Another wasted weekend. I am going to try to keep this entry short. Today I spent most of the day in bed (fighting yet another cold). I finally got out of bed around 3pm. My plan was to clean up my shoebox, but I ended up cleaning everyplace but my shoebox. There have been several burnt out light bulbs in the common areas. Once again, I tried the “if they don’t care, then I don’t care”. The problem, they don’t (seem) to care, but I do. My neighbors don’t seem to have any problem with living in a pigsty. Last Monday, I wrote a note and taped it to the jar of spaghetti sauce that was thrown in the trash. I left the jar (with the attached note next to the trash, would you believe that jar (with the note still attached) is still sitting there. I will attach a photo.

What did the note say? Basically, it asked that sauces and beer be poured in the toilet. My neighbor(s) have a bad habit of dumping anything and everything into the trash, (sauces, half drunken beer bottles [with the beer still in it], whole pizza boxes, etc…).

Anyway, when I finally came out of my room, I noticed the newspaper that I’d put down last night was wetter – I slipped on some water last night. There was cat crap on the floor. The bathroom had strands of long hair all over the place, and dirty foot prints all over the bathtub.

At first I was only going to clean up the cat crap. Since there was some cat crap on the wet newspaper, I picked up the wet paper only to discover the newsprint was all over the floor. But before I could clean up the newsprint stains, I had to sweep the floors. I ended up mopping the hall, the bathroom, and the kitchen. I got tired of living in the dark, so I replaced all of the light bulbs. Once the light above the gas range was on, I could clearly see all of the greasy build-up that was covering the range that I’d just cleaned last week only to have the Screamer cover it the very next morning in grease.

After doing my imitation of a house-keeping maid, I was too tired to clean my own room. I was also a little annoyed that within 10 minutes of cleaning the kitchen, the Screamer was in it cooking for her and her boyfriend. There is now a pot and a few dishes in the sink.

Other than living with slobs, how have conditions been with the immature couple since the big argument? I have say things have been relatively….less noisy. I don’t expect the “less noisy” condition to last for very long, but I’ll enjoy it while I can. Now if only those living around me would turn down their “music”. It is strange for me to be living in a place where people seem to be trying to “out play” their music. While I was cleaning there must have been at least 3 different stereos playing at the same time, each one at full volume.

Also, now that the weather is getting warmer, I noticed that the locals are out later and later, and getting louder and louder.

Instead of trying to back post blog entries for the past week, I am just going to summarize my week.

Remember my very good work day on Friday. I knew that I would have to pay for it and I did.

Monday, May 22, 2006

I was assigned a special ed class (4/5 grade bridge class) for kids with behavioral and/or emotional problems. There were about 12 students on the registrar, but only about half showed up. Lucky me? Hardly. Even with the 3 other adults in the room, the group was still a hand full. I was like an on guard sentinel, I couldn’t turn my back for a minute. I had to stay on my feet, because anything would set some of these kids off. The frightening part, was that there did not seem to me to be a major difference between this class and other classes I’ve had.

So, having 3 adults must have made things much easier. Yea right.

One of the paras (teaching assistant) was pro-active like me, she did not wait for trouble to kick into high gear before doing (or saying something). The other para (although very nice), was more laid back, she did not get involved as much. One thing that did annoy me was her bringing in another child “to watch” until lunch time. I had enough difficulty with the regular kids from this class. The kid that she was supposed to be watching, was almost just as disruptive as any of the other regulars. I spent more time correcting that kid’s behavior than the para that brought him in. What about the third adult? I think her job was to suck up air and complain about the kids behavior. She came in, plopped down in a seat, didn’t move until my back was turn, then she disappeared for most of the morning, only to return to say that she was leaving.

Returning to my shoebox, I was too tired to row. I was also annoyed that the cooktop range that I’d spent a bit of time scrubbing clean the previous day was now covered in grease.

