Yay Camera!

Looks SO cool. Canon D10, first in the D series. Waterproof to 10 meters (33 feet), shockproof and such, so you can drop it. 12megapixels, and with the 8GB SDHC, it holds over 2000 pictures. Still, going to bring a 2GB thumb-drive to store some pictures, just in case. Battery lasts 6 hours or 200 pictures, and is compatible with foreign power sources.

Aside from that, a lazy day. Oldest texted wife this morning, saying she wanted to come home tomorrow. We have decided that it is OK to want to leave, but we aren't driving up there to rescue her. She needs to fulfill her own commitments.

And in a crazy reflection of the Prop 8 nonsense in California, Shelby County officials voted on a proposal that would prevent the county from discriminating against gays in hiring and firing. Naturally a bunch of ministers, many black, came out AGAINST it, some even saying it was not a civil rights issue. One, ironically, even was quoted as saying "You can't outlaw hate". Today, in a slap in the face, after the council deadlocked 5-5 with two abstaining, the NCAAP came out in favor of the resolution. And a local columnist had another good line - it is as if the blacks are scared of losing the gold medal in the "Who had been treated the worst the longest" Olympics. (she is black, by the way, and pleasantly outspoken).

Final "official" Day

And what a waste it was. Some pre-recorded video from the Superintendent and his right-hand man, three exercises designed to get us to pay attention to changes in the curriculum. Basically they are using broad Grade Level Expectations instead of State Performance Indicators, but still keeping the SPIs. Also going to a 9 week grading period, and 90 minute periods, although we may be exempt from that.

The best part was being told to make a syllabus for the first two weeks of school, using the fill-in template on a particular website. Except it wasn't there. Much hilarity ensued. We got dismissed at 2pm, when we could have been done at 11.

And during all this, I missed my UPS delivery, and will have to wait another day.

And wife came home and told me she was laid off from her part-time job at the yarn store. She draws a lot of people in there, is helpful and knowledgeable, and this will hurt the store in the long run, if it isn't actually the first nail in the coffin. Her boss, for some reason, thinks I make a great deal of money, so she was the first in line for layoff, as she could afford it better. Um, yeah.

Just one week

Today was a waste of a day in the school building. I had maybe six signatures to get to complete my checkout list. Think of a scavenger hunt where you have to find the right people, show them proof you did something and have them sign. My stuff was all done on Friday, but people weren't available, or wouldn't sign. In fact, one person refused to sign until after 930 - we reported at 8. Needless to say, I was the first one done, and got to sit around until lunch (I even hauled my boxes of garbage to the dumpster). When I returned, the principal released us for the day.

Tomorrow is an in-service to get us ready for (allegedly) block scheduling and 9-week grading periods. Which means nothing, except they are going to force people to write plans for the first two weeks, 2 months from now. And we will probably have to sit there the whole day. Hardest for me, as my mind is elsewhere.

Good news today, though. Oldest PASSED US History. I think the teacher took pity on her and gave her the grade she deserved (well, not that, but at least didn't fail her) instead of the grade she earned. Found out she could have made it up next year, but better to have her scared now, and hopefully more responsible next year (so she can get into college).

My day in Perth once I get there - going to check in to hotel and then stroll a bit. I am nearby the Mint (oldest one, founded during gold rush, still can buy neat stuffs), and a ferry across the Swan River to the Zoo. A nice dinner then turning in. The bus on Friday will take me directly to Monkey Mia. Turns out the bus company extends a courtesy to the researchers, so I can dead-head up there as long as there is a seat, which there usually is. This bodes well for my excursion to Exmouth - maybe I can snag a free ride there, too.

Memorial Day

Typically a day of travel. Well, for me it surely was. Took the oldest and her friend to their summer camp job - Boy Scout Reservation Kia Kima, extreme north Arkansas. The map provided by their website is deceptively not to scale, and neglects to give any directions past the town of Hardy. Through LOTS of trial and error, we found it within 2 hours, even getting a map from a fire station.

I expect to get a call from her before the week is out. The camp is very remote and they are in heavy canvas tents on wooden platforms. They were the last to arrive and got the leaky tent ("It should be OK if you put a tarp over it" - yeah, because my girl knows what a tarp is), and their area is about 1.5 miles from the administration area. I get the feeling, though, that they open up different sections of the camp as necessary, since there were pavillions for crafts and nature study in their area. Plus a waterfront. Much different than Camp YI, which was more compact and seemingly more organized. It made me a little "homesick" for camp life, remembering bonding with friends and making new friends by virtue of shared experiences, both good and bad. She has her best friend with her, sharing her tent, and that counts for a lot.

