TOBAGO TRIP

I finally got to hop over to Tobago this weekend. Four of my students went along, and we had a great time. It is about a 20-minute flight there, 50 bucks round trip. The beaches there are awesome. I liken Tobago to Tallulah, Louisiana, only with zillions of coconut trees and surrounded by nice beaches. It is pretty laid-back and quiet there. We stayed at a place called "Jimmy's Holiday Resort". It is a local favorite..and while it was decent, it wasn't on the beach..and that sucked..but the beach was a short walk away.

I went to bed Friday night at like 8 p.m., which is so totally not me..got up at midnight...had to be at the airport near my house at 5:30. Quincy had overslept, and when I called him at 5:30 to see where he was, he was still at home in bed. I set out walking toward the airport with my 40-lb backpack (what an early morning workout THAT was..it wasn't even daylight out, and here I was, walking in Trinidad on the main highway)...and Quincy managed to show up and take me the rest of the way to the airport. I think he thought I was going to chew him out, but I was in a good mood and I didn't fuss at all. Besides, the rest of the crew was late getting to the airport, and the last two of them got there 1 minute before the flight closed.

As soon as we landed in Tobago, we walked from the airport over to Store Bay. This was around 7 a.m. Saturday. Here we are (except Melissia was the one taking the picture..and she obviously couldn't get that right. :))).















This is Shelly, Petronilla, Petal, and me.
















Here is Melissia (the airport is behind her).

We then walked down the road to Jimmy's Holiday Resort, which was about another half-mile away. We walked most places, except down to the port, and we took a cab there because it was about 6 miles from the area we were staying in. Here is the road to the hotel, the rest of the gang walking up that road, and then the actual hotel (well, the pic of the hotel was taken at night, when we were out by the pool).












































We got to the hotel to check in, and Melissia plopped down on a chair outside the motel office without looking to see what was there....and then the security guard told her she might want to get up, because there was dried blood all over the chair and the ground there because a woman stabbed her boyfriend there the night before. Needless to say, she was absolutely horrified and for the next few minutes she walked around like she was trying to not let her pants touch her skin, until they gave us a room so she could change. LOL



































We went and got something to eat, then we went back to the beach for a few hours. The beaches here are so beautiful, no trash at all, but the weird thing is...NO SHELLS. None at Maracas, none in Tobago. I got stopped by dozens of rasta men offering to taxi me somewhere (they just totally ignored the rest of the group...guess they knew they were locals, and since I am white, they assumed I had money..haha..sadly mistaken!) We found a nice little spot under the rocks at the beach. I wanted sun, they wanted to stay out of it.



























































LOOK! There were chickens at the beach, too! haha

We ventured into Scarborough to see about getting tickets to take the boat back Sunday, but there was basically a riot because the ferries were broken down or something, so instead we got tickets to fly back Sunday.
Here is downtown Scarborough, Tobago..and here is a crowd of angry rioters at the port. LOL





























Later, we went back to the hotel and sat outside and played cards and stuff.





























We had a great time. I can't wait until my family gets here and we get to go to Maracas and Tobago. At least I know my way around a little more now.

I miss everybody...

oh, hey, did I hear that Brett is staying???????!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOHOOOO! Before ya know it, it will be Fantasy Football time again...I have first dibs on BF! :) LOL

Friday

Well, today was midterm presentation day. The teams made their presentations to the class, so the day went by very quickly. The different teams were each assigned a body system and had to put together some kind of creative presentation regarding such. I think the most creative one was the "Church of the Cardiovascular System", where they transformed "Nothing But the Blood of Jesus" into a song about cardiorespiratory functions. They got the whole class involved...Rayann was preachin' and yellin', "Can I get a witness??" and "Hallelujah, Amen!" all the way through it. OMG, it was hilarious. Antonio was accompanying on the keyboards.





























The girls in that group were dancing around, drinking and smoking and eating junk food, when "Moses" (Antonio) came in and warned them about the "hardening of their arteries" and encouraged them to "modify their lifestyles". All but one of them turned from their health sins, and the one that didn't "died".

