Blog Tour (or "Being a Good Sport")

I was “invited” to take part in a blog tour by my friend, Scarlet.  I’m doing this to be a good sport because she tagged me, but really I find this kind of thing annoying and well, revealing.

Annoying because I hate these “tag” things.  I do them (as I said above) because I’m a good sport.  Revealing because I don’t really read other “people” blogs; mostly political opinion blogs.  So, I’ll answer the questions and tag the two people whose blogs I read, but I can’t guarantee they’ll follow suit or that they’ll even respond.

1)  What am I working on?

I have four Facebook pages, three blogs, two businesses and one website.  There are a variety of thoughts that haven’t made it out of my head and onto paper or computer yet and a book that lives in my head until I have time or the right words to get it down on my computer.  I also have poetry that floats around in there and a calendar that keeps track of the husband, teenager and various organizations I’m part of.  It’s crowded in my head.  

2)  How does my work differ from others in its genre?

I have no idea.  My main blog is mostly whatever is in my head at the moment that I have time to get down.  Sometimes it’s local politics, sometimes mom stuff, sometimes a rant and sometimes just annoying photos from the few vacations we take.  Blog #2 is Family history and genealogy related.  My book is a contemporary romance.  

3)  Why do I write what I do?

My main blog started because someone jokingly suggested that I write one.  And it kind of took.  I don’t have a huge readership – sometimes that bothers me and sometimes that comforts me.  I have written everything from book and movie reviews to local political commentary to opinion to rants.  There are things I won’t write about because my intent isn’t to hurt anyone.  My intent is to make people think and generate their own opinions.  I really don’t care if you agree with me or even understand me.  But I have to get things out of my head or I’m even more mental than I normally am.

That being said, some things just don’t have words.  Or the words that are there are just going to be too painful (hurtful, angry, mean, hateful) for anyone to read and get past without hating me.  You don’t have to like me but I don’t want anyone to hate me.

4)  How does my writing process work?

It depends.  That was really helpful, I know.  The book in my head has been there for several years and I’ve written and re-written and re-re-re-written about a gazillion times.  I know the characters and then ‘they’ do something that messes up the storyline earlier so I have to re-work it and then, well I get frustrated.  So I have all these documents on my computer with just scenes or several chapters but they haven’t gotten together to actually form a credible story at this time.  

I also have McDonald’s napkins and scratch pieces of paper and sentences on sticky notes floating around in a file.  

My poetry is either in a notebook, mostly typewritten or on the computer. I usually write it down as soon as it comes to me unless I’m in the shower or driving.  Most of my ideas come to me while driving or in the shower.  The trick is to remember them long enough to get somewhere where I can write them down.  I hate the sound of my voice so the recorder app on my phone is just there.  Doing nothing.

My blog is what I work on more steadily.  Sometimes I start something that’s floating in my head and work on it for weeks before I post it.  Sometimes I just sit down and three pages later I’m done.  Sometimes I write it down, finish it and don’t post it because it didn’t go where I thought it would.

Now I’m supposed to tag bloggers who might want to take the challenge.  So, I’m tagging the two women who make me laugh and think and cry.  

Ironic Mom has made me laugh and snort and appreciate the fact that I don’t have twins.  I pre-ordered her first book and read it in two days.  I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants and certainly made people in public think I needed to be institutionalized.  (Not that they didn’t think that before, but hysterical laughing and crying usually makes people start dialing for the men in the white coats and the I-love-myself-jacket sooner rather than later.)

Suburban Snapshots is one of the bloggers that I read no matter what she writes.  I’ve purchased two books that she’s had shorts in and laughed so hard I hurt.  Sometimes she swears more than I’d like, but she’s never wrong in what she writes about.  And I hate that she looks cute in boots.  

Apparently you have one week to post your answers to the questions above and tag other bloggers to do the same.  I don’t think you’ll win millions or be blessed if you do and I’m sure you won’t be cursed if you don’t, but sometimes playing the game is fun.

Team Loyalty:

Just a few words on football as we enter the 2014 season:

1. I cheer for the Seahawks.  Every game, no exceptions.  Win, lose or draw, they are my team.  (Unless they do something stupid like hire the player to be named in #2).

2. I will never cheer for Michael Vick or any team that hires him.  Ever.  I actually sent a letter to the Eagles organization scolding them for hiring him.  

3. I don’t cheer for the Broncos.  Ever.  (I cheered for Tim Tebow when he was there, but not the team).

4. I cheer for Peyton Manning; no matter where he plays.

5. I cheer for the Rams unless they’re playing the Seahawks.  This is because I love my cousin, Rich.

6. I cheer for the Arizona Cardinals unless they’re playing the Seahawks.  This is because I love my nephew, Ryan.

7. I don’t cheer for Colin Kaepernick or Johnny Manziel.  Ever.

8. I used to be, but no longer am a Pittsburg Steelers fan.  I’m also no longer a Terry Bradshaw fan.  

9. I understand enough about football to follow the game, understand the rules and enjoy the game.  

10. I don’t follow stats, or the history of the game. 

11. I don’t have enough room in my head to remember who all the Superbowl champs have been in the history of the game.  That’s what the internet is for.

