Merry Christmas!

I apologize for the delay in updating...I've been busy with my family! Yea! They arrived a week ago today, and we've been scampering all over Poltava for the past week. If you're friends with Amiee on Facebook, she's put up about a zillion pictures, documenting the week.

I would like to say thank you to several people for the wonderful Christmas gifts and cards:
the Rufes
the Benefields
the James
the Romines
the Rufe Sunday school class
the Peddycoarts

There are many more who have been so incredibly supportive and generous- I'm so sorry for not naming you by name...my brain is filling up with Ukrainian information, and sometimes other information just doesn't stick.

I hope that everyone had a WONDERFUL Christmas!

A Christmas Thank-You

Yesterday, at the Transport College, while talking about Thanksgiving, I had the class play "I am thankful for..." It was quite humbling, because one of the students very seriously said, "I am sankful for Ehreen because she helps uz vis our Eengleesh." It was very encouraging.

So, in the held-over spirit of thankfulness, I'd like to send out a thank-you.

Earlier this month, I got up very early on a Saturday morning: 4:30 am, Ukrainian time. Why? In order to talk to my parents' Sunday school class via Skype. I found out that the class didn't just show up to talk to me, they sat in an unheated room at the church...in 25 degree weather...for hours...in order to talk to me.

This group of people is so special to me for many reasons. After the tornado destroyed my dorm room, they helped me pull my life back together. As I prepared to come to Ukraine, they supported me and promised to pray for me. During these first few months of transition, they have been consistent in contacting me, encouraging me, and helping make my holidays homey.

Thank you, Brassart Sunday School Class. You are all so special to me. Merry Christmas!

Down the drain...

Today has been interesting. Most days are, of course. However, today has held lots of "unexpecteds."

I woke up this morning feeling awful. Knees hurt, back hurt, stomach upset. I had absolutely no motivation to move. I even thought about calling the Transport College to let the professor know that I couldn't come today: "Sorry, I'm dying a little today, so I won't be there. Thanks!" I got up anyway.

My family is arriving here on Saturday (yay!), so I've been in the process of cleaning. I realized this morning that the shower mat thing in the shower needs to go. It's been there since I moved it, but I finally woke up and realized that it's gross. I removed it to store it elsewhere with a stash of the landlord's possessions. That's when I got really grossed out...the under-mat area was N.A.S.T.Y. Well, I HAD to clean that before I got into the shower, right? I pulled out this cleaning stuff that Mrs. Linda had helped me buy back in the jet lagged days, and I doused the shower.

Such a bad idea.

Seeing as how I don't read Russian, I was not aware that you are supposed to dilute it first. I've been airing out the apartment since. And let me tell you, it's somewhere around 14 degrees Farenheit here, so that's no small task. I think I've been a little heady all day because of it. Good news: my shower is very clean.

I did go to the school, which was a blessing. The professor wasn't there, so it was all me. Fun! We talked about American holidays, excluding Christmas, which my family will teach next Thursday, on Christmas day. Side note: Ukrainians celebrate Christmas on January 7, in keeping with the Orthodox calendar. It was great fun! We played the "I am thankful for..." game when we discussed Thanksgiving.

I hope everyone is enjoying this wonderful season of celebrating Jesus' birth. What a privilege!
Merry Christmas!

Ukrainians: Hospitality is their middle name

I never cease to be amazed by the hospitality in Ukraine. It's so great! And, it takes several forms:

1. You never make a visit to someone's home without taking a gift. Usually, this gift is a gift of food or candy. It doesn't have to be fancy or anything...just an offering of thanks. One example: one of my friends, Maya, is one of my pro bono language tutors (yes, one of them. I'm remedial...). Today, she came to my apartment to spend several hours listening to be labor through reading and interpreting, butchering Russian grammar, and continually stressing the wrong syllables. She was providing a service to me, and what happens? She arrives with a gift of apples for me. Isn't that sweet?

2. There is a kind of "reciprocal hospitality." Once you are friends with Ukrainians, they feel comfortable dropping by to visit. One example: Friday night, I was planning to spend the entire evening writing lesson plans for the bi-weekly lessons that I'll begin teaching in January. My apartment was really cluttered with books, papers, and worksheets. Dishes were piling up in the kitchen, I hadn't cleaned the bathroom in a week, etc. I got a phone call from one of the guys from church, and he says, "Iricka Amerikankah (that's me...my Ukrainian name plus the adjective "American"), Vaht are you do-eeng? Vee vill be zere in fifteen meenits. Bye." I had no idea how many people were coming or how long they were going to stay. I turned into a cleaning machine, scrounged up some tea and cookies (you must provide these to visitors), and answered the door to find 6 people ready to hang out. I knew 3 of them. Ha! They stayed for 3 hours. Isn't that joyful?

3. My Ukrainian friends never let me go places alone, if they can help it. One example: Tonight, I was at a small group Bible study across town and needed to get home. I knew which bus to take home and everything. When Tanya realized I was leaving, she became very upset; I then realized that she was asking if anyone was going my direction. Kostia won the toss (metaphorically), seeing as how he's from my part of the city. We spoke Eng-Ruski as we walked to the bus stop, on the 35 minute bus ride, and from my bus stop to my building. As we got to my building, I practiced my Russian and asked him where he was going afterwards. To my surprise, he told me he was going back to the bus stop: he was going back across town to visit his grandmother and had only come my direction in order to make sure I got home safely. Isn't that touching?

I love Ukrainians.

Snow/ Sneg

It snowed today. Unfortunately, the ground was too wet for the snow to accumulate. I think the weather is trying to break me in slowly. I learned the word for snow; it sounds like "sneg." I think that's funny.

Well, the outing with the students last week was great. They took me to a mall on the edge of town, and we had cake and tea and talked for 3 hours. It was great. There are plans in the works to visit again this week.

In my effort to learn the language, I have made Russian signs for all furniture and appliances in my apartment. So, when I brush my teeth, I'm staring at the words for sink, shower, and towel. When I'm washing dishes- cabinet, freezer, refrigerator, etc. I also starting posting charts of verb conjugations to study. I feel so studious. :)

I hope that everyone is having a great week!

And so it begins

Ladies and Gentlemen:
I got a phone call from one of the girls I wrote about yesterday. We are planning to hang out tomorrow afternoon at 4 pm my time (8 am Central). Thank you for your prayers! Please continue with them.

Today, I spent the morning at college #2. This group is so fun because they are at a fairly beginner level. They are my Thursday morning group each week. The class is chock full of guys! There is only one sweet girl in there; she generally looks a little overwhelmed. I can't blame her...those guys are intense.

