Squirrel Love

O.k., loving me, not each other. I can't get pictures of them on top of the air conditioner.
Yes, these were taken through very dirty glass with a cell phone so the quality is not the best. I will take an oath attesting to the fact that this guy is just waiting for me to open my window so he can steal my post-its.

On Wednesday when I did not have time to eat, he teased me by gnawing on a bagel out there. Truly a New York squirrel.

Just TRY to renew that ebook

Three weeks ago I downloaded a Lisa Scottoline book to my Treo. I figured that three weeks was more then enough time to read it during spare moments. I read it while waiting for my lunch, I read it on the subway (the one or two times I took it) and that was about it. Two thirds of the way through the book, it expired.

This morning I thought I would see what happens if you try to check out the same ebook two times in a row. In to the NYPL website I went. The book was available (yes, ebooks can be unavailable) so I checked it out and downloaded it. Then came the transfer to my device. That is when everything went bad. My Treo rebooted, and rebooted, and rebooted, endlessly. Even a soft reset didn't stop it. Even a medium reset didn't stop it. Even a hard reset stopping short of wiping all memory didn't start it. Wiping the memory worked. Blah. Fortunately the hot sync that mucked everything up had also caused all of my information to be saved to my computer. One more hot sync and I was golden.

Later I finally got up the nerve to try opening the book and it worked -- it was even on the correct page!

From now on I will stick to Project Gutenberg books and skip the hassle of the library due dates.

Skirting the Issue

On Monday and Tuesday I work a suit. A "proper" suit with a skirt, hosiery and heels. The theory was that this is more professional than a pants suit and when your school is being reviewed, you want to look professional.

My question now is: why is a "skirt-suit" considered more professional than a pants-suit? What is it about a tailored skirt that makes people take a woman more seriously? And, should a person reviewing said people in skirts actually think less of them when the weather is below freezing?

Please, I am dying to know the answers. Both my boss and I wore skirts on days when the outside temperatures ranged from 10° to 25° . Today, we both wore pants.

*****
The Second School Blanket

Another stack of blocks came in from my most prolific knitter and others are still working on them. The third blanket will have several crocheted pieces as well as knit blocks. A couple of my staff have donated abandoned crochet projects for our effort. Hey, it works for me.

Thanks to Anne for her recent donation of fun fur for the chemo cap project!

Murphy's Law

The last two days have been beset by Murphy's Law. Nothing horrible happened, just annoying stuff that, when added to the Quality Review, made life that much more stressful.

New York City has instituted an annual Quality Review for all public schools. I will not go in to the details but it made for a stressful two days. To add to this ... the boiler froze on Monday. The other school in the building could not go out for recess due to the extreme temps and were a tad louder then usual. Our own kids were obviously under the effect of the full moon from the other day. On Tuesday it seemed that a migraine epidemic was underway. Little Squid woke up with one at 5 a.m. and kept us guessing as to whether it would be gone enough by departure time. When we finally decided that Papa would stay home with him -- and Papa had called in to work -- the worst faded and Little decided he could go to school. Papa rescinded his sick call and, as he mounted his bike ... got a migraine.

Little Squid's migraine through me off my usual morning routine so that I forgot to take the new "school" blanket and Sis's hat to work. The blanket was finished in time for yesterday's club meeting which was partly postponed because of the club fair, which, due to circumstances beyond my control, I did not manage to get to. As for the hat ... I was supposed to mail it yesterday. Um ... I'll try to get it in the mail tomorrow.

Meanwhile, for the Teen Knitting fans ...

Scarf made from yarn donated by KnittyOtter.

Tune in later for pictures of the second school blanket. I plan on using it to warm my legs in the car on the way to work this morning.

Cold, Cold, Cold!

Temperature at time of departure: 10°
Temperature upon arrival at work: 12°

Status of heat at work: none.

Yup. That is how the day started. The problem? The oil filter in the temporary boiler ... get this ... froze. The technician was able to make an immediate diagnosis and the building was starting to warm again by 9 a.m. This will not happen again. You really do not want to hear how I know that this will not happen again. It is not an environmentally friendly solution. It will, however, guarantee that our students and staff can walk around without hats and mittens on.

