Amor Vincit Omnia

So it's been since my big brother's birthday since I wrote in my journal, why not make my little brother's birthday another reason to write. Well almost. Yesterday was Christopher's birthday. Happy 22nd bro. Even though I know you aren't reading this I just want to say that I love you and I'm always thinking about you...I hope you like your card. I know I'm kind of a dork when it comes to things like that...paper, colored pencils, glue sticks...but my excuse is that I'm a teacher and we do that kind of stuff.

Anyway...I just got through dancing incase anyone wanted to know. I have been out of school since Wednesday and do you think I have been vacationing? No, I have been working on this website that I'm helping one of my students with. Thursday alone I spend 16 hours STRAIGHT (no kidding) working on it. I about finished every page when I couldn't get any of them to open properly! I have been pulling out my hair calling everyone I know...writing to the company for support, and about 20 minutes ago I fixed the problem. I don't know how but I managed to do it and I'm not going to question it. I was so happy I had to do a victory dance. At the moment the only thing I could think of was I'm So Excited by the Pointer Sisters. I wasn't feeling it in my steps so I changed it to Canned Heat by Jameriquai. YOU KNOW THIS BOOGIE IS FOR REAL! Yeah yeah yeah, you know I heard that boogie rhythm...Hey...I had no choice but to get down down down down!

What am I going to do with the rest of my weekend? Study.

:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)Right now I just feel like smiling. :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

Check out the ticker! My baby's gonna be here in less than 2 months!!!!!!!!!!!! Ahhhh!

Alright...leave me to my smiling and bootie shakin'! Have a greeeeeaaaat weekend.

Priqten Yikend!

It’s been a long time...shouldn’tna left you...without a dope beat to step to...

So it's been a very long time since I wrote in my journal but I'm back in business.

I have nothing major to write about today except for the fact that IT'S MY BIG BROTHER'S BIRTHDAY TODAY!!!! YEAH Happy Birthday Clif! 31 years old-I love ya Clif, no matter what!

Other than that my day sucked-it was filled with depression and tears.
The afternoon was better-less depression and no tears. I am actually in the process of grading some English compositions by the 8th, 9th, and 10th graders all one of 6 topics. They really brighten my day. I don't intend to laugh at them but they are really open when it comes to writing and their honesty makes me laugh. This is the part of teaching that I love. The things kids say and do are something everyone needs to see and hear every once in a while.
The evening is going alright as well. So far it's consisted of planning planning and more planning...what can possibly be better than that?

Oh! It's time to get LOST. I tell you I have never in my life been so addicted to a Television show before. You can even ask Eric. I had an episode without sound and I had to call him for the complete show synopsis in order to go on! I can't get away from it. Normally I would hate the person that got me addicted but in this case I have to thank Melody Jones. Man without her I would have never found...Lost. Talk about word-play! Anyway I've even got Christina watching it. Darling you need to catch up so we can be LOST nerds and discuss each episode. Heck we can even rake up the phone bill and WATCH an episode together!!!!! If you haven't started watching it START NOW!!!!! 5 STARS fo-sho!

No Lost for me tonight cause I have work...and when there's Lost there's NO WORK.
Leka rabota
P.S. My paid membership has expired! Can anyone explain how I ever HAD a paid membership, cause I sure as heck didn't buy one!?!?!

I would like to take the time to thank someone who has been here in Bulgaria with me from (close to) the very beginning! Mom, Stephie, Miss Chocolate...or the most popular...Momma Chocolate (Stephanie Giacoletto). She is an amazing friend. Her talents include cooking extremely delicious foods, baking unbelievable pies (cherry, apple, pumpkin, banana cream...). She is(was) a go-get-em BG language studyaholic (but hey non of us do THAT anymore). She cares so much about her student that she puts loads of effort into teaching them. She is great person to hang out with when the heat goes out in the winter! And speaking of weather, she's been known to flood the country by doing her laundry. She is a great teacher, who stands up for her beliefs when others wont let her have her way. On that note, she's also tractor capable of destroying forests, innocent flowers, and the students around her if you're not careful. She's great at listening and giving advice - which has been the talent I have appreciated the most. Momma Chocolate, I love you, I think you are a wonderful person, and I appreciate your friendship.

In the words of Alexander: today was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day! It was by far one of the worst days EVER at school. I will spare the details because I don't really want to re-live it...well why not.

It's 'bout as bad as it can be. Seems everybody's buggin' me. Like nothin' wants to go my way, yeah it just ain't been my day. NOTHINGS coming easily.

