School has begun....

I have had no time for anything other than 2 showers, a you know what, and two point five meals each day. This program that we started ... I stole the idea from other people, primarily my mom, and kept pushing it until "they" said yes ... has been an enormously stressful and time consuming disaster. What is it? Basically the school district says that the students are heterogeneously grouped, but they're really not. ESL students who speak Spanish are kept separate all day. Special needs students (all of them in the grade level) are in one homeroom filled the rest of the way with gifted students. Those special needs kids only have science and history/health (that's a whole other issue - the kids don't understand that NJ is a state and not a country, but the district thinks it's okay for the social studies teacher to have to spend two days a week on health...can't the gym teacher do that? I'm sure they'd want to if they knew their students think that we live in the country of New Jersey). The special needs kids don't have me for math or problem solving or my co workers for reading or writing...so those periods the gifted students, who aren't most in need of lots of one on one time with us are in a small group setting multiple times during the day. Others, who are borderline in need or special classes, are packed into other groups b/c the group with the special needs and gifted students has a cap on it. So I'll have a math class with lots of troubled learners...24 kids, then I'll have a class of gifted kids...8 kids. How is this okay?

In an attempt to help us move towards a better situation I suggested (rather nagged) that we have heterogeneous homerooms and that those homerooms would travel JUST to the activity classes together (world language, gym, art, computers, and music). The district chose this year to impose on us teachers another turd-tastic program that they chose not to have staff test run before purchase. Last few years it was an online plan book/teacher web page combo. I hate it, it sux, the web page doesn't accept hardly any widgets. Now it's an online gradebook. While I love the idea, had they asked me to try it (I would have volunteered w/o pay b/c I'm an idiot) I would have known right away that this would have posed a problem for our heterogeneous groups b/c we would need a middle school format of the program.

People up top I guess don't see the benefit of the program as much as we do on the bottom. I have bilingual students becoming best friends with special needs and regular ed students. My final dream... that science and social studies/health be totally mixed along with activity classes.

I've been crying every other day. People have lost patience with me. I've seriously thought about how Mr. G and I would survive if I quit. I really feel that unless I de-stress I will not get pregnant. So, that's where I've been. What's been up with you?

New Floors! & Some Beautiful Stuff

Got prefinished wood floors in the bedroom upstairs. There used to be nasty 80s purple rug up there with stains in it. Now it's pretty pretty. Slowly but surely the place is coming along.

And I was wandering Etsy and found Siam2U's merch. I'd love to hear from someone who's ordered her stuff. It's beautiful!

I think it's high time Mrs. You know who learns to clean up after herself

I helped my sister, Pepper, clean her art room today. Mostly we were cleaning up the closet she shares with the other art teacher. Sorry, but just to quickly vent...and please, I've thought about bleaching my hair blond so many times...nothing against anyone who does. Normally it looks great...but there are some situations when the chemicals start seeping into your brain...anyway...

Mrs. You-Know-Who-You-Are,

You art so lucky to be teaching with Mrs. Pepper b/c she puts up with your superficial, shamefully horrendous behavior and treats you with the civility and respect that you don't give to her. For the love of the Gods, you should be ashamed that you don't keep track of your supplies and that your younger co worker, her sister (who had a hole-ly classroom of her own to set up thank you very much) and their lupified mother have to come in and clean up after your years of closet neglect! It concerns me that my former students might be subjected to you in the classroom because I have total confidence that you care little for anything beyond yourself. Your dark, dark brown roots are showing; go bathe in peroxide and wash away all those tough thoughts you may be having. PS: Don't ever wear a low cut horizontal striped tank under a t-shirt that doesn't cover your belly or boobies. That's not appropriate attire for school. If even a tom boy like me knows that so should you, blondie.

Love,
GW

Then again, maybe Mom, Pep, and I shouldn't be complaining about our jobs...read this link about a guy who really hates his job.

Pilfered from Cynical - C Blog....possibly the most entertaining blog out there.

In knitting news, I made up a pattern for a holiday themed scarf (I'm sure there are patterns just like it elsewhere, but I've never seen one).

The next pagan holiday I celebrate is Harvest (or Mabon). That's the autumnal equinox so the night and the day are both the same length.

I wanted it to be a little lacy (representing the breeziness of summer) and also see patches of solid stitches (creating warmth for winter).

I wanted it to have both sides of stockinette visible on either side (purls always remind me of moonlight glistening off ripples of water and the v's of knit sides can be compared to the rays of the sun).

