The first week of teaching has finished and as you read this I’m gearing up for another one. After weeks, no months, of not being in front of a classroom, the first weeks of a school year are always the toughest. Add to that that I’m committing again to making better and healthier food choices, trying to pick up my old work out schedule and am about to graduate in a few weeks and life is just a little crazy right now. Crazy, but good crazy.
Source: weheartit.com
The first week of teaching went great. It was tiring though. I am currently teaching 22,5 hours a week and they’ve somehow managed to cram all but one 50 minute session into 3 days. So that takes some getting used to, as I’m making 2 days filled with teaching from 8.30 till 17.00 with just a lunch break to catch my breath almost halfway through the afternoon. Also, the first semester is always the toughest: class sizes are through the roof with 30 – 35 students in each class and I somehow have to try and learn all their names in the next few weeks. A few of the courses I’m teaching are also brand new for me so I’m still figuring things out as I go along. With all that said though, it’s great to be in front of a classroom again. It beats grading by a mile.
Another thing that started again this week is dance class. They announced the new schedule in early August and I saw that one of my old dance teachers would come back to teach a new jazz class right before the one I have been taking for years. So I’ve decided to add that to my work out list. For now, I will have to skip Tuesday night at the gym as I will need my energy for my Wednesday dance night from now on: 2.5 hours of dancing is great, but also tiring. On Thursday my entire body ached as I hadn’t danced in almost 2 months.
Food wise I’ve been cheating a bit. I wanted to start a no sugar unless it’s a fruit or vegetable routine as of September but that simply turned out to not be feasible. I think I will first have to get used to my work and work out routine before I can start dabbling with my diet. I’m hoping to be used to it all by the end of September though, so I’ve now decided to simply start when I feel ready. Not at a specific date, but just when I feel good and not so tired all the time.
Last but not least, I now have a date for my graduation ceremony. As of September 20th I will officially have obtained a Research Master (or MPhil) in Language and Communication. Before that though, I still have to prepare a 15 – 20 minute presentation and then it will all be over. Three years of blood, sweat and tears will hopefully bear its fruit. I am not yet sure what I want to do next though. I started the program wanting to use it to give myself opportunities besides teaching and education. So once I’ve got my head wrapped around this semester and all my regular goings on, I will take some time to rethink my life and where I’m heading to.
But for now, I’m just going to focus on the here and now. First getting back into a routine, then my graduation, and then, hopefully come fall break, treat myself with a trip to London. I’ll see what life throws at me next.