A Story By Eric

Eric wrote this story a few weeks ago as part of a homework assignment. I just didn't get around to posting it until now.

"Once upon a time there was a jedi knight named Eric Crumpley. One day he had to face the evil Darth Mola Ram. Darth Mola Ram made Eric do his math homework. Eric just said "No!" and light saber dueled him. Eric choped Darth Mola Ram's arms off. Then, Eric made Darth Mola Ram do Eric's math homework for him! The End."

Again, I spelled everything the way he did and gave it the same punctuation (other than the quotes I put around the story itself).

"I Don't Like Recess"

I know. No one has ever heard a kid actually say that they don't like recess. Well, almost no one that is...

Sean doesn't like recess. He would rather just stay in the classroom and do work. I know that this is his first experience with school, but Eric liked recess from day one. Most kids do.

Yesterday, at parent-teacher conferences, the teacher told us that Sean is doing very well in school and is one of the few kindergartners that can read. She went through all of his scores from before school started and told us the things that he has already improved on. She then went on to her only concern with our sweet boy. He doesn't like recess. Most days he just sits next to the door and waits for her to come get them. One day she felt so sorry for him that she went out and asked him to help her make copies (he told me all about that the same day).

Yesterday, knowing that kids who don't finish their work have to stay in until it is done, Sean raised his hand when she told the class it was time for recess and informed her that he wasn't going to be able to go to recess because he hadn't finished the last line on his paper yet. She informed him that he would go to recess anyway. He was greatly disappointed. Who knows what he will try next to get away from the dreaded recess...

A Banana For The Teacher

A few weeks ago, Sean decided that he needed to bring his teacher a banana. It seemed to be a bit random, but I went ahead and put a banana in his backpack before he went to school. The next day he had this note from his teacher in his folder.

The True Downside Of School

"I like legos. My favorite pearson is my bro. I like playing pro street. I can't get better at vidio games when I'm stuck at school. I am a great runner."

Seriously?

The question has been asked, "Why would they need a graveyard shift at Dish Network?" All I could think of was all the lonely men out there ordering pay per views in the middle of the night. First off, I have to say, I have had as many calls from women as I have from men over the last two nights in regards to that. The thing that has surprised me though is the number of calls I have been getting about bills. I mean seriously, it seems like the perfect time to call and complain that a person can't pay their bill and it is totally unfair to have services suspending for not paying said bill (or should I say bills since they are usually about 2 months past due or have never completely paid their bill in full) is at about 3 am. OK, so you may be saying, "It isn't 3 am all over the country when it is 3 am here in Denver." I know that, but seriously last night we had call after call with little or no down time from about midnight until we got of at 5 am. To me it seemed like the majority of the people calling in were mad that their services had been interrupted sometime in the middle of the night.

One exceptionally crazy lady had already received so many credits on her account in the last few months that she was paying very little for her bills. She had made a payment on Saturday and was absolutely appalled that her cash payment that she had paid at Walmart had not posted to her account. I told her that it could take a few more days, and she insisted that I look up her payment by receipt number. (There is actually not a way for me to do that.) She barely let me talk enough to get her name out of her and eventually asked to talk to my supervisor so she could report me for not doing my job. My joy came when I heard him say, "You know Charlie (speaking of the founder and C.E.O. of the company)?" It seems as though she told him that she had spoken to the highest up person in the company and was supposed to get things a certain way. I don't know what all happened after that, but it made me giggle to myself.

The thing is, yes, Dish Network is open 24 hours a day, but who in their right mind is more concerned about weather or not they can watch TV than sleeping at those hours?

Like Father, Like Daughter

If anyone knows my dad, they know that he is quiet and shy. This is the award I got yesterday when I graduated training. Now I have proof (like I really needed it) that I am Bob Mitchell's daughter...and proud of it!

Group Projects

I HATE GROUP PROJECTS!

These group projects for school are getting to me. I hate them. I think it is dumb to make grown ups learn to work with others, especially since I am going to school only online. Doesn't that make it clear that I don't work well with others?

I would rather just be given the assignment a sweat over getting the work done myself without all of the aggravation of working with people who depend on others to do the assignment for them. When there are five people in the group, why should there only be three people working on the project? Oh, wait...maybe adding a comment here and there that really has nothing to do with the project (like, I am really not good at putting this stuff together) counts. Don't say that you will be the leader for that project or document writer and then flake out. Really, all the researchers are assigned to to is the research and proofreading. They shouldn't have to put everything together as well, and if they do offer to help, don't' say that you don't need help because you are getting it done and will have the rough draft posted soon. When the project is due on Saturday, the team should not be asking where the rough draft is on Friday. (Yes, I know today is Thursday. This happened a few weeks ago.)

