No one said this would be easy...

The end of this week has been an epic struggle.

I feel like setback after setback has occurred and I haven't been able to really do a lot about it.  I received a key to my room roughly a week after I got here, which means that week was literally squandered.  When I received that key on Monday, I was told we couldn't log into a computer till Thursday.  When I asked if I could get online via the wireless network, I was told the wireless network wasn't set up for me yet and I would have to wait.  When I got my computer up and running--by myself without any help--on Friday, I did not have access to my gradebook.  I still don't really have access to my gradebook, but have access through the teacher's username that I'm here for while she is gone on maternity leave, which brings around a whole plethora of more issues.

I still have no internet at my house and am stealing it from someone that has labeled it "home" somewhere around me.  The signal is super weak and works about 50 percent of the time.  It works well enough to skype about 5 percent of the time.  After being told when I got here I couldn't get internet at my apartment because it required a 12 month contract, I started e-mailing the teacher about possibly splitting it, and I wanted to get a plan that would work for her.  After a weeklong struggle with that, I finally got the okay, only to find out I can't get that kind of internet because they don't have service where I live.  I am yet again wondering if I will just need to adjust to "normal" internet service meaning I will have to call people back five times per every ten-minute-long skype conversation.

We visited a really nice hotel with a gym, an awesome pool, a spa, and weekly classes that go along with it.  It's month-to-month and super cheap at only 25 dollars a month.  However, the initiation fee is somewhere between $150-$175.  It would essentially be about 65 bucks a month for the four months.  Maybe I should do it though, just so I have something to do.  It would be better than sitting at home twiddling my thumbs three weekends a month.

On the bright side, I went to Ikea today (had some swedish meatballs, too) and managed to get out with spending just under $200.  I bought some real pillows, a blanket for my bed, some hand towels, and a bowl to wash my produce in since it's not safe to eat unless I wash it with an anti-bacterial water purifier.

I'm excited to actually have a lot of prep time next week in my classroom.  I'll be able to pump out my yearlong curriculum plan and start getting unit plans and lesson plans going as well.  The beginning of a schoolyear when working with complete new sets of curricula for both preps is quite complex.

I miss my home.  I do miss Seattle and all of my friends, too, but my home has morphed throughout this last year from being a place and a set of people to a person.  Every day that passes is another day closer to being able to be home again.  If you're interested in how to support me right now, prayer always helps.