stuff, also me saying stuff
That's fair!
Hey, if you're not using that DVD set...
>.>
<.<
*cough*
Oh! Hey, how was meeting Ms. Strong?
Also, in your opinion, who is your favorite PPG, and who is your favorite pony?
EDIT: I'm certain my motivations aren't that transparent...
*gets dressed*
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My kids go to public school, but it's the ones (one kid is in elementary, one in middle school) where all the local celebrities send their kids, so it's pretty much the same crowd as a Montessori school. :-)
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You forgot to ask "How dare you!" and "As if!"
If you start out with an accusation and strong rebuttal you've already gained the upper hand.
Or not.
I'm not really sure how interviews are supposed to work.
Which is probably why Access Hollywood hasn't called me back (I'm going to assume the restraining order is unrelated).
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Follow up question: I'm assuming that four people can play Champions on one PS3, but I haven't found anything that explicitly says so. Am I right?Looking for a good multiplayer rpg/cooperative game to play with my family with our Wii or PS3. Any recommendations? Doesn't need to be strictly rated-G, but we want to avoid gratuitous nudity, sexy-times, and culturally maladjusted language. Thanks!The original Trine was quite good, if a bit short. And it's only 3 player.
The four of us enjoyed the Champions of Norrath series, but I'll admit, it's definitely not for everyone.
Yes. We have played Champions of Norrath 4-player, though the version we played all the way through was for PS2. I'm pretty sure we got the PS3 one and could also play 4 players at once.
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Hating my job today.
All preschoolers can be a*##!#&s sometimes; I don't usually mind because it's usually unintentional.
But the wealthier and more entitled the family, the less discipline and guidance the child gets at home, which means the greater the degree of IDGAF behavior at school.
Which brings me to the lengthy rant I swear I am not going to go into today about how Montessori was never meant to be for the wealthy and entitled, but for children of the working class.
I really, really want a drink tonight.My kids also go to a Montessori charter school. The school has policies about bullying, but it still happens. Some kids get detention, but they can not stop all of it. Kids can be, and often are mean. My oldest boy gets picked on sometimes. His older sister often protects others from getting picked on physically, but I have caught her teasing. I had to stop her. Its as if she did not know it was hurtful until I asked her how she would feel if someone said that to her.
I find that many successful parents are driven individuals, but it is towards work not family. So the kids do not get the discipline they need.
What surprises me is that our school district has a very strict "no bullying" policy to the point that if you or your child report it, the parents are immediately called in.
And maybe it's because Albany is such a ludicrous school district, but as far as I can tell from being a parent of a tiny kid (Impus Major), an overweight kid with glasses (Impus Minor), and a chaperone on a lot of trips, it really seems to work. The couple of times I've heard of (very minor) bullying, I've reported it, the staff has responded immediately, and then the staff followed up with both the student who was bullied and me to make sure the situation was resolved.
So it's active staff, active parents, and zero tolerance, and it really seems to work in our school district.
YMMV.
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Hating my job today.
All preschoolers can be a*##!#&s sometimes; I don't usually mind because it's usually unintentional.
But the wealthier and more entitled the family, the less discipline and guidance the child gets at home, which means the greater the degree of IDGAF behavior at school.
Which brings me to the lengthy rant I swear I am not going to go into today about how Montessori was never meant to be for the wealthy and entitled, but for children of the working class.
I really, really want a drink tonight.My kids also go to a Montessori charter school. The school has policies about bullying, but it still happens. Some kids get detention, but they can not stop all of it. Kids can be, and often are mean. My oldest boy gets picked on sometimes. His older sister often protects others from getting picked on physically, but I have caught her teasing. I had to stop her. Its as if she did not know it was hurtful until I asked her how she would feel if someone said that to her.
I find that many successful parents are driven individuals, but it is towards work not family. So the kids do not get the discipline they need.
This is greatly problematic aspect for parents, and I've seen it myself.
I will note that my Eldest went to a Montessori school as well - he started when he was very small, and there was about, maybe, three incidents reported to me of him engaging in overly-aggressive behavior. My response to the first - where he took a girl's head piece and threw it - kiiiiiiiind of terrified the teacher, I think , and I think she might have even been worried about his well-being. (She needn't have been. But pretty sure she kind of was, at least at first - this was, like, the third day of school, and he was three, so she hadn't gotten to know me or know that I'm basically a big, loud marshmallow, that can't threaten much at all. We eventually got to know each other.)
