Things That Make Me Go Hmmmmm?

1. 10 year olds with cell phones. Is it really necessary?
2. Vending machines so old that they don't take dollars and you have to open a door on the front and turn the knob for the soda you want.
3. The sudden and inexplicable loss of a friend.
4. Refrigerators with a light switch. Shouldn't the light just turn on when you open the door?
5. Irresponsible people who quit their jobs by leaving a note and don't even finish the day which means that 92 disabled people don't have lunch.
6. My agreeing to a job that requires me to be AT work at 5 a.m. What was I thinking?
7. Adults who forget how to drive when picking up their children from school.
8. Teachers that have a reputation for being hard to work for and still haven't changed 16 years later.
9. Double standards. Like a friend who rarely calls me back and often flakes out on plans with me but then acts like the one time I don't call them back is the end of the world.
10. My grandmother wanting me to come over to her house so she can show me her "stash" so that when she dies no one will throw it away. Stash? Should I be worried?

Evolution of a Blog

I began this blog almost two years ago because I thought I had no one to vent to. It evolved from "Rantings of a Semi-Sane Woman" because I realized that there was a lot of negativity in my life and that I didn't want to live that way. I then changed the name to "All You Need Is Love." I was hoping to promote peace and tolerance for ALL people whether you agree with their political or religious ideology or not. As I have become content with my life's current state I have decided to make a return to the original purpose. Sort of. Sometimes it is important be able to comment on the strange and sometimes upsetting things that happen to us in life, but I have learned to take joy in the journey so I am now making a small change and have rearranged my original title and now dub this blog "Semi-Rantings of a Sane Woman"

Life's Twists and Turns

I went from blogging on a semi-regular basis to nothing! A lot of things have happened over the last few months. I keep waiting, unsuccessfully, for some stability and normality. I have been through two new roommates, conflicts with the existing roommates and the normal ups and downs of being a single adult. I never would have thought that at the age of 28 I would still be trying to figure everything out. I guess I have the basics down. I know who I am as a person. I am not likely to suddenly decide to be a vegan or decide to only speak Klingon. As far as dating goes is it ever easy? If it is, I am still waiting for that to happen. But overall I don't have much to complain about. I am relatively healthy, I have employment and a roof over my head. Though I seem to have lost contact with a friend or two lately, I have people who support me, including my family.

Working with these kids in Special Ed make me realize how lucky I was to have a stable home life. Most of the kids don't have physical disabilities or even severe learning disabilities, they have just been the victims of unhealthy home lives that has stunted their academic growth. So even though my life has had unexpected twists and turns, I live each day hoping that in some way I can take what I have learned and help someone else.

From the Mouth of Babes

After a recent bout of unemployment I managed to find a job that I am enjoying quite a bit. I have become a para-educator at an elementary school near my home. A school coincidentally that I went to during my formative years. I have learned a lot about kids that I didn't know before. First is that everything for them is black and white. It's either right or it isn't. Trying to explain abstract concepts can be very difficult, especially in special education. Second is that they don't hold grudges. One day I spent 45 minutes straight in a power struggle with a fourth grader. I was exhausted at the end of that. I figured the kid would be mad at me at least for the rest of the day, especially since I won. Yet only 10 minutes later this same kid would only let me help him do something, no one else!

One of the interesting things is that kids don't always have a filter on what they say or do. Now that I have been at the school for a couple of months and the kids in my class have gotten to know me I can usually count on a couple of things being the same. At least once a week I can be assured that "Freddy" will tell me that I am getting too old and that I better get married soon. At least once a week I will be told that I am a mean teacher. I will continue to be told by one child or another that if I already know the answer to something that I should just do it for them. Following which I try to explain again that I don't give them things to do because I don't know how to do it, it's so that THEY can learn to do it for themselves. I can count on being asked if I ever am not drinking something. (I have a tendency to get dehydrated so I always have a water bottle and occasionally a Diet Coke in my hand)But one of the best parts is that at least once a week I see the light of understanding appear in a kid's eyes and I know that I have helped them learn something new. And the very very best part is getting hugs from kids who want to make sure I will be there the next day even after what has seemed like a never-ending power struggle all day. It makes me want to have kids of my own, even on the worst days!

Star Trek rules!!

Curses!

More laptop trouble. But finally fixed again. At least for the moment.

Attacked by Technology!

I have not posted for quite a while now and it deserves an explanation. Just after Thanksgiving my laptop decided to quit on me. And since that was where I did all my blogging from I had to take a forced leave of absence. I also have been under attack from other inanimate objects. There was an unfortunate incident involving me and ice that resulted in a graceful faceplant while wearing a skirt and heels. Which also resulted in my phone deciding to randomly vibrate constantly with no prompting from a phone call or text message. On another note I finally finished paying off my car! Which of course means that immediately my car has started to fall to pieces. I have decided that technology hates me. I have resigned myself to riding out the electrical storm. Gradually I am repairing everything and I finally have my laptop back. So, more entries to come later!