They Just Don't Call 'Em The Same Way

I'm back! Apologies for the delay between posts. I blame The Olymipcs, moving to a new flat and parents evening at school. A hectic couple of weeks to say the least.

Now that I've settled in my new (bigger, brighter) room, I've got a minute to spare for this quick post about watching the men's gold medal hockey game here in London.

The only way I could get my kids really interested about this game was to promise them maple cookies if we managed to win the gold. Since both men and women got gold, and Canada generally kicked butt at winning gold medals, I went all out and gave them Canada pencils as well. Cookies were a huge hit, and I had parents telling me their kids were demanding maple syrup for home. Ha!

Anyway, we tried to go to The Maple Leaf pub (Canadian pub in Covent Garden) to watch the game, but since we were only 3 hrs ahead of game time, the was a huge line, and it was a 'one in, one out' situation. I guess people had started lining up there a few hours before the pub even opened.

Luckily, we found a sports bar that had loads of t.v.'s, space, pitchers of beer (yay!) and more importantly, a pro-Canada crowd. It was such a blast being around Canadians and having a hockey game on t.v. It was also great, because whenever Canadians are together, inevitably people either know each other from somewhere, or there is some sort of common person/place that comes up. Case and point: A new friend Karen came to join us, and the people at the table next to ours were her previous co-workers from a day camp in Toronto they all worked at. They hadn't seen each other since working together over a year ago. Crazy.

Anyway, as previously mentioned, hockey games are just not called the same way here. This was made very apparent last Sunday night. I actually took notes. Here are a few of the better quotes from the BBC commentators:

"He was hanging his stick out to dry."

"We are seeing plays with a lot of impulse and forward thinking ideas"

"Not so much of a rush, more of a considered move."

"They want to get the puck out, because there is danger luring near the net."

"The puck was sitting there obligingly waiting for a touch"

"The puck was bubbling and babbling about"

Now, I don't want to paint myself out to be a hockey buff, because I'm not. At all. But I know that if you ever turned on a game at home, this stuff would never be said as a game is happening. Ever.

Either way, it was a great game, even though I gave myself a heart condition when the States tied it up. Felt great to be a Canadian, doing a very Canadian thing in a totally different place. There are some great pics of that night as well - I'll get mine up on Facebook sometime this week, so have a peek.

Lastly, if you want to re-live the Olympic experience there is a great video essay put together by a Globe and Mail journalist, Steven Brunt about what the games meant to Canadians. Definitely worth a trip to Youtube for a look. There were tears in my eyes at the end, and have never felt prouder to be a Canuck.

The More Things Change...

...the more they actually change.

Had a bit of a moment of clarity on the bus home last week. Was feeling a bit homesick for my friends, and looking forward to being home and getting to re-connect with them and 'go back to the way things used to be'. Then I really started thinking about it, and I'm not sure I have all that in common with my friends at home anymore.

Reason #1: They are all in pretty serious relationships, if not married. I am, and have been, perpetually single. And with the way things are going right now, may always be.

Reason #2: They all own houses. I am 'homeless' (my choice, as I will be traveling) as of the end of July and am not sure when/how I'll find an appropriate place to live in Toronto.

Reason #3: A bunch of them have/will have kids in the next little bit. For reasons #1 and #2, I'm no where near pro-creation.

I know these aren't major things, and friendships aren't determined/based on that kind of stuff, but it is going to be a bit tricky re-adjusting. I think it was a bit silly of me to assume that after two years, I could just return and everything would be frozen in time as I had left it. It gets a bit tricky for me when I realize that they've all changed and I've changed, but their changes have all happened together, and the changes I've made/gone though have been with/because of my new-international-traveling-living in a different part of the world-friends.

All of my friends back home are amazing, supportive and fantastic in ever sense, and I do look forward to being in a place where I can just stop by and hang out with people that I've already got a history with (in some cases, a crazy long history that goes back to primary school!) and just kind of 'be'.

The Olympics have started, and being 8hrs ahead has never felt more out of place. It's always been tricky to figure out a good time to call my sister living in Vancouver, because of this time difference, and our schedules. It's also tricky to watch Olympic stuff happen live, as it all occurs from 11pm through to 5/6am London time. It's fine right now because I'm on half term and can stay up a bit later than usual, but next week is going to be hard. Would feel really out of the loop if something happened to my internet connection/computer.

I did stay up late the other night to watch the women's hockey team play (and beat) Switzerland, and had a realization that the sports commentators for BBC really don't know how to call a hockey game. There were no 'HOLY MACANAW'S!' happening. At all. I will definitely need to find some North American/Canadian coverage for the medal rounds. Which is something I will definitely stay up late and watch live. Fatigue the next day is a small price to pay.

Go Canada Go!

The Cultural Divide

Believe it or not, there are some cultural differences between Canada and the U.K. This was made apparent to me this week at school when we were talking about some of the winter Olympic sports. I think I've mentioned that my topic this term is The Olympics, so we were discussing some of the winter events since the Vancouver Games start in less than a week - Go Canada!

