I've decided to wait to write about school until tomorrow afternoon. Then I'll just write about my whole first week back.

Nothing super exciting. I'll whine a little bit and then predict how my year will go. Just in case you don't feel like reading the next post....:)

Work starts again tomorrow. No kids, but I still have to get up at 6. UGH. I think I'm ready to go back. Not as ready as I was last year. This summer just seemed to go by faster than any of the others.

I can't believe I start my 7th year of teaching tomorrow. It feels like just yesterday I was one of those crazy freshmen running around UD's campus. We were down in the campus area yesterday and both felt so old! I can't believe we used to be that young! And my job marks that time well.

I'll be sure to post Tuesday night after I've met all my new kids and tell you whether this year will be good or bad. You get a pretty good feel from day 1. Some of the kids may suprise you but overall, at their age, they're not very good at hiding who they really are. The honeymoon is so short, it doesn't even really exist!

On the agenda for tomorrow: District breakfast (free!!!), computer training that I already had in Sidney, out to lunch with the other 8th grade teachers, staff photo and killing the time til 3:30. I know, a really rough first day back! :)

So the HOLE (as in a$$) that keeps posting with my name was "kind" enough to explain how they are doing it. You have to turn off anonymous comments in your blog and then they can't be a "fake" version of you. I've had anonymous turned off and I think that's why they can't post with others names in my blog. So, if you just go to your blogger dashboard you can not allow anonymous comments. That will also solve our "reader" problem. :)

Okay, that's enough for now. Oh, and it's really me posting....because if you weren't really me, you wouldn't know that Karen has touched my husband in "special places" when we were in college and really drunk. LOL!!!!! Karen, back me up!

CHANGE YOUR PASSWORDS

Someone is hacking mine and Martha's accounts I think. Someone posted a message to Viki's blog with MY NAME. If I hadn't gone back to read the comments posted, I wouldn't have even noticed it. I'm changing my password and I suggest others do the same thing!

This looked fun....

A) FOUR JOBS I HAVE HAD IN MY LIFE:
1. Pet Store Employee
2. Friendly's Ice Cream Scooper
3. Professional steel belly bander and marker (I had to band red hot coils of steel as they came off the mill and then mark them with heat chalk telling their weight, thickness, and type of steel. All while it rolled away from me on a conveyor belt and more steel was being produced)
4. Teacher

B) FOUR PLACES I HAVE LIVED:
1. Parma, OH
2. Huber Heights, OH
3. Dayton, OH (and I mean IN the city limits)
4. Troy, OH

C) FOUR TV SHOWS I LIKE TO WATCH:
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. LOST
3. Miami Ink
4. The Office- by far my ABSOLUTE favorite show. I can watch these things over and over again in reruns and they're still funny to me!!!! Both the American and BBC versions!

D) FOUR PLACES I HAVE BEEN:
1. Ocho Rios, Jamaica
2. Malibu, California
3. Milbank, South Dakota
4. Burlington, Vermont

E) FOUR FAVORITE FOODS:
1. Pizza
2. Salad
3. BREAD!!!!!!! All kinds!
4. Cheese!!!!!! Almost all kinds!!!

F) FOUR PLACES I'D RATHER BE RIGHT NOW:
1. Somewhere with snow
2. The beginning of last school year with my favorite kids EVER
3. The Cabbage Patch- where I could just "pick" a baby!
4. Hawaii (but after the hurricane mess is over!)

G) FOUR FRIENDS I WANT TO RESPOND:
1. Karen
2. Stephanie
3. Laura
4. SARAH FORD!!!!!!! Are you dead dude?

H) FOUR PLACES I LIKE TO SHOP:
1. GAP
2. Crate and Barrel
3. Sam's Club- I love buying in bulk!
4. Pottery Barn

I) FOUR FAVORITE BOOKS OF ALL TIME:
1. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
2. Gone with the Wind
3. Pride and Prejudice
4. The Goose Girl

I have to say the book list was very hard for me. Because I love to read! And I could have made a much longer list. I had to sit for a while and think about those.

Now, consider yourself tagged. Here's what you're supposed to do. Post this on your own blog or on my comments. Copy all, delete my answers and type in your answers. Can't wait to see your Four Things...

Mostly random Thoughts

Time for a random post. As if many haven't been random lately.

1. Soft Core Porn- so Kendall and I came across this in our Showtime On Demand List. It was a "film" called Busty Cops 2. We couldn't help ourselves, we had to watch part of it. Not only does the word Busty catch your attention, but the fact that it's a 2!!! Implying there's a 1!!!!! So basically they got naked for most of the movie and had gratuitous sex for the portion we watched. How do they get away with it you ask? By not showing the "money shot". I was amazed at what my cable programming gave me access to. For the 10 minutes we watched it, we found ourselves critiquing the breasts of each woman. It was definitely obvious who'd had implants.

