We are down to the final week in preparing for our, Maohi Nui's, Christmas Show :0) This morning was our first practice together as a group--talented musicians, singers, male dancers, female dancers, keiki dancers, and our faithful supporters gathered today for an intense 5 hour practice! I love feeding off of everyone's energy and excitement every time we are putting on a big production or going into competition.
On Facebook, I posted a status, which read: This morning was nothing short of a PURE BLESSING!! Sometimes I get caught up w/ stress from the daily grind that I tend to go through the motions in life, but today was a great reminder that when I put my HEART into everything I do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING can bring me down. I have so much ♥ & RESPECT for my passion and the AWESOME, TALENTED people that I am blessed to share it with! *Manuia*
I always refer to tahitian dancing as my constant and throughout the entire time it has always been a love/hate relationship!! To call it my passion would be an understatement! I work 8 hours a day, the other 16 hours of the day, I am practicing to be better, I am dancing to help others get better, I am sharing the dance at a performance, I dream of dance, I am drinking to celebrate the completion of the hard work spent to execute the dance, I work out to be a stronger dancer, I eat at certain hours of the day to make sure I don't puke my guts out at dance practice, I refuel my body not to have energy for work, but energy to dance, I think Tahitian thoughts, I listen to Tahitian music, I replay Tahitian dance moves in my head. When I am not dancing, I crave to dance! I am so in love with this cultural art form, that when I hear the live music I get chicken skin, almost being brought to tears!
Like in any relationship, whether it be with another person or hobby, sometimes it gets too life consuming and the hundreds of hours, blood, sweat, tears and dedication you put in can put a heavy burden on your shoulders and cause sleepless nights, and stress. Sometimes I wish to get away from dancing, to lower what's expected from me as a dancer just to ease the stress burden.... but in the end, I always find myself loving and appreciating all the stress and hard work that was spent for the final outcome because it is always PRICELESS!! To feel the music, the adrenaline rush, to know that you worked so hard for something so beautiful is a feeling that I cannot even put into words.
This week has been stressful indeed trying to keep up with my diet, exercises, retaining choreography for our Christmas show, attempting to manage work, household chores, Christmas shopping, and I just got my period--so I'm trying extra hard to be patient, fight the menstruation fatigue and bloatedness hahaha! It's been a task, but I am sure that our supporters will not be disappointed by our performance next week Saturday! "Maohi Nui e! IMUA!"
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Sunday = FUN day!
I think I just discovered the most uncomfortable feeling in the world [well, for me at least]. It's trying to hold in your crap! HAHA! I know, I know! I sooooo know what you're thinking... "Why the hell would you want to hold in your crap?" Well, I wasn't going to hold it in so I could release shit all over myself. I wanted to hold it for "just a sec" because I was proof-reading my previous blog, and wanted to finish that before taking a dump, but yeah, I couldn't hold it any longer so I had to go to the bathroom in the middle of trying to complete my task.
Anyways, Sundays are always FUN days for numerous reasons:
So........ the week after my birthday, I vowed that for the next three weeks I would eat healthy and do Insanity 6 days a week again to get my "March body" back and look good for Maohi Nui's Christmas show [you know me, gotta always keep up w/ the rest of the girls in line, ah lol]. I've been eating oatmeal or cheerios for breakfast, tuna or turkey or chicken on bread for lunch, and oatmeal again for dinner, unless my mom cooks up Filipino veggies then I'll eat that. Then, I drink only water or apple juice. At any time of the day 3 hours before of after my work out I mix a fully rounded teaspoon of cayenne pepper w/ orange juice and suck on three li hing mui seeds after to suppress my appetite. This weekend was hard because of Thanksgiving, but I think I did good w/ portion control. It's been hard because it's the Holidays and I want to indulge in all the yummy foods, but shit, it ain't easy to cut weight! =(
I mentioned earlier about how I treat my Sundays like a day of rest or "cheat day" [lack of a better term for it] and I also mentioned my new diet plan hahahahaha! Okay, so I'm laughing because I sooo totally cheated today. I had an entire totino's pizza for breakfast [fuck oatmeal man, this shit was goood]! Yeah, I feel pretty bad so after I publish this blog and after tending to my restaurant on "Restaurant Story," I'm gonna go work out. **Pinky promise** ;;) <<edited after Tine made her snarky comments =P
Have an absolutely amazing Sunday, FUN day, y'all... Big kisses!
Anyways, Sundays are always FUN days for numerous reasons:
- I remember back in the days when my sisters and I would blow off church and go gallivanting!! Going to town to shop at Ala Moana, Ross, get our Mrs. Field's cookies fix, Borders, Starbucks... etc. We were on a mission to get some shopping done in an hour & half tops! When we'd arrive home, we'd leave our shopping bags in the trunk because to state the obvious, it's pretty suspicious to arrive home with new merchandise when you're coming home from "CHURCH" hehehe!
