Almost done

My grades are done, the week is almost done, we're almost done.

This week has been a little different. I wasn't giving an exam, so I didn't have class. But I still had a world of other things to accomplish. Like:

taking down everything off of the walls
organizing which art work belonged to which kid (no names are a real pain..how hard is it to put your own name on something...totally a different subject all together)
carefully placing all claimed artwork into their personal properties at intake
finding some kind of closure with the kids without holding classes
re-organizing the art supply closet (yes I was happy to get a room this year, but I didn't have anytime to organize it)
cleaning
cleaning
cleaning
completing transfer summaries
and a world of paperwork....

It's ok. It's mostly happy times at the end of the year, even in here. The kids feel like it's the end. They're happy they've made it through something, and "finished" something. It's a sense of something "normal" in their lives. And for us too. Some of these kids will still be here when we return in a month, but there will be a bunch of new kids too. (not really wanting to think about that right now)

What I really like about the end of the year here, is that I get to give kids all their artwork back. Some of them actually forget what they've done, and how far they've grown (if they've been here a while). Some kids don't want to have anything to do with their artwork-- which is normal in this climate too. But, I find that a lot of them want it, but don't want to show their pride. So I have to kind of coax into taking their artwork. After that, they usually have this innocent smile, and their eyes beam with some happiness. I want them to know how proud I am. And how glad I am to have them as a student. It's important for both of us.

So anyway, one more week (I suppose). I'm not sure if I get some days to "work at home". I'm hoping for that.... but I'm not sure.

Right now, I want to make some late summer plans.

I want to make it to the beach
I want to see some friends
I want to feel like I've been on vacation..
I really don't want to make the mistake of not doing anything, and regret not doing anything....

Hummm....... We'll see what happens. I'm low-budget, so who knows where I can go for a minimum price. I'm thinking very local. Very... no flights, no grand car rides (I think I could limit myself to 8 hours), and cheap accommodations.....if that's even possible. Who knows, though, last minute deals can be had!

The Breeders!

I never thought I would go see The Breeders! But I did! And they were AWESOME! I loved it. They were fantastic. It was a fun, exciting, loud, rocking, guitar playing, bass drum beating, smash out, good time. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about them, the lead singers have interesting, yet sometimes hard to listen to voices. It takes some getting used to. They have sort of this sharp alto voices that are loud and very throaty. Not my favorite kind of singing, because it can come off in a live show as shouting. But NO! They actually sang. And it was loud, and throaty, and all of that.. But it was good. They totally rocked. They did some new songs, old songs, covered songs. It was fantastic, and had it been a weekend I probably would have danced around at bit more. However, being a school night, and recovering from my illness(es) I thought head bobbing and a touch of hip-shaking was just fine.

I didn't think I would be too impressed with them, but I love it when women totally own the stage, and are a bit aggressive. They were also funny, and joking, and having a good time. There was a bit of audience participation, and one of the sisters even managed to get into the crowd to film the rest of the band! Who does that??? You can really tell they love what they do, and they are talented musicians. I can't believe how their hands just went over the guitar as if it was nothing. It was amazing. I'm so glad I saw them.

I even liked the opening band. Although it took a little while for "The Montana Boys" to grow on me. I don't know what kind of sound they're looking for. Or if they care. They seem to try and do a little bit of everything. At first I thought they were channeling a little bit of "Clap your hands, say yeah" , but then it turned into some kind of typical college band, and then they got all bluesy, and folksy, dancy. It was interesting. Better than most opening bands I see.

So what's next??? I don't know. No shows on the immediate horizon that I'm dying to see. I may try to venture out to listen to "Tilly and the Wall". It's only $13. I can enjoy a night of tap-dancing percussion and dance along right with them.... It would at the very least, be interesting to watch. Plus, they're from Nebraska!

OK- time to go put in some teaching time. Only about a week to go with students.....

For your entertainment:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bt5MWCwFhCI

and for historical content:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGXdXcpNsv4


Because as you know, there are a few bands that emerged from the Pixies.....including the Breeders.

Enough is enough

I've been sick for way too long. It all started about a week ago. I've missed a lot of work, but I'll be back tomorrow. It's horrible to be sick, especially this past week. We've been having a heat wave in this part of the country (actually all over the eastern seaboard). It's been above a hundred or near 100 degrees in the last week. I've felt clammy, and hot, and overall horrible. Once I got over the flu part of it, it became a hacking cough along with some congestion. Thanks, just what I needed.

I'm starting to feel better, so that's good. But let me just tell you about our lovely health care system. I tried calling my primary doctor, they wouldn't let me come in until next week. So they suggested that I go to urgent care if I felt like I really needed to be seen. They gave me the number. So I called. The receptionist asked me what insurance I had. So I told her. She said that I would need a pre-approval from my primary care doctor before I came in. WHAT? So I asked her," This is urgent care, right?" She said, yes but I would need pre-approval. So I decided that my own diagnosis was the flu and basically said-- forget it.

How could I need a pre-approval from my primary doctor to go to an urgent care place? What is the point of having a point-of-service plan if I need pre-approval? And why did my doctor say I should go there as a suggestion, if I needed pre-approval?

Do you know how long a pre-approval takes? 2 working days. That means I still wouldn't have been able to get in today.

Not only that, I had to get a prescription filled. My insurance no longer covers it...for some strange reason, no one told me. I've been taking this medication since November..... WHAT?? So I had to change to something else.. I don't even know if it's good for me to do that.

So, do we need an overhaul on our American "Health" Insurance plans? YES, by the grace of GOD-- or Obama, we definitely do. It's ridiculous how much I pay for it out of my own paycheck, but then I can't even get treated. I'm not the type of person to even go to the doctor all the time. I go when I need to go.

Needless to say, I was not happy. But, I am going to the doctor next week. I need to talk about my sleep issues, and get those squared away, I'm so tired of not sleeping.....

After all this, I realized it was lucky that I could take all these days off. My principal was very supportive, and luckily I had enough sick leave to cover this last week. I really needed it. I still have a few more weeks of school to go. I hope I make it through, so I can actually enjoy what little time off I have for summer.

UGh

I love having the flu. But at least the haze of Dayquil is working this morning. I'm just in a fog. Which is good, because we just had a staff meeting and found out that we have to go back to work on July 29th. I get just 4 weeks off. I'm too tired to fight back. I'm too sick to get angry. I'm just not happy. It looks like I really do need to go find another job. I can't deal with this. It's not like I get paid any extra. Yes I get paid for the extra time I work. But it's not worth the stress. I never feel relaxed after a weekend. I never feel refreshed. And this weekend I had the flu. ugh.