The first one we started with was curling, and to get things going I asked my kids what they already knew about curling. A bunch of them were convinced that the brooms were used to sweep the snow out of the way as the stone goes down the ice. Others thought the whole point was to see who could throw the stone down the length of the ice the fastest.

Now, I'm not pretending to be a curling expert by any means at all. I've 'played' a grand total of two times and was by no means exceptionally gifted at the sport. However, I do have a bit of background knowledge about curling, and would like to think I knew a bit about it as a kid also. I'm sure there are Canadians who know less about it than the kids in my Year 4 class in east London, but I found it a bit surreal to be discussing the surface curling happens on (others thought it was snow, because it's white) and going over the basics of a sport that's pretty well known at home.

The next sport we discussed was hockey. Again, you have to specify 'ice' hockey over here, or else people think it's field hockey. I showed them how the rink is marked, and tried to relate it to a football pitch (crease = penalty box, goals at either end etc.). Then I said how instead of a kick off in football, the start of a hockey game is called a face off. This, of course, had everyone thinking you tried to take your opponents face off at the start of the game. Once everyone was calm, I explained that it's called that because you are face to face with your opponent.

It's funny, because when living in Canada, I never thought that this stuff was important to me (am still not really sure that it is), especially since I don't play either of these sports, but it's just the kind of stuff that everyone knows about and it's assumed that people have some sort of background knowledge about. It's a bit weird when you have to explain it to people.

It goes the other way as well. The other day in the staff room, people were talking about shows they watched on t.v. when they were kids, and I had no idea who/what they were talking about, and wasn't really able to participate in the conversation. Postman Pat?

One thing that is cool, for someone in my position, is to be able to tell my students about hockey, maple syrup and blizzards and expose them to stuff that they wouldn't otherwise necessarily have a first hand exposure to. And also to be able to adopt cultural stuff here that I never thought I would - like drinking loads of tea, and going to the pub on a Tuesday night without a second thought. Live it, learn it!

Hats off to ... me!

Last post I ended saying that I was going to carry on knitting a hat that I had started.

Well, I had a very domestic day last Saturday, and actually ended up finishing it!

I had some major knitting difficulties before Christmas, (which usually ended up with me wanting to put the needles in my eyes out of frustration), so it was really really satisfying to start and finnish a project and have it turn out the way it's meant to. Mine is a little bit short (was worried about running out of wool) so the next versions will be longer. However I was able to do the ribbing and reducing correctly on my own, and only had to call on Youtube to learn how to cast off.

It's been good for me as a teacher to be back in the 'learners seat' with this knitting and Spanish stuff. Learning these new things has really made me think about the instructions I give my kids and the way new information is presented. Hopefully it's translated into some more engaging and interesting lessons for my Year 4's.

January is over and done with (well, tomorrow) so that's always good. It's such a 'blah' month. I've got a feeling February is going to fly as well, with our half term break right in the middle of it.

It's funny how different I feel about the whole London vs. Toronto debate now compared to a year ago. At this time last year, I was trying to figure out if I'd be interested in a second year overseas and felt torn because I really missed people/things at home, but was worried that one year away wouldn't be enough. I didn't want to end it, and then regret it once back in Toronto. This year, things are much more for sure in my mind. I know that I love London, but I know in my heart there is no way I could live here permanently. Which I guess makes it that much easier to say, "Yup, it's been great, but time's up." and carry on. Having said that, it's going to be really sad to leave and I'm going to miss loads that I've gotten used to here, and will most likely be crying on the plane at Heathrow at the end of August.

I suppose I'll have to come up with a clever, new blog title once back home. If I continue blogging that is. Suggestions welcome!

Gym Snob

Never thought I'd be one, but am now, most definitely a gym snob.

This past week I joined the Virgin Active Gym near school. A teacher friend at school is always going on about how amazing it is, and the great classes and whatever else. Having cancelled my Fitness First membership (I never went, it's small, always had to wait for a machine, no classes I was able to attend), I decided to take a tour of this Virgin place to see what my friend is always going on about.

Well, so say the least, it's an amazing place. Brand new cardio machines, an extensive group exercise schedule, stunning pool that overlooks the Thames, sauna, steam room, jacuzzi, spa - the works basically. There is a cafe area where you can check your email and grab a coffee, Molton Brown lotion and soaps in the change rooms and everything is generally really nice and beautiful and makes you want to be there.

It's definitely out of my price range, but I feel like it's worth it, and I deserve it. Location is ideal and since taking the tour on Wednesday, I've been twice. Might as well pay more for a place I'm happy to go to, and will spend time at.

Spanish went well this week - we learned the days of the week, months of the year, and did some grammar stuff. I'm definitely considering spending some time in Spain to put my (very limited) vocabulary into use. Barcelona? Madrid?

