Meet Me on Monday

Questions:

1. What do you put on your hot dog?

Everything! Chili, cheese, relish, mustard. onions, and I am dying to visit other parts of the US where dogs are rippers, or have a culinary standard such as either being served on benches or with a 10 oz. Coke in a glass bottle.

2. Do you play Sudoku?

Nope. If anything I run to Scrabble.

3. What is your favorite vegetable?

Brocolli, or I can run to spinach easily. ~licking my lips~

4. Do you color your hair?

Nope, but I have done a blog about my impending grey hairs in the last few years so I'll try finding a link later to show you the wisp I fear.

 By the way here's the link to my graying hair in case you wondered.  There's also a cartoon attached that's another blog entirely.


5. What is your favorite brand of clothing?

Eddie Bauer, although Old Navy does have my geeky cartoon superheroes.  And Wranglers jeans, as they can actually fit my chubby ass comfortably

.

 

Thanks for listening & take care everyone.

Back to Being Busy

Well, as I was working on designs and thinking about what is to come next I suddenly found myself inundated with assignments. In fact, I went back to the school of Hottentots I worked with last year before the Christmas holidays.

So it's 6th grade again, 5 days a week, 7:15am to 3:00pm, and this includes grading papers, watching for anything else, meeting with parents, and I won't make more than I did last year, which (according to my W-2) was a total of $8400 and some change. I may do a little better this year, and I may make some cash under-the-table, trying to do some commissioned art, as my own desires don't make money ... yet.

I am going to be posting a few things on the next blog so you can see something wonderful, fanciful or warm and expressive.

I posted the above song for a dear friend of mine who needs to take in the fact that she is a jewel, not to be possessed, but to adorn the heart of someone deserving of her amazingness.

If you don't see much I haven't disappeared, I am just busy.  I do promise this won't keep me from being a better writer or artist, just a busier one.

Take care & much love,

~ j ~

Little River Band - Lonesome Loser

LITTLE RIVER BAND ~ "Lonesome Loser"

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

Beaten by the queen of hearts every time

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

He's a loser, but he still keeps on tryin'

Oooooooh-hooooooo-hooooooo

Oooooooh-ooooooh-hoooooooo

Sit down, take a look at yourself

Don't you want to be somebody

Someday somebody's gonna see inside

You have to face up, you can't run and hide

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

Beaten by the queen of hearts every time

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

He's a loser, but he still keeps on tryin'

Unlucky in love

Least that's what they say

He lost his head

And he gambled his heart away

He still keeps searching

Though there's nothing left

Staked his heart and lost

Now he has to pay the cost

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

Beaten by the queen of hearts every time

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

He's a loser, but he still keeps on tryin'

"It's okay", he smiles and says

Though this loneliness is driving him crazy

He don't show what goes on in his head

But if you watch very close you'll see it all

[Instrumental Interlude]

Sit down, take a look at yourself

Don't you want to be somebody

Someday somebody's gonna see inside

You have to face up, you can't run and hide

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

Beaten by the queen of hearts every time

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

He's a loser, but he still keeps on tryin'

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

Have you heard about the lonesome loser

Now tell me have you heard about the lonesome loser

http://www.oldielyrics.com/lyrics/little_river_band/lonesome_loser.html

****

Just a little something I crossed after seeing "The Other Guys", which had a scene in Bed, Bath & Beyond, which was one of my stories last year.

I am working on new stories, new art and hopefully posting more goodies at my other blog next door.

Gotta keep trying.

Take care.

Someone Like You by Adele

A friend of mine pointed out this song to me; thank you kindly. I hope you smile again as you're a brilliant young woman.

