Inky ink.

Tattoos! I love love love tattoos. I love to look at them, and I love to get them. I have seven now, and I plan to get many, many more. Once I can afford them ;) I have always wanted to be significantly covered in tattoos, but am a little hesitant. Firstly, I don’t know exactly what to get, or, rather, I can’t decide! Secondly, it’s very expensive. Thirdly, as an English teacher, it seems I have to compromise very much about where I want them to be! All of my tattoos have been done at the same shop, and most by the same person. Steve, at Vertigo in Oxford, OH is a very good friend of the family and almost always gives me a great deal, not to mention he is a pretty amazing artist. ;) Visit their site, here! He also pierced my nose, lip, and cartilage, but I have since grown out of that phase!

My favorite tattoo is one I got for my sister. It was my second tattoo, and I have had it for two three years now. It’s a female archer. My sister is a Sagittarius, and also my goddaughter. Her birth when I was 19 years old was a huge event in my life that greatly changed the person that I am. I wanted to get something that encompassed all of that, and made me remember what a strong role model I am to her each and every day. She is three and a half, now, and constantly asks to see my “rattoos.” :) She also asks my dad all the time to give her some of her own! Usually a cat named “Harry” and dog named “Sheila” (after our pug).

My third and fourth tattoos were ones I got for my brother (the scales, he is a Libra) and the man and woman, which I got for my parents. The music note signifies their musical abilities. My mom loves to sing, and my dad plays the guitar amazingly. Ever since I was a little girl, these two things have been a huge part of our household. And my brother and I are much closer than we used to be, and I think he secretly likes that I have a permanent tattoo in honor of him. ;)

My next set of tattoos is anchors on each of my hips. During my sophomore year of college, I got out of a very bad relationship and this was also the time when my little sister was born. As a result, I began having a really hard time at school. It got so bad that I would have to leave classes because I was unable to control my emotions. So I started seeing a counselor on campus. He asked questions about my tattoos, and one day asked when I was going to get a tattoo for ME. I thought this was a very good question! Eventually, he diagnosed me with anxiety. He asked me where I felt that most physically when I was upset. I told him that I often realized that I was holding my breath for long periods of time, and that I would get really tense in my back and shoulders. Originally, I wanted to get anchors on my shoulders for this reason, but teaching stopped me. So that’s why they ended up on my hips! Which is a little ironic, because much like anxiety having a panic attack that comes on unexpectedly, I don’t often think about these little anchors until I catch a glimpse of them on the way into the shower.

Lastly, I have this little dinosaur on my back for my grandmother. This is my most recent tattoo. When I was very little, my grandma got me this keychain, and I have had it on my keys for years and years. When the paint began rubbing off, I decided that before it was completely gone, I wanted to get it tattooed. I think it may be my least favorite tattoo stylistically, but one that is closest to my heart. I grew up with my grandma, and we were very close when I was young. As she gets older, her memory is fading and we are growing apart. It makes me sad that we don’t talk or see each other much anymore, but I still love her very much, and each time I see this tattoo, I take time to think about her.

Additionally, the sun above this little dino is my very, very first tattoo. I got it the week after I turned 18 and ended up being one that I regretted. Not because it wasn’t pretty or cute, but because it didn’t mean anything to me. Luckily, I have a wonderful friend named Christa who got one to match it :) Now we have matching ink, and I love it! I used to have a picture of it before the dinosaur was under it, but I don’t know where it ended up!

I would love to get an Angelique Houtkamp tattoo, especially her day of the dead skull. I have been wanting one of these for a long time, and Danielle over at Sometimes Sweet just did a feature about Angelique Houtkamp the other day. I was sort of familiar with her work before this, but her entry prompted me to do a bit more research, and her artwork is beautiful!

So, that’s my tattoo story. I hope everyone enjoyed it oh so much :).

xoxo

Bleh!

Today has been a pretty crappy day, all around. School was just OK, had a little problem with a student during 4^th bell today and he had to be removed. He told me more than once that he didn’t have to listen to me; I am not a real teacher; and he didn’t care what I said… This was all because I asked him to sit quietly while others were working. It almost brought me to tears. Not because I took what he was saying personally, but because it seems such a daunting task to hear these things every day from students who have no reason to speak to an adult this way. I feel that any breath I waste arguing with a child like this would be just that…. A waste of breath. And energy.

