Full Weeks Suck!

The week didn't go slowly, really but working a full 5-day work week just isn't my fave. Next week, though I'll work 5 days, I'll have a kid-free Friday since we'll have an inservice that I'm hoping I get to spend at my desk working. Then, I've taken Monday the 4th off for Jim's next appointment so WOOT! 

Yesterday I went to Aldi and stocked up on most of my favorite things there: 1/2 and 1/2 (it's fat free and about $2 cheaper than anywhere else), sprouted bread, beans (lots of beans! - funny story about that in a minute), ground turkey, frozen shrimp and so on. I loves me some Aldi and their prices! 

So yeah, we've been "studying" about biomolecules in Biology (carbs, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids). I say "studying" because I'm pretty sure most of my kids aren't learning anything. Anyway - we were going over examples of where we get these biomolecules. You know, carbs = breads, pastas, potatoes and proteins = meats and beans. So I tell the kids I eat beans pretty much every morning (they're in my breakfast concoction) and one of my kids says, "That's gross." It took me a minute to figure out why he thought that was gross. Apparently in this kids mind, beans = farts. So then I had to say, "Mmm...beans..." and then, "Beans beans they're good for your heart the more you eat the more you fart. The more you fart the better you feel so eat beans for every meal!" I think he was mortified to think of me, his teacher as farting. He doesn't know me very well! 

Thankfully, today will end my suffering teaching about biomolecules. The kids will take they're test (open note because come on...there's no way they would score near passing without their notes) and I'll finally get a break from trying to drill this stupid shit into their brains. Why, you ask am I teaching them this? Because I have to...it's part of the curriculum. What're you going to do?

Tonight Jim and I will go to dinner with Doug and Lauren. We're going to Pacific Kitchen...an Asian restaurant. I say Asian because it serves dishes from 12 different countries in Asia. I try to have a different dish every time I go there. Last time I had a ramen dish. I haven't had their Pad Thai so I'm thinking that for tonight but we'll see. The menu is about 10 pages long. They also feature a lot of dishes with Spam. Jim had their Pad Thai with Spam last time...it was actually really delicious. A little salty for my taste but still yummy. After dinner tonight we'll most likely come home and hit the sack because Jim has to be at work at 6AM. 

I'm sad. I'm 2 or 3 shows away from the end of this season of Great British Bake Off. I'll have to wait a year! Life just isn't fair! 

Okay well, I'd best get a move on. Happy Friday! Later!

Sweet Mountain Christmas!

I was perusing the Internet (NO! Not perusing porn as Maggie would say) and up popped an ad for a movie that is premiering tonight on Lifetime! Sweet Mountain Christmas (with Megan Hilty who I like)! I mean...does someone  know me or what?! (Big Brother is watching) I can't wait for Christmas! And not just because two days after I'm headed to Punta Cana! I just love the holidays! Of course I'm freaking out a bit that I haven't started my shopping but then again, Jim and I are going on a trip so really that's our present to each other. But of course I'll have to get him something to open on Xmas morning.

I was reading the latest just a few minutes ago and there was a story about a speech tRUMP gave yesterday/last night talking about his big beautiful wall being build on Colorado's border. I mean...who but tRUMP would not know the geography of his own country...the country he's president of (HA!)? So of course Twitter went nuts...my fave was the pic on the left.

I came home yesterday and Jimmy was home so I got to take a lovely bike ride and then I came home and took a nice walk with Scouty. He was so happy!

Speaking of my dogs, they are filthy! They both need a bath which I won't be able to give them until Saturday. Maybe I'll try to give them one today or tomorrow though...with Jim's help.

Jim has to work on Saturday. It was either that or go in at 10PM this week tonight. He has to be there at 6AM which I'm fine with because A) I'll still be sleeping and B) He'll be home before noon. Plus it's going to be a nasty day on Saturday so we don't have any real plans. Maybe a quick trip to Little Miami (still need to try their pumpkin beer)...who knows?

And that's all I've got. Today will be a stupid day at work because we're on an Advisory schedule...I hate advisory as I've mentioned before. The activities tend to be stupid and today is no exception. Oh well...this too shall pass and then tomorrow is FRIDAY! (And we're going out to Pacific Kitchen for dinner tomorrow...yum!)

K - I'm out. Happy Thursday! (There's another weird sounding animal outside.) Later!

I Don't Know Why Jim Talks To Me

Jim says stupid shit...thems just the facts. So there's this Thrifty commercial that's been on lately and Kenan Thompson from SNL is the new "face". So Jim says to me, "What's that guys name who is on that Thrifty commercial?" And I said, "I don't know...I can't remember...something Thompson maybe?" And then Jim says, "Oh yeah, Kenan Thompson." Then he adds this: "Did you know he's had the longest run on SNL and I don't even know his name? And I think that's the norm with a lot of people!" (Apparently he's had a lot of conversations about Kenan Thompson and done some polls on if people know who he is or not.) "And then he said, "Why do you think people don't know who he is?" And I said, "Well, maybe you weren't sure who he was because you don't watch SNL. I knew his last name was 'Thompson' and when I said that you immediately came back with his first name. So I'm thinking this """theory""" of yours is bullshit?"

Like I said, Jim says stupid shit sometimes.

My ass and arms hurt. I did some pretty rigorous yoga yesterday with a lot of chaturangas and some splits (that I can't do but tried) and boy am I feeling it this morning. It's a good hurt though.

There is some kind of crazy animal outside that my dogs are interested in. I don't know what it is but it's out there sort of screaming. It almost sounds like a dog but I don't think it is. So weird. Boo just came running in - obviously wigged out a bit but of course Scout is still out there thinking he can wrangle the damn thing given the chance.

My behavior kid has been absent for the last week - bronchitis and then pink eye - and is coming back today...dread. He's such a lying pain in the ass. And his lying is partially his skewed sense of reality. We had this long conversation about him coming to me a couple days a week during his 1st period so I can help him and then I get an email from his gma saying he didn't know he could do this...he thought it was a one time thing. I'll set them straight when I get to work. He's just so exhausting. Oh well...such is my job.

Okay - well, I best mosey...get to work and drink another 10 cups of delicious coffee. Happy Wednesday...half way through. Later!

I Need To Get A Cheetah!

Specifically, I need to go steal Kris, the Cincinnati Zoo's cheetah and her companion dog Remus. Although, I don't think Scout and Boo would appreciate the new additions. I mean, how cool would it be if you were a dog and you said, "My best friend is a cheetah!" (Or if you were a cheetah and could say, "My best friend is a dog!") So sweet!

Today should be an easy day (knock on wood). My LA classes are required to go to a vaping/juul lecture which means, I'll have 3rd, 4th, and 5th bells basically free. Woot! I'm hoping to crank out a couple IEPs during that time. I also have a parent requesting to have a chat. Her daughter just transferred into Kings this year and is struggling in Geometry. All these kids are struggling in this class because they basically teach using a computer program and they've combined two classes so there are approximately 40 kids. The struggling learners are getting lost. Stupid.

What else is happening? Can't think...nothing. It's nice and chilly out. We got some rain yesterday. Um...not much else. I'm so boring lately. Not that I'm complaining but it certainly doesn't make for an exciting read, does it?

OH!!! It's Diane's birthday today! I totally forgot! Damn! Happy birthday Diane! You won't read this but I'll see you 2nd bell. Boo and Scout say "Rappy Rirthday Romma Ree!" (That's happy birthday Momma D!)

Okay well, on that note...I'm out. Happy Tuesday! Later!

Back To The Grind

Another Monday...the weekend went way too fast. I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't remember what day it was. For a minute I got excited thinking I wouldn't have to work when I got up. And then I remembered and my heart sunk a little. Oh well...another day another dollar.

The weekend was good. Jim and I had quite the adventure going to the Party Source. We headed to the Banks and all the roads were closed for some marathon. Once we finally found a place to park and got to the Yard House, we were enjoying a beer, had just ordered food and the electricity went out. In the end we had to leave because we weren't going to get lunch there (they had no clue when the power would come back on) and ended up at Hofbrauhaus. Yummy.

The Party Source was a bit of a dud in that they didn't have any kegs we wanted. They did have some yummy beer, however and I'm excited! Death by Coconut and a couple other coffee infused beers.

The week should be relatively easy. No meetings this week...no late nights. I should be able to get caught up on a couple things so that's good.

Storms will come in this afternoon. We need the rain for sure.

Our giant tree is down in the backyard...what a relief. Of course the dumb asses took all the wood which pissed me off. They'll be replacing it when we need it.

Got my passport on Saturday! And our airline confirmation. Woot!

Okay - gotta mosey...I have to get gas on the way to school. Happy Monday Later!

One Down...

...three to go. Late nights, that is, at work. Last night was fine. I got hardly anything done, however, because my meetings were so spread out. 3:45, 3:55-4:40; by the time I finished my dinner at that point, my 5:40 showed up. Then I had a 5:53 appointment and a 6:06 appointment and then it was time to go. All the meetings went well...I have happy parents.

