Is July over yet?

well, I've been on vacation for 4 weeks, and I get confused on what day it is, so I thought I would ask.

The funny thing about having a blog is you never know who's reading it. I started my blog because I had moved to a strange and new place and needed an outlet for sharing my experiences. Then, I started to bore myself with the constant complaints, so I didn't write as much...then, well, you probably know what happened then...if you read the blog.

The other funny thing about having a blog is I feel there's no need to write if I'm around all the people that read it (all two of you...thanks mom and dad.) Today, however, I realized that I often write on this blog to gather prayer support when I need it and to share my thoughts on things as I see them. Today I feel inspired enough to write again, and here goes.

Here I am in the states, lovin' the vacation vibe, (it's Saturday morning and I'm at Claudias in San Francisco...the sun is shining so clearly I can see a mountain on the other side of the bay, that I'm sure I've never seen from her deck before.) As good as it feels to be on vacation, I'm just starting to think about getting back to work in two more weeks. I'll leave San Francisco August 9th, arrive in Taiwan on the 10th, and start teaching again on the 11th. I've resigned my job, as many of you know, but I have to return to teach for 7 weeks 'til the end of September. What comes after that is a little up in the air, but this is what I know...

I will be flying to New York this Tuesday morning, only for two nights to interview with the New York Teaching Fellows program, for a potential job teaching ESL to children enrolled in one of the 1450 New York Public Schools. For more info on this program you can read all about it at www.nycteachingfellows.org. It looks like a solid opportunity to do a lot of what I've been doing in Taiwan, but in a context where everyone around me speaks English, and I'm familiar with the culture in which I'm living. I'm only a short plane ride from family and friends, and maybe, just maybe, I'll get the chance to sing with one of the most awesome gospel choirs of our time. I hope to get to audition for the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir, and be involved in the ministry of the choir for a couple of years, before the Cymbalas retire. They've been at the church for so long, I think they could retire anytime, so I'm anxious to get there.

So....I will interview next Wednesday evening in New York City. If I am accepted into the program, I will start my 7 weeks of training on November 3, finishing on December 19. During that time, I will be placed in a New York City public school somewhere in one of the five boroughs (Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Manhattan, and the Bronx), where I'll be mentored and learn the system. Also during the training, I will be alerted to job openings and get to go on interviews to try to secure a teaching position in the system. When I'm hired, I can begin work at anytime, and my Masters degree classes will begin in February. Once I'm hired, I will have to find a permanent place to live as close as possible between Brooklyn and wherever my school is. (I'm responsible for finding my housing during training, so I'll be looking for a temporary solution during that time.) Before all that happens, I have to pass two standardized tests on October 18th in NYC. These are the LAST (Liberal Arts and Sciences Test) and the CST (Content Specialty Test). Woo hoo ...tests!

All of these things are exciting challenges for me, which will require a lot of praying and listening to God so I can know what's best for me. On my own, I'm a failure. I know that. But with God, all things are possible. I can't even explain what it is about this that makes sense to me or appeals to me, I just know I have a deep desire to do it... and so I take one step at a time. The next step is flying to New York, going through the interview (which involves a 5 minute teaching sample on any topic - I've got to figure that out this weekend... aagh!), and seeing what happens then. Thanks for praying that I will be in God's will throughout this process.

I have been having a great time on vacation...beginning with seeing everyone in San Francisco for two days before flying to Toronto, seeing an old friend of mine from Scotland now living in western Ontario, meeting my friend Michelle's fiance (now husband) 4 days before their wedding, taking part in all the fun festivities surrounding their July 4th wedding, flying off to New York City for a vacation for four nights and five days, then back to San Francisco for a weekend before flying to Oklahoma to see my family, R.V. camping at the lake in southern Oklahoma with my parents, nephew (wife and four kids), niece (and husband), brother (and wife), and my cousin. (To read a sweet entry about my Oklahoma vacation, check out my nephews family blog at kmanderson.blogspot.com.)

Now, I'm back in SF, recovering and thinking a lot about next things. Looking forward to the adventure, and not without a little bit of trepidation. Vacations are a good time, eh? Maybe I'll post pictures later...maybe not. ;)

Well, like I said, it's a beautiful day in the bay area, and ... what... oh, yea, there it is...the sun is calling me to get out of my pj's and go out to enjoy it. Gotta go.

Until next time,

LC from SF (not TW ... at the moment)