Off The Hook!

Earlier this summer I went to a taping of the new Food Network show, Guy Off the Hook. In this show Guy Fieri cooks in front of a live audience.

The two shows that were taped, Far East, Far Out & Seoul Food, are being showed during the month of October on the 5th and 19th respectively. For the latter show, my friend and I sat stage left and got to taste the delicious s'more egg rolls (mmmmm!). Check your Food Network listings!

Take Off!

The Discovery Channel is showing When We Left Earth: NASA Missions on TV. I caught it this afternoon and I found myself mesmerized.

When I visited the Johnson Space Center Museum in Houston, Texas, I took in each and every possible exhibit and demonstration. I loved looking at the NASA mission time line and seeing memorabilia from the Apollo missions, crew pictures including Ronald E. McNair (2nd African American in space, 1984) and Sharon Christa McAuliffe (the first teacher to fly to space) from the tragic Challenger Shuttle Mission in 1986 , and information on Columbia Shuttle Mission re-entry tragedy in 2003.

NASA tragedies aside, I love learning about space travel and astrology (sometimes). I love seeing the moon and stars! I am amazed by the intellect and physical strength that astronauts/mission specialists possess in order to train and then travel into space. Most have experience in the U.S. Navy or Air Force, which speaks towards their training.

Most importantly, the legacy that astronauts leave behind is insurmountable, especially if they live to talk about it. How do you describe telling your child "I was one of the people who put the Hubble Telescope into orbit"? How does your child feel knowing that, they may never surpass such an accomplishment. If you don't make it due to some unfortunate mission tragedy, your former schools can be renamed to pay tribute, significant buildings in your field may be named after your, and you can even have an asteroid named after you.

I don't think teaching would get me all of that. Well, not unless I'm a teacher that travels to space. Until that happens, I'm adding something to my to-do before I'm 30 list: See a space shuttle launch.

*Jas*

Disney Run: 2

I'm injured already!

My second week of training so far has been spent limping around with Neuroma.

It feels like I'm walking on a bunched up sock, but barefoot. The bottom of my foot seems swollen, but it appears to be the same size as the other. When I told my Team in Training mentor about the pain she inquired about my running shoes. Right now, I'm running in an old pair of Adidas outside and a newer pair of Nike running shoes with great stability and cushion at the gym.

She told me two important things:
1. I need more cushion at the ball of my foot. My foot was clearly telling me this.
2. I need a bigger running shoe. One that has approximately half an inch space between in front of my longest toe.

With that... I need to get new running shoes!

I haven't run all week and I'm hoping to run at Saturday's practice. Until I get those shoes, it's ice on the foot.

Make a donation to honor those battling blood cancers here.
*Jas*

Disney Run: 1

This week of training was fun, fulfilling, and very challenging.

I've never voluntarily run...EVER! Playing basketball, running up and down a court is nothing like running around a park or track. Good thing I like to people watch!

On Wednesdays and Saturdays I have team runs in Prospect Park. I've only been in this park three times, so these runs familiarize me with the park.

Our first run was a "fun run" where we ran 15 minutes out and 15 minutes in. I walked most of the path. I was in back! The very last person. When the group turned around one of the coaches helped me find my running pace and I went from walking most of the path or running most of the path.

I missed the Saturday run in Central Park, but I met back up with the group for a Wednesday run focusing on our arm swing. Awesome! We were to run 0.25 miles off (running regularly) and 0.25 miles on (focusing on form). I ran the first 0.25 miles at my own special pace :-) But I was still in back :-( It's okay! I'm improving at my own pace because I ran most of my treadmill workout the following day.

I finally made it to a Saturday run and I was very nervous. I thought that they were going to run us to death. To my surprise our run was to get us even more familiar with the park by running the entire loop, 3.3 miles! I started out with my special running pace and after 0.25 miles I was feeling fine so I kept running...and running...and running. Sixteen minutes later I exclaimed to my running partner "I just ran my first mile without stopping! I haven't done that since elementary school." Quite an accomplishment for me, the non-runner.

Stay tuned for the next week...

Help to improve a Leukemia patient's quality of life here.

Team in Training: Disney Marathon

On September 10th, I began raising funds for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and training for a marathon with their Team in Training program. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training^®, provides participants with professional coaching and training for the world's major marathons, half marathons, triathlons or century (100-mile) bike rides. In January, I will compete in my first full marathon (26.2 miles) at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

Some of you may be wondering why? Well... not only am I doing this for my God Mother's father who passed away from Leukemia a few years back, but I am also doing this for my students. Leukemia is the No. 1 disease killer of children! The money that I raise funds research and cures for all blood cancers, including leukemia, Hodgkin or non-Hodgkin lymphoma or myeloma.

