This is my original blog. I haven’t updated for years. I keep it as a reminder of the journey.
Please see Broke Teacher for education and Poser Homestead for chickens, recipes, and dead zucchini.
The Toughest Break
Took a break from my pile of work for a run on a lovely day. Took a break from my run on a lovely day to introduce myself to a delightful neighbor down the road. Took a break from my delightful neighbor conversation to watch a hunter drag a dead deer out across the...
On Crime and Punishment
Kids and trouble Declan got in trouble in school again. This isn't new. He hangs out with the principal so much he doesn't know principals are supposed to scare kids despite the fact you spell "principal" with a "p-a-l." If I ask him, he'll tell me the principal gets...
To All the Foods I’ve Loved Before
"Ramen comes in seventeen different flavors." I'm really not sure. I needed a fact, and like a standard TV broadcaster or government official, I made it up. I tell my students how much ramen they'll eat in life. "You'll eat it while you work your way up the ladder....
“I’d Rather Be Shot at than Teach”
The reason nothing gets changed is because nobody wants to vote. I vote every chance I get, even if I have to write in a candidate. I'm a bit of a voting junkie. People have been shot at protecting my right to vote. "My vote doesn't make a difference," kids say....
Want Your Stuff Fixed? Don’t Vote–Pick Up The Shovel and Dig.
Why are schools closed for voting? They shouldn't be. The same politicians who tell me to fix public education close school so they can put stickers on constituents? We've got work to do so we can beat Finland like the politicians want. They can't close school....
What We Have Here is a Failure to Communicate
These are two hours I can never get back in my life. Ever. Two hours of "communicating" with my "communication" company. "Our billing systems aren't integrated." This is an IQ test more than a phone call. Mistakes happen. I lived in a city that always credited my...
Fairy Tales are Parent Lies
"Teach me about Slenderman." Slenderman is Declan's new "thing." For a while, it was Jacob Marley, then dinosaurs, then video games. Declan loves Minecraft. Minecraft lies somewhere between Legos and little kid engineering--it's great stuff. It makes me motion sick...
Thank God it’s Saturday: You Survived the 1st Week of School!
I survived the first week of school! I feel like I got hit by a truck. It's not the work, it's the general chaos. Kids swirling around the building, schedule changes, the feeling I couldn't take accurate attendance if I tried, "Miss, I'm supposed to be in this class."...
Nobody’s Ready for the First Day of School
It's five a.m. The bread is in the oven, breakfast in my bowl. I made it in the crock pot last night in an amazing feat of "I'm going to get ready for school the night before. The momentum should last at least a week. I'm listening to crickets. Birds aren't yet awake....
Yoga: Tying the Body in Knots
I'm on yoga retreat, contemplating the meaning of life, but I keep thinking I should get ready for the school year. Pause. I promised I would not do schoolwork this weekend, no matter that I got my schedule really late or that in a few short days I'm going to have...
Moms Can Detail Cars, Too!
I may be a girl, but I know my cars. And it's time to detail this one. I'm going to a yoga retreat today. I have to go on retreat because it's the only time I can avoid being jumped on while I practice yoga. It's bad karma to go on a yoga retreat with a car filled...
Invasion of Privacy Starts Young
Declan got a letter in the mail. I didn't think twice about it. I opened it right after I opened the monthly notice from the electric company telling me,"You used 4% more energy this year than last year." Declan's letter wasn't a bulk notice from the school. It was a...