Tuesday
I had the special ed class again. This time the woman who was of no help did not come in, however, about 2 or 3 of the boys who were absent yesterday came today. Results. The class was wilder than yesterday. Did I really need to type that?

Finally at 9:40, the wild ones broke free. I managed to get the group up to the science room. Once there, one ran, and two followed. While most of the students were in the science room (that was my preparation period), I was trying to plan out the rest of the day. It was at this time, one of the paras came in the room to complain about working with that group. This was the para that was actually working and very helpful with keep the group from going wild. She decided that she would take one student to the computer lab. She reasoned that taking that one kid away would keep the others calmer; she said that he was kind of an instigator. True, but he was not the worst of the bunch.

Now, the only thing on my mind was how I would survive this day. It turned out I got lucky. The runners were kept out of the classroom. One was sent home (the one I was told could not be controlled by his parents). With the runners out, the class was actually calm…relatively speaking. I was also pleased that the other para stepped up to the plate (she was more involved than she was yesterday.

Wednesday. I went on a job interview for a counselor at a summer day camp. I am someone who needs to be working during the summer or I will do nothing but stay home eating and sleeping.

By the end of the week, I was fighting yet another cold. Sorry, it is getting late, so I am cutting this short.

May 21, 2006

Weekend update. On Friday, I stayed awake from 2 in the morning. I was expecting to be extremely tired, but I wasn’t. In school, I had a cluster’s schedule (I love cluster schedules) for the Pre-K – 2 grade science teacher. The only pre-k class on the schedule went on a trip that class was canceled (free period for me).

I had a 2nd grade class next. The wildest second grade class. I mean no disrespect to the teacher, but I don’t think that teacher has a good grasp on that class. Whenever I see that class, the teacher seems on the verge of losing it; the kids never seem to be on line, but move in a mob. Being the softy that I am I was little worried that I would not be able to control them in the science room, especially without a “reward” (bribery) for good behavior. In the room, a few kids tested me, I gave a few time-outs, but all in all I controlled the class. I didn’t sit (and rarely) turned my back on them. Only a few thrown crayons. I told them that if they went wild, they would be having lunch up there in the science room away from their friends, and if they spoke during my lunch detention, I would have them there again on Monday. That worked. At the end of the period, I had them in two straight lines and quiet. And the teacher was late. After waiting a couple of minutes, I opened the door to see what was holding up the teacher (her class was one door down on the other side of the hallway). She was in the hall gabbing away. The minute she walked into the room, the kids started to revert to the wild mob. I briefly reminded them about their lunchtime. I could tell the teacher was happy that the students were quietly lined up; she used that time (my lunch period) to lecture them about being good for the cooking lesson next period.
While she took her students, I took the wild boy (who could barely sit still in his seat) who tried testing me telling he had to go to the bathroom because it was an emergency. Once a returned the boy to the class, the class was wild again.

After lunch, wanting to reinforce the message I had given the wild class. The kids were all over the room…out of control. Seeing me, seemed to make the teacher happy. However, the results were opposite for the students, they got quiet fairly quickly. I reminded them that if they had not gotten their act together during the science period, I would be taking the trouble-makers for their lunch period. The teacher got very happy. “That’s right. I understand. They need to lose their free time”. She then went on to explain that that was the only class that didn’t cook because of their behavior.

I then noticed that the teacher was in the middle of the classroom just beginning to set up for the cooking lesson that she had mentioned in the science room would have taken place right after the science period (her prep period). The thoughts in my mind were:

What was she doing during her preparation period?
What was she doing for the last period that she said would be the cooking period?

The teacher kept asking for me to give her the names of the ones who were out of line during the science period. She wanted me the take those kids out of the room (knowing it would be the usual kids), hopefully giving her a stress free cooking period. I didn’t take the bait. My goal was just to put a little bit of fear, or at the very least, a chance for the kids to think twice the next time they come into a class that I am subbing for (or in a worst case scenario for the day that I have to sub for this teacher).

