A Year in Review

Since today is the last day of the year, I thought it might be a good time to reflect on the journey that was 2008. The first six months of the year went by quicker than I could have imagined.... the "teenaged one" got accepted to all the colleges that he applied to.... my sweetie & I spent all our free time planning a wedding.... by the time summer came life was a great big blur... in the span of 4 weeks we had graduation, a wedding & college orientation.... the last week of summer was probably the most stressful part of this year... we moved to a new house & took the "teenaged one" to college... saying good-bye & untying those apron strings was not easy.

Life slowed down in the Fall... we were getting used to our new home ( still have some boxes to unpack)... I grew up in this house, so it feels familiar but at the same time it looks totally different from the way it looked when I was a kid.... we didn't get our Christmas tree this year until 2 days before Christmas... spending time with family & friends made us remember what Christmas is all about.... giving & receiving the most most precious gift.... LOVE.... I am truly blessed!

military option

Today my son, also known as the "teenaged one" attended the graduation/going away party of his friend Darnell. The two of them have known each other since junior high when they played on the school soccer team. When they started high school they joined the varsity track team together. During their high schools days both of them participated in numerous plays and sang together in the choir. They even co-hosted the final variety show in their senior year.

While one of them gets ready to go to college, the other is leaving for basic training and a four year stint in the army. This really scares me... this young man just turned 18 a few months ago, who knows where he'll spend his next birthday... maybe Iraq? I'm not even sure why "we" (USA/ our troops) are there ... Saddam Hussein is dead & who knows where the hell Bin Laden is now.

I guess I'm just hoping that he won't become another casualty of war... Godspeed Darnelito y que Dios te bendiga.

Campus Life

Hi folks... it's been a while. Today's posting is coming to you from beautiful Oswego, N.Y. right here on Lake Ontario. We've been here for the past 2 days attending freshman orientation. In just 4 short weeks "the teenaged one" will be moving into his dorm room. Today while the parents were at a seminar on parental separation anxiety, the kids had their ID photos taken & made their fall class schedules.

The "teenaged one" is really looking forward to being on his own.... I'll promise not to call him everyday.... time for the little bird to fly the nest.

the timetable

Anybody got a pair of rollerblades? I'll need them with the crazy schedule for summer 2008. The "teenaged one" graduates in 11 days, then 5 days later his mother gets married... the graduation party is 10 days after the wedding then freshman orientation for college is a week later... catch my breath for 2 weeks then its moving day (luckily the new house is only 6 miles away). We'll have 3 weeks to unpack the new place & then we're off to Lake Ontario to take the "teenaged one" to move into his new dorm... I'll have a week before its time to report back to kindergarten..... it'll probably take from Sept to June just to recuperate from my "summer vacation".

Looking forward to all of it!!!!

Almost Crunch Time

Well folks, it's just 5 weeks 'til the big day. My sweetie & I went to Town Hall to get our marriage license today! We also went to order the wedding cake (yummy). My sweetie got me some "shiny stuff" as an early wedding present... he treats me like a princess...I'm so lucky.
The teenaged one still hasn't gotten a haircut, but he got awarded the PTA scholarship this week.
Win some , lose some?

Super- Heroes

When you mention super heroes most people think of the usual suspects like Batman, Spiderman, Captain America etc. This year I've been fortunate to meet some of the real super heroes of Long Island. Most of my kindergarten students are from "economically challenged" neighborhoods... they wear hand-me -down clothes, they don't have the luxury of designer sneakers.

This school year my students were blessed with 2 guardian angels... the first one is a retired grandmother who likes to shop at the dollar store... she has given them teddy bears , cars & trucks and pretty plastic jewelry. The other angel is a wonderful man who prefers to remain anonymous...he gives the kids books and has even donated a bike to a little girl who didn't have one of her own.

These are the true heroes... you'll probably never read about them in the newspaper, but they are the ones who know how to put a smile on a child's face. God Bless them always!!!

Grandma, Tito Puente & the Hard Rock Cafe

My grandmother was always an adventurous woman. When she was a kid, she would ride her father's horse bareback to school. When she was in her 20's she was the first person in our family to fly in a plane (with her 9 month old baby). During the years she was raising her children, her love of travel & adventure would continue to flourish. At any given moment she might be in Oceanside, California or in San Antonio & Fort Worth visiting her her siblings.

