you knew this was coming

session 2 happiness:

1) quizzo team winning AGAIN!-the nerd games of "guess the acronym" and "world capitals" that b and i used to play FINALLY came in handy...do YOU know the capital of armenia? didn't think so.
2) short ross totally schooling tall ross in a wrestling match. when i implored tall ross to stop being such a wimp, he said, "sweetpagene, i'm a lover, not a fighter!" short ross definitely proved that...twice.
3) "sweat" really was the song of the summer...it ended up on the official cd
4) hearing the french classes singing this ridiculous song...and how i couldn't stop head bobbing to the music

5) going to movieland with katie, julie and bridget. the highlight: being straddled by zorro, who was not as sexy up close as we had previously thought.
6) the best dinner table ever assigned: joakim (sweden), enis (turkey), david (france) and joel (switzerland) LOVE THOSE BOYS!
7) the zurich day trip ending with a dance party on the bus courtesy of driver marco's excellent taste in music and willingness to drive with the overhead light flashing...so what if the kids thought we were weird?
8) this time i LOVED the spanish speaking kids (probably because they were not from spain)
9) gossiping with the russian girls about who kissed whom at the semi-formal dance...nothing like summer camp love
10) surprise water balloon attack on the staff of our rival program on our last night there, showing them who's on top in lugano...perfect way to end the summer
11) session 2 2009:
      best.
      kids.
      ever.

i tried to put it into words

but i can't. i'm no poet. just know that i have a big dopey grin on my face that will likely last for days.

and it's all because someone cares...and cares enough to show it.

this is why i love brett

on a beautiful summer's evening we were sitting in a grotto on the shores of lake lugano. it was a bittersweet time, most of us were leaving the next day and this would be our last time together. the view was spectacular, the food delicious and the company unbeatable. there was a pleasant lull in the conversation which brett decided to fill with this:

"i think bats are so misunderstood. i mean, what do you first think of when you hear the word "bats"? evil, that's what."

me (turning to nicky and whispering, incredulously): did he just say that bats are misunderstood?

brett: shut up, sweetpagene.

me: i just wanted to make sure i heard you right. i think of rabies, when i hear the word "bats".

t-bone: i think of echolocation.

brett didn't like our thinly veiled sarcasm so he decided to steer the conversation in another direction.

brett: (very gravely) what do you guys think of when you see the number 48?

ross: one less than 49

nicky: close to 50

me: (trying really hard not to laugh that they are taking him so seriously)

brett: because i live in room 48 and every time i see it on my door, you know what i automatically think? 6 x 8

all: (nodding with newfound enlightenment)

sure will miss that guy.

i guess i'm homeless

warning: this is grouchy post...with a happy ending.

within a few hours of arriving home i found out that the condo that was supposed to be built while i was gone has been cancelled. it is no longer being built. and my health insurance rates went up. and then i went to work training (where i heard the same thing i'd heard the previous 4 years) and people kept asking stupid question after stupid question. and i got proof that my boss hates me. and along with my sadness of leaving my friends and school in europe, all i could think about was how i don't get paid enough to do this and why do i tell people i love this job? i was so happy to be home that i wanted to punch someone in the face. i seriously considered walking right out of training, taking all the money i'd saved for a down payment and running off to south america. (pretty sure my dollars would go far there) then yesterday we had the "meet your teacher" day and i met my new class. i am indifferent to them...give me a couple of months and i will be head over heels in love with them. BUT THEN, marcus streaked around the corner and ran full speed into my arms. i had to peel him off. then came lucy...and malia...and dominick...and amoni...and alyssa...and cayden...and kami...and davon...and sydney...and every kid who caused me to cry on the last day of school because letting them go was tearing me up inside. and then i remembered...oh yeah, THEY are why i love my job. THEY are why i'm here. and it made all the difference in my terrible horrible no good very bad day.

plus, on the drive home, i remembered that i've never had a problem that this guy didn't make better.

kaya.
on repeat.
the whole way home.

...it's good to be back.

the fat lady has sung

she really did, i have proof. but that's not the point. the point is, it's over and here i am sitting at my parent's house (because i am officially homeless) wondering if the best summer ever actually happened. i used the phrase "best summer ever" last year too, but it's true again. i was getting really tired and ready to leave, but not ready to come back to real life...i was ready to go into limbo, i guess. but here i am, back to work and bills and stress and not eating everything in sight. and so, because it's what i do best and also to prevent myself from falling into the depths of deepest despondency, here's a list of the things i'll miss the most from my new and improved best summer ever:

1)being in a place where eating a whole pizza is perfectly acceptable (and yes, i took full advantage of that tolerance)
2)work starting at noon
3)not cooking my own meals
4)practicing my russian (and also my english with a russian accent...i'm pretty fluent)
5)meeting kids from nearly every country in the world
6)gelato...especially pistachio, canela, limone, nutellino, panna cotta, nocciola, and bacio
7)that my biggest worry is waking up in enough time to wake up the girls
8)those breathtaking alps
9)having something to look forward to every single day
10)the people i worked with whom i've grown to love (that's a whole list in itself)

and just because it's over, doesn't mean that i'm going to stop talking about it...so expect more stories and probably another list or two.

i didn't think i was a fan of opera

but maybe i am after all. i went to verona this weekend. that is where romeo and juliet lived:

"Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,"

well, if they had been real, that's where they would have lived. our tour guide kept saying that maybe they had really existed, but i think that's because he didn't want us to realize the absurdity of visiting the house of someone who never lived. i didn't care, though, it's verona. i was trip leader, which basically just means that if we lose any kids, i get blamed. we had two other chaperones and 15 kids, just right. i knew it was going to be an interesting weekend when, after being in the bus less than half an hour we approached the border and girl chaperone said, "everyone, we are crossing the border soon so sit up straight in your chairs." at first i thought she was kidding. so i laughed. but then she shot me a dirty look and i cut it off. i'm not sure what her reasoning was, but i WAS sure that seeing a bunch of 12 year olds in matching t-shirts slouching in their seats was not going to arouse the suspicion of the border police. as if bad posture was the first sign of a future of lawlessness...and maybe loose women. really, though, it was fun. the kids got to shop, which is all they really cared about. we got to eat, which is all we really cared about. the opera was in an ancient roman theater, which i found very exciting: i had visions of myself as a patrician woman. the show started at 9 pm and ended at 1 am, so i had already resigned myself to falling asleep. i thought most of the kids would join me in my slumber, but nope, when one am rolled around, only one person needed to be nudged. although i only understood a few of the words (it never really occurred to me before that the singers were not just singing nonsense) i loved it. it was beautiful-the set, the costumes, the orchestra, and of course, the voices. the whole evening was another of those magical times when i realize how lucky i am to be here and have this job and do all these things i do...for free...while getting paid. i wouldn't trade it for anything. and of the 8000 euro i was given to pay for the trip, i only lost five and we made it back to lugano with 15 kids. if that's not a successful trip, i don't know what is.

just when i think it can't get any better

i go canyoning. every time i tried to get a good definition of canyoning, i heard the words waterfalls, rocks, and SCARY. i always thought i was pretty brave, but it turns out i'm a big chicken. i learned that while trying to scuba dive the great barrier reef. i am terribly afraid of the ocean, but i figured the best way to overcome my fear was to face it, so i attempted to do a baby dive on the reef, because really, diving is the only way to see it, they say. i learned, however, that facing your fears does not actually result in you overcoming them, but facing your fears results in a panic attack. i tried three times and panicked three times. so i gave up and snorkeled like a chump and then sat on the boat feeling sorry for myself while the nice dutch instructor brought me food slathered in mayonnaise. i think he thought that more mayonnaise would make me feel better. he was right. but anyway, this is not about hyperventilation or tasty food condiments, this is about canyoning and how i was terrified...even though i signed up for it.

we got to the place after only 2 wrong turns (props to ari's driving, but not my navigating) and donned 3 layers of neoprene-a wet suit and two other layers that were terribly difficult to put on (and they smelled bad). ari and i had a great time taking ninja pictures until we realized the kids were ready and our instructors were impatient.

 we were supposed to take a cable car to the canyon, but it was "broken" so we hiked...for an hour...uphill...in 85 degree weather...in 3 layers of neoprene. i wanted to punch our instructor in his very attractive face. however, we got to the starting spot and the freezing water actually turned out to be a nice reward for the death march. and it was absolutely beautiful. we were in a very remote spot, but there, surrounded by trees was a charming stone cottage with a water wheel. the river ran by the side of the cottage and pink and white flowers grew along the banks, framing the cottage. about 10 feet behind the cottage was a waterfall that pooled behind the cottage. the whole picture was breathtaking...so was the water. we climbed up rocks to a cliff about 20 feet above a pool in the river and jumped off. i hate the high dive, i did it once when i was a kid and it hurt so bad i never did it again. but there's something about being in place like this, having these amazing experiences, (and also my helmet and layers that made me feel invincible) that makes me do things i'd never do at home...so i jumped. other than the six gallons of water that shot up my nose and into my brain, it was thrilling. i was so pleased with myself. but there was more. we slid down boulders and waded through pools. we hit a waterfall, so we had to rapell down the side. rapelling was fun, but the rocks were slippery and three times i lost my footing and slammed into the side of the moss covered rock. finally the instructor gave up on me and dropped me into the water. loved it. the climax came when we reached yet another waterfall. this one was not suitable for rapelling, it was suitable for sliding. we laid down at the top of the waterfall and the instructor pushed us off a slippery rock. we couldn't see where the waterfall ended until we had surfaced off the bottom. the drop was over 25 feet and 23 of those feet were freefall. other than the additional six gallons of water in my brain, it was amazing. all in all, a great time...but i'll probably never do it again. i might be brave now, but i'm no fool.

i have some things on my mind

yesterday i met the headmaster of the elementary school here. he's from my state. he knows people from my hometown. he also knows my boss at home. and he offered me a teaching job here during the academic year. i find it a strange coincedence that on the other side of the world i meet someone with so many connections. it's also rather convenient that all my belongings are in a storage unit and my home that i should have bought in june has no official scheduled completion date. i have dreamed of teaching abroad. i have a decision to make. this is one thing on my mind.

boys are confusing. i don't usually bother with them too much. it's too much work, you know. but once in a while, one will get under my skin. i hate that. i especially hate it when he's the exact opposite of everything i'm looking for, but i like him anyway. and it's so frustrating when that boy really likes me, even more than i like him. but then it's confusing when he changes his mind overnight. this is another thing on my mind.

i missed laundry day today. this is so annoying. i may not have enough clothes to last until the next laundry pick up. this is one more thing on my mind.

and swirling amidst all these things in my mind is this song. i can't get it out of my head. but that's ok. because it is so catchy.