- Next on my list would be CHURCH! [Oh the irony, right?!] LOL! I love going! Since 90% of the time I sit alone (since my mom is in the front serving w/ the rest of the servers [I forget what their title is], I like to think of it as my personal time w/ Him, in His home!
- As a Catholic, I totally try to take advantage of the Sabbath being a day of rest thus, I never take the time to clean the bathroom, vacuum, wash the clothes, clean my room, or work out haha! Sometimes I'll be a real cheat and eat lots of junk food. The most "work" I'll do is probably heat up some leftover food, wash the dishes, and of course DANCE [gigs & practice if I'm available] =)
- I also remember when I used to work at Brooks Brothers, our Big boss was always off on Sundays and only came in to work if it was just absolutely necessary. So, my supervisor at that time, Chris, and I always proclaimed it "FUN day" because for the most part, we got to work with the FUN crew: Bobbie, June, Atsuko, Tammy, Angelo, Masa, Jerome, etc.
So........ the week after my birthday, I vowed that for the next three weeks I would eat healthy and do Insanity 6 days a week again to get my "March body" back and look good for Maohi Nui's Christmas show [you know me, gotta always keep up w/ the rest of the girls in line, ah lol]. I've been eating oatmeal or cheerios for breakfast, tuna or turkey or chicken on bread for lunch, and oatmeal again for dinner, unless my mom cooks up Filipino veggies then I'll eat that. Then, I drink only water or apple juice. At any time of the day 3 hours before of after my work out I mix a fully rounded teaspoon of cayenne pepper w/ orange juice and suck on three li hing mui seeds after to suppress my appetite. This weekend was hard because of Thanksgiving, but I think I did good w/ portion control. It's been hard because it's the Holidays and I want to indulge in all the yummy foods, but shit, it ain't easy to cut weight! =(
I mentioned earlier about how I treat my Sundays like a day of rest or "cheat day" [lack of a better term for it] and I also mentioned my new diet plan hahahahaha! Okay, so I'm laughing because I sooo totally cheated today. I had an entire totino's pizza for breakfast [fuck oatmeal man, this shit was goood]! Yeah, I feel pretty bad so after I publish this blog and after tending to my restaurant on "Restaurant Story," I'm gonna go work out. **Pinky promise** ;;) <<edited after Tine made her snarky comments =P
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Thanksgiving Weekend!
I have a tendency to go off on Thanksgiving!! Not "off" in a bad way as if to bitch someone out, but "off" as if to say that I go on a "Thanking-Spree"--being thankful for every little thing and I'd make it known to the world by posting a long status on Facebook! Yup, that is sooo typical me! From all the major stuff like good health, awesome family and friends, great causes like St. Jude, etc., all the way down to the stuff that people don't really give a shit about haha! [Merci à Dieu for making the sun so hot so that it is able to shed light on the cows in California, for making sure the callouses on my feet are the right size so I am able to do duck walks on any terrain, for the softeness of my cat, Nohea's, fur and how it brushes against me ever so gently gently] I guess that's what I get for being an extremist! But this year I really took it easy and without having to broadcast how grateful I am, I remained so deeply thankful for everyone and everything in my heart :o) I know people say that if you appreciate someone/thing you should let them know, but as the saying goes, "Actions speak louder than words," so I'll let gracious actions speak for themselves ;) So, Thanksgiving Day, I went to the 9am service at our church and had my usual conversation with my Savior. For the remainder of the day it was pretty chill. I spent it with the family and I replied to phone calls and messages as everyone else was on their "Thanking Spree." We usually host Thanksgiving lunch and dinner, but this year we just hosted Thanksgiving dinner with the family.
Here's our deep fried turkey and the rest of the meal in the bottom picture. Outter circle starting from the left going clockwise: rice, pumpkin bread, butter mochi, paradosdos, halohalo, corn, macaroni salad, gravy (in the pot, which I cut off), bitter melon dish, green bean dish. On the lazy-susie: fried fish, some of the cut up turkey, Filipino spaghetti, and grapes.
During this weekend, I was given a small task to watch my friend's dog since she and her husband would be out of town spending Thanksgiving with their families. So I went over to do my duties with Umi-boy and after doing everything I was asked, I was going to give him a treat and then be on my merry way, but as I was getting the treats out of the cabinet, he went for my left foot and started to chew down on it. Thank God it was just my foot and not my leg where I could have muscle injuries or he could've ate a chunk of my fatty tissue. I feel completely sad for Umi-boy because I know he misses his mommy and daddy! Of course having me come around to the house is totally suspicious because he is usually super friendly with me when they are around. So now I'm afraid to go back and feed him :'(
Here's our deep fried turkey and the rest of the meal in the bottom picture. Outter circle starting from the left going clockwise: rice, pumpkin bread, butter mochi, paradosdos, halohalo, corn, macaroni salad, gravy (in the pot, which I cut off), bitter melon dish, green bean dish. On the lazy-susie: fried fish, some of the cut up turkey, Filipino spaghetti, and grapes.
