Macy's Parade...FUN!!!!

Picture it 630AM
Thanksgiving day,
high off dunkin doughnuts coffee,
it is so good!!!

We searched and found the greatest spot,
front row center
at the corner of 65th and Central Park West.
tens block down from where Al cut the ribbon.

An unexpected blast,
perfect weather,
the late fall leaf change a perfect backdrop.




I screamed like a 5 year old,
Oh my god,
hear comes shrek,
here comes Dora,
YAH!!
we are happiest when we revisit our youth,

the balloons were huge,
and i begged for confetti,
we are still finding it around the apartment,


Anaki Rose (from Dreamgirls) waved right at me,
only because during a brief crowd lull,
I yelled in a high pitch voice,
"LARELL, We LOVE YOU!!"
Dolly, Winona, Jordin,all wonderful.

Something i will always remember, a true treat.
Enjoy the pics,
I picked my faves,

happy holidays!!

"Lars and the Real Girl"

I watched this about 3 weeks ago, but it is still on my mind.
The best movie I have seen this season.
I hope Ryan Gosling gets the golden statue.
A truly brilliant performance!

The movie is hilarious, sad, and compassionate. A movie of true acceptance and unconditional love from a whole community. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!

5 freaking stars from me!!!

A more hopeful Jake...

Hi all...
I am here again,
Yah!!

have to struggle to learn,
and here I am learning.

No more fear,
no more paralyzing moments,
just hope,
hope for a better tomorrow!!

"walking like a one man army"
I take to my life with an editing pen,
taking the necessary steps,
to find that goofy boy again.

A glimpse tonight,
a brief feeling of a sustained change on the way.

I return tomorrow
Day 1,
Jakey, a good person, Mr. Robbins,
all back with in a blast!!

2007 is almost a memory,
a rollercoaster of a memory,
that will end with one last drop,
a good drop,
where you scream so loud because you are having FUN!!

I love you all
Happy Holidays,
Stay in touch!!!

Staying Strong

how dO i grow up when I teach six year olds?

tough day at 163,
bad teaching days come in waves,
today it felt like a Tsunami.

The education system has a trickle...

Cant they see they fail the kids?
It starts at the top,
the most political of jobs,
everyone watches their own ass,
working inner city in one of the biggest districts in the nation
provides a magnify glass.
teachers, teachers, teachers,
trickle, trickle trickle,
blame blame blame,
same same same

How can this be?
NY's brightest,
please,
room 205-d is an island.

Isolation for survival,
teachers fight for individual sanity,
leaving the feeble, fresh and uncertain to hunt alone.

Strength must come within. I have never fought this hard!!
How can this be in something like teaching?
Well teaching is one of the battlegrounds.
it all plays out in front of you,
a barometer of change in this country.
Something that appears so simplistic becomes complicated,
in the eyes of seeking six year olds.

Every inch of your mind and soul is exposed in this profession,
at least for the ones that truly care,
moments of simulated mental illness,
at least for someone as emotional as me.

Why take it so seriously you might ask??
This year will define me,
how it plays out I feel,
will shape my second quarter life,
as you can tell my struggles lie within,
teaching is the stage,
personal growth is the backlighting.

Drowning happens,
but before I hit the bottom,
hope gives me a second wind,
I cant give up on myself,

the light above me is distorted
gets brighter as I push to the surface,

turn the clock to zero honey,
we are starting on a brand new day.

drowning

sometimes I feel like Im drowning,
I dont know what to do.

looking through the mirror,
all I ask is who.

I fight, fight, fight
feel like Im losing the war.

no one to tell,
problems the same old bore.

head pounds,
heart races.

look at people,
dont even see their faces.

lost,
I feeel lost.

walls are closing in,
dont want to hurt the ones I love.

sometimes I wish I could disappear
on the wings of a freedom dove.

Take me far away from myself.
Take me far away from myself.

Man in the Yellow Hat

Well the week of Halloween has come and gone. It was a fun week. On Halloween, we had our "character" parade at school. (I love when schools do sneaky thing to get around weird religious blah). I had 9 kids absent that day. You see, in the Bronx Halloween is a big gang initiation day where new gang members have to do crazy things to be initiated, so parents are notorious about keeping their kids home that day. Needless to say, I couldn't really teach any planned lessons because their were so many kids out. YAH!! We just had so much fun. We did pumpkin number problems, and sequenced the story "The Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat" and if they got all 8 things she ate they got a prize. Then we wrote spooky stories in the afternoon. Then at the end of the day they got to trick or treat with Mr. Robbins, which basically meant that they walked up to me said "trick or treat" and I gave them a bunch of candy. It was fun. It was the first time I have ever been able to teach a holiday at school so I took full advantage. I dressed up as the man in the yellow hat from curious george, and I have to say without coming off too braggy...I WAS A HIT!! It was such a fun day at P.S. 163.

That night we went to the famous West Village Halloween parade. I was so excited but I have to tell you I was a little disappointed. For this being NYC, I had big expectations for the event. I mean this is the town that holds the Macy's Day Parade and one of the biggest gay pride parades in the world. But, with a frowning heart, I must say that the Village Halloween parade just didn't add up. Oh bother... :)

The week ended well. I had another professional development day at Teacher's College at Columbia, and last night we went and explored an area of Brooklyn called Williamsburg. It was pretty groovy. It is up and coming and we had some great Chinese food. This weekend I am going to rest. Supposedly we are getting a huge rain storm with high winds but it doesnt look bad yet. Anyway, have a great weekend and talk to you soon.