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February 14 Three years and maybe the endI started this blog February 26, 2005. Right now I am considering deleting the whole thing. Craig reads my blog regularly and I told him that I didn't mind, because I don't keep secrets from him. The problem is that he tries to start arguements about things I write or what is written in my comments. He has started reading my e-mail, and checking the numbers on my phone to see who I have been calling, who is calling me, and what time the calls are made. Once again, I don't have anything to hide, but I am tired of the third degree - "Whose number is this? Why are you calling so and so at 7:00am? I know you made plans in advance because you spoke to so and so earlier today..." I thought about starting a new blog at a different sight, but he would just look up the history on my computer and track it down. I really hate the thought of giving up my blogging, but if I cannot write my real thoughts and the events of my life, what is the point of writing at all? February 13 The Variety ShowLast night I participated in my school's variety show to raise money for "Dollars for Scholars." Normally I wouldn't dare to show my complete lack of talent, but the act I was in required bad singing. Now that I can do - naturally. I was in the Geriatric Choir. My costume consisted of my grandma's walker, my dark green suit, white gloves, a blue gaudy brooch with rhinestones, huge rhinestone earrings, knee-high hose (with one falling down), an adorable little black hat, black oxford shoes, too much rouge and a piece of toilet paper hanging from the waist-band of my skirt. The song was sung to the tune of "My Favorite Things" and began with the words: Maalox and nose drops and needles for knitting, Walkers and handrails and new dental fittings... I even managed to speak a few lines of the song - solo. Since we were allowed to use papers with the words to the song, I didn't even get nervous and the whole thing was a blast. If some ornery teacher posts the act on YouTube, I will post it here, so you can see me being goofy. My last stint in acting was in the 8th grade, when I was 13 years old and I was a robot. If I wait that long to appear on stage again, I might be in my casket! February 11 Nothing...Did you ever see someone staring off into space and ask him, "What are you thinking about?" and he says "Nothing." That has always bothered me. I am always thinking about something. I couldn't meditate for squat, because it is impossible to "clear my mind." I have tried to think about nothing and then I am thinking about trying not to think. If anyone asks me what I am thinking about and I say I am not thinking about anything, it really means one of two things- it isn't any of your business or it isn't important enough to share. I guess the only time my mind is clear is when I am sleeping, and then that might not be the case, because I could be dreaming and just not remember my dreams when I wake up. sigh I wish I could say that a busy mind is a sign of great intelligence. If that was the case, I am a stinkin' genius! LOL February 10 Fred and WilmaLast night I had my first shift with clients. I met Fred and Wilma and loved them almost instantly. Wilma is 89 years old and her darling, devoted husband takes care of her full time. He needs help getting her up in the morning and into bed in the evening. Wilma had a stroke two years ago and her left side is useless. Company rules say that I am not allowed to lift clients - they have to be able to stand and walk pretty independently - with only an arm to hold onto. That is not the case with Wilma, and my back is aching this morning from helping Fred transfer her 4 times in three hours. At least after my shift tonight I will have 5 days to recover before I do it all over again.
I asked Fred and Wilma how they met and Fred got a sparkle in his eye as he said, "Well, should I tell her how we met?" Wilma gave him permission. It seems that each of their spouses died, within a month of each other and Fred was Wilma's mailman. Fred said, "And she made the best cookies!" When I asked Wilma what kind of cookies she used to win his heart, she said that it was either the chocolate chip or the sugar cookies. Fred chimed in and said, "It was the sugar cookies. She made a wonderful sugar cookie." LOL. So cute.