Even in her 80's & 90's she continued to travel and her quest for new experiences. In the summer of 1997 we traveled to Spain on a family. One day after several hours of sight seeing grandma complained that if she had to look at another museum or old church she was going to hop on the next plane home! That afternoon we went to the Hard Rock Cafe (Madrid) for lunch. While we were waiting for our table grandma wandered off & and met Tito Puente who was giving an interview for a Spanish television station. After his interview, "Tito" came over to say hello to grandma and let her take pictures. He even joked with her saying he was going to charge her $5 per picture. This would be a tale she would repeat to her friends & family members for years to come.

Her life had many sad moments... her mother died when grandma was only 12 years old. She outlived 2 brothers and 2 sisters (all younger than her), and after 58 years together she buried her husband... the only man she ever loved. Despite all these hardships she was always loving, caring & generous. Last Fall, just a few months after my mom died, my grandma decided to join her in Heaven.

We miss you both, Happy Mother's Day

One year later

The hardest part of losing a loved one is when you forget they're gone. This happens to me occasionally... something funny happens at work & my first reaction is to pick up the phone and start dialing 541-5.... Oh shit! Mom, you're not here anymore. I miss the sound of your voice, the Saturday afternoon shopping sprees and most of all I miss hearing you & grandma argue in the kitchen while making Sunday dinner.... but I guess we were lucky , we saw each other every day for the past 44 years & when we didn't see each other there was always the phone. We had all those great trips San Diego, Alburquerque, our road trips to Florida even Cooperstown and the baseball hall of fame was fun. Can't believe that you went to Paris without me! But then again I went to Ireland with the" boys" while you & grandma spent the summer going to garage sales.

Opposites

Everyone has heard the expression OPPOSITES ATTRACT..... this might be true, but can they co-exist? Well I can't comment for other couples but in the mcC/mcD household life is never boring. He gets up early & I stay up late. He's neat & orderly and I'm disorganized (just look at my desk!). He likes country music I'm into rock & roll. He eats his veggies , I'd rather eat M & M's.

Despite these and other more obvious differences, we do manage some common ground. Both of us value our time off together. We both like empanadas & Texas BBQ. Both of us snore , but he denies it. Regardless of the differences there's nowhere else I'd rather be & no one else I'd rather play opposite to.

taco night

My sweetie is full of surprises... he & I take turns making dinner and he always does a better in the kitchen than I do. Tonight he made us tacos (which I had never had before), they were yummy! I must repeat myself one more time "I'm definitely marrying this man!!"

P.S. wedding update: the invitations have arrived, the dress fitting is 2 weeks away (still haven't gotten the shoes), honeymoon weekend is booked. We have 2 months & 3 weeks left & john still hasn't cut his hair!. More to follow.

can you hear me now?

Today my sweetie & I went shopping for a new cell (for him). Within 30 seconds of walking into the t-mobile store the salesperson (who looked young enough to have been born in this century) was at our side. The kid (salesperson) started talking about all the new features available and began rattling off so many technical terms that we thought he was reading to us from a text printed a MIT . When he started talking about a "hotspot" , I began to think this conversation is getting way too personal for me (lol).

Needless to say, we didn't buy a new phone today.... next time we go shopping for anything techy we will take a teenager with us so he can translate the jargon into English.

Puerto Rican Day Care

Once again my sweetie highwayman has outdone himself in the kitchen... the man has skills!!!! Our Easter dinner was delicious, especially the roasted turkey breast.

All day today I've been thinking about how we spent last Easter (which happened to be our first holiday together). After mass last Easter Sunday I headed for the hospital, it would be the last holiday I would spend with my mother. Before going to the hospital , we went to see my grandmother. I asked Matt & John to stay with grandma since at 91 she should not be alone on any holiday.

