Friday September 29, 2000
It has been a week since I last wrote and I think it is mostly because of the vanilla flavored atmosphere at school. I have had to look for things to write about because there have not been any fights, bomb threats, or explosions going on. Is this a normal place for education?

The kids have been very good. Actually, working with the kids has really been the highlight of my days at Sunnyland. The kids seem to do their homework, and are not too disruptive in class. Last week I gave them a quiz and most of the kids did pretty well.

Friday, October 6, 2000
I have hardly had any reason to write at all lately primarily because the action at Sunnyland has been so routine. The kids are basically doing their work, and I have had few problems with students. The school is fairly well organized and my days are filled with actually teaching and grading a bunch of papers. I love my job and am happy at this place.

Thursday October 26, 2000
I have not written in a few weeks because I broke a finger on my hand and it hurts like hell. It is in a splint and I have total ligament damage. As I am typing this it hurts like shit, but the readers are salivating for more.

The first nine weeks will end tomorrow and the honeymoon is still on. The kids have been pretty well behaved and the school runs pretty well. I have been doing some after school tutoring with the kids to score a few extra dollars. I have also just written a grant proposal and will probably get an answer some time next year when I have forgotten about the whole thing.

I have become closer with some of my colleagues and learned to distance myself from the others who are nothing but trouble. The lesson I have learned at Sunnyland is to keep your nose clean and to just teach - you will be rewarded if you do the right thing at this place. Getting involved in the politics of the school is a total waste of time.

Sunday October 29, 2000
I went to a party on Friday and it made me realize just how differently things could have been. I went to Boris Slavik's house who was the friend I recommended to the other principal who called me after I had been hired. Boris and I used to work at Shitsville together. Boris was having a gathering for the people at his new school, Paradise Valley. There were also a few of the Shitsville crowd that we were both friendly with. Attending the party made me realize that either we both could have been back there this year, or that I could be at Paradise Valley, instead of Sunnyland. Now Paradise is a nice place to be, but Sunnyland rocks the house. Simply put, we have not had the 2 stabbings that Paradise has had this year. The old department chair at Sunnyland was moved out of the school and has been bumped down to a mere employee at Paradise. I think I made the right choice and feel good about it.

Grades are due this week and I think most of the kids did pretty well. Some of these kids did some amazing projects on the upcoming presidential elections. A few even built their own websites. I really dig Sunnyland and realized this weekend just how far I have come.