I also hate that people can't tell the difference between being mean and constructive criticism. If you don't want the paper that you just worked on to be proofread and corrected, then don't offer to be the draft writer. I personally think that by telling someone that the fist sentence in a paragraph doesn't go with the rest of what is being said and suggesting that the sentence be switched with the first sentence in the next paragraph is not mean. I could have said that the paper just sucked and didn't flow well at all. Instead I made suggestions for improvement. I am not saying that it would have been written well if I had written it, but I would have taken the suggestions into consideration instead of writing back that the other person is wrong.

I know this is a minor problem compared to how hectic things could be right now, but I really needed to get it all out.

The True Master of...

Yesterday, in church, Sean gave a talk. I had just gone into a Primary (kind of like Jr. Sunday School) manual online and copy and pasted it for the most part. Sean was a bit nervous. I told him that he could do it, and he was smart enough to read it on his own. I had him read it to me right before I took him to Primary. He read it all by him self. I told him he did a great job and that I knew he could do it. When it came to be time for him to give his talk, I stood in the back of the room as he told Sister Kidd that he didn't need help. She very happily let him go ahead. My smarty-pants, kindergarten boy then read his talk all by himself. The only time he needed help was when he lost his place. I thought this was very impressive because I didn't even know he could read some of the words in there (throughout, for example). Then, after church, his primary teacher told me that he read a scripture in class all by himself that had some hard words in it too. How did this boy learn these words? Who said he cold get this big so fast?

The Good Call From the School

This morning I checked my messages to find a great message from Sean's teacher, Mrs. Badgett. She was calling to let us know how much she has been enjoying having him in her class so far. She complimented him on how smart he is, and even said that he has his hand up for every question and always has the right answer. It is so wonderful to get this kind of message from the school as opposed to the one I got last February about Eric.

Love Letters From My Boys

Eric made me that on in school last week. What mom wouldn't be happy to be loved so much?

That is Sean's handy work. He said that instead of drawing a picture of the temple in Primary, he wanted to write a letter to Mom and Dad. I am so proud that my almost 6 year old thinks I am pretty good... :-)

At 8?!

In my medical terminology class we have discussions that tie into the parts of the body we are learning. This unit we are studying the male and female reproductive systems and obstetrics and neonatology. Our discussion is about HIV/AIDS. The topic is listed like this: "HIV/AIDS has become epidemic in the world. Discuss some of the medical terms that have become part of our general vocabulary related to this disease. Does the age or gender of the person you are talking with affect what words you use to explain or discuss HIV/AIDS?" We are to post our opinion on the subject, then respond to at least 3 of our class mates. I seem to agree with most of their points. I agree that education is key, and that it needs to be done early. I, however, don't agree on the age that some of them have decided is best to start.

Here is the main discussion that I had a hard time reading.

Unit 3 Discussion
I believe the age of a child or young adult, when discussing the disease and the prevention of the HIV/AIDS problems is everything. Using some of the words such as:Viral load white cell count T-4 cells Window period HIV AIDSWestern blot trachea lungs candidiasis PneumoniaDidn’t mean much to me I had to look every term up.According to a paper from the CDC HIV/AIDS fact sheet educating our young, needs to begin as early as 8 years old.The http://www.globalchange.com/truth-about-aids states that worldwide, pneumonia or pneumocystis carinii are factors of HIV but many of these deaths go unreported, in some rare cases a bronchoscope is used to locate germs hiding in the lung if the Doctor suspects the person to have died of HIV/AIDS.

Dawn Strauss-Berta
11 Aug 09 11:47 AM MST

Hi Jacqueline,I agree with you. Education children as young as 8 years old is a good idea. Do you have any suggestions on how we would do this?Thank you for the link, but when I click on it, the information was not there. Does it work for you?Dr. Dawn

Jacqueline Otero
12 Aug 09 1:48 PM MST

Sorry about the link:http://www.globalchange.com/truth-about-aids-chapter-3.htmis the correct link.another link for children ishttp://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/std/hiv.html#Has some great info on HIV/AIDSI would create a story book with pictures and pronunciations on the big words that go hand in hand with HIV/AIDSthe kidshealth web site above has a picture of a T-cells and how to pronounce immune (ih-myoon), and several other giant words in such a way that children can understand, and pronounce.