My sister-in-law, Lynzie and her husband, Brandon had their house robbed today. They have a precious Chihuahua, Pixie, who was thankfully okay. The thieves took a bunch of very valuable things, and they are devastated. It doesn’t seem fair and I feel so helpless for them. I wish there was something I could do. I think that this has been going on lately on their street, but it’s still unexpected and terrible to experience. Hopefully, insurance will bring them some restitution. I just hope this can be resolved. I just don't understand why people think it's okay to take what isn't theirs!!

Lastly, I just heard that my Dad got into a pretty bad accident. When I spoke to my mom she said she was on her way to where he is, and that I should stay where I am. They are going to call me when they get there and know something, but I am hoping that he isn’t hurt.

Send good thoughts and prayers my way, please.

xoxo thanks for stopping by, sorry for such a sad post!

Veg Vagabond

Being a teacher, kids often find out little bits and pieces about my life, and want to more. So, naturally, they ask lots of questions. Among these being: Do you have kids? Are you married? Do you have a boyfriend? Do you like to party? (They ask this when they find out that I am a college student, earning my degree to become a full time teacher). And the question that I get most often is…. You don’t eat meat?! At all?!

After four weeks of this, it made me think, again, about why I am a vegetarian, and what a big part of my lifestyle it has become. It’s second nature, now, but when I stop and think about it, it is actually really important to me.

I still haven’t been able to bring myself to re-watch those PETA videos I saw back in 6th grade. I am sure they haven’t changed a bit, and they are still the reason I stopped eating meat. Regardless, I have learned so much. Originally, I stopped eating meat in high school because of the lovely cruelty-free aspect. Always having been an animal lover, this was a pretty clear and easy choice for me. It was not, however, and easy choice made by me for my parents. This began sophomore year of high school and my dad had NO idea what to buy for me. Bless his heart, he tried so hard, but even I had little information about what a true vegetarian ate. So, he began to buy all things Boca. To this day I think that Boca is vomitatious. On the same token, my mom refused to let me stop eating meat unless I kept fish in my diet. She said “You’ll never be able to get enough protein to stay healthy without at least fish…” So, I listened to her, and until recently, fish has been a part of my diet. And it’s always been a little hard for me to hear people discrediting my choices because ‘“real” vegetarians don’t eat fish because fish is meat.’

To say the least, my vegetarianism didn’t last much longer than a few months. It was hard, and the temptation was strong. I left it alone for a while and revisited it a few years later. I didn’t eat meat for two years, and then began feeling utterly exhausted and completely fatigued at all times… so I though perhaps it was my diet. While I was making better choices and was better equipped (being an independent college student) to make these choices, I still was not well informed. I reverted to eating meat, again. This lasted for a few months, and I soon realized how gross, dirty, grimy, and awful about myself it made me feel at all times. AGAIN, I decided to cut meat out. My fickle relationship with vegetarianism has led me to the point that I am in my life now…

I have learned so much about my lifestyle choice – which is what it is – a complete lifestyle change. I have learned the way that all animals that produce consumable products are treated, and how that affects what ends up on (not necessarily mine, per se) MY plate. I learned that often they are sick, too weak to walk, and laden with bacteria and disease when they arrive at the slaughterhouses. I learned that fish are made to swim in tiny spaces filled with disgustingly disgusting water. I learned (more) about chickens and the amount of them that one person consumes in their lifetime, and how they are raised… and even the conditions that they are forced to produce eggs.

Not only have I chosen vegetarianism for myself as a way to support the well being of these animals that deserve to be treated with respect, but I have also chosen it to become a healthier person. After doing this project (where I learned the sheer number of types of vegetarians that exist, and omg!) I have made many changes to my diet, and I have even become more attentive to my protein consumption. I feel better about being a healthier and more astute and aware about the world around me. More importantly, after talking with Nick, I am pretty sure (not anytime soon by ANY means) that a completely vegan lifestyle is in my future. We’ll see when that decision comes, it’s a big one, and it means cutting out my addiction to cheese, but I feel that it’s probably the path that I am headed down at this rate. ;)

Just to show that vegetarian food can still be delicious tasting AND enticing, I thought I would show a few yummy looking meals that are veg friendly :)

If you're thinking about going veg, one of my favorite favorite favorite healthy and fresh snack is homemade guacamole. Here's the recipe for you to try at home!