12. My “rules” for who I like and don’t like don’t have to make sense.  They’re my rules.

13. Numbers 9-12 are why I really suck at fantasy football leagues.

Activity Day

I’m not sure I understand the purpose of school anymore.  Today, my son is home from school (with my knowledge and approval) because it’s “Activity Day” due to EOC testing.  End of Course exams for freshman who didn’t pass the 8th grade math/Algebra 1 EOC or those students who took Biology or Geometry and need to pass the EOC for that course.  The students that don’t need to take these exams have Activity Day.

When my son attended the Activity Day last semester, he was hoping to get some finals study in, help with class issues, workshops or sheets to work on for classes he was struggling in.  Instead they played games and then had field day on the football field.  Clearly a good use of pre-finals time for students.

My son passed the 8th grade Math EOC in 8th grade.  He didn’t take Biology this year – it’s mostly a 10th grade class.  Currently his grade in 9th grade Algebra is a C-; in English a D and a C in French 1.  The other grades are A’s and B’s (Band, PE and Science).  He’s a freshman in High School.

Here is the schedule for EOC testing on Wednesday, June 4th:
(From the LWSD website )

Wednesday, June 4 

EOC Biology 

Students will be tested in classrooms. We will be on an alternate bell schedule. 

EOC Exam 7:30 – 10:24 

Lunch 10:30 – 11:00 

Tutorial/Finals Prep 11:06 – 12:30 

For students not testing, the library and Career Center will be open, 7:30 – 

12:00 

My heartburn with this is that’s it’s a waste of a school day just before finals.  Why not have the students who don’t need to take these tests in study hall or finals work-shops or; here’s a thought a regular learning day?

I know, those students who are testing will miss all the instruction for the one day and it gives the others an unfair advantage.  Well, that might be, but ACTIVITY DAY???

First of all, this is a Wednesday.  It’s already a short day in our District (LEAP Day – Learning Enhancement and Academic Planning).  Students are dismissed 1.5 hours earlier on every Wednesday in the district as a “teacher professional development day or a day of professional learning”.  Every.Wednesday. during the school year.  To make this work, the classes that are usually 50-55 minutes are reduced to 25 minutes.  Did I mention this was EVERY Wednesday in the school year?  EVERY level of school is included.

So, what are the teachers doing during the regular school hours (that they would usually be teaching classes) that they can’t hold regular classes?  Are there THAT many students in 9th grade math classes that the classrooms would be nearly empty?  Are there THAT many 8th graders that failed the 8th grade EOC?

I’ll renew my suggestion that instead of having a day that the students consider unnecessary, why not make it another regular school day but have them focus on studying for finals or working on class issues they haven’t understood or resolved yet?

And WHY wasn’t something sent home to the parents explaining this?  Allowing us the choice to opt out or ask questions?  How many students stayed home today because it was a waste of their time? According to my informal FB poll 5 parents kept their kids (9 total) home today (various grade levels) because of the lack of school classes.  During school hours.  On a school day.

Meanwhile, RHS is looking at changing the lunch schedule for the 2014-15 year to give students more time (30 minutes, once a week) to meet with teachers if they’re struggling.  They’re doing this because they want to reduce the almost 30% failure rate at the high school.  1 in 3 students are failing AT LEAST ONE course.  2500 (approximate) students at the school and roughly 800 of them are failing at least one course in a quarter.

But of course, let’s have them play games and have shortened class days because of testing.

What do I have against wrestling?

This is my 2^nd year as a wrestling mom. Last year was ‘just’ middle school; against other schools but considered “intramural” and not competitive at a regional or state level.  We asked for a scholarship, he got all the equipment and uniform from the team and he had a good time.  It was a learning experience.

This year is his first year in High School and he signed up for wrestling as well as football.  He had one week in between the end of football ‘season’ and the beginning of wrestling practice.  Practices are every school day for three hours, excluding match days.  Matches are Tuesday and Thursday evenings and all-day tournaments are held almost every Saturday during December and January. 

In the coach’s favor, he sent home a packet of forms and information about a week before practices began.  The packet also had a calendar with EVERY practice, match and tournament listed on it, including regionals and state competitions.  I LOVED this!  So much easier to make decisions on schedule conflicts when I have advance notice instead of two days prior to the event.  We were granted a scholarship and all the equipment and uniform items are again provided.

I’ve signed up to donate food for the concession, run the concession for a night and help with the hospitality room during the home tournament.  I’m not going to the away matches or tournaments, but the home matches and tournament I’ll at least stay for the JV portion to see my son.

So far, there have been two matches, both on Thursday nights.  JV starts at 6:30; Varsity at 7:30.  I’m off work at 5-ish and go right after I’m done for seven very important reasons…If I arrive after 6 PM; I’m charged $7 PER MATCH to attend.  If I attended every match and tournament over the season (not counting regional and state) I would be paying an additional $126 for admission alone.  That doesn’t factor in time or gas or the hours spent in an all day match where my son wrestles for approximately 30 minutes over the entire day.

But that’s not the real reason I’m not fond of wrestling.  It’s about the weight.  My 15 year old son has grown roughly 3 inches in about 4 months and has a body-fat percentage of about 7%.  That’s the minimum percentage he can have (in other words he can’t go below a specific weight during the season or he has to sit out).  Here’s the problem:  He weighs a little over 145 pounds; the next weight class is 152.  Sure, that’s only 7 pounds, but that (apparently) is a lot of difference when wrestling.   If son weighs anything (decimal points included) OVER 145, he’s wrestling boys in the 152 weight class which includes boys that weigh 146 to 159 pounds. 

