Paura Niente

I feel completely lost. I am now the church choir director, which isn't so bad, it is going to be good for my conducting, especially expression. I get a sweet director's robe thingy. Joy of joys. It's really hard to figure out what to sing. I can sing the soprano part, I don't like it, but I can sing it. The alto part is hard to hear, and our guys don't really sing parts. So I'm trying to cover the tenor part (which I actually can sing really well, it's kind of scary) and also help out the poor altos, who look at me pleading to give them the note. I plunk out the bass line on the piano, so they can at least hear it. Tonight we have rehearsal for our Christmas cantata. Should be fun.

Today at school I made some of my elementary kids write this in their notebooks, because they are my rowdiest, noisiest, meanest class. They had to do it because yesterday there was a lot of yelling, hitting, and laying down. We were playing rhythm baseball, and a couple of kids called it stupid, said it was nothing like real baseball, so why do we have to do it. They laid down in the outfield. After repeatedly telling them to be quiet, I told them tomorrow they would be writing. Quiet- calm, motionless
Sitting- The act or position of one that sits (on your pockets).
I will be kind to my classmates.
They had to write that ten times apiece.
I told them if they could follow instructions and sit silently and write for five minutes, I wouldn't make them write the rest. I said it because I knew they wouldn't be able to. Within 3 minutes I heard a kid making farting noises on his arm, and other kids giggling. "Ms. H this is stupid." "You're the meanest teacher in the school." So I upped the quiet one to 15 times. In another 5 minutes I watched one boy kick another in the side. Thats when the kind one came in. They couldn't do it. They have to finish it tomorrow. They wrote for 20 minutes.
I did have several kids apologize for being mean to each other, and for laughing at the boys' annoying noises. It kills me because EVERY DAY I have to tell them not to hit/kick/slap/pinch etc. etc. I tell them they are not allowed to lay down in music class. I have a behavior log that they write their names in and has its own consequences.

I just don't think they thought I would ever make good on a threat.

After work today, I sat out on my porch swing and enjoyed some nice cranberry juice and The Grapes of Wrath. Unfortunately, I did not take into consideration that my neighbor might come over and talk to me. He proceeded to ask me about my day, play with my dog, and ask me if I wanted to go for a ride this weekend. He has a motorcycle.

Not with you, mister.