When will it ever be Spring

I am tired of cold weather. Normally by this time, we are beginning to enjoy the onset of Spring with highs in the 60s and lows in the 40s and the promise of Spring coming. Not this winter!! Today the high did not reach 50 and while it was sunny, there was a 20 mph wind and it was COLD. Tonight's low is supposed to be 25!!!! What happened to an early Spring that was depicted by Gen. Lee on Groundhogs Day????!!!??? I think we need a new southern groundhog.

School is going really well. This time of year gets busy as Spring sports begin and people begin looking forward to Spring Break. I know I am. We are headed somewhere to celebrate me being done with my Masters and my sister being finished with her PhD. By this time next week, Angie will be Dr. Angie. (So proud of you big sis!!!!)

Prom is heating up with the first workshop this weekend. The invitations came in this week, the senior girls will love them. And face it, they are the only ones who care about that. This Prom is at a new location so I am apprehensive, but I think it will be good.

Beginning to plan for the summer, and aside from spending a week in Gettysburg at a conference, I have a whole lot of nothing planned. This will be the first summer since I started teaching that I have NO SCHOOL!!!!!!! Super excited about lazy days and reading as much as I want when I want without feeling guilty. Besides, I have a stack of books (27 to be exact) that I got at the Library's Old Book Sale last weekend and there is a new used bookstore in town that I am building a store credit with!!! Super Excited.

Now if warmer weather would just get here!!!!

Life

I really have to do a better job with posting, but life always seems to get in the way. The past week and this week leading up to Winter Break are extremely busy for me. Last Tuesday night, TSA had the first ever PINK OUT at a basketball game to benefit the Susan G. Komen Foundation. We raised over 1800.00!!!! The gym was decked out in pink. The basketball players, girls and guys, wore pink shoelaces and armbands, and athletic tape. The place looked like the church from Steel Magnolias. It was pink and pink!!!!! It was a great turnout and everyone had lots of fun.

The next day it was off to the ATL with the 8th graders to visit the Capital, the Varsity (whadda ya have, whadda ya have) and the Civil War Cyclorama. The kids had a great time and represented the school well. They wanted to know why the representatives did not get in trouble for talking over the speaker. I explained to them that it was politics. We met the governor and had our picture taken with him. Then it was off to the varsity for lunch. After ingesting much grease, it was time to go see the Cyclorama. This is a 42 foot tall painting depicting the Civil War battle for Atlanta. It was amazing and the kids really enjoyed it.

Friday afternoon brought on the trip to go see the prom venue. I had never been in this building, so I was apprehensive, but it will be a good location.

This week brings Region Basketball tournament, another prom meeting, and Y-Club Valentine Balloons. Thankfully I get a 4 day weekend!!!!! Hope to hear about a summer study position in PA this week as well!

Listen to the rythmn of the falling rain

That's right, its raining again in Macon. I guess we should not complain since we are finally out of a years long drought. But, just once I would like to go seven whole days with no rain or clouds. Some weeks we forget what the sun looks like. Today's weather has been troubling. It was 72 degrees outside at 6:00 p.m in January!!! Needless to say, the dog has been in a tizzy all day because of the coming storms. The storms have started and he has seemed to calm down some. Now, we are listening to the rain.

This past week has been a strange one. It seems that God is throwing things at me to test me and see how I respond. I have had lots of things going on and Thursday topped them all. Its prom time, well planning time at least, and I had a meeting Thursday night with my parents. Now, I found out Thursday morning that our location had bumped us to the next weekend and I was just now finding out. We could not do the next weekend due to state track meet and grad nite at Disney World for the seniors. So, 8 hours before my meeting, we had no place to have Prom. Thankfully, I found a venue in town and it is now booked for us!!! Also have the d.j booked, so that takes some stress off. By the way, found this out in the middle of teaching a class when an administrator came and told me.

But, Friday was a bright spot in the week, even if the sun did not shine (see above). Our school had a "Hats for Haiti" day where students could donate a dollar and wear a hat. We raised over 700 dollars. So excited!!!

Plus, the people of Massachusetts voted and Scott Brown is headed to the Senate!! Never thought I would see the day where a political revolution like this would gain traction in that state. But, we have to remember, our country was birthed there and they were the original "Tea Partiers"!!!

One of those days

WARNING: This is long, I need to vent before I can sleep.

Do you ever have one of those days? I did today. It was like the day in the children's book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. The day started off like any other, get ready for work, get out the door and head to school. As I was driving, listening to Lisa and Eric on K-Love as usual, they were talking about some list of the 200 best jobs to have. I kept wondering where teaching fell on the list and I thought about what I loved about my job. I can honestly say that I love my job. I love all (o.k, almost all) aspects of it. I think the thing I love the most is connecting with the kids and as they talked, I thought to myself, I may never know this side of heaven which kids I have impacted, but that was ok. I really do love my job. Then, I got to school...

