Tuesday, November 14, 2006

The Many Forms Of Crisis Management.

Ah...the dry gas! A miracle substance, really. And one that is, apparently, not universally known, if my comments are any indication. Allow me to elucidate. Dry gas is a fuel additive that you put in the tank to help break down any water that may be lurking in there with the pricey gasoline. It is probably a more common little item in my neck of the woods due to the temperature fluctuations that cause condensation to form. For the record, water is not good for an engine due to the fact that it is not exactly "combustible." And I suspect that one of the local chains I was using last year due to it's convenience of locale had a bit of the H2O in it's tanks.

I've been keeping the dry gas makers in business over the last few months...

That question answered, The Sheep now moves on to other types of crises that can occur in the life of a workaday gal. The rain continues to pelt down upon us and is making for the mushy brain. It has also made one less likely to make the trek down to the dumpster to take out that bag of trash that has been sitting in the kitchen for two days now. Today, however, being the good little homeowner that I be, I made the decision to take care of that little chore. But the driving rain forced me to assume something of a "head down" posture when walking. This is good for keeping the rain out of your nostrils, but not really all that effective in terms of avoiding low-hanging pine boughs.

I took one right to the face. A nice, wet, "whippy" sort of branch that slapped me into a state of awakeness far earlier than I was really ready and left more water on my glasses than the falling rain ever could. Nice... Fortunately, I noted little damage aside from my pride since these things never seem to happen when there are no witnesses. What all these people are doing out at the crack of too-early-thirty in the morning, I will never know. They certainly seem to be able to sleep in on days when I am able to walk without incident. And I can generally pull that off at least twice a week.

The staff meeting at school was an interesting start to a gloomy day, as well. Understand, that most schools are now charged with being prepared for any possible thing that could start with the words, "in the unlikely event." For example, in the unlikely event that certain exits are blocked, we must know all means for evacuating the building in the case of fire, terrorists or textbook salesmen. In the unlikely event that a stranger is in the school, we must be able to successfully identify him and take appropriate action to have him removed. In the unlikely event that the coffee supply runs out in the teacher's room then we are allowed to panic with wild abandon. There really is no plan that will cover that.

Today's unlikely event was centered on the recent concerns with regard to pandemic type flu outbreaks and what might happen should we ever be quarantined with the children for any length of time. Now, please don't misunderstand me. There is not a single child in that building for whom I wouldn't take a bullet if I had to. But, it is with great shame that I admit to you that the thought of being trapped with them for an indeterminate period of time caused a small and petty part of my brain to begin calculating the amount of time it might take for me to begin tunneling under the wall to whatever plague might be lurking out there. I am further dismayed by the fact that I was calculating it in hours, not days.

And it is still raining. But I made it to work on time today, was spared a pine-induced concussion and am now fully aware of the lengths to which I will go should I ever have to choose between a killer flu and extended time with my students. All in all, I'd say things are looking up since yesterday!

Despite all the bad mojo coming at me 24 hours ago, I took a chance and knit a bit. I'm not really loving the mitten that is stumbling along as project #2. But the Feather And Fan experiment is a winner!



At least The Big, Fluffy Kitty seems to think so...
We'll keep plugging along on the mitten and see what happens. I suspect that it is going to be a bit on the small side. But that will simply mean that they will remain in my possession as I have the small and delicate hooves. Not such a bad thing, I suppose.
However, I wonder if I should be knitting some sort of protective garments just in case. I've got the bird flu and those killer pine trees out there, after all...
SA

12 comments:

sheep#100 said...

The scarf is looking reaqlly nice.

I must admit that I got all excited when I saw my name in the post today. Then I realized that you meant trek as journey not trek as me and I was sad ;o)

JJ said...