I spent most of the day with mom... at that point she only had a few weeks left and I was spending most of my non-working hours with her. Back at grandma's John & Matt were enjoying the rice & beans that my grandmother made for them and the lasagna that matt made. Grandma really liked my matty because he enjoyed her cooking. He always teases me that I left him at grandma's like a kid going to daycare, but it was a good way for him & grandma to get to know each other.

computer nerd

this is a test

the family

The Rodriguez girls... Sheila, Liz & Nora... we're more like sisters than cousins... the girls and my son are half Irish & half Puerto Rican.. what a great combination!


Once you become associated with the Rodriguez-McCoy clan either by marriage, friendship or close proximity you become "one of us" we love you to death! .... its like the mafia, once you're in we don't let you go..... as my cousin Adam puts it, "Loyalty runs deep in our family, if you kill someone, we're there to help you bury the body!"... he actually said this as part of my mother's eulogy to emphasize how close we are. (Don't be afraid we are not disposing of any corpses in the Pine Barrens.) I think that the main reason I wanted to do this blog was to get to know the McD's while letting them get to know the Rodriguez-McCoy family.

mccoy/mcdermott wedding update

As of today, we are 4 months & 1 week from the "big day"...am i nervous? not really. excited? yes! I got the important stuff taken care of...i got the man, the dress & the location.... still haven't gone shoe shopping yet (what do you think white sandals or cowgirl boots?)

Underpaid

Most of us are familiar with the Taylor Law, which prohibits public employees ( teachers included) from going on strike. This law makes sense because of the public safety issues that could arise. Recently I read an article from my union newspaper about a possible teacher's strike in Puerto Rico. There are approximately 32,000 public school teachers in P.R. ... they will lose 2 days pay for every day they are on strike.

The main reason for the possible strike is salary. Most people will say teachers only work 10 months a year & get tons of days off during the school year, but my colleagues in Puerto Rico are at a severe disadvantage. Most schools on the island are not air conditioned even though the average daily temperature hovers around 80 degrees all year long. Also the average starting salary for a first year teacher is only $18,000 (this is obscene for a college graduate!) It's hard to believe this is part of the U.S.

After reading the article about the Puerto Rican teachers, I feel really fortunate that I was able to get a job teaching in NY where teachers are compensated fairly well. Despite low salaries & poor working conditions these educators ( in P.R.) do an excellent job. I should know because I am a product of the Puerto Rican school system. (high school grad).

!Viva las maestras! Long live the teachers!

Pushing 40

A woman I know is turning 40 next month. She isn't distressed about it, in fact she she's very accepting of the fact that time passes for all of us. She is , however, freakin' out because just a few months from now she will become a GRANDMOTHER!!

Yes, her son got his teenaged girlfriend pregnant. Why did this happen? If I'm not mistaken there is a planned parenthood in almost every county across this country. The answer is simple.... people (teens in particular) think they are invincible & they don't think about the consequences of their actions.

Any thoughts?

Can't believe it!

Two days ago I received a letter from a source that will remain nameless regarding one of my students. About two months ago I referred my student because she had been absent from school several times & when I called the home no adult was there . It seems that my student & her 8 yr. old sister were home alone.

I filled out the necessary paperwork & reported this incident to the proper authorities. It seems children are not a top priority in Nassau county. The matter was investigated , but by the time someone checked on the kids an adult was finally home. How many hours, days were they home alone?

leave of absence

This week JP'smother will be on hiatus due to mid -year progress monitoring. Tons of paper work both at school & at home. I'll be back on Feb. 2 (ground hog day).

Eating in public

Yesterday was our monthly "Student of the Month" assembly at my school. Parents were invited to school for breakfast and to attend the ceremony in which one child from each class received a certificate for academic achievement & positive social interaction with peers.

I was seated in the 3rd row with my student & her dad. Ahead of us a woman in her mid to late twenties was sitting with a baby in her lap. When the ceremony was about to begin my principal came over & asked me to take pictures of the event using his digital camera. As was taking pictures I noticed some of my colleagues whispering & pointing in my direction. It seems they were concerned about the woman in the row in front of me who was breast feeding her baby without covering herself.

Anybody care to comment on this? I really don't understand all the controversy, but it seemed to be the hot topic at lunch on Friday.