As a new parent I made the mistake of dressing him down publicly. That said, as I handled all future ones (after pulling him aside), I forced him to go look whatever victim in the eyes and say, "I'm sorry." followed by two apology notes (one to the teacher and one to the student), and then replacing whatever was damaged or broken (which he loved doing because he thought that she'd like it a lot; also thus might have been the only time something was broken, but that's our policy, if we can afford it). To this day we've had only those three incidents that I've been made aware of.
(Of course, it definitely helps that I have literally two of the kindest and most gentle children on Earth. Like, I know that I was not this kind and gentle...)
In any event, it can actually be work. It's the most important work, though, as if your kids miss out on the idea that they must be good to others, they miss out on the fundamental basis for most morality.
Anyway, hoping this resolves itself.
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Ah, ninja'd by NH, but I'm leaving my post as-is. I got stuff to do! (Maybe.)
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No one's been by my Skyrim rampage thread (except Swarth Sharoth and John, who are awesome!).
Here's where it really starts to get good.
Ediot: stupid computer! where's my phone...
Edit 2: The Edited Edit:
Edit 3 (starring Brad Pitt): Okay, Lets try that again
Edit 4: Finding Nero's Mom: Here we go!... i hope...
Edit 5: (oh come on!): Nero's mom! lol!
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^^^this post keeps getting better - but stop making laugh hard enough to go into coughing fits!^^^
(Though, uh, that does tell me that I am not in good enough shape for TKD, today. Again. Dang it!)
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NobodysHome’s Life of a Chaperone, Part IX: The Wheels Fall Off
Over my lifetime, I've found that there are two types of people in a crisis: Those who suddenly become very focused and start ordering other people around, and those who freeze up and wait for others to tell them what to do. And you never know which one you are until you're in one. I am fortunate in that I am a Type I. I am equally fortunate that all of the other chaperones were either of the, "OK, this is what needs to be done" or, "OK, tell me what to do and I'll do it right now" type.
Saturday, April 8, 9:00 pm - Sunday, April 9, 2:00 am
So, one of the reasons I was so inundated with texts on the way down was that Team Awesome Soda was gleefully using their channel to describe their fates on the trip, with everyone deciding that poor Lon was going to die in some horrible manner, either by being run over by a bus, left behind, or whatnot. Ms. S encouraged them, so it was a running joke by the end of the trip.
Imagine the irony when I got a call at 11 pm from Kole that Lon was in really bad shape at the park. A had just texted that she was leaving the park, so I immediately instructed Kole to call her and texted her to wait for Kole's call. As they were headed towards each other, the other chaperones chimed in, all offering to help. It was a fantastic, fast reaction to our first "crisis", and once A reached Lon I'd already offered to pick them up, so by the time her text came back, "Yes, please," I was on my way.
Lon was in really bad shape. He had a severe headache, sore throat, and couldn't stand. He was coherent, but had difficulty focusing. We initially diagnosed him with heat stroke, but he insisted it was a pre-existing condition he'd had before, but it was far, far worse this time because he'd tried to ignore it and "power through" the day at the park.
Ah, young men! Always "powering through" everything until they keel over. It's... less-than-charming, but somewhat amusing, because I know I was much the same.
As I got A and Lon back to the hotel, I dropped them at the front door then got to the gated parking lot only to find a "lot full" notice. Don't get me started on a hotel with a strict "one car per room" policy that hands out parking tickets as reluctantly as gold nuggets, yet which somehow still gives out more tickets than there are spaces (apparently there was a "special event" at the hotel, and the opportunity to make extra cash by charging for special parking outweighed their customers' convenience. What a suprise!) So while several of the chaperones were ensuring that Lon got into a room lying down with some ibuprofen and water, I was sitting double-parked in the lot waiting for another chaperone to call the front desk to find out what I could do with the van.
Eventually, I got word that I could double-park in any red zone for the night. Fire hazard? Naaaaah...
While I was waiting, Impus Major informed me that he and Z had returned, and Ms. S informed me that Z was in bad shape, and had kicked Impus Major out of our room. Aw, carp!
