Madness

I haven't written about my job as a teacher yet. I don't know if I had planned on writing about it, but after this week, I need to vent!

Tuesday was my first day back to work with kids. I've been working on-and-off all summer, but Tuesday was my first official day. Before the school year started, I was told that I would have a 2nd/3rd grade combo. That's a tough one for a teacher because, even though we make "it" work all the time, I have not yet figured out how to be two teachers at the same time in order to teach two separate grade levels. I resigned myself to the fact that I would have it and tried to just shrug it off as one more thing. As the end of the school year approached, it seemed to me like the combo wouldn't happen because of the numbers, but I still remained a combo teacher.

Over the summer, I didn't do too much planning because I didn't want to waste the time on something that was bound to change. The first day of school got closer and closer without word one way or another. Then on Friday of last week, I got my class list and I had a combo. I spent the weekend doing some planning and started school on Tuesday, ready to go!!!

This entire week was spent on assessing and teaching classroom procedures. I had a nice little group, albeit two different grade levels, but it was ok. I still wasn't convinced that this combo should be happening. The numbers weren't right, but as the week went on, I started some curriculum and we were moving forward. Then Friday morning I was told that I wouldn't be having a combo anymore. My 3rd graders were to go to another 3rd grade room and I would get additional 2nd graders to fill my class. Ugh! Here we go again.

Don't get me wrong, I am thrilled to have a straight 2nd grade, but the first week of school is so, so very important and now it's come and gone, but I've got to do it all over again. I started school on Tuesday with 18 students and now I will start school on Monday with 17 students 8 of which are new to my classroom. Not to mention that among those new students are a borderline autistic child and two selective mutes. It's almost comical, and all I can do is laugh.

This is my ninth year of teaching and not one of those years has started off "normal". I work for a principal (yah, the one who grabs his neck) who likes to change things and move people around a lot. Here is a quick glance at my 9 school years...

Year 1 - Hired in October. Two second grade classrooms were too full so those teachers picked students to go into my classroom. I started that year with 18 boys, two girls, and 5 students who didn't speak any English, 2 of which had never ever been to school.

Year 2 - Given a 2/3 combo and moved out of Year 1's classroom into a classroom that was pretty much condemned a year later. My kids and I were sick all year, so sick that my principal wouldn't even come observe me because we were hacking, and coughing, and sneezing like a doctor's office.

Year 3 - Back to 2nd grade, but made into a roving teacher. I had to move, yet again, out of the sick classroom and into one rolling cabinet. That rolling cabinet made it "easier" to pick up and move from classroom to classroom each month...that's right, EACH MONTH!

Year 4 - Still in 2nd grade, but this time had to pack up that rolling cabinet and all my storage and move to a new school, literally a brand new school. We got to move in about 4 days before school started. That year I had the class from hell.

Year 5 - Still in 2nd grade and the same classroom, but I don't remember too much about it, so it must have been pretty normal.

Year 6 - Still in 2nd grade. The year started off pretty normal. Then a month into the school year another teacher was mad that she had lower kids and to appease her my principal moved 7 of my kids out to her room and 7 of her kids to my room. Did I mention how important that first week of school is? After a month had gone by it was very difficult to reteach all the classroom procedures AND keep up with curriculum. That was the worst year I have had.

Year 7 - Still in the same classroom, but back to a 2/3 combo. Plus I had back-to-back student teachers starting with day 1. They were WONDERFUL, but it's hard to get your classroom running smoothly when you have to hand it over to another person a week or two into the year.

Year 8 - Started off the year job-sharing with another teacher and doing additional tasks for my principal. Let's just say that last year is neck-in-neck with year 6 as the worst year ever.

Year 9 - See above

I know I'm just being a whiny baby, but it's my blog and I'm allowed too. I'd really like to have a normal beginning to the school year more than one out of nine times. I'm just saying.

Tasty Tuesday

I'm not a food blogger, in fact, I'm not sure what kind of blogger I am. Is a "bunch of random blather" a blog niche? Anyways, I am still a foodie in the sense that I love to eat, drink, cook, and plan parties. Since my vacation ends today and my time spending hours reading and writing posts is over, I thought this would be a great time to start a weekly "culinary" post so I can share some of my favorites with you. Slàinte!

Chicken Tortilla Soup - Slow Cooker

Ingredients

2-3 boneless/skinless chicken breasts (can be frozen)

1 (15 oz) can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed
1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chile peppers
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups water
1 (14.5 oz) can chicken broth
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 (10 oz) package frozen corn
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (add more if you like it like I do)
7 corn tortillas
vegetable oil

1. Put all ingredients (except tortilla and oil) into slow cooker. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 6 to 8 hours or on High setting for 3 to 4 hours. Before serving, shred chicken using a fork - it will just fall apart.
2. Preheat oven to 400.
3. Lightly brush both sides of tortillas with oil. Cut tortillas into strips, then spread on a baking sheet.
4. Bake in preheated oven until lightly brown and crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes.

