Good Thing I'm Not a Germ Phobe

Gloves to serve pizza would be a good idea if the same gloves didn't handle money.



Good thing a few germs never killed anyone. The pizza in this place is great! Maybe the germs add to its flavor.



(Photo taken in the pizza store which I won't name.)

John

John graduated from Packemin HS in 1995. When I first met him, I thought he was kind of slow, but a really nice kid. I never called his home because he appeared to be working to capacity so why stress his mom and dad. He did manage to pass and I was able to put him in a double period class where he could get extra help.

I ended up being the teacher of this double period class and got to know John and his two buddies completely. I found that these three ninth grade boys were not slow, but were not interested in school either. They lived and breathed baseball. They dreamt of opening up a surf shop together in South Beach. I encouraged their dreams and also stressed their education so they would have something to fall back on, just in case. I even took my son to cheer them on as they played on the junior varsity team in a nearby park.

By coincidence, John ended up in my class the following year. He still was not much of a worker and I picked on him and pushed him to work and that he did. He passed Sequential Math I, II and III. He graduated and went on to a community college. After 4 years, he decided to become a history teacher and came back to Packemin to do his observations. He begged his advisor to be allowed to sit in my math class, rather than a history class and the advisor agreed. He said, he wanted to be just like me when he started teaching. (Pity his poor students.) Once again, I was calling on John, along with the rest of my class.

Fast forward two more years, John is now graduating college and about to become a teacher. Again, coincidentally, his mom is a para at Packemin. I am so happy that I send John a check for $25 to celebrate his graduation. John frames it instead of cashing it.

It is now 2008, 13 years since John graduated from high school and 17 years since I first met him. John got married this weekend. His two friends from high school were there. Only in New York would a kid from the Philippines have best friends from Columbia and Pakistan. My husband and I were invited to the wedding banquet. I felt honored to have been invited after all the years that passed. John even had a picture of the two of us in his slide show. I had tears in my eyes as I saw this wonderful young man enter the room with his beautiful bride.

Some people would have written the three of them off years ago. All three are big successes. John teaches history and although he never made it to the major league, he coaches his school's varsity baseball team. One of the boys is a computer geek and earns big $$$$$ doing IT stuff and the other is in charge of all the stores of a major retailer in the New York area. I'm glad I never gave up on them.

This was my first Chinese Banquet dinner. Although there was nothing that I could eat (not kosher), it was an event to remember. At 5:30 a buffet table opened. At 6:30 the guests took their seats and platter after platter was brought out. I think there were ten courses. The last one before dessert was lobsters. My husband said it was the best food he has ever eaten. All I know is that I have never seen so much food in one place before.

Welcoming Words

"Come in. I've been waiting for you."

A woman in the nail salon repeated these words that a teacher had said to her students many years ago The teacher never reprimanded them for being late or sent them out for a pass. She just showed joy at their arrival. The kids learned to not only show up on time, but to be early.

Too bad my school does not believe in this policy. I only yell at my students for being late if there is an administrator in the room. The kids know I don't mean to yell. Wouldn't it be nice if we could all treat our students this way.

Skip This If You Are Tired Of My Pictures

My aching feet. I met my friend at Penn Station. We walked from there to Avenue A and 3rd St to a craft store. Then we headed over to the Container Store on 17th and 6th. They were out of what I wanted so we went to the branch on 58th and Lexington. I finally got back on the subway at 63rd and Lexington. As the years pass, I know there will come a day when I will no longer be able to wander the streets. I have to get it all in now, no matter what the weather may bring. This store looked really interesting. Next time, we are going to stop.

Most people don't realize that there are tree lined streets in Manhattan.
This poor guy was dripping . It was in the high 90's today.

The Gershwin Hotel. next time, I am going to check out their bathroom.
Barnes and Nobles on St. Mark's Place. It is out of business. Aside from the sadness of a closed business, NYC lost a good bathroom stop.

St. mark's Place has interesting store windows. An old synagogue on some side street I never walked on before.

We were wondering if it was still in use and were pleased to see this sign on the door.

As seen from Lexington Ave.

Also from Lexington. I love the contrast of the old buildings with the new.
The carvings on this building are really great.
New York Magazine headquarters.
More construction.
Huge crane.
I can't imagine what it is like to work underground, in the heat, every day of my life. These poor guys really earn their money.

Upper East Side

The upper East Side is a whole different world from places I've posted about before.


