Tuesday, March 22, 2011

I need Combat Pay

Today was a stellar day.....not in a good way. I have one particular hour of the day that is literally a powder keg waiting to explode. Needless to say the implosion was inevitable. In all my years of teaching I've never seen a beat down like the one that happened today. And the scary thing in hindsight is that I tried to break it up, yeah I have no idea why I think my telling them to stop will ever actually accomplish anything. Once the adrenalin starts pumping these kids get tunnel vision and just go into a blind rage.

Needless to say some blood was spilt today, and a kid was sent to the hospital in an ambulance, and I have to just pick myself up brush myself off and carry on......and so I teach.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Looking forward to spring

Thanks to Jeremy Barber for this guest post
This spring my condo association decided to fix up our commons and pool area. I recently ran into one of the committee members and they filled me in on all the fantastic improvements that are underway.  One of biggest improvements that were approved is an upgrade of Site Furnishings. I was really excited to hear that new Park Benches were going to be installed in the garden area and also some new picnic table to be installed  near the community pool.
Of course I was also pleased to hear about the Adirondack chairs that were ordered to be installed in the pool area. I plan on putting my name on one of those chairs this summer as I plan on planting myself in one as much as possible. Now all we need is some warm weather so we can enjoy all our new amenities 




Sunday, March 20, 2011

Seriously.....it wasn't me

As you all know from past posts that some weird and downright idiotic sh*t goes down in my classroom on a pretty consistent basis. Friday was no exception to the rule......about half way through 5th hour the principal comes over the loud speaker saying we're in a lockdown....no one in, no one out...and by the way the "dogs" will be searching the building.  Well when they bring in the dogs it means only one thing....a drug bust.

So in these situations we just continue teaching as usual and carry on as normal.....about 10 minutes after the announcement I gave my students some independent work to do at their desks....a few minutes into the assignment I noticed that one of my students was acting  extremely agitated and called him over to my desk to ask him what the hell what his problem was.

That's when he starts wigging out on me and says smell my hands....yes I know this sounds weird but you'd be surprised how often kids ask me to "smell" things.... so I'm  sitting at my computer trying to ignore his request to smell his "god knows where they've been" hands..... as I turn to stand up from my chair he shoves the sleeve of his hoodie directly in my face coming in full contact with my nose.

To say it smelled is an understatement....yeah it smelled, like the third row of a Bob Marley Tribute Concert. What did you do...... smoke a big fatty this morning while waiting for the short bus? That's when this turd decides to wipe his sleeve on my arm.....That's when I say "Are you completely insane?" ,  you better pray that those drug dogs don't come scratching at my classroom door or I am going to personally feed you to them.......Let's just say I am not sure which this kid was more scared of....the dog's or his bitch of a teacher.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Welcome to the Ghetto

According to Men's Health Magazine Detroit is The Angriest City in America......can you really blame the ghetto for being a bit pissed off? Because we have so much going for us right now right?.....Let's see unemployment over 20%, a city government that are self serving criminals that are more interested in lining their own pockets than in governing the city......Personally I've lost count of how many of these public servants are now in prison or on their way...  A public school system that has been so riddled with corruption over the years that classes in the fall will have upwards of 60 students....yeah how's that working toward reducing the illiteracy rate??? Then there is the media.....who seems to have nothing better to do than dump on the auto industry and the people who are just trying to survive. Yeah we got some things to be pissed off about....you got a problem with that? 

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Familiar Memories

I turned on my computer the other day and glanced at the Detroit Freepress and noticed this headline..".Dad of  Timothy King wins documents in search for son's Killer"........Knowing the background of he the story I immediately clicked on the link and began reading....While reading the article it was like I was transported back in time. To a dark place in my memory when fear overrode any sliver of normalcy in my life and that of any other child my age.

It was a time when every kid my age lives lost some innocence, stolen from a monster who plucked children form their happy existence, held them for days and then callously murdered them dumping their lifeless bodies on the side of a snow filled ditch or roadside.

