just a few thoughts I had today while en route to Charleston and back......
why do people believe that if you ride someone's tail at 70 mph that they will move faster? Sorry, if I am doing the speed limit, in any lane, and you are riding my bumper so close that you should have asked it to dinner first, all you are gonna get is to buy me a new vehicle. Dare ya........
why do those same people not even flinch at the thought of suddenly swinging directly in front of a 53 ft tractor trailer moving at the same speed, with no signals, no clearance, no warning of any kind? I swear I think the Darwin award was made for these people.......
why did they make those ever changing billboards---you know the ones that advertise the dr one second and beer the next? If I am driving like I am supposed to, I am NOT going to be able to take a look at the durn thing.........
And by the way, to Mr/Ms NY plates that I followed all the way out rt 10 to work today-------get some help. If you cannot drive at anything approximating the posted speed limit---usually 15 mph slower than posted----then get the hell off the road. Even better, the next time I drive thru your state, I will make doubly sure I drive AT the posted speed limit----55 shouldn't be a problem for you, since it is the posted speed limit on your stupid interstates. We can at least go 65-70 here so as to get thru it quickly-----and I-84 in NY is the most boring stretch of road I think I have ever been on---even Indiana was semi interesting on I 70.
By the way, I heard my first Obama political ad. Unfortunately, I live close to Ohio, where there is a primary in the next week or so, and so I suppose I will have to put up with HIllBill too. But Ihave to say that I was not impressed by the Obama ad. rather boring and bland if you ask me.
Ah well, neither he nor BillHil will get my vote, for any reason. Not even for dogcatcher.
Long live Opus and Bill the Cat................
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Thursday, February 21, 2008
one of them days....
Just when I thought things were going smoothly......
I called my ex yesterday on the way home from work to ask him to clarify the dates he was taking the boys this summer. Usually he takes them the latter half, but this year he wanted them the first half. I just wanted clarification, as we have had ....ummm...misunderstandings....in the past on dates.
No problem---I would check the school website to verify spring break dates while he double checked the summer dates. I emailed him, he emailed back, voila, we have it in writing.
So I put two of my 3 paid vacations on the calendar at work tonight, and thought all right---I at least have a week with the boys after school lets out before their dad gets them. So I am checking email and stuff tonight---Ben wants to do track and I am corresponding with the coach to make sure my questions are answered before I sign the papers--and double check the school website for the last day of classes----June 9th.
Their dad picks them up the 14th.
Sigh.......
But there is a silver lining----I pick them up July 19th-----and the next day is my birthday. It will be the first time in 10 years they will be with me on that day.
I called my ex yesterday on the way home from work to ask him to clarify the dates he was taking the boys this summer. Usually he takes them the latter half, but this year he wanted them the first half. I just wanted clarification, as we have had ....ummm...misunderstandings....in the past on dates.
No problem---I would check the school website to verify spring break dates while he double checked the summer dates. I emailed him, he emailed back, voila, we have it in writing.
So I put two of my 3 paid vacations on the calendar at work tonight, and thought all right---I at least have a week with the boys after school lets out before their dad gets them. So I am checking email and stuff tonight---Ben wants to do track and I am corresponding with the coach to make sure my questions are answered before I sign the papers--and double check the school website for the last day of classes----June 9th.
Their dad picks them up the 14th.
Sigh.......
But there is a silver lining----I pick them up July 19th-----and the next day is my birthday. It will be the first time in 10 years they will be with me on that day.
Monday, February 18, 2008
She amazes me.....
Shellie. I am in awe of her---her brother is too. Chris bought a book the other night that quite frankly, I thought was below his reading level---he's in 10th grade but reads higher. Shellie is in kindergarten, and is now reading it. She has read quite a bit out loud to Chris and me, and even more by herself, missing or needing help with a very few words. She is 6. She just started reading early last fall and I would say this is about a 4th or 5th grade level book, about 150 or so pages.
Chris has now cleaned out the remainder of the books in his collection--barring a couple I deemed to have subject matter a little above her head--that she could read. She is discovering that the higher the reading level, the less pictures, but seems to do fine with that. Maybe it is time to haul back out the Little House books again--heck she should be able to read it herself!!!!!
