The world according to Jen

When you get older you think that the situations that you have as a child or teenager were only things that you experienced because that was the phase of life you were in. But this summer during my outrigger canoe paddling season, my once undefeated women's team has been torn apart by drama. It saddens me because the ladies on my team are all very important to me. We each come from different lifestyles but in the past have come together as one strong team of women. It is interesting how women relate to each other. I know that it is just not my team that experiences stuff like this- it is in every sport with women.
It saddens me that we weren't able to overcome drama for the sake of sports. I am such a easy going person and I tend to stay away from drama because I just can't take being in dramatic situations, especially when they revolve around men, which is basically what the drama is about on my paddling team. Tomorrow is the championship meet for my team. But it won't be the same. One of the girls won't be there with us and it won't be the same. It is hard to get excited about tomorrow when the team I have been practicing with since last November, won't be the team I will be competing with for championship. This is when I just have to be a true athlete and do the best I can do, regardless of the situations around me.

So as I learn more about Specialized bikes, there is one bike that I love because of what it stands for. With gas prices increasing at a rapid rate, the bike industry is really trying to embrace this time and invite people to get on bikes and ride. One of the bikes that they are promoting this year is called The Globe. It is a nice easy riding bike with some accessories that make it possible for you to take it just about anywhere. It is affordable and built with the same technology as the awesome other bikes that Specialized makes.
"The aluminum frame, which comes in a nice dark blue paintjob, is adorned with a slew of functionally oriented parts. The urban bike commuter will appreciate the upright riding position, smooth- and fast-rolling 700c wheels, included hub-generator head- and taillights, and built-in rear rack and integrated rear wheel lock. Fenders with mud flaps and a clear, hard-plastic chainguard help keep riders clean and dry."
I love the motto of the globe "Run on apples and bananas." I am thinking about getting one of these bikes or at least promoting this bike to people who aren't super hard core riders but ride for enjoyment and affordability.

As I was listening to the Specialized bikes speech that described the mission and vision of Specialized for the future the one thing that stuck out to me besides the fact that Specialized is focused on getting people to ride their bikes instead of driving their cars (their slogan is "run on apples and bananas" to advertise riding your bike), is their focus on getting more kids on their bikes. My interest was totally peaked at this and I think this might be something I am going to focus on in the coming months. I don't know exactly what that will look like but I think that there has to be someway I as a teacher could offer some input on helping to get more kids on their bikes. I know that when I rode my bike to school on Ride Your Bike to School Day, my kids were so excited that many of them came to school the next day and told me they too took a bike ride. The influence we have as teachers is amazing and I think if I can influence my students to get on their bikes now, it will only encourage them to ride their bikes more in the future.

As I was arriving at the airport to head to Colorado and sat down after taking off and putting on my shoes, belt and all that fun stuff you need to do to make sure you left the knives and forks at home and a lady sitting next to me asks me if I was going to be working the Specialized event for the next two weeks. I told her yes and then she told me she was headed that way too. I was with another teacher, who was going with us as well because her husband works for Specialized and we all started talking about teaching. Soon we loaded on the plane and head to the land of the Rocky Mountains. After a pretty bumpy ride we got off the plane only to be shuttled for almost 2 hours to Copper Mountain.

I sat next to the lady I met in the airport and found out her name was Harj. It didn't click with me who she was until she asked me if I was talking about the IISME program with the other teacher. I told her yes and she told me she was an IISME fellow for the last four summers. And then it clicked! This was Harj- from blogging last year. I remembered her instantly from her picture on LiveJournal. We had never met in person last year because I was in Salt Lake during midsummer and never saw her at the end of the year celebration. But I remembered her because she was the one who fell hard on her bike. Totally random that we met up. She got connected to Specialized through a riding club she is in and decided to head to Colorado because Specialized was looking for people to help with the Demo teams.

It makes me laugh that it took me going all the way to Colorado to meet Harj. We have been having fun getting to know each other and enjoy the world of Specialized. Just goes to show- it really is a small world after all!