The next period was the kindergarten class that I had the long term sub assignment while the regular teacher was out sick. However, there was some confusion. The kindergarten teacher knew that the science teacher would be absent, but the office did not make an announcement that the prep period would be covered. Therefore, she didn’t bring the class up. By the time I went to check why she had not come (about 10 minutes), she did not want to stop her lesson to bring up the kids. So…another free period for me!

The last class was another kindergarten class (I did an all day sub for this teacher two days ago). The first year teacher has been struggling with this class, but they were very nicely behaved for me; I was looking forward to having this class for a period. It turns out one of the students was having a party, and she only needed a half a period to get ready.

Since Fridays are shortened days at this school, I was finished at 2:30. I was out of the building at 2:35. That was my work day! I had a very good work day.

In my shoebox about 3:10, I made an appointment for a summer job at a day camp. I know that if I don’t work, I will be bored out of my mind this summer. Also, I need the money. Before I moved to Japan, I was a summer camp counselor at this day camp for about 5 summers.

I got the impression that the lady on the phone (in charged of hiring) had not really looked at the application (and the resume) I had mailed in because she did not know (even though it was written on both) that I was a counselor at that day camp for 5 summers.

Any problems? The woman told me that the only counselor positions were for kids aged 4 and 5 years old. I really don’t want to be a babysitter, but I am going on the interview just in case something else becomes available for an older group.

On Saturday, I did my usually sleep all day routines. About 4pm, I went shopping at a local grocery store for a few things. I fried some pork chops, and made some 10 minute rice. After I finished cooking, I put the food aside so that I could get on my rowing machine for about 30 minutes.

I was so proud of myself. Usually, when the food is ready, I am ready to eat. I usually promise myself that I will exercise after I eat, but I never do. Somehow (with fried pork chops sitting on the side), I was able to get on my rowing machine for the 30 minutes.

So, how are things on the war front (between the Screamer and her boyfriend)? They seem fairly quiet (relatively speaking) for the last few days. However, I think they are slowing returning to their old patterns.

Now, I have some laundry to do. I also need to clean my shoebox.

I also need to upload these blog entries. I have about 12 pages of blog entries for the month of May. I think my last posting was April 23rd. I also have those Washington DC photos to upload to my other website (not to mention my Kyoto photos). Sorry, I am getting lazy on my computer.

Post Date Sunday, May 21, 2006 8:20pm

May 19, 2006 2:40am

Another screwed up evening. Today (at work) I had a cluster teacher’s schedule to do. A cluster’s schedule means that I have various classes to teach instead of one. I did a lot of walking from classroom to classroom (with [about] a 50lb. shopping cart filled with my teaching supplies. However, with a cluster’s schedule, there is no classroom room to clean up at the end of the day, and no report to leave for the regular teacher letting him (or her) know what was done in class. The end result was that I was out of the school building at 3:09. I could have been out of the building at 3:00, if I organized my materials better.

Anyway, my plans were to go to the local copy center to make photo copies, come to my shoebox (change clothes go shopping for a spring jacket, and buy a small flashlight for my keychain. Also, I wanted to upload the various blog entries for this month. For the regular readers of this blog, I still have not posted any blog entries for this month. Even though I now have internet connection at home, I’ve been reluctant to go on-line during the work week. For me, a planned “brief” trip usually turns into a couple of hours on-line.

Recently, I’ve been forcing myself to use the rowing machine. How? I force myself to exercise before I eat (or even make) dinner. After exercising (even briefly), then eating dinner, I fall asleep only to wake up in the middle of the night. I was hoping this evening would be different considering I was in my shoebox about 4:05. I should know better by now.

As soon as I walked through the front door, I had the feeling it was going to be another less than great evening. I walked passed the young couple’s room (the first room with a hole kicked in the door); the lights were off in the room. The hallway light was burned out (reason for the flashlight). I think I’ve mentioned the inconsideration my neighbors have about leaving the hallway light on at night, so I am in no hurry to replace the bulb. Sorry, I’m getting sidetracked.

