This just in....World does not end at tip of nose, contrary to the belief of millions!

I am a REAL stickler for time. I've always been an extremely punctual person and being made to wait around for people who can't be bothered to make the effort to show up on time drives me crazy. It always seems as though we fools who show up early or on time are forced to make concessions to the slow pokes of the world.

When I was leaving Washington, DC, my flight was delayed for "late arriving passengers." I asked the flight attendant if that meant people who needed to connect to this flight had been delayed on the previous flight. Fair play, right? I mean, if your flight is delayed, you can't be on time for your connection. However, the flight attendant just said, "No, it looks like some folks just aren't here yet. It has nothing to do with a connection."

I was flummoxed. I mean I had been there for the suggested two hours prior to the flight. Apparently that is nothing but a mere suggestion.

What ever happened to the "You snooze you lose" way of doing things? I mean, really! This isn't a city bus, folks, we're trying to catch a flight. And you could argue that those people were stuck up in security lines or some such. I contend, however, that if they had gotten to the airport in a timely manner, they would have time to clear security. We should all understand security in a post 9/11 world. If we're leaving five minutes to get from the airport parking lot to the flight gate, we should be taught our lesson the hard way.

But no, the airline decides instead to wait around for the stragglers.

No wonder the percentage of on time flights is abysmal a this point. Doesn't this just breed a race of latecomers? I mean, really....after seeing this display, what's my incentive to show up early or on time? I might just start leaving my apartment twenty minutes before flight time. They're going to wait for me after all. Why hurry?

And just today I went to the gym to take a step class. It was in Cambridge at 9:00. I left my apartment for a 7:10 bus, which is admittedly really early. I just couldn't sleep any longer, so I decided to get out and enjoy the lovely weather. Anyway, I digress...

I learned that the class would be held in the smaller of the two studios. It used to be in the larger one, but has apparently been shuffled to the smaller one. (I don't often make this class as it is in the morning on a Thursday.)

When I learned that the class would be in the smaller studio, I was glad to be there early. I looked at the clock. It was 8:15. I set up my bench in the room, and then went out to lift weights. By 8:55, the room was pretty mobbed. I was glad to have set up already. The class started uneventfully at 9. Lo and behold, at 9:10, the same ASSHOLE who shows up to every single class that she takes at least ten minutes late comes strolling into the room. She seemed to be momentarily deterred by the fact that the room was filled to capacity. However, she didn't give up that easily. She went over to get her bench, knocking everybody over and all and causing everybody to miss up their coreography, etc. She got her bench and marched STRAIGHT OVER TO WHERE I WAS STANDING AND SET UP RIGHT ON TOP OF ME. Then, she had the nerve to interrupt me and walk right up to me and ask say, "I know I was here late and you were here on time, and I know this is really a pain, but could you move over? I'm crashing into the weights over here."

Maybe it is mean of me, but I just looked at her briefly and then resumed my workout. I didn't even answer her. I was thinking, "SCREW this!" She said herself that it was a pain and that I was there on time.

The thing that really baffles me is how these idiots can think that they have the right to show up late, inconvenience everybody, and that everybody should move out of their way! No way!

Annoying, right?

Like I said, this might just be me getting too tightly wound over something silly, but it drives me to the brink.

"Capital" Punishment.

So I decided to head down to Washington, DC to visit my friend, Leslie, for the first few days of the April vacation. Makes sense, right? I mean, it's always great to catch up with friends. It also makes sense to travel south for nice weather, right?

Wrong.

It did NOTHING BUT POUR\ the entire time I was there. I'm not talking about drizzle. Not even a steady rain. It was an endless stream of opaque sheets of rain. It sucked. I was totally unmotivated to get out of my little tour bus to walk around the monuments.

Anyway here are a couple of photos I took.




The picture above might suggest that the weather wasn't that bad. I just played around with iPhoto to try to make the skies look less dismal. In fact, look at the same undoctored photo below to see just how shite it really was.




And yeah, here's another shot of the lovely weather.

What more can I say.

The Longest Week

I keep thinking today is Friday. I have been making this mistake all day long. I think it is wishing thinking on my behalf. Tonight we had to endure evening parent-teacher conferences. I guess I was willing myself to be past Thursday evening parent conferences, and straight on through to Friday. The fact that April vacation is next week could be another driving force behind my wishing it were already Friday. That would, after all, just bring me one day closer to vacation.

But alas, it is Thursday. And tomorrow is another full day of school. But then...April Vacation. An entire week off. Nice!!

