Saturday, March 27, 2021

Wrapping up March...

Hello, Friends. 

Get ready to wrap up March this week. We had a great sampling of wind, hail, rain and snow this month (which is March's claim to fame here in the Midwest). We have seen the lion and the lamb. How will we end the month?

April 1: April Fool's Day is a fun holiday for pranking and practical joking. Here are some fun pranks that can turn your house upside down that are fun for kids or adults. Stay alert and ready to be pranked.

And wow, what a week of weighty questions! We had a lot of legal type questions and discussions this week. Be sure to know your rights and read all contracts and terms and conditions. Most of the time you may not have a choice to disagree to the text of the terms.

Spring Break

We are looking forward to our Spring Breaks after a year of learning. International Friends follows the Carmel Clay Schools.

We are breaking March 3 through April 11. 

Classes and meetings resume on April 12. 

School District Vocabulary

In Indiana and most of the United States each public school district is governed by school board members elected from the community. These members do not have stated political party affiliations. The Superintendent of schools directs the the overall school district while principals are responsible for individual schools in our district. 

Carmel Schools are redistricting or reassigning where children will be attending schools in the fall. In Carmel, our schools are "neighborhood schools" which means that children in the same neighborhood are assigned to specific elementary schools. These decisions are based on the numbers of children in the households in our community (including apartment complexes) . As people move and housing is built, the counts change. Elementary schools feed into one of the three Middle Schools. What schools All Middle Schools feed into Carmel High School.

March Madness

True to form, the underdogs have risen to the top. Everyone has had their bracket busted! What does this mean for our competition? Everything continues to be very exciting because now no one can brag!

What was the awww moment? How about Sister Jean meeting Blue, the Mayor of March? Blue is the mascot of Butler University. Sister Jean is the team chaplain for the Loyola Ramblers. She is 101 years old and having gotten her COVID vaccination, she pleaded her case to come to the dance.


Add Hoosier Hysteria to your basketball vocabulary. Hoosier Hysteria is our excitement for High School tournaments. 

COVID-19

Happy news for us here in Indiana on the COVID front. As vaccinations increase and cases decrease life in Indiana is beginning to open up. Mask wearing, social distancing, hand washing still are a part of our daily living. Relaxing our guard and planning to resume meeting together and enjoying each others' company and being together is exciting.

  • Indiana vaccinations opened to age 40+.
  • Beginning March 31, supplies permitting, vaccinations will be available for all Hoosiers 16+.
  • The Mask Mandate will be lifted April 6 and be changed to a Mask Advisory. This means that the communities drive mask decisions locally based on COVID cases. Please follow all postings: if a building requires masks, be sure to wear yours out of respect. 
  • All government buildings will continue require masks: motor vehicles, post office, schools, hospitals, etc.

Talking to the Police

In our classes we were discussing culpability, rights and dealing with law enforcement. Knowing what to expect when talking to the police is an important part of living in a community. In the United States you have "the right to remain silent", which is a right many people forget. Shouting and arguing is never in your best interest because "anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law". Lying to authorities is perjury and can be a felony which is a serious crime that is punishable by a year or more in prison. Here is a great resource:

  • Know your Rights When Interacting With Law Enforcement: All people have rights in the United States. It is your responsibility to know your rights as well as to behave in a way that protects you and others. While there is an emphasis on immigration in this document, these principles can be applied in all situations. This could be in the airport, during a traffic stop, or involved in any situation involving the police.
  • Know Your Rights Card gives you the words to speak (or not speak) to keep with you.

In the United States, the role of the police is to protect and serve the community. The police here in Hamilton County are ready to help in any situation. Do not be afraid to call the police for help and support or to report anything that seems off. Call the non-emergency number when you have time and if a situation is not life threatening. 


Stories and More: Monday, 10:30-11:00 A.M.

We enjoyed the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. This fairy tale tells the story of a poor boy that trades the family cow for a few beans! How can that help him and his mother? 

Here is a feature length film with an all star cast of Jack and the Beanstalk for you to enjoy.


March 29: Don't forget to pick up your packets for April and May! When you do, be sure to get a bag out of the tin (our house squirrel was helping himself to that activity!)

International Bible Study: Tuesday, 9:30-10:30 A.M.