For the next two weeks I am in Colorado. What a beautiful state! I am loving being around trees and wild flowers and a beautiful creek. I am here to help my sister who works for Specialized bikes, at their big 2009 product launch. I got to go to Salt Lake last year and had a blast and so far Colorado has been a lot of fun too. We are staying at Copper Mountain, a beautiful ski resort that is like it's own little village. I am surrounded by athletes in all walks of life and from all over the world. One of them is Ned Overland. I had never heard of his name before but now I am in total awe of this man that I just met. Type in his name in Google and you will see he is quite the moutain bike rider with a list of achievements that competes with my list for the grocery store. What I loved about meeting him is you would never be able to tell he was so accomplished because he is so humble and gentle. I have no idea where the nickname "Deadly Nedly" came from- must be his amazing talents in riding because surely that name does not come from a harsh attitude or "to kill" mentality. I love when people like this are "people" and not think they are better then anyone else. They take their talents and hobbies and go out there and give it their all. That to me is a true athlete! More to come from Colorado...

I think that if I were to have dinner with anyone it would surely be Jesus. The idea of actually meeting God in human flesh would be more the worlds could describe. I think I would want more then dinner with Jesus. I would want to follow him everywhere, be with him at every moment possible. I know that Jesus is with me at every moment now but to actually see and touch him, to hear his words being spoken from his mouth. To share the same space and experiences with him would be incredible. I think to hear him tell stories would be awesome. I can't even imagine how a man could relate to people and to love those who hated him. But even though I don't have the opportunity to see Jesus in human form I know I will one day see him again in heaven.

Part of the IISME program I love is the exposure to new things I never knew about. I know that sounds silly but during my research and with talking with people that I work with, I have come across some pretty awesome new tools, and websites to access. I am a little slow but I had never used or even heard of GoogleScholar and now I am using it a lot this summer. Beyond that I learned about Slideshare, a website much like YouTube but for sharing slideshows- pretty cool! Thanks to Diane I know about pbwikis and want to continue to learn more about them. I have learned about LinkedIn- the Facebook for professionals another option of keeping in contact with people while also getting ideas about business topics. Never hearing about SecondLife, I am now curious about it and think it is high time to create a “Jennie” avatar. I even learned how to make a table of contents without have to manually put in the page numbers for the table. Through making survey graphs I have gotten a lot more exposure to Excel then I have in the past. I have created a survey report complete with graphs and analysis. The list goes on an on- but I have learned so many things already this year beyond just researching the library, I am excited to take back to the classroom. Hey there’s another one- VoiceThread. Going to go check it out!

Going into a job as a fellow sometimes makes you feel like you are an intern with a degree- you are still smart but you are new, and temporary. Maybe it’s just me but in the past I have often felt like an intern and sometimes have been referred to as one. There isn’t anything wrong with being an intern but when you look young and people start asking you about college and what’s it’s like the idea of being called a “Fellow” is a lot more appealing.
Well this job has been quite different. IBM hires a truckload of interns during the summer. I use the word “truckload” because it has felt like a truck has been unloading new batches of interns each week. I watch them move like a pack of sheep through the hallways learning the ropes. I have been in some sense combined with these new interns in trainings and what not but at the same time I am different. What is cool about my status at IBM that I never would have imagined is that people give me their time. I have been setting up interviews with people from all different departments at IBM to ask them about the library. It amazes me how many people have responded to my requests. I think I have interviewed at least 15 people if not more and I continue to put more on my calendar. My mentor is excited because she told me that if she were to request meetings probably no one would respond. But because I am an “intern” there is a sense of duty to help me. I think I am going to use this to my advantage as much as possible- even if they start asking me about what my dorm is like! Ha!

I often get forwards from friends that I actually read and enjoy. Being a very symbolic type person this forward struck me.

