Broken Road

2012-01-14T19:39:00.009-05:00

Best update ever

Okay, I'm going to definitely get back into this blog again. Facebook is good, but you can really only give 3-line updates. I kind of miss writing, and my blog will be a good outlet for that. Between my first year of teaching 3rd grade (at a new school), my NEW HUSBAND (more on that in a bit), my new stepkids, the online Masters in Reading program I just began through USF...I'll have plenty to talk about.

Let's start with the big one: On November 20, Dan and I got married. We were married on Sanibel Lighthouse Beach on Sanibel (island), Florida. It was very small (just family and a few close friends), but it was the best day of my life. The weather was absolutely perfect. For our reception, we all went to dinner at the Lazy Flamingo, the place where Dan works. It's a very Florida-vibey, laid back restaurant--just a fun time with friends, which is exactly what we wanted.

Dan's family stayed in Ft Myers for that whole week, and it was great being able to spend some time with them. The only "downside" is that we weren't really able to take a honeymoon--we couldn't really take off with family in town (although, as they were staying on Ft Myers Beach, I'm sure they would have survived). ;) So we stayed a couple of nights at this beautiful resort there on Sanibel--it definitely wasn't enough, but we'll do something special, maybe for our anniversary.

Our first married Thanksgiving was here at the apartment. It was the first time I'd ever cooked a turkey, or Thanksgiving dinner at all for that matter, but I have to say, it turned out as well as I could have hoped for. It was Bryce (my stepson), Dan and I, his parents, his sister, brother in law and niece. They left the next day to return to Michigan, but it was really the perfect end to the perfect week.

Let's see, what else..ah yes, my new job. I'm teaching at a school that's 99% minority (and about that many have free or reduced lunch). It's been a difficult adjustment to third grade; I think due to their maturity levels. The tattling and tantrums and crying....OMG. And they are quite a bit below grade level, although that in itself I don't mind. However, when a large percentage of the class is getting D's and F's in 3rd grade reading or math because they're functioning at a 2nd grade level, and then the principal kind of looks at YOU with questioning eyes (it was different at my old school, since admin knew me and my teaching abilities, and I had already proven myself)....well, that's tough, too. I'm struggling a bit with classroom mgmt, which is odd, since it's my sixth year of teaching....but again, with a new grade and a different socio-economic group--well, it kind of IS like I'm starting from scratch. And really, the majority of the class (I only have 14, but most days it feels like 28) is just fine, but there are 2 who try me on a daily basis. (One of them, though, ended the day yesterday by giving me a hug and kind of resting his head on my shoulder, reminding me that although he may drive me to drink, he's also just an 8 year old kid.)

I think that's about all for now....lots more I COULD say, but this is a good start. I do look forward, as I said, to posting more often. Hopefully, the people who have read me before will find me again.

2011-03-24T18:37:00.005-04:00

Dan and Jen--What Ever Happened With That??

Wow. Time kinda got away from me here, huh? Well, as most of you know, here's what has happened in the months since my last post:

Dan and I spent a few days together when I was home for Christmas break....and it was incredible.
We realized, very quickly, once I returned to FL that being apart was no longer an option. 20-something years was long enough.
He bought a one way ticket down here at the end of January.
We were engaged within a few days of his arrival.
We'll be married before the end of 2011, although our summer wedding may become a fall one.

And, more recent developments....

His kids will be living with us full time during May and part of June, while his ex also moves down to FL, settles in, find s a job, etc (and they'll be going to my school!)
Needless to say, we need to upgrade to a bigger apartment, although we'll stay in the same complex (and Ft Myers)--at least for the next year
His older son may end up staying with us full time, although we certainly don't know that for sure yet

Hopefully, I can be forgiven for my lapse in blogging. ;)

I have never, ever, ever been this happy. He has truly made all the pain and heartache I've gone through worthwhile.

I've finally found my happy ending--no. My BEGINNING.

2010-11-26T13:47:00.005-05:00

An old friend returns (in a big, big way)

So....through the magic of FB, I have reconnected with an old friend, an old "boyfriend" if you will. We were like 11, and I would see him during the summer when I went up north with Renee to her family's cabin. We would write back and forth during the school year--until one day, I stopped hearing from him. I checked the mail religiously every day (while pining away for him every night) for like 2 weeks. Finally, I gave up...and never saw or heard from him again (I heard OF him, of course, through Renee's mom and stuff--I remember once seeing an oh-so-handsome pic of him in his baseball uniform or something like that at their house, but we never saw each other again). I went to the cabin with Renee a couple of times after that, but his family was never up at the same time we were....so alas, it just wasn't meant to be.

...Or was it? Although we became friends on FB like 2 years ago and exchanged a couple of messages (you know, the "hi, don't know if you remember me, how you been?" kind), we started to REALLY talk again a few weeks ago. He, I realized after reading some of his posts, was going through a rough patch in his marriage (which later became a separation and soon a divorce). I posted a few encouraging msgs to him and one day, he sent me a FB chat message. And we haven't stopped talking since then. No, literally. We stop to sleep and work, obviously, but that's about it. We've gone through (at last count) roughly 1300 text messages in the last 17 days, and the hours we've racked up on the phone? Fuhgeddaboutit. Our longest conversation was just on Thanksgiving Eve, which rang in at a whopping 5 hours, but I don't think we've ever had a conversation that lasted less than an hour, with an average phone call of 2 hours. (And we've talked every single night since about 3 days after we started texting.)

So what does all of this MEAN, you may be asking? Hell if I know. =-) I will say that we're definitely into each other. We'll be seeing each other when I go home next month, so we can MAKE SURE that this thing we think we may be rekindling is actually really there (although by now, we're both pretty sure). His divorce has to be finalized (although trust me when I say there is NO chance of a reconciliation). And, of course, there's the little matter of him living in Michigan (Beaverton, which is in the Midland-ish area) and me living in Paradise--I mean, Florida. As I told Kish yesterday, "I may have found the one thing that could drag my ass back to Michigan." (He couldn't move to FL, because of his 2 kids--who, btw, are both just beautiful.) Although quite honestly, I would be really, really bummed, as you all know how much I love it here. And I wouldn't do that unless I had a job lined up already and we were, like, engaged or something. I sure ain't givin' up Florida for just another boyfriend.

Sooooooo......who knows. I will also say that he's just as into me as I am into him, which is nice. We're actually quite stupid for each other right now. And sure, there may be nothing there romantically when we hang out in a few weeks, although that's becoming increasingly less likely. And there is, of course, a great deal of irony to the possibility of me ending back up with the very first guy I really really liked, after 23+ years of dating assholes, losers, cheaters and even an ex-con or two. (Although, as I told him, that just makes me appreciate him even more now.)

Oh, and by the way? He told me recently that he was crushed when he stopped hearing from me. I, of course, was stunned, and reminded him that no, it was HIM who stopped writing to ME. No, he said, one day my letters stopped coming, and he never heard back from me again, even after writing to me a couple more times. In fact, he told me that he kept my letters all the way through middle school, and high school--and that, in fact, they may still be at his dad's house somewhere. So we aren't sure what happened...but we're back in touch now, and maybe that's all that really matters.

2010-10-24T18:07:00.003-04:00

Update

I have been doing SO bad with Broken Road lately--mostly because all of us talk so regularly on FB. I really need to get back in the habit again.

I've just been so busy. I can't put my finger on exactly WHY this school year feels so much more hectic than others have. Maybe because we have 2 new teachers on the team (including, of course, my hot bff), so there's more work involved getting them trained and up to speed (and offering my mentoring services, natch). Maybe because I'm working harder this year (since I DIDN'T get a bonus for last year, which REALLY pisses me off. Yes, their FCAT scores weren't as high as the year before, but that doesn't mean I still didn't bust my ass with those kids...but I digress. Regardless, THAT shit ain't gonna happen again, so I'm really pulling out all the stops this year). But yeah, the year is flying by, and it'll be Thanksgiving break before I know it.

My bday is this Friday. This are the last few days of my EARLY 30s (34 is definitely "mid"). Damn. It's hard to believe. I don't FEEL 34. And although many things about my life kickass, I'm still kind of bummed that I'm single (the kid thing doesn't bother me so much...the older I get, the less upset I think I'd be if I DON'T have more kids one day. But marriage is a definite). I was actually kind of "talking" to a new teacher at my school, but I'm not sure how much I'm into him yet. Plus, of course, there are potential complications. (There are no specific rules about dating coworkers, as long as someone is not a superior to the other, etc--in fact, several married couples work for our company; they're just posted at different schools. So if anything DID happen with this guy, one of us would eventually transfer...but our school is gossipy as hell, and it would just be a general pain in the ass, no matter how hard we tried to keep it quiet. Plus, like I said, I don't know how much I like him yet. We mostly hang out in group settings so far. We'll see.)

I guess that's about all for now. Check back again soon, though--I PROMISE I'll be updating more regularly now.

2010-08-31T21:13:00.002-04:00

What a year! (So far)

WOW WOW WOW. This is, hands down, the best (behaved) group of kids I've had so far. Yes, it's still early, and there's the danger that we're still in the honeymoon period. But this time, I really don't think so. I really just think this group of kids is awesome.

It hasn't been all sunshine and roses, however. Many of you know that I have someone in my class who is currently in a shelter. They're moving into an apartment, and we've been focused on finding a way to keep him at our school. (He's moving farther way.) Just today, we were able to get him on a bus (as a charter school, we have more limited busing than the public schools), but he'll have a mile and a half walk each way. Still, he'll be able to stay. And here's the thing: to some, it may not seem like that big of a deal, whether he stays with us or switches schools. But he's been with us for like 5 years now, since he was just a little kindergartner. And considering his situation--this has been the ONLY steady thing in his life that whole time. In many ways, it IS his home, at least from 8 - 3. So he's almost--DESPERATE to stay here. And this--this MAN CHILD (cuz he's taller than me and has facial hair)--was looking at ME to fix it, to solve it, to find a way to keep him here. It was just KILLING me this last week or so, while we dealt with the red tape and found a way to make it work. (He's on a wait list for a bus that runs a little closer to his new place.) They don't even have furniture or anything yet for the new place...but it's a place to live. And it's theirs.

So anyway, other than THAT, the year has really gotten off to a great start. (Well, that, and the fact that my other little girl, with the sick dad, gets a visit at school from a Hospice worker every other week.) My kids are good--not PERFECT, of course. I have to get on them, still. But they're good kids. One little boy told me to close my eyes, and when I did, he gave me a big hug and said, so enthusiastically, "I love you, Miss K!!!!" (I told him to just wait a few months, LOL.)

Oh--and some of my kids from last year told me that in their new language arts class, they had to write an essay about someone who changed their life. And a few came back to tell me they'd written about me.

Seriously? It doesn't get any better than that.

2010-08-24T20:38:00.002-04:00

The new school year

So there I went and disappeared for a while again. Oops. I promise to start posting more regularly...especially since it's a new school year, which of course means another year o' stories.

This year, I have 26 kids, 6 are ESOL and 7 are ESE (some are both). I have a huge rage of challenges and learning disabilities. But, you know, I love them already. Then again, it's only day 2.

I have one ADD kid who is already famous for asking random questions. For example, during a spelling pre-test:

Me: "Underground. Number 12 is 'underground.' "
K: (raises his hand)
Me (slower and with more enunciation, because most questions involve word repeats): " 'Un-der-ground.' "
K: "Yeah, I heard. Aren't you the teacher who went skydiving?"

Hey. At least he raised his hand first. Small victories, my friends.

As many of you know, this will be a tough year emotionally, since one of my kids has a terminally ill father. But I think it's going to be a really, really fun year, as well.

PLUS, my kids are already getting compliments in the hallway and stuff for their good behavior.

But did I mention that it's only day 2?

;)

2010-07-31T12:44:00.002-04:00

One month later....

Holy crap, I can't believe how long it's been since I last posted. Does anyone besides the usual people even read this thing anymore? Damn. Anyway, this'll be short and sweet since I've talked to --well, all of you recently.

I had my bi-annual sojourn back to Michigan. As always, it was great times. I got to hang out with Amanda WITHOUT Andrea, which was pretty cool. We were able to spend the day with Katey and her kids. We went to the zoo, and afterwards, we hung out at Katey's house for a while. Amanda told me later that she felt totally comfortable around all of us, like she had always been there. It's been a rocky almost-18 years, and things haven't always turned out the way I'd hoped they would (especially in terms of her home life)...but, as she approaches 18, if she's able to have the kind of relationship with her birth family that I'd always hoped for, everything will have been (almost) worth it. Next time, I hope for her to meet Missy and her boys and Nikki. (Because it goes without saying that I consider them part of her "birth" family.) And Renee, she really wants to meet you, too. For her to meet my best friend??? That would be AWESOME.

So...there was that. We also had Girls' Weekend, which was on a whole new level this year, thanks to the presence of Lynda, Missy and Nikki. Ladies, I hope it was everything you had envisioned and more. GOOD TIMES. Everyone, start saving for GW 2011: The Florida Edition. ;) If you save just $1 a week, you'll have.....$52. Hmmm. Okay, save more than that then. ;)

School is starting up shockingly soon. I spent this past week working on a project for corporate, creating math tests that will be used by all the schools in our company. Go me! (No, I'm not getting paid.) I still have a few days' worth of work ahead of me. Teachers report back the week of the 16th (with students reporting on the 23rd), but, as always, I'm sure I'll be back the week before that to get my room set up. Needless to say, summer is definitely slipping away. This is BULLSHIT. We teachers had like 7 weeks off this time around. Yes, I know, your hearts are bleeding for me. ;) And on top of that, I had to take a class this summer. So much for that relaxing 3 months off that everyone is sure educators enjoy every year. ;)

We'll have 2 new teachers on the 5th grade team this year, too. We lost one (as we just found out yesterday), and we're adding a class so we need one additional teacher--which, as you may recall, will be Hot Married Friend In a Tiara (hereafter referred to as HMFIAT). The 3 of us who are returning will have to train/initiate new teachers for the first time in a couple years--and we've never had 2 in one year. We've been a pretty static team, till now. I know HMFIAT will fit in well, but the 2nd new teacher is a total crapshoot; we have no idea who we'll get. Hopefully they won't suck and break up the 5th grade groove.

Okay....do me a favor and comment, so I know you all are still out there. ;)

2010-07-02T23:55:00.003-04:00

The scores are in...

My kids, sadly, didn't do as well as I had hoped for.

Then again, neither did the entire 5th grade. To show a year's worth of growth, a student has to go up a certain number of points from last year to this year (say, 150. It varies depending on the subject and grade). The average growth in, as an example, 5th grade reading, was +9. Yes, nine. (Again, this is for our grade as a whole.) Well, judging by THAT, my students did well. Twenty of my 25 kids did better than the grade-wide average. * However, of those kids, only 6 or so showed the amount of growth they SHOULD have for an academic year. In other words...my kids went up--but maybe not enough. Ugh.

*Math was worse for my kids. Only 10 did better than the 5th grade average.

2010-07-01T14:14:00.009-04:00

Old friends

I talked to an old friend on the phone the other night for like an hour. (Renee, two words: Wide Load.) He's a (married) teacher down here in FL now, too. We haven't talked in, hell, probably almost ten years (not on the phone, anyway), and yet the conversation was effortless. It's hard to find people that can happen with, so when it does, you know you have a good friend. Hopefully, we can keep in touch more frequently this time...but even if I don't talk to him for another decade, it's good to know that the friendship will be there, waiting.

2010-06-28T20:33:00.002-04:00

Another classic Jen moment

So I was out my friend P's house today (this is where I contracted my grassitis--which, btw, is much better now that I've taken a shower). He's just returned from a week in NC with his wife and family, and he brought me back this 1000 piece puzzle they had finished (he broke it back up again, obviously, but he thought I might like to put it together and then glue it or whatever--it's under the sea/dolphin themed, which he knows I love). A thousand pieces is pretty big, so I was trying to figure out if it would fit on my kitchen table (which, really, is more of a dinette, since my dining room--aka Anna's bedroom--is really not too large to begin with).

He flipped the box around to get the exact measurements. "Okay, it's 24 x 30," he read off.

And I shit you not, but without even stopping to think about it, I immediately replied:

"Inches, or feet?"

Now, as soon as it was out of my mouth, I was leaning up against the kitchen counter, just laughing my ass off, since I instantly realized what a dumbass question that was. And then when I looked up at his face, I doubled over again. I was CRYING by the time I got control of myself.

Yup. I'm awesome.

And in case you were wondering, I finished the outer part tonight, and it DOES fit on my round table--barely.

2010-06-27T21:26:00.003-04:00

Breaking news

The Sunday paper reported that FCAT scores are being released tomorrow (Monday). This are the individual student scores. Our school grade, it sounds like, will be made public on Tuesday. There are two bonuses on the line here; if our school keeps an A, that's one bonus; if my kids in particular do well, that's another one (although I won't know for sure if I'm a recipient of that second MAP bonus until the fall, since it's also based on things like evaluations, etc).

It goes without saying, of course, that the BIG payout of the scores is the satisfaction of seeing that my kids' hard work all year paid off. ;) Which, after all, is why one goes into teaching.

But I REALLY want those bonuses....start praying extra hard. I'm going to go to the school as soon as we're allowed tomorrow to view my students' scores. I'll report back as soon as I know anything.

2010-06-26T14:22:00.002-04:00

This is BULLSHIT.

Since gaining 15 lbs this year, my "project" this summer is, naturally, losing it. I bought two different workout DVDs last weekend, and I've done them every single day since then--sometimes a couple of times a day. (The Biggest Loser, which focuses on cardio, and Valerie Bertinelli, which is more toning. And they both use handweights.) I've cut out fast food and I've only been out drinking once.

Imagine my dismay, then, when I weighed myself today and discovered I'd GAINED two f*&##^#% pounds.

Now, I know what you're all going to say. You're probably gaining muscle, Jen, especially if you're using weights--and muscle weighs more than fat. Pretty soon, you'll start dropping the weight, since muscle ALSO allows you to burn off more fat.

Yeah, I know. I read the same magazine articles you do.

But I'm a GIRL, goddammit. I want to LOSE WEIGHT. I want the numbers on the scale to go DOWN. Now yes, I've seen a difference--at least I THOUGHT I did--in my body. My sides are thinner, my waist seemed to be attempting to come back (what little I had to start with, LOL), my thighs were thinner, and there was even a little less jiggle in my arms. And blah blah blah, you should judge by how you look and not the numbers on the scale.

Yeah, I know that too.

But I ALSO know that I weighed LESS when I drank every other day, lived on Wendy's, and worked out a hell of a lot less.

This is BULLSHIT.

2010-06-16T22:36:00.008-04:00

I think this finishes off the year pretty well

The kids' last day was yesterday and it actually turned out to be pretty emotional. At the very end of the day, I made them come up one by one to get their report cards (and give me a hug). I then "annointed" them middle schoolers with my meter stick. They cheered uproariously for about 15 seconds--and then burst into tears. This, of course, set ME off.

My last class with my "adult kids" is tomorrow night. I have exciting news about that job (their final essay scores are in) but I took my meds and I am literally falling asleep. Will write more soon.

2010-06-06T18:29:00.002-04:00

Oh, I have a blog?

Okay, so I've been a little busy the last few weeks. ;)

There is, of course, the normal end-of-the-school-year craziness. FCAT scores (duh-duh-DUH) should be released very soon, tentatively even this next week. We had our annual 5th grade trip to Busch Gardens; a great time, as always, even though one of my boys had a complete meltdown on the Phoenix (the "pirate-ship" type ride that goes rocks back and forth, going higher and higher each time until it's going full circle). Final grades are due Tuesday morning; the kids' last day is the following Tuesday. We have one teacher day after that, and then we're done, as well.

Oh yeah, and there's the whole matter of my teaching college now. College, bitches! I love it, too. It's really, really hard and tiring to be teaching twice a week and not getting home till pretty late, but it's only 5 weeks at a time and it's some nice extra money. Definitely better than your typical second part-time job. It's a great experience, and they've already asked me to teach another round of classes in the fall.

I've made a new friend, too. Not in the dating-type sense (he's married; all the good ones are), but we've actually become pretty close in the last couple of months. He's a sub at my school, although things are looking very promising that he'll be hired on full-time for the upcoming school year (and I'm campaigning very heavily to have him made the new 5th grade teacher, since we'll be adding a class next year). His wife and he (that sounds grammatically weird) are moving into a house 2 miles from me (I measured it on my way back from helping them paint last night). In an alternate universe, he would have been THE perfect guy for me, mostly because he has that same sarcastic sense of humor that I do, and you know how much I dig that in my men. The fact that he's hot doesn't hurt, either (he's right up there with Hot Teacher, my skydiving buddy). But I met him after he was already married (of COURSE), so I guess I'll just have to settle for adding a truly wonderful guy to my circle of Florida friends. He's kind of like a big brother (even though he's a few years younger than I am), and he's slowly but surely becoming part of The Crew. We talk and text all the damn time (and lest you start getting any ideas, his wife knows all about it). He's a great addition to the group, and to my life. And he knows about my crazy, too.