I think the second most fun presentation was Melissia and Gordon's group. "Antoine Rumco" came into the doctor's office "'cause it hurt meh pee-pee to go pee". Melissia had this Rasta hat with dreadlocks built into it, and Gordon had a lab coat and was lookin' all doctorish. HAHA

















Today was Ady's last day (the admin assistant). I sure am going to miss her. She is moving to the UK. She will hate it there, cause she is a sunshine kinda person. See ya again, soon, Ady! :)

















Ron H. was around for the going-away festivities, too..
















We got Ady a pretty necklace as a going-away present, and it took Nadia forever to put it on her.

















Tomorrow morning I am flying to Tobago with 4 of my students. Good Lord, how did I get roped into this? haha The thing is, we were originally supposed to take the boat there and back (the fast ferry takes almost 3 hours)...but they have no set schedule here and we found out that there wasn't a boat early on Saturday...so they decided that we should fly over and then take the boat back to Trini on Sunday. Well now we don't even know if there is a boat coming back to Trini on Sunday before 11 p.m. (and that is the slow ferry, which would put us getting back into Port of Spain at 5-6 a.m. Monday morning, just in time to get ready for class..lol) So I don't even know if we will get back from Tobago on time. Wait, let me rephrase that...I don't know if THEY will get back from Tobago on time. As for me, I will carry my ass right up to the B-Wee ticket counter and fly back, with or without them.

Have a great weekend...see ya when I return.

What a day...

I woke up this morning feeling like crap, but I dragged myself into work anyway, because some of my students needed to use my laptop to set up their Powerpoint presentations and load their video and stuff for the midterm presentations on Friday. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have gotten out of bed. I must have picked up a bug when I was in the states, cause I had an earache and just felt totally miserable. Anyway..some sights on the way to and back from work...now, here is some strange kinda lizard that was probably about 8 inches long crawling on the side of the road (he is to the right of the bottle, you can barely see him. He looks like some kind of skink..and here is the best looking gas station I have seen yet (I have only seen about 4 total since I have been here..there aren't that many gas stations around this place). Nothing like a 7-11 or anything on this whole island. Inside, the most you can buy are smokes, chips, and usually local soft drinks. I have been in one that sells Coke and Pepsi. Gas is around 1.00 USD a gallon here.

My students are really working hard on their presentations. I hope to get some decent pictures tomorrow....this is going to be hilarious. Some of them have even written original songs for this stuff. Jesus. They really take it seriously. This is Antonio composing a song for his team's presentation, hiding out in my office so no one spies. Also, Kim decided to bring her tambourine to complete the composition. LOL

Yeah, that is my 50-cent Coke in the background. haha How can they make them so cheap here and they cost so much at home? I guess because Coke people in the US are paid way better than anyone here, maybe.

Today's Song That Is Stuck In My Head

Today's stuck song is Tusk by Fleetwood Mac..although I did have a couple of hours that I couldn't get Not Now John by PF out of my head. My head apparently is stuck in the 70s today (wait, was Tusk 70s or 80s? lol..anyway, it was ages ago).

May 1, the Mexicans Are Hitting The Streets: I say we up the ante and plan to celebrate Cinco de Mayo by boycotting any business who employs Mexicans and refusing to eat at Mexican restaurants on that day, too. LOL I also agree with Ann Coulter on bringing out the paddy wagons and rounding up anyone present at the protests without an ID. I am completely against amnesty for illegals already in the states because to me that is an insult to all of my friends who came to the US the RIGHT WAY and OBEYED THE LAWS. Les, Dave, Kennedy, thank you for doing the right thing. Just think, you could have just sneaked across the border and not have had to go through the process you did to get where you are. I love legal Mexicans, and I love Mexican food...but come on....and for God's sake, put the darn Mexican flags away if you are fighting to stay in the US. Sorry, but waving that flag has the appearance of an actual hostile takeover. Another case of people liking our money but hating us.

Okay, I am off of my soapbox now.

My Shows This Week...

Survivor: I am glad Courtney went home, cause I couldn't stand her.

Amazing Race: Gotta love the hippies. I hope they win.

Boston Legal: I was embroiled in conversation during that show (and grading papers at the same time), so I kinda missed James and Bill. Darnit.

DH and GA: Both were recap shows, and those suck. Nothing but fillers.

Lost: Haven't gotten to watch it in about 3 weeks, so I am way behind.