Today should be pretty easy. Test in US history, reading to my LA kids (we're about half way through our Agatha Christie book) and in science we're going to slow down and make a word wall...cause these kids just don't understand Carbon-based Molecules. Not sure their teacher does either. Just kidding!

My plans for the weekend are pretty exciting: A whole lot of hanging at home and loving on my pups. I've been away these last two weekends so I'm excited to have no commitments. Our neighbors are headed to Louisville tonight and we'll take care of their Great Dane, bearded dragon, fish and cat but that's no big deal. Jim and I do have plans - finally - to go to the Party Source to replenish our kegs and then eat lunch at Yard House but that's fun stuff!

The tree is mostly down in back. They got all the branches off and most of the brush has been hauled away. My neighbor kept me informed on the goings-on yesterday via text so I didn't have to worry so much. Phew! Tree guys will return today to drop the trunk which should come down easily and without incident (knock on wood). It's amazing to look out there and not see that tree. It was such a behemoth and took up so much sky space...it's like we put a sky light in! Oh, I guess we do have that chore to do this weekend now: stack the pieces to season for splitting next year.

And that's about all I've got. It's Friday and considering I had a late night last night - the week really did fly by. Happy weekend people! Later!

Look Who's 53!!!

Happy birthday to TRIPPY!!! I hope you have a marvelous day! Here are the things that make me thankful every day to have you as my brother:

• I love how much you love JJ and I love the father you are to him! He is your life's work and it touches my heart every time I see you two together!
• My love of sports (especially baseball) can be chalked up to you and I know who to call whenever I have a question about one of our teams! 
• I love your wife! I know that's about her but I'm so glad you were smart enough to snatch her up and bring her into this family! 
• I love to play euchre with you because I know you don't take it too seriously and won't annoy me (like Jim does) when we play. BTW - we need to get together and play soon!
• I love that you're pretty much up for anything! PIB is so much more fun when you're there!
• You're generous and and funny and the best big brother out there! I hope you have an amazing day! Love you

In other news, I've been APPROVED!!! In other words, my passport is on its way! It was a pain in the ass to get this damn thing but I can only blame myself (for not knowing better) and the damn post office dude who didn't send in the correct paperwork. In the end, it took just about 6 weeks, which is the allotted time they give for normal processing and that's even with an eff up in my paperwork. 

In scary news: The tree guys are taking the giant tree down in the backyard today. I'm so nervous! I'm so worried they're going to hit the house or the fence. The good thing about this is that I won't be home when it's going on and so won't have to watch on tender hooks! Being at work will allow me to be preoccupied and not think about what's going on but I'll still worry. Mostly about the dogs. I know they'll be wrecks while in their cages and hearing everything happening but what else can I do? Fingers crossed it all goes as planned and nothing bad happens. 

In sad news: Elijah Cummings died. Ugh! He was only 68! I know he was ill lately and had heart issues but it just makes me sad. 

Today is my LONG day at school. I'll be there for 12 hours and though I will be able to get work done that needs doing, I have 5 parents to meet with which doesn't make me happy. I mean seriously?! You need to meet with me when we email back and forth about 3 times a week already? Why must they waste my time? Add to all that - I'll be extra tired today because I got up at 4:00 to exercise but it's worth it! Now I won't feel guilty when I'm sitting for so long tonight at my computer and I can forgive myself for the 2 glasses of wine I had last night. 

Okay - time to get a move on...happy Thursday! Later

Guess Who's 51?!

Happy Birthday Maggie! So glad we got to celebrate this past weekend! You make 51 (and any age really) look amazing!!!

Here's what I celebrate about you, not just today but everyday:

• You are my best friend.
• You are the voice of reason for me when the voice inside my head is screaming and can't be heard. 
• You are the mamma to one of my fave peeps in the whole world! 
• You are generous!
• You were my support in the last year while we went on the WW journey to finally get those pounds off. 
• You motivate me to keep going in my health journey (especially when all I want to do is chug a bottle of wine!)
• You have been such a support to Jimmy and me through his whole health crisis. 
• You make me laugh everyday! 
• You are supportive and you cheer me on and know when I need a kick in the pants
• You are my sounding board!
• Basically, you get me and I hope you have a great day! Talk to you later!

Guess what? It's raining...like cats and dogs. However, it should end here in about 2 hours or so and from that point, the temps will plummet! Brr!!! Of course, that won't last and by the weekend, we'll be back in the 70s again. I have NO idea when I'm going to finally get a fire in my fireplace! Ugh! 

One good thing from yesterday: I managed to get home exercise and then get the front yard mowed. It needed it, especially because I needed to mulch up the leaves that had fallen. We have a long way to go before that job will finally be done but at least I got that done before the rain. 

Jim got our new outdoor lights mounted. They're awesome too because they have a sensor and just pop on and off when the light gets dim enough! And they look good! I had been looking for a while and hadn't found anything I liked but Jim went to Costco and found exactly what I was looking for. Good boy Jimmy!

And that's about all I've got. I have a 7:30 meeting today so need to get a move on to make sure things are set to go. Hopefully it will be an easy, quick meeting. Should be. 

Happy Wednesday. Later!

Snuggles

Boo has recently switched his sleeping habits and is now into spooning with me, under the covers, while laying his head in my arm pit. This makes me happy. This is what I've missed since my sweet boys Bubba and Zeke got too old to get on the bed. Last night he got there, I tucked him in, and aside from switching positions, he didn't move all night long until the alarm went off. He just keeps getting sweeter and sweeter!

So I have an IEP tomorrow and I realized last night when I woke up around 3:00 AM that I don't think I ever finished the IEP. Oops. This also means I didn't send a draft home. Oops. Well, at least it's a kid who I've had for 4 years and I can crank out a goal before school starts. Woot.

I mentioned in a previous post that parent/teacher conferences are on Thursday and I got my sign-up sheet of parents after school yesterday. I have 4 meetings...which annoys me a little. One is with a parent who always comes. Another is for a parent who was bummed she didn't get to meet me at Open house and the other two, well, the one showed up last year and isn't a big deal. The final one is for the new Down Syndrome girl who is completely misplaced in nearly every class. She takes my class (Language Arts) but is also in a "college prep" English class. She is completely unengaged and basically stares off into space with her fingers in her mouth whenever anything is going on in class. She has practically NO communication skills and though the parents assured the "team" she was well-versed in her iPad communication app, she's not. They also said she's on a 4th grade reading level which is another joke. Maybe pre-primer! I understand wanting your child to be a part of the school with as much normalcy as possible but it's such a disservice to not teach her any life skills. They have the idea that she'll be going to college and living on her own someday but she can't even walk to class by herself. She got stuck in a bathroom stall a couple weeks ago and couldn't figure out how to get out. But she's going to live on her own!? Right! God forbid we celebrate her differences; her uniqueness and try to capitalize on that rather than make her something she's not. We can shoot for the stars and make lofty goals while still teaching her some sort of independence. And they're such hypocrites! On one hand, they want her completely included in every way at school and yet they demand to hamper her progress and have an aide who is supposed to do everything for her, every minute of the day. Right now, her day consists of sitting in classes without learning anything! But of course I won't be saying any of that to the parents.  So annoying.

And that's all I've got. I need to get moving so I can finish that IEP. Oh, I made a delicious soup last night: Skinny Chicken Fajita Soup. It didn't call for it to be made in the instant pot but I did anyway and it was yummy with lots of leftovers that I froze.

Okay - time to finish my toilette! Ooh, it's National Cheese Curd day! And National Cake Decorating day! And Global Hand washing Day! And a day for me too: National Grouch Day! I will try to celebrate all of those today. Happy Tuesday! Later!

A Full 5-Day Week

It's been a while since I've actually had to work a full week but here we are. And this next run (until Thanksgiving) is going to be a tough one. Although, Nov. 1st is an in-service so that is something. Oh, and I will be taking a 1/2 day (or whole) to go to Jim's follow up appointment for the scan he has today (I'm a little worried about this one) so that's something. I can do it!!! I just have to keep my eye on the "prize" which is Thanksgiving break and then Christmas! AND THEN PUNTA CANA!!!

The weekend was lovely by the way. It was very relaxing and fun and we had beautiful weather. Saturday was quite breezy and chilly in the Oktoberfest tent but a bit of beer and brats kept us warm. Basically we ate, drank, played cards, drank some more, walked, shopped...and that's about it. It's always nice to go there in the fall (for all the obvious reasons) but everything is on sale as well, which means I made out like a bandit in terms of replenishing my sweatshirts and even got a cute little ornament.

We got the 9:30 ferry (which wasn't on the Miller schedule) so Jim and I got home (after stopping for lunch at Panera) before 2:00. It was a rough ride home but as Maggie said, it didn't even make the top 10 of rough rides we've experienced.

This week at school will be a bit of a pain since I have an IEP Wednesday (it will be easy) but then Thursday is Parent/Teacher Conferences so I'll have to be at school until 7:00. I don't know yet if I have any meetings but I usually only have one or two. We'll see. I have a feeling that since I missed Open House, a couple teachers may want to come in to meet me. Here's hoping I'm wrong.

