Another short week :)

So this week was another short one, which is always nice for me :) We did not have school on Thursday because the teachers were on strike again, because of the problems with the pay and the insurance of a job for next year. I feel so bad for the teachers because they are having so many problems with salaries and whatnot, I am very fortunate to not be feeling these effects because I cannot imagine what I would do in their situation. However that did lead to another shortened week for me :) The strike was on Thursday and I do not have classes on Fridays so I only had three days this week. I don't know what I am going to do next week, I have a full schedule, which has not happened for the past three weeks! Oh well, I need more to keep me busy and motivated, it is good for me :)

So I have officially started a project. It is going to be long and difficult, but I think that it will be good for the community as does the community. We are going to be putting on a play for the community. So far this includes 4 short Romanian plays and 1 short English play. I will be going to the students on Monday and picking them out for their parts. I will be picking the most advanced students in English, but I am also hoping to pick a few that try really hard for some of the smaller parts. It is going to be hard to decided, because I think that all of the kids have potential. So we are going to put this play on and then charge people that enter a small entrance fee of 1 or 2 lei. This money will then go to the 25% that is needed for a grant that we will apply for. In addition to this hopefully we will be receiving some money from the mayor's office to fully meet this percentage. This money will then be used to purchase and install an asphalt soccer/play area for the kids. Here for physical education and for soccer at the elementary level they play it on a hard surface. While this still is a foreign concept to me, and I myself cannot do it because it kills my legs, they really do need it for their school to make the physical education program better for the kids. Maybe I can even teach them games like Hop scotch and 4-square when it is finally installed. This is the initial idea and I know with hard work and perseverance it can be obtained. The students also seem to be really excited about the play, so hopefully that energy continues until the end of the semester.

Let's see what else did this week bring. Oh I went into Botosani to go to a festival there. This weekend was a big holiday you might say, it was sfantal gheorge (Saint George) which is an important day for the Romanian Orthodoxes (the biggest religion here) and it was also Botosani's birthday for lack of a better word. So they had lots of stands available to buy things, tons of food, traditional dances (which I actually did not get a chance to see :( and live music. I stayed with another volunteer there and we went to see Bad Boys Blue. It was a band I have never heard of, but they were apparently popular in the early 80s (before me time!) and they actually did have a lot of good music. So it was fun to listen and dance and hang out with friends. I had a nice time there :) Apparently the festival was all weekend, so I am sure that Botosani was a happening place all weekend!

Now however I am back to the grindstone, lesson planning, studying Romanian, cooking, picking out students for the English play and I will probably be starting the SPA grant work next week. So I will hopefully be a busy bee, and hopefully the Internet will not be too much of a distraction for me! I love having the Internet here it is fabulous, but it sure sucks me in really quickly. It is a good source of distraction when I am trying to avoid doing an undesirable task. That should be a new resolution for me, more productive work and less play!

On a positive note, I have been doing better with getting more exercise. I try to walk about 4 kilometers a day, and I have been succeeding with that. I took a break yesterday, but I will be back to work today with the walking. I have already had a fairly productive morning with lesson planning, and will be doing my Romanian lesson shortly. I was slacking on the Romanian for a while but am now teaming up with my neighbor. We are hard at work on grammar, which is my week spot. I never know how to end the words, because that is where they but the ownership, plural and the words. Oh and they are normally irregular, so it is just memorization for me! Yipee! Oh well if I keep working hard I will eventually get there, and in time it will just start to click...or so I hope!

So I think that is about it for the week. I wish I had something else interesting to say, but due to a short week, with little excitement I think that is about it. I hope that the weather is treating you well and that you are all able to enjoy Spring. It is warmer here, but so dusty and when it is windy it makes it very difficult to be outside! However I am happy that the snow is gone! I miss you all a lot, and always feel free to send me an e-mail if you want to talk more or tell me some exciting news, I love hearing from you and I promise I will respond! Or you can always get Skype and we can schedule a time to chat :) I always like that! Alright well Happy Sunday everyone and I hope that this week brings you smiles and cheer!

Va iubesc
Va pup
Mi-a dor de voi!

Pana mai tarziu
~Sarah B.