Snow Days

As a teacher, I always look forward to the occasional snow day. It's nice to not know you have a day off and then "BAM" off you are. We had been waiting for snow days for a couple of weeks...mainly because the weatherman kept saying we would get a huge snow storm and then it would vanish (which made me seriously think about a career in weather...after all, you can be totally wrong and still get paid).

Sunday night it flurried here. I went to bed as usual, got up as usual and showered as usual. I got out of the shower, turned on the TV and saw we were closed. I couldn't believe it...we had hardly anything. I got dressed and watched the news and listened to them talk about how much snow was on the way, but they also said that there was a possibility of the storm vanishing as previous storms had. I decided that I would go to the grocery early Monday morning (since I had a totally random snow day) to beat any crowds that would rush there after work (let me clarify...I wasn't panic grocery shopping. I was simply grocery shopping. There is a difference. I wasn't going there to horde milk and water and bread. I just needed to make the trip).

Monday night I went to bed as usual. Woke up Tuesday morning and turned the news on and saw I was closed. I went back to bed. Hubby was off, too, because his boss said it was too bad to come into work.

That day I watched the snow turn into freezing rain. And we got freezing rain for almost twelve hours. And then it switched back to snow. We were stuck in this storm that stretched from Maine all the way to Texas. I had never seen anything quite like it.

I knew Tuesday night that I didn't have school on Wednesday. I also knew Wednesday night that I didn't have school on Thursday. This was becoming a pattern.

I know what you all are thinking: must be nice to get random days off. I can't lie. It is nice...when you have one or two. But, ladies and gentlemen, I have been off all week. That makes it difficult when you have students who have projects due, papers due and tests to take. I have answered a ton of student emails in the last few days. I am actually surprised that they took the time to worry about it, but it seems the week to be surprised.

I can't remember if we have ever had a straight week of snow days before. I'm sure that if it wasn't snow and ice we would have been back by Thursday, but we got the ice. And it was nasty.

I am hoping we'll go back on Monday because as much as my job drives me crazy from day to day, it is also nice to have a routine and a purpose. Being stuck inside for three days was enough to push me to the edge...luckily, I got out of the house for a while last night and I plan to venture out today. I think seeing people...real, live people will do me good.

What about you guys...anyone else get hit with this massive storm? If so, how long were you stuck?

Non-Clumping Mascara is so Hard to Find...

Face it ladies...there are a few things that we always look for. The perfect foundation color, the perfect shampoo and a mascara that really does what the package says it does...and we all know that those searches can be close to endless. I can't say I have found the perfect shampoo or even foundation (although I am close), but I think I may have found a near perfect mascara.

I always trust Neutrogena for face care (I tried Clinique's "oh-so popular" Three Step System and I ended up breaking out like I was a teenager on the verge of puberty) so I figured that I would give their new Healthy Volume Mascara a whirl. As you all may remember, I was very faithful to Maybelline's Full and Soft Mascara, so this switch was a leap of faith (and honestly a result of an ad I saw in a magazine...I was seduced by good advertising!)

First thing you need to know is that the brush is HUGE...for real, I have never seen a mascara wand like this. I can almost do all my lashes at one time in one sweep...and that is something. I bought the black brown color and tried it out. Surprisingly, it goes on quite smooth with very little (as in almost no) clumping. I am not going to say that it is 100% clump free because I would be lying. But, I can say with confidence that it takes quite a few uses for the clumping to begin to appear. It seems that the closer you get to the end of the tube, the more likely it is to clump. Maybe that is Neutrogena's "you need more mascara" alarm or something.

This stuff has olive oil in it, so it plumps your lashes from the inside out. If you have tiny lashes (like me) you know that is a good thing. Neutrogena claims that it makes your lashes 400% thicker. Considering I can't measure my minuscule lashes, I can't say for certain how accurate that is, but I can tell you that your lashes will look fuller and they stay soft...another plus for me. I HATE stiff feeling lashes. This stuff gives you volume and doesn't make your lashes look like little spider legs. Yippy!