This particular morning, however, two other people joined our class: the vice president of the school and the dean of students. Apparently, they want to improve their English and are planning on attending my class every Thursday. What?? No pressure. I spend most of my classes there part-teaching English and part-fielding questions about American pop culture. Now, I'm going to have to tweak my lessons to be adaptable to both students and faculty. Should be interesting. I'll keep everybody posted.

Thanks for all of the picture suggestions...I'm going to try some of them out and see what I can get to work.

Blessing

I spent this morning at University #1. I was able to be in class with my very favorite professor there (and I've met a lot of them). She's such a character and is always thrilled to see me. In the language departments of schools here, I'm an instant hit- just because my first language is English. Amazing.

Anyway, I have a blessing to write about and a request to add. Two weeks ago, I was at the school during the English language festival week. All week (actually, it was more like a week and a half), students gave presentations and heard guest lecturers. I was asked to serve as a judge for two different forums. The second forum was almost over my head; all the senior International Business and Economics majors were presenting their research papers...

The first forum was more up my alley: students were presenting on their time spent studying abroad (Molly, I totally thought of you!). All of the presentations were interesting, but one in particular stayed with me. One of the first year students presented on her year as a foreign exchange student in the States. She was in a town in the Midwest and absolutely loved her experience. She spoke about how her host family (an elderly couple) became like second parents to her and provided her with so many opportunities. As she neared the end of her presentation, she made a list of pros and cons. One of her cons was that her host family required her to go to church each Sunday. I silently thanked the Lord for families like that and made a mental note to find this girl later and talk to her.

I couldn't find her that day or the next few times I was there. I continued to pray that I would run into her again. For the time being, we'll call her Anna*.

Today, it happened. I walked into the classroom this morning, and there she was. I didn't even have to go looking for her. The class wanted to ask me questions, and Anna was the most active questioner. At the end of class, the professor asked if any of them would like to offer to be tour guides around Poltava for me. Anna whipped out her cell phone and asked me for my number so she could call and plan a time to hang out.

My request: please keep Anna in your prayers. I am convinced that she is back in my path for a reason. It's obvious that God has begun a work in her life, and I'm praying for opportunities to continue sharing. Another girl in the class (we'll call her Tori*) also asked for my number. I'm praying that they contact me soon.

Thanks for your help!
(I'm still working on the picture situation...I changed layouts to see if that would work, but so far, no dice. Any suggestions?)

I hate hats...and other life-adjustments in Ukraine

I hate wearing hats. I don't look good in them, and I definitely don't look good after taking them off!

Unfortunately, wearing hats is a reality on a daily basis now. I'm not sure how to explain the weather here. Even if the temperature doesn't look like it should be very cold, that does not mean that it's not cold. A few factors: wind, lack of heated vehicles, and MUCH more walking in the elements. Thus, I now wear hats.

Here is a list- for your reading entertainment- of adjustments I'm making these days:
1. Walking. A lot. In the cold with the wind trying to cut right through me.

2. Taking my own grocery bag to the store.

3. Only being able to buy what I can carry in the store. In the States, you can groceries for the week or even for the month. Generally, there is a car waiting in the parking lot, and you can simply pile it all into the car. This allows the buyer to get whatever he or she wants/requires in one fail swoop. Here, once you leave the store, you have to hoof it home- through mud and puddles, dodging traffic and stray dogs, up flights of stairs into your apartment. This phenomenon means that you end up at a store just about every other day.

4. Customer service does not exist. The employees are not there to serve you; you, the customer, are just so lucky that they deign to accept your money.

5. Personal space does not exist- on public transportation or in interpersonal interaction. Everything is very up close and personal.

6. Washing clothes translates into only being able to wash one pair of pants, one shirt, a pair of socks, and 2 pairs of underwear. If you're lucky. The washing machines are small.

7. Nutella. It's a wonderful creation.

8. European pizza. It's so great.

9. People don't really call me Erin here. It's kind of a difficult name for Russian/Ukrainian speakers to pronounce. There is a Russian name that is similar to mine: Irina. The short, more common form is Ira. So, most people call me "Ira" or "Irichka." The -ichka ending is a term of endearment. Some people who can say "Erin" call me "Erinichka" anyway. It's fun.

I'm still unable to upload pictures right now. I've tried changing the size and everything, but I'm unable to even pull pictures up to load. I might change the template for my blog and try again. I hope you have a wonderful day!

I'm back!

I'm so sorry for not having updated this past week; I've been out of town.

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I certainly did! I had a great time visiting with other workers with my organization and eating American food. Oh man...I definitely needed that. We also kicked off the Christmas season and watched Christmas movies!

I'm so thankful for all of you who keep up with me, even if I can't keep up with you. I pray for so many of you on a regular basis. Thank you for your participation in my life!

I'll update again soon.

It's been a day... Part I

Actually, it's been a -couple of- day(s). Let's start with Thursday.

I get migraines. I have since I was 16. Over the years, I've learned to recognize triggers, and sometimes I can preempt migraines. I'm pretty good at taking care of them after they start.

Unless they start at 6:00 am. Here's the thing: migraines that start at 2:00 am are far easier to manage than the ones that start at 6:00. You can take hefty migraine medicine and still have a few hours to sleep it off if they start at 2:00. If they start at 6:00, no such luck.

Thursday morning started with a 6:00 am migraine. I took medicine, but seeing as I didn't have time to sleep off the migraine/medicine combo, I woke up 2 hours later with the remnants of a migraine AND a medication hangover. Misery. I got up anyway and started getting ready for a day of teaching English at the Transport College. I was looking forward to the lesson, despite my physical condition. I got ready, took the trolley bus to the school, and found the classroom. Then, I waited. And waited. I called the professor just to make sure I wasn't confused. Lo and behold, she was out sick and had tried to get someone to call and tell me. Ok...

I left and started walking back home. On the way, I was accosted by a very happy drunk. Please keep in mind that it was 10:30 in the morning. It took me a while to shake him because he kept following me. I told him in Russian that I didn't understand and that I speak English. He then proceeded to speak German -very loudly- to me. Yes, that makes perfect sense. I finally got rid of him, but I felt like Jason Bourne (you know, stealthily making sure he lost my trail...wasn't hard. He was drunk.).

I then decided to go ahead and get my rent money ready. I have to pay rent in dollars, which meant that I needed to go find a specific ATM that will allow you to take out money in dollars. I had to walk for a while to find it (it started raining in the meantime), only to find that the machine was, in fact, out of dollars. Really?

I walked back home. Sad and useless in Ukraine on Thursday, November 20. My migraine was starting to return, and I realized I needed some Coke for the caffeine factor. I dashed out to the little corner store across the street to get one (of course, I had just finished off another Coke the night before). I get to the store and 2394879845 people are crammed in there, and they're buying the store out of...that's right, ladies and gentlemen...Coke. I had to trudge further to another store to get it. Gee whiz...

