Deafblind Documentary

Naturally, there's an awesome Dr. Phil episode on the day I decide to stay later at school. I caught the last 15 minutes of his episode on deafblindness, which I would have LOVED to have seen.

A year ago, I was working in a group home for the Canadian Deafblind and Rubella Association. If you want to renew your appreciation for how good your life is compared to some, try working with deafblind individuals. I can't imagine trying to live with this disability.

There were four men living in the group home I worked at. One of them was completely blind and deaf and the others were hearing and vision impaired. When I first started working there, I didn't know if I would be able to handle it. As an "intervenor", I was responsible for being the eyes and ears of these men. Not only is it an incredible responsibility, it can also be a very difficult job.

As part of training, we were required to become deafblind for a day. It was honestly one of the most terrifying things I've ever done. We were blindfolded and given earplugs and heavy duty earmuffs and then given things to do. We had to sew, cook and go shopping while deafblind. The worst part was going out in public this way. My intervenor left me in the middle of the store and helped another temporary deafblind person. I felt very alone and scared - I couldn't see or hear if anyone was near me and I didn't even really know where I was. It certainly changed how I worked with the men after that.

Since I worked there, I've wanted to learn more about deafblind children. Most people know nothing about deafblindness (other than Helen Keller, I didn't really know how prevalent it is) and I think it's great that Dr. Phil chose to do an episode on it.

The guests on his show were parents of deafblind triplets. Can you imagine?! If done well, it's a lot of work to intervene for one deafblind person, let alone three. Of course, Dr. Phil showered them with gifts and arranged for special services at no charge.

Now I'm anxiously waiting to download it. I'm not sure if I can emotionally handle watching the whole thing - it was a real tear-jerker in the last 15 minutes alone. Maybe I'm biased because I have experience with this disability, but it sure made me miss my "guys". Anyway, check out his website...

I'm the smartest person in the world!

I'm feeling pretty darn proud of myself right now. You know what I did? I conquered... the snow blower.

I'm sure for most people this would be an easy task but since I have allergies I've never really run a piece of equipment like a lawn mower, so I never made an attempt to use the snow blower. I've actually found it easier to just shovel (it's quieter and I can do it after dark, when the neighbours won't watch me the whole time), but when I got home yesterday there was no way I was getting into the driveway. I had to park on the street all night, which isn't a huge deal since this isn't a huge metropolis with steady traffic.

I was secretly hoping that some neighbour taking pity on the single woman in town would do it while I was at school, but I wasn't that lucky. I went home a little early and arranged it so one of my fellow staff members would come to help me start it (that's how little I know about these things!).

I figured it out though!! I'm SO proud of myself! I was so proud that I didn't care that the neighbours watched me the whole time. I was a tad embarrassed when I was doing the sidewalk right in front of my house and the thing backfired and stalled. I think it was burning oil and I couldn't get it to run long enough to drive it back into the garage. So I dragged it in and did some shoveling.

Actually, I did a terrible job. But I'd say it's not too terribly bad considering I've never done it before. Sean can fix it for me on Sunday if it's that bad!

it's official!

Today I went dress shopping with my mom, Brea, and my Auntie Darlene. Yesterday when Sean and I were in the mall waiting for our gift registry appointment I saw a dress in Bryan's that caught my eye. It was really busy though, so I didn't try it on.

Today we went back and I tried it on... I loved it! It's ivory, strapless and has sort of a flowery pattern in gold and silver all over it (sounds ugly, but the pattern is really subtle). Normally I HATE strapless dresses (God didn't bless me with a large chest so strapless dresses are uncomfortable and look weird) but this one feels so comfortable! There's also a sash that goes around the waist that I didn't like at first, but if you tie it in the back it looks really cute.

We checked out a few other stores in the mall (Fairweather, Mariposa and Le Chateau) and there were some really nice ones in those stores as well, but the seams on the front of the dresses I liked made them look really cheap. So I went back to Bryan's and ended up buying the dress.

We went to Tim Horton's for a late lunch and then to Brea's house to show my cousin Nicole. They dolled me up with a pearl necklace and earrings, plus white high-heeled shoes, and I decided that I absolutely love the dress.

Now the wedding seems real. It started feeling real after we set up our gift registry yesterday and after Sean bought his suit, but now it REALLY feels real. I have a wedding dress hanging in my closet!!

My only concern is the size of the dress. I bought a size 3 because that's what size I am now (it's a little snug right after I've eaten but I can handle it). I'm just wondering if I'm going to gain any weight/size between now and July. I guess I'll have to take up running to keep my size, then I can focus on gaining some weight after the wedding. After all, isn't it my job to get fat and ugly after I'm married? :)

I need to destress...

Wow, I really feel like a tool right now. On Andrew Coyne's website, he linked to an article that made me reallllly mad. I actually read it with my jaw dropped and my blood beginning to boil.