During this weekend, I was given a small task to watch my friend's dog since she and her husband would be out of town spending Thanksgiving with their families. So I went over to do my duties with Umi-boy and after doing everything I was asked, I was going to give him a treat and then be on my merry way, but as I was getting the treats out of the cabinet, he went for my left foot and started to chew down on it. Thank God it was just my foot and not my leg where I could have muscle injuries or he could've ate a chunk of my fatty tissue. I feel completely sad for Umi-boy because I know he misses his mommy and daddy! Of course having me come around to the house is totally suspicious because he is usually super friendly with me when they are around. So now I'm afraid to go back and feed him :'(
Thank God, it wasn't worse! So anyways, next topic: BLACK FRIDAY!! Everyone's been talking about it! Whether they have to work 12+ hours through it, or camp out days in advance to get through it, or shopping all day through it, whatever the situation may be, people are talking about these great deals that are going on everywhere! Personally, since I've worked retail, Black Friday doesn't particularly turn me on and it's just because there are so many great deals during Memorial Day weekend, President's Day weekend, Fourth of July weekend as well!! I don't find it worth my time to do so much damage in just ONE day. Especially since ten million other people want to get the same deal on a particular item that you want. Chances are, it'll be off the shelf by the time you get to it, unless you're hardcore lai'dat. LOL.
I am proud to say that I've finished my gift shopping in July and I paid it all off!! .......Okay I lied! Now I feel completely ashamed. That would all be true if it weren't for the little binge-shopping I did last night... online! Ugghh!! Well, at least I'm able to pay it off and they weren't for me! I bought gifts! Oh schnapppp! I just lied again [feeling even more terrible] because the most expensive purchase I made last night was for me! So I bought my mom a fitness kit since she's all about going to the Spa Fitness Center, I bought my dad a Leatherman multitool (I swear he is the most difficult person to shop for because he is so simple and when you get him nice things it just collects dust), made 2 personalized photo books for 2 different friends, and I bought myself........... a Nikon Coolpix 14.2 MP Digital Camera w/ 7x Optical VR Zoom in bronze for $166 on Amazon :))) It was so late in the evening that I didn't want to be making calls to friends to evaluate the pro's and con's with me... so....... **CLICK** [Just click once to make sure you don't get charged multiple times ;) ] and just like that, I bought it! I just bought a camera back in March of this year. My Canon Powershot SX20 IS is awesome, but there are just some things that my new Nikon can fulfill, thus in marriage, they compliment each other perfectly to fit my lifestyle and needs *:o)
So one more day and it's back to the daily grind! I'm so dreading going back to everything because it has been such a nice break, but hey, nothing lasts forever right?! So I am SOOOO THANKFUL FOR THE FOOD, THE COMPANY, MY FAMILY, MY FRIENDS, MY PETS, MY DANCE GROUP, FOR THE MANY MANY OPPORTUNITIES I'M GRANTED, FOR THE AIR I BREATH, FOR MY HEALTH, FOR MY JOB, FOR THE SAFETY & WELL-BEING OF MY LOVED ONES, FOR MY HAIR, FOR MY COMFORTABLE BED, FOR THE MAN-ABOVE, FOR MY IPOD TOUCH, FOR "RESTAURANT STORY" [a game on my ipod touch], FOR THE TRADE-WINDS, FOR THE TI-LEAVES IN OUR YARD, THE KALO PLANTS IN OUR YARD... you get the point, right?! I hope you all had an amazing Thanksgiving weekend!! Be safe... the Holidays have arrived :)))
Monday, November 22, 2010
Giving back to my High School Alma Mater
Have I already mentioned to you that I'm married to dancing??? So being that I love it so much and it pretty much occupies almost every minute of my life outside of work, I get overfilled with joy when given the opportunity to share this culture with anyone and everyone. Recently, a very good friend of mine, Ed, asked me and another good friend of ours, Ian, to coordinate a short presentation for his senior class council's Senior Luau (because Ed is the senior class advisor). How could Ian and I decline such an amazing opportunity? We were more than glad to do this for our awesome friend :)
On November 20th, their Senior Luau was in effect and I am so glad that I was able to attend and watch them push-push-geev'um the best that they could [I have a video clip that I've been trying to upload all day, but it's been giving me problems :( but I really want to show everyone what an amazing performance they let out]. Majority of these student have no background in Polynesian dancing and due to everyone's crazy schedule, we have only met to teach the dance and practice 5 times before their actual performance. Of course, we have asked them to practice on their own and we trust that they did because their performance turned out real amazing! They did their best, they smiled, they were happy/nervous/excited to perform--What more could we ask for?? Nothing because they are amazing and respectful students and we totally appreciate their efforts :)
I ended up staying awake until 2:30am to work on 16 of the girls hei's and finish just in time for their performance. I started at 9pm and didn't think it would take me so long. After I got through 9 of them I called up one of my hula sisters, Litea, to help me out in finishing the rest and she did... and so did 3 glasses of Sake! Haha! She's awesome!! I worked on the boys' arm, leg, neck, and head pieces just moments prior to the arrival of guests and surprisingly I finished for all seven of them! I knew I was pressed for time so I was worried that the boys wouldn't look as completely charming as the girls did... but hey, time ain't got nothing on me lol, I finished their fresh costumes and was able to put it on them just in time for their performance!