These two children are playing a board game in the park. They are being supervised by a nanny. (The two little ones I was with are really gorgeous, but I did not want to publish their pictures so I substituted these two cuties.) The park--really nice, well kept and full of great activities.
Bloomingdales, the Third Avenue side. I love the flags. The Bloomberg buiilding-57th between Third and Lexington. It sure beats any school building I have seen.
A church on Lexington.

Ladies who lunch. Keep the kids busy while mom shops by giving them a laptop to use.
Waterfalls by subway entrance 53rd and Lexington. These are prettier than the ones the city has put up in lower Manhattan. (Shot through the window of some ritzy store.)
And the Kosher meal, in case you are hungry, also at the subway entrance.

Why Wait 20+ Years to U Rate?

A teacher I know just got his second U rating. This guy has been teaching over twenty years and he never received a U rating until he came to my school.

Mr. T started teaching in X HS. After a few years, he stopped getting along with the chairperson and transferred to Y HS. He lasted a short time at Y and then transferred to Z HS where he conflicted again with the chairperson and that brings us to today.

While I won't judge Mr. T (I happen to like him very much), I wonder if he really now just started being an unsatisfactory teacher or if he has been one since the beginning. If he was always bad, he should have been U rated years ago, not three years before he hits the magic 55/25. He has been advised to resign, but he won't. He's worked too hard to give up. They are trying to tell him that if he resigns he can keep his license and get a job teaching in a private school or on Long Island. He knows this won't happen. No one would give him the recommendations he would need for the new job.

Mr. T is putting on his gloves, hiring a lawyer and fighting until the finish. My money is on him to win. I would never bet against a colleague.

Attention: NYC Teachers

TRS had a great seminar today on retirement options for Tier I teachers. It was worth the trip to 55 Water St. Don't despair if you are not Tier I. They also run these seminars for Tiers II, III and IV. Even if you are not ready for retirement, it is still worthwhile going. There is a special form to fill out that will give you a projected retirement income.

Views from the windows

South Street Sea Port

This street performer was fantastic. One of the few I have actually given money to. The box he ends up in is only a 17 inch cube.

New Baby

This the the beautiful granddaughter of a woman who works with me. The baby is 10 days old.

This lady has had a lot of sorrow in her life. The baby is making her forget that pain.

We all need something this kind of beauty in our lives.

Summer of Weddings

I never understood the big deal about weddings and tears. Maybe it's age or maybe it's having children of marriageable age, but my eyes are getting wet at all weddings these days.

This picture is from my son's best friend's wedding. I've known the groom since he was in third grade and his parents say he would still be in high school if I did not tutor him in math. The bride I met only once. Seeing her dad's eyes' all wet as he walked her down the aisle was enough to set me off. My son was best man and seeing these two young men, dressed to the nines in their tuxes, had me weeping again.

For me, this is the summer of weddings. I've already been to two and two more are on the calendar. The next one is the wedding of a former student. I remember this boy, sitting in class with his two best friends, dreaming about playing professional baseball or opening up a surf shop on the beach. He was far from a good student and only when I got to know him better, did I learn that he was just not interested in school. In spite of this, he graduated on time and went to a junior college. True, it took him six years to decide what he wanted to be and to graduate, but graduate he did. He went on to finish and is now teaching history and coaching baseball. His mom told me the graduation check I sent him is framed on his wall. I hope he cashes the one I am planning on giving him at the wedding. I know I will get weepy when he takes his vows.

The last wedding of the summer is that of the son of a guy I became friends with when I first began teaching. I will never forget this guy's face when his baby was born. He looked like he had a 200 watt light bulb inside his head. I never saw anyone glow with happiness so much. Over the years, I have watched this baby grow into a wonderful, responsible, fine adult and I know already the tears will flow as his parents escort him down the aisle.

I don't want to think about how much money I have spent this summer on wedding gifts (well over $1000). I want to think about the wonderful young people I have watched grow and be happy that I am able to contribute to their new lives together.

This You've Got To See

Really strange stuff.

More like this on the site.

First Random Subway Day of Summer

First Manhattan stop--bathroom in this ritzy hotel right outside the subway, across the street from Century 21. It is very clean, very modern and well equipped. No one cares if you are a guest at the hotel or not.

Map of lower Manhattan. Click to see an enlarged version and all the sites.

The area is still being worked on. This is the side street, north of Century 21. For any tourists, you should hit this store. It has fantastic bargains. It has been featured on Sex and the City and the TLC show What Not To Wear.

