Spring update

Well, I've been so swamped with my job that I haven't had time to keep the blog up to date. Here's a quick synopsis: coming into this classroom in the middle of the year with NO info on where the kids are at assessment-wise with very little information from the previous teacher and NO lesson plans to go with, I think that I've managed to keep my head above water pretty well. Of course, I'm still in survival mode, but things are better now that I've established myself a little bit. My job is incredibly stressful, overwhelming and rewarding too. I think it is pretty common for most teachers to want to embrace and strangle their students, sometimes at the same time. I LOVE MY STUDENTS!!! They are clever, funny, intuitive, sweet, talkative, curious, loyal, devout, kind and energetic. There is *never* a dull moment in my class. I have done so much for my kids, to the point of sacrificing my own time and energy, I barely have a life outside of school. I am working on average 15 hours a day and mostly on weekends too. Part of the reason for this is due to the fact that this is my first year teaching. I have run into some problems with parents, AKA "Helicopter parents" who hoover over every little thing that their kids do and want to control every part of their child's education. Fortunately, this is a minority.

My long term sub job goes from January to June. Now I am applying for a permanent position at my school for this fall. I really pray that I get it. My job interview is tomorrow. Wish me luck!

I wish I had the time to write some stories about funny, humerous and poignant events that have happened in my class. I feel very blessed to be working with such an amazing group of kids. I also am grateful to have a supportive staff that have made me feel at home.

I'll keep you posted when I know more of what is to come!

Teaching Adventure

My teaching job is going well, it is just very time consuming. I'm about 5 weeks behind in grading and correcting papers, so that is one of my biggest challenges right now. I'm teaching at a small private Catholic school outside of Seattle (and I'm not even Catholic), teaching 4th and 5th grade. I really enjoy it, even though it is my life...all I do is go to school and work like 14 hour days and then drive home and plan for the next day and try to get more than 5 hours sleep before doing it all over again! But I don't mean to complain, I'm just really happy to have a job! And I love the kids and the staff are great so there's lots to be grateful for! There are many funny stories and anecdotes I'd love to share, so someday I hope to write them down and share them with you. My class has 5 girls and 13 boys and many of the boys are natural entertainers, so they keep me laughing, that's for sure! :)

I am really grateful for this opportunity to be teaching at this school with these wonderful students. :)

The Best Christmas Present Ever!

I got a job! I got a job! I got a job! It all happened so fast, I got a long term sub job for the remainder of the school year on Dec 22nd and had a week to prepare before my first day of school. I'm teaching 4th and 5th grade at a Catholic School outside of Seattle and I have 18 students! It is a wonderful way to start out my first official certified teaching job.

And just to bring you up to speed on the last 6 months, I finally finished taking classes towards my Science endorsement and passed the West-E Science exam in November, exactly one year from when I first attempted the standardized test. So, although I don't have the endorsement, I am now highly qualified in Science. And this all works out great with my new job because since I'm not Catholic, I can't teach Religion. So another teacher will teach my class Religion while I teach her class Science. It is a good arrangement for us both.

Above is a photo of my classroom. Although this is all new and overwhelming, I am so blessed to have this job and so happy to have a new chapter in my teaching career! My students are great!

I'm a first-time aunt!

My sister Heidi and brother-in-law Rick just had their first baby, which makes me a first-time aunt! His name is Richard James Bagnall, or R.J. for short. He was born on May 22nd, 2009 in Lafayette, Indiana at 8:30am after 23 hrs of labor, 9lbs 15.8 oz.

Standardized Tests Suck

I just got notified via e-mail that I did not pass the West-E general science and biology exams. I am pretty depressed about it, as this was my second attempt on the general science exam and these tests are $130 a pop. I believe I was ONE QUESTION away from passing. The bottom line is that I do not take standardized tests well and a lot of questions were about obscure concepts. Plus I haven't taken Physics yet, which was about 15% of the exam. I took the tests now so that I could get hired as a science teacher for this fall. Well, that's not going to happen now. I won't take the tests again until I'm finished with my classes, which will be later on this fall. It appears that it's going to take at least a year to get the science endorsement. So, needless to say, I'm pretty disappointed. I was talking with a school principal last week who told me that this is the worst time in 30 years to get a teaching job. Lovely news, huh?

