Memorial Day is here! What a year it's been. This is one for the record books. After I didn't get the phone in time yesterday morning ::cough cough:: I had another free day looming (today) until the phone rang around 8:30 last night. I was surprised because I didn't think teachers could take off the day before a long weekend, but it turned out this one had a good reason.
Every year I seem to find myself in a string of the same grade. Last year it was mostly fifth. Well this year? No. First and second. ::rips out hair:: They are very cute, but they can run you ragged. This was a pretty good class, but there's never a dull moment in the life of a substitute. First I found that today was the teacher appreciation luncheon, where all lunches were extended by half an hour. Except mine. I was never technically invited, and my plans said to go outside after half an hour of lunch. So it was very awkward for me, because I knew that by not going I was avoiding them, and yet I couldn't just assume I was welcome and walk in, either.
But first I need to backtrack to half an hour *before* lunch when the office intercom announced into the classroom that the guppies had arrived. Guppies? There was already a tankful of guppies. I said, OK, and continued about what we were doing. Five minutes after that, in walked the janitor with a box that said "living things" or some such identifying feature. (!) What was I supposed to do with guppies?
So one of the kids told me they usually do science with another teacher, whose class is on the complete other side of the building. I chose the most responsible girl in the room and sent her off with a note saying, "guppies are here. what do i do with them?!" She set off and happened to encounter this teacher on her way to take her own class outside. She took a detour and brought HER entire class in with the class I had, who were at their desks working. When I balked at the responsibility, terrified I would kill the entire colony of silvery swimmers, I guess she decided she'd set them up herself. So she did, and I read two books to her class, who had gotten a bit wild with excitement. There were two guppy casualties, which I had to fish out myself (heh heh) at the end of the day. I absolutely hate deceased guppies.
So that was the beginning. Then, after spending lunch dealing with the issues of my beleagured Explorer, which is at the dealership now, I went back to the classroom and got the group ready for recess. No sooner had we emerged into the hallway than we were spotted by the principal! She had me take them back to their room, get books, and come sit with her in the gym so that I could attend the remainder of the teacher appreciation lunch! So although that was also nice, it did set us back an additional half hour!
But the rest of the day went fairly well, although I was also asked to cover for a computer teacher during prep, because she had to go home for a sick child. This was fine, and in fact her class happened to be the class that I had had for the two week period that just passed. But that meant that I didn't get to organize any of the work for the teacher I was covering, or to grade the classwork that they had done. As it was, I didn't get out until 3:30 (normally 3:15) and Brian was ringing my cell phone off the hook looking for permission to roam the neighborhood. I think has managed to elude any law enforcement encounters tonight. He is down at the local McDonald's now, and Kevin will pick him up in half an hour.
Anyway, in other news, E is still hacking a bit and Megan is still having the symptoms. I noticed that seasonal flu is still listed as widespread in NJ, but I don't worry as much about that because I do believe we have done our time with that one, back in the time of the Great Sick. But the swine flu thing bothers me. It's a constant state of limbo, and I am pretty sure they don't tell us even the tip of what they know. I found out that there are kids who attended the conference with some who fell ill, and are being checked daily for fever. So they could come down with it, but meanwhile they've been in school the whole time they were cooking the virus anyway. I guess that's why closing the schools really just doesn't pay. By the time they close it, the virus is probably everywhere, and the ones who aren't sick yet probably all get together and hang out in close quarters anyway! But the best news of all is that the summer is kicking off, and the beach club opens tomorrow!
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