Let's see....I guess that's about all for now. I've just been incredibly busy the last few weeks, but with summer quickly approaching, I'll soon have all kinds of free time on my hands once again. After paint-a-palooza at the P's new house last night, I'm totally jonesing to paint my apartment, something I've never done before. (Yes, I'll have to paint it back when I move out, but I plan on staying here for a while, so I might as well make myself comfortable.) I'll post pics if and win that comes to fruition.

I'm getting crazy excited for the annual girls' weekend...which will be Girls' Weekend on Steroids, with the addition of Missy, Nikki and their friend Lynda. Wait a way to celebrate GW's 5th anniversary.

And on a sadder note, I want to send lots of hugs to Renee, who recently lost her grandma. Since her family has been my second family since I was 6, it was a little like losing my grandma, too. It's one of those bittersweet things, since she's not suffering anymore, but it's still always sad to have to say goodbye.

I guess that's about all for now....let me know how you all are doing. (Yeah, I know, I email and text you bitches all the damn time, but I want to get Broken Road hoppin' again.) ;)

2010-05-11T19:01:00.004-04:00

Why I became a teacher

And it's funny, because I've been extra super-bitch on them lately. (Part of it is getting them ready for middle school, part of it is because they're starting to act like they ARE in middle school so I have to take them down a few pegs and get them back under control.) I guess they're kind of like men....treat them like crap and they just want you even more. ;)

2010-05-10T21:10:00.002-04:00

Ooops, my bad

I TOTALLY forgot to post about that whole life-changing-moment thing last week. ;)

Okay, so the horoscope in Glamour for May said that on the 4th, I would meet someone who could change my life. So I circled the date on my calendar (yes, I'm an uber-dork) and anxiously awaited for the fatefull day to arrive. Now, before you get too excited, it was NOT my soulmate (son of a BITCH, that bastard better show up soon)...but it was still pretty cool.

That day, Tuesday, I was doing a site visit at one of our other schools. (You know--go in, observe, offer feedback, etc.) I was at the high school again, but this time, instead of business and social studies classes and shit like that, I got to watch a morning of English lit classes (all grade levels, 9-12).

And I fell in love....with high school English.

I thought teaching HS school would be totally scary and intimidating and not something that I would EVER consider....but it's not like teaching, say, middle school. In other words, the kids aren't tools. ;) They're mature and they've calmed down and--

--I'm getting excited just thinking about it--

I could discuss novels. All day long. And get PAID for it.

At an intellectual level that I could only DREAM of at the 5th grade, or even middle school, level.

It'd be relatively easy to add on high school English certification (I'm certified now in English for grades 5-9, so I could actually walk in now and do freshman classes, but if I wanted to go any higher I'd have to get the extra licensing)--it's just a matter of taking the subject area exam (4 hours, $200, but all things considered, entirely doable). I got a study guide online and there are definitely some things I'd need to review, but I got an 85% on my the practice exam (that was only 30 questions, compared to 75 on the real one, PLUS I'd have to write an essay analyzing a literature piece, so I'd have to brush up on my English lit and writing terms, shit I haven't even DREAMED of being able to talk about or teach in the last few years)--but overall, I'm in pretty good shape. apparently, at least as far as subject knowledge, etc goes.

SO. That's where I am right now. I don't know if I'd be able to make it happen by the fall, but I could spend the next year getting all of that into place (and networking with the principal at the high school--and since it's in our "family" of schools, it'd be more of a transfer than anything else)--and then possibly make the jump the year after that. That would give me an even five years at this school, and at this general grade level. Then, if I still feel as strongly about it as I do now (cuz let's face it, sometimes I get all fired up about something and then the excitement just kind of dies out)--well, THEN I'll know it's a step I should definitely pursue.

But it was just....so....AWESOME, and inspirting, and exciting, watching the kids and the teachers involved in those kind of conversations and debates...about BOOKS (The Great Gatsby, FYI, which I checked out of the library that same day, since I'd never read it). Yes, my friends, THAT would just about be a perfect job for me (besides working with dolphins or working as a book editor in NYC, which I would actually kind of hate because I'd be miserable in NYC, but the book editor part would be sweet).

So...we'll see if it actually pans out, but it looks as though I met a whole BUNCH of people on the 4th who may very well have changed my (career) life.

2010-04-28T18:41:00.003-04:00

Get your motor runnin'

I’m used to friends and family—you know, people who have actually RIDDEN with me—giving me shit about my driving*. I’m not so accustomed, however, to getting it from strangers.

*And again, I don’t know WHY. Let the record show that I haven’t been in a car accident (caused by me) since 1995, and I haven’t even had a ticket since 2006 (and that was a really gay one—getting into the turn lane too soon).

Anyway, I was at the tire place today, getting two new front tires. (Since I’ve never rotated my tires, my front tires were worn down to the cords, while my back ones were practically brand new.) While the guys were working, I wandered over to the grocery store and the nail place, for a much needed eyebrow wax. When I returned, Benji (my tire guy) and 2 other guys started in on me almost immediately.

“Hey, Speed Demon is back!” called Benji from under my car.

I tried to look both innocent and offended. “What do you mean?” I asked.

“Oh please,” one of the other guys said. “No one’s tires can look like this unless they’re hauling some ass.”

“I’ve never seen a woman who rides their tires so hard,” added the other guy.

“Oh, and also?” added Benji. “Some people actually slow DOWN for speed bumps.”

“I do!” I exclaimed.

Benji just raised an eyebrow at me.

“Well…the big ones,” I muttered.

“ 'Cuz your alignment is shot,” he went on. “You’re a teacher, right?”

“Yeah,” I said.

“Are you actually running over small children in the parking lot?”

The other guys, of course, found this to be hi-LAR-ious.

“Your car is totally out of whack,” he added.

I rolled my eyes, trying to hide my grin. "Okay, I get it," I answered.

As I was leaving, I heard Benji yell, “Remember….speed bumps are your friend! And slow down!”

2010-04-18T16:20:00.003-04:00

Family, work and God

On a lark, I typed "Krzys" into Facebook the other night...there are a LOT of people, it turns out, with Krzys as a first name (Krzystof), but not too many with the same last name. I found a couple, though, and I've been emailing with a guy named Jerry, who is a few years younger than me and a lawyer in Ohio. We are trying to find a common link--we know that, with this last name, we HAVE to be related somewhere down the line....we just don't know how far back we have to go to find the link. It's still pretty interesting, though, since it isn't every day that either of us "meet" someone with the same last name as ours.

In school-related news, there may be a change coming for me for next year. Remember when I was given the opportunity to switch to middle school language arts last year? Well, that choice has (tentatively) presented itself again. Although I felt very good about my eventual decision to stay in 5th--and I would be more than happy to do it again for yet another year--I have to say that the fact that this chance has come up for the second year in a row makes me wonder if it's some kind of sign/signal. I will also say that if I DO make the switch, it's because the principal wants me to be one of the middle school lead teachers for next year. (Our MS is growing, and she thinks it may be time for 2 leads rather than 1.) If I'm definitely offered a lead position, I'll absolutely make the switch. (She hasn't decided for sure if she's doing that yet for next year, but she's definitely leaning towards it.) Otherwise, I'm not QUITE as sold on it but am definitely tempted.

Anyway, all be decided in the next month or two, so I'll let you know.

Last, I went to a new church last weekend, a Presbyterian one, and I LOVED it. I think it's definitely my new church. I can't say I'll go every single week (I didn't go today, for example--but it was really rainy and yucky outside and I force myself to leave my nice warm bed), but I do want to attend much regularly than I have been recently (which would be never). Everyone was really nice, the sermon was very interesting and relevant and I felt this odd feeling of at-home-ness there that I've never experienced in a church before. (Plus, no one died, which has become a factor in my church-hunting.)

2010-04-06T12:12:00.002-04:00

Easter and stuff

Hello, everyone. I hope you all had a blessed and/or fun and relaxing Easter, depending on your religious beliefs. =-) Mine was actually great; spent the day with friends. Easter wine (which was just regular wine consumed on Easter), a fancy dinner (well, for us) and cornhole were all a part of the day's festivities. Oh, and my non-cooking ass was promoted from bringing cheese and crackers to deviled eggs. And they turned out really good!! (Is it bad to eat deviled eggs on Easter? Ha.)

As many of you know, I had a rather eventful Easter morning. I went to church (which is noteworthy in and of itself), but while I was there, an older (I think) gentleman crashed or coded or whatever. They had him in the room where you usually take crying babies and wiggly kids, so of course there was a huge glass window looking into the worship area. They closed the blinds while they were working on him but not all the way, and I had a clear shot into the room. I of course tried to focus on the service, but it was virtually impossible with everything going on. And can I just say, it was very unnerving that they even continued with the service. I mean, I know Easter is an important one, but you had a gathering of 300+ religious souls and a man literally dying in the next room. Shouldn't we have stopped and, oh, prayed for him? Anyway, I could see volunteers giving him CPR and then the medics when they got there. They were still working on him as they hurridly wheeled him out, but it didn't look good. Many of you have asked what ever came of that situation, and I don't know. I watched the news that night but they didn't say anything, and I'm checking the news websites now; I'll let you know.

So that's about all right now. Spring Break so far is fab; pool time with friends, reading, watching movies....*bliss.* Will probably hit the beach one day this week, too. Weather is perfect....85 and sunny. How are all of you?

2010-04-01T20:49:00.003-04:00

Happy April Fool's Day!

Yesterday was the last day of school for the students before Spring Break. Teachers still had to report, even though our grades were due yesterday and most of us are pretty much caught up on our paperwork. So our day has been spent socializing and counting down the hours till our official SB "meeting" at Pott's at 2. A bunch of teachers who are slap-happy and bored? Oh, and April Fool's Day to boot? You know no good could come from this.

Well, yours truly happened to come across a website listing office April Fool's Day jokes. Here's the one I decided to pull on Hot Teacher (my skydiving buddy), who has been gone on "lunch" for like an hour and counting.

Tidal Wave: Take about 20 (or more) paper or plastic cups, place them on the victim’s desk and fill them with water. Then take a stapler and staple them all together. You can also put the cups on the floor blocking their door, or just about anywhere.

We (I recruited 3 assistants) only did it with 10 cups, since he could have walked back in at any minute. and we taped them all together (a combination of duct and packing) instead of stapling them, which wasn't working so well.

Here's the finished product. Oh, and the part of the door that just happens to be showing above our handiwork? Well, that's just the icing on the cake.

2010-03-31T09:45:00.009-04:00

Hi, all. It's Junior Blogger again :-) Our little girl is growing up, *sniff*, and has bought a dining table and chairs for her apartment! I have a couple of pictures to share, along with the email telling about this feat. It must be known, however, that I was excluded from this email when it originally went out. Does anyone else wonder how this could happen? How, when going through one's address book, clicking on those important enough to receive the email, one could leave out a person one has been best friends with since first grade? For 27 years? And then one sends an email saying "could you post these pics and the email about my kitchen table?" There's an element of discomfort, like when someone says, "Oh, I'll see you Saturday at Susie's party!", only to see the look of horror cross your face as they realize you've not been invited to Susie's little shindig.

But I digress. Let's not get caught up in the details. Plus? LOL. Jen won't even SEE this part, unless I email it to her. I think I shall :-)

Now, my friends, on to the aforementioned email and pictures from Jen. Hers is typed in black. Because that's the color of her heart. I mean, what? Err. Never mind.

I wanted to take a moment and share with you a not so small victory.

I put together the table and chairs seen below--BY MYSELF. I had to do EVERYTHING, down to attaching the seat cushions to the legs. It took just under 2 and a half hours (because part of the time was spent disassembling something that I had just erroneously assembled--backwards, in the wrong place, etc). Most of it was done with one of those annoying allen wrenches (the L looking things), but I did borrow an electric drill from the maintenance guy here at school to help speed up the process. (Note: I'm totally buying myself a drill. SO MUCH FUN.)

Anyway, one of the legs on the table looks slightly crooked (you can't tell here in the picture) but overall I think I did a really good job. I've never undertaken a project like this all by myself before so I'm incredibly proud. And it looks really good in my apartment!! (And a neighbor has sat in one of the chairs and it didnt' collapse

Don't you wonder how Jen got this home in her little Kia? I do. Oh, I think I have a picture of that, too. And her caption, which cracked me up.

This is how a Michigan redneck-turned-Florida cracker gets a dining room table home in a Kia.
Bahahahahahahaha! She used jumper cables! I love it. Congratulations, my friend, on your first major household project. Victory!!!

2010-03-23T17:21:00.005-04:00

My life in pictures

Okay, not my whole life, but here's a couple that I thought you might find entertaining. (Note: the pics themselves won't be up until Renee gets a chance to post them for me....could be an hour, could be a week. So we'll see.) ;)

The first is a nomination I received for Staff Member of the Month. (I don't know who wrote it, either, which makes it kind of cool.) It says (in case you can't tell; I don't know how clear it will be when it's posted): "For always enthusiastic about teaching and showing her students that it can be FUN to learn." Awwww! If you're chosen as Staff Member of the Month, the only thing that really happens is that you get the good parking spot right in the front of the school instead of having to park way out in Siberia. Oh yeah, and the honor and the glory, of course. ;) Still, "it's an honor just to be nominated." (Heh.)

The second pic is the newest addition to our classroom decor. Unfortunately, one of my angels or another have been called down to the discipline office on almost a daily basis (gossiping, drama, etc). So finally, I decided to create an incentive plan; each day we go where we DON'T receive a call from the dean of discipline summoning one of my lovelies, we color in another notch on the meter. When we make it to 30, they get a reward (to be determined later).

And yes, in case you can't read it, it IS called the "Save the Drama For Your Mama Meter."

(I've had many visitors to my room, because the other teachers think it's hysterical and wanted to see it for themselves.)

So that's what's new in my world. Only a week or so left until Spring Break....and trust me, we teachers need it just as badly as the kids do.

2010-03-19T16:06:00.002-04:00

Lots o' updates

I'm finally broke down and hit the library so I could update you all (not that Renee didn't do a fabulous job herself; I shall definitely use her services again in the future).

(That's what he said.)

Random bits of information:

1) I am working on quitting smoking again, and I dare say that this time, it may finally take. It will be 2 weeks on Monday. I'm making the supreme sacrifice of skipping my after-work meetings for a while, as it would be impossible for me to drink and sit with other smokers without doing it myself. So I'm a loser with no life, but I'm a SMOKE FREE loser with no life.

2) Speaking of which, I currently have a cough which may be tuberculosis (or, according to my kids, Valley Fever, which is the disease afflicting a character in a book we're currently reading--a 1930s Mexican migrant worker in California). I don't know if it's from the quitting or allergies or what, but I may break down and go to a doctor soon. Or not, since I'm relatively sure it's a combo of quitting AND allergies, which are particular horrendous here in Florida this year. I haven't gone this long without a cigarette in years, so Lord knows my lungs have to expel some nasty stuff.

(I'm sexy.)

3) Random story that I'm sure you guys will find entertaining: yesterday at parent pickup, one of my students was picked up in a different car. "Who's that?" I teased her, eyeing the driver's shaved head and muscular build. "Is that your mom's boyfriend?"

"NO!!" she giggled. "It's her friend."

"Uh huh," I said knowingly. "Her FRIEND." The word "friend" was accompanied by air quotes.

"It is!" my student said. "My mom has lots of friends."

"I bet she does," I said, grinning.

It wasn't until I opened the door for C, my student, that I realized the driver was a female.

Awesome. Not only did I just accuse her mom of being a lesbian, but a rather trampy one, at that.

4) Speaking of our novel (Esperanza Rising), we had to have an impromptu geography lesson when I realized that a large part of the class didn't know where Mexico IS.

It gets worse.

I also had students who:
1) thought Mexico and New Mexico were the same thing
2) thought Mexico was part of the United States
3) don't understand the difference between states and countries
4) don't understand the difference between countries and continents
5) didn't know that North America is actually made up of 3 countries, not just the United States
6) didn't know that Canada was right above us
7) didn't know that Canada and the US weren't the same country
8) thought that Mexico was part of South America (since it's south OF America...but hey, at least that's a somewhat acceptable mistake, although not at the 5th grade level)

Finally, I told them we had to stop for the day, since they were "making my heart sad."

I think that's about all for now. I promise to update again much sooner than last time, either myself or via my superfabulous proxy.

Have a great weekend, all!

2010-03-08T09:00:00.004-05:00

'Sup, blogland? It's Renee again. Jen had the pleasure of Anna's company over the weekend and asked me to post these pictures of them boozing it up in the glorious sunshine!

Jen, enjoying a second of whatever that is... fuzzy navel? Hurricane? You couldn't have gotten rid of the empty glass, you lush?

*snicker*

That's what you get for asking me to post stuff :-)

The new mom, enjoying a well-deserved pina colada!

Ah, sunshine, sunglasses and short sleeves! I'm so jealous, but if any of us needed that weekend away, it's you, my friend! I hope it recharged you and will get you through til Spring finally makes an appearance in the midwest!

2010-03-05T08:41:00.002-05:00

Jen still doesn't have internet at home, so she emailed this post to me and asked me to post it. Yay! Thought she'd never post again :-)
Renee

It's been awhile (again) since I posted, so I figured I'd better check in. This has been an incredibly busy few months for me, which is why my regular posting has slowed wayyyy down.

School is great. The big state tests that you hear all about each year are next week already (how is that possible??). I made my poor students do 5 hours of math yesterday. Our math FCATs are this Tues and Wed, and unfortunately, there's a LOT I haven't gotten to yet. (Partly because I have the low group and everything takes longer, but mainly because the FCATs are in March and they cover a full year's worth of material--so some of it we don't even get to until April and May. Yeah, makes a lot of sense, doesn't it?) We have mathapalooza again today....for 5th graders, my kids are holding up pretty well. I'm letting some of their misbehavior slide this week because hell, I"M getting cranky and bored and restless. =-) We also have reading next week, and then 2 days of science the week after that. I'm very, very nervous this time around. I think part of it is because my class last year did so incredibly well, and I feel the pressure to "deliver" again this year. We'll see what happens, I guess.

Shawn and I aren't talking (again). LOL. This time it's because his girlfriend found out that we'd been hanging out, and of COURSE she's incredibly jealous of my fabulousness. Anyway, she gave him the ol' ultimatum (get rid of her or else), so he did. He DID say that we could be Secret Friends, but that we couldn't talk on the phone anymore or even hang out that much, and while the old Jen may have gone for that, the New Jen, who is strong and actually has some pride, told him to go f*** himself. I'm hurt that he ditched a friend for a girlfriend who I know is not going to be a forever thing, but what are you going to do?

In happy news, our beloved Anna will be here in Ft Myers with me in about 7 hours. I'm so excited!!! I only have her for the weekend, and she'll be gone for most of Saturday at a wedding in Orlando (the reason for her Florida trip in the first place), but I know we're manage to squeeze in a lot of fun in between. Tonight, I'm having a dinner party for her with about 10 of my nearest and dearest (I, however, am not HOSTING the dinner party, mostly because 1) I don't cook and 2) I don't have a dining room table, but I did ORGANIZE the whole thing. One of my fellow teachers, Linda, is the gracious hostess, and what an extravaganza it shall be....) We will, of course, be visiting the great Ft Myers Beach and the Gorgeous Gulf at some point, probably on Sunday (she doesn't fly out until 6 pm or so). The weather won't be that great by Florida standards (high 60s, low 70s)--but at least it will be sunny and clear all weekend and it's a hell of a lot better than the current weather in Minnesota. Stay tuned for an exciting update (and possible pictures).

Okay my kids are coming up.....I hope you all are well!!!

And in a surprising turn of events, my Baby Daddy just donated $40 to my March of Dimes walk!!! Didn't see THAT coming. LOL. Yup, he's definitely still trying to get in my pants. ;)

2010-01-29T21:15:00.003-05:00

Down but not out

So....rough week at work. I was able to vent to Renee and John at dinner last night (holla!!), but long story short:

Our company has these "benchmarks" 4 times a year, designed (in theory) to replicate and predict how our students will perform on the FCAT, that all-important state test, in March. The problem is that the students who have been with our school for a while know that these tests basically dont mean shit (for them, anyway) and therefore don't really try on them. Like, at all.

The problem for ME, however, is that when the results come in, it looks as though I am failing miserably at my job. It is "projected" that my students (and all of 5th grade, as it turns out) will bomb the upcoming FCAT in spectacular fashion. Now mind you, last year my kids sucked on this benchmark and still kicked some FCAT ass. The difference is that LAST YEAR, we had a principal who knew us, knew our school, knew our students and knew ME. She believed in us, had our back, and trusted us when we said that our kids were on track.