I wanted to take a group shot of them before they tore it up on stage, but didn't get a chance to. However, here's a pic of some of them shortly after exiting the stage :) I think they look cute and charming! You probably think the same or think otherwise, which is fine, but ehh, don't hate because these kids worked so hard and were very determined to get the dance right so they totally earned my love and respect! Cheeeehuuuuu! Shakas all around \m/
On November 20th, their Senior Luau was in effect and I am so glad that I was able to attend and watch them push-push-geev'um the best that they could [I have a video clip that I've been trying to upload all day, but it's been giving me problems :( but I really want to show everyone what an amazing performance they let out]. Majority of these student have no background in Polynesian dancing and due to everyone's crazy schedule, we have only met to teach the dance and practice 5 times before their actual performance. Of course, we have asked them to practice on their own and we trust that they did because their performance turned out real amazing! They did their best, they smiled, they were happy/nervous/excited to perform--What more could we ask for?? Nothing because they are amazing and respectful students and we totally appreciate their efforts :)
I ended up staying awake until 2:30am to work on 16 of the girls hei's and finish just in time for their performance. I started at 9pm and didn't think it would take me so long. After I got through 9 of them I called up one of my hula sisters, Litea, to help me out in finishing the rest and she did... and so did 3 glasses of Sake! Haha! She's awesome!! I worked on the boys' arm, leg, neck, and head pieces just moments prior to the arrival of guests and surprisingly I finished for all seven of them! I knew I was pressed for time so I was worried that the boys wouldn't look as completely charming as the girls did... but hey, time ain't got nothing on me lol, I finished their fresh costumes and was able to put it on them just in time for their performance!
I wanted to take a group shot of them before they tore it up on stage, but didn't get a chance to. However, here's a pic of some of them shortly after exiting the stage :) I think they look cute and charming! You probably think the same or think otherwise, which is fine, but ehh, don't hate because these kids worked so hard and were very determined to get the dance right so they totally earned my love and respect! Cheeeehuuuuu! Shakas all around \m/
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Thank Goodness It's The Thursday before THANKSGIVING!!
I haven't blogged in a while and the HOLIDAYS are definitely creeping around my ghettohood-street-corner! My favorite months of the year are November and December because in about a 60-day span I get to celebrate my birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the New Years :o) Whoooo hooooo party!
Speaking of partying, I just celebrated my 24th birthday just last weekend and I'm totally paying for it this week because I caught a bad fever. I have been trying to rest this week, but I just can't stay away from Tahitian dancing. No matter how much I try not to stress at work, try to cut down on the "cruise sessions", and try to tell myself, "Eh bulleh, take it easssayy," I just can't help but push-push-geeev'um, push-push-geeev'um at practice. Sometimes I think my passion for Tahitian dancing is like an incurable disease [and you wonder why you see "kupuna" category at all of the Tahiti Fetes, because all those 80-something years olds STILL got the passions to push-push-geeev'um at their RIPE age ;) ;) ] Anyways, I just got a text from my ra'atira informing me that practice got pushed back half an hour, so I thought, "Hey, I can use this time to blog about the random shit going on in my life that no likes to read about" Hahahahaha!
My birthday celebration last week was the bomb! I don't think I need to further explain because my current state of lacking healthy living explains it all! I've been sick since Monday and finally got enough energy to twiddle my fingers on the computer today! So anyways, I got to spend my birthday with many wonderful people in my life... NOT ALL the wonderful people, but surely many of them :) Here's some pictures:
((Ummm Hello?! Has it been that long that I don't even know how to put pictures on here??? Oh where, oh where can that button be??))
(Found the button... silly me) A super scrumptious meal and yummy wine to start of my evening with these chic and fabulous ladies at Formaggio's... our fave :o) Then it was off to the dance studio to meet up with my hula sisters... and voila! I was totally surprised to see all the Marrays and Barrays there :o)
Isn't my outfit so different from the beginning of the night?! HAHA! I started off wearing pants, black tank top, reef slippers, earrings, and peacock necklace and somehow throughout the course of the evening I ended up putting on a pareo, took off Mr. Peacock, and my reef slippers are off to the side in this pic hahaha... Auweee!
So round three of the birthday weekend started off sweeeeeeet thanks to Manny Pacquiao's fight against Margarito! After the picture taking, we karaoke'd the night away :o)
Oh just in case you were wondering about the towels draping in the background it's supposed to be an awesome replica of the French Flag because it was a Paris theme party lol. Please don't take offense to it, Viva La France, toujours! Yaaaye!