I raced upstairs, only to encounter a fundamentally different person from Z's normal self. I don't know how many of you are familiar with people with clinical, chemically-induced depression, but the person to whom I was speaking was not Z. He lashed out at me with a great deal of anger, saying that all he wanted was to be left alone. There was even some mild sense of physical aggression, but I didn't feel particularly threatened by that aspect of it -- I was far more worried for his safety.
So to avoid a physical confrontation, I stepped out of the door and texted D. No response. WTF?!? I called. No answer! In other words, after an entire trip of, "NobodysHome, can you tell me where we're going next? NobodysHome, I'm lost. Where should I be? NobodysHome, what's happening tonight?", all so she could be there if Z had a meltdown so she could assist, at the moment of greatest crisis when I needed to know whether it was safe to leave him alone or whether I should stay and risk a physical altercation, she wasn't there!
To say I was pissed would be a vast understatement. I had to make a decision that might kill a student if I chose incorrectly. But he really seemed more wound up and angry than self-destructive, so I made the decision to trust him that he'd text me before doing anything dire.
The reason was simple: We were short on chaperones. Not only did Lon need monitoring in case we needed to call 911 for him, but nearly 100 students were returning from the now-closed Disneyland (it was after midnight) and they needed to be herded onto the buses, but one of the two bus drivers was missing (he was remarkable in being at least 15 minutes late every single time he was supposed to show up), and some of the chaperones were still at the park, herding the final students back to the hotel. We all needed to be moving and herding and organizing. It wasn't that I was so fundamentally critical; once again I'll say this is the best group of chaperones I've ever worked with, bar none. It was that there was so much work to do, and we were so short-handed.
Miracles occurred. I think it was CK who put one of our most responsible students (who was also staying the night to catch an early morning flight) in charge of watching over Lon. Ms. S visited Z, and convinced him to allow Impus Major into the room. I don't know what it is about Impus Major, but as I've said, similar to me, he seems to have a calming influence on those around him. He has not one but two chronically-depressed "best friends", and he manages to keep both of them stable. And he frequently comes to me with, "Dad? I have no idea how to deal with my friends when they get really sad and start crying."
"You're there for them, Impus Major. And the fact that they keep coming to you means that that's enough."
The bus driver showed up. A full 20 minutes after I called her, D called back and immediately got in touch with Z. She told me all Z wanted was to get to sleep, so I should let him.
So, much herding and organizing later, by around 1:15 am the buses were on their way, and CK, G, and I headed back to our rooms. We had the responsible kid (I'm done making up names, so yeah, just him) slept in Lon's room. G and I were in neighboring rooms, with Z and Impus Major in my room. As a final incensing moment, after Z had blissfully fallen asleep, D called him again to check up on him, waking him up!!!
Y'know, if your suicidal son says, "All I need is sleep, mom," then WHY THE **** ARE YOU CALLING HIM AND WAKING HIM UP? I got him calmed again, and waited for him to start snoring again before I finally got my own rest, shortly after 2:00 am.
he was remarkable in being at least 15 minutes late every single time he was supposed to show up
Wait. Waaaaiiiiiit. I wasn't... I wasn't supposed to... this... isn't me, right? Riiiiiiiiiiiight?
*goes into existential crisis*
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I've taken a 1 hour nap and so many things happened here meanwhile! It's difficult to keep track.
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Hating my job today.
All preschoolers can be a*##!#&s sometimes; I don't usually mind because it's usually unintentional.
But the wealthier and more entitled the family, the less discipline and guidance the child gets at home, which means the greater the degree of IDGAF behavior at school.
Which brings me to the lengthy rant I swear I am not going to go into today about how Montessori was never meant to be for the wealthy and entitled, but for children of the working class.
I really, really want a drink tonight.My kids also go to a Montessori charter school. The school has policies about bullying, but it still happens. Some kids get detention, but they can not stop all of it. Kids can be, and often are mean. My oldest boy gets picked on sometimes. His older sister often protects others from getting picked on physically, but I have caught her teasing. I had to stop her. Its as if she did not know it was hurtful until I asked her how she would feel if someone said that to her.
