End of the chapter

 It has been on  my mind for a while that I should leave my job and start work on my bucket list, truth be told I should have left a couple of years ago but circumstances dictated that I stay on and continue to earn a crust to support Al and make sure we were financially stable. Even though not one of the designer sunglasses wearing, German car driving genre I have had a good year, done a lot of work and was satisfied that it was time to move on...........

It was touching the last lesson at school, one of my Y10 classes who walked up in a line to sheepishly pass cards and gifts and a card from a girl I hadnt taught for a couple of years which made me cry. I am not sure half of those listening to my speech who were recruited in the last 3 years had the faintest idea who I was but I said my piece, collected my bag and closed the chapter.


Quite by chance a job came up at another school not too far away and I got it, its a similar sort of school but with smaller classes, more prep time and a 6th form tutor group, given the advantages it would be rude to grumble about having to buy your own planner and no free food on TD days!

 I have been going into the new school on some of my days off for a few weeks before the end of term so I can hit the ground running in September, its a nice place with a good sense of fun so it will do me good to get a different perspective on teaching, having said that I will probably be in tears at the end of the first day!

Fifty Shades of What?

A few years ago, encouraged by some giggling year 11 girls, I read THAT BOOK  (and the sequel I confess).
I also have to confess that having been to Seattle and the area in the book, it was a pretty poor depiction of the area, I found myself skipping over the emails and sex in the book looking for the plot!


Anyway... Seattle
Struggling to find somewhere acceptable to Al as well I decided on Washington State as he hasnt been there, Last time I went with Dunc and we camped and slept in a tent or the car... Al doesnt do camping so its cheapo hotels this time.
 Alaska is tantalisingly close only 3 hours flying from Seattle but still prohibitively expensive (and too late now as well) to book a flight. I am not sure if Alaska would turn out to be Al's thing, I dont know if its a bit rough and ready for him.

Arizona Trip

 The round trip from Dublin has become a bit routine.... broken only by gin or champagne , I made it down to Heathrow before the second wave of storm Katie hit and in a brief sunny spell, I amused myself by taking photos of planes taking off through the rainbow .

The plane to Phoenix seemed oddly familiar, the same version of 757 I had flown from Brussels to Philadelphia in a couple of years ago. whilst I object to crossing the Atlantic in one, a 5hr crosscountry flight isn't newsworthy. Apart from what must have been the rudest flight ttendant on the planet that is!!

Frank Lloyd Wright
Think Frank Lloyd Wright and you think designs for stained glass, textiles architecture and all a bit Rennie Mackintosh , well thats what I thought I was in for .... this was a tour of his winter residence in Arizona, which is now actually an Architectural college so nothing like I was expecting, still the history was interesting, the construction method "interesting" and a nice sunny day so it wasnt all bad after all.

I have had a couple of ideas for the garden so it wasnt a wasted trip!!

Apparently his wife who was 30 years younger than him had some of the place remodelled after his death, poor woman she was probably fed up with rock and concrete walls with no decoration and wanted a door she could actually shut ......


My little cactii including the ones I "inherited " from Nods house have a bit of growing up to do ..... I took them some photos to remind them of home!!

Remote

The place I was staying at was very beautiful but very remote, no phone, tv or internet signal so it was make-your-own-entertainment time. Watching hummingbirds in the cactus garden and trying to capture one on camera was plenty of entertainment, eventually I caught one or two but the bright pink breasted one evaded me!

Biosphere

Tombstone

Oops........another plane museum  

The cactus botanical garden... day and night

you got a ticket to go back after dark to see the exhibition