Okay well I thought I had more time to blog, but it's almost time to get nutz in the dance studio! I had so much more to rant about e.g. my current obsession with Restaurant Story on my ipod touch, the new aparima I learned from one of Tahiti's finest dancers, Ms. Kohai--tall, absolutely gorgeous, making me feel like a total smurf next to her LOL, and also my attempt in transforming my body in the next 3 weeks to prepare for our Christmas Show. Maybe I will have the time to blog about such things later! Have an amazing Ia Ora Friday and a Fantaaaabulous weekend!
XOXO!
Speaking of partying, I just celebrated my 24th birthday just last weekend and I'm totally paying for it this week because I caught a bad fever. I have been trying to rest this week, but I just can't stay away from Tahitian dancing. No matter how much I try not to stress at work, try to cut down on the "cruise sessions", and try to tell myself, "Eh bulleh, take it easssayy," I just can't help but push-push-geeev'um, push-push-geeev'um at practice. Sometimes I think my passion for Tahitian dancing is like an incurable disease [and you wonder why you see "kupuna" category at all of the Tahiti Fetes, because all those 80-something years olds STILL got the passions to push-push-geeev'um at their RIPE age ;) ;) ] Anyways, I just got a text from my ra'atira informing me that practice got pushed back half an hour, so I thought, "Hey, I can use this time to blog about the random shit going on in my life that no likes to read about" Hahahahaha!
My birthday celebration last week was the bomb! I don't think I need to further explain because my current state of lacking healthy living explains it all! I've been sick since Monday and finally got enough energy to twiddle my fingers on the computer today! So anyways, I got to spend my birthday with many wonderful people in my life... NOT ALL the wonderful people, but surely many of them :) Here's some pictures:
((Ummm Hello?! Has it been that long that I don't even know how to put pictures on here??? Oh where, oh where can that button be??))
(Found the button... silly me) A super scrumptious meal and yummy wine to start of my evening with these chic and fabulous ladies at Formaggio's... our fave :o) Then it was off to the dance studio to meet up with my hula sisters... and voila! I was totally surprised to see all the Marrays and Barrays there :o)
Isn't my outfit so different from the beginning of the night?! HAHA! I started off wearing pants, black tank top, reef slippers, earrings, and peacock necklace and somehow throughout the course of the evening I ended up putting on a pareo, took off Mr. Peacock, and my reef slippers are off to the side in this pic hahaha... Auweee!
So round three of the birthday weekend started off sweeeeeeet thanks to Manny Pacquiao's fight against Margarito! After the picture taking, we karaoke'd the night away :o)
XOXO!
Sunday, October 17, 2010
SPECIAL KIDS? Special indeed, but "precious" is more like it!
Switching gears witin the past month has been a little rough on my overall well-being, but despite how exhausting a days work can be, I love what I do. More importantly, I love these kids. After 5 years of working in the retail industry, I finally landed a career that better suits what I went to school for in the first place.
Before I even began working part-time as a substitute skills trainer, I had worries fo' dayz about what client I would be working with, what if I got spat on, bitten head-butted, tackled, scratched... what if I got dodo smeared on me?!?! Oh hell to the no! I know Brooks Brothers has the best wrinkle-free and odor-repellent apparel. So where do I go for feces-repellent clothing? Haha! No, I wasn't seriously thinking that, but honestly my worries were endless! Funny thing is, is that after having worked with several kids, no matter what their diagnosis, I was always smiling and giggling like a little girl about a thousand times a day, on average :o) The only stressful part about my job is dealing with conflicts that arise with the adults whom are in some way connected to the child or the child's Individualized Educational Plan (IEP). Luckily, I haven't encountered any major problems thus far, but I hear horror stories all the time about many people disagreeing about what they feel is best for the children.
SUBBING: Bottom line: It kinda sucks! Reason no. 1 - The first week of calling in was like a dry spell, you know, kind of like the romance in my life! Hahaha kidding! Seriously though, I was calling in at 5:30 am to ask for available openings for a sub position and I got NADA. The two weeks following turned out to be a lot better and by the end of the third week, I got a permanent case. Reason no. 2 - Okay so do you remember that one cool teacher back in high school? Young, hip, charming, got along well with the students, was hilarious, and laid back. Yeah, remember now? Do you also remember when you showed up to class one day and all of a sudden "Mr. Cool" was out sick and a stranger was standing in the front of the classroom with their name written in bold on the chalkboard. It was kind of nice handwriting, too. "Hi class, I'm Mr. 'Whats-his-face' and I'll be subbing for Mr. 'Cool' today." It kind of throws off the alignment of everything. Now you know your school day is going to be jacked because you don't know what to expect from the sub. And that's what I feel like I'm doing to these kids. I'm Ms. Whats-her-face and I came to replace Mr. Cool for the day :o( It sucks to seem like the bad guy, but I'm really trying to step in and do my best for these kids (since Mr. Cool is still hanging from last night's punani patrol LOL).
