
• To visit the Colosseum in Rome…make a wish at the Trevi Fountain…
• To see the Parthenon of Athens…see the Acropolis and visit the Theater of Dionysos…

 

My wanderlust is strong…so very, very strong… Maybe one of these days visiting these places will become a reality…

Upstairs Neighbors…

I live in a downstairs condo… which I really love.

Being on the first floor allows me easy access in and out… I am able to lug in an entire load of groceries in just one go, because seriously, who has time to make two trips? Being on the first floor allows me to do this…

I can sneak in and out through my patio doors- taking out the trash, running to my car in my pajamas trying to avoid being seen by neighbors, sitting on my patio sipping wine hidden behind lush, green bushes- blocking me from view (when the warm weather decides to grace us with her presence, of course)…

I really love living on the first floor…

Except…

My upstairs neighbors.

Sigh.

I am on my second round of neighbors since moving in and they have been less than desirable. Today, as I write this, I am currently listening to my upstairs neighbors slamming what I assume to be a heavy weighted ball against the floor (ya know…my ceiling). Over. And over. And over again. This has been going on for a good 45 minutes. My patience…its waning and is becoming very, very thin…

All I wanted to do tonight was unwind…grade a few papers, enjoy a glass of wine, and watch Once Upon a Time… revel in the peace and quiet of my home…relax and prepare for the final two days of the week.

But all I can hear is thud, thud, thud…. Which is a nice change of pace from the usual bass vibrating through my ceiling, shaking my light fixtures, causing my electricity to flicker on and off, on and off…

But tonight…thud, thud, thud…

My neighbor is lucky I’m already in my pajamas… that this glass of wine is much too delicious to leave unfinished… and my legs too sore from kickboxing to make that long trek upstairs…

 

Birthday Surprise…

I knew my then 7th graders (8th graders now) were up to something…

A secret notebook rotating throughout the classroom (“Its not a love note, we promise, Ms. Geijer!”)…

Sly glances at one another across the classrooms- smirks and head tilts with an occasional nod…

Shared whispers in the hallway, the lunchroom, my classroom that would instantly stop upon entering within hearing distance…Whispers of “Shhhhhh she’s coming” could be heard milling about for quite a few weeks…

My teacher radar was up….

One day, I was sternly instructed not too come in too early the next day… “We have something we are doing for you… if you get here early you’ll ruin the surprise.”

So I obliged… and strolled through the school doors a little later than normal. Upon observing my classroom shades pulled down and my room blacked out, I was instantly on guard.

I slowly unlocked my door and swung it open and….

BAM!

Hit in the face with a confetti gun… Balloons encompassed the classroom floor. Banners posted wishing me a most happy birthday. Pictures of our class together. Selfies taken on field trips and at school functions plastered across the board and wall. Flowers and cupcakes sitting on my desk. Streamers from floor to ceiling…

An agenda was posted on the board…the students had planned out the day in honor of my birthday…

Showered with handmade cards, letters, and notes, my students took a day that I was not looking forward to (I hate birthdays…I refuse to age!!!!) and made it so very, very special…

A birthday surprise that I will absolutely never forget… from students who have wormed their way into my hearts and taken homage for good.

I am on very lucky teacher… ❤

 

 

 

 

Some Things Just Don’t Go As Planned…

I’m a planner…have been for as long as I can remember…

Lists of goals and life plans…

Some accomplished, some not…

My biggest goal- I’m not even close to reaching… Just a spec on the very distant horizon… trying so hard to grasp it, but always failing to fall within reach…

I try to tell myself that its okay…I’ll be fine if it never happens.

But I’m just lying to myself…

And it bugs me everyday.

 

What To Slice About…

I could write about how rough mornings have been lately…besides teaching I work part time at a local hardware store…and how tomorrow I have to be AT work at 6 am. Yup…awful. My alarm clock will shrilly go off about 4:30 am… I”m praying I do not hit snooze one too many times…

I could slice about how shocked I am that slicing has come so naturally to me so far…that I’ve had an idea for each day…in years past, about this time, I’ve skipped a few days.

I would write about how my nieces are currently in Disney World… I’ve been stalking their trip via Snapchats sent from my sister and brother-in-law. Oh my, their smiles and giggles of pure glee… priceless!

I could slice about my current lack of personal space. My cat has stalked me all night… walking in between my legs tripping me (intentionally I’m sure)… eating dinner she thought it was appropriate to jump up on the table and try to lay next to my plate (umm…absolutely not!)…and now she is curled up, nestled in my side. My arm held at an upright, crooked angle as I type this to avoid jostling her sweet self- purring and kneading her paws against my leg.

I could write about how I showed up to kickboxing class…and was the first one there. Normally, by the time I show up (just before class starts of course- I tend to forever be running late), the class is half packed and I’m throwing elbows (politely of course) to make my way through the locker room to secure my belongings and grab my favorite bag. Our class total today- four members. Apparently, everyone else decided to take the night off to go celebrate St. Patty’s day.

I could slice about all that and more. But I have to be up at 4:30 am….So now, I’m off to bed!

 

 

 

An Arranged Marriage…

As a junior high teacher, I have the great privilege of having  a large majority of the same kids both in 7th and 8th grade…which I love! I love that I already know so much about who they are as people, their strengths and struggles, the bonds that we have built.

My students seem to love this as well.

Some, even so much that they want me to become part of their family…literally.

One of my students, Alexis, is obsessed with the idea of me becoming her aunt, or as as she calls me, Tia (aunt is Spanish).

She has it all planned out. A “random” meeting here at school- she’ll just happen to bring him along on a field trip as a chaperone or need him to accompany her up to school one day…

Next, is a first date. Possibly a blind date if her stealthy plans for us to meet haven’t quite worked out. Chipotle of course.

From there, we will date for one year before the unexpected happens…a proposal (where of course I’d say yes!)…

Followed by a wedding…Which I’ve recently learned she’s already hard at work planning… Apparently colors have been chosen, flowers, and a date. Now, I’m not quite sure about of the details, but Alexis promises to let me know as it approaches (hints of a spring or early summer wedding were made)…

And then, a few years later, a few children we would have- little nieces and nephews for my new “big” niece, Alexis, to babysit.

She has it all planned out…

She has shared this idea with anyone, and everyone, who would listen…our classroom, her mom and dad (who support her in this crazy quest), fellow teachers, and even her uncle.

She is quite motivated to make this happen…

She has it all planned out… literally!

Oh, Mom…

I think my mom may be having a slight mid-life crisis…

She has set up Facebook. “Samantha, did you see I have TWELVE friends now?!? How many friends do YOU have?!”

Oh, Mom…

She downloaded Instagram. “Samantha, how do you set up this Insta App Thingy…And what am I supposed to do?!”

Oh, Mom…

She purchased a motorcycle. A silver Harley that she rides complete with Harley Davidson leather pants and jacket… ” Samantha, do you see how COOL I look on my new bike?”

Oh, Mom…

She has downloaded Snapchat… Now, mind you, she doesn’t quite know how to use it, but hey, she HAS it (she wants everyone to know)… “Samantha, can you send me that link on Snapchat instead of through text?”   Ummm…no?

Oh, Mom…

But her biggest struggle lately, now that she has a new phone, is emoticons. Those tricky little faces are causing some serious strife as she strongly believes that the laughing-so-hard-you’re-crying- emoticon is actually the sobbing-because-I’m-so-sad emoticon. “Samantha, I just don’t understand why your sister is so mad at me. She accused me of LAUGHING at her…I would never do that!” After careful explanation, and modeling of the two DIFFERENT emoticons, she still couldn’t tell the difference…

Oh, Mom…