My squirrelly employee kept coming by and sunning himself on my window sill. I would swear that he was waiting for me to open the window so he could come in and warm up.

Squid on Strings

I promised you mushy mommy and mushy mommy you shall have.

Preparing for the concert.Taking a bow.Final notes.

I suggested that Mike put the video on YouTube but fear not, you are spared. Both children performed as only Squid can. Few mistakes, played at tempo (a concern with Little Squid) and generally making the other parents say "wow." They are not child prodigys but are quite respectable nonetheless.

After, we treated them to lunch at their favorite dinner and came home to do the laundry. Therein lies a tale which proves just how much I am capable of deluding myself.

Back story:

Yesterday I forced myself to clean the turtle tank and goofed a little. To drain the tank I use a siphon system that attaches to a sink and uses the force of the tap water to pull the dirty water through fifty feet of tubing and dump it down the sink drain. This system worked great in my mother-in-law's apartment when she and I cleaned her humongous fish tank. When we took the tank, we also took the system. The tank has since been donated to a school but we kept the siphon system after getting a larger turtle tank.

Using the system involves hooking it up to a sink in a far away bathroom -- totally out of sight of the tank being emptied. In the past, I have successfully used it, all by myself, to clean the turtle habitat. So, knowing that it was possible, and not wanting to disturb Papa Squid, I set it up and sucked all of the very dirty water out of the tank. This I did with only one or two visits to the bathroom. Once the tank was almost empty, and seeing that Papa was heading into the bedroom anyway, I asked him to turn the water from suck to fill. That was when he found it. The bathroom and bedroom awash in dirty turtle water. Oops. Towels were drafted in to action and the floors were soon brought to a state of tolerable dampness. The same towels were then taken to the balcony to drip-dry until they could be washed.

I should have seen it coming when I first realized that icicles were forming from the water dripping from the towels. Being in denial, however, and still having to finish cleaning the tank, I ignored the signs. Until today.

When we returned from the concert it was time to do the laundry. I gathered up the various soiled items from around the apartment, including from under Little Squid's bed, and headed out on to the balcony, dressed in my parka and mittens. The fact that I had bundled up for this activity should have warned me. The fact that the temperature today had never broken freezing should have been another sign. Nope, I was still in denial.I can deny no more. No, Papa Squid is not fluffing the towel. Yes, it is staying in that position all by itself. The same goes for those held by Squidette. Yup. Frozen solid. So solid that this is what remains on the balcony.I could not pry them loose of their moorings. (The red bathmat will actually be discarded. It was rather ratty before it got drenched in turtle poop.) Sigh. Maybe next Sunday will be a bit warmer.

Knit-alongs

This month I joined my first Knit-Along. And then I joined my second. And then I tried to figure out how to combine the two. And then I gave up on this "kill two birds with one sock" idea and the result is:

Sis's Hat for Fair Isle February Mermaid Socks for the Dave-Along.
Since there are no rules for either Knit Along, I have made my February the month of Finishing. I hope to finish the Mermaid Socks, and the long abandoned Gingham and Tulip socks which are ... Fair Isle! If I finish both then I would like to start a true Fair Isle or properly stranded sweater or vest. There are four hanks of handspun ombre yarn waiting to become something. I'm just not sure what yet.

Tomorrow: Violin Virtuosos (otherwise known as Squid on Strings).

Proof!

For those of you who still think that my squirrel stories are tall tales, I present proof in form of photographic evidence. Here you see two well gnawed window frames and one that was left alone -- that is the one near the window that they use as the main access to my desk.









My understanding is that these windows are not long for this world and should be history by the end of the month. Then the poor squirrels (not!) will have to sharpen their teeth elsewhere. Perhaps, just maybe, in the park?

In other news, a package of fun fur and needles arrived today from Susan! Included in the package was this:a glossy magazine all about Oklahoma. This is my next reading project. Red Dirt country, here I come! Thank you!