He weighs himself AT LEAST twice a day.  If he weighs even close to over 145 he doesn’t eat for the day of the match.  EVEN though coach has told him that’s not the way to make weight; even though it’s unhealthy; even though he’s a growing boy and he could lift weights to burn the weight and build muscle (which is heavier than fat).

Here’s a conversation from our house last night, before the match: 

Son:  “Mom, I weigh 145.2; should I eat something or wait until after the match?”

Mom:  “I think you should decide on your own, but you didn’t eat lunch and you had very little for breakfast.  Your body needs fuel to grow as well as compete.”

There’s a mom on the team who makes sandwiches and provides snacks and fruits for the wrestlers.  After they’ve weighed in, they can eat to their hearts content.  I love that this mom does this and I’m not complaining about the food.  But the logic is counter-productive to me, because if they’ve weighed in at 145, but they eat afterwards, won’t they actually be wrestling at OVER 145?  Why not just eat a good meal before and wrestle at the higher level?

Coach’s rule is “no sodas, no McDonalds, no pizza” during the season.  Great strategy, but the number of times we actually eat any of those things is possibly twice a month.  We cook at home mostly and eat pretty healthy.  I make homemade pizza crusts and we have lots of vegetables and fruit on hand for snacks and sides.  The wrestling eating strategy also counts out Chinese food, rice, potatoes, and at the weight he wants to wrestle at, almost anything except a carrot stick and water.  In a given school day he’s eaten an Eggo French toast (4 sticks), a pizza stick at lunch with water and an apple at home before the match.

Another conversation regarding dinner the night before prior to an all day tournament; we usually have pizza one night, two times a month. 

Mom:  “What should we do for dinner Friday night?  Should I make pizza?”

Son:  “I can only have one piece of pizza or I’ll just have a salad.  And then I’ll run afterwards.”

To say that I’m concerned is an understatement.  Let’s review; he weighs himself at least twice a day, eats maybe 1000 calories and stresses over every ounce. It’s like living with a super model without the paycheck and the paparazzi.

I’m not against the actual wrestling, although the team last night was extremely aggressive and I felt the referee didn’t call the choking calls he should have. 

I’m not worried about him getting hurt (he’s played football after all).  I think the workouts and training are beneficial and he’s exhausted every day.

I’m not even bothered too much about the fact that girls wrestle against the boys (although I maintain that there are some sports that women should never participate in and especially when they’re matched against men).

But I’ll just say that I don’t think it’s a wise choice to have a sport where people in the growing phase of their life are worried about gaining weight in a manic and unhealthy way. 

Viva la Choices!

Apparently, there is something wrong with me. You see, I don’t like to have people make decisions for me that I can make all by myself.  I actually believe that I am responsible for the choices that I make and I’m willing to take the consequences (or rewards) for those choices.

Case in point:  Kraft makes this ‘poisonous’ decadence called “Macaroni & Cheese”.  It’s a blue cardboard box with elbow macaroni, powdered milk, powdered cheese and a list of preservatives and unnatural colors that make it look yummy on the plate.  It’s carb-loaded, sodium-laced heaven in a pulp enclosure.  I am able to eat an entire box of this luscious delicacy all by myself.  I have been known to make a box for lunch and increase the chances of death to my loved ones by adding hot dogs to the dish and feeding it to my children.  Horrors.

I have several recipes in my arsenal of homemade, hand-crafted, from-the-ground-up macaroni & cheese dishes.  They are delicious and healthy (ish) and worthy of serving to my family.  But they are not the box of carb-fake-cheese-dried-milk-heaven that Kraft provides for just a small convenience fee. 

I realize that the box macaroni & cheese is not healthy.  I comprehend it’s filled with preservatives and additives and unhealthy things that would kill me if I ate it every meal, every day for all of my life.  I’d probably turn orange and weigh over 300 pounds, but I’d likely die happy. 

Here’s what’s wrong with me.  I grasp all those concepts and I choose not to eat it every meal, every day.  I choose to make it a treat; a special fast meal that is tasty and quick and looks nice in the bowls.  It’s called ‘comfort food’ for a reason.

Second case in point:  The FDA is going to ban all trans-fat from our diets.  Apparently we’re not allowed to make decisions on our own health because trans-fats are a danger.  A poison.  A health risk. 

Funny, I don’t see the government banning alcohol or smoking.  According to the World Health Organization the “harmful use of alcohol results in 2.5 million deaths per year”.  The CDC states that “Cigarette smoking is responsible for about one in five deaths annually” 

According to the site “World Life Expectancy” the top 15 causes of death are:

1. Heart Disease

2. Cancer

3. Stroke

4. Chronic Lung Disease

5. Accidents

6. Alzheimer's

7. Diabetes

8. Influenza and Pneumonia

9. Nephritis/Kidney Disease

10. Blood Poisoning

11. Suicide

12. Liver Disease

13. Hypertension/Renal

14. Parkinson's Disease

15. Homicide

Also please note that the government wants to ban ownership of firearms, but other than “suicide” and “homicide” firearms aren’t even major factors of death.  Possibly “accidents” could fall under that category.

If the government is trying to protect us from all things unhealthy, then why not ban cars?  The “esteemed” Mayor Bloomberg attempted to ban, or at least curtail the consumption of sugary drinks like sodas and juices.  Apparently it’s not the vodka that kills you in a screwdriver, but the orange juice.  And heaven forbid that I treat myself to a gallon of cherry-Coke while consuming fat-drowned kernels of popped corn after I’ve thrown out a Jackson for a movie (which used to be two hours with cartoons and now is more like 45 minutes plus three hours of trailers).

