so freaked out....

to log into facebook and see this in the "people you might know" thing:

yikes....

happies and crappies

Haven't done this for a while: Happies: * Overall things have been going really well at work. I'm caught up on things, I'm in the groove, I'm tackling things that have been lingering around on my desk for ages. Feels much better. * Isaac got his report card today and it was wonderful. I'm a proud mom. * I think I've gotten a handle on my spamming e-mail account. Sorry again about that. Hope no one clicked any links. Apparently one of the subjects was "I'm so depressed" and it was sent at 3 in the morning. I guess it had my parents a little concerned. Oops. * I have fun weekend plans: DJ DJ who exclusively spins Michael Jackson, Prince and Madonna. Can't wait. * My powercord for my home laptop is on it's way. I can't wait to get it. I have been getting by bringing my work laptop home, but I miss my itunes! * My compromise with Isaac on school clothes has been working out well. We alternate who chooses outfits on school days and it has helped cut back on tense before school fights. I'm not thrilled that he wants to wear sweat pants and track suits exclusively, but my mom picked him up some cute ones, so it could be worse I guess. Crappies * I had a great lead on a summer job. I e-mailed my resume and heard back from the HR lady a day later. She sent me some info via e-mail and asked me to get back to her. I contacted her the next day (and several times since via phone and e-mail!!) but she hasn't gotten in contact with me at all. Not sure what to make of that. I thought it was a done deal but apparently not. And that was really my only lead. Booo. * A co-worker at my job was ridiculously rude to me at work. Like full on screaming at me in front of my students. It was so unexpected and out of no where, that, two days later I am still reeling from it. * For some reason I can't read any blogs with a "Shabby Blogs" template. I can only see their header-- none of their content. Any thoughts?

weekend update

I forgot to take out our (very few) St. Patrick's decorations thisyear. I did get out our (very few) spring decorations up this weekend. There were a few nods to our Irish side around though. Isaac made this cute little leprauchan at school. And we made these cookies from a recipe I found in a magazine my mom left here. They turned out cute I thought (not bad for a first attempt,) but the recipe was a little dry. Or I overcooked them. Could definitely be that too. A few seconds in the microwave before helped a lot. I had a lovely weekend. Friday I did a little shopping at the outlets. GAP/Banana frequently sends the teachers in my school 40% off coupons, so I couldn't resist. I didn't go crazy but I did pick up a few things including a 6 dollar pencil skirt from Banana that was originally 60 bucks. I love high quality clothes that are 90% off!

I also got this cute cardigan. It is such a pretty spring color. Saturday was a leisurely day spent with friends that I don't see too often. Sunday I went to my old singles ward in the city and then went to my brother's house for dinner. His girlfriend Kami was there and my parents came out too. It was a really fun time. We played Monopoly Junior (actually not too tedious for a kid's game) and The Game of Things which was quite fun. We took the dog out to play for a bit before we headed home.

It was a lovely weekend, and probably my last totally free one for a while because spring soccer starts up shortly. That keeps us busy for a while.

In other news, my computer apparently has some kind of virus that is causing my old Hotmail account to spam my contacts repeatedly. I'm sorry about that-- please don't click on any links in the e-mails. I've tried a few different things but hopefully tomorrow I can get the tech guys at my work to get it back in working order. I am using my work computer exclusively while I am waiting for a new power cord for my home laptop to arrive, so I don't want this one out of commission too. At any rate, feel free to add that e-mail to your block list. I will just use my g-mail one from here on out.

Anyways, I need to keep working on a few odds and ends for work and then get to bed. Hope your weekend was lovely and THINK SPRING!

who cares if you disagree?

Do you guys know about Meghan Tonjes? I just discovered her recently and I looooooooooooooove her. And she did this cute cover of one of my favorite songs.