Knitting-wise we have this:a partially completed Boogaj bag

and Sis's hat.

Beware that visiting this blog on Sunday may result in an overdose of proud Mama. Just warning you.

Pickled Cauliflower

Thought for the day: "Pickled cauliflower think they are superior to pickled cucumbers. " Squidette

I find it interesting that through all of yesterday's blather, people picked up on my squirrel comment. This makes me think that I should take a picture of my gnawed window frame before the contractors remove it. (The next batch of windows has finally arrived so I should have a nice, weather tight window in my office before the end of next week. Woo Hoo!)

Now that some of the scaffolding is down I can see what a nice job the workmen are doing on the school. This whole construction experience has been very educational. I even learned what a "load test" is as our guys were commenting on the construction going on across the street. Yes, not only is my own school under construction but they are building a mall across the street. Many of my days are worked to the counterpoint of a pile driver. No wonder the squirrels are taking shelter.

No real knitting progress to report -- a few more rows on the hat and bag and the pile of rejected "Dave sock" is still sitting in a corner waiting to be rescued by the Lucy Neatby socks book, due to arrive later today.

Enjoy the day!

Missing Them

I miss my students. Mid-year Regents exams began last Tuesday and the kids only came in to take the few exams they had to take. I saw a few of my juniors on the days of the English Regents (nope, not a typo, days as in two) but that was it. Classes resume on Thursday and I hope that my kids, both Knitters and Scholars, come to visit. Knitting club will not resume until the 13th due to the club fair next Tuesday. I may just have to run an abbreviated club on the 8th just to get my one-on-one kid fix in. The building is so empty this week that we could actually hear the squirrels making more squirrels on top of my air conditioner. Kind of freaky, actually.

On the personal knitting front, I am booking on Sis's hat and am still on target to finish it by the weekend. The sock has been ripped and restarted twice and will be ripped and restarted again once I get the book I ordered today. The yarn is screaming to be made in to Mermaid socks but I first had to buy the book with the pattern in it. In the meantime I have started a Booga Bag with the Noro Kureyon that my Sock-ret pal gave me.

So much for my pledge of keeping new projects to a minimum.

Goals Achieved

The mittens are in the mail in packaging guaranteed to embarrass little sis (she is using her sorority house as a mail drop).

The Muppet Fur hat is finished.Squidette's scarf is ready for wearing. (My own handspun done in Mistake Rib, one of my fave scarf stitches even before Cookie made it hip.)
and the school blanket is now in 5 panels instead of lots of little blocks.

Little Sis's hat is now on the needles and a new pair of socks has also been started using my lone skein of Cabin Cove for the Dave-along.

And, my nails are once again pink. Last week I went for prudent over pretty and left them au natural. Exam week wrecks havoc on my hands. Broken nails abound as do paper cuts. My poor hands get washed every hour or so since the tests and the vault are just dirty! With the tests, I think it is partially ink rubbing off as I repackage them right before test time.

My crafting goals this week include finishing Sis's hat and finishing the blanket assembly. I have no delusions regarding the socks.

Thanks to Anne K. for this link. It is way cool and if I used Mike's I-Pod I might have to make it. Hmmm ... maybe for Squidette's Zire?

Time to knit on that hat ... have a great week!

Goal Oriented Weekend

I have finally finished my sister's mittens. Now to pack them up and send them off.

This weekend is all about finishing. Finishing Squidette's scarf. Finishing my third muppet fur hat. Finishing putting the school blanket panels together. Finishing some stuff for work. Finishing the camp search process for Little Squid.

I also hope to start Kid Sister's hat (to match the mittens) and my Shut Up and Knit Your Cabin Cove project.

