Well, I have been in the United States for one whole month. Hurray! I still not have seen any guns yet, despite being close to the Fort Bragg military base.

This weekend marked the first in four where I didn't go further than Fayetteville. Shopping for the essentials this weekend at Wal-Mart: milk, juice, bread, pre-packaged dinners, cereal, soap.

I am continually learning new things about my profession; I have acquired more skills in this past month than I have in fourteen weeks of student teaching in Edmonton. I have my own mentor teacher, a special program for initially licensed teachers, and plenty of opportunities for professional development. It's a lot of work, but I'm surviving.

The image above was submitted to a recent worth1000.com contest for mythical creatures in our everyday lives. I thought this one was among the best.