The Blueberry Story

I've been asked recently, if I am in a teacher's union. I didn't realize that in other parts of the country there are teachers who teach in public schools who choose to not join one. The answer is yes, I am. I don't know personally know any teachers that teach in PA who are not in one. It's a crazy world out there and if some parent decides they are going to sue their teacher because they don't like the grade their kid got, it's nice to have some protection. At any rate, the president of our teacher's union passed this along, and I thought it was great. It's a perfect illustration of why the education world does not equal the business world and why, imo, people like Bill Gates have absolutely no place in it. The Blueberry Story A business leader learns his lesson. by Jamie Robert Vollmer 'If I ran my business the way you people operate your schools, I wouldn't be in business very long!" I stood before an auditorium filled with outraged teachers who were becoming angrier by the minute. My speech had entirely consumed their precious 90 minutes of in- service training. Their initial icy glares had turned to restless agitation. You could cut the hostility with a knife. I represented a group of business people dedicated to improving public schools. I was an executive at an ice cream company that became famous in the middle-1980s when People Magazine chose its blueberry flavor as the "Best Ice Cream in America." I was convinced of two things. First, public schools needed to change; they were archaic selecting and sorting mechanisms designed for the Industrial Age and out of step with the needs of our emerging "knowledge society." Second, educators were a major part of the problem: They resisted change, hunkered down in their feathered nests, protected by tenure and shielded by a bureaucratic monopoly. They needed to look to business. We knew how to produce quality. Zero defects! Total Quality Management! Continuous improvement! A school is not an ice cream company: It can't send back its inferior blueberries. In retrospect, the speech was perfectly balanced—equal parts ignorance and arrogance. As soon as I finished, a woman's hand shot up. She appeared polite, pleasant. She was, in fact, a razor-edged, veteran high school English teacher who had been waiting to unload. She began quietly, "We are told, sir, that you manage a company that makes good ice cream." I smugly replied, "Best ice cream in America, ma'am." "How nice," she said. "Is it rich and smooth?" "Sixteen percent butterfat," I crowed. "Premium ingredients?" she inquired. "Super-premium! Nothing but triple-A." I was on a roll. I never saw the next line coming. "Mr. Vollmer," she said, leaning forward with a wicked eyebrow raised to the sky, "when you are standing on your receiving dock and you see an inferior shipment of blueberries arrive, what do you do?" In the silence of that room, I could hear the trap snap. I was dead meat, but I wasn't going to lie. "I send them back." "That's right!" she barked, "and we can never send back our blueberries. We take them big, small, rich, poor, gifted, exceptional, abused, frightened, confident, homeless, rude, and brilliant. We take them with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, junior rheumatoid arthritis, and English as their second language. We take them all. Every one. And that, Mr. Vollmer, is why it's not a business. It's school." In an explosion, all 290 teachers, principals, bus drivers, aides, custodians, and secretaries jumped to their feet and yelled, "Yeah! Blueberries! Blueberries!" Schools reflect the attitudes, beliefs, and health of the communities they serve, and therefore, to improve public education means more than changing our schools, it means changing America. And so began my long transformation. Since then, I have visited hundreds of schools. I have learned that a school is not a business. Schools are unable to control the quality of their raw material, they are dependent upon the vagaries of politics for a reliable revenue stream, and they are constantly mauled by a howling horde of disparate, competing customer groups that would send the best CEO screaming into the night. None of this negates the need for change. We must change what, when, and how we teach to give all children maximum opportunity to thrive in a postindustrial society. But educators cannot do this alone; these changes can occur only with the understanding, trust, permission, and active support of the surrounding community. For the most important thing I have learned is that schools reflect the attitudes, beliefs, and health of the communities they serve, and therefore, to improve public education means more than changing our schools, it means changing America. Jamie Robert Vollmer, a former business executive and attorney, is now a keynote presenter and consultant who works to increase community support for public schools. He lives in Fairfield, Iowa, and can be reached by e-mail at jamie@jamievollmer.com.

survey

Favorite time of day: That hour or so after Isaac goes to bed before I fall asleep. Favorite season: Oh gosh...I love them all for different reasons! Spring for the all the flowers blooming and just that feeling of renewal and life. Fall because it is sooooooooooo beautiful. Summer because of vacation and minimal work and the beach and family memories. Winter because of snow days and the holiday merriment. Favorite month: August. We tend to take our family vacation in August and then there is all of the fun back to school stuff. I love the anticipation of a new school year. Favorite holiday: Christmas :) Halloween is a close second.

