everybody hates the first week of school...

well, it turns out that i am back with many things about which to write. sadly, though, i cannot waste my time writing everything here. and as much as i'd like, i probably shouldn't waste your time as much either.

first things first. i have successfully complete my first week of teaching 2nd grade. it was...different...to say the least. as of monday, 24 august 2009, this wesley became the proud parent/inheritor of 20 boys and girls (10 of each...thanx to a little bargaining). from the way this first week went, it's painfully clear to me that i'm going to need the following materials: a sturdy yardstick made of solid oak, two belts (it's an inside joke), some black masking tape, a lifetime supply of ibuprofen (sidenote, i hate that damn word: it's unpronounceable for me), a swear jar, a steady stream of morphine, and a hell of an attorney. actually...forget the swear jar; i might need one of those huge ozarka or sparklett's water fountain jugs.

all in all, my first week went a lot more smoothly than i thought it would. as most are aware, my heart is still resisting 2nd grade. it's an internal struggle, similar to how a body might resist a transplanted organ. i'm working through it, though. i've found that i can do a lot more with this lot of ankle-biters than i could with the kindergartners. i was trying to show them how to hold pencils, sit in desks, write their names, etc. they looked at me like i was absolutely insane:

mr. thomas, we KNOW how to do that!

whatever, dude. we're gonna have to come to some sort of compromise, the kids and i. they can go on with all that attitude all willy-nilly. i can say this: this is going to be an interesting lot of kids. i have a trail mix of students who have varying degrees of personalities, most of which clash with mine. more on that later.

SO...in school we're (the staff) playing this game called "assassin." each staff member has the name of another person, along with a secret word. the object is to get your assigned person to say that assigned word. then, and ONLY then, will you have assassinated them and get their target. i was projected to be a big killer in this game for some reason. i objected; i have such a subdued persona. i think i've been able to see through a lot of people's ploys, although i am certain that i will not win. i do know that i'm not gonna get got. i know who's out to get me, and that is all i will say.

meanwhile, board games are still in full swing, although they've dropped off a bit since school started. now that i have to get up a 5.45a and get home at 4.5p (on a good day, that is), my sleep schedule is taking a heavy hit. add to that the fact that i have to be a lot more responsible with my school stuff this year (not that i haven't been in the past; there are just a lot more things i have to do with 2nd grade) and you have a potentially grumpy gus on your hands. if wesley can't get his sleep, come monday kids will weep. i just made that up on the spot; it was supposed to end differently...

which reminds me, eric and crystal (and to a lesser degree, todd) are trying to arouse themselves by intentionally using poor grammar around me. they are destroying the king's english, phoneme by phoneme, on purpose with their self-made creations that i cannot even bear to type here. that's okay; i know what they're trying to do, but i will not, must not, should not and could not fall for it. mainly it's because eric and crystal are a little tiffed about losing tichu many many times. oh yeah, todd an i beat the sh*t out of them. they'll deny it if asked, but come to me; i have the proof locked away.

i will spend the rest of the day preparing for this coming week. i have to get a system down for doing school stuff. i think i'll set wednesdays aside for staying late at school and getting maintenance work done. i have to do grades and all that stuff today, then work on maintaining that all year. maybe board games will be played today (who knows?) but i have to bring my A game this year, or else i'm screwed.

it's official. galaxy truckers is neither on nor off my list. it just...is. like the angel of death is neither good nor evil; it just...is. werewolf is slowly making its way onto my list. in shadow hunters news, i haven't been allie recently. it's making me uncomfortable. i don't want to have to change my board game schtick again. it's already gone from "wesley: always allie, always a villager" to "wesley: always allie, seldom a werewolf." i couldn't bear to live with "wesley: usually allie, seldom a werewolf." it would just break my heart.

and in volleyball news, not much has happened with me. on tomorrow, i won't have played in a week, though i'll be returning to the sand (insert annoyed grunt here) tomorrow evening. maybe i'll hit the rosemeade tomorrow before hand to refresh myself. x and i are on and off; we have on days and off days. we'll get it together eventually, but the most important thing is for us to have fun. i'm afraid...i'm going...to have...to touch.......the butt. lululululululululu! and filling in for minnie ripperton, miss adrienne siefers!

my hair is growing! i must take advantage of it before it recedes too far. my forehead is expanding by the day. i think i will get it twisted; right now it is very curly. most people seem to like it, but it's just juices and berries you know. a lot of people aren't too familiar with african-american cul...

oh well, c'est la vie!

-w

PS: happy berfday michael, happy anniversary todd & crystal!