So it all began when I woke up from my 4 hour nap at 6am. I had some coffee and was ready to have a great day. My 8th grade students, weren't ready with their project which were due today. That was fine because they work really well together and I'd rather witness them working as a team than having one person work on the report at home and everyone else slides by. We didn't get to do the fun drama skit I had planned but all is great. The bad day started when I left that class and was told that there was a problem with the water in my apartment and the city hall doesn't have the right keys and so I have to run home and stop the disaster. All I could think about was WATER and the HEATER I forgot to turn off and everything I own UP IN SMOKE. Turns out NOTHING HAPPENED!? It must have been the floor below me but everything was under control at my place. Well except for the stench growing from my pits from all the running!

I get to school have a great time during my tutoring session with the 100 kids that showed up. We read skits and short stories and finished homework. Then I entered a class that treated me like a piece of dogshit! I mean it was the first time I'd had students swearing at me, throwing spit balls and chalk at me, banging chairs on tables, farting for like 10 minutes straight, asking how to say SEKS in English...I mean it was crazy!
I was even more frustrated when I couldn't use my phone because the person whose name my bill is under hadn't paid her bill. So I had to drop a few bucks and buy a new card which means I have about 1.5 million people to give a new phone number to.
I entered another class that got yelled at (on my behalf) before I entered...then the vice principle came in and yelled at them for talking during my lesson (it is a language class after all)...then got yelled at by my counterpart (again on my behalf but I support this one).

I suppose I'm supposed to forget the guilt and embarrasment my counterpart bestoed upon me in front of half of the staff today because I reported my problem to her while she was sick, just because she apologized. Well of course I will. I have no reason to hold a grudge. But it's definatly not locked up that tight in the memory banks.

My last two classes went allllriiighht. But then I couldn't send a message with my new number. I got denied for dinner, and then......I PAID MY INTERNET BILL.
THEN to add to the mess I get the news that Punxsutawney Phil saw his freakin shadow and we're doomed for 6 more weeks of winter! It can only go up from here.

You know I'm tired of complaining it's giving me a headache. I just want to move to Australia. In Australia, everything is upside down, so maybe a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day can become a wonderful, terrific, really good day.

When everything is going wrong. Don't worry it wont last for long. Yeah it's all gonna come around. Don't go let it get you down. You've got to keep on moving on.
Up, up, up can only go up from here.

I bought a bottle of wine to help!!!!!!!
Leka...woo hooooooooooooooooo I'm goin up-up-up, I'm going UP!

"Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it. It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more." i love you e

I love you too c

Thanks Mike for the reminder. For those of you who don't know...I JUST learned all about hump day. I was one of the few out there who had never heard of hump day. So with some help...I will practice using it when I can! Hump Day - Hump Day - Hump Day! Well I know it's not such a great day but IT'S OVER! And we all made it alive! Bust out the tequila! Man I wish I had some tequila!

That's all for today. Nothing new in this department. I want to go skiing. Postage has almost doubled since Christmas. I got new gloves and the weather got warmer. I need to take the garbage out. Hi Melody! Hi Liz! Hi Eric! Hi Dylan! Hi Christina! Hi Lisa! Hi Mike! If you're a devoted reader and I forgot your name...sorry. OH BTW...no more of this one person comments. If you see only one person has left a comment it is your duty as a reader of mine to leave a second. You can't just leave me and my "1 people enjoyed dinner" here to be displayed to the world. I'm supposed to be a English teacher! Help a brotha out!

I got dinner waitin'! 4ao-chow!

Pozhelavam vi mnogo vkycna ve4erq!

Whatever you do DON'T write anything bad about Bulgaria or especially your COUNTERPARTS!!! Word out on the street is that they are all reading out journals AS WE SPEAK! Apparently they are sooooo desperate to find out about our personal life that they spend their waking hours reading our journals and developing opinions about us from them.

These are my own words of advice for you as my fellow volunteer friends:

While you are in Bulgaria you should NEVER EVER be bored by the way. This is the most fantastic country and there is SO much to see. If you are bored then there is something wrong with you. Stop missing your friends, stop crying over your families. Find a family to love and friends that care for you HERE!

For those of you who hate chicken liver STOP SAYING IT. You must eat it whether you like it or not. AND FOR GOODNESS SAKES stop craving the foods that you've grown up eating your whole life. You're in Bulgaria dammit, you're gonna eat Bulgarian food so stop with the Peanut butter and STOP with the bacon!

For those who think there is a lack of porn in this country you are OUT OF YOUR MIND! I can tell you a few good websites to visit...that is when you aren't watching it on your local cable station or buying a playboy calendar from the local copy store.