Wilma and I found common ground because she is a chocoholic and loves to eat ice cream. Fred and I found common ground because my grandpa was the postmaster while he was a mail carrier. Except for the physical toll on my old back, I think my first night as a caregiver went amazingly well. February 08 A tough day to be a teacherYesterday during my direct class I got a call from my friend Karen. She had just heard from Harley's sister that one of our students was killed in a car crash right down the road from her house, but all she knew was that it was a student coming to school from the vocational school in our county. My mind raced through my classlist as I tried to think what students I have at that school. I felt sick to my stomach as I pictured their faces. For some reason the first person I thought of is one of my students with CP - Aaron. "Please God, don't let it be him. Don't let it be anyone I know. Maybe there has been some sort of mix up and no one died."
A few minutes later the principal announced that we needed to turn on our televisions. I knew the dreaded announcement was coming. Three students were in that crash. Two injured and one dead. I did know the student who died. Martin had been in two or three of my classes since I started teaching three years ago. In fact, we just spoke in the hallway earlier in the week. He and Aaron have been friends for years. I sobbed at the announcement and tears streamed down my face. I left the room for a minute to calm myself and then went on with business as usual.
My students were so sweet. One boy who swears that he hates my class because I am so mean, came up and gave me a hug. A girl made a note that said something like, "We love Mrs. B." and then she put all of the students' names on it. Even the student who drives me crazy with his non-stop talking was subdued after the announcement.
My friend Terri and I sat in our office after school and cried and talked. She had been his teacher of record for four years. We had such hopes for Martin's future. We were so pleased that he was going to make it through high school despite his disability, a less than perfect home life, and some bad choices along the way. Martin was going to graduate on June 8th. February 06 Everything ChangesToday I got a call from my part-time employers offering me different hours. Yay! I get to work 3 hours on Saturday evening and 3 hours on Sunday evening, so I don't have to give up my work in the church nursery. Of course I will work less hours and drive more, but I think God must really want me to stay in the nursery at church so He got me different hours. I also get to substitute for a woman who cares for my neighbor. I have known my neighbor for 23 years and she lives right across the street. I told the woman who assigns the hours that I can sub there in the evenings during the week, and in the mornings on the weekends, so if they need me they just need to call. I think that in the future I might just be walking across the street to care for my neighbor every weekend. Time will tell.
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Today was Victoria's parent/teacher conference. The news was very bad. She had 4 A's and 1 B at the end of the semester and for this progress report she went down to C's and D's. What on earth is her deal? The teacher said that she gets up repeatedly to sharpen her pencil and blow her nose, she chats to her neighbors, and has even been crawling on the floor. The teacher wishes she could tape her rear to her chair. She has missed many recesses to make up work, but it hasn't phased her at all. Craig and I have noticed that lately she needs constant redirection at home. What I wonder is, why in the heck didn't the teacher call me or e-mail me to let me now about these problems sooner? Why wait until half of the grading period is over?
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On my way to work this morning I was flipping through the radio stations trying to find music instead of talk, when I stopped on my favorite classic rock station. I heard a very familiar voice. It was our former youth pastor, now the new morning DJ. He has been a DJ for years and worked for several stations, including a Christian station. Naturally I stopped and listened to his morning show to see what it was like. It was clean because his monologue focused on music and movies instead of sexual innuendo. Of course he played some of my favorite classic rock, including Ozzy (who I like more at age 45, than I ever did as a teenager). What fun!
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Just for fun I am going to make a political prediction: I think that if Clinton gets the Democratic nomination, she will ask Obamah to be her running mate. If Obamah gets it, he WON'T team up with Clinton (but I don't know who it will be). If McCain gets the Republican nomination, I think he will ask Huckabee to join him. I am a total novice when it comes to politics, so it will be fun to see if I am right. February 05 What's NewToday I called in to my new job to see if they have any clients for me. I was offered a Sunday shift from 8:00am - 4:30pm, every week. That means that I would have to give up my time in the nursery with people I like very much. I hate that thought. It is so depressing to think of giving it up. On the plus side, I won't have to miss church since we have Saturday night services. Do I wait for a different assignment and give up the money, or take it and live without my "baby fix"? I have to decide by Thursday.
