Danggit!

Just when I thought that I was doing so well by posting every few days in January... Well, with all of the piles of papers that need correcting, lessons to plan, and TV shows to watch (yes, I make time to veg out and watch mindless, yet entertaining shows), I find that I rarely have time to blog. Okay wait, forget all of that. The REAL reason why I don't blog as often as I'd like can be summed up in two words: dial-up. Um, okay, so technically that could be one word, but people, you get the point. As disconnected as I feel during the week without going online and checking mail, I'd rather not have to go through the hassle and aggravation of waiting for pages to load...and for those who have forgotten what it's like to live in the dsl or cable-less world, it takes forever! Not to say that the main reason I visit my sis on the weekends is for their wireless network connection...but it sure does help!

A Helluva Week

First off, let me just say that the weather is to blame. Because of the crappy, gloomy, cold, dark, and rainy days that we've been having, kids all over the Bay Area can't help but give their teachers a hard time. I know this from first hand experience- it has been my living hell the entire week. And no matter how much I plan for it, anticipate it even, I am Ms. Cranky MnM by the end of the day. Sure, it's hard for the kids to be cooped up all day, I understand...I get it. But oh how I wish the kids could cooperate and be dazzled by all the cool stuff I have to share! They really can't sit still and their mouths are on overdrive...I've been reminded of that damn Energizer bunny- keeps goin' and goin' and goin' and goin'. Argh. As terrible as this sounds, there have been moments where I'd just love to tell them to shut up. OF COURSE, I NEVER WOULD! I'm just saying that sometimes I wish I could.

Okay, I don't mean to brag, but I will say this- if you were a 3rd Grader, you WANT to be in my class. I, for one, like to have fun in class. I find that when kids are enjoying themselves, they tend to remember the lesson better. Sure, not everything is all fun and games, but if I was a 3rd grader, I'd be bored out of my mind if we had to listen to a teacher lecture all the time. You gotta switch it around every so often, surprise them, do something out of the ordinary, get them to laugh, gross out, be wowed, and challenge them to think. I swear, all of the prep to try and make all of that happen isn't successful all of the time. It's almost like being a stand-up comedian...sometimes the crowd goes wild and you totally feed off of their excitement and energy; other times, you're stuck with a bunch of deer-in-the-headlights stares and you're wondering if the mic is on.

Earlier in the week, I was the freakin' headliner.

I told my class a joke. Okay, if truth be told, I'm always cracking jokes and throwing sarcasm around. It's one of those things where I have to have my door closed because my class is busting a gut on something I said. But this time, not only did I tell a joke, I told them a FILIPINO JOKE.

So we've been talking about Invertebrates- animals without backbones- and the topic of the day was octopus. 8 arms called tentacles with suction cups, uses ink to confuse the enemy, comes in different sizes, blah blah blah. When octopus move, they do so by using a siphon- in other words, think of a balloon that you're blowing air into, but when you accidentally let go, the balloon flies uncontrollably around as the air escapes. Same thing, but in water. So I'm demonstrating what an octopus might look like and well, the "pusit" joke came to mind.

In order for this joke to be funny, you HAVE to know that the word "squid" in Tagalog is "pusit." You take your left hand and while you open and close the fingers, move it across your body. You ask "what is it?" and the answer is "pusit." Then, you take your right hand and do the exact same thing and ask "what is it?" and the answer is "op-pusit." Get it? Opposite? LOL! Okay, I may not have explained that so well in words, but if you saw the reaction on my kids' face, it was enough to get me rollin' on the floor. So yah...I was cool teacher with the jokes that day. LOL!

Too bad it didn't last though. The forces of nature were stronger than my superteacher powers and well, as Friday took its sweet time coming, the kids' behavior went from bad to worse. But hey, just like I told them at the beginning of the school year, "If you give me a good day, I will give you a great day. If you give me a bad day, I will give you a terrible day." Woe to the kids who feel my wrath! Bwahahahahaha! Seriously? I DID make two kids cry. Do I really need to repeat myself twice? I don't think so. 'Nuff said.

High and Mighty

These words could describe a teacher at school. Ms. High and Mighty is one of those Christians with that "holier than thou" attitude that I seriously cannot tolerate. While I am totally down for being so convicted about your beliefs and speaking your mind about it, I don't appreciate it when those very same beliefs are rammed down my throat and I am made to feel condemned if I don't agree with them. It all began with a discussion of Mayor Gavin Newsom's extracurricular activities. Ms. High and Mighty was sharing her views on why she would not vote for him and well, as she said, his actions are a reflection of his character. Fine, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But then she continued with the argument that his decison making isn't based on a Biblical perspective; she further continued with her feelings about the sinfulness of the homosexual community and how appalled she is that Mayor Newsom supports "those people." I, for one, was so appalled at what she was saying, that I got up in the middle of her spiel and walked away.

What happened to love for our fellow man?

But there's more to Ms. High and Mighty. In reference to a student who potentially could've been in her class, she stated that she hated this child. Hated. Hate is a very strong word and to direct that type of feeling to a child, A CHILD, is just so totally wrong and so un-Christian as can be. Put that all together and mix it up- a Christian teacher at a Christian school spouting Christian values and morals is the very same teacher who refuses a student because she hates him. My goodness...out of all the difficult students I have had, as much trouble as they have given me and no matter how much they got on my nerves, not once have I said that I hated them. I may not like them for a while, but I would never in a million years say that I hated a student. Whatever ounce of respect I ever had for this teacher is completely gone.