The negatives are these: it is a little pricey for a common cosmetic brand (runs about $6.50 here) and it is a little hard to get used to the huge wand. It also takes a little more to get it off your eyes than other mascaras. I use Neutrogena's Eye Make-Up Remover and I still have mascara residue after washing my face. I may need a stronger make-up remover, but I hesitate to switch. I just think it could be because this mascara is so potent that I need more remover.

Overall: I don't feel that the negatives outweigh the positives on this product. I am pleased with the volume it gives my lashes and the length (I know that isn't one of the features this product pushes, but my lashes do look longer to me). I love the fact it is virtually clump free and my lashes stay soft. I have tried numerous other mascaras to achieve the no clump look (including Cover Girl's Lash Exact Mascara and Maybelline's Lash Discovery Mascara) and they all failed miserably (in fact, the Lash Discovery is one of the worst I have ever tried...that tiny brush does not work for me at all.) This one, however, rose to the challenge.

So, ladies, if you are looking for a new mascara, I highly recommend at least trying this one. You may be pleasantly surprised by this product. I am happy to see that Neutrogena puts as much into their cosmetics as they do their face are products.

If you have tried this product, what did you think? I would like to know if you had the same success as I did or if you found it less than stellar.

Now, if you'll excuse me...I have mascara to put on ;-)

A Change is Coming...

Lately I noticed that I only posted when I had negative things to say or when something in the world provoked a negative reaction. I never posted about anything happy. So, starting soon, I will be using this blog to give my insights, opinions and commentary on products I have used, movies I have seen, books I have read, music I have heard...and some of it should be positive! For those of you who swing by only to get a dose of my wit, sarcasm and opinionated personality, don't fret...it will be there. It's genetic. :-)

Looks like Rambling Shan is about to become "Reviewing Shan..."

I figure I'll put my opinions to good use. See you all soon!

To Whom it May Concern...

I am a teacher. I attended college on a full scholarship. I have a Bachelor’s degree. I graduated Summa Cum Laude. I have a Master’s Degree. I am well read, meticulous and dedicated. I plan lessons, grade papers and answer emails until 11 each night. I’m up at 5 in the morning and am lucky if my head is on the pillow by midnight. I work hard, am good at what I do and hope for a brighter future.

But each day, that hope grows dimmer and dimmer. Each day I am insulted by students, antagonized by parents and forgotten by the institution. Daily I struggle with being cussed out, disrespected and bullied. And yet nothing is done. Parents email saying I don’t do enough for their child, so I try harder. The child, however, does not, but the parent emails again insisting that I try harder. So I do.

I am tired. I am tired of being ignored. I am tired of being treated like a second class citizen. I am tired of working so hard for no result. I am tired of waking up each day knowing that I will have some battle to fight and, inevitably, lose. I am just tired.

Too long have teachers been viewed as a low class position. Too long have we been expected to tolerate things that no other profession would ever tolerate. Too long have teachers been looked at as babysitters. Too long have we worked in a thankless job with thankless people.

When will people start to realize that no person could be where they are today without a teacher? Why is it that the CEO of a big company gets recognition and praise and all teachers get ridicule? Why do professional athletes make millions and I can barely pay my mortgage? Why do auto companies and banks get bail outs for overspending when I can’t afford pencils for my classes?

I don’t know how much longer I can fight the battle. Conditions are worse and I am more exhausted than ever. I’m done playing this game. It seems I can’t win.

Places Worth Visting

No, not real places (I haven't been anywhere new for a while). I'm talking about bloggy places.

Thanks to a friend from work, I have found two hilarious blogs that I read on a daily (or almost daily) basis. I find them therapeutic and fun and on some days they help give me that extra boost I need to keep going.

The first is Hobo Teacher. This blog is maintained by two different teachers. In it they discuss (with wit, sarcasm and other various methods) they day to day oddities that happen in their school, classroom or district. Some days it's about an email they received. Others its about a student situation. The funniest part is that some days I swear they work where I work or they are in my head in some way because I can relate to so much that they are saying. Anyone who is in education will appreciate the daily struggles of these teachers. Even those who have never set foot in a classroom can get some insight into what its like to deal with students, administrators, parents and (sometimes) other teachers.