The gist of the article is that children's imaginations have to be suppressed because it's dangerous to their health, according to the "Department of Health and Human Services". The first half of the article sounds like a super-radical version of what some "experts" believe is best for kids (I'm sure you've heard the debate over whether or not kids should wear helmets while sledding - but that's a topic for another day).

It wasn't until the article stated "The HHS also discourages aimless playtime activities that lack a rigid, repetitive structure: 'Opt instead for safe activities like untying knots, sticking and unsticking two pieces of Velcro, drawing straight lines of successively longer lengths, and quietly humming a single note for two to three hours'" that I realized I had been had. Apparently when you decide to skim an article it's possible to miss the fact that it says "The Onion" at the very top of the page.

If I had taken my time and seen that, I would have realized what I was reading. The Onion is a really funny website that posts ridiculous articles on a whole whack of topics. (Check out their Education section - maybe I just find it humorous because that's the field I work in, I'm not sure.) They have articles entitled "Last Month Apparently Women's History Month", "Study: Depression Hits Losers Hardest" and "Aliens Demand More Positive Portrayal In The Media".

I get frustrated with people who don't evaluate websites for legitimacy and accept everything they read. Apparently now I'm one of them. Why am I posting my stupidity on my blog? I'm really not sure. It just seemed like the right thing to do.

I'm on the bandwagon!!

Tonight I jumped on the Josh Groban bandwagon. Lately I've really been into Michael Buble and someone suggested that I listen to Josh Groban. They're not quite the same genre but I downloaded a couple of his albums and I'm impressed so far.

I also downloaded two Death Cab for Cutie albums tonight. Sean and Brea both like this band and I saw them on TV last night, so what the heck. What else does my small but oh-so-important population of readers recommend I download? I'm looking for Celine Dion's album "Unison" but I haven't been able to find it. Pity... it was the first cd I ever owned and I still really enjoy listening to it.

I'm open to suggestions - I like pretty much anything except that twangy country crap.

Scotties update

I know the few people who read my blog could care less about curling but that's just too bad! Curling is the one sport I follow closely and know something about.

Today was Day 2 of the Scotties Tournament of Hearts (formerly the Scott Tournament of Hearts). I haven't enjoyed watching this tournament during the past few years as much as I have the Brier because I've realized how boring women's curling can be. Nevertheless, I will still watch it because there are a few women's teams I really enjoy watching.

Take Jennifer Jones, for instance. She won the Scott a couple of years ago and since then she's been one of my favourites. She's very serious about the sport and she's young, which I find inspirational. She can make some great shots, such as the in-off to win the tournament (Schmirler-style). I was disappointed the other night, however, when she had a terrible game against Jan Betker - I expected much more from her.

Jan Betker is another curler I really like. As the TSN commentators have mentioned, she seems very comfortable skipping this year and I appreciate how much she makes the sport look like fun by actually smiling when she curls. I hope she does well with her new team (Joanie-less). Besides, she's from SK so I'm somewhat biased. A random and useless fact: I curled two sheets down from her when I curled in the University league. I was pretty star-struck.

There are some teams I really don't like or have mixed feelings towards. My teeth have been on edge lately when I watch Kelly Scott. I will admit she is a great curler and very classy on the ice, but she's so... nice. Her syrupy-sweet voice makes me want to vomit, to be perfectly honest. I guess I shouldn't complain; she's refreshing compared to Colleen Jones. I just want to hear her swear or fart or something, so I know she's human.

Anyhoo, tomorrow I'll be taking a break from working in my classroom to watch the game in the afternoon. Since I have Poverty Vision I don't actually get TSN, so I have to watch it on the website. Honestly, I would be so depressed this week if I couldn't watch it. Thank you, TSN Broadband!

Girl's Weekend!!

I'm in Regina right now, visiting my friend Stacey for the weekend. I decided it was high time I visited some friends for my sanity's sake, so here I am. It's nice to be back in Regina spending time with Stacey.

I got here yesterday at about noon. We had lunch, then went wedding dress shopping. I had envisioned a long, flowing summer dress, just something simple. Well, the stores don't have their summer stock in yet I guess, because we didn't find anything in the mall. We checked out 4 bridal shops and I tried on some basic dresses and some huge poofy ones that stood up on their own from the hundreds of layers of material. It's looking like I'm going to have to compromise my dream of a summer dress and go for a really basic wedding dress, because I can't find anything I really like. There was one dress in the last shop that is really nice, but it's only in Regina here and I have to order it within the next two weeks or so because it takes 4 months to come in. Apparently I'll be going dress shopping in Saskatoon next weekend. Are you up for that, Brea? Saturday, say 1:00?

