it's monday night! (sarcastic enthusiasm)

This is going to be a rather random post but it's monday night and my one day of school this week has me feeling eccentric already... I'll begin with crows.

To add to the already depressing atmosphere of an ex-soviet balkan nation, there are literally thousands and thousands of huge black crows that are constantly overhead.  I happened to peek out the window last night as a flock or five flew by crowing (real word?) and cawing up a storm.  

even Hitchcock would be intimidated...

Next up, my classroom!  I've continued with the decoration and slowly but surely it's starting to feel more like my own.  Some specialties: a German license plate; a lion I painted in the art room yesterday; a map of the world on which I put little red pins on Singapore, Tamil Nadu, Kosovo and Minnesota; and a whole bunch of portraits of inspirational people.

Mr. Neil's Social Studies room

The Portraits

Hemingway, Lee Kuan Yew, Rosa Parks, Henry Ford, John Lennon,
Rita Hayworth, Michael Jordon, Martin Luther, Jonas Salk, Helen Keller,
Dalai Lama, Steve McQueen, Sai Baba, Desmond Tutu, Houndini, Einstein,
Ang San Suu Kyi, Martin Luther King, Obama, Teddy, Lincoln, Robert Frost,
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Churchill, Michelle O, Mother Teresa, Paul Tillich,
Vijay, Nelson Mandela, Amelia Earhart, Will Shortz, Franz Joseph, Marie Curie,
Elie Wiesel, Bob Dylan, Fredrick Douglas, Gandhi

Next up.  The Albanian flag.  Kosovars struggle with national identity.  To be fair, their "country" isn't recognized by nearly half of the nations of the world and most of their new identity has been constructed for them by the UN and the EU.  But, they don't really seem to want their own identity.  Rather, it seems most would prefer to just join together with their neighbors Albania.  Often times you see the Albanian flag being proudly displayed and the Kosovo flag nowhere to be seen.  Kosovars speak Albanian and many Kosovars fled to Albania during the war but the relationship between the two countries is spotty at best.  Certainly the Albanians do not want Kosovo and all the problems that come along with it.  But even behind this cold shoulder the Kosovars continue to love Albania and show their "patriotism."

this Albanian flag randomly sticking out a
car window illustrates my point fairly well.

I could write a book analyzing this poster I found yesterday.
Albanian flag in the background, gun toting moustacioed
man in the foreground

That's all for tonight from me.