A new year, a new post with happy moments. I decided to do one again now that the new year has properly kicked off. December and January flew by as they are some of the busiest months of year if you work in education with it being the end of a semester and all that. But I also did lots of fun things too and so these the things that made me happy these past few weeks.
Puzzles & Shoes
I found myself a new hobby! I did a puzzle over Christmas break and I loved it so much! I bought it for €2 or €3 from my local drugstore and it was such a great way to unwind and relax. Not something I can do when I am work because I would have nowhere to put the puzzle when it’s not finished, but it was great to be able to sit down and hour or so everyday and listen to Christmas music while putting it together.
Shoes are a longstanding love of mine and I have very many as a result. Not all of them get worn all the time, because some of them, like these velvet blue ones with silver stars on them, are ehm let’s say too much of a statement. But I like a bold statement shoe from time to time. I wore these to a work Christmas party organized by students and the next day I wore a pair of glitter boots to my office Christmas party.
When it comes to shoes I sort of keep a running wishlist of what I would like to own. Currently for instance I would still like to own a pair of brown suede knee high boots or just any sort of brown knee high boots to begin with. For the time being I decided to take this of my wishlist: a pair of Dr. Marten’s in the Emmeline style. I had been eyeing these up for 2 years and I finally bit the bullet. Now all I need to do is break them in!
More Food
Now that the Holidays are over, I am certainly back on trying to cook more again. I made a gnocchi ovenbake the other day and last week I tried my hand at some traditional Dutch grub for a change. I don’t normally eat this kind of stuff as I had it too much growing up (thanks mom!), but sometimes I crave a good potato and kale mash in the winter time. It sounds healthier than it is trust me there is more butter in that mash than I care to admit.
More Concerts
I had to add some concerts again of course. I went to see the next installment of the Harry Potter concert series. This time we saw and heard Order of the Phoenix. It is great and if something like this comes your way deffo check it out. Me and my friends also participated in a Harry Potter quiz a few weeks before this concert and we came in third… Yup fan right here!
My most recent concert was a super cool double act. With Circa Waves in the support and Two Door Cinema Club as the main event, last Sunday was amazeballs. I hadn’t seen TDCC in years and I loved all the tracks live. I think I saw Circa Waves a few years ago at a festival and they were just a lot of fun to listen to as well. I got some more tickets for upcoming shows in the next few weeks and I also bought myself a ticket to Best Kept Secret again as they announced their final headliner: The Strokes.
Slowbal
Photo by: Julia Khadasevich
You may know I took up swing dancing when I moved to Rotterdam 2 years ago. What you may not know is that I switched to Slowbal last September. I have been dancing for most of my life, but never partner dances, so this was a welcome change and I have been loving the Rotterdam swing scene. But last year, two teachers started their own Slowbal school to promote this now nearly dead 1930s swing dance to the masses. I joined as I wanted to try something new and I’ve been loving every minute of it. I also have tickets to two swing events in the next few months so I know I’ll get my swing on in 2020 as well.
Grading
Yup, a work related event on my blog and socials. I never really post about work as I like to keep those things separate, but I realized yesterday how much grading I have yet to do (and that is without considering the amount of grading and feedback I already worked my way through in the past 2 months). While it can be exhausting (I did 25 assignments yesterday and was absolutely pooped), it is also great to see when your students just get it and see them grow. That is ultimately why you become a teacher so to see that pay off is always a happy moment for me.