When I walked into the hallway, I was greeted by a pleasant “hello, how are you? from the Screamer. Oh crap, I thought I would have at least a day or two of peace and quiet (relatively speaking in a building where every other room seems to have their stereo blasting at one time or another).

I’m rambling and it is very late. I need to shorten this.

The young lady knocked on my door wanting to talk, and being the kind of person that doesn’t know how to say no, I invited her to talk. She stood at the door for about an hour and a half. Highlights:

she was sorry for the disturbance last night.
she was the one who was throwing things last night.
she blacks out when she gets angry and doesn’t remember anything.
she gets angry when her boyfriend blocks her out.
she gets jealous when her boyfriend spends more time with his friends.
etc…
Oh, her boyfriend pays for everything (food, rent, etc…)

There was a heck of a lot more, but it is getting late.

She also explained that there is some kind of “situation” with one of the girlfriends upstairs that is why she was afraid to go outside today. She told me that she was scared, nervous, shaking, etc… She couldn’t sleep being so worried. She explained that she wanted to clean up (both the pile of dirty dishes that have been sitting in the kitchen for about a week, and the room that she admits trashing herself), but she was so worried about the situation with a girl upstairs about something that was said last night.

All day the weather was beautiful. It was a beautiful spring day (the reason for the spring jacket). Unfortunately, the weather report said “chance of evening rain showers”, and the weather report was correct. It started rainy while I was out getting the jacket. I had wanted to walk around see what was available, but since I was trying to beat the rain, I just bought the first cheap jacket that I could find. I’ll try to attach a photo.

I returned to my shoebox, and about 10 minutes later, the young lady returned. Another hour conversation passed. Basically, she loved my macaroni & cheese and wanted to know how I made it, what ingredients I used, how much it would cost…

Oh, and would I mind going to the store to buy the ingredients. I reminded her that mac & cheese would not be a good make-up dish because her boyfriend doesn’t like a lot of cheese. I also reminded her that it was raining. It turns out she just had a taste for mac & cheese (she especially loved the cheesy crust I made with mine). And, she did not know that it was still raining.

Please don’t think for a minute that since I haven’t said anything, I am buying any of the **** she is feeding me. My problems are 1. I don’t know how to say no, and 2. I don’t know how to say shut up.

No, I didn’t go to the store. Unfortunately, the young lady did mentioned that she was worried that her boyfriend was still angry, and I did suggest that that she could get his attention more if she cleaned up the room she trashed. I knew they were not breaking up, so I was not upset (too much) with playing next door psychologist.

The evening went fairly quiet. With only one more interruption (she wanted to borrow my newspaper to read her horoscope), and only one complaint (she was very tired cleaning up her (boyfriend’s) room. I guess she was too tired to wash her dirty dishes which are still sitting in the kitchen (with the addition of a couple of cups removed from the room she cleaned, and the bowl after eating some of my sherbet -- she had not had sherbet in a long time [and wanted to know where I bought it]).

After rowing for about 30 minutes, and eating dinner (I ate leftover spaghetti I’d made last week). I watched the series finale of “That 70’s Show” and “Will and Grace”. I thought both finales were boring and a waste of time (both to make and to watch). I managed to stay awake to watch the entire last episode of Will and Grace before I fell asleep.

I woke up about 2am. My neighbor’s boyfriend returned about 2:30am. Can you believe that the Screamer actually yelled (just briefly) the minute he walked in, but now they are quiet…but only for the moment.

It is now 4:13am in the morning, and my dirty dinner dishes are staring at me. I am very glad it is Friday. By the time I wash my dishes, and take a shower, it will be about 5:30. Since I get up about 6am, I can kiss going to sleep goodbye. I really need to get my life together. Not to mention, I need to grow a backbone.

Well, since it is too late to go to sleep, I might as well “briefly” go on the internet and check my e-mail.

