Earth Shakes

Question:

I just read an article that said aftershocks could continue to happen in Chile for several years and that they could skill be happening in Indonesia several years after that earthquake. So with large aftershocks 6.0 magnitude and higher and several years in between how do they determine what is an earthquake and what is an aftershock? Does anybody know the criteria? I have taken geology courses and such and I don’t have an answer for this one… it kinda bugs me… guess I will have to find out.

update: found a reasonable answer here…

Girls it is time to, MAN UP!

I caught a girl in my class today working on a math worksheet that I did not assign. I found it odd so I asked her what she was doing.

Pushover Llama: My boyfriends homework.

Me: Do you really think that is a good idea?

PL: Well he isn’t smart enough to do it.

thanks for admitting that hun but what does it say about you dating such a fella

Me: Well I don’t think it is a good idea so put it away and work on your homework.

… and then as I wander through out the class room she goes back to doing his worksheet. So I collected it from her. I had intended to let her keep it and just email all of the other Geometry teachers that he was busted, you know let them think they got away with something, let their hopes soar, before we squashed them like a little bug.

As I thought about it, I thought what kind of a girl does this? Then I had to admit that I let a cute boy copy my homework a few times so that he would like me more. Guess what? I got caught. Guess what? Said cute boy still didn’t care! Can we say lesson learned! I guess it is one of those things that as an adult I can look back at with the wisdom of the ages and laugh at my stupidity.

But then I thought about it some more… I am currently seperated from my husband for many reasons but one of them being that in being in a relationship with him I lost myself, and not in a good way. I did his homework for so many years, I did the cleaning, and cooking, and shopping, and bill paying at the same time I worked 2 jobs while he worked one job and honestly that is okay but what is not okay is that while doing all of these things I supported his dreams, I supported his work choices, I supported his emotional needs while he did not support mine. I put everything he wanted and needed ahead of what I needed. While I understand that you should support your spouses wants and needs, their wants should never come at the price of your needs! and while you are supporting their wants and needs, they should be supporting yours.

So while I wanted to slap the little girl upside the head and give her the ever famous look, I guess I better slap myself upside my own head and give that look to myself.

update: so in our mixed up school this kid has 2 math classes, 1 during the day and one at night… both teachers are teaching this lesson… both are peeved and will be giving him a zero! 2 zero’s for the price of one, how fun is that!

Then What Do You Call It?

Okay by now we have all heard about the man who crashed his plane into the IRS building in Austin, Texas yesterday, it is a terrible tragedy and the fact that so many people walked away with their lives amazes me. But as you very well know if I blog about current events, there must be something bugging me so here goes…

I keep reading these reports, and I have read the letter that was posted on the man’s website, and these reports keep claiming that this was not an act of terrorism. A man, upset with the governing body of this country, took a large device (a PLANE) and used it in an attempt to kill many, many people (199 people that worked in this building and that  is a lot of people) and if that isn’t terrorism then what is.So my question is this: Why do we only label foreign, radical, and lets face it Muslim acts of violence as terrorism? 

I myself am quite conservative in my political views (are you shocked?), I myself am not a huge fan of people playing the “race” card. It really pushed my buttons when someone blames another’s actions on their race or makes excuses for themselves because of their own race. So I am bothered by the fact that so many are not willing to call the actions of a middle class white man exactly what they are, terrorism. I myself am a middle class white girl, although according to some numbers I was a poverty ridden white girl growing up (I had a home and food so what ever, I made it) so I am not racially or socially biased in this situation (at least I don’t think I am).

I believe this situation was domestic terrorism and should be called as such… what are your thoughts?

A Question…

All right, be prepared to comment, I have a question for you my dear bloggy friends.

Is it right/wrong to employ spouses?

Teachers, should a husband/wife teach at same school? what if one is a teacher and the other is not, does that make a difference? 

Parents, would you have an issue if you knew that your child had a husband/wife pair as teachers?

Married peeps, could you work with your spouse? would you work with your spouse? would working together strengthen or weaken your marriage?

Unmarried peeps, would you feel at a disadvantage working with a married couple?

Fill me in let me know what you are thinkin’!

Peanut Butter and Love

Nothing takes the taste out of peanut butter quite like unrequited love ~Charlie Brown in Peanuts

 

So what do you think? The other day I was watching one of my guilty pleasure TV shows and one of the characters said, “… there are worse things than a broken heart, like the love you don’t explore.” I am not ready to share why this was so touching to me, I don’t want to share all of the details on this but I would really like to know what you think. Is this true/false? why? have a story you wish to share? I really would like to hear what you out there have to say.

Another Where Were You…

As I surfed my morning blogs and checked face book updates I noticed several comments about where people where 8 years ago today.

I live in the West so I was on my way to work when I heard the news. I worked in a mechanics shop. We set up a tv in the office and I kept the mechanics up to date as the day went on. I am one of those people that when tragedy strikes I glue myself to the radio, tv, or internet, I can’t have too much information, I can’t stand to miss a detail, I think I get that from my dad.

