Oh, How I have missed thee.

Watching: Enchanted. This movie exceeded my expectations and then some. I've been singing the songs all day, everyday, much to Mark's dismay.
Listening: New Death Cab. They're my fave, always will be.
Obsessing:Lesson Plans. The only thing swimming around in my mind. Grapes of Wrath... Grapes of Wrath.... GRAPES OF WRATH!!!
Reading: I'll give you a clue: It rhymes with Grapes of Wrath.
Waiting: Nothing really, I don't have any time to wait for anything.

Oh my friends, how I have missed writing to thee. Informing thee of my day, or relaying any funny anecdotes.

Okay, I'm done. I can't spend a whole blog writing like that.

So, for those of you that do not know. I no longer work at the travel agency(praise God, for He really does turn your sorrow into joy) and now work as a substitute High School English teacher. Last week, was my first week shadowing the previous teacher. I really love it so far, but I haven't taught on my own yet, so we'll see. I really love all the students in my classes. Some may be eccentric, but that's what makes it exciting. They're all so very different and unique in all their own ways and it's quite exciting to see what the coming weeks will be like.

A few weekends ago I went home for my mom's surprise birthday party. It turned out great and she really was surprised. So many people showed up to support her. Anyway, so at this party I'm making the rounds saying, "Hello," playing the role of dutiful daughter. As I'm doing this, a pattern seemed to emerge and most, if not all the conversations went something like this:

Me: Hello, Tita/Uncle!(For Filipino's it is customary to address any of your elder's as Tita, which means Auntie or Uncle which is self-explanatory.)
Person: Oh, Noelle! Congratulations!
Me:Thank you??(I say a bit befuddled. Congratulations on what? on the party? on the trip? am I pregnant and I don't know it?)
Person: On your NEW PROFESSION!
Me: Oh....( Then it dawns on me and makes sense.)
Person: So.. (and then they continue on some long tangent about how their daughter is in medical school, or their son is still single and looking for someone, or how I should wait til I'm 30 to have kids. You know, the typical Filipino stuff.)

My mom really is the proto-typical mother. She told everyone and not just random people, but EVERYONE that I was going to teach, but of course she left out the temporary bit. It's okay. I understand, she's proud of me and wants to brag. I just thought it was funny, because everyone at this party of 100 people were congratulating me. I had no one to break the news to, they all knew. Le sigh.

New Death Cab!!

I've been super busy with school and all, but good news! Follow the link for the new Death Cab for Cutie single!

It's very different from what they normally do, but it's still really quite good. It's been described as "more lunar" maybe a little Radiohead-esque? I don't know that's what I thought of, when I heard it.

Five reasons why I love....

It's been a while since I've done one of these. Maybe a few months. Anyway, I'm on my second to last day at work. I'm Grapes of Wrath'ed out. I've read every blog I check daily and its super slow at work.

Anyway, so the topic of today's Five Reasons is....

Edward Norton.


1. Fight Club. Do I really need to elaborate? Okay, maybe I will. I stumbled upon this movie late at night, when I was alone. Not really the best movie to watch when you're alone, but this movie is so good it's hard not to watch. This is one of those few guy movies that I could watch over and over and over.

2. He's underrated and often flies under the radar. I really do feel that the guy always falls under the radar. Sort of plays second fiddle to his co-stars. ie. Orlando Bloom, Brad Pitt, Robin Williams, Ben Stiller. Also, you don't read about him in the news and honestly, I like an actor who stays grounded.

3. His voice is cool. I like the way he talks. Something about it. The lip movement, the intonation, the pronunciation. I just like the way he sounds.

4. He's highly intelligent. He graduated from Yale with a degree in History. Come on. Most actors don't care about that, it's good to know there are still some intelligent people in film.

5. He's redeeming the Hulk. After the atrocity that is Ang Lee's Hulk. Norton is re-inventing it and re-working it. He's heavily involved in the writing and creative process. It's gonna be sweet and the cast is amazing, Tim Roth and Liv Tyler?? Hot.

Check out the trailer!

monotony of life.

There are times when I live for monotony; I would kill for it. But most times, I abhor it. I'm in the loathing phase at the current moment. I want life to step away from the mediocre and mundane and burst through to the exhilarating experiences I have yet to explore.

Creative people strive off of other creative people and I'm lacking that in my life. I need more creative and innovative influences. Hmm maybe a change of scenery might do?

