The Week and Pandan Picks and Pans

Wow. It has been a crazy half week back at school. I'll start with the now and work backwards. You'll notice a theme. Yes, I am tired. This weekend is a very welcome one, indeed!

Today is Friday and I am home and finally get an afternoon to relax. At least until 5:00, when I will go to Nat and Steve's for some drinks for his birthday. This afternoon, we launched a new unit of inquiry in Grade Two and the students are looking into the past, present and future. To give them a glimpse into the lives of those in the past, we set up rotations where they could play with old toys, watch old movies, write with quill pens, make their own ice cream and experience a Victorian school setting. I was the Victorian teacher. I had a blast. The lights and air conditioning were off, there were lit candles, the white boards were covered with black paper and chalk was used, the desks were set up in rows and each student got their own small chalkboard with chalk. I was dressed in Victorian teacher garb, complete with glasses. As soon as it was time to start the rotations, I stood outside my door, with meter stick in hand, waiting to greet (and then to shout at) the students. They were to stand against the wall, toes touching the wall, backs to me, so I could check their posture. Throughout each 15-minute rotation, students were made to sit up straight, repeat times tables, read aloud, write with their right hands if they were left-handed and practice penmanship on their chalkboards, all the while being belittled or made to stand in a corner or being startled by the smacking of the meter stick on their desks. I had so much fun. The looks on some of their faces were priceless. At the end of each rotation, I would take off my glasses, smile and take a deep breath. Then, all the kids would start to relax and would instantly become animated talking about their Victorian school experience. Last year, I hosted the toys rotation and while it was fun, there is just something about releasing some of that angst on the kids . . . no, I'm kidding. But, really, we all had a blast. I am tired, though.

Last night, we hosted Slurp, the bi-weekly get-together for staff members who wish to participate. We co-hosted with Dave and Kristen Feren and had a theme: Heaven and Hell. Upstairs was Heaven (our place) and downstairs was Hell. In Heaven, there were delicious desserts, champagne, and white wine. There was also soft music and white Christmas lights and clouds completed the ambiance. In Hell, there were spicy foods, bloody mary's and cheap booze and beers. There were red lights, masks and a birthday cake for all those with end of October/beginning of November birthdays decorated with flames that read "It's Hell Getting Older." Everyone came to Heaven first, to be judged by St. Peter at the Pearly Gates. After about an hour and a half, we turned off Enya and turned on Metallica and everyone was made to pick out a "deed" (school-related, of course) which would keep them in Heaven or send them straight to Hell. Later, everyone from Heaven was sent to Hell for committing the sin of drinking. Overall, it was a great night. Slurp duty done for the year. But again, I was tired.













The night before that, we went to watch the premiere of the new Bond movie: Quantum of Solace. Cory has not missed an opening of Bond since Grade 5, so it was only natural that we go. There were eight of us and the theater was packed and freezing. Overall thoughts on the flick: disappointed. Won't give anything away, but it didn't stack up to Casino Royale. If you want a full run-down, just ask Cory - he won't be shy to tell you all of his opinions. Got home at 11:30 and was very, very tired. It was also the first day back with the kids after October break. Tired.

The night before that, the same group that would go to the opening of Bond on Wednesday evening, came to our place for a showing of Casino Royale. It was also my birthday, so Cory and I had a fabulous steak dinner with wine from Margaret River that we brought back from our trip to Australia last year. I opened some cards and gifts and then I did a very nice thing. This is how much I love my husband. I allowed him to invite people over for Casino Royale (which I must admit, I don't mind watching). It was just as good the second time around. We also had cake for my birthday. Got to bed late. Tired.

The night before that was my mom's last night in Manila before she headed back to Singapore. It was great having her here, as usual. It was a little hard to say goodbye, but she will come back in the spring. We had that day off and went to get pedicures, stock up for Slurp and just visit. I was still feeling well-rested on Monday evening, ready for a full day of faculty in-service meetings for my birthday the next day.

The week before that we spent at Pandan Island, off the southwest coast of Mindoro, Philippines. Here's the breakdown of our trip:


Picks
* Gorgeous and bath-water warm turquoise blue water for swimming and snorkeling.
* Soft, white sand for bocce ball tournaments.
* Great weather for snorkeling the shallow reefs with some beautiful corals, fish and sea turtles.
* Saving a baby octopus.
* The company (Joanna and Neil, Kristy and mom), which provided lots of laughs.
* The time to read three full books and a host of magazines.
* A blind eye from the "staff" to all the booze and wine and snacks we brought with us.
* A mellow bartender who was always helpful and kind. (He got a big tip.)
* Some beautiful sunsets.
* Swimming at night in the phosphoresence.


Pans
* A less-than-friendly owner whose been at Pandan for 20 years and has let it go to crap.
* A moody chef who griped at us every meal, even when we continued to smile and engage him in conversation, who later insinuated that we should give him a tip (we didn't).
* Very, very basic accommodations with rat droppings, spiders the size of your palm, termite shavings falling from the ceilings to the beds and a toilet that wouldn't flush.
* Salt water showers (with a bucket of fresh water for rinsing).
* Mosquitos. Poor mom got bit so many times that she looked like she had the chicken pox.
* The food should really go in the middle. It wasn't bad, but it got old.

So, ups and downs, but it truly was relaxing. I won't lie. Even with all the pans, we had a great time and made the best of it. But, would we recommend going to Pandan again? HELLZ NO.