I choose to eat these poisons at the risk of my own health but I eat it in moderation.  I take responsibility for my dangerous actions and live my life on the edge of sanity as I drive through that fast through lane and actually order French fries and chicken-parts coated with breading.  And, yes, I have been known to ‘super-size’ the whole thing.

We, the people have allowed ourselves to be enslaved to the political correctness and hyper-phobia of others who are “only interested in the well-being of all” while they steal our freedoms and turn us into mind-numbed sheep who only eat what we’re told, read what we’re allowed and watch what is deemed necessary.  Meanwhile I’m supposed to work and hand over most of my money to people who don’t work so that they can have phones and food and medical care, while eating the very food that I’m not allowed to eat with the money they’ve gotten from me.

Give my processed cheese pasta or give me death.  Because it should be MY CHOICE.

It's no wonder

It’s no wonder I never finish anything.

My youngest went on a 100+ mile hike this summer and took a few photos; many others on the trek took photos as well.  I asked for copies of the photos and a couple of the leaders put them on the Boy Scout troop website.

I wanted to download the photos I wanted either to my computer or to my shutterfly account so I could make a digital album.  If I don’t get it done now; I’ll never get it done.  So, I wanted to view the photos to decide which ones I wanted to download.  On the website, I open up the first photo and select “full size”.  Move to the next photo and it moves back down to a thumbprint size.  At this rate to view 100 photos, it will take me about an hour.  I decide to select all the photos, copy them to my computer and view them in my photo editor, then dump the ones I don’t want.

I select all the photos and look for a way to download them all.  There is no way.  I right click; I try to drag them, and all the tricks I know.  No way. 

Now I email the webmaster to ask if there’s a way I’m missing to download the photos.  He’s a busy guy and it takes him two days to get to figuring it out.  He can’t find a way to do it, so he creates a “Dropbox” folder for me, sends me an invitation and then sends me an email explaining what he’s done.

So, now I have to download a new application in order to download the photos to my computer in order to download the photos to a digital book program online.  By this time I’ve spent about two hours and I still don’t have photos selected or into a digital book. They ARE downloaded onto my computer.

Is it too much to ask for things to work together, smoothly and quickly?  Am I the only one who stops a project because I need to ask for help (which takes time), download yet another program (add time for the learning curve) and then possibly get to the project?

All this while attempting to maintain my normal life.  It’s no wonder I never finish anything…

And I haven’t even been able to tackle the phone/calendar/laptop/Microsoft issues that are constantly changing and shifting and messing up my life…

BSA Leadership

 “It's not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.” 

― Roy Disney

“On my honor, I will do my best 
To do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; 
To help other people at all times; 
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.”

Sitting in an Eagle Board of Review a few weeks ago I considered what the scout in front of me was swearing to. I considered this boy, almost a man, and the promise he made.  As I’d known him in his Cub Scout days as well, I had a pretty good handle on the type of young man he was.  I reflected on the Oath he was making and it struck me that I would no longer be able to be certain that future scouts would be able to demonstrate in honesty what the oath required.

“I will do my duty to God…”  Please notice this is not an all-inclusive “little ‘g’ god.  This is a term of reverence used to specify the Christian God.  Not Buddha, or Allah or Krishna or other gods.  Although Boy Scouts is not specifically a Christian organization, in this instance the oath represents a Christian God.

That same Christian God specifically calls us to stand for what is right, follow His judgments and obey His laws.  One of the laws that He instructs us to follow is to keep our bodies sexually pure.  And, in specific, He warns against sex between same-sex persons and encourages either remaining abstinent or marriage between a man and woman. (1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Romans 1:26-27).

“To keep myself…morally straight.”

BSA has made a financial decision to change their “timeless” values to reflect the current belief that sexual choices are a personal decision.  However, in a youth organization that presumes to protect those young people; whether physically or emotionally; allowing anyone with destructive sexual choices into an organization can only lead to injury and damage to the same youth it promises to protect. 

I have served the organization in many facets for many years and completely supported the program and the opportunities it provided for scouts of all beliefs and backgrounds.  The belief that the value of sexual morality is of no consequence to our young men and women as they become adults is a dangerous and harmful ‘compromise’ that neither reflects timeless values or strong moral code.

It is because of that decision that will impact the lives, morals, values and futures of many youth in the organization for years to come; I have decided to terminate my membership in all areas of BSA.  This was in some ways a difficult decision as I still believe in many of the principles of the scouting program.  The decision further saddens me as I’ve already discovered that in standing for my values, I have been labeled as hateful and phobic; a misunderstanding that unfortunately reflects the consequences of standing for what one believes, instead of following the crowd and the social wind.

I wish the scouting program and all involved the best as they struggle to remain protective and active in a society that is destructive and unproductive.

Curriculum Night

WARNING…this will be a rant.  Make popcorn or don’t, but I’m not going to be Suzy Sunshine and talk about unicorns and puppies and rainbows.

First of all, this isn’t my first rodeo.  This is my (by my possibly faulty calculations due to memory and denial) 9^th High School Curriculum night as a parent.  I have three more to go before I’m done with high school; I am too tired to count how many elementary and middle school nights I’ve attended.