The Apprentice: I couldn't stand that chick, whatever her name was..oh yeah, Andrea. I am glad she went home.

Big Love: I TOTALLY MISSED IT THIS WEEK. I guess I will stay up until midnight tonight to watch it because I have no DVR here. That sucks.

Surreal Life: I missed that, too. I like Alexis..he/she is funny as hell.

Okay, I LOVE YOU ALL AND CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU AGAIN. Oh, Tammy, sorry about the phone tag...maybe next time in July?

I'm Back....

Got back to Trini today. Two hours after my plane landed, my sinuses cleared up. LOL Guess the 40-degree temperature change from PA to here helped, too. Had a good visit home, except for the bad part about Don dying (see below). I didn't get to spend enough time with my baby niece, though...so maybe in July I will. Got home Good Friday night, went to Lancaster General to see Don on Sat morning, went to NJ to see Gin and Donnie and the baby, went back to the hospital Sunday morning to see Don....had Easter at the Bresnans' house. (By the way, Les, you should be happy now that I have left YOUR country. haha) Mondaymorning, Don died...I did housework, Tuesday appointments and Syd's program practice, Wed down to Sterling (great time, took my mind off the sad stuff), Thursday I honestly don't remember 'cause I had a slight hangover (okay, first time I have had anything to drink in a longgg time), Friday the funeral, Saturday shopping and Olive Garden, then back to the Bresnans' (and we got to see Rob and Mary Ann, too!) Went to bed at 11:58 Saturday night, left to drive to BWI at 3:30 a.m. Yes, the time flew by. I don't go home again until July 13, so I have a little over 2 months until then. Eric and the girls will be down here in about 25 days for vacation, so at least I will get to see my babies.

Quincy and Olive Garden
I brought back Quincy some lasagna and breadsticks from OG, and I swear it was like he was in heaven...I froze it and carried it on the plane, and it was still cold when I landed. He immediately proceeded into my kitchen when he brought me home and heated it up and wolfed it down, all the while singing the praises of OG. I told him he missed the salad and wine part, but he didn't care. I brought him some NY cheesecake, too, but he put that back in the OG bag to take home...and he said he was going to walk by his homies on the block with the OG bag and brag. Now when he sees the commercials, I guess he will tell everybody he has tried it and how good it was.

Did you ever get a song stuck in your head, over and over and over?????? Today, I had 2 songs stuck in my head..

pick up the receiver, I'll make you a believer...your own...personal....Jesus.....

and

Tell me how
you know now
the ways and means
of getting in
underneath my skin
oh you were always my original sin
Tell me why
I shudder inside
every time we begin this dangerous game
oh you were always my original sin...

I gotta listen to some calypso now and clear my head, to get Depeche Mode and Elton out of it. I think the harder you TRY to get a song out of your head, the worse it is.

Baby Pics
Here are a few more pics of the baby (and me and Sydney and Shelby..and Ginger)

Sad News

Donald W. Bohn

Donald W. Bohn, 53, entered into rest at 5:35 a.m. on Mon day, April 17, 2006, at Lancaster General Hospital, after a lengthy illness. He was the husband of Deborah J. (Sauder) Bohn, to whom he had been married since September 2, 1994. He was born in York on February 21, 1953, and was the son of the late Clyde R. and Margarette (Rider) Bohn. Mr. Bohn retired from Donsco Inc. in Wrightsville after 32 years, and was also a former employee of St. Anne's Nursing Home in Columbia. Besides his wife, he is survived by one son, Eric W. Bohn and wife, Jeannie of Windsor; two daughters, Daylynn Fasig and Andrea Bohn, also of Windsor; four grandchildren, Brittney Klinedinst, Nathan Lanich, Sydney Bohn, and Shelby Bohn, all of Windsor; one brother, Ronald Bohn of Windsor; and one sister, Connie Norton of Yoe. There will be no viewing. Cremation will take place with Burg Funeral Home, Inc., 134 W. Broadway, Red Lion. A memorial service will be held on Friday at 2 p.m. at the funeral home, with the Rev. James L. King, pastor of Silver Springs Baptist Church in Columbia, officiating. Contributions may be offered to the American Cancer Society, 924-N Colonial Ave., York, PA 17403.