We read the first story in chapter seven of Luke. This story tells about a centurion who requests Jesus to heal his servant. Great observations:

  • The centurion follows through channels to request help.
  • People in power in the Roman community recognize Jesus as a source of help and believe and trust him.
  • The powerful Centurion displays humbleness in Jesus.
  • This story demonstrates asking for help and care on behalf of someone else and prioritizing others.
  • This story demonstrates the value of a servant to someone in power in order for that person to fulfill a leadership role: when our homes, family and details of life are cared for by trusted people.
  • The Centurion respected Jewish conventions that frowned on Jewish people associating with non-Jews. Even at this very high level of social hierarchy, this Centurion respected this convention and did not demand Jesus fulfill his wishes.
We wondered who we were in this story:
  • Are we the messengers that connect people with the help they need? 
  • Are we the servants supporting leaders, our community, our household? 
  • Are we the leaders that look out for and care for those who help us carry our load? 
  • Are we the people that are the hands of Jesus and provide the needed service?

March 30: Luke 7:11-17 This story is an amazing story: Jesus raises a child from the dead. How could this be?

International Friends: Tuesday, 10:30-12:00 P.M.

We talked about March Madness and basketball from a Hoosier point of view. The bracket vocabulary and living in the heart of the competition puts a little spin on the ball. The pandemic is giving us all an excuse to enjoy the games.

March 30: Let's talk about Easter and spring break. Easter is a religious holiday for Christians but is a secular holiday for everyone else. Neighborhoods host egg hunts. Bunnies and chicks and colorful eggs and candy and feasts. 

This year we will cook cod (a Brazilian favorite) and sweet potato bread. Click to be redirected to the recipes and to make your shopping list) 

We traditionally dye Easter eggs. Grab a kit and boil some eggs. The kits cost anywhere from under a dollar to $2.00 like these available from Walmart for the ones that include all you need (even the cups!) McCormick Spices has this great page that has some alternative ideas and tips for dying your eggs.

 Book Club: Wednesday, 10:00-11:00 A.M.

We started talking about the first two chapters. We shared our impressions and our favorite moments. We talked about the character of Don Quixote: is he mad, a fool, idealist, wise?

 We found that most of us are reading several versions and maybe even several languages. We do like our hard copies to read, mark and enjoy. There is something satisfying about reading a paper copy!

March 31: Be ready to talk about chapters three and four. 

 Afternoon Conversation: Wednesday, 4:30-6:00 P.M.

We learned to flash fill and use control E to duplicate format in Excel. Chatting and finding common things to talk about is important to developing our language skills. 

March 31: We will have a short Excel lesson. After that, anything goes!

English Classes: Thursday, 9:30-12:00 P.M.

It was nice to have all the classes all under one roof so to speak. Prepandemic we were able to see each other each week. This week we were able to see all of our friends, even briefly for a get together before everyone arrived and touch base.

Don't miss our resources. Our webpages have some excellent links to building your vocabulary under each of our meeting links in Our Meetings and Classes.

We had a great conversation about Bill's Tip "on the sly" which means secretively. We talked about the fact that this phrase may not be bad (when we are planning a surprise for someone).

April 1: Meet for English classes

End of the Week Conversation: Friday, 10:30-12:00 P.M.

We talked about "terms and conditions" and your responsibility to read before agreeing or signing. Here is a link to some standard templates that you can lookover and study. Remember that leases, app terms and conditions and other business documents generally protect the business and inform you of what you are agreeing to. Pay attention because if you break these terms you may legally or fiscally responsible,

Legalese or legal language may not be clear to the average person reading. Be sure to ask questions if you do not understand. Do not be afraid to ask questions. Do not sign or agree if you do not understand what you are reading. You are responsible to know and understand what you are agreeing to or signing which also means that you may have consequences and penalties if you break the contract.

Sometimes you can object to terms of a contract and negotiate a change, but with apps or online purchases, you just say no and don't download them.

Be aware that taking no action and using the website (with its cookies) or using an app implies your agreement to the terms and conditions!

April 2:  Welcome April! Will we have weighty conversations or will we have casual conversation?

all under one roof: in one location or place

anything goes: there are no boundaries; we can talk about anything

awwww moment: cute or sentimental time

break: fail to keep the terms or agreement

come to the dance: attend the college basketball tournament

culpability: deserving blame

feature length or feature film: a movie that is 130 minutes long

hard copies: books, magazines, papers (not virtual copies on your computer or tablet)

implies: suggest or implicates (a good legal term saying that you are involved in the situation)

How about: asking for an opinion

look over: read 

pleaded her case: spoke up for herself 

risen to the top: excelled 

secular: not related to religion or religions practices

seems off: is not typical or is unusual

so to speak: in a metaphorical way; an image

standard template: a document form to start

stated political party affiliations: political party is not part of the election requirment

true to form: usual

weighty: serious; full of information

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