Zoo Trip

During my trip to the zoo, I felt that there was a lot more smiling than laughing overall.  Many of the school busses had left, and I think a lot of the kids that were there we tired by the time I arrived at 2:00pm.  Also, it was a warm day and a lot of the animals were sleeping and were not nearly as active as I’m used to seeing them.

What made me laugh the most, unfortunately I didn’t get on video, was a conversation between a son and his parents.  As they were walking up to the elephant exhibit, the son asked, “Mom, elephants like peanuts right?”  The mom responded, “I think so.  Dad, isn’t that right?  I think that’s what I saw on Dumbo.”  And the dad said, “Well, that’s what Disney makes us believe.” What was so humorous about this conversation was that the child was oblivious to the sarcasm and jokes his parents were making.  I was overhearing their conversation, and it made me crack up.  Not necessary because laughter was contagious but because the parents were so sarcastic and sassy about a mundane question.

When I was by the duck pond where you can pay 25 cents to feed the ducks.  There was this cute family who had run out of change and I split my duck food with the two kids.  When the girl threw the food at one of the ducks it started quacking.  She got so excited that she yelled, “Mom, one talked back to me! It talked back to me!” (13 seconds into the video).  We all laughed because she got so excited by hearing the animal noises.

The other instance in which I saw people laughing was when a boy entered the “African Wind Tunnel” that simulates wind in the Sahara Desert.  From this video you can see that the boy was having a less than great experience but his aversion to the simulator made those around him laugh.  I definitely feel that this experience reflects the superiority theory and schadenfreude because the woman laughing was glad she didn’t have to experience the wind and was laughing at his obvious discontent.

I fully believe that laughter is contagious.  However, in my experiences at the zoo, one person’s laughter did not seem to always trigger another person’s laughter.  Yes, when someone laughed, the person with him/her may have chuckled.  But there were no instances of people being doubled over by laughter because of another person.

Those were the three instances in which laughter was most apparent to me at the zoo.  Below is what made me laugh the most.  As soon as I walked up to the flamingo exhibit, they all got agitated and started squawking.  Their fights made my mom and I laugh because they seemed so silly and cartoonish.  This was definitely the highlight of my zoo visit…

…until, while I was looking off at something else, my mom yells at me, “Come get this on video! The flamingos are doing it!”  Unfortunately they had concluded their romantic encounter by the time I got my phone on video to record.  But here is a picture of the moment right after it happened.

YouTube link for all of the videos (plus some awesome background music): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkLFhh5ZNeo

Learning - #3

Unfortunately this year, especially this semester, I severely overextended myself.  I felt that address stress and the difficulty of balancing nannying, schoolwork, and clubs.  I will run myself into the ground trying to get everything on my list accomplished.  I have the hardest time telling people “no” or slacking on my responsibilities.  I also over-compensate for other people’s negligence.

In regards to my job, I have nannied for the same family on a regular basis for two years and have babysat for them for four and a half years.  The times and days I work always changes each semester depending on my class schedule.  The mom I work for knew that I was stressed and was willing to let me cut back my hours depending on my class load.  However, by the time February hit, I was drowning in work and commitments.  I was afraid of quitting because I wanted to be able to work for her family as a summer job.  She was more than understanding when I told her that I couldn’t keep working during the school year and assured me that I would always have a job when I was out for the summer.

Regarding my schoolwork, my course load stays pretty much the same from semester to semester.  However, the difficulty of my classes and the time requirements changes drastically from semester to semester.  Spring 2015 has been especially gruesome.

And lastly, my involvement in clubs has put me over the edge this semester.  I hold an officer position in three clubs and am active in six organizations overall.  If I wasn’t doing homework, I was doing paperwork or planning events for the organizations I was involved in. 

Unfortunately, relationships with my family and my friends suffered.  I wasn’t good about keeping in touch with those that mattered most to me, I wasn’t taking care of myself by sleeping enough, eating right, and staying active, and, most of all, I was burnt out.  Instead of letting myself get overworked and extremely stressed, I need to quit over committing myself and accept the fact that I can’t do everything.

This semester has taught me that it is okay to say NO!

Learning - #2

One of the biggest learning experiences I encountered this semester was teaching and observing in an 8^th grade Spanish class.  I have taught many times in front of high school students, but this semester was entirely different.  My first day walking into the classroom, I had forgotten how small eight graders were.  There was such a difference between eighth and ninth graders that I wasn’t expecting.

Every time I taught a lesson or an activity, I was overcome with nervousness and anxiety.  My hands would get clammy, my heart would race, and I would start falling all over my words.  In other words, I was a nervous wreck.  I couldn’t figure out why I was struck with this intense uneasiness.  Then one day it hit me.  These students were much more dependent on me than the ninth graders were.  These students still needed their hands held.  They did not have as much autonomy nor had they learned the necessary skills to be responsible students.  Therefore, I felt this responsibility for them; I felt that their success was dependent upon me – and it was!

However, I need to take a step back and breathe.  I’ve taken Spanish for 16 years and have had so much exposure to the Spanish language.  I have the knowledge and the ability to teach thirteen and fourteen year olds, but the responsibility I felt for them was overwhelming.

This experience taught me that I need to trust myself and have confidence in my abilities.  I am perpetually stressed for a fear of failing.  But teaching is my future profession and I’m prepared to teach.  In 15 months, I will have a classroom all to myself, I will teach for about six hours a day.  I need to let the Spanish-speaking part of my brain take over and share what I know with the next generation.  I know that I need to have confidence in order to have a successful classroom, and I need to trust in my knowledge because I know that I can teach an exciting, productive Spanish I class.

Learning - #1

As I sit here writing this post, I feel my tired, sore shoulders from canoeing last night.  Canoeing last night was quite an experience.  Before arriving at the Trinity River, I didn’t know if I would be canoeing or kayaking.  I had previously kayaked twice before and those were both interesting experiences.  My first experience was with a guy from my high school, I was paired with a friend who had competitively kayaked, and he practically steered the boat himself; I may have just propelled it forward a bit.  My second experience was with my dad; we were in the Baltic Sea on choppy waters.  No matter what either of us did, the experience was difficult and hardly a success – but we did make it safely to shore!

For our Community Engagement Project, I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to successfully paddle myself down the river.  Thankfully, I didn’t have to do it alone; I had great partners with whom I was able to make it down the river to Panther Island.

I definitely learned the most from the first half of the experience.  From carrying the canoe, which according to the Internet weights about 60-80lbs, down the ramp, I realized that this would be a difficult experience.  However, it was comforting to know I wasn’t going to have to do it alone.

When I got into the canoe, I was surprised at how shaky and unbalanced it was.  As my partner and I began to canoe, we realized as we glided on the water, the canoe would slowly steady itself.  Steering, on the other hand, was a daunting task.  As we gradually glided into one of the banks, I tried to redirect the canoe but ended up running into the bank and accidentally began to do donuts in the river.  I was frustrated with myself that I couldn’t make us go straight.  I was trying to do the fancy paddling movement that Cameron tried to teach us so that we wouldn’t waste time zigzagging on the River.  I felt that I was less capable than my peers and discouraged if I couldn’t make it down the river.  As we slowly progressed, I had the childish question repeating in my head, “Are we almost there?”

However, by the time one of the guides announced we were halfway through, I felt a since of satisfaction and confidence that I could finish canoeing down the river, even if my shoulders and arms were tired.

A constant struggle in my life is to not try to micromanage and plan everything.  This canoe trip definitely taught me that I need to go with the flow more often even when I am uncomfortable in a situation.