London has been exceptionally grey as of late. Since I've been back, there has been one sunny day. One. Last Sunday to be exact. Otherwise, it's quite grey and dull all the time. When living in Ontario, I always said I preferred a bright, blue skied -20 degree day to milder grey days. This holds true today. On the bright side, the days are ever so slowly getting longer. The sun does not rise and set while I'm in my classroom anymore, so that's a bonus.

This coming week is the last full week of January - yay! Always the toughest month of the year to get through, especially so for me last year. This year, definitely not as bad at all. I was able to get my sleeping on track almost immediately (take that jet lag!) and was coming back to a more familiar place compared to last year (had only been in my flat for a couple of weeks before Christmas last year).

Am particularly excited that this has been a super fast 6 week term, and we've only got 3 to go before half term in February. I'm going calm my travel bug this break, and hang around London and be a normal person and relax a bit. It will be good to save money for upcoming trips, see some more of London (the list of stuff I haven't yet seen here is long and embarrassing) and actually take a break.

As for the rest of the weekend, I hope to finnish the hat I've started knitting (first 'real' project to date - so far so good!), spend some time in the local pub, and of course, continue to increase my feelings of 'gym superiority'.

Don't Stop Believing!

I have always had a soft spot for 'Journey's' Don't Stop Believing. When I hear the lyrics 'Just a small town girl, livin' in a lonely world...' I can't help but sing along, at the top of my lungs for the rest of the song. I've recently discovered the Glee cast version of the song, and it's been playing on my ipod on repeat ever since. I can't wait to watch the show.

Other than that new addition to my playlist, this past week hasn't been very eventful. School carried on as usual. My students now get Tae Kwon Do instruction on Monday mornings, and are enjoying it so far. Lots of jumping and co-ordinating punches and kicks. It's good, because listening to instructions is key to learning the new moves, so it's interesting to see who is paying attention and who isn't.

I've been thinking about my plans for next year, and am trying to get myself geared up for leaving the U.K. which I think will be quite an adjustment, both good and bad. It's going to be great to be around friends and family again. I can't wait to be a part of people's lives in a more real way than phone calls, emails and blog posts. However, I'm anticipating that it's going to be a bit of an adjustment leaving the exciting, energetic atmosphere of London, and the people I've grown close to here. I also know it's going to be hard to be on the 'other side' of the adventure - there was so much build up and preparation to moving over here, it's going to be a little surreal to be back home again. It's all shades of grey: not rights or wrongs, which makes it that much more frustrating.

One thing I am feeling a little homesick about right now, is missing all the build up to the Vancouver Olympic Games. I'm doing 'The Olympics' with my students right now (we to topic teaching, so all the subject areas are taught through a central topic) so it's cool to think about all the things that have to do with the Olympics with a group of kids, and listen to the interesting questions that they come up with. I saw some cool stuff on the Canadian Olympic Schools website I've signed up for - a medal counting board, a 'Go Canada Go!' banner and a bunch of other resources that would be extra fun to have in a class in Canada.

I've got Spanish again tomorrow. I haven't really practiced too much, so I'll have to brush up a bit at lunch time. We've got a few of the main phrases and sentences down now: What is your name? My name is..... How are you? And some basic counting. It's a bit tricky with the pronunciation, but hopefully next week I'll get some more practice in, and things will sink in a bit more.

Until the next post!

Blogging again in 2010!

Hello! Apologies for the insane months long delay between blog posts. I don't really have any real excuses, other than getting caught up in the craziness of the last half of the term, Christmas etc. and I kind of forgot about posting.

However, after a few subtle and not to subtle questions about the blog ('Heather, what's the deal? If you don't update soon, I'm just going to stop checking. Forever.') I figured I should get back on the ball. I also watched 'Julie and Julia' on the flight back from Toronto and it reminded me that I do enjoy writing my thoughts down and sharing them with those in cyberspace. I thought a new format would be fun too.

A quick recap: October half term my mom came to visit and we went to Budapest (amazing!) and then to visit relatives in the Czech Republic. My Christmas season started early, as I teach in a Catholic school. Lots of carol singing and nativity play practice happened in December. Was lucky enough to head back to Canada for the holidays, and had an excellent visit with friends and family.

Have a few exciting things coming up this year. After a 'knitting intervention' from my very experienced Aunt Marie over the holidays, I now am doing things correctly, which is nice and much more satisfying. There is a knitting store that opens it's doors on Wednesday and Thursday nights for people to stop by and work on their projects. They sell wine too! (Although I'm not sure I can handle alcohol and knitting at this point) I've got some chunky wool and plan to make some hats, and really cool wool my flatmate Holly doesn't like, so am going to attempt a scarf with that.

I've also signed up to take some Spanish courses on Tuesday night after school. A school in our borough is offering courses for free, so I feel as though I should take advantage. I'm hoping that my knowledge of French will help me out. Right now I only know how to say 'hot' and 'water' in Spanish.

That is all for now. I do plan on posting more frequently/regularly in the future, so check back when you can!