2^nd, I hated High School.  It still gives me a cold dread in the pit of my stomach.  Yes, I’ve been out of High school for a few years now, but I still hate it.  I hate the crowded hallways, the lockers, the endless shuffling from class to class (across the campus mind you – several times).  And I hate, hate HATE the popularity play that seems to never end (the “it” crowd stays together as they age, it seems).

Thirdly, we live in Redmond; home of MICROSOFT and several other technological powerhouses.  Technology is a tool; unless it doesn’t work and then it’s a doorstop.  A HUGELY EXPENSIVE doorstop that wastes time and causes frustration…a doorstop that I’ve apparently paid quite a bit of my taxpayers dollars for.

Our school has three forms of communication with parents (not counting mail, phone and website):  Email, Standard Score/Webgrader and Haiku. 

Standard Score is how parents look at the grades in the classes and see what work/projects/tests have or have not been completed.  Standard score is only useful if it’s USED.  Not updating it regularly is of no help to the student or the parent.  Incomplete or outdated information is not useful either.  Not using the notification system of late or missing work defeats the purpose of the system.

Haiku is supposed to be the “portal” (another failed technological tool, but never mind) to the teacher’s classroom.  This is supposed to contain a calendar of what the teacher is covering in class along with notes or worksheets for students to access in case the dog ate their homework or they were out with meningitis or broke up with their love interest and couldn’t handle going to school.  In an enlightened age it might also contain a link to the class textbook, other references or information about the subject for further study.

This is my 2^nd year with Haiku.  Or perhaps I should say without Haiku.  Last year parents had no access except through their student’s log-in.  We are three weeks into the school year and parents still have no access to it without student information.  Yes, I have my student’s password but I’m “supposed” to have my own.  And for those of you that say “my son/daughter won’t give me their password” I say; who pays the bills in your house?    

This leaves me with email as the only consistent form of communication.  As unpleasant as it is for me to write to the teachers every week asking for updates on my student; imagine if all 1900+ parents emailed all the teachers asking the same thing.  I think that’s what centralized communication systems are meant to be used for.  At least that’s the theory because I’ve yet to see one of them work in almost 8 years of being used. 

 

A few notes I took during curriculum night, September 2013: 

• Curriculum night should be focused on learning about the class and the curriculum.  Shocking, I know.  It is NOT a night to tell me about your favorite sports team, all the countries you lived in or that you like French fries.  That’s all fascinating and I know it helps you connect with the parents, but I just want to know what my student will be expected to learn in your class.

• 10 minutes per class is not enough time.  It’s not enough time especially if you’re going to tell me about your background, interests and favorites things.  Tell me about your PhD and your extensive traveling experiences and your summer work in Mozambique on your Haiku page (portal) or on a hand-out that I can read at home.

• Curriculum night should not be about politics or money or introducing new programs or procedures to the parents.  It’s about curriculum.  Don’t give me a 10 minute slide show on Lake Washington Schools Foundation or the upcoming Levy proposal or Common Core standards or the Senior Portfolio guidelines.  And don’t expect a teacher that has no information about any of those things to actually be able to answer questions (and there will be MANY) about the topics.  I don’t want politics or fund-raising at curriculum night. 

In every High School curriculum night I’ve been to, I’m supposed to mimic my student’s schedule and move seamlessly from class to class.  Why is it EVERY night I’ve been to the classes are from one end of the campus to the other and rarely logically laid out?  For instance my son has six classes.  First period is in the new building, 2^nd floor.  Next class is in the band room – not too far away and I have the luxury of knowing where the band room is from previous experience with my older son.  3^rd period is on the second floor on the OPPOSITE end of the campus.  I have about 5 minutes to walk through the hallways, up the stairs, locate the correct hallway and enter the classroom.  Imagine those same hallways during school hours with 1900-plus students doing the same exact thing (don’t forget to imagine the overstuffed backpacks).  Now I have 4^th period, which is back at the other end of the campus in the new building, first floor.  5^th period and I’m back across the campus, upstairs on the other side of the wing.  6^th period I’m downstairs from the 5^th period class, but in a different section of hallways.  It’s no wonder these kids are stressed and crabby and have back problems after carting their backpacks up and down and over and around all day long for 6 hours. Thank goodness he doesn't have French 2 this year or he (and I) would have to access one of the four portables on site.

Periods 1 and 5 were the only teachers who finished their presentation before the bell sounded.  There is NO TIME to talk to the teacher because you feel the need to hurry to the next class (not to mention there are already 5 parents in line ahead of you even though the bell just sounded). 

Teacher #1 does not use Webnotes (yes he actually said that).  He does use Haiku and we’re supposed to check Haiku – but we’ll need our student’s pass code and ID to do that – no word on when parents will be given access.  He told us that he’ll "probably" start sending out weekly emails with what’s coming up in class in a week or so.  It’s so hard, you know, to communicate with the parents right now because there have been so many scheduling changes.  (boo.hoo)  He was unclear on how often he'd update Standard Score with assignments.

Teacher #2 finished his presentation (almost) but it’s band and I’ve heard it before.  Only new item was someone needs to help determine the 9^th grade uniform for band performances.  Oh, and practice, practice, practice.  Except in my case, we can’t rent a Tuba/Sousaphone from a music store (at least not in my budget) and he doesn’t have any extras for us to take home and use (a benefit the Middle School band had that I’m missing horribly). 

