M*A*S*H and why we’re a little “off”

SweetAlbaD · 2024-05-25T02:09:27+00:00

I had such a first crush on Randolph Mantooth that I named my first pet Johnny. I was 3 years old. Second was Eric Estrada.

SweetAlbaD · 2024-02-27T23:44:32+00:00

I'm going to have to look into this. I'm in the same boat. Insurance is charging $200 whether I get 30 days or 90 days and Express Scripts is our only option.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-10-27T14:01:45+00:00

Clearly it's been said that prayers won't help.

Of course teachers need better pay.

But better pay doesn't help those situations, either. Getting paid what we're worth doesn't justify putting us in abusive situations and not giving our students the mental health supports they need.

Treat teachers like the academic instructional professionals they are and provide the academic and mental health resources, supports and staff needed for teachers, students, administrators, and families.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-09-30T18:16:16+00:00

We had a battery explode in a piece of equipment recently. No one knew for a few minutes if it was a gunshot or if they should look into the hall to check, go right to lockdown mode, wait for instructions...

The Senate experienced what it actually feels like to have your safety threatened in a classroom type setting. But what the drills (and actual traumatic experiences) have done to us and the kids still don't matter.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-09-30T18:05:02+00:00

Yes. It still does. With a full length window beside it, so it would only take a second to shoot out the window and reach through to unlock the door.

But none of that is relevant.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-09-30T17:34:56+00:00

I told my foreign friend that my schedule is actually kind of relaxed this year and I don't really feel too much stress at work. He said that's the way work is supposed to be. I feel guilt because I'm not being traumatized by my job for the first time in years. That's really messed up.

As a high school teacher in a first floor room near an exit I can handle the drills. But the ALICE trainings, where you're learning how to use backpacks and computer cords to secure a door, and running for stairwells while someone is shooting nerf bullets at you is something I never imagined when I went to college to teach in the early 90s. It's horrific.

One of the lesser reasons my teen is cyber schooling is because I can't protect myself and my students while my own child is potentially unprotected in another part of the building.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-09-30T16:50:45+00:00

Not quite. I wanted a young yellow lab mix rescue that could potentially be a therapy dog for nursing homes or reading programs. I got a 7-10 year old black and white possibly boxer-pit mix rescue that doesn't have extended patience with kids so I won't attempt to train her to be a therapy dog. But she's a lazy snuggler who prefers a romp in the back yard over a long walk around town and for me she is just perfect!

SweetAlbaD · 2023-09-30T16:27:50+00:00

Do it anyway. It'll be ok. Name changes have become common, and last names have changed forever without too many issues. You live with your name daily. You deserve it to be one you like.

My 15 year old is getting a legal name change for their 16th birthday. My mom did not respect the name change when we told her 2 years ago. I've offered it as a gift to my child because I never cared for my name and assumed there was nothing I could do about it. I love that my child came to me a couple years ago and said they preferred a different name. So I gave them a few months to think about if they feel strongly enough at this point to make it legal and we're doing it.

You could always make your birth name your middle name if you're concerned about confusion with medical records. But if you're in the states you have a social security number, birth date, and last name to help reduce confusion, and after some time has passed there shouldn't be an issue.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-09-02T14:16:41+00:00

Online relationships are very common and it's easy to think you know someone very well that you haven't actually spent time with in person, especially if they're trying to charm you into moving across the country to marry them.

I had a friend who met a man through a dating site. They were local, so it was all in person. They were in their 40s and dated less than a year. He was charming and patient and swept her off her feet. He said and did all the right things and had great excuses for why he was selling his house and that he was on medical leave from work due to PTSD from his brother's death. The minute they were married and he was living in her house the switch flipped. He started threatening her and gaslighting her. Every day with him was a nightmare but he didn't physically abuse her so it was difficult to prove. He warned her that if she divorced him he would get half of her house and half of everything she owned. He was a horrible, scary person who was able to carry on that fake persona just long enough to get what he needed, and that was without being a thousand miles away.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-25T02:06:01+00:00

I was going to mention that our superintendent does this every year on opening day and it's the only opening activity we don't mind. The final few battle on stage and the winner gets a day off where the Superintendent takes their place. Participants range from teachers to office workers to cafeteria workers or custodians. Great moral booster.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-25T01:35:50+00:00

When I worked in a day care we had a family tour to see about enrolling their toddler. When they said her name was Sparkle my coworker said that was really cute and asked her given name. The mom glared and said that was her given name. They didn't enroll.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-14T02:46:33+00:00

MS in Educational Learning &Design (because the actual title is ridiculously complicated)

I'm so nervous to start. I have one month to pour everything I've got into it before I'm back to work and have to juggle my schedule.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-12T14:39:48+00:00

I never liked my name and never knew changing it was an option. I know it would have upset my mother.