Dawn Strauss-Berta
13 Aug 09 2:54 PM MST

Thanks for the links. Great idea with the storybook suggestion!Dr. Dawn

Michelle Giroux
13 Aug 09 1:28 PM MST

There are plenty of ways that we can educate young kids like 8 year olds about this. Like in health class they should discuss it and also do research on it. Maybe if they see pictures and hear that people die from theses diseases they might think twice about having unprotected sex.I know 8 year old is a young age but you never know kids be having sex at like 13. So it's good to educate them young

Dawn Strauss-Berta
13 Aug 09 2:55 PM MST

Hi Michelle,I agree, it is a good idea to education them young. How would you go about explaining it to an 8 year old? Would you teach them any of the terminology?Thanks,Dr. Dawn

Michelle Giroux
14 Aug 09 7:15 AM MST

You can teach the 8 year olds the terminology. And you could also have them do research projects, and some activities that can teach them about the diseases.

Dawn Strauss-Berta
15 Aug 09 8:14 PM MST

Hi Michelle,I really like the idea of having them do activities to help them learn about the diseases.Dr. Dawn

Rosa Crumpley
18 Aug 09 8:56 AM MST

I think 8 is a bit young. At that age, they are just starting to learn the technical terms about their body parts. I agree with educating them, but I think it needs to be age appropriate and tailored to the specific child. I have a seven and a half year old. I teach him what I can. He is a smart kids, but still very young and innocent. I think that telling him all the facts at this age would be information overload.I do agree that kids need to be educated at a young age though.

Danielle Jones
15 Aug 09 5:34 PM MST

I agree we should start teaching them at a young age. i think they should have it in school too.

LATASHA SEWELL
11 Aug 09 6:29 PM MST

Jacqueline, I agree that discussing HIV/AIDS to try to prevent people from getting it should start at a young age. If people educate their children at the age of eight it would help stop the spread of the disease.

Jacqueline Otero
13 Aug 09 1:53 PM MST

How do we get the message to our young people, to stop look and listen?That cool is not being the first one to act on a dare, and that it is ok to say oooo I don't want to get that disease! It looks ucky!

Am I just living in a sheltered world. I think that it sounds crazy to not only have the birds and the bees conversation with an eight year old, but give them all the details of STDs at that age as well? Also, would a second grader really have the know how and motivation to do some big research project on the subject?

Yay!

While going through the training schedule last night I realized that I get to have my anniversary off! Yay! That was the main day that I was bummed about having to work since I started. I hadn't really sat down and looked at it, but I was sure I would have to work that day. As it turns out, since that is the last week of training the schedule will be Sunday through Thursday with Friday off, and then I will start my regular shift (the graveyard shift) on Saturday. That Friday is my anniversary.

Now for an interesting (to me anyway) fact about my anniversary. We got married on Friday, September 4, 1998. This year our anniversary will be on a Friday. Kind of interesting and fun...I think.

So Tired

I am so tired lately! I am probably not getting enough sleep. I don't get home from work until midnight, and then I just want to spend time with John. I get up aroud six (most mornings) so that I can spend time with my husband before he goes to work since I am not home when he gets home.

Homework is kicking my butt. I do still like the learning part, but it seems like most of my free time is taken by doing school work. I guess I shouldn't complain. I could be doing this much work and attending classes. Instead, I am doing this much work and turning it in online. Not so bad I guess.

My kids would be the other reason I am so tired. I love them. They really are good kids. The thing is, these boys need to get into school. They are driving me crazy. They need some structure. I am not a hugely structured person (I guess I could list that as reason number 4). I am sure that once they are in school, things will calm down at least a little bit around here. Only one week for Eric and a week and a half for Sean. Then, they will be in school. Not that I am counting or anything...

General Update

As Jami was so nice to remind me, it has been a while since I updated my blog. This is not because I don't want people to know what is going on with me. I just plain haven't had the time. It is hard to juggle kids and school and work. A lot harder than I thought it would be. I am hoping that once I get into the groove it will be a bit easier for me to find time for my hobbies like blogging and sewing and knitting.

School is going pretty good right now. I have a 99% in both classes. That is great. I had a hard time trying to find time to fit in my school work, but I did eventually get my assignments and quizzes done. By eventually, I mean I just got finished. It's OK. I had five and a half more hours to get the stuff in. It is not completely last minute.