Post Date Sunday, May 21, 2006 7:58pm

And the saga continues. My neighbors (the guy and his girlfriend [the screamer]) had another fight. How did it start? The boyfriend left the room without waking up the Screamer. The fight started about 11:30pm (May 17th) with a phone call:*

*This is the conversation I heard from my room. The young lady was talking on the phone with her boyfriend. The dialog below is the young lady’s part of the conversation. Obviously, I couldn’t hear what the boyfriend was saying on the other end of the phone call.

“How could you f**king leaving without waking me?”
“I don’t care.” You left without telling me where you were going.
Don’t come back. I am locking your f**king a** out. (forget the fact that it is his room, and he pays the rent).

About 15 minutes later the boyfriend came home, and the Screamer…starts screaming. She goes on for about 10 to 15 minutes. I’m in the hall (not sure what to do), a neighbor from upstairs comes down tells me to relax “that is the way she is”. Then my other neighbor (on my floor) Mr. 40+ comes out of his room, and says the same thing, “just ignore it. While the 3 of us are in the hallway (right outside my room) the upstairs guy explains that he knows all about me. The guy (the screamers boyfriend) told him all about me. Apparently, I am the guy that will listen to the young lady screaming and think that she is getting beaten and call the police. They (the police) would listen to me and have the guy arrested.

Now that there is an audience, the screamer kicks it up a notch; she comes out of her room screaming hysterically running into the bathroom. The boyfriend is now cursing at us (the audience in the hall) to mind our f**king business. He then alternates screaming at us (the audience) to go back in our rooms and mind our f**king business and yelling at his girlfriend he has money and doesn’t need her.

Not knowing what to do, I go wash my dishes. The other hallway audience members return to their respective rooms (I think).

About 10 minutes later, the screamer comes into the kitchen calm, pleasant just a little bit nervous. She asks if I can please do her a favor. Someone had called the police.

What was the favor?

She asked me to not open the door. I told her that I couldn’t do that. She then asked me to say that I didn’t hear anything. Again, I told her I couldn’t do that. I (tried to) explain to her that the police are law enforcement officers, I am going to look pretty stupid saying I did not hear anything.

Now, if the police had come in to talk to me, I would have told them exactly what I type here (minus the dialog). As I have mentioned in previous entries, the couple (seems to me) to be incredibly immature. The look on the young lady’s face was (to me) one of a child) who got caught doing something wrong, but not knowing what to do.

Now, it is very quiet. How do I feel now? Actually, I am feeling a little pleased with myself. Although I wanted to ignore the fight (pretend that I did not hear anything), I believed that providing an audience, with make the combatants (or should I say performers) think about their next encounter. Unfortunately, I am sure there will be a next time. But I hope they will at least keep the drama to a minimum. I think the screamer was a little scared that someone called the police on the little drama that she has participated in for months. If I am not mistaken, tonight was the first time the police were called. I am hoping the couple will mature (at least a little).

Attached is a photo of the hallway, that is my room with the opened door. The couple has the room closest to the main door, and Mr. 40+ has the room in the middle.

Post Date Sunday, May 21, 2006 7:47pm

Another wasted weekend. I stayed in my pajamas (in bed) for most of the day. I was too lazy to go into the kitchen to fix breakfast, so I ate a couple of breakfast bars, and drank a vitamin health drink. My back was also hurting for most of the day. I am not sure if it is the cheap futon mattress or the rowing machine that is the cause.

In the kitchen. more dirty dishes. For someone who has said on several occasions that she does not like rats, my neighbor (the screamer) seems to enjoy leaving food for the varmints. She has also been showing off her new blender. Last night, she left the blender, the box, and the packing materials on the kitchen counter, at that time, I put those things in one of the cabinets that she uses. Today, the blender (and the box it came in) was back on the kitchen counter. Now, my neighbor has a blender to go with an electric chopper, electric mixer, and coffee maker. Wow, she is becoming quite the Betty Crocker. Next month, she will graduate high school; I wonder what new counter clutter gadget her boyfriend will buy her.