Woman and a Fork
There was a young woman who had been diagnosed with a terminal illness and had been given three months to live. So as she was getting her things "in order," she contacted her Pastor and had him come to her house to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes.
She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service, what scriptures she would like read, and what outfit she wanted to be buried in.
Everything was in order and the Pastor was preparing to leave when the young woman suddenly remembered something very important to her.
"There's one more thing," she said excitedly.
"What's that?" came the Pastor's reply.
"This is very important," the young woman continued. "I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand." The Pastor stood looking at the young woman, not knowing quite what to say.
That surprises you, doesn't it?" the young woman asked.
"Well, to be honest, I'm puzzled by the request," said the Pastor.
The young woman explained. "My grandmother once told me this story, and from that time on I have always tried to pass along its message to those I love and those who are in need of encouragement. In all my years of attending socials and dinners, I always remember that when the dishes of the main course were being cleared, someone would inevitably lean over and say, 'Keep your fork.' It was my favorite part because I knew that something better was coming...like velvety chocolate cake or deep-dish apple pie. Something wonderful, and with substance!'
So, I just want people to see me there in that casket with a fork in my hand and I want them to wonder "What's with the fork?" Then I want you to tell them: "Keep your fork the best is yet to come"
The Pastor's eyes welled up with tears of joy as he hugged the young woman good-bye. He knew this would be one of the last times he would see her before her death. But he also knew that the young woman had a better grasp of heaven than he did. She had a better grasp of what heaven would be like than many people twice her age, with twice as much experience and knowledge. She KNEW that something better was coming.
At the funeral people were walking by the young woman's casket and they saw the cloak she was wearing and the fork placed in her right hand. Over and over, the Pastor heard the question, "What's with the fork?" And over and over he smiled.
During his message, the Pastor told the people of the conversation he had with the young woman shortly before she died. He also told them about the fork and about what it symbolized to her. He told the people how he could not stop thinking about the fork and told them that they probably would no t be able to stop thinking about it either.
He was right. So the next time you reach down for your fork let it remind you, ever so gently, that the best is yet to come. Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us.
Show your friends how much you care. Remember to always be there for them, even when you need them more. For you never know when it may be their time to "Keep your fork."
Cherish the time you have, and the memories you share ... being friends with someone is not an opportunity but a sweet responsibility.
And keep your fork.

I think it is so true. We live our lives day by day, hour by hour, and sometimes minute by minute, but in the end what truly matters. I think this message reminds me to embrace every moment, make a difference when you are here. Being in industry and talking with friends who work in similar type jobs, often tell me that what there job really doesn't make a difference. That in the end they will take their forks but won't leave any "dessert" behind for others to enjoy because of what you did for them in their life. This is one of the reasons why I love teaching so much. At the end of the day I pray that the things I do and say will make a difference in the life of my students, that my actions will effect them and that they will feel better about who they are and what they are able to accomplish. While I am not afraid to die and am excited about my life with Christ in Heaven, I also know that there is so much here on Earth that can effect others to live a life with a fork in their hand. I am excited to share this story with my students being that I work in a Christian school.

Living on my own for the very first time... sounds a bit like a 1960's song. If I were to be singing it I would be singing it with a smile. Ever since I moved away to college I have always had roommates. And before that I lived in a busy household. As of this past weekend I am on my own. I am almost 30 and it was high time to be living the roommate-free life. I would have done it sooner if teaching paid the big bucks but IISME is now helping with that. It is so nice having my own bathroom to mess up and clean, my own stove, my own tv, my own, my own, my own. What makes it even nicer is that I am living in a studio attached to a house owned by a wonderful Greek family. I have already been invited to take part in the Greek food eating traditions, which a girl could get very used to. It's also nice because I have a small pup and she has her own little place with me. Being a Christian girl, it totally amazes me how this all happened. I was needing a place to stay and I have been looking for a really long time- a place I could afford and feel comfortable. Jennie doesn't have quite the street smarts one would need in a place with cheaper rent..aka downtown San Jose! I didn't plan to do IISME this summer and just applied for the job I have now because it sounded interesting. I always wanted to live in South San Jose, close to the Santa Teresa area. And one of the things I dread is having to set up all the cable, phone, internet type things when getting a new place. The place I have now is truly an answered prayer. It is in the area I wanted, at a time I could afford it, with all the utilities paid for, at exactly the right time I needed to move out. Praise God! He made a way for me when I needed it most!