Driving back was another 2 hours or more, with curtains of rain every few minutes as I drove through the squalls. Stopped in Marion Arkansas to visit the gravesite of Specialist Christopher Thomas Fox, a good friend and adoptive son of some close friends. Chris shared my cabin at the aforementioned camp. He was killed in Iraq last fall, and against his wishes his body was returned to his half brother, rather than his adoptive family. He wound up in a county cemetery, not a veteran's cemetery near his loved ones. I expected to be the only person to visit him today, but when I arrived, a couple was just leaving, and they came back to meet me. They knew me as Amy's friend - they were Chris' biological father's sister and her husband. It was good to meet them and hear that they visit his grave regularly to drop off flowers.

Ahhhhh

Nice lazy day. Library, a quick sporting goods store run to get a headlamp for me, so I can have hands free light in the pre-dawn (since my PhD mentor says "you won't survive without one" - and I pretty much plan to survive), lunch at TGIFridays (yes, I did not hallucinate the $5 sandwich and salad menu, although there is nothing in the place to tell you this, including the server).

Oldest has (against my better judgement, due to her potential impending failure in US History) signed on to work at a summer Scout camp. She is really excited, and some of her good friends from Venture Scouts, which I guess is what were Explorer Scouts back then (go Team Venture!), will be at the camp as well. She asked me to drive up there on Monday. Not sure she has realized that will be the last time I see her for a month. Actually, I am VERY sure she realizes this, and will go out of her way to not mention it or have any kind of goodbye. Teens are SO fun.

My wife is addicted to really poor quality movies on SciFi, or as they recently renamed themselves Scyfy. Something about a mega-gator awakened by a Hawaiian volcano. Intense laughter was the product. Although I am getting a little tired of the giant animal themes (go search for Mega-Shark vs Giant Octopus...I kid you not! "It rises"

And got a nice lengthy email from down under with my hotel for the day I arrive in Perth. Reviews of the hotel are bad (bedbug bad) but I will only be there a night, then onto a bus. The place is centrally located and within a block of a restaurant I wanted to try - Sister Maud's Swedish House...a true smorgasbord buffet. And then a fun bus ride with stops at refueling roadhouses, so I get to experience "fine" dining that way. Trial and error on the trail, since there are not too many large places between the two points. I am nervous, but my accent will probably be as winning as an Australian accent is here, and a lot less common since this is the relatively non-tourist side of the continent. Plus, the "real" tourists won't ride a bus for 10 hours, but would fly from Perth.

School's Out!

Yesterday and today were just wastes of days. At least we rewarded the kids that came yesterday by getting pizza for lunch. Surprisingly, some kids who didn't come yesterday showed up today, even though we have been saying "don't come Friday." Not enough kids to fill up a single classroom, so we rotated them, and gave them work. Before one hour was out, most had called home to be picked up. Remember kids, when a teacher says don't come to school or we will work you hard, we mean it.

Much of my classroom is packed up, and most of my check-out list is completed. Tuesday will be another non-day since I will have very little to do. Wednesday more of the same. I guess we will all get caught up on the gossip - who is coming back in the fall, etc.

Just two more

and they don't hardly count. We have encouraged the kids not to return if they have all their exams done. At first, this was only for Friday, but now we are including Thursday. I have a back-up exam for them, and I have a small handful, maybe 8, who haven't finished or haven't done the final exam. All my grades are in the spreadsheet, gradebook and online.

You would think this would elicit a huge sigh of relief. Nope. The entire curriculum is being revamped next year. From state standards changing to moving from 6 six-week grading periods to 4 nine-week grading periods, to block scheduling...and we got word today that before we are "dismissed" for the summer we have to submit lesson plans for the first two weeks of school in the fall. Funny stuff, as many of us won't be teaching what we are now...the district hasn't posted their curriculum in line with the new state standards, or the pacing they will prefer. Even so, I can put together two weeks of stuff in my sleep that will stand up to scrutiny - except it won't be scrutinized...it is just paperwork.

Been bicycling all week. Weather is perfect for it. Kind of cool, but dry, in the morning, with the sun just up, warm and breezy in the afternoon. My legs are back in the game, stronger than ever, and the only challenging parts are the two hills each way. Coming home is definitely harder, but by then I am warmed up, and not in a time-rush. Approaching 1000 miles on the odometer. Wow.

Birthday!

