Just an odd, odd week. Backdrop of buckets of rain, 10 inches in the past week or so, which caused me to tell someone I felt like I was living in London without all the falsetto vocals. Failing that, Seattle without the hair or angst. Crickets, per usual. But really, it's just been a miserable weather week, resulting in a slew of cancelled Ultimate events, no running outdoors, and a general air of pent-up, cabin-feverish nastiness from pretty much everyone at work, students, administrators and all. That is probably also largely due to something I will dub "The May Effect," the fact that seniors have one foot out the door, everyone has recitals or shows to put on, parents are freaking out because children are not passing, teachers are sick of said children not passing... it's a whole bag of badness. I have tried to put on a happy face, and as a consequence have been lighting up the faculty lounge with my comedy stylings (this week alone, a bit on "Wendy Works" and her stripping career, a response to Ben Gregg's "Science: All the Facts, None of the Truth" with "Humanities: All of the Fluff, None of the Stuff;" multiple other psycho-cynical commentary that has kept the giddy rain-bound educators giggling. Seriously, to quote Ariel Santos, I've really been on lately. Stephen Hawking*!!!
All comedic glory is really the fluffy pillow cover of hatred and pain, so you know it hasn't been a crystal clean evening at the improv. One of my students essentially bearched me out in front of the entire class, so I had to resort to a nasty "are you quite finished?" at the end of her rant accompanied by a Daytime Emmy worthy glare. The message was loud and clear, but i followed it up with an e-mail to let her know that such insolent behavior was plainly unacceptable. I think I may have even used the phrase "your tone of voice" at some point, which shows you how deep the teacher cult has sunk its mind-melting talons. As long as I don't hand out gold stars, I think I'll be alright. Anyhoo, it was just bad, nasty, one of my normally reliable great students just being so ridiculous, so it's put a damper on the entire week.
And just to bring up the comedy level of the week in the classroom - MK, who lacks what you might call "da social skills," announced out loud in front of the class, "Can we meet in private again? That was really fun." AC responds to this with a perfectly appropriate and timed "Awk...ward." Egads, man. JH gave another "spellt" quote, and KL and ATT combined for this great one on Monday, after I had accidentally knocked a box of markers off the board:
KL: "Dude, everything you touch... just dies."
ATT: "Yeah, you're like "Negative Minus."
This would be the same student who answered a question with "Negative Zero" earlier in the semester. FTR.
So yeah, the classroom has not been a haven this week. Grades are not great, kids are griping and arguing about lates and absences, it's basically Baba O'Reilly all up in my face. Neko Case can, um, keep That Teenage Feeling.
On the not plus side, beck has been gone for 11 days now. It's a wonder the house hasn't exploded. She's still working 14 hour days and sends me cryptic messages like, "Argh, horses horses EVERYWHERE," which usually strike me as very bad Coleridge parodies. So yes, the extended absence of the Beck has been exceedingly lame. Come home soon kwia!!! Only 10 days...
Really on the plus side - it's been raining for ten days straight! I haven't touched a frisbee since Thursday! I love New England!
Actually on the plus side... spent the last two evenings having Lasagna dinner good meals with Ali and Ben. Very much a blast. I am something resembling happy to have peeps to hang up with up the street.
Speaking of *up* the street - I ran from our apartment up the hill to Grafton center, down Millbury street to Ben and Ali's and back here. Week point five without running so I go out and do 5ish miles. I am a idioto grande, with cheese.
All I got. Mainly I'm too tired to type right now. Puppies are good. Spurs, not so much. Buenas noches.
* - Ariel once told a lot of jokes over the course of a tournament, a lot of which were funny, but he ruined the entire effect by saying, "Hey guys, I was really on this weekend, I mean, I was hilarious, right?" during the car ride home. He then made up for this faux pas with a brilliant out-of-left-field non sequitur: a bike was riding by with a trailer attached, and Ariel in all seriousness said, "What do you think is in that trailer? Stephen Hawking?" It really is a pantheon joke. And I won't even throw out, "You had to be there," because I wasn't there, and I still give it an A+. So phbbbbbbt.
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