Today Squidette auditioned for a spot in a free music camp. If she gets in then we have to find 5 weeks worth of camp for Little Squid. We already decided that he will not go back to the same place they have gone the last few summers. They really have no interest in gymnastics or sports so other then the convenience factor (and that is HUGE) there is really no attachment for it. I admit that for several years we have used camp as a way to make sure that the kids spend at least some of the summer interacting with other kids. It was also a way to give mom and dad two weeks of a few hours a day to just be adults and be with each other. The decision is now that if Squidette does not get in to this camp, then we are dispensing with camp for the summer all together. They will spend some time with my folks and we will do some more extensive camping. Last summer they actually made some friends while camping so the "being with other kids" thing is there.

On the Squirrel front ... he sat on my desk again today and then broke in to my next-door-colleague's office. I think Cookie is right and he wants a job. Hey, he should be an inexpensive addition to payroll. After all, he'll work for peanuts.

Saga of the Squirrel: Act 5

The events in this Act occur on the Monday following the previous Act. Said previous act occurred on a Friday so the squirrel, if it was there to begin with, had my office to himself for the entire weekend.

As I approached my office I wondered. Was my office in a shambles? Did the squirrel eat my box of hot chocolate? Was the squirrel even there? And what about Naomi?

At the door to my office I paused and peered through the lace curtains on the outer door. All seemed clear so I unlocked the door and ventured in. I heard nothing and all seemed fine in my secretary's area so I peered into my own office. I glanced under the desk and noticed that the trap had been triggered but, at first glance I did not see an animal. I figure the custodian had probably kicked it when he cleaned and caused it to snap closed. Then I noticed the furry thing moving within. Yes!

I grabbed the trap, took it outside and released the furry invader. That squirrel took off like a shot! He ran south as fast as his legs could carry him. Hopefully he was smart enough not to run on to the highway.

And so ends the Saga of the Squirrel ... for now.

More Thanks and Bits and Pieces

Thank you, KnittyOtter! See all this stuff? It came yesterday, courtesy of our favorite Otter. See that box full of yarn? It was only half full by the time the day ended.
And the needles? Half gone by the end of the day. The Boss and I were trying to figure out the tremendous interest in it this year and the best I can come up with is the two-year almost hiatus and the "Breck" factor. Remember the old commercial? "I told two friends, and they told two friends, and so on and so on and so on ..." That's what it is like! Thank you so much, KnittyOtter!!!

In other news, I have joined the Cabin Cove Knit along and will finally knit the lone skein that I have. Come join us and show off how nicely your Cabin Cove yarn knits up.
While I am plugging bloggers who sell things ... my cousin is now blogging as well as selling vintage sewing patterns. Go say hi and tell her Mama Squid sent you. (Yes, I have a lot of family members who blog. Cousin Elana does a business blog, Cousin Robert does a medical blog, kid brother Josh blogs for the NCAA and now this. It is only a matter of time before my wonderfully wordy father gets in to the business.)

And to prove that this is still a knitting blog ...for my kid sister. They are actually almost done, just the thumb is left on the left mitten. If I stop blogging I should be able to finish it tonight, block them tomorrow (to get rid of the horrid squishyness) and pop them in the mail this weekend. The hat will follow a week or so later. First I have to finish Squidette's scarf now that winter is actually here.

Saga of the Squirrel: Act 4

When we last encountered our squirrel it had been sighted in my office and was not witnessed leaving. I spent the entire day working in the office with no sense that I was being watched ...

Saga of the Squirrel: Act 4

Even though I left work at a normal hour that night, I did not go straight home and hence was not there when the phone rang with the fateful message. "The squirrel is still in your office.”

Damn.

I listened to the message and concluded that my somewhat timid colleague saw the fuzzy little creature and panicked, slamming my doors closed and trapping the poor guy. I was not a happy camper.

The next morning I came in to a closed, dark office. The window was open. I went into my colleague’s office and discussed the situation.

Apparently when my colleague entered my office to make a copy, he had encountered a jumping, spitting, furious squirrel and had paged for the custodian-on-duty but the
C.O.D had not appeared by the time my colleague had to leave. My office was left closed up over night. In the a.m., my colleague, the head Custodian and one of his assistants had carefully examined my office without uncovering the squirrel. They opened the window and left the office closed up.