As I work to improve the quality of life of blood cancer patients, I am also working to improve my quality of life through fitness and health. I've been overweight for most of my life and for the past 3 years out of college, I've fallen into a state of being inactive. My energy levels have been low and my body is showing signs of stress. Completing this marathon shows my dedication to my personal fitness goals.

Visit my fundraising page to make a donation to support my participation in Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission.

Check back for training updates!

*Jas*

Emotional Pain In The...

You know that feeling in your throat that you get when you're fuming mad and hold whatever you want to say in. It's like a burning piece of coal in your throat that moves up your knock and into the back of your mouth. It now starts to sting as if you ate something that was knock-your-socks-off spicy or smack-your-momma sour. You then feel your body temperature rise, jaw locks, eyes water, behind the ears gets hot, and your head starts pounding.

I imagine this is how infuriated a fourth grade students was when he decided to yell, scream, and toss a chair in our classroom. Right?

I mean, why would you not be expected to sit down in a chair and not talk across the room?

Some educators think that this student needs strategies to deal with his anger. Eh, maybe. But wise ol' momma-Jas once told me, "When you cry and tantrum you're making the decision to not to use your words to express yourself. You're letting your emotions take over the power of your words." She always taught me that my words, opinion/voice are will get me further than tears and tantrums. I can't remember if it was a look or if I got my behind tore up for trying to tantrum. I do remember that I was ALWAYS able to question others and explain my feelings to adults if done respectfully and in a timely-manner.

Where has parenting gone? And so I pray...

*Jas*

Lunch Box vs. Academic/Social Behavior

Since last Friday, Roommate #2 and I have received phone calls from a parent every day after school.
No, not to ask about homework.
No, not to see if the student completes classwork.
No, definitely not to say hello and meet his new teachers.
No, not to discuss why he kicked another student.
He never talks back to adults or when the teacher is talking, so it wasn't to
discuss that.

It was to ask us about his dang on LUNCH BOX!!! I need to pray...

*Jas*

A sign of the future? I'm still for O'Biden...

Obama's platform for change resonates with many young activists and has generated a lot of excitement. Former Real World cast member and "hip-hop historian" Kevin Powell caught the political bug during this momentous time.

Powell sought to paint the congressman as an outdated, out-of-touch representative whom voters should retire after 13 terms. He also sought to position himself as part of a new generation of political activists, seizing on the excitement generated by Barack Obama's historic presidential bid.

I hope Powell continues to push ahead in politics, brining his momentum to local or state political arenas where NYC could use his fresh ideas and community roots. And so I pray...

*Jas*

Attachments

"EH isn't coming back this year!" roommate #2 exclaimed.

I sighed in relief and continued to my other task of keeping 21 fourth grade males engaged in their math activity. After passing EH's name tag at an empty seat several times that morning, the relief quickly turned to sadness. I was looking forward to EH's moodiness and charm. This student grew to be one of my favorites throughout my first year teaching and now I wondered if I would ever see him again.

Another favorite of mine from last year still comes up to the school to visit and I feel like I am seeing an old friend. Her smile still makes my day! I hope she and he stay sweet, where ever they go. And so I pray!

*Jas*

Let Me Introduce Roommates 1, 2, and 3.

Roommate 1: This is the roommate that I share my spacious 2.5 bedroom apartment with. She's a 23 year old female who is also from the mid-west. We went to college together. She'll be called... CN.

Roommate 2: This is the educator that I share my beautiful 4th grade classroom with. He's an older 20-something year old male who has been an assistant teacher for way too long (I'll get to that in a later post) and has been with this class since first grade, excluding second grade when they were with me. I teach with him in the morning and afternoon when I have my homeroom group. He'll be called... RC.

Roommate 3: This is the other educator that I share my classroom with. She is a recent college graduate who is entering her first year teaching. I teach with her for a few hours in the morning. She'll be called...BR.

These are my "living"arrangements for the next few months. I say few months because I'm not exactly sure where my heart is for this school year and if I'll make it. Come with me as I live and learn with these three others in my life. And so I pray...

*Jas*

New beginnings...

This year I'm teaching 4th grade! Yaaay!!! Or not...

If teaching at a charter school wasn't hard enough, NOW I get the opportunity to teach in a testing grade. And not just any testing grade, but the one that gets students into the city's best (or worst) middle schools. It's kind of cool that these are the same students that I had my first year teaching when they were in second grade. There's older, hopefully more mature, and so am I! I mean, isn't that why my school's leadership team put me in this position, because they knew I'd succeed? Or did they put me there to burn me out of teaching for good and serve me up on a silver platter? From the looks of today, I'd say the latter.

My first day was not only filled with endless technology mishaps, but I had the pleasure of meeting with the a group of people that disregarded my previous experience with this group of students and the fact that most behaviors were magnified from it being the first day of school!