Oldest is now 17. She had a nice dinner of NY style pizza at one of our favorite places, then home for cake and ice cream with the family (my in-laws). Lots of gift cards, which suits her. She is in the middle of finals, trying to escape her junior year in High School. Hopefully she can squeak out a passing grade in US History - I hated history at that age. She is hella smart, just doesn't apply herself, which I can relate to, but I would rather not have her in summer school.

My teaching year is basically over. Tomorrow is the final exam, and we have telegraphed to the kids that once that is done they really don't need to come in. If they come on Thursday there will be a second part of the exam (that won't count) which will be essay questions. Friday, just don't come.

I think I have found my camera for Australia. New release from Canon, the D10. Waterproof to 10m, several modes for different lighting conditions, not too pricey. Now to find a place here that has it, or try to scour eBay and get something here within the next 2 weeks.

Feeling old

Yep. Time is catching up to me. Performing my lector duties in church today, for the first time I whipped out my reading glasses. Well, they aren't actually reading glasses, but those magnifying eyeglasses sometimes referred to as "cheaters." Since the new contacts, which do great for anything over about 3 feet, and are passable for some reading, I prefer to wear the cheaters when reading on the computer, or with books. Once I am in for the night, though, it is simpler to remove my contacts and wear my old glasses.

Other things that make me feel old - my oldest gave blood for the first time today. Hooray! for her - we were going to try to get her exempted since she turns 17 in two days, but they just recently reduced the age requirement to 16. She did fine, but then got up too soon and had to unexpectedly lie down on the floor. Now she is all tired out and wants dinner early so she can go to bed.

My youngest on the other hand decided she wanted to ride her bike to the "other house", which is what we call my sister-in-law's house, about 100 yards up the street. Not out of the ordinary, you say? Well, she never learned to ride a bike. We worked on it a few times, but nothing came together. She rode up and back, up and down the street like a pro. Her comment - Dad, I can ride a scooter, so why couldn't I ride a bike?" I forget this generation grew up on wheels, with roller blades, wheelies in the heels of their sneakers, and scooters, so the balance thing is pretty much second nature.

And finally, one more girl making me feel old. The daughter of my oldest and dearest friends graduated from college today! Many congratulations to her (and her parents). She and I will share divergent research projects this summer. She is going back to Alaska to study sticklebacks (something she did last summer as well) while I will be in Australia studying sharks. Fish, although wildly different sorts, since sharks are non-bony fish, and sticklebacks are teeny tiny.

But they all taste like chicken.

Toasty

That is me, after a VERY sunny day out in the ballfields, supervising 300 7th graders, many of whom have the social skills and behavioral tendencies of animals. I heard more group chanting of curse words (since, in a group, it isn't "fair" to snag one kid who is definitely doing it, suspend them), food and water fights, refusal to participate in cleanup of the fields, etc. It wasn't sunny when we went out, and I left the sunscreen inside. Oopsy. And when I did go inside to escort some miscreants, I got drafted to supervise a bathroom break (mind you, the school is empty. The 8th grade had a class picnic off premises, the 6th and 7th grades had field days - - so the only people in the building were administrators and the kids who couldn't behave), I had to write up some sexual harassment (a boy who poked a girl in the ass with his drumstick, a literal drumstick (no clue why he had it, as he only had the one, and he doesn't play the drums), then when she grabbed it away from him, he body slammed her into a corner and pawed her trying to get it back).

Anyhow, so busy that I forgot to pick up my paycheck, even. Money is tight, wife wants to re-do the bathroom while I am away. Our sink is original to the house (built in 1957) and is breaking down. New sink implies new vanity, which implies new fixtures including toilet. We looked at a tub, and that will require re-tiling around the tub, etc. Lots of work. But I did finish my Saturday teaching (money rolling in, god knows when) and volunteered for a professional development on the 29th which pays a stipend.

On the happy front, my friend the art teacher who went psycho is now speaking to me again. I think she was over stressed and I caught her at a bad time with a situation that brought up bad issues. Anyhow, we chatted about Lost (I have theories...they don't sinc with theories on the web, but I am still loving it), and her new job next year at a high school that is twice the size of our place...so 2000 students. It will remove her from some issues in the building, least of which was an overbearing mentor who at one time had her job as art teacher. On the bad side, one less person to chat with. Plus not knowing (I will speak to the principal after school finishes) what subject or grade I will teach next year - whether I stay with Math and maybe move up to Algebra (where it was announced today that 100% of our students who took the Algebra exam scored proficient or advanced!!! And I helped, by preparing those kids years ago) which would require an additional qualifying test, or stay where I am in Math (where we are being told that the curriculum will shift by a year, so 6th grade will be pre-algebra, and all 7th graders will get Algebra), or if I will get a Science placement due to my Australia experience.