I am going down to DC for a few days, to visit my friend, Leslie. I'm not sure exactly what we'll get up to, but I'm sure it will be fun. Leslie and I always have a few laughs when we get together. I'm sure this will be no different.

One of my students got mad at me yesterday because I made her sit down during a chorus performance. The students were made to sit on the floor, which does suck, but nevertheless.....

Anyway, I had heard rumors of her temper, but had never seen it firsthand. She was pissed at me yesterday, which prompted me to have the very gentle, "You know, sometimes we have to put up with things we don't like when we have to function productively in a community like a school or a workplace" conversation. It just brought about more huffing and puffing.

Today the same student was a jerk in my class. I tried to check in with her again, but she was super obnoxious again.

I guess I'll leave it for a few days.

Jesus....

Is this my career?

This Just In....I'm getting old!

Today the high school chorus came to our school to perform for the 7th and 8th graders. They make the rounds of the middle school classes every year to basically recruit the incoming freshmen.

I was monitoring my class, of course, and probably spending more energy doing that than actually listening to the singing. I cast a glance up onto the chorus risers to see if I recognized any of the kids as former graduates of my middle school crew. Not recognizing any of the kids, I turned my attention back to my own students. Toward the end of the performance, the chorus director asked any kids who had attended my school in 8th grade to raise their hands. I was shocked when five hands popped up. I neared the risers to look again at the faces. I've been teaching 8th grade at my school for 7 years, so clearly all of the kids on the risers had passed through my class within the last four years.

A few of the faces suddenly took on a familiar air, but the others were still completely unfamiliar.

After the performance, the kids who had attended my school ran over to say hello, give hugs, report on what's new in their lives, etc. As soon as they neared and started talking, I immediately remembered every single one of them, and could imagine what they looked like as they sat in my class. But my goodness, they look so different now. They are "all growed up." The hair. The makeup. The clothes.

Anyway, yeah, I'm getting a little long in the tooth!!

Seeing former students is always GREAT, but it always makes me feel over the hill. Ha ha.

MCAS Hell.

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) is a pain in the ass. It is the state standardized testing and it is a real bear. It would be one thing if the kids had a day or two of testing, but this thing goes on for months. The kids are tested in just about every subject every year or every other year. It sucks.

It throws every single school into total scheduling hell and turmoil.

My kids had the ELA test this week. My 8th grade special ed kids had to go test with this jackass who calls himself a resource room teacher. Apparently, he sat there talking with the other teacher in the room for the entire first day of testing. The other teacher kept trying to physically distance herself from the guy, retreating to the far corner of the room, hoping that he would shut the Christ up. This was to no avail. Finally she convinced the jerk to go take a coffee break, and the kids got a few moments of peace and quiet.

Yesterday the kids came back to my homeroom from his class and reported that he had been talking on his cell phone to his insurance company about a car accident the entire time. When they asked him to hang up because they could not concentrate, he told them, "You're not doing well anyway." He brushed them off and continued talking. And let me just say that this man is hardly discreet. Everything he does his slovenly and loud. He's disgusting.

As I was taking my class to lunch, this really good kid M.M. called me from the other end of the hall. He had apparently decided to stop taking the test and wait until 11:30 when he knew he would see my class filing to lunch. He took it upon himself to dismiss himself from that room and come to me to tell me that he was unable to complete his work. I was livid.

Under normal circumstances, teachers present a united front to the kids, even if they disagree with each other. However, this test is just way too high stakes. I marched the kid right into the vice principal so he could tell her what had happened. He was so frustrated. He said, "Mrs. H., if you don't believe me, I can even tell you what street the accident happened on and what Mr. F.'s doctor said because HE WAS TALKING ABOUT IT THE ENTIRE TIME."

We managed to calm MM down and the VP made space for him to sit and work in her office.

This is just so F'ed up on so many levels. First and foremost...as I mentioned, this test is so freakin' high stakes. All the kids have to be given the chance to succeed. I get a kick out of this a-hole ruining this test for the kid. What does he care? The kid's test goes under my name, not his.

But perhaps the most important element at play here is the fact that this alleged special education teacher would tell a special education student that he might as well endure his endless phone conversation because he's not going to do well anyway.

WTF???

I might not be the best teacher ever. Occasionally a lesson bombs, or the kids did not get from point A to point B in a timely manner. Sometimes the activities get convoluted or whatever. Sometimes the kids don't connect to the lesson the way I had anticipated. But Jesus, I have never just told a kid to give up because he has no chance of succeeding. That's disgusting.