The second is Cake Wrecks, which recently won "Best Humor Blog." This site posts hilarious, hideous and down-right scary professional cakes. There are wedding cakes, birthday cakes, graduation cakes...you name it. The site is worth a look for the writing alone. Jen has a great ability to convey her opinions and comments in a very original way. Her commentary is almost better than the wrecks themselves. And on Sunday she takes a break from posting the wrecks and she has a "Sunday Sweets" installment, where she posts really great cakes. Some too detailed and realistic to believe, but they are all real.

If you have a minute or need a laugh, cruise on through. They are worth the five (or fifty) minutes that you may spend reading.

The Funk

I've got the funk. And not in the "let us in we'll tear this mother out" Parliament way.

I don't know what it is. The things that used to bring me joy aren't doing it for me right now. I don't read like I used to. I don't listen to music like I used to. I don't pick up random hobbies for no reason like I used to. I don't even enjoy my job like I used to.

Funk.

And I find it funny that I am blogging about it. Not because I am shy about the Funk...I'll admit to everyone that I have it. I think it's funny because, let's face it, no one really cares about anyone else's problems and here I am blogging about mine.

Which leads me to something else.

I remember when your life was your life. You lived it, made decisions, and kept your thoughts and feelings and secrets to yourself or wrote them in that diary that you kept hidden in the most obvious place in your bedroom. Now we put our lives, our problems and (some people) our secrets out into cyberspace where all can see, read, laugh at or spread them like wildfire.

When did this happen? When did we become such an egocentric society that we actually think that random strangers want to know what we did today? What we ate today? What we watched today? I am baffled.

And yet...I blog. I read other blogs. I am intrigued by the thoughts, ideas and troubles of others. I find myself drawn into their stories and I feel that some of those people are my friends...but we've never met, talked or even casually emailed. I care what happens to them. I worry when they say bad things have happened and I celebrate with them when things go well.

Maybe blogging has made all of us less shy about what we say. Maybe it gives some of us an outlet. Maybe for some of us it gives us a chance to be the person we don't have the strength, courage or gumption to be in real life. Maybe some have a hard time being hear, so they blog. Others may have just been looking for something to fill the time. Whatever the reason...we blog.

I started blogging as a way to voice my opinion on issues...big, small, ridiculous. I didn't (and still don't) care who read it or not. I really was looking for an outlet...something that could help me get everything out without unloading on the same people I unload on all the time. My friends and family are great, but they can only listen to me rant about how messed up I think some things are. Is it great when I can hear what someone else has to say about my latest rant? Sure. But I think it feels even better to get it out there.

Even if I am the only one to read it.

Silence! I Keel You!

If you have never heard of Jeff Dunham, you don't know what you are missing. I saw this guy live Friday and can honestly say I have not laughed that hard in a very long time. It was a much needed release after all the crap that has been going on. So I wanted to share with you a clip of one of his most famous...er...partners (for lack of a better word).

Be warned: don't watch this if you are remotely offended by off color jokes (you know the kind...the ones you laugh at and then stop yourself because you realize you shouldn't be laughing) or if your co-workers are remotely offended by off color jokes.

Life Gets in the Way

I'm not even going to apologize of make excuses about not blogging for months. I don't even think I could begin to tell you every little reason why I bypass my own blog each day. I can tell you that I do miss it, but my life is so busy that I can't even begin to think about a witty, sarcastic or even remotely Shan like thing to say. Instead, I will provide the short list of reasons I have wanted to pull out my hair (and occasionally punch someone in the face).

