Thanks, Dori!! This was hilarious!
Showing posts with label Dori. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dori. Show all posts
Monday, October 25, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
I guess I should give a puck....
The local morning news show that I watch played this last week, and now my buddy, Smileygirl, posted it to her blog. I figured I'd better join her on the bandwagon, lest I be considered a bad Chicagoan!
BIG CONGRATULATIONS to my sweet friend, Miss R. Although, now, she's Mrs. R-P!! Yay!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Um...HELLO!!!!!
What part of "kindergarten is OVER!" did you not understand!!???!!
There have been kids at school everyday since their "last" day. WTF?!?! Dori and I were both out Friday, so they put the kids together with one sub, then Dori was there yesterday, but I was at graduation, so there was a sub in my room. Today, I was there but Dori was out, and luckily none of her kids came. Well, truthfully, one showed up about 40 minutes late for school, holding two bags of Flaming Hots, with red-orange Cheeto cheese all over her face and fingers. Obviously, she made a little pit stop at the corner store before coming to school! I asked her who brought her, and she said her sister. So, naturally, I dragged her back out the front door, chased her sister down, and sent her home! The nerve of some people! The sister happened to graduate yesterday, so she probably didn't want to be stuck babysitting her little sister all day, so she brought her to school. When she was good and ready, obviously! After a stop at the store, obviously! I fully expected a phone call or complaint from the parent, but there wasn't any. Maybe it'll happen tomorrow, after momma comes home and find out I sent her home. Oh well!
As for my little darlings, five of them showed up today. I asked each and every one, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!?" The one little girl said, "My momma had to work." OH, so I get it, I'm the babysitter! Yeah, that makes sense. I went to school for years, spent 10s of thousands of dollars, got a damn masters degree! to babysit. Ok, thanks for clearing that up for me. I'm glad I had to get a babysitter for my own child so that I could come here and babysit for yours. Granted, my son was at his father's house, but still, I had to make sure I had somewhere for him to be so I could go to work. Why exactly is it you think you don't have to do that? Augh!! So aggravating!!
There have been kids at school everyday since their "last" day. WTF?!?! Dori and I were both out Friday, so they put the kids together with one sub, then Dori was there yesterday, but I was at graduation, so there was a sub in my room. Today, I was there but Dori was out, and luckily none of her kids came. Well, truthfully, one showed up about 40 minutes late for school, holding two bags of Flaming Hots, with red-orange Cheeto cheese all over her face and fingers. Obviously, she made a little pit stop at the corner store before coming to school! I asked her who brought her, and she said her sister. So, naturally, I dragged her back out the front door, chased her sister down, and sent her home! The nerve of some people! The sister happened to graduate yesterday, so she probably didn't want to be stuck babysitting her little sister all day, so she brought her to school. When she was good and ready, obviously! After a stop at the store, obviously! I fully expected a phone call or complaint from the parent, but there wasn't any. Maybe it'll happen tomorrow, after momma comes home and find out I sent her home. Oh well!
As for my little darlings, five of them showed up today. I asked each and every one, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!?" The one little girl said, "My momma had to work." OH, so I get it, I'm the babysitter! Yeah, that makes sense. I went to school for years, spent 10s of thousands of dollars, got a damn masters degree! to babysit. Ok, thanks for clearing that up for me. I'm glad I had to get a babysitter for my own child so that I could come here and babysit for yours. Granted, my son was at his father's house, but still, I had to make sure I had somewhere for him to be so I could go to work. Why exactly is it you think you don't have to do that? Augh!! So aggravating!!
Little D.J. came today, of course, but was about 30 minutes late. He came be-boppin' in at around 9:30, all dirty and sweaty, holding a basketball! "Um, why are you so late?" Shoulder shrug. "Were you outside all this time playing basketball?" Shoulder shrug. I started to send him back home, since he was so late, but then I remember the house I'd be sending him to, and changed my mind. Plus, I missed the little bugger. The sub from Friday left my three pages of notes about how bad he was, as did the sub from yesterday! I'm going to really miss him. There's a BIG part of me that wishes I could just take him from his house and keep him. I want to "fix" him, before it's too late. I feel like this poor baby doesn't have a chance in life already, and he's only 6. OK, I've been an emotional mess for about a week now, and I feel a rant coming, so I'm going to change the subject.
I spent the day pulling every single thing out of all my closets and off all my shelves, and trying to get it somewhat organized so that I can start packing it up and bringing it home. But, sheesh, there's a LOT of stuff! I think I may need to rent a truck to get it all home. I'm taking everything home that's mine. God willing, I'll have a new job in the fall, so this will save me the trouble of packing it later. If for some reason I return to the Hell-Hole in the fall (yes, you SHOULD be praying for me, thank you!) my room will be all cleaned out and decluttered. 90% of the stuff I have there doesn't get used anyway, because there just isn't any time. Between our reading program, our math program, our science program, and the social studies we're supposed to squeeze in, too, there is zero playtime for the babies anyway, so why leave all my stuff there? The one downside is that I'm going to have to rent a small storage unit to put it all in because there's just too much. I plan to spend at least one day a week weeding through the stuff to get rid of what I don't need. Plus, I'm leaving a lot at school that I'm just going to replace since it's old and junky now. I don't want to bring any of this stuff home, since I just emptied my basement of all the crap that was down there. I don't want to junk it up again. At least not just yet. I do have a huge closet on the one end of the basement that my basement guy built me just for school stuff. Sadly, it's currently filled with a ton of other crap that we needed to get out of the way during construction. But, once I go through it all and empty the closet, I'll bring my school stuff there and organize it properly. I'm almost getting a bit excited at the prospect of having my stuff all organized and at my fingertips. I'll be one step closer to my dream of opening my own preschool/daycare center! Yay!
I stole this from Dori's blog, cuz it made me giggle!
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Let's try something new...
...how 'bout, instead of bitching up a storm today, I share some funny "school" stuff instead? Hmm, novel idea, isn't it? Gee, maybe I should start a blog just for school stuff....oh, wait, that's what THIS is!
This story is going to lose a little in the translation, because you really need to hear the tone of voice and see the facial expressions, but here goes...
J.H. came over to my desk and said, "Mrs. L.! D.J. is cursing!" I didn't really give it much thought because I hear that sentence about 100 times a day. Then he says, in a whisper mind you, while looking around secretly, "He said the F word, the B word and the D word." Now, I'm holding back a giggle. THEN he says, "Here, I wrote it down for you." He handed me his workbook, and this is what I saw....
I very nearly wet my pants! I literally had to step out into the hall so that I wouldn't laugh in his face. Then, naturally I RAN to Dori's room to share! I shared it with nearly every adult I saw this afternoon.
Later, I told my son the story and showed him the book. Leave it to the genius to point out things I didn't notice. He said, "Well, he has the right number of letters for each word. And, he has at least two letters right in each word." Hmmm, let's see, the f and u, b and t, and d and c. Yup, you're right! Then my son says, "So, I guess he's at the top of your class, huh?" Little smart ass!
Last week I read a book to my kids called The Incredible Shrinking Teacher. There's a part that mentions the principal and shows him in his office. Imagine my delight when I turned the page and saw this part of the illustration:
I couldn't believe my eyes! Too funny! Gee, maybe I can cross-stitch one of those before school ends so I can leave The Big Cheese a parting gift. NOT!
I could continue with Day 3 of my rant, but I just got home from my last Parents' Club meeting (which I completely forgot about until another executive board member called me at 5:30!) so I'm ready to hit the sack. Plus, I want to end on a positive note - tomorrow is the last day! OK, well, sort of. I'll be out Friday and Monday, which I've already told some of my parents today, so I don't think I'll be seeing any of my kids again after tomorrow. However, I know the report cards won't be ready tomorrow, which means someone will have to come back next week to get them, so maybe I'll see them. Who knows!
Wait! So much for ending on a positive. I just remembered something I had to complain about, although it has nothing to do with school. The weather reports are all saying we'll be hitting temps in the freakin' 90s tomorrow. 90s!!! I'm already pissed off and crabby about it! Is it too early to see if the air conditioner works? Smileygirl and KBL, you both can have that hot, uncomfortable, icky weather, like you love so much out there in Cali. I'll take a Chicago winter anytime over that nonsense!
Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather. ~John Ruskin
Little does John know...all of those can happen in the same hour here in Chicago!! Reminds me of another one of my favorite quotes - "If you don't like the weather in Chicago, wait 5 minutes!" It's funny cuz it's true!
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Still seething...