Post Date Sunday, May 21, 2006

Endings and Beginnings. All over again. Today was the last day of my long term substitute assignment teaching a kindergarten class. For me, it was like a vacation. Usually, I am given difficult classes in the upper elementary grades because I seem to be able to minimize the wild behavior that usually takes place when a substitute teacher arrives.

For the most part, I really enjoyed having my own class. Relatively speaking, the class was a very good group of kids… Relatively speaking. Any negatives. The little ones don’t really handle being sick very well. All this past week, I’ve been cough on and sneezed on. Today, there were 5 kids out sick. One kid who seemed to be sicker than the others, chose to come to school. I think he wanted the perfect attendance awards (a pencil, a pad, and a certificate). The kid is very nice, but an incredible daydreamer. However, he is the smartest kid in the classroom – also the biggest. He is about 54 cm (over 4 ft. tall). He was also one of the kids who could not tie his shoelaces. His shoelaces were always uneven (and untied). Finally, I told him to tell his mother that he needed new shoe laces. So…she buys the smallest laces that don’t fit his big shoes. I had to tell him to ask his mother for bigger shoelaces. Finally, she bought him a good length of shoelaces, but she still did not teach him to tie his shoelaces.

I got so tired of tying his shoelaces, I took away apart of his play time, to teach him to tie his shoelaces. And once he learned how to tie his shoelaces, what does he do? He teases another student for not knowing how to tie their shoelaces.

Anyway, I spent all day (all week actually) telling this child to cover (and/or turn) his head when he coughed or sneezed. All day, I had this kid coughing (and sneezing) on me or anyone nearby. It took every ounce of willpower to not strangle him. Now I sit here typing with a headache and a runny nose.

Other than the colds going around the classroom, I enjoyed my time there. Today was my last day. The regular teacher will return on Monday. It took me about 3 hours to pack my things, clean up the classroom, organize the work (and materials) that I used these last couple of months, and write a report (briefly outlining what I did in the classroom). I divided up the students work into piles according to curriculum topic. I labeled most of the assignments (and each pile) with post its. I then laid the piles on an unused desk. When the regular teacher walks in, she will know within a couple of minutes what was done in her absence. I will attach a photo of the end product. All in all, I left that classroom much cleaner (and organized) than I found it. I'll also attach a photo of a bulletin board display of the kindergarteners work.

I finished up about 6:30, and returned to my shoebox. Anything new in the shoe (box)? Oh, let’s see. Someone tried to set the front door (of the building) on fire, leaving the plastic window on the door slightly burnt, and the curtain with a hole the size of a grapefruit. The building manager had the door replaced. However, there is still a leak near the kitchen area.

And finally, last night, I saw a rat in the hall when I stepped out of my room. It was the first time I’d seen a rat inside. I told my neighbor (the screamer) about the rat when I walked in the building (the building manager put the door up yesterday evening without giving anyone keys (until today). My neighbor let me into the building. Sorry, I am getting sidetracked.

When I told my neighbor about the rat sighting, about 3 minutes later, she removes the dirty dishes that were in her room and leaves those dirty dishes on the kitchen counter (plates still containing bits and pieces of food not eaten). And how are things going for you?

Post Date Sunday, May 21, 2006 7:22pm

Quick entry. Today was relatively nice. Nothing much to report about class, I just have another 3 days before the regular teacher returns. I managed to leave school at 3:35. My plan was to make some photo copies for school, and pick up the ingredients for baked macaroni & cheese (today was payday). I ended up spending about an hour at the copy center making copies for the next 3 days. After returning to my shoebox, I quickly changed my clothes and went to the store to pick up the ingredients for baked mac. After returning to my shoebox, I find my neighbor (the screamer) in the kitchen starting to cook. As I am putting my ingredients away (to wait yet another day), my neighbor tells me that I could share the kitchen with her (because it is everybody’s kitchen). That was very nice of her to say (and true); she is actually a very nice young lady when she isn’t screaming and hollering. Unfortunately, I am not the kind of person who can just jump into someone else’s space. At that moment she had all of her ingredients on the counter, so I took a pass. I exercised on my rowing machine for about 30 minutes. I ate about a quart of rainbow sherbet and a breakfast cereal bar, and drank a mug of hot green tea. I then fell asleep.