I find that many successful parents are driven individuals, but it is towards work not family. So the kids do not get the discipline they need.
This is greatly problematic aspect for parents, and I've seen it myself.
I will note that my Eldest went to a Montessori school as well - he started when he was very small, and there was about, maybe, three incidents reported to me of him engaging in overly-aggressive behavior. My response to the first - where he took a girl's head piece and threw it - kiiiiiiiind of terrified the teacher, I think , and I think she might have even been worried about his well-being. (She needn't have been. But pretty sure she kind of was, at least at first - this was, like, the third day of school, and he was three, so she hadn't gotten to know me or know...
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¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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Captain Yesterday learned a very important this day about going to a different Rocky Rococo then the one by his job because this one was more convenient.
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You know, people often wonder why I make such enormous posts. Pretty much the entire reason is what happened here: when I try to be more concise, people begin reading detailed emotions, opinions, and concepts that are simply not there.
And I thought you were unable to abbreviate just like me. I thought you were a twin soul. So disappointed.
Just kidding.
Well, I wasn't going to mention that other reason...
Tacticslion, I think you rent your rock from the same people that I do.
Make sure to mention my name to get the discount!
Not feeling my worst.
But not sure that I should be leading a small group in a tiny, confined room with this much coughing, sneezing, and nose-blowing. Pretty sure people wouldn't appreciate that.
I think, instead, I'm going to call it off and order pizza so my boys can eat something and I don't have to breathe on/cook it.
(My wonderful wife is working super late/overtime to make sure her students' play will be ready. Two more days...)
EDIT: clarity
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I used to want kids, until I worked 4 years in the education industry.
Used to.
"But it's different if they're yours."
You're right. You can't walk away, then.
Yes, genetics and environment are in your favor that they'll likely be more tolerable if you raise them and they are similar to you in DNA, but you do still roll the dice. I have a friend with two kids, only a year apart, same parents, same raising pattern, everything - one is an amazing child, one is a horrible little s+%*. Sometimes you roll a natural one.
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I've always wanted kids and I'm feeling frustrated because my economy is not good enough to have kids.
When I read your stories about kids I feel a bit of envy.
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I've always wanted kids and I'm feeling frustrated because my economy is not good enough to have kids.
When I read your stories about kids I feel a bit of envy.
Hmm... an attractive Spaniard who loves to wander around naked in the summer.
Somehow I don't think you'd lack for volunteers to help you produce children on this thread.
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I have volunteers at home. But money doesn't help xD
Nothing like an entire class of schoolchildren with one completely inept teacher suddenly packing into your subway train during your commute to make you despise children. They were painfully loud, some people missed their stop because the kids packed into the isle wouldn't move out of the way so they could get out before the doors closed, and the teacher just stood there screaming various threats at the kids.
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I have volunteers at home...
Aw, don't tell Freehold that! You'll disappoint him!
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You can't wait for the economics to work out, you just gotta do it.
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I guess so, but I've moved less than a year ago and I'm broke right now. So I need at least a year (if I get enough contracts) to recover. I lived on a very complicated situation and I had to move without having enough money to do so. Now I live happily but I am broke.
There is a very nuanced balance between fiscal responsibility and the desire to parent that every family has to find for themselves. In the end, having "enough" before you start will never really pan out (I mean, it does for some people, but that's usually because they start wealthy).
In any event, there will always be financial setbacks and upsets - it's up to you to determine the best way through them, as they come up. If you're willing and you have a good support network of friends and family (something that sometimes only grows up around you after you have children), you can make it through.
Nothing like an entire class of schoolchildren with one completely inept teacher suddenly packing into your subway train during your commute to make you despise children. They were painfully loud, some people missed their stop because the kids packed into the isle wouldn't move out of the way so they could get out before the doors closed, and the teacher just stood there screaming various threats at the kids.Elementary or High School students?
Either elementary or early middle.
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I'm never really bothered by field trip kids on the bus.
I ignore them like everyone else on the bus. :-)
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My condolences. I also have suffered through many such "field trips" while riding mass transit here in Pittsburgh. One time, it got so bad, I began wishing that I could shove rocks in my ears.
Edit: If the teachers cannot control their students, then perhaps the (school) Police might.