Okay well, I'd best get moving...happy Monday! Later!

Jobs That No Longer Exist

I wish one of the bullet points on that list (based on the title of this post) were Donald Trump's job as president but alas, that fucking clown is still in the White House. I shouldn't call him a clown though because there are some people who think clowns are funny and the shit that DT is pulling now just isn't funny. It's scary. The best word for him at this point with what's now happening in Syria is murderer. I think what's going to maybe tickle his regret button is when he starts hearing those serving in the military saying they are ashamed of DT and what he's doing to America. How does he still have supporters? And if your answer is that we (America) can't be the only ones helping to fight terrorism, you may want to keep in mind that we can stop fighting terrorists but they aren't going to stop fighting us.

So now to my list of jobs that no longer exist. I saw this online and was interested and will share with my kids at school since we're currently studying the about labor unions in the late 1800s. Here are just a few good ones:

• Soil Collector - I mean, that would suck! This was a person who would go around and collect buckets of waste from homes at night. What a stinky job that would be.
• Rat Catcher  - no explanation needed. I think the worst part of this job was the mound of rodents they had in the picture. Gross...gives me the willies!
• Used Teeth Salesman - This was something they had in UK and Ireland where people couldn't afford dental upkeep/cleanings and then after they lost all their teeth, they couldn't afford new false teeth so they would have to use USED teeth. Gross! I would you NOT gag putting those in your mouth? 
• Projectionist - I only put this up here because it hasn't been that long that we've had projectionists at movie theaters. In fact, I know Trip used to run the projectors at the movie theater when he worked there and though I never ran them, they had them at Kenwood Towne Centre theaters when I worked there in 1990. 
• Knocker-Upper - Nope, not someone that went around impregnating people...this was the person who went around and knocked on people's doors to wake them up in the mornings because alarm clocks were too expensive. Mostly this was a common job in UK and Ireland in factory towns. 

So today is my Friday and I have a SHIT ton of stuff to do after work. I need to exercise, clean, pack, love on the boys and figure out dinner (we'll probably go out). I'll send Jim to the store after work.

I plan on getting tomorrow at 4AM so I can do my elliptical and then I hope to hit the road by 6AM. I figure, if I don't exercise in the morning, I won't do it once at PIB. Plus, I need to burn as many calories as possible since I'll be drinking a fair amount of beer.  Which means, I won't be posting tomorrow...sorry! I'll post on Instagram and FB though so settle your jets!

And that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Thursday! See you Monday! Later!

P.S. Spell check isn't working so please excuse my misspellings!

20 Mintues! BAM!

That's how long my IEP meeting was. I love it when I can fly through a meeting and get everyone in and out in a reasonable amount of time. It helps that it was an easy kid (pretty much all my kids are easy this year...knock on wood) and the parents were on time. I have another one today with a parent I haven't met but hopefully it won't take too terribly long...especially because it eats into my lunch.

How did I not know that there was a Netflix movie on Breaking Bad!? I keep forgetting to tell Jim too. I'll have to watch the final episode to remind myself exactly what happened and then watch it.

Sure is chilly out there. And that's not a complaint!

Yesterday I came home and finally decided to tackle the backyard lawn. It needed cutting but it's still so dry out there. I might tackle the front yard today...we'll see but I don't feel like a got a great workout yesterday so I need to elliptical it today.

What else? Jim's still in bed. These last two days, he's worked late. Monday he was out until 10:00 and then last night he didn't get home until 8:30ish. He told his boss that he was going in late today as a result. I don't blame him. However, he asked me to still make his breakfast and now it's cold. Oh well, he'll still eat it.

Got a call from Eva yesterday. She had her first appointment to get her grill "fixed". Apparently she has "too many teeth" and a cross bite. She got spacers put in yesterday and then will go back next week for something else. Eventually they'll put a palette expander in. She told me that she wasn't really nervous and that it didn't really hurt...maybe one tooth that got a spacer was a little uncomfortable. What a champ!

Okay well, I'll go see if Jim wants to get up and at 'em and I'll get myself ready for the day. Happy Wednesday (ooh, tomorrow is my "Friday"). Later!

Pumpkin Pie Hummus!?

Yep, you read that right! Pumpkin Pie Hummus and it's delicious! I was turned onto this by Anne so while I was Krogering yesterday I remembered, bought it and tried it with a lovely Honeycrisp apple and I'm telling you what! I could have eaten the whole container! So yummy! For a while I was off the pumpkin-flavored everything because I burnt myself out with pumpkin beer and pumpkin bagels etc. But enough time has now passed that I'm back ON! Everything in moderation!

I had one of my recurring dreams again last night: Moving out of an apartment. The part of this dream that I woke up thinking about was that one of the rooms I was cleaning out had a bunch of aquariums in it with baby frogs (hundreds of them all clustered together...it was creepy), roaches (gross) and snakes in it. When I called to Jim to get the F&%K in there and take care of it, he acted like he knew it was in there all the time. Disgusting.

I have a 7:30 IEP meeting this morning...so I need to get a move on because I need to make a few copies, read the thing over and get gas.

Oh, my tomato soup in the Instant pot was delicious last night and bonus! It made enough to freeze some!

I got home yesterday and Scout was acting so weirdly. He kept following me around and jumping up to me and needing hugs and love and when I would bend down to love on him, he'd start shaking like a leaf. I don't know what was up with him. I guess he just needed his momma.

And that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Tuesday! Later!

Another Short Week

As I will be headed north on Friday for our final PIB visit of the year, I will have a short week...WOOT! However, I have two IEPs but they should be relatively easy (one tomorrow and one...Wednesday?). Other than that - a normal week.

The weekend was lovely. Headed to Columbus where we shopped, went to Pins, watched football and relaxed. I was home yesterday by 11:00 and Jim and I went to Shooters for a quick bite. I walked Scout (Jim walked Boo), bathed the boys (they were ragamuffins!) and then put my aero pilates machine together and did a little arm and cardio on it. I forgot how good of a workout that thing gives.

Jim had lots of jobs this weekend and he did okay in getting them done. His main job was to start cleaning the basement, which he did. There was a lot of shifting of stuff from all over the place to the left side of the basement but he did manage to purge some things. It's a start. He also brought up the pilates machine and though vacuuming was on the list he didn't get that done until I made him do it yesterday afternoon.

The weather is finally cool and fall-like. We currently have rain but won't get near enough of it. Not that I'm complaining...too much. A drier fall makes for easier leaf clean up. We've had about 1 inch of rain since September 1st. That's crazy!

Dinner tonight will be homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese. I've never been a tomato soup girl but over the weekend I had a cup at Cap City Diner and it was amazing. Made me realize that I like tomato soup and because I know Jim will love soup and grilled cheese for dinner, I decided to treat him. I have a recipe that's a stove top one but I'll make it in the Instant Pot instead. Kind of a combo of a couple recipes...need to cut some of the fat as well.

Oh! Booked our Punta Cana trip! Well, I booked the hotel, I'll do the flight this morning! So excited! I also got the letter from the State Department so I can finally get my passport rolling and hopefully have it within the next couple weeks.

And that's all I've got. Need to pay a couple bills and then head out to work. Happy Monday! Later!

Finally!!!

You're probably saying that because I'm so late in posting but that's because I took today off for appointments and then decided to head to Columbus. The real reason I say, "Finally" however, is that I got the email I was waiting for to complete my passport application process. I need to make a copy of my birth certificate and then send it off in the mail, which I'll do on Monday. Phew...I'll be glad to get that off my plate.

And now with all of that nearly complete, I'll make my reservations for my trip on Sunday. I found a good deal for a nice place in Punta Cana through Costco and then I'll do all my flight stuff through my credit card company so I can redeem my points, which will basically allow for a free upgrade to first class. I'm excited too because the cost of my trip is going to be about $1000 less than I had budgeted for...woot! Can't wait!

Like I said, I'm headed to Columbus in a bit because I haven't been there in forever. No real plans except that its the Fall Festival at Eva's school so we'll do that when we pick her up. Maggie needs to get jeans (because she's so skinny now, none of her old ones fit) so we'll do a bit of shopping as well. Other than that, no plans.

It's going to be a GORGEOUS and cool weekend. I'm so happy the heat has finally broken. It was getting a bit stifling.

My dogs are running around like nuts...which is good since they'll be getting in their cages in a bit. I sure am going to miss them this weekend. And next weekend when we go to PIB. And then I think about being away from them in December and I get sad. But I know they'll be fine! I just need to settle down.

Okay well, I need to get my shit together because I still haven't finished packing. Although I've exercised already and showered and eaten breakfast so packing is all I need to do.

Happy Friday! Happy weekend! Later!

Here's Why...

I'm happy! Here's why: By this evening, we'll be on our way toward temps that are 20 degrees cooler than they've been for the last, almost week!

