The Party Connection

I'll admit it right up front:  This may seem a little disconnected.  You may be thinking that you have inadvertently been thrust into some sort of time warp and been transported back to a Wednesday Night Bullet Post.  Not so.  And I can connect it all.  The party is the uniting element here.  That and the fact that I get to do whatever I want.  You'll just have to trust me.

Back In A Distant Time And Place:  My family isn't really all that big on celebrating stuff on the day that we are supposed to.  We do the major holidays pretty well.  But birthdays are something of a flexible thing.  We'll celebrate them whenever we can get everyone together and assuming that there is ample time for card purchasing.  That's fine with me.  Birthdays aren't that big a deal to me in general and I'd rather spend the day in a normal sort of fashion anyway.  I get all scared at the thought of people jumping out at me like ninjas and yelling, "Surprise, you old person!!!!!!!"  That is not the sort of thing one does to old people.  There could be any number or incidents or accidents...

Fast Forward To Sunday Night The Last: I decide that I want a Birthday Week.  Instead of my usual plan for ignoring the whole thing and trying to keep it a deep, dark secret, I opt to announce my upcoming Saturday birthday and demand that I be afforded a week of Me.  

Fast Forward To Monday Morning:  I announce that it is My Birthday Week and that I can do whatever I want whenever I want.  I make this announcement several times throughout the day as the students and staff in my class tend to rotate in and out and I didn't want anyone to miss it.  There is a marked lack of cooperation.  And my Cheerful Teaching Assistant announces that she needs to take Friday off to move.  This is not exactly what I had in mind, but I am really happy that she is moving because she has needed to do this for a long time so I'm allowing it.  

Fast Forward To Tuesday:  We, the teaching staff begin getting any number of reminders that our principal's retirement party is Wednesday night.  We are encouraged to bring in our party supplies and to pick up our t-shirts.  Our principal has a long history in the district and is very fond of certain sayings.  One of them is often said to students who seem to be under the impression that they are grossly overworked in our happy little Learn-A-Torium.  He will tell them that, "this isn't Camp (Insert School Name Here)!  So the theme of the party is summer camp.  It all sounds really fun and everyone gets matching camp t-shirts.  Except for me because I am not going.  It will make for a late night and a Sheepie needs her sleepie on a Wednesday.  I am sad because the t-shirts are really, really nifty.  And we all know my love of the novelty t-shirt...

Fast Forward To Wednesday Morning:  While my Other Cheerful Teaching Assistant and I supervise a basketball game between two students, the librarian bustles in to tell us that our t-shirts are on our desks.  I thank her then tell the Cheerful Teaching Assistant that her t-shirt is on my desk.  I didn't get one, after all.  She laughs.  Later, the librarian bustles back in, apologetically saying that she hadn't meant to mess things up.  I assure her that I figured it all out without any help.  She keeps apologizing, though.  My staff finally escort her from the room.

Fast Forward To The Wee Hours Of Thursday Morning:  The Big, Fluffy Kitty accidentally lets a whisker brush my hand as we sleep.  I, being the sort of person that I am, naturally assume that I am being attacked by a swarm of fire ants and swat my hand vigorously.  I am up.  And my hand hurts.  And the BFK is a bit disconcerted.  Sleep eludes me.  I hate fire ants...

Fast Forward To Thursday Proper:  I am tired and grumpy beyond all reason.  I am further irked by the fact that everyone is wearing their cool, new t-shirts to school today.  The mood plummets.  This is unfortunate because the Cheerful Teaching Assistant, with the one hour available to her last night between jobs and while in the throes of an epic allergy attack, took the time to bake me a cake.  For my Birthday Week.  And it had chocolate mousse frosting.  I like chocolate mousse frosting.  I regret the attitude that has overshadowed my day.  There was a gift, too.  She and The Other Cheerful Teaching Assistant snagged me the chocolate bunny favor from their table at the retirement party to bring to my impromptu classroom birthday party this afternoon.  That was also very good.  As was this:

They got me a t-shirt!!!!!!!!!!

Such a happy Sheepie!  I now have my very own camp t-shirt just like all the cool kids!  Yay!  This is what I'm talking about when I say, "Birthday Week!!"  I'd wondered if anyone was paying attention, if you want the truth.  But that Cheerful Teaching Assistant is a sharp one.  She got me the perfect card to go with my perfect t-shirt:

See what I'm saying, here?  A very bright girl.  This, of course, does not mean that she isn't taking tomorrow off.  But she made me a cake and it had chocolate mousse frosting.  She also signed out the TV for tomorrow so I can show a movie in the afternoon rather than try to teach after the kids finish yet another grueling round of standardized testing.  She gets a free pass and full Birthday Week permission to take a day off.  

Oh, and I'm still not knitting.  If you have any questions, please refer to the card...

SA