Author Glen Hirshberg, who also lived in the area as a kid, dubbed him the "snowman" in his chilling hauntingly familiar tale titled "The Snowman's Children" A work of fiction laced with just enough similarities to the murders to remind me these crimes have never been solved. The kids in my neighborhood simply dubbed him the babysitter for his habit of holding his victims for days before killing them, meticulously cleaning their clothes and bodies before dumping them.

Al the snow we've ad lately remind me of that long clod bitter winter that ever seemed to end. The two block walked home from the bus stop in which you'd break into a sprint within seconds. Glancing behind to make sure no one was following you.....passing strings of houses displaying their "safe house" signs in their windows...as if that could really keep you safe....always wondering why the green house on the left never displayed the sign. It was the first time I'd ever overtly mistrusted someone based on such a simple act, not a trait I've been able to easily shake.

It's bee over 30 years since the principal came over the PA system one wintry afternoon and announced they'd found the last victim Timothy King....His father's heartache being looped on the news as he tried to make sense of his son's death and that of three other children.

There's been no closure for Mr. King and the families of Mark Stebbins, Jill Robinson and Kristine Mihelich. There has been no closure for all those kids who ran home from school trying to escape the grip of a child killer.....and there is no closure for the little girl that continues to wonder why.

Monday, March 7, 2011

I am in 7th heaven..............

I have the day off and the MLB Network is showing my boys playing against the Mets at 1 pm .........ahhh I am in my element! Now go kick some New York Ass..........

Introspection

I've long compartmentalized my angst, stored it away in a tidy drawer never to acknowledged it, at least not in public. That way it's easy to deny the role it has played in my life. How I've molded my entire adult life, every perception, every thought, every word said to me according to it's deceit.

I had an epiphany while in therapy last week, that's a good thing I guess, but I've come to the realization that it's not so much that I'm afraid of facing my fears and solving my angst...but rather I'm afraid of who I will be without it.

I mean who am I really, without all the baggage I've inadvertently carried around for so many years....That my friend...... scares me more than anything.

Oh Man that is just Nasty

I thought skunks hibernated in the winter.....I mean when's the last time you opened your patio door in the dead of winter and sniffed that rectched smell? Honestly I've never had that happen till tonight....well let me back up I didn't actually smell the skunk till about 30 seconds after I opened the door and the dog took off after the skunk. Needless to say she startled that little Pepe La Pue and it sprayed.....thank god it wasn't a direct hit cuz I am in no mood to drag my ass to Walmart at midnight to buy 5 gallons of tomato juice to soak my dog in.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Conversation Fail Part duex

Ok so like I said before there is a ton of stuff that has been said in my class and everyday I think nothing can top this, but it always does.  So I was talking to my biology students about how manufactures use hormones to spur growth in livestock like chicken and cows and such. Of course I had to show some somewhat distrubing video of baby chicks being injected with growth hormones. What's a biology class with out some visual aides!

So after the discussion I asked if there were any further questions....that's when one of my brillant students stated ....."Is that why I get horney when  I eat chicken nuggets"?  Insert my eyes rolling into the back of my head while responding........."not those kind of hormones Einstein".......I digress

One more thing

Thanks to Kelly Partick for the guest post

Hey all it's me Kelly again, I told you earlier about my favorite place for buying scrubs online in an earlier post. I just wanted to let you know that this site is also a great resource for scrubs for men. As fusssy as I am with the way I like my work gear to fit, I think making comfortable work gear for men is equally important and possibly more difficult.

So men you are equally represented at blueskyscrubs, and you'll be able to get the same quality made products for yourself that us women enjoy. Don't waste your time with other scrub stores, you'll find the sizes, and quality you need in one stop.

Well that was disappointing

I really hate it when bloggers just decide to quit blogging, no warning, no hey it's been a good ride thanks for reading my stuff. Just Poof and they are gone. Yeah I know I don't deserve a good bye but well it'd would have been nice. So Freaksmack, I wish ya the best in your blog free world, going to miss ya Fred.