Employee Day on a Tiki Boat

'n Werksdag op 'n boot buite Miami met 'n kelkie in die hand, wyl die samba-dromme sing.

Foto: Die Afrikaanse Ontwikkelingsbeampte met die Kansellier en haar span.



Amerikaners doen alles uitspattig, volgens Afrika-standaarde beoordeel. Voeg daarby 'n stewige dosis Latino-kultuur-element en jy het 'n sukses-resep vir 'n tamaai werks-partytjie.

Ons jaarlikse Werknemer-Dag is vanjaar op 'n Tiki boot gehou - in hierdie geval meerendeels 'n drywende tropiese eiland, om die beskrywing nou nederig te hou.

Skaamteloos is daar eiland-kroee, 'n buffet ete, Bali-styl sofas en rusbanke, 'n "live" eiland-band en les bes, see-sand en kamma-gras.

Die kaptein het rondom die stad en die beroemde Suid Strand gevaar, en ons met skemer afgelaai by 'n bekende winkelsentrum.

Weens my dissertasie-voordrag die volgende oggend en my vlug die aand daarna, moes ek die gedans, gewuifery en gesellige atmosfeer met 'n kalmerende bedeesdheid benader. :-(

Die Samba-wurm loop op die Tiki-boot!

The Incredible Lightness of Just Being

This has been way too long a Blog-silence - the past 2 weeks.

On Saturday I completed the last requirements for my MBA, defending my thesis in front of a panel of judges. Driving to a dinner with Sarah and some classmates, it felt like emerging from a long period underground, from a cave-like existence back into the light. And light as a feather!

Sarah though, started her Masters a couple of weeks ago and I think the brutality of studying AND working full-time has hit her. Her course is very intense and although it seems less problem solving-oriented as my business course was, there is more academics in the true sense of the word involved. If that makes any sense...

We spend the weekend at good friends' place at the beach. Vegg is too active a word to describe my state of being Saturday and Sunday! Will miss the sun, sand and surf as I travel to African Winter tomorrow to spend a few weeks with my family in Cape Town, 3 years since I stepped on African soil.

Te lank gelede, seg ek.

Sien uit om die vele nuwe aanwinste tot die vele jong gesinne van my vriende te ontmoet!

This week's thoughts on teaching

We have less that 7 wks of school and the days are going by faster than I can count. This has been a challenging year, one in which I have grown in classroom management skills. I sure hope that my next year's students are slightly less rambunctious. I received a letter in the mail last week stating that I am no longer a "highly qualified teacher" since I am not ESOL endorsed. (In 2001 they came up with the idea of imbedding ESOL into the core teaching curriculum, before that it was a minor that you could take as an option- whoa to all of us who graduated before 2001!) I couldn't help but laugh at that. Not only due standards vary from state to state, even within the state, counties can't decide what counts as a "highly qualified teacher"- only a select few counties state that it's mandatory to have ESOL certification. To make the matters more hysterical, classes offering this certification are offered on an irregular basis. I called our county office of professional development to complain and was told "We recognize that this is mandatory and that there are more teachers that need this certification that the number of classes offered. However, we only offer 1 section of each class with 25 spots every 3-6 months. It's not our problem." So, I need to take 7 classes, and only 1 has been offered this year.

Add this to the fact that our budgets have been cut, I'm suppling my own paper towels and soap in my classroom, offering extra credit to anyone who will bring in copy paper (I was given 1 ream = 500 sheets of paper in January to last until June!), they want to raise our health care costs, freeze what little salary increase they're considering giving us, is it any wonder why we have such a shortage of teachers in our area?

In light of being told I was a "highly unqualified teacher" I have to look at my ESOL 2 student who is thriving in my LA/ reading class. He currently has a B in both subject areas and is keeping pace with the rest with our 6th grade level reading novel (he reads independently on a 2nd grade level.) Does this mean he understands all that we are talking about? No. Does he understand the similes, metaphors, foreshadowings, etc that we discuss, not always. But, with some tweaking, working one on one, he is successful. He is actively participating and volunteering, the class claps and cheers for him each time he correctly diagrams his sentences, and he loves to read out loud. When I look at him, I can't help but think, that's not to bad for being "highly unqualified"!

'n Korte Bouwer-Reunie

My boet Tian het Sondag aan wal gestap vir 'n weeklange werks- verwante besoek. Ons het hom 15 mnde terug laas gesien en voel bevooreg om hierdie onverwagse pasella te kry.

Intussen duur die soektog vir
'n nuwe blyplek voort. Gister, smaak dit my, het ons nog 20 pleke gaan besigtig!