Our new principal, however, does none of the above.

So when these "preliminary" results came out, let's just say that we had a meeting where she basically made us feel about THIS big. (You can't see me, but my fingers are, like, a millimeter apart.) Oh, and she p0inted out that our 5th grade scores were THE LOWEST 5th grade scores in the entire company.

OH. And she told EVERY OTHER TEAM THAT IN THE ENTIRE SCHOOL. (Yes, literally pointed out, very explicity, to every other grade, just how "low" 5th grade was....and that we were the lowest in the company.)

I cannot tell you how demoralize that is. Not only does our principal not believe in us, but she points out to EVERY OTHER GRADE just how sucky she thinks we are.

The only thing keeping me going is that I believe in my kids, and I believe in myself. My kids are working their asses off, and IF, **IF** they don't do well on the FCAT, it's not for lack of trying. It's because...well, they're low students. And a third, A THIRD. of them are ESE ("special ed" in other states). Not to be all cocky, but I was a "Star" teacher last year, which means I was a TOP performer in my company--not my school, but my COMPANY...yes, the same company in which I am now firmly at the bottom--last year. Am I a fantastic teacher? Hell no--and any teacher who tells you they are is full of shit, since any teacher, regardless of how long they've been teaching, ALWAYS has room to grow and improve. But do I do well with the kids I have, in the situation I'm in, with the resources I have, especially considering the fact that I am pretty new to the field? I'd like to think so.

Regardless of what happens in March, I'm giving everything I have, and so are my kids. I cannot possibly give any more, and neither can they.

2010-01-09T01:52:00.002-05:00

My bad, Officer

I just had a TOTAL Jen moment, and I had to share it with you immediately (yes, at 2 am).

So I hung out with a friend tonight, and I was on my way home (stone cold sober...thank God, as you'll see in a moment). As I approached the major intersection leading to my place, I saw cop cars with flashing lights at almost every corner of the intersection. In the right turn lane--where I needed to be--there were 2 bright flashing hot-pink lights in the road, at the top (front? head?) of the lane. I had never seen those before, and I wasn't sure exactly what they were or what they meant. I just figured I wasn't supposed to drive IN the lane--I honestly didn't realize that they meant "don't turn right." So I kind of pulled into the next lane over (which would have been the go-straight lane) and THEN turned right....

...and immediately realized why those lights had been there. There was a major accident and all lanes in that direction were completely closed and blocked off by every type of emergency vehicle known to man--including several more cop cars.

And there was no where for me to back up and/or turn around.

Shit.

So I'm sitting there, with roughly 10 (no exaggeration) police, fire and rescue vehicles sitting in front of me, and roughly 6 other squad cars behind me....one of which promptly made the "beep-beep" noise with his siren and headed towards me.

Shit.

He pulled up on my passenger side (since I was in the left lane) and got out of the car. I rolled down my window.

"Ma'am, are you aware that you just completely disregarded two emergency police flares?" he asked, rather irritatedly.

"Oh, is that what those pink flashy lights were?" I asked. (Yes, I actually said "pink flashy lights.") "I'm so sorry. I've never seen those before and didn't know what they were."

"Well, what did you THINK they were there for?" he asked--and he wasn't even rude or mad now, just genuinely curious and a bit dumb-founded.

"I just figured we weren't supposed to drive in that lane," I meekly answered.

"Yes," he replied. "Don't drive in that lane because we didn't want you to go IN THIS DIRECTION."

To which I answered:

"My bad, Officer."

To which I tacked on:

"I'm really, REALLY sorry."

Now mind you, it was a Friday night at 1:30 am, and he never once asked to see my license--or even whether or not I had been drinking. I think it quickly became obvious that I wasn't drunk--just really, really stupid.

"Well," he said. "I don't know what to tell you. We're going to get this cleared up as quickly as possible--it could be 2 minutes, it could be 45."

Just then, one of the fire trucks pulled away, opening up the entrace to a corner plaza.

"Oooh!" I said, helpfully pointing it out. "Could I maybe just pull in where that guy did and just get out of your way?"

(Yes, "that guy.")

He looked at me for a moment before blowing out a big breath of air. "Yeah, whatever," he answered. (LOL. "Whatever.") "Go. And ma'am? The next time you see a whole bunch of police cars and 'pink flashy lights,' you MAY want to pay some attention."

"Yes, sir," I told him. "I'm sorry. Thank you."

By this time, he was already walking away. I distinctly heard a "Jesus Christ."

I very conscientously put on my turn signal, pulled into the far right lane and got the hell out of there.

Lesson learned.

2010-01-05T20:51:00.004-05:00

Only funny because it wasn't happening to me

We needed to do laundry, so Chad graciously agreed to take control of laundry duty. (We do not have a washer/dryer in the apartment, but there are facilities on site. They're not far away but you definitely have to drive, especially when you're lugging a basket full of clothes. Side note: there are washer/dryer HOOKUPS in each unit, so my goal is to use my tax refund to get a set in here...especially after last night.)

Here was the ordeal.

1. We sorted the laundry.

2. Chad left.

3. Chad quickly returned. He had been sure that the detergent was still in my car from the last time he did laundry. After searching all over the apartment, we came to the realization that the last time Chad did laundry, he left our detergent behind. We knew it probably still wouldn't be there, but Chad assured me that, in a pinch, you could use shampoo. (A true bachelor.) He left again with $1.25, the cost of washing a load.

3. Chad left.

4. Chad quickly returned. Apparently, they raised it to $1.50 on January 1, so he had to come all the way back for another quarter.

5. Chad left.

6. Chad quickly returned. The washer he used was broken--it turned on but no water actually filled the tub. He took another $1.50.

7. Chad left.

8. Chad quickly returned, this time with the clothes. The SECOND machine he tried to use was also broken (which, again, he didn't find out until he had already put the money in)--this one didn't even turn on.

8. We were now out of quarters, it was 10:30 pm, and the clothes were covered in shampoo.

This whole time, I was working on my laptop in the living room. The first few times he came back, I would kind of groan and commiserate with him. But on that final return (which was, what, the 3rd? 4th?)--when I glanced up and saw him walk in, still WITH the clothes, even after all those trips--I had to use every ounce of strength not to bust out laughing, since he was SO pissed at this point and it wouldn't go over well. And had it been ME, I would have been horribly irate, as well.

But it wasn't...and therefore, it was funny as all hell.

2010-01-02T13:36:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year!

Yes, my friends--I'm posting from the new place. All of a sudden, there's a nearby wireless signal that I've been able to pick up. I don't know how long it'll last, so I'm going to enjoy it while I can.

I hope you all had a great NYE. Chad and I went to a local place right on the corner, about a mile away. We were only going to "pre party" there and shoot a few games of pool, but before we knew it, it was 11:30 so we figured we might as well stay for the Big Show. (The shots may have had something to do with the accelerated passing of time.) In what can only be described as an inspired moment of evil brilliance and quite possibly one of my best "pranks" ever, I pimped Chad out to a leathery, VERY butch, 50-year-old truck driving lesbian. (Her and I were sitting outside talking, and she was drunk and telling me about her problems with her girlfriend. I told her that when *I* was having issues with men, I always threatened to "go gay," so maybe she should try going straight for a night. "That's a great idea," she slurred. "I've had it with this f*#&#^ b*#&#^." Then I helpfully told her about a good friend of mine, Chad, who would be glad to help her out. I brought her inside, introduced them and then went back outside on the bench to revel in my brilliance. Not 30 seconds later, Chad pokes his head out and says, "Im going to f(*&^%%% kick your ASS," before she pulled him back inside again. OMG, she was all over him, trying to take him home. I'm laughing again just thinking about it.

Anyway, he escaped from his girlfriend around 1 and we headed back here, where we proceeded to shotgun a case of beer. (Yes, my friends, we are 33 year old adults and are living like frat guys. But in our defense, we saved the heavy drinking for when we were home for the night. We had a few shots but we were also there for quite a while. And really, it ended up being a really cheap night, since we were working with Natty Ice--which is also part of why I felt like hell for most of Friday.) Anyway, I was actually wearing more beer than I actually got down by the time we were done, since I am horrible at shotgunning, as it turns out. (Also, beer sprays really far. He spent a good part of yesterday cleaning up the kitchen, while I laid around and cursed HIM for making me drink so much beer, which was probably HIS revenge for my little matchmaking attempt.) We finally tapped out around 5.

I hope you all had great evenings as well, no matter how you spent the night.

2009-12-19T23:08:00.003-05:00

Back online...for now

I arrived safely in Michigan a couple of hours ago. I'm here until the 30th (Lord help us all), although it's really more the 29th since I leave at, oh, 8 am on the 30th. The untrusting bastards in my new apartment building all have their wireless accounts password protected, so I haven't been able to get online from home and all "blogging" sites are blocked on my work computer. Therefore, I'll be able to check in with y'all for the next 10 days or so.

The move went smoothly. It came down to the wire, but everything fell into place the day before the move. I was able to do it without springing for a moving truck--my new place was just a few miles from the old one, and I had friends moving carloads of boxes. Sadly, moving my furniture was only a few trips in the back of a Ford truck (although the guys did fit quite a lot into each of those trips, with their Tetris-like loading skillz). It only took a few hours (with a U-Haul, it would have been like 20 minutes, but whatever).

I really like my new place. I have brand new carpet and of course the walls were freshly painted, so that's cool. My favorite part of the apartment is over by the bedroom and bathroom. The bathroom has two doors--one leading out to the main part of the apartment and then one leading to the bedroom. On the way to the bedroom, though, is a little hallway with 2 huge closets on each side, giving it almost a walk-in-closet feel. It's got lots of storage and closets for a one bedroom, too, which is nice. My dining room area is obviously totally empty except for a bookcase, and my living room consists of my small couch, a tv stand and the TV, but overall it's starting to look like a (sparsely furnished) home. I'm kind of looking forward to slowly adding new pieces of furniture over the next few months. I bet I can make some really good garage sale finds. And it's MINE. No roommate. Oh, the giddiness of it all.

Everything else is fine. The kids were nuts this last week and about killed me, but now I'm freeeee till the 4th. I've been seeing a lot of Chad, of course (since I have my OWN DAMN PLACE and can do whatever I want), but we're still more friends than anything. Sort of. It's quite complicated. We care about each other in a more-than-friends way, but we also don't want to screw up our really close friendship. So we're kind of seeing what happens. I've been having so much fun with him, though. It's like having your best friend sleep over a lot (even on a school night, LOL). And for the record, he sleeps out on the couch when he's there. He says it's more comfortable than my bed. (Sometimes he'll lay in there with me, talking with me till I fall asleep, then he moves out to the living room.)

All in all, life is pretty good. Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers. They obviously worked. I'm off to get my Facebook fix now (another site that's blocked from work). What's everyone else been up to?

2009-12-10T21:45:00.003-05:00

SO. STRESSED.

Theoretically, I'm moving in a day and a half. I still don't know what my final deposit is going to be, and once I find out I have to run to the bank to get a cashier's check or money order....oh, and I still have to arrange to have the power turned on (so it better be able to be done same-or next-day)...all of this by Saturday. Yeah. A little stressed.

On the plus side, I'm pretty much packed.

I won't have internet hooked up right away, so worst case scenario, I won't be back online (as in the blog and Facebook; I can still check email from work) till next weekend, when I get to my mom's house. However, there's a good chance that someone in my new building will have wireless that my laptop can piggyback off (for free. Holla!) so you may be seeing me sooner.

Pray for me!

2009-12-07T19:54:00.003-05:00

Update on the update

Okay. So I'm good to go in my new apartment; we're still haggling over my down payment/deposit (they don't want to "lose me" and I'm "exploring other options," LOL. Initially, they were anticipating an extra $250 or so for a deposit, but then the lady I talked to today said I may need a month's depsoit (roughly $600), which obviously is a major difference. At this point, my rental and employment history are my two ace in the holes. #1, I've had the same steady job for 4 years and #2, my rental history is great. I have a male friend stepping in for Brad, since his phone is disconnected and I need a reference for the last 2 years. At this point, they acknowledge that my credit sucks ass but that my rental history appears literally flawless, and that's the only thing going for me....so although we can't get a hold of Brad physically, I just have someone to testify on his behalf that Jen paid faithfully and on time every month for two years. Is it shady? Not really. It's not like I was a faulty tenant and I'm having someone lie for me. I'm having someone tell the truth, just in place of the actual "landlord." Hey, screw you all. I have 5 days to find a place to live. ;)

So...I'm good to go, almost definitely. Like I said, all we're debating on is my deposit. I was hoping to get out of here by Wednesday, but it looks like I'll need till Saturday. Maybe it's better. Moving mid-week WOULD be tough. Things here at the homefront are civil, considering. I'm playing nice. Internally, I'm just counting down the days, and when I'm home, I'm staying in my room. The weekend was harder because we were both off of work both days, but I was out with friends of mine, so that helped. And on Sunday, I slept in (ridiculously late) and packed. I'm really doing well on packing; I mostly have left my clothes in the dressers and then some things in the kitchen. I was going to take a day off this week to help with the packing and moving, but now I may not need to, if I can handle it all on Saturday (and I'm sure she'd allow me Sunday to get some more miscellaneous things. Like I said, we're on decent terms as of right now).

I think that's about all for now. I'm hanging in there, considering.

2009-12-01T21:48:00.004-05:00

A "slight" update

So....to make a very long story short, my roommate and I have had a falling out, and I have 2 weeks to move out (not even. More like 12 days).

Everything was going perfectly, literally perfectly, till very recently. She disapproves of Chad, basically. What I hadn't told you guys yet, because I didn't even know myself what was going to come of this whole thing, is that he got out of jail about 2 months ago for drugs (dealing). He told me everything the night we met, because he said I deserved to know everything about him and his background so I could decide if I even wanted to keep talking to him that night or just walk away. The way I was raised, and the way I am as a person, is that it's not my job to judge others. I've made some mistakes in my past that *I* would not like to be judged by/for/on, and it's not my place to judge him or his "value." If nothing else, he needs a friend right now. Every single action of his so far has shown me that he truly does want to turn his life around--that he made an incredible mistake that almost ruined his life for good, and he intends to do everything he can to take advantage of the opportunity he has now. In fact, he wants to return to school to become a drug and alcohol counselor, so he can use his past experiences to help others (although right now, he's just trying to find a job; as we all know, it's a tough job market out there for anyone at the moment, let alone someone with his past).

And yes, we really are just friends, for the record. We've talked about "us" quite a bit already, and although we've become really close in the last month or so and have spent a LOT of time together, we also know that jumping into a relationship is not great for either of us. He knows I need time to get to know him and see if he is serious about making a change--and on his end, he's trying to pick up the pieces of his life, so adding a relationship to that is obviously the least of his concerns. To paraphrase what he told me, he feels like absolute shit about himself right now and as though he has absolutely nothing to bring to the table right now, in terms of an equal partnership/relationship....kind of the whole "you have to love yourself to truly love someone else" thing. And he said that this could very well be the start of something; but right now, he has to start rebuilding his life. However, he also tells me on a daily basis that he's so grateful he met me, that it means the world to him that I DO listen to him without judgement, and allow him to vent and figure things out, sometimes in his OWN head, and that I believe he can be successful. He also said that my friends and I (he's met many of them at this point) are exactly the kind of people he needs to surround himself with right now as he builds his new life.

Soooo....I made the mistake (in hindsight) of telling April about his past. I honestly thought that she'd keep an open mind as well (even if she wasn't thrilled with his past cuz let's face it, who would be? *I* don't love it myself). However, she told me on Sunday evening that he is not welcome in our apartment at all, for any length of time, period, which led to an argument. I called her judgemental and she called me naive. I said it was people like her who made it impossible for people like him TO change his life around, and that it must be nice to have lived a life that's free of any kind of mistakes and regrets. I pointed out that she'd barely ever spoken a word to him (not just when he was here, which frankly wasn't that often anyway, but when we'd be out with friends or whatever as well) or made any true attempt to get to know him, and she replied that she already knew everything she needed/wanted to know about him.

That was Sunday. I told her I thought she was overreacting by banning him from the apartment completely but if that's what she wanted, so be it, at which point I took off to go talk to him and cool off. (For the record, the argument we had definitely involved raised voices on both sides, but I actually thought I did a pretty damn good job at keeping it adult and civil.) By the time I got back later that night, she was in bed, and then I was in bed by the time she returned last night. We exchanged a couple of texts, primarily about the dog (had she been out recently, etc--I also told her that although I did care about Chad, I also didn't want this to jeopardize either our friendship or our living situation) but that was it.

Then tonight, she came home around 8:00 (with a friend of hers, another teacher at our school by the way). She knocked on my door; I thought she was coming in for a nice little heart to heart and instead she said that she felt it was best that I leave, and that I had 12 days in which to do it (for the record, her name is the only one on the lease because my credit kinda sucks, but we got this place together and it was "ours"). Her reasoning is that her parents are "horrified" that I'm living here, exposing her to "those kinds of people" and "putting her in danger". I pointed out that I'd agreed not to bring him here anymore so the entire point/discussion seemed moot to me, and she said yes, but she knows I'm still hanging out with him, and she doesn't want to live with someone who allow people like that into their life. But mostly it's her parents, it seems. They dont want their daughter living with someone who associates with people like that (aka flawed) and now they "fear for her safety" (although he doesn't have anything violent in his background or on his record, period).

So...there you have it. I have until we leave for Christmas break in 12 days to get packed and moved. To say I'm in shock doesn't even begin to cover how I feel right now. I mean, if he was an actual drug dealer STILL, and I was running around slinging hash with him and joining him in drive-bys when I wasn't busy shooting up, that's one thing. But I certainly don't think that he's a bad person today because of what happened in his past (a red flag? Sure. Something to watch very carefully? Absolutely. But does it mean that he's not worth getting to know or that he CAN'T make something out of his life? Absolutely NOT). And I CERTAINLY certainly don't think that I'M a bad person because of it.

This all just went down tonight and I'm really shell-shocked....but you know, she isn't the kind of person that *I* thought she was and she's not someone I want to live with, let alone be friends with. It sucks that I only have 12 days but frankly, I don't want to be here anymore anyway. Most of the people who HAVE met him actually like him and, again, are keeping an open mind, which is all I ever wanted from her. But if she's this quick to judge people (not just him but, let's face it, she's judging ME as well now, and that I'm no longer worth having as a friend OR a roommate)--well, that's not the kind of person I want in MY life. You know what? I would much rather be TOO trusting and naive and caring than be that judgemental of others, even if it means my getting hurt (which I have in the past and I'm sure I will again) because of that trust.

So....there you go. I really didn't even want to tell you guys about this (his past), if only because I wanted you to know him for who he is today and who he desperately wants to be in the future, rather than who he was. I KNOW there's the chance that he will go back to that lifestyle, and HE knows that that's something I would not be able to stand by or stick around for....and I really think I would know if he did start it up again because quite frankly, he was not selling a little pot on the side before. He had a pretty major business going, and if he gets a job as a server, let's say, he'd have a really hard time hiding or explaining a sudden, dramatic increase in the his income...not to mention the fact that he's been nothing but up front with me so far. Trust me on this, he even tells me when he has the CHANCE to do something but turns it down. Now that he's been out for a while, some of his old contacts are starting to call, asking if he can get this or that, and he keeps saying no. And guys, I would never ever ever justify that kind of behavior but right now, he has NOTHING. And it takes a lot of balls to say no to a single phone call that could bring in hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars when you are so down and out. And he's DOING it. And I actually admire that kind of strength and determination. And as long as he's trying to turn it around, I'm perfectly willing to be a friend to him while he does. And if it becomes more than that, we'll see.

And yes, I KNOW I can get hurt here. But I am who I am, and I'm not sorry for that. I have a big heart (if not a big brain, ha ha), and I care about people, and I can see the good in them. Yes, I DO still believe that most people, at their core, are good, and I will always believe that, even when it does bite me in the ass (and even if others can't or won't see that good in them). I've lived too flawed a life to even think about judging others, and that's one of the things that I think my friends--my TRUE friends--value about me the most...that I will always listen with an open mind and never judge them, their decisions or their actions.

Because that's just how I roll.

2009-11-19T20:49:00.003-05:00

How is it Thursday again already?

I'm only posting once a week now? You'd think I went and got myself a life or something!