5. Add tortilla strips and any other toppings...serve!

Sexy Appliances

As mentioned in a previous post my vacuum cleaner broke a couple weeks ago when I foolishly tried to clean my house without the supervision of my housekeeper. Who knows when she's coming back and I had dirty floors, so I had to find a new vacuum. I did some research online and asked some friends for recommendations. I have a dog and needed something that was good at sucking up dog hair. The Dyson commercials make it sound like it's the best thing out there, but my research seemed to prove quite the opposite. After a few days of looking around, I found the Sunpentown. "The what?" you ask. Yes that's right the Sunpentown; Not to be confused with Supentown and Supertown which was how I numerously tried to look it up on google. Well Sunpentown is a local (LA) small appliance company that makes one and only one vacuum. The reviews are very good and it's red (my favorite color) so I bought it. I received it from the company the next day! I opened up the box, put it together, and I have to tell you that this vacuum is HAWT!. It is candy-apple red and sparkly. It's like a sports car vacuum.

I told Jason from the Jason Show about my new purchase and after some dirty comments about vacuums (yes, he can turn anything into something dirty), he told me that his brother-in-law just purchased a red washer and dryer. He said that they are amazing and called them "sexy". It's true, these red appliances are sexy. My vacuum is sexy. I've been vacuuming all week because I just like looking at it. Some day I want to have a house full of sexy, red appliances.

Tag, You're It!

I was tagged by Karen over at For the Love of Pete to do a meme. I am supposed to tell you about 6 quirks that I have. It will be difficult to narrow it down to 6. I am pretty quirky.

1. I don't do pictures. I love to take pictures, but I prefer to stay behind the camera. In fact, if I see a camera in someone else's hand I get nervous and have to leave the immediate area in fear that I might be caught on camera.

2. I hate, HATE mayonaise. I can't smell it, look at it, or even listen to it. My mom tells a story about the one and only time she had morning sickness when she was pregnant with me. She was making sandwiches for lunch and on those sandwiches she put mayo. That did it. Even from the womb, mayonaise disgusted me. BLECH!

3. I sleep with 4 pillows. When I was little I had bad allergies and asthma and it would get so bad at night time that I would weeze. My parents would stack my pillows so I could sleep sitting up which made it easier for me to breathe. Years and years later, I still sleep with 4 pillows stacked up around me and find it very difficult to sleep without them.

4. My bra and underwear must match. It doesn't matter if anyone else will see them or not. It's just important to me.

5. I love art and the act of being creative, but I don't like to share what I do. I was even accepted to art school in San Francisco, but the process of applying and then thinking about going having to show others my work freaked me out so much that I decided not to go. Instead I majored in business and then later education.

6. I love to talk, but I don't like to talk on the phone. I am a multi-tasker and it's hard to do more than one thing when you have to hold the phone to your ear. I have gotten past that a bit since July 1 when CA law requires that I buy a headset to use in the car. My bluetooth headset allows me to walk around my house and do other things while I talk on the phone. But I still find myself sitting down after awhile and just talking otherwise I don't pay attention to the person on the phone. It's funny too, because when I was growing up my parents and I always laughed at one of my grandmas who didn't like to talk on the phone either. One time I called her on her birthday and this was the conversation...
Grandma: Hello?
Me: Hi Grandam, it's Kim.
Grandma: Hi there, how are you?
Me: I'm fine, I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday.
Grandma: Thank you.
Me: Your welcome.
Grandma: Alright, thanks for calling.
Seriously, it was less than 30 seconds. That's my kind of call.

OK, now I tag...
Cortney at Cortney Chronicles because she was recently concussed.

Grandma J at Ask Grandma J because she's a riot and I can't wait to hear about her quirks.

Heart Shaped Hedges because she's had a 5 year milestone.

JLo at Almost Famous because she was able to spot porn from two lanes away.

Jason from The Jason Show because he's the man who got me into the mess in the first place.

Twenty Four At Heart because she writes great posts about Money Town and anyone who sneaks alcohol in water bottles is a good egg in my book.

Live. Love. Eat. because she invited me to her martini party and her food posts are delicious.
So, tag, you're it! (If you've already been tagged, oh well, you are again!)

And now for the rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Mention the rules on your blog. (Here they are.)
3. Tell about six unspectacular quirks of yours.
4. Tag six fellow bloggers by linking them.
5. Leave a comment on each of the six blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Cruel Summer

It's been an expensive summer my friends. Yes, I do enjoy shopping and have purchased quite a few shoes over the past month, but since I started summer break (when I don't get paid) unforeseen expenses have popped up. These unforeseen expenses ALWAYS seem to pop up during the summer when I don't get paid. Here's a list of what's come up...

Tree Trimming $450

Wall Repair $250

New Tires $560

Sprinkler repair/installation $540

New Vacuum - $200

So, if you're keeping score that's $2,000-unforeseen expenses, $0-paychecks.

I am not looking forward to going back to work, but I am looking forward to getting paid! In the mean time, I wonder if Heifer International will let me buy a flock of chicks for my own use - I'd even share with my fellow unpaid teachers.