In responding to David's blog, I got a little inspired to find ways to jazz up the work space. I came across this list that I shared with David about how to pass time at the work place. There are some pretty interesting ideas on here. I think fun little pranks are fun to do at work as long as they don't cross the line. Kinda like a t-pee your house type thing to do in an adult like fashion. My dad worked as a mechanic before he retired and he is a pretty funny guy. When he would change a part he would take the old part and send it through company mail to some person in his company. Imagine their surprise as they open up a gift and find an old spark plug inside. I am sure he must of wrote a little note (without disclosing his name of course) in the box that made the person laugh. I think these kinds of things, as long as they are harmless, are sometimes what make the day go by fast, and also give you a funny story to tell. During my first fellowship a group of us did a few harmless pranks on each other and it truly bonded us. Teacher's have quite the imagination!

Fun things to do at work!
Arm people with water pistols, Nerf balls or paper wads to assail anyone who is blocking creativity
Ask a work mate if they need a hand, then give them a photo copy of your hand
At the office, make your garbage can into your in-tray
Bring a different tablecloth and flowers for the lunch room everyday for a week
Call everyone bob or Richard, even the females.
Change the speed dial settings on a co workers phone
Change your accent every three minutes.
Crank up some music
Create a hall of fame photo gallery
Create an official lighten up room with books, posters, videos, etc.
Create the worst case scenario for your project - feel free to exaggerate
Decorate your office with fun posters - add a humor section to the bulletin board
Dress up like a flight attendant and stand in an elevator, when people get on hand them peanuts and tell them to enjoy their flight.
Give crazy awards fior the sexiest phone voice, biggest blunder, Most likely to OD on coffee, Largest toe contest or whatever
Give your boss a "wet willy" and blame it on someone else standing there.
Grab the whole team when you need to pick someone up at the airport
Have a contest to see who gets to paint a mural on the elevator doors
Have a slipper day.everyone wear slippers and have prizes for the funniest, the cutest, the most worn out etc.
Have fun with a photocopier or scanner
Have swivel chair races at work
Hold an awards ceremony during a particular stressful period
Hold meetings out of the board room - at a park, picnic site or a bowling alley
Mail an anonymous joke-of-the-week to someone on a regular basis
Move your desk into the elevator and ask anyone that comes in if they have an appointment.
Penalize people who talk about work when they are not at work
Play Nerf Frisbee in the office
Pray to the gods of the water cooler and leave various sacrifices.
Proudly show everyone your calculator and hand out cigars. Tell them your computer just had a baby.
Put a sign on your photocopier that says "New Copier - Voice activated - please speak your command" Watch the fun
Send odd emails from other peoples computers - Pretend you are them
Show home slides or videos in the office during lunch hour
Use a banana or any other vegetable as a pointer for your next presentation
Water the fake office plants.
Wear your thong over your trousers and act surprised when anyone notices
When people send you unsolicited faxes - Send them back to them about 600 times

Today I had a great talk with Diane about life, life, and everything in between life. While she munched on some good ol' sushi rolls and I chicken and rice, we talked about school and life in general. It was a nice conversation as I got to learn more about Diane and her life, and her about mine. I am excited by the idea of working with Diane with technology. In the past I would send my 1st graders to her computer lab and after 50 minutes I would go back and pick them up again. This coming school year we are trying something a little different. Instead of just dropping off my students with Diane, I get to stay with her and work with her and my students, while being afforded prep time through an additional music class to make up the time. I think this will provide a myriad of technology integration ideas and I look forward to working with Diane in this way. I have a feeling I am probably going to learn more then the kids in the process. Being able to integrate topics that I am readily teaching at any given moment into the computer class will be great. While I still see a huge need to pre-plan, I do think by having both of us there at the same time that we can work together and make ideas and projects relevant to exactly what we are talking about in class at any given time. Collaboration is key, especially in education. I am finding it more and more valuable and finding more and more ways to do it, as I journey through my fellowship this summer. For example- Second Life. While I am still trying to understand the whole idea of Second Life, I think it is a possible tool to use in many different communication areas of life. I will have more to say about that once I design my own avatar!