Saartjie het 8 weke skool oor hierdie kwartaal, en begin vlge week met haar Internasionale Studies. Ek handig oor 2 weke my dissertasie in, lewer my finale projek voor 'n paneel op Saterdag, 3 Mei, en neig Kaap toe 3 dae later.
Min dae!

Weekend Bliss

The ingredients for short-term bliss, for a feeling of instant gratification and relaxation is firstly being outside of Miami, being on a beautiful, quiet, beach, sun, sand, turquoise water, and time!
We spend the weekend in Fort Lauderdale at friends - on the beach - and all was good.

Last Class!

Changes

I love change...at least I used to. Change is something that is inevitable. However, I am way more open to change when it's a complete new, like ending a new book and starting new one. Today however, that did not happen. Instead, it's like a commercial break occurred and the program will be resuming shortly. In short..... we turned in our letter of intent of moving. Where to? I don't know and wouldn't even mind if we were moving from Florida, but we're not. This might not seem like anything big, but to me it's huge! Miami is so flipping expensive that I'm stressing that I'll end up living in a postage stamp like house paying an extortionist rate as we look for a closer place to work.

The problem is I work in the Gables, an extremely expensive area. Anything decent is going to run you $1500 and up. Yet, I'm so tired of driving an hour to work each way for a whopping 11 miles. If we lived closer, then not only would I save on time, but gas, wear and tear, etc as well. Not only that, Marco works north-west and by moving, he'll also be slightly closer.

What's frustrating about this whole thing is we have to give a 60 day notice before moving out. So, as we're looking, the places that we're looking at are not the ones that we'll be moving into- no one is willing to hold an apartment for 2 months. We did ask for a grace period and could we give a 45 day notice of the intent to move out (giving us a little more time to see our options and make a final decision of whether we should do this). Without even a thought our management gave a resounding no- if you want the apartment, you'll have to reapply for it. Never mind that we've lived here 3 years, have always paid our rent early, have made no disturbances ( unlike our neighbors with 3 arrests taking place in this last lease alone!), don't have kids who are selling/ doing drugs in the gym, and pretty much keep to ourselves....

There's just an uncertainty to the whole thing that makes me go, yuck!

An Ad from the Not-So-Distant Past

Washington DC pt 3- Rememberance

Once of the things I loved was the memorials to our heros.  Each monument was one that made me reflect on truly what our country was founded on and that what I enjoy today came at a price.  I stood at the Jefferson Memorial and read Jefferson's words, the words that were to shape our country...

"We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal. That they are  endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights... and for the support of this declaration... we mutually pledge our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor."

As we walked through the various memorials, I came upon a large flag made up of bronze stars representing the soldiers who sacrificed during WWII.  I was reminded of a quote that I had challenged my students with, "The dead pay the price for the living."  That which I enjoy today came because someone was willing to pledge their life so that I could have a better one.

         

DC pt 2- A Walk Through History

We spent quite a bit of time in the National Archives, partly to get away from the cold and partly because we're both history lovers.   I just finished a 9 wk study on the Revolutionary War and am currently teaching US government in my SS class.  Seeing these documents that are the foundations to the freedoms that we enjoy today, was very inspiring.  As I stood there and looked, I wondered if our forefathers know that over 250 years later, the words that they penned would still hold such value and importance.

Left- The Magna Carta

Right- 

The Declaration of 

Independence

Cherry Blossom Festival

Upon our arrival in DC, Brandon met us at the airport and gave us a quick tour of Alexandria, VA, a suburb outside of the city while we waited for Heather to get ready. :) Seeing Heather was awesome. We've been friends since I was 16 and she is one of the few friends that I have kept up with over the years. Her friendship is something that I really treasure and I knew it was going to be a blast spending the next few days

with her and getting to know her husband.

After chatting over cups of teas and exchanging all the "vital" news that couldn't wait, we headed over to the Mall to the Cherry Blossom Festival. It was beautiful!! As soon as we stepped out of the subway, a brilliant blue sky met us and there stood the Washington Monument. It was amazing!

The opening day of the Cherry Blossoms also coincided with the annual kite festival so there were hundreds 

of people on the Mall lawn flying kites. It was perfect weather for that. There was a strong breeze so kites bobbed all over.

We followed the trail along the Potamac River. It was so great seeing people out enjoying their city and be able to partake in the festivities!

D.C.

AmeriQuest Ads

What hilarious ads from Ameriquest in their new -Don't judge too quickly - campaign.

Florida's Highways

On the way back from our Easter Weekend up North, I always look forward to passing Daytona, where the famous Daytona Speedway is located. This is Harley Davidson-country and there is always a picture-opp. on this stretch of Florida highway down to the Keys!
This couple was part of a group of 15 riders heading South.