2 avocados, diced

1 small tomato, diced

1/3 of a red onion, diced

1 tsp (or more!) of diced chilis

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp salt and pepper

1 tbsp fresh cilantro

1/2 of a lime, squeezed

Accompany with your favorite (corn) tortilla chips! Yum!

*** Don't forget! I love to know that you're reading... Please, click the little follow button at the top left. Your dedication makes me want to blog more! Thank you so much for visiting!! xoxo

Thursday, only one more day until the weekend!

Wow! Guys! I can’t thank everyone enough for stopping by. It seems like there are more of you checking out how I am doing every day! Thanks!

Today was so much better than yesterday. In fact, I am still at school, enjoying my lunch/planning bell. I have all my papers graded, and already know what we’re working on tomorrow. We only read all day long and the kids seemed to be thankful that they had a relaxing day. I was appreciative of the slow work, even though it was a bit repetitive reading the same two chapters aloud with three bells. ;) However, the third bell, AA kids read aloud two chapters from The Catcher in the Rye and it was so much fun! They were all laughing and giggling at Holden’s speech and it made me feel so much better about having a bad day yesterday. A few of them even told me that they love the book, and they are glad we’re reading it. I can’t wait to talk more with them about it.

I have also started tutoring one student for the OGT in October, and he seems to be struggling a bit, but I am trying to teach him to slow down and not get worked up about a timed test, just do what he can and that will work. He is such a good kid and it’s so rewarding to help him out with something that I can tell he is working so hard at. I hope that this pays off; he really deserves it!
Here's hoping that tomorrow is just as great as today was!

Anyways, that’s all for now, just wanted to give a short shout out to all my lovely, lovely readers. ;) <3

xoxo
S

P.S. Check back tonight for another post about all things Stephanie + being vegetarian. xo!

Not as inspirational as I would have liked...

Wow. Today was absolutely the longest day I have had as a teacher this far. It’s four weeks into the school year, and I knew that assigning the kids’ research paper was going to be a hurdle, but I didn’t expect what I got. For my first day in complete control of the classroom, I was hoping for a little easier of a time. On one hand, working in an urban setting is the most eye opening and soul-fulfilling experience one will ever have, and on the other hand it’s the most frustrating and testing. I have never met more endearing (some, at times) and more frustrating (most of them, most of the time) kids in my life. There are some that sincerely want to learn and are trying so hard to understand, and there are some that have blatant disregard for anything anyone does or says. This is so different from my own high school experience and I cannot understand how this happens to teachers on a daily basis. I can’t imagine acting the way these kids do towards my teachers, or having anyone in my high school classrooms that acted this way. I know that I am in a completely different environment from an all girls, catholic high school, but we are still humans! Goodness, today, these children absolutely exhausted me.

In other news, planning for school has gone really smoothly, I have planned through the entire month of September, and the first few days of October. It has been a blessing that everything I have planned has magically fit perfectly into each and every bell. And when I do have a few minutes extra, the kids (usually) read quietly or talk softly. The only other worry I have niggling away at me is my mentor teacher. I sometimes feel as though she doesn’t completely trust my abilities, and maybe she doesn’t, but the evidence of this can be very discouraging at times. She seems to occasionally get impatient with me, or make me feel as though I am doing something wrong without giving me direction or constructive criticism. I hate to say it, but this happening a few times today, and also the reaction I had from the children had me seriously questioning my career choice, again. I know that this happens a lot, especially for new teachers, or anyone for their first time in the field, but I am really worried. I hope this gets better over the coming fourteen weeks.

* * * * * *

Lastly, today we picked up Guillermo. I was a little disappointed to see find him sleeping on the blanket that we left with him overnight. it was mainly used as a receptacle for his pee, I was hoping they would have someone there at night to walk the kenneled dogs, or else not give them food or water for the 12 hours they were there. Other than that, he seems his normal self! Digging imaginary holes, playing tug, and trying his hardest to jump onto the couches (which isn’t allowed to do for four days!). He cried the whole way home, and shook, too, because he was so excited to see us! I am happy to have him home again and hopefully we wiped away any fears of abandonment he may have had. ;)

I hope everyone had a more uplifting day than I did, back tomorrow with another update :) Don’t forget to drop me a note if you are stopping by, or to click the little “Follow” button over to the side of this column!

xoxo S