After having subbed a couple of times my worries were out the door and my perspective about people in general has totally changed 10-fold after I met a girl whom I will call "baby girl" for privacy purposes. Baby girl is mostly blind and deaf, non-verbal, & autistic. When I first saw her walking off the handicap school bus, I noticed slight bruising on her head and a helmet attached to her backpack and I thought, "Oh no! Baby girl is a head banger!" Upon introduction, she walked up to me, touched, and pressed her face against my chest to get acquainted with my scent. Baby girl is lucky I showered that morning! Hahaha just playing, I'm always clean before work!! Anyways, real talk, despite Baby girl being a high-profile case, she is super smart and totally capable of doing things that we, as fully functioning as we are, would NOT be able to do under such conditions. Although she is blind and deaf, I believe that her other senses have extraordinary capabilities. She knows when I'm around and she'll bolt up quickly to catch me if I'm not next to her. She has superb sense of direction because she makes her way around campus effortlessly, can ascend and descend from stairs and over water hoses, uneven walkways without ever stumbling. She can identify her friends through touch and scent--she is sooooo smart and such a lovable little girl! A lot of the students around campus would greet her saying "Hi Baby girl," others just stare, but I was glad to see that most of them were respectful to her. One student during lunch said "Hi Baby girl," and Honey girl next to him said, "I don't know why you said that to her, it's not like she can see!" After overhearing that, I got a little defensive and told Honey girl [in my sweet adult voice of course], "It's okay Honey girl, he can say 'hi' to Baby girl if he wants to. You see how she's looking in his direction? Baby girl is smart and can sense that he's there."
Despite getting b*tch slapped, and at times rejected by these kids, they are amazing and have such a great capacity to love others and support their peers no matter what and that's what makes them different from high functioning students who only know of one world--their world. In their world, they put down their classmates, call each other mean names, and refuse to support one another. On the contrary, although autistic kids have deficiencies in communication and social interaction skills, they know how to give love and give support. I've never heard an autistic or disabled kid put down any other child and it's sad that these are the ones that get teased in school. They have two worlds--their world and the world that they are trying to become assimilated into. I love and respect these kids so much and hope only for the best in regards to their future well-being!! They truly are "special," and I'm not talking "special needs," but more so special as in precious little beings :o)
Before I even began working part-time as a substitute skills trainer, I had worries fo' dayz about what client I would be working with, what if I got spat on, bitten head-butted, tackled, scratched... what if I got dodo smeared on me?!?! Oh hell to the no! I know Brooks Brothers has the best wrinkle-free and odor-repellent apparel. So where do I go for feces-repellent clothing? Haha! No, I wasn't seriously thinking that, but honestly my worries were endless! Funny thing is, is that after having worked with several kids, no matter what their diagnosis, I was always smiling and giggling like a little girl about a thousand times a day, on average :o) The only stressful part about my job is dealing with conflicts that arise with the adults whom are in some way connected to the child or the child's Individualized Educational Plan (IEP). Luckily, I haven't encountered any major problems thus far, but I hear horror stories all the time about many people disagreeing about what they feel is best for the children.
SUBBING: Bottom line: It kinda sucks! Reason no. 1 - The first week of calling in was like a dry spell, you know, kind of like the romance in my life! Hahaha kidding! Seriously though, I was calling in at 5:30 am to ask for available openings for a sub position and I got NADA. The two weeks following turned out to be a lot better and by the end of the third week, I got a permanent case. Reason no. 2 - Okay so do you remember that one cool teacher back in high school? Young, hip, charming, got along well with the students, was hilarious, and laid back. Yeah, remember now? Do you also remember when you showed up to class one day and all of a sudden "Mr. Cool" was out sick and a stranger was standing in the front of the classroom with their name written in bold on the chalkboard. It was kind of nice handwriting, too. "Hi class, I'm Mr. 'Whats-his-face' and I'll be subbing for Mr. 'Cool' today." It kind of throws off the alignment of everything. Now you know your school day is going to be jacked because you don't know what to expect from the sub. And that's what I feel like I'm doing to these kids. I'm Ms. Whats-her-face and I came to replace Mr. Cool for the day :o( It sucks to seem like the bad guy, but I'm really trying to step in and do my best for these kids (since Mr. Cool is still hanging from last night's punani patrol LOL).