2. Kendall's obsession with TV- He wants to watch it all the time! Movies, TV shows, TV on DVD. I'm tired of watch TV. I like reading books. TV in my head. I finally told him tonight to go watch it on his own and I'd catch up later. He pouts about it. It's weird. I wish he'd read more.....

3. Our lawn tractor- Had to rent a U-haul and return it today. Long story short, Home Cheapo lied to us and we couldn't by the extended warranty we wanted on the mower. It's been acting up and we've only had it 30 days! I got mad and returned it today. And now we're going to go buy a John Deere at Lowes. LOL! ps. I LOVE lawn tractors. Makes my two hour mow only 40 minutes long!

4. School- I have barely gone in this summer. I think I'm still in denial that I have to get new kids. I told Kendall the other day that sometimes it just feels like we're on a long "spring break" and that my kids from last year will be coming back in August. Like I'm saving stories in my head to tell them. I've never been affected by a group of kids like this before. I love them. I miss them. I am sad that I have to get new kids. I don't want new kids. I want my old ones. It makes my heart hurt to see them. Because I miss them so much. More than they could ever know. I sound pathetic. But these kids really affected me. I have to be conscious not to carry that over into my new year.

5. Our new neighbors- They ROCK! We just met Jamie (wife) and Andrea (Italian husband) two weeks ago. But we are already finding that we have many things in common. I really wish we had small children because it would be just one extra thing we have. They have a two year old named Matteo and have a baby girl due in 5 months. I'm really excited about them because we both want to live in our houses long term and I think that we will become great friends. It's so nice to have cool neighbors. Jessica commented that Kendall and I seem to have good luck with neighbors. And we truly do. We've loved our neighbors in both of our houses.

Okay, time to go spend a little time snuggling with Kendall!

Babies in Threes

Anyone else out their prego right now? I just found out that my friend Anne is pregnant and due March 21st. Jessica is also pregnant and due March 22nd, I didn't mention that here yet. (I was sworn to secrecy!But now I'm not!) So my question is....who's the third? In my experience they always come in threes...both pregnancy and delivery. Case in point- I had three friends deliver in or near July- Karen, Lora, and Missy (Missy was August 1st so close enough!).

So who's the third soon-to-be-mommy???? (May I also note that this is not something I'm upset about. I've chosen not to talk about my own infertility anymore in my blog, and quite frankly, I've gotten to the point where I'm okay with it....sort of. But anyways, I just wanted everyone to know that this entry wasn't about being upset.)

Nothing new in my world. Just avoiding the heat. Our thermostat is at 71 degrees and I'm actually contemplating getting some sweatpants out. But I'd rather be cold that HOT!

Oh, yeah, and Kendall got his first paycheck from his new job. It's a one week paycheck....and it's already 400 bucks more than my two week one! *sigh* I guess I couldn't be the sugar mama forever.....

This is SICK. And WRONG. OUTRAGING!!!!!!

Convicted Animal Abuser Gets Abused Dog Back
Activists Outraged By Release To Owner
POSTED: 8:08 pm EDT August 5, 2007
UPDATED: 11:53 am EDT August 6, 2007

OXFORD, Ohio -- A man who was convicted of animal cruelty will be allowed to get his dog back, but he must follow a list of conditions to care for the animal.

Otis Clark, of Oxford, pleaded no contest last month to charges related to the abuse of his 2-year-old dog, China, and he petitioned to get it back.

The dog was found with a chain so deeply imbedded in its neck, it required surgery to remove it.
Judge Robert Lyons allowed Clark to care for the dog, provided that it is licensed and is not tied up.

The dog also must be checked every 90 days by a veterinarian, and if Clark does not comply with the judge’s orders he will be considered in violation of his probation.

Clark must read a book on dog care given to him by the court and is subject to random home visits by a probation officer.

If he violates the terms of his probation, Clark must forfeit the dog and would face up to 180 days in jail.

Animal activists are angry that Clark was able to get the dog back, blaming the prosecutor and judge for engaging in a "closed door" deal with Clark.

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen of My Favorite Songs Not on the Radio (Right Now)

1. Movin' Out- Billy Joel
2. Hell- Squirrel Nut Zippers
3. I Could Be the One- Staci Orrico
4. Poison- Alice Cooper
5. A Hard Days Night- The Beatles
6. I Need a Hero- Bonnie Tyler
7. Take Me Out- Franz Ferdinand
8. Someone to Love- Fountains of Wayne
9. Brave- Nichole Nordeman
10. American Girl- Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
11. The Sweater Song- Weezer
12. Riot Girl- Avril Lavigne
13. Beat of My Heart- Hilary Duff