On Grace, God, being a spouse, mother, daughter, sibling, teacher, barista, student, and being myself throughout life

That was too close a call for me.

Nate was in the bathroom, cutting his hair with the hair trimmer.  He comes out of the bathroom, wearing a towel.  You know-wearing a towel, and no shirt, so it was odd to me that this otherwise very modest guy was walking around just in a towel.

He walked over behind me to talk to me, and out of the corner of my eye, I see him take off the towel.

I had no idea he had shorts on underneath, and apparently, the look on my face was “classic, just classic, Mom!”

Nice.

to my last night at Starbucks.

I thought you would want to know.

Here is how my day went:

• got up, dressed
• went into the dining room, where we currently have the computer set up, and checked my email
• got one email telling me of an error on the main ad video
• went into Windows Movie Maker, fixed the ad, re-published it to my computer, downloaded it to You Tube; deleted the old one
• got a call from a student with technical errors
• tried to solve the errors, told him to call later in the day, after trying what we said
• ate breakfast in front of the computer
• told everyone else to eat breakfast
• typed in some of Jode’s paper, due today, that he needed to edit
• got another email telling me of another error
• went back, fixed it, re-published it, downloaded it to You Tube; deleted the old one
• told Ben to do his math
• asked the Teens what were they doing
• asked Nathan for technical help
• told Ben to do his math
• had an argument with Nathan over the technical help
• told William to go play
• told William to go eat
• told Ben to do his math
• told a Teen to help type Jode’s paper
• tried to figure out how to begin to edit the movie myself, when it became apparent by the second phone call from a student about technicalities, that I was not going to get anything by tomorrow-the deadline
• told Ben to do his math
• told William to go play
• told William to go eat
• typed up more of Jode’s paper
• argued more with Nathan
• got upset, and felt like a royal ass
• tried to make up with Nate-y, but it was still a no-go
• told Ben to do his math
• told William to go eat
• blogged a little
• checked out the new website for the co-op
• emailed with students about their projects
• made up with Nate-y
• visited with Jode, to encourage him
• listened to someone leave a message on my phone
• typed up more of Jode’s paper
• told Ben to do his math
• made Ben laugh at the sound effects on iTunes (don’t ask which ones)
• put my lunch in the oven
• told everyone else to deal with lunch
• thought about what a beautiful day it was outside
• told Ben to quit fighting with William
• told William to quit fighting with Ben
• purchased sound effects for the movies on You Tube
• spent an inordinate amount of time trying to label said sound effects, in Windows Media Player
• took a call from a student, who was still telling me about technical issues
• considered driving to California to see my mother
• told Ben to get back to his math
• began to balance the checkbook
• told William to go play
• burned CDs of the sound effects
• crabbed about the burning of the sound effects
• ate a piece of Ben’s apple, and then promptly went and cut him an entirely NEW piece, to make up for it, after he crabbed at me
• thought about taking my multi-vitamin
• ate a string cheese
• wondered about how am I going to juggle all of the graduations/weddings/baby showers this month
• told William to go play
• balanced the checkbook
• told William to go eat
• told Ben to do his history
• typed Jode’s paper some more
• paid the bills
• called the gas company and told them the logic they use to figure my bill every month was ridiculous
• opened two packages that came, and pulled bills out of the mailbox
• called a medical office I owe money to, and asked them to call back, since the billing woman was out
• paid more bills
• thought about chocolate
• wondered about my health
• finished the bills, and thought about our life insurance coverage
• went upstairs, and passed out on the bed
• woke up, and began taking more phone calls from my student
• asked Nathan about getting the files onto his computer
• finally decided to have him bring his computer to the co-op tomorrow
• picked up Chinese food for dinner
• asked Nathan again about getting the files we need, tomorrow, onto his computer
• ate dinner
• began watching Peter Jackson’s version of “Ding Dong” “King Kong”
• asked Nathan again about getting the files we need, TOMORROW, onto his computer
• told a Teen to go and put the boys to bed
• was interrupted no less than four times, to answer technical calls
• told Ben, yes, it was bedtime
• told the Teens to type in Jode’s paper
• told William, yes, it was bedtime
• finished “Ding Dong” “King Kong”
• got on here to blog to you
• wondered about just how much school did Ben do today, anyway?
• and, asked Nathan about the files we need, TOMORROW…

That was one long entry.  Trust me, it was a longer day.

After finishing up the ads (which, BTW, I was still working on today because of errors I had not caught-spelling, mostly-and others emailed me and said, “Fix this.”), I had to then tackle the issues my film students were having with their uploads/downloads/idiotloads.  And not that my students are idiots, because I really don’t think that. It is something else.

You know how “they” say you are not a good teacher if you cannot get your point across, and I just think that some of this (I emphasis some) was simply my lack of getting my point across.

For example:

• when I said, at the time of students signing up for my class, make sure you have the right computer equipment (or whatever it would be called) to do this class, I did not actually double-triple check this. I should have.
• when I said, start this project four weeks ago, I meant, start this project four weeks ago.  I should have checked this.

However, I confess I am sorry to not have seen my students really get on this project, and for us to have hashed out the issues of technicalities earlier this month (meaning, April).  I don’t know what else I could have done, other than every week (which I did) say, “Are you doing this? Don’t wait until the last minute…” and now, the majority of my class apparently waited until the last minute.

Somehow, I feel like (and I mean feel) a big failure.  If I was a better teacher, wouldn’t they have gotten on it sooner?  Jode does not think so, and said I should just let them do it or don’t do it, and give them the grade.  He is probably right.  I think part of that feeling of “shouldn’t I do more if I can?” comes from home schooling so long-that one on one aspect of it lends itself to allowing the student to slow down, if needed, and work longer.

But, this co-op is meant to not only assist the families for the long haul of high school, but also to help the students to learn how to learn from others, I think.  College is a big shock to students who have only had Mom to teach, I think.

All of that to say-next year, all the students will have flash drives, and turn them in to me with their projects on the drives. No more downloading or uploading.

Or idiotloading. Holy. Cow.