I decided to leave it alone for a while -- after all, the squired had holed up for 6
hours the day before -- and patrolled the building for a while. After an hour or so I
returned to my office to find everything was the same. One of the custodial
staff was there and he carefully examined everything again and said to call him
if we saw or heard it.

For the remainder of the day I worked in my office, with the 12 degree breeze blowing across my keyboard -- tempered by the 90 degree radiations from my radiator so it
wasn't too bad. Muddy footprints were all over the office and I periodically discovered some hidden squirrel poop on my papers and window sill. The furry intruder did not show his face leaving most to conclude that he had departed. Not being quite as confident, I once again left the baited trap under my desk and, at the end of the day, left for the weekend.

The end?

***
For those non-believers, this photo was snapped from my desk this Friday.

New York, New York Anyone?

Many of you have commented that you like our little NYC tours. Well, after thinking about it, we sometimes have trouble coming up with a destination for our trips so I am opening it up to you, my dear readers.

Is there anyplace in NYC you want to see from a Squidly perspective? Somewhere you really want to go, virtually? Leave a comment and we will try to accommodate. Note that Manhattan locales will probably get covered more quickly then those in the outer boroughs but everything is fair game as long as it is legal.

Already in the planning and research stages (yes, I am actually starting to research this stuff):
Tin Pan Alley
Fort Totten
Fort Tryon
Chelsea Market and
The High Line

Drop a line and let us know where you want to go!

Meanwhile, I give you some views from today ...The view from my terrace this morning. Yes, that is snow.
What we saw out the back window as we left the building this morning. Huh?! The kids went out by the back door while we stayed in and walked the first block indoors. The expression on Squidette's face when she saw the lack of snow was priceless.
We found some snow to frolic in for a few minutes.
??? It sure looks like snow to me.This device cuts open streets. Check out the warning sign pasted to it.

Goodies!

My second Sock-ret Pal came through today with a box of Squidlicious goodies!Included are 3 skeins of Noro and a skein of hand-dyed sock yarn from White Willow Market. It is a lovely pinky/purply colorway and I cannot wait to knit it up! Thank you, Sockret Pal Part 2! I promise to put up some more squirrel sagas soon.


And for your amusement I give you:Big Mommy, Little Mommy. (Said in a sing-song voice)

Teens Knitting: Blanket 2

I keep coming in to my office to find piles of blanket blocks on my desk. One of our students has co-opted her mom into knitting for the cause. The young lady brings home the yarn and brings in blocks that she and her mom knit. See the striped ones? The green ones? Just about every one in the three panels laid out below? All theirs. The remaining blocks are enough for two or three panels but I stopped after two. The three big panels combined with two narrower panels will be large enough for this blanket leaving enough blocks left over for at least two panels of the next blanket. My challenge to the school was to have enough for a second blanket by Regents week. Boy did they come through!!!

The first blanket stayed in my office for two weeks longer than I anticipated but it turned out to be a good thing. I was able to refer to the various blocks when describing techniques to the kids. It will be going to its new home, a home bound senior, tomorrow.

The club will officially be on hiatus for the next two weeks during the Regents and Reorganization periods but I cannot wait for the new term to begin. This has been the most exciting year with regards to the knitters!

Anyone wanting to donate materials to our cause can send them to:

MCSM Knitters / Devorah Zamansky
Manhattan Center for Science and Mathematics High School
280 Pleasant Avenue
New York, NY 10029

Munch, Munch and a Pillow

Squidette's first pillow!

And herself snuggling with same.

I've got the munchies. Big time. All day all I have wanted to do is nibble. I think it is a case of pre-exam jitters. Little Squid finished this set of exams last week, Squidette finishes hers tomorrow and mine begin on Tuesday.

Today I published my 23rd Regents Exam proctoring schedule. With the schedule comes three immutable laws:

The first law of proctoring schedules states that five minutes after the schedule is printed a teacher will approach me with a special request that causes me to change it. (I am far to nice to refuse a polite request.)