Have great work week. Don't forget to work 5 days from now on. If you aren't then you're not busy enough. I'll see some of you this weekend!

Priqtna cedmitza!

So a week without internet can really drag you down. Melody said she would die..what's sad is...she ain't kiddin'! SOooooooo bad news of the day is that all Peace Corps Volunteers will soon be required to work at their schools 5 days a week. To some of you it may sound obsurd to you that we DON'T, but it's hard to understand unless you were here. I work 23 hours during a 4 day week and am involved in a major project at school, I also tutor and teach a 2 hour a week adult course. Next month I will be starting to work on my secondary project (which should actually be called my THIRDary project for obvious reasons) I am a freakin mess during the week and I can't imagine them making me work another day. I DO work on my days off...ask anyone who I have visited and just ask if I've ever pulled out folders of work to do! I wrote a letter to admin and I won't be so bold to post it here, but I will say I said what needed to be said in order to save my sanity. END BAD NEWS.

Good news is I received a package yesterday from someone special back home with the initials CGBG. {PREPARE TO DROOL Y'ALL}
The contents included an extensive amount of instant foods such as 5 minutes pastas, chunky steak soup, clam chowder, 2 pizza kits, and EXTRA CRUNCHY PEANUT BUTTER! There were even goodies like Peanut butter cookies and AIRHEADS! The best/and the worst part...was my long johns which I accidentally left behind. The good part is that they are covered in the sent of a woman...the bad part is that they are covered in the sent of a woman and my ass is going to smell like her face for the next month. I am just glad it's not the other way around. I love you Pumpkin Face (lol - inside joke). I've decided just to NOT wear them until I don't smell you anymore. Why avoid frost bite on my legs when I can have your smell as well as your face on my pillow!? Thank you for loving me.

I think this is a good time to say goodnight...well to you at least because I HAVE WORK TO DO!!!!! See I wasn't kiddin'!

Leka rabota i leka nosht (ako i kogato imate vreme da spiite)

I just wanted to thank Melody for sending me home with some oatmeal.

1) I never noticed how litte the packages are - which is parallel to the amount of oats and fruit it contains! But the two bites I had were more than I had B4!!!!
2) A warm breakfast (besides bread and melted cheese) is a good way to start the morning during these cold mornings.

Thanks again,
Priqtna zakuska!

It really has nothing to do with the weather but my spirits are really heading in a positive direction. The week started off with having a blast in Chirpan, thanks to the company of Eric, Liz, Mel, and Trevor! I should also mentions the hamburger helper, the apple sauce, the beer, and the pizza involved. Spending time with friends is a great way to feel less hostile towards the world.

I love country music.

CG is coming to Bulgaria. It is official, she's got her ticket and for almost a whole month I won't have only my pillow to hug, lol! I can't wait babe. And I know we talked about this, but don't forget to bring your Charmen travel rolls. (Thanks Liz's mom for that!)

Things around the school are also moving in a positive direction. Grades are due on Tuesday and I'm getting a lot done in that department.
*I have projects graded, tests returned, and kids PASSING!
*I just thought of this great idea for a MOVIE NIGHT at my school which has my hopes at an all time high for a positive 2nd semester.
*I impressed the ladies at the school by giving our Dnevnik chart a facelift.
*Last but not least my 8th grade class and I will be starting our Mandialogo competition with our Egyptian partner team with MONEY as our driving force to like each other...(thats a joke, lol)

This is the coldest freakin night of the winter so far; MY FEET ARE FROZEN! Even with a heater pointed directly on them, they still haven't defrosted since 7 o'clock!

Priqtna Zima!

Can today get any better!? First I have a great day at school. (That means a LOT). Then I come home and get a call from my host family...everything is good. Then I realize that one of my most beloved TV personalities is back on the screen! Who could it be??? It's ALF! He's on bTV 5 days a week from 6-6:30!

And it's not like watching re-runs either cause he talks in bulgarian now! Life is GOOD! Welcome back dude! Too bad you chose Bulgaria to come to because there isn't much peanut butter and the cats here are stray, dirty, and diseased! NO LUNCH FOR YOU THE SEASON!

Thanks baby for the fish face pictures. A smile a day keeps the depression away! How funny would that be to publish those pics!? Hey it's for the health and sanity of all PCV's in need of a laugh. Alright it's time to vote: Say "I" if you want to see Christina's fish face pics!?