...about the prick that calls himself the principal. Plus, this morning, as Dori and I were talking in my room, he comes in and tells us that we can't make Thursday the last day for kindergarten! WTF!?!? Someone make up my mind! It was the office that came to US and said "the 5th will be your last day." We already told the parents, I spent the weekend running to three different dollar stores to get supplies for the craft we're making, I ordered custom cupcakes from Sam's Club, and then Asswipe decides we can't make that our last day! He made some comment about our attendance being affected, which is a bunch of horse shit, since the fucking office changes the attendance anyway! (I think I may have ranted about that once before.) After swearing and venting with Dori, I figured I'd better wait til the end of the day before making any rash decisions.
My first reaction was to send a letter home saying that ALL the festivities for Thursday were being cancelled, and that the kids should just come everyday until the 13th, like everyone else. By the end of the day, Dori and I decided that we aren't going to do anything. We're going to leave everything alone, let the parents still think Thursday is the last day, and just go from there. We can't officially say the words "Thursday is the last day," but we can certainly imply it! What's he gonna do, fire us!? Dori already has a new job (lucky her!) and God willing, so will I soon! Oh, did I mention that I told the clerk on my way out that I would be taking a personal day on Friday? I already am taking Monday off, since that's the day my son graduates, so I'll be enjoying a four-day weekend. I'm 99% sure I'll be taking Tuesday off, too, because I'd like to do something special with my baby to celebrate his graduation. We'll just have to wait and see if I'm still pissed off by Tuesday. Chances are, I will be!
The only problem with taking so many days off is that I'll have less days to pack up my room. I'll be starting that tomorrow, as I finished all my report cards this afternoon. There's a big part of me that's tempted to just take the rest of the year off, now that my cards are finished. I've fulfilled my duties, so why should I show up simply to babysit? I have more than enough sick days, I certainly could take the next 5 days off. But then how would I pack up my stuff? Such a dilemma, huh? And, even though no one in the Hell-Hole would even notice, it would be incredibly unprofessional of me to take all those days off. Despite working in a freakin' zoo, I still have my own personal standards that I try to uphold. Granted, those standard have taken a serious nosedive after so many years at the Hell-Hole, but they're still light years ahead of the administration's standards!
OK, I feel a slew of swear words bubbling up again, so I'll be going now, lest I offend!!
My first reaction was to send a letter home saying that ALL the festivities for Thursday were being cancelled, and that the kids should just come everyday until the 13th, like everyone else. By the end of the day, Dori and I decided that we aren't going to do anything. We're going to leave everything alone, let the parents still think Thursday is the last day, and just go from there. We can't officially say the words "Thursday is the last day," but we can certainly imply it! What's he gonna do, fire us!? Dori already has a new job (lucky her!) and God willing, so will I soon! Oh, did I mention that I told the clerk on my way out that I would be taking a personal day on Friday? I already am taking Monday off, since that's the day my son graduates, so I'll be enjoying a four-day weekend. I'm 99% sure I'll be taking Tuesday off, too, because I'd like to do something special with my baby to celebrate his graduation. We'll just have to wait and see if I'm still pissed off by Tuesday. Chances are, I will be!
The only problem with taking so many days off is that I'll have less days to pack up my room. I'll be starting that tomorrow, as I finished all my report cards this afternoon. There's a big part of me that's tempted to just take the rest of the year off, now that my cards are finished. I've fulfilled my duties, so why should I show up simply to babysit? I have more than enough sick days, I certainly could take the next 5 days off. But then how would I pack up my stuff? Such a dilemma, huh? And, even though no one in the Hell-Hole would even notice, it would be incredibly unprofessional of me to take all those days off. Despite working in a freakin' zoo, I still have my own personal standards that I try to uphold. Granted, those standard have taken a serious nosedive after so many years at the Hell-Hole, but they're still light years ahead of the administration's standards!
OK, I feel a slew of swear words bubbling up again, so I'll be going now, lest I offend!!
Oh, you hate your job? Why didn't you say so? There's a support group for that. It's called EVERYBODY, and they meet at the bar. --Drew Carey
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
I give up...
...on my promise to myself to post everyday. It just can't be done. Failure has reared it's ugly head, and bitten me on the ass.
However, there was some good stuff that happened at school today. (Can you believe it, a post that's actually about school?!) Mrs. J., the Office Goddess, arranged for us to get rid of, I mean finish up with, our kindergartners more than a week earlier than was scheduled! I LOVE THAT WOMAN!!!! Our last day with the beasts, I mean children, will be Thursday, June 5, instead of Friday, June 13. Hallelujah! The only downside, if you can call it that, is that now Dori and I have to plan an afternoon of activities for our kids and their parents. But, hell, it's WELL worth it. I was so happy, I almost cried. I think Dori may have shed a tear or two, as well.
Well, that's about all the time I have today. Join me again tomorrow, for another boring episode of "Life in Englewood."
However, there was some good stuff that happened at school today. (Can you believe it, a post that's actually about school?!) Mrs. J., the Office Goddess, arranged for us to get rid of, I mean finish up with, our kindergartners more than a week earlier than was scheduled! I LOVE THAT WOMAN!!!! Our last day with the beasts, I mean children, will be Thursday, June 5, instead of Friday, June 13. Hallelujah! The only downside, if you can call it that, is that now Dori and I have to plan an afternoon of activities for our kids and their parents. But, hell, it's WELL worth it. I was so happy, I almost cried. I think Dori may have shed a tear or two, as well.
Well, that's about all the time I have today. Join me again tomorrow, for another boring episode of "Life in Englewood."
Human beings are the only creatures that allow their children to come back home. ---Bill Cosby
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
I'm back...
...sheesh, what happened to the last 5 days?! I never finished my birthday post, and I didn't post yesterday. Shame on me!!
They're really gonna look awesome when they start to grow and fill out their containers.
Let's see, where did I leave off? I showed you my car. When I got to school, my good friend across the hall, Mrs. M., brought me flowers in a pretty vase.
My Dori brought me a whole bag of bath goodies. Sadly, I haven't had a chance to use any of them just yet, but believe me, it's coming soon! She gave me some great body wash, in-shower moisturizer, an exfoliating cloth, some lavender-scented hand soap, and a gel mask that can be used hot or cold. Believe it or not, I don't have one of those, so I'm really excited. I'm really anticipating the relief it'll provide when I get my next migraine!
Dori and Mrs. M. took me out for lunch at our favorite hotspot - Subway! We decided to get our lunch to-go, and we ate in Dori's room. As I was standing up to go get my babies from art, I looked up at Dori's window, and there was my brother's handsome face!! I just shouted, "My brother's here!!" I went running to the door to let him in, and imagine my surprise when I opened the door and saw my mommy, too! I can NOT believe my mother came to Englewood for my birthday. Now that's love! My mom and brother brought me flowers and brownies, and some candy for the babies.
All my pretty birthday flowers!
Speaking of birthday flowers, here are the ones I told you my wonderful mother-in-law planted for me last week.
They're really gonna look awesome when they start to grow and fill out their containers.OK, back to the birthday surprises. My mom brought me a few "little" present at school. Look at this!!!! I LOVE it!!! 
Apparently, my mother thought this was a laugh riot. I don't know if I posted the horror I experienced recently at having to break down and buy reading glasses (gasp!) but my mother is eating it up. She thought this would be useful!
I guess this book tickled her funny bone, as well. It actually does have a bunch of cute comics in it. As a matter of fact, I purchased a couple of them to have on hand to add to birthday gifts myself.
Since I'm showing you all my pretty flowers, I wanted to show you my favorite thing in my backyard. My lilac bush!! It always opens it blossoms the week of my birthday. That's so nice of it, isn't it? My yard has smelled heavenly for the past week or so. I usually have my hammock on my deck right in front of the bush, and I literally just lie there and drink in the heavenly scent of lilac.
I have a little more to share from the night of my birthday, but this post has worn me out. I've never posted this many pictures at one time, and it takes forever! I'll have to continue tomorrow, plus I have a few funny stories about the babies. Remember the babies, the actual point of this blog? Until we meet again....
Can you see what it is? Of course you can! It's penguins!!! From far away, it just looks like a funky, silver bracelet. But, it's really made up of the most adorable creatures on Earth!! (Hey, KBL, should I send your Belov-ED one?)
Apparently, my mother thought this was a laugh riot. I don't know if I posted the horror I experienced recently at having to break down and buy reading glasses (gasp!) but my mother is eating it up. She thought this would be useful!
I guess this book tickled her funny bone, as well. It actually does have a bunch of cute comics in it. As a matter of fact, I purchased a couple of them to have on hand to add to birthday gifts myself.
I forgot to show you what the front door looked like the morning of my birthday. My mom and sister originally had planned to cover my front lawn with balloons (table cloth to match) but they kept blowing away, which is why they stuffed my car instead. Oh, those silly girls!