I sure am going to miss him. He was the best father-in-law in the world.

TODAY'S FEATURED SALE ITEM AT TRU-VALU GROCERY STORE...

"Grace Cock-Flavoured Soup Mix." It says "Authentic Jamaican" down at the bottom right corner of the pack (I hate this cheap camera right about now)...so what I want to know is this: Is the fake chemical used to make it taste like chicken (hence "flavoured") actually made in Jamaica, or how does that work? It says "Spicy"..so maybe just the spicy part is "Authentic Jamaican." I hear they grow A LOT of spices in Jamaica. haha And you thought I was going to joke about the obvious. Wrong. I am more concerned about the Jamaican authenticity and the verification process on that.

I bought a few packs just for the humor factor. Hope customs doesn't take them away from me when I hit Puerto Rico on Friday. :)

...meanwhile, back in New Jersey..

Meet my new little niece, Miss Genevieve Christine Whitehead!

9 pounds 13 ounces, 23-1/2 inches, born April 7. Isn't she lovely? Ginger and Donnie, get ready for at least 18 years of hellraising. :)

Hmmm...

Still no baby pic...but I did hear Miss Genevieve cry over the phone today. :)
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CRUEL JOKES
Isn't life full of them? I was thinking today about what a cruel joke it is that some of the most beautiful men in the world are gay. Seems like every man I ever think is hot has some weird touch of gayness (okay, except for Billy Joel..but he did TOUR with a gay guy...the other love of my life. haha) Don't get me wrong, I love gay people just as much as the next person. And just for the record, I don't think Elton is hot per se, but he could sing to me..

Great example here of hot gay guy cruel joke...my all-time favorite video by GM...and even if you aren't a fan, you will still probably like it. Warning: If you are not a grown-up..or if you are a homophobe or just have a problem with straight people hooking up in public, this music video is not for you. GM did this video after his arrest for the little bathroom incident in LA several years ago. If I had to be arrested...well..Officer Michael, ARREST ME, PLEASE. :)) I have never seen someone twirly a billy club so well. ;)




Why does George Michael have to be gay? I mean, we should have recognized it back in the Wham! days, and we probably did, but we really didn't want to believe it. We were in major denial. Wake me up before you go-go, 'cause I'm not plannin' on goin' solo, wake me up before you go-go, I don't want to miss it when you HIT THAT GUY. :))
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Next time anyone asks me what I would want if I were on a desert island, I have the answer for them, because I LIVE IT EVERY DAY. OMG, less than a week and I am off the desert island. I might cry when the customs guy at the airport says, "Welcome home, ma'am." I love it when they say that.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD!

I am an aunt to a brand new baby girl....but I was so excited when I was on the phone that I am not exactly sure what they are naming her. I think it is Genevieve, but I don't know her middle name yet. Anyway, she was born April 7, 2006, at approximately 2:58 p.m....9 pounds 13 ounces, 23-1/2 inches long, and red hair. I am told she is a perfect little angel, but I am waiting on Donnie to send pics. Ginger and Genevieve are doing great. As soon as I get pictures, I will definitely get them posted here. I wish I could be there to see her right now, but I have to wait until next Saturday. Boy, this is going to be a LONG WEEK. Can't wait to get home and see my family and friends...I sure have been missing you.

Peace,

J

Happy Monday!

(Is there such a thing as a Happy Monday??). The weekend was great. Suzanne (the other instructor) and I went up to Maracas Bay and spent the night on Saturday night. I had taken some really great pics and I pulled my cheap camera out of my pocket, and the batteries fell out of it...right before we were leaving..so I lost all my good pictures. But you can see the hotel we stayed at..and a few beach pics.
















The room at the top left was our room. The view from the balcony was wonderful...too bad I lost all those darn pictures. I am still kicking myself.











Here is Suzanne, and also the hotel restaurant.
















Eric, take note....people are fishing. LOL

The pina colada was probably the best I have ever had..it was made with real, fresh coconut.

Class
My class is going great...they are a bunch of clowns. They are doing a great job, though..I am lucky to have such a great bunch of folks. Here are some of the class folks (and me) and then Melissia trying to look hot. lmao

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10 days and a wake up until I go home for a visit...woohooo!