The second law states that very few people will read the memo on the other side of their schedule resulting in no end of questions about where they are supposed to be and how they are supposed to behave. (I will rarely point this out unless I am at the end of my rope.)

The third law states that no matter how hard you try, you can never please everyone. (This does not stop me from trying.)

This leads to a very important lesson -- watch what you say while in labor. 11.5 years ago I uttered the fatal words to my supervisor as she drove me home. (I was, at the time, in labor and was obtuse enough to not realize it.) "I hear the Test Coordinator position is opening up. I want to apply." That was it. When I returned in September I was given the position and have done it ever since. Beware of what you wish for ... you may get it!

That said ... I am so protective of the job that I have tried to give it up and can't. I cannot bear to see someone else go through the hard fought learning curve.

Ghandi, King and Kids

I know that it is Martin Luther King Jr. day but yesterday we did a spot of geocaching and discovered the Ghandi statue in Union Square Park. Both King and Ghandi used the same principles of passive resistance to make the world a better place. I honestly believe that words are much more powerful then guns and actions speak louder then words.

As we walked through Manhattan today I reflected on how children become miniatures of their parents as the mimic our actions. If we always cross with the light then they will do so. If we jaywalk then they will think it is just fine to jaywalk. They cannot learn everything, however, by passive absorption. Sometimes we need to step in and explain why things are done and how they affect our world. This weekend involved Ghandi, robot building and pillow top piecing. Without explicit instruction in all three, our kids would not understand any of it. The instruction may have come via books, in the case of the piecing, or through one on one instruction as in the robot making. Sometimes a profound discussion must occur as in the case of Ghandi. When I discussed him with Little Squid he understood and made the connection to King. Raising kids is a tricky business. You always hope you catch the holes in their education and provide them with necessary and valuable information. Today was one of those days when we saw some holes and plugged them.

*****

Continuing with our ongoing tour of NYC ...

Chelsea Market which used to house NBC. Nope, not that NBC but rather the NBC that later became NaBisCo -- the National Biscuit Company. Yes, this was where Oreos were made. One day I'll take you inside and show you the railway spur on the second story of the building. It is a part of the High Line and I hope they open it to the public when the High Line is opened as a park.
and the White Horse Tavern. White Horse is best known as the place where Dylan Thomas collapsed after drinking far too much. He died shortly afterwards just a few blocks further uptown at St. Vincent's Hospital. The White Horse was known for the literary types that it attracted during the 50s, including Norman Mailer and Jack Kerouac.

Stay-at-home Saturday

Look! Two finished objects (three if you count each sock separately.)

Monkey for and on Squidette's feet.

A fun fur hat for Kate's project.

A glam shot of the ever lengthening Squidette.

And proof that she can no longer be used as a tool for getting cans off the top shelf with our risk of concussion. Papa Squid may have to start using the step ladder.
New on the needles ... mittens for the youngest sibling and another fun fur hat.

Thoughts on Language

Yesterday Little Squid asked what a "cuss" was. He heard the word in a movie (Because of Winn Dixie) and did not know what it meant. I admit it, my kids have been sheltered. Neither Mike nor I have ever used "bad" language extensively so cleaning up our act when we had kids was not too trying. The occasional f-word or s-word comes out of our mouths in times of extreme stress -- dropping an anvil on ones toe qualifies but misplacing the car keys does not. My feeling is simply that one can use nicer language to express the same feelings. Sometimes it is just a dumb substitution like saying that Mommy is a softie and not a sucker. Other times I try to be more colorful and descriptive -- and usually fail. Usually though, I just say nothing. I am not perfect and the occasional explicative does come out of my mouth after a so and so cuts me off.

Working in a high school can either numb you to the presence of a certain group of words (all starting with F) or get you angry that these kids can't be more creative. Why not, instead of calling someone a "bad" name, use a variation on those great ethnic curses. "So and So isn't fit to clean up after my camel!" "That piece of lace looks like it was used as a washrag for my pet walrus."