Since I'm showing you all my pretty flowers, I wanted to show you my favorite thing in my backyard. My lilac bush!! It always opens it blossoms the week of my birthday. That's so nice of it, isn't it? My yard has smelled heavenly for the past week or so. I usually have my hammock on my deck right in front of the bush, and I literally just lie there and drink in the heavenly scent of lilac.
I have a little more to share from the night of my birthday, but this post has worn me out. I've never posted this many pictures at one time, and it takes forever! I'll have to continue tomorrow, plus I have a few funny stories about the babies. Remember the babies, the actual point of this blog? Until we meet again....Age does not diminish the extreme disappointment of having a scoop of ice cream fall from the cone. ~Jim Fiebig
Amen, Jim, amen!!
Monday, March 31, 2008
I'm shweepy....
Last night, I was at my brother's bar until nearly 2:30 this morning. In the time I was there working, I managed to drink 3 HUGE 32oz cups of Diet Coke, and the caffeine was working overtime! I could NOT fall asleep when I got home. After hours of watching infomercials and just general crap on TV, I finally turned the TV off at 4:30 am, knowing full well my alarm was set to go off at 6:00. I don't think I really slept at all, I just kind of floated in that in-between stage - not really sleeping, but not fully awake. Anyway, after spending the evening doing my sister's taxes, then my own, I'm far too exhausted to really write about school today. So, instead, I've stolen some stuff from Dori's blog. Thank you, Dori!! The second one nearly made me wet myself!!!
On a side note...the bar should be open by this weekend, God willing!!! We're having a wine tasting tomorrow night, the liquor should be arriving Wednesday, and we should be ready to open by Thursday or Friday. FINALLY!!!!
On a side note...the bar should be open by this weekend, God willing!!! We're having a wine tasting tomorrow night, the liquor should be arriving Wednesday, and we should be ready to open by Thursday or Friday. FINALLY!!!!
Tired, very tired, still have to take a long trip. ---Kaspar Hauser
Thursday, March 27, 2008
I need to put these in a book...
My Upstairs Neighbor was bothered by the fact that I didn't give up the scoop on our ridiculous staff meeting yesterday. Given my Alzheimer's, I can't really remember everything, but I'll share what I can remember.
First of all, I HAVE to share the survey we were handed when we walked in to the meeting. My table was having uncontrollable fits of giggles over this ludicrous document. (Be sure to click on it so it enlarges, and you can read it!)
First of all, I HAVE to share the survey we were handed when we walked in to the meeting. My table was having uncontrollable fits of giggles over this ludicrous document. (Be sure to click on it so it enlarges, and you can read it!)
As a group, we wanted to scratch out the word "different" in the last choice, and write in "some" or "any." One of our teachers was told a while back by our LLT something to the effect of "maybe you'll be happier at your next school." So, naturally, she was looking for the option that said, "Mrs. C. told me to look for a new school."
Another topic brought up in this meeting was teacher attendance. Big Cheese started to talk about it, and immediately says, "Well, I guess I'm preachin' to the wrong group." DUH!!! WE are all here! But, did that stop him from going on and on? Um...NO! He proceeds to waste 10 minutes talking about how we "muss be here everyday, teachers!" (no, that's NOT a typo!) Monday we had 8 teachers out. Far be it from me to agree with anything Big Cheese says, but that is irritating! Dori and I both missed preps this week because so many teachers were out. That sucks! I have yet to miss one single day in the Hell-Hole this year (outside of days that we are scheduled for professional development). Shocking, I know! I seriously think that's a major contributing factor to my unbelievably high stress level this year. In the 18 years I've been teaching, last year was the first year I had any sick days left at the end of the year to carry over to the next year. This year, like I said, I haven't taken ANY days off. I think I feel a sick day coming, though, cuz we don't have another day off until freakin' Memorial Day!!! (OK, all you non-teachers out there can stop rolling your eyes now!) And, just for the record, the main reason I never had any sick days left was because I'm a mom, and when my baby was sick, I had to stay home to take care of him, obviously. But, believe me, there were "mental health days" mixed in there, too.
We do have a teacher institute day coming up on April 11. Dori and I are scheduled to attend some in-service meeting somewhere, but I/we plan to sign and in leave immediately (I know, hard to believe, huh?) so I/we can enjoy the day with my daddy. April 11 will be his 65th birthday. He's officially going to become a senior citizen. Haha! I'm planning to drive up to his office with a cake, and maybe some balloons, just to irritate him. tee hee! We did that on his 60th, and all his employees were so excited. I actually got these giant number balloons, a 6 and a 0, and parked them in the breakroom along with a cake and assorted pastries. This year, his birthday falls on a Friday, so maybe we can make it an all-out party.
I'm sure there were many other things from the meeting that would make for interesting reading, but they escape me right now. If U.N., or anyone else, remembers any of them, PLEASE feel free to share! I'm just too tired to think anymore about it right now, and I still have tons to do for the big fundraiser I'm having Saturday night. I hope to see some of you there!
The man who doesn't relax and hoot a few hoots voluntarily, now and then, is in great danger of hooting hoots and standing on his head for the edification of the pathologist and trained nurse, a little later on. ~Elbert Hubbard
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
In a nutshell...
...today was an "ehh" kind of day. I missed Dori. No one to sit around and bitch with! That's so not true, cuz everyone that works there (and I mean actually WORKS!) hates it as much as we do!
I'm so overwhelmed right now with this fundraiser that I'm running for my son's school, I shouldn't even have taken the time to check in today. On that note...
Well, if that's true, then this fundraiser will be a hell of a success!! I'll be putting some info about it here soon, for those of you who live here and can help us out by attending the event. Hell, even if you don't live nearby, feel free to help out with a donation.
I'm so overwhelmed right now with this fundraiser that I'm running for my son's school, I shouldn't even have taken the time to check in today. On that note...
Sweat plus sacrifice equals success. ---Charles O. Finley
Well, if that's true, then this fundraiser will be a hell of a success!! I'll be putting some info about it here soon, for those of you who live here and can help us out by attending the event. Hell, even if you don't live nearby, feel free to help out with a donation.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Tired Tuesday
I'm far too tired to say anything coherent right now. Fill ya in tomorrow. Say a prayer for Dori please (or send some good thoughts, if you're not a "pray-er"). Her freakin' car died AGAIN!!!! She just had it in the shop last week, and it cost her a fortune, and tonight it screwed her again. She had to just abandon it at school. Not the Hell-Hole, her university, where she's in grad school. Needless to say, I have to suffer through another day without her tomorrow. Yes, I know, how selfish of me. But, I don't have many more days with her before she leaves me for greener pastures. Lucky duck!!! Man, I'm gonna miss her....
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse....
First, let me bore you with the details of yesterday's day from hell...
Tuesday morning, my assistant principal let me know that my tire was going flat. I've had a slow leak for, gee, I don't know, 2 years maybe, so I just figured that's what he was talking about. Well, when I left for the night at 5:00, the tire was nearly flat. I drove slowly to the closest gas station and filled it, then went home and didn't give it another thought.
The next morning, my son and I got in the car (running late as usual!) and I started rolling down the driveway. Immediately, I knew something wasn't right. I had my son get out and look at the tire, and it was flat as a pancake. My first thought was "Shit!! My son is going to be really late now!" Normally, that wouldn't really be a big deal, however this week all CPS students are taking the ISAT, which is our annual standardized test. It's kind of a big deal to miss it. After a series of phone calls, my mother-in-law was on her way to pick him up and drive him to school.
In the meantime, I managed to get my dad on the phone, and he was going to come pick me up, and drive me back to his house so I could take my mother's car. She wasn't thrilled about that, but it was the plan,nonetheless. Now, my dad was going to be late for work, as was I. I really wasn't that worried about it, though, because every moment away from the Hell-Hole is a moment of peace. I walked in about 5 minutes before the babies.
Now, regular readers know that we have a standing appointment every two weeks at the vet's office for my mutt. Yesterday happened to be our day, so I had already decided to walk out the door with the babies when the bell rang. Besides having a vet appointment, I also had a Parents' Club meeting at my son's school. The vet is a 30-45 minutes drive each way, depending on traffic, so I wanted to get home as quickly as possible, in order to get to the vet as quickly as possible.
So, there I was, cruising on down 63rd Street, when I noticed a white car driving erratically down the street. He was darting in and out of traffic, switching lanes constantly and speeding. At one point, he was driving to the right of me, which was actually the parking lane. He was driving parallel to me, but then was about to come up to some parked cars, so he darted into my lane and promptly hit me! At first it seemed like he was going to just keep going, so I started laying on the horn, and screaming for my son to get his phone out and take a picture of the car and license plate. Well, to my surprise, the guy pulled over and I pulled behind him. Because of the neighborhood we were in, I expected a young punk, either Black or Latino, to step out of the car. Imagine my surprise when a blond-haired white kid got out.