Teacher #3 was home-room.  We had a whopping 25 minutes in this class, but it was all taken up by “Pass the Hat”, slides on the Levy vote in 2014, introducing the Portfolio program (to 9^th grade parents) and blowing the horn of Lake Washington Schools Foundation.  We also were handed an emergency form to verify, correct and sign.  This left the teacher about 5 minutes to tell us about her interests and her love of literature.  I understand from my student that she doesn’t use Haiku – not sure if it’s because she won’t or she can’t.  She wasn’t very complete in the small bit of information we were able to get from her; so my overall impression wasn’t much.  I found it interesting that one of the texts the students will be reading are selections from the Old Testament (Bible).  I wonder how long before someone complains about separation of church and state.  She had no information on student passwords for career cruising (the portfolio site) or the portfolio other than what was on her slides.  Thankfully three parents in the class (including myself) had older students and had some knowledge of the program. 

Teacher #4 was the math teacher.  Her message was “No cell-phones, buy a scientific or graphing calculator (for $100) and learn to talk to each other”.  She plans on updating Standard Score by Friday every week.  She didn’t finish her presentation because the Vice Principal came over the intercom and announced that three very special people had parked in places that were so special they were blocking about 50 cars from getting out of the lot.  They were instructed to grab their keys and move their vehicles.  That took 5 minutes of intercom time.  Whoops!  Time to move to period #5.

Teacher #5 is the French teacher.  Overall, I liked her.  She finished her presentation, complimented the students, related to the parents and talked about the planned trip in 2015.  She even had time for us to ask a couple of questions.  I was irritated that she mentioned three times that she had a PhD, but whatever.

Teacher #6 was probably my favorite of the entire evening; although I was late getting there because it wasn’t so easy to just go down one level and across the wing to find the class.  She is a huge ball of energy that was so funny, I’m sure the kids think she’s either on drugs or crazy (my son loves this class, although doesn’t really like history).  She didn’t finish her presentation because she talked too much and all over the board about her life experiences, French fries, chocolate and beer.  Oh, and her husband is an Oregon Duck.  I have no idea how she’s going to teach kids history in the last period of the day after they’ve walked the campus twice; but I know she’ll give it a try.  I did find it interesting that she had signs with several major religions EXCEPT Christianity in her classroom.  I understand it’s a history class, but Christianity is history too.  I suppose it’s balanced out by the Old Testament sections read in English class.

Solutions?  I have a few.  I’m sure the School Board/District/Administration/Union doesn't give a fig about my solutions; but I’ll offer them as I don’t like to complain without a suggestion of how to fix “it”.

Communication:  

Every teacher has to use the tools given.  EVERY TEACHER.  (I don’t care about union regs and how long they work and blah, blah, blah.)  I – or my student – should be able at the end of every school day to access the portal/website for the specific class and know what’s due, when it’s due and any notes, worksheets or presentations to help my student do their homework and study. Every Day.

If my student is late turning something in (or doesn’t turn it in at all) the system that alerts the parents to this MUST be used.  Otherwise I feel that you only want my money and the rest of the parent involvement speech is just bunk. If you want my help in keeping my student on track, focused, organized and doing well in class, then YOU NEED TO PROVIDE ME with the tools (and USE them) to do this.  (Don’t tell me how many students you have.  It’s your job.)

A bit of (ancient) history:  if there was a problem when I was in school, the teacher sent a note home through the student.  If the problem continued, the teacher called the parent.  I don’t remember my mother having to wait for progress reports to come home before she knew what my grades were in a class or if I was struggling or not.  And, although I always turned my homework in on time (it never occurred to me not to???); I’m sure that a call would have been made if my homework was missing or incomplete.

Technology:

If you don’t know how to use the technology, learn it.  I spend hours every week learning how to get onto every new system that I’m required to access.  I manage to do this in between two jobs, the mom-gig and the wife thing.  I’m tired of hearing “He/she is a new teacher and they haven’t learned the system yet.”  Bah. 

We are required to have our students use netbooks.  My tax dollars paid for this.  Put the textbooks on the netbooks and quit expecting our kids to carry the textbooks around (or open them at all).  Have them turn homework, worksheets, math calculations and journals in on the netbooks too.  There are software programs for these things.  I’m not against hand-written assignments, but we live in the 21^st century.  “Every child future ready”, right?

Curriculum: 

Every middle school student should have a mandatory class on organization, study skills and using the agenda – every year.  Make it a 7^th period or make it a Saturday once-a-month class, but make it mandatory.  If the students don’t know how to organize, use a day-planner/calendar/agenda and study for their classes, they have no way to succeed.  Give them the tools to succeed and the knowledge in how to use them.  If they haven’t learned by 8^th grade how to study and organize; they’re going to have a really difficult time in High School with the added stresses and expectations.

Class schedules: 

Based on my personal experience from the past two years, before you change the schedule that the parent and student have requested because of out-dated testing results; why not a) re-test the student to see where the progress and holes are and/or b) CONTACT the parent and talk about solutions and suggestions.  Two years in a row I have had to re-arrange my student’s schedule because of faulty or out-dated testing results.  If you had contacted me the first year, I could have provided you with the testing results I had after four months of tutoring that brought him back up to speed (Why was he behind?  See here)  And why put him in a safety-net ENGLISH class when his MATH skills were clearly the scores of contention?  WHY? 

This year I received (in a very round-about way) information that scores from two class years ago (outdated) put him, yet again, in an English Safety-net class.  If you had consulted the grades from his last semester 8^th grade, OR retested him; you would have seen that his English scores were much improved.  And, if you had contacted me (instead of me calling you in a defensive and mama-bear mode) I would have again, gladly provided you with current test results from yet another year of tutoring to keep him up to speed. 

