Teacher, Teacher...

Can you teach me?

Can you tell me all I need to know?

Teacher, teacher, can you reach me?

Or will I fall when you let me go? Oh no. 

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Guess what? The week of May 2-6 is Teacher Appreciation Week! May 3 is Teacher Appreciation Day and to celebrate, the Texas House is proposing huge cuts to education! But in their infinite wisdom they approved a tax break for those who want to buy yachts costing $250,000.00 or more. I could almost guarantee that none of those people would be teachers. Isn’t there something wrong with this picture?

With the current budget proposal, approximately $7.8 billion will be cut from Texas public school budgets. Four community colleges will be closed and about 60,000 students will lose the financial aid that’s allowing them to further their education. As many as 97,000 teachers and school employees will lose their jobs. And there’s $9.4 billion in the rainy day fund. If this doesn’t qualify as a rainy day I don’t know what will!

To add insult to injury, substitute teaching could cost any laid-off teacher their unemployment compensation. The reason is a clause in the Labor Code designed to keep educators from seeking unemployment benefits in the summer or during holiday breaks when they have a guaranteed job waiting. School personnel can’t get benefits during a break if they were employed before the break. It carries over to substitute teaching. It makes sense for full time employed teachers. It doesn’t for substitutes.

It doesn’t matter that the substitute services are only part-time and on an as-needed basis. The commission ruled that if a district is using someone to substitute they could very well offer that substitute full time work in the fall or after a holiday. Therefore, the way the law reads it means they can’t be paid unemployment benefits during the breaks.  Thankfully the commission is supposed to be writing new benefit explanations that will warn teachers that substitute teaching isn’t worth it! I’m sure they’ll be a little more politically correct than I am and not tell them that if they substitute they’ll be screwed.

You're screwed.

In the meantime, if you can read this you need to thank a teacher. It doesn’t matter if you learned at home or at school, someone taught you and that makes them a teacher.  You should be grateful that they took their time to help you to become a better person. And when the next election comes around…remember to read the ballot carefully and express your appreciation to the powers that be this time…by not asking them back.

Just when I thought I finally learned my lesson well,
There was more to this than meets the eye.
And for all the things you taught me, only time will tell,
If I'll be able to survive. Oh yeah.

I’m fortunate that I had good teachers, (for the most part anyway), during my years in school. My first grade teacher gave me my love for school. If I’d had someone who wasn’t devoted and caring (even though she had a loud, gravelly voice that scared me!), I wouldn’t have done as well as I did because I was a terribly shy little girl. Thank you Mrs. Martha Roberston! 

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One of my favorite high school teachers was my favorite because she thought I had potential. She encouraged me to explore different possibilities not only in art and craft type things but in other areas as well. She believed in me. There’s more to that story but maybe it can be in another blog post. Anyway, one time she spun some yarn and asked me to knit her a sweater. I even got to work on it at school, in classes besides hers! She did a lot for me and doesn’t even know it. Thank you Ms. Carol Klattenhoff!

http://sweetsugarbelle.blogspot.com/

Speaking of knitting, I made another ball. They are fun but this time I had a harder time getting it together for some reason. But I finally got it.

I also put the beads on the blue/green shawl. I had two on each fringe and it was too heavy. So I took one off each fringe. I still don’t like it. I think I’m going to take it completely apart and do it again on a smaller needle. I pulled out the telephone pole #17’s for this one but I think I’ll try again with a 15. I’ve got another ball going but that’s about all for now. I’m just in the mood for some no brain knitting. Oh yeah, I still haven’t blocked the crocheted shawl. I’m beginning to think I might have to hire it out!

This little guy is thankful for his teacher and so am I. Without teachers we don't have a future. And that's nothing to look forward to! 

Am I ready for the real world, will I pass the test?
You know it's a jungle out there.
Ain't nothin' gonna stop me, I won't be second best,
But the joke's on those who believe the system's fair, oh yeah.

Teacher, teacher, can you teach me?
Can you tell me if I'm right or wrong?

Wild Thing

You make my heart sing.
You make everything groovy,
Wild thing…

I saw an ad on the side of my Facebook page the other night about 100 things to see or do in Midland/Odessa. (Now that I want to see it, is it there? No!) While I was sitting here in bed, not feeling the best, I started thinking about things I might want to do but most likely would never do. (I say most likely because you never can tell!) I came up with a few wild things I’d do if I was brave…or someone else! Here you go.

1. I’d have tattoos…yes, more than one but they would be in places that required an invitation for viewing. And they wouldn’t be of ‘normal’ tattoo things. I saw one once that was really cute and I asked the girl if I could use it should I ever decide I wanted to. She said yes, but not to copy it exactly. Anyway, it’s a mummy and the mummy is knitting with a string from her leg. I thought it was hilarious! She said she designed it because she’s the ‘mummy’ at her house and is a knitter.

Original tatoo from Jenny Lee on Ravelry.

2. I’d buy some killer shoes that cost $500.00 or more and wear them proudly. I wouldn’t blink when I paid. They’d look good, too, and they would never hurt my feet!

Jimmy Choo...not in this lifetime!!

3. I’d sing Karaoke. I’d get up and sing and I wouldn’t be scared. I wouldn’t mess up either. Both of my boys have done this. In fact Bryce does it regularly. Don’t know about Callye.

4. I’d put a pink or blue steak in my hair. Well maybe not blue because I’ll be the old lady with blue hair soon enough!

Drawing by Evan. Streaks by me! ha ha

5. I’d bungee jump. And I wouldn’t have to go to the hospital afterwards.

6. I’d be in a play. A big one that a lot of people came to see. I’d act in my role, and not be inhibited. (Hmmm…am I noticing a trend here? Do I secretly wish I was a star? Ha ha)

7. I’d be someone important. I know lots of people who are very important, in their own minds! I’d really be important, though, for the day anyway! In my own mind!

8. I’d get liposuction. I’d only do that if I was wild. I hate needles.

9. I’d get a fancy sports car and drive fast. But not to work. If I had enough money to get a fancy sports car I wouldn’t have to work!

10. I’d go to Mardi Gras. I’d have a lot of beads that I didn’t have to buy at the souvenir store! Ewww….

These are actually Ty's. I'm not asking what he did to get so many.

This isn’t a bucket list. I think a bucket list is things you want to do before you die. Chances are I wouldn’t do some of these things even if I could. But then there is always that chance! So fess up! What’s one of your ‘wild’ things?

Wild thing, I think you move me

But I wanna know for sure

I was looking for a new project the other day ran across a pattern on Ravelry that is a woven ball. I know you’ve probably seen them in stores, made of plastic. I worked on some of the strips at the fiber fest because it’s kind of mindless knitting, except for keeping count of the rows. It was hard to explain how the strip I was knitting was going to turn into a ball!

Six strips. 20sts wide, 68 rows long.

I finished all the strips and put one together and it turned out really cool. It was a fun knit and since I have a lot of scraps this is a good way to use them.

First step. Weaving four strips together.

Finished ball. Cool!!

I got the beads for the bias shawl but haven’t put them on yet and I’m still gearing up to block the crocheted shawl.

Beads will be added to the fringe on each end.

I guess I’m getting a bucket list of knitting, things I need to finish before I die! And if I wanted to add knitting to my ‘wild’ list I guess I could always knit a wild bikini!

Wild thing, I think I love you.

But I wanna know for sure...

Oh come on, come on wild thing.

Check it, Check it wild thing.