The first thing he did was check his own car for damage. Surprise, surprise! Then he walked over to me and says, "Totally my fault." So I respond, "Gee! Ya THINK?!" We walk around to the passenger side of my MOTHER'S car, and at first all I saw was white paint rubbed all down the quarter panel. Then, I saw it. Not just a dent, but a big crease across the quarter panel, right above the tire. Shit!!!
Blondie asks, "Do you want to just go to the police station to file the report."
"Ah, yeah!"
"Do you know where it is?"
"Yes. I'll meet you there."
The police station was only about 5 blocks away from where we were. I got in my car, while he jumped into his, and took off, driving just as erratically as he was before. Asshole! My first thought-he's taking off! I made sure my son took plenty of pictures of the car and license plate while I was out of the car talking to Blondie, so I wasn't too worried about it, just pissed. I figured I would file the report even if he didn't show up. Well, as I approached the station, I saw that he had parked on the street, and was already jumping out of the car. That's when I finally took a good look at him, and the first thing I noticed was that he was wearing uniform pants. (Did I ever mention my ex was a Chicago cop?) That's when it hit me. This asshole is a cop, and seeing how it's now 3:00, he's late for role call. That would explain the shitty driving.
Well, he proceeds to enter through the employee door on the side of the building while I was parking. My son and I walked the half a block to the main entrance, and went in the building. Blondie was already at the counter talking to the officer at the desk. This story is already too long, so let me just say, we filled out the report, I watched the rest of the guys at role call laugh and point at Blondie through the window of the role call room, we exchanged numbers (he would prefer to just pay for the damage, rather than file a claim with his insurance) and I was finally on my merry way.
Obviously, now I'm late for the vet. The vet took longer than usual, which meant I was going to be late for Parents' Club. I tried to make several phone calls while driving there, and while sitting and waiting, to try to get someone else to run the meeting, but I struck out. I ended up getting to school about 5 minutes after the meeting was supposed to start, with no agenda, no treasurer's report, no fund raiser report, no nuthin'. Luckily, one of the other parents was able to talk about Teacher Appreciation week, which she is organizing for us. OK, enough boring details, suffice it to say, I didn't get home from the meeting until 9:30, which is when I posted the highlights last night.
That brings us to today. As I was driving to school this morning, after picking up my friend's son, I turned a corner, and heard a scraping noise all of a sudden. It sounded like I was dragging something under the car. I didn't think I ran anything over, but I pulled over and had my "chocolate son" get out and look. [wait - I need to add a side note here. I call S my "chocolate son," and my friend (his dad) calls my son his "vanilla son." It's actually kinda cute. OK, I just wanted to explain, lest I offend someone.] Well, S didn't see anything in back, but when he looked in front, he said it looked like there was garbage under my car. I asked him if he thought he could pull it out, and he said no. In the meantime, I started backing the car up, hoping to dislodge whatever the hell was under there.
Suddenly, I see a couple of construction workers up on a scaffold on a building across the street. The one was waving for me to roll my window down, so I did. He yells to me that some shield under my car fell down, and I should just pull it off. Oh, just freakin' great!! My mother is going to KILL me!! I drove a little ways down the street so I could pull into a lot, and S and I tried to pull the thing off. It didn't budge, so we tried to tuck it back in place instead. I was able to get a tab up under what felt like the frame for this thing (mind you, it was all by feel, since I couldn't crawl under the car and look!) and we started driving again. Well, that held for about 100 feet, and the damn thing fell again! Ugh!!! I pull onto the next side street, and this time we tucked every single tab we could into the frame. As of 9:00 PM, it was still holding! I'll have to get that looked at, as soon as I get my car back. Which leads me to the rest of the afternoon...
By this time, my car had been sitting in my driveway for two days on a tire that was completely flat. I don't know anything about cars, but I was worried that this was going to be bad for the rim, or the axle, or something. I decided to stop on the way home to get a can of the stuff you can use to seal a flat. I get the can, go home, follow the directions and start to fill me tire. Hey, it's working!! Everything seems to be going well, right up until the can emptied, and the tire was only half full. Damn it!!! The directions said that after you fill the tire, you're supposed to drive slowly for 3-5 miles to evenly distribute the "goo" in the tire. Well, it didn't have enough air to drive on, so I got out my air pump. I have this nifty little pump that plugs into your lighter, which I'd been using for these two years to deal with my slow leak. Unfortunately, my lighter stopped working last summer (of course!) but I was in luck because now I had my mom's car. I pulled the car as close to mine as possible, plugged the pump into her lighter and started to fill my tire. It seemed to be taking forever, and the tire never really looked full. Finally, I figured it had enough air to drive on, especially since I was only going to drive around the block few times.
I pulled my mother's car out and parked it on the street, then went back to my car. I started it, and shifted into drive. I didn't even get my foot completely off the brake when there was an EXPLOSION! Seriously, a freaking EXPLOSION!!! The tire basically popped. My son got out to look, and was quite amused. It literally shredded. The car landed hard on the rim, which I figure can't be good. I held off on the nervous breakdown long enough to call my brother's friend who owns a garage, and works on my car for me. We wound up making arrangements for my car to be towed to his garage, which is actually where I was trying to drive to this afternoon anyway, after I filled the damn tire. I've been having some front-end trouble for a while now (which I'm hoping is just the alignment) so he's been waiting for my car anyway. Actually, my first thought yesterday, when Blondie hit me, was "why didn't you hit me yesterday, when I was in my own car, cuz it's needs some front-end work anyway!!"
I'll be anxiously awaiting Billy's call from the garage tomorrow to tell me how much money I'm going to have to dump into this damn car. I spent a couple of hours tonight at my son's high school (God, I can't get used to that - high school!!!) so all I can think about right now is tuition and how the hell I'm going to be able to pay it. That's the very reason I can't get a new car right now. There's NO way on God's green Earth I can swing $400 a month for tuition PLUS a car payment right now. Thank God I only have to pay 1/2 of his tuition. His father will be paying the other half, under protest it seems.
Good God, is anybody still out there? I think the only people who have actually read this far are those of you who truly love me, and for that I thank you! :) I think I'd better get my behind to bed. I think tomorrow's gonna be a loonngg day. Indulge me a moment longer...Yesterday, while I was getting rammed by Blondie, Dori was out in the parking lot of the Hell-Hole with a car that wouldn't start. After trying several times, she finally had to go in and ask for help. Much to her dismay, Big Cheese came outside to help her, and tee hee hee, when she tried it again, it started!! Hahaha! But, sadly, it didn't start today, so she had an unplanned day away from us, and she'll be out tomorrow as well, while her car is being fixed. I just hope she gets the same sub as today, since there didn't seem to be any problems. I didn't go in her room, though, so let's hope the sub didn't let the babies destroy anything. Although, I don't think, at this point, Dori even cares. I'm pretty sure she's staying focused on the fact that she won't be back next year. Lucky her....
One last little "story," but I promise to keep it short. I went to the Parents' Night at the high school with my friend (my son's best friend's mom, the one who is president to my vice president of Parents' Club) and she told me that this morning on the way to work, she hit a kid with her car!! What the hell is going on with the universe?! The kid is fine, but her side mirror is completely ripped off her car, and hanging by a wire. Sheesh! Between Dori, she and I, we need to go have a couple of drinks somewhere. Although, with the way our weeks are going, one or all of us would be picked up for DUI, so we'd better just keep our asses home!! On that note, I'm going to bed. Good night!
Tuesday morning, my assistant principal let me know that my tire was going flat. I've had a slow leak for, gee, I don't know, 2 years maybe, so I just figured that's what he was talking about. Well, when I left for the night at 5:00, the tire was nearly flat. I drove slowly to the closest gas station and filled it, then went home and didn't give it another thought.
The next morning, my son and I got in the car (running late as usual!) and I started rolling down the driveway. Immediately, I knew something wasn't right. I had my son get out and look at the tire, and it was flat as a pancake. My first thought was "Shit!! My son is going to be really late now!" Normally, that wouldn't really be a big deal, however this week all CPS students are taking the ISAT, which is our annual standardized test. It's kind of a big deal to miss it. After a series of phone calls, my mother-in-law was on her way to pick him up and drive him to school.
In the meantime, I managed to get my dad on the phone, and he was going to come pick me up, and drive me back to his house so I could take my mother's car. She wasn't thrilled about that, but it was the plan,nonetheless. Now, my dad was going to be late for work, as was I. I really wasn't that worried about it, though, because every moment away from the Hell-Hole is a moment of peace. I walked in about 5 minutes before the babies.