I'm well rested regardless of Boo. Here's why: Boo, who usually sleeps up on my pillows, decided he needed his mama a little closer last night. He moved down to the crook of my belly and we spooned all night long. Usually when this happens, I have a hard time sleeping because I'm very aware of my pup and don't want to disturb him and leave me so I don't move when I need/want to. Last night though, I slept well and moved when I needed to and still Boo stayed. He's my little snuggler! (Usually it's Scout.)

I'm feeling bad for Trip and Susan. Here's why: After buying their "forever" home, while getting it ready for move in, they found they had termites, which the inspectors didn't catch (can't see that they didn't know they were there from everything I'm hearing). Because of that, they've been on hold with moving in and moving on, waiting for a remedy. As of now, the termites have been treated but they have to wait on the insurance adjuster to find out what kind of money they'll get for the damage before they can get moving on the repairs. Ugh! They are in good spirits (after going through all the other stages of "grief" with this fiasco) and are just looking forward to putting this behind them. In the meantime, they will move onto fixing up the parts of the house that they can - painting walls...doing landscaping etc.

I'm feeling excited! Here's why: Trip called me last night to tell me about the plans for PIB. Things are really starting to roll with the rehab and it looks like the following may happen: They will close off the bathroom that opens into the kitchen to make it open only into the bedroom there. They will put in a 1/2 bath downstairs. They will extend the kitchen out toward the road by 15 feet. They will enclose the side porch and take down the chimney along with a wall to open up the downstairs. Upstairs, they'll put in another full bath and bedroom and connect the loft to the house. I'm so excited if all this happens! Updates are much needed and to finally have this ball rolling...WOOT!

Okay well, now I'm feeling sad! Here's why: I'm done with my post which means I need to head to work! However, today is my Friday so that's a good thing! And...I get to have a glass of wine tonight! And I'm having Cincinnati Chicken Chili for dinner! And...can't think of anything else. So, happy Thursday! Later!

This Heat...This Lack Of Rain

I mean, I can't believe the grass hasn't just self-combusted and caused a major brush fire...everywhere. It's so freakin' dry out there. I walk on the grass and it just crunches. The heat hasn't really bothered me much since I'm inside all day. But it does piss me off that I've had to have the AC on in October, which pisses me off but other than that...I'm just happy there's an end in sight. Last week at this time, there was no 10-day forecast with anything but 80s and 90s. Friday should be lovely!

I had a dream last night that I was back working at the deli but for some reason I was working naked. And it didn't seem to be a big deal...that's just what I chose to "wear" that day. Of course mid-way through my shift I said to my fellow workers, "I'm going to go out to my car and see if I have anything clean to put on." So I go out and find something (in a randomly placed suitcase in my back seat) but I can't put my clothes on because I can't find anywhere private to do it. Isn't that funny!? Muwee be all cray cray!

Jim didn't get home until 8:20 last night! Poor guy! Well, hopefully that just means overtime! Or it'll be make-up hours for Friday.

I made one of the most delicious meals I've ever had in my Instant Pot last night and Jimmy wasn't home to enjoy it at the dinner table. Although, he got to eat it when he did get home and he said it was FREAKIN' DELICIOUS! It was a Tuscan Chicken dish. It's pinned under my Instant Pot board. Note: I cut the heavy cream and put in lite coconut milk instead. I also put the sun-dried tomatoes in while the chicken cooked. It was so freakin' flavorful! Can't wait for leftovers today!

Today will be a good day because not only am I giving a test in 2nd bell but 3rd and 5th bell will be taught by someone else! Woot!

Okay - that's all I've got. Time to get a move on! Happy Wednesday! (I originally started typing Tuesday and then realized...YAY!!! It's Wednesday!) K - Later!

Too...Many...Passwords...To...Remember

I hate that my life is controlled by whether I can remember my user name and password or not! Ugh! For the most part, I rely on one go to (I know that's bad) and most of my password/user names are saved on my devices but if I'm home and I need to check a website that's primarily used at school, and something has changed, I can never remember the damn things. Drives me nuts! I need a place where I keep all my stuff with access from anywhere. Maybe I'll take care of that this week.

I hate moths! Moths are mother effers! They, for some reason, think it's hilarrrrrious to come in through the open slider in the kitchen and beam me in the face and scare the shit out of me and make me scream like I'm being attacked by Freddie...or Jason...or Michael! Or all three at the same time!

The end of this heat wave is in sight. If I can just get through Thursday, I should wake up on Friday to lovely fall weather. Can't wait! Oh, and rain too...we haven't had rain in about a month so that will be nice. A nice squirrel piss cleansing of the backyard will make everything right again in the Hanke household. Those boys just really like whatever that smell is! They will be getting baths soon!

Jimmy got his new glasses yesterday and as predicted, he feels like they aren't right. I think it's just he hasn't had new glasses with the correct prescription in years so it's taking some getting used to (this happened with his last pairs). I told him to give it at least two days and see what happens. He looks so cute in his glasses though!

And that's about all I have to talk about. Nothing much happening here in my life. The political upheaval happening right now is crazy...addictive to watch at times. I find I have to just turn this shit off to settle my brain and get some relief. It's so depressing but I'm hoping there's a light at the end of this horrible tunnel.

K - I'm out. Happy Tuesday! Later!

I Hear You & I Ignore You

That's what Scout just said to me as I scolded him to stop pulling the flowers off the hibiscus trees! That boy just doesn't listen! And he really loves hibiscus flowers!

So the weekend: First of all, Jim and I went to see Downton Abbey and thoroughly enjoyed it. It wasn't much different than sitting in my own family room watching a show I love! They picked up, pretty much where they left off (a year and a half later, I think). Things were much the same except Carson's role had changed. The focus of the movie was a visit by the king and queen to Downton. There was a lot of  Branson in it, which made me happy because he was one of my faves and there were a LOT of little one-liners and digs by the Dowager. If you're a DA fan, you'll be satisfied and they left it with the possibility of another one.

Other than that, the weekend was good. Saturday, Jim and I had big plans to do a bunch of stuff but I had a rough night (up most of the night with some stomach issues) and so we only managed to do part of what we'd planned. We did manage to get Jim new glasses (he'll pick them up today), have lunch and grocery shop but that's it. We came home and just relaxed for the rest of the night. I was in bed by 8:00 because I just wasn't feeling great...I needed some rest I guess.

Sunday, I got up and felt 100% better. I walked Scout, who wanted to run after every single squirrel he saw (exhausting) and even managed to ride my bike after getting back from the movie. Even though I walked Saturday, I just felt like I didn't get my full exercise on so the bike ride was needed. Plus, it was a beautiful day though hot as hell. I made dinner, we watched some TV and I was in bed early.

My week this week should be no big deal. I'll take a half day Friday and we're starting a new book this week in LA (Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None). Nothing major...no meetings.

And that's all I've got. Not exactly sure what I'm doing today in LA so I'd best get a move on. Happy Monday...later!

I Have A Confession To Make

My confession: I love Mr. Rogers. I loved him as a kid and I watched him unapologetically . And I got a lot of shit for it! Yesterday I saw a commercial for the upcoming movie with Tom Hanks and I immediately got a tear in my eye...it just gave me that nostalgic feeling and made me miss that sweet, innocent time when I just wanted to see Henrietta Kitty (who could only say three words besides Meow..."Beautiful" Misterrogers" and "telephone"...I remember her saying "Meow Meow Beautiful Meow Meow"). Can't wait to see the movie!

Speaking of movies...Jim and I have plans this weekend - Sunday - to finally go see Downton Abbey and I can't wait. We'll go to lunch (Rusty Bucket) and then the movie. No other real plans.

I have my in-service today so my hours are 8-3. I woke up at regular time and did my work out for the day which means I can come home and just relax! Woot! My in-service will consist of three hours on cultural competency then lunch then a meeting about special ed law and I'll end my day with an hour at my desk. Not bad...at least no kids.

My lab in science yesterday went okay. It wasn't the kind of lab where I could hand the kids the instructions and just let them do their thing and of course 1/2 didn't listen to my directions and effed up at least one part of the experiment. Oh and then two kids determine if a number (say 3) was between 0-7 or 7-14 so of course they had a hard time figuring out if something was an acid or base. Ugh...I mean, I'm dealing with some LOW kids. Regardless though, the kids enjoyed it and I gave them all coke afterward (that was one of the substances we tested).

Okay well, my hands are numb so it's hard to type so I'll sign off here. Happy Friday! Later!

Advisory Sucks

At Kings, Advisory is basically Homeroom. This year, they started having these every other Friday (since we don't have kids tomorrow, they moved it to today). Most teachers have been assigned a group of kids (based on alphabet; mine are 2022s) and every other week, we get together and are supposed to do these stupid activities. This year the focus is "building relationships". I get it...they're trying to make school a safe place for kids; a place they can seek help if needed or whatever. So far, however, it's been a waste of time and today is going to be the worst. I know I need to have a better attitude but these kids are only interested in an extra 1/2 hour to study for a quiz or socialize with the friends they have in Advisory. Today, we're supposed to be making a banner for Homecoming based on school spirit. This will be a two session project and then they'll have each homeroom parade their banner through the hallways and other kids will vote on the best one. Points will be awarded and the winning Advisory will get some sort of "Spirit Shield". And we've been given almost no direction nor told what the points are good for. Stupid. I'm just hoping these kids will be a little hip to putting something together and I won't have to fight too hard to get some cooperation.

