Flight Of The Conchords - Jenny

Flight Of The Conchords - Jenny

In celebration of Friday and the approaching weekend, I cut my Sociology class a little short and let the kids have some down time. They love when I do this because they use this time to show me everything that they've spent the last week looking up online. Yea, it can be pretty scary to find out what they're looking at. This video on YouTube was the greatest though. Thanks Corey, you made me smile right into Saturday.

TGIF

The first full week has come and gone - TGIF!


Highlights:

• I have fallen in love again with the 10th grade class. I guess some maturity has begun to kick in. I'm happy to be their sponsor.
• I got to see all of "my girls" this week as they dropped by here and there (seniors from last year)
• My son finally said that he had a good day at school
• I received my shipment of textbooks for my senior class today
• Today is Friday

Not so "high" lights:

• My grandbaby had to have more bloodwork and it's always hard to find a vein on a six month old
• The 11th grade class hasn't changed at all
• I can't get as much done in a day as I used to because of teaching an extra hour and that means a lot more work at home, which then makes the kids unhappy because they have less time with me

Bouquets of Freshly Sharpened Pencils and New Notebooks

Ahh yes, the start of a new school year. The halls are clean and freshly waxed. Everyone has high expectations (well, most of us anyway). The smell of a fresh start lingers in the air.


Today was the first day of school for the kids (teachers have already been there a week) and all in all it went well. Everyone was giddy over the anticipation of what is ahead.

• Seniors were excited about being top dog and getting the perks that come along with that job description
• Juniors were just glad to finally get that far, knowing that next year is theirs
• Sophmores were excited about being in my homeroom (I hope they're not too soon disappointed) and being in a half credit class for the first time ever
• Freshmen were excited about finally getting into highschool and getting the opportunity to join clubs that only highschoolers can get into
  

One thing that always remains constant from year to year is change. Some students graduate, some will not return to school for various other reasons, some new students will enter our lives, and even teachers come and go. This year seems to be a much bigger change for me.

Our first ever graduating class was last year and today the halls, and my heart, missed that special group of kids. Two of them came by at the end of the day to see what was going on it was so good to see them again. I wish the entire class the best that life has to offer. May you strive for more than you thought could be possible and gain all that you ever dreampt could come true.

We also lost several faculty members this year. They have moved on to new adventures in life - a new marrigage, new babies and jobs. All will be sorely missed by students and teachers alike. May your marriage be strong, your babies healthy, and new careers successful.

To the new graduates and former coworkers - keep in touch because you are all so special to us. You have touched our hearts and changed our lives in many ways. Because I have known each of you, I look at life differently. Thanks for everyday smiles, laughter, occassional tears, and crazy antics.

And school began, and it was different, and yet familar, and it was good.

THE COUNTDOWN

Yea! This just in: Teachers do not need to report until Tuesday, August 7th. Four more days of freedom. Stand back and let me live!

Summer Vacation

A very wise person once said that summer vacation was not intended to give kids a break, but instead to provide enough time for teachers to forget why they wanted to quit teaching in May.I live for summer break. Unfortunately, summer seems to be shorter and go by much faster each year. What happened to the days when kids didn't go back to school until after Labor Day?! We now end around the last week of May and start back around August 10th (the students at least - a teacher pops in and out through the summer, is required to be at work about a week before the kids, and usually comes in even earlier to get the class ready before then).This summer my kids and I decided to have a vacation adventure. Instead of planning out every little detail and making reservations, which creates commitments that tie down a free spirit, we decided on a few places we'd like to see and set out with the RV to find them and anything else along the way. The one place that we did decide to make it to was the Atlantic coast. Unfortunately, the scheduled lives of others hampered our spontaneity and lack of reservations crushed that little dream of ours. BUT, that did not stop us. And neither did beach rats. Yes, unbeknownst to us, and perhaps some readers out there, there are places along Florida beaches that host a wide variety of wildlife. At one stop (this ended up being a one nighter coincidentally), the rats came out to watch us set up camp. We were camping right at the beach: it was the beach, sand dunes, and then us - oh, and the beach rats. We could actually hear them thump around in the palmettos and even on top the camper rooftop late in the evening. But hey, we wanted adventure.We also stayed at Florida Caverns State Park, which I highly recommend, and toured one of the only caverns in the state of Florida that is high enough above sea level to actually walk through. The park has many nature trails; one of them takes you through another smaller cave tunnel. Do beware of black widow spiders however. Being the good cub scout mom that I am, I demonstrated to my son the importance of taking a broom to sweep around and under the picnic table before sitting down. I had no clue that I would uncover one of the largest black widows I have ever seen! I should have taken a picture of it but at the time all I could think of was, "kill this spider!". Did I ever impress my boy. I am now super spider killin' mom.About an hour away from Florida Caverns is Ponce de Leon State Park. You can't camp here but the natural spring is wonderful to swim in. They have even constructed cement steps leading into the spring so that you can enjoy nature without too much trouble.
All in all we had a great two weeks, even if we didn't see the Atlantic. I have to say that for me, the best part of the trip was being with my kids and watching them have fun - from my oldest to my youngest and even my precious little grandbaby (made 5 months on the trip). What is really important is family spending time together. And there's always next summer. We have all school year to anticipate it!

