Friday freakout
This was a typical Friday. Everyone was in a panic over not having some piece of paperwork, or some numbers that they needed for a meeting, so we were all scrambling around trying to pull things together,
This is all stemming from the meeting we had on Wednesday, and the fact that the superintendent can’t figure out what the principal is talking about. So now I’m attempting to pull together a schedule and numbers so the superintendent can see on paper what it is that we are trying to get additional help for.
Personally I think it’s a losing battle. What we need to do is cut our losses for the coming year, consolidate classes so we are covering fewer rooms (granted this is a burden on the classroom teachers), and try to hash this out for the 2001-02 school year.
But the principal has made this his cause. We’ll see.
I hate feeling stressed on Fridays. I like the week to end smoothly, so I don’t have a lot of stuff waiting to be faced on Monday morning. It doesn’t often work out that way. I had a meeting with a parent at two this afternoon so that leaves me with a stack of stuff to wade through on Monday. I could take it home, but …nah…
I had to bring home other reports that need to get written and lesson plans to complete. I’ll ignore them until Sunday night I’m sure.
Dee and I went out for a quick bite tonight, but I was really feeling lousy, and seem to be having some side effects from the new medication, so I was home by seven. I have a ton of errands that I need to run, but I was too warn out to do that. I especially need to go and get the new contact lenses.
I’m going to have to drag myself out of here tomorrow to be sure I get these things taken care of. I’m in such a mood to procrastinate. I’m still staring at a pile of laundry that needs to be put away. I think it’s been sitting on the floor of the bedroom for a good two weeks now.
I can be lazier that anyone I’ve ever met.
Listening to: Whistle Down the Wind
Reading: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Rowling
Weather: 55, partly sunny
Trivia: How can cartilage-jawed fish crush hard clams?
Like all elasmobranchs (fish in the shark family), stingrays have no solid bones. Instead, they have skeletons of cartilage. So how can some stingrays manage to crush and consume hard clams, whose shells are much harder than their own bones? The secret is leverage and smart design. The clam-crushing rays have special three-layer cartilage, with an outer layer of tough, fibrous cartilage and a middle layer that is harder than the inner portion. There are also thin, hollow bracing struts that reinforce the jaws and add extra leverage. Because of the way the jaws are designed, they can crush objects that are harder than they are. Then the ray's sharp, hard teeth can further crush the shell fragments, releasing the meat inside.
Cool word: Podunk [n. POE-dunk]
"If you don't study hard you could end up someplace like Podunk University," Jeff's parents threatened. What is it about Podunk that might make a reluctant student hit the books? In the example above, and in contemporary figurative use of this noun, Podunk describes a small, unimportant town. Used to refer to a place of geographical obscurity, Podunk is synonymous with Anywhere-USA or Nowhere-USA. The location of the original Podunk is unclear. Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, and New York are among the American states that can lay claim to a Podunk. The word itself, which first was used figuratively in the mid-19th century by a newspaper journalist, appears to have come from an Algonquin word. It was either the name of a tribe in Connecticut or a generic term for a swampy place. Native Americans can be thanked for many other words in our vocabulary. They include:
- caucus: private meeting of leaders of a political party
- toboggan: sled
- moccasins: shoes or slippers
- plantain: an overgrown banana chiefly used in cooking
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You might be feeling a little inclined to indulge your whims right now. And if you're not careful, this could end up costing you a pretty penny. Your children and your loved ones might sense your mood and want to get in on the act as well. Since you might be feeling a little possessive and protective of them right now, you might be willing to indulge them a bit today. Just don't take any unnecessary risks when it comes to your money right now.