Can we start a movement here? If you stumble on a post where "common" language is used, leave an affirmative comment such as "you are so right, that son of a turtle herder isn't fit to clean your cookie jar." Or "I bet with some blocking that sweater will no longer look like the bottom of an orangutan."

Anyone with me?

Squirrel on the Prowl

Last night the contractors removed most of the scaffolding outside of the stretch of building that includes my office and those rooms adjacent to it. In the process they seem to have stranded at least one young squirrel in the pillar between the windows of my colleague's office.

When a lone squirrel on the window ledge was brought to my attention I scoffed at it and went back to work. After all, the squirrels are quite capable of climbing the brickwork of our school. Surely it could find its way down.

Half an hour later I was roused from my work by cries of alarm from next door. Somehow, the squirrel had entered the office through the closed windows and was prowling around the office looking for a way out. It jumped to the floor, wandered under my friends desk and conference table and looked like it wanted to cross to my office and the yarn stash. Gasp!

I took action, stepping in to the infested office, garbage can in hand. I closed the door behind me while the window was opened by another occupant of the room. As I slowly moved in the direction of the squirrel it thought better of its actions and found the exit. Phew!

Personally, I think it was looking for some cardboard on which to build the house it is designing with the wood taken from my window frame and the glue that was subsequently snatched. Yesterday, it, or one of its brethren, entered the Main Office and poked around for a bit before leaving, empty pawed.

Tomorrow should be interesting. When I left work, the contractors were hard at work removing my old, wood-framed window from its opening. When I return in the morning, I will find a brand new, metal framed window in its place. No more staring at squirrel gnawed wood. What are the poor squirrels going to do for amusement? What am I going to do with no squirrels to watch? Oh wait, I know! Work!

Squirrels like glue?

Apparently, while I was off doing other stuff yesterday, a squirrel decided to enter my office via the open window and make off with my glue stick. I didn't even know I had a glue stick on my desk!

The squirrel was seen to enter my office and scamper across my desk. As my secretary made to close the doors so that he would not get in to the rest of the building, she saw him ignore the bag of M&Ms, pick up the glue stick, turn around and leave the same way he came in. He was then seen, outside on the scaffolding, using his mouth to try to get the cover off of the glue stick.

My secretary swears this is true and has another staff member as a witness. She was surprised that he did not even mess up my papers. If you have ever seen my desk you would know that this was a kind of odd comment. How would anyone know if he messed up my papers given the state that they are usually in? We all have our moments.

Fun Fur any one?

After seeing several links to this post I decided to contact Kate and add my kids to her list. A half hour or so of my morning was devoted to digging through the yarn boxes in my office and finding most of the fun fur. When the kids came in this afternoon I suggested the idea of knitting fun chemo caps for kids and they jumped all over it! Not a whole lot of progress was made as the kids got used to dealing with the difficult muppet fur but at the end of the afternoon a few rows had been knit by 4 or 5 kids and 4 more young people had learned to knit from scratch. Tha second blanket has enough blocks to be considered half-way there and now kids are starting to work on baby stuff as well as the chemo caps. New knitters are being inculcated at a tremendous rate -- it takes my breath away. These kids really force me to remember what my job is all about -- them -- and I love it!

Thanks to Pooch for the box of yarn and needles that arrived today! You guys are great!

Quickie ...

Today starts three days of testing for all New York State 4th Graders. Yes, I mean Little Squid. He is nervous but we got him laughing -- we reminded him that he is obviously brilliant. After all, how many Squid can ride a bike. Most of them get their tentacles all tangles in the spokes. And, from the Little one himself, how many Squid can play a violin.

I started preparing a rant on how these exams are used but I may never post it. Simply put, as both a parent and an educator I understand why the exams are given, I just object to how long it takes to get the results (9 months for last year's exams) and how the results are used (middle and high school admissions over a year later in the case of the 4th and 7th grade exams). Using results that are over a year old for the purpose of deciding where a kid can go to school seems very wrong to me.

Off to stick a little something extra in Little Squid's lunch box ...