Poor Pedro...

This school year started off with a new friend around campus - a rather plump pigeon. Never before had we seen a pigeon around the school campus, so he created a bit of a stir. Each morning "Pedro" (I chose the name because we were studying the Hispanic-American population in Sociology the day I decided he needed a name) would sit on my window and wait for me to go around and throw wheat crackers out the door for him. Each morning my tenth grade class would comment on Pedro's visit.
On a chaotic Friday morning before Thanksgiving holiday, my tenth graders entered my class and quickly began moving about and talking. They could see that I was very preoccupied for the moment with some paper work that had to be done ASAP, and like any highschool student they took advantage of the time they had to wait. As I worked I overheard a couple of students ask where Pedro was and noticed them approaching the window to look out. Suddenly there was a loud gasp, followed by a comment from one of the other students (who by the way tends to process things rather slowly), "What are all of those feathers doing there?" Like a flash I dashed to the window, where by now the entire class had congregated, and looked out in disbelief to find the largest pile of pigeon feathers I had ever seen in any one location. "Oh Pedro, what happened to you?!"
I know it's sick but my first thought was of the movie Shrek - you know the part where the princess sings such a high note that the bird explodes? Yea, all that was left of poor Pedro was feathers and what may have been a beak. There were no bones, just feathers. I couldn't help but laugh and tell my class that I hoped all of those wheat crackers didn't cause him to swell up and burst.
Needless to say, not much was accomplished in class that first hour. We all had to go out and look at Pedro's feathery remains and discuss the possibilites of how his life may have ended. We all mourned the loss and then moved on.
Poor Pedro....

No. I’m Not Dead…

…but it sure can seem like it some times! Despite a severe lack of time, I still do long to Blog. Each day that has passed I have “thought” Blogs – if only I could get them from my head to the computer instantaneously. Even now I should be working, because I’m still way behind, but I must simply stop and move away from reality to the land of empty cyberspace.

There is absolutely no way to catch up so we must just move on from here. For instance, the greatest thing has come into our chaotic and busy middle/high school hallways this week and sparked an interest level that I wish I could see in my students (and myself) everyday. What is it you ask? AFRICA. Actually, it’s an African watering hole. No kidding, there is a real-time audio/video feed of some watering hole somewhere in Africa that has enthralled us all – at least most of us anyway. Everyday we hear birds and bugs of Africa chirping and squawking in the hallways (which is oddly more welcoming than the usual sounds we have). We have seen wildebeests grazing and drinking, monkeys moving about, and even a turtle lazily slumping off into this great watering hole. What an adventure! My daughter really doesn’t get it though. I sent her the link and she simply wasn’t that amused. My daughter usually “gets” this kind of stuff, so I find myself questioning the level of sanity among us all at school. Have we really come to this point? Are we so stressed out that finding moments of escape in an African watering hole has become a salvation to us? I’d prefer to think that we have really hit on something that stimulates our mind and our senses. Check out the
Link

But if you disagree, don’t bother to tell me about it –I prefer to remain in denial until the thrill wears off.