So I thought about all of this and came up with a pattern using some Noro Silk Garden Sock that has some autumn-ish flava's to it. I'm just playing with the needle size but will post pics soon.

Hats Done!

Mr. G helped me take the pics but I think they came out funny.

October is Just Around the Corner!

Domestic Witch is encouraging everyone to celebrate October with an October Blog Party.

PS...

Realized I skruwed up Brooklyn Tweed's fair isle hat and had to rip out about ten rows of colorwork. Ooops:)

My school looks like a war zone :(

So I got to school today to do set up (teachers usually go in early -and unpaid, mind you - to set up? Why? 'Cause most of us teach 'cause we love our jobs and not for the fat pay check:) and I find this.

As if my students don't have enough working against them. The sad thing is that with my district's track record I don't know for sure what's going to happen. Will it be fixed? Who knows? In addition to this the nipple-looking leak outside my room pictured in this previous post has gotten much worst (there was a huge 3 by 2 sort of puddle that built up in less than an hour with three garbage cans having 4 inches each of yellow water right below the leak). Also, each of my colleagues has either a 2 by 2 or a 3 by 2 hole in the ceiling or wall (none of those appear to be leaking...yet).

The state is allowing the town to use moneys once destine to fund a new building for us to improve the high school that most of my kids will drop out of b/c they felt like they were pieces of shit in grammar school b/c they went to a turd ball school.

Sorry, but ... my job and my kids .... (yes, I'm goin to type this) ... are so important to me that they are only second to family (including Smudge) and friends .... even above knitting!

What have I been knitting...

This is the Brooklyn Tweed hat I posted about before. Lupie started hers too. She's having sinus problems with the hairiness from the yarn :( But she says she is enjoying it. I like it too. I would like to try it with a solid and a Noro sock as the background. I really like the yarn, Classic Elite Fresco, and will use it again.

Speaking of Lupie, aka my Mama, I just want to thank her so much for getting me my first Kitchenaid. Way more colors than they had way back when my mom got hers. It's a kitchen luxury that my mom always wanted to get for my sister and I as gifts when we were adults with our own households (notice I don't say married - feminist Lupie would never say 'when you're married' to her daughters. She taught us that marriage is great if you want it but not mandatory to reach adulthood).

I haven't used it yet, but every time I look at is I smile and I already have a bunch of ideas about what I wanna do. It's not shiny like most of them are. It has a mat texture. I think it's a more macho version of the original, perfect for a tom boy like me. I haven't seen my sister's yet, but apparently she got her a wasabi colored one. That's so my sister's color. In the pic you can also see some other awesome shit I have. The art nouveau coaster is from Griffin's mom years ago. My sister got me that slamin' Alice in Wonderland mug. The canister set was my grandmother's (Lupie's mom).

And now for some bun stuff. Here's my little lovely.

He is so funny...anyway, that clear ball in the background is a cool toy. It's just like the dog balls that release treats. When a bunny rolls it the treats you put inside come out. He hasn't figured it out yet:) I don't know where it came from...Mr. G got it.

Finally...my guilty pleasure has returned (one of them:)

Project Runway is starting out great. This season, unlike the previous ones on Bravo, is on Lifetime and is taking/took place in LA. I can see no change in the quality of the show since the change in stations. It's too soon for me to have any favorites yet. But if you've never seen it I would recommend you give it a chance. Although I watch Top Chef, The Fashion Show, Split Ends, Big Brother (go Kevin!!!! HOH) I'm not a reality show freak. It has to be fairly interesting and not too insipid to attract my attention. Project Runway, as usual, looks like it's going to be delightful!!!

Lots'a Yarn

Last weekend Mom and I stopped at Yarn Diva in Hillsdale while out. She wound up buying me a Knit Kit. I think Pat said someone had asked her if it was a birth control kit.:)

Pat got her one and she was looking to spread the addiction. As she said on her blog, Mom added a needle to the kit. I'll be doing that too. Above the Knit is pictures from the front with some really vibrant Jitterbug yarn that I picked up at Yarn Diva. Below I'm posting a shot of the back of the Knit with some Aussi sock. That is the same yarn (different colorway) as the yarn I used for the Mary Thank You Socks.

I still have the Lapis Hederas on the needles here next to me. I'm thinking I may give those to Mary as well.

I've made a lot of progress on the BSJ for Mrs. B's new grandbaby.

I think I'm going to make something for the big brother of the new baby, Alex, but I'd want it to be crochet. I've been missing crochet so much. I also sleep with a crochet blanket every night and it's just as snuggly as any knitting! So I'm considering making this Spiderman blanket (Ravelry Link). I'd make one for Griff too, and I'd hope to make one for my other co-worker's son. We will see...that is a buttload of blanket!