1. Sunday, September 14th, we had a wind storm of massive proportions. As in hurricane force winds...in KENTUCKY! We had gusts up to 76 miles and hour or something. As a result, 1.2 million people lost their power...or so they said. We found out later that they were counting people who went out multiple times. So, our power flickered on an off like 8 times before it went off for good, so I guess we could has 9 outages. Anyway. Our power went out Sunday around 2:00. We didn't worry because everyone was out. I called our electric company at around 7:00 that night and I was told that it could be 48 hours before everyone's power was restored. Two days? Really? I wasn't happy, but I would deal with it. My mom and dad called at 8:00 and said that their power was back on. They live, quite literally, 500 feet behind us, so TJ and I were hopeful that the power would be on soon. We were wrong. Monday came and went. No power. Tuesday morning, at 3:00, it came back on. We were happy, slept great and woke up Tuesday at 7:00...to no power. We called, and they said they were working on it. We called everyday...for SIX DAYS...and they kept saying they were working on it. That's right. SIX DAYS!!! We had no power, lost all the food in our freezers and fridge, had no hot water...nothing. I stayed with my parents (because I still had to go to work). It became humorous (after a while), and on Saturday morning, my husband ran an extension cord from my parents' house to our house so we could watch TV. Talk about funny. No lights, no clocks...but we had TV.

2. As a result of the power outage, darling Hubby decided to have some fun. he put a huge sign in our front yard with our electric company's name and the letters "WTF?" Now, do i think this was a little over the top? Sure. But it was Thursday, we still had no power, he wanted to have a little fun. So yesterday a letter appears in our local small area paper. Someone wrote a letter to the editor bashing my husband for putting the sign in our yard because she had to explain to her child what WTF meant. She says it was our fault that we had no power because we didn't buy a back-up generator. Excuse me? I pay (good money) for an electric company to keep my power on...why would I even need to buy a generator? Does everyone have one? Is it in some "how to live your life" contract that I didn't get? Yes, I will admit that the sign was a little out there, but my guess is that this woman didn't have to live six days without power. I say the city she lives in under her letter--and I know for a fact that that part of town didn't lose power AT ALL! I hate to tell her, but we have the right to free speech around here, and that's how my husband chose to express himself. I guess I would have gotten creative with the explanation...tell your child WTF stands for "wasn't this fun" or something. The best part was that she ended this attacking rant with "Your house looks great, by the way." As if saying something nice in the end makes it all better.

3. Work. I can't even tell you about work. I can give some advice. Parents: when your child comes home and says how unfair the teacher is, how she never actually teaches, how she hates him/her, etc., please contact the teacher in a rational, calm manner to get both sides of the story before attacking the teacher's integrity, dedication as an educator or ability to do his/her job. In the last week two of my colleagues and myself have gotten the "you aren't doing your job right" emails from parents. And these emails are mean, nasty and very confrontational...and the kicker is that all the information that the parents are e-yelling about is inaccurate. Last week I had a nasty email and a confrontational meeting. The woman found out very quickly that her son was lying to her at home...but she never apologized for the things she said and implied. Parents, I know that it is your job to protect your child's' best interests, but please help us, too...get both sides, talk it out rationally, and don't imply that your child's teacher doesn't know what he/she is doing. Working together is better than setting up an uncomfortable situation.

The best part of these three lovely emails? You guessed it...all three ended with "kind regards,' "Thank you for your precious time" and "respectfully submitted." Once again, ending with something positive makes all the negative go away. Where do people learn that stuff?

4. The state of the world in general. Let's face it, gas prices are ridiculous (and for those of you saying "but it's better," you are right...but I remember when gas was 1.19 a gallon and THAT was considered expensive). Then there is this whole bail out thing. And the presidential election that has turned into a circus of massive proportion. The Republican VP candidate is a woman no one has heard of, Obama was ridiculed for making remarks about lipstick on a pig, McCain wanted to boycott the debates and Biden...well...he seems to have flown under the radar (for now). As I listened to parts of the debate on CNN last night, I couldn't help but wonder...when will we be the UNITED States? We are kidding ourselves if we think we are united now. Everything is bi-partisan. EVERYTHING! It frustrates me. And to add to that, everyone is freaking out about the possible economic chaos that may happen, so everyone is walking around in a bad mood all the time. The price of everything is high. People are depressed. We need someone (or something) to bring us out of this royal funk. Maybe the politicians can end every negative speech with a positive comment. I bet that would make it all better.