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We got a letter in the mail saying that the judge decided that Bio-mom gets two overnight visits a month, and he set a date for us to go to court this summer for a status hearing. He made suggestions for the times and days of visitation but said that we can make our own arrangements if we can agree. Since we offered Bio-mom more time than the judge did, she agreed. The problem is that the judge said that Craig and I are responsible for transportation after her visitation. I don't know think he remembers that she lives an hour away, and that she doesn't pay a dime of child support. So - I told Bio-mom that the only way we will provide transportation is if she is ordered to pay child support. We have supported Victoria for over three years, and I have to work two jobs in the winter and Craig works two jobs in the summer and fall. If she wants to push the issue, we will file for child support and it will be granted. She said that she cannot afford to pay child support, so she will take care of transportation. I am pretty good at playing hard ball when I need to. If she keeps her visitation and doesn't have any major meltdowns, I expect she will get visitation in line with Indiana State Guidelines at the status hearing.
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Andrew is on his third Geometry teacher this school year. Third. He has had trouble in math since he started high school and playing musical teachers doesn't help any. The computer grade book has not been updated since before Christmas break. I have no idea what his grade is. That really ticks me off. I sent an e-mail to the guidance counselor and the special education teacher in his Geometry class and asked if they could please let me know what his current grade is. Hopefully they will get back to me tomorrow. If not, I will contact the assistant principal on Thursday.
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Since I have already earned the reputation of being a witch in my childrens' school district, I agreed to attend Craig's nephew's IEP conference. Z has Asperger's Syndrome and he is in the 6th grade. The IEP we will be working on is for Junior High (next year). That is a scary transition. I will be there as a student advocate and make sure that Z's parents don't sign that IEP until we are totally satisfied that it offers the support that Z needs to be successful. Z's parents are not educated, and I am sure are very intimidated when sitting at a table with administrators, teachers, consultants, and therapists. They also don't know the law. I pray that this team is more flexible and open to my suggestions so I don't have to be a witch - again.
Yikes - I am out of creamer!What a crisis. I cannot drink coffee without my flavored creamer. Someone (named Andrew) put the empty bottle into the refrigerator instead of throwing it away. I stood over my steaming cup of coffee pitifully praying for some creamer to magically flow out of the overturned bottle. Hey, Jesus turned water into wine so miracles can happen, right? I think I got two drips out of the container. Now what? I can be creative - occasionally. A little cartoon balloon appeared over my head. YES! I have an idea! I put a Hershey's dark chocolate Nuggest in my mouth and then drank my coffee. Hot coffee and a smooth chunk of dark chocolate, make for a delicious morning. Try it - you'll like it! February 04 Yucky Weekend HappeningsSaturday night we tried to go to church, but I got a migraine. Thankfully I managed to keep from throwing up until we got home. Thankfully I kept a lined waste basket next to my bed. Thankfully I didn't miss the waste basket. I managed to keep down to over-the-counter sleep aid pills and slept for 11 hours straight.
Unfortunately, there was chaos in my household. Devon was the source of it. It is blatantly obvious that he is as bi-polar as the day is long. I guess the mental health clinic he is going to doesn't want to get to the bottom of his problem because he doesn't have health insurance and he only pays $5.00 a visit. Then there is the fact that he doesn't take the medication that is prescribed and uses pot and alcohol instead. Saturday night he left me a ranting, angry, foul-mouthed, message on my cell phone that included a death threat. Yep, my oldest son told me that he is going to kill me. I hadn't even spoken to him and didn't do anything to provoke his anger.
