you learn something new.

every day, time seems to move at a faster rate. or maybe it is just the weekends that fly by?

i have survived an action-packed independence weekend in queretaro, a colonial town in central mexico. but reality has hit hard in the form of progress reports, which are due at 4:15 tomorrow. needless to say, i was miles behind in my marking so i spent literally ALL afternoon and evening reading small moments, marking math and catching up from an assessment standpoint. despite having sat at a desk almost ALL day today, there are a few positives: there were no kids. PD did not come in the form of a 'play day' but in the form of a 'professional development inservice day'. bummer. PD DAY used to mean sleep in! BUT, thank goodness i had that time, or i may have been at school all night. assessment has definitely been the area that i have felt the inexperience the most. there is SO much benefit to having done all of this before, and having a comparative viewpoint. all i can do is follow the rubrics/benchmarks/standards and ultimately go with my gut. the kids leave at 1:45 tomorrow so it will be a race against time to get them done for 4:15... since it is not report cards, admin has told us it should take 5 minutes per kid. doubtful. but i'm still hopeful.

queretaro was an unforgetable weekend, but i am too tired to go into detail. pictures and stories will come tomorrow evening. instead, i will enlighten you on all the things i learned about mexico this weekend. you think you know a place - but really - you don't.

1. people in charge like to avoid problems. for example, when the airplane almost left us behind, NO ONE would help us. they kept saying they would be right back... and then leave forever.
2. their rules... are not set in stone. another example from the airport: when we first went through security our newly purchased margarita glasses were turned away. 40 minutes later after trying to fight our way back on the plane, they were suddently accepted. huh? clear as mud.
3. ALL mexican food is made up of beans, tortillas and carne (meat) and it is ALL essentially a taco under some other name. don't let the names fool you... still a taco.
4. time is not a reality in mexico. particularly after having some tequila.
5. it is impossible to pay with a 500 peso bill, yet that is all the bank machine gives out. waiters gasp with horror at the sight.
6. little flower pots are the new cups.
7. shaving cream is used liberally (like confetti) at celebrations... but pretty disgusto when it lands in your hair.
8. in parades, school kids carry shovels. still not clear why.
9. street vendors sell everything at the wrong time. when we were boiling they were trying to sell us shawls, but when we were frigidly cold, they were nowhere to be found.
10. it is impossible to ask for seperate bills at a restaurant. too complicated? apparently. the least they could do would be to stop gasping at the sight of a 500 pesos bill!