'I used a snare to catch some mices.'

Good evening, friends and family. It's Monday night and Neil and I have just returned from a delicious pasta dinner at an Italian restaurant with some of the other staff. We are now watching euronews and eating berry flavored chocolate, in an attempt to somewhat celebrate Valentines Day. We are also counting down the minutes until Thursday, which is Independence Day, a day off school! THIS IS GREAT NEWS. However, although I am ecstatic about not having to tame rooms full of chimpanzees/ students for the day, I'm also looking forward to experiencing the celebration of Kosovo's independence, which was declared in 2008.

We really are experiencing this country at such an interesting time. It's hard to say what Kosovo will be like in another three years, and I really think it could go either way. There seems to be so much potential here for change, for the place to be 'newborn.' However, there is also a sense of hopelessness in the air. People seem apathetic about the future of Kosovo, and even about their recent new identity as Kosovars. Most of my students refer to themselves as Albanian, and don't show any obvious pride in their own country. The whole place is stuck in an identity crisis, and it's hard to see how things will go from here.

Anyway. The title of this blog post is a quote from my tenth grade class today. The vocab word was 'snare,' and it seems they are still confused about the plural of mouse. Hopefully that is rectified now, after a quick review on irregular plurals. Although it's hard to say. Below are (as promised some time ago - sorry) some pictures of the library. Enjoy!

'Silent Reading Area.'

Just one example of my hilarious library signage.
Others include Justin Bieber and Snoop Dogg.

Casual open propane flame next to a box of cushions and plastic tubs of books.
Just how we roll here at ASK when it's below freezing inside the school.

Me after escaping from the zoo exhibit.