Still working on my Clapotis.

It's taking much longer than I'd thought, but then again it is sockish yarn. And it does feel really nice. It's for me, so I'm in no rush.

I've done NOTHING to get ready for school. A little web design on my class site, but it sux so I'll need to re do it. The company that we teachers have our sites through makes good design difficult. Tomorrow (gulp) I'm planning to go in.

Mom, Pepper, and I were supposed to see Julie and Julia today but Pep got sick. Mom and I hadn't been to Stix-n-Stitches in a gillion years so we drove up to Montclair. I miss going there b/c the staff is great. They are so helpful and make everyone feel at home. They truly are a bunch of wonderful broads.

So I'd seen online that another store that had once been in Montclair had relocated. Mom and I decided to drive by and found that they'd moved down the block from Stix. I found this very puzzling. I wish them the best with their venture, and I know Stix will support a fellow yarn store in any appropriate way, but why would you open up a store down the block from another that sells the exact same merch? I also doesn't feel the same as Stix. If I need Rowan and don't want to drive into Hoboken to Patricia's I guess I'd go there, but otherwise I don't think I will. And I think I'd feel totally uncomfortable asking for help there.

While at Stix I finally got to spend the rest of my gift cert from Mom and Dad from December...yes, December! I was really looking for Flat Feet but I couldn't find any. Here's the loot I did get...

Although I love blues I'd never purchased an all blue sock yarn so there it is and it feels great.

I saw that they had all this Araucania Patagonia on sale so I went nuts with that.

I really love this yarn. A few years back I made one of my first sweaters out of it. I don't think I ever posted the final result...I know it's not on my Ravelry, so here's that...

I made it with a huge hood modeled after my favorite sweater ever, some cheep, fuzzy, black cardigan I got for $5 or so at some discount store when I was in college. Both the Patagonia one and the original are very warm, only good for late fall or winter. I knitted on a smaller needle with the cotton to make it heavy and very insulating. I wear it and the original one every day under my coat in the winter.

While at Stix I picked up some yarn to make a fair isle hat with Mom from Brooklyn Tweed's new book (Mom's a Jared Flood fan). Here's the Ravelry link.

The yarn is Fresco from Classic Elite. I eliminated the white from the pattern and changed it to black (I do white as little as humanly possible; my day glow 'how is she a Latin lady' skin it pale enough for any outfit I may wear). There's a pic from Ravelry of the finished fair isle along with a pic of the crochet hat I'm working on now, Raspberry Beret, from the most recent Crochet Today magazine.

Here's what my Raspberry Beret (love that name:) looks like so far...

A bit blurry, but you can see mine it far more grapie. I was originally working on it in Berroco Ultra Alpaca and just b/c I tend to crochet and knit like I'm strangling someone I didn't like the way it was coming out. This is Cascade 220, and the feel is much softer and is better for the pattern.

I did get one more thing at Stix. I saw this woman lugging tons of bags into the store. I didn't know why she was there, but I felt bad she had to do all that on her own. I wish my knee wasn't so screwed up 'cause I would have preferred to help her bring the bags down the steps into Stix, but the least I could do and did was to hold the door so she could just breeze in once she got her shit down stairs. When she was finally done Mom joked that she now needs to pay me in yarn b/c I was such and excellent door lady. She then proceeded to ask me if I like cool or warm colors and handed me a kid socks size piece of Flat Feet.

Turns out she was a yarn company rep and was there to show Sheila (Stix owner) new Fiesta and Flat Feet (really stunning new Fiesta!). I don't ever do shit expecting things back or b/c I'm thinking of the 3 fold law, although I do believe doing good always brings you good in return simply by just feeling good. I just do whatever little shit I do for others b/c that's what every one should do. And really, holding the door? That's just a little bullshit thing. That was really nice that she gave me yarn and I was touched.

In non knitting news...I'm silly often and one silly thing I do every year is watch the tv show Big Brother. This season I've chosen to cheer for Kevin Campell to win.

He was smart to lay low most of the game and although I guess his house mates would disagree he was as loyal as he could be to his allies while still taking part in the game play and not forgetting that he's playing for money. I think this loyalty mixed with reasonable self preservation will come to be the argument for him to win a freakin buttload of cash if he makes it to the end. Go Kevin!!

And don't forget...PROJECT RUNWAY IS BACK!!!!!! More on that next post.