Thursday night, a major quandary befell me. I walked out my door and found a little gray kitten waiting on me. If you don't know me well, you should know that I LOVE cats. Most people don't. I do. Always have. I've been wanting a cat since I got here, but I realize it would be far too complicated to have one. I was so torn, because I wanted to adopted Little Kitty right off the bat. I chose to keep walking and go on to prayer meeting. Little Kitty kept following me and giving me a hard time, practically begging me to keep her.

Such trauma in my life. And, I accomplished absolutely nothing. What a day...

It's back!

Miraculously, my internet got fixed- sort of- overnight. Yay! I couldn't even believe it.


I'm still having trouble uploading pictures...I'm not really sure how to fix it. I'll just have to work of creating my "word pictures" until it starts working. :)


Couple of interesting things:
1. I thought I was buying tuna yesterday...nope. Sardines. I now know how to spell "sardine" in Russian.
2. I had a semi-conversation with my landlord. Small victory- I'm starting to be able to communicate on a very elementary level.
3. I'll be teaching in the Transport College tomorrow. We're talking about life in the States, especially Thanksgiving.
4. Saturday, I'm going out to my friend Ira's neighborhood to do some informal English lessons with the kids that live near her. Please pray for sharing opportunities.
5. I'm partnering with the college students at my church here to start an English program for the student community. Right now, the plan looks like the classes will be on Monday and Wednesday nights starting in January. Please pray as we plan for and begin this program. It will be a large part of my work here...so it's very important.

Thanks for staying involved and in touch! I appreciate the comments and notes of encouragement, even if I can't always respond.

Internet down...

Hi friends.

My internet is down. I don't know when it will be up again or when I'll be able to update again. I'm praying that the answer to both of those variables is "soon," but we'll see.

Thank you for your prayers!

Three week mark, two universities, and one unbalanced washing machine

Today marks three weeks of Ukraine. Well, technically, it marks three weeks since I left home, but that's neither here nor there.

I'm heading to my second university today. I'll sit in on some classes and talk with the professor about what she'd like me to do each week. I'm looking forward to it. The school is a college for those pursuing work in the railway industry, which is alive and kickin' in Ukraine.

My washing machine was perfectly balanced and practically noiseless until yesterday. I think I'm going to have to throw my weight around and show it who's boss (yeah right- that sucker is about 2384989435 times my weight. Gee whiz...).

Last night, I went to a small group with some college students from my church. There was one guy there who had never been to that kind of meeting in his life. If you get a chance, please pray for him. His name is Roma.

Small victory

Today, ladies and gentlemen, I had a small victory. I successfully navigated one small facet of Poltava public transportation all by myself! Tomorrow is my first day in one of the universities, and I knew I would have to get myself there. So, last night, a few friends took me after church to help me get my bearings. They showed me how to get there and how to get back. In order not to forget my way, I decided to strike out on my own and make sure I could make it there and back.

I did!

I'd appreciate your prayers tomorrow...I'm a little bit nervous.

End of week 1 in Poltava

Week one is coming to a close, and I'm still alive and kickin'!

Here are some highlights:
1. I got to attend part of a youth conference. So neat to see the same things that go on at home go on here...only in Russian and Ukrainian.
2. Prayer meeting: it warms my heart to be with other believers, all praying in our own heart languages. Some prayed in Russian, some in Ukrainian, and one in English (that would be me.)
3. There are some potential opportunities to work in some schools that I wasn't planning on. I'm praying those opportunities will continue.
4. I got a cold. That wasn't the good part; the good part was that two Ukrainian friends came over to check on me, and they brought bananas and orange juice. Such great encouragement.
5. I heard from so many friends and loved ones from home. Thank you!

Hopefully, I'll update again soon. With pictures.

Whoa, life in Ukraine!

I’m not even sure how to begin catching everyone up on what’s gone on in my life over the past however long it’s been. So much has happened; it’s been like a whirlwind, and I’m not sure that I still have my head on straight.

Short version: Moved to Poltava. Moved into apartment #1. It’ was an experience that words cannot even describe. I’ll put up pictures, but they don’t even convey full meaning. Spent the first night. Next morning, began having pipe/water/plumbing issues, as well as refrigerator drama. Spent the day having those problems worked on. Returned to the apartment that night to find an unexpected person crashing for the night. Packed overnight bag and stayed at the church. Got up next morning and began apartment search. God worked a miracle and allowed us to find the most perfect apartment AND get the paperwork process finished in one day. Whew.

If you want the more detailed descriptions, see below. If not, then just remember to look for pictures in the near future.

Long version: We drove to Poltava on Thursday, October 30th. I was able to meet two of the church ladies, and they are wonderful. They both have kids my age, so they automatically moved into mom mode. Precious precious friends. The Rays and I had lunch at the church (Ukrainian food, of course. It’s really quite good for any skeptics out there.), and then set off with Oksana to move into my apartment. None of us had seen it in person because someone else had been in charge of the wheeling and dealing on the apartment.

Let’s just say that I’ve never seen anything quite like it. A few keywords: 32984729834 different decorating patterns, 3 mounted sets of antlers, turquoise toilet seat, immobile shower head designed for someone 3 ft. tall. Pictures will come soon, but unfortunately, we discovered that pictures do not capture the full effect. It’s a two-bedroom, but the landlord’s family stored a lot of their stuff in the bigger bedroom and locked the door.

I spent the first night in the apartment and was exhausted the next morning. The mattress was approximately .5 inch thick and strange noises abounded. The strangest noise, however, began very soon after I finished my shower. I wondered why workmen would be in the building, drilling at 8:15 in the morning. That seemed a little unnecessary. After about 10 minutes of the drilling, I began wondering if perhaps that noise was coming from my apartment. I moved into stealth sleuth mode and began sneaking around the apartment to find the mystery noise. Found it. The refrigerator had morphed into a live, shaking, noisy creature. Yikes!

The day that was supposed to be spent seeing Poltava turned into a day spent inspecting the refrigerator and gutting the kitchen because of a pipe problem that I didn’t know about.
That night, we had dinner with Oksana’s family, which was wonderful. So much fun. I returned to my apartment that night (Mike and Linda came back with me to ensure I made it safely) and realized that I was not alone in my apartment. That is a very unnerving feeling. I went into my bedroom, shut the door (thought about piling luggage and furniture in front of it), and called the Rays. Mike was back in a flash, and we soon discovered that the landlord (think 60-year-old) was spending the night in the locked room. He didn't see the problem.

The next day, the Great Apartment Search began. In a miraculous turn of events, we had another apartment signed, sealed, and delivered by that evening. That kind of thing doesn't happen here; nothing is fast. Not kidding. Apartment #2 is phenomenal. Much too good for me. Pictures of that to come, too.