Devon is not allowed in our home without invitation. If we invite him over he will have to be totally respectful or leave. If Craig won't back me up, he can leave right along with Devon. My tough love approach just got tougher. February 03 Newest VideoThe video I posted today is a song performed at GCC a couple of years ago. The original song is from Matisyahu aka Matthew Miller. Matisyahu is a Hasidic Jew whose music is a mixture of reggae and rock. The song that is being sung in the video is "King Without A Crown." The peformance was much more impressive when I was actually two rows from the stage, but I still like the video. February 02 A devotion for the dayThis devotion was written by a teacher at my school. Now I know what to say when Devon tells me I am wasting my time: Several years ago, one of my brothers made the comment that, “I was wasting my time believing in something that did not exist.” I didn’t put much thought on his reply because my brother often opens his mouth without thinking and from the lifestyle my brother lives, this comment was to be expected. We definitely have different lifestyles and different beliefs. Later, I thought more about his comment and the fact that we have different views. One question kept popping into my mind--who has more to lose if they are wrong, my brother or I? What if I am wrong? What if being a Christian is wrong? Then I’m wasting my time being nice to people and caring about their future. I’m wasting my time being honest, not stealing, and not killing people. By trying to live a healthier lifestyle, I’m still wasting my time. I’m wasting my time reading the Bible, praying for others, and attending a fellowship with others. I’m wasting my time trying to live for someone or something greater than myself. I’m even wasting my time by preparing these emails. Basically, I’m losing time. What if my brother is wrong? What if being a non-Christian is wrong? Basically, the answer is the same. It is a loss of time. However, it is not the time spent here on earth. It is an eternity. If he is wrong, or if a non-believer is wrong, he/she misses the opportunity to achieve the greatest gift available—eternal life. The Bible is very clear that we are all sinners (Romans 3:23) and that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), meaning if we do not accept Christ as our Saviour and do His will, we will separated from God forever. The Bible is also clear that if we accept Him and do His will, we become His children (John 1:12), we become heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17), and we shall have everlasting life (Johns 3:16, Romans 6:23). If you are a non-believer, I encourage you to spend a lot of time reading the Bible. Also spend some time attending church and talking/learning with others. But most importantly, take a second and invite Christ into your life. There is an eternal gift available to you. Every day I write different quotations on my board for my students to read. I’d like to close with one of them:
“I’d rather life my life believing there is a God and die to find out there isn’t, than to live my life as if there isn’t and die to find out there is.” February 01 How to quit smoking - Kathleen's wayI started smoking at the ripe old age of 16 and continued to smoke until I got pregnant with my boys. You know those billboards showing a fetus with a cigarette in the mouth? They affected me profoundly. I quit smoking - cold turkey- for both pregnancies. Once I got home from the hospital I started up again - in the basement or outside. Crazy, stupid, thing to do. The stress of working, living with Craig, and having children who had sleep and behavior problems was my excuse for "my crutch."
Over the years I quit and started back up, again and again. One time I quit for 4 years and still went back to smoking. There were long periods of time when I would only smoke 2 or 3 cigs a day, but then eventually the number would increase. If I had a no-good, very bad day with Craig or Bio-mom I would smoke a pack and make myself sick. Of course then I would vow to quit.
Medication didn't do a thing for my smoking habit. I realized that I wasn't physically addicted because I did go for months only smoking a few cigarettes a day. Finally I decided to make some new habits. I made some new rules. I added the new rules one at a time, not all at once, and severely limited my smoking. Rule number 1 - No smoking with non-smokers around. Rule number 2- only smoke in the basement or outside, eventually going to only outside. Rule number 3 - no smoking in my new car (I never did break this rule). Finally I decided to become a complete closet smoker, so when I did sneak a cig I had to be outside, wash my hands when I was done, gargle or brush my teeth, and spray myself with Febreez. What a ritual! People just assumed that I had quit smoking since they didn't see me smoke and I didn't smell like I had been smoking.
