This time of year there is so much to do, and we catch up with many people before the summer is out. The one big event at our school last Friday was saying farewell to the playground before construction comes in to take it away, tear down some trees and place our temporary school in the same spot as the playground. The new school will be built at the current location while our school of over 300 kids in their portable classrooms with a grass playground – it will be a tight fit I imagine! It is going to be our last and quite a dramatic year at school next year!
So Friday night I went out with my lady friends to enjoy cocktails and a lovely dinner at Scratch to relax. We all needed it, and this is a great tradition we have to 1. catch up with each other and 2. to celebrate each others birthdays. This pic was taken to remind me of the good times in Mountain View and the city I have called home for the last ten years – it is now time to go back to “our home” in Australia in 2018 and be with our families!
I have been studying mostly and writing my final two assessments worth 50% each on the subjects of mathematics and science, very current topics that I feel are so important in education. So I am enjoying the assessments but every moment of my time is spent studying and even in the evenings! So between social engagements (three last weekend) and my life and study, there is not much room for much else. Still, each day learning something new and making the most of every day encourages me to have still the energy to continue with the resistance. One of the ways I am giving back is to knit pussyhats for friends, and they can donate $ to a cause that needs it at the time – which indeed are many at the moment. My friend managed to find this gorgeous fuschia in my favourite yarn Malabrigo Rasta – here’s to taking it to the streets and continue to fight for our rights!
Last week marked the 20th anniversary of our beloved school Stevenson PACT Elementary School – it was such a fun filled event full of entertainment, dessert, food trucks, art – a mosaic, and what the kids loved most of all was balloon swords. It was hilarious to see all the kids out on the field sword fighting with balloon swords, and everyone was having such a grand old time doing it!
The alumni enjoyed seeing their friends who were at other schools and had an excellent time playing, and the adults of the community enjoyed catching up on life.
The school was decorated with some very thoughtful ideas like this tree full of favourite memories and the watercolour flowers made by the kids.
At the end of this week, we say farewell to the beloved spiderweb that I am climbing – it will be removed over the summer to place the new temporary school buildings in its place. It is such a fun play structure, and apparently, the new play structure is nature inspired so we will see how that compares to this super cool spiderweb.
In quiet times when not studying or driving the kids around I sit and knit and made a couple of pussyhats this week for one of our teachers – this is my son’s 1st-grade teacher who wanted a hat for herself and for her daughter. We saw each other at the Women’s March, and I suggested I knit a hat for her in the beautiful Malabrigo Rasta.
Saturday was a busy day with a yoga class and helping my friend out with a knitting party in the afternoon. So Sunday I really had to get into gear with my last 2 assessments for this teaching period and get on track and now after devoting a few hours of my mothers day to study I feel I can get through it all! Mother’s day was lovely with the kids making a beautiful spread of pancakes, kombucha and a cup of tea complete with flowers freshly picked from the neighbourhood. I said to Ash to come on a bike ride with me as I wanted to take him out for some exercise and we rode a nice 10 miles (16 km) out on the bay. The head wind was not very enjoyable, but it was so lovely to get out and about on such a beautiful day!
And there is my beloved bike on the trail with no one around, we found some binoculars and spotted a pelican – next time we will take our bird watching binoculars!
Saturday marked a huge event for the knitting activists AKA Craftivists in all of us! I made a total of 13 pussyhats (and still counting!) for the Women’s March. Knitting 6 for the group I marched with and another 2 were sent to Washington DC for women in the march and a friend wanted one made so she bought me the yarn and I knitted it for her, I knitted for my neighbor and ladies in my exercise class and I am still knitting one for a good friend in Oakland. If anyone wanted to offer me money for the yarn and knitting them, I said to them please donate to a cause that you believe in such as the ACLU. I love how knitting is subversive and how these hats created an impact for the wearer, it said this is what I believe and what I stand for and was handmade with love!
I have been knitting the hats in a bulky yarn and on Saturday evening I watched the film ‘Hunt for the Wilder people’. I had the hat finished by the end of the film. I really loved that film as it was hilarious, the characters were quirky and the acting was superb, something I really needed after a day marching and feeling the energy of the crowd! To top off this wonderful New Zealand film the scenery was just breathtaking, I so want to visit New Zealand one day! Hopefully soon, when we finally get back home to Australia.
A couple of the crew here with pink pussyhats on, waiting for the march to begin!More pussyhats and the huge crowd of people bottlenecked heading towards the rally in Cesar Chavez Park
The activist in me is alive and furious now after this Women’s March, and I promise to do whatever I can to help the resistance against the tyrant that is now the President of the US. I could not vote in this country as I am not a citizen but the whole world feels for the total lack of morals this man has for anyone but himself. It is really difficult to comprehend the craziness that is happening at the moment but we all know that we have to face the fact that this madman is in a place of power and will do whatever he and his band of cronies can do to support the capitalist regime of destruction.