~ j ~

I heard

that you're settled down

that you

found a girl

and your

married now

I heard

that your dreams came true

I guess she gave you things

I didnt give to you

old friend

why you so shy

aint like you to hold back

or hide from the light

I hate to turn up out of the blue uninvited

but I couldn't stay away I couldn't fight it

I hoped you'd see my face and be reminded

that for me

it isn't over

nevermind

I'll find someone like you

I wish nothing but the best

for you too

don't forget me

I beg

I'll remember you said

sometimes it lasts in love

but sometimes it hurts instead

sometimes it lasts in love

but sometimes it hurts instead

yeah

you know how the time flies

only yesterday

it was the time of our lives

we were born and raised

in a summer haze

bound by the surprise

of our glory days

I hate to turn up out of the blue uninvited

but I couldn't stay away I couldn't fight it

I hoped you'd see my face and be reminded

that for me

it isn't over

nevermind

I'll find someone like you

I wish nothing but the best

for you too

don't forget me

I beg

I'll remember you said

sometimes it lasts in love

but sometimes it hurts instead

nothing compares

no worries or cares

regrets and mistakes

and memories made

who would have known

how bittersweet

this would taste

nevermind

I'll find someone like you

I wish nothing but the best

for you too

don't forget me

i beg

I'll remember you said

sometimes it lasts in love

but sometimes it hurts instead

nevermind

I'll find someone like you

I wish nothing but the best

for you too

don't forget me

I beg

I'll remember you said

sometimes it lasts in love

but sometimes it hurts instead

sometimes it lasts in love

but sometimes it hurts instead

Killing Mr G in Texas

I am reprinting an article I found on-line.  This morning I met a friend for breakfast & to see an early showing of the Cohen Brother "True Grit" starring Jeff Bridges & Matt Damon.  As we ate he told me about a story where several students decided to attack/assault their teachers.  A few years back a group of kids in GA thought about the same thing, (See here) and nowadays a lot of the sites teacher start for their personal use are being monitored by employers.  (See here)

So you've gotta think really carefully, "Do I want to be a teacher?"

----

'Attack A Teacher Day' Facebook Invite Gets 6 Girls Arrested'

MARTIN GRIFFITH | 01/ 7/11 06:34 PM |

RENO, Nev. — Six girls have been arrested after students were invited on Facebook to take part in "Attack a Teacher Day" at two middle schools.

One girl was accused of inviting about 100 students on the social networking website to participate in the event Friday, and the other five were accused of responding with online threats against specific teachers, Carson Middle School Principal Dan Sadler said.

The Nevada Appeal in Carson City reported the girls were booked Wednesday at juvenile hall on a misdemeanor charge of communicating threats. Their names were not released.

While the students insisted it was a joke, Sadler noted they were arrested on the same day a suspended 17-year-old student in Omaha, Neb., fatally shot an assistant principal and wounded his principal before fleeing the campus and taking his own life.

"School shootings really happen. That's why we took it seriously," Sadler told The Associated Press on Friday. "It's not OK, and it's not funny in this day and age if you're going to make a threat against a teacher."

Five of the students attend Sadler's school and the other attends Eagle Valley Middle School. Both schools are in Carson City.

Eighteen students accepted the invitation to participate in the attacks at the two schools, which had been set to take place from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Friday. A parent brought the posting to the attention of authorities, Sadler said.

Classes took place Friday without incident at both schools after students were earlier notified of the arrests and parents of the students who were arrested or accepted the invitations were contacted by authorities.

The 12- and 13-year-old students were arrested after allegedly posting threatening statements against six teachers at the two schools. One student used the word "die" before a teacher's name, while others wrote that they would "attack" certain teachers, Sadler said.

No specifics, such as weapons or how the attacks would be carried out, were mentioned, said Carson City sheriff's Deputy Jessica Rivera, the school district's resource officer. The invitation to join the attacks went out either Monday or Tuesday night.

"Even if the six girls meant it as a joke, there's no way to know if the other students who accepted the invitation weren't going to carry out the attacks in some fashion," Rivera said. "The school shooting in Nebraska is just another thing that shows us you can't take this kind of situation lightly."

The girls were released to the custody of their parents after their arrests. They were suspended from school for between three and five days.

The Facebook posting was removed by the parent of the girl who sent out the invitation to join the attacks.

Sadler said the teachers targeted by the threatening comments were shocked by the arrests because the six girls were good students. Some held leadership positions while others had top grades.