Great buildings seen walking uptown on Park Row.

Part of Woolworth Building

Another great building, still walking uptown.

Skyline showing Financial Center. The Twin Towers used to be here.


NYS Supreme Court

The Brooklyn Bridge--I remember walking across this bridge during the '75 teacher strike.

China Town

More China Town

You can get your shoes repaired from this lady on the street.

This guy changed batteries in four watches for $12. He did a great job.

There are four of these on one block on Mulberry St.

City Hall

City Hall Park. In the center "Parks are the refuge of the people."

I've been on this block in Little Italy hundreds of times yet never noticed this building painted the colors of the Italian flag.


Guy trying to convince tourists to try his restaurant. I once got plied with wine to eat in a certain place. The wine and food was great.

Interesting and cheap tee shirts.

Beautiful fruit.

Another great building.

Only in NY!

Another park.

One of the best dessert places in Little Italy.

I think this guy was in love with his reflection.

Waiting for free admission to Hell Boy III

Miles and miles of books. The only problem is the store is not air conditioned. There is a good selection outside for $1.00 a piece.

Park your bikes and ride the subway.

Elevated parking garage.

Getting My Money's Worth

I'm good on the subway. I can get anywhere and find my way home from any part of the city. I never get lost--at least not until today.

I was on 14th St., on the east side. My day started at Century 21 on Chambers St. so I had already done quite a bit of walking but I hate to change trains so I walked to 6th Ave to catch the F train home. But, for those who know the area, the F stop at 14th St. is not an easy one to use. First, I ended up on the L platform. Then, I found the F platform, fought the traffic and reached the platform, only to find I was on the downtown side. I turned around and got caught up in the rush hour mob and decided to just take the L one stop and get on the E. Unfortunately I got on the L in the wrong direction and ended up back at Union Square. At that point, I took the 6 to 51st where I changed for the E to get home. If only I found the F in the first place I could have sat the entire way home. Oh well, at least I got my $2.00 worth!

What Every Teachers' Cafeteria Needs

School

High School Diploma = Literacy?

A woman in the beauty shop was complaining about all the remedial courses college students now have to take. She said "These kids all graduated with regents diplomas. How can they be graduates and still need all this remediation? The colleges are just trying to make extra money." I tried to explain the low grades needed to pass these exams. I wish she culd read some of the stuff that is considered acceptable by the powers that be today. Here is a writing sample from a girl who was in an AP calculus class. She has only been in this country a short time. She tested out of ESL almost immediately and passed the English regents on her first try. And, no, she is not using computer shorthand in her letter.

Dear Ms POd:

I'm jun, i own your a calculator.I was thinking to give it to you the last day for class, but you were absent in that day.so i want to give it to u tomorrow after my physics regent.if u get my email, can you email me back, cas i want make sure what time and what room you are in school.

My Cousin's Wife

It sucks to die when you are only 50 years old and have a real love of life. It sucks to deprive your three sons, the youngest only eleven, of their mother. It sucks to for a husband to lose the wife he has been in love with since his teen years.

Donna is lying in an ICU right now, stricken down with an ovarian cancer that has spread through her body. The cancer was detected five years ago, at stage three. There were rough days and miserable treatments, but she was beating this disease, until recently. Last week she went into the hospital for a routine chemo treatment and the hope of becoming part of a new, experimental program. Things did not go as planned. She developed a pulmonary problem. Her stomach became distended and the doctor's discovered the cancer spread to her colon. Her colon was removed. Unfortunately the cancer spread to other parts of her body. Now she is on a ventilator, sedated and her survival chances are very slim. Her 18 year old does not leave her side. Her 16 year old can't bare being in the room with her. Her 11 year old is confused about what is going. Her husband is numb. Her sister-in-law flew cross country to help for a week and is now staying indefinitely because her brother needs her.

I was with Donna at the Montreal wedding just three weeks ago. She danced and partied and laughed and talked about beating the disease. I just found out that she was in pain, even then. She hid it. She didn't want people to worry. I will always remember her twirling around the dance floor with her three sons.

Donna is a Bronx girl that never forgot her roots, no matter how much money her family has made. My cousin, to whom she is married is a top lawyer in a major firm but you would never know this by looking at her and talking to her. She is as humble and loving in wealth as she was in the projects of the Bronx.

Life is not fair. Donna is in the hands of great doctors. I pray that Donna's family will have the support they need to carrying on without her.