Favorite subject in school: In high school I loved English and writing. In college I loved psychology classes, especially abnormal psych. After getting my undergrad and Masters...I'm over school for a little bit. When I pay down my student loans perhaps more school is in my future! One of my longterm goals is to get my doctorate. Favorite channel: Probably A and E. I actually don't watch too much TV these days though. Favorite color: pink! Favorite song: Oh gosh, so many. Catapult by Counting Crows will always be a favorite.

Favorite movie: Lars and the Real Girl Favorite celebrity: I do love Adam Duritz Favorite kind of music: Depends. As a general rule, I like pretty much all pop. Favorite TV show: Rupaul's Drag Race,Obsessed, Pushing Daisies, Intervention, Hoarders, Heavy, Beyond Scared Straight, Project Runway. Favorite thing to do: spend time with family, read, run around Philly with friends, go out to eat. Favorite place in the world: Jersey Shore. I'm a simple girl. Give me a beach, a good book, some fudge, and a porch swing and I'm good. Favorite hobby: Zumba. Favorite kind of animal: the cats. I have one good one and one naughty one.... Guess which one is running along the top of my kitchen cabinets? Favorite place to live: I liked living in Oaks. After Isaac is all raised I would like to live in Rittenhouse in the city. Favorite place to vacation: I've never been anywhere too exotic but anywhere I can get a tan is nice :) I really enjoyed spending time at my parent's time share in Orlando. Favorite restaurant: Oh gosh. I don't know. Anything with really good mexican food. Locally, I like every Stephen Starr restaraunt I've set foot in. Favorite food: ice cream :) Favorite thing to cook: Ha! Me? Cook? I make a mean grilled cheese. Favorite drink: Diet Coke. Favorite chore: folding clothes...for some reason I really don't mind this chore! Favorite makeup: Still loving Bare Minerals. Favorite hair products: I like Herbal Essenses. Nothing fancy anymore. Favorite lotion: Bath and Body Works Moonlight Path :) Favorite perfume: I really like Victoria Secret's Pink with a Splash. Also can't go wrong with Candies... Favorite blogger: Sooooooooo many. I love blogs and spend far too much time reading them.

• There's people I know IRL (Deeva has Spoken, Because All The Cool People Are Doing It)
• People I barely know IRL whose blogs I follow and enjoy (not linking up for fear of outing myself as a creeper)
• People I know in IRL who's blogs are not super interesting to me, but that I read occasionally to be supportive (sorry Tushar, tech talk is Greek to me--- Technical Fowl)
• Education reform type blogs (Leaving Behind the PSSA)
• Classroom idea blogs (Sarah's First Grade Snippets)
• Blogs by moms I met when I was pregnant on a babycenter forum and we've been in touch ever since watching our kids grow up (Tea and Topaz)
• Single gal blogs(Pillow Talk is Extra)
• Single mom blogs(Single Mom Survives!),
• Single Mormon girl blogs (The Law of Chastity and the Modern Mormon Girl

I could go on and on. I'm sure I probably have at least 100 blogs in my reader. Favorite thing to blog about: oh about anything. I always get a good response to the "e-harmony reject pile" posts. Favorite books: Oh gosh. I don't know. I try to read most of the current "Best Sellers". Also a fan of fluffy "Chick Lit". Favorite thing to wear: Sundress, flip flops, huge sunglasses. Favorite kind of day: One where I can sleep in, eat lunch my mom or girlfriends, Zwahlen's, some kind of fun adventure somewhere locally, a long, hot shower, then bed! Favorite memory: How do you choose a favorite? Disney with my parents and sister last year was a fantastic memory...

What I Love lately...

This necklace from Lia Sophia. My friend is having a party next week and I was browsing around on their sight to see if there was anything I could afford that appealed to me. This one is so darling.

Celestial Seasonings in Lemon Zinger. I have been starting off my mornings at work with this and also sipping on it in the evenings. So yummy... Ulta Eyeshadow in Peacock. My friend's sister works for Ulta and she tossed me a ton of full sized eye shadows. I ignored this one for a while because I felt like it was too wacky but it's actually very pretty. I wore it Friday night to my friend's birthday party and today for church. It's highly pigmented but it blends nicely. This song by Tiny Vipers. (Disclaimer - I am known to like really depressing music). My friend dragged me along to see her at Burlap and Bean last weekend. Honestly, she is a little on the awkward side live but I've been obsessed with this song ever since. I think it's so pretty especially 3:14 on.