Well you wouldn't believe it but things got EVEN BETTER. First I took the best shower ever. Maybe it was so good because it was the first I'd taken in a while but who cares...it was gooooood. So THEN I cooked up this awesome dinner. I was inspired by Stephanies Tomato basil salad. Well it was only the beginning. I also made this unbelievable pork-chop that was burnt just right on the outside and filled my plate with juice from the inside...the kind you can't EVER make again. Then I made some corn with the juice from the chop and had the rest of my red wine to satisfy the tastebuds! What a great night.

After that great meal, I'm finding myself tired. I will plan for a class or two and just lay down for bed...I deserve to go to bed b4 2am tonight!

Leka rabota i leka NO6T!!!!

P.S. Did the quote "Porkchops and applesauce" come from the Brady Bunch???? It doesn't really matter but it made me think of Mamma Chocolates applesauce from Thanksgiving. Steph will you pretty please (with sugar on top) make me some applesauce this weekend...I will bring the apples or pay you back for them...I'll buy you a sucker or somethin'. OMG you ain't had apple sauce 'til you've had hers. I LOVE YOU!!!!!

I just want to spend another moment of my sad life to express the love of a name. Eric is one of the coolest names on this planet BY FAR. I'm proud to have it and I wanna give all you others out there (Eric's with C's of course) your props and give a shout out to those of you I know:

Big Bro Eric C
EK
EU
Married Eric
Mexican Eric
White Eric
Eric B from Elementary school
Jackson
Karlavo Eric (please confirm the C)
3rd year Eric (please confirm the C)
PC Money Man Eric Y
Eric Clapton

You know it's hard being an Eric cause nothing rhymes with it!

I should totally join a group...I know there's one out there!

So I checked my temperature last night and I definately caught the grumpy mood flu. Sorry to anyone I spent more than 5 minutes complaining to. Today I woke up and was put into another cranky mess just being at school. I then took a little solo trip to Veliko Turnovo looking for canvases to paint on. I was at the store before and I thought I could find it again...WRONG! I never found the store and therefore I wasted my time going there...WRONG AGAIN. I actually had a good time getting out of the house and off my butt. I am home at a decent time and ready to plan from my classes. I think today went well. PLUS I got 2 dyuners in VT! I love those things and had no idea they had 'em there!

Even though, last week, I was counting down the days to the weekend, I am ready to go back to school. I need to have things to do during my days besides sit on my butt! I am going to make plans this weekend whether they are to go to Kourtovo, or to see some other volunteers. Y'ALL better be ready cause I'll be knockin' on your door without warning! I want to laugh this weekend. Anyone else? Together we can make it happen!

Leka rabota

Special thanks to Christina, Dylan, Mike, Mel, Jess, and Jeremy who were caught in the snot of my flu tissues!

Well Christina...you're the only one who can justify this to be true...

Your Seduction Style: The Natural

You don't really try to seduce people... it just seems to happen. Fun loving and free spirited, you bring out the inner child in people. You are spontaneous, sincere, and unpretentious - a hard combo to find! People drop their guard around you, and find themselves falling fast.

I just have to make a comment about how I love fast food and the abundance of fattening and delicious foods in America. I never felt hungry in American because I was always eating. Is there anything wrong with that!?

This morning I woke up around 11:30...well actually 10:30 (Thanks Christina)and I ate lots of chocolate until about an hour ago. I ate three hot dogs. Mike told me to at least make something gourmet-ish with my dogs but I don't have anything to add to it...so I decided that instead of JUST Luytenitsa I ate them with Luytenitsa and RANCH. Why not?

Yesterday was the same except my hotdogs were frozen so I had a can of Cream of Mushroom soup that I brought home from the states.

I've been saving this pic for a special occasion and it's time to bust it out. It is a perfect visual aid for the matter of food and my health in this country. There isn't a lick of good mean but their fruits and veggies ROCK.

I just want to be fat :(

So welcome back ME. I haven't touched this journal since I left for the states. I was getting addicted there for a moment so maybe it was a good break.

I'm not going to sum up my Christmas vacation in the states because it was just an overall great experience that can not be recreated through a short paragraph. I had a great time with my friends, my family, my girlfriend. I loved eating rediculously large portions of fattening foods and lots of sweets that don't have waffles in them. I had pizza without ketchup and mayo!!! I was able to drive drive drive! I cried a little but laughed a lot. Thanks to all those who made that possible.

I received a few cool things for the holiday. One of them was an iPod alarm clock that I broke about a minute and a half after I took it out of the package. Now I have to send it back to the states for a new one! Another was my power cord that allows me to plug my laptop right into the wall! What a life saver. Now when I travel I don't have to lug all my concerters around. Thanks D! I have to give Lisa her props for the awesome picture flipbook she made. All of Bulgaria will have seen in before long trust me! I got a new winter coat which I give credit to my mother, and getting all this was possible because my father loves me.

