Everything's Amazeballs

Amazeballs is my new favorite word. I think I saw it on Regretsy used to make fun of someone. I've claimed it as my own.


This has been a great day. I've been in a good mood because although I lost time with my students due to horrible high stakes testing, I had a lot of time over the last three days to think and plan. I wrote syllabi, exams, and whole curriculums all in my head while proctoring the test. On my breaks I wrote it all down on paper. I feel über prepared for the next trimester even though it promises to be as behaviorally challenging as my last two. 

While I enjoyed my standardized testing induced coma, I stand by my opinion (and Sir Ken Robinson's) that schooling has to change.

Doing work that requires only obeying orders and not thinking meant that I didn't stay at school late this week. I got home while the sun was out, walked my dogs in 60 degree weather, and got workouts in too. Amazeballs? Yes. I wonder if this is what it's like to have a career where you leave and don't take anything home with you. I wonder if it could be like this all the time. 


I met with Peace Jam after school and my friend Paul from the Kalamazoo nonprofit Clean Water for the World came and presented about the importance of access to clean water for everyone.  Our Peace Jam club is planning to participate in the Walk for Water on March 17th. We are walking six miles-- the average distance women and children in developing countries walk to get water every day-- and collecting pledges to support Clean Water for the World. 


This organization brightens my life and being able to say that I helped install one of their purification system in a community changed my life. The ideals they carry with them to each country they visit are uplifting. With all of the Kony2012 hype, smaller and more transparent organizations lose attention. Do I like awareness? Yes, of course. Raising awareness is amazeballs. I also like it when people educate themselves on all sides of an issue. :) 


Since I had all this time on my hands to do so much thinking (even after a club meeting), I took a brain break and wandered over to Marshall's to find some discounted goodies. They had these delicious bars in the food section:

THE BEST!

I didn't know what to expect when I bit into the bar. I'm not able to eat dairy or gluten in large quantities right now because my stomach freaks out so I'm always looking for a semi-healthy treat. I'd had the regular fig bars before and I love them. These were as good the regular ones times 1,000,000 simply because there were chunks of dark chocolate in the bar. Score! Thanks Marshall's. 


Then, I had my swim class tonight and I learned how to flip turn. I'm not at 30 before 30 goal reaching status, but I flip turned several times without getting water in my nose. I'll be flip turning with ease in no time. 


Last, but not least, I just signed up for my first outdoor triathlon: the Double Time Tri in Three Rivers. My tri workout buddy Danielle told me this was her first outdoor triathlon and it's about to be mine too! I'm so glad she'll be with me. I was really nervous before the indoor tri. You probably don't want to know this, but I think I went to the bathroom 5 times... it reminded me of how I felt before a cross country race when I was in high school. I always feared peeing in the woods. 


I digress. 


It's been quite the day. I'm going to turn in and hope that tomorrow is as amazeballs as today.