Another year. Another project. Another opportunity.

     Well, I have not been as prolific as I should have been in 2015, although I must say that I was as prolific as my time and schedule allowed me to be.  I hope to do better as this year progresses because there are great things on the horizon, all things considered.
     On a personal note, I am still employed in a rural Southern high-needs school district as an ESL teacher.  I am half-way through my Ed.D. studies in transformative leadership.  Let's not get started on the craziness of having a doctorate and not qualifying locally for a job which requires a master's degree in leadership...because my master's degree was in something else.  That rant alone could go on for days.  One of my sons recently turned 17 and another one 16, so the hormones and attitude level in my abode is a bit, shall we say, charged?  Testing my ESL students has begun and this year most will be done in an online format.  It will be an interesting few weeks, but I am anticipating that all will go swimmingly.
     Since we last spoke, I have had some very interesting experiences, including an incredible educators' seminar at the University of Colorado at Boulder on Korea into the 21st Century, which I did not want to end, a research grant in Boston at the Massachusetts Historical Society (and a stay with a wonderful group of people while I was there, along with meeting others :)) which I found enlightening and fascinating.  Both of these occurred in the Summer of 2015.  In the Fall, I began back at work, traveled to Mexico to present a project at the MEXTESOL 2015 Conference and traveled for the first time to Korea.  Since it was the second year at a MEXTESOL conference, it was not terribly interesting, although I did meet some interesting people.  BUT KOREA.  If I had brought my sons along, I would never have come back!  I certainly had not expected to fall in love with Seoul, with Gimje, with Iksan City.  With the people.  With the history.  With the technology, transportation and food.  I wanted to take my sons there to see how they like it so I can start applying to teach, but finances will not allow it this year due to my next fascinating news...
I will be presenting some research at the GLOBELT2016 Conference in Antalya, Turkey, in April!  It is disappointing that my business-related travel must come out-of-pocket, but the opportunity to be published in a European linguistics journal is too great to pass up.
     So, on top of my doctoral courses, licensure courses and study of Korean, I am also studying Turkish and maintaining my family and my employment obligations.  Ah, to spend Spring Break in Korea smelling cherry blossoms, but alas!  Not quite yet.
     Paperwork for Summer opportunities is coming due fast and furious, and trying to maintain everything in order is much harder than it has been in recent memory.  Fingers crossed that all will come to pass as I am anticipating, and that all is well on the horizon for this year!