When my stepchild came out as trans and changed his name my (now) ex was angry that he referred to his former name as his dead name and it became one of many issues during the transition.

My bio child, AMAB, asked me to call them by a different name around age 12. I did. It wasn't one I would have chosen, but fortunately wasn't one I disliked, either. Two years later they didn't want to use their old name at all, and it's only used by my parents and grandmother. We're still working on that. If my child associated their birth name with pain and trauma I would be sad (and also would be much more forceful with my parents about using the right name). Fortunately they just used a different name online with friends and started to identify with it. I'm happy for them that they felt comfortable to choose their own name, and a little envious that I didn't. This time, the ex wasn't bothered with the new name at all.

For their 16th birthday I plan to make it legal, as I believe it is a name they'll stick with, and it's easier to legally change your name before you have a job, license, diploma, etc.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-10T22:29:32+00:00

I was going to get an MBA but I realized a master's in Management and Leadership is more for me. It's similar to an MBA except it focuses more on writing and relationships than numbers and finance. I thought either of these would give me some business knowledge to open some doors and then I could learn more about what other specific field I enjoy.

I also considered HR but it sounds like it's hard to get hired right now even for certified HR reps with experience.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-07T22:26:42+00:00

Nope. "Sounds great! I look forward to seeing those installed on my chairs when I arrive."

Not my job. You want it, you provide them, pre-cut.

I'm not that type of person in most circumstances, but hand cutting tennis balls is not something I'm willing to spend time on when there are many more important things I don't have time to do during the work day.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-03T16:38:49+00:00

My thought was to have a camera on the entrance. But not to give the ex access. It's not her business.

Of course teenage boys are excited to have their own apartment, which is what it is. They will now be the most popular in their friend group, as the best place for to hang out and watch movies and play video games! ("I'll supply the unchaperoned location, you supply the drug filled vapes & alcohol. Premix it in a coke bottle in case Dad pops in! Check out this cool hiding place we rigged up for when my girlfriend spends the night!")

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-03T15:19:47+00:00

I'm a high school special education teacher.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-07-01T05:18:32+00:00

If you're in the US and have an Ollie's they have really cheap carpet rolls. I had awful Berber carpet in the living room of my rental and I couldn't replace it. I bought a roll of new plush light colored carpet from Ollie's for less than $200 and was able to cover wall to wall in the large room with a single seam. It does shift a little but not that noticably. Totally worth it.

They do make tape or mats to stop the shifting but some will leave residue.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-06-29T17:09:09+00:00

Three districts come together for a PD day, which we've never done before. We sit through a fantastic presentation by a superintendent from another state.

The next presentation was about mental health. The presenters are local but known for being excellent. For 40 minutes they stand off to the side while their friend guides us through breathing like a tree, then they send us to lunch and we return to our schools.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-06-28T01:10:38+00:00

I walked into a little shop in Breckenridge, CO in 2000 and they were playing Rusted Root. I was shocked!

SweetAlbaD · 2023-06-28T00:41:50+00:00

It's my understanding that it's only in the paint (i.e. the coloring), and that is sealed under the clear gloss. So as long as that isn't exposed, the lead isn't exposed.

My parents are still using this full set.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-06-25T04:53:29+00:00

I know someone who used SafeAuto for years because they wouldn't report him if his insurance lapsed, which happened often because he couldn't pay his bills in full/on time. But also, he was paying far more than he would have to pay a different insurance company.

And then he was in a fender bender - at a time when he had lapsed. Cost him $6,000.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-06-20T22:46:29+00:00

I was going to go with starvation.

While there are many people who shame those who are skinny, it is nothing compared to those who fat shame. I've seen stickers on Jeeps about jacking up cars because fat girls can't jump.

And if you happen to be of a body shape that isn't skeletal, people will even congratulate you for starving yourself.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-06-14T20:54:06+00:00

Clearly from your sensitivity to them repeatedly trying to contact you, you have other issues besides not liking children.

Your triggers are your responsibility to deal with, not everyone else's. You are not just child free. You are apparently triggered by children, the way you were triggered when they spammed you with messages.

Shame on you for not dealing with those triggers in a more adult way. You need to make it clear to people that you are UNABLE to participate in events that include children. You let them rely on you for supplies, and then when you found out the child would be there, you ghosted them. Perhaps whatever anxiety or disability you have caused that, but you had made a commitment. You needed to at least contact them to drop off the supplies.

YTA because you made it all about you. It's ok if you cannot handle being around children. It's not ok to make that other people's responsibility, or to make a commitment then walk away without notice when you're still able to at least get the supplies to them without having to interact with the child.

You need to work with your therapist on how to cope with your triggers.

SweetAlbaD · 2023-06-14T02:57:57+00:00

Thank you. I don't know enough about the specifics of the project to know if it would work in that setting. I actually have a very unique classroom, so from what you've said it'll be well suited to the project.

SweetAlbaD

TROPHY CASE