Fall in the Air

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DSC03813Snowfall, that is. (hardyhar)

I gasped out loud when I opened my blinds this morning and saw this. I was hoping for a blue sky and a golden fall day after yesterday’s rain. I wasn’t expecting this.

It happened so fast. Last night I was standing out on the playground at midnight, watching the aurora in a hoodie. Eight hours later, there’s snow on the slide. I’m going out for a long walk today, for sure. I want to see new snow on the riverbank.

In other news, project Arctic Salad is coming along nicely. My microgreens are thriving in the front closet. I started them last weekend, and this weekend they’re thick and juicy. I nibbled a little yesterday and went into an ecstatic, drooling, vegetable-induced dance. Behold, one week’s growth!

DSC03744 DSC03809

I need to order some worms so that I can get a little compost bin going in the closet. It’d be awesome to have a salad plot that doesn’t require much by mail-order.

Weird things my kids don’t know about

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  1. Hammocks: My hammock has been a source of endless fascination for the kids in this village. They don’t know the word and they’ve never sat in one. Everyone has had to try it.
  2. Everyone’s related: I taught about how humans came to the Americas last week, and started the story in Africa (my ancestors hung a left and wound up in Ireland, and yours took a right and trooped through Asia and crossed the Bering Sea when it was land during the ice age…). The kids stared at me like I’d sprouted horns and said “wait. Back it up. You’re saying everyone in the world is related? We’re related?”
    Yeah guys. In a distant kind of way.
    Got a tremendous giggle during this discussion when I babbled about poor old Homo erectus. Sorry gramps.
  3. In the book we’re reading, Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt, the protagonist fabricates a story for her little siblings about their parents’ wedding, which, in reality, never took place. When asked why she did this, my kids couldn’t answer. Many of their parents aren’t married, and I don’t think they knew the meaning of the word “bastard,” which so troubled the kids in Homecoming, until we discussed it.

    “Are your parents married, Ms. O?”
    “Yeah. Where I grew up, most people’s parents are married or were married, then got divorced.”
    “My parents aren’t married.” “Neither are mine.”
    “Well, for the kids in the book, it’s a big deal. People treat them badly because they’re ‘illegitimate’ or ‘bastards’ which means their parents weren’t married”
    “that’s weird. Is it still like that?”
    “Some places. Some people.”

  4. Ms. O, why do white people train their dogs so much? And keep them inside?

The grinder is out, which means the whole school building smells like sewage. We cancelled today (we don’t get snow days, but we get shit days), so there are only three days of school this week. It’s too early for a break! I have everything all planned, and I’m excited! Here’s hoping they get it fixed for tomorrow, and here’s some pictures from this golden weekend.

A and little H enjoyed the hammock experience until every kid in the village showed up, and they had to retreat indoors to guard their share of the cookies.

I was sulking at home (nobody would go camping with me this weekend) when these characters showed up and brought instant joy. A and little H enjoyed the hammock experience until every kid in the village showed up, and these two had to retreat indoors to guard their share of the cookies.

This one and the next one go together. I was so happy looking out over the lake, and I felt the happy showing on my face.

This one and the next one go together. I was so happy looking out over the lake, and I felt the happy showing on my face,

so I flipped the camera over and took a selfie. That is genuine happiness, folks.

so I flipped the camera over and took a selfie. Folded up neat and tidy and tucked into that dimple is genuine happiness, folks.

the last of the fireweed in the foreground.

the last of the fireweed in the foreground.

golden

golden

foxtails

foxtails

color!

color! Also, this was taken on my little brother’s 24th birthday. Happy Birthday Dylan!

Come teach in the bush!

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Okay, this is shameless, but things are dire! We really need a teacher for grades 3-5. Things got screwy and the job didn’t get advertised, so we’re stopping the gap with a sub, and worrying about what will happen if we get stuck without a teacher and are forced to consolidate (it will suck. Let’s make sure it doesn’t happen). Here’s the job posting (finally) on ATP. The details are a little screwy, but the district is kinda like that. Things aren’t perfect here, administratively speaking, but for the most part, they leave us alone in our classrooms, and that’s something, anyhow.

Details:

The job, right now, is grades 3-5. There are maybe twelve kids in those grades, the bulk in fifth. The classroom is spacious, purple, outfitted with a smartboard, a sink, and big windows that look out onto the playground. There is an ipad for each student, and there are enough laptops available in the building for word processing projects. The internet is a little slow and occasionally unreliable, but you get used to it. Several of the students have IEPs. Special ed services are inconsistent here. You will probably have an aide.

Why you should come:

  • This place it outrageously strange and beautiful:
    I’m Keely
  • You will make a difference: these kids are desperate to love and be loved, and when they are loved they learn. It’s amazing. If you can love the kids, you can make outstanding things happen for them in a very short period of time.
  • Hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, any kind of outdoor adventure you can imagine, right at your fingertips, maybe more than you’re prepared for.
  • I have a big box of board games and nobody to play with.
  • Great pay, great benefits. Nice, new, warm teacher housing with running water.
  • It’s an adventure. Few people can say they live north of the arctic circle in a fly-in village.

Fair warning:

  • The community and the school have had conflicts in the past, and there’s not a lot of trust there. We’re trying, and this is getting better.
  • The staff is stressed always and grouchy sometimes. This is a pretty hard job.
  • You will be (unofficially) expected to help with after school activities.
  • The kids are way behind. They don’t start school with much prior knowledge, and they’re often stuck with teachers who aren’t really invested in them.
  • Special ed is not readily or consistently available here.
  • It’s lonely.
  • It’s difficult and expensive to leave to go shopping or to a movie or just to get some space.
  • It’s hard to take sick or personal days because your colleagues have to cover for you (there are not really any subs).
  • You will always be an outsider in the village.

Why you should do it anyway:

Why not? It’s awesome. Challenges and opportunity go hand in hand: here, you have the chance to make your experience into whatever you want it to be, and that’s pretty unique.

Come teach with me!

Keely