Here are my suggestions for Advisory: Don't have them on Fridays or at the end of the week (like today is). See, there are a TON of teachers who, for some stupid reason, like to give tests/quizzes on Friday and so kids are focused on that shit, not sitting in a room with a teacher they don't know who's asking them to fill out some "icebreaker" activity. And maybe every other week is too much. Once a month would be plenty! And maybe group the kids based on something else. For instance, as a special ed teacher who teaches kids who are LOW and need to work on post-secondary skills, maybe my group could be those kids and we work on transition activities for special ed paperwork.

Okay - lets see, what else is going on? Well, like I've mentioned, today is the last day of the week with kids. YAY! The week has been pretty good and fast and considering I haven't been drinking all week, that's saying something! Jim's still feeling good and working hard...trying to make up for missed hours on Monday. Oh, and today I'm doing a "lab" with the kids. We'll see how much of a shit storm that is. They have such a hard time following directions, who knows what we'll end up with (we're testing pH in about 10 different liquids...no battery acids or hydrochloric...just regular stuff like coke and lemon juice). Should be "fun".

Okay - time to get a move on. Jim wants to leave a little earlier today but I want to be gone before then. Happy Thursday! Later!

A Love Of Tampons

Have I mentioned before that my dogs love tampons!? It's just another reason I need menopause to take full affect because every time I accidentally leave a box of tampons within reach of Boo, he destroys the box and I find partially torn apart tampons around the house and yard for days. It's ridiculous. I told Jim last night after the boys had been too quiet for too long that they were up to something but did he believe me? Maybe but did he check on them? No! He didn't and now I'm out $7 (the approximate cost of tampons). Ridiculous!

Speaking of the boys, they are being so bad this morning. First they went outside and started barking at my neighbor who was out with his dog. Then, they went tearing outside...chasing each other with Boo in the lead carrying, guess what? A tampon. And then they proceeded to bark at each other while running in circles. Ugh! They love this time of year.

Almost done with this week in terms of kids. Phew. One annoying thing is that there's a teacher from another district who is coming to observe my science class tomorrow. I'm not quite sure why she's coming to observe my class but I know she's young and the sped director said in an email that she's "feeling isolated". I'm not sure what that means. And apparently the circumstances with this woman's class is completely different from my class so I don't know what she expects to get from watching me. Not to mention my kids are a shit storm who are probably learning a minuscule amount because science is WAY above their head. I mean, we're talking about atoms and protons, neutrons and electrons. They can't grasp shit that's staring them right in the face. How are they supposed to understand stuff they can't even see? Anyway - chick coming is probably going to be a big waste of her time but whatever...makes no never mind to me.

Can I just tell you that the show "The Masked Singer" looks so f&%king stupid? I have no desire to watch that stupid show. I have enough stupid shows to watch anyway.

The heat is headed back this way. We'll be back into the 90s for the weekend and into October, apparently. I just hope that by the time we have our weekend in PIB, things are a little cooler.

I'm excited for Sunday!? Why? NOT for the Bengals (who play Monday anyway) but because Jim and I are going to lunch and the to watch Downton Abbey! Woot!

Okay - that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Wednesday! Later.

Instant Pot Debacle

Sometimes you just can't explain stupidity. Maybe I was tired. Maybe distracted. Maybe the stress from my day yesterday and thinking about Jim's fever (more on that in a minute) is to blame. Who knows? Regardless, I ruined my Instant Pot while cooking last night in a major, choking way. I mean, it's not out of the realm what happened especially since I'd nearly ruined it in the past in the same way. Picture it. I'm cooking...the Instant Pot is sitting on my glass stove top...I've released the lid and I'm just sauteing the sauce. Things are nearly ready for plating so I turn on the burner to steam my veggies and I continue my prep. Jim comes in and distracts me (not his fault though) and then I smell something foul...and then black smoke starts rising from underneath my IP where I've accidentally turned on the wrong burner. UGH! So I grab the pot and run it out to the front porch (because the bottom is melted and dripping all over the place) and I smack my forehead and say, "I can't believe I just did that!" Yes I can. UGH UGH UGH!!! STUPID, STUPID, STUPID!

Two good things in all of this: Dinner was made and not ruined. My glass top stove is fine. After letting everything cool down, it just scraped right off using a credit card. Oh, and now I have a new and improved IP on the way. Good thing since half my meals this week are IP meals.

Speaking of which, my meal last night (from my bible) was scrumptious: Better Butter Chicken (a rich tasting - though I cut much of the fat - curry dish).

So the Jim saga: First, he's fine. Apparently, (he says he told me all this but I question the accuracy of that) after Jim's last appointment the doc gave Jim to okay to increase one of his drugs slightly to try and combat the slight growth of one of his lesions. I think that with the increase and Jim's drinking Sunday and lack of water (good fluids) he sent his body into a bit of shock...thus the fever. Once I had gotten home, his fever had abated so all is fine. I told him to stop being an asshole and drinking like he did on Sunday (I told him then but he doesn't listen) because if this happens again, I'm going to be pissed. My day sucked yesterday because all I could think about was if we were headed back into a medical shithole. Jerk.

And that's about all I've got to talk about. The weather right now is terrific...low 50s and a high today of cooler than 80. Of course it isn't going to last and the weekend is going to be sweltering again but I'll just roll with the punches. I'm sure it will only be a few weeks when I'm bitching about rain and cold.

Happy Tuesday! Later!

Feverish

Jim's got a fever. It's only 100 but you know with his history...gotta keep an eye on this. Ugh! I'm hoping this is just a bug and he's not headed into a medicine induced spell...we'll see. In the meantime, he'll stay home this morning and see how things go...text the nurse practitioner. On the one hand, he said he's been feeling weird the past couple days but then I don't know how much I believe him because he never mentioned anything and he certainly didn't curb his alcohol intake yesterday. And now he's saying that he's been having little spells where he gets the shakes and is zapped of energy and he's wondering (one of his theories) if it's caffeine combined with the anti-depressant he's taking. (Can I just say how annoying it is that he doesn't bring this shit up when it happens?) Plus there have been a couple incidents where he gets massive headaches in the middle of the night. All things that probably need to be brought up with his doc.

The weekend was fine. Nothing major happened. We went to dinner Saturday to Bite...it was good. Yesterday I finally got my guest room/exercise room back in order. I did some major purging and I'm so relieved that's done. Now we just need to get to the basement.

This week at work will be a semi-short one because I have an in-service on Friday (no kids). That makes me happy...a little break even if I still have to be at work and sit in some meetings. Aside from that, LA will be easy because we're watching Hamlet this week.

And that's about all I've got. It's finally raining here but it won't be near what we need. I wish it would just rain all day but that's not going to happen. At least it brought some cooler weather though by next weekend we'll be near 90s again. Stupid.

Okay - better go check on Jimmy and then head to work. Happy Monday. Later!

Back To Boston

Kerr Hall...my dorm

In my dreams, that is. I had my recurring dream last night where I'm in Boston and going back to college. In this one, I was going to live in an off-campus apartment that I'd never seen so my dream was all about me trying to find the damn place. My dream started by Fenway Park and I was walking with Maggie trying to find Fenway (the road) which is where my apartment was located. This also happened to be where my actual dorm was when I lived there. Of course in my dream, I walked in the wrong direction and lost Maggie and ended up having to get a taxi to take me to my little hole in the wall. And then of course with all this, I missed my first class. Ugh! I'm guessing I'll continue having this dream until the day I die.

In other news - IT'S FRIDAY!!! I'm so happy. This was a long week! I look forward to hanging with the neighbors tonight and then Saturday Jim and I are going to a local restaurant - Bite. We made reservations a couple weeks ago (hard to get a table last minute) and I've been looking forward to this. It's a BYOB place so that will cut down on the bill! I like that...more restaurants should do that. Other than that - we'll be doing some clearing out in the basement and I want to get the guest room that serves as my exercise room straightened up as well.

The weather is still hot though not humid so it doesn't feel that bad. I'll be happy when it cools down around Monday and we get some rain but until then...I'll just go with the flow.

Tonight for dinner will be some chicken/shrimp kabobs in a teriyaki sauce, corn and probably some roasted potatoes. Something easy for a Friday night. Last night we didn't eat until 7:00 because the neighbors kept showing up. Oh well...who cares. I was still in bed by 8:00ish.

Okay - well, it's final test day for Hamlet...YAY! History we'll continue watching Hugo and in Biology we'll wrap up reading Science World, the magazine I ordered for the year.

Happy Friday! Later!