I had guitar lesson #2 today. LOVE THEM, btw. I practiced my "homework" (2 pages on the notes on the E string--E, F, G) religiously over the last week, so when I walked in today my guy was actually really impressed. Instead of going over the lesson like he usually has to do, he just had me play the "hardest" part of the lesson to see that I had it, and we skipped right to the next string (the 2nd from the bottom, which is actually the top--the B string). Dude, guitar is SO MUCH HARDER when you have 6 notes to read and play instead of 3--and on 2 different strings, no less! I went from the advanced class to the slow, remedial group in about 2 seconds today, LOL. I felt SO bumbling and frustrated. However, he said he's setting the bar pretty high for me since I'm picking it up pretty quickly, so he expects me to come back in 2 weeks (we don't have our lesson next week due to Thanksgiving) and have this next section down. I told him I'd do it, come hell or high water, but right now it seems impossible. (Although by the end of this next section, I'll be able to play Ode to Jode, an actual SONG--and it's like 5 lines!)

Let's see...I hung out with Chad a couple of times this week, although one of our "dates" was helping a friend of mine move (which he VOLUNTEERED to do, btw. Shit, I don't even like helping my own damn friends move, let alone total strangers). We'll probably meet up at some point this weekend--I hope so, anyway. And he's coming with me to Thanksgiving at a friend's, too. (Although when he got out of the car on Tuesday night, he didn't kiss me or anything. Maybe I'm being all over-analyzing-y and stuff, but did I just get put in the Friend Zone? I know he was bone tired, but still.)

That's really all that's new. The other stuff is the same ol', same ol'. My work highlight this week was actually today--after giving a long division quiz on which my kids scored an average of 61 (after working on it for like 2 weeks), I retested them today and now there average was 80. And that's only because one girl was like 12%, which really messed up the overall average. They did SO MUCH BETTER. And one of my ESE (formerly special ed) girls got an A!! I think this was her first A in math in years, seriously. Now on to division with 2-digit divisors! (The divisor is the smaller number you put into the larger number, FYI.)

So...yeah. That's what's up.

2009-11-12T18:01:00.002-05:00

Catching up

I haven't posted in a couple of weeks (how is that possible?). Here's what's been up:

1) I've been sick...a few different times. It's been all go go go with very little sleep, so my immune system has been even weaker than normal (which, let's face it, sucks even on its good days, LOL).

2) Parent-teacher conferences and report cards last week. A few late nights at school and lots of extra work at home.

3) I started guitar lessons today! My teacher is a 25-year-old John Mayer look alike (holla!); he's very cool and I was immediately comfortable with him. I told him that he was going to have his hands full with me because I'm musically UNinclined, blonde and Polish. However, I have to say, my first lesson was a huge success. Maybe I really am a guitar prodigy! Granted, all I did today was learn the E chord, learn the 3 notes in that chord (E, F and G), learn the frets (numbered from the top, starting with 1 and counting down), learn how to "count" the strings (the "top" string, #1, is actually the one on the bottom when you hold the guitar on your knee), learn how to "count" your fingers (your thumb doesn't count; finger #1 is your index finger). Oh, and I reviewed how to read the whole, half and quarter notes, and how to read E, F and G on the staff. And did I mention that that was all in 30 minutes? I have 2 pages in my book to practice before next Thursday (playing music with those 3 notes), and I'm going to have it DOWN before I see him again.

4) I met a guy, I think. I mean, I definitely met one; I just don't know what, if anything, is going to come of it. I just met him on Monday (at my after-work hang out place); we stayed there talking till almost midnight; we've talked every day since (usually several times a day); and we're hanging out again tomorrow night (I think I'm going to cook him lasagne). And I have to say, even though it's only been a few days, I'm already more excited about and "into" him than I ever was about Daniel. Even if nothing happens with New Guy (Chad), it's shown me that this thing with Daniel is definitely DOA. I really wanted to like him, but it's just NOT THERE.

I think that's about all.

2009-10-29T20:56:00.011-04:00

My birthday week

Somehow, the revelry has expanded this year from a mere day to an entire week-long celebration. It started on Monday, when Mom had flowers delivered to me at work. (Note: they were SUPPOSED to be delivered today; however, the florist made a mistake. It was actually pretty cool, though, because that made them totally unexpected. Plus, I was doing trainings at other schools today, so I wouldn't have been there to get them anyway. See? It all worked out.) Because of that, though, most of the school thought my birthday was Monday, so I received birthday wishes from the staff all day. It was fun. =-)

Tuesday, I went out after school with some friends from work.

Wednesday was the last day of school this week for the kids, so that was my day to celebrate with them. They brought me cards, and I was surprised mid-day with this delivery, courtesy of my class:

The parent who "sponsored" this cake swore up and down that the name on the cake was an innocent error on the bakery's end. I'm not so sure. ;)

Oh yeah, and I went out after work again on Wednesday, too.

And we maybe went out today, as well.

Tomorrow, though, is the highlight of Birthday Week. We have tomorrow off, so we're meeting at the bar. At noon. To do shots.

Because we can.

And then we're going to walk next door to the movie theater to see Paranormal Activity.

I am SO EXCITED.

Anyway, that's the story of my 33rd.

Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes. And so begins the last year of my "early" 30s....

2009-10-25T23:11:00.010-04:00

Halloween 2009

Tonight, we carved our pumpkin AND roasted seeds. We used cayenne pepper and seasoned salt for the seeds and OH. EM. GEE they turned out sooooo good. And our pumpkin? We got fancy and used one of those patterns (rather than just carving the traditional face), and not counting a mishap that required some crazy glue (and the ultimate "blonde moment"--which is funny 'cuz April is a brunette and hell, MY natural color isn't even blonde anymore), we think it turned out pretty damn good. We had to take this photo at a particular angle so the flame inside didn't cause a "flash" in the picture, but you can still get the overall effect.

This close-up allows you to see the intricate detailing of the bottom bat. I know, you're jealous. As well you should be.

2009-10-22T19:17:00.002-04:00

GREAT F'IN DAY

Two amazing things happened today. (The day wasn't ALL sunshine and roses, mind you; at one point, I had to yell loud enough in the cafeteria that I actually peed a little. But it was end-capped in different but yet equally spectacular fashions.)

First: this morning, a very cryptic email was waiting for us from our current "principal" (and I use the term loosely), talking about evaluating the situation and adjusting staffing to better meet the current needs. We knew something was afoot, and once the team leads came out of the morning meeting, we had more information: basically, our principal of curriculum, who we love and was Mrs. A's right-hand woman last year, will be taking over of the day-to-day running of our school. Our principal is still technically our principal, but basically in name only. (They didn't come out and say that, but that's what it boils down to.) Frankly, I think this is our company's first step is phasing her out.

HELL YEAH!!!!!!!!!!! After my last post, you may have noticed that I was feeling a bit down about how things were being run under new leadership. Well, for all intents and purposes, she's now gone. It's like a huge weight was lifted; already, you can sense a change in the building. It's FABULOUS.

And then, to cap off this day: I won $100 on a $5 scratch-off lottery ticket!! I can count on both hands the number of times I've bothered to even stop and by those things. Still, April was buying one, so I thought sure, why not. I even went back through the check-out lane to buy a pack of gum so I could get cash back for the tickets. The one I got (I forgot what it was called) has 4 lucky numbers at the top and then 12 squares on the bottom. If a number in one of the squares matches one of your lucky numbers, you win the amount in that square. Well, the first or second box that I scratched off matched, and I won $10. And hell, I was excited enough THEN. I was jumping around and everyone in line was laughing at me. Then I scratched off the next box...and the next box...and the next one. When all was said and done, 10 out of the 12 boxes matched one of my 4 numbers (each at $10 a pop). By the bottom of the card, we were just giddy. It was so funny. After the fifth one, I was like, "I MUST be reading this game wrong. There must be more to it than this" (you know, like maybe a whole row has to be the same number or something). I gave it to the guy (who, of course, had been cheering with us the whole time) and said, "Please just scan this for me. Tell me if I did this right." And he was like, "Yup. You just won $100."

(I split it with April, since we each bought 2 $5 tickets and were kind of doing it together. I know, I'm awesome.)

So yeah...a pretty damn good start AND finish to the day.

2009-10-19T19:43:00.003-04:00

Blah

I'm here, just crazy busy (thanks for the update, Renee. LOL). Very tired lately. Will be emotionally limping through the next month till Thanksgiving break, and then it will be the final countdown till Christmas break! Yes, I'm already living for Christmas break. Ha ha. I don't know what my deal is, just still don't feel right and am exhausted. May go back to the doctor but frankly, I'm also sleeping like crap and staying up too late so I suspect that's more my problem. I need to get on a much better sleep schedule first and then see how I feel. Everything is fine, just busy.

The leadership thing was cool. In theory, it will open up doors, especially down the road if I do ever decide to leave the classroom. But there are other leadership roles I could take on and still remain a teacher, including going back to team lead; there's another position or two (which would probably require me switching to a different school, but we'll see). Lots of school drama going on, namely due to incredibly poor leadership. I miss Sara a LOT. We're all hoping we outlast our new principal (which, at this rate, is entirely possible. I think she's digging her own grave). It's like Educational Survivor....outlast, outwit, outplay. Or something like that. It's just a huge culture shock going from someone like Mrs A to the new one. Morale is lower than I've ever seen it. That may be contributing to my overall feeling of "tiredness," too--we're working so hard and not only are we NOT being encouraged or supported, but it feels like we're being pushed (kicked) back down every time we turn around.

I just feel...rather disillusioned right now, I guess. Still love my kids and my coworkers (most of them). But it's amazing the impact one person can have on a whole building (and not in a good way).

Weather is changing and I am definitely, DEFINITELY a Florida pu$$y now. It gets worse ever year. The lower 70s IS, in fact, downright chilly. I know, I know. You all hate me right now. But your blood really does change. It's not my fault. =-)

2009-10-13T19:57:00.002-04:00

This should be good....

There's a new state reading assessment program that all grades must administer to their students....grades 3-12 have it (relatively) easy, as it's a computer-driven test that the students all due online. However, for the younger grades, the teachers must administer it one-on-one to each and every student (and this is NOT a short test). To make a long story short, the deadline in which to finish the testing is fast approaching and some of our 1-2 grade teachers are falling behind. Therefore, they're looking for 3-8 grade teachers to go into those classrooms on their planning (ie free time) and sub for the classroom teachers so they can devote themselves solely to giving this test.

I volunteered to help out; as a result, I will be teaching 2nd grade for about 50 minutes tomorrow.

There's a reason I teach the slightly older grades. Still, for a short period of time, it should be fun. Plus, that's the reading block, and teaching reading is basically the same from grade to grade (as far as reading and comprehension strategies go, anyway). Guess which story the second graders are reading right now? COURDEROY! Yup, the little bear with the missing eye or button or something. And since this will be their 2nd time through the story by the time I get in there tomorrow, I'll be able to use my favorite teaching strategy * on them, so we'll have fun.

*Teaching strategy: play dumb and let them "teach" you. I do it with my kids all the time. Tomorrow, it will go something like this. "Okay, I haven't read this in a while. Who can summarize for me what this story is about?" Or, on a specific page: "Wait a minute, I'm old and confused. What just happened on this page? Who can tell me?" Or, "Hold on. Why did he do THAT?" Then, if I run out of time, I'll have them write a story about what would happen if one of THEIR stuffed animals came to life. Oh yeah. Pulled that one out of my ass on the way home as I was wondering what the heck to do tomorrow, and I'm pretty proud of it, if I do say so myself. PLUS, I'm a teacher for one of the big kids, so I get to go in all mean and scary (unless the sweet and always-patient teachers in the younger grades) so I won't have any discipline issues. (...Having said THAT, they will probably eat me alive, LOL.)

It's only 50 minutes. How bad could it be? **

**This, my friends, is what's known as "famous last words."

2009-10-10T00:26:00.002-04:00

Sit down. It's finally happened.

An old friend of mine from high school just became a grandmother.

I'll let that sink in for a moment. Continue reading when you're ready....

.....

....

....

(Still not ready? Yeah, me neither.)

....

Granted, it's her step-son's girlfriend...and her husband may be much older for all I know...

BUT WHAT THE FUCK?!?!?!?!??!?!

Usually, I censor the "fuck," but in this case, it simply must stay.

And be repeated.

WHAT THE FUCK?!?!?!?!

2009-10-07T18:47:00.004-04:00

Another dream

This particular dream, although (as always) very vivid and detailed, actually requires a LOT of set-up and backstory; plus, it was also long, so it would take forever to even describe/explain. Instead, I will leave you with the major components of my dream, along with the interpretations (which are, again as always, quite fitting). I should note, though, that a couple other integral parts of the dream, such as "tetanus" and "professional athlete" (not even a real athlete, mind you, although my pro baller WAS a member of the Pistons) were un-look-up-able. It'll be up to you to try to come up with a scenario into which all of these diffferent parts could conceivably fit. ;)

Nails: To see nails in your dream, symbolizes long and hard work for little compensation and pay. To dream that you hurt yourself with a nail, suggests that you need to be careful with what you say.

Jealousy: To dream that you are jealous of another person, signifies that such feelings may be carried over from your waking life This dream may reveal you unconscious feelings of jealousy toward that particular person. Alternatively, it represents your vulnerability and your fear of intimacy. You need to work on self-love and acknowledging your self-worth.

Rabies: To dream that an animal with rabies bites you, indicates that you are harboring extreme inner feelings of anger and unexpressed hostility. Your anger might erupt in violence if not expressed in a controlled manner.

Dog: If the dog is vicious and/or growling, then it signifies some inner conflict within yourself.

2009-10-06T21:03:00.003-04:00

Whose Big Gay Line is it Anyway?

Kevin (Renee's cousin) posted this on his Facebook, and it's exactly what I needed after a 13 1/2 hour day at school (Curriculum Night). It's a clip from Whose Line is it Anyway, featuring Richard Simmons and a very traumatized Wayne Brady. (Richard's A-OK sign right around 5:12 just makes the whole scene.)

Enjoy.

(If you don't have sound, this is worth going out and buying speakers for.)

2009-10-04T16:04:00.004-04:00

Fertility Dance

You may have seen the commercials for those at-home fertility tests ("Did I wait too long to become pregnant?"). Well, I did, too. The first time, I just heard the commercial from the kitchen and marveled at how far technology has come. That will be a good thing to have, I thought, some day in the future.

The second time, I actually SAW it--and realized that the woman in the commercial WAS MY DAMN AGE.

Mind you, I don't even know if I WANT to have any more of my own kids at this point. But I'm single, not dating anyone seriously and staring down the barrel of my 33rd birthday. So yes, I bought one.

I can hardly be blamed.

Anyway, as of right now, I am pleased to announce that I can still get knocked up. (This test doesn't detect all fetility issues, of course; just egg quality/quantity.) It all has to do with the "test line" that may or may not appear in the little window. This test measures your FSH, or follicle (as in egg) stimulating hormone--and basically, if your body has a lot of this hormone, that's actually bad, because your body needs a lot of extra help to produce the eggs and stuff. In a perfect world, the line won't appear at all, because your egg factory is churnin' along perfectly well, merrily releasing eggs left and right, without needing any extra push. However (and this is the category that I fell into), if the line shows up but it's lighter than the control line, you're still okay....for now. (Cue the ominous background music and flip over the hourglass.) It's only when the test line is as dark as or darker than the control line that they recommend you see a doctor, pronto.

I feel a new birthday tradition coming on... ;)

2009-10-01T22:18:00.002-04:00

2 good things

I found out today that I *am* receiving an extra bonus based on last year's performance. It's known as MAP money (Merit something Pay), and the criteria are your final year-end evaluation from your principal and, of course, those all-important student FCAT test scores. This is actually the first time I've received the money, so I'm pretty excited. I'm not sure exactly how much yet but it'll be around a couple grand. Our new principal came in during math today and handed me the official award letter; after she left, I did a little happy dance. When the kids asked what the letter said, I told them, "Let's just say that Miss K can go get her guitar now!!" and they all cheered (that's all I told them).

Now of course, there are teachers who didn't receive the bonus (including my roommate, which really surprised me), so this is kind of a tense kind of year. The people who do receive it are told to be courteous and aware of those who didn't, of course (basically, keep it on the downlow), but of course word is already getting out and there are some pretty pissed off people out there right now.

I feel for them--but damn am I excited to have finally qualified this year!

Second, I had to give a training to the staff yesterday (it was on that DI stuff from Orlando over the summer). I think my presentation actually went well, too. I had many people come up to me yesterday and say that they actually learned stuff and that it wasn't boring like the regular staff meetings. One teacher actually told me, "I only graded one paper, and then I stopped and actually paid attention." If you know anything about teacher professional development trainings--which are generally 1) bullshit 2) boring and 3) nothing you haven't already heard before, then you know that this is very high praise indeed. A lot of people commented on my sense of humor and the fact that I made them laugh. Anyway, I'm very proud of that, too, because as I said, these things usually suck, and they're genreally total and complete wastes of time, so if even a FEW people learned something new and/or weren't totally bored out of their skulls, then I feel pretty successful. (Plus, our new principal was there, whom I've had very little interaction with, so I'm glad to have had a POSITIVE reason to help her put a face to the name.)

I'm taking a very important test tomorrow, but more on that later....

2009-09-30T20:45:00.003-04:00

Random scenes from my day

1) Math class: we were working on some tricky problems, and one of the things I threw out was seeing which students were "untrickable." One thing led to another, and before I knew it, I jumped on my computer and designed a superhero-like "U" that I posted on the wall. Now my students love ripping off their imaginary shirts to reveal their superhero "U"s when they get a problem right and prove themselves to be "untrickable." It's a little thing, but they love it. It's funny how you can teach the same grade, and same material, 3 years in a row, and you still come up with random new shit evey day. You never know what's going to hook the kids...but I'll take it.

2) During a bathroom break, a kid fell down. Standing in line. Waiting for the other kids to finish. This is not a show-boating, attention-grabbing student, either. This is not a "goofy" kid. This is one of my straight A, model 5th graders. For whatever reason, she just lost her balance and fell down. I found it hysterical and laughed for like 5 minutes. (Is that bad? Don't judge me. You weren't there. It was funny as hell. I made sure she was all right first, of course.) I mean, I'll watch her for future signs of an inner ear infection or some other medical condition...but assuming it was just a one time act of klutziness, it was entertaining as all get-out.

3) In the morning, during science, one of my kids remarked, "You know, Miss K, you aren't nearly as mean as I thought you were going to be. You looked really scary in the hallway when I was in 4th grade, but you're actually pretty funny. I mean, you know, for an old person."

4) (After hearing my story about my new hobby of guitar-ing:) "That's really cool! I think you'll be good at it. No offense, but you don't sing that great...but I'm sure you can probably still play a guitar." (Pause) "Maybe."

I love my job.

2009-09-28T17:18:00.009-04:00

My new "violin"

(The extended story of my FB post)

As you know, I've been talking about taking violin lessons for the last month or so. As I said, I just really feel like a new hobby that will keep me busy and give me something positive to focus on. So today, I finally went to the music store in town to rent my new violin and sign up for lessons.

We (April went with me; she didn't want to miss this) went in and I introduced myself to Dave, the music guru. I told him I was interested in the violin but, as we were talking, I was kind of wandering around the store, looking at everything else. We kind of talked about the pros and cons of everything from violin to drums to the sax.

And THEN we started talking about my personality and personal tastes. He asked if I liked classical music (I listen to it OCCASIONALLY and I play it sometimes while the kids are working, but I don't tune in regularly or anything) or fiddling (um, no, unless it's The Devil Went Down to Georgia). He quizzically asked why, then I wanted to play the violin. "I dunno," I said. "I used to play it in fifth grade...and I want to start music lessons, so that seemed like a good place to start."

"What kind of music DO you listen to?" he asked. "You know, when you're just out driving around."

"80s stuff," I answered immediately. "Rock. Classic rock. Stuff like that. I love me some Bon Jovi."

"...And you don't want to play the guitar WHY?" he answered.

And seriously, that had never occured to me. Never mind the fact that they were hanging ALL OVER THE WALLS and that my dad has played, like, forever.

He took me over to one of the walls and said "Is there one that's catching--"

"That blue one," I told him. (It's SWEET.) I'd already started bouncing around giddily. Seriously, as soon as he mentioned the guitar it just FELT right. My face totally lit up like a little kid on Christmas.

"Well, we have to make sure it fits you," he said, sitting me down. "Don't get your heart set on this particular one yet. It depends on your arm length and--okay yeah, actually, this one is a perfect fit."

My new guitar, as modeled by April. (Now I just need a cool name for it, like BB King and Lucille. Post any suggestions you may have.)

And I knew: not only was the guitar right for me, THIS guitar was right for me. This was MY guitar.

Now the only problem is that--of COURSE--there are no monthly rental plans for guitars; you have to buy those outright. HOWEVER, we have a bonus coming up in October (hopefully, if I qualified for that one) or November (definitely; all returning teachers are receiving this one), and this guitar will only be a small portion of that. So I put it on 60-day layaway (only a $40 deposit, I don't have to make any more payments, and that bitch is now officially MINE). I bought 2 guitar picks and the strap to tide me over.