Go Shellie!!!!!!
Chris has now cleaned out the remainder of the books in his collection--barring a couple I deemed to have subject matter a little above her head--that she could read. She is discovering that the higher the reading level, the less pictures, but seems to do fine with that. Maybe it is time to haul back out the Little House books again--heck she should be able to read it herself!!!!!
Go Shellie!!!!!!
Monday, February 11, 2008
just a thought....
But if all the idiots who kept coming into the store after the snow/ice started this evening and complained about how bad the roads were would have stayed off them in the first place-----how badly did you need that Coke or that storage tote for $6-----then we could have closed early and gotten our folks home earlier. Not that I kept anyone who felt they needed to leave, but I sure would have liked to get home earlier.......my 20 minute trip took nearly 50, but most of that was me not trusting my eyes that the road was actually clearer than I expected, so I kept my speed slow.....School just notified us it is a 2hr delay, so I can sleep in some.tomorrow night will hopefully be better.......
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
sticking my opinion in again
Apparently I need to quit reading the local paper. I have always griped about the decline of the educational system in this area, and now have involved myself back on the forum page of the online version of the paper.
First, pay raises for teachers---the presumption being that if you pay them more, they will be better teachers. NOT. Ok, number one, I don;t like the idea of any pay raise for anyone that is not based on job performance. Sorry, I don't believe in giving raises across the board for anyone in any sector of work, private or public. I believe if you do the job you are supposed to be doing in the first place, then yeah you get a raise. Now if I give you a raise, then I also like to see a little more performance for my money. Works both ways.
So why should I give raises to those who do not teach the subject they were hired to teach? Any idiot can open a test booklet and tell you to study for the test and teach just a few concepts so that they look good when the test results come out. What about the biggest test of all----LIFE? Can you teach to that? Maybe not, but why not try to teach the kids all they may need to know later? No I do not use the Pythagorean thereom every day, nor E=MC squared, but I learned them. I do not remember the theme of Dreiser's "An American Tragedy" but I did read it. I do remember having to actually use my brain to do the classwork to get the grades to succeed in school. My parents and teachers expected, and demanded, the best of me and they got it, for the most part. I proved I could make A's in tough subjects, so I had no excuses for not making A's in easier ones. I learned how to think, which is a rapidly disappearing quality in many folks today, as evidenced by the poorly completed job applications I review daily. I learned how to question what I was taught. I would grant just about any teacher I had in high school a major pay raise, because for the most part, they did their job. They weren't there to get rich, but to teach. Yeah, maybe to some it was just a job. Heck I have plenty of days like that in my own job. But I still do it to the best of my ability.
Then there is the rapidly changing/disappearing honors program in our county high schools. My boys are honors students, and I see their 6 yr old sister reaping the benefits of having two very bright siblings---she will probably surpass them all. My stepdaughters are very bright----not in honors program, but I honestly feel that they would both have done very well in it, if given the chance. Even given the hormonal hurricane, ditzy, clueless days they all have from time to time, none of these kids lacks the capacity to think for themselves and learn whatever they want to know.
So are they being challenged in school? Are they being pushed to do at least what they are capable of? With a few execptions, the answer is no. Why not? That is my question. Since when does teaching at the lowest level of understanding benefit those kids who knew the stuff 3 yrs ago? What benefit is it for those gifted kids to be bored, and ignored, in the classroom, while fellow students who could not care less, or even those who learn at a slower pace, are taught and catered to? Why should my bright kids be in classes with those who are constant discipline problems? Get the problems out of there so the others can learn. Put kids of like abilities in the same classroom so they can learn from and challenge each other.
Demand the best. Always.
I am sure there will be much more on this topic.......
First, pay raises for teachers---the presumption being that if you pay them more, they will be better teachers. NOT. Ok, number one, I don;t like the idea of any pay raise for anyone that is not based on job performance. Sorry, I don't believe in giving raises across the board for anyone in any sector of work, private or public. I believe if you do the job you are supposed to be doing in the first place, then yeah you get a raise. Now if I give you a raise, then I also like to see a little more performance for my money. Works both ways.