I'll be updating as often as possible now, because I finally have internet! Thank you for your prayers!

I'm still alive

Hello friends!

I am still alive. Promise. I'm now in my city, Poltava, and am starting to get adjusted. I've had quite a lot of bizarre things happen since I've been here, but I don't have time to write about things just now. I won't have any internet of my own for at least another week to two weeks. That leaves me scrounging around to find it where I can. Yikes! Please don't be offended if I don't respond- I promise to try to get back to everyone when I can.

Thanks for your prayers!

Pictures of Dnepropetrovsk (and me!)

Here are some pictures from Dnepropetrovsk (I'll narrate as best I can):

This is me in front of some columns where people get their pictures taken...I'm following suit.

This is a "youth hall" from the days of yore. I'm not sure what it's used for these days.

This picture is for Molly...she knows why. Hope you like it, Mols!

Orthodox cathedral. We went inside, but we couldn't take pictures. Even if I could have, they would not have done justice to just how incredible the artwork is.

I just thought this was pretty. It's in the middle of a park. When you get up close, though, there is a LOT of litter. Made me want to pull out the trash bags and go to work.

FINALLY here

Hopefully, this will come out making sense and as the work of a jet-lagged maniac. I’ll try to keep this quick and snappy, but there’s a lot of ground to cover to catch everyone up! Currently, I’m staying with my supervisors in Dnepropetrovsk, which is a big city in eastern Ukraine. It’s about two hours from the city I’ll move to. Here are some highlights:

1. I made it! I actually got a good 6 hours of sleep on the trans-Atlantic flight. I had a whole entire row to myself! My layover in Austria was short, but I did make friends with a Ukrainian lady named Olga. We chatted in the airport, and she kind of made me her project for the rest of the trip. She stuck around when she was done so that she could translate for me if I had trouble. She then hung around to help me get my luggage. So helpful! Especially since there were no rolling carts for luggage, and I had four pieces. Ugh…

2. Mike and Linda Ray met me in the airport with flowers. Apparently, Ukrainians love to give flowers for all occasions, so they greeted me the Ukrainian way.

3. I don’t remember just a ton from my first afternoon, but Saturday was very productive. I got some money changed, bought a phone (a Razr that is just like my phone from home…except that everything is in Russian. I’ll have to fix that.), bought a hair straightener (how vain am I?), and got my bearings in a grocery store.


4. I totally thought I’d be fine staying asleep at night, but no. I was wide awake between 11:30 and 2:00 Sunday morning. Of course that would happen the night I needed to get up at 6:45 the next day. Growl…

5. Sunday, we drove almost two hours outside of Dnepropetrovsk to a city of about 25,000-50,000 people. A church that the Rays partner with was having a new building dedication. It was a neat experience. We left the apartment at 7:30, got to the church around 9:15, church started around 9:45, and we wrapped up around 1:20. Being Miss Jet Lag, it was quite a challenge to stay awake, especially when everything was in Russian and I understood approximately 15 words. It was neat, nonetheless. I also found a little kitten that I really wanted to adopt.

A few cultural observations:
1. A woman in the grocery store was wearing an ensemble that looked something like a black bra under a shirt made out of off-black nylons. No one else seemed to notice.

2. Men kiss each other on the mouth in greeting.

3. Um, if it’s really cold outside and you use a bathroom that is housed in a cinderblock-ish building, it will be absolutely freezing when you sit down. You might, in fact, jump right back up immediately. Just a tip.

4. There are still hammer and sickle paraphernalia. Here’s me playing Vanna:Incidentally, this is the name of the city. It’s like a “Welcome to Alabama” sign.

5. There’s a kind of dialect-esque creation that a hybrid of Ukrainian and Russian. It’s called surjik. That won’t be confusing at all while trying to learn language, will it?

Much love to all of you loyal readers. Hopefully, the one of the next updates will be of my apartment. I’ll try to give a tour.

PTL!

I get my computer back today! Thanks to Geek Squad, my computer has been diagnosed, fixed, and is now ready to be picked up. I'm so thankful for your prayers! Next time I update, it will be from my own computer. Yessssssss.

3 trunks + 1 suitcase + 1 backpack + 1 carry-on...

That's the count so far. I know it may sound a little much for two years, but please remember that I have to pack winter and summer and teaching supplies and various and sundry heavy household supplies...YIKES!

The countdown is five days until departure. Things are coming together. I'm getting to visit with people I love and eat foods that I'll miss. It's becoming very real as my belongings become inaccessible due to their locations in pieces of luggage.

Thank you for your prayers! Important prayer request: my computer is very seriously ill and is in the process of being healed. Unfortunately, this is a very long process, and I really need it back by Wednesday. If you could remember that when you pray, I'd be very grateful!

Love.

Farewell tour

I'm on my farewell tour of loved people and places right now. It's so fun! (and a little sad...)

I've spent the past few days visiting Union, and it's been wonderful. So great to see all of the rebuilding and the recovery. The best part has been seeing all the ones I LOVE. More goodbyes to come, though...

Bon voyage to all of my beloved ones who fly out in the next few days!

Sweet Home Alabama

The official countdown has begun. At least in my head. Now that I'm finally back home, the whole "I'm-moving-to-a-foreign-country" bit is sinking in. As of today, I board the plane in 19 days. I'll probably have 4 suitcases, one carry-on suitcase, and one overstuffed backpack in tow. Whew...

I have a lot to accomplish before getting on that plane, though. Did I mention I already have my plane tickets, by the way? That made the whole thing incredibly real. Anyway...I have banking things, lawyer-y things, voting things, packing things, speaking opportunity things to do, but most importantly, I have the saying goodbye to beloved friends and family to do. I hate that part.

I'm going to have to wear waterproof mascara for the next few weeks.

The goodbye life

My former roommate (Molly) and I used to talk a lot about how our lifestyles- that of international workers- are just full of goodbyes. It's such a neat life for the majority of the time. There are so many priceless experiences and incredible people that filter in and out and make an impact on your life.

The wretched part is saying goodbye.

There's no real permanence of people physically being present. My life is so at that point. I've spent the past 8 weeks forging relationships that are unlike any others I've ever made. I've spent every waking moment with approximate 342 other like-minded people. We all have the same purpose and share many of the same struggles. We've all been through the same classes and experiences here. The hard part is knowing that I may never see many of them again. Yes, we'll stay in touch, but most people eventually lose touch.

There's no way to solve it; it's just the way it works.

The neat thing is seeing how the Lord is faithful to use those relationships to build and strengthen...even if it's only for a season.

love you, FPO friends.

