Zenaida Arroyo

10
Sep
2024

Tuesday Topics: The letter J

Happy Tuesday! Thank you for joining me and Jenn for another edition of Tuesday Topics. Remember to link up with us! Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier! Don’t forget to come back for later linkers!

I wrote a post of things that came to my mind that start with the letter “M”. Today, it is about the letter “J” because it is the 10th letter of the alphabet and it is the 10th day in September.

• Joy. I am going through a phase right now and I am looking for joy wherever I go. I am trying very hard to be positive but sometimes that doesn’t go well. Please tell Joy to come back!

• Jail. I have never been to jail..not even to visit anyone. Based on what I see on TV, it looks like a scary place.

• Jeans. I love them! I was so happy when I found out that I can wear jeans everyday to work as long as I have a spirit wear top. Unfortunately, the pairs I have no longer fit and I refuse to buy new ones. I will fit back into them.

• Jalapeño. This is great with salsa, nachos, and on pizza. I also like jalapeño poppers.

• Journey. The first thing that came to my mind was the music group. 🙂 But then I started thinking about my journey in life. I believe that everything happens for a reason so sometimes I think about the things have have happened and the reason they were supposed to happen.

• Jaws. This movie FREAKED me out!

• Job. I am grateful for my job. It is rewarding but exhausting. I don’t love it but I don’t hate it either. This is my 16th year working in the same District. Hopefully, I can retire from the school I am working at now.

• Jetlag. One of the worst feelings. A few years ago I went to Spain with two other friends. I remember one of them told me not to take a nap but to instead go with them to sightsee. Nope. Sleep won.

• Jealousy. It is a horrible feeling. I am not proud but there have been a couple of times in which I’ve felt jealous of other people.

• Jibarito. It “is a sandwich that uses flattened, fried green plantains instead of bread, and is typically served with meat, cheese, lettuce, and tomato.” If you ever get a chance to eat one, do it.

The topic for next week – What are your Fall running plans or race schedule? Feel free to write about this or any running-related topic. We hope you’ll link up with us!

New Tuesday Topics

06
Sep
2024

Fit Five Friday and September 2024 Ultimate Coffee Date

categories: Fit Five Friday, Ultimate Coffee Date

Welcome to the September edition of the Ultimate Coffee Date hosted by Coco and Deborah. It’s also time for another edition of Fit Five Friday hosted by My First 5K and More, Running with Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and me!

Now, grab a mug of your favorite beverage, and let’s chat briefly!

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that I do not like how dark it is in the morning. I know I’ve mentioned how I enjoy running in the dark, but I am not running anymore. Well, at least not like before. I want some sunshine. It is 5:30am right now and it is still dark outside.

The photo below is from a few years ago

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that these weeks have flown by. Progress grades are due next week. How? I am still working through some kinks with my students. It is stressing me out that I need to enter these grades for school. I am also very tired.

dead battery

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that even though I will not my meet my goal of running/walking 2,024 miles this year, I signed up again for next year. Crazy? I need a goal or some motivation. Marathons are out of the equation but I want to focus on half marathons. Next year I am running the Fargo Half Marathon in South Dakota and need a few more states to run in.

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that I may not be running everyday, but I have been either walking or running or BOTH since June 28th. I may have “cheated” a few times in logging in a quarter mile or even less, but it is still a walk. It counts!

If we were having coffee…
I’d ask you if you saw the video of when my school was featured on TV. I wasn’t planning to be at school that early (7am) but am glad I made it happen. I am on the left side next to a woman with a pink shirt. You can see me for a few seconds because then I moved to the front to take a picture.

The topic for next week’s Fit Fit Friday – 5 things you’ll never do as a runner. Feel free to write about this or any fitness topic you’d like. We hope you’ll link up with us!

27
Aug
2024

Tuesday Topics: August 2024 Review

categories: Monthly Review, Tuesday Topics

Monthly Review-August 2024 This week’s Tuesday Topic is a FREE topic. Feel free to post any running-related blog post. Remember to link up with Jenn and Zenaida! Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier! Remember to come back for later linkers!

I went back to work and let me tell you that I am EXHAUSTED already. I have 24 students and 6 boys and 2 girls with behavior issues. The boys are the worst. Every single day I come mentally tired. It takes me about 5-10 minutes to line up to leave the classroom (bathroom, lunch, dismissal) because they are constantly talking, touching, etc. I have separated the boys and put their desk in the back of the classroom (one is next to mine), I have given positive and negative behavior points, and have talked to parents. Oh, one student cannot write his name and about 6 students CANNOT read. One mom even told me earlier in the week that her son didn’t learn to read last year in first grade. I looked at her and wanted to say “So why didn’t you teach him?”

I am doing a lot of work to prepare my Reading and Foundational Skills lessons. Our reading curriculum from last year is OK but we were never trained. I got by last year but told myself that this year I would do better. So far it is going well. The students are engaged with the stories we’ve read (The Fisherman and His Wife, The Emperor’s New Clothes, Beauty and the Beast, and Paul Bunyan). The good thing is that I alternate between an English and a Spanish lesson. Skills I have to teach in English and in Spanish. I have the English slides that I bought from TpT but need to do my Spanish slides.