I AM SO EXCITED.

So...yeah. As par for the course with Jen, I went in for a violin and walked out (metaphorically speaking) with a guitar.

And I couldn't be happier.

Side note: Build a Bear never called me back (WTF? I know they loved me) but I'm putting in an application at Total Wine tomorrow (which, let's face it, is the second most perfect place for me to work, LOL).

2009-09-27T21:31:00.002-04:00

Operation: Tripoli

Girls' Weekenders (and Missy) will appreciate this.

On Friday, when my friends were over, I went to pull out The Best Game Ever (aka Tripoli)--and realized I had left it behind at my old place. In the month since I've moved, there have been a few times when I've remembered that I'd forgotten something, but I didn't care enough to make a trip back there and sneak back in for whatever it was. But this...this was different. This was TRIPOLI. So tonight, I staged a daring, middle-of-the-night (okay, it was 9 pm) rescue of my beloved game. I figured it was well worth another journey to the land of no power, lights or air. (While I was there, I found my curling iron, too, which I was ALSO looking for the other night. And I grabbed a pack of light bulbs, as well, just because they were there and so was I.)

From the looks of things, Brad still hasn't been back...I have no idea if he's planning on returning before the foreclosure officially takes place (whenever that may be), but he still has a couple of TVs there, plus a pretty sweet metal-and-class TV stand thing in his room. I'm not taking them yet because they're his and I don't want to burgle the guy (LOL. I said "burgle") but at the same time, if he's planning on just cutting his losses at this point, it'd be silly NOT to take them. So I'll probably go back once a month or so and see if he returns.

But for now, you can all breathe a sigh of relief. Tripoli is safe.

2009-09-26T01:27:00.007-04:00

My friends are the shit

They are also booze hounds.

(You can't tell, but there are rows of beer bottles on the counter behind THOSE beer bottles. This will help but it's still missing like a whole nother dimension.)

We went through like 5 bags of chips, a couple of veggie and fruit trays and some cocktail weinies....

A good time was had by all.

(Yes, my man friend was there. Too soon to tell how it went, since all involved were intoxicated. We'll see.)

PS--One (or many) of them thought it was hysterical to turn my cell phone to "French" every time I wasn't looking/paying attention (which, let's face it, was quite a bit). They're assholes but honestly, it was pretty damn funny).

2009-09-23T19:48:00.003-04:00

Random stuff

I had MY site visit yesterday (when someone from the company, whether it's an admin at another school, a fellow teacher from a sister school, someone from corporate, etc comes in and evaluates me); it went well but at this point, it's mostly because I'm ON the site visit team, so I know what they're looking for and I can deliver. (No, Nee, that doesn't mean BJs. LOL.)

Tomorrow, I'm GOING on a site visit (and it's at Mrs A's new school, so I'm mostly just glad to be able to see her again). I might be a bitch but I love walking into a teacher's classroom all poker-faced and seeing them go all nervous, LOL. If only they knew I was pulling this shit out of my ass myself.... but anyway, it's good face-time with people higher up in the company so whatev.

And then when I'm done, it's OFFICIALLY the start of a 4-day weekend. We have Friday off AND Monday....holla! It sounds as though some people will be hanging out here at random points during the weekend, so I'll be busy. I should, however, be able to schedule some pool time as well. ;)

Good times, my friends. Good times.

Oh--and did I tell you that I'm going to take violin lessons again? I worked out a deal with the music teacher at our school (again, no BJs), so I get to learn at an incredibly cheap rate. Plus, I'm trying to channel some shit I'm working through into a POSITIVE activity. I AM SO EXCITED. I'm getting my violin this weekend. (It's like $15 a month. Totally worth it....but we'll see how long this whole kick lasts, LOL. Either I'll be bored in a week or I'll go on to become a violin prodigy....there's really no halfway point with me).

2009-09-21T22:43:00.004-04:00

The age-old question

Okay, maybe it's not THE age-old question--we're not talking the chicken and the egg here--however, it's a question that has been debated through the years and will continue to be argued about for years to come:

If you know someone is cheating on a spouse, do you tell that person? If you are friends with them both, what do you do?

In short, here's the situation: they are both friends of mine, and the husband has told the wife that things are "pretty much" over. However, per the battle of the sexes, the wife was still holding out hope that things could be worked out--whilethe husband, in his own head, thought he had been perfectly CLEAR that he was done.

And I knew for a fact that he had been stepping out with his new "girlfriend" this weekend.

It would devastate his wife, my friend, to know this, but here's the thing: if she didnt find out from me, she WOULD have found out, because let's just say that there were a LOT of our social group out when he decided to do "fraternize" in public with the new girl on Friday, and he was, clearly, cold busted. And frankly, teachers gossip (me included), and she was going to hear about it. So do I tell her, as the person who is closest to her out of the group? Or do I stay quiet and let her hear about it otherwise, and then be there to pick up the pieces?

I chose the first option. I know that there are people out there who may disagree with me but--this girl has been there for me through all of MY drama--which does not even come close to equaling the end of a MARRIAGE and I fucking get that--but trust me, she was going to hear about it, and I decided I wanted her to hear it from me.

And it was ugly, and it sucked, and I can't even talk about it....other than to say that I cant even imagine getting married. EVER. Because if I thought that ending a regular relationship was bad....have you ever been there when someone really, truly realizes that her marriage is over? It's gut wrenching.

My heart is broken right now, and I just pray, literally PRAY, that I did the right thing. She assured me that I did, but....fuck.

I hurt for her. More than I can say. I can only be there for her....and it may not even help that much because, shit, her life is going to suck for a WHILE. But I hope that I can help, even a little. And I hope that I did the right thing. And....fuck. Just say a prayer for my friend, who is hurting. And pray that I am the best friend to her that I can be...whatever that may entail because fuck if *I* know right now.

2009-09-15T23:12:00.002-04:00

More good news

I've been noticing lately that whenever I start to feel too sorry for myself, some good news also comes my way. The latest is that I've been officially nominated for the leadership program within our company (not our SCHOOL, but the whole company). I know Sara was going to nominate me before she left, and she very well may have put a good word in for me, but the official nominations happened after she left, so I feel kind of good about that.

Anyway, to bitch and moan some more (LOL), this is the kind of thing that I know some ex-friends would have been pretty proud of, but guess what? YOU guys will be proud of me, and YOU ARE ALWAYS THERE FOR ME, NO MATTER WHAT. So you all win. ;) (But seriously, this is the kind of shit I miss telling him about. GOD, it's harder now to be away from him than it was at first, you know? Like with quitting smoking...I can quit the first 4 days, even 7 days, at first....it's the long term that's a bitch.)

So...I have to officially apply, including writing an essay. We'll see what happens. I don't know if it's a super competitive process at this point or if, once you're nominated, you're pretty much in unless you show that you're a total asshole...but we'll see. I'll let you know.

Oh--and one of my friends' marriages is falling apart and I'm friends with them both. Just some added drama for ya. ;)

2009-09-14T17:56:00.003-04:00

Behind the scenes

In case you've ever found yourself wondering what goes on at my tri-monthly psychiatric appointments (and really, who among you HASN'T?), I'm going to pull back the curtain a little bit. Why this particular one? Because afterwards, she announced that I was very well-adjusted, all things considered, and was also very "realistic" about my condition. (PS--I often try to get her to crack a smile, since she's always so serious and straight-faced.)

At the beginning of every appointment, I sit down and give her a 2-5 minute recap of the last 3 months--how *I* feel I'm doing, how things have been going, etc. She takes notes not just on what I say but on how I'm acting--she's looking, as I told Mom, for "signs of the crazy."

Here was the summary she received today (and most of it is word for word):

"Overall, I'm okay. I'd say a 7 out of 10. I'm not PERFECT, but you know what, these aren't magic pills. When someone makes me mad, I'm still going to get angry, and if I'm going through, say, relationship issues, I'm still going to be sad. Overall, I feel pretty much in control, which hasn't been easy, that's for damn sure. [Here, I give a quick run-down on the Brad situation. For Shawn, I just say, "...and I still have leftover drama with the ex." I think even SHE must be tired of hearing about it and she gets PAID for it.] So yeah, all things considered, I guess I'm doing okay. I'm feeling a little down and my friends say that I've been a little more withdrawn lately, but I think most of what I'm dealing with isn't the bipolar, it's because men are assholes....and I don't think there's a pill for THAT."

(This last part is where she did her cough-laugh behind her fist and kind of raised my file in front of her face.)

Anyway, she said she's a bit concerned that I'm still reporting feeling "down" because I was back in June, as well, although she acknowledged that I certainly have "extenuating circumstances" that could be causing that. If I'm not feeling a bit more peppy by my next appointment in December, though, she said we may need to stop and reevaluate my meds.

So...yeah. As far as bipolars go, I'm actually pretty normal and stable. And that's something I definitely needed to hear right now.

PS--as I was checking out with her receptionist, a young, just-out-of-college new girl, I had to set up the date for my next appointment. She suggested December 14, and I told her that I was pretty sure I'd still be in town but that I was leaving around that time for Christmas break. As she was typing into the computer, I stood there and, muttering to myself kind of under my breath, tried to calculate exactly when we'd be getting out of school and when I'd be flying out. "Let's see...Christmas is the 25th...that means we're probably getting out the week before that...so that's like, what, the weekend of the 19th or so..." She looked up at me and said, "I'm sorry, did you say something?"

"Nope, just talkin' to myself," I said cheerfully. Hey, she's working for a psychiatrist now. What's she expect? ;)

2009-09-13T11:13:00.000-04:00

This about says it all

"I feel so miserable without you, it's almost like having you here." -Stephen Bishop

2009-09-10T20:45:00.002-04:00

Speechless (but not type-less)

So I received an email from Brad today. At first I thought that he had returned to the old place and discovered that I had "taken" some items, but oh no. He still has no clue. He ALSO clearly has no clue that the power was disconnected due to nonpayment, as he asked when I was sending a check for the dressers and bookcase I was going to buy, plus the last $75 or so for the rest of the utilities for the month.

YES, MY FRIENDS, HE WAS ASKING FOR ****MORE**** MONEY.

Talk about crazy. I paced the apartment with my hands clenched at my sides, ready to literally punch someone, for half an hour. I also felt the "crazy eyes" (they're hard to explain, but they get really big and wild and almost glazed) coming on. I was LIVID. It took me almost two hours, with assistance from April and feedback from Mom, but I was finally able to craft a MORE-than-civil email to him.

Here's what it said. Tell me what you think:

"Hello Brad:

I tried to get a hold of you a couple of weeks ago, but as you mentioned, your phone was turned off.

A week before I moved, I came home and discovered that our (my) power had been disconnected. I was obviously surprised, since I had been giving you enough for the utilities and then some. The amount to get the power turned back on was $300--this was not the full amount due, mind you, just the amount to get it reconnected. If that amount wasn't paid within a few days, the TOTAL amount would have to be paid (this full amount was quite a bit, I believe close to $500?)

Anyway, I had to leave to stay with a friend for that last week, and then I had to pack (and move) with no lights and no air conditioning, which as you can imagine, sucked. Since you didn't pay the electric bill with the money I gave you expressly for that purpose, I figured that that was instead meant to go towards the dressers and book case. That accounted for $100 of the past-due $300. I also took the love seat that I had expressed interest in, for which I paid you $200 (to equal the $300 that did not go to the electric company). I feel that this is more than generous, as you/we owed MORE than $300 to FPL alone, per the statement that was tacked onto the front door.

Let me know if you have any questions. Im sorry to end things on rather negative terms, since I really did enjoy living with you the past couple of years. But frankly, I feel a little betrayed that the money I was giving to you specifically for utilities was obviously not being put to that use.

Thank you.

Jen"

2009-09-10T19:07:00.003-04:00

Traumatized

For once, I'm not talking about me ;), but my students. Well, some of them. A group of my current class was in a class last year who lost their teacher about halfway through the year. I didn't realize the effect that had had on them until today.

I'm doing a site visit later this month, so I told my kids that they were going to have a sub in a couple of weeks (I've learned that it's better to prepare them for it, rather than for them to just walk in to a strange face one day, ESPECIALLY the first time of the school year...and ESPECIALLY ESPECIALLY when I've bonded with the class the way I have this year. Seriously, guys, they are just amazing). I didn't go into a lot of detail, I just told them that I'd be gone doing "teacher stuff," and that I'd be back the next day. Well, this particular group of kids flipped out.

"Are you coming back?!" they asked.

I told them that of course I was, that it was only for a day.

"That's what Mrs. F said!!" they cried. "And then she left for good!"

"Yeah!" one boy (C., who's adorable and the class "heart throb") added. "She said that whether or not she stayed depended on how good we were, and we WERE good, or we thought we were, but she left, so we must have been BAD! And now you're leaving!!"

Seriously, I felt like divorced parents must feel when they're trying to reassure their kids that it has nothing to do with them. And furthermore, what FUCKED UP teacher tells the kids that if they're good, she'll stay as their teacher but if they're bad, she'll leave--and then actually LEAVES?

So all I told them today was, "Look. Those of you who are returning students know that I've been here for many years (if "4" qualifies as "many," LOL), I'm going to STAY here, I'm honestly just leaving for the day, and I promise I'm coming back....okay?"

Everyone said "okay," and went back to work...except for C., who sighed, muttered "Yeah, we've heard that before," and picked up his pencil.

And honestly, you guys, I LOVE this class. Like, I am seriously half in love with them already. And it kills me to see how vulnerable they are. We're going to have a class meeting tomorrow AM where I reassure them again that they're stuck with me for the year...but I can't believe that someone would tell a class of NINE YEAR OLDS that kind of shit.

And even though they really didn't like her that much, I can't believe how affected by it they still are, almost a full year later.

2009-09-06T19:43:00.008-04:00

Home f'in SWEET home

I try to balance all of my maudlin Shawn posts with a positive one; so in keeping with that theme...

Eight days post-move, we are ready to reveal the new place. We have a couple of little boxes left to go but we're mostly done. And I'm not kidding, yo, it looks awesome.

My favorite part of the new place by FAR are the high cathedral ceilings in the living room (picture 3). It makes the whole room look SO big. And like I said on FB: come Christmas, we're going to be rocking a Rockefeller-like tree up in her'.

2009-09-06T13:47:00.003-04:00

I'm sorry but...

I just have to vent one more time, because I'm feeling pretty down today. Still no word from Shawn, so I can only assume that he's totally gone. (Yes, I sent him an email telling him that at this point, the best thing he could do for me was just to stay gone, rather than continuing to mess with my head, but you also know that that wouldn't stop him if he really gave a shit.)

I think it's just hard for me because of the crazy aspect. He was one of the very few who saw the crazy and still loved me. And now, clearly, he doesn't. So once again, I've lost someone else because I'm all messed up. That means that the only person left who has seen me in an episode and is still around is a friend named Mike, one of the very first people I met down here. That's all. So I am clearly quite unloveable, I guess.

And no, nothing major happened the last time I saw Shawn. I was a bit "off", but it was really more of a bad case of PMS than a bipolar episode; hardly anything at all, especially for me. ;) But I don't know, I guess maybe he was just sick of dealing with someone who could BE more emotional than your average chick. I don't know. It's just hard to realize that, yeah, this disease or condition or whatever you want to call it will make it significantly more difficult for me to find someone who will love me unconditionally, who will see through it for the "real Jen," as opposed to the other Jen who is kind of lurking, waiting for the chance to come out and play. (Why do I suddenly feel like Chucky now? LOL)

I truly don't mean to whine and feel sorry for myself. That's honestly not what this is about. Because really, I had come to almost accept the bipolar and even appreciate that it made me ME; that it brought a lot of unique and funny and interesting aspects to my personality, as well. But now, suddenly, I feel like I have to go back into hiding with it, that I have to keep the veil up, the wall, the curtain, especially around any new people who may come into my life, since there's no way they'd love me (or continue to love me) once they saw the crazy, because let's face it, no one else really has. I thought otherwise for a while, and that made me feel really good, and that's ALSO why I was so loyal to and supportive of him--because he was the same to me, in a way that almost no one else in my life had ever been.

But apparently, the crazy is only cute for, oh, a couple of years.

Duly noted.

2009-08-31T20:26:00.002-04:00

Whoot!

I just checked my work email, and I found this:

Dear ------ (it was addressed to 6 of us at the school, that's all):

You have been invited to attend Site Visit Training: When: Wednesday, September 09, 2009 4:00 PM-6:00 PM (GMT-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada).

It's at Gateway, one of our schools in the area. (The training is, not the actual site visit. We'll see which one I get assigned to.)

So that's cool. I'm glad that even though I'm not a lead anymore, they're still choosing me for things like this. That means that I must have done well when I did it last year.

I hope it's at a school across the state, so I get a road trip out of it. =-)

Interestingly, J. (one of my friends from my first year here, B.C. (Before Crazy), was one of the 6. I kind of hope we go on a visit together, especially if it's far away. That would give us a chance to hang out, and for her to see that now that I'm medicated, I'm the Jen she USED to know, rather than the one she saw that night.

We'll see how it all shakes out. But even if it's local, I'm still excited...and honored. I kind of feel that Mrs. A had some role in all of this. ;)

2009-08-31T19:59:00.003-04:00

I know you don't care but...

Okay this is a venting post; in fact, I'll probably turn comments off cuz I know you guys will have nothing nice to say about it. BUT, I'm a slow learner, so consider this just me continuting on my journey...

Shawn and I, even though I don't talk about him on here that much anymore (since I don't want to be lynched), have carried on our friendship this whole time. We'd hang out once a week, usually drinks or something, and things were cool. Yeah, he still had his girlfriend, and YEAH, technically, I MAY still have had feelings for him, but we were still FRIENDS, you know? And say what you want, but he would still be there for me when I needed him, or when I was a bit on the crazy side, because he was one of the few who saw that and was STILL THERE. And as we know, that's hard to find. (Sure, Dave eventually came back, but by then I couldn't trust HIM because he left when I needed him, unlike Shawn, who, although he couldn't keep it in his pants, was there for me in a lot of other ways. He saw my crazy and handled it and, in his way, kept me sane...when he wasn't driving me crazy.)

But there were times when he WOULDN'T be there, or I'd catch him in a lie, but that's okay, because no one is perfect, and he accepted me the way I was and I accepted him.

...And then suddenly, he stopped calling me back. I haven't talked to him in like 10 days. No big deal, right? But for us, it WAS. We never ever ever go that long. Ten days for us is a sign that something is a'brewin'.

LOL. A'brewin.

So...yeah. It's like suddenly, he dropped out of my life. My BFF is gone. And I have no idea why or what I did. And I'll be damned if I tell him, because I tried to contact him, left him a couple of VMs and a text or two, and that's all I can do; it's obvious he doesn't want to talk to me...but shit. WTF?? He didn't even call to see how my first day of school was. That HURT. For that matter, he didn't even call to see how my first WEEK was. It's like he just doesn't care anymore. And I know some of you are saying "He never cared in the first damn place, ass hat," but he did. In his own way, he did.

Or ...maybe he didn't, and that's what I'm seeing now.

Because even after the relationship, we had a friendship. He knew me. And for him to totally disappear for this long is WEIRD for him. For us. So I guess I did something, and I don't know what. And I won't chase after him, because unlike Ye Old Jen, I actually have pride now. And dignity. And if someone cares about me, they'll be in my life. I won't keep calling and texting him with no response. He's made it clear that he doesn't care about what's happening with me. But it just hurts, I guess. Because I've defended him and defended him, against you guys and everyone here, and, what? Now he proves them right? THAT PISSES ME OFF BECAUSE BY PROVING THEM RIGHT, HE HAS PROVED ME WRONG, AND I HATE TO BE WRONG. LOL.

So...yeah. I miss Shawn. But he obviously doesn't miss me or have a place for me in his life, so...what am I supposed to do? That little fucktard knows I'm always there for him, and all I can do is....hell. Nothing. I can do NOTHING. Is this what it's like to have pride and dignity? Cuz frankly, it kind of sucks. LOL. Even now, I want to call him and try to figure out what's up, because this is NOT like him, but...he won't call or email or text and I must have done something, so...whatever. I have my friends and my work and I'm happy. But I still miss him. Any time he's not in my life, I miss him.

That's all. Thanks for listening, even if you're flipping off your monitors right now. ;)

2009-08-30T13:05:00.004-04:00

Moving: the rest of the story

I know most of you got the email about the big move yesterday (it was crazy hot, we were miserable, it rained, we had to bring everything all the way around the side building and then up 17 steps, REALLY LONG AND STEEP STEPS, to get it inside the new place). Here, though, are some extra details, details I didn't necessarily want to share with people like my dad and grandparents.