Work is, well, interesting. I am in a class of 12 new hires. We get to sit and learn all about Dish Network most of the time. Sometimes we get to sit for an hour or two and listen to live calls. As boring as that sounds, I actually am having fun most of the time. I like most of the people in the class. I find it interesting that adults are just as clicky in that kind of situation as high school kids. There seems to be 2 obvious groups with a few of us that are, for the most part, accepted by both groups.

The kids went camping with John's family the last few days. It sounds like they had a lot of fun. John and I didn't go, so the kids went up with Rachel. I'm glad that she was willing to do that. The kids looked forward to going on vacation without Mom and Dad. We are lucky to have someone who was willing to aid in that effort.

I think that is all that needs to be updated right now. I'm sure if I left anything out, someone will ask questions....right?

I Know What ____ Is Made Out Of

This is Noel's favorite saying lately. Just about every time I give her food or drink she says, "Mommy, I know what (fill in the blank) is made out of." Sometimes she gets it right. Sometimes it is just so cute or funny that I have to laugh.

Here are some of the things she has said lately:

"Mommy, I know what milk is made out of. Cows"
"Mommy, I know what crackers are made out of. Crack." (My personal favorite.)
"Mommy, I know what corn dogs are made out of. Bread and hot dogs."

Messy Dog

I washed my dog yesterday. She was really dirty! I was so proud of myself for actually remembering to not only wash her, but brush her as well. She was so pretty.

Well, that was last night. This morning she came in from...well, you know...covered in MUD! I was so upset. It was way worse that what the kids would have done. It was almost the same feeling I get when I finally get "all" of the laundry done just to have a child pee in their pants as I fold the last towel. UGH! I would share picture of her, but I was so frustrated I didn't thing about it until after I sent her back out and went to take a shower.

Legos: The Best Invention Ever

I Got The Job!

After playing phone tag with the HR department at Dish Network, I finally talked to Brandy yesterday. I will start my training as a CSR2 (customer service representative, level 2) on Monday. I am so excited and nervous at the same time!

I get to start as a level 2 because I already had 2 years in a call center (it was over 8 years go, but it counts). All that I can tell that means is that I get paid more than the people who have no call center experience. That works for me.

My training sift is going to be 3:00pm to 11:30pm. That means that I can at very least drop my kids off at school, and I don't have to completely miss Sean's first day ever of school or Eric's first day of second grade. That makes me happy.

I am a bit nervous about the fact that while our relationship is so fragile, John and I will only see each other about 2 hours a day on the week days while I am training. It is only for 5 weeks, but it is going to be really hard.

As far as getting the children cared for, my wonderful sister-in-law,, Rachel, will be watching them for a few hours a day. There are still some things that have to be decided on when school starts, but I will have a few weeks to figure that out. I thought that the kids may not like having to go somewhere else to be watched so much, but they are really excited to be going to Aunt Rachel's on Monday.

When I am done with training I will be on graveyards for at least 8 weeks with Tuesday and Wednesday off. That will be hard as far as finding time to sleep, but I will get that figured out. I'm just happy that I will be still able to to be with my kids.

Week Two at Everest

The second week of school is over for me. I can tell that I am already leaning a lot.

The good news is that I still have A's in both classes. I have 100% in Strategies for Success and 98% in Medical Terminology. I took my first Medical Terminology quiz on Wednesday and got a 93%. I was excited! I could have had 100%, but there was one trick question, and I got it wrong. I am hoping to continue to get 100% on all of my other work so that the grade will get even better . (Does that make me a nerd? Oh, well. I'll take that as a compliment if it does.)

I made the mistake a few days ago of actually looking though the syllabuses to get an idea of what my assignments will be for the next few months. It overwhelmed me so much. I had to remind myself that I just need to take this one week or unit at at time. I may even go as far as saying one assignment at time.

The only thing that is really irritating me is the group work. I don't want to have to work as a group to complete any assignments. I guess I will just have to suck it up and do it for the next few months though. I am sure that I will have to do group work in other classes, too. Hopefully, I will be put into a better group though.

A Common Goal

Our marriage counselor suggested that John and I have a common goal to work on since we had been running almost separate lives for so long. It took us a while, but we finally have one. We have started working out together in the morning. For the last three days, we have been trying to get up at 6am and turning on an exercise video and exercising. OK. The videos that we have been doing have only been about 10 minute workouts, but we have got to start some where right?