i love my job...

and it's not just because i get all the school holidays off work. it's because i love books, and reading, and libraries... i could spend the whole day in the tulsa central library just browsing the stacks... yeah... good times!

on vacation now, back to work on january 4th. let me tell you, those kids really need this time away from school! they were bouncing off the walls yesterday!

so, read a book. it's called "the road", saw the movie on showtime... very visual... you don't listen to the movie so much as you absorb it with your eyes. the book was the same way... very odd... no chapter divisions. you don't listen to the book either, you are visually involved with it. i'm thinking that the author was physically drained after writing it, i know i was drained from reading it. i won't need to read this book again, it will stick with me... like "the lovely bones"... that sticks with you too. still haven't seen the movie... i will at some point.

the new elementary school is so cool! they let us tour it on wednesday. it's very odd... there are these things on the walls, on every wall in each room, i think they are "electrical outlets"? and there's this other thing called "storage"... these are foreign to those of us who work at washington or woodlawn. we're not sure what they are... but we are sure to love them very much. right now we're lucky to have maybe 2 outlets per room, that's 4 plugins. and storage... good lord! our buildings look like paddy's market most of the time since we have no where to put anything. we get to move in over summer... yea!

trying to ignore the annoying holiday madness around me... but it's getting harder.

ok, things to do.... stay tuned...

my favorite time of year... NOT!

the most annoying time of the year is once again upon us. i'll be forced to change at least one preset on the car radio, as said station will play NOTHING but xmas music from thanksgiving through new years. ARG!

so, now i will go off on any apple/mac product.

it was veterans day on thursday, and we had in a former student who is now a marine to talk to the students, she was really nice and had a great power point to share with the kids. she brought her mac laptop to hook up to the projector... THERE WAS NO VIDEO OUT ON IT!!!!!!!!!!

WHY!?

we ended up using a teachers laptop, with her power point on her flash drive. the teachers laptop was a nice, normal HP... with a DAMN VIDEO OUT! it worked great!

why would something not have a video out? i do not understand... and people do not understand my hatred of all things mac/apple?! i REFUSE to own an ipod. i will NOT OWN an iphone. and i will NOT OWN an ipad... but for another reason...

IT DOES NOT HAVE A USB PORT!

seriously... what were they thinking?! probably someone dropped the ball like on the nintendo gameboy sp's... those came without a headphone jack. then they had to develop a freaky headphone jack to fit in the back existing port.

BUT REALLY... NO USB?

ok, on to other things.

like why that insomnia drug has fine print on the commercial that states that "they do not know how this drug works". and then there's the fun about how you can wake up in the middle of the night and do stuff and not remember it the next day...

yeah... like i'm gonna take that?! i don't think so...

i have an even better cure for insomnia... it's called "read one of those "classics" that they made us read in high school", you know the "classics" i'm talking about? here's a list:

the scarlet letter- a poorly written soap opera plot. got a D- on a paper junior year for stating that fact in my critique of the book, the teacher thought the sun rose and set on that waste of paper. i'm not against hawthorn as an author, i read some of his other stuff, and it was alright. of course, that D- could have come from the fact that i said my paper was "the cliff notes, to the cliff notes of the scarlet letter" and said teacher HATED cliff notes... i don't know.

les miserables- i got to the part where jean valjean is taking a leak against some building in more detail than i cared to know about. i read the cliff notes, and got an 86 on the final... the highest grade in the class. HAH! i pretty sure there was a whole lot lost in the translation, so if i ever learn french, i'll give it another go. i use this book as a title list for books that are overly described... i call it the "less miserable's" pile.

the old man and the sea- seriously! why was this book printed?! and why was i forced to read it?! to put me to sleep? 'cause it worked. you can't sleep? this works quicker than any drug will. i'm guessing it was because hemmingway wrote it, that guys only saving grace was his love of cats. he wrote this book from some short blurb in the paper, it was like one paragraph... he gets some susposed religious symbolism BS out of it and writes a book... he should have put down that bottle of whatever 100 proof he was drinking...