Anyone up for a Harley trip accross the US in the near future...? Pleeease contact me!

Tomoka State Park

Baie Geluk Jollie!

Daar is 'n troue in Maart ini Kaap wat ek gemis het. 'n Nooi Cloete heet nou Mrs. Jolanda Scourfield. Ek is spyt ek was nie daar nie. Julle is 'n beeuutiful couple! Veels geluk!!

Bill Toppled As World's Richest Man

After 13 years on top of Forbes' World's Richest List, Microsoft tycoon Bill Gates' reign at the top has come to an end. Ironically, he has been surpassed by non other than his good friend and philantropy partner Warren Buffet of Berkeshire Hathaway fame.

Alas, despite being worth $58 billion, a mere $2 billion more than last year, that is only good enough to place Bill in third spot - globally. Also beating him to second spot is the Mexican telecom tycoon, Carlos Slim Helu, who's fortune has doubled in the past 25 months.

View the list of billionaires @:
http://www.forbes.com/2007/03/07/billionaires-worlds-richest_07billionaires_cz_lk_af_0308billie_land.html

The list certainly indicates change - two years ago 10 of the top 20 billionaires were Americans, today there is only four. However, among the total list of billionaires acrros the globe - 1125 altogether! - approximately 45% are still Americans. The country with the most top ten finishers are ....India! with four.
Russia is second behind the US with the 87 billionaires, less than 2 decades after the fall of the great USSR. Germany is third with 59 billionaires.

South Africa's top spot is held by the owner of a small family business - a mining family business! - Nicky Oppenheimer of De Beer's ($5.7 billion). Patrice Motsepe of South Africa and Nigeria's Aliko Dangote joines the exclusive club og billionaires, the first Africans to do so.
And then, the most enviable of them all: The creator of Facebook, 23-year old Mark Zuckerberg, is certainly the youngest self-made billionaire in mankind's history.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of Crystal Skull Trailer (iHD)

The Legend is Back! Ou Indie het toeka die oer-hartsnare van enige Hoêrskoolseun getokkel met sy avonture.

Globalization and the Dissolving of Borders

The world surely is getting smaller. Growing up it was an event to meet someone who has actually travelled to another country. Today very few of my peers have not yet been exposed to at least two other cultures in foreign countries. Cultural infusion and assimilation is happening rapidly and borders are dissolving due to technological changes and faster travel. Speaking of technology - it still leaves me speechless. Just yesterday I spoke via the Internet to friends and family on the other side of the globe - through crystal clear live audio and video feed.

Sarah was relaying a humorous insident that happened in her class this past week:
She was having her Fifth Grade class tell about their country of origin and a little about their culture and customs. Her kids are from all over - France, Spain, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Colombia, Haiti, Germany etc. Finally they asked her where she's from, and were flabbergasted when she said she's American. "A real American?!", was their response. "But really Teacher, where are you really from?"
Even Sarah had to give in then and explain that her most recent ancestry is Irish, Scottish and Blackfoot. We're all mutts, surely!
Bloodlines are rarely pure and cultures are blended, as the global population constantly is in motion due to war, famine, and economic opportunity. Nowhere is this more apparent than in this great country we live in, the Land of the Free, the country build on the sweat and dreams of immigrants.

Given, this topic is both grandly interesting and simultaneously very controversial. Should the US allow more immigrants to enter the country? Or have they already been at fault by not closing their borders years ago?
This topic is worthy of a thesis.

Meet Jeeves

Massive Power Outage Hits South-Florida

Yesterday I felt close to my family and friends in electricity-shorted Cape Town when we experienced a massive power outage that left nearly 6 million people in South-Florida without power.
According to the Florida Department of Emergency Management power was out across the entire Miami-Dade County in less than 20 minutes after the initial failure. The outages then extended into neighboring Broward County and Palm Beach County.
A failed switch and a fire at a sub-station outside of Miami is believed to have caused the problem. The substation problem caused a sequence of events that within a few minutes knocked out numerous other power plants, including the Turkey Point nuclear power plant South of Miami.
Traffic was something to miss, since every traffic light on the 14 mile-stretch from my office to home was down, and for Miamians no red means no stop.
An additional tornado warning for neighboring Fort Lauderdale made yesterday a pretty interesting day.

About Lazy Sundays with Friends

CE Workshops

As part of the cultivation process and in our attempt to "connect" to the University's alumni, I've started hosting quarterly Continuing Educational workshops for our Doctoral and Masters-level alumni.

These seminars are high in demand, especially for licensed psychologists and mental health professionals, alumni and other, who need the credits to fullfill their annual licensure requirements. Thus, there is also a fundraising element in it for us, which makes my bosses smile, and when they're happy, I'm happy.

