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2002-10-02 - 6:05 p.m. I was annoyed with the freshmen today, and I actually found myself making threats. The first threat was that if they weren't quiet during journal time, I would pass out detentions. The second threat was that I would write them up if they left early. They were standing near the door and someone started yelling, "Go, go, go!" a minute early. And they started to go, until my threat. There's some sort of rule against making threats, but I broke it. I think the actual rule is that you shouldn't make threats if you aren't going to follow through. Well, I didn't have to follow through because my threats worked. I'm actually still enjoying all of my classes. I have to pick a class to focus on this year and I finally decided on my seventh period. It is supposed to be a sophomore class, so I chose that one because they are the better behaved of the two. I kept waiting for them to get bad (since it is the last period of the day), but they haven't, so I'm counting on them to stay well-behaved. I have to do all this crap like video tape them and save samples of their work. The biggest fear I have is that you won't be able to tell the difference between their writing at the beginning and at the end. I wonder what will happen if that is the case? I mean, you would think they would be bound to get better, but who knows. I don't remember noticing a remarkable improvement the last two years. However, I am gung-ho doing the writing workshop thing this year, so hopefully it will actually work out. Who knows. We got some of our novel sets today, so it is my mission to read some of them so I can actually start teaching them. The first one I need to read is Animal Farm. I think that it will be good since it is short. So if they don't enjoy it, it won't take forever to get through it and move on. I don't mean to be mean, but I really don't much care for the other teacher that I have mentioned in the past. Today she was talking to me, kind of complaining about an issue with the textbooks. She is always talking to me about some issue she has with something, and I just get tired of it. Especially since I helped choose those textbooks, you know what I mean? It's not really a big deal, but I just try to avoid being around her. I'm in a major quandry about what to watch tonight. The new season of Dawson's Creek starts tonight with a two hour episode. However, opposite to the second half of the episode is a rerun of Felicity that I have not seen. What pain and heartbreak!!!! Too bad my VCR does not work with Digital Cable (does anyone know how to get around this issue?!) I hate it. What good is a VCR if you can't tape shows? It is all a conspiracy. Anyway, I have been watching Felicity since it started on the Women's Entertainment network, and it was even great back then. I missed the first few seasons, so I didn't know how wonderful the show was. I can't believe that a good show like this was cancelled, but they leave stuff on like Just Shoot Me. Can I tell you how much I hate that show? I absolutely despise shows where all the characters are just completely unlikable. They say that Seinfeld is like that, but I actually like the characters on Seinfeld. Just Shoot Me has really annoying, shallow people, who are very unattractive to look at. David Spade is hidious, so is the boss guy, the woman who supposedly was a model, and the thick eyebrow lady. Have you ever seen a less attractive cast? I like ugly people as much as the next person, but I thought TV supposedly had cute people. I wonder if anyone is going to get me the American Idol CD. I got a package today from Amazon.com that I assume is from my mom. I am having the hardest time not opening it, but I am holding myself back because then I have something to look forward to. Southwest is having a deal on plane tickets and it would be $45 dollars each way to visit Cassandra. I wish I had a four day weekend or something like that coming up. I want to visit her so bad, and that is so cheap. Or I want her to visit me. But alas, the only thing coming is Thanksgiving, and I assume she wants to spend that with family. I've been grading journals the last few evenings, and so I am starting to feel closer to the kids. I made sure to write comments in everyone's journals. One girl said my comments made her day (What did I say? I couldn't remember!) It's funny watching them read their comments. Sometimes they share what I wrote with each other. Then I wonder if I wrote enough. Sometimes I just can't think of anything to say to respond to what they are saying. I try, though. My absolute favorite is when they talk about their crushes or relationships. I have always been sort of obsessed with relationships, and so I love all of that kind of gossip. Maybe because I have no life, but oh well. I am desperately hoping that I will be able to get everything planned so that I can have an entire birthday extravaganza this weekend without homework. I was really kind of annoyed because on Monday we had class meetings. The advisors were requested to sign up to chaperone hall decorating this weekend (for Homecoming). Well, sorry, this weekend is my birthday extravaganza and I will be out of town this weekend. The woman, who I really like, seemed to try to make me feel guilty, "You're going to be gone the whole time?!" I am at the school every single weekend doing work! Don't I give enough of my life to that school and those students?!?! Do I also have to be made to feel guilty because I don't want to donate my time during my birthday weekend? Are teachers supposed to be completely without a life of their own? Completely without the option of saying no? For the first time, though, I put my foot down and said no. I need to do it more often. I'm almost done reading The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver. I really am enjoying that book. The only other book I have read by her is The Poisonwood Bible, but I like this one better. I haven't been reading much lately, unfortunately. I did read The Princess Diaries, which was a cute book, and Walter Dean Myers' autobiography Bad Boy. That was a pretty interesting book, too. For some reason, I always pictured Myers as a hip 35-40, but he was born in the 20s or something. I want to see a picture of him. Maybe I'll do a search on the web. The other thing is that he was adopted by his father's ex-wife. His real father and mother were black, but his father's ex-wife was white (and his adoptive father black). I just thought that was rather unique. Well, it's time for the TV marathon of the night.
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