Getting To Know You

I don't have much to talk about. School is school (TGTIF - thank God tomorrow is Friday). Nothing happening here at home. My pups are still cute (although they caught another chipmunk Tuesday that I forgot to mention...or did I?). It's still hot (although the evenings are quite lovely and the humidity is low but we need rain!). So...I thought I'd share one of those "about me" lists you see on FB (I'm not one to do that on FB but I'll do it here for kicks and giggles. So here it is:

1. Do you like blue cheese? LOVE
2. Coke or Pepsi? NEITHER
3. Do you own a gun? NO
4. What flavor of Kool-Aid? GRAPE
5. Hot dogs? TURKEY DOGS
6. Favorite TV show? GREAT BRITISH BAKE OFF
7. Do you believe in ghosts? YES
8. What do you drink in the morning? COFFEE - THE STRONGER THE BETTER
9. Can you do a push-up? YES
10. Favorite jewelry: MY MOM'S GOLD VINE BAND SHE GAVE ME...NEVER COMES OFF
11. Favorite hobby? QUILTING
12. Do you have ADD/ADHD? NO
13. Do you wear glasses? NOT ANYMORE (READER'S)
14. Favorite cartoon character? TOM CAT
15. Three things you did today. WOKE UP, SHOWERED (YOU'RE WELCOME), ATE
16. Drinks you drink all the time? WINE, WATER, COFFEE
17. Current worries? GAINING THE WEIGHT I LOST BACK
18. Do you believe in magic? THAT'S A STUPID QUESTION
19. Favorite place to be? PUT-IN-BAY
20. How did you bring in the New Year? I WAS SNOOZING
21. Where would you like visit? SCOTLAND
22. Name four people that will likely play NONE, THIS ISN'T FB
23. Favorite movie? TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD
24. Favorite color? BLUE (IT CHANGES)
25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? NO
28. Where would you rather be right now? PUT-IN-BAY
29. Favorite food? PASTA (WHICH I HARDLY EAT ANYMORE)
30. Least favorite chore? UNLOADING THE DISHWASHER
32. What's in your pockets? (I'M NOT WEARING PANTS...JUST MY UNDIES)
33. Last thing that made you laugh! RAJ ON BIG BANG
34. Favorite animal? BOO AND SCOUT (DOG)
35. What’s your most recent injury? STABBED MYSELF AT PIB WHILE PREPPING DINNER
36. How many TV’s are in your house? 3
37. Worst pain ever? NOTHING I CAN THINK OF (KNOCK ON WOOD)
38. Do you like to dance? Yes
39. Are your grandparents still alive? NO
40. Do you enjoy camping? I USED TO BUT WOULD LOVE TO GO GLAMPING!

And there you go...a little about me that most of you probably know anyway...except maybe that I wasn't wearing any pants right now as I haven't gotten dressed for work yet. 

K - well, time to get a move on. Happy Thursday! Later!

2:30 AM Is NOT Playtime!

Jim got up in the middle of the night with a massive headache (this happens sometimes for him on pill days...he barfed too poor guy) and when that happens, he goes downstairs to sit and wait it out. Well, the boys know he's up and don't like that they can't go play with him so they play on my face instead. Needless to say, they got yelled at. After that, they settled down until Jim came back to bed. Thankfully, however, I managed to get back to sleep. I'd yell at Jim but it's not his fault. Maybe next time he can just close the bedroom door.

Yesterday was a doozie of a day. Actually, it wasn't bad until 7th bell when a couple kids had a geometry quiz and another couple kids were freaking out about all the work they had to do this week. The geometry quiz was a pain in my ass because it was on proofs (which suck to begin with) but they've only been learning about them for 2 days. I mean, proofs are HARD! Kids don't get them and you quiz them on them after only two days?! Give me a f&%king break! And I can't help them because I don't get it half the time either. UGH! So I came home and eased my brain by exercising. And I had just finished up with Jim came home and I got irritated all over again because of his eye doctor appointment. So I had to go for a bike ride...oh and then I decided I deserved a glass of wine so I had one. Hopefully today will be a better day.

Can I tell you how much I love the cheetah cub - Kris - at the zoo!? Man is she cute! And her puppy companion is adorbs as well! I want a cheetah and a puppy companion!

Scout's so tired (Jim just went over to love on him) he's not even wagging his tail. That's what happens when you get up at 2:30 and think it's time to play!

Okay well, I need to finish my routine. Happy Wednesday! Later!

Attack Of The Killer Moths

It's that time of year when, as I'm sitting at the kitchen table with the slider open, eating breakfast and blogging, when some moth, which has been fattening up all summer, enters my house, beams me in the head and freaks me the f&^k out! I mean, every morning! You'd think I'd do something different to prevent this happening! I did turn out the light above me this morning after the mother of all moths bounced off my face 13 times (while I screamed, "JIM! GET HIM! GET HIM! KILL HIM!!!) So annoying.

Jimmy finally took my car in for an oil change, brake inspection and tire rotation. The guy said my brakes have hardly any wear on them...I told Jim that's because I try never to stop. HAHA!

I'm finishing Hamlet with the kids today, which I'm happy about for two reasons. 1) It means that for the next week and a half, I won't have to "teach" (bc they'll be doing review, the test and then watching the movie) and 2) I'm sick of being tortured with these kids reading aloud and struggling through simple English with their 1st, 2nd, or 3rd grade reading level. I know that's mean but it gets trying when you're trying to beat the bell. I've got one kid who throws in an "uh" every few words..."To uh be uh or not uh to be uh that is the uh question." I'm all like, "STOP THROWING IN 'UH'!" (No I didn't do that.) What I am happy about is how these kids, who really do suck at reading, just don't care and always volunteer to take a part in the play. Makes me so happy that they try!

You know what Scout likes to do? He likes to bite on hands and feet that are under blankets. He and Jim have a routine every morning: Jim grabs a blanket to sit and watch TV in the recliner and Scout sits at his feet playing with his them...biting them. Of course Jim, who is the most ticklish foot guy I know, yells/giggles the whole time, "He's biting my toes! He's biting my toes." It makes me smile and Scout wags his tail harder than at any other time when he's doing this. Love those boys.

Oh, and if you're wonder what Boo does during this whole show: He's running in circles from the kitchen to the living room to the dining room and back again with his duck in his mouth. He'll do it about 5 or 6 times before finally settling down and sucking on his stuffed duck. He's a kook.

What else? Nothing. Mom reminded me that today is Constitution Day which means I'm supposed to teach about the Constitution. I'll figure something out when I get to school. I'm sure it will involve a little Schoolhouse Rock and some word searches...maybe some extra credit opportunities.

Okay well, time to get a move on. Happy Tuesday! Later!

30th Reunion

I still can't imagine that 30 years have passed since I graduated from high school and seeing these ladies proved that 30 years can't have passed based on how good we look! It was really good to see everyone and hilarious to hear some of their memories of me. I would share them but they are rather inappropriate and horrifying that I was such an ass! Thankfully I lived, learned and didn't get arrested! How that didn't happen I don't know. I shouldn't question and just be thankful.

The reunion was at a bar called Pearls and was really cool. I told my neighbors that we need to make plans to head down that way (it's on Eastern Ave down near the Precinct), visit a couple breweries, have dinner at Tostada's (sing a little karaoke) and then go to Pearls for some cocktails! Of course their in!

Other than that on Saturday, Jim and I had a nice and relaxing weekend. Friday we hung out a bit with the neighbor, had dinner. Saturday we got up and walked the dogs. I did a little shopping while Jim cleaned and then we headed down to the trail to ride our bikes to Milford and have beer and lunch at LMB (Little Miami Brewery...they just tapped their Oktoberfest). When we got home from there (Jim was full of beer and took forever to pedal the 3 miles to our car) we both needed a nap plus I needed to be fresh for my reunion. We went to dinner at Paxton's early and then I headed out. I was home late (for me...11:30). Sunday was just about football.

The week shouldn't be out of the norm though it's still hot as balls! They're saying 91 today. I with this shit would just stop! I'm so sick of my clothes. Stupid. I don't have any meetings this week so that's good and we're wrapping up Hamlet tomorrow which means the kids will be tested on it and then I'll get to show the movie.

K - I'm out...Happy Monday! Later!

Triskaidekaphoabia

Triskaidekaphoabia is the fear of the number 13. (I actually spelled that right the first time!) Selenophobia is fear of the moon. So today, I really feel bad for people with irrational fears. What would you call someone who is afraid of both? Triskaidekaselenophobia? That's a mouthful. Should be an interesting day at work.

I got kicked in head last night by Boo. When it happened, it made me chuckle. I love that boy.

I contacted the guidance counselor about the girl I mentioned yesterday who is potentially going to be wed in an arranged marriage. He didn't have anything helpful to give me but at least I put it out there. Not that I thought there' be anything TO DO (she's 18 and this isn't far from the norm in their culture) but I still might try and have a little chit chat with her about what her life MAY be like as a woman in Saudi Arabia. Just a little FYI session. Not a lecture.