The next step was lozenges whenever I craved a cigarette. The final step was prayer. I had prayed for help to quit, but I still couldn't get myself to give the cigarettes up completely and it was really hard with Craig smoking like a chimney. I finally got specific and prayed that I would get sick from the smell of cigarette smoke. It worked like a charm. I felt green around the gills every time I was around Craig smoking or I tried to light up. That prayer worked so well that I couldn't be around my husband because he smelled like smoke and I felt like I was going to puke. He had to install an exhaust fan in the basement so he could smoke down there in the winter. I still won't kiss him until he has had a shower and brushed his teeth. I cannot hang out with my old friends who smoke, unless we are outside. I find it difficult to work with students who have been smoking. It has been two years and 7 months since I quit, and the only way I can stay away from the darned things is if they keep making me sick. Now one of my favorite prayers is, "I thank you God that cigarettes make me sick!" A test of my patienceOne of the wonderful things about anti-anxiety medication is that completely irritating, annoying, frustrating things barely make a blip on my emotional radar. I might think to myself, "Oh shut up already!" or "Calgon take me away before I smack the crap out of that person!" but it passes quickly. I can stand in long lines at the grocery store and sigh and think about how I always pick the wrong line to get into. Without the medication, the irritating things in life make me feel like I am going to explode. I don't know exactly how to explain it but it is a physical feeling, not just thoughts. The battle for self-control makes the physical feelings escalate. I am not a yeller or screamer and I don't throw temper-tantrums. Well normally I don't, but there have been a few times in my 23 years of marriage that Craig pushed me over the edge...
I haven't had my medication for 2 weeks. Finances, being busy, bad weather, and an expired prescription I have kept me from getting it. Yesterday my day was very pleasant. I worked a half a day, then went to my training for the new job the second part of the work day. I was pleased with the professionalism of the company and the friendliness of the trainer. If I am placed with a client I like, this could be a very nice part-time job for me. Once I entered the front door of my house, all of that changed. Craig was in another of his nit-picky moods and I was under fire.
Why is there coffee on the counter?
When are you going to put away your hair stuff?
I am making dinner.
Fine, you can make dinner.
Nobody does anything around here.
I hate coming home to a messy house.
What do you mean you're not hungry? I cooked dinner!
I work all day and then everyone expects me to come home and clean.
It went on for 2 1/2 hours. It wasn't just what he said, but HOW he said it. That tone of voice. Ugh. He was so mean and nasty with Victoria I felt like ripping his head off. I actually considered getting my stuff together while he was in the basement and running away from home for a few days. I could call in sick to work. Then I realized that I couldn't leave the kids. The anxiety and pressure was making my insides a churning mess. We drove to church in absolute silence. No music, no talk - just deafening silence. On the way home, Victoria wanted to talk. Craig wouldn't let her. He turned on the music to drown her out. Jerk.
This morning the anxiety is still eating away at my insides. I was relatively sure that we would have at least a 2 hour delay because of the snow we are getting, so I decided to stay in bed until 6:00am to wait for the call. Craig refused to let me sleep. He played and talked with the dogs, bugged me, turned on all of the lights, yelled at me to get him some toilet paper... He absolutely would not allow me to relax. I still didn't yell or complain. He finally left for work and I got some peace, and the call that school has been cancelled. Some time today I have to brave the snow and bad roads to go pick up my meds. If I don't, I am going to lose my temper with that man, and it won't be pretty. Not at all. January 31 Bargain Hunting Pays OffWe have three services from a company that begins with the big V - phone, internet, and wireless. I figured with that kind of loyalty we should qualify for some sort of discount, so I made a phone call. Turns out that putting all three services on one bill gives us free calls from all 5 of our cell phones to our home phone, and calling from our home phone to the cell phones won't take any of our minutes. The package includes Caller ID, and Call Waiting, but the very best part is free long distance from our home phone to anywhere in the continental US and Canada. We normally use our cell phones for any long distance, but if it isn't after 9:00pm or a weekend, the call uses minutes from our wireless plan.