Now, regular readers know that we have a standing appointment every two weeks at the vet's office for my mutt. Yesterday happened to be our day, so I had already decided to walk out the door with the babies when the bell rang. Besides having a vet appointment, I also had a Parents' Club meeting at my son's school. The vet is a 30-45 minutes drive each way, depending on traffic, so I wanted to get home as quickly as possible, in order to get to the vet as quickly as possible.
So, there I was, cruising on down 63rd Street, when I noticed a white car driving erratically down the street. He was darting in and out of traffic, switching lanes constantly and speeding. At one point, he was driving to the right of me, which was actually the parking lane. He was driving parallel to me, but then was about to come up to some parked cars, so he darted into my lane and promptly hit me! At first it seemed like he was going to just keep going, so I started laying on the horn, and screaming for my son to get his phone out and take a picture of the car and license plate. Well, to my surprise, the guy pulled over and I pulled behind him. Because of the neighborhood we were in, I expected a young punk, either Black or Latino, to step out of the car. Imagine my surprise when a blond-haired white kid got out.
The first thing he did was check his own car for damage. Surprise, surprise! Then he walked over to me and says, "Totally my fault." So I respond, "Gee! Ya THINK?!" We walk around to the passenger side of my MOTHER'S car, and at first all I saw was white paint rubbed all down the quarter panel. Then, I saw it. Not just a dent, but a big crease across the quarter panel, right above the tire. Shit!!!
Blondie asks, "Do you want to just go to the police station to file the report."
"Ah, yeah!"
"Do you know where it is?"
"Yes. I'll meet you there."
The police station was only about 5 blocks away from where we were. I got in my car, while he jumped into his, and took off, driving just as erratically as he was before. Asshole! My first thought-he's taking off! I made sure my son took plenty of pictures of the car and license plate while I was out of the car talking to Blondie, so I wasn't too worried about it, just pissed. I figured I would file the report even if he didn't show up. Well, as I approached the station, I saw that he had parked on the street, and was already jumping out of the car. That's when I finally took a good look at him, and the first thing I noticed was that he was wearing uniform pants. (Did I ever mention my ex was a Chicago cop?) That's when it hit me. This asshole is a cop, and seeing how it's now 3:00, he's late for role call. That would explain the shitty driving.
Well, he proceeds to enter through the employee door on the side of the building while I was parking. My son and I walked the half a block to the main entrance, and went in the building. Blondie was already at the counter talking to the officer at the desk. This story is already too long, so let me just say, we filled out the report, I watched the rest of the guys at role call laugh and point at Blondie through the window of the role call room, we exchanged numbers (he would prefer to just pay for the damage, rather than file a claim with his insurance) and I was finally on my merry way.
Obviously, now I'm late for the vet. The vet took longer than usual, which meant I was going to be late for Parents' Club. I tried to make several phone calls while driving there, and while sitting and waiting, to try to get someone else to run the meeting, but I struck out. I ended up getting to school about 5 minutes after the meeting was supposed to start, with no agenda, no treasurer's report, no fund raiser report, no nuthin'. Luckily, one of the other parents was able to talk about Teacher Appreciation week, which she is organizing for us. OK, enough boring details, suffice it to say, I didn't get home from the meeting until 9:30, which is when I posted the highlights last night.
That brings us to today. As I was driving to school this morning, after picking up my friend's son, I turned a corner, and heard a scraping noise all of a sudden. It sounded like I was dragging something under the car. I didn't think I ran anything over, but I pulled over and had my "chocolate son" get out and look. [wait - I need to add a side note here. I call S my "chocolate son," and my friend (his dad) calls my son his "vanilla son." It's actually kinda cute. OK, I just wanted to explain, lest I offend someone.] Well, S didn't see anything in back, but when he looked in front, he said it looked like there was garbage under my car. I asked him if he thought he could pull it out, and he said no. In the meantime, I started backing the car up, hoping to dislodge whatever the hell was under there.
Suddenly, I see a couple of construction workers up on a scaffold on a building across the street. The one was waving for me to roll my window down, so I did. He yells to me that some shield under my car fell down, and I should just pull it off. Oh, just freakin' great!! My mother is going to KILL me!! I drove a little ways down the street so I could pull into a lot, and S and I tried to pull the thing off. It didn't budge, so we tried to tuck it back in place instead. I was able to get a tab up under what felt like the frame for this thing (mind you, it was all by feel, since I couldn't crawl under the car and look!) and we started driving again. Well, that held for about 100 feet, and the damn thing fell again! Ugh!!! I pull onto the next side street, and this time we tucked every single tab we could into the frame. As of 9:00 PM, it was still holding! I'll have to get that looked at, as soon as I get my car back. Which leads me to the rest of the afternoon...
By this time, my car had been sitting in my driveway for two days on a tire that was completely flat. I don't know anything about cars, but I was worried that this was going to be bad for the rim, or the axle, or something. I decided to stop on the way home to get a can of the stuff you can use to seal a flat. I get the can, go home, follow the directions and start to fill me tire. Hey, it's working!! Everything seems to be going well, right up until the can emptied, and the tire was only half full. Damn it!!! The directions said that after you fill the tire, you're supposed to drive slowly for 3-5 miles to evenly distribute the "goo" in the tire. Well, it didn't have enough air to drive on, so I got out my air pump. I have this nifty little pump that plugs into your lighter, which I'd been using for these two years to deal with my slow leak. Unfortunately, my lighter stopped working last summer (of course!) but I was in luck because now I had my mom's car. I pulled the car as close to mine as possible, plugged the pump into her lighter and started to fill my tire. It seemed to be taking forever, and the tire never really looked full. Finally, I figured it had enough air to drive on, especially since I was only going to drive around the block few times.
I pulled my mother's car out and parked it on the street, then went back to my car. I started it, and shifted into drive. I didn't even get my foot completely off the brake when there was an EXPLOSION! Seriously, a freaking EXPLOSION!!! The tire basically popped. My son got out to look, and was quite amused. It literally shredded. The car landed hard on the rim, which I figure can't be good. I held off on the nervous breakdown long enough to call my brother's friend who owns a garage, and works on my car for me. We wound up making arrangements for my car to be towed to his garage, which is actually where I was trying to drive to this afternoon anyway, after I filled the damn tire. I've been having some front-end trouble for a while now (which I'm hoping is just the alignment) so he's been waiting for my car anyway. Actually, my first thought yesterday, when Blondie hit me, was "why didn't you hit me yesterday, when I was in my own car, cuz it's needs some front-end work anyway!!"
I'll be anxiously awaiting Billy's call from the garage tomorrow to tell me how much money I'm going to have to dump into this damn car. I spent a couple of hours tonight at my son's high school (God, I can't get used to that - high school!!!) so all I can think about right now is tuition and how the hell I'm going to be able to pay it. That's the very reason I can't get a new car right now. There's NO way on God's green Earth I can swing $400 a month for tuition PLUS a car payment right now. Thank God I only have to pay 1/2 of his tuition. His father will be paying the other half, under protest it seems.
Good God, is anybody still out there? I think the only people who have actually read this far are those of you who truly love me, and for that I thank you! :) I think I'd better get my behind to bed. I think tomorrow's gonna be a loonngg day. Indulge me a moment longer...Yesterday, while I was getting rammed by Blondie, Dori was out in the parking lot of the Hell-Hole with a car that wouldn't start. After trying several times, she finally had to go in and ask for help. Much to her dismay, Big Cheese came outside to help her, and tee hee hee, when she tried it again, it started!! Hahaha! But, sadly, it didn't start today, so she had an unplanned day away from us, and she'll be out tomorrow as well, while her car is being fixed. I just hope she gets the same sub as today, since there didn't seem to be any problems. I didn't go in her room, though, so let's hope the sub didn't let the babies destroy anything. Although, I don't think, at this point, Dori even cares. I'm pretty sure she's staying focused on the fact that she won't be back next year. Lucky her....
One last little "story," but I promise to keep it short. I went to the Parents' Night at the high school with my friend (my son's best friend's mom, the one who is president to my vice president of Parents' Club) and she told me that this morning on the way to work, she hit a kid with her car!! What the hell is going on with the universe?! The kid is fine, but her side mirror is completely ripped off her car, and hanging by a wire. Sheesh! Between Dori, she and I, we need to go have a couple of drinks somewhere. Although, with the way our weeks are going, one or all of us would be picked up for DUI, so we'd better just keep our asses home!! On that note, I'm going to bed. Good night!
Calvin: You know, Hobbes, some days even my lucky rocketship underpants don't help. ---Bill Watterson
Thursday, February 28, 2008
"Your kids was OFF the CHAIN!"