The petri dish life

Communal living is so fun for a while.

Then, the stomach bug starts making the rounds.

I was feeling fine and dandy all day Monday. It was a really good day, actually. Monday night, I got off campus for dinner with a friend and had a great time. Approximately an hour later, I thought I was dying. I proceeded to die for the next NINE HOURS. At one point, I actually just made the decision to "sleep" on the bathroom floor. It was absolute misery. Thankfully, I am now on the upswing. Unfortuntely, my roommate is now down with it.

I'm so good at sharing.

Washington D.C.

Yesterday, we went to D.C. I love D.C.! So much. However, yesterday wasn't a sightseeing day; it was a cultural experience/ project day. Here are some pictures from our outing:

Stop #1: Kabobs and Rotisserie in Sketchtown, USA. It was soooo shady in that part of town, but the food was good. The menu was kind of Mediterranean-meets-Middle Eastern-meets-Indian. Such an experience.

Stop #2: St. Nicholas Orthodox Church. Totally different part of town. It was on Embassy Row, in fact. Unfortunately, no one was there. We couldn't get inside, but we did turn into creepers and press our faces to the windows to see. I have never seen anything quite that elaborate. There were floor to ceiling murals and ornate woodwork. There aren't any pews in Eastern Orthodox churches (worshipers stand for the service), but there were a few wooden chairs with signs reserving them for the elderly and disabled.

This picture of Jesus (we think) was over one of the side doors. Let me know what you think.

Mini Ukrainian lesson: Prince Volodymir introduced Orthodoxy into Ukraine, following his political marriage to an Orthodox-background princess. This plaque says: "Saint Vladimir, equal to the apostles, grand prince of Kiev."

My group: Amy, Mary, Mary Ann, and me. We all happen to live in the same quad, as well. Mary and Mary Ann will also be in Ukraine, just not in my part of the country. Prince Vladimir is in the background here.

Ok. If you know me, you know why this was a great moment in my life. I really am doing "V for victory," not a peace sign.

Stop #3: There's a story here. We left the Orthodox church, seeking the metro. Unfortunately, we missed a turn somewhere that caused us to walk the ENTIRE length of Embassy Row. Such a neat experience to see all the embassies and flags. We passed the Islamic center. I'm not sure if you can see the massive row of flags; I love flags, so it was cool to try to identify them. It was also a neat prayer opportunity.

It was a long and full day, but a really great outing. I'm tired today though...

Lessons of ALL kinds.

We're in training, right? We study about cultures and languages and different methods of communication. We listen to speakers talk about cultural anthropology and the importance of prayer, how to eat foods we don't like and how to travel safely.

Globe fountain...I don't think you can see Ukraine from this angle.

We also learn other kinds of lessons...

That's right. Flushing squatty potty here on campus. F.A.N.C.Y.

It's your lucky day.

Yesterday, some friends and I visited a Greek Orthodox church in Richmond. It was such a neat/different/unique/cultural experience. To make it even more neat, we were there on a church feast day. It was really different.

* The Orthodox Church puts a major emphasis on 2-dimensional icons. This church had icons that were taller than an average door. Very ornate.
* There's a wall facade that the icons are painted on. The facade goes about 2/3 the way up the height of the building. It's on the platform and separates the congregation from the highest part of the platform where the priests assemble the items for the Lord's Supper. It obliterates most of the view into that part of the sanctuary.
* Incense is HUGE in the ceremony. It's pretty intense.
* The music is beautiful. The visit to this church reinforced the concept that I've learned about the emphasis on aesthetics in Orthodoxy. The whole experience was truly beautiful. I felt like a fish out of water; I had no clue of what I should do or when I should do things. Part of the ceremony was in Greek, which I didn't understand.

Thanks for reading! Information overload... sorry!

Loooooooooong week

It's been a really long week. I still have several hours to go before it's all over. This week has operated on the following schedule: 8-5 Monday through Friday and 8-4 today. You may note that today is, in fact, Saturday. I'm so tired.

We're getting great training this week, but it's taking the life out of me. There's been lots of hands-on activity and intense discussions/ lectures. I'll be thankful to go back to a normal week next week. However...we do get shots again. Bummer.

Sorry that I haven't updated much this week; I've been pretty exhausted. New lesson on Ukraine coming soon...

The results are in...

That's right. The results on my Meyers-Briggs personality instrument are in, and I am a...

ESTJ.

Extrovert: derive energy from being with people
Sensing: concrete, like facts and details
Thinking: task-oriented, problem-solver
Judging: like a plan and lists

*For the record, I was almost off-the-chart on Judging. I do love a good list!

Moving on. Here is your Ukrainian fact of the day:
* Ukraine is divided into oblasts, which are kind of like states, kind of like counties. Here's what the country looks like all divided up:



* My city, Poltava, is in the Poltava Oblast. It is, in fact, the capital/ seat of the oblast. Neat, huh? Here's how my oblast is broken down:
Please don't ask me how to pronounce those words.

Awards

Special awards go to Karen Tidwell and Amanda Pennington.

Mrs. Tidwell figured out that salo is pork fat. Yes, Ukrainians like to eat pork fat. They spread it on bread like butter on toast. The prize for getting this? If you come visit me, I'll acquire some salo for you to eat and round out your Ukrainian experience.

Amanda gets the "my biggest blog fan" award for commenting on EVERY post I've put up so far. Impressive. And, I miss you.

My face is really obscured, but it's good of Amanda...that's all that matters, right?

Halfway point

This week, we are officially halfway through training. That is really unbelievable to me. It feels like the following:
1. I've known these people for MUCH longer than four weeks.
2. we just got here.
3. I have so much more to learn.
4. I'm going to be leaving for Ukraine REALLY soon.

Those last two are especially true. In less than two months, I'll be in Ukraine (probably freezing). That thought is simultaneously crazy and very much sinking in. I'm both excited and unprepared. However...I'm not sure there is a way to be fully prepared. I think I'll just to move and then adapt.

Here are some Ukrainian facts:
1. Crimea, the region in the south of Ukraine, is the Crimean part of the Crimean War. "The Charge of the Light Brigade" anyone? Yep. That happened in Ukraine.
2. A popular dish in Ukraine is salo. Any guesses as to what it is? First one to get the answer wins a prize.
3. Borshch, which is traditionally associated with Russia, originated in Ukraine. It's usually served with smetana (sour cream). It's good. You should all come visit and give it a try.
4. Alcohol is very prominent in Ukrainian culture. In fact, kvas is a soft drink made from beer. It's that common.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions?

Would typhoid really be that bad?

Just kidding... I know typhoid would be awful.

However.

My arm that got shot up with typhoid innoculations is about to fall off. It hurts VERY badly today.