ok, i guess that's all the rambling for the moment... stay tuned...

just all kinds of stuff...

so, there's just all kinds of stuff in my head...

we'll start with that famous guy who got house arrest in his swiss chalet for some trumped up rape charge or something to that effect... really... like that's some kind of punishment?! i want to be under house arrest in my mansion... with the satellite and computers and staff to take care of me... boo hoo!

ok, so those kids who got kidnapped when they were "hiking" on the border of iran?! "hiking"... really?... really, really? like there's not a million other places to go hiking?! hiking in a warzone? who's bright idea was that? and who signed off on that visa? i know... it's the vietnam war... let's go "hiking" through the rice patty... that's like a really bitchin' idea! ARG! stupid people are now my biggest pet peeve, above ill-named children.

and speaking of ill-named children.

if your last name was "camp", would you name your child "timber"? or how about naming a girl jackson, but spelling it "jaxcyn"? or if you last name is "christmas" and you run a christmas tree farm... so you name your son "christopher"? we've got a neighbor whose name is roger rogers, and there's a guy in sapulpa with the name richard head, the nick name for richard is usually dick...

sapulpa schools had a golf tournament to raise funds, instead of holding it at the sapulpa golf course, they have it at oaks in tulsa. why? the sapulpa golf course could really use the money, the city government can't fund it forever.

had some 4th graders from last year who are now the 5th graders that i was really worried about, they were always in detention. this year they are really toeing the line... it's like they all went on vacation to stepford over the summer! everyone is so happy! now, we've got some pre-k - 2nd graders who are so far over the line they can't see it anymore. i just love being argued with by a 6 year old... NOT!

if you're bored, google pics from what they sell in walmart in china... interesting to say the least...

so, K, i'm outta here... stay tuned...

bigger hitler in a warm up track suit

figured it out! yea!

doesn't he look so nice?!

hahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

hitler in a warm up track suit!

ok! yeah... i got bored...

i'll see later if i can get it bigger... i'm new to the cutting and pasting heads on other stuff...

stay tuned...

just some crazy stuff outta my brain...

so this is interesting...

Vaseline has launched a skin-whitening app for Facebook in India. The app lightens the skin tone of the user's profile picture. This is to promote Vaseline's skin-whitening products. Skin-whitening products are popular in India.

in america we darken ourselves to gain status... which is just too bizarre to think about... over there it's all about whitening... go figure.

so, have you noticed 3rd world dictators lately? they all wear those warm up suits... what would hitler have looked like in a warm up suit?! i maybe need to play with the paint.net now and put his head on a body wearing a warm up suit... i think it would be funny. wonder what color he would look best in?

so, the car died. engine went... 2 payments from payoff! normal! so i sold it on craigslist for $1000 and paid it off and the money i owed the mechanic and have some left over for tags on the new to me one i'll be getting soon. looking at a 2005 ford escape. consumer reports likes it, they didn't like the 2003 nissan sentra. should have done my homework in the first place.... hindsight is 20/20.

stuck at home... summer is boring at the moment. reading a lot. re read the shelters of stone from jean m. auel. the 6th book is due out next summer! woot! i can't wait! i love this series. instead of reading the first book, the clan of the cave bear, i just watched the cheesy movie on vhs... aaaahhhhh, daryl hannah before she became a tree hugging animal activest wacko.

yeah, ok. i gotta go make dinner now. taco tatertot casserole... yum!

stay tuned...

taco tater tot casserole recipe

i'm reposting this recipe for a friend, it's also in the september 7th or 9th post from last year.


ok, so i finally tweeked that tater tot casserole to my liking. i never used the cream of mushroom soup, cause i hate mushrooms. i was using the cream of celery, but it lacked oomph. so, i started using the cream of tomato and a package of taco seasoning. it was alright... last time i exchanged the ground beef for owens italian sausage... and WOW! yeah! that's the ticket!