I'm eagerly awaiting 3:00 today. That's when the Scotties Tournament of Hearts starts!! Since I don't have cable at home I'll be limited in which games I can watch, but I think I can watch some of the games live on TSN. It should be a pretty good tournament this year. Kelley Law is back, Jan Betker is representing SK and Suzanne Goudet is back with PEI! Should be interesting to see who wins this year. I'll keep you posted on the standings!

It's been a week?!

Sorry about the lack of posting. Last week was kind of crazy because it was the last week before our break, so I had a ton of stuff to do at school. Then we moved this weekend, so I haven't had a chance. Don't get mad at me!!

Anyway... we're pretty much settled into the new place now. Most of the boxes are unpacked; now it's little piles of miscellaneous stuff that need to be put away. It's kind of empty in here though. Sean's old place was so much smaller than this one. Sean's friends gave us a leather couch and loveseat, which was really nice of them, and they fill the living room up quite nicely. The fireplace limits us in how we arrange the furniture, and I'm not much of an interior designer to begin with, so we have to deal with the way we have everything right now. I can't wait to move my stuff in - then it'll REALLY feel like home. Tonight we're painting our own art to go on the walls. Neither of us are exactly Van Gogh but I think it'll provide a homey touch.

This week I'm going to take it pretty easy. I'm starting to eagerly await the end of the school year - not because I hate my job, but because I'm SO SICK OF BEING SICK! I had that horrible stomach flu, then a cold, then as we were moving on Saturday morning I developed a fever and terrible chills. And now my cold is back, but even worse. I hate being a whiner but this is ridiculous. I wash my hands all the time and use hand sanitizer (which is supposed to work, unlike antibacterial soap) - what more can I do?!

Anyway.. this afternoon I'm off to the doctor, going to pick up a few groceries and clean up Sean's old place a bit while there are some daylight hours left (power was shut off today). On the menu tonight is chicken parmesan, rice and salad. Is that bad when the highlight of your day is food?

Whaddayaknow?!

Did you know that you can email the premier? Or any MLA or other head honcho? You politically-aware people can stop laughing at me - I didn't know this and I've generally been one of the people in my circle of friends who somewhat follows politics and all that stuff.

In my defense, why would I assume that I could email any of those people? I guess it's 2007 and it makes sense, but it's really not a form of communication that I thought was available to me to have a voice. Hee hee, I'm going to send Lorne Calvert dirty forwards!

Seriously though, I had a discussion with Sean tonight about money and stuff, and I realized that I spend a fair amount on things for my classroom and my students - out of my own pocket. This is something that most teachers do because that's just how it goes, but it's really not fair. Thinking about it, I'm actually being really frugal with my money and I could spend a LOT more than I do.

Is this really fair for beginning teachers? I don't think so. I'm trying to manage a classroom that didn't have a lot of kindergarten resources to begin with; there's no way that my part of the school budget would come close to being enough to fill my classroom with enough (and adequate) resources and materials. Have you ever been in a teacher's store? The stuff in there is bloody expensive. Yet there is a ton of pressure on me to plan super-creative crafts and activities, and if I didn't spend that money to do these activities parents would probably run me out of town.

In five years I'll be in a much better situation. I'll have a better collection of activities, games and resources that I won't have to worry about accumulating just to stay afloat. In the meantime though, I'll continue paying out of my own pocket but I won't be happy about it. I'm SO Canadian.

I'm also really Canadian because, going back to the whole emailing the government thing, I'm working on a letter to some of those people about this issue that affects almost every beginning teacher, especially elementary teachers. If you're a beginning teacher and you're experiencing this same thing, you should follow my lead and email some of these people. Email addresses can be found on the Government of Saskatchewan's website.

My first dancing nightmare...

First off, I should mention that I have a phobia of dancing. It's irrational, I know, but that's why it's a phobia. I don't know how it got started but it sure makes things that should be fun for someone my age to not be so much fun (like going to the bar - I haven't been to a bar in a year).

I had my first wedding dance nightmare last night. Sean and I had just gotten married and he made me get onto the dance floor for the first dance. I was crying because I didn't want to do it but he insisted. The DJ announced that it was time for the dance (which is funny because we're not having a DJ) and Sean started dancing with another girl. To make matters worse, the dance was really dorky. So I danced with my dad and cried on his shoulder.

Then I confronted Sean because I was really mad at him and he wouldn't take me seriously. I started punching him as hard as I could and he was punching me back (just as hard!) but he laughed the whole time, which made it even worse. Jerk!

So that was my first wedding nightmare. I figured I'd have at least one nightmare about dancing. Apparently I have pent-up anger too, which I don't understand because I think everything is great right now. Ahh, the mysteries of the subconscious.

On a different note, I just started reading Tim Flannery's "The Weathermakers". It's a book on climate change and he explains the science (and I'm sure much more) in easy-to-understand terms. I'll keep you posted on it. Anyone else read any good books lately?