I'm not liking it... not one bit! However, I do believe that everything happens for a reason and there is usually a lesson in such unfortunate circumstances. And so I pray...

*Jas*

Just Party & Bull Ish...

Tonight was one of my most interesting nights in NYC...

It all began with a nice day at the beach. Actually, it was really windy and the waves were crazy high!

Then, there was the good ol' Georgia St. block party. Big ups Long Beach :-) They really know how to do it. Thanks to RG and her friend's "panty dropping" jungle juice, good times were had! I even played a nice lil'' prank on a good sport!

My roommate and I took a drive back into Brooklyn for a loft party in East Williamsburg. __ words: loft party, live band, a cooler full of beer, and a basement techno party...WHAAAAAT?!?!? Can you imagine a club like room in your house? Yeah, it was hot!

We finally made it home to put our new splitter on our cable/internet to find...The Color Purple on We! Now, that movie is deep in its time, but even deeper after you have some experiences to relate to the characters.

"I'm Black, poor, and I might be ugly, but I'm here!!!"

Good night !

Get yo' walk on!

Walking is the new workout plan! There are great health and weight-loss benefits to walking at a moderate pace for 30 minutes a day. To maximize your walking regime, use Google Maps Pedometer to map and calculate distance and calories burned.

Now, go! Get yo' walk on :-)

Does your job drive you to drink?

At Local West (1 Penn Plaza, 33rd St. & 8th Ave.) you get a ludicrous happy hours, sassy staff, plus a heated rooftop and patio, 11 flatscreens, and a full menu of outstanding grub, all a stone's throw from Penn Station. (If your job drives you to stay sober, you're probably a bartender?) Sundays are karaoke nights, with free Liquid Courage shots for solo acts.

Okay, Movie Buff...

I love movies that leave you dumbfounded and searching for the remote to review scenes!

Did you catch these exciting movie twists? Check out the ones on this list:

Spoiler Alert: Giving Away the 20 Best Movie Twists

#20 is the BEST!!

Game Time!

This is the second week that I've played volleyball at the YMCA. However, this time I decided to go to the Total Body workout class before hand. By time it was game time, I was tired and my arms were weak. That didn't stop me though! I looked forward to it for a whole week...since the first time I played :-)

I don't remember seeing them, but everyone else must have went to that same workout class because everyone seemed just as tired as me! So, after missing all my serves, dropped balls where no one called it, and calling a ball only to have ol' boy not call it go for it and run into to him...I realized that I AM COMPETITIVE!!!

It took the remaining strength that I had to not tell someone, "GET ON THE BALL!"
"THAT WAS YOURS!"
"DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE FLOOR!"
"GET LOW!"
"MOVE YOUR FEET!"
It was JV Volleyball all over again! One thing's for sure, it's still loads of fun! One more week :-)

Subway Follies II

Sometimes I try to see how much I can get away with...

I was on my way to a play in Manhattan during rush hour. The 6 train was empty when I got on at Brooklyn Bridge-City Hall. I took out my book and began to read to pass the time. I quickly became engrossed in my reading and the train became crowded as the it traveled farther up the cement island. Before I knew it, there was a large, sweaty man sitting to my left with about 2 ft. between us. "Great, still some room there!" I thought. There were tons of people on the platform at the next stop. As people piled onto the train, a woman sat on my right with about 1 ft between us, "...nice, still breathing room." But not for long...

Standing in front of me was a woman--about the same age as my mother, with as much spunk as myself, and not the trimmest cut on the block. Get what I mean? "Excuse me," she spoke looking down at me. I knew that she wanted me to open up the 1 ft. between myself and the woman to my right for her to sit down. That would've required me close the 2 ft. between myself and the sweaty NYer-type that I try my hardest to avoid. In fact, that's one reason why I drive! Decisions, decisions...

I chose self-preservation! So, without looking up from my intellectually stimulating book, I slid 1 ft. to my right! That opened up a spacious seat for both of us ;) Mine being on the more pleasant side!

Telemarket Dating

A few weeks ago, I went for an interview to be a part-time telemarketer. It's something that I did a few times during college and I actually enjoyed it... plus, I needed to make some money moves. When I entered the office for my interview I was greeted by a very handsome young man, brown-skin, clean-cut, and bright smile. He introduced himself as E.E., explained that he'd be interviewing me and led me to a conference room. Following him, I could tell that he definitely worked out. I was already becoming uncomfortable and knew that I would have to pull it together so that I wouldn't embarrass myself. If I were a guy... I would've had a boner.