We’re in this together:

Finally, I’d like to ask that the administration and staff stop treating parents as if we are the enemy.  This is MY child we’re talking about; not just another number in the 1900+ student body you have to teach.  I truly want to help you in any way possible by creating a home environment that is favorable to complete homework and assignments.  I want to make sure they do the best they can and follow your class rules.  I want to help them succeed (and yes, I’d like them to graduate). 

I realize we live in a society where every child is a precious snowflake and deserves an award just for being (end sarcasm), but there really are parents who believe that their child is not perfect and doesn’t always deserve the benefit of the doubt.  I’m well aware that my son doesn’t listen to the entire instructions and usually hears only what’s fun and interesting to him.  I’m also aware that not everything he says about you is true or accurate – just as you should understand that not everything he says about his life is factual.  He’s a 14 year old boy with hormones raging through his body that renders his logic center useless and his entire focus is on girls, sports, video games and food; not necessarily in that order.

I have three more curriculum nights left in my mom career.  Is it too much to ask that they actually be about curriculum and nothing else?

Cost vs. Value

This post was previously posted at the Redmond Neighborhood Blog on July 30, 2013, which I linked on my Facebook page.

For those of you not on Facebook, I'm posting it again here on my personal blog.

Cost vs. Value

As you drive by Redmond Middle School and Redmond High School this summer; make sure you count the number of portable buildings on site at each school.  RMS will be adding one more portable; and RHS will have an additional two; bringing the total to 7 between the two schools.

I asked Kathryn Reith, Communications Director at Lake Washington School district for the cost of the new addition at Redmond High School (the brick building that faces 104^th) and the cost for each of the portable units including all related expenses (permits, furniture, painting, etc.).   

Her answer:

“With regard to classroom cost, here’s the answer:

·  Per permanent classroom cost (this is for the addition) = $728,484

·  Per portable classroom cost = $190,000 (*each portable is actually a double-classroom, so this figure per portable is $380,000)”

There is an additional portable that will be added to Redmond Middle School – bringing the total to three on-site.  This portable will be used for classrooms as the school needs “additional space”. 

By my count this means three portables at RMS and four portables at RHS:

7 portables at $380,000 cost per (double) portable = $2,660,000 total cost (14 classrooms)

Let’s focus solely on the additional portables at Redmond High School which would be just 4 portables at $380,000 each (Total $1,520,000).  This adds an additional 8 classrooms to the RHS campus in portable buildings.

Redmond High School was originally built in 1964; demolished and rebuilt during the LWSD modernization process (Phase 2) in 2003.   The modernization updated the 1964 school from student capacity of 1,375 to the 2003 capacity of between 1431 and 1500 (specialized classes and ELL have different class and population capacities).  The budget for the 2003 construction was $50,575,931. 

Page 11 of History of LWSD states:

 • 1965 – Redmond – A new Redmond High School was opened on Education Hill and Redmond students returned to this high school. With 134,294 square feet of floor space in three buildings the cost was $2.2 million. Walter Seabloom was the first principal in the new school. Remodeling was done in 1984 and 1985.” http://www.lwsd.org/SiteCollectionDocuments/About-Us/HistoryofLWSD.pdf

The construction completed in 2012 added 30,000 sf of space and included an auxiliary gym addition and a classroom addition. http://www.lwsd.org/SiteCollectionDocuments/For-The-Community/Construction/RHS/Neighborhood-meeting-4-21-2011.pdf According to Kathryn Reith’s figures above, the cost for the classroom addition was $728,484 of the $1,400,000 construction budget cost listed.  14 classrooms are housed in the brick addition; all classrooms were used in one way or another throughout the school year. 

Each portable building houses two classrooms – for a total of 8 classrooms on the RHS campus.  A class size is based on a 32 student capacity; although some classes may have more or less than that number.  Capacity is no different for a portable vs. standard classroom.  8 classrooms with an average of 32 students per classroom is a total of 256 seats available.

14 classrooms for $728,484 (cost of the building) vs. 8 classrooms for $1,520,000 (four portables)

Let’s assume the district decided to double the size of the 2011 addition; using the cost of the 14 classroom structure it would have cost roughly $1,456,968.  WELL BELOW the cost of installing four “double” portable buildings for one school and with six more classrooms than are currently available. 

Could the district have built the 2003 RHS campus with capacity for the future?  Certainly!  LWSD states in their modernization information that schools being built are theoretically intended for use for 40 years.  Modernization projects began in 1998 and will continue until 2033 (http://www.lwsd.org/For-Community/School-Construction/Modernization/Pages/Modernization-Program-Basics.aspx.

Would this completely avoid the need for portables?  In the long term probably not; however portables have a shorter life-span than a brick-and-mortar building and would need to be replaced and repaired more frequently.

Buildings should be planned, designed and built for long-term use and for many generations of students.

There is a projected increase of roughly 4,000 students coming into the district in the next 10 years (http://www.lwsd.org/News/News-and-Announcements/Pages/Lake-Washington-School-District-Predicts-Enrollment-Growth.aspx).  Redmond Mayor John Marchione expects Redmond to grow from a city of 56,000 to 78,000 (http://redmondcity.blogspot.com/2013/05/redmond-mayor-marchione-gives-state-of.html)  Although many of the new housing developments are apartments and other multi-family buildings intended for the younger, single or no-kids couples; there are far too many places to live in Redmond when matched against the number of schools and classrooms available for incoming children. 