I made a kid cry yesterday. Well, let me clarify: My wacky autistic/ODD (oppositional defiant disorder) kid asked me 1st period if he could call his mother. I said, "Why do you need to call your mother?" And he said he wanted to tell her he cracked his phone. I told him he didn't need to call her right then...at that very moment and he could just text her. (BTW - this is something we've been trying to break him of...needlessly calling his mom during the day.) Apparently he was unable to text her so I said I would email her. He wasn't acting like it was that big a deal but when he went back to his seat he started bawling. So he had to go out into the hallway and get a hold of himself. I went out to deal with it and found out that they had JUST bought the phone and within a day, the stupid poor kid had cracked the face and he was worried she would kill him. And this is why you don't buy your kid a $400 phone. I'm all for flip phones for teens. They can make calls...what else do they need? In the end, he talked to his mom and was able to get himself together.

I gave a test the other day in history...I think I mentioned this. This is the class where a couple MH kids come in and so I get Diane (aide/dog watcher/person extraordinaire) to help me in class. Well, she was giving the test to two of the kids and as they do, they were acting like kooks. The one kid (who constantly talks about his TV being busted) was told that if he didn't get it together he would get an F on his test. He said, "I don't want a 0! I want a 200!" Kid's going to be disappointed when he gets his test back. However, he did get a good grade!

No plans tonight except to hang with the neighbors for a cocktail...maybe some cards. I'll make a cobb salad for dinner...something easy.

And that's all I've got. Time to get this day started. Episode 3 of GBBO today! I'll get to watch that after school. Happy Friday! Later!

Arranged Marriage

So I have this student, a senior, whose parents are originally from Jordan. She was born here, however. She's a bit of an awkward girl and pretty immature for an 18 year old. Her parents divorced a few years ago because dad is abusive but I'm not sure mom is much better. From the day I met her, this girl had a job (at 14) and mom takes all her money. In other words, she's completely controlled by her parents. The other day, she was leaving my LA class and she mumbles to me, "Mrs. Hanke, I've been talking to a guy." Me: "Oh, well, that's nice." And then she says, "I might get married." Me: "Oh...wow, when?" Her: "After I graduate. He's in Saudi Arabia." Me: "Oh, so are we talking about an arranged marriage?" Her: "Yes. He's 29." And she shows me a picture of this dude and I'm trying not to sound like I'm freaked out and trying to figure out how to respond but all I can think of is Which number wife will you be? and You'll never see the light of the U.S. again. And I'm in a pickle about what to do here. I mean, she's 18. She's excited about this but she obviously has no idea what her life in Saudi Arabia would be like as a woman. And really, neither do I but I know about the stories I've heard. And what if I school her and her parents find out and I get them coming after me. Ugh! Who would want that for their daughter? But maybe I'm just making an assumption. I don't know. I'll probably talk to her guidance counselor (who won't give a shit because all he cares about right now is football as he's also our head coach)...ugh...poor kid.

And here's what an article said about why women should flee Saudi Arabia (aside from the fact that women can't try on clothes when shopping! What the heck!) :
No Freedom to Travel or Get a Passport
No Freedom to Choose Marriage Partner, and Child Marriages
Domestic Violence 
Employment Discrimination
Health care Discrimination
Inequality in Divorce, Child Custody, Inheritance
Challenges to Transferring Guardianship
Restrictions on Leaving Prison and Shelters
Restrictions on Studying Abroad
Political Repression

Still hot as balls here and isn't going to get any better for over a week. Pfft!

Tomorrow is Friday and I'm excited. I kept thinking yesterday was Thursday which makes for a long week!

I finished watching Four Weddings and a Funeral yesterday. Sad that's over but here's the thing: I thought the whole time watching that it seemed much more of a remake of Notting Hill than Four Weddings. And then yesterday, there was a montage in the final episode just like the one in Notting Hill...you know the scene...where Hugh Grant is walking through the street and "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone" is playing.  Same scene but the song was in another language on Four Weddings. Anyway and regardless...I really liked the show and I'm sad it's over.

Okay well, that's all I've got. I guess I'll head to school and get my day going. I set up two more IEPs for October so I'll have plenty to do over the next few days.

Happy Thursday! Later!

18 Years.

I hate that there are these days where something so catastrophic happened that I remember where I was, what I was doing, what day it was, what I was wearing, who I was with and so on. 9/11 is one of those days and on one hand, I can't believe it's been 18 years and on another, it just doesn't seem like that long ago. Especially in this day and age of such hate. How can we be where we are now, in a place of such contention, knowing where we've been and what we've, as a country, muddled and fought through? How is there such divide when we proved ourselves to be a country that was able to come together with such unity to re-build and stand strong against a force that wanted to tear us down? How have we allowed such a force to rise up again and spread such potentially ruinous hate!? It's truly shameful. But, today, I won't let that be what I think about. I'll remember what we were then, directly after the attacks and how getting kicked and pummeled didn't mean defeat. It only meant we had to gather more tightly together. I'll remember that when you're down, you're not out. It's a different kind of fight but it's a fight we've won before and we will again. 

In other news, it's still f&%king scorching out. I checked the weather last night during the Wheel to see about the temps for today and it said that at 7:00, it was still 93 degrees out. Now, I don't believe that was the case at my house but for freakin' sake Mother Nature...cut this shit out! I'm ready for lovely fall weather and I'm sick of all the same clothes I've been wearing...which only causes me to want to online shop which isn't good for anyone. 

I'm in the midst of trying to figure out my December trip to the Caribbean. I emailed a travel agent parent from school but I'm not sure she'll really be able to help me. First, she doesn't really deal with credit card points so I'll probably just have to figure it all out myself. May have to rope Charlie in to help me with my trip since he's so well versed in planning. 

Nothing else is happening here. I'm giving my 2nd test to my history kids and I have a feeling that most of them won't be prepared. What are you going to do? Takes a bit for freshmen to realized that when you don't study, you don't pass tests. 

Okay - time to get a move on. Happy Wednesday! Later!

Scorching!

It is going to be one hot mother f%&king day and I'm not looking forward to getting in my car at 2:30! However, I'm glad it wasn't like that yesterday since I had to run errands after school (Aldi, Costco). 

Guess what? My meeting for Wednesday got cancelled which means my week got a little easier. The meeting will be rescheduled for October which is fine with me since it's already written and I don't need to do anything to prepare at this point. My week got a little worse though when Diane called in sick yesterday (and today) and we didn't have a sub for her, which means those crazy boys in my history class only had me to crack the whip. Thankfully, they did pretty well but man...they keep me on my toes. The one is slower than molasses and the other won't stop talking about his "busted TV". He's been talking about it for 3 weeks. I wish someone would fix it for him. I'm pretty sure he's the one that broke it though. 

Yesterday I made a really delicious meal: Turkey kielbasa and shrimp kabobs and zucchini. I made a really yummy marinade and because Jim was so late coming home, I got a nice carmelization on my kabobs. Jimmy loved them! Tonight: Sheet pan chicken with rosemary and lemon with potatoes and green beans. 

I'm getting REALLY into Handmaid's Tale of late. I always thought it was good but as I'm getting closer and closer to the end of the first season, it's really picking up. I only watch it about once a week so I'll be able to make it last but as it gets good, I'm afraid I'll start binging it a bit more. Especially after Four Weddings and a Funeral ends (Wednesday I think). At least I still have GBBO (Great British Bake Off) which I can ONLY watch once a week. Oh, the television problems I suffer. 

I lost my first match up with my Fantasy Football team but I don't really care. Other than my quarterback, I really don't know my team. And the fact that I lost to Lauren is a good thing because she's so competitive, maybe she won't lose her mind on this one thing. Speaking of which, we were playing euchre this weekend and I made a really stupid mistake (I may have been influenced by alcohol) and when we lost the hand she looked at me with the devil in her eyes and said, "I'm pissed! I'm REALLY pissed!" And I said, "That's fine...I didn't do it on purpose and remember it's just a game of euchre...but you're allowed to be pissed...sorry by the way!" And then I ignored her behavior...and she got over it. But it was funny...I mean...I don't remember the last time I made such a stupid move. And not just playing euchre. Hee hee.

Okay well, I guess I'll head out. Aw...I forgot...I planned on wearing my blue flip flops and just remembered they busted on Saturday! (While I was out too...had to walk around barefoot...thankfully I never had to use the bathroom when I had no shoes to wear.) 

Happy Tuesday! Later!

A Full Week

I'm dreading this week for 2 reasons. 1) It's a full week! and 2) It's going to get into the 90s which blows. I'm so done with HOT weather and I didn't want to have to turn on the AC again but these are the drawbacks to living in Ohio. Watching football yesterday I wished it was cold enough to have a fire in the fireplace...can't wait.

Other than those reasons above, the week should be fine at school. I do have an IEP on Wednesday but that shouldn't be too bad...it's for a senior who's an easy kid.

Oh, the saga of my passport...I forgot as it happened Friday. So I went to the post office for my appointment Friday and when I got there with all my stuff, I was told by the guy waiting on me that they have to have a copy of my birth certificate. What!? It doesn't say that anywhere on the form. But...I managed to race home, grab the document and get back to the office within 30 minutes. So I get it all complete (copies of my birth certificate and my license like the guy said) and sent off ($145 later...I thought about paying extra to expedite my passport but didn't...glad I didn't now.)