I have a phone interview with the Anchorage School District next week. I'm pretty nervous about the idea of moving to Alaska! But I'm also pretty nervous about the idea of subbing this fall in classrooms of 30+ students.

I'm finished with subbing for the school year and am not working this summer. Just taking my physics class. I'm going to have to be even more creative to make my small savings support me through this summer!

On a different note, I recently went to Nebraska to attend my friend Shauna's wedding. Shauna was my best friend in Macedonia Peace Corps and she married her Macedonian boyfriend. It is like a fairytale. I will post the story and photos soon.

3,000 teachers

May 15th has arrived, the day that the legislature dropped the other shoe down on the school districts and we finally got word on the big issue of funding. It doesn't look good.

The Seattle Times reports that 3,000 teachers statewide are being laid off. These are teachers who typically have 1-3 years teaching experience. This is 3,000 more teachers I am competing with for jobs. The Seattle School District alone has laid off about 175 teachers. Provided, some of these teachers will be re-hired, but that is what I am up against, not including all the newbie teachers like me who are vying for positions and have not been able to get a job yet.

So, I'm looking out of state. I just completed my application for Anchorage and next I'm going to apply to Indiana, where my sister is.

I am trying to mentally prepare myself for another year of subbing. There are pros and cons. If I am subbing, I will continue to work on getting my science endorsement. It is almost like I need another student teaching experience to satisfy all of the competencies for getting a science endorsement. But what I need is to pass the West-E exam as the bare minimum to be hired without the endorsement. This is my second time taking the test (I took it last fall and didn't pass). Now I am taking the General Science exam AND the Biology exam. The day is May 30th. I hope I pass them!

My Cellular Biology class is kicking my butt. I am really struggling to keep up with the reading and the assignments. At this point, I just want to pass. I feel like I'm just trying to keep my head above water, with subbing, my Biology class, applications and somehow having a life in between.

As a side note, I had a fist fight in my class on Thursday, where I was subbing. I'd been in the class before, I know the kids, and I knew there were some words between these two boys (3rd & 4th grade), but I had no idea it would escalate to fists flying. Fortunately I was able to keep my cool on the surface and call for back up, but my heart was racing like crazy for the next half an hour! Both boys were, of course, suspended and I found out this was not the first time they had gotten in a fist fight.

Also, when subbing in middle school the week before I noticed a boy with cuts on his forearms. I sent him to the nurse and later the counselor came in to talk to me about it. It is suspected (and I think most probably) that it was self-inflicted.

One thing about teaching: There's never a dull moment!

Road Blocks

This is a crazy time to be looking for a job, and that is especially true in education. With many schools RIFF'ing (laying teachers off), the job market is saturated. It doesn't look good for a newbie like me. So, still considering out of state. Besides Indiana, where my sister is, I'm also thinking about applying to Alaska, since they are hiring. I was in Anchorage in 2002 for the Iditarod Dog Sled Race, so at least I have an idea of what their winters are like! Don't want to move, but my options are limited.

I just found out that the principal at the middle school where I was planning to teach my lessons (as part of getting my science endorsement) is probably not going to give me permission. Don't know why, some kind of red tape, so I'm pretty frustrated about that. At the same time, I learned that I have to do a lot more than teach two science lessons, I have to show about 40 competencies before getting final approval. It's like having to do student teaching all over again. So it doesn't look like I'm going to be able to complete the science endorsment by fall anyways, which is very disappointing. The good news is that if I can just pass the West-E exam then I'll be "highly qualified" and can get hired to teach Science, even without the endorsement. I've registered to take the test on May 30th. I only have two more classes to take, which I plan to take this summer. It looks like I won't be able to work this summer. I've applied to a bunch of summer school jobs, but then I just learned that Edmonds School District has nixed all of their summer school classes anyway. And I probably can't even get a job at McDonalds because of unemployment being so high. So, I have to scrimp and save with my measily little substitute teaching wage so that I can survive three months without any income. I am living with other family members, I cannot support myself on my substitute income. The main comfort of my current position is that I'm not the only one who is struggling during these difficult times.

