The Great Pump Kin

So it’s that time of year when Charlie and the gang go house to house in search of “tricks or treats”.  I started to think about school while my kids were glued to the comings and goings of Snoopy the pilot.

I tried to group the main characters into school groupings.  Please take no offense if I group someone you can relate to into a group you can’t identify with.

Schroeder – classic talented and gifted (TAG) student.  He is quite refined and extremely musically talented.

Lucy most likely also falls into the TAG cat.  She seems bright enough, and ambitious enough.  At an older age she might even be an athlete.

Charlie is your average joe.  Chuck probably scoots along getting his B’s, C’s, and D’s and is OK with that.

Linus is the weird coin in the bunch.  He is pretty creative and a little far out at times.  (I think I associated with Linus on one of those quiz things a long time ago…hmmmmm)

Marcy most closely resembles Linus and most likely bats for the other team.  In the words of Seinfeld – Not that there is anything wrong with that.

Peppermint Patty and Pig Pen are definitely At Risk kids.  It’s Patty’s attitude and Pig Pen’s hygiene that lead me to this decision.

Franklin, the first black character, has to be the athlete.  It is so stereotypical, i’m sorry, I just can’t avoid it.  To tell the truth, I don’t really remember much of Frankie.

There are several other characters, including the “little red haired girl”.  If I had to guess, I would say she is the rich kid.  I can’t comment on any of the others.  If you have any comments/contradictions to my groupings let me hear ya.

Bits and pieces…

1. We got a little snack bag from the FCCLA group for parent teacher conferences.  One of the things in the bag was gardettos.  Gardettos?  really?  for PTC?  Just what I need when sitting in close quarters with parents, something to make my breath smell worse.  It might as well have  been a clove of garlic.
2. My timing is off.  I can’t seem to get on track.  It is frustrating as hell.  It’s like a disease or virus that I can’t seem to shake.
3. One mushroom tra-la-la two mushroom tra-la-la three mushroom tra-la-la three three threeeeeeeeee four mushroom tra-la-la five mushroom tra-la-la
4. I have been contemplating age lately.  Maturity too.  I suppose it’s about time, I am 35.  Mid-life crisis??
5. Fantasy football haunts my brain.
6. Started canning my salsa.  See # 4
7. I want more time in the day to do the stuff I want.
8. How do you warrant taking precious time from your kids to have time for yourself?  Is it really a sanity saver?
9. Have actually contemplated having a 3rd kid.  This almost makes me sick to my stomach.  Don’t tell my wife.

Farmer Wedding

Weddings in Iowa are fairly unique, at least when farmers are involved.  Imagine lots of men in black pants w/ brown belts and shoes, wild patterned shirts (think macarel and shovels) or maybe a polo that doesn’t cover their belly, and buzz cuts and beards.  Having limited shoping opportunites the women all tend to wear similar if not matching outfits.

There most always is a free keg or two and after you can expect lots of cheap beer being swilled.  Food is usually provide by the area meat locker (which is always quite good).  The DJ’s are of poor quality and the dancing is even worse. But don’t let my description deter you from attending, they are usually a good time and it’s not about you is it, it’s about the couple celebrating.

Just like…

…riding a bike.  or in the immortal words of George Costansa; “I’m back baby!”

I haven’t taught science in 2 years.  My position at CCHS required me to guide At Risk students in their studies in a program I developed.  This year I am teaching 3 sections of Ecology and 3 sections of my At Risk program (actually newley modified program as we added another teacher to cover when I am teaching science).  I was so eager to get back infront of the classroom to teach science, now I am not so sure.  I enjoy teaching, but my passion is still missing.

How does a person regain their passion…or find it again.  I am not sure my passion is the same.  I think that my friends from my old school might be able to agree that a little piece of my teaching joy is absent now.  When we left the old school I didn’t know how happy I was there.  I think we knew deep down inside that we had something special, but it wasn’t staring us in the face. 

So, I am desparately looking for that spark, hoping to find something to spur me along.  Until I find it, I will keep pedaling along, smiling when appropriate and playing nice.

The new dawn approaches…

School starts tomorrow.  Looks like I am behind again.  It is now 10ish and I am at a dark building trying to ready myself.  Good thing Pandora isn’t blocked, my Rock-a-billy station is keeping me moving.  I have exactly 2 curriculums to finish by this Thursday in addition to getting my room ready for educating.  We’ll say I am 85% there.