• After visiting Live. Love. Eat. I surfed right over to playlist.com and created myself a playlist of some of my favorites. Turn off your mute buttom when you visit and you'll be serenaded. If you scroll to the bottom you can see what is playing on my fancy, new RED playlist.


• I am really annoyed. Prices all around have really been skyrocketing! I've recently been noticing it when I grocery shop. I love cheese. Really love it. If it was healthy, I would really just live off of 3 foods - cheese, bread, and coke. I could live happily if that's all I got. Anyways, so about once a month, I buy 2 packs of Sargento or Kraft sharp cheddar cheese, pre-shredded. Usually my store has a special on one or the other, 2 packs for $5.00. Well, let me just tell you, neither of those brands have been on sale in weeks and in fact, both of them are about $5.00 per pack. That's right people, 1 pack for $5.00. So I have been forced to buy the $3.00 a pack generic brand of cheese. I'm not usually a name brand snob, but this cheese sucks. It doesn't melt. I made pizza last night and the mozzerella just turned into a mushy messy blob. It was gross. And "they" keep telling us that there isn't a crisis in our economy. I think this demonstrates quite the opposite.


• Have I mentioned the humidity. I know, I know, I shouldn't be complaining. It is worse on the East Coast or in the South. I spent 8 years in New England, and it is sweltering there. But come on. I live in Southern California, technically in the desert. It's not supposed to be humid. Every morning for the last few weeks have been hazy and damp. It's like I'm living at the beach without getting to live at the beach. Ick! I hate it.


• I cleaned my house (kind of) all by myself today and it was fun and easy. I don't need Manuela. Psych! Just kidding. I want her to come back NOW! It was awful people. I dusted and washed the linens and remade my bed and all the stuff, well some of the stuff, that Manuela does. The one thing that I don't mind doing is vacuuming. However, today I ran over something with the vacuum and it started smoking and smelled awful. See, I am no good at this cleaning thing. Everyone keep your fingers crossed that she comes back sooner than later.


• Yesterday, JLo and I were in the car together and as we stopped at a light JLo said, "Why are those guys there looking at porn when they're driving?" "What?" I asked, "Who?" She pointed to these guys in a white truck two lanes over. We laughed and she turned to look at them. As she made "shame" fingers she said, "Naughty, naughty." The driver laughed and punched his friend and they both laughed. As we drove away I asked her how in the heck did she know they were looking at porn. "I don't know, I just saw a naked women in the magazine they were looking at." "That's so funny," I said, "I just might have to blog about it." So I did.

Koho

This is Koho.

She is my dog. I love my dog a lot. There was recently some concern over at Grandma J's about people who love their dog just a little too much by dressing them in clothing, carrying them in their bags, and bringing them to inappropriate places like restaurants, grocery stores, and boutiques. I assure you, I don't do those things. My dog weighs about 50 pounds so she is too heavy to carry around in a handbag and those doggy clothes don't fit her, besides she's a dog and although I love her to death, she's still a dog.

But, she's the best dog ever. Here's why...

• She's an Australian cattle dog which means she's super smart. She's so smart that she has taught me to stop trying to teach her tricks like rolling over and shaking paws. She looks at me like I'm the dummy. However, she does sit, stay, and do her business on command. Fetch and "Come here" are hit and miss. If she feels like it, she does it great, if she doesn't, she doesn't. Because she's a cattle dog, she also likes to herd things. Whether it be squirrels or small children, she's not picky. She really can't be picky living in the suburbs. I told you she is smart.


• She's a good guard dog. If someone comes to the door, even on TV, fits of hysteria come over her and she runs around barking her head off with the hair on her neck and back standing straight up on end. When we are invited over to the houses of friends, she barks when I knock on the door. "This is their house," I have to tell her.


• She loves routine. As soon as the alarm goes off to start our day, she has a schedule of what they day should be like. If something interrupts that schedule she is disoriented and has a hard time handling it.


• She's cuddly. She likes to be close to me at all times. That could be sitting on my feet, curling up next to me on the couch, or snuggling next to me in bed at night. I let her sleep on the bed. It's a big bed, so there's plenty of room, but I often find myself hanging off the end of the bed because Koho is sprawled out right next to me sound asleep. When I get up in the middle of the night, she usually has made my spot her spot and falls back to sleep. I have to push her out of the way so I can get back into bed.


• She's cute. She has brown freckles all over her legs and face. There is a black ring around the middle of her tail and the end of her tail is white, like it's been dipped in paint. Plus, when she lies down, she crosses her front paws like a princess. Some say that's a sign of intelligence.

She's just the coolest dog ever.

Here in sunny California, 104 is not only the amount it cost to fill up your gas tank, but also the temperature most days in the summer. As cute and cuddly as Koho is, all that hair sheds like a "motha" in the summer. So about June every year I have her shaved. Here she is shaved.

She sure looks funny and gets embarrassed when I laugh at her, but she seems cooler and doesn't leave white hair everywhere around the house.