Five more days of school. Two of "teaching", two of finals, and one day of "you better not come to school, you rotten kids." Tuesday will be my oldest's 17th birthday. Yikes.

A bright and shiny day

Weather was fine, but not really what I am implying.

Knowing my flight schedule made today a breeze. Things didn't really bother me, and the kids got into their tessellation completions. Twice, during two different classes, the principal popped in the room, and the kids were all engaged, mostly quietly, while I was inventorying textbooks in the back. And this wasn't just busywork, either...many of the kids were showing some great creativity. Big laugh when I coaxed them to tell her about the video we saw about the artist. "Oh yeah...Usher"

My Study Guide for the final exam is completed (which in turn means the final exam is complete, since I will jiggle the order of questions and recalibrate the numbers on all the problems...), and that should take up at least the next 2 days. Tomorrow there is some sort of all-school assembly about gang awareness - we do it every year but it still doesn't stop the gangs from recruiting, nor ignorant students from imitating gang signs (like certain colors, brands of clothes, etc.).

Friday is still the "May Day" field day. Pray for good weather, since god knows what will happen if it is canceled or moved indoors. Unarmed revolt, perhaps.

Fancy Flights

Got the confirmation of flights today. Good news, I leave from Memphis, which means skipping a 3 hour drive on both ends of the trip.

Outbound
June 2
Memphis 1115 -> Dallas 1255
Dallas 1420 -> LAX 1530 Enough time to eat in Dallas, plus 2 hours of earliness by virtue of West Coast
LAX 2230 -> Sydney 0615 Yuck! 7 hour layover in one of my least favorite cities. Not even worth leaving the airport. And I should mention, that is 0615 on June 4!!! International Dateline.
Sydney 0810 -> Perth 1115 Again, plus 2 hours of earliness for West Coast of another continent

All in all a long way to travel, but well worth it. There was some passing mention of hotel stay...probably on the way back as my flight out of Perth is 0545 on June 29.

Only one more Monday to go. Tessellation stretches to tomorrow, as today we had a sub. Which is good (since we didn't have to overload ourselves) and bad (since the kids were pure animals).

Readjustment

Since that 5k race a couple of weekends ago, I had a touch of tendonitis (amateur physician diagnosis) that made walking slightly painful. Not painful enough to limp, but twinges with every step. It would come and go, too, but didn't prevent me from hitting the machines at the Y a couple of times a week.

Well, Saturday morning I had a cough that produced a lower back spasm that was less than pleasant. It was as if my back finally said "enough! you have been walking out of balance for too long and we won't take it anymore!" I had to teach, being the final Saturday session of the Math program (and got to turn in my timesheet for 36 hours at $25 per...not too shabby, with another 18 or so hours this summer, possibly) and be on my feet, but it was slow going. I walked even funnier than normal, lately, and was very careful of bending and lifting.

When I came home I then had to run the girls around for errands (pre-Mother's Day), then finally took a brief nap at about 4. Bad Mistake! I was so stiff I couldn't sit up on the bed, but had to roll to the edge. This morning it was also kind of bad, couldn't really get my shoes on. Now, in the evening, things seem to be in better balance. Knees are not painful, and the back seems stronger, less likely to rebel against my wishes when I want to sit, stand or bend.

Ten more days of classes. The closer the end gets, the longer it seems. Still waiting for that email about my plane tickets, and therefore starting to get nervous. Got a long-ish memo from the principal on the next two weeks - things like collecting books, cleaning out lockers, which class or grade has which field trips on what days. Finals are the week after this, for some reason, though, like mid-terms they are encouraging us to have a test that takes no longer than a class period, when in the past we have had double periods for the exams. I would rather have the longer ones, since my more diligent students take their time. Nothing I like less than having a lower student finish a 50 question test in 10 minutes. I still plan to have them answer 50 questions. If they have to come back a second time to finish, so be it.

Closeout procedures are a joke to me, and always have been. Inventorying the classroom, turning in various things (like gradebooks), entering grades. All of this I do anyhow, nobody needs to pressure me to have it done before the end of classes. Of course, there are some teachers who won't do it, even with prompting and personal reminders.

Confusion

All this week I was under the impression that my team-teacher was going to be out Thursday and Friday. Had my lesson plans all set up, with the expectation that we would be adding 1/3 of his students and 1/3 of a period to the other classes. Yesterday I found out he will be out Friday and Monday, so I shifted things back a day.

