Thursday, June 26, 2008

Well Read

It is really rather unfair.  I get a week of summer vacation under my belt and they go and drag me back for training.  And it was the mandatory kind, designed to ensure that I will leave No Child Behind.  There is no getting out of that sort of mandate from the federal government.  

I went to bed at a reasonable hour even though I am long since past the habit of such things.  I set the alarm.  I made sure that matching shoes were at the ready because I have a tendency to not think of that and then run around for twenty minutes in the morning accusing the invisible elves of stealing all my footwear.  That, as you can well imagine, is a real time suck.  Entertaining for the neighbors...but not so good for the timely arrival at trainings.

With all that forethought, I was able to exit the manse without too much in the way of Sheepish Nonsense and made it to The Integrated Reading Process Workshop with tens of minutes to spare.  I would, however, suggest that you not try and quiz me on the material.  I don't claim to have been fully awake.  But, fear not!  The brain was absorbing all sorts of knowledge and I swear on my mother's name that there will be no leaving of children in the behind-place.  

Plus I got a keen binder.  I can just go back and check that.

And the best news?  It seems that when I wrote down the training dates, I didn't really read the fine print.  It is possible that I was feeling really virtuous at the time and overwhelmed with a willingness to be trained until it hurt.  But I don't think that was the case...  At any rate, I don't have to go tomorrow.  That one is just for the Language Arts teachers.  I don't exactly fit that category so I get to take a pass!  

Can I get a WHOOO HOOOOO?

Meanwhile, the kitties and I had to endure a full day of separation.  Sure, I had to bring the laptop with me to training and could share slide shows of the new baby to anyone willing to watch.  (Or not willing to watch but unable to find a good escape route.)  But it wasn't like really being here.  For nine hours, we were unable to enjoy one another's company.  We all coped in our own ways.




Some were just overwhelmed with a sense of loss and melancholy



Others, having experienced these sorts of separations before, simply sat at the window and waited patiently.


Me?  Well, I coped in the only way a knitter knows...



Sheepie make sock.


When I returned home, all full of the knowledge and so very well-trained, there was much in the way of rejoicing.  Certain new babies who are absurdly gi-normous and quite handsome got a little carried away and there was a small amount of damage done to various household knick-knacks as he capered about merrily.  That's  OK.  I was just happy to see that the two little ones had survived the day without any major sibling rivalry issues.

There were Greenies and sort-of-homemade-brownies all around!  Tomorrow we make up for lost "together" time!

SA

15 comments:

The Kelly Green Rogue said...

don't you just love a welcome like that?

Anonymous said...

Holy Buckets! Look at the size of AGK's paw!
What's bigger than Gi-normous?

knitseashore said...

I love, love, love the kitty slide shows. Keep them coming. AGK is so incredibly cute, and has lots of lost blog time to make up for, don't you think?

And Tim thinks that the more red cats that take over blogs, the better it is. There's even an orange cat group on Ravelry you can join...

Donna Lee said...

I hope that this is the end of the trainings for the time being. How are you going to miss the job and pine away to return if they don't let you leave?

Anonymous said...

BFK and AGK both look like they really missed you while you were gone.

I kind of get some time off today - I have a meeting and get to come home afterward (which after driving 2 hours there and 2 hours back for a 1 hour meeting only seems fair).

p.s. If I were in your training, I'd have been asking to see the pics again and again and again....

catsmum said...

there's an orange cat group on Ravelry? how did I miss that one? going over to join right now ... oh and
WOO HOO [ well you did ask for one, right? ]

Mia said...

hey, pass one of those brownies over here! *grin*

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad they were fine without you but I bet they'll be happier with you home.

sheep#100 said...

Sheepie did make a sock!

Cursing Mama said...

I suspected there would be Greenies!

Anonymous said...

Here ya go: Woo hoo!

And a bonus: Awwww for the AGK!

Knitting Linguist said...

Yay for no training on Friday! And I'm glad that the cats made it through the day :)

Anonymous said...

Perfect day! Greenies, brownies, kitty pictures, socks, children not left behind......I think you deserve the summer off.

Yarnhog said...

I feel for you. I spent yesterday evening at a mandatory Legal Ethics workshop. The speakers were so dry I swear I saw dust poof out of their mouths when they talked. I was DYING to pull the sock out of my purse and start knitting, but there was a video camera and multiple microphones circling randomly--although why, I couldn't say, because there is no chance in hell that anyone is going to sit through a video of that tedium.

Leigh said...

Ooo, pretty sock!

Actually, it sounds like "no teacher left behind." And then the teachers drag the kids along behind them. Right?