After having subbed a couple of times my worries were out the door and my perspective about people in general has totally changed 10-fold after I met a girl whom I will call "baby girl" for privacy purposes. Baby girl is mostly blind and deaf, non-verbal, & autistic. When I first saw her walking off the handicap school bus, I noticed slight bruising on her head and a helmet attached to her backpack and I thought, "Oh no! Baby girl is a head banger!" Upon introduction, she walked up to me, touched, and pressed her face against my chest to get acquainted with my scent. Baby girl is lucky I showered that morning! Hahaha just playing, I'm always clean before work!! Anyways, real talk, despite Baby girl being a high-profile case, she is super smart and totally capable of doing things that we, as fully functioning as we are, would NOT be able to do under such conditions. Although she is blind and deaf, I believe that her other senses have extraordinary capabilities. She knows when I'm around and she'll bolt up quickly to catch me if I'm not next to her. She has superb sense of direction because she makes her way around campus effortlessly, can ascend and descend from stairs and over water hoses, uneven walkways without ever stumbling. She can identify her friends through touch and scent--she is sooooo smart and such a lovable little girl! A lot of the students around campus would greet her saying "Hi Baby girl," others just stare, but I was glad to see that most of them were respectful to her. One student during lunch said "Hi Baby girl," and Honey girl next to him said, "I don't know why you said that to her, it's not like she can see!" After overhearing that, I got a little defensive and told Honey girl [in my sweet adult voice of course], "It's okay Honey girl, he can say 'hi' to Baby girl if he wants to. You see how she's looking in his direction? Baby girl is smart and can sense that he's there."
Despite getting b*tch slapped, and at times rejected by these kids, they are amazing and have such a great capacity to love others and support their peers no matter what and that's what makes them different from high functioning students who only know of one world--their world. In their world, they put down their classmates, call each other mean names, and refuse to support one another. On the contrary, although autistic kids have deficiencies in communication and social interaction skills, they know how to give love and give support. I've never heard an autistic or disabled kid put down any other child and it's sad that these are the ones that get teased in school. They have two worlds--their world and the world that they are trying to become assimilated into. I love and respect these kids so much and hope only for the best in regards to their future well-being!! They truly are "special," and I'm not talking "special needs," but more so special as in precious little beings :o)
Monday, October 11, 2010
10-10-10: the new "New Year's Day!"
Ohmylanta! My first blog on blogger! This feels like the good old days when I used to blog on Xanga religiously when I was just a young teeny-bopper and I would give out props and comments like they were going out of style!
Anyways, YESTERDAY was truly a blessing in disguise! After spending most of my Friday and Saturday getting caught up with my paperwork, feeling stressed out, unmotivated about dancing, and being a total loner, yesterday came along and made up for my, what seemed to be, miserable weekend.
Sundays, in general, are always awesome because I look forward to going to church and praying for my family and friends--that they may look forward to another great week head! But the Sunday of 10-10-10 was definitely one to remember for me!
I started off by attending the 8 am mass at my family's catholic church. I greeted father Greg and was excited that he still remembers me by name :) Then I did a bank errand and headed to town to drop off my paperwork to our main office. Afterward, I headed to the mall to get my hair done from one of my hula-sisters. She does amazing work with my hair so why go anywhere else, right?! She had called me earlier to move back my appointment because the receptionist screwed up the schedule. I didn't mind at all and decided to just check out the shops. I bought some essentials from Whole Foods, a cheesecake yogurt to snack on, and a really cute romper for only $20. I didn't realize there was a sidewalk sale going on until I saw signs and then thought, "Oh geez, no wonder it was so hard for me to find parking!" I barely shop for clothes for myself so finding this cute denim romper was absolute joy for me! Most of my friends know that shopping is not something I do often. ShooOOoot, I still rock the clothes I've had from my sophomore year in high school! HAHAHA! Working retail has sort of turned me off to shopping, especially on busy holidays! I prefer to buy gifts in advance and avoid crowds at all costs! But anyways, back to the point--It felt good to be getting a lot of things on my "to-do" and "to-buy" list done.
Haircut time!! This would have to be the highlight of my day! For the past 12 years, I have had haircuts before, but I've always told the different stylists that I went to, "I'll do some layers, but can you keep my length long?" And if I wasn't paying for a haircut, I could always count on my mom to bust out her scissors and just give me the straight-across-trim. My look would change... very little because it was always a protocol to maintain the Polynesian Dancer profile. I truly loved having my long hair! I loved to braid it, curl it, not even dare to brush it, or just toss it in a bun sitting atop my head!! But this time when I went to see Pua I told her, "I don't really know exactly how I want it, but I do want it short... I absolutely trust you so do whatever you want to it!" This was her second time doing my hair. The first time, I had told her exactly what I had told other stylists in the past, but this time, I just totally let her have control of the scissors and she did an awesome job! I absolutely LOVE it!
Being a dancer can get rough at times because of the many restrictions and orders that we have when it comes to our appearance: remove piercings, conceal non-Polynesian influenced tattoos, grow out hair, no bangs, no manicures, no pedicures, tan body, watch figure :'( No one likes being told what to do, but as dancers we grew up around these unspoken rules and learned to accept them. Year after year of the same mundane things I just craved change and that's exactly what this hair cut accomplished for me: CHANGE! Before heading home, I showed another hula sister, Kapua, who works at the same salon, my new hair-do, and I totally loved her response! She said, "Oh my gosh marray! I love it! It's like for the first time you actually have a hairstyle and not just stuff that's attached to your head! I sooo love it and it's so light!" I love it too and I drove home feeling like a new woman! LOL! I know, sounds kinda dumb, but really I did!