Friday I organized a daylong workshop with four seminars - Ethics, Neurofeedback, Domestic Violence and Sexual Violence and the Criminal Mind. The presenters were top notch! Attendance was fantastic, feedback was highly favorable and it seems to be an event we will do regularly in future.
PIC: (Top) Student workers manning the registration tables.

Biking the 'Glades

Mugabe's Zimbabwe

The situation in Zimbabwe seems to be getting even worse.

The statistics are staggering: According to the BBC the country's inflation is now 3,7000%, the highest in the world by a long shot. Basic commodities such as bread and milk are not readily available in shops. More than 3 million Zimbabweans have already fled across the border into South Africa.

Speaking of, its big brother neighbor, South Africa is persistent in its unwillingness to apply pressure on Robert Mugabe. Instead, the SA government is pursuing its "quiet diplomacy"-policy. Meanwhile, Zim's economic slide is basically complete, affecting the entire region. The country's next general elections will be held in 2010, around the same time as the Soccer World Cup in South Africa.

Ol' Bob lavishly celebrated his 84th birthday this past Saturday, while unemployment last month soared to 80%. He is preparing to launch his campaign for a sixth term in power...

Click below for the complete article:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6441529.stm

To the Zoo!

Sarah's mom and her siblings visited us for an extended weekend and we had ample time to play tourguides for the kids.

The young one's and I share a love for animals so what better place to visit on a lazy Sunday afternoon than the Miami Zoo.

We saw some pretty weird and also some very familiar animals. I'm referring to all the African species on display, especially the meerkat and the hyena, who seemed to be laughing at me. A "headless" camel had us all stoked, until we figured out where his head went!

Many of the wild animals on display, however, don't belong in Miami's, hot, humid, tropical climate - own interpretation. They looked downright unhappy, hot and bored to death.

They looked so hot and thirsty that I immediately drank a Bud in their memory when I got home.

Another Bullish Rugby Season!

My Kuduclub account is active, the snacks are stacked up and a valuable compromise has been reached in the Bouwer household that I can watch at least one of the five Super 14 rugby games that'll be played weekly, come Friday.
The game tomorrow between the Brumbies and the Crusaders kicks off the start of another mouthwatering season of premier Southern hemisphere rugby. The best 14 regional teams from Australia, New Zeeland, and South Africa compete again and honor, pride, and patriotism is on the line. Ag, actually just an excuse to get together and zone, while the wifes go shop!

Last year's Champs (who stole it from the Sharks), the Bulls, are certainly not the clear favorites. My prediction: Semi-finalists will be the Crusaders, Sharks, Warathas maybe, and definitely one other team.
Some say maybe this is finally the Stormers' year. Die hoop beskaam nie...

PS - If you register at http://www.telecomvirtualrugby.co.nz/ you can guess the outcome of every game and play against your friends, every week. Do join, it's loads of fun - though you won't beat me!

Table Mountain From Afar

The sun setting over Cape Town.
February 14th, 2008.

Best Baby Picture

Baie geluk aan my ou vrinne Christiaan en Teresa de Villiers met die geboorte van hul eersteling laasweek. Van al die baie baba-fotos wat ek die afgelope 14 mnde ontvang het (en almal is veel oulik!), het hierdie een vir ons UITgeSTAAN.

Super Tuesday - The Race for the White House

The Real Race is on.
After months of campaigning and early primaries, TODAY primaries will be held in more than 20 states accross the country. This will decide the Republican and Democratic candidates for the General Elections to be held in November.

Here in the States the big issues defining the remaining candidates are Iraq, immigration, abortion, same-sex marriages, taxes and social security. With both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama positioning themselves as far left on the political spectrum as you can get, that leaves John McCain, Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee as the conservative choices.

McCain is currently the Republican frontrunner in the polls, but appears to have very liberal views. He is advocating open borders, which implies that he does not condemn illegal immigration. Huckabee, the Christian conservative choice, is endorsing McCain, as he is to far behind in the polls, but rumor has it that he wants the Vice-Presidency. A deal seems to be on hand.
And then there is Romney, himself a solid candidate. In the deep South, however, he is struggling for Christian conservative votes due to him being a Mormon. California will probably decide his fate.

You can follow the live updates online at www.cnn.com/POLITICS/

The following website supplies indepth info on each candidate: http://www.president08.net/

Interestingly, the very early results show that Obama is getting most of the black votes, while Hillary is getting a far superior number of the female votes. If I interpret this correctly, that means that women are voting for Hillary because she's a woman and black voters are voting for Obama because he's black! This then irrespective of their political stance on issues. ?!