1) You know what sucks even more than moving? Having the majority of your moving crew show up late because they decided to go out the night before and celebrate the first week of school by getting schnockered on vodka and playing Partini all night (although hell, you all know *I* would have been there if I wasn't the Final Countdown to moving). We had to start loading the truck at 8 am because we needed to be TOTALLY done by 2:30 to return the truck (plus, you know, we needed to make a fast getaway at my old place, but more on that in a minute); unfortunately, even though we've had this lined up for a couple of months now, Andy (Hot Teacher) was the only one who showed up on time (uncoincidentally, he was NOT at last night's gathering); in fact, he even went with us to pick up the truck. Mike showed up about an hour and a half later, just as we were finishing up at my place (we had planned to be out of there much early than that, obviously, but we were down 3 men at the time), and then the other two rolled over just as we were starting to unload at the new place. Normally I would bitch about them getting there for the "easy" part (why DOES unloading always take an eighth of the time?), but in our case unloading was equally a bitch, due in part to THIS:

This picture doesn't do The Stairway to Heaven justice; you can only clearly see like 7 steps before it kind of blurs together at the bottom, but keep in mind that altogether, it has **17**. And it's STEEP. And narrow.

2) Here's a brief overview of my haul from the old place. I took the bookcase and 2 dressers that I was going to pay him an extra $100 for. At April's urging (actually, begging, cuz she loved it), we also took the suede (or suede like) cream loveseat, to which we assigned a rather generous $200 value. I left him a note explaining that this was in place of the $300 he took from me and DIDN'T give to the electric company.

However, that $300 past due balance wasn't even the FULL AMOUNT DUE. Oh no, on closer reading, that was just the amount needed to get the power turned back on. If he didn't pay it by a certain date, than the full amount would be due. With that in mind (and also the fact that this was only ONE utility that we knew about, not to mention the money I was giving him in rent even though he'd stopped paying the mortgage, AND the food I lost in the fridge when the power was turned off), we also took a runner (for you men out there, it's one of those long and thin rugs) for our hallway, this ionic air purifier for me (to help with the dog), a water purifier from the kitchen sink, and this really nice picture for our wall. I had to be careful; my friends wanted me to clean him out, but as I told Nikki, there's a fine line between "taking what I am owed" and "grand larceny." Still, I feel like I was pretty reasonable, although this was NOT a cheap piece of art that we snagged. (It looks awesome in the new place though, snicker snicker).

We are like 80% unpacked and settled already, due to staying up till 4 am last night, so pictures are coming soon. This is BY FAR the nicest, most grown up place I've ever lived--and I actually contributed to quite a few things to the place! I had more than I thought I did. Until then, here's a picture of our entrance (just inside the door is our Stairway to Heaven, which leads straight up to our place--our whole apartment is upstairs, we just have that private entrance and staircase to get there. It's not a 2-level place or anything).

Oh, and PS--Renee, tell John to bite me. You both know why. ;)

2009-08-27T20:39:00.003-04:00

F--- My Life

Fred turned me on to the BEST website ever. It's fmylife.com (see title of post), where people post funny (to everyone else but them) shit that happens. It's now the new light of my currently uber-stressed life. THIS post, however, was extra hysterical, for reasons that will become abundantly clear:

"Today, I was told I have bipolar disorder. I'm 31. It took so long to diagnose because my mom 'always figured I was just a super bitch half the time'. FML"

No, I didn't write that one....but I could have.

2009-08-26T19:30:00.002-04:00

Oh hell to the NO

So as most of you have heard, at least in part, Brad is offically a douchebag. No, more than that. He's a motherfucking ass.

I get home last night and I have no power. Now, a big storm had just rolled through, so I wasn't too worried...until I noticed that my neighbors were basking in the glow of their lamps and televisions. And THEN I saw the notice from FPL. The past due amount was $300, which is at LEAST 3 months' worth. This meant that Brad has been taking the money I've been giving him every month for electric, cable, water, etc and, well, NOT paying for electric, cable, water, etc.

I'm still a little shell-shocked, to be honest. I can't believe he would do this. While we were never bff's or anything (we never hung out together outside of the apartment), we got along just fine when we were both home. We've lived together for 2 years. And he's been actively screwing me over for quite a few months now. It was bad enough when I received the foreclosure notice, but at least that was somewhat understandable....he wasn't working, foreclosure rates are so high that everyone knows SOMEONE who's going through the process, and the money I was paying him for rent only covered half. Even with my money, he couldn't cover his half...and although I was pissed when I found out that he had been taking rent money from me and NOT paying the mortgage, it was at least understandable. Plus, technically, it was still his place, and I was living there, so he could kind of do whatever he wanted.

HOWEVER. He now has no charges/costs associated with that place. The only bils he's receiving are, ONCE AGAIN, electric, cable, water, etc--and I have been sending him the money for that, AND THEN SOME. I knew the amount he was asking for was more than the actual cost, but he was at least being nice enough to wait till I was gone before he sold his furniture and stuff, so I didn't want to argue. Again, even though it is being foreclosed on, that process takes a lloooonnngggg time, especially down here, and until that time, the condo belongs to him and I was living there. So I didn't want to argue over an extra $70 a month or whatever (since I obviously wasn't giving him rent money anymore, only for expenses I was actively accruing, like power).

I tried to call him, of course, but his phone has been disconnected. I was going to email him, but honestly, at this point, my plan is much more devious. I don't want him to know yet that *I* know he hasn't been paying any of this. I suspect that he was hoping I'd be out of there before they officially went through with the disconnections, and then I would never have known that he was pocketing my money. He almost made it, too--I was like 4 days away. HOWEVER, I'm going to move out on Saturday, as planned, and I'm going to do it with a smile. Because you know what? I'm sure as hell leaving there with more stuff than I came in with. And once I'm out of there, THEN I shall be contacting him. (I just hope I get my stuff out of there in time; he asked me when I was leaving because he was selling/had sold some of his furniture and wanted to know when it could be picked up. Well, I hope he's not planning to sell some of the new pieces *I* plan on acquiring.) (This isn't theft, right? I mean, I gave him money, and I'm taking a couple bookcases and a dresser and stuff. I paid him for all of this. And if he dares to even contact me about it, I'll tell him, "Actually, I paid you $400 for that stuff. CHECK YOUR FUCKING WALLET. It's the money that was supposed to go towards electric and water." Oooh, that's good.)

Anyway, I'm staying at April's, my future roomie's, for the next few days until we move into our new place. It's just sucky trying to pack in 90 degree heat with NO FUCKING AIR...and no lights, for that matter. We're okay right after school, but it gets dark inside pretty quickly, especially when it's rainy and overcast. So I'm fine, relatively speaking. And at least it was only a few days before my scheduled move. It's just more the feeling of betrayal; the realization that people CAN be that shitty to other people. That people can just be that..that...unremorseful. (Actually, it must be the week for that. I'm dealing with someone else I thought I knew who has suddenly become like a freakin' stranger, literally.)

So that's the deal. Sorry for the book, but I needed to vent. I'm crushed, guys. Why would he DO that?

2009-08-24T22:29:00.003-04:00

Report from the trenches

Ugh.

The air was broken for most of our first day, and since it was like 93 degrees, that sucked ass.

Otherwise, all was well. There are a couple of kids whom I will have to "train" (aka lay the smack down), to teach them the difference between 5th and 4th grades (in other words, Miss K won't put up with their shit...I LOVE the first days of school, cuz it allows me to be myself....Bitch on Wheels. ;) )

But overall things were great and we'll have fun stories this year.

(I had 9 kids from last year come back to see me, one begging me to fail him cuz he wasn't ready for MS, lol.....one of my former kids went to lunch TWICE today cuz he got confused....I told him that was the best story I heard all day and gave him a high 5. Seriously, I laughed so hard. And no, it wasn't "P", LOL)

I wrote on one of the 6th grade teacher's board, "Good luck in middle school...you'll do great! Love Miss Krzys" ...since she's a 6th grade LA teacher, that meant that they'd all see it at one point or another as they passed/rotated through. That teacher told me later that they thought it was awesome that I took the time to do that. They were like, "Is that from OUR Miss K?" They couldn't believe it. But I TOLD them at the end of the year that I would still be watching over them, even from 5th grade. ;) I think it made them feel a little bit less alone and "adrift," so to speak. This whole year is different for them, but some things will never change.

And that's what's funny--as much as they drove me crazy last year, I miss them already. A LOT. I didn't realize how much I'd miss them until today, when I saw them in their middle school uniforms, looking terrified (ha ha). But I MISS THEM, even the ones who damn near turned me into a raging alcoholic...I will NEVER , for example, forget "P", or "A", who broke his hand taking a math test...and neither will most of you, LOL. But this new group....they'll be cool. I can tell. Give me a few days to mold them into shape, and I'll have a fresh round of stories. ;)

...Sometimes, as a teacher, it's hard to say goodbye...even when they keep coming back. And for some reason, last year's class has been especially hard for me to let go. (Thank goodness that their homeroom teacher is one of my BFFs, so I'll still hear all about them at our "meetings," LOL.)

2009-08-23T19:49:00.004-04:00

First day of school...

....is tomorrow. I'm as ready as I can be. I should probably figure out what I'm going to wear to make my morning a little less hectic, but otherwise, I'm set. I probably won't be able to sleep tonight, though.

Update on Mrs. A: she actually officially offered me a job last week, but it was as a reading specialist. This means I would work with/pull out the "low" kids in 3rd, 4th and 5th but I wouldn't have a classroom of my room (which is why I turned her down). I told her I was flattered that she thought of me but that I needed my own kids and to remember me at the end of the year when they're making offers for 2010-11.

I move this coming Saturday. In addition to setting up my room, writing lesson plans, attending trainings, GIVING trainings, etc, I've also been packing up my condo. I, in true Jen fashion, haven't really gotten that far yet, so it'll be a crazy week. The good news is that it's not like I have to have ALL my shit packed up and officially out of here next weekend; if I had to turn in keys or something, like when you're leaving an apartment, that'd be a different story. But my friends can help me move my furniture and whatever I have packed and ready to go, and then I'll still be able to kind of come and go over the next week or so and pick up any random crap. (Of course, KNOWING I'll be able to do that is, as you might imagine, contributing to my procrastination.)

OH!! And then I had my interview with Build a Bear yesterday. It actually went really, really well. Apparently there will be another round of interviews (I didn't realize that BaB was as competitive as, like, Harvard or something, LOL), but she pretty much told me that I've at least made it through to round 2 (although she still hasn't completed all of her round 1 interviews, so it may be awhile yet). She asked me a few retail-management questions (what would you do, etc), although I don't have any experience in that specific area, I do have retail experience and I've been a supervisor in a few of my past jobs, so I kind of put all of that together and, well, talked out of my ass. ;) I also threw in some key phrases like "encouraging teamwork", "focusing on each individual's strengths," "giving the employees ownership and emotional buy-in," and "making high customer service a non-negotiable." I almost CRIED at the pure poetic beauty of some of my answers. Interesting side note: after that customer-service answer, she told me that this particular store is #3 in customer satisfaction in the WHOLE COMPANY, so of course she LOVED that answer.

Oh yeah--and I've still been able to fit in a few "meetings" with my friends over the last week, as well.

So...that's what I've been up to. How are all of you?

2009-08-20T21:58:00.003-04:00

Reflections from Open House

1) Even though I have the "low group," I have the largest 5th grade class. I'm at 24 right now (after one requested to be switched from another teacher, simply because I'm awesome). That may not seem like a lot, but when you're struggling with the slower students, it sucks. Everything takes us longer, and they need more individual attention. Yeah, so give me the most students, and give the on-grade-level and HIGH kids smaller classes. Awesome.

2) Overall, it's a good group of kids. There are a couple of "talkers"--I can already tell that I'm going to have lay the smack down early on--but for the most part, I'm excited.

3) I have like 17 girls and 7 boys. Again--AWESOME.

4) Almost a quarter of the class are younger siblings from previous students....so that's cool.

5) About a third of the class are new to our school, and most of them are from private Christian schools in the area. I don't know if that's because we're an A school, because families are "downsizing" due to the economy, or a combination of both, but it will be interesting. (Surprisingly, kids from private schools are usually behind those in the public system.)

6) I'm exhausted...and going to bed. Ten pm for me is like 6 pm for other people....but I'm wrecked. My work here is done.

2009-08-19T22:36:00.004-04:00

Thursday: Meeting the Kids

Our open house is tomorrow night. OH means a 13+ hour day for me, generally without dinner, but it also gives me that all-important glimpse of what this coming school year will mean for me--in terms of both the students I'll have but also the parents I'll be dealing with. I just spent 6 hours at Shoeless Joe's tonight, but the majority of that time was spent talking to the teacher who had the low 4th grade class last year (i.e., the kids I'll have this year). I got some great insight from her and although this class may be more challenging (ability-wise) than my kids last year, I'm also ready to meet that challenge. Our first day of school is Monday, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE the first day of school--I get to come out of the gate strong and scare the shit out of these kids. ;) Unfortunately, my reputation proceeds me with a lot of them (due in large part to older siblings who have already had the Miss K Experience), so they already know that although I can be a bitch on wheels, I'm also a softie at heart who will bend over backwards for them.

Damn.

;)

PS--one of the skills I've been learning over the last few years of teaching, a skill that I'll be truly implementing for the first time tomorrow, is that open house is a chance to not only set the stage with the students but with the parents as well. Yes, I have to lay the groundwork for an atmosphere of cooperation and teamwork with the parents, but I also have to (subtly and diplomatically) let them know that my classroom is MY classroom, and that I'm running the show, not them. It's a delicate tightrope, my friends....I'll let you know how it goes.

2009-08-17T21:59:00.013-04:00

Wicked weather

After my third "hey, didn't you just have a tornado?" email/text/phone call, I figured that I should let you all know that I'm still alive and well. I wasn't going to mention it because it didn't hit my immediate area, but since you all are hearing about it back in MICHIGAN, I guess it's noteworthy after all.

Yes, a tornado came through on Sunday afternoon/early evening. It was in the Ft. Myers "metro" area but in a neighboring city, Cape Coral. As far as tornados gone it was pretty small and, amazingly, no one was injured. Still, it damaged 23 homes and even upended a car. Here are a few pics:

And as if twistas weren't enough to worry about, we suddenly have a flurry of activity in the Atlantic, as well. The most immediate threat is Ana, although "threat" isn't really the right word since, as of Monday night, they expect it to be downgraded soon. The official forecast track has "the center of Ana approaching Southwest Florida by Thursday morning"; however, Ana would be "a weak tropical storm" at most. They advised that we should not "be surprised on Wednesday if Ana makes a last fight to strengthen" while simutaneously stating that "it's important to note that none of the official guidance indicates restrengthening." In other words: they don't have a freakin' clue. We'll know a LOT more in about 48 hours. We're watching it, but no one is boarding up the windows just yet.

Along those same lines, here's what they say about Bill (which is shaping up to be a much more dangerous storm--possibly even a 4, aka a Bad Ass Hurricane): "While every computer forecast model has this turning north with time, some of the morning model guidance pushes the track back farther west (ie, back towards Florida)."

...Thanks for clearing that up.

2009-08-15T18:58:00.004-04:00

Plot twist!

I was playing around on the Build a Bear website (because what childless 32 year old woman DOESN'T do that from time to time?) and on a lark, I hit the "apply for a position" button and pasted my resume. I actually applied last year, because I'd had such a great time there the few times I took my Little Sister, and I remember thinking, Well, if I have to have a part-time job, then Build a Bear would be a really fun one. I never received a response, though, and didn't expect to hear anything this time, either. After all, aren't we in the middle of a historic economic downturn? Isn't unemployment at an all-time high?

Not at BAB, apparently. I received an email from the Chief Workshop Manager about half an hour later. She "would love to speak to me more." Of course she would; after all, who could resist THIS charming combination of ass-kissery and humor? "I am a 5th grade teacher who is looking for a part-time job. I am available evening and weekends. Obviously, I work well with and relate well to kids. In addition, I have more Build a Bears than any self-respecting adult should. I've had a lot of fun every time I've come into your workshop, and I'd love to help provide that type of experience to others."

What can I say? I was on a roll.

Here's the twist: the job I'm interviewing for is not a regular sales associate position...I'd be a part-time Associate Manager.

Hell, yeah!

I responded and made sure she understood that I'm a full-time teacher and am only available nights and weekends, but if that schedule worked for the position then yes, I would love to talk to her. She wrote back and said that that schedule would absolutely meet their needs, and she's excited to meet with me. I'm going to call her on Monday and set something up.

I don't WANT a part-time job, but I need to, at least to get back on top of my bills and things. Since I'm not team lead this year, I'm going to have a lot more free time. I'll definitely have to manage my time well, and it'll be tough for a while, but having 2 jobs always is--and a lot of people are having to take on 2nd jobs in this economy. And like I said, working at BAB would be FUN; and if it's in management, then that's even better. At least I'd be making a little more money while I was there.

I'll keep you updated.

2009-08-15T11:35:00.010-04:00

I don't even know

I had the oddest, most random dream about LCB last night (yes, we still hang out and yes, he's still with the byaaatch). Anyway, in the dream, we were emailing back and forth while he was at work. In one of the emails, he mentioned that he was worried about a friend of his, who had suddenly become pretty sick.

"She's 85 and a tough old bird," he wrote. "I know she's got a lot of spunk and she'll be just fine. Still, I'm thinking about going to visit her."

I replied and told him that I hoped his friend would be okay.

"If you promise to wear something nice and say hi to my mom, you can come with me this afternoon to visit her," he wrote back. "We're going to the Naples Zoo. She's a zebra."

????????????????????????????????????

Why did LCB have a "friend" who was a zebra? Why was there apparently a dress code for the zoo? Why was he afraid that I would offend his mother by NOT greeting her? I LOVE his mom! And most importantly, what's with his uber-gay use of the phrase "tough old bird"?

I don't know where any of this came from. So, I went to my trusty online dream dictionary to look up a couple of the key words and symbols to see if they can shed some light on the possible hidden meaning of my dream. What is my subconscious trying to tell me? Let's find out together...

ZEBRA: To see a zebra in your dream, represents perfect balance, unity, harmony, and the attraction of opposites. Alternatively, it signifies that you are spending too much time in trivial and varying matters. You need to establish a mindset and lay your groundwork for some solid stability.
MY ANALYSIS: I'm not sure about this part. I can say that, during the last week, I've been spending a lot of time on the "little details" of my room and none whatsoever (so far) on things like lesson plans. Interesting.

ZOO: To dream that you are at a zoo, symbolizes loss of freedom. Your abilities and talents are going unnoticed. You or an aspect of your life feels caged in. The zoo may also represent chaos and confusion as implied by the common phrase "this place is a zoo!" You may need to tidy up some situation in your life.
MY ANALYSIS: Um, hello? "Loss of freedom" = end of summer and return to school! Not to mention that between unpacking and setting up my classroom AND packing my condo and getting ready to move at the end of the month, I have certainly been surrounded by chaos and confusion.

EMAIL: To dream about email, indicates that you need to reach out to people who may not necessarily always physically be around. It could also very well mean that you have been spending too much time in front of the computer and this has carried over into your dreams.
MY ANALYSIS: Since I've been working so much in my room, I certainly don't think I've been spending too much time online; however, having just returned from Michigan and spending 2 weeks with my family, this may be a subtle reminder to keep in touch with everyone now that I'm back to my regular, day-to-day life--especially my dad, who I don't talk to nearly enough.

Unfortunately, there wasn't a listing for "Shawn's mom". I did look up "mother," but the only choices were your OWN mother or mother-in-law. So I hope the fact that Shawn's mother was going to be at the zoo wasn't a crucial component of the dream, or the key to unlocking my psyche's life-altering message, LOL.

Gives me some food for thought, anyway.

2009-08-14T22:28:00.011-04:00

Scenes from Miss K's room

Today, I finished setting up my classroom for the coming school year. Yes, there are still a million little things I could do but for the most part, I'm done. We don't even "officially" report back until next week but I wanted to be done with my room before we returned and were promptly buried under things like lesson plans and in-services (the fifth grade team is presenting one of these trainings, because of our all-expenses paid trip to Orlando earlier this summer). I spent a solid 6 hours in my room today (in addition to the 20+ hours I'd already put in throughout the week) and FINALLY, I went from "hot mess" to "yeah, I'm ready."

Here are a few pictures I took today. Mind you, I was still under construction at the time, but the major components were all in place. (I also apologize for the blurriness. Just squint and imagine.)

This is what you see as you face the front of my room. For the first time, I have a "theme" in my room--Under the Sea--and under the white board, I have this whole coral reef/ seaweed thing going on, complete with little fishies and dolphins swimming around. You only see one little section here between the rows of desks (and, if you look very carefully, some leaping dolphins right under the metal bar at the halfway point of the whiteboard), but it continues along the entire length of the board. It actually looks pretty cool. Across the top of the white board are my class rules and the alphabet in cursive (which can still be tricky in 5th grade).