It was not one thing that made the day bad, it was a multitude of small things that added up as the day went on to where I was counting the minutes till 3:15. First, my room was cold. My room recently is always cold. I am so tired of cold weather and having a classroom that I cannot keep warm. Then my first hour class had absolutely no interest in what we were talking about. Forget that I am trying to help them learn something that is semi-important. I mean, you do need to know about American history and the Civil War. After that, the downhill train was off and running. No class was particularly bad, it was just little aggravations that normally do not bother me, that today set me on edge.

Then came fourth period. Now, I am a stickler for the rules in the classroom. Its the only way to keep control and my students know that and have known it since day one. One of the HUGE no nos in my room is cell phones. Forget the fact that they are not supposed to have them at school to begin with. I took one up almost immediately for texting in class. About 30 minutes later, one boy has his out ON HIS DESK TEXTING!!! And you think I am not going to take your phone up as well?????? Hello, lets use some common sense here. So, I turn the phones over to the principal to deal with.

But, it keeps on heading down hill. My afternoon classes did not seem to remember, really none of my classes have, that we are no longer on Christmas vacation and that its time to get back into school. We are allowed to give homework and tests, it what we do as teachers! My students have no interest in being at school, are lazy, and generally seem to not care and that makes me mad. I work my tail off to prepare for them and they don't care.

So, I left everything on my desk in a true Scarlet O' Hara moment and said at 3:50 that it would all be there in the morning. That's when my day got better. I went home and as I walked in the door, my lovable dog Barney was there to greet me. It amazes me what unconditional love a pet will give and he, for all his odd behaviors is one of my greatest joys. But, the day gets better than just Barney being excited to see me.

At church, we started a Beth Moore study last night on Ester. Its amazing what a little time with God and reading Beth putting it all into perspective will do for your outlook on the day. My day went from horrible to not really so bad in the span of about 45 minutes. One thing this study does is to remind us that God has a miraculous plan for our lives, we just have to let it occur. Today in the study, Beth reminds us of Job and the problems that he faced and that we ALL face problems, and we ALL have issues on a daily basis, but if we let God handle them, there is a great ending waiting for us.

I leave you with this long post a verse from the Ester study.
Even when we're blind to the evidence, God "works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will". - Ephesians 1:11.

God has this in control, we just have to let Him have the controls.

UMMMM

School was cancelled tomorrow because of the "possibility" that it will sleet tonight and freeze. Now, its 9:00 at night and is still 45 degrees outside. I think officials in Macon are absofrekinlutley CRAZY! I mean come on, its Macon, its not going to do ANYTHING!!! We get measurable snow every 5-6 years and we had 4 inches last March. Any reasonable thinking person knows that we have a slim chance in hades of getting any snow this year.

Now, our school was the last to call off, and I really think its because every other school both public and private were closing. Life in the south is amusing sometimes....

HAPPY NEW YEAR....

a few days late. My computer has been in the shop since last Tuesday with virus infection. Thankfully, all clear and virus software is updated!! Now, of course in the coldest week in recent memory here in Macon, my heater is on the fritz. I have no idea what is wrong with it other than what the repairman tells me, something to do with alternate heat source and my heat pump. All i know is that I am praying my house stays the temperature its at right now and I don't have to open the 60 dollar heater I bought at Lowe's. Also praying the part gets here tomorrow early. They will work me in as soon as the part is here and I say the earlier the better.

Had to go back to work today. A day of planning before the kiddos come back tomorrow. It was nice having a calm day before the storm. I am looking forward to the spring though. Its always a fun time and hoping that our trip to Europe will get to happen. We already have 2 people interested.

Sorry this post is so random, must be the cold freezing my brain. More later in the week.

Christmas and other things

Christmas break so far has been nice and relaxing. Of course, the first few days of it were forced as I had a nasty cold that sent me to bed until Tuesday morning.

Tuesday morn brought the advent of my sister Angie and I commencing our annual Christmas bake fest. We made about 20 dozen cookies for gifting and of course our families consumption. This year, the new addition to the lineup, minty melts, are the favorite. A peppermint cookie dipped in chocolate, what is not to like?

Christmas Eve brought church with the family and then dinner and the traditional watching of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas performance. Christmas Eve was spent at mom and dads so I would be there Christmas morning. Christmas is low key at our house since its just the 4 of us, so we are able to do exactly what we wanted. The rest of the weekend has been spent relaxing and enjoying having my sister home.

Tomorrow begins the last week of holidays (teaching is good for vacations), but I have errands to run and stuff to do around the house, so the pleasure of lounging in my new PJ's under my new down comforter are over.

Happy New Year Blog World.