D-Day

Or shall we say THE-Day ?
For me anyways it really was THE day. I finally met my students !
Some totally new ones ( Sec.2 ) and some very familiar ones ( Sec.4 ) whom I taught two years ago.
It really is all about the students. After days of preparation , it all boils down to them . They`re the reason you shower in the morning and leave ( in exchange of a salary I know ... ).
You work both for and with them.

The beginning of a school year is always fresh and exciting. New challenges, goals, objectives are established and it`s the beginning of the rest of the year. We are all rested , ready to tackle the world. Of course deceptions will occur but isn`t that part of the learning process ? We often tend to forget that if one can really taste and savour success , one must unfortunately taste failure to different degrees. As a teacher I will witness that . Your failures and victories. I will see you grow and surpass yourself. Not only academically but in general. I will witness your physical changes : growing a foot a month for example.

I also got to see my former students ( sniff sniff ) today. How you`ve grown this summer ! I miss you guys already. Some I will see again next year and some never since you`ll be graduating this coming June . I miss you all dearly.

On this note, I say " Later ". As days will pass we`ll get acquainted. But we`re in no rush right ? We`ve got the rest of the year ...

Annie

Blog Fight

If you`re a woman you have already noticed that my blog`s title has been changed. If you`re a man : it`s the title on top of the page. The very top . Higher.There you go...

Originally, the title was INTENSE ANNIE. Yep. Ever since I started this blog a few days ago Pierre ( hubby ) has been bugging me to change it.
As usual, I ignored him. But Pierre can be as persistent as I can be stubborn.
But why ? I would ask .
Apparently the title had a double meaning .
Hey , I`m just an English teacher, if it suggested something less appropriate, I would know !
I kept it. Was it pride? Darn right.
Besides, why fix something that isn`t broken ?
Why did I finally change it ? To shut him up.
I am less patient than I am stubborn.
So if perchance I have offended anyone, fuelled any fantasies, started any arguments within a couple, I am sorry. My intentions were pure and clean.

It is official I have changed office at work. I am no longer with Sec. 1 and 2 teachers but rather with the Sec. 4`s . I miss some of my co-workers already. You have no idea how much fun I had there last year.
I liked the routine :
Michel : Tiens si c`est pas la petite Annie "
Annie : " Merci pour l`adjectif "petite " "
And that was EVERY morning !!
Loulou`s jarS of candy on her desk. So many trips I made to her desk....
Seeing Guy on the computer and then inviting me-no YELLING at me from across the room :" Annie j`ai d` quoi à te montrer "
Who can I say " you moron " to if not to Guy ?
Julie R`s coffee she`d prepare and sometimes deliver to my classroom !!
Loulou`s great candy.
Anne-Claude`s little giggles and repeated question : " t`as manger du chocolat pour être enervé de même ? "
Loulou`s candy.
Loulou`s famous phrase : " Toé mon Bélanger "

But why did I leave you inquire ?
A change and free coffee.
Paul promised me free lattées and they are divine. He usually adds a croissant or chocolatine with that.
Yes I am that easy.

To my pals in Sec.1 and 2 : I`ll miss ya but having a sweet tooth you`ll see me around to grab a few pieces of candy from Loulou`s candy jars. Thanks for making last year a great one!!

I cannot wait for the kids to come in. Can`t wait to meet them. Can`t wait to see my Sec.4 too.
Once they start, stuff will get interesting around here.

I GOT NEW SCHOOL BOOKS!!!
The biography of my favorite author : S.E Hinton . My kids in Sec. 4 will get to know her very well in September. She writes literature for young adults.
Other literature books I will need in Sec.4.
Guess what I`ll be doing this weekend ?

To Caro- Caroline : good job !
She has had one heck of a week and has been nicotine-free for the last 2 weeks !!!

To Frank : They are real and they are spectacular !!
Love you Frank xx

As the Brits say : Tata for now.
Intense Annie ;)

All Is Well

Reality ( after weeks of slacking and R & R ) quickly bit me in the butt today.
Filou , Rosie and I took off for the hospital in Trois-Rivieres early this morning and everything went smoothly. ``Look mom, a new cast ! Can I go play outside now ? `` I don`t think so, at least not today ``.
Because I own a daughter with a cast who require TLC ( tender loving care ), I must be extremely brief tonight.
I `ll be back with a vengeance tomorrow...

Annie
Head Nurse of the Bergeron household.

PS : the nurses are great in Trois-Rivieres too.
Nurses rock man !!

ON THE FIRST DAY

Was I happy to go back to school today ?