Fast forward to Saturday morning with Jim at Milford's post office. We get there and hand the lady all the documents including the copies of Jim's birth certificate and license and she says, "I need the original birth certificate as well to send off." Me: WHAT!? Yep...apparently the guy who waited on me Friday fucked up. So now, I have to wait for the State Department to contact me and then send the document off and then I'll get my passport. Everyone out there said it wouldn't take that much longer and travel plans for December won't be affected...we'll see. Dummy! I called Loveland after hearing and the post master was pissed at the guy who waited on me. I felt bad for having to turn him in but DUDE! You're an idiot!

In other news, poor Boo got stung by a bee yesterday. I saw him playing with something in the kitchen and when I investigated, I found it was a honey bee. I immediately got the bee away from Boo and then his paw proceeded to swell a bit and he started licking it obsessively (I'm sure because it hurt). I gave him some Benedryll and all was well. And bonus, I think the bee survived. Lesson learned for Boo...I hope. Probably not.

The weekend was good...relaxing. The only real thing we did was go to Mitchell's Fish Market for dinner on Saturday and Little Miami Brewery in the afternoon. Fun.

Okay - time to get a move on. Happy Monday! Later!

Starting Off Rough

Scout started jumping on me this morning and I thought Jim can handle this! It's too early! And I rolled over and waited...sure enough, Scout went to Jim's side of the bed and jumped on him. But of course, Jim didn't get up with that boy so I laid there a little longer and finally after a loud yawn from a certain pup, I rolled over to check to see how much longer until the alarm went off. To my dismay, I realized it was 5:19 and I had overslept! By 20 minutes! UGH! I shaved some time off by NOT shaving my legs but I'll still need to make this short. Here are the finer points of what's going on:

• I made a REALLY delicious soup (Chicken Curry) in the instant pot last night. (Maggie, you wouldn't like the mushrooms in it but it would be just as good - not better - without.)
• The kids at school are driving me nuts - specifically one who I need to name because he's going to be talked about A LOT on here! It they aren't bothering me about work they haven't even tried to do yet, they're not listening or lying to me or just being oppositional! TGIF!
• I've got 12 points so far in my fantasy football league (had Chicago defense for last night's game). I don't pay much attention to my team, generally but I do have Matt Ryan as my QB. We'll see how I do. 
• Today at school will NOT be movie day except in history where we'll watch a video on Thomas Edison (we're studying the Industrial Revolution).
• One of my colleagues - I'll call him Hawk - is driving me nuts. He's playing a bit of a moron lately. He's one of those people who "reply to all" in a group email. Hawk! The rest of us don't need an email from you that says thanks! It's annoying. I've also told him over and over again to cut that shit out! Yesterday he kept sending one of HIS kids (who I have in LA) to my classroom to see what she may have to make up in my classes. I told her that if she were on our grade book app, she could check herself. So I had to go over and tell Hawk to step it up and set his kids straight so I didn't have to do his job! ARG! 
• I'll leave school about 45 minutes early today for an appointment after school. I need to remember that I'm doing this. 
• The weekend: No real plans except to get Jim's passport application completed and sent out. Maybe dinner out on Saturday...we'll see. Other than that, relaxation.

And that's all I've got. Happy Friday! Later! (I think I'm back on track in terms of time for my morning routine.)

Sad For Mol

After exercising yesterday, I was sitting in front of the big industrial fan I have, trying to cool down and stop sweating (with dogs licking my salty arms and legs) and I opened Facebook to see what was up.  Sadly, I saw the sad news that one of my best friends' from high school's mother had died - Marilyn Toomey for those family members who knew her. Adrienne (my friend) and I were in grade school together at Mercy Montessori (I left after 4th grade) and then came back into each others lives at St. Ursula. I spent a TON of time at her house in Indian Hill through my high school years and then from there, we spent our first year together as roommates in Boston at Northeastern. Funny enough, when we went to Boston in 1989, Adrienne's parents moved to Marblehead Massachusetts (just outside of Boston) for her father's job (he was an engineer with GE). So, while we were at Northeastern, there were several times when we would take the train up to her parents house and spend the day or weekend with parents. Mrs. Toomey always gave us the attention we were missing while living in a dorm and needless to say I have so many memories of her. The two, however, that stick out in my mind are of her driving her three kids to Mercy and dropping Monica and Mitch off at the Little Red Schoolhouse in her white VW bus. She was so tiny...under 5 feet and with her haircut, she always put me in mind of a fairy or an elf. She was so cute.

The other memory I had of her was this funny little quirk that was just so her: When Adrienne was born, apparently Mrs. Toomey couldn't decide if she should name her Adrienne (obviously she chose that one) or Molly. Well, Mrs. Toomey, after deciding, realized that she liked Molly better and so for the rest of her life, she called her Molly, or Mol as was more often the case. It was even to the point where when she would call the dorm room for Adrienne and when I would answer, she would say (thinking I was Adrienne), "Mol?" I commented on FB about those memories and Adrienne's commented back was that she's so sad that there won't be anyone who would ever call her "Mol" again. Makes me teary just thinking about it. So sad for her.

Well, now that we've all started our day on that cheery note, I'll try to move on to other more uplifting things. Oh - I know - I made a meatloaf in the instant pot last night. Verdict: Delicious!!! And let me tell you it was so easy. I literally mixed the ingredients and had everything ready to go within 15 minutes. Now one thing I did do differently was I used a mix of ground beef and ground turkey. Additionally, after it was done cooking in the pot, I took it out, put a glaze on and put it under the broiler for few minutes. Lip smacking!

For those who are counting, that's 5 recipes from my new bible that have been hits! I've been making notes in my bible after each make so I don't forget any needed changes that need to be made or that I made. Best buy ever in a long while.

Okay well, I need to get going. Happy Thursday! Later!

Kids Don't Listen

One of the things I hate about a new group of kids is the little habit they have of never listening. Literally, yesterday while I was going through some "housekeeping" with the kids in history to clean out their binders with the chapter we just finished in order to put the new work in, I had to say, at least 15 times, "Open your binder. Open your binder. Open your binder. If you're sitting there staring off into space you should know that I want you to open your binder. Binders should be open. Open your binder!" Then, I had to say things like, "Open up to the Questions tab" or "take out the old chapter" just as many times. And then as I walked around the room to the kids who I'm pretty sure were just being obstinate and trying to make me crazy by not doing what was asked, they would get all pissy when I said, "Why haven't you followed the direction that I just asked you to do 17 times?!" And I would get the typical freshman response of, "I DID!!!" with a shitty look and eye roll thrown in as they finally open their binder. ARG!!! You f&^king kids are going to get the biggest knuckle sandwich you've ever had! Or I'm going to end up in a mental hospital!

Breathe...breathe...only 15 more years...you can do this! (I don't think I can do this!)

Scout just went outside and reached up into the hibiscus tree that sits right outside the sliding glass door, grabbed a flower, pulled half the tree into the house before it finally gave way and ran into the living room (with Boo chasing after him) to chomp on the damn flower. And through all this Jim was sitting at the kitchen table with a mouthful of cereal yelling, "HEY HEY HEY HEY!!!" Bad dogs don't listen! (I love them!) 

There's something that happens every year at this time...I get these stupid bumps on my legs. This year is terrible. I'm wondering if I have psoriasis or something. So weird. They don't itch though but every time I shave I slice some of them and "sometimes I bleed". (What movie, Maggie?)

Okay well, that's all I've got. Tonight I'll make a meatloaf in the instant pot. We'll see how that goes. I mean, how bad could it be?

Happy...ooh, it's humpday...happy Wednesday! Later!

Too Fast

The weekend went way too fast but as Jim said, it's a good thing we're going back to work today because we can't keep drinking beer all day in the driveway! Actually, I really didn't drink that much yesterday because I was so sick of drinking! (Who ever thought they'd hear that from me?)

So yeah, the weekend was good! Saturday we spent the day at Trip and Susan's new house helping to prep the walls for paint. Jim and I took wallpaper down and Trip and Susan washed the walls. It's a great house in a really nice and pretty neighborhood. They have so much room and I'm just so excited for all the rehab to get done and for them to get in. J.J. seems excited too. I asked him if he was happy or sad about moving and he said, "A little of both." How thoughtful that kid is! Love him.

Saturday we came home and just played cards with the neighbors. Sunday I took Jim to Shooters and then we played the rest of the day. Jim's set up the whiffle all field again in the circle so we played some whiffle ball and corn hole and of course, cards.

I took a lovely bike ride yesterday around the neighborhood. They repaved a road that was a menace recently and my butt was happy. The boys went on lots of walks this weekend (I think total, Scout walked 11 1/2 miles for the three days) and I think they're also ready for us to get back to work. They're exhausted.

The week at work should be easy. Just reading (in LA) and starting new chapters in Bio and US History and it's a short week so bonus.

Okay well, I'd best get a move on. Happy Tuesday! Later!