Bits and pieces

I know it's been awhile but the end of school is near and we've been staying home many weekends so I can just rest up from the pressure of testing, reports, plans, and the impending job of special education. On Tuesday of this week I was in meetings from 8:00 until 2:30. What a day. I hope that's not indications of what's to come--I hate sitting in meetings. I want to be teaching kids.



On Saturday two weeks ago (that long already???) we got on the bus at 7:00 a.m. for a trip to two of the islands north of Sicily (Aeloian Islands), Lipari and Vulcano. Our tour guide arrived to tell us that the sea was too rough and we couldn't go on the boat so the trip was cancelled. Instead they substituted a trip to Messina and Tricani where there's a statue of a black Madonna. The trip was good but the interesting thing to us is the many statues we see that have been found in the sea. Apparently ships with statues on them sink in the Mediterranean. We'll have to remember that next time we're on a boat---look for statues and get off if you're sharing the ship with them.



I've started Italian classes--the first one this week--and so far learned I've been using the wrong word for "I want". Apparently I've been using the one that means a command instead of the polite form of the verb. I always seem to know just enough of a language to get in trouble. I'm looking forward to learning the right way to speak and am even willing to write the common letter clusters ten times each while saying them out loud (only a little part of our homework this week).



Speaking of (not) speaking Italian. Mimma and I had a nice conversation yesterday--wish I understood what she was telling me. I think she said that her friend we met at her house when we went for the pizza party (we met three friends--refer to photo in previous blog) wants us to come to her house Monday (or Tuesday) evening (or afternoon) for dinner (or not). She doesn't live in Motta, she lives in some town that starts with Gi---. I said, "Of course, we'd love to. So--we're going somewhere we don't know to eat or not with someone we don't know who and we don't know when. But we're going to have a great time.



This next week is our last week of school. The kids have three and a half days then teachers go until Friday afternoon. After a two week break we'll start summer school. I've volunteered to teach and since I'm the only actually certified teacher teaching, I'll be "teacher-in-charge." What an honor. That really means I'll be the one who fills out all the paperwork and the evaluation of the program. What that also means is that I get to go to Vicenza for a two day training. I'll tell you more about that at another time.



Anyone want a really smart dog? We have a nice Italian dog who amazes me at how smart he is. He learns things very quickly and is the first dog we've ever had that does the whole game of "chase the ball, pick it up, bring it back and drop it at the master's feet". Most dogs we've had either ignore the ball or pick it up and want you to fight them for it.



However, today, we thought he was going to be playing the game with a live chicken. One of Giusseppi's chickens stupidly came through the fence into our yard and was flapping around the yard. Now isn't that an invitation for a dog to play? By the way, "no animals were injured in the playing of this game." The chicken quickly found out it didn't really want to play and ran home and surprisingly Bullet let him. It may have had something to do with all the yelling he was hearing from both yards.