School is a lonely place to be in the dark with no people.  Maybe that is why I have turned to my keyboard.  Stay tuned for status reports…

Ahhhh shit…

OK.  blog renewal number 5?6?  who knows or cares.  My equally opposite conservative/educated/religious teaching colleague has started his own blog many years after my suggestion.  I got the itch back after reading his writings on religion and life.  It is quite amazing and refreshing that he and I can have such thoughtful, understanding conversations coming from polar opposites in many areas.  It can be attributed to our education and upbringing I believe.  It is a freindship I truely cherish yet have trouble finding time for.  With both of us teaching and coaching and raising our own kids our main correspondence falls onto the keyboard in the form of email and a few random poker games.  Maybe our blogging will add one more opportunity to converse intellegently.

So, check back.  I am going to keep things up…for at least a little while.

Bad Hair Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lately I have been living for BHF.  Every Friday on a local radio station (Rock 108 {107.9}) they play kick ass music from the 80’s essentially.  Maybe some early 90’s, but rock only and only rock.  It’s only for the noon hour, I guess this makes us want it more.

Luckily the students I teach are products of Bad Hair era parents.  This makes them appreciate it, or at least that is what I tell myself.

On a differnt note, my kids are excited for Halloween.  My daughter is a ballerina and my son is going as a turtle, but if you really want to be correct he is more like a tortoise cause he’s huge.  Lifiting him is like pulling up a 20lb sandbag.

Hope everyone has a happy H-A-double L-O-W-double E-N.

Oh shit!

Woke up, knew I had to be to school by 730, I was on schedule.  Hear Addison crying out for me, claims she has a stomach ache (most likely hungry, as she didn’t eat very much last night).  I settle her down, told her she could wear her jammies to day care (packed extra clothes in case she changed her mind).  I finished getting ready, got into Mason’s room and he had shit a really runny/pasty shit.  This shit went out the top of his diaper, soaked him, his jammies and the bed with shit juice.  Now I am late.  Have to get the shitty diaper off of him, wipe him down best I can with wipes.  Got the bath ready, took diaper out to trash, put jammies in bag, set in garage.  Got Mason washed, diapered, and dressed.  Loaded him into carrier. Took stinky shit-juice sheet and mattress pad to washing machine.  Took kids outside, locked door.  Realized I forgot Addison’s medicine…and my keys.  First thing to my mind; “Shit the bed!“  I now have two kids under 3 outside in the brisk fall air and can’t get into either my truck or house.  Also did not have wallet, so I could not pop door open with credit card.  Decided to kick in back door on garage, actually kind of cool/fun.  Stumbled over a bunch of shit, went in got keys and wallet…and medicine.  Ended up 10 minutes late to meeting.

Ahhhh the joys of being a parent.

Wow. I’m back. Don’t get all excited, I’m not.

So I have decided to try my hands…er….fingers at blogging again.  I think I need to empty my brain a bit.  Hold no expectations for my performance, as I don’t know how long it will last, or if it will suck eggs.

Things I now know since posting last:

It is really hard to pick peppers in the dark using only your Razor to light the way.

Eating bean & bacon soup leads to bean & bacon gas.  Same smell exactly.

If you hear a story about a woman with “man-hands” and they tell you she’s kinda cute, they’re lying.

College football tailgating is the best Saturday activity known to man.

Metallica finally figured it out, the fans want what they used to be – bad ass.

Beer is good. Beer is good.  Beer is good.

I am really good at pretending to listen, when in actuallity I am not.

 

That’s it for now.  Check back every so often for something new.  I am going to try to keep up.

Wise Old Bull

I don’t know if you all know the story about the Old Bull and the Young Bull on the hill, so I will tell it…the old bull and the young bull were on top of a hill looking down into the valley at a group of heffers.  The young bull says to the old bull; “Hey, hey, why don’t we run down the hill and screw one of those heffers!?”  The Old Bull just shakes his head; “Why don’t we walk down and screw them all!?”

 So why tell an old story you ask, well, an Old Bull happened to share some wisdom with me the other day.  While looking through the toy department with my daughter and my folks, I happened upon a group of dolls.  I couldn’t believe how creepy they looked with their larger-than-life foreheads.  So I pointed this fact out to my old man. 

Dad’s reply…”Foreheads?  Look at that one’s skirt!”