Aristo! Aristo! A la lanterne!: It's Friday, and I'm A Smilin....

Friday, April 20, 2012

It's Friday, and I'm A Smilin....

Okay... a few points of ketchup.....

I had intended to spend the weekend cleaning and doing home chores and class prep. This will be a bit more challenging.... as SOMEONE let the heating oil tank run dry, and Castle Carteach is now sans hot water till the tank is $illed again, and the system bled out. BARgle Fraggin Flippin SnargLE Growl..... cold showers suck.
Woke up smiling this morning, with my mind racing through ideas for the possible upcoming career. So many possibilities, the options for success are endless. More on that later, if an offer firms up.
Appleseed.... I enjoyed it so much, and respect the idea of it enough, I'm considering whether I can be of use as a volunteer. The thing is.... my new possible career will have me working many weekends. This will be a tough nut to juggle. That said... if I can give them even a day now and then, perhaps it will be a welcome help.
Speaking of Appleseed... I am eager to put what I learned to use at our clubs match next month. I MUST get to the range and spend some time with The Grand Old Turk, learning how it reacts to all the lessons Appleseed taught me.
School.... to be as honest and open as I can be right now.... I am having a ball. The kids are coming along great, and the majority of them are maturing into people worth their salt. I think most will be just fine in life. The Administration..... all I can do now is laugh at the things they do. Like small clowns wrestling in a box.... they are cute, but of limited interest anymore. They'll never be more than they are, and I just don't have time to spare them any pity or concern.... although they certainly have their moments of unintended hilarity to us instructors. Like watching a Keystone Cops short flick at times.
Summer teaching.... I'm looking at 18 weeks of Wednesday evenings, instructing college level students in the fine arts of understanding, diagnosing, and repairing ignition systems. Now... there is just no WAY I can make that subject take up 18 weeks without stretching out a little..... and we shall. Oh... we shall.
More school shenanigans..... Admin has gone off the deep end regarding my use of accrued sick days. The idea of having to pay a substitute every time I decide not to work sick or wounded like I always have..... that idea kills them. I imagine enough of that, and they will have to cut back the school funds they spend on their own comfort (which is an astounding amount). They have threatened to come to my house to verify my presence if I use any more sick days this year. (GGGG). I'm sorry... but the thought of my Principal being jacked up by the nice State Troopers when I call in a prowler to 911... Holy crap! The very idea is making me laugh so hard, I may injure myself... and have to take off a few days to recover. Over the years I have had to go in for heart stress tests after nearly killing myself with work, and had to have appendages stitched up after being injured at work.... and they couldn't have cared less because I seldom took a sick day. Never a peep of concern for me. Now that they have to ACTUALLY PAY...... holy CRAP has that caught their attention.

Life is GOOD people.... Life is GOOD!

2 comments:

ZerCool said...: I'll never discourage anyone from volunteering with Appleseed - I met some fine people on "the trail", and had some great times. I ended up being driven away by way-farther-up-the-chain politics and policies. They will take you with open arms for as much or as little as you can give.

Heating oil ... ugh. Double ugh for the run-dry burner. Bleeding those lines is a pain in the ass. Are you using an oil-fired water heater separate from an oil furnace, or an all-purpose boiler?

We just (January) put in a heat-pump/electric water heater and I couldn't be happier. We haven't run out of hot water, it's a steadier temperature, and it's not costing us $4/gal to run. GE GeoSpring if you're curious.; April 20, 2012 at 7:08 AM
PRH said...: I remember fondly days at a few working places(mainly radio stations in a past life}....where, after giving my notice, I would mess with the brass....hoping they would dismiss me, thus voiding their and my contract, and have to pay the remainder of my salary, just to get rid of me...it worked a couple of times, and they being the gutless pricks they were, it was like I won the Super Bowl....Keep em' on the Hot Seat!; April 20, 2012 at 12:28 PM

Post a Comment

Robert Heinlein

"Do not confuse "duty" with what other people expect of you; they are utterly different. Duty is a debt you owe to yourself to fulfill obligations you have assumed voluntarily. Paying that debt can entail anything from years of patient work to instant willingness to die. Difficult it may be, but the reward is self-respect.

But there is no reward at all for doing what other people expect of you, and to do so is not merely difficult, but impossible. It is easier to deal with a footpad than it is with the leech who wants "just a few minutes of your time, please — this won't take long." Time is your total capital, and the minutes of your life are painfully few. If you allow yourself to fall into the vice of agreeing to such requests, they quickly snowball to the point where these parasites will use up 100 percent of your time — and squawk for more!
So learn to say No — and to be rude about it when necessary.
Otherwise you will not have time to carry out your duty, or to do your own work, and certainly no time for love and happiness. The termites will nibble away your life and leave none of it for you.

(This rule does not mean that you must not do a favor for a friend, or even a stranger. But let the choice be yours. Don't do it because it is "expected" of you.)"