In order to get some feedback about what people think about the current IBM library, I created a survey. I had heard about SurveyMonkey before and I have been to the site to check it out, but never have I actually created a survey. Now that I have created one, I am finding many different ways I could possibly use this survey in my teaching. Now that our school has a great website parents can access at anytime, and I am posting stuff on the website all the time, surveys might be another thing to add onto my website. These are some of the ways I think I could use a survey in class: to ask parents their opinions about field trips, presentations, assignments, homework, I could ask kids survey's about things we have learned, things we have done, and I could even put out test questions in a form of a survey and have the computer figure out how many students are actually getting each question correct or not. I am sure there are many more uses of a survey that I am not coming up with but just the ones I have listed motivate me to want to create some for my class. SurveyMonkey makes it easy and is very user-friendly, and the best part, it's free. You can purchase a more advanced version but I don't ever see the need to do that. Check it out if you haven't done so already, and if you have any other ideas of how to use a survey for class, send them my way.

I’m young, and try to keep up with the times. I got my first “spray on tan” for a wedding a few weeks ago. That makes me trendy right? Well as I continue on my journey of learning what the “Library of the Future” looks like I am becoming more and more curious about all the new technologies out there (and probably a little bit overwhelmed at the same time).
Today I took a field trip to three different libraries. My first stop was Santa Clara Universities' brand new Learning Center, Tech Center, and Library. Opened just two months ago, this new building is quickly becoming a hub of gatherings. Being that it is currently summer session at SCU, the center wasn’t as crowded as it has been but after talking to some employees, this place can be quite busy during the normal school hours. I was impressed with the design of the building. I loved the outdoor, covered, study areas complete with couches and outlets where one could enjoy a peaceful outside break while searching the internet. Each of the mini conference rooms came complete with an LCD projector and white screen for student collaboration and discussion. While I am not sure what of this information I can use to bring back to the library at IBM I can tell you that from my research, I ditto my previous notion that the idea of the traditional library is changing. For more information about the future of libraries check out this two videos. The second one describes a pretty radical look at the “new” library and the third one is what I wish our school library looks like!
1- Stanford Library http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMus6tZifGY
2- Transformation Lab - Prototyping the Future http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpFO_L_jA1c
3- Children’s Interactive Library http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu7XciJi6xY&feature=related

Our world is quickly changing. I sometimes feel just when I have all these new gadgets all figured out, out comes something new that perplexes me all over again. Boy, do I sound like my mother or what!
As I dive into my first two days of my fellowship at IBM, I have started to research the topic of libraries. I have been hired this summer to do research to figure out how IBM can take their library and transform into a place people will want to come to. What does that mean exactly? Well that's what I am going to try and figure out.
How likely is it anymore that when someone wants to find some information about a certain topic that they would choose to walk all the way to the library and hunt through the card catalog to find a book, then go look for the book on the shelves, find the right chapter in the book and then sit down and read it? With a click of a mouse and a few searches, this same information could be revealed in the matter of seconds. So does that mean that all those books on the shelves have no value? I would argue no. As I do research into this subject I realize that a dilemma exists about what to do about libraries. There is so much information available on-line that need for books has become outdated. Libraries are transforming into what I like to call "intelligent Starbucks" where people can come and collaborate and socialize in an intellectually stimulating environment (usually over a cup of coffee).
So my question is, what can IBM do with all the books on their shelves, which have great value and contain much of the history and backbone to the history of IBM? Do they put them all on-line? Do they store them in a facility off-site? Do they keep them in the library? If the library exists it should be a place for people to use not just a storage unit for old books.
I would love any input, suggestions, good libraries to visit that you all might have.

It is fun to be back in the world of blogging. I have to be honest, I have yet to have blogged since the last time I was part of IISME so it is nice to penetrate the internet with my wildly, crazy, and sometimes enduring thoughts. Ok so I don't know how wild and crazy my thoughts are but who knows- it's only week 1 right!
And to be honest again, I didn't think that I would be doing the IISME program again this summer. I totally love the idea and all the people and staff at IISME. They make this program so well organized and are enjoyable and helpful to work with. My site last year was a little discouraging and I felt this huge let down when I was not utilized last year. It was really hard for me to go from school where there are more things to do then you can fit on a "to-do" list to a job that doesn't have anything for you to do.
So this year I made sure to be pretty picky about where I wanted to work and what job I thought would fit my skill set, and I think and pray that I found the right position for me. So far I have been enjoying it, and being able to work from home is a huge perk! Hope you are all enjoying corporate life!

