Breaking News!!

I actually typed the following blog about a week ago, making it not-so-breaking news, but I decided to wait until my "invisibility cloak" took effect. I've gone into hiding from future students...

This just in... Dunkerton Community School District has a new VOCAL DIRECTOR!!

How did this happen? Well, that's a good question. You see, I knew someone who had student taught in the district. She told me that the current teacher is retiring at the end of the school year. I visited in December to see if it would be a place I could see myself. I sent in my papers, got the interview, and the rest as they say, is history.

What was your interview like? It was unlike any I had experienced before. I arrived at noon and was finished at 3:45, including teaching two lessons and answering about a thousand questions. Whew, what a day!

What grade levels will you teach? I will have upper elementary (5-6), junior high (7-8), and high school.

So are their sports teams the Dunkerton Dunkeroos? Well, Debra... actually no, they are the Raiders.

What is there to do in Dunkerton? Uh... teach? It's small.

Important demographical information? STATE CHAMPS! That's all you need to know. Read http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunkerton,_Iowa if you don't believe me!

How do you feel about this? I'm excited about the big life change. I am excited to find a place to live. I've found from subbing that I tend to have a permanent case of butterflies in my stomach when it comes to teaching. I'm getting used to it now.

So, Miss Zwiefel, you've just secured a job for next fall, what are you going to do next? I'M GOING TO DISNEY WORLD!

"Bailey-sitting"

The Shews are in Disney World... While they're gone, Debra and I are watching Bailey. It's been a good time. If you notice in the picture, her tail is wagging. Which is translated as, "I am having tons of fun even though my family is gone to a warmer climate without me and Debra won't let me jump on her bed!" She makes sure Debra gets out of bed in the mornings to get ready for school. Better than a snooze alarm, right Debra? Bailey and I have bonded, though I think she'd like anyone who offers to throw things for her to fetch and scratch her back. Right now she's watching Debra make bacon with a bacon press. Someone awesome must have thought to give her a bacon press for her birthday. Soon Bailey and I will brave the cold to make some routine checks on things and get the mail. It's hilarious to watch her sniff around and stir up clouds of snow. The plan after that? "First we'll make snow angels for two hours, then we'll go ice skating, then we'll eat a whole roll of Tollhouse Cookiedough as fast as we can, and then, we'll snuggle."

The Phantom of the Opera!

For my mom's birthday, I gave her two tickets to The Phantom of the Opera, now showing at the Civic Center in Des Moines. Secretly I really wanted to go, and I knew my mom would enjoy it too. Yesterday I drove to Fenton to pick up my mom, then on to Des Moines. We spent a few hours at Jordan Creek and then had dinner with my sister Nicole. My sister and I both had rib tips at Famous Dave's. My mom found the sight of two girls, each with her own mound of meat, quite entertaining. Then my sister dropped us off at the front door for a couple hours of quality entertainment. It was awesome! Mom liked it too. On the way home we talked about going to see the Blue Man Group, which would be AMAZING!

There's no substitute...

I'll be starting a long-term substitute job soon. For eight weeks! It all happened so fast. About 3 weeks ago I had three copies of an e-mail from a teacher in the Harris - Lake Park School District. Their district was looking for a substitute for middle and high school vocal music! I called on Thursday, interviewed on Friday and had the job by 3:00 that afternoon. I still can't believe how things work out. I already live so close AND I'm in the market for sub jobs! The current teacher will be taking maternity leave, beginning as early as February 14. I am going to spend the day there tomorrow to check things out. I have a pretty good idea of what to expect. The school is about the same size as good ol' Sentral, teeny-tiny! (For those of you who don't know, yes I DID spell that right!) I'm very excited about this opportunity. It has the potential to be a great learning experience with minimal stress. I say that now, but I am responsible for the middle school concert and solo/ensemble contest, YIKES! Now you'll know why if I don't blog for awhile.