We save a whopping $3.00 a month. I know that is not a great savings, but it solved a big dilemma for me. Marilyn's phone number is long distance from our house and cell phone. If I wanted to call her before 9:00pm during the week, it used up minutes on my plan (her cell phone plan is not from the V company). She gets free incoming, but if she wanted to call me, it burned minutes on both plans. We have had some seriously high cell phone bills since her separation and divorce. She changed her plan so she gets free minutes after 5:00pm, and I have free long distance from home, so we can talk to our hearts content. I guess having the day off yesterday had one benefit after all. I had time to do a little bargain hunting. January 30 Check out the new video I postedThis past weekend one of our pastor's performed an original rap song with video clips from 2007 services and outreach. It is GCC's year in review. After you watch it, you will see how unusual our church is. Unusual but awesome. Now that I know our videos are posted on youtube, I am going to be posting them often. Enjoy! No School TodayWe had a thunder storm last evening. A thunder storm in Indiana on January 29th, and the high temperature of the day was 50 degrees. Then the temperature started dropping - down a whopping 31 degrees in three hours. When I woke up this morning the temperature was 0 and the wind chill factor was - -20. Craig's truck doors were frozen shut. He had to yank and pull and jerk to get one open. The kids' schools closed, my school closed, and Marilyn's school closed. Am I happy about my unexpected day off? NO! My school year will now be extended into June. I think the students will still get out in May, but the teachers have to come in one day in June. If we have another day off, we will have two days in June, and so on. This is why my bad weather chant is, "Two hour delay HEY, two hour delay!" January 29 The times I've fallenI cannot take credit for the title of my entry this morning. It was stolen directly from Ree's blog. I am sure her entry is much funnier than mine, because, well, she is just a hoot when she tells on herself. However, as I was reading her blog this morning I was reminded that I am currently nursing a rather tender rug burn on my right knee. It is the result of one of a very graceful move I executed Sunday night.
Victoria, Craig and I were all snug in our beds and Andrew was glued to his computer screen in his room, when I realized that I forgot to turn down the thermostat. For some reason I decided to walk to the living room in the dark to turn it down. The thermostat is right above my computer desk and next to the desk my was my purse, complete with medium length handles which were sprawled out on the floor. I guesstimated the adjustment of the thermostat, turned and headed back to the bedroom. Somehow my size 12 foot hooked the handle of my purse and I started flailing, and hopping on one leg. Because of the momentum, I crashed and burned right in the doorway of our bedroom. I must have made quite a racket becuase Andrew opened his door and said, "Are you ok Mom?" Craig, on the other hand, laughed at my grace and wondered aloud how I managed to fall the entire length of the hallway if my purse was in the living room. I don't know how I did it, but if it was on tape, we would have all had a great laugh.
The fall reminded me of what could possibly be my most graceful move ever. A few years ago I was at Wally World to do my grocery shopping. The parking lot was icy and I was trying to strike a balance between shuffeling along like an old lady and walking like a confident woman, when I hit black ice right in front of the doors. Oh I am sure I was a beautiful sight, with my arms windmilling in the air, my mouth opened as I cried out in surprise, my eyes bulging. The next thing I knew my nose was to the ground, and I was getting a close-up look of the shiny pavement. My arms and legs were sprawled out in all directions. Before this incident I thought that only cartoon characters fell in this manner. I wanted to rise quickly, and try to be cool and confident; maybe laugh at myself and stride into the store with a grin on my face.
Nature was against me. The pavement was so slippery that I could barely get to my hands and knees. Every move I made, caused more sliding. I hurt - everywhere. A mother and teenage boy stood gawking at my side-show, when the mom recovered and barked at her son, "Go help that poor woman up!" The kid just stood there staring at me. I have to give him credit - at least he wasn't laughing. He obviously didn't want to help me up. I told the kid, "Don't worry about it. If you try to get me up we will both be sprawled out on this ice." They watched as I crawled to the salted area on the sidewalk, slowly unfolded my aching 5'10" frame, and hobbled into the store, with my face burning from embarrassment. I refused to consider how many other people had witnessed that fall. Just call me GRACE!
