Thursday, April 02, 2009

Stranger Than Fiction

I was sitting in the teachers room this afternoon with a group of my fellow educators.  We were joined by a young colleague who said, "Is it just me or is this place like something you couldn't make up even if you tried?  I mean, it's like right out of a movie..."

None of us could disagree.  At the time, we were all gathered to watch no fewer than five people, each with a bigger and scarier looking set of tools, try to get the nurse's bathroom open and free the child trapped within. This had been going on for at least thirty minutes. We had finally gotten around to the point where we were taking bets on whether the School Resource Officer would just take out his gun and shoot his way in.

The whole thing would have been much funnier if the kid stuck in there didn't have a serious medical issue and was being fed juice through a long tube stuck under the door and handed sugar packets in a similar fashion.  The school nurse was looking like she'd begun regretting not taking that relaxing job with the combat unit over in the Middle East and there was every indication that the custodians were going to have to go through the wall to get in there.  Frankly, if there is ever an attack on the school and gunmen are roaming the halls, I now have every intention of going in the bathroom to wait it out.  Those doors are solid!

The child was rescued and all was well in the end.  But I don't think anyone can disagree that things have taken a turn for the surreal over here in the world of Middle School Education.  What made it worse was that none of us were going home when that blessed bell finally rang at the end of the day.  

It was Parent/Teacher Conference Night.  

Yes, I realize that we just had one.  But we need two to accommodate all the parents.  Well...the regular teachers do.  I had but one conference scheduled and that wasn't due to happen until 6:15.  I usually use the time to get some work done and plan for the next few day's lessons.  Since I'd spent my prep. period watching the drama unfold outside the nurse's office, I hadn't gotten much accomplished.  I really needed the extra time tonight.  Yet, by 4:00 I was officially "done."  I didn't have the will to do one more thing.  I mostly just hung around the Guidance Office and chatted until it was time to go do my Caring Teacher Thing.  

I really do care...it's not a "thing."  It's just that I don't care quite as much by 6:15.  I care less by 6:30 when the parent I'm scheduled to see finally shows up.  But I happen to like this Mom a great deal.  She's cool, kind of a Biker Mom.  I enjoy talking to her and I like her kid so I was able to find my inner Caring Teacher pretty quickly.  

But it was still a long day which happened to fall in the middle of a very long week.  This long week has been fraught with danger, flying fists, swinging chairs, disgruntled co-workers and administrators who have had it with the lot of us.  I was tired and completely incapable of doing anything productive while I hung out and waited for the announcement over the P.A. system that said we could all go home.  How does one fill the hours when one is not really in the mood for actual "work?"  Hmmm...

The answer is obvious.  Or it should be.  But this has been a strange day, a strange week and a strange Conference Night.  Things did not go the way they usually do.  They went right back to "surreal."  I did something I have not done since I first began teaching in this school district and being subjected to Parent/Teacher Conferences With No Actual Conferences on my schedule.  It was the crowning touch, the icing on the cake of weirdness, the straw that broke the camel's back and forced him to go on Dromedary Disability...

I forgot my knitting!!!!!!

SA

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

I must have read that wrong; I thought you wrote that you forgot your knitting.

Kath said...

Seriously - it probably would have been faster and easier to go through the wall, assuming it's just regular drywall & framing! (And not like..concrete or something silly like that). So sad to hear you forgot your knitting - that would definitely make the time drag - perhaps a cookie or two for medicinal purposes?

PICAdrienne said...

uhh, what about a dishcloth out of string with two sharp pencils?

Betsy said...

There's a medal in this for you...too bad it will have to do because there's no money in the budget for combat pay...

Karen said...

Put this at the top of your weekend to do list: Pack bag of emergency knitting and put it in the car. Mark the outside of the bag so you remember what it is. A dishcloth pattern and come cotton would be perfect or maybe some sock yarn and a pattern. Don't forget needles and a few stitch markers. You could tie one of these little kits to your belt in case you ever get locked in the bathroom too.
I hope things take a turn to the uneventful.

sheep#100 said...

Don't fret over it so much. Your tension would have been way off and you would have made a sock way too tight for your little hoof.

Was Hulu good last night?

PS - The word of the day is "tater". Is that as in "tots" or as in "salad".

Anonymous said...

What, the folks in the office couldn't find a project for you to do. I thought that they kept you very busy during the last conference night.
Have a good weekend,
MS

Donna Lee said...

I think they should just let you leave if you don't have any conferences.

I confess, I, too, have forgotten to take knitting with me on occasion. It made me crazy. Keeping a small bag in the car sounds like a good idea....

Mia said...

hahaha - hohoho - not laughing at ya sheepie - just laughing with ya...

this phrase:
fall in the middle of a very long week. This long week has been fraught with danger, flying fists, swinging chairs, disgruntled co-workers and administrators who have had it with the lot of us.

sounds a lot like my work except here it's all grownups and it's us slaves who have had it with the administrators...

Security is gathering as we speak hehehe
TGIF. (but really not kidding :)

Cursing Mama said...

Tell me you at least had a book. I mean, when life is crappy the least you should be able to do is escape to some fictional land...as long as it the fictional land doesn't go on exclusively in your head. That might be a whole other problem

Lynne said...

Oh no!! But you did have access to a computer, right? And the 'Net?

catsmum said...

please tell me that the Tech Support guy had worked some magic and you were at least able to read blogs or surf Ravelry for new fibre-related goodness
and anyway - could you not have gone out in search of a LYS to fill in those waiting hours or do they not let you off campus ?

Beth said...

What a week! When is spring break for you? You sure need it!

I read your last two posts right now and I'm glad I read them together. Silly me - in the last post I thought School Resource Officer was like a guidance counselor and I thought it was interesting that the two combatants were going to discuss their issue with him/her. In this post I realized just what the SRO is. You know, the word "officer" should have tipped me off. :)