After work I went home, I lived with my Aunt and Uncle and they were in shock, who wasn’t. That day was also my boyfriend’s 20th birthday, all day long I thought of him and worried about him, how was he coping with this great loss on his birthday, and how for the rest of his life he would remember this one birthday more than so many of the others. So after dinner I headed to his house for a birthday “party”.

The drive to his house was the scariest thing that have witnessed. All day long I heard people talk of more attacks, how the area I live in is rich in natural resources (oil, coal and natural gas) and that we could be a target for terrorism, that if they wanted to cripple our nation that we were as good of a spot as any. Hearing this all day was a bit disturbing but I knew that if something happened and the Lord decided it was my time to go then it was meant to be. But that night driving the 20 miles to the boyfriends house, I got so scared. The roads were nearly empty and then I began to pass gas stations and cars were lined up forever, just waiting to get to the pump, it was then that I realized just how my world was going to change. It was then that I saw a war being fought, here at home. I was 19 years old and never seen war but seeing hundreds of people lined up to by gas, I finally saw what could lie ahead, what my future could hold. Until that moment war was something that happened some place else, not here, not in the Untied States.

I asked my boyfriend how he felt about the loss of life that had happened that day, his birthday. He told me that no matter what day it had happened that it would be someone’s birthday. I spent that evening eating cake and ice cream and watched someone open gifts and I realized that I had been give a great gift. I was born in a country where I can walk the streets night or day and feel safe, a country where I don’t have to worry about where my next meal comes from, a country where I can do what is best for me, and a country that I can be proud to stand and salute the flag, a country that I hold my head up a little higher and stand a little taller when I hear the national anthem being played and a country where I am free.

So much in my life has changed in 8 years and so much more is going to change but one thing that will never change is that fact that I am proud of my country.

Am I missing something?

I think I am, I really do think I am missing something, in fact I am sure I am missing something.

Wanna know what it is?

The faces of young men, I miss them. I just ran to the restroom (it is important that I note the restroom usage as I get so little) and on my way there I saw a student or I thought it was then I looked again and he had facial hair so I thought substitute teacher, then I looked deeper and thought nope student. I continued to ponder this student/substitute mystery while using the restroom (I know you are just loving the details here people) and then I rushed back to my desk to type up my pondering post (after using hand sanitizer of course).

I remember when I was in high school (it hasn’t even been ten years so cut me a bit of slack) and I can only remember 2 guys have facial hair. The first was a hippie that drove a V0lkswagen van in the summer (heater didn’t work so no winter driving in this thing), wore rainbow striped toe socks in the winter with his birkies, streaked at homecoming our senior year (I missed it BTW), and wore a rastafarian hat any time he could. So the fact that he had facial hair isn’t a big thing, in fact I think it was expected of him. The second kid that had facial hair in high school is the same kid that had facial hair in junior high. There were 2 junior highs in my hometown, I attended one, Beard Boy the other. I remember the first time I saw Beard Boy. My friend and I went to a basketball game, out team was playing Beard Boy’s school in the Beard’s gym. When he walked on to the floor we both about died laughing (13 year old girls think this is funny), we couldn’t believe someone our age could have a full grown beard. In High school we both got to know this kid better, turned out he started shaving in like the 4th/5th grade and by Junior High he had grown tired of shaving daily.

So recalling that and thinking of my current students and various others that I see in the hall, I am shocked by the amount of facial hair that I see. I now have a class of 23 before me, 13 boys, and 2 have facial hair. I think of my morning class of 24 and there are 3 in that class with facial. I had one in my afternoon classes that he shaved his beard and people noticed, like when a girl chops of 6 inches of hair noticed.

When my husband and his brother were in High School their father demanded that they be clean shaven everyday.

Have things changed that much already, in less than 10 years? I am appalled at several of the things my students do, things I have never done and would have never thought of doing in high school but the hair thing really gets to me. I just find it odd that kids that don’t even drive yet are walking around with beards. Any one else freaked?

Can You Change the Definitions of Words?

mar·riage 

Pronunciation:

\ˈmer-ij, ˈma-rij\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Middle English mariage, from Anglo-French, from marier to marry

Date:

14th century

1 a (1): the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law 

 

All right, here I am on my soap box. I try people I really do to stay off of this soap box but I can’t help myself sometimes. 

The state in which I grew up is getting ready to change the states constitution to include a clause that says that marriage is defined as the union between a man and  a woman. They do not have a law allowing same sex marriages but being a traditional kind of state there are those that want to make sure that the definition of marriage remains traditional.

I whole heartedly agree!

I know some of you are booing and hissing at me right now and that is okay. I was raised in a very traditional way, in a traditional town, and therefore I have very traditional values.

If you take my religion out of things, I still feel this way.