In the morning I like listening to Don Blue. Probably because I live up in the mountains and I don't get very many radio stations on my oh so expensive $10 alarm clock/radio/phone I bought forever ago. But I have grown to love Don's show (enough so that I even attended the 80's prom with lovely Jordan Knight from NKOTB).
Anyways I was listening to a discussion about a bus boy at a resturant that found a wallet with $5000 in it. He then called the man who left it at the resturant and the man pulled out $5 to thank him for his deed. For one what a kind thing for the boy to do. I have lost my wallet more times then I care to share haha (ok not that many) and it always amazes me when it is returned- thank you God! (and only one of the times was the cash I had in it, taken out). I have never had the opportunity to thank the person who found my wallet face to face (I always tend to leave it on the counter and places I shop) but if I did I don't think that I would hand them a $5 bill. I have found a few wallets in my time and I think it is my responsibilty to return the wallet with no expectations that I would be getting something out of my kind deed. I wouldn't take the reward anyways. I just feel good doing the kind deed for someone else- that's enough reward for me.
I think for the man to give the boy $5 was kinda a joke. The man didn't have to give the boy anything but since he did- why $5? Obviously this man doesn't have problems with money considering he was carrying around $5000 in his wallet. I would much rather the man not give me anything but a huge thank you then for him to give me $5 like he was tipping me for being a kind human.

I am looking for a place that does Henna tattoos. Does anyonw know of a place or a person that is able to do them?
My paddling team and I were thinking about getting one before our last race on Saturday and we aren't finding much luck in who or where to go... any help would be super!
Thanks!

Diane's blog about "To Catch a Predator" got me a little bit on edge. I am a Petaluma girl- born and raised for most of my life. I remember how my town got hit hard during the tragic story of Polly Klaas (I was in high school at the time and it was difficult). But I also remember why this story became so popular. My hometown embraced this situation and made it out in the open. They did everything possible to try and find Polly. And even though this was a terrible situation, I was proud of the way my little ol' town stepped up to the plate. But now after reading Diane's blog about "To Catch a Predator" I am little disturbed, ok a lot disturbed, about what people in Petaluma are doing. I am also a little more disgusted. Granted these kinds of situations occur all over the world. But it doesn't really hit home, until it's your home it is hitting. Luckily no one on the list of perverts was anyone I had ever seen before, but I most definatly don't want to see any of them now. What saddens me is that my little hometown, a place filled with kind, loving people keeps getting this bad rap. Am I not seeing what the town is really like, or is there just a select few who make the who place not any place one would want to be. Basically, don't discount Petaluma. It's a great place to be and live. Just know that no matter how cute and quaint a place is on the outside though, there are always stories and things going on that aren't always pleasing. Stay safe!

Video resume- sounds like a fun idea and what a way to catch a persons attention who has never met you. I was on Yahoo! and there was an article about how we are now turning to video resumes. My big question is what do you really tell on a video resume. Would I just be a face that tells you all the things listed in detail on my lovely resume or do I tell you who I am in my most professional, friendly, and perkiest of ways. What made me think about writing about this idea was the fact that I wondered if it would be impressive to send a video resume when applying for a teaching position. I can see possibly adding in some clips of teaching in action, maybe some parental comments, and some student interviews. I really don't know if the would work but I think it would be pretty impressive for people looking for a new teacher at their school, to see an applicant in action and the feedback of the people the applicant interacts with. But then this leads to another question- how far is too far in a video resume. I can see this getting to be a crazy ordeal if you bring in movie clips and sound clips and who knows what else to enhance your resume. Maybe I should start working on this and see what happens. Watch out world, Miss Furrer's going virtual!