This one time, I realised I am turning into Miss Lippy.

For the last two years, whenever I've had to fill out immigration forms, or if I was out and striked up a conversation with a stranger and the inevitable question of 'So what do you do?' was asked I told them I am a teacher. However, it has only been in the last 8 months or so I have actually been living the substitute teacher life. Before that, I had the degree but was not a practicing educator.

So my days now have me never too far from my mobile phone incase I get a phone call asking me to work. Today is one of the days in which no work eventuated so I am free to watch as many 'terrible' films as my heart desires. Today's 'terrible' film, which actually happens to be one of my absolute favourites is 'Billy Madison'. This made me reminisce to something I wrote three years ago, while still doing my masters.

I am studying to be a Primary School teacher and am currently on placement within a wonderful school gaining experience. So my days of late are consisting of waking up early, printing my lesson plans, photocopying, RED BULL, RED BULL, teach teach teach, answering to 'Missssss, Misssssss!' laughing at general child hilarity, then off home exhausted. So when I get home and before I start planning my lessons for the following day I usually rest, put on a movie and have a nap. Today I put on one of my favourites, 'Billy Madison!'.  

In it is one of my personal teaching role models! She is a fantastic example of informed teaching practice and it is obvious she is always thinking of the learning and teaching pedagogies (horrid word we need to chuck in at least 10 times per essay).

I will now argue my point.

1.  Miss Lippy's classroom is very inviting! How could you not enjoy eating clag glue in that learning environment??

2. She uses a warm and kind teacher voice.  'Scotty Likes beans, don't you Scotty!' She also knows her kids interests!

3. She always dresses in teacher appropriate clothing. As my wardrobe consists of mostly sequins, short skirts and dresses and other obnoxious prints I struggle to put together a 'teacher' outfit as chic as Miss Lippy!

4. She chooses engaging texts to read to her class. 'The Puppy Who Lost Its Way' is an example of a text that embodies various literary features like 'alliteration' but also an underlying moral lesson about responsibility.

5. She takes time out of each day for herself! Whether it be by putting an invigorating glue face mask on or fitting in some rhythmic interpretive dance, teachers should always have a calming routine for relaxation.

I would be lucky to become a teacher as good as Miss Lippy one day, and I am glad I can now justify watching 'Billy Madison' as research.

Now that I am officially out in the workforce, I can say that I probably am 70% Miss Lippy and 30% Miss Veronica Vaughn. I have children laughing at me on a regular basis, because I do a little dance while writing on the whiteboard (something which I don't even realise I am doing) or because I say something a little loopy. I also however, like any teacher can come to the end of my tether and have a bit of a yell, something I imagine Miss Lippy would never do. 

One of the main things that likens me to Miss Lippy, and something any teacher soon realises, is the importance of including dodgeball into you daily schedule. Now in Australia, we don't really endorse the practice of throwing balls at each others faces, so dodgeball has now been tweaked and differentiated into a game called 'Guard the Fortress' which has pretty much the same rules except you can't hit each other above the knee. Sometimes if I have had a rough day I enforce the rule of silence and they have to play without making a single peep. 

Now I gotta go put my paste facial on.

This one time, 5 ladies decided to Hakuna their Tatas.

Kenya 2012
I hear the drums echoing tonight.......

Sigh, before I had travelled to Kenya, I had done my fair share of wanderlusting around the world. However it wasn’t until after my month stint in the glorious African country that I understood what people mean when they say ‘I left my heart in (insert countries name here).  Africa stole a chunk of my heart.

There is too much to write about my time there, and my trusty computer does not have enough juice to do it at the moment, so I will start off by explaining how 4 Aussies and a Canadian managed to end up topless watching a glorious African sunset.

Well there really is little to say, we were ending our month long expedition, had gone a little crazy from the heat, the 10pm early nights, seclusion, really cheap Smirnoff  and no doubt were mesmerized by the glorious sight that we had set our eyes on. One of the two boys with us at the latter stage of the trip was our go to, dependable photographer and after taking many photos of us clothed, suggested we whip our sweaty shirts and sports bras off and recreate a sort of Pink Floyd ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ homage in front of the Serengeti. This took little to no persuasion and within seconds, as the rest of our, how could I say this nicely ah ‘square’ group looked on in horror with shaking heads and dulled whispers, our tops were off. I think we even heard some trumpeting from appreciative elephants. This series of photos, which has been called everything from ‘Helllllloooo Africa’ to ‘Tits out for the Lions’ was the perfect goodbye to Kenya, and perfect souvenir shared with four righteous babes. It will forever be framed in my home, and I no doubt will be explaining to my future children why Mummy is in the nudy on the rock from the Lion King, Hakuna Matata.

Things to get you in the mood. 

(Format stolen from the Lonely Planet 'The Travel Book' with my own spin).

Read: ‘The White Maasai’ by Corinne Hofmann tells the story of a German woman who becomes enamoured by a strapping Maasai warrior while holidaying in Kenya with her boyfriend. She ends up ditching her boyf, travelling across the country in search and marrying him. It is also a movie and is based on the true story of the author who had a similar romance and a daughter with a warrior.

Listen: Obviously anyone who has been to Kenya would know the ‘Jambo Bwana’ ditty. It is ridiculous how catchy the song is and how long it sticks in your head.

Watch: I found it hard to watch Disney’s ‘The Lion King’ after returning; it got me too emotional and nostalgic (absolute sook). Another one to watch is the 2010 film ‘The First Grader’ directed by Justin Chadwick. It is the story of an 84 year old former Mau Mau freedom fighter who, once education becomes more accessible fights for his right to have the education he could never afford. It is such an uplifting film, which touched a nerve for me, as I was able to see first hand how much some Kenyans value education. More on that later.

Eat: We had lovely and hilarious Kenyan chefs cook for us, I couldn’t name a particular dish, which I loved more than the others, but I did love the odd onion ring. It was typical hearty carb heavy food to sustain us while we worked.

Drink: Hands down, the only thing I drank other than water and the odd cocktail was Tusker beer. I have many the souvenir shirt to prove it.

In a phrase: ‘La la salama’ which means goodnight in Kiswahili.