September 24, 2008
-
When it rains, it rains and it rains and it rains.
Then it lets up a little.
Then the hail comes.
I realize that “counting my eggs before they hatched” was not a good thing, but I dove into this school year with the best of intentions, the coolest syllabi yet, and the most positive attitude a liberal can have in North Dakota. It shouldn’t shock me, then, that my beloved karma would teach me a lesson, or something like that. At the very beginning of the semester, I started to feel tired all the time. And I detest being tired (just about as much as I detest being sick or crying). Cheryl diagnosed me with this and that, but now I see it was the foreshadowing of tiresome problems to come…Since I have the themes in my classes figured out, the syllabi charts practically perfect, and the use of book content wrapped around everything in a nice bow, the outside factors just had to be the molehills that are magically becoming moutains on their own. Slowly, it hasn’t been about what I am doing in the classroom or how successful it is; it has become all about who isn’t in class and why. Students missing for this and that and the challenge of upholding a new attendance policy (5 unexcused absences and you are out) has become a job in and of itself. How about everyone just COMES TO CLASS, so I don’t have to judge whether Suzie’s cousin’s wedding in Ohio is excused or not?!
Add to all this a few students in every class pushing tork-off-the-teacher-buttons (sleeping, chew, demands, etc.) and the fact that my property management’s is pulling the let’s-charge-them-for-utilities crap and I have too many things smacking my ego and brain power and spirit everyday. How’s that for a pity party?
Let’s just say I’m a wee bit overwhelmed and call it good.
Comments (7)
Best of luck to you.
@wherethefishlives - Thanks so much!
lessons i’ve learned: dance in the rain, tuck into a tiny ball and crawl into a corner if it hails.
sometimes the pity party is what you need to get through the storm.
That Cheryl chick is pretty smart, are you sure you don’t have a thyroid problem? LOL
I am not sure why all this is happening, because you are nice to people and you do the right things, so Karma doesn’t explain it. I though Karma crapped on mean people!!?
@ChubEchpmnk - Yea, Cheryl’s cool beans.
Well, it could just be my “eternal optimism” getting some major testing; it probably doesn’t have a lot to do with karma since if what comes around goes around… oh wait, maybe I’m the karma that has to smack people, like when Earl (on My Name is Earl) has to punch the owner of the fast food place in order for the good worker to become the new manager and for the nice wife to find out her hubby, the mean manager, was cheating on him… maybe that’s it?
Whatever. I’ll survive with my sarcasm and great friends.
sounds like we need to have a long chat soon. i feel like i’m missing out on your life! eek!
@tokidokiforever - No kidding! I miss ya too… things are looking up, however… Twins won last night, Anne brought me a scone from a cool bakery in Fergus…