No less than 7 adults said that exact sentence to me today. The first one didn't even let me swipe in before telling me. Apparently, both kindergarten classes decided to severely misbehave yesterday while Dori and I were at our professional development meeting. I even had two different parents come find me specifically to tell me how bad the class was. Pay no mind to the fact that one of the moms was drunk as a skunk and high as kite at the time.... Needless to say, both of our classes were on lock-down today. The last person to tell me "your kids was off the chain yesterday" was the Big Cheese himself. Professional, right?
I just came home from a lovely dinner with a friend I haven't seen in a while. We went to our favorite restaurant, Casa Margarita. Just as the name implies, they make a hell of a margarita. As a matter of fact, I'd say I'm more than a little tipsy right now. They serve their margaritas in a fish bowl, which is really nice! Luckily, the full effect of the tequila in my Cadillac Margarita didn't kick in until I was a few blocks from home. But now, man, I'm feelin' it!! I just made the mistake of chasing my drink with a few Hershey's Pot of Gold caramels. They are not mixing well in my belly right now :( On that note, I'm going to go lie down...
I just came home from a lovely dinner with a friend I haven't seen in a while. We went to our favorite restaurant, Casa Margarita. Just as the name implies, they make a hell of a margarita. As a matter of fact, I'd say I'm more than a little tipsy right now. They serve their margaritas in a fish bowl, which is really nice! Luckily, the full effect of the tequila in my Cadillac Margarita didn't kick in until I was a few blocks from home. But now, man, I'm feelin' it!! I just made the mistake of chasing my drink with a few Hershey's Pot of Gold caramels. They are not mixing well in my belly right now :( On that note, I'm going to go lie down...
One reason I don't drink is that I want to know when I am having a good time. ---Nancy Astor
Monday, February 25, 2008
Don't breathe on me!!!
There is some God-awful bug going around here. You may recall that my son was sick the week before last. He's still trying to shake the last of his cough. Well, last week my brother got it. As a matter of fact, my sister ended up taking him to the emergency room Thursday night. He's such a typical man, waiting until he sees The Grim Reaper coming up the driveway before he does anything about his sickness! 
I had 7 babies out sick today. One of their moms came to pick up her homework and told me she'd be out for the whole week. My buddy D.J. came for breakfast before school, but one of the lunch ladies marched him straight to the office and called his house to have someone come and get him because he was burning up. Idiots! That's the kind of house he comes from! Knowing that helps me draw on that reserve of patience I often need when dealing with him.
Today was the 101st Day of School, so naturally, we watched 101 Dalmatians. Well, part of it, because the little hellions had a hard time behaving today. Tomorrow, we'll be watching 102 Dalmatians, which is the live-action movie starring Glenn Close. She's a perfect Cruella DeVille! Wednesday, Dori and I will be at the Adler Planetarium for a workshop. We might actually stay for this one! But, somehow, I doubt it. Ha! This week is going to fly by. Then, we're off Monday in honor of Casimir Pulaski. (I'm pretty sure this in only a Chicago thing.) I'll be going to what will probably be my last In The Loop show. I'm so bummed that it's been cancelled.
I wanted to give a "shout out" to Mary Beth over at Hey Teach. She and her very generous sister sent Dori and me some goodies for our babies to help us celebrate Read Across America. We're going to use the goodies to celebrate Dr. Seuss' birthday on Friday. Thank you, Mary Beth and Helen!! I've added a link to her blog, as well as the business, so please check them out.
I had 7 babies out sick today. One of their moms came to pick up her homework and told me she'd be out for the whole week. My buddy D.J. came for breakfast before school, but one of the lunch ladies marched him straight to the office and called his house to have someone come and get him because he was burning up. Idiots! That's the kind of house he comes from! Knowing that helps me draw on that reserve of patience I often need when dealing with him.
Today was the 101st Day of School, so naturally, we watched 101 Dalmatians. Well, part of it, because the little hellions had a hard time behaving today. Tomorrow, we'll be watching 102 Dalmatians, which is the live-action movie starring Glenn Close. She's a perfect Cruella DeVille! Wednesday, Dori and I will be at the Adler Planetarium for a workshop. We might actually stay for this one! But, somehow, I doubt it. Ha! This week is going to fly by. Then, we're off Monday in honor of Casimir Pulaski. (I'm pretty sure this in only a Chicago thing.) I'll be going to what will probably be my last In The Loop show. I'm so bummed that it's been cancelled.
I wanted to give a "shout out" to Mary Beth over at Hey Teach. She and her very generous sister sent Dori and me some goodies for our babies to help us celebrate Read Across America. We're going to use the goodies to celebrate Dr. Seuss' birthday on Friday. Thank you, Mary Beth and Helen!! I've added a link to her blog, as well as the business, so please check them out.
Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You. ---Dr. Seuss
Friday, February 22, 2008
100 down, 73 to go!!
Yay!!! Today was the 100th Day!! I took pictures to share with you, but unfortunately, I downloaded them to my computer at school, and then I couldn't email them to myself for some reason. I'll try to take care of it on Monday. Overall, the kids were WAY too rowdy for me, and we ended up not even doing half the stuff I had planned. Oh well, that's the way the cookie crumbles.
I woke up in a great mood today, and believe it or not, here it is almost 5:30 and I'm STILL in a good mood. What's going on?! Even the kids driving me CRAAZZYY didn't ruin my mood. The sad thing is, as I was driving to school, joking with my son (THAT hasn't happened in a long time. Our mornings are usually very unpleasant because neither of us are morning people!) singing along with the radio, I realized that I used to feel this way everyday before the Hell-Hole sucked it right out of me. It's taken years of stress and utter chaos to turn me into the cranky witch I usually am when I arrive there each day. I miss being me :( I hope I can find me again. I suppose I'd better follow Dori's orders, and abandon ship, huh? Today really reminded me how much I truly love being a teacher, and why I've dedicated my life to "shaping the future of the world."
A little personal stuff to share....my mom had her latest check-up/bloodwork a few weeks ago (she has to do it every three months) and she went to see the oncologist for the results today. Once again, everything is wonderful! She's "clean." My dad gets such a kick out of telling everyone she's a "clean girl." As opposed to a dirty girl, get it? Tee hee! He started that after her last set of tests came back clean. Today, when I called to check how things went, as soon as he answered the phone, I heard, "She's a clean girl!" My dad is so cute! The doctor actually told her that she could go six months this time between blood tests. That, however, wasn't going to work for her because the six month mark falls smack in the middle of her time at her villa. (rough, right?) The doctor agreed to let her do it in October when she comes home, even though that's eight months from now. She couldn't be happier! That goes double for us.
Well, I'm off to try and figure out what the heck my son is going to wear to a wedding tomorrow. Now that he's lost 40 pounds, he has nothing that fits him. Leave it to me to wait til the night before the wedding to worry about it, huh? Have a great weekend!!
I woke up in a great mood today, and believe it or not, here it is almost 5:30 and I'm STILL in a good mood. What's going on?! Even the kids driving me CRAAZZYY didn't ruin my mood. The sad thing is, as I was driving to school, joking with my son (THAT hasn't happened in a long time. Our mornings are usually very unpleasant because neither of us are morning people!) singing along with the radio, I realized that I used to feel this way everyday before the Hell-Hole sucked it right out of me. It's taken years of stress and utter chaos to turn me into the cranky witch I usually am when I arrive there each day. I miss being me :( I hope I can find me again. I suppose I'd better follow Dori's orders, and abandon ship, huh? Today really reminded me how much I truly love being a teacher, and why I've dedicated my life to "shaping the future of the world."
A little personal stuff to share....my mom had her latest check-up/bloodwork a few weeks ago (she has to do it every three months) and she went to see the oncologist for the results today. Once again, everything is wonderful! She's "clean." My dad gets such a kick out of telling everyone she's a "clean girl." As opposed to a dirty girl, get it? Tee hee! He started that after her last set of tests came back clean. Today, when I called to check how things went, as soon as he answered the phone, I heard, "She's a clean girl!" My dad is so cute! The doctor actually told her that she could go six months this time between blood tests. That, however, wasn't going to work for her because the six month mark falls smack in the middle of her time at her villa. (rough, right?) The doctor agreed to let her do it in October when she comes home, even though that's eight months from now. She couldn't be happier! That goes double for us.
Well, I'm off to try and figure out what the heck my son is going to wear to a wedding tomorrow. Now that he's lost 40 pounds, he has nothing that fits him. Leave it to me to wait til the night before the wedding to worry about it, huh? Have a great weekend!!
A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.---Mignon McLaughlin
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Day 99...