Bound and determined

I had a weeklong sub job in early April that went really well. This was for a class that I have subbed for before, a 3/4 split grade classroom in the Edmonds school district. So I already had a good rapport with the kids and knew their names. I also asked the principal if he would do a formal observation and write me a letter of recommendation. This was the smartest thing I did, because although it was a lot of work, I now have THE best letter of recommendation now in my file and it is current for this year and it is very complimentary!

April 16th was the annual Washington Educator Career Fair (this was my third year in attendance) and boy was it interesting. The sign of the times was that there was only about HALF of the usual number of school districts present. I took advantage of the opportunity and spoke to almost every school district present, which was 45. From 9am to 3pm I pounded the pavement, threw modesty to the wind, talking myself up and gave out over 40 copies of my resume! Although most everyone is clueless as to their employment needs until the Federal Government passes the budget (May 15th), many districts told me about their anticipated needs. So here's the scoop:

There are very few leads for elementary positions. If I was strictly an elementary teacher I would be discouraged right now. It's not hopeless, but there's more competition in this area. However, there are a few leads, all of them are South of Seattle with the exception of private schools.

I have a few more leads for Science and ELL (since I'm highly qualified in that area, meaning I have a number of credits and I passed the Praxis exam in English Language Learning). This might be my saving grace. This was what many people at the job fair were interested in, compared to my K-8 endorsement.

I am also considering the idea of going out of state. Most of the jobs leads are south of Seattle (Tacoma, Federal Way, etc). I had been considering going to Eastern Washington, but I get the feeling that there are less jobs over there than west of the mountains. Again, nobody knows anything until after May 15th, this was just the impression that I got. So, where would I go? Well, Alaska is hiring, so that's a possibility, but I have more of an interest to go to Indiana than anywhere else out of state simply because I have family there. My sister, brother-in-law and future nephew live in Lafayette (they are expecting next month). So, we will see. I will apply in-state first and will go from there.

I had another job interview for a long term sub position in Shoreline. I didn't get the job and am frankly not surprised. I suspect they already had someone in mind before they started interviews.

I survived Chemistry and am now taking Biology. It is going fine except that it is a lot of work and is time consuming. I feel like I'm barely keeping my head above water, with subbing, studying, finding time to work on applications, other commitments and somehow manage to have a social life as well??? However, this is probably good practice to what it will feel like when I have a full time teaching job.

I also have found a junior high science teacher that has agreed to let me teach her class for my formal observations (for the endorsement), which I will do next month. Wish me luck!

I'm bound and determined to do my best to get a full time teaching position for next year and that is what I am focused on. I'm not sure what I'm going to do this summer, other than take the remaining classes I need for science. I have applied to numerous summer school positions, but I don't think I have a good chance of getting anything. I think school districts are more likely to hire experienced contracted teachers for these jobs than a newbie like me.

More will be revealed...

When life gives you lemons...

I just realized that I haven't posted in several months, so it's time for an update.

Since last spring I've been on the search for a full time teaching job, and it has been a lesson of humility, grace, patience and reflection. I had high expectations of landing a full time teaching job after graduating from the #1 Teacher Ed program in the state, and with having 5 years of teaching experience already under my belt, who would have guessed? Some of my Seattle U colleages got teaching jobs, but for whatever reason, that has not been in the cards for me. Besides the fact that, across the state, there are less teaching jobs, it appears that demographics plays a role too. There was less hiring on the north end of Seattle than down south, such as Redmond and Federal Way, school districts I didn't even apply to due to the long commute.

Like a pebble thrown into pond water, there has been a ripple effect of many things due to the economic downfall. School districts are scrambling as their budgets are being cut, less teachers are retiring because they can't afford to, some schools are closing due to funding issues, more people are subbing than ever before, because, like me, they haven't found full time teaching jobs, there are less sub jobs due to less professional development opportunities for teachers...etc, etc

However, when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade.

So I've been subbing and continue to sub and have been discovering the positive side of subbing. For example, when I see a cool project or teaching method that I like, I make a note of it for future reference. I don't have to plan lessons. And if I'm teaching in a class I don't like, I don't have to go back to it again. The biggest downside is that I am not working full time, there's simply not enough sub jobs to go around. I have been working, on average, 2-3 days a week.