To be honest : nnnyes.



Let`s face it after so many days off and crappy weather,5-6 pounds heavier, it was time to go back in the real world.

All your friends go back to work so you`re stuck cleaning up the house because at this point , there`s not much else left to do.

But if my kids weren`t so darn cute ( here she goes again- I do have a point here. ) , nice, cuddly, funny , this mother would have no difficulty running back to work.

BUT I am not complaining nor whining since I spent 2 great months with them 24/7. Great kids are like fine chocolates : they`re addictive. And to think I used to NOT want any kids 10 years ago, I wanted a career! Thank God I came to my senses.



The only motivation to come in this morning essentially was the free coffee and cookies. Really glad though to see my co-workers all nice, tanned and relaxed .

My husband Pierre takes off right after dinner and Murphy`s law kicks in : when daddy`s away, things go astray.
Rosie is my athletic one and at times, a tomboy. She takes fun seriously. And what seemed like a typical fall turned out to be a free evening at the emergency room with free cable : La poule aux Oeufs d `Or and other crappy shows intended to entertain you while your kid is crying because she`s in pain and the other one wants to try every beverage and snacks displayed in the vending machines. Free medical care ?! I think not, it cost me 10.00$ worth of junk food to keep them busy . Felix likes to read wrapping labels. Ask him the percentage of potassium and calcium or the number of calories in an Activia strawberry yogourt and this little guy can give you a correct answer. This boy knows the recipe to Heinz ketchup. And if you really want to have a laugh : ask him to read the ingredients on a jar of Cheez Whiz. Hilarious !!

Anyway, I`m drifting. 3 and a half hours later , you guessed it : a broken left wrist. BUT that is not all. You get a free trip to see the orthopedist to get a free cast. Except it`s in Trois-Rivieres . That`s tomorrow morning. If you want to splurge, you can pay an extra 10 dollars to get it in fiberglass. I`ll have one of those since Rosie is going to have it for 4 to 6 weeks and bathing and showering are important in this household.

I do want to mention that the nurses at Christ -Roi hospital in Nicolet are simply fantastic ! Ihave a full-time membership there ( comes free when you give birth ) and NEVER have I not have great care with a genuine smile !! The nurse even showed me Rosie`s x-ray and played a game of : Bet You Can`t see the Break ? I couldn`t and that`s why he`s the nurse and I teach. What a nice gentleman.Later, one of the nurses had to go somewhere with Rosie`s x-rays and asked Félix Antoine to tag along to `help her out `. Bless you nurse of the night whose name I don`t know ! Lovely lovely people. Love you guys.

Sooo , it`s midnight and my husband still doesn`t have a clue about his princess. I am so getting a free night of dishes after tonight .
If you don`t here from me tomorrow night , it`s because I `m still at the hospital in Trois-Rivieres, put my face on the milk carton....

What`s odd is that my brown labrador has a limp on her left front paw ( a rock while playing outside ) and Rosie broke her left wrist. I knew these two had a special connection but this is ridiculous.

I`ll keep you posted.
Annie

Here We Go !

Hi everyone,
Welcome to my blog. Never in a million dreams would I have thought of starting my own blog.
But it was so easy, too easy and I `m afraid I could really get addicted to this..... Annie`s found a new way to communicate !!

There are 3 reasons I started this blog :

1- Find a new way to communicate with my students ( A big howdee to my sec. 2 and 4 students in the Intensive English ( hence the title of this blog ) Program at Ecole Secondaire Jean Nicolet in Nicolet) family and friends.

2- I have just read my pal`s blog ( Duff ) for the first time. He`s in the Persian Gulf ( NO HE IS NOT A SOLDIER ) and it just blew me away. How interesting, how practical, useful ( I need my Thesorus dictionary right now )anyway, you get the point. I HAD to have my own.

3- Well it was just too darn easy to get this blog started. I just let my fingers do the talking and VOILÀ !

Why in English you say ?
Because life is too darn short and English is so much easier for me. Besides, my students need to read various English reading material and this an other one.

Why Now ?
Because tomorrow is the first day of the rest of my life....Soooooo cliché I know. Seriously, tomorrow is the first school day of the year ( us teachers that is ). And a new year rhymes with a new challenge : professional and personal . This is my professional one . Besides, I need an excuse for not doing the dishes once in a while.....This will do the trick.

So before I sign off, I just want to say a big HELLO to my pal Duff ( Alain Dufresne ). Love your blog, keep it up .

Your intense Intensive English teacher or just Annie if you`re over 18.