I thought I would give everyone a little Ukraine information. It has recently come to my attention that many people know very little about Ukraine. Let me enlighten you:

*Ukraine is not a part of Russia. It used to be a part of the Soviet Union. However, Ukraine gained its independence on August 24, 1991. So, yes, there are ties to Russia, but it is not in fact a part of Russia. The surrounding countries are Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova.

*Not to add more confusion, but there are two primary languages spoken in Ukraine: Ukrainian and Russian. No, they are not the same. They are similar (more so than, say, English and Ukrainian), but not everyone speaks both. They both use the Cyrillic alphabet. Ukrainian is used more in the west and Russian in the east. I'll be in the east...guess what I'm going to learn.

*The capital is Kyiv. In English, we typically spell it Kiev and pronounce it "Kee-ev." Really, though, it should be "Keev." Other major cities are Lviv, Kharkiv, Odesa, and Dnipropetrov'sk. That last one is the largest city nearest me. I just recently mastered pronunciation. Scary...I know. Yalta (as in the site of the post-WWII talks) is located in Crimea, which is an "autonomous republic" attached to Ukraine, jutting into the Black Sea.

*Mark Twain visited Ukraine when making his tour through Europe. When writing Innocents Abroad, he wrote about Odesa: "I have not felt so much at home for a long time as I did when I "raised the hill" and stood in Odesa for the first time." I thought that was neat that Mark Twain liked it enough to write about it.

There's so much history to Ukraine and so many stories that the Western world knows very little about. Never fear: I have taken it upon myself to educate you. Get excited!

Ouch!

Shot day 2 is done. Thank the Lord.

Highlights:
1. TB test is gross. Thankfully, it's over. And- I got a red crayon band-aid.
2. Strawberry smoothies for lunch on Thursday.
3. REALLY great day-long sessions on the Persecuted Church. It changed my life. I wish all of you could have been there.
4. Regional time: This is when we meet with the others going to our parts of the world and talk about issues specific to our people groups. These are always so encouraging; they get me excited about my job. Most of our classes are general and cover information that can be applied in most situations but have to be modified for specific locations. Regional time makes it a little more specific.
5. It rained! We were in a drought, so it's great that we finally got some rain.
6. We threw a surprise birthday party for one of our friends. We made cupcakes without any measuring cups or potholders or spatulas, and our mixing bowl was a tea pitcher. It was good training!

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Pictures...

Here are a few pictures to help tell the training story:

This is the view from my back window. It's really pretty... there are lots of woodland creatures.

This picture is for Amanda and Molly...they know why. Ryan can also feel involved; however, I don't think he'll approve.

My mortal enemy. We battle it out every night, and it usually beats me out.

This is us being really serious students. Someone looks like a marsupial...guess which one of us?

SORRY!

Sorry that it's taken me so long to update! Here's my problem:
1. We're in class 8-4 with an hour for lunch.
2. There are 360+ people here, so everything tends to take a while.
3. By the time we're done with everything, I'm too braindead to write anything.
4. I have to be in the library or computer lab to have internet.

But, I apologize and promise to try harder!

Here are some things of (possible) interest:
1. Today was shot day #1. I only had to get one: polio booster. I sat in the chair, she said, "Hi Erin. Here's your polio booster," grabbed my arm, bam with the needle, and I was out the door. The whole process was about 30 seconds.
2. I'm really excited about the weekend!
3. I have a great view of the lake from my window.
4. My air conditioner is trying to freeze me out at night- not during the day when I'm actually hot but at night when I'm in fact not warm.
5. There are two families that live in my building (with me and three other girls), and both families have precious little babies. Love them...

Thanks for reading and praying! I'll hopefully be able to put pictures up soon.

Best things

I've decided that the best things about training are:
1. New friends that I've made and the old friends that came with me.
2. Orthodox worldview sessions.
3. Smoothies at lunch time.

That's how focused I am...

No, seriously. I'm learning all kinds of great information and am really enjoying my time here. My brain is always a little bit fried, though. Comes with the learning territory, I think.

Week 2

Week 2 has begun. I'm tired already! Sitting in classes ALL day is really exhausting.

I go to class from about 8-4 every day. There's a break in there for lunch, of course. Don't worry. After classes, we're all strongly encouraged to exercise daily. My favorite thing ever... And, we have various and sundry homework assignments. I kind of feel like I'm back in college because I'm reading all the time. Oh, and we have the same food service provider as Union. Any and all Unionites are free to chime in on that.

A friend and I went around taking pictures for prayer cards yesterday. I think we came up with some good stuff. I'll let you know...

I'm heading to class. I'll try to get better at this updating-while-at-training-business- even if it's not terribly interesting.

Up and running

First day of training under our collective belts. So much information... My brain is going to collapse.

Facts:
1. I have to have a will. As in, last will and testament. Creepy.
2. I've had lots of shots before traveling to foreign countries. Alas, I will have to have more. Apparently, they will administer up to four in one sitting, AND they give two at a time. Fun.
3. We walk all the time. I guess it's good training for life without easy access to personal transportation.
4. The cafeteria has really great smoothies.

Hopefully, I will have pictures of some kind in the near future.

Travel Tips

Rule #1: Don’t travel with me.

That’s basically it. Trouble follows me! I made it to training all in one piece, but this is what happened:
I got to Atlanta, and my flights were so close together that I had to run to my next gate. I got to see my friend, Nathan, because our gates were right next to each other. While chatting with him, my flight was delayed. About 20 minutes later, it was delayed again. About 10 minutes after that, it was delayed again. That should have been a tip-off.

When we finally boarded, the pilot greets us and just casually mentions that the reason for the delays was a mechanical malfunction (something about a circuit board?). Not to worry- the problem has been fixed. I get comfortable- I had two seats to myself- and start dozing a little.
About 45 minutes into the flight, the captain comes over the intercom again and says, “Ladies and gentlemen, the problem that we thought was fixed in Atlanta is, in fact, not fixed, and I have been advised by the control tower to return to Atlanta.”

I would like to point out that we were halfway to our destination. Ugh… We made it back to Atlanta and were told that we would all deplane, trot down to a different gate, and then board another plane.

I had met another girl on the plane who was also headed to training. We compared notes, and I called the lady in charge of all of us traveling and filled her in on our situation. She asks us to check and see if there was any way to be rerouted to another airport, because the shuttle that we were supposed to take from the airport had already left.

We checked. No dice.

We reboarded and were good to go… then we had to wait in line behind about 17 other planes, waiting to take off. That took about an extra hour. After an eternity, we finally made it to Virginia. Then, we had to make many calls to find out what to do about transportation to our final destination. We found out that the drive was about 2 hours!