[insert angry rant against using police to solve problems with kids]
[Initiating political hyperventilation]
Okay. A little disturbed, now.
My iPad has been "Processing Update" for a day, now, and I can't shut it off to try and break how it's found itself stuck...
Oh come on!
Okay, let's get this done before Fargo comes on.
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Yeah, at this point I'm beyond tirading and just at the point of, "WTF, people?"
I had 4 co-workers: B, W, N, and M. M is new, so he gets a free pass.
But seriously, everybody else?
=====
Manager: Before you go, B, can you take all these labs and update them to the latest Word template?
B: Yeah, no problem!
.
NobodysHome picks up the labs, and finds all kinds of stupid stuff we haven't allowed in years: Soft carriage returns to add screenshots (if you've never seen what that does to PDFs, try it sometime -- it's ugly), misconfigured sub-subbullets, random white space. Just a whole formatting mess.
I can fix it all, but it's not, "Oh, we have this arcane rule where you need to use an 11.7-point font when you're doing this," it's, "We don't use soft carriage returns, ever, so make sure they're all gone."
"Nope. I even added some of my own."
=====
NobodysHome: N, can you take all these PPTs and do (1), (2), (3), and (4)?
N: No problem, NobodysHome!
NobodysHome reviews the PPTs and sees that NONE of the four things have been done. It's not even a partial job. It's just... NOTHING has been done!
NobodysHome: Er, N? You didn't do anything I asked you to do!
N: No problem, NobodysHome! I'll get right on that!
=====
W: NobodysHome, I need you to find the source for all these labs and align them with PPTs. I don't think we have any existing content.
NobodysHome: Wasn't B supposed to have taken care of all of that for you?
W: Yes, but we can't figure out where all his stuff is.
NobodysHome: OK.
NobodysHome: Er, was there something more?
W: How did you do that? I don't think it was all there before!
NobodysHome: ...
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I've always wanted kids and I'm feeling frustrated because my economy is not good enough to have kids.
When I read your stories about kids I feel a bit of envy.
Hmm... an attractive Spaniard who loves to wander around naked in the summer.
Somehow I don't think you'd lack for volunteers to help you produce children on this thread.
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New weapon instruction time!
This evening, we did quarterstaff, in a suitably restrained manner (just as well, since we weren't wearing any protective gear, and getting a belt somewhere bony one of them wouldn't be much fun)
And rapier & cloak, which is always a laugh.
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New weapon instruction time!
This evening, we did quarterstaff, in a suitably restrained manner (just as well, since we weren't wearing any protective gear, and getting a belt somewhere bony one of them wouldn't be much fun)
And rapier & cloak, which is always a laugh.
Do they glue on handlebar mustaches for those that don't have one. :-)
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stuff, also me saying stuffThat's fair!
Hey, if you're not using that DVD set...
>.>
<.<
*cough*
Oh! Hey, how was meeting Ms. Strong?
Also, in your opinion, who is your favorite PPG, and who is your favorite pony?
EDIT: I'm certain my motivations aren't that transparent...
*gets dressed*
it was awesome.
We had all been evacuated due to the fire.
Suddenly a side door opens and she pops out.
Observant fans are observant.
Someone shouts "TARA WE LOVE YOU"
She waves embarrasedly.
Fans try to claim she was waving at them and no-one else.
Fire department is embarrassed.
Pinkie pie is best mane 6.
Luna is best princess.
Maude is best Pie.
Trixie and Starlight have replaced Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara as best bad girls.
I heart griffons, even if they hate everyone else.
Will always love Buttercup.
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Do they glue on handlebar mustaches for those that don't have one. :-)New weapon instruction time!
This evening, we did quarterstaff, in a suitably restrained manner (just as well, since we weren't wearing any protective gear, and getting a belt somewhere bony one of them wouldn't be much fun)
And rapier & cloak, which is always a laugh.
Yeah, but you can't see them behind the masks.
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Oh no, I was just joking! :-)
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That makes sense, I just didn't want you to think I was mad at you or anything. :-)
Aw. I'll miss seeing you around, John, but you do what you gotta.
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Don't worry. We will still be here. It is not like any of us have EVER taken a break from the boards before.*
* Sarcasm alert on the last line.
Just take care of yourself and try to get some rest.