Today was one of those days. After being at work for half of the morning, I suddenly realized that I didn't have my purse. "Where could I have left it?" I thought aloud. So, I decided to pick up my cell phone and give my mom a call to see if I had left it at home.
Interjection: Okay, the truth is out. My kids and I are all living with my mother. Hmmm. Unfortunately, there's not much out there that a divorced private school teacher can afford, outside of the projects that is. Hence, we decided that living with dear ole mom was far better than living with the other choice.
Back to story:I would have placed that call to dear mom if I would have had my cell phone; sadly it was in my purse which was MIA. So I decided to call from my classroom. The phone rang, and rang, and rang some more. Perhaps mom has left the house, so I'll call her on her cell. Of course, that too would prove to be a difficult task because I can't dial a cell phone number out from my classroom phone. By now the bell had rung and classes were switching so I ran into the hall and borrowed a cell phone from one of my 11th grade students. Finally I have a way to get in touch with mom, find my purse, get to my phone, and ask her to kindly bring the cheese that I left in the fridge, all at the same time (today was my day to bring food for the teachers at lunch and cheese was an important topping). But alas, mom did not have her phone turned on. Now I'm thinking-her cell is turned off so that means she's home, but she won't answer the phone despite my countless calls and endless ringing, is she okay?! By now the bell has rung again and my 12th grade class is coming in for Sociology. I'm on the phone with my daughter in a conversation that goes something like this: "Could you take an early lunch and go by the house at eleven to check on your grandmother because she's not answering the phone and I'm concerned about her. By the way, if she's not dead (I said this in humor) could you please look for my purse and bring it, my cell, and the cheese out of the fridge for me?" My 12th graders are laughing by now. No sooner had a hung up the phone I looked up to see my mother walking into my class - holding my purse and my cell phone. I quickly called my daughter back, reported that grandmother was alive and I had everything I needed except for the cheese. Ahh yes, just another beautiful day in the neighborhood. I should charge my students admission into my classroom because their getting great entertainment for way too cheap! Oh, by the way, mom went and got the cheese for me and brought it to my classroom just as the bell rang again. Thanks for saving the day mom :) but I really need to teach you how to use the call waiting feature!!!

The Brick Wall

One day later and I'm still thinking about the "brick wall" - if you have no clue what I'm talking about then read Monday's statement blog.

Why is it that so many of us continually disregard the obvious, running head on into the same brick wall time after time?! The brick wall is there-we know it,we see it,we feel the excruciating impact each time we hit it-and yet it's not enough to deter us from trying one more time to avoid it or break through it.
I have been there, and stayed there for about six long years before I realized that it was never going to change - I couldn't break through that wall. I also realized that I couldn't keep destroying myself little by little trying to.

So, the question I pose tonight is this: How do you help others who are doing the same thing to see the light before it's too late? I NEED to know the answer because it tears me apart to see people I love hurt. Knowing that the answer is there but their desperation to make it work refuses to acknowledge fact, and they plunge on into ignorance only to be hurt again and again. I want so badly to end their pain, place them back onto the road with a good map, and see them reach a better destination.

Ignorance is not bliss. Ignorance is a state of illusion, disregarding truth in order to avoid it.

Ignorance

Ignorance is bliss - until you hit the brick wall.

What Matters

Smiles on my children's faces
The sound of their laughter
Big hugs
Hearing "I Love You" from them
Making a connection with them
Knowing that I love them no matter what

Ugh!

Why is it that we work so hard all week long and then have to spend the weekend working at home?! Oh and long weekends like this one just means you have an extra day to get more done. Don't get the wrong idea, I love to keep up the house and yard. I gain real satisfaction in knowing that everything is just how it should be, and looks appealing to all who arrive. However, after some long hard consideration, I have come to the conclusion that I am not cut out for this double/triple/quadruple duty stuff. I am TIRED by the time the weekend arrives and I always bring home school work to boot. And of course you can't leave out the constant drama of life with an ex-husband, an eighteen year old daughter, and the general belligerence of a seven year old. It's hard to find time to get everything done and lately I'm so exhausted that the amount of satisfaction I usually derive from completing a task is waning. I can tell you one thing, if I had known then what I know now I would have chosen a career that makes a heck of a lot more money than teaching. Lets face it, you work just as hard and the "vacations" that you get are still spent working on papers and plans-it's just the scenery that changes. With a bigger paycheck I'd be calling someone else to cook, clean, and cut the grass. Oh yea, and buying fashionable clothing that matches the current style instead of the last decade.
This year I'm teaching a Sociology class for seniors and we just finished discussing statuses, roles and role conflict/strain. This concept was a breeze for them to grasp - I'm a living, breathing example.