I decided not to run the Chicago Marathon. It wasn’t an easy decision to make. I couldn’t finish my long runs. Running during the week wasn’t happening either. The main reason was that I was tired. I would wake up with my alarm and then turn it off. I am still doing my daily running and/or walking so at least I am doing something for myself. However, I am enjoying my walks more than my runs even if my runs are shorter runs.

Let me tell you MORE about how August went for me:

Mileage: To date I’ve run 32.25 and walked 39.50 miles. Interesting that I have logged more walking miles than running.

Run the Year 2024: I signed up to run and walk 2,024 miles this year. So far I have completed 369.51 miles (per the RTE Tracker) and have 1654 miles to go. I know I will not reach this goal. I would need to run/walk 13.8703 miles per day to reach my goal in time.

Current Book: I read “The Bright Side Running Club” and am currently reading “What Could Be Saved”. I loved The Bright Side Running Club. That is my 15th book I read this year so I am on target to reach my goal of reading 24 books this year.

Injuries: I am still dealing with plantar fasciitis. It is worse in my right foot but I think I have it in my left foot. I have no one else to blame but myself because I am not doing anything to make this go away. I have some discomfort/pain in my left knee too. Sigh.

Races: None.

Health: I am still dealing struggling with hot flashes. The number on the scale isn’t going up so I am happy about it. Now I just need to lose the weight!

School: See my paragraphs above. 🙂

What I am looking forward to next month: A day off for Labor Day.

The topic for next week: Tell us how your running journey began. Feel free to write about this or any running-related topic. We hope you’ll link up with us!

09
Aug
2024

Fit Five Friday: Five Friday Prompts, Part 1

categories: Fit Five Friday

We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and me for another Fit Five Friday link-up!

I am going to deviate from today’s topic to write about 5 prompts that are in the Jetpack app. Ready?

• You’re going on a cross-country trip. Airplane, train, bus, car, or bike? I would go by car with a friend. It will be a fun drive and trip. I read “The Lincoln Highway” and would love to take that route – from NYC to San Francisco.

• What tattoo do you want and where would you put it? I already have 3 so I don’t really need another one. 🙂 I have a purple panther, a butterfly, and a sun. I would like to get something that is running related. Ha, if I were an Olympian, I would get the Olympic rings. I like the one below.

• How has technology changed your job? When I began teaching job, I used a TV with a VCR to show a movie and an overhead projector to project things on a screen. None of those things are used now. This Summer I received a new Promethean Board and a document camera.

One of the benefits of remote learning during that awful year of 2020-2021, was that I learned how to teach my classes with a camera, a computer, and Google Classroom. We no longer have snow days to make up at the end of the school year. If the weather is bad, we all work from home.

• Describe something you learned in high school. One of the best things I learned is how to type. I remember my counselor suggested I take a typing class. She told me it will help me in the future. She was right! I enjoyed the class and did well.

• What’s the oldest thing you own? The first thing that comes to my mind is my Keurig. I’ve had it since 2012. My nephew was 10 years old and we were at Target. I told him that if his mom asked him, to tell him that Tia wants a Keurig. I was serious but also kidding. Imagine my surprise when I opened my box. He was excited too!

The topic for next week – 5 finish line songs. Feel free to write about this or any fitness topic you’d like. We hope you’ll link up with us!

06
Aug
2024

Tuesday Topics: My focus this month

categories: Tuesday Topics

Happy Tuesday! Thank you for joining me and Jenn for another edition of Tuesday Topics. Remember to link up with us! Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier! Don’t forget to come back for later linkers!

It is August! To me that means the end of Summer Break and back to work. I know it will be busy the first couple of weeks. This will be my 16th year working as a teacher and it doesn’t get easier.

Here are a few things I plan to focus on this month:

• Self care. I come first. I have to take care of myself. I am making sure to run and/or walk in the morning, get plenty of sleep, read, drink water, eat “healthy”, etc.

• Settle into work. This week I am planning to go to school to set up for a few days. I start on Monday and the students start on Wednesday. I am not planning to stay late this week. Once school starts I will do what I can during the day and work a few hours at home. In addition, I plan to leave at 3:30 pm unless I have a meeting after school. Work will always be there. I will never catch up so why stress about it.

• Marathon training. My long runs have sucked big time. I need to figure out why. I’ve done these runs before so I know I can do them again. Sometimes I wonder if it is because I am older. It could also be because of the weather. I ran my last marathon in 2016 using the Hansons Marathon Method. I cannot believe I was running 6 days a week!!!!

• Patience. I know this is throughout the year, but I need to continue to have patience. One reason is for work. It will be easier for me and for my students. Second is at home. I’ve mentioned it before that I help take care of my mom. I also live with my sister that has a mental illness. Those two sometimes take a toll on me. There are times in which I just want to be alone.

• To listen. I listen but do I really listen? Sometimes the answer is no. Sometimes I find myself listening to the other person talk but in my head I am already thinking of a response. I want to stop doing that. I want to hear what the person has to say. I owe it to that person.

The topic for next week – Share your race fueling plan. Feel free to write about this or any running-related topic. We hope you’ll link up with us!

New Tuesday Topics