Back to Work

This past Monday I called a private school close to where we are live to see if they were hiring a speech therapist. I was told they needed a 3rd grade teacher not a speech therapist. As a matter of fact, no one out there needs a speech therapist. The director of the school encouraged me to come see the school & to sit down with her for an interview. Tuesday morning I showed up with my resumee, transcripts, proof of my credential & H1N1 vaccination. I was shuffled through three different people, all part of the interview process. They offered me the job right there. I said I'd get back to them the next day because I needed to talk to Scott about it. Actually, it all happened so fast. I was not expecting to get hired so quickly. Scott & I talked about it. The money is the pitts, but it is close to home & I want to work with kids again. I miss them. So, Wednesday morning I went in and signed my contract to start. Thursday I went in to meet my class. I arrived just before recess. All the girls were waiting for me in the classroom. They had drawn me some pictures that either said, I Love You or Love is in the Air. It was sweet. They are adorable. The boys took off running. None of them stayed back to meet me. The girls quickly let me know which boys can't read, which ones talk too much and which ones are, "naughty." I have a feeling those are the kids I'll be drawn to. The girl drama seems to already be a bit too much for me! We shall see. The majority of the students are Bahraini. The remainder are a mix of nationalities. The school uses an American curriculum. I will be teaching all subjects in English. They get pulled out for Arabic, Art & P.E. I'm excited to try this out but I am also nervous. Other than teaching a special-ed high school class of about 12-students during summer school, I have never taught a class. I loved the independence I had as a speech therapist. I had a large caseload but there was a constant flow of kids coming and going. I saw different kids on different days & I made my own schedule. To be with the same kids 5-days a week all day will be new for me. Should be another exciting experience. I'm sure that I will have some funny stories to share. I went out and bought a couple of bottles of hand sanitizer, two boxes of Kleenex, spray cleaner & paper towels. My usual start-up stuff when I start in a new school.

Wednesday evening the Admiral & his wife invited all the spouses to tea & dessert at their home. They live in a mansion, really. About 40 of us showed up. We carpooled over there. I was one of the drivers. The Admiral lives in an isolated area. There is a high security level out there. We all went through security just to get into the house. Once inside it was very nice. Casual yet elegant. We had representatives there to speak to us about medical services & travel. It's always nice to get together to socialize. The spouses meet twice a month for coffee at a local hotel, but that is during the day and the spouses that work could never attend. So, it was nice having an evening get together so the working women could join in. I am now one of those working women. I will miss those daytime get togethers.

The weather here all week was gorgeous. We are really taking advantage of the nice weather. Watching the news from the states I couldn't help but be so grateful to be out of Memphis now. It is freezing there and snowing. It was so hard for me to live through those freezing months. Driving on the icy roads and never having the appropriate shoes or outer wear was a pain. Last night we went out to dinner with another couple. The husband is Tunisian and the wife is from San Diego. They are very nice & we had a great time. We went to a restaurant several people have mentioned, Le Chocolat. It is known for its pizza and desserts. They were both yummy. We sat outside. There was a slight chill but it wasn't bad at all. I think the only thing I can complain about is that smoking is allowed outside. I try not to complain about that stuff but every time I had a whif of smoke come my way I felt sick. The breakfast & lunch menus looked amazing, so we will visit there again.

Benny is Benny. He really seems to love it here. His dream would be to catch a local cat. We encounter several throughout the day on our walks. He freezes like a statue when he sees one & just becomes a dead weight. He won't budge. The cats here crack me up. They have no fear of him. They just sit where they are and stare Benny down or they lick their paws like nothing's happening. There is a large stray cat population here. They are all over the place. While eating at the restaurant last night, several ran around where we were seated. For all you cat lovers out there I apologize, but I don't care much about the stray cats. It's the stray dogs that get to me. Cats can take care of themselves. Dogs need someone to love them. Scary, but Scott & I are talking about rescuing one from here. We saw an ad for a lab mix named, Mr. Darcy. How appropriate would that be since I named Benny after the Bennet family of Pride & Prejudice?!

We have officially been in Bahrain for 3-months. We can't believe how fast the time is passing. Before we know it, a year will pass and then another. We really like it here. It's not perfect or even ideal, but it is comfortable for us. We're hoping to sneak in a few trips to Europe while here. I want to go see my cousin in Dubai & my aunt & cousin in Lebanon. We're hoping our parents will come visit, but we're not counting on it. It's a long trip. The invitation is open to anyone out there.....come visit us!