To showcase my newly acquired experience: I have subbed in the following areas: Gifted elementary, high school special ed, middle school science, PE, Art and ELL, 5th and 6th grade band (THAT was interesting...) and Learning support.

I have applied for many long-term sub jobs and had a couple of interviews this fall, but nothing panned out. One interview was for a private Catholic school in Snohomish, another one was for a middle school science position.

Another new development. I am now taking evening classes, working on getting my science endorsement. This will give me more options, because there is more demand for science teachers. So, perhaps I will get hired to teach middle school science? I am hoping to have the endorsement by Fall '09. This will require several more science classes, including chemistry, biology and physics, being formally observed teaching a couple of lessons (maybe while subbing?) and passing the PRAXIS standardized science test. Wish me luck!

Schools are just now starting to prepare for hiring for next school year. I've just updated my resume and cover letter. Now I need to start updating my applications and apply to school districts I haven't applied to yet. This time, I'm not holding back. I'll be casting my net out much farther this year, but focusing my search in Western Washington.

I'll keep ya posted!

Merry Christmas!

“I truly believe that compassion provides the basis of human survival.” - The Dalai Lama

Last spring I was blessed to be able to attend one of the “Seeds of Compassion” events in which the Dalai Lama spoke during his visit to Seattle. It was an amazing experience and one that I will never forget. One of the things that I took away from the experience is that people, relationships and the entire world is nurtured by compassion and in this global community, it is essential that we not only learn to practice compassion ourselves but that we teach it to our children.

2008 has been an important year for me in the fact that I completed my year-long studies at Seattle University, which included three months of student teaching, and ended in July when I earned my Masters in Teaching. My student teaching experience turned out to be a very challenging experience, but one with many important lessons (mostly ones that I learned myself). I had a wonderful cooperating teacher who practiced compassion, not only with her students but with me as well and I am grateful to her for that.

Since last spring and throughout summer and fall, I have been applying for teaching jobs. As we all know, it is a tough economy at the moment, and so, I have not been able to find a full time teaching job. I am currently subbing in Edmonds, Mukilteo and the Shoreline school district (areas around Seattle). Subbing has its pros and cons but the bottom line is that I am getting more experience and hopefully it will lead to a long-term sub job.

My family is doing well. My sister Heidi and her husband Rick moved to Indiana in August, which was a mixed blessing. Rick got accepted to Purdue University (a full ride!) to pursue a PhD in Chemical Education and when he is finished will be a Chemistry professor. We are happy for this advancement in his career, but were sorry to see them go. They do plan to return to the Pacific Northwest after he graduates. My brother David and his long-time girlfriend Natalie are still living over in Maui and soaking up the sun and surf. My parents are doing well, my Dad enjoys retirement and my mom continues to care for my grandmother.

I plan to stay in the Seattle area for now, and hopefully will find a teaching job next year. I plan to go to Nebraska in June because one of my Peace Corps buddies is getting married. I also hope to go to Japan for another friend’s wedding, but much will depend on the job situation.

I wish you a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah & Chreken Bozheek!

If you want to learn more about the Seeds of Compassion tour, check out: http://www.seedsofcompassion.org/

Love,
Jesse

Macedonia Update

MACEDONIA UPDATE:

Well, one thing that is interesting is that Kosovo got independence from Serbia on February 18th of this year. To read more, check out:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23203607/

Also, on a personal note, my friend and fellow Peace Corps Volunteer Shauna fell in love with a local Macedonian guy during her service and they have been in the process of getting him a U.S. Visa for almost a year now, after she finished her PC service and returned to the U.S. Yesterday he was granted the Visa and soon he will join her in Nebraska. Can you imagine being separated from your fiance for a year??? I am very happy for them both and will attend the ceremony sometime next year.

In addition, I'll be attending a wedding in Japan next year as my friend Maki will be marrying her friend Fulgence, from Tanzania, that we visited on my trip there almost 2 years ago. I have Fulgence to thank for the opportunity to visit Tanzania and who really made my stay there an enjoyable one, as well as giving us a place to stay, and being a tour guide and translator.

Both weddings are tentatively scheduled for either spring or summer of 2009.