LWSD is guilty of not adequately projecting the school-age population increase in a growing and thriving community for the future.  They have consistently discounted growth trends in the last 10 years with Redmond Junior High (now Redmond Middle School), Horace Mann Elementary and Redmond (Senior) High School; not to mention Rosa Parks Elementary in the Redmond Ridge neighborhood.  Of course, they can’t be certain to the letter of the number of students coming into a district, but with all the media attention the district receives about awards of distinction and test scores; calculations should be over-planned instead of conservatively placed in the lower estimates.  In addition, the cities and the District should work together to develop communication about future residential projects and how many projected school-age children those developments could bring.

In 2014, LWSD will once again ask for more money to finance modernization and upgrades to existing schools.  This money will be used towards “Phase 3” schools http://www.lwsd.org/For-Community/School-Construction/Modernization/Pages/Future-Phases.aspx including Juanita High School and Rockwell Elementary.  If the “Phase 2” modernizations have required portables and additions within 10 years of construction; how will the district address the increase of students in the next 20 to 30 years?

Is it really more expensive to build larger structures than are currently needed for new schools and have 3 or 4 (or even a few more) classrooms sit empty for the next 10 years?  Is it of value to the taxpayer to have to band-aid enrollment issues every year because of poor planning by the district?  Does the District truly expect the voters to approve yet another bond issue so they can waste more time and more money on buildings that are crowded before they’ve even been completed? 

I urge you to carefully consider your vote in the 2014 levy process. 

A word is just a word…until it’s not

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet"

~ Romeo "&"; Juliet; 

William Shakespeare

According to Wikipedia, the word “Nigger” comes from the ” Spanish and Portuguese word negro (black), and from the now-pejorative French nègre (negro). Etymologically, negro, noir, nègre, and nigger ultimately derive from nigrum, the stem of the Latin niger …”

The word “colored” “…is a term that was formerly used in the United States to refer to black people (i.e., persons of sub African ancestry; members of the black race). According to the Webster dictionary, the word colored was first used in the 14th Century.^[1]

“People (or persons) of color” “is a term used primarily in the United States to describe any person who is not white. The term is meant to be inclusive among non-white groups, emphasizing common experiences of racism. People of color was introduced as a preferable replacement to both non-white and minority, …”

“Caucasian” ” is the general physical type of some or all of the populations of Europe, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, Western, Central and South Asia.^[2] 

Ethnicity or ethnic group is a socially defined category based on common cultural heritage, shared ancestry, history, homeland, language or dialect, and possibly other aspects such as religion, mythology and ritual, cuisine, dressing style, physical appearance, etc. 

What about the word “Cracker”?  Urban Dictionary defines the word as “Originally the white slave driver because he would "crack" the whip, hence the noun cracker.” Also, “Noun. Slang word used to refer to those of European ancestry. The word is thought to have either derived from the sound of a whip being cracked by slave owners, or because crackers are generally white in color.”  And, “opposite of nigger, an insult to whites... except white people aren't dumb enough to walk around calling each other that word because it's intended to be demeaning.” 

But what about “White Hispanics”?    This makes no sense at all!

So personally, I can be a “Caucasian Cracker”, even though I’ve never whipped anyone and I wasn’t born in Europe.  I’m also considered “White” although my skin tone is more tan than white and my heritage (ethnicity) is from Italy and Ireland. 

I can’t use the word “Gay” because I would be hateful and bigoted, but people who are homosexual can have groups named after them that use the word “Gay” and that’s not hateful or bigoted – it’s just giving them a place to feel safe.   When I was younger, “gay” meant happy.  Kookaburra the bird had a song about how “gay your life must be” and my parents regularly used it to mean joyful or very happy.  Now, “Gay” is a sexual orientation and if someone is “Gay”, they can use the word, but if you’re not “Gay”, then it’s mean and bullying to call someone else “Gay” (even if they are, in fact “Gay”).

Rap artists and people of color can use the word “Nigger” or any variation they want when they sing or talk or joke, because it’s their identity.  But I can’t use the word “Nigger” or any variation because it means I want them to be slaves and that I think less of them (don’t get me wrong – that word isn’t in my vocabulary; nor do I want it to be).

I’m not saying that I agree with using words that have a hateful meaning or that cause pain to groups or individuals, but at what point does any word or EVERY word make someone angry?  Many people who are incorrectly called “African-Americans” are neither African in descent nor are they related to any African country.  Many are Jamaican or Australian or from New Guinea. 

People who are considered “Caucasian” for government forms like the Census, are not from any of the countries that are considered ethnically Caucasian.  I know many people who are American – born in the United States – that may look “Asian” or “Latino” but identify as American.  Not white, not Asian, not “of color”.  Originally census forms asked for the country of birth for the respondent, and each of their parents.  It did not identify the person as “white” or “African” or Irish. 

If we are truly to be a country of diversity and tolerance, we should stop identifying people by groups of race, ethnicity or color.  No more hair or eye or skin color on licenses or applications.  I’m not sure how to identify two women named “Joan Smith”; but forget about age and race and identifying by looks.

Perhaps we should just tattoo everyone with a number and that’s how we ‘classify’ them.  Let’s just jump ahead a few centuries and tie everyone’s identity to a number which can be put into a system and logs everything about that person ever.  I think there's a name for that too...