(One time I managed to step on my own foot and crash to the ground during a high school Government class. You guessed it, I was the teacher. Mortifying I tell you.)
January 28 The special education battle continuesWay back in October of 2007, I began battling with my son's school to get an appropriate IEP. I finally got the IEP finalized to my satisfaction in late December. What a struggle. I had to involve the director of special education, the building principal, the autism consultant, and I talked to representatives of INSource - the watchdogs of special education law in Indiana. I seriously thought I was going to have to hire an attorney to fight this battle, which was unbelievable to me. I wasn't asking for anything that I wouldn't provide my own students.
The problem now is that Andrew did not pass Health his freshman year. He told me that the whole class consisted of taking notes and he doesn't write quickly enough to get all of the notes. His IEP stated that he got copies of teacher notes or another student's notes would be copied for him. I e-mailed his special education teacher about it and totally expected that it would be taken care of. It wasn't. Normally when a student fails a class my school just puts them right back into the class the next semester. Andrew's school didn't, and now that he is a sophomore, they still didn't put him back in Health. The guidance counselor said that the classes were too full - with freshman, so Andrew would have to attend summer school. WHAT??!! They didn't follow Andrew's IEP and now they expect me to pay $75.00 to send him to summer school. Not a snowball's chance in HELL, will I pay for summer school. I explained that I am totally willing to send him to summer school IF the fee is waived, because it is not my fault that they did not follow his IEP. The building principal promised to get back with me with an answer. Yoo hooo - it is the end of December and I still don't have an answer.
Last week I e-mailed the building principal asking what they intend to do about Andrew's Health credit. He said that they were investigating the option of giving him a grade based on his test scores and dropping all of the homework. If he passed his tests then he would get his Health credit. You know how long that would take? About 5 minutes to pull up the grade report from that class and about 5 minutes to average all of his test scores. Why in the heck is it taking three months? I wrote the principal back, saying essentially that. Guess what? He hasn't written back. I called INSource again and then I looked up a law firm that represents all of the school districts in the county, except my son's. Today I am making one last ditch attempt to get this resolved, then I contact the law firm.
I am infuriated and totally mistified. This isn't an unreasonable request. We have had some people drop the ball in my school district. We are not perfect. When a parent makes a call and we define the error, we (teachers and administration) do whatever it takes to make it right. I totally believe in the old adage, "The squeaky wheel gets the grease." Why are they giving me the run-around? Well I guess it is a good thing I have some paid time left this year, because I have a feeling I am going to have to take it to get this mess straightened out.
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UPDATE: The principal sent me an e-mail today to let me know that Andrew "earned" a C, and now has his Health credit. I am glad that I didn't have to push it to mediation. Hopefully the next two years of high school will go much smoother. The head of the special education told me that the school distirct has never had to go to mediation. Maybe they would like to keep it that way.
January 27 Just another reason to love my churchOur youth pastor resigned last week. I knew something really bad must be going on because he and his family are loved by all. The students are crazy about him. Sure enough, I was right - it was bad. He had a relationship with someone other than his wife. He went to the pastor and told the truth, confessed to the rest of the pastors, and spoke to the youth group. That had to be extremely hard. But what is amazing is that he and his family aren't being treated like outcasts. While no one approves of his sin, they didn't turn their backs on him. The family is staying in our church. They are going to counseling and working on their marriage.
Wow. Those people know that the leaders of our church really love them - not just when it seems that they have it all together and they look like spiritual giants. Our former youth minister is loved even when he has been slopping around in sin, and has confessed his weakness and brokeness, his imperfection. Sure he didn't keep the standards expected of a leader in ministry and he had to give up his ministry, but that doesn't mean that God quit caring about him, and the leaders haven't stop caring either.
I think that is a wonderful testament to the agape love that our church leaders live out on a daily basis. It is wonderful to see that kind of spiritual maturity. I just discovered another reason for loving my church. |
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