As soon as I got back, I suffered an even greater amount of homesickness than when I first left, but the 7 extra hours of teaching that they gave me on my first day gave me other things to keep my mind busy. Now things are back to normal. I've got my friends at home keeping in touch as well as the new ones here. I've cleaned the apartment and I'm wearing clean underwear. And like usual it's Saturday and I am bored out of my mind and have nothing better to do than to read an American History book. I guess it's about time, since I must have slept through in in HS...and Middle School...and College.



To better prepare myself for my reading...I think I'll take a nap with my new pillow. My baby wanted to make sure that I was never alone in bed...and if I was the other girl would know who was boss! I love you CGBG...

Well it seems that this will be my last entry in Bulgaria during the year 2005. I am having a horrible day. First of all I haven't slept yet from last night. I was up late doing some packing and had to leave really early in the morning. I finally arrived to Sofia and had the hardest time finding the Hostel, which by the way is called Hostel Mostel. Creative, eh?

I got here and everything was fine. I had some breakfast, and met some new peeps. Later I helped Melody to the airport and that's when it all went downhill. Melody cursed me by labeling me as having the worst travelling experiences. So of course I DO. ALL THE TIME. Don't let that discourage you from visiting me, getting lost only helps you learn. So I left the airport with Rich and we took this bus that was supposed to take us back to the center. Well it was the wrong bus of course, but it wasn't my fault. He asked about it and he's been here longer so I assumed his BG was better than mine. I guess it was cause he got off earlier than me and reached his destination point. I on the other hand got all mixed up and ended up on another bus and then finally gave up and took a freakin taxi back to the hostile.

NOW I am starving and waiting for Simona to call because she supposedly came to Sofia to meet me for dinner and then, tomorrow, will see me off at the airport. I can't decide if I'm more hungry or tired. If I don't hear from her at...let's say...5:30 I'm walking to the nearest McDonalds and having dinner. Some last BG meal, eh? Only 12 more hours and I am leaving for the airport to come home. It STILL doesn't feel real but I'm sure turning in my luggage will be a big wake up call.

Speaking of luggage, I have soooo much stuff in my suitcase that I'm afraid wont make it to the States. I have ceramic, glass, beverages of all sorts-including alcohol, chocolate, clothes, and even cheese and meat. They might as well arrest me at the gate. Please cross your fingers that they will let me in with everything. Also prey that my bag isn't too heavy, or else YOU aren't getting your Christmas gift.

It's time to either eat or sleep, and perhaps put on a jacket, IT'S FREEZING IN HERE!!!!

4estiti Praznitsi!

Thanks Steph and Mel for the visit. I had a great time catering for you two and cleaning up your girl hair from all over my apartment. Just kidding.

This weekend consisted of a great lack of sleep. BUT that's when you get most work done. Who works while they sleep...well, productively? I am the worst when it comes to grading papers when I'm tired. I like to write random notes on papers when I start to dream. NOT COOL.

Anyway so the girls and I went to Veliko Turnovo to do some Christmas shopping and had a really fun time. We ate good food, found some good deals, I found ANOTHER puppy friend (it's not hard in Bulgaria!). The lady who we barfed out our cash too, tried to scam me of more money and when that didn't work she just asked for it! Happy Holidays grandma! My mom called me just to tell me that my dad had a great gift for me and when I figured it out she blamed me for being sneaky. I told her that I could use a beating from her anyway...I miss my mom (don't act like y'all don't every now and then. We came back to the apartment and watched HIDE AND SEEK which was about a 3 star film in my opinion, and went to bed....well took a nap I guess.

This morning after showing the girls off at the train station I got back to work. P.S. It was really sad seeing Stephanie off knowing that I wouldn't see her until after the New Year. For Mel, it was a shove on the train and an "Ill see you Thursday" and I was on my way, lol!

I finished making over 50 Christmas cards for friends and family and left in the knee deep snow to get some food. I couldn't help but hit up the internet club for a few while I was out.

Tomorrow morning I have to get up early to head to Gabrovo because I forgot to pick something up that I was supposed to get in Turnovo. THAT SUCKS! Then around lunch I have a meeting with Simona, a 10th grader, and the Mayor about a new skate park we'd like to get money for. Then it's off to my second home - the workshop so I can GET IT DONE...FOR REAL, I'm working on threads of time here.

That's all for now...I'm realllly getting hungry now, so it's time to go HOME!