This is one of the boards in the back of my room, near the door. This is where I'm posting student work (our company is very big on posting student work, and it's a key thing they look for during our site visits). In keeping with my theme, it says " 'Sea' our great work" across the top. To the right of it, you see a wall-mounted book shelf; to the left is a self-made "board" for posting information, events, upcoming dates, etc.

Also in the back of my room, on the other side of the book shelf you saw in the previous photo, is this bulletin board. I love this one. You have the octopus, and it says "Vocabulary is in our grasp." (Get it? Eight arms? Under the sea?) This will be my word wall (another thing that corporate is VERY big on--so both of my bulletin boards will be winning me some major points). The wall to the right of this picture are my windows, which look out onto the lake and palm trees (and the parking lot, but I ignore that part).

And this is my teacher area. It looks better in person, but you have my "traditional" teacher desk right in front, and off to the right I have a table on which I'm keeping my computer, printer and stuff like that. That allows me to free up space on my actual desk for working, grading, etc. To the right of my table is an additional library area with crates of books, a rug, etc. To the left are my teacher cabinets and cupboards.

So that's a view of the major areas of my classroom. Again, I'm sure it will change slightly in the next week or so, but my overall setup (and especially my walls and bulletin boards, which take FOR.EV.ER to set up; moving the furniture and desks around is actually the easier part) is done.

I AM READY for my 23 kids. Get ready for a whole new batch of stories, my friends. After talking to their 4th grade teachers, it's certain that I am bound to have a bunch of them.

2009-08-13T09:37:00.074-04:00

A few pics from Katey's wedding

There are tons more; if anyone wants the link to view the rest, let me know.

**Note: This post took me two hours and the spacing STILL isn't right. Screw it, I'm done.**

**Note 2: After typing THAT, I worked on it for another 40 minutes.**

The whole family (including Nick's son from a previous relationship)

The oldest holding the youngest

My now-infamous delivery of the rings (the look on Steve's face is hysterical)

Why does Savannah look like she's about to kick some Flower Ass?

Katey and Nick with my grandparents (it was Grandpa who performed the ceremony). I really wish my other grandparents had been able to be there.

And finally, the bride with her parents: Mom and Steve and then Mom and Dad.

2009-08-08T16:51:00.003-04:00

Plot twist

After 16 years of smoking...my desire for cigarettes is gone.

No patches, no pills, no gum, nothing. I just don't want to smoke anymore. It's been like this since I got back to Florida.

(This does NOT, of course, count Thursday night, when I was out with my friends. I'm talking about my day-to-day, regular life.)

Is it because I was finally ready to quit? Because I actually WANT to stop this time? Is my body just "smoked out"? Or is this some weird temporary glitch?

All I know is that in the last week, I've only smoked once, when I was out at Shoeless Joes. And it hasn't even been HARD.

Please, please, PLEASE let this be it. PLEASE let me be done smoking. Please let this sudden strength and willpower I feel now to still be here tomorrow....in a week....in a month.

2009-08-04T20:02:00.002-04:00

Ch-ch-ch-changes

News broke today that our principal has been moved to one of our other schools in the area (hereby referred to as "G"); we, on the other hand, will be SHARING a principal with a 3rd school, "CC".

WTF?

First of all, how can one person effectively oversee two different schools? Answer: they can't. I don't know if they're setting *us* up for failure or her. Second, as you know, I was in pretty good with Sara. I truly liked her and, more importantly, respected her, and she really liked me, too. I had total job security with her in charge. I had it pretty good, honestly. And now, we're getting someone new and I have to start all over. And FYI, I know you may find this shocking and implausible, but not ALL principals love me. Our previous one hated me.

But more than the fact that she liked me, she did a great job. She took us from a D to an A in two years. Now yes, we teachers and our students obviously did most of the actual work to get us there, and yes, that can continue under new leadership. But the "flow" we had established, the morale, the attitude around the school, that was all her. She was tough but fair. If she got on us, it's because we deserved it.

So...I'm pretty sad right now.

2009-08-03T21:46:00.002-04:00

For once, I DON'T have any baggage

As most of you know from panicked phone calls and/or Facebook, United lost my suitcase last night. This is a quick recap of my travel adventures on Sunday:

1) Got to the GR airport at 3 for a 4 pm flight. Found out flight was delayed until 5:45.

2) Spent the delay "cougaring" this adorable, Zac Efron-lookalike, 17-year-old high school senior. We hung out the entire time (except when I had to leave him to get a drink because he wasn't old enough to be in the bar, LOL).

3) Landed in Chicago at the exact same time my connecting flight was boarding. Had to run through the airport to make the flight. Was pissed because I had never been in O'Hare and had actually been looking forward to exploring it.

4) Arrived in Fort Myers, on schedule, at 9:45 pm. Welcome home, Jenny!

5)....Except that my suitcase hadn't made the journey with me. While my ride, Mike, waited patiently outside, I filed the paperwork on my MIA bag, along with EIGHT OTHER PEOPLE whose bags were also missing.

6) FINALLY made it out to the car. Realized on the way home that my cell phone was about to die...and my charger was in my bag.

7) 10 minutes later: realized my crazy pills were also in my bag.

8) Started digging for my house keys....and realized THEY WERE IN MY BAG. Along with my car keys.

9) Broke into my condo through my (unlocked) kitchen window (actually, Mike did it for me). My lax security measures saved my ass this time, my friends!

10) Got inside, looked around, and realized Brad had apparently been in town long enough to throw a wild party...but not long enough to clean up afterwards. (Okay, it wasn't THAT bad, but the kitchen was a mess and there were beer bottles and plates all over the living room.)

11) Wanted to cry. Mike suggested we go out for a drink instead.

So...yeah. That was my Sunday. The good news is that my bag HAS been located; delivery should be tomorrow.

Let's just hope my keys are in there.

2009-08-02T00:35:00.004-04:00

Wedding daze

It's over!! OMG, for those of you who have gotten married, I don't know how you did it without going insane. Planning a wedding SUCKS. And this was just a SMALL one, too, with family. Larger, more involved weddings?! I shudder, literally SHUDDER, at the thought. I never want to get married. No, wait. I never want a WEDDING. Vegas, baby, Vegas. And I must have been HIGH to even have THOUGHT about this as a career. Shoot. Give me a classroom full of "P.'s" ANYDAY. LOL.

Anyway, enough about me. ;)

The ceremony was beautiful, and all of the kids (aka half of the wedding guests) were very well behaved. I did send Tyler, the ring bearer, down the aisle without the ring pillow, so I improvised--*I* grabbed the pillow and did my "bride walk" down to the front to hand it off to him. Katey didn't find out about this until afterwards, of course, but I hope she sees the humor in it when viewing the pictures later (and especially the wedding video, which undoubtedly captured my "Shit! Shit! SHIT!!!" when I realized that I had sent Tyler flying solo).

Everything else went very smoothly, though. We had 2 seats right up front reserved for Dad's parents, who just passed in the last couple of years (it kills me that they couldn't have been here for this). Before the ceremony, I explained to Dad that we were using the roses to "save" the seats for Grandma and Grandpa. He leaned over to me and whispered, "I don't think they're going to show up." That's how we deal with sadness and emotion in my family, but it did make me laugh. (It didn't stop me from getting misty during the ceremony when my other grandpa, who was conducting the ceremony, said a few words about them and offered a prayer and moment of silence in their memory. And even though Dad isn't an outwardly sentimental guy, I know it meant a lot to him that we remembered them.)

Grandma read a chapter from the Bible and ended up blubbering so hard that she could barely finish it. That was the only time that *I* actually cried during the ceremony. The unity candle, the exchanging of the vows and rings--everything went very smoothly. And Katy, as much as it pains me to admit it, looked beautiful. ;)

So...there you have it. My little sister is officially married.

2009-07-28T13:29:00.003-04:00

Amanda

So I got to go see Amanda (my daughter) yesterday. It was like most of our other visits--we met at the Muskegon mall and hung out, then went to dinner--except that this time, we brought Paige, Tyler and Savannah. Amanda told me that when Andrea first found out they were coming, she was pretty pissed, but you know what? AMANDA wanted to see them--these are her cousins--and that's the point of an open adoption...so she can know her birth family. The girl is 17 in January and she doesn't know her cousins OR her aunts. Anyway, once we got there, Andrea seemed fine with it. Good thing, too, because I purposely didn't tell them till we were on our way. ;)

The coolest part was seeing Amanda and Paige together. They'd only met once, it was like 6 years ago (Paige barely even remembered it) and neither one of them knew "the truth" yet. Now they both do, and it was so cute to watch them. They kept glancing at each other, clearly trying to look for similarities and scope each other out. Paige especially loved hanging out with Amanda, because Amanda is now a cool high school girl and Paige is a soon-to-be junior high girl. And Amanda just LOVED Paige. For a while, it was just Amanda, Paige and I walking around the mall, going into random stores, etc. I inducted Paige into the Religion of Bath and Body Works, and I bought her her first lip gloss there. It was the first time I've hung out with Paige not as a kid, but as--as corny as this sounds--a young woman. We had a blast. Interesting side note: considering that, DNA-wise, Paige and Amanda are virtually the same person (their mothers are sisters and their fathers are brothers), they really bear NO resemblance to each other--but we discovered that they have a birthmark in the same exact spot on their right arms.

For dinner, we went to an all-you-can-eat buffet. Katey's kids, the sheltered children that they are, had never been to one, and they were just blown away by the notion that you could eat pizza AND nachos AND mac and cheese AND pa-sketti--and keep going back for more!! And when we set them lose on the dessert bar? I think Savannah almost passed out from sheer giddiness. And Tyler, who normally eats like a bird, packed away more than he's ever eaten in his life. Normally, I'd say no to 2 bowls of ice cream AND a piece of cake AND a cupcake--but hell, we had to get our money's worth, right? ;) (Katey was thrilled when we finally got home around 10 and the two youngest ones were bouncing off the walls, LOL....but that's what aunts are for, especially aunts who only come home twice a year.)

We took lots of pics, so I'll probably email those out later. If anyone (like Fred, although I'm pretty sure he doesn't even read my blog anymore, AHEM) would like to see them who isn't normally on my email list, just shoot me an email.

Amanda's a really great girl, and I pray that the rest of her birth family gets the chance to know her soon. Amanda said that Andrea is thinking about letting her come to see us on her own in the somewhat near future--and that, of course, is when she would make her debut. I've been waiting over 16 years; another year or so will be a piece of cake.

2009-07-20T16:00:00.011-04:00

A few early pics

Nee and Jen, BFFs since 1983

Kish and Nee, BFFs since 2005. ;)

E! Hollywood Story: When Bipolars Drink. No, just kidding. I was totally fine...not sure what was up with the crazy eyes.

Renee performs that ever-popular bar trick, Balancing a Lime Slice on Your Hand. (This was, of course, immediately followed by a shot of tequila.)

Here, the new mom gets her WELL DESERVED drink on.

I have 2 comments here. #1: Anna, we look ADORABLE! #2: NICE CAMERA WORK, KISH!! We're to the LEFT!!

And, in closing: the only pic of me in which I am neither drinking nor making an alcoholic treat. Go me!

2009-07-19T18:52:00.005-04:00

Fly on the wall

Fred mentioned that he'd love to be a "fly on the wall" during our girls' weekends. Well, now you ALL can be, with this posting of our traditional Quote List. Some of the following statements just sound dirty when taken out of context, some of them ARE dirty and some of them are just amusing/entertaining (at least to us, at the time, after consuming copious amounts of alcohol). I realize that a few of these may be the "you had to be there" type of funny, but I'm sure that there's at least one or two on here that ANYONE can appreciate.

So hoist your drink in the air and let's toast to the revelry that was the 5th Annual Girls' Weekend.

(Key: J is Jen, A is Anna, R is Renee and K is Kishelle...duh.)

"OMG, that is FULL of sins!" -K

"I look CUTE!" -J. ...and K's response: "If you say so."

"Jen's lain with a LOT of men on the beach." -R

"Not five! FIFTEEN!" -K

"Sorry, watchin' the dick." -K

"I'm the one who's gonna get blamed in THIS foursome." -Random guy from Meijer

"Tell him to call 1-800-stop-f*cking-with-Jen's-head-or-I'll-kick-your-f*cking-ass." -K. And my response: "That's more than 7 numbers."

"The eye of the frickin' tiger!!" -K

"I'm very animalistic, okay?" -R

"Oh, honey--drag queens are prettier than you." -A

"I've got a triangle hot box." -R

"But if he grows his hair out a little bit? TOTALLY Jesus!" -J

"God created the monkeys that created us." -J

"She did a 380...wait what is it? A 360?" -K. (Note: she was talking about someone who made a total and drastic change and was therefore talking about a 180.)

"I can't believe I almost carjacked that girl!" -J

"And to think I slept with that tiny little white boy!" (the speaker of this qoute shall be kept anonymous, but it was one of the married ladies)

"Okay, so my NEXT question is..." -R. (Note: this is funny because there was no previous question. This was spoken completely out of nowhere and WAS her first question.)

Note: the following were between the hours of midnight and 2 am...but as you're about to see, you probably could have figured that out yourselves. (You'll also notice that the ratio of "J" quotes significantly increases, LOL.)

"I've never wanted to be an island so badly in my life." -A

"It looks like my neck exploded and vomited...ASS." -J

"I'm like a streak of awesome." -J

"That one made my nipples hard." -J. And K's response: "If I had nipples like yours, I'd want them hard all the time, too."

"Suck it like you're getting paid!" -J

"My head didn't move but all of a sudden, I had craziness occuring near my ass!" -J

"Jen talks with her elbows!" -A

"What's ON me?! ...Pie!" -R

"Something's happening in your middle area, and it weighs a LOT." -J

"Is this my STD?" -J

"Look at the drunk sista with the big words!" -R

"It's hard to believe I'm 32 and not married, 'cuz I'm just a pile of sex!" -J

"My eyes feel drunk, but the rest of me doesn't." -R

But wait--there's more! Pics will follow....

2009-07-18T13:14:00.004-04:00

Mmmmmm....

Cheesecake martinis are good, especially at 11:00 am.

Will post full report on Sunday night. Until then, if you need us, we'll be HERE...

2009-07-15T18:47:00.001-04:00

Flight had worst turbulance ever. Lots of jerks & sudden drops. i finally threw up my arms coaster-style and said "whooo!" Ppl laughed; attndants not so much

2009-07-13T21:18:00.003-04:00

Oops, I did it again

Okay, so NO BIG DEAL AT ALL, MOM, but I might be back in a sling again (and by "might," I mean, "I am"). LOL. My crazy doc put me back on lithium, which can fuck with your balance....yadda yadda yadda, I fell on my right arm over the weekend. I finally went in to the doctor today, and I have a SLIGHT, VERY SLIGHT, MOTHER, fracture to my right elbow, and the only reason he's worried is because it's the one I broke a year ago. He gave me the sling just to MAKE SURE it doesn't get any worse, but as you may remember from last year, I barely wore the damn thing even when my elbow was outright broken, so I can't imagine I'll be wearing it very much now. ;) However, as of tonight (Monday), it does hurt like a bitch, so I'll wear it the next couple of days, and I'm SURE I'll be fine--like I said, he wouldn't even have worried about it that much if I didn't have a "history" with this elbow, and he said that because I broke it I'll always be more "susceptible" (ooh, big word) to injury in this area, and he did say to expect some "discomfort" when I fly home on Wednesday (because one thing I did notice, even after I had healed this winter, was that the altitude hurt my elbow like a mofo), and he ALSO picked up on the "arthritis" in my elbow (thanks, bitch, cuz I need ANOTHER reminder of how old I am)....this is a really long sentence, LOL. Anyway, I'm fine. I just have a sling again for when I need it over the next couple of weeks.

BECAUSE I'M OLD AND MY BONES ARE MORE FRAGILE.

Mother fucker, I'm going to need one of those "I've fallen and I can't get up" things pretty soon.

Fuck.

2009-07-12T23:19:00.005-04:00

Color me blind

When Mis and the boys were here, we realized that I was unable to differentiate yellow from orange (I swore upside down that a Ford Mustang was yellow; Missy, Donovan, Anthony, and 2 innocent bystanders that I accosted in the Coldstone parking lot all told me it was orange).

At the wedding last night, it happened again. A new friend and I were cattily watching a particular girl grinding out on the dance floor.

"...unlike that hooker in the green dress," New Friend commented.

"No kidding," I agreed. And then: "--wait. Green?"

New Friend looked at me oddly. "Yeah...."

"Her dress is green?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Might one call it...blue?"

New Friend looked back out at the dance floor. "No, it's definitely green." **

"With blue undertones?" I asked hopefully.

The fact that this happened twice in the last couple of weeks kind of threw me off. Is this something new? Or have I always been like this and it's just now becoming more obvous; perhaps it's worsening? I've always been virtually unable to discern navy from black but hell, who doesn't? This extension to yellow/orange and green/blue is new to me. Can one GO color blind or are they always that way? (FYI: color blindness, unlike what many people may think or assume, does NOT mean that those affected only see black, white and gray. They can often see color, but the hue--or "degree" of color--may be skewed.)

At any rate, it's not a huge deal. I can see colors and, in general, can tell yellow from orange or
green from blue (at least I think so, LOL). It's just odd that it's becoming more frequent.

** I surveyed many other wedding guests last night, and they all immediately said "Green." So it wasn't a matter of the dress being a blue-green "in-between" color; we're not talking a po-tay-to /po-tawt-to situation here.

PS--I've done some research, and it's much more rare for a woman to be colorblind than a man. "For a woman to be color deficient, her father must be colorblind and her mother colorblind or be a carrier." And I'm pretty sure my dad isn't colorblind. So...my eyes just suck, I guess. Probably because I'm getting so damn old.

2009-07-12T13:13:00.011-04:00

Just wed

I went to a wedding last night. It was pretty much my ideal dream wedding.

To begin with, it was on the beach. The bride came down a huge staircase (to that newer version of "Somewhere over the rainbow"--you've heard it in a million commercials), walked down a boardwalk-type bridge and then came out onto the beach. She got to wear a beautiful wedding dress BUT didn't have to worry about girly, uncomfortable shoes. It's the best of both worlds--Holla!

Her groom met her here.

It was a small (60ish people), informal, relaxed wedding.

I loved it.

Congrats, Kelly and Rich!

2009-07-08T14:07:00.007-04:00

Are you my (baby) daddy?

I had the weirdest dream last night, one that I HAD to share with you all. I found out I was pregnant--and that it was twins. And that part was SO real, the pregnancy part. I remember flipping out when the nurse first told me ("I can't even take care of myself, I'm not ready to be a mother!"), I remember telling my family, I remember telling my friends ("Hey, Gang Bang is knocked up! What a surprise!" LOL--actually, that part may very well happen someday, ha ha), I even remember interviewing for the right doctor (my decision was based on who made the best pizza--which, of course, is how ALL dedicated, protective, nurturing moms-to-be choose the person who will deliver their precious children).

When she told me I was pregnant, though, the nurse also informed me that the babies were part Irish. (How she picked up on their ethnicity from a SONOGRAM is beyond me, but go with it--it's a dream, bitches, not CSI.) When I stated that I wasn't Irish, she looked at me as if I was a dullard and stated the obvious: "Well...then their father must be, right?" And that's when it hit me--I didn't KNOW who the dad was. I actually hadn't even thought of him up until that point.

So I began the search for their father. And no, this wasn't a Maury Povich, "who my baby daddy because I've slept with seven men in the last 24 hours so it could be anybody" type of search, either. It was--it's hard to explain--more of a "looking into the future, who will the father of my children be" kind of search. Men would come into the picture and I'd look at them and say "No, it's not you" and then they'd just kind of fade away and I continued on my journey until the next man would appear. (I *thought* I'd found him at one point, but then at the last minute I asked, "Wait, are you Irish?", he shook his head no, I said "Son of a BITCH!" and continued my search. Even in my dreams, I have the mouth of a trucker.)

Finally, right before I woke up, I found him. He stood in front of me and I looked up at him and said "It's you!" He said yes and reached down to take my hand. ('Cuz I, for some reason, was sitting on a step...probably exhausted from my search--or else full from all the pizza, LOL.)

And then I woke up, incredibly pissed off because I never got a look at his face. But at least I found him.

(I'm glad that my biological clock isn't ticking much, or anything.)

2009-07-07T17:54:00.002-04:00

Heartwrenching

I don't care what you thought or how you felt about Michael Jackson, this moment at the end of his memorial service should have been like a kick to the stomach.

