only five days left!

the apartment is quickly emptying of my belongings. there are boxes upon boxes of things to sort, categorize, and ship out! the poor cat is on to me. she understands what is going on and continues to try to communicate with me that she doesn't like it! each time i take something out of the apartment, she follows me to the door, tries to escape, and then is patiently waiting in her cat carrier when i come back in the door. she wants to ensure that she, too, is going wherever the rest of this stuff is going. she's no dummy. poor, little girl. i will sorely miss her great personality. at this time, she sits in the window "observing" the little birdies outside. the ears go back and forth with her excitement. what a character.

MY STUDENTS!! i'm excited to head in to learning for leadership today for their reward party. they've been working hard on their two goals: maintaining a positive attitude with posititve language and doing better with closing circle. they've worked hard, so it's time to celebrate! i can't wait to see them! however, some of them won't be there because there was a fight last week. i am extremely disappointed in those few. GET A LIFE. BE the bigger person and kill 'em with kindness. keep your power, don't give it away in your fists or anger. i hope those few have learned a valuable lesson: it's just not worth it. what have they really gained? they've gained days off of school to fall behind in work, lost participation points, potentially lower grades, a MAJOR slash on their school records, and a tarnished reputation.
to those few: let it go. forgive and move on. this, too, shall pass. make the best of your future. you have the power of choice. choose wisely. that's what we're trying to teach you.
i do look forward to seeing them all and can't wait to see all they've accomplished since i've been gone. what a special group of people i'm so glad i got to know!

travel plans are more secure. we, Barb and i, will take our first flight from minneapolis/st. paul to narita, japan this sunday, february 25. it is a twelve hour flight. we will rush to our next plane in narita that will take us to bangkok, thailand! the second leg is a little less than 8 hours. it will be a long time spent on planes, but well worth it to finally be there!! i have books, games, and snacks to keep me busy. oh, and i will surely spend a good amount of time sleeping. i hope to, at least. time passes much more quickly with your eyes closed.

if you have any suggestions for literature i might enjoy, please send them my way: extrabeth@gmail.com. after viewing the film Babel the other day, i would appreciate suggestions that are uplifting! it's a great, but depressing movie.

in bangkok, barb and i still have plans to drop some of our things at the school, then travel to the islands of koh phangan and koh phi phi. in the midst, we will most likely also see phuket and koh samui, both are bigger islands near the other two we plan to visit. we will get back to the school in time to gather our things and move into my temporary housing, which is an apartment near the school. we'll settle in and then explore bangkok for a few days before barb has to head back to the US. i will still have about a week and a half before orientation, so i'll wander the city and make some friends.

my friend, lucas, will be coming through thailand, from india, on his way home to the US. he will stay about a month in thailand, spending some time in bangkok and some time traveling to his favorite spots out of the city. i look forward to seeing him and hearing about his travels in india. he has been there since early january and is having a great time. he keeps repeating the same phrase, "there are a lot of people everywhere." he has a lot of great stories to tell. i keep telling him to write a book! anyhow, when lucas has departed thailand i'll be gaining momentum for the upcoming school year at Assumption. about that time, my friends Bob and Brandy should be visiting her grandmother who also lives in bangkok... so more friends from home to visit with! i feel so lucky to go across the world and still be able to see friends! (anyone is welcome to stay with me if you'd like to visit thailand. that, or i'd be perfectly willing to give advice for travel and stay in thailand.)

there is still plenty to accomplish today. i must get to it. i will update again in the coming days.

thanks for reading!