More from Kristi

She created this picture and several others. It included a brief discussion on idioms. Yeah, she's ten.

A Tree

Below is a story from my ten-year-old niece, Kristi. I have posted some of her work in the past. I think her punctuation is much better than the majority of my 8th graders.

Today I saw a tree. Now. I know what you're thinking. "Trees are everywhere. It's not an event to see one!" Yes, reader, I am aware of that. BUT! This tree was something........

Time for explanations. Okay. Let me describe what happened.We were stopped at a red light, and it just so happens that there was this tree right outside of my window. Let me describe it. It was blotchy with brown and white on its bark. The leaves were perfectly green. The bark was what caught my eye. The way it was spotted, it looked like someone dumped either a bucket of white paint or brown all over the trunk. The paint had dried and peeled revealing the opposite color. I know it wasn't paint. It seemed to me that the bark was either white, but chipping to show brown, or brown, but chipping to show white. This tree was so strange. It caught my eye. Again.

Phone Message

I just got this message on my voicemail:

Robert! What did you do? Lose your personal phone? Here I am wanting to talk to you. Okay. I’m going to ask you a question. You can call me back with it. I’m trying to put forward what I learned. I got a pancake box of job last week , and there is a ceiling fan. It is a global world ceiling fan, take a closer look at the pancake. And there is a sticker right on it that said, “Okay for ceiling fan.” Now I’m at a job where the guy’s doing a patio cover is doing an exterior rate fan and he’s giving me a standard pancake. He doesn’t have a label on it, and we aren’t told on the listing. It’s just a standard cubic inch-type… what four inch. Four- inch pancake. So if you can tell me I’ll call back and let him know. Appreciate it. Thanks. Bye.

Um… yeah. I’d say don’t worry about the sticker this time.

Good Etiquette

At the party tonight there was only one toilet in each bathroom. I waited for minute until the men's became available. A woman came out of it. But she put the seat back up before she left.

As she should.

Cold Hard Truth

So I decided in January to start a new segment with my AVID students. I'm going to title it "The Cold Hard Truth with Mr. B." Each session I will discuss the reality of a specific issue.

I am going to brainstorm my ideas on topics here.

• You can't change other people
• Myth: Everything happens for a reason
• Not all AVID classes are created equal
• Not all AVID classes are taught by me
• Life is not fair
• Some things in life will be tougher for you than they were for me
• Drugs can cause you to do things you'll regret
• School's a Game-- Make sure you get enough points to win
• Some people still live with prejudices
• You can go your whole life without ever getting into a physical fight
• Carrying a gun will make you more likely to get shot at
• There is a reason certain money for college is out there for minority groups-- if you qualify go for it.
• Some people in your life may not be good role models; find good ones
• There is stuff to learn from your elders
• You don't have to live paycheck to paycheck
  

Coke

I don't usually support juvenile activity, but check this out.

Baby Shower

I went to a baby shower today with 25 guests, and I was the only male among them.

I also bought a onesie for the second month in a row.

And I also wrote the word onesie for the first time.

The Devil's Book

I just ordered a used copy of The Bell Curve on-line, and my total came to $6.66.

Auto Insurance

I just received a notice in the mail that stated, "California Teachers Association members are lowering their annual auto insurance payment by $400 or more!"

I thought this was fantastic considering I only pay about $350/year. Maybe they will send me a reimbursement check too.

Long Week

Yesterday when I got home from work I just sat in the car a while. I didn't know if I had the energy to make it up the stairs.