Post Date Sunday, May 21, 2006 7:15pm

Central Park Zoo. Today as a substitute, I had to take my (kindergarten) class to the Central Park Zoo. I was nervous, but the trip turned out to be very nice. The program was very well organized. Basically, the program divided up each class (there were two from my school) and paired the small groups with park volunteers; the job of the teacher was just to supervise. I enjoyed the trip very much! I didn’t take many photos (only about 2). Too often, schools (where I’ve done subbing) have shown a dislike for me taking photos of the students when the students are going wild. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been told, “oh no, you can’t take photos of the children without parents written permission. But if it is “related to school (translation = kids not shown wild and out of control) then it is okay to take their photos. So being the stubborn person that I am, I didn’t feel like guessing what photos would be okay to take, so I did not take any (of the kids). Relatively speaking, the kids were all nicely behaved. The other teacher I was with seemed a bit more relaxed.

After we returned to school it was time for the kids to leave. A good class trip is one when the kids return right at dismissal time. Today was the first time in a long time that I was able to leave school at 3pm. Except the assistant principal’s late approval of the homework sheet, meant that the kids did not receive their homework packet at dismissal time. But being the person that I am, I stayed after to write the students’ name on the packets and distribute the homework to the kids (most of who) were in the after-school program. At this school (and most of the schools that I’ve subbed at), the school policy is to give kids homework every day.

I was out of the building at 3:33 (still an early time for me). After stopping off at copy center, I returned to my shoebox.

My plan was to do the laundry, make some bake chicken and bake macaroni & cheese. When I told the boyfriend that I was planning to make some mac and cheese, he told me that he was also planning to cook after I was finished. Stupid me, I assumed that he meant he (or his girlfriend) would come into the kitchen sometime after I was finished (or nearly finished [as in the case of previous instances]). l went to the Laundromat to get my clothes out of the dryer. I was gone no more than 4 or 5 minutes (the Laundromat is in the building next door), When I returned, both the boyfriend and his girlfriend (the screamer) were in the kitchen cooking (he frying something, she making a cake). With my chicken still in the oven, my neighbor (the screamer decides that she wants to bake a cake (no special occasion she just felt like making a cake) and wondered how long I would need the stove.

When they finished in the kitchen, my other neighbor (40+) started cooking his dinner, The kitchen was free about 9pm. So once again it was canned soup (with the baked chicken that I had made that earlier).

Oh, my neighbor offered to share the cake she baked, it was a little over cooked, but it was good.

Tomorrow, I am going to try leaving the school between 3:30 and 4pm, so I can post this blog entry along with the last 2 or 3.

Post Date Sunday, May 21, 2006 6:58pm

For the last couple of days I’ve been subbing for a 1st grade teacher. I later found out that she was out with strepp throat. I thought that I’d seen a wild 1st grade class, but nothing compared to this class. There were about 3 or 4 wild boys in this class. What shocked me the most wasn’t the flips, or the throwing of objects across the room. What shocked me the most was the level of vulgarity that came out of a couple of the boys’ mouths. They knew every curse word in the book. One boy (after calling another boy’s mother a b***th) threatened to beat down the other boy and piss on him. I could not believe this was coming from a 6 year old boy. Did I tell the mother? No. I thought it would have been a waste of time. By now, I am becoming increasingly cynical about some parents’ parenting abilities. Anyway, I did get a chance to meet the mother a few times during dismissal time (when she came to pick up her son).

First encounter, she wanted to know everything. Even asked me to write a daily journal about anything and everything her son did.