TACO TATER TOT CASSEROLE

1lb. pkg of owens italian sausage (or other italian sausage)
1 sm onion, diced
1 can condensed tomato soup
1 pkg taco seasoning
1/4 cup milk
1 cup diced frozen veggies mix from freezer case at grocery store
8 ozs shredded cheese (cheddar or monterey jack work well, you could also try pepper jack)
tator tots, enough to cover top in one layer

oven 350F. about 40 minutes to bake.

brown sausage with diced onion. add soup, taco seasoning, and milk, mix well. add veggies, mix well. i use the 10 inch square corning ware baking dish for this (but a 9 inch square would work too), line it with foil, so you don't have to soak and scrub the dish. put meat mix on bottom, spread for even layer, top with cheese, top with one neat layer of tator tots. i'm OCD, so it takes me a few minutes to arrange the tots for what i think is a perfect looking layer. put in oven for 40 minutes, let set about 5 minutes when it comes out. this also freezes well in small portions to heat and eat later.

how liberals have ruined the public school system and this country

it all goes back to the touchy feely don't you dare spank that child nonsense that has been prevalent since about the early 80's. When they took swats out of the discipline line up in public schools, this country was all but lost. What can you scare them with to keep them in line? Detention? Suspension?...I'm sorry, but as someone who works in the public education world, I'm here to tell you that these things are a complete joke. Nothing kept you in line at school like the sound of someone getting swats echoing down the hall.
But, it really goes back to the parents. I have come up with and explanation for this, I call them “fish” parents, because they “spawn and release”. They may feed the baby (but they also are known to put soda pop in the baby bottle, I've personally seen this, I wanted to strangle the mother, but restrained myself), and keep the baby clean, but they don't read to them or teach them any manners or teach them how to behave in public or at school. They put them in front of the TV, or give them video games to play. By the time they are ready to enter the public school system at 4 for full day free pre-k, they are all but ruined. For most it's too late. They have become ill-mannered louts, who argue when given directions, who won't be quiet and do their work in class, who disturb others, and are constantly in trouble. They will become drags on the economy, instead of productive members of society. Some of them will become clients of the correctional system.
For those of us who actually “parent” our children, it is a trial also. Our children are forced to be in classrooms with these ill-mannered louts. Their education is hampered, not as good as it should be because the teacher is constantly having to deal with children that won't behave so that all can learn.
And the parents of the “louts” either think that it's not their childs' fault, or that the behavior is cute. Take one of my “repeat offenders” or “inmates” as I call them when they spend most of their lunch time recess with me in detention. It's a boy, and last year on the playground, he whipped it out and took a leak in front of everyone... momma thought it was “cute” and “well... he is a boy, and boys will be boys...” as if! If I had a son, and he did something like that... his back side would shine like the top of the chrystler building. But, if I had a son, he would know his manners and how to behave. I, thankfully, was blessed with two daughters.

civil rights day

so, it's another civil rights day. i've read alot about martin luther king jr., and i believe that he would not have wanted anyone to name a day after him. he was for civil rights for everyone, not to make a name for himself. so, every year i cross out his name on the calendar and write in "civil rights day" above it.

going to the movies today. the girls want to see that chipmunks movie, i'd rather gouge out my eyes with a red hot poker. i'll see another movie in the same theater while they see that one. glad they are at the age that i can do that. i remember mom dropping off me and best friend to see horror movies at the theater when we were like 9 and 10. aaaahhhh... the days when they didn't care how old you were, just that you would pay the ticket price. then they actually started enforcing those age limits for the ratings.

winter break pretty much sucked! we couldn't go anywhere thanks to that stupid blizzard on christmas eve. then we get back off break, and we were out on thursday and friday because it was so cold. now we're out for a 3 day weekend thanks to civil rights day. anyway, we won't be out again until spring break. the kids are restless 'cause they haven't been able to go outside at recess because of the playground being a muddy mess. i hope it dries up soon...

read 102 books last year, wonder how many for this year.

ok, outta here. stay tuned...