One of my kids took this picture one afternoon in Puerto La Cruz.

(No, he did not receive extra credit for it....but it is a sweet pic)

My Foot on the Gas.....

It seems as though the past 22 days have flown past. I'm sorry for leaving anyone hanging and I had one or two emails asking me if I was still alive! Luckily, I am.

Things at school are moving along quickly, but at a better pace. Our Director returned safely (with his family and new daughter Ocean). We got a new high school science teacher (who also teaches PE on the other days) and we picked up an ESL teacher. This means that those replacements we have been hoping for have finally arrived and things are moving a little more smoothly.

In other interesting events, one of the local companies down here, H & P, are celebrating their 50th Anniversary this year and decided to hold an Olympics to celebrate. I entered the volleyball, bowling and basketball competitions. Bowling was fun (and I got a free polo--awesome) and volleyball was a bit disappointing, losing in the 2nd round. Basketball though was hilarious!

We were waiting and waiting for the bball tourney to start and every time we were told to show up, no one was there. So finally, after our volleyball match we were told to go over to the basketball courts and our first game would start right away. So Shaun, Bill (the Director) and myself went over and waited.....and waited. Still nothing. Then three locals showed up and wanted to play, so we played for about forty-five minutes....just for fun.

Suddenly a man that looks like he could be a ref comes over and says we're about to begin. "Begin what?" we asked? The tournament. So sadly, we were exhausted and near death and our game had yet to start. The odds were not looking good.

The tournament was played on a court that was a little bigger than half a normal court and it had a hoop on both ends. So it was 3 v 3, full court, if you will. The other team had a big guy that was pretty good. I'd say he was about 6'3" or 6'4" and he was solid. He had decent post moves and you could tell that he could play. Sadly the rest of his team wasn't as solid, so we tried to defend him and let the others do what they would. We ended up winning by 14 points, which was hilarious because I thought I was going to vomit after the first 7 minutes (luckily, only two 10 minute halves).

We then waited and waited to play our second game. Last Wednesday was rained out. Last Thursday--rained out. Last Friday--rained out. So I went to the BBQ Picnic Finale assuming that the bball tourney had been scratched. However to my surprise, as they were handing out medals, the representatives from Escuela Anaco took first place!!! Sadly, I was the only one from our team at the picnic and I laughed to myself the entire way up to collect our medals. I even got my picture taken with the three young ladies that handed out the medals! So to sum up, we went 1-0 and were the champs. Hilarious.

With everything that is going on, sadly the ride isn't about to slow up. This week is short, due to our Halloween Celebration Thursday night, Friday night I head to Puerto with my MUN students for a workshop and then on Saturday we have the elementary bball tourney in Puerto. Next week I head to Caracas with the MUN students on Friday for five days and then the week after that is Thanksgiving (and a trip to Angel Falls). Needless to say, I'm going to be a little busy.

I'll try to find some time to post some pics and other fun-filled stories during the next few weeks. I hope all is well wherever you are.

God Bless

My Beat-down.....

I'm tired....we're all tired. I don't really know how else to put it. It seems that over these past two weeks, we've all been run ragged. All of us really. It's almost as if we are a unit of soldiers, repelling wave after wave of attacks......but we're short-handed. Some of our crew have left, others have been wounded or sick at times and some just disappear, right when you need them most.

Luckily, we've all pulled through. Everyone has played their part and filled in where needed. Some have battled through illness, others fatigue and still others have fought through the frustration. All we need are some reinforcements....two or three, heck, even one would be a blessing right now.

Luckily one is coming......one. Just having that one will free up so many others. Maybe some of our crew can rest........

soon.

God Bless.

My Fun Experiment.....

You may not have heard, but something really cool happens when you drop a sleeve of Mentos into a 2 liter of pop. My students brought it to my attention and since I was wanting an experiment for science class, we decided to try it today. Here's what happens:

How cool is that!?!?

I know, now we need a brief explanation. According to Steve Spangler science, what happens is the carbon dioxide in the bottle (put there when the bottle was bottled) attaches itself to the Mentos when you drop them in, forming bubbles on the tiny pits that are on each Mento. The Mentos sink to the bottom and when the gas is released, it pushes the liquid up and out of the bottle. I'm not going to lie....it was a lot of fun.

I hope things are great wherever you are!

God Bless....