All meetings and classes are GMT -5
Hello, Friends:
We are talking about hoops. March Madness is here! Do you have a bracket? Go to CBS Sports and fill in your bracket (who you think will win the tournament).
Meet some great people and watch the stories of Hoosiers and their lives. Find some new people to meet and places to go. #myINcrowd lets you tell your story!
Dates
A big week for weather and climate and the official March party...St. Patrick's Day!
March 14: Daylight Savings Time Begins (spring forward) and lose an hour of sleep. The busses will be running in the dark, again. Watch out for children.
March 14-21: Severe Weather Preparedness Week
March 16: Statewide Tornado Drill Day
March 17: St. Patrick's Day. Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick's Day! Celebrate with traditional Irish American corned beef and cabbage. The Old Farmer's Almanac has a history of St. Patrick along with recipes. In spite of COVID, there are events in Indiana if you are ready to venture out for a Guinness stout.
March 18, 11:00 A.M.: Weather warning tests begin. Listen for the sirens.
Severe Weather
Spring weather is changeable in central Indiana. Stay on top of the forecasts and be ready for change. Indiana is hit by an average of 22 tornados a year. In 2011 we had a record of 72 tornados touch down.
Generally:
- A "watch" means that the conditions are good for severe weather.
- A "warning" means that the storms or tornados have been sited and are moving your way.
- NOAA Weather is a good bookmark.
- Add a local weather app to your phone and turn on your warnings.
- 93.1 FM talk radio covers current weather as well as call in notifications from people with boots on the ground.
At Home:
- Make plans for where to go when weather turns bad. An interior room without windows in the lowest level of your home. If you live in an apartment, they may have designated areas for shelter.
- Have a go bag or kit prepared: shoes or flipflops, a portable radio, chargers for your tech, a flashlight, a blanket to protect yourself from flying debris and don't forget medicines and your mask! Here is a great kit list from NOAA.gov
- Don't forget to plan for your pets.
Away From Home:
- If you are in a public building, there are signs posted advising where to go if weather is threatening.
- Flooding on the roads can be a problem. Do not drive into standing water. Your car can be swept away or fill.
- If you spot a tornado while driving, do what you can to avoid it. Pull over and take shelter in a building (a truck stop, convenience store). If you are stuck in traffic, stay in your car and buckle up. Finding shelter in an outdoor culvert or ditch is an option, but can put you at risk. Avoid mobile homes. For more: What To Do if You See a Tornado While Driving.
COVID-19
International Stories and More: Saturday, 7:00 P.M./Sunday, 9:00 A.M.
We learned about St. Patrick's Day! We sang along: I'm a Little Leprechaun. We counted to 20.
March 28: Join us! We are learning fairy tails and the story of the Three Little Pigs.
Stories and More: Monday, 10:30-11:30 A.M.
We enjoyed the story of the Princess and the Pea. How do you know when someone is really a princess? She is so sensitive that she can feel a pea under seven mattresses!
March 15: Let's celebrate St. Patrick's Day
American Sign Language: Monday, 5:30-6:30 P.M.
We warmed up with casual conversation that included a lot of finger spelling. We reviewed and conversed. We still fall back on our verbal English to explain but we are getting better at correcting or trying to incorporate more sign words. We are learning that sloppy and incorrect motions lead to misunderstanding. Some signs are made quickly and blend with each other and can be misread. Does this equate with pronunciation issues?
March 15: Join us to talk with your hands!
International Bible Study: Tuesday, 9:30-10:30 A.M.
Luke 6: 43-45 teaches about how tell if someone is good or bad. Jesus teaches that you can tell someone's heart by how they speak and act. This lesson helps us to understand and make sense of the people around us. As we choose associates and advise our families, we need to keep in mind these words of advice.
March 16: We will look at the Luke 6: 46-49. Jesus uses the analogy of building and bad weather to wrap up his seminar.
International Friends: Tuesday, 10:30-12:00 P.M.
We talked about judging and being judgmental. Is there a difference?