Working On The Streets Of NY

I hope no one sees me back here. Think anyone will notice that we are missing?

These umbrellas are doing nothing for the heat.

Pocketbooks for sale! Wonder what is in his box?
Boy, its hot today.
Get your fresh fruit here.
Want to see the sights?
Newspapers for sale.

I can't believe I ate the whole thing.
Why are you guys goofing off? Want to sell some euros?
Wonder what I should get for lunch?

Not Very Reassuring

Seeing this outside Bryant Park as I was leaving 42nd Street Library (great photo exhibit on eminent domain in NYC) does not make me happy. I don't care where the gun was pointed.
Bomb sniffing dog?

He's dressed too warm for the weather of the day.

One of the Many Reasons Why...

I LOVE NEW YORK

So You Want To Be Principal

Mr. AP would like to be a principal. If he asked, here is the letter of recommendation I would write:

To Whom It May Concern:

Mr. AP has been at Packemin HS for many years. He first served as a teacher and then moved on to become the chairperson of the department. The department has benefited greatly from his ability to fix the copy machine, whenever it breaks down. He is also good at finagling extra masters and ink for the machine.

Mr. AP is the type of principal you want if you want someone who believes he is smarter than everyone else in the building. No one knows as much as he does or has more common sense. He can determine whether a child will pass or fail, just by looking at a name and a few test scores.

If you want to hire a principal that knows how to antagonize parents, Mr. AP is the man for you. He yells at parents if they knock on his office door and he makes them wait long periods of time to talk to him. He will not consider any requests they make if they are different than what he has in mind for that particular student.

If you believe that one ethnic group should be favored over all others, hire Mr. AP. This ethnic group of students gets preferential treatment. He also hires teachers only of this ethnicity also.

Mr. AP is constantly blaming teachers for all the ills of the school. He will berate them if their regents grades
are not high enough. He will berate them if their final grades are not within 5 points of the regents exam. He will not allow them to make their own decisions about who should pass and who should fail. If you want a principal that will hold teachers accountable for all the school's troubles, Mr.
AP is your candidate.

If these are the qualities you are looking for in your next principal, hire Mr. AP. No one does any of the above better than he does them.


Sincerely
yours,

Ms. POd

Mr. Frenchie

All the physical education teachers had to be released from their proctoring assignments to so some stupid work that should have been finished last week before classes ended. It was not their fault the work wasn't done. The paperwork they needed did not arrive on time.

Lucky me!! I got to proctor the French regents for one of these PE teachers. The PE teacher started the exam and when I took over Mr. Frenchie was reading aloud. I don't know Frenchie. I never even spoke to him until that day. I don't even know his real name.

Frenchie was reading instructions when I walked in, instructions Ms PE had already read and explained quite thoroughly. Then Frenchie asked "Is everyone happy that I am reading? Would you like another teacher?" He then smiled and patted himself on the back. He repeated the question after every third reading. He also asked "Am I reading too slow? Am I reading too fast? Am I reading just right?" Again, he smiled, and patted himself on the back. He complimented his clear pronunciation and commented on the ease of almost every question. The reading in this room took 20 minutes longer than the reading in every other room.

Joey walked into the exam twenty minutes late and missed 24 points of the exam. Joey's teacher agreed to read the part he missed to him privately. Frenchie was not happy about that. He said Joey should be penalized and asked the students in the room if they agreed with him. The kids just wanted to get on with the exam and raised their hands to get Frenchie to stop blabbing about nothingness and get on with the reading. Frenchie never even bothered to find out if Joey had a legitimate reason for being late. Thank goodness Joey's teacher had compassion and helped Joey in spite of Frenchie.

French is the language of love. I hope Mr. French enjoys whispering love phrases into the mirror because no one will ever say them to him better than the way he says them to himself.

Graduation Day

I'm sorry to say this, it makes me sound like a fool but, I HATE GRADUATIONS, yet I never miss them.

Last night, my friend Gina's son Billy graduated from high school. Gina's husband, Billy's dad, died two years ago. Billy loves having people lots of people around so Gina asked me to attend the graduation, which I did.

First off, let me say that Billy is not a nice person. He is rude and disrespectful to his mom and his mentally disabled uncle. He thinks the world revolves around. Part of this behavior is stuff he can't control, but most of it can be controlled. I know, he controls it when he has to.

