Almost the End

This semester went so quickly, at least for me. I want to tell all of you that I enjoyed reading your blogs. I found out a lot of interesting things about each of you. I hope you enjoyed writing on your blog and reading your classmates' posts. If not, I at least hope you felt the blogs helped you with your writing.

I wish each of you the best of luck this week and as you begin the next chapter of your lives!

College

I've been thinking a lot about college these days. For one thing, my daughter will graduate from college in around 3 weeks. She is so sad about leaving school. I don't blame her. I felt the same way when I had to graduate. I've also been thinking about college a lot because of my hope that all of you get the opportunity to start college very soon. It's exciting to think of all of you leaving LINCC and beginning what may be one of the most enjoyable and meaningful parts of your lives.

Times Square Scare

Did you hear about the car that was found in Times Square in Manhattan last night? It seemed to contain a bomb or the material to make a bomb. All of mid-town Manhattan was off-limits for hours as a result. Luckily, no one was hurt, but it's very scary. I love going to the Times Square area, and I don't want to feel nervous. I guess this kind of thing can happen now anywhere and at any time, and we can't live our lives worrying that it will happen at any particular time or place.

What do you think?

Did you hear about the proposed law in Arizona about illegal immigrants? Arizona, a state in the southwestern part of the USA, may soon have a law that says police officers must stop and question people they think could be illegal immigrants. If they find that they are illegal, they will arrest them. The question many people have is: How can you tell by looking at someone whether he is an immigrant and whether or not he is illegal? I find this law distressing. What do you think?

Do I Need a Doctor's Note?

Hi, everyone. I'm so sorry that I missed class today. I would have come to class if I possibly could have. I hope you understand.

My father called me at 5 a.m. to tell me that my almost 85-year-old mother had fallen out of bed and couldn't move. She was rushed to the emergency room, and I really had to help my father deal with the doctors, etc. for the rest of the day. The doctors admitted her to the hospital, but she seems like she'll be fine. It's frustrating, though, because she had already been in the hospital Monday and Tuesday nights, and they let her out on Wednesday.

I hope the lab and the class with Barby went well. Feel free to write a comment or an email to tell me what you did and if you have any questions about class, homework, or anything else.

Enjoy your weekend. I'll see you on Monday.

Tragedy in Europe

Did you hear about what happened to the government of Poland this weekend? Many of the top officials, including the President, were on their way to Russia. They were going there to have a ceremony honoring Polish people killed by the Russians in the past. It was a way, I guess, for the Russian people to apologize for past mistakes. The plane that all the officials were flying on crashed, and everyone died. Early reports are saying the pilot of the plane did not listen to the air traffic controllers who told him not to land the plane.

Almost the entire leadership of Poland was destroyed by this one crash. I think it will take a long time for Poland to recover from such a big loss. In the United States, I don't think the government allows a lot of government officials to travel together on the same plane. I guess now we see why this is so important.

Computer Lab

Hi, everyone.

I totally forgot to remind all of you that we have lab tomorrow at 8 a.m. Please go right to the lab. I'll meet you there. We'll finish the movie afterwards.

Fresh Air

I hope all of you got to take advantage of the beautiful weather today or the last couple of days. I wasn't really out much on Thursday or Friday, but today my husband and I walked across the Queensborough Bridge from Queens to Manhattan. Then we walked across town to Central Park. It was so crowded in the park that it was hard to walk around. There were a million adorable dogs and babies and some good street performers and some bad ones. It really felt like spring! Happy Easter to those who celebrate the holiday! See you on Monday.

My Trip to Boston

Hi, everyone. I hope you're enjoying your vacation so far. How was your class on Friday with Barby? I'm sure it was fine, but I do apologize for having to leave you, especially during our first week together. It was bad timing.

I did enjoy my conference, though. I spent 2 days going to many different seminars about new ideas in teaching ESL. It all made me think a lot about teaching. Hopefully, you guys will benefit from some of the knowledge I gained.

Now that I'm home, I'll try to comment on your blogs much more frequently. I enjoyed reading all of them when I returned tonight! Keep those blogs coming, and enjoy your vacation!

Stress

I picked a perfect week to begin a unit on stress. I am experiencing so much stress my self this week! At the end of the week, I have to go to Boston to an ESL teacher's convention. Before I go, I have to get a lot of work done for class and home. Two days after I return, I will have a lot of guests over for an important Jewish holiday, Passover. I have to cook special food and clean my house thoroughly. Since I'll be away right before then, I feel very stressed. To make matters worse, my Internet and printer have been experiencing problems over the last couple of days, so I can't even do my school work easily at home. At least there haven't been any bad traffic jams. Otherwise, I might be punching someone like in that cartoon we looked at today! Anyway, I hope the rest of you are having a calmer week.

WELCOME

Welcome to my blog, everyone. I'm excited to begin reading your postings and to get to know all of you better. I hope that you will use your blog to express your ideas and tell us about yourself. I also hope you will read your classmates' blogs and leave comments. The blog experience is only as fun and worthwhile as you make it. Let's make it the best class blog ever!