Yesterday morning I left my noisy wind tunnel of a bedroom that Jeff has made me acclimate to, only to hear another sound. It was like I had just stepped out of a tent. The crickets were so loud that I was sure we had left a window open or something. I left for school giving Jeff the mission to find the window that was open during the day.

During school, my day was interrupted several times by shrieking children. One rolled an eye over to see a cricket sitting next to his head on the library center pillow. Another time a cricket liked the story I was reading, so he decided to hop in and join us at the carpet. The children were aghast when I instructed them to step on it and then put it in the trash can. My justification to their " Awwww"s was, "Hey, if I dropped into a cricket classroom... I would fully expect for them to dispose of me as well."

I returned home to find that Jeff had located the source of our house sounding like a campsite. He opened the garage door to reveal about 80, 000 crickets. I'm not sure what Austin, Texas has done... its probably only like number 3 on the lists of modern day Sodom and Gomorrahs.... Las Vegas would definitely be destroyed first .... but ....I'm talking about a plague of biblical proportions. I'm just praising Jesus that its not frogs.... I'd be saying " Minnesota... here we come!"

Picture this...

21 sweaty kids just in from recess. I saw one picking up pebbles and sucking on them, one licking the palms of his hand, and several eating the finds from their left nostril. Point being... they're pretty dirty.

I had just dismissed them to do some independent working and one girl began to have a breakdown. This is the same girl that tried to get out of putting food in someone's seat, by crying to me about how it was because her sister calls her an idiot. Anyway...

She's sitting at my table... because I need to talk to her about balancing her water bottle on her forehead while I am teaching. Another child came up to ask me a question while I took a big drink of water. While the other child was talking to me... this girl kept trying to get my attention and I kept quieting her. Finally... I say, "Yes Leticia, what is it?"

"um... Mrs. Olson... you just drank the rest of my water bottle."

I have never had to fight back my gag reflex so much before in my life. I really thought the kids were going to see me lose it. I had to eat 3 tootsie pops and drink a coke to help me forget.

I will never make that mistake again... guaranteed!

I feel like there should be some sort of triumphic music when you load this page.

Yes... ladies and gentlemen... I am back!

I took that first class plane ride about 4 months ago and much has happened since then.

For those of you who haven't heard already. "The piece" is gone. A lucky used car salesman got that jewel for a VERY bargain price... (I'm talking in the triple digits) This explains why I haven't written much of anything. I have this fear that I won't think of anything interesting to say if I don't have my old car to make fun of.

However, I've also gotten married. I feel that married life may make up for the car with its own stories to share.
So far.. so good. Jeff is a wonderful roommate. He can cook, clean, fix things... how did I ever live without him. (It is here that I am glad Jeff doesn't have a blog because I would hate to say this and read his response about me.) Over the summer I was a great wife... but it seems lately that Jeff is having to do a lot more.

I'm 4 days into my second year of teaching and I feel like a 97 year old woman and not a zippy, spunky one. The kind that is in poor health. I hobble around the apartment moaning about my feet and my back and not able to make a coherent thought. This could be because of the cute, strappy shoes I bought while "school clothes" shopping. I had to justify their purchase to Jeff by wearing them to school... next year its only SAS nursing shoes for me.

My brain hurts also. After a 2 month vacation, it is just too much to be singing the alphabet song so that a 2nd grader can know where to find an 'm' on the alphabet chart. That's right... where to find an 'm'. He doesn't recognize numbers or letters.... much less know what sounds they make.... even much less know how to put those sounds together to make words... even even much less know how to break down the sounds to read a word. They are supposed to be reading at AT LEAST a level 12 to be ready for second grade. He can't even be tested for a level 1... its beyond his grasp.
AGGGGHHHHHH!

Anyway... by friday ... I was saying things to them like, "STAY SEATING... i mean... STAY SITTED... oh whatever... you know what I mean." ( and that is a direct quote.)