5. People on my back. About everything. At work, I work my ass off, but people ask me to do more. At home, I work on stuff for work. I answer emails from parents and students until 11:00 each night, but parents still tell me I'm not doing enough for their kids. Because I do so much work for work, I know I'm not doing enough at home...my laundry is piled up, my floor needs to be cleaned, and my house looks like a hurricane went through it, but I can't get it all done. I try. I really do. I told Hubby today: I can't remember the last time that someone looked at me and told me "you're doing a good job" or "nice work" or "I know you're busy, but keep up the nice work." No. I get "I know you did this much, but can you do this, too?" or "Why is this such a mess?" or "I need you to work harder." It is discouraging. And what makes it worse is when I mention the need for an occasional pat on the back, someone says it just to make me feel better. That's not what I want. I don't want your pity "Hey, you're doing a great job." I want someone to really and truly take note of the fact that I (and others) are working well beyond what we are required to do...at work, at home, in life.

So, that's the short list about why I haven't blogged. I know I'm not the only one stressed or with problems or with a ton of crap going on, but I just can't seem to get a handle one it. Until I do, blogging has just become something else that I can't keep up with.

I've Been Away Too Long!

I've been away...far away from blogging land for a long time. And I think it has been good for me. I actually accomplished some things I wanted to. But now I am back (for now) to share back to school humor with you...

We just started back to school. I was dealing with a kid who had quite the "I don't want to be here" attitude, so I asked him if he wanted to be on the four or the five year graduation plan.

His response?

"Uh, which one is faster?"

Really.

Job Opening...

Just a word of warning...you all may want to steer clear of the Greater Cincinnati area on Tuesday...you may melt.

A Month...

I haven't blogged in a month. Over a month, actually...and I don't have a good reason. Honestly, I just hadn't felt like it. Things have been stressful off and on here at Rambling Shan's house and I just haven't had the energey to blog...much less come up with something witty to blog about.

So, to let you know, here is (part of) what is going on...

My dogs are in bad shape. They have each had bad allergies since they were about 3. We know that Gizmo is allergic to dust mites (we had him tested a long time ago), but we don't know about Loki. We have tried everything the vet can offer--medication, special shampoo, special food, restrictive diets (which means none of the treats they love because they can't have wheat, beef, chicken, rice, etc...all the normal stuff), expensive trips to the vet, topical treatments, you name it...we've tried it and nothing is working. Even the special diet--which means (thankfully) it isn't a food allergy...but it also means that we don't know what it is. The vet wants me to bring them back this week so we can determine if they need to see a dog dermatologist...can you believe it? I don't even have a dermatologist!

One problem that bother me more than anything is that they have been on Prednisone off and on for over three years...and that is not good for them at all. It actually stopped controlling their itchiness, so I took them off it about three weeks ago. They are still itchy, but I think they feel better (if that makes sense).

My yoga instructor suggested that I try fish oil supplements, so I am going to try that this week (after talking to the vet, of course) to see if that will help at all...at this point, we are willing to try almost anything because they deserve an itch free life--and it is our job to give it to them.

So, what else am I willing to do? Buy a Dyson vacuum. Why? Because we know that Gizmo is allergic to dust mites and Dyson vacuums are certified by the allergy association...which means they eliminate allergens from the home...and I am willing to try. I also figure that the $550 I spend on a Dyson may actually reduce the amount I have to spend on the vet.

If any of you have any natural remedies that I could try to alleviate some suffering, please let me know. We are at the end of our rope and we would really like to not have to medicate them if at all possible...they don't need to live doped up forever.

Noah? Can You Hear Me?

So far in 2008 we've had a blizzard, and earthquake, numerous tornado warnings and now a flood. Yes, a real honest to goodness flood.

We had another round of bad storms roll through this evening. So bad, in fact, that Hubby and I enjoyed our dinner in our unfinished basement (what else can you do when there is a tornado warning during dinner?) We didn't get a tornado (thank goodness...what would happen to all my landscaping?), but we did get a TON of rain. And I mean a ton. As in, on average, 4 inches and hour. As a result of this torrential rain, the creek in front of our house flooded and covered the road.

Here is what the road used to look like:

Here is what it looks like right now.

See the difference?

(And, yes, that is a car in the last photo...he didn't make it far because the road is closed in all directions....wait a minute...that means I am trapped in my house. Anyone have a boat I can borrow?)

I am Loved!

