Gidy-up

Most people refuse to give horseback rides. Some will do it with one person on their back. Occasionally you have one hero give two people a ride at the same time. I however have now passed into legend running across the playground with three horse riders. One day this epic event will be remembered in Tokiens great grandson's unforgettable works.

In addition to this amazing occurance, I have one more adventure to brag upon. This last Sunday, yours truly finished second in the men's 18 and older 2 mile race. Fortunately, I have the hardware to prove it to those in doubt.

More great news, my new science room is nearing completion, and I will hopefully move in there after Semana Santa. We also got a bunch of new science equipment in from a work team, which makes teaching so much easier. This means less scrounging for materials and less nixing cool science experiments due to lack of supplies. Oh and while we are on the topic of science, Junior High is doing an expedition titled Pirates of the Caribbean. Focusing on the formation of the pirates and the effects of the pirates. Anyway, long story short. For the science aspect of things, we are going to focus on cannons. How they work, and the physics/chemistry properties of them. For our big project we will build potato cannons! Gotta love teaching in a country without strict laws. I'll keep you updated on all of the progression of the spud guns.
God Bless,
Andrew

Trust

Sorry I have been lazy as of late with getting this website updated. Here is the latest picture from team-building class. This is called the faith fall. It was an amazing activity for some, but also frustrating one because a few people absolutely refused to go because they didn't trust others. This age group is definitely a tough age to explain exactly what a team is. Everything is focused on me, me, me. Even this culture has difficulty working as a team.

Anyway, things are going well here despite the recent Illini loss early in the tournament. But I guess the spirit of Bill Murray wasn't with us. Those who watched the amazing Arizona game last year know what I'm talking about.

Just finishing up third quarter, and starting the home stretch already. I am excited being I feel very burnt out. Spring break will be sweet ice cream. Especially since my parents have decided to come visit for a week!

Pray for me that I may get rest, I haven't slept well for quite some time now. Also that I may be given wisdom and love in disciplinary actions with kids.
Love
Andrew

Vroooom....

Here's just a little picture of me and my mode of travel. I sent this picture to my Frontier Ranch friends, because Frontier Ranch of course is in Buena Vista, but don't let the picture fool you. I did not drive my motorcycle across the gulf of mexico and half way across the country. This town is 15 minutes away and has a population of, I don't know, my fingers. Now I know to y'all I look pretty bad to the bone in this picture, but in reality I just kind of look odd. Because their aren't a lot of Americans here and I think I'm the only one that has a 25 year old dirt bike. Most drive something a lot newer, but smaller. Of course due to my freakishly tall size, I thought it would be awkward to drive one of these, so I opted for old and big. Now don't get me wrong many dominicans have moto's that are equivalent to trash too, but they are fortunate enough not to get stared at. Really things in this country don't surprise you any more. Things you see reguarly on a moto: washing machines(granted the dominican washing machine is a little smaller), tanks of gas for stoves, families of six, twenty feet of PVC pipe or rebarb, metal gates, or six baby pigs in burlap sax. Yes, what an interesting life here. My motorcycle is doing a lot better. I'm quickly passing mechanics 101. Something new always happens, but the good thing is if it happens twice, I know what to do.
Anyway, miss you,
Andrew

Free Time...

WEATHER: Unpredictable...Somedays its cold and rainy(by cold I mean that I wear a fleece most of the day)....Somedays its hot, hot, hot(meaning that their are sweat pores that I never knew that I had)...One guarantee is that it is chilly at night, and avoid direct sunlight if you don't want to bathe in your own sweat.

Anyway, I thought you would all enjoy a little weather update being their is only 3 weeks left of winter. My freetime has been very eventful. Somedays I sit with my Dominican family and play parche (parcheesee 'spelling' as its called in the States). Other days I spend hiking to various waterfalls, catching laptop movies, enjoying company, playing sports, and one of my most exciting new past times - Kayaking. Above you will see a classic picture of me hitting the white water! Some classic niknames that I've acclaimed on the river are: popeye - for the classic face made when doing something difficult, pinball - for successfully hitting every rock in sight, and speedy gonzalez - for taking the 'paddle harder when you need balance' very seriously. But mostly there are school events that consume my time. There you have me in a nutshell...(aah let me out!!!)
Love you, mean it,
Andrew