I'm still in a state of shock that it's already Thursday night...I'm not really sure where the time has gone. It's been a blur of new faces, paperwork, and sleep deprivation. Oh, and power struggles. Let's not forget the power struggles.
The first power struggle was when PissyAP decided to tell all of Uberschool teachers that they had to patrol the outer perimeter of the school on their hall duty. Outer perimeter as in outSIDE of the building. As in...where the kids rendezvous to fight. As in...
hell.
no.
He made it seem like it was a decision the entire administrative team had made together.
They had not.
He had to retract his edict.
That was a sight to behold.
The other power struggles have come from my new batch of squirrels. For the most part, they've caught on to who is in charge in my room. (And it ain't them!) But there are a couple...
These few have launched minor skirmishes over such territory as gum chewing, sunglasses (both with and without gang-sign etchings), tardies, and...get this....words from the dictionary. Yep. I had a kid who, while shopping in the dictionary for 10 words that started with "R" (the initial of his first name) called out words such as "rubber"...and asked if he could use them. (There were others, but I have blocked them all out of my memory.)
I said "Sure. As long as we're thinking of "R" words...I got one for ya...it kinda goes with it. How about....'referral'??"
Needless to say, he didn't write down the word.
Then, there's the clown in my Speech class who wore a Batman cape to school the first day.
No need to call the eye doctor, folks...you read it right.
He. Wore. A. Batman. Cape.
It took me a while before I figured out that it was, in fact, a Batman cape. (It looked like a doo-rag on steroids from the front.)
Me: Are you wearing a.....cape?
ClassClown: Sho am, Miss.
Me: Is that....Batman?
CC: Yep...Miss. Do you know Batman?
Me: Well, not personally.
(The best part is when the kid's friends laugh more at your jokes than at his!)
Later, I asked ClassClown if I could see his class schedule. He handed it over.
Me: PreAP Calculus. PreAP English. WOW.
CC: Yeah, Miss. I'm smart!!
Me: Dude. Who'da guessed!
CC: I know...hey!!
Buggy Update:
I've not seen much of Buggy this week. I'm not sure what's going on with him....he's only come by my room once -- and that was because Crazybrother needed me to print off his schedule. (Again.)
In the short time he was in my room, he did tell me that he's not only been talking with a Marine recruiter...but has taken the ASVAB, kicked ass on it...and picked Avionics as his field. He seemed kind of excited...but still withdrawn. I don't know if he thinks I'm going to disapprove of him going to the Marines because we've been talking about college. I don't know.
Am I thrilled with the idea of him going somewhere where people are going to shoot at him? No.
But hell, let's be honest. That crap happens in his neighborhood...at least in the Marines he'll have a fighting chance.
I have absolutely no doubt that he'll be able to make it through the physical challenges of boot camp with flying colors. (In fact, he said that's the part he's most excited about.) I'm a little curious about how he's going to feel when some big guy is screaming in his face and he's not allowed to react....but hey, it's about time he learned that lesson, I suppose.
Ultimately, I think he's making the right decision. Sure, I'd love for him to go to college first, and enter as an officer...but the reality is that he probably wouldn't end up going too far away from home for school -- not far enough to get away from the network. And...even if he did, he might flounder without a support system to keep him on the straight and narrow. I think the military will give him the structure he needs while he's getting the education that will challenge and utilize that incredibly gifted brain he has.....and also give him an outlet for the physical energy that gets him into so much trouble.
I'm not dealing well with him being distant right now....but I'm trying to tell myself he'll get over whatever he's dealing with -- and come talk to me when the time is right. I'm pretty sure he's dodging me because he knows if he hangs around long enough, I'll pull it out of him. So, I'll wait for him to decide that time has come.
But damn, waiting is hard.
hasta...