031/365: Snow Angel?

We survived the storm, but the collateral damage could put us under:

SRR: "Mom, you need to put JOR in time out!"
Me: "Why?"
SRR: "He bit me!"
Me: "Why?"
SRR: (Feeling defeat): "Uh, it was an accident..."
Me: "Why?"
SRR: "Uh, I accidently had my hand near his teeth....."
Me: (You guessed it) "Why?"
SRR: "I accidently punched him..."
Me: (Everybody now) "Why?"
SRR: "Never mind." (Walking away defeated).

SRR is now attempting to atone for his deeds by heating up a rice pad for JOR's sore leg. We'll see how this goes. Hopefully he won't scorch his brother.

Until next time....bite away!

030/365: Snowman

We were gifted with almost a foot of snow. It was a wonderfully decompressing day: as the snow fell, so did my stress level. The snow just naturally mutes out the world. How exciting to just be! Until....

"Honey, do we still have that space heater out in the shed?", he asks out of the blue.
"I don't think so", I reply.
MGR: "Can you go out to the shed and check?"
Me: "I don't think so!"
MGR: "Can you help me?"
Me: "Do I have a choice?"

So, donned in his new boots, jacket, and ergodynamic snow shovel, MGR and I ventured out into the storm. I assisted in clearing a path to the shed, froze my hands to unlock the door and searched for the heater. As luck would have it, we don't have one. But we did take time to laugh and throw snow at each other as we took a brief respite from the house and kids....and life!

It's not the destination, but the journey that makes life fun!

Until next time....play away!!

029/365: Waiting.....

I feel like a child on Christmas Eve. I'm nervously trying to get things done: laundry, bills, floors, and anything else that needs "fixing". A Starbucks' Venti Skinny Vanilla Latte is adding fuel to the fire. MGR, feeling the same way, created and baked a lasagna that smells heavenly!

We went out this evening and enjoyed a trip to the library, a fun dinner, some last minute winter clothing shopping for MGR, and a Starbucks run. That will probably be our last time out of the house for at least 2, maybe 3 days. And you what? I LOVE IT!!!! I am a firm believer that God gave us snowstorms to either calm us down or make us happy. In our house, it's both! It has been a rough couple of weeks for us, physically and emotionally. I can't wait for the first flakes to fall. It almost seems like that will give me permission to start shutting down.

Until next time....wait away!!

028/365: Bring it on!

Watching the Weather Channel 12 hours a day.....check!
All news websites tabbed in order.....check!
Positive affirmation on the board.....check!
Went to Ukrops for milk (already had bread) and lots of other essentials (cookie dough, popcorn, frozen pizzas, cheese, chips)....check!
Shovel and de-icer out of the shed and in the house....check!
Ice cubes flushed down the toilet....check!
Pajamas inside out....check!
Mentally prepared for whacked out people (big and little) tomorrow....check!!
Getting ready for a 6"-10" snow at a time we all need a little happiness and fun....check!!
Bring it on!!

Until next time...let it snow!

027/365: Rally Time!

While the evening was cold, the spirits were hot! A coalition of parents, teachers and community members gathered outside the government complex to fight for our kids. Guest speakers included a former school board member, the former VEA president and the presidents of the county's PTA and NAACP. Unity for a common cause. They all spoke of creating revenue, not creating cuts.

The most stirring speaker, however, was an instructional assistant from an elementary school. She spoke of the many duties she has in her position: working with students in reading groups, supervising breakfast and lunch duties, and, of course, completing numerous clerical tasks. All this for a salary of $14,000 (this is before our 3% pay cut next year). She is a single mother with two daughters.

Why is it that we, who have invested in quality public education, have to stand out in the cold to voice our concerns, while Wall St. gets to sit in their corner offices and get what they want? I wish someone has an answer....

Until next time....rally away!!

026/365: Let the Games Begin!

There it is, on live TV, the "Budget Reduction Summary". The superintendent presented his proposed budget to the school community. It is, in one word, ugly!!

There are two rounds of cuts. The first includes a 3% pay cut (6 less days of instruction), and hundreds of job cuts, including teachers, instructional assistants, and secretaries. Programs involving the special education population will become almost nonexistent.

If the necessary revenue does not appear, then the following will also occur: an additional 1% pay cut, more teachers gone, 10 integrators and 8 MCAs (the wonderful people who maintain the hardware and software) gone, electives (such as music, drama, and advance courses) gone, athletics, gone.

Now the school board gets to play hardball with the county board of supervisors. It seems that last year, the school system gave money back to the county; money that was not used. Now they want (need) the money back. Let's see if the supervisors will play fair and return the money to fund the schools.

It appears that the supervisors have a long lasting love affair with builders in this county. A love affair that continues even under these circumstances. It almost seems like Tiger Woods trying to pick up women even after being caught. The county just loves approving subdivision after subdivision, even though the only things they contribute to the county are traffic, overcrowded schools, and maybe a trickle in real estate taxes. I don't see them going after the big business and green energy folks to get what Chesterfield really needs: lots of jobs and lots of tax revenue.

This is the beginning of what will be a long four month period. Lots will happen: jobs lost, salaries cut, programs gone, children deprived. I pray that a miracle will happen, the games will stop, and the education of our kids be put to the top of the priority list. Schools, NOT subdivisions!!

Until next time...pray away!!!

025/365: GradeQuick...HELP!

My job is to make technology easier and more accessible to all end users: students, teachers, administrators, secretaries, custodians, and parents. I hit a major road block while trying to do my job today.

Teachers had to submit their grades electronically by the end of the work day. My job was to make sure there weren't any snafus in the sending process; that teachers had an easy path to grade sending success. This was made impossible by the mere fact that the server could not handle the volume of users! Imagine thousands of teachers sending millions of bytes of data through the network without any rhyme or reason, and almost all at once. When I left work at 4pm, teachers, some with tears in their eyes, were still trying to send grades they finished this morning. I felt absolutely helpless! Time is the new currency, especially in public education. It disturbed me that much of it was wasted today.

It is my hope that a sending schedule will be established to assure that this sort of debacle won't happen again. I need to be at work early tomorrow to help the teachers who couldn't send today. Hopefully, they will be able to send quickly and be done with it!

Until next time....send away!! (Hopefully....)