sick and fancy

Last night was my school’s fundraising auction at a golf club deep in the suburbs. It was pretty incredible. The live auction started while we were eating (surf & turf for Mike, s a l t y risotto for me), and the first items up were some fancy desserts that people could bid on for their tables. How much do you think a carrot cake might go for? $50? -No! $100? -No! $200?!? -NO!!! The carrot cake alone went for $800!! That’s eight HUNDRED dollars. For a carrot cake. I am not complaining, because that money ensures that I will not have to do recess duty next year (hooray for Instructional Assistants!), but damn. That cake better be frosted in diamonds! Anyway, the event was basically what you’d expect- touching, surreal, boring, and occasionally shocking. Like when a mom that has often voiced her lack of confidence in my ability to challenge her gifted daughter beelined over to us and introduced herself to Mike as “the bitch mom,” and said she was sure he’d heard all about her. Unexpected! And also sort of awesome of her! Hooray for cocktails and diamond cake!
In other news, I am sick. My teacher immunity seemed to have taken hold this year, and I managed to avoid all the dark bugs that went around this winter. But apparently my white blood cells could hold out for only so long. It is mid-April, no one I know is ill, and I have a cold. A cold!! My life is over!! Perhaps I exaggerate. But I do feel super shitty, and I don’t think I can take a sick day because I’ve sort of been milking my personal days since Spring Break, and I’m taking a professional day on Thursday to go to a Love & Logic workshop. I have no idea what it’s about, but I love alliteration. So, yeah. My life is over!!!
I added it all up, and it turns out teachers get a lot of time off:
10 weeks for summer vacation +
2 weeks for Christmas +
1 week for Spring Break +
1 week for Thanksgiving +
10 sick days +
6 personal/professional days +
All bank holidays =
—————————–
17 weeks off a year!
I can appreciate this fact now that summer is just around the bend. Hopefully it will be smooth sailing until then. All of my students have exceeded the 1st grade reading benchmark already, and they are just super-smart all around. As much as they drive me effing bananas, I am really attached to this class. I keep eyeing those Kindergartners that will be my little dudes next year, and I’m just not convinced they’re going to be able to live up to my current homies.
I can’t stop sneezing.
Good night.