Ikea

Watching:Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium. People said this movie sucked. I really shouldn't listen to people. They often lie and their opinions never match my own. This movie was amazing. I love Natalie and Jason Bateman. In my opnion, those two can do no wrong.
Waiting:March 17. With excited anticipation. It's gonna be a good day.
ReadingGrapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. So far, this book is really exceeding my expectations, but Lo said I still have a lot more to read. So, does that mean my opinion will change? Most likely.
Listening:Mika. He's like a cute floppy haired reincarnation of Freddy Mercury. I saw him on the Brit Awards last night and he's just so adorable.
Obsessing:Take a wild guess.... I'll give you a clue. His name sounds like James McAvoy.

We went to Ikea this past Saturday with Lo and Ry, two of my fave people in the entire world (that's right. I said it). I've never been to an actually real live Ikea. Many people think after visiting my house that it's an Ikea house, but no, not a single item in my house is from Ikea.

Anyway, my thoughts on Ikea are best stated through list form, since it is my last Monday at work and I really should be working.

1. Ikea is a very smart store: They have a place for kids to play, they have everything set up so that you can see what it would look like in an actual room. They know how to make the big bucks.

2. Ikea's cafeteria felt like Disney World: When I was a kid and we went to Disney world, anytime we would eat I would feel so anxious. I would eat so fast, only so that I could go on more rides and that was the exact feeling I had. I wanted to look at more STUFF!

3. Walking around Ikea felt like I was at Disney World: I know I stated this before, but that was to describe a feeling. This is meant to describe the surroundings. Ry and I noticed that about 70% of the people didn't speak English. But it wasn't just Spanish, it was like French, Russian, Chinese, every language under the sun. I really felt like I was on vacay again.

4. Ikea is affordable: I want everything in Ikea and I could probably buy everthing if I really wanted to. Point blank.

Getting prepared...

So many things are going on at once. It's a bit hectic and crazy. My mom's 60 birthday is next weekend. I can't believe my mother is 60. She's the most beautiful and amazing woman I know, she's also the funniest. So, we're going home to see her, then that friday I leave is my last day at work, but not really my last day because I'm going to work over Spring Break. I need that extra cash flow, yo. I'm also looking for summer work, if anyone has any ideas let me know. Hopefully, if all works out, I'll be teaching somewhere in the Fall. I don't really mind where it is, as long as it's teaching.

Somehow all the kids at school found out I'm taking over for Rita. I forgot how fast things can spread. It's gonna be interesting, but I'm still super psyched. I've been reading Grapes of Wrath in preparation. I forgot how amazing John Steinbeck is. I'm so caught up in all the British Literature that I forget there are still a few "Great American Authors." I'm not bias, I just really love British literature, be it jovial or dark I love it all. Maybe I am a bit bias, oh well.

I don't have very many funny stories lately, I've become a sort of hermit. I'm trying to savor all the free time that I have now, because in two weeks, it's gonna be completely different. I'm sure when I come back from Tampa, I'll have tons to jibber jabber on and on about.

Ch-CH-Changes....

So, as I stated before I put in my two weeks,I'm really excited. I wasn't before. I didn't allow myself to be excited. It was kind of a wait to see if you get this job, so that you don't dissapoint yourself. I've been like that for all the jobs I applied for. I didn't want to get excited about something and then it fall through and everything about this job looked that way. It just didn't seem like it was meant for me, but God proved me wrong. It really is so crazy. For the first time in my life, I truly and utterly left everything in God's hands. I didn't try to manipulate or control, I didn't even stress out and most of you know I can do that sometimes.
Something happened to me last month, something amazing. God took away all my anxiety and stress when it came to finding a new job and even now, its only temporary and I know that He has something lined up for after. All the devo's and the teachings I've heard recently feel as though they are meant for me specifically. In my devo's in Jeremiah, I read that God will turn my sorrow into joy, and this has been my mantra for the past 4 weeks. Over and over I repeat in my mind, He will turn my sorrow into joy and believe me, He has. Also, Pastor Fidel taught 2 studies about being in the eye of the storm, that even when things still seem hopeless, there is an end and you won't be in the storm forever. God sees everything and he can see the end of all your trials. He knows I you must go through this to get where He wants me. He's putting me through this right now, but it's because He's doing a work in me, to make me trust in Him alone and to prepare me for His plan. Most times, I felt so helpless, so defeated but man, after hearing that how can you not feel hopeful? Ah, it's an amazing thing.

I put in my notice yesterday...

It was both scary and exciting at the same time. I'm putting complete trust and faith in God, and I'm ready for the next stage of my life.

I might have more time on my hands, so either you'll be seeing me more or you won't because I'll be writing so much. I hope it's the latter.