I read an article in Bustle about ‘What to Tell People Who Say You have to Accept the …… Presidency Now’ (sorry I don’t want that name on my blog). In the article, this point rang true to me and that is the fact that, “I condemn ……. as a human being”. His opinions and his concept of “great” has nothing to do with the progress of the future and living in a society that accepts all people. A billionaire has no concept of wanting anything but more for himself and everything HE alone stands for – America is not a wasteland – it is a place full of creative, energetic, human beings wanting to do good for the world and in general. Americans (here on da West Coast anyway) are really caring people, who really do want to make a difference! But now I am living in this bubble on the West that is called Silicon Valley, and I am surrounded by so many cultures, this is what has made me stay here for all this time. Our elementary school had so many countries represented on International Day ranging from Japan to Israel to India to the UK and beyond, the food was amazing!
We got this – let’s use our bodies, minds and power as a democracy!
Coming from Australia, I am used to living in an area that is a melting pot of cultures and people from many countries.I have come from Australia is a place where your neighbours do not get harassed because they wear traditional clothing. A place where your neighbour who is an Italian grandma, has a pet rooster and likes to have a chat about the kids in her strong Italian accent. WE accept people for who they are and assimilate them to our communities and our into our lives. This is what being human is about, because living in a global world means to accept others no matter where they came from. We need to listen to their stories and you may find that their stories relate to your lives some way, stop listen and do not be afraid. We all need this in our lives, who wants to live under a dictatorship fueled by hate and supremacy? Not ME and the millions of other people who marched around the WORLD.
As to why I marched on Saturday 21st, 2017 – women’s rights, people’s rights, diversity, protection of our mother earth, acceptance, truth, justice, science, education, respect, being human and most of all love. Let us continue to fight for our rights for freedom and justice, to live in peace with each other and for each other.
This week was back to everything including my study which I had not really paid attention to for the last couple of weeks while we were away in Washington State. The time there with the family was just so perfect 😀 and so well needed the shock of coming back to reality is rough!
Anyway, I have been hibernating with my assessments and heater in my sewing room most of the last week as I have 3 assessments due in the next 2 weeks. One I have been fully focussing on is an oral assignment, recorded in Soundcloud and submitted as a link. I love how online courses embrace the technology for assessments so we truly learn something new as we are studying – the challenge is exhilarating!
Another assessment is in Prezi – a program I have played with the kids recording their voices for presentations though this one is a huge presentation on Learning Theories and to top it off it is a group assignment. Our group has me in California, 1 member in Sydney and 2 members in Melbourne and we are nearly complete in our presentation though I need to write a reflective essay of the process to go with it – whew!
The kids enjoy seeing mum study though any excuse for them to get on their machines and watch YouTube – yes I do watch YouTube videos in my course but only for educational purposes only 😉 Still balancing life and study is tricky and I am finding it challenging it will make it all worth it, positive education for all is truly a priority for the future.
A #pussyhat – one of the many I have been knitting this week!
Back to the What the…? I have to not look at the news and mostly Facebook as it does not do me any good looking at what is happening here in the US. It is truly depressing stuff to see the madness that is happening but the light is that I am working on knitting up some pussyhats for the Women’s March here in San Jose in between my University studies and hanging out with the kiddos and family. A friend of mine asked me if I would like to go with her and a bunch of other ladies in a carpool to the march – and of course, I said HELL YEAH! So I then agreed to knit up some hats for the march here and I also got some thicker yarn to send away toWashington for the huge women’s march on the 21st January. We will be wearing our #pussyhats here in San Jose on the same day in solidarity with our sisters!
Lately I have had this Marvin Gaye song in my head for some reason…
Talkin’, talkin’ to the people
Tryin’ to get them to go your way
Tellin’ lies, not to worry
That we won’t be led astray
So blind, unsignified
Your opponents always lying
Think about the mistakes you make
I believe America’s at stake
You know, busin’, busin’ is the issue
If you have a plan wager
If you have a plan
If you’ve got a master plan
Got to vote for you
Hey hey, got to vote for you
You’re the man
We don’t want to hear no more lies
About how you planned a compromise
We want our dollar value increased
Employment to rise
The nation’s taxation
Is causin’ all, all this inflation
Don’t give us no V sign
Turn around and rob the people blind
Economics is the issue
Do you have a plan wager?
‘Cause if you’ve got a master plan
Got to vote for you
You’re the man
(8 times, over scat singing):
Don’t you understand?
There’s misery in the land
(One version fades out during this; read further for a longer version)
People marching on Washington
Better hear what they have to say
‘Cause the tables just might turn against you, brother
Set around Election Day
Politics and hypocrites
Is turning us all into lunatics
Can you take the guns from our sons?
Right all the wrongs this administration has done?
Peace and freedom is the issue
Do you have a plan wager?
If you’ve got a plan
If you’ve got a master plan
Got to vote for you
Hey hey, got to vote for you
‘Cause you’re the man
(repeat and fade):
Got to vote for you
poppypeach 