Marriage is defined as man and woman, lets leave it that way. We define a dog as a 4 legged creature with a tail that barks. If you have a cat that barks, does that mean he/she is a dog? Don’t tell me cats can’t bark, they can, I had one (totally weird I promise you).

Can’t we just leave marriage defined as is, call the same-sex things something else? If two people choose to live together and create a home together I think they should have all of the same legal rights. Heck, if my 80  year old granny moves in with her 80 year old friend and they help support each other and pay the bills together, entertain together, laugh together I say what the heck, give them a tax break, give them all of the rights my husband and I have. I don’t think the fact that 2 people being physical with one another should be a requirement for this rule either.

If you call the same sex thing marriage then what is next? A woman married a female dolphin in England a few years back, is that next?

I will not lie, nor try to cover up the fact that I think same-gender stuff is wrong but that is due to my religion and while I wish every one could see the beliefs I have as truths, I realize that is unlikely to happen. I will not push my religion off onto any one else. I say if you chose to live this way, so be it. I believe you will be dealt with later, not my place to judge or punish. 

Can’t we just give this whole thing a new name, why marriage?

I just don’t get it!

Driving home today I saw something I just can not wrap my head around.

This post may seem a little rude but I have to give you all the details in full glory so you can see my struggle(and I know that those of you who know me in real life love me no matter what I say).

We have a new math teacher in our department, I think she is great ! The group of teachers on the hiring panel struggle with just one thing, she is over weight (like she weighs 300 lbs) and they were concerned with how the students would react to her. As awful as it sounds, students will find any reason to disrespect a teacher and this is a perfect target for them. Props to our hiring panel, they hired her anyway!

This womans husband also works in the SPED (special ed) department at our school. He too happens to be overweight (agian weighing in at about 300 pounds). This man sweats and pants when required to walk down the hallway.

I had their middle daughter in class last year, she is a great kid! She is polite, studious, and sweet (most teenagers can’t be called sweet). She to is also overweight for her age, about 230 pounds.

Don’t get me wrong, I myself am a little heavy for my height. I think that these a great people regardless if they are thin or not but here comes my point…

Today I saw this family leaving the parking lot, in an 80’s Mazda 2 door pickup.

All three people in this small truck. Their 17 year old daughter in the back seat (you know the kind that face sideways). I was shocked. This teacher informed all last week that her great tan was due to the week spent in Hawaii and how last year it had been some fancy resort in Mexico annnnddddd how they take these fancy trips evvery year for Christmas break!

I am wondering how people can spend money on such trips and drive a vehicle that is obviously to small for their family (they have another 14 year old daughter and another 19ish in college). This method of transportation can not be safe. It can not be safe to have their child in a space so small. She would certianly be crush if there were to be an accident. How can you spend thousands of dollars every year for a good time and good tan when you could save some money, buy a bigger car and take the family to a local not so pricey destination where a quality time would still be had.

Thanks for letting me vent. I know it wasn’t my nicest post and I don’t have children so maybe my opinion doesn’t count but I just can’t reason how you could put your childs life at stake for a week of fun and sun.

I also know that the point arises that maybe they have another vehicle, they do a 4 door sedan. I also know where this family lives, close to the school, and their travels today took them far from home. Couldn’t they have gone home and got that car?

I guess I am just not that smart.

Recently our school district bought laptops for every middle school student (yeah, I know). I have been an opponent of this idea from the first moment I head about. My reasons could go on and on and on… but that isn’t what this post is about.

One of my reasons was obviously children looking up things that little eyes shouldn’t see, as a staff we were all assured that the district had a top. of. the. line. internet filter and that no student was going to get passed it. Well. they. did. duh. There was a large article in one of the local news papers about a group of students breaking down those filter walls. The district said that it happened because parents were not supervising the children at home. Come to find out, they were lookin’ at this stuff while at school, in classrooms! Yikes! Like I as a teacher don’t have enough to do. I am supposed to have eyes in the back of my head, hear the cell phone ring that they say no adult can hear (I can hear it buy the way so if you were thinking of purchasing, think again), It used to be that teachers had to keep their 2 eyes on 20 or so kids but now you want me to keep my eyes on the 32 kids I have AND on their computer screens. I mean I know I look like wonderwoman and all but come. on.

Okay so I got side tracked, touch subject. ANYways these kids were caught looking at no-no stuff, at scholl. They tried not to make it sound so bad but then we find out through an editorial that these kids weren’t just lookin’ at kind of no no stuff. It was the hard core stuff.

After all that I am searching today for song lyrics, so I can be super clever on mrsgee’s lyrics about cold this week. I am thinkin’ that Rudolph the Red Nosed Raindeer might have the word cold in it but I am not sure, so I google it and click on the first link that looks go to me and I get a filter notice stating my page has been blocked for get this: profanity. The sight was wwwilovechristmas…ursomethin’.

Children can look up hardcore nastyness and I can’t find my Rudolph lyrics, I guess I am just not that smart.