Monday, July 1, 2002
I got a call today indicating that budget cuts wont allow me to teach this summer. In one aspect its totally cool - I mean, two extra months of vacation is totally awesome, but I really do miss the kids.

I've been getting lots of fanmail recently, and thought I would share some:

• I belong to a group called the Coalition for Assesment Reform, which has a discussion mailing list. One of our members came across your website...and boy was she mor(t)ally offended! Of course, there were quite a few of us who visited the site and had the opposite reaction

So, after reading this I assumed that this is the one who was 'mortally offended:

• Are you for REAL?? Why would you call yourself a teacher and write with such vulgar obsenities? Don't you have a more creative way to express yourself and your concerns? Actually, I came to your site thru the list serv I am currently on. They are trying to track you down. I hope you don't think you are entertaining the rest of the world. Why would you want to put this on a web page anyway? Why would you want to teach if it's such a hassle? I don't think we need teachers that bad. Just wondering...

Oh, Jesus, not the listserv trackers….

• After reading only part of your recent experiences, I understand why you would not enjoy working in your present environment.

No… That was over two years ago at Shitsville. Sunnyland is a totally different ballgame. I wonder if they have even been reading my journal.

• You don't need to be teaching with an outlook like you have, and the language that you put out for all the world to see. Teaching has enough problems. We don't need you to make it worse.

Yes… I am making it worse. Thanks shithead.

That's about all for today. Fingers are tired from cutting and pasting.

Tuesday, July 2, 2002
I have been thinking about several policy decisions that have come down in the last few days and after reflection, I have come to these points.

Drug testing of students who participate in after school activities sucks ass. It is invasive and a misguided policy directive. I'm sure after school activities like band and drama will likely have limited participants. Everyone knows that those were the places where the stoners hung out.

Vouchers suck worse. I don't know too many teachers who like them for all of the obvious reasons. And to think that some of our national leaders are comparing this to desegregation of the public schools in 1974. My only hope is that the comparison will be accurate in terms of how long it will take to implement vouchers. It took 20 years after Brown for integration to begin as an experiment with busing in the east. Now, nearly 50 years later, we still have mostly segregated schools. Voters all across America have rejected vouchers, but our Court has not.

And what effect will these programs have on our kids. Will lots more sign up for extra-curricular activities? Will they be better served by schools that can discriminate?