5 yr. olds

Hi everyone.... it's been a relatively uneventful week, except for today. As all of you know , I spend my days with five year olds. This afternoon I took the 5 year olds down to the gym for phys. ed. class. After 35 minutes I went back to pick them up & found 2 boys sitting in chairs while the rest of the kids were playing basketball. When I questioned the boys they told me they were not allowed to play because they were biting their friends.

When we got back to our classroom I had to give the whole class a lecture about not hurting our classmates & treating others with kindess. Before the kids went home today I made them repeat a new mantra, " We wll not bite our friends...... friends are not food!"

Tragedy at school

Imagine you're a high school student. It's after an hour after school has ended on a Friday afternoon. You're playing handball with 2 friends behind your high school. This sounds like a typical scene at any suburban high school in America, doesn't it?

Unfortunately if you live in Hempstead , NY this story does not have a happy ending. The day before yesterday a gang of thugs (7 in all) robbed some high school students after school. They stole money, a couple of cell phones & an MP3 player, but that wasn't enough as they were leaving one of these punks stabbed repeatedly one of the three boys that were playing handball.

By the next morning Michael was dead from his wounds. He was only 15 years old. He had been my student when he was a kindergartener. He was murdered less than a mile from his home. He was on the school grounds when it happened. As I read the newspaper account this morning I was shocked, saddened & angry. I don't understand how anyone could have such little regard for the life of another human being.

Top of the World

I saw on the internet & heard it on TV and the radio that Sir Edmund Hillary died yesterday. Of course most will people remember him as the first man to reach the peak of Mount Everest.... the highest point on earth. He was, as he described himself, a simple bee keeper from New Zealand.

When I read his obituary this morning I started thinking about my own mortality... how will I be remembered when I'm gone? Have I made a difference in lives of the people who knew me? Have I done anything for the good of humanity? I don't have any of the answers, but I do know that there are people who love me and I love them... that's all that really matters isn't it?

sleeping angels

The guys at the McCoy/McDermott wake up early from Mon. to Fri...... my sweetie has to be at work by 7 a.m. so he's usually up before 5 and the teenager leaves for school at 7 so he's up before 6 a.m..... luckily I don't have to be at work 'til 8:15 so I'm not getting up as early as the guys... tonight while the guys are in dreamland i'm enjoying the quiet time as I watch Law & Order.

While I enjoy the peace & quiet for an hour or so, I can't imagine how some people can live alone. I definitely enjoy our noisy times, especially when my sweetie & the teenager are playing practical jokes on each other. Sleep well my angels!

Cowboys in Manhattan

As part of my sweetie's Christmas present I got tickets to the PBR (that's Professional Bull Riding tournament for all the civilians out there). So we took the train into NYC this afternoon & had some dinner (Puerto Rican food of course!) After dinner we headed to, of all places, Madison Square Garden to see an indoor rodeo. I had never done this before so I didn't know what to expect, but my sweetie was like a kid on his first trip to the circus.

I'm sure all the football fans out there will think a 280 lbs. linebacker tackling the guy with the ball is exciting, but exciting is watching a man riding bareback on a 2000 lb. raging bull. As usual date night with my sweetie was a lot of fun! Hope you enjoyed yourself honey, I know I did!!!!

am open letter to my guy

hey sweetie....just a quick note to tell you how much i love you.....i can't believe how quickly the past 11 months have gone by.... do you realize that in just 6 months we will be walking down the aisle ( 7/3/08 can"t wait)!!!! xoxo, liz

Best of times...worst of times

2007 proved to be bittersweet... after a long illness my mom left us in May, then over the summer my grandmother suffered 2 strokes...she lingered for a couple of months, then she died as well (she probably died of a broken heart). OK maybe I'm feeling a little sorry for myself, but on top of all this my brother isn't talking to my dad and my dad isn't talking to my uncle... I'm close to all three & they're driving me crazy...luckily they each live in a different state.

No more whining, I promise! I have so many things to be thankful for ... I have a man who loves me & tells me so everyday....my son is healthy & on his way to college in a few months... my friends are more caring than I deserve..... so I guess 2008 will be better than the previous year.

God Bless everyone & Happy New Year.