I ended the night by having dinner at Ruby Tuesday's with a few of my former co-workers from Brooks Brothers. They are such awesome people. It was sooo nice to know that our friendship never changed! We laughed so hard and talked so much and the food tasted awesome! At this point I had realized that some things in life are better left unchanged--all other domains that we have control over, are changed with hopes for a better outcome.
Let's face it, everyone craves change once in a while. This was my change, my way of breaking the rules! And I feel so guilty for feeling this good being it's only the beginning of the week! Not only does my head feel sooo much lighter, but so does my SOUL! I feel like I just let go the past 12 years of my life. 12 years!! That's how long I have had the same long-haired hairstyle. There were some good years: great times, greater friends, and amazing accomplishments. But there were also bad years: regretful situations, awful people, and painful memories. It feels great to let go of all of that hair, to let go all of the hurt, and have a clean fresh start, as if yesterday was my "New Year's Day" =)
Anyways, YESTERDAY was truly a blessing in disguise! After spending most of my Friday and Saturday getting caught up with my paperwork, feeling stressed out, unmotivated about dancing, and being a total loner, yesterday came along and made up for my, what seemed to be, miserable weekend.
Sundays, in general, are always awesome because I look forward to going to church and praying for my family and friends--that they may look forward to another great week head! But the Sunday of 10-10-10 was definitely one to remember for me!
I started off by attending the 8 am mass at my family's catholic church. I greeted father Greg and was excited that he still remembers me by name :) Then I did a bank errand and headed to town to drop off my paperwork to our main office. Afterward, I headed to the mall to get my hair done from one of my hula-sisters. She does amazing work with my hair so why go anywhere else, right?! She had called me earlier to move back my appointment because the receptionist screwed up the schedule. I didn't mind at all and decided to just check out the shops. I bought some essentials from Whole Foods, a cheesecake yogurt to snack on, and a really cute romper for only $20. I didn't realize there was a sidewalk sale going on until I saw signs and then thought, "Oh geez, no wonder it was so hard for me to find parking!" I barely shop for clothes for myself so finding this cute denim romper was absolute joy for me! Most of my friends know that shopping is not something I do often. ShooOOoot, I still rock the clothes I've had from my sophomore year in high school! HAHAHA! Working retail has sort of turned me off to shopping, especially on busy holidays! I prefer to buy gifts in advance and avoid crowds at all costs! But anyways, back to the point--It felt good to be getting a lot of things on my "to-do" and "to-buy" list done.
Haircut time!! This would have to be the highlight of my day! For the past 12 years, I have had haircuts before, but I've always told the different stylists that I went to, "I'll do some layers, but can you keep my length long?" And if I wasn't paying for a haircut, I could always count on my mom to bust out her scissors and just give me the straight-across-trim. My look would change... very little because it was always a protocol to maintain the Polynesian Dancer profile. I truly loved having my long hair! I loved to braid it, curl it, not even dare to brush it, or just toss it in a bun sitting atop my head!! But this time when I went to see Pua I told her, "I don't really know exactly how I want it, but I do want it short... I absolutely trust you so do whatever you want to it!" This was her second time doing my hair. The first time, I had told her exactly what I had told other stylists in the past, but this time, I just totally let her have control of the scissors and she did an awesome job! I absolutely LOVE it!
Being a dancer can get rough at times because of the many restrictions and orders that we have when it comes to our appearance: remove piercings, conceal non-Polynesian influenced tattoos, grow out hair, no bangs, no manicures, no pedicures, tan body, watch figure :'( No one likes being told what to do, but as dancers we grew up around these unspoken rules and learned to accept them. Year after year of the same mundane things I just craved change and that's exactly what this hair cut accomplished for me: CHANGE! Before heading home, I showed another hula sister, Kapua, who works at the same salon, my new hair-do, and I totally loved her response! She said, "Oh my gosh marray! I love it! It's like for the first time you actually have a hairstyle and not just stuff that's attached to your head! I sooo love it and it's so light!" I love it too and I drove home feeling like a new woman! LOL! I know, sounds kinda dumb, but really I did!
I ended the night by having dinner at Ruby Tuesday's with a few of my former co-workers from Brooks Brothers. They are such awesome people. It was sooo nice to know that our friendship never changed! We laughed so hard and talked so much and the food tasted awesome! At this point I had realized that some things in life are better left unchanged--all other domains that we have control over, are changed with hopes for a better outcome.
Let's face it, everyone craves change once in a while. This was my change, my way of breaking the rules! And I feel so guilty for feeling this good being it's only the beginning of the week! Not only does my head feel sooo much lighter, but so does my SOUL! I feel like I just let go the past 12 years of my life. 12 years!! That's how long I have had the same long-haired hairstyle. There were some good years: great times, greater friends, and amazing accomplishments. But there were also bad years: regretful situations, awful people, and painful memories. It feels great to let go of all of that hair, to let go all of the hurt, and have a clean fresh start, as if yesterday was my "New Year's Day" =)
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