Snow Days!

One of the perks of being a teacher is the fact that often, when the weather warrants, the schools are shut down. These unexpected holidays are a teacher's best friend. Many of my co-workers have midterm exams to correct this week, so a day off is a welcome surprise. These days often give us teachers the time to work on things during the day that we would often have to do, in the evening, on our own time.

I, on the other hand, am spending the day cooking, baking and cleaning. I have chicken in the CrockPot (such a godsend that appliance), have butter softening to bake chocolate chip (with Toblerone chunks) cookies, and have washed dishes, tidied my apartment, and swept the floor.

This is the second snow day this week for my school. There was one Monday as well. Unfortunately, I missed that one as I was in Corner Brook (2 hours away) for a medical appointment. I was completely surprised when the call came this morning. I honestly wasn't expecting it. The weather didn't look too bad when I woke up at 6:45am for my shower. However, not long after I got the call, the weather started. It became quite snowy very quickly, and the wind picked up.

Another benefit of the snow day: being able to go back to bed!

An interesting development

I received an email earlier this week regarding a position for a teacher of the blind in the Bahamas. I was intrigued. I contacted the person who sent the original email and asked for some information. The parents of the student provide housing, a salary, benefits.

It has the potential to be an amazing experience in my opinion. But do I want to pursue it?

I seriously doubt the salary would be even remotely close to what I make now, which is rather significant. Would I be able to cover my bills? What is the cost of living down there? All important things to ask.

I've been thinking a lot about it. I really think I need to look for something somewhere else for next September, for various reasons. However, do I really want to go to the Bahamas? Especially as I've never visited and don't know what I'd be getting myself into.

I think the best route may be to continue with what I'd planned - look for a job in Vancouver. I love the city, and I have friends there. There's a bit more to it than that, but that's another story.

Who's coming for dinner?

One of the things I hate most about living on my own is cooking for myself. I enjoy cooking, and I'm quite a good cook (endorsements can be provided by family and former roommates). However, I hate cooking for myself. I don't see the point of going through all the preparation of cooking for just one person. I could live on grilled cheese sandwiches and soup if I had to. At most, I might cook one meal a week, eat it for several nights, and then spend the rest of the week living on quick and easy meals.

A couple events will hopefully help me change these bad habits. The first is that a coworker has moved into an apartment down the hall from me. She also lives on her own. We've decided that we're going to try and cook meals for one another. We did this a couple times before Christmas. It was nice to have someone to cook for, and the company was also enjoyable. Last night marked the first shared meal of the New Year.

The other event is the introduction of a CrockPot into my small supply of kitchen appliances. My brother asked me what I wanted for Christmas, and that's what I asked for. Yes, I'm getting old. My two big Christmas gifts were appliances. But I digress... I used my CrockPot for the first time yesterday to make sweet-n-sour pork. It was delicious. My friend and I both enjoyed a healthy serving, and I have 3 meals now in the freezer. With the CrockPot, I can prep the night before, dump everything into it in the morning, and when I get home I have a lovely cooked meal. I think I'm in love.

Let's get this started

I am back in the-middle-of-nowhere, having spent the better part of two weeks in civilization.

Don't get me wrong, I don't completely loathe being here. I've met some wonderful people, I have a job I genuinely enjoy, and the scenery is beautiful.

That being said, there are things I don't enjoy. While St. John's is a small city when compared to Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Ottawa, or even Winnipeg, I do consider it to be civilization. It is the location of the only AVEDA salon/spa in the province, which happens to be my salon, and preferred spa. There is relatively decent shopping. The grocery stores are generally well-stocked, and have a large variety. It is also the only place in Newfoundland where there is a Starbucks (3, and soon to be 4).

Here's my dilemma: do I remain here where I have a permanent position, or do I try to obtain a job somewhere more civilized? As things stand at this moment, my job search this spring will be composed of two cities: St. John's and Vancouver. I either want to be closer to my family, or as far from them as I can possibly hope to be. If things don't work out for this coming September, I'll stick it out here, and hope that I can find something for 2012.

For now, I'll make do with my Tassimo, buy my groceries in Corner Brook when I can, and look forward to any possible trips back to civilization throughout the course of the year.