So why should I give raises to those who do not teach the subject they were hired to teach? Any idiot can open a test booklet and tell you to study for the test and teach just a few concepts so that they look good when the test results come out. What about the biggest test of all----LIFE? Can you teach to that? Maybe not, but why not try to teach the kids all they may need to know later? No I do not use the Pythagorean thereom every day, nor E=MC squared, but I learned them. I do not remember the theme of Dreiser's "An American Tragedy" but I did read it. I do remember having to actually use my brain to do the classwork to get the grades to succeed in school. My parents and teachers expected, and demanded, the best of me and they got it, for the most part. I proved I could make A's in tough subjects, so I had no excuses for not making A's in easier ones. I learned how to think, which is a rapidly disappearing quality in many folks today, as evidenced by the poorly completed job applications I review daily. I learned how to question what I was taught. I would grant just about any teacher I had in high school a major pay raise, because for the most part, they did their job. They weren't there to get rich, but to teach. Yeah, maybe to some it was just a job. Heck I have plenty of days like that in my own job. But I still do it to the best of my ability.
Then there is the rapidly changing/disappearing honors program in our county high schools. My boys are honors students, and I see their 6 yr old sister reaping the benefits of having two very bright siblings---she will probably surpass them all. My stepdaughters are very bright----not in honors program, but I honestly feel that they would both have done very well in it, if given the chance. Even given the hormonal hurricane, ditzy, clueless days they all have from time to time, none of these kids lacks the capacity to think for themselves and learn whatever they want to know.
So are they being challenged in school? Are they being pushed to do at least what they are capable of? With a few execptions, the answer is no. Why not? That is my question. Since when does teaching at the lowest level of understanding benefit those kids who knew the stuff 3 yrs ago? What benefit is it for those gifted kids to be bored, and ignored, in the classroom, while fellow students who could not care less, or even those who learn at a slower pace, are taught and catered to? Why should my bright kids be in classes with those who are constant discipline problems? Get the problems out of there so the others can learn. Put kids of like abilities in the same classroom so they can learn from and challenge each other.
Demand the best. Always.
I am sure there will be much more on this topic.......
Sunday, February 03, 2008
R.I.P. Thomasina
My kitty cat died today. I guess she was more Mom and Dad's kitty than mine, but she was mine at the start, when she showed up at our house as a wet, bedraggled kitty hiding under our porch. And of course I had to pet on her and then my brother fed her a can of tuna---after that, she was ours. I took her to the vet and got her fixed and her shots, and she was designated as an outdoor kitty, since we didn't want pets in the house.
That changed in May of 1990 (we found her in September 1989). Mom came home from the store or something and grabbed me to drive her back out the road where a cat that looked an awful lot like Tommicat had been hit. We drove by it a couple of times and I told Mom that I couldn't see where a collar should be, and we always kept a collar on her. Plus I told her that I had seen a cat that looked like ours around, when I knew ours was in the garage or something. About an hour later, here comes that persnickety cat walking up the drive, looking very pleased with herself. After that, she became a house cat.
I moved out in August 1990 and couldn't take her with me like I wanted, but Mom and Dad kept care of her over the intervening years. Occasionally we argued good naturedly about whether she was a Maine coon cat or a mutt cat or what. But she was gorgeous. I have pic after pic of her as a younger cat, with beautiful long fur that was charcoal gray mostly, darker some places, lighter others, with some orange mixed in and I couldn't begin to tell you what other colors. She was just a pretty cat. She caught baby birds straight from the nest, chipmunks, mice......
typical kitty cat.
She was a purrser---meaning she was a purry kitty.
But she got older, and kind of crotchety with age. In 1995, married with kids and living in PA by this time, with 2 other cats, I was diagnosed with asthma and told that the cats aggravated it greatly. So as I refused to destroy what finances we had by taking costly allergy shots or daily medication to keep the pets, we farmed Scruffy out to Mom and Dad and Charlie found a good home also. So Tommicat had Scruffy to torment her in her later years, after years of being an only kitty.
