The Streak Ends

Despite my best efforts to think that my sickness was isolated to the weekend, it came on again strong in the middle of last week and my perfect attendance record was broken when I took my first sick day last Wednesday afternoon. I probably shouldn't even have been in school all day Wednesday with as crappy as I felt by 9 AM but I was too stubborn to call in and make plans from home. I spent the day in bed and recovered enough to go back on Thursday. I told the secretary that on Wednesday I felt sick but by Thursday just like I had a cold. It was a slow week anyway with at least 4 kids out each day and no students on Friday for school improvement. At one point, I seriously wondered it it was possible to drown in your own snot. It was disgusting. 2 weeks and 3 boxes of Kleenex later I'm finally starting to breathe a little bit better. Word on the street is that there isn't much that can be done for this killer cold but to wait it out. Never had serious sinus headache pain or pressure just enough to make me uncomfortable and annoyed. Over the counter drugs worked enough to keep me from drowning. The kids were back on track too this week and I had 21 of 22 most of the week.

I think at this point last year I was starting to wish that the year would be over and that I could get a new batch to start fresh. This year, talking with the two new teachers I know they feel that way but I'm starting to be a little reenergized for the final push. My kids are acting out a little less and seem to be fairly motivated. I'm feeling a little bit of pressure to really pick up my game because they're learning a lot and really starting to take off reading and writing. It took a while but maybe 4th quarter can be all that I envisioned the previous three to be. We shall wait and see.

Beware!

Sickness round 3? 4?, not really sure which, has struck hard. I had almost forgotten what it was like to be sick but alas, that fear has subsided. I remember and I'm not a fan. I was practically down and out over the weekend and have moved from aches, chills, and sweats on Saturday night to a head cold that has me breathing through my nose with a pile of Kleenex at my side tonight. My saving grace is that if I am feeling this sick most of my kids are probably feeling worse. I had 6 gone today and two that are back but each missed 5 days of their own. It's colds and some kind of nasty virus that's making the rounds. My room as also been infected with a neverending cycle of ringworm. So far, there have been at least 8 different kids come up with it in various spots. Faces, legs, arms, heads, etc. I haven't picked it up yet but the nurse and I are getting pretty close. She just keeps the cream on hand and I send a new one down it seems at least once a week. Seems like maybe it's time for some serious lysol decontamination. Enter at your own risk. No guarantees that something can't be acquired even from just reading about it. Antibody Up!

McTeachers Night

On Monday, we had a fundraiser for our PTO at the local McDonalds. The school received 20% of the sales from 5-7, and the staff was given the chance to work behind the counter. When it was first announced and they asked for volunteers, I didn't get it. I thought they were going to come to the school and do something or I don't know what I thought but not that. We didn't even know what we would be doing that day honestly. I didn't figure they would actually let us work behind the counter because it was probably some kind of public health violation or who would really want 15 extra people trying to "help" you do your job? I can only imagine how well that would go over at school. However, I was wrong. We walked in and they put us to work. Registers, french fries, pickles on burgers, wiping tables and trays were all jobs handed out to our eager staff. Apparently, I looked inept because I got put in front of the speciality drinks machine. Mochas, smoothies, iced coffees, etc. Guess how many of those get ordered between 5-7? About 10. It was definitely the cush job to have. It wasn't even that there weren't that many ordered but that it was also super easy. You put the container under the spout, push the type and size on the touch screen, and pour it into a cup. I felt a little guilty watching the girls as the registers handle the constant stream of orders. However, I seriously struggled a little bit with making the chocolate drizzle look like an M on the top so she was probably right in putting me there. I'm not sure I could have kept up anywhere else. Our principal REALLY wanted to do fries and they finally let him about halfway through. He probably wishes he worked there instead of school sometimes. Someday I'll figure out how to get pictures off my camera. Until then, ask to see his picture. It's serious business making fries.

I had 11 of my kids and families make it out which was an awesome turnout. It was a great and easy way to make $400 for our school and much better than selling stuff. As far as never having a job in a fast food restaurant, I have to say that I stand by that decision. It wasn't because of the health or cleanliness by any means (I ordered and ate when I was done and will do so again) but that the work is tedious, long, and tiring. If have to be able to keep about a million things straight in your head and be a multitasking professional. And, they only make minimum wage. I mostly just watched and came away exhausted. One of the teachers that was working in the trenches helping with condiments and burgers says her head is still spinning. We joked that it wouldn't be surprising if she woke up shouting, "2 pickles, no ketchup!??!" at least once in the next few days. You have to be a people person to work at the counter and thanks to technology it is probably 10x easier than it was even 5 years ago. Did you know the drive thru drink machine is entirely automatic? It grabs the right sized cup, drops it in a circle, spins it around to ice and pop and stops for the human to put on the lid. Very cool. Someday, a computer will be making your burger and it's probably closer than we think. Overall, I would say the entire experience was a great success and the teachers that didn't make it severely missed out. I'm glad I didn't make food service my career choice but I'm also glad I got the chance to do it. The other side of the counter will forever be better appreciated by at least this grateful consumer.