I am also happy to report that the National English Essay contest that I helped to start has been continuing thanks to other Peace Corps Volunteers that came after me, as well as local organizations. They are currently working on the 3rd annual contest. I am proud to be a part of the creation of this awesome tradition!

"I'm a guest teacher AND a real teacher"

Now in my second month of subbing, I just survived my eleventh day. There are not a lot of sub jobs out there, October was a very slow month. I'm realizing that everything has a domino affect. Due to the economy, there are less jobs, more people subbing and so, less sub jobs to go around. Budgets are tight for many school districts, so less teachers are taking part in professional development, so less sub jobs. Due to the Boeing strike, there are spouses of machinists that normally sub on occasion who now have a need to sub more regularly, therefore, less sub jobs to go around....you get the point.

So for awhile there, the only sub jobs I had were when I was requested, which wasn't much since I hadn't subbed before.

My first day of subbing was for the same class that I did my student teaching with (my teacher moved up a grade and kept most of the same students). They were excited to see me, which was fun, and were surprised to learn that although I am a guest teacher (a nicer term for substitute) I am also a REAL teacher now. This news also surprised a group of high school students I taught this week.

So, I have subbed grade school, a gifted class, middle school science (that turned out to also have a PE class!) and high school special ed.

I am currently subbing in Edmonds, Mukilteo and soon in the Shoreline school district.

I continue to apply for leave replacements, but with no luck. I had one interview last week for a private Catholic school up in Snohomish, but I didn't get the job and that was mainly because I am not Catholic. I am totally OK with not getting the job, the commute would've been tough.

I am now working on my science endorsement, and I'm taking the WEST-E exam next Saturday, the 15th. If/when I pass, I will be "highly qualified" to teach science, which makes me more marketable.

I'm considering pursuing a job in middle school science, so I just need to take a few more science classes, which I can do in the evening at a community college while I'm subbing during the day.

I'm also now tutoring a 6th grade girl in math.

Substituting

Finally! After one month I have been cleared to start subbing in the Edmonds School District. I've been waiting (im)patiently for my paperwork to get processed and jumping through hoops so I can get in the classroom and get some income flowing in. I've also applied to sub in the Mukilteo school district, but they hire in waves and the next round isn't until next month. As of right now, I am set to start subbing on Wednesday, Oct 1st. I have a few leads on some long term subbing positions (also called Leave Replacements), so I'm hopeful that something like that will work out in the near future (otherwise I'm SOL when it comes to health insurance with my job).

Speaking of income, I am continuing to sell PartyLite candles. Contact me for more info if you are interested or have questions.

I told someone the other day, "You know, for someone who is unemployed, I'm pretty busy!" I have been looking online, applying for job openings and have not had more job interviews, which has been frustrating. I've probably applied or sent letters of interest to over 30 job openings (I would count how many, out of curiosity, but I think it would just depress me). I've expanded my job search, looking into jobs that would require a further commute. I've networked like crazy. Now, my latest thing is that I've started a support group for SU MIT grads that do not have full time teaching jobs and I call it, "Jobless in Seattle". There's been a decent response, enough people to have a group. We have our second meeting this week.

BTW, many people have asked me about teaching abroad at an International school, which would seem like an obvious choice for me, given my history. So, here is my answer...

Yes, I would love to, but now is not the time.

First of all, I'm broke and in debt. Second of all, I've gotten burned out from living abroad and Lastly, my family needs me (insert collective "awwww"). Now that both my siblings have moved away, the tables have turned. I am now the only kid left and I have missed my family (and friends, and my favorite city in the world) very much over the years. Now is the time for me to be home.

However, the nice thing about being a teacher is that I get summers off (from teaching, I'll still be working of course). So have no fear, my travels are not over. They will just look different in the future. And I do plan to teach abroad again, sometime in my career. Who knows when.

But, in case you're interested...I have plans to go to Japan next summer for a wedding.

For now, my next adventure is Substitute Teaching. Stay Tuned!!!

Now that I have the degree, what to do with it?

Since graduating, I've been very busy! I've applied to 7 school districts all north of Seattle, helped my sister and brother in law pack up for their move to Indiana (he got accepted to Purdue, full ride, to get his PhD in Chemistry Education) and even managed to take a few short vacations.