Tommicat aged, and not well. She went thru a period of not grooming herself--and not letting anyone else do it for her. She became very unsocial around some people---not that she was the most social cat anyway, but around those she was not used to, and kids especially, she did not want to be messed with. Her legs became arthritic and it was hard for her to walk sometimes, much less jump or run, although if she had a need, she could. She began not being particular about her litter box habits, and we began to wonder if each day would be her last.
About 4pm today, Mom called to chat, and part of her call was to tell me that Tommi had died today. Part of me wanted to cry, but I knew she was better off, as I explained to my 6 yr old. She is in kitty heaven, purring around the Lord's ankles, chasing mice and birds and so on, with legs that have no pain now. I know Mom and Dad are sad--she has been part of the family for almost 19 years. I wonder how Scruffy will get on--he is nearly 15 and has been with Tommi for 12 1/2 years.
Bye bye Thomasina. We loved you and will miss all that you brought to our lives over the years.
That changed in May of 1990 (we found her in September 1989). Mom came home from the store or something and grabbed me to drive her back out the road where a cat that looked an awful lot like Tommicat had been hit. We drove by it a couple of times and I told Mom that I couldn't see where a collar should be, and we always kept a collar on her. Plus I told her that I had seen a cat that looked like ours around, when I knew ours was in the garage or something. About an hour later, here comes that persnickety cat walking up the drive, looking very pleased with herself. After that, she became a house cat.
I moved out in August 1990 and couldn't take her with me like I wanted, but Mom and Dad kept care of her over the intervening years. Occasionally we argued good naturedly about whether she was a Maine coon cat or a mutt cat or what. But she was gorgeous. I have pic after pic of her as a younger cat, with beautiful long fur that was charcoal gray mostly, darker some places, lighter others, with some orange mixed in and I couldn't begin to tell you what other colors. She was just a pretty cat. She caught baby birds straight from the nest, chipmunks, mice......
typical kitty cat.
She was a purrser---meaning she was a purry kitty.
But she got older, and kind of crotchety with age. In 1995, married with kids and living in PA by this time, with 2 other cats, I was diagnosed with asthma and told that the cats aggravated it greatly. So as I refused to destroy what finances we had by taking costly allergy shots or daily medication to keep the pets, we farmed Scruffy out to Mom and Dad and Charlie found a good home also. So Tommicat had Scruffy to torment her in her later years, after years of being an only kitty.
Tommicat aged, and not well. She went thru a period of not grooming herself--and not letting anyone else do it for her. She became very unsocial around some people---not that she was the most social cat anyway, but around those she was not used to, and kids especially, she did not want to be messed with. Her legs became arthritic and it was hard for her to walk sometimes, much less jump or run, although if she had a need, she could. She began not being particular about her litter box habits, and we began to wonder if each day would be her last.
About 4pm today, Mom called to chat, and part of her call was to tell me that Tommi had died today. Part of me wanted to cry, but I knew she was better off, as I explained to my 6 yr old. She is in kitty heaven, purring around the Lord's ankles, chasing mice and birds and so on, with legs that have no pain now. I know Mom and Dad are sad--she has been part of the family for almost 19 years. I wonder how Scruffy will get on--he is nearly 15 and has been with Tommi for 12 1/2 years.
Bye bye Thomasina. We loved you and will miss all that you brought to our lives over the years.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
back again.......
This is how my life goes........Wednesday, Chris comes home from school and hands me his report card---3.57 for 3rd 6 wks and 3.8 cumulative. Very cool, even though I still think he has room for improvement in his honors English....then he tells me that he and Ben made All County orchestra. Cool again......Then he tells me that he is supposed to be concertmaster next year in orchestra....even cooler.........
Then the shoe drops......Hey Mom I was flicking my bottom retainer around in 7th pd and look....as he pulls out the bottom retainer and shows me it is broken in two, right about the left lower incisor.
He has had his retainers for 3 weeks.
3 weeks....
THREE FREAKING WEEKS!!!!!!!
