Weekend Recap

John came to visit me this past weekend. We had a grand ole time! Saturday we went to the Spy Museum. Saturday night we went downtown for dinner at a nice little Italian place, then on to the Mad Hatter. It was a fun night! Sunday we went to Georgetown then went to the movies. Monday we visited Ole Town Alexandria, then I took him to the airport & said goodbye. We saw a lot of things and had great fun, I wish the weekend had lasted longer.

As for my classes, they are going fine. I have a total of 27 students divided into four classes. It's hard to believe my first assignment is almost over! It ends a week from this Thursday. I will then fly out Friday to attend Tonya's wedding in ATL! When I return, I have Monday off (yah for Columbus Day & school is out), and then I start at my second school.

I hope everyone is well in the lovely Magic City!

Here's a picture from the weekend!

Arlington National Cemetary

I decided to hop on the Metro this afternon & venture out to Arlington Cemetary. From the second you enter the gates you know you are somewhere sacred. They have little white tombstones everywhere. I always thought they were just unmarked, but they have the names and dates on them of the fallen solider. Some even have the names of their wives on the back. It was a very touching experience. You could tell everyone walked through it the same way I was - in awe - in silence. I got to the Tomb of the Unknown Solider just in time for the changing of the guards. That was so interesting to see! Everyone was seated on the steps in utter silence. Even when the change had taken place and the new solider was marching in front, people started to whisper, talk, and he turned directly towards us and said "Please keep silent in memory of those who have fought for our country." It caught everyone's attention & everyone shut up. It was a beautiful day to go out there. It was a moving experience. For those of you who love wiki facts - here's a quick link to learn more about ANC. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arlington_National_Cemetary



The view from the top!


The Tomb of the Unknown Solider.


Changing of the guards @ the Tomb of the Unknowns.

JFK's grave.


Jackie O's gravesite, buried by JFK. Eternal flame burning.

6am on a Saturday! Ugggg!

My alarm came early today! 6:05am on a SATURDAY! Yes, I have a four hour class on Saturdays - the good thing is it only meets three times & it's done! Today was my first "real" class. I had seven students - six boys and one girl. As I went around the room asking them all why they were taking Readak they all said the same thing, "My parents are making me." They loved being in class at 8am on a Saturday, let me tell you. Anyway, it did go by very quickly and they were all very receptive. They are sweethearts - they all mentioned they are excited to take this & hope it helps them. It touched my heart. I know that sounds silly, but I never imagined being a teacher before. It is great to know I could actually help these kids be better students. Also, it's still sooooo odd to hear them call me "Miss Hartman."

I know some of you want pictures of me lounging in the teacher's lounge - consider it in the works. I may see what I can do. :)

I am going to attempt a walking tour of the city tomorrow. I say "attempt" because my car's stupid check engine light came on. We'll see how far I can get.

That's all I got. Good night!

Old Town Alexandria

Wednesday my bossman, Gerry, came in from Boston to check in on me & the school I am at now. He took me to Old Town Alexandria to eat. I LOVED Old Town! It was beautiful. We walked down the same cobblestone roads that George Washington & Robert E. Lee skipped down. For all of those waiting for my wikipedia facts, you'll find a picture of a sign that tells of the history of Old Town. Enjoy.


Look who was in Alexandria!


And look who else!

Loungin' in the Teacher's Lounge

While in school, I always wondered what teachers talked about in the teacher's lounge. I mean, what did they do in there? Well, now I know. They talk about students! LOL... I've been camping out in the teacher's lounge this week. I've been doing mini-presentations in classes trying to recruit kids. High school students can be such smart a$$es. One kid, man, I wanted to slap him. Anyway, it's been a busy week. Kelly's apartment is without internet for the time being, so I thought I'd use my "school time" to update this. My first class is tomorrow. Four LONG hours. I have seven kids in there. We'll see how excited they are to get up on a Saturday to come to an 8am-12pm class. :) The weather here is great! I've been running and it's nice to not run in hot, hummid weather. The highest it's been was 78 degrees. I may go to a museum this weekend and go to a cookout. I hope Bham is lovely and I hope you are all well! xoxo!

The First Day @ School

My first day had a rocky start. Talk about BAD first impression. I get there early - of course- and am scheduled to meet Tom (my contact & the assistant principal) at 7:30am. They page him. He finally comes running in at 7:50am & yells "Who paged me?? What's so important?" The secretary says, "The Readak girl is here," and points to me. I wave & say hi, he then says, "That is NOT important and it's the least of my concerns right now!" They all look at me & sigh. Ugg... what a jerk. He then comes back 10 min later, smiling, laughing and I go back to his office & we talk. He reminds me of the gay guy from Will & Grace. He's real bubbly and maybe, early 30s. So...yah...that was my first day. I hung up posters promoting the program, met some of the 80+ teachers, tried to remember their names, got a lot of paperwork done, and even ate a canolli that an old student brought in to the office staff. :) It's so weird to be back in a school. From the second I walked in, that smell of the school halls, oh my, it was overwhelming. It took me back to high school. I never thought of being a teacher. I actually think this may be fun. My first class is Saturday from 8am-12pm. My day got off to a rocky start, but I think I'll survive.

The Capitol City

I'm here! Aftering driving 9 hours from Boston to DC on Friday, I arrived safe & tired. The weather in Boxborough, MA was 62 degrees when I left and 97 degrees when I arrived in DC. Talk about a huge change! I miss the cooler weather. By the way, I hate, hate, HATE Garmin for taking me through the Bronx on my way here. Not a good idea and not fun. It gives me something to look forward to on my way to Long Island in November *touch of sarcasm* Anyway, so I met my new roommate, Kelly, on Saturday. She is truly fabulous! *Thanks again, Lauren!* She took me out with her friends on Saturday night & I had a great time. Her friends are great - so friendly and they loved my accent. I never knew I had a Southern accent until I went to Boston. I just thought people here in VA would sound somewhat Southern too, but nope. I stick out like a sore thumb. We went out in Arlington to watch the Ohio State/USC game. It was a fun night! My first day at Paul VI Catholic School is tomorrow. I already scoped out the area and it's only 15 min from here. I'm not nervous now, but ask me tomorrow at 7am. I have to be there at 7:45am. My day will last until 3pm, then I have a seminar tomorrow night. It'll be a long day. I hope my other friends traveling made it safely to their respective places (Halifax, Houston, Tyler & San Jose). Tomorrow is the start of a quick month. Gerry (boss man) promised us this time would fly by. We'll see. I hope everyone back home is great! I miss you all!