...one day to go! Tomorrow will be our 100th Day of School (YAY!) so we were doing some things today to prepare for the celebration. On of the activities we did was a called "Wacky Wish." I found it on one of the websites I came across yesterday.
If I could have 100
Of anything at all,
I'd wish to have 100 _________s.
Now, that would be a ball!
The babies were coming to my desk, one at a time, to tell me what they wished for so I could help them (all 29 of them!) write it. Well, my little darling D.S. came to me, with his signature goofy grin, and said he wanted 100 "shmarshmallows!" I held in my giggle and said, "Oh, marshmallows." He says, "Yeah, shmarshmallows!" I had to let the guffaw escape after that one!
I had the babies keep their answers a secret, to avoid having 29 of the same answer, and it worked out so well. When they finished their papers, I put them all together in a class book, and then read it to them. There were just a few repeats, but overall, I was impressed with their creativity. Wishes were made for 100 lollipops, computers, cars, pennies, nickles, dollars, cookies, puppies, even queens. They did a great job!
At the end of the day, we were practicing a couple of 100 Day songs, and as I was flipping through my song book, I came across some songs about summer. The babies begged for me to share one, so we sang the Ice Cream Song.
(Sung to the tune of For He's a Jolly Good Fellow)
____________ (insert child's name) likes to eat ice cream,
____________ likes to eat ice cream,
____________ likes to eat ice cream,
and he/she likes _____________ (flavor) the best!
Well, leave it to D.S. to crack me up again!! I was going around the room, giving each baby a turn. I filled in the name, that child sang the flavor. When it was D.S.'s turn, he sings, "Vanana!" I chuckled, and asked, "Vanilla?" He says, "Uh-huh, vanana!" (insert BIG goofy grin!) Again, I ask for clarification - "Banana?!" He vigorously nods his head. "VANANA!" I couldn't take it anymore, so I just moved on to the next baby. Too cute!!
Sometimes I wish I could set up a webcam and let the world in to our classroom, so you all can enjoy these silly moments as they happen. Actually, I wish I could broadcast what happens all over the Hell-Hole all day. Gee, today you would have seen the Big Cheese crack two of Dori's babies "upside their heads." I shouldn't admit it, but it made me laugh out loud. They both deserved it, so I didn't feel bad for them at all. I'm hoping maybe now El Queso Grande is starting to see what it's like to deal with that many 5 & 6 year-olds at one time! Obviously, he didn't handle it very well, and he was simply passing them in the damn hallway! Try sitting in a crowded room with them for 5 1/2 hours every day, Big Cheese!!
Smack your child every day. If you don't know why -- he does. ~Joey Adams
Joey and the Big Cheese must be home boys!
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Darn...
...I'm not needed for jury duty tomorrow. I was on stand-by for tomorrow, and just made my required phone call to hear the pre-recorded message, which stated only those with last names starting with A-H are needed. I was really hoping I'd be picked, just for the day away from the Hell-Hole. How sad is that?
Things are really just going downhill fast around there. I can't believe Dori even shows up everyday, with the motley crew she has right now. I had to step in at lunch time because a group of her boys were pushing and shoving each other in the hall while she was trying to get the rest of her class from the lunchroom. (We wouldn't want to bother the other 8 adults in the lunchroom, and ask them to actually get off their asses, now would we?!) Then suddenly, one of the little hellions SPIT in the faces of two other boys. And not just a little wet spittle, actual pieces of freakin' chewed up food!! I thought I was going to be sick! It took all my strength not to crack the little brat upside his head! Naturally, the only person that handles discipline issues wasn't at school today, so Dori was, once again, left to her own devices. Don't expect any help or support around that joint, cuz it ain't gonna happen!
As far as my own bunch of nutballs, they're starting to get a bit more out of control everyday, as well, now that I've received 5 new students in just the past couple of weeks. Just when you get the group "trained" to follow the program, a new crew comes in to throw a wrench into the works. Damn, it sucks! I'm going to have to revert back to being the Mean Queen until these new ones get with the program. Hell, by then it'll be May, and the year will almost be over. Whatever it takes, I guess, because this isn't cutting it.
Allow me to wander off on a non-school-related subject for a minute...I heard some sad news today. My new favorite daytime talk show, In The Loop, has been cancelled. I'm so sad about it. Not just because I loved going to the three tapings I attended, or because of the massive give-aways I received, but more because of all the people who are now out of jobs. It's terrible. My friend and I are going to try and attend a few more tapings before it ends on March 28. Gee, I hope that wasn't priviledged information....
Well, it really is a good thing I won't be out tomorrow because I have a lot to do for Friday. That's the 100th Day of School! Big celebration happening in Room 104! I have all kinds of things to cut out for our "100" crowns, not to mention mats to make for us to count out our 100 items that each child is supposed to bring to school. I'm actually a little excited about it. And, luckily, the 100th day fell on a Friday this year, which makes it even better. Too bad we aren't off Monday...tee hee!
If there are any teachers out there reading this that are looking for some cute songs about the 100th Day, I came across this website that had some good ones. This one has a bunch of great activities. I also came across this quote:
Things are really just going downhill fast around there. I can't believe Dori even shows up everyday, with the motley crew she has right now. I had to step in at lunch time because a group of her boys were pushing and shoving each other in the hall while she was trying to get the rest of her class from the lunchroom. (We wouldn't want to bother the other 8 adults in the lunchroom, and ask them to actually get off their asses, now would we?!) Then suddenly, one of the little hellions SPIT in the faces of two other boys. And not just a little wet spittle, actual pieces of freakin' chewed up food!! I thought I was going to be sick! It took all my strength not to crack the little brat upside his head! Naturally, the only person that handles discipline issues wasn't at school today, so Dori was, once again, left to her own devices. Don't expect any help or support around that joint, cuz it ain't gonna happen!
As far as my own bunch of nutballs, they're starting to get a bit more out of control everyday, as well, now that I've received 5 new students in just the past couple of weeks. Just when you get the group "trained" to follow the program, a new crew comes in to throw a wrench into the works. Damn, it sucks! I'm going to have to revert back to being the Mean Queen until these new ones get with the program. Hell, by then it'll be May, and the year will almost be over. Whatever it takes, I guess, because this isn't cutting it.
Allow me to wander off on a non-school-related subject for a minute...I heard some sad news today. My new favorite daytime talk show, In The Loop, has been cancelled. I'm so sad about it. Not just because I loved going to the three tapings I attended, or because of the massive give-aways I received, but more because of all the people who are now out of jobs. It's terrible. My friend and I are going to try and attend a few more tapings before it ends on March 28. Gee, I hope that wasn't priviledged information....
Well, it really is a good thing I won't be out tomorrow because I have a lot to do for Friday. That's the 100th Day of School! Big celebration happening in Room 104! I have all kinds of things to cut out for our "100" crowns, not to mention mats to make for us to count out our 100 items that each child is supposed to bring to school. I'm actually a little excited about it. And, luckily, the 100th day fell on a Friday this year, which makes it even better. Too bad we aren't off Monday...tee hee!
If there are any teachers out there reading this that are looking for some cute songs about the 100th Day, I came across this website that had some good ones. This one has a bunch of great activities. I also came across this quote:
Those who can, teach. Those who can't, do something far less important. ---Shirley Frye
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
What a day!
NOT the kind of day you want to have after a wonderful three-day weekend. I got three, count 'em, THREE new students this morning!!! WTF?!!? Last week, Dori had two kids put back in her room that had transfered out earlier in the year. For some reason, when this happens (and it happens quite often with our VERY transient population) they always put the child back in the room they were in originally. Well, that put her at 30 students. I, however, only had 27. (Only - HA!) I knew I had one that was transfering out as of last Friday, so Dori and I decided I would take the last two kids that were put in her room, and then we'd each have 28. Still WAY too many in a kindergarten class, but at least it was fair. Well, wouldn't you know it, at about 9:30, here comes a mom with her daughter. Another new student. This mom also has a son who was put into Dori's class. And, no, they're not twins. Well, some would say they're "Irish twins." They were born 10 months apart, so they're both in kindergarten. Mom also had two more little ones with her, who looked like they could be twins, but mom said no. Another set of Irish twins! Crazy!!
Speaking of crazy, Dori let the Big Cheese know last week about our situation. She was simply looking for a little support. Instead, she got insults and put-downs. He really is the most unprofessional person I've ever encountered. I wish I could put the actual email here that he sent back to Dori. I'll work on that for tomorrow. In the meantime, check out her post about it. On a side note, Dori will definitely be leaving me next year. She accepted a position at a charter high school for next school year. I'm so very happy for her, but I am going to miss her something fierce!! Her leaving is the kick in the butt I needed, however, to seriously do something about leaving the Hell-Hole. As a matter of fact, she keeps volunteering to update and send out my resume!! That's why I LOVE her!!