We also shared a bunch of home remedies:
- Vinegar is a great disinfectant for surfaces. It also kills mold. Bleach only cleans up mold.
- Raw honey is great for your throat.
- Local honey helps with allergic reactions.
- Dry pomegranate peels and make a tea with them for colds.
- Aloe vera is great for your skin (put it on burns or other irritations), mix the pulp with honey for an upset stomach, put it on your hair for shine.
- The inner membrane of an onion skin stops bleeding when wrapped on a cut.
- Pickle juice is takes the heat out of a burn.
- Flour in the refrigerator for burns. Dip your burn in the cold flour for a quick cure.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding is a fun romantic comedy about a Greek family adapting their customs to America.
March 16: Let's get ready for St. Patrick's Day! We will have a "cook along" and learn to dance a jig! You will need: potatoes, cabbage, onion, carrots, parsnips and Corned Beef (on sale in the meat section). Grab a couple We will talk about Irish Soda Bread (and whip some up). Click for the recipe. And here is a nice video of Irish Soda Bread with an grand Irish accent.
Book Club: Wednesday, 10:00-11:00 A.M.
Let's kick off our "book club" with Don Quixote. Here is the link to the online PDF with and English translation by Ormsby as well as others from Project Gutenberg. And here is another link from Spark Notes. You can find versions on Amazon, also. Feel free to read in your home language or other versions and we can talk about the story and compare notes. And I don't mean the Cliff Notes or Spark Notes (but here is a helper summary for the first chapters)!
March 17: Join us as we kick off this new adventure and dream come true (a book club) for International Friends. Read introductions and the first four chapters (if you can stop there).
Please register for the 2020-2021 with us to get Zoom links. People who have registered for the 2020-2021 year should have received updated Zoom links this weekend (March 13).
Here is the Restless Reads Reading Guide. You can download the free pdf (they will ask for your information to "buy").
Afternoon Conversation: Wednesday, 4:30-6:00 P.M.
We love it when you bring your questions to our meetings! We looked at the phrase "in that while" from Romans 5:8). While the gist of the sentence is similar, the emphasis or key figure of the action is different. This can be a little tricky. Pause and punctuation can make a difference.
- God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. (during that time)
- God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. (for the reason)
- God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. (a contrast between the two ideas: God's love and people's state of offense against God)
We wrapped up our conversation with our Excel lesson. You can ask Excel to look up or search for specific information to quickly inform specific decision making.
We also talked about using an abacus (but not as a spreadsheet). Some children still learn this skill in lieu of using a calculator. Some countries use 4:1 or 4:2 beads for counting while other use 5:1. In the U.S. abacuses are used in the early years to understand math concepts. This tool and its history is so interesting. There are many advantages to learning and using this method for calculating.
March 17: Happy St. Patrick's Day! I know what I am having for supper!
English Classes: Thursday, 9:30-12:00 P.M.
While waiting for students to join, we had a great conversation about the weather and about how we hold each other accountable. In the U.S. we may rely on others to help us keep our intended goals. For example, if I want to work out every day, I may enlist a friend to meet me to walk.
March 18: It's never too late to join!
End of the Week Conversation: Friday, 10:30-12:00
We talked about having people help us in our homes and the customs in other countries. We talked about our housekeeping habits and wishes (I wish my family would leave the kitchen sink empty and the counters wiped down).
March 19: This is the third Friday of the month. We meet starting at 11:00.
adapting: changing behaviors
boots on the ground: in the middle of the action
a bunch of: a lot, many
compare notes: talk about and comment about observations and opinions
dream come true: something that has been talked about or thought about that finally happens
drill: practice
equate: be compared with or to something else
fall back on:
gist: general meaning
hit: experiences or has
inform: advise
keep: follow through
sensitive: easily hurt or damaged
this weekend: the current weekend
touch down: touch the ground (and in this case cause damage)
seminar: conference, meeting, training
sloppy: careless, messy
warmed up: practice or get ready
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