Billy graduated from a high school on the ritzy south shore of Long Island. Snobbery was in the air. Journals were distributed with full pages full of the young high schools achievements, pictures and wishes from their families. They must have cost a fortune to produce. In spite of all this, it was great seeing Billy walk across the stage. He is a special education student that accomplished a difficult feat. I feel part of it. I got him through Math A.

My school had its graduation today. This was the first time graduation came a day after school ended. I actually got paid to go! This is the only per session I have done in years. I figured, since I always go to graduation anyways, I might as well get paid for the day.

This year's set up was better than last year's. The kids (all 950 of them) lined up in an air conditioned gym. It was pretty organized and the kids were well behaved. It took forever to get into he auditorium. Naturally, there were too many speakers and Suit managed to tell his stupid jokes. In spite of the length, it was nice. I would have cut the part where they do the Faces of Packemin HS. That could have saved 15 minutes. And, although the music was great, three pieces were unnecessary. One of them showcased the talents of a teacher. He was great but it was not appropriate here. Parents wanted to see their children graduate, not see this guy perform.

To me, the highlight was calling the kids to the stage to receive their "diplomas". It took over an hour to call 950 names and Suit posed for a picture with every kid (He must be exhausted afterward all that smiling.) While I hated waiting for it to happen, it was nice for the kids.

Afterwards, people milled around outside. I saw a few of my kids but there were just too many people around to really find anyone in particular. Just watching the proud parents and seeing the flowers and balloons was enough to make me glad I sat through that boring ceremony.

Worse than the speakers and the length of the ceremony was the traffic getting out. I'm smart. I parked right near the exit and walked a long way to the ceremony. It got me out 40 minutes sooner.

Graduations are long and boring. Traffic is terrible. I look forward to next year's event.

Will We Be Better Off?

Suit announced his retirement at the faculty conference today. I have mixed feelings. I really despise this man (as anyone who has read this blog can tell) but he is basically harmless to most of us. He might hate me, but he knows my results and relationships with the kids are both good and he leaves me alone (except for his verbal nastiness).

Is the devil I know better than the devil I don't know? Only time will tell.

Either way, it is good to know I can walk if things get too heated.

Cause For Celebration

I won the pool. Students only need 30 out of 89 points to pass the new Integrated Algebra regents.

Good to know the state has raised standards.

I Will Derive!

Courtesy of a student.

Spy Dirty Dog

Ms Dirty Dog always dreamt of being a secret agent. She grew up watching shows like Mission Impossible, Man From Uncle and I Spy and fantasized traveling the globe with a suave, good looking partner like James Bond. Unfortunately life did not have that plan for her and she became a school secretary. Ms Dirty Dog labored diligently behind her desk, always dreaming about what she felt should have been her life long work.

One day as Ms. Dirty Dog was turning on her computer, an electric shock passed through her body. She lost consciousness for a few minutes. When she woke up she was no longer Ms Dirty Dog, she was now Spy Dirty Dog. She had the power to prowl the halls during regents exams and to peer into every classroom. The teachers were terrified. No one dared to sit while proctoring. Spy Dirty Dog had her trusty pen and pad ready to record every misdeed. Pity the poor proctor who failed to notice a student had a bag on their lap or unconnected headphone wires around their neck. No one was immune to the eyes of Spy Dog.

At the close of the exam, Spy Dirty Dog reverted to her alias, Ms. Dirty Dog. The only difference was now she was content and happy with who she was. She had followed her dream. Her super ego could rest until next year's regents exam.

Desk Surprise

I was bored while proctoring the Global Regents so I started looking through the English teacher's desk. I expected to see things like this:Or this: I never expected stuff like this in a high school.

I'm teaching the wrong subject. We never have time to color or draw pretty pictures in class.

Teaching Technique?

From Bizarre News:

You don't see these old-fashioned values much any more. There is a big hoopla in Mount Vernon, Ohio about a public school teacher who preached his Christian beliefs despite complaints by other teachers and administrators. Mount Vernon Middle School teacher John Freshwater also taught creationism in his science class and was insubordinate in failing to remove a Bible and other religious materials from his classroom. But it wasn't enough that he tried to burn the fear of God into their little heathen souls, he wanted to burn it into their flesh, too. Freshwater used a science tool known as a high-frequency generator to burn images of a cross on students' arms in December. Freshwater told investigators he simply was trying to demonstrate the device on several students and described the images as an "X," not a cross. But pictures show the images depict a cross. A friend of Freshwater defended him, saying, "With the ex- ception of the cross-burning episode... I believe John Freshwater is teaching the values of the parents in the Mount Vernon school district."