Speaking of crazy, Dori let the Big Cheese know last week about our situation. She was simply looking for a little support. Instead, she got insults and put-downs. He really is the most unprofessional person I've ever encountered. I wish I could put the actual email here that he sent back to Dori. I'll work on that for tomorrow. In the meantime, check out her post about it. On a side note, Dori will definitely be leaving me next year. She accepted a position at a charter high school for next school year. I'm so very happy for her, but I am going to miss her something fierce!! Her leaving is the kick in the butt I needed, however, to seriously do something about leaving the Hell-Hole. As a matter of fact, she keeps volunteering to update and send out my resume!! That's why I LOVE her!!
Friends are the most important ingredient in this recipe of life. ---unknown
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
This Just In....
...I HATE MY FUCKING JOB!!!! Why am I even ever surprised at the level of stupidity at the Hell-Hole?!?! I'm SOOO sick of the Big Cheese, I don't even know what to do about it. It takes every bit of strength I have to not punch him in the face when he's talking to me. Part of that is the fact that he insists on TOUCHING when he talks!! Then, add to that the fact that he will look you dead in the eye and LIE to your face! Ugh!!! I can't stand him!
There was an "issue" today regarding our field trip, and one of the office women. Basically, she accepted money from a student, but never told us (specifically Dori, since it was her student) so the little girl wasn't on our list. We left her behind today when we went to the aquarium, but then found out AFTER we came back that she was supposed to go. I can't even count the number of times this woman has done this exact thing!! She's such a stupid bitch!! Then, she was bitching about us to El Queso Grande, trying to say it was our fault!! Bitch! Long story short, Dori and I have decided to cancel our next trip, and not take anymore this year. It's just not worth the hassle! If the office would just mind their own damn business, we'd have a lot less problems!
Speaking of the office NOT minding their own business, the office clerk decided to take attendance for us while we were gone, and screwed it all up. I had kids at school who were marked absent, and kids who stayed home who were marked present! I would say it's unbelievable, but the sad fact is, it IS believable in the Hell-Hole!! Just a little over a week ago, we noticed the attendance was actually doctored. If you recall, the night of Jan. 31, we had about 12 inces of snow dumped on us. The next day, most of the kids in the school stayed home! I had 14 kids come to school, Dori had 7. Well, lo and behold, when Dori pulled up the attendance for that day, most of the kids WE marked absent were suddenly marked TARDY!!! WTF?!?! Gee, how many ways is that wrong? Not to mention illegal! That place is an absolute joke!! I need to change the subject, because I'm about to blow a gasket!!
We had a great time on our trip to the aquarium today. The first thing we did was go to the Oceanarium for the dolphin show. One of my babies was picked to help with the show!! It was great! He actually got to walk out into the tank and touch the dolphins. I tried to get pictures for his mom, but you can hardly see him. For those who have never been to the Shedd Aquarium, the big dolphin tank is built out on the side of the building that faces Lake Michigan. The wall is all glass basically, looking out on the lake. Well, believe it or not, we had a very bright and sunny day today in Chicago. Since the sun was behind the tank, it made all the pictures turn out dark. The only thing that didn't go so well was that we were given a 12:30 lunch slot for the lunchroom. Well, our babies usually have lunch at 10:45, so they were STARVING! The nice thing was, though, as soon as we ate, we went straight out to the bus, and home we went. Oh, and another interesting tidbit...as I was walking into the lunchroom, I heard someone call out my maiden name. I looked across the room and saw a girl I went to high school with standing there! It was so great to see her!
I wanted to share this awesome picture I took of our gorgeous city from the staircase of the Shedd Aquarium. Man, I LOVE Chicago!!
I took this shot from my seat during the dolphin show. It's the Adler Planetarium, which is also on the Museum Campus.
There was an "issue" today regarding our field trip, and one of the office women. Basically, she accepted money from a student, but never told us (specifically Dori, since it was her student) so the little girl wasn't on our list. We left her behind today when we went to the aquarium, but then found out AFTER we came back that she was supposed to go. I can't even count the number of times this woman has done this exact thing!! She's such a stupid bitch!! Then, she was bitching about us to El Queso Grande, trying to say it was our fault!! Bitch! Long story short, Dori and I have decided to cancel our next trip, and not take anymore this year. It's just not worth the hassle! If the office would just mind their own damn business, we'd have a lot less problems!
Speaking of the office NOT minding their own business, the office clerk decided to take attendance for us while we were gone, and screwed it all up. I had kids at school who were marked absent, and kids who stayed home who were marked present! I would say it's unbelievable, but the sad fact is, it IS believable in the Hell-Hole!! Just a little over a week ago, we noticed the attendance was actually doctored. If you recall, the night of Jan. 31, we had about 12 inces of snow dumped on us. The next day, most of the kids in the school stayed home! I had 14 kids come to school, Dori had 7. Well, lo and behold, when Dori pulled up the attendance for that day, most of the kids WE marked absent were suddenly marked TARDY!!! WTF?!?! Gee, how many ways is that wrong? Not to mention illegal! That place is an absolute joke!! I need to change the subject, because I'm about to blow a gasket!!
We had a great time on our trip to the aquarium today. The first thing we did was go to the Oceanarium for the dolphin show. One of my babies was picked to help with the show!! It was great! He actually got to walk out into the tank and touch the dolphins. I tried to get pictures for his mom, but you can hardly see him. For those who have never been to the Shedd Aquarium, the big dolphin tank is built out on the side of the building that faces Lake Michigan. The wall is all glass basically, looking out on the lake. Well, believe it or not, we had a very bright and sunny day today in Chicago. Since the sun was behind the tank, it made all the pictures turn out dark. The only thing that didn't go so well was that we were given a 12:30 lunch slot for the lunchroom. Well, our babies usually have lunch at 10:45, so they were STARVING! The nice thing was, though, as soon as we ate, we went straight out to the bus, and home we went. Oh, and another interesting tidbit...as I was walking into the lunchroom, I heard someone call out my maiden name. I looked across the room and saw a girl I went to high school with standing there! It was so great to see her!
No visit would be complete without seeing my darling babies!!! Could they be any cuter!!!? I'll spare you the other dozen pictures I took of them. ;-)
Well, my brother is trying to convince me to ditch school tomorrow and go to another In The Loop show. After today, it doesn't sound like such a bad idea! I don't want to abandon the babies on Valentine's Day, though, so I'll probably just go to work...
My darling little boy came home from 5 days with his dad not feeling very well. I probably should have let him stay home today, but Mean Mommy made him go. I just gave him a healthy shot of Nyquil, so I'm going to go tuck him in for the night. Hopefully, he'll fall asleep soon, and sleep all night, then wake up feeling much better. He can't even stay home tomorrow because he has a project due. Thankfully, it's finished, so all he has to do is rest the rest of the evening.
When asked if he is sick, he replied "No I'm not sick, my batteries have just runned out"— Boy, 4
Monday, February 11, 2008
Marvelous Monday!!
Well, I've had just a glorious day today!!! Take a look:
http://intheloop.ivillage.com/on_demand/watch
(You may have to put in the date - Feb. 11) Just in case you don't have 40+ minutes to sit and watch this whole show, let me just tell you that I came home with $1,213.70 worth of gifts!! I can't even remember what they all are right now, so watch the show to see them.
On the off chance that you want to know what happened at the Hell-Hole today, take a peek at Dori's blog.
Thank goodness we don't have school tomorrow (Happy Birthday, Abe!) cuz it's snowing like crazy right now, and the windchill is below zero. I plan to stay cuddled up on the couch, watching movies and reading all day tomorrow. I may even go back to school Wednesday feeling re-energized! At least I hope so, because we'll be going on a field trip that day, so I need all the energy I can muster!
Let's hope my babies aren't ready until Wednesday!!
http://intheloop.ivillage.com/on_demand/watch
(You may have to put in the date - Feb. 11) Just in case you don't have 40+ minutes to sit and watch this whole show, let me just tell you that I came home with $1,213.70 worth of gifts!! I can't even remember what they all are right now, so watch the show to see them.
On the off chance that you want to know what happened at the Hell-Hole today, take a peek at Dori's blog.
Thank goodness we don't have school tomorrow (Happy Birthday, Abe!) cuz it's snowing like crazy right now, and the windchill is below zero. I plan to stay cuddled up on the couch, watching movies and reading all day tomorrow. I may even go back to school Wednesday feeling re-energized! At least I hope so, because we'll be going on a field trip that day, so I need all the energy I can muster!
When the student is ready the teacher will appear. ---Lao Tzu
Let's hope my babies aren't ready until Wednesday!!
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