During the interview, I kept strong eye contact and steady language. Every now and then I found myself looking at him for too long and getting the school-girl giggles. This man was gorgeous! Beautiful Black man features! Deep brown almond eyes, strong jaw line, wide shoulders and thick arms, and luscious looking lips! As I left the office and got in my car, I felt a wild rush of giggles and excitement! I couldn't wait to find out if I got the job...

I did get the job!

Unfortunately, I had scheduling conflicts with the training and decided not to work it out. When E.E. there was an unsettling pause. Was he waiting for an explanation? A plea to reschedule? Or...my hopes... changing the professional acquaintance to a personal acquaintance?

The post-it with his phone numbers (cell, office) remains on my desk and I'm looking at it thinking, "Should I call him?"

What would you do???

Boobs!

This professor will say anything to get a feel.

But that's okay because if they don't sag, they may get breast cancer down the line anyway...

U.S. Study Links Breast Cancer to Drinking

Soo...

If I get all the smoking and drinking out of the way now, will my chances of breast cancer be lower than if I do it when I'm older?!?

2008 Primaries

"...my life still goes on. Just let me know when it's my turn to vote."

That's how I felt in January. Now, it's April and... sadly, I think I still feel the same.

Umma do me...

Last month I visited an old high school buddy. This buddy is very talented in the restaurant industry and has traveled a lot. He has finally settled down in Naples, Florida and finds himself quite content. In addition to being in sunshine and warm weather everyday, he is going what he loves to do, working hard, and is getting the props he deserves. His new place of employment is so posh, that you need to have a membership to eat his delightful meals. I, his best friend, couldn't even dine in his restaurant...humf! I did however, get some great breakfast and frozen pizzas. He also treated me to some great seafood places on the Gulf. I love dining with him because he knows so much about food & beverages that it makes a regular eating experience ten times better!

The best part of the entire trip was seeing my buddy happy, smiling from the inside because was now at a place in his life where he can just... do him!

Is your career like that?

Subway Follies I

I have officially done something dirty in a Manhattan subway station. What do you think it is?

Clues: I was on my way back from a party in NJ; I stopped at an area hotel with no luck; and it was night time.

Lesbian

"Ewww...what the!?! No one wants to see all that!"

Exercise isn't my thing! But I love the results I get and it's a great stress reliever. So are other things, but exercise is better for your health...nevermind. Since I hadn't worked out in a while and went pretty hard on treadmill I decided to visit the sauna to help relax my muscles so that I would be able to move just a little bit more easily the next morning.

Now, everyone has their own locker room style. Some people go all out and walk around the locker room like they were in the Garden of Eden before Eve ate the shiny apple...fruit...or was that snow white? You get my drift... BUTT-NAKED!!! Me-- I'm conservative, bra and panties in the sauna or steam room, and only showing skin if something slips.

As I entered the sauna, I was met by two sets of creamy breasts. Two young women were chillin in there naked. Alright. To each her own. I'll lay over here and chill. As they exited the sauna a young girl about the age of thirteen blurts to her older sister, "What the!?! I don't need to see all that!" Surprisingly, the older sister adds "What!?! I aint' no lesbian. I don't need that all in my face!"

The girls entered the steam room and looked towards me for confirmation.

I sat up, removed my sports bra, and said "Quite liberating if you ask me!"

What does sitting topless have to do with being a lesbian?! I believe that those who are most afraid of it will soon become it!

Electile Dysfunction

It has been diagnosed. I have "the inability to become aroused by any of the choices for President put forth by either of the parties in the 2008 election."

No matter how many Presidential debates I watch I still can't get it up. My interests that is...

I will continue to try. They say that the more I stimulate it, the more sensitive it will be become and the better my reaction. We shall see...

Justify My Love

"Do you like to idea of him (accomplishments, belongings, credentials) or are you truly interested in the person that he is?"

My good friend's question from the college years still hunts me to this day. I think about it when I first meet someone until I can honestly answer the question. Recently, I had to fess up to the former. This person had great credentials and I was impressed by their goals and determination. However, outside of the conversations where he was talking about himself there was nothing there. No doubt, I don't mind hearing or seeing a guy's confidence. I even prefer that a guy be able to sell themselves to me. However, this exchange can't be one-sided. They too must not fall in love with my credentials:
23 year old college graduate pursuing a masters degree , full-time career, own place & car,with no kids,

but truly get to know me:
the fair-minded, sincere, CP-time running, trying to be in two places at once, dancing, drinking, teacher, researcher, goal-orientated, spiritual driven, emotional, affectionate, independent, princess, young lady that is comfortable with her sexuality.

The red flags in dating will not always be extreme (kids, drug habits, etc.), but do hold tight to the person that you are and take your time to truly get to know the person you're dating beyond their Wall Street credentials.

Yo-Plus

"Plus is where it's at!" (TV Commercial)

I've been tryin' to tell ya'll that for the longest!