In the event...

that happened to me once when I was teaching 6th grade. A snow storm came in early one morning but the County did not close the schools. Snow built up and they didn't delay school openings. Why, yes, I do live in the sorta South! I called a fellow teacher and carpooled in his SUV. When he dropped me off at my school 20 minutes after sign-in time, the county finally announced that school opening was delayed. Half the busses were already on the roads. Busses started straggling up to the school and discharging students, school started, kids came in, snow built up, cars slid toward the building. The County closed the schools but it was too late. Busses tried to take the kids home and turned around. Some busses just pulled over and the drivers walked the kids back into the building. Admin suggested that we all spend the day and wait for the plows and end of the storm. The weather service predicted another foot of snow. I panicked. No way was I spending the night with 250 hyper kids and a lot of cafeteria food. Plus, I had tickets for a Jethro Tull concert that night. Yes, I am old.

I walked to a Metro bus stop and waited for 2 years um hours for a bus that never came and then I started walking back to town. In a dress and granny boots. (I'm old). I caught a ride but then the traffic stopped and didn't move for an hour. I got out and walked on a closed highway. I walked 6 miles in a snowstorm over high bridges and past cars with huddled commuters trying to get in or out of the city.

I made it to a friends' house and spent 3 days there. The teachers who stayed were there for 2 days and couldn't talk about the experience. They blanched and shook at the mention. I never regretted leaving.

(sigh)The concert wasn't cancelled although the roads were closed between the cities and our tickets were not refundable.

Now, I'd pull a kid out of a line of fire and I'd hoist myself and kids through windows, but I do not want to be sealed into a school until the government gives the all clear. Heck, I do not even want to be sealed in with my family for that long.

Anonymous said...

In the unlikely event you are trapped with little ankle bitters you should have an emergency Sheepish stash of supplies.

Dry gas ranks right up there with duct tape, even though duct tape will remain the greatest invention known to man.

Anonymous said...

I totally agree with mrichme: you need some emergency supplies for the unlikely events. I'm thinking chocolate, knitting supplies, Tylenol, more chocolate, ...

I got hit in the face with a small river birch branch this evening. Nothing as dramatic as your incident, but that always ticks me off and I end up feeling insulted.

We need to see a mitten picture. I tried starting a pair of mittens tonight, but wasn't very successful. Try, try again...

Anonymous said...

Hi Sheep, Im reading this along with Joe, hence the lack of website to click on LOL...

Joe of course understood what dry gas is, hate to say it, but its kind of a 'guy thing' to know, isnt it???? MORE LOL!!

Joe also likes reading your blog posts and believe me, he doesnt read blogs like I do, you are one of the honored few he likes to read along with me....

Your fluffy kitty (who is that, I get the names mixed up I fear) does indeed look like she is enjoying the new lovely scarf.

If you need flu protection I noted somewhere (sometime!) on the Web a knitted 'mask' as in Dr. Casey, to wear in the unlikely event of an epidemic. I will try to locate if you are interested in pursuing this for a future project.

BFN, Geraldine AND Joe

Anonymous said...

Feather and Fan, while a very pretty accessory (disguise?), could be thrown out the window to a nearby tree, and used as a rope to pull you to safety...if you've got skis/snowshoes/another emergency vehicle hidden in the school garage...

catsmum said...

all of the foregoing explains why I am an EX schoolmarm, thankyou very much :]
It's 24 years since I jumped ship and I've spent 23 of those teaching quilters. I'd be ok about being snowed in with a bunch of quilters or knitters anytime...no problems!

Anonymous said...

The scarf looks great! Mommy Sheep will be pleased.
Karen
http://nothingbutknit.blog-city.com/

Anonymous said...

Few things horrify me as much as the thought of being locked in with a bunch of rug rats/ankle biters/other people's children. My sister once told me that the reason I'd never make a good sub is that they frown on teachers killing students. Not something I'm proud of, but at least I'm not locked in with the little buggers - um, dears!
Tree branches lie in wait for someone unsuspecting to walk by so they can WHAP!! I know this, cause it's happened to me too - where I thought there were no trees, and where there were plenty of witnesses.

Cursing Mama said...

Isn't there some kind of emergency supply box you should have for such a horrific event?!?
Natural inclination says knitting & chocolate but I'm thinking I'd throw a flask of something really strong in too. If you can't knit the pain away at least you can pass out. I think a trip to the grocery is in order.

Anonymous said...

Love the blog... glad the purloined letter sent me over!

Hannah said...

Your scarf is so lovely! Feather and Fan in that color is a perfect combination!