Curriculum Revised

Spring Semester Curriculum 1/24/11 – 5/13/11

Sunday-Friday 30 minutes writing, 30 minutes dance is required.  On the 7th day, I rest.

Monday

9-10 am Morning Pages.  3 pages of free form writing, can include my dreams to practice lucidity, fears to clear cobwebs

10:15-11:15 Drawing. Reading Material Drawing with the Right side of the brain change to Feng Shui book Feng Shui A Practical Guide for Architects and Designers and why I am changing classes.

Drawing uploads are due February 18th, March 18th and the final project is Due May 8th.  Final project to be determined.  Read exercise for 30 minutes, draw for 30 minutes each class.

–change  projects to Feng Shui our current house

Take 5 pictures of any way that I used Feng Shui and write about how it helped me grow.  February 18th, March 18th and May 8th.

Final project is final plans to be submitted.  This is a two semester project.  Feng Shui photographs will be due at the end of construction and along the way.

11:15 – 12:15 Creative writing. Write the first draft of my piece for that day.  Reading is the little book on writing, which name escapes me at that moment.  Shula’s Brother gave it to me.  I just googled it and found something else also helpful How to Write With Style.

I got my next clue for next semester I will read The Elements of Style, by William Strunk, Jr. and E.B. White. E.B. White recommended by Kurt Vonnegut, thanks!

12:15-2 pm Break and Recess (all emailing or facebooking is to be done at this time or prior to class.  Never during class hours)

2-3pm Finance and Math.  Required reading for this class is Money Maturity.  This hour will be spent doing the exercises in the book.  Its due at 3 pm.  I will post few exercises to my blog.

3:15-4:15 Fix the writing draft and upload it by 4:15 pm.  The writing has 4 hours a week, plus the required 30 minutes a day.  During the 4 hours of class time, I will be working on my script.  This time will also be used for the production of the script.  The final project is Due May 3rd.  It will be a 13 minute Pilot of the show. (Ohh scary commitment, I know nothing about pilots).

4-5 pm Time to work on any unfinished creative projects of the day and answering Olia College related emails.

Yura has Class Monday nights this semester so after I put Isaiah to sleep at 7:30 I have from 8-10 pm to do any homework left over from class.

Wednesday

9-10 am Morning Pages

10:15-11:15 Dance Class Zumba

Other days Dance is open.  Make sure to prepare your iPod selections.  Dance can be Solo or an actual class in the neighborhood.  I will have a performance piece and upload the video to the blog.  Dance pieces are due March 30th and May 1st is the final.  The final project is to write about that experience.   Final video will be submitted with my final writing.

Thursday

School meets work. Today I start my morning going to GAS half day of school, half day of work.  It turns out it’s the only way I can do two full days of class.

9-10 am Morning pages

10:15-11:15 am Finance and Math, Money Maturity

11:15-12:15 First Draft Creative Writing

12:30-4:15 work on Olia Designs.  Looks like it’s a 4 hour week.  I need to read that book, I think it can help me now.  I literally will have a 4  hour week.

Tuesdays and Fridays during Isaiah’s nap I will work on Olia Designs as well.  Tuesday and Friday 1:30-2:30 pm, Olia Designs.

Thursday nights, Yura has school so I will work on Olia College homework  8 pm – 9 pm.

Otherwise Tuesday and Friday, I am all Isaiah’s!  Mama Time!

Tuesday and Friday Nap time do first draft of writing and house chores.

Weekends are leisure time.  Saturday no writing.  Sunday writing.  If I did not do Friday writing, I do it on Saturday.

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Learning

4:04 pm

Isaiah is still sleeping, giving me precious time.  Yesterday we went to Zumba with my sister, my mom and my niece.  My sister, my mom and I were very excited.  The class started at 3:15 pm.  My niece Beata was not excited.  She wanted to stay home and read.  We wanted her to come with us and experience the joy of dancing together.  A time that is a break from talking.  She dragged her feet and agreed to come.  I am guilty of begging her and putting what I thought was cute guilt trip on her.  Please for Auntie, I have been wanting to do Zumba with you, Beata.  It was true, when I pictured this weekend, I pictured all the stress melting into Zumba with the ladies of my family.  The reality was not so.  Beata did not want to go.  We pushed her.  At least on the way over and back, Beata and I had a lovely conversation.

She told me that Zak was going to Birthday party of his friend David, so he stayed home.  It is very important.  I asked her if she wanted to go and she said, NOOOO.  Zak gets carried away and does not pay any attention to me.  She said it with no hurt feeling, just the understanding that this is how things are.  I want to learn that way of being.

This knowing child who just wanted to read was dragged to a Zumba class. We thought that once there, she would get into it.  She did not.  She danced few songs with a frown.  Even when she enjoyed some moves, she did not let on.  Then, she went outside to read her book in the hall way.

Isaiah wants to sleep with a book.  He wants two or three books with him along with his blanket.  Yura and I thought it was cute.  Few days ago, my nanny told me that he should not sleep with books.  She said he can’t fall asleep and she knows for sure.  From my experience he usually falls right asleep when I give him his blanket and his book.  He is like Ganesh holding his sacred object in his hands.  Few days later, Isaiah could not fall asleep and I blamed the book.  I took it away, he cried.  I brought it back.  I did not know if I was doing him harm by taking the book or harm by leaving the book.  If it is distracting him from sleep — harm by leaving.  If it is his sacred object of peace — harm by taking.

I still do not know but I know this is a small preview of decisions that I will have to make as a parent.  I want him to grow up his own person.  I want his light to shine onto the world.  I want him to feel confident.  I want his individual traits, his special interests and talents to be supported.  At the same time, I want him to have discipline.  All of life requires discipline and there are no short cuts in getting discipline.  It is a life long quest.  I need to know when to be quiet and when to talk.  I need to learn when to eat and when to fast.

It starts with, when to play and when to sleep.  When to make a mess and when to clean up.  It is those little things that make a person great.  I took a leap.  I had a baby.

On our honeymoon in Hawaii, I met Phil sitting under a rainbow umbrella on the Red Beach in Maui.  If you are in Maui, make sure you find the Red Beach, it will not be easy but it is worth it.  He was selling jewelry and “reading people”, he told me I can do it to if I try.  He told me a lot of things I wanted to remember but I did not.  One thing I remembered.  I thought of it my whole pregnancy, I think of it now.  I told him that I feared having children because I have things in myself that I am working on.  Why would I want to bring another person into it?  He said, it is simple.  Your intention of having children should be that you become mutual mentors for each other.

There are no answers.  There are only questions that I have to try to consciously consider.  The student who does not ask questions, does not learn.  I am in this to learn.

10:29 pm