Now it's 4 days after the beginning of school and I still don't have a job! I'm trying not to get discouraged. I've had two job interviews, but no job yet. It's a tough market right now and very competitive. There are more teachers than their are jobs, school budgets are tight, less teachers are retiring than expected and they say that it is all due to funding issues and the economy. For every job opening there is, I've heard there is anywhere from 70-100 or more applicants. Like I said, it's competitive! I've sent in my paperwork to substitute teach in Edmonds and waiting for them to process the paperwork so I can start!

My best bet for getting my foot in the door is taking any kind of teaching job that I can get, whether it is part time, long term subbing, what have you.

Since school started I've been volunteering and observing at Beverely Elementary in Lynnwood. There's a good chance that I will be able to get into a long term sub position this fall. Keep your fingers crossed!

Graduation and Beyond!

July 18th, 2008 12pm= Freedom!

I graduated from Seattle University with a Masters in Teaching on Friday. I also earned my teachers certificate so now I can say "I is a real teacher now". LOL! A lot of people are surprised to find out that this Masters program is only a year, but that is typical for an MIT degree, as long as you are going full-time.

Now I have the joy of finding a teaching job. I have applied to Mukilteo and Everett and will apply to Edmonds shortly. So I'm looking for something in the area. Getting a teaching job, interestingly enough, is very competative, despite the pay (WA state is nationally 48th in Teacher Pay). Believe it or not folks, this chick is actually going to set up shop, get rooted and stay home in the U.S. (for now). I had a job interview with Everett last week, to be hired into a pool of teachers, but later learned that I didn't get in. This bummed me out until I remembered that I didn't really want to live in Everett anyway. I'd rather be closer to home.

Student teaching was one of the toughest things I've ever done. It was right up there with my Peace Corps experience...challenging, frustrating and also rewarding. My biggest challenge was behavior management, and I learned A LOT, so I'm feeling better prepared for my first year of teaching this fall

It doesn't really feel like I'm done with school. It seems like I should be writing a paper, reading a textbook or cramming for a test or something! I think it will hit me slowly during this next week.

Also, I spoke at a Peace Corps informational session on Saturday and it went really well. It actually got me nostalgic for Macedonia. It also reminded me that I need to write to my host family...

(By the way, anyone notice that Kosovo followed Montenegro and gained independence from Serbia in February? This is an area of the world to keep an eye on! Never a dull moment)

Hope you are all enjoying your summer! I'll try to get somewhat caught up with this blog before I start teaching and then you'll really think I fell off the face of the earth...

Finals! The end of Winter Quarter

It's finals week, do you know where your brain is?????

I wish that I had the time to make regular posts about how the Masters in Teaching program is going, but take my word for it, it is A LOT of work and at times it is VERY STRESSFULL. This is one of those times. I have 5 papers/projects to finish in the next 48 hours. So why am I bothering to take the time to make a post? I guess it's because I need to vent.

I just created a webpage to accompany my 50 page Literacy Unit, here is the website.

http://denazureus.googlepages.com/home

This quarter we have to do 3 unit plans, one on Social Studies, one on Literacy and one on Math. I still have to do the one on Math.

Wish me luck, I really need it!

On Monday, the 24th I start officially student teaching, even though I have already been working in my class, once a week, this quarter.

I am at Cedar Valley Elementary, in Edmonds with a 2nd & 3rd grade combination. The teacher and the kids are great!

Fast Forward 5 months...

I've been reminded by a few people that I am woefully behind in my updates. Those of you who know me personally know that I am now in the midst of a new adventure called graduate school. I am currently in the Masters in Teaching program at Seattle University, and loving it. Despite having to work and study very hard and trying to balance work and school and a personal life, things are going great. I started in September and will graduate summer 2008 with a teachers certificate and my Masters. I want to teach 5th grade somewhere in the greater Seattle area.

I am thrilled to think that starting in September of 2008 I'll have my own classroom. It is exciting and terrifying at the same time, but the Seattle U program is so great, I expect I'll be prepared when that time comes. I plan to do my student teaching in Edmonds with an experienced teacher.