Been there. Done That.

Second encounter, Cautiously taking the written report (at the same time keeping one eye over her shoulder to see who was listening), and quickly changing the subject.

Third encounter. “Another boy just viciously hit my son when you weren’t looking”. Which negated anything I could have said about her precious little man. I could go on, but what is the point.

Next topic.

After procrastinating all weekend (and not doing my laundry), I had to do my laundry on Monday evening. I decided to go to the small Laundromat in the building next door. As I was taking my clothes out of the dryer, a loud young lady (in a red jacket) came through the door. She briefly rambled on about returning to the old neighborhood to “see who was renting her apartment”. After I finished in the laundry, I started to walk back to my shoebox. Guess what? The same loud young lady (in the red jacket) was on the sidewalk (in front of my building) talking to some friends. In total, there were about 5 people blocking the sidewalk. The young lady (in the red jacket) had her back to me talking to her friends. As I approached the group, I said politely “excuse me”. No one moves. I said excuse me again. The young lady slowly turns around and looks at me (without moving). She looks to her left and right side as if to suggest that I should walk around. The only way I could have walked around (if I were to actually consider it) would have been to take a couple of steps back, walk into the street and around the car parked next to the sidewalk; the young lady must have realized that because she reluctantly moved to one side. To explain the interruption, I said, “I live in this building”. She said, “I don’t give a f**k where you live. I live in that building over there”. She then bursts out laughing. I was in the laundry so I know that she used to live in the building across the street. She told the laundry worker (and anyone in ear shot) that she had moved about a month ago.

I have about 2 more examples of vulgar language (and behavior) of mothers with child(ren), but I think you get the mental picture.

Attached is a photo of my building and neighborhood.

Post Date Sunday, May 21, 2006 6:58pm

Yesterday on a bit of an impulse, I bought a microwave and toaster; I got tired of cleaning my neighbors’ appliances. It was very nice that they were so comfortable with sharing their appliances, but I’d often had the nagging feeling that borrowing from them came with a price. Then again, it could just be my imagination.

Anyway, I brought a microwave and toaster after getting off the train on my way home from work. The microwave was on sale $48.76 (with tax). I passed on buying the store’s extended warranty: the microwave came with a one year warranty. I thought a small microwave would not weight much, and I would not have any trouble carrying it the 15 minute walk to my shoebox. When will I learn that few things in life are as easy as they seem.

In my shoebox, I unpacked the microwave and plugged it in. And…it didn’t work. No matter what button I pushed, no matter what I tried. More than that, the receipt had written on it, “Appliances are Not Returnable or Sold On A Trial Basis”. I don’t think I’ve ever bought something under warranty that did not work right out of the box. I thought I got shafted, but I was able to return the microwave with only a typical problem you would find in the ghetto…waiting. Before bringing the (heavy) microwave to the store, I made sure I would be able to return the microwave. I brought my receipt and I went to a manager-looking clerk. Once he saw that the microwave was purchased yesterday, he said that it would be no problem to exchange the microwave. I brought the microwave to the store, and I waited, and I waited, and I waited.

The old couple in front of me couldn’t decide on whether to buy a camcorder or not.
Other clerks would pull my clerk away for one reason or another.
The salesclerk had allergy attacks, and needed to stop about every 10 minutes for a sneezing frenzy.
The clerk had to find out what was the procedure for returns.
Customers having questions that needed answering.

Once the clerk had taken the microwave and the receipt, he became my clerk; I couldn’t just go to another clerk. Besides, the other clerk (behind the counter) seemed just as busy.

Once the clerk finally gave my return his full attention, he was told that he had to test the microwave to make sure it didn’t work. To make the exchange, the clerk had to enter data into the computer, but a previous clerk didn’t log out, so my clerk (and I) had to wait for that clerk. In total I was kept waiting for more than an hour (1 hour and 26 minutes to be exact).

Post Date Sunday, May 04, 2006 6:52pm