THE WORLD IS A VAMPIRE

Eight little pumpkins carved last night went to school this morning. A day of treats and costumes and a scary story and a creepy movie. Happy Halloween! 

IT'S CLOSE TO MIDNIGHT

Sometimes the getting ready for the night is the best part of the night.

DON'T GET ANY BIG IDEAS

Had a way different idea in my head of what I wanted this headdress to look like, but I kinda like the way it turned out. Sometimes things just evolve the way they want to.

IT'S QUIET COMPANY

Dress: Joe Fresh, Necklaces: American Eagle, Shoes: Ralph Lauren

Never really been a night person, I enjoy my sleep too much, getting to bed just in time to hear the nine o'clock cannon fire from Stanley Park. Early mornings, minimal traffic, an empty classroom for two hours before school opens. Except for this morning, not alone at all, another Halloween prank I'm sure just like the moldy pumpkins, a spider dangling from the ceiling and promptly deciding to land on my daybook while I was planning...

NO THINKING FOR A LITTLE WHILE

Jacket: Lucky Brand Jeans, Shirt & Jeans: Gap

So so rank. One of the pumpkins we painted in class went bad over the weekend, spilled a big gooey mess all over the counter and onto the floor. That smell was nothing like I'd ever smelled, had to keep the windows open until the end of school, good thing I wore my fur as the classroom turned into an icebox. Thought I was in the clear until we found another pumpkin oozing its' guts out everywhere. So foul, just awful. Bed early for me tonight, if only I could get that stench out of my mind...

I'VE SEEN YOU IN THE CLOTHES YOU MADE

Halloween costume from start to finish. Still gotta make the headdress.

SUPPOSE I SAID I AM ON MY BEST BEHAVIOUR

Shirt: Gap, Skirt: Joe Fresh, Necklace: American Eagle

A prof at university told us in the last class of our final year that we needed, absolutely necessary, to have some kind of outlet to escape to while working as a teacher. Exercise, music, dancing, wine... whatever it took to just relax and not think about school for a bit. Wishing you all restful Sundays, full of escapes.

EVERY TIME YOU CLOSE YOUR EYES

The girl working at the shu uemura counter in Holt Renfrew told me, "these ones aren't as fancy as some of the other ones, like, you could wear these every day to work". Pretttty sure I'll just settle for Halloween.

ALWAYS TRIED TO GET ME FAR FROM HOME

Pyjama day - Shirt: Gap, Pants: Old Navy

A bit of a crazy week of ups and downs. Admittedly I can be so stubborn sometimes, it's hard for me to get over things and get back on track. A culmination of miscommunications and power struggles and locking my keys in my car (again) and having orange paint explode on me yesterday in class, something needed to change. Got back into running, forgot how good it felt. Literally, things make perfect sense when I think about them during a run. Mind clears up, answers come forth. Don't ever lose yourself, my mind says. You're much stronger than you think.

Halloween art from Thursday

YOU CLOSE YOUR EYES AND HOPE THAT THIS IS JUST IMAGINATION

My answer to the question one of my students asked me, why I put Caution Danger tape on the classroom door: because there's kids in here! Ain't nothing scarier than that.

PS. how great do those painted pumpkins look?

Pants & striped shirt: TNA, Tank top: Wilfred Free, Shoes: Nine West, Necklace: American Eagle

STRANDED IN THIS SPOOKY TOWN

Painted pumpkins from Friday, spent the whole day doing art, pretty much my favourite kind of day.

IN ALL THEIR GLORY IT'S GONNA SHAPE THEM

Pretty much the most exhausting thing ever, field trips, fell asleep on the bus-ride back to school, fifty noisy kids couldn't keep me awake. Best part was seeing my students just so excited, the hay ride and the apple orchard and the petting zoo and the pumpking patch, and the bouncy floor, now that was exciting. Pure joy on their faces when they were jumping on that bouncy floor. Another best part was watching my students all with their hands up in the air waiting to be called on to answer a question regarding apple farming, and the apple barn employee saying "you can just shout out the answer!" and they looked so confused, they don't ever yell out answers in class, they wait their turn and let others who are called on go first, that's the respectful thing to do. Pure pride on my face, what a great bunch I have.

ALWAYS TIME ON MY MIND

Shorts & Shirt: Gap, Trench: Club Monaco

Wish all weekends could be three-day weekends, one extra day of guilt-free laziness because you've already packed full your other two weekend days. Heard today that Vancouver will experience one of the coldest winters in the past twenty years, not sure how long I can hold onto this outfit of linen shorts and a trench coat but I'm gonna leave it til the last possible minute to be forced by the weather to wear tights...

I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE

My students' Thanksgiving art

Thankful for family and friends and my job and the city I live in and sunrises and sunsets and turkey dinners and the feeling that I'm exactly where I need to be in my life.

 My brother Felix Cartal and I playing Wii

Driving to work

 A student's Social Studies project on Vancouver

My thanksgiving turkey 

A Steveston sunset