Nothing makes me happier than to know that I am loved :-), and Crystal over at Memoirs of a Mommy shared some bloggy love with me and many others last week in the form of the "Sharing the Love" award. I am thrilled to know my blog and my random thoughts have touched someone else. So, thanks Crystal for your thoughtfulness. I will be adding you to my "People to See" sidebar.

In the meantime, everyone should check out Crystal's blog and see the pictures of her adorable kids.

Thanks, Crystal...I will display my award with pride. And I will pass the love on to others soon.

Landscaping. Ugh.

One of the reasons I haven't blogged regularly is because I have been busy with end of the school year stuff. Lucky for me, Friday was our last day with kids and today is our last work day...and it is only a half day at that. Hooray!

The other reason I have not been blogging has to do with the tiny home improvement project my husband decided we should take on: landascaping.

We have lived here for almost 2 and a half years and we had no landscaping. Sad, I know, but in the grand scheme of everything, it didn't seem that important, so we kept putting it off. Suddenly he decided that this was the year to do it. And he picked Memorial Day weekend to start. Normally I wouldn't care about doing work over Memorial day weekend, but I had lots of things planned for that weekend, so I was a little miffed that we had landscaping. (Okay, so I lied...I had BIG FAT NOTHING planned for that weekend...I just didn't want to landscape).

Hubby started working on the Friday before the long holiday weekend. We worked all day Saturday, all day Sunday and some on Monday (it rained and he golfed.) We still weren't finished. We worked every spare minute we had last week. We still weren't done. We worked Saturday...and we were darn close to being finished. We slept great knowing that we would most likely be finished early Sunday...

That is until Hubby decided he had one more flowerbed he wanted to build...so off we went to Lowe's. And then Natorp's. And then home again we came. He worked on getting the bed ready and by last night, we were finished (for the most part). Sure, we still have more plants to buy, but we look at this as a process...a process that caused us to nearly kill each other at times, but a process nonetheless.
So, enjoy the before and afters. Hopefully I can blog more now that I have a little less dirt under my nails and a little more time on my hands.

Well, Shucks.

First, to the three whole people who may wander by...sorry I haven't blogged in a while. I have been busy. For real busy...not "I'm just saying I've been busy to get off the hook." I've really been busy. I have new flowerbeds to prove it!

Today I received a thank you card...from a parent. The card was actually mailed to school, and in it the parents thanked me for being such an influential person in their daughter's life. I have been teaching for eight years and never once have I gotten a thank you card from from a parent...especially not at this time of the year. Usually at this time of the year I get nasty emails and phone calls, so this was a welcome surprise.

I emailed the parent to thank her for the thank you card (sounds weird, doesn't it? But I wanted to make sure that she knew that I got it.) She emailed back and let me know that she never sends thank you cards to teachers, but she felt she needed to in this case. I was flattered and taken aback by her kind words and her encouragement.

I get burnt out a lot of times with work. I get VERY frustrated at the end of the year. When I get frustrated, Hubby gets frustrated and asks why I still do what I do.

Today I'll show him the card and he'll get his answer.

Saturday Special...#1

I have decided to try a couple of new memes...so, this week I am playing The Saturday Special. All you have to do it answer four questions each Saturday.

This week the general topic of the questions is remembering childhood...here goes.

~Remembering Childhood~

1. As a child I loved to play?: Anything that allowed me to get dirty. I grew up with a brother and all boys on my street, so I had to adapt if I wanted to play. I wasn't a "girly" girl at all. I played sports, played in dirt, rode my bike, buried stuff in the yard, played with Hot Wheels...I was a tomboy for sure.

2. As a child I wanted to grow up to be...?: A veterinarian. I realized after working with a vet and watching her put a horse down that I just couldn't do that with my life. I became a teacher instead. I have no regrets. In fact, I am grateful to the vet for showing my the truth.

3. As a child my favorite thing to eat was...?: Spaghetti. It was what I always had my mom fix for my birthday dinner. I still love it. Italian food (in general) is my weakness!

4. As a child my favorite relative was...?: My Uncle Bill and my Aunt Taniya. (they are a pair...I couldn't split them up). They are from California so I never saw them. When I did, we had so much fun. As I grew up, my grandma became more special to me, but my aunt and uncle hold the top "childhood relative" spot.