To wrap up: we found our ride, rode for two hours, and FINALLY made it! And, our driver was even kind enough to stop and get us dinner!

Countdown...

Well, the countdown has begun. Here are some basic numbers to keep you oriented:

2.5- days until I fly to Richmond for training

2- number of months until I finish training

84- days until I fly out

85- days until I land in Ukraine

Monday morning, I'll leave for two months of training in Richmond, VA. I'm supposed to be finishing up some pre-training assignments right this very minute. I'm not... I will get back to it in a few minutes. Following training, I'll have exactly 3 weeks before I leave for my assignment. I already have a MASSIVE list of things to do in that very small window of time. Yikes!

A few more pictures:

Precious friends... We were in between scheduled events, hanging out in Katie and Ryan's "classroom."

Nastiya, me, Tanya, Elizabeth, and Julia: These were just a few of the sweet students that Elizabeth and I taught. They didn't really need teaching so much as practice.

Elizabeth's and my class playing "Apples to Apples." It was a HUGE hit, for anyone who was wondering. After playing it the first time, they got a little impatient every time Elizabeth or I tried to teach something that didn't involve playing the game! L to R: Alex, Yulia, Tanya, Oksana, Nastiya, and Katya.

Story time...

Story time from Ukraine (in no particular order):

1. On our last night before flying out of Kyiv, the church we partnered with sponsored a festival/ time in a local park. We had invited all of our new friends to join us. We had dropped them off at a metro station after camp and then spent the afternoon sight-seeing before heading to the park. At the park, about 14 of our 20-somthing campers showed up! It was such a great time of visitng and talking about events/ decisions that took place at camp. Following the time in the park, all of the Americans and all of the Ukrainians went to McDonald's for dinner. While at McDonald's, two more campers arrived to visit. After a little while, their story came out. These two guys were from Lutsk, a town several hours and a long train ride away from Kyiv. They had decided that morning when dropped off at the metro that they wanted to reunite with everyone that night, but since they had no where to go in Kyiv, they spend the day walking around. We were so excited that they had come to visit...then we found out the rest of the story. In waiting and coming to visit us that night, they had missed the last train to Lutsk until morning. They were planning on walking around Kyiv for the rest of the night until the next day's train.

2. Learning campers names was difficult at first. Here's why: 2 Valyas, 3 Tanyas, 2 Yulias, 2 Lubas, 3 Sashas, and 2 Sergeis. Gee whiz! The funny part is that one Tanya and one Yulia lived in my room with me and the other Tanya and the other Yulia were in my class!

3. I'm not athletic. Or coordinated for that matter. And, I really hate camp games. Mostly because of the aforementioned reasons. Well... One bright, sunshiny day in Voron'kov, Ukraine, I was suckered into playing multi-faceted, highly physical camp games. I was actually doing well and holding my own for the first few rounds of running, jumping, balancing. Then came the "dribble the soccer ball around this pre-defined area while racing the other teams." May I point out that soccer is second nature to Europeans? This was a walk in the park for them. Not so for the American. I start out and am doing pretty well for the first 5 steps. Then, like a flash of lightening, the world turned upside down. My life flashed before my eyes, and after an eternity bound in a split second, I found myself not standing anymore but rather lying flat on my back as other teams raced by me trying not to laugh. I'm not even sure how it happened...

More to come.

Back home

We're back! It will probably take me several days of updating to come anywhere close to filling everyone in on the happenings, but I'll give it my best shot. Today, I'll just hit some highlights:

1. We were able to see 8 of our new Ukrainian friends experience a life change. It's worth all the lowlights (which I will expand upon later... get ready. It's funny.).

Zhenya, Judy Manna, Llosha

2. Amiee and I were able to see and room with two of our precious friends from last year's camp, Tanya and Svieta!

Tanya, Valya (new friend), Svieta, me

3. Classes went wonderfully, and as expected, deviated from the lesson plans right from the very first lesson.

Amiee and Rachel and their really fabulous class...I think Luke (Manna) is sitting on the end of the bench there.

4. All s'mores ingredients arrived safely and intact at camp. The s'mores were a big huge hit!

Me, Elizabeth, and the piles of s'mores. This was probably right before we were stampeded...

5. Our friend that learned English since last year was at camp, and we were able to talk to and hang out with him ALL week!

Mesha and me. His sign says "Free Hugs," by the way.

6. We made fast new friends/ family with the Manna family and Elizabeth who live and work in Kyiv.

Elizabeth and Erin (not to be confused with Erin Elizabeth, which is, in fact, my full name). I love her. So much.

Our beloved Manna family/ "daily Manna": Mike, Luke, Judy, Katya, me, Amiee, and Sammy. We miss them dearly!

7. We worked for the second year with our dear Natasha and her husband, Pastor Sergei.

Anyone remember a picture very much like this one from last year? Amiee, Natasha, me.

Natasha and Sergei rockin' out in the chapel... this is what they do when everyone has left.

8. Ryan now has a new best friend and BROTHER!

Vitalik, Ryan, Rachel

9. We got to see 14 of our new friends even after camp. They came to visit with us our last night in the country!

Just a very few of our precious ones...they just kept jumping in the picture.

10. No one got sick, and our adrenaline held out until the plane rides home! Amazing what a body can handle...

Amiee, Rachel, Ryan, me, and Katie. Let's give it up for Ryan who took cold showers all week. Just ignore his ridiculously wrinkled shirt...

Much more to come. Thank you for your prayers!

Dasvedanya!

That's my English-rigged spelling of a Russian word (which means "goodbye," by the way). We leave tomorrow morning at 11:30. We're all packed and weighed and tagged and ready to roll. I've already written about my dislike of airports, so I'll spare you that. Hopefully, there will be no difficulties with luggage weight issues or transport of luggage from one aircraft to another; we'd REALLY love our luggage to arrive at the same time as we do. In tact. And with nothing exploded inside. Mind you, we've sealed basically everything in ziplock bags, but occasionally, things still explode.

We're excited about seeing our Ukrainian friends and meeting new ones. I won't be able to update while we're gone, but you can bet your britches that there will be many a picture and story once we get home. We get home on the 28th...give me a day to recover from jet lag, and I'll be up and running again.

Amiee and me tackling the shopping list!

Thank you for your prayers; can't wait to tell you the stories when we return!

Countdown

Our "countdown":

- 1 soccer ball
- 2 pairs of scrapbooking scissors
- 3 lbs. of colored gimp and accompanying keychains
- 450 water balloons
- 2 packages of 100-ct. notecards and envelopes
- 50 people signed up for camp
- 60 hours until arrival at the airport
- 5 really excited ESL teachers!

Thanks for your prayers!

T-minus 5 days

Ukraine: Round 1 commences in five days. It's just around the corner!