It is hard to believe that almost a year ago I was in Macedonia getting ready to go on my trip to Tanzania. Although I had no idea what trouble lay ahead for me, and the challenges that I had to overcome, I am very grateful for how everything worked out.

Thanks to everyone for their support!

P.S. Since school keeps me so busy, I've been unable to get caught up with my posts about Tanzania, Macedonia, Romania and my sister's wedding. Well, they all went really well and were all amazing adventures. I hope to be able to include some more posts (with pictures) during my Christmas break. Stay tuned!

In Transylvania

My visit to Macedonia was like a whirlwind, but it was also very satisfying to see my friends (Macedonians and PCVs) again as well as my former students and host family. I went now so that I could be at my school on the last day, which is a day of music and dancing and celebration. I had a lot of fun. My time in Macedonia was full of smiles and laughs and tears. But I'm very glad that I did it, I have no doubt that it was the right decision.

Ten days flew by in a wink and then I took the bus/train to Bucharest, Romania and met up with my friend Matt. We were in the Romanian capital for 2 days, I was able to see a little bit of the city, which reminds me of a combination of Skopje, Budapest, Buenas Aires, and Brussels. Sometimes I would have to stop and remember where I was! I also took a tour of the Parliament Building, which is apparently the second largest building in the world, after the Pentagon.

Next we stopped in Sinaia, where there is a beautiful fairytale-like castle. Now we are in Brasov, in Transylvania. It is a beautiful country and a very interesting region. And yes, we plan to visit Count Draculas castle!

Last Big Trip (for now)

...Fast Forward a few months!

I've gotten very busy this spring with a new part-time job (selling Partylite Candles), taking little trips here and there (ie; Maui with my family, to visit my brother who now lives there) and catching up with old friends while making new ones!

After many months of paperwork and airline bureaucracy, I got my plane tickets from Seattle to Macedonia (originally in January) switched to June. I'm returning to Macedonia for a visit to see friends again and get some closure. Since I'm over there I've made arrangements to meet up with my friend Matt who is traveling around the world right now, and tour a bit Romania together (see his blog at http://velotrek.blogspot.com).

I leave Monday, June 4th and come back on the 27th. This will be my last big trip for awhile because...

I got accepted to Seattle University Masters in Teaching program and I start September 4th. I'm very excited about this opportunity, I'll finally make it official and get my Teachers Certificate. Just imagine, Fall of 2008 I should (hopefully) have my own classroom! I plan to teach general ed and I'd like to teach 5th grade.

Not only that but I just learned that I am a recipient of one of several $3,000 MIT alumni scholorship, for outstanding applicants who have financial need. I am thrilled and honored to be one of the chosen. Seattle U isn't cheap, but it does have an outstanding reputation and I know that I will get an excellent quality education in my pursuit to be an excellent educator!

(I still plan to post about Tanzania and my sisters wedding, just be patient with me!)

Medically Separated

Well, the verdict is in. Unfortunately I'm being medically separated from the Peace Corps. I just don't have all my medical issues resolved within the PC policy of 45 days.

I've been on medical hold for about 6 weeks, waiting to see if I could return to country or not. I got my answer about a week ago. It wasn't the answer I wanted to hear, but the good news is that at least I'm not in limbo anymore. Being sick wasn't fun, but at least it taught me what the more important things in life are (for me): family and health.

I just want to let you all know that I'll miss those of you in Macedonia and I've enjoyed my experience there and learned so much professionally as well as personally. I'm disappointed that I won't be able to finish my PC service, but it appears that it wasn't meant to be. My health has restricted me returning to country, but the good news is that I'm almost back to "normal" now, mainly I just need to regain all of my strength, although I'm doing a lot better now.

So, for now I'm focusing on my health and moving on. I've applied to graduate school this September at Seattle University (interviews are this month, fingers crossed). I'm also planning a short visit to Macedonia to say goodbye, probably in June before school gets out. At least I'll be able to get some closure then.

A thank you to the overwhelming number of people who have been so encouraging, supportive, and have kept me in their thoughts and prayers. I feel very blessed.

All the Best,
Jesse AKA Jill

P.S. Yes, I still plan to keep posting on this blog. Stay tuned for more info about my African Adventure and Wedding Photos!