Want to play? Visit The Saturday Special now!

Third Time's a Charm?

I just heard on the news that, according to the latest Gallup Poll, George Bush has a 69% disapproval rating. They said that this rating is the lowest in the 75 year history of the Gallup Poll.

Richard Nixon's disapproval rating was only 66% right before he resigned.

George Bush has been on the list of five highest disapproval ratings THREE times...

The other two? Harry Truman at 67% and the previously mentioned Nixon at 66%.

That is NOT a club I would want to be in.

Irony

Irony: Losing the work ethic certificate paper that you were told to keep..

Ah, it is that time again...time for students to turn in their work ethic certificates.

Time for students who have a 20% to ask why I circled "never" on their work ethic standard.

Time for students to ask if they can turn their work ethic papers in late (like last year).

Time for students to have the "oh, crap, I should have actually done work all year" epiphany.

You've got to love the end of the year!

Deplorable!

For those of you who have been around my blog for awhile, you may remember me blogging about China, a dog whose owner was accused of abusing her...only to get her back. I was outraged by this decision...especially since she had a chain embedded in her neck. But, hey, the guy PROMISED to never let it happen again, so the judge gave him his dog back.

And today, he did it again. Today the story broke that the dog was found filthy, cold and wet outside in a pen...a clear violation of his solemn promise to take care of the dog...which included not leaving her outside.

I was angry when the first story broke, and I am angry now...because we all knew how this would turn out. We knew this guy would most likely not take care of this dog, but he was given a second chance. A second chance that most of us knew he didn't deserve and wouldn't take advantage of.

Now it is time for China to get a second chance. A chance at a life that includes love, warmth and a family who appreciates her for her.

We can only hope it isn't too late.

Jeff Foxworthy...My Hero.

I am stressed out (the end of the school year does that to me...not to mention a few other things that have occurred over the last few days...but that's another story). To de-stress, I wanted to share these funny things with all of you. I hope you all get a chuckle out of a couple of them. Any of you who ever worked in education...or even set foot in a school...should find something to laugh about :-)

Jeff Foxworthy on Educators

YOU might be a school employee if you believe the playground should be equipped with a Ritalin salt lick.

YOU might be a school employee if you want to slap the next person who says, 'Must be nice to work 8 to 3:30 and have summers off.'

YOU might be a school employee if it is difficult to name your own child because there's no name you can come up with that doesn't bring high blood pressure as it is uttered.

YOU might be a school employee if you can tell it's a full moon or if it is going to rain, snow, hail....anything!!! Without ever looking outside.

YOU might be a school employee if you believe, 'shallow gene have its own box on a report card.

YOU might be a school employee if you believe that unspeakable evils will befall you if anyone says, 'Boy, the kids sure are mellow today.'

YOU might be a school employee if when out in public, you feel the urge to snap your fingers at children you do not know and correct their behavior.

YOU might be a school employee if you have no social life between August and June.

YOU might be a school employee if you think people should have a government permit before being allowed to reproduce.

YOU might be a school employee if you wonder how some parents MANAGED to reproduce.

YOU might be a school employee if you laugh uncontrollably when people refer to the staff room as the 'lounge.'

YOU might be a school employee if you encourage an obnoxious parent to check into charter schools or home schooling and are willing to donate the UHAUL boxes should they decided to move out of district.

YOU might be a school employee if you think caffeine should be available in intravenous form.

YOU might be a school employee if you can't imagine how the ACLU could think that covering your students chair with Velcro and then requiring uniforms made out of the corresponding Velcro could ever be misunderstood by the public.

YOU might be a school employee if meeting a child's parent instantly answers this question, 'Why is this kid like this?'

YOU might be a school employee if you would choose a mammogram over a parent conference.

YOU might be a school employee if you think someone should invent antibacterial pencils and crayons...and desks and chairs for that matter!

YOU might be a school employee if the words 'I have college debt for this?' has ever come out of your mouth.

YOU might be a school employee if you know how many days, minutes, and seconds are left in the school year!