"I would say their reaction was `Are you serious? Is this really happening?'" Sadler said. "The more they thought about it, they said they were not OK with it. This is kind of disheartening to an educator."

Kathy Haas, a Carson Middle School teacher who taught two of the students who were arrested, said she was surprised because they seemed normal.

"It shows you just don't know what's going on in their minds," she said. "I don't understand their motivation. I don't think they think about the consequences because they're young. They're pretty immature then."

The arrests gave teachers at the schools a chance for classroom discussions about online communications with students, Haas added.

"It's a teachable moment and hopefully it prevents it from happening in the future," she said. "Most students know it was wrong. A lot of students said they knew about it (Facebook posting) and deleted it."

Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong said the case demonstrates the need for parents to monitor their children's online activities.

"They made some pretty violent comments about some teachers, and this isn't even close to a joke," he said. 

"Children's stresses are so great that they can act out on their frustrations. Parents need to monitor what their kids are doing on communication devices."

Originally posted at the Huffington Post here

Big Screw Up

I had my calendar skewed, and I thought grades weren't due till next week when they're due NOW!

And sadly, my password was changed, so I had to do everything by hand, in little boxes, on Word and e-mail it this morning.

I'll be dropping off the papers later on today as I have another assignment; they really don't pay me enough to grade and guide all these pest for so little a time but I should have been more attentive.  If you're wondering, with a degree, substitute teachers get about $60 - $80 a day, without/with a degree, and about $100 a day with a degree and certification, so if you're working all the time, in every changing environment of schools, then you can make $18K maybe all year, and when holidays and summer come up, you need a spare job.

And, no health insurance, so if you're sick or injured, you're outta luck. 

That's why last year (2010) I was keeping a job with 2 school districts, and working nights & weekends at Bed, Bath & Beyond.  And if you're not retired, (or have another source of income) you really need to get into a classroom where you can pull down $38K for your job being on the line ALL the time.  If the child fails now, it's not, "What can we do to fix it?"   It's "Why do you hate my child?"

Homework has gone the way of the dodo.

Writing lines is considered corporal punishment.

Using physical force to stop a fight is considered litigious & schools advise teachers not to get in the middle of a fight.

But, all that aside, the grades were my responsibility, and  it's still my fault, so I gotta fix it or be sacrificed on the pyre of failure.  I can do the lessons, motivate, and monitor the safety, but the minutiae, the bureaucracy, all that bores the ungodly SHIT out of me.

And that's why I have to try doing the other blog immediately.  I had to think long & hard about it all, and look at what's out there for art, and make my decision.

So tonight, I'll be doing and (hopefully) posting a sketch or two, something to show my effort.  (And no, the one at the top is not mine; I just Google'd scolding teacher as a phrase & these came up.)

And if you really want a chuckle, see what's on my other blog about grammar.  The creation is amazing & I likened it to art if you're bold enough to make your own poster and print it and hang it somewhere.

Here's the link there.

Thank you for listening.

afare24get

Goodbye Clock

Countdown Clock by Zoodu.com

In 20 +/- minutes you are done with my countdown.

Thank you & take care.

http://rainbowsbeginning.blogspot.com/2011/01/and-here-my-work-begins.html

Home for Now & A Second Blog

My longer-term job just cancelled.  In fact it happened this morning, so all I need to do is insert my grades, and unless something happens, I have a little more down-time.

I am waiting for payday & plotting some side work so I can keep afloat when I am not teaching.

Let's see what happens next.

Thanks for listening & my new blog is open.

Blessings,

Julian

"God helps those who help themselves." ~ Sidney Algernon (1622-1683)

"And the attitude of FAITH is the very OPPOSITE of clinging to belief, of holding on...[it] is to LET GO, and become open to truth, whatever it might turn out to be. In other words, a person who is fanatic in matters of religion, and clings to certain ideas about the nature of God and the universe, becomes a person who has no faith at all." - Alan Watts

When the clock runs out ...

http://rainbowsbeginning.blogspot.com/

Thought for today

"A guilty conscience needs to confess. 

A work of art is a confession." 

Albert Camus

(No, that is not my arm, but I liked what this tattoo has to say.)