We only saw and knew a very, very small part of Michael, but we have to remember that there are 3 children who are going through an emotional nighmare right now. Losing a parent is heartbreaking at any age, but to have it happen so young--and under this kind of media attention--is unfathomable. I don't know what's to become of these three children, but I predict we'll see a lot more of them. Much as William and Harry carried on their mother's legacy, I think Michael ingrained something into his kids that they will carry with them, and share, for the rest of their lives.

So to those 3 children, especially this brave little girl who stood in front of a worldwide audience of who knows how many million, to share her love for her father: you have many thoughts and prayers with you. And know that you made, and will continue to make, your father very proud.

(Yeah, I know, I don't usually get so serious and sappy on here. But this moment truly touched me, and I wanted to talk about it.)

2009-07-04T12:43:00.003-04:00

Happy 4th!

I've actually had a great start to the day. I got to be IN a parade today, out on the "rich island", otherwise known as Sanibel. My friend's husband is the GM at Sanibel's Lazy Flamingo, and every year they have a "float" (although I use the term loosely, LOL) in the parade. Ron buys TONS of swag like frisbees, footballs, baseballs, etc, as well as a couple hundred dollars worth of candy. My job was to look pretty and toss all the Flamingo stuff out into the crowds.

The funniest part, though, is that over the years, Ron has build quite the reputation for himself as the Water Gun Guy. He started by taking a few of the little water guns and squirting the crowd as he rolled by. Well, it's gotten bigger and bigger (as have his guns), and this year he was fully equipped with a huge tank of water, hoses, Super Soakers, etc. It's hysterical, because the crowd is ready for HIM, too--he was getting ambushed by the spectators every couple yards or so (some of them even had water balloons). Apparently, it's become something of a Sanibel tradition. People look for the Lazy Flamingo float because of the water fights and also because they give away the most (and best) free stuff. Needless to say, by the end of the parade, all of us innocent bystanders on the float were drenched too, but it was a lot of fun. I've already promised my services for next year.

Tonight, I'm hanging out with a friend. Liz, the friend I was with today, invited us to go along with her family to the Sanibel Causeway (which is truly beautiful, by the way--overlooking the Gulf) for the fireworks, so we'll see how things shake out. For now, though, I'm taking a nap (I was up at 6 am!).

Have a safe and happy 4th of July, everyone!

2009-07-02T18:28:00.002-04:00

Disney recap

It will be impossible, of course, to recount the entire day without writing the longest post ever. Suffice it to say that even with the rain, the boys had the time of their lives. Here are some highlights.

1) We arrived about 10 am. The rain began while we were on the ferry to the Magic Kingdom and continued for most of the day. At times it was just a light drizzle; at others, it actually rained pretty hard. Luckily, some of the lines were indoors (in fact, we got in line for one roller coaster, a kiddie one, simply because it WAS inside. A. really liked it, though). Still, the rain helped with both the temperature (which was pleasant all day) and the lines.

2) When we walked through Main Street and got our first glimpse of the castle, I think I got just as excited as Donovan and Anthony.

3) We hit all of the major attractions other than It's a Small World, since we were souvineer shopping instead. That's okay, though. Yeah, it's a Disney classic, but I was there with BOYS, after all--boys who are almost 9 and 13.

4) We lucked out on the lines for 2 of the major rides, Splash Mountain and Thunder Mountain Railroad. The first time we walked by TMR, it had just closed due to technical difficulties (not the rain). When we checked back later, it had literally JUST opened up; in fact, we were one of the first people in line. We had NO wait! Then, we Fast Passed Splash Mountain--twice. (That's when they tell you what time to come back and you get to enter the ride through a separate line and bypass everyone else. Man, it was exhilarating to walk by allllll those people.)

5) Space Mountain was closed--till WINTER. So that really sucked.

6) The parade was cancelled due to the rain; however, we were close enough to the start of the parade route that still got to see them all walk by on their way back to--wherever they go. So we lucked out there, too.

7) A & D both got to meet Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Minnie, and many more that I'm sure I'm forgetting. We waited in line for about 45 minutes for Mickey (this was the highlight of A's day at the park--it was the #1 thing he'd wanted to do). We got some great pictures.

8) We stayed long enough to see dusk start to fall and the castle start to change colors (see previous pic). The color changed every 5 minutes or so. It was beautiful. We couldn't stay for the fireworks, though, because they started at 10 and that's when the last shuttle back to the hotel was leaving. HOWEVER,

9) As we were on the monorail back to Epcot (where the shuttle was actually picking us up), THOSE fireworks kicked off. The monorail driver actually stopped it mid-track so we could see the show. We TRULY had the best seats in the house; we were RIGHT in front of them. It was so cool; a great end to the day.

10) Missy and I both loved, loved, loved Pirates of the Caribbean (a "pirate-themed boat ride" that landed us in the middle of a pirate battle, but trust me, that description totally doesn't do it justice). It was, as dorky as this sounds, magical and enthralling. I couldn't take it all in fast enough. And the wait was only like 30 minutes. The boys' favorite ride was Splash Mountain (a close second for Missy and me). The second time we were on it, everyone, including A, kept our hands up for the entire plunge. It was awesome (the fall was like 5 stories! I looked it up).

Those, as I said, are just the highlights. There was so much more to our day, but it was SO good. It was a day that those boys really deserved.

2009-07-02T06:47:00.005-04:00

Dreams really do come true!!

I don't know if the magic of the Magic Kingdom is rubbing off on my regular life or what, but I just checked my mail from the last few days--and something truly momentous has finally happened. I've dreamed of this day for as long as I can remember, and although at time my faith has wavered, I've never given up hope. Today, that faith has paid off.

I have FINALLY been selected to be a Neilsen "family."

You know the TV ratings you are always hearing about? Well, those are calculated by surverying a sampling of the American public, finding out what they're watching at any given time. And now, *I* get to be one of those people! I have to keep a TV diary (I'm not sure for how long yet; I've been too excited to actually sit down and read all the info, LOL) of everything that I watch and for how long. (It makes me wish I had Cinemax, so I could enter in a whole lot of late-night porn.) AND they sent me $4! I guess they want to know what single spinster teachers in their early 30s are watching these days.

So...yeah. Seriously, I've wanted to do this for years. I'm so excited.

I just dropped Missy and the boys off at the airport. This place is so quiet that it's actually loud, if that makes any sense. I've really, really enjoyed having them around. It was really nice to be able to spend that much time with Donovan and Anthony. Usually when I go home, I'll spend a few hours over at their house, but we've never been together for a week like this before. I had a blast with them. They really are truly great kids--very funny, very sharp, very smart, very sweet and loving. I'm lucky to have nephews like them. Oh, and Missy isn't bad either. ;)

I'll post a full recap of our Disney adventures later, but for now, I'm going back to bed. I just jumped online to post about the Neilsen thing, because I am THAT excited about it. It's truly a pretty noteworthy event. ;) In the meantime, though, I leave you with these camera phone shots that capture the beauty of the Magic Kingdom and Epcot at night. (I have the MK pic as the wallpaper for my phone and it looks amazing--like the kind of picture you would pay to download. The Epcot one is blurrier but you can still get the general idea.)

2009-06-30T18:14:00.001-04:00

Most of day has been spent in rain but we are having a great time. Am about to drag them on Its a Small World next . Just Fast Passed on Splash Mountain.

2009-06-30T15:46:00.001-04:00

Been raining all day at Disney. We finally broke down and bought ponchos. Rain immediately stopped.

2009-06-28T20:03:00.005-04:00

Everything's better in Florida, part II

Saturday:

We started out the day with a visit to the nature center and planetarium. They were both okay (especially the touch tank at the nature center, which let the kids pick up starfish, horseshoe craps, etc, and then the "tour of the solar system" show at the Planetarium), although neither will make highlight reel of the trip, I'm sure.

But the best part of the day was the cookout with my friends. The boys actually had a great time, because a) there was a pool, which is all they cared about, LOL and b) two of the guys, Andy and Rich, came up with this game that was a big success. It's hard to explain, but I'll call it Ultimate Pool Frisbee. Andy and Rich would stand in the shallow end of the pool, and they took turns tossing the frisbee over to Donovan and Anthony. The "catch" (no pun intended) is that the boys would have to take a running start, leap into the pool and catch the frisbee in midair. It was quite the party hit, let me tell you.

Sunday:

Today, Shawn took us out on the boat. We were very lucky because we saw a LOT of dolphins today. It was so cool. We saw them extra close up on our way back to the dock. Seriously, they were right in front of us. I'm SO GLAD the dolphins made an appearance for us today--in spades.

Shawn was nice enough to buy us all dinner (it was a little restaurant out in the bay; we pulled up and "parked" the boat right there, and then hopped off and went in to eat). The boys ate--are you ready for this??--GATOR TAIL!!!!! And they really liked it, too. Missy and I both tried it, but we weren't big fans (I, of course, almost hurled, but I kept it down). We were out on the boat for like 5 hours. The boys got to swim in the Gulf, and Shawn and I towed them from the boat onto shore (they had on life jackets), so they could look for shells on a whole different beach (Missy stayed on the boat, laid on the deck and got some peace and quiet, LOL). The boys had a great time--we all did, actually. He was a great host and gave them yet another memorable Florida experience. The boys seemed to really like him, too. It was cute. (I'm sure Mrs. A will be glad to hear that the I Heart Shawn Fan Club has two new members.)

And on the way home from the beach, we somehow ended up with Zeke and Thriller--Donovan's and Anthony's new pet turtles. It's a long story. =-) They've been asking for a pet for a long time, and, well, we were in the right place at the right time. (They're little itty bitty baby turtles; we're not sure how they're getting back to Michigan but I'm pretty sure they will count as a carry on; they're both in one little tank with a plastic lid.

Anyway--yet another great day here in paradise. Tomorrow, the zoo during the day and then we're heading up to Orlando later that evening. We have to get our rest on Monday night because Tuesday is DISNEY!!!! We'll spend the night on Tuesday night, too, and we'll head back here on Wednesday--their last night, already. How is that even possible??

In closing:

Donovan: "We can do whatever we want, 'cuz we're on vacation."
And later: "I have a ring of itch-ness" (where he's peeling on his back)

Anthony: "Turtles are awesome."

Missy: "It's Florida, bitches."

And there you have it.

2009-06-27T11:56:00.005-04:00

Everything is better in Florida

The boys, of course, are already in love with Ft. Myers. Once I picked them up at the airport, we hit a Waffle House on the way home, where we discovered that Anthony (8) loves, loves, LOVES him some grits. After stocking up on groceries, we went down to the beach (it was rainy for most of the day but finally stopped around 5 or so). The boys went right into the Gulf and they took to it immediately. The looks on their faces when they got their first mouthful of salt water was hysterical, but once they got used to it they were diving into the waves like dolphins. Missy and I weren't planning on going into the water, but I sucked it up and went in wearing my shorts and a tshirt when I saw that the boys wasn't to go in a little deeper. We talked Missy into coming in, too. We also went on the pier and just walked around Ft. Myers beach. We took a break for dinner at Hooters, then went back onto the beach so the boys could swim and hunt for shells some more and Missy and I could watch the sunset (it was cloudy but still damn beautiful). Another highlight for the boys is "gecko hunting," where they stalk the gecko lizards and then try to pounce. The geckos, of course, are on to them and are able to jump out of the way pretty easily, but it's still so funny to watch.

Today, we have a cookout (where the boys can swim in the pool) with some of my friends. We were going to try to hit the planetarium and nature center today, too, but we better freakin' get moving since it's already noon (so Donovan, quit watching me type this and go get dressed).

In closing, I will let each boy give me one sentence that describes how they feel about Florida so far.

Donovan (12): "It's ten times better than Michigan."
Anthony: "Everything's better in Florida." *

*Hence the name of this post. It became a running joke yesterday that everything, from coffee to Target to trees to sand, is just way cooler down here--'cuz it's in Florida.

2009-06-25T22:05:00.003-04:00

That's just WEIRD

So by now, we know that we lost Michael Jackson today. However, I have a slightly different view, if you will, on the days' events.

Liz and I were down at the hotel bar this evening, having a glass of wine (shocking, I know). We were talking about Farrah Fawcett, and since Ed McMahon also died this week, I mentioned to her that my mom often says that celebrity deaths happen in threes (many people say "bad things happen in threes," but for Mom, it's just celebrities). "So watch," I said at about 5 pm today. "Someone else relatively famous is going to die in the next couple of days."

"Oh, that's ridiculous," Liz said. "And anyway, it depends on your definition of 'celebrity.' I'm sure if you look hard enough, then SURE, you'll be able to find someone that SOMEONE has heard of who dies in the near fiuture."

TEN MINUTES LATER, on the flat screen TV directly in front of us: Michael Jackson has been taken to the hospital in cardiac arrest.

We just looked at each other.

I opened my mouth.

"Shut up," she said. "First of all, it's cardiac arrest. He's not dead YET. And second, that's just an incredibly weird coincidence."

Thirty minutes later: The King of Pop is pronounced dead.

"Okay," she said. "That's pretty f*ckin' weird, I give you that."

And you know what, HE was pretty f*ckin' weird, especially in the last part of his life. But he was also a true iconic legend. And watching it on the news was just SURREAL. Michael Jackson, dead? And out of nowhere like that?

That glass of wine, by the way, turned into several. The bar was packed, but it was silent. Everyone was just glued to the TV. For me, it's like Princess Di or the Challenger disaster: I'll always remember where I was when I heard the news.

And for once, I don't even have a smartass comment to make.

(Well, except: at least we don't have to hear about Jon and f*cking Kate anymore.)

2009-06-25T12:03:00.002-04:00

Pic of the Day: Wednesday

I call this one "Orlando From the 18th Floor."

2009-06-24T17:17:00.004-04:00

Pic of the Day: Tuesday

I almost used a picture of Wine and Cheese night (hint: plastic cups, spray cheese and wine with twist-off caps were all involved). However, the BIG part of the night was our (attempted) trip to Universal:
See the ponchos and umbrellas?

Yeah. Good times. Like true Floridians, we know that rain showers are, often, frequent but short-lived, so we tried to wait it out. After several hours, though, we finally gave up. (We aren't talking sprinkles, either--we had torrential, bone-chilling downpours.)

If we're lucky, the "adventure will live on" tomorrow night.

2009-06-22T09:32:00.004-04:00

Updated: pic of the day

I've decided that each day, I'm going to take just one of the shots I've captured that day and make it my "Picture of the Day"--a shot that kind of encapsulates/sums up the overall theme or message from that day's adventures. (Then again, they may be totally random shots sometimes, too. Today, for example, your pic of the day was almost a huge-ass muffin from the deli here. It was seriously the biggest muffin I've ever seen in my life. Take your hand, spread out your fingers--that is the size of the TOP of the muffin.)

Anyway, here's the POTD for Monday:

I call this shot "Tickets to Paradise." See, during the day, we are loaded down with stuff--purses, tote bags, binders, training materials, trainer kits, etc. We are freakin' pack mules.

But at night, walking around Doubletree City (ha ha--I'm so clever)--and, tomorrow and Wednesday, Universal Studios-- this is all I need: my driver's license (because I've been getting carded a lot lately--holla!!), my debit card and my room key. No matter where we end up or what we're doing, there is a world of fun to be had--and the keys to that world are these 3 items.
And that, my friends, has been your POTD.

*Dramatic bow*

9:30 am
Conference center was just evacuated --not sure whats up

2009-06-21T22:06:00.005-04:00

Reporting in: Day 1

** Note: this started as a comment for my original post until I realized how freakin' long it had gotten. =-) **

It's actually beautiful here. It's a DoubleTree, but it's amazing. You know they have Targets and then Super Targets? This would be the equivalent of a Super Double Tree. It's like a palatial mini-city, with all these stores and restuarants (and BARS). The lobby is amazing. And you get a free warm cookie when you check in. Hell yeah, byaatches! Seriously, though, it's really, really nice. Hell, we got our exercise today just by walking around and seeing what all is available. (Nice fitness area, too. I even brought my sneakers, just in case we get ambitious.)

Here's what *I* think sucks, though. Now, tell me if this is normal, for those of you who stay in nicer hotels on a regular basis. Seriously, this place is like a freakin' palace. It's gorgeous. I hate to bitch, especially because it's all paid for. Even sitting down at the pool--and the Jacuzzi!! Holla!!--after our workshops, looking at the palm trees, having a drink from the tiki bar....this is NOT a bad work trip, at all.) =-) HOWEVER:

1) No free Wifi in rooms. You have to go down to the common areas, like the lobby, pool area, etc. So you won't be hearing from me QUITE as much; maybe once a day. I don't want this damn thing around all the time.
2) You have to pay for parking, $12 a day. That's onsite parking. WTF? I have to pay to use their parking lot?
3) They charge your credit (or in my case, debit) card $50 a DAY for any "incidentals" you may incur; so right now there's a $250 hold on my checking account, which doesn't get credited back till probably Monday, since we check out on Friday and it will take at least a business day. $50 a day would be a lot of porn, my friends. Of course, this money DOES also go towards the parking (you swipe your room key to get in and out of the lots), and of course the parking (and meals) will be reimbursed when we get back, but still. WTF.
4) You have to pay to use the in-room safe. Good thing I left my jewels at home.
5) NO FREE CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST IN THE MORNING!!! Shit, even Motel 8 has that. You have to go to a cafe or restaurant (they have plenty of them here, and some of them are pretty reasonably priced, considering--it's just the principle of the thing. Would it kill you to throw some free juice and cereal my way? Maybe a banana, if you're feeling REALLY saucy? Damn).

Those are my main complaints for now. Is this shit normal? Damn. It's expensive to be rich. ;) I guess, being right in Orlando, they're capitalizing on all the tourists that came through here. But seriously, I got more free shit staying at the Days Inn in Atlanta for Ron Clark. And I'm pretty sure there was a drug bust while we were staying there, if that tells you anything.

I told Liz that I'm scared to even open the fridge. "Oh, our records show that you opened the fridge at 8:00 this evening. That will be a $10 daily free."

And now if you'll excuse me, I have to get a toothbrush from the front desk. I may have to apply for a loan.

2009-06-20T17:18:00.004-04:00

Leaving town

Tomorrow, I'm leaving for Orlando for a week. I'm going to a workshop on Differentiated Instruction; it's a "Train the Trainer" kind of thing, which means we (myself and the other 2 5th grade teachers) will receive the training, and then we'll go back to school in the fall and train the other teachers. Fun stuff. It will be boring as hell, I'm sure, but it looks really good on the resume and it's a really good investment to make (time-wise, not money-wise; the school is paying for it, of course. And speaking of which, it's costing them $1300 PER PERSON just to ATTEND the workshop, not to mention putting us all up in a hotel for the week, food, etc. We figured that by agreeing to attend this conference, we were securing our jobs just that much more--after all, if they were willing to put this much money into us, then obviously they weren't going to kick us to the curb any time soon).

The best part of this conference is that the hotel is right at the entrance to Universal Studios. The SECOND best part is that teachers get in free to Universal all summer. So, yeah. They'll be keeping us pretty busy this week, but we're hoping we'll get at least a couple of free hours to check out Universal.

I'm bringing my laptop, so I'll still be online and stuff. (Not a whole lot, though--in addition to the trainings during the day, we then have to spend our evenings putting together some kind of presentation for Friday, to demonstrate that we've learned what we need to learn.)

2009-06-18T19:02:00.006-04:00

We're an A!

The news is in: my school has officially received an "A" from the state.

In Florida, schools receive a grade (from A to D) based on their students' performance, primarily on state tests like the FCAT. When calculating school grades, a number of factors are considered, including the percentage of students who scored at "proficient" and the percentage of kids who improved/showed growth (even if they're still not at grade level). There's even a seperate category that looks solely at the performance of the lowest 25% (the "low kids" in each grade, aka my class).

This is an extra huge deal when you consider that we went from a D to an A in just 2 years. We received a D during our 2nd year (my first year), when we were still in the process of establishing ourselves as a school (this was due in large part to the huge staff turnover we saw in the first couple of years). Then last year, we went from a D to a C--which was good, because we were showing improvement as a school (we even received bonuses for going up a letter grade) but still far from ideal.

And now, this year, we busted our asses and went from a C to an A. We are now officially a top-rated school. And we're one of only 3 schools in our entire district to go up two grade levels in just one year. (In related news, our school district received an A for the first time EVER.)

As you may remember, I was stressing out pretty hardcore in the months leading up to the FCAT. I was particularly nervous because my class WAS the lowest 25% in the fifth grade--so, as I said, my kids kind of count for double. If my class didn't perform well, it would hurt us in a multitude--a myriad, if you will--of different ways. And they ended up doing GREAT. I was so excited.

We knew we were at least a B, which was our goal. But once the FCAT scores were released, we realized that we had a very real shot at surpassing that and going all the way to the top.

I am SO HAPPY!!