We had one last hard-core planning/ training meeting this last weekend. Rachel, Amiee, Ryan, and Katie are doing a GREAT job getting ready. They all earn "E" for exceeding expectations. Bless their hearts, I made each teaching pair choose a part of a lesson and teach the rest of us. They felt silly but did fabulously.

Katie and Ryan discuss (animatedly) lessons for the Beginners.

Rachel and Amiee work out the final kinks for the Intermediates.

This week, I had the privilege of speaking to the WMU ladies at a local Baptist church this week. It is such a blessing to meet those who are so dedicated to prayer. I was able to share the story of my journey to Ukraine and was encouraged with their commitments to pray for me. It's so humbling when people take the time and effort to pray and encourage me.

Brad came through and visited this weekend. He came in perfectly good health and left with a wasp sting that swelled his entire right forearm, a bump on the side of his head (courtesy of a rather vicious water bottle), crushed fingers from makeshift furniture repair, and various and sundry other injuries. In the gaps between injuries, he accompanied Amiee and me to training and sat in as the only male representative in the WMU meeting. He deserves some kind of commendation, I think.

Dad trying to fix Brad's arm. You can't see, but we're in an exam room with really bright green trim and multi-colored tiles.

Brad got confused about what kind of steroids he was taking for the sting...

Lunch with Chris!

I had lunch with my friend, Chris, today. Chris and I both went to Ukraine last year, although we were doing different jobs. He loved it so much that he went back this summer for three weeks. He got back this past weekend, so we had lunch today!

Me, Chris, and Amiee in Kiev in 2007

It was so good to hear about what he was able to do and stories about some of our Ukrainian friends that we met last year. One story he told me was about a guy he befriended last summer who spoke no English. After this friend spent time with those from our church, he felt that he needed to pursue training in ministry AND learn to speak English so he can work with us this year. So, friend started seminary in Kiev and began English lessons. When Chris was reunited with him this summer, he found that friend had one year of training in youth ministry under his belt and could converse with Chris IN ENGLISH! Neat, huh?

It was so good to talk to Chris...it was so encouraging and got me even more excited about going.

Oh, how I'd love to disapparate...

I hate airports. I do. Flying used to be such a fun thing: the excitement of different airports, the various and sundry folk you can bump into in airports, the movies on the places, the snacks, the tiny Coke cans that European airlines sometimes serve. It was all so grand.

Not any more.

I hate it that airport workers can almost never be friendly. You have to ration your carry-on toiletries. You now have to pay for your checked luggage. You can only take 50 lbs in one suitcase. Please let me just say that it boggles my mind when I look at my two teeny suitcases and my growing list of items I'd like to take with me for the next two years. Gee whiz... I guess one positive thing resulting from Tornado Trauma 2008 is that I can totally live with way less stuff than I thought I could. Cell phone and pillow only, anyone?

Back to flying: I have terrible misfortunes when traveling. Key cities in which disaster has struck: Johannesburg, South Africa; Paris, France; London, England; Charlotte, North Carolina. Those are just the places where I've been traumatized. For some reason, I look like a trouble maker to airport security. If anyone will be pulled aside and security wanded/ patted down/ interrogated, it will probably be me.

If only there was another way...

Happy Independence Day!

Happy 4th of July! Especially to Kari and Trey (http://www.jkmassonfrance.blogspot.com/). I'm fairly certain that your celebration will be a little more limited.

I'm still ironing out the kinks of the lesson plans. Here's what I'm finding:

One major difference in writing lesson plans for ESL camp in Ukraine and writing lesson plans for high schoolers or middle schoolers in the States is that my Ukrainian students actually WANT to be in my class. More than that, they WANT to learn the finer points of English. I finally have an enthusiastic class rather than a captive audience on which to impart my intense fascination with the minutiae of the English language!

One major difference that causes me to squirm a little bit, though, is that they want to learn ALL the little details. Now, I know a lot about English, but I’ve found that I begin to question my knowledge and capability when focused students inquire relentlessly. That’s when I start to fidget and sweat and forget my present progressives, past participles, adverbial clauses and wish that I was teaching colors and items you find on a menu.

But…I’m going in armed with scores of idioms and advanced vocabulary words. This year, I’ve decided to take the game “Apples to Apples” (http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/74) to use in teaching vocabulary. I’m not sure if it will work well or not, but I’ll try it.

With advanced classes, I try to incorporate a lot of discussion opportunity. The camp leaders have given us daily themes to talk about:
Day 1: friendship
Day 2: family
Day 3: dating
Day 4: career
Day 5: making the right choice for my life

I love to hear what the students have to say about their lives and the people that influence them. I take pictures of my family and friends to class and talk about my life to get the ball rolling (ha…another idiom. Yesssss.). Theoretically, they’ll get excited about discussion. Here’s hoping! I’ll totally let you know. Don’t worry.

VERY small sampling of the pictures I'll be taking:

Mom and me...and my diploma!

My sister, Amiee, and me

College roommates: Kirby, Molly, Amanda, and me

Thanks!

Thanks to everyone for the idiom help! I got so many responses that I decided to plan in about 30 minutes of idiom-ing for each lesson. Here are some of my favorites that I got in feedback:

1. piece of cake
2. give me a break
3. I'm burning up
4. catch a cold
5. runny nose
6. scoot over
7. eating out
8. eating in
9. My feet are killing me.
10. I'm over it... (that was Kirby, of course. Thanks, Kirby!).

Thanks again. If there are any more that you think of, I'm still taking suggestions!

Disgruntled musings to come: airline restrictions on everything. Feel free to join in...

Burn up/ burn down, break in/ break out/ break even, etc.

I've finally gotten around to working on MY lesson plans for my first Ukraine trip. I've basically finished writing everyone else's, and yesterday, I started working on mine. Since I'll be teaching an advanced class, my lessons will include more intensive vocabulary, slang, and idioms. I taught some idioms last year, and they loved it! Students who have studied English for a while really love to practice speaking with native English-speakers, and they especially love to learn the less-formal ways of speaking English.

Part of my advanced class last year

Idiom: an expression in the usage of a language that has a meaning that cannot be derived from the conjoined meaning of its elements.

I've been generating all kinds of idioms that we use and have been very proud of myself. The only thing is...I realized that I have to explain what all of them mean. It sounds easy, right? Not so much. Although they speak English fairly well, they are still from a completely different culture and a language that may or may not have complimentary syntactical elements. Try explaining the difference in these, using fairly basic English words and NOT using another idiom in the definition:

1. Burn up
2. Burn down
3. Break in
4. Break out
5. Break even
6. Catch a cold
7. Catch on
8. Catch on fire

I'm taking suggested definitions from anyone who is feeling word-smithy...