Now rumor is there WILL be a sub for him, which means normal classes and normal class lengths. No problem, right? Well the video I planned to show is about an hour, and our class periods are 50 minutes (really closer to 45 with transitions, etc.). I can cope...and tried out some Escher artwork on the kids today, and many were pretty excited. This could be a really fun thing, even with many complaining that they can't draw. Hell, nobody can draw like Escher.

The good news of all this is my plans take me through Monday now. Tues/Wed/Thurs remain, since Friday is "May Day" which is a glorified field day. Administration has stepped up and is coming down harder on students who act the jerk.

Now for the annual pet peeve. This week is dubbed "Teacher Appreciation Week" which means we can feel bad that we are not appreciated. In past years there have been daily treats, some from the administration, others from the Parent/Teacher Organization. They just did something for us during TCAP (and since parents didn't donate, they asked us to pay for a lunch honoring teachers), so no dice now. The media makes a huge hairy deal out of every "made up" holiday like Secretary's Day, Bosses Day, etc. Do I hear anything about Teacher Appreciation Day? no. How about just "Don't be an ass to your teacher" day? Don't Give Your Teacher a Hard Time Day? Not going to happen.

Short time thoughts

As the clock/calendar closes in on the end, every day is a milestone. Even if nothing happens, it is one less in front of me. Today was no exception. For the most part, the lesson went well, and I really heaped on the praise, letting the kids know that at the end of the year they can do this stuff without even thinking about it, and build upon it in a single class, where at the beginning they wouldn't have even tried. Wednesday we build another brick upon the first two.

Tomorrow is a little off-site trip for the class. Looks like 100 or so, out of maybe 108, have paid their money and handed in permission slips. All four teachers as chapperones, plus one grandmother who pops in a lot, helped proctor the TCAP and is generally a favorite of the kids. The kicker is this...of everybody going on the trip, I am the only caucasian. Yay, diversity. I am going to keep a low profile and basically do nothing. The trip is to Funquest, so skating and bowling.

End of the week will be a breeze. I put a hold on a video of MC Escher at the public library, and that will take up an hour for each class on Thursday (the first of two days where we cover for a missing teammate, so 80 minute periods), followed by some explanations of tessellations, both basic and complex, reflective and rotational, then an in-class project for the rest of that day and Friday. If they don't do it - meh. Right now, according to my calculations there are only a couple or four kids in real danger of not passing Math, and missing a project won't really affect their chances.

Still waiting on final word on flight arrangements - already submitted my information - so I don't know if I will be driving to Nashville, or lucky (?) enough to fly from here, but make an additional connection. Nashville --> Los Angles --> Sydney --> Perth, or Memphis --> Dallas --> Los Angeles --> Sydney --> Perth. Oddly enough, the Memphis flight gets in earlier, but it also leaves earlier. The Nashville flight would be a nighter...leaving at 7pm. Once I know more I can make sure I am on the frequent flyer program (might have to reinstate it from my previous traveling life). Less than a month by the calendar now.

Rain rain

Funny, they have been predicting rain all week. It finally hit last night at about 3:30. Lots of lightning, thunder, torrential downpours. And it pretty much rained all through today. Which is also funny, as last night began the Memphis in May MusicFest. Or, as those here call it, Mudfest. Because it, without fail, rains for the three day weekend. Today would have been the day I would have attended (Elvis Costello was the prime performer for me) but I am too old to slog through rain and mud.

Instead got a haircut and took my oldest to Free Comic Book Day, an annual tradition for us. I go to my local store weekly, or used to until I cut WAY back on my comics. Now I might get one in a good week, and many weeks go where I don't buy any. Still, it is fun, and I grabbed up some for my nephew, as there are some kid-friendly things. One is printed on paper that resembles the old comic book paper that turns brown, and it features Nancy! Remember her? Super round head, Sluggo the boyfriend, hair like little squares sticking up from that round head?

T0morrow will be my prep day. Got some papers to grade, also some grades to input. Three weeks down and I have given 2 quizzes and one or two homeworks. Going to be a challenge. More so since one teacher will be out Thursday and Friday, which means we absorb his students and roll the time into our classes. I think I will be finding a decent short video on Escher and we will develop some tessellations over those days. Tuesday is a field trip (double dose of Xanax, thank you very much) to a roller rink/bowling alley. So, in a way the week is short, but challenging.

The week after I expect we will be instructed to collect textbooks (so they can determine which kids don't get report cards until they pay up), which gives the less responsible kids 2 weeks to locate them, with daily reminders. That will make the week a challenge too, although we can and will use a classroom set of books.