So I call the orthodontist. That'll be $145. Drops his molds off 1st thing in the morning and they should be ready hopefully by late afternoon. I looked at Chris while still on the phone and told him he was a dead kid. So much for getting her driving permit when he turns 16---there will not be a 16. The lady at the ortho's office laughs----apparently I am not the first parent to mortally threaten her kid over this.
So I agree to bring the molds in at 8:30 the next morning. 5 minutes later, I had just reamed the boy a brand new butthole, and the office calls me back-----turns out Chris's gums were still swollen from getting the braces off when the original molds were made, so he may have to have a new set anyway for them to fit correctly, so we may be in luck.Could I bring him in at 2pm the next day. Sure. My day off is apparently just meant to suck, so why not. So I took him in.
He is the luckiest 15 yr old on the planet. his gums weren't swollen anymore and so making a new bottom retainer was necessary, and I was not charged for it.
Luckiest damn high schooler around........
On another note, Ronnie ran into his oldest girl at WM tonight and they saw a very pregnant teen---he said about 15 or so, though she looked 12----and our lovely airhead said something about how many pregnant teens she sees at WM and how awful it is. He told her the only difference b/w them and her is they got caught. The man has been married to me too long--he is starting to sound like me-----and I'm guessing it went right over her head, as all she does is right and all we do is wrong. But I am proud of her daddy for saying what he did. Funny thing, she is so much more mature and wordly wise than her younger sister, yet her younger sister at least seems to get it: why can't she?
Well, yeah it's late, but I am facing a moral dilemma-----my niece wants a pink quilt. Shellie has one, so it stands to reason she wants one too. Actually she wanted Shellie's. I am not happy with the selection of pinks I have---nothing seems to suit what I see for her quilt, so I am either going to have to talk her into purple, like I think her mom would rather, or I will need to up what I pay for fabric just a little and get her what I want. Hmmm, I think I will email mom and see what she thinks........
Then the shoe drops......Hey Mom I was flicking my bottom retainer around in 7th pd and look....as he pulls out the bottom retainer and shows me it is broken in two, right about the left lower incisor.
He has had his retainers for 3 weeks.
3 weeks....
THREE FREAKING WEEKS!!!!!!!
So I call the orthodontist. That'll be $145. Drops his molds off 1st thing in the morning and they should be ready hopefully by late afternoon. I looked at Chris while still on the phone and told him he was a dead kid. So much for getting her driving permit when he turns 16---there will not be a 16. The lady at the ortho's office laughs----apparently I am not the first parent to mortally threaten her kid over this.
So I agree to bring the molds in at 8:30 the next morning. 5 minutes later, I had just reamed the boy a brand new butthole, and the office calls me back-----turns out Chris's gums were still swollen from getting the braces off when the original molds were made, so he may have to have a new set anyway for them to fit correctly, so we may be in luck.Could I bring him in at 2pm the next day. Sure. My day off is apparently just meant to suck, so why not. So I took him in.
He is the luckiest 15 yr old on the planet. his gums weren't swollen anymore and so making a new bottom retainer was necessary, and I was not charged for it.
Luckiest damn high schooler around........
On another note, Ronnie ran into his oldest girl at WM tonight and they saw a very pregnant teen---he said about 15 or so, though she looked 12----and our lovely airhead said something about how many pregnant teens she sees at WM and how awful it is. He told her the only difference b/w them and her is they got caught. The man has been married to me too long--he is starting to sound like me-----and I'm guessing it went right over her head, as all she does is right and all we do is wrong. But I am proud of her daddy for saying what he did. Funny thing, she is so much more mature and wordly wise than her younger sister, yet her younger sister at least seems to get it: why can't she?
Well, yeah it's late, but I am facing a moral dilemma-----my niece wants a pink quilt. Shellie has one, so it stands to reason she wants one too. Actually she wanted Shellie's. I am not happy with the selection of pinks I have---nothing seems to suit what I see for her quilt, so I am either going to have to talk her into purple, like I think her mom would rather, or I will need to up what I pay for fabric just a little and get her what I want. Hmmm, I think I will email mom and see what she thinks........
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