Do You Want to Build a Snowman?

    Greetings and salutations!  It's already Thursday and boy do I want the snow to stop.  Not only is it below twenty degrees, (plus a nasty windchill), but we got a couple inches of snow too, resulting in some power outages last night.  Hurray for the end of winter!  I DO have some good news though!  I had mentioned on Tuesday that I had a pretty important interview today for what I would consider one of my dream jobs and I am about 93% sure that I got it!  I went into the interview feeling nervous, but also excited about the prospect of doing something I like with kids for the rest of the time I'll be in school.  I also felt pretty confident in my experience, coupled with my degrees and educational background.  I just have to wait for my references to check out and I could start as early as next week.  AAHHH!!

    Obviously I'm a little excited about the possibility of being employed again while still holding onto my subbing position until the end of the year.  Even though I wouldn't be working a whole week, I would still be way happier there than I would if I ever had to set foot in a retail environment again.  I think it's important to keep your options open and if the opportunity is there, I have to take it.  I won't get too many more opportunities like this; a chance to do what I've always wanted to do again is too good to pass up.  It seems like the perfect fit, so here's to hoping the dark days are behind me.

    That being said, this week wasn't too great until today.  Town elections were on Tuesday and my town was voting on the prospect of building a new school building for our kids.  If you saw the school in its present state, you would've voted yes: they are fighting and working hard to alleviate the obvious structural and spacial issues facing the school as it stands.  Unfortunately, a small margin of voters pushed more for basic renovations rather than spend their tax money on a new building.  This made me angry because the town is basically saying there are more people here that could care less about these kids and their education than they do about their money.  The population of elderly voters outweighed the percentage of younger voters, who obviously would've voted for a new school.  The older generation doesn't have kids who go to school anymore, so why would they vote to pay for a school that won't benefit them in any way?  They don't see the ripple effect this causes in the community either.  These kids believe their elders don't care about them or their future, which in turn won't provide them with an adequate outlook on life.  It'll only make them want to leave this school district even more than some already do.  As a substitute teacher, as well as someone who values student opinion, I see the vote as one for these kids, not for taxes.  The backlash and negativity on social media after the vote was decided was immense.  The only reason I know that is because I respect these kids and I think they deserve better than what they have been given.  All the more reason for me to do good by them.
    Speaking of students and respect, there was an incident at one of the schools I am observing at involving a hate crime.  To think that middle schoolers are capable of this magnitude of cruelty is mind-boggling.  I keep thinking back to my own time in middle school, in a different world.  Although I have fond memories of meeting new friends, some I've kept to this day, and of fun teachers, I also have memories of sickness and backstabbing.  I was diagnosed with Lupus at the beginning of my middle school years, so I remember more about hospital visits than of school work.  I was also the victim of bullying, mostly by people I had once considered friends.  It's tough in middle school, to gauge who you really are and what you believe in.  I think that might be one reason these kids are more likely to become bystanders than those who are willing to take action against hatred.  I know that I felt somewhat alone within all of that silence, so I would assume the same holds true for these abuse victims.  We have to learn how to be nice to each other, or our future will most likely be bleak at best.

    Enough of that sad talk for now.  Things are looking up, at least from where I'm standing.  I've made it a goal of mine to always impact kids in a positive light, and that's exactly what I plan to do, especially if I get this new job.  That being said, I plan on doing some premature celebrating this weekend.  I will be attending a fundraiser for cystic fibrosis at the local Margaritas restaurant with my husband and parents.  All proceeds from the event will go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, so I don't see any harm in drinking margaritas for a good cause!  What better way to celebrate my probable employment?

    I've done something I never expected to do this week: watch Frozen.  I liked it, surprisingly, and now understand why all my kids are obsessed with the songs, mainly "Let it Go," seeing as it's been stuck in my head for the last few days.  That, and "Do You Want to Build a Snowman?"  I liked the movie because I saw a lot of similarities between my relationship with my own sister in Elsa and Anna's relationship.  We grew apart as adolescents and I wish I could go back and change that, but we're better now and get along really well together.  I like the symbolism of "sisterly love" as opposed to the usual "romantic love" aspect of most Disney movies.  It shows that they are veering away from the typical story lines in favor of a more modern approach to things.  I look forward to seeing more of Disney's new creations, seeing as Frozen has done so unbelievably well.
    Monday is also St. Patrick's Day and, for most of us, that means day drinking and wearing as much green as possible.  For me there is an entirely different element to this holiday, considering the fact that I am mostly Irish, although it might be hard to tell from my maiden name and my dark hair.  While my mother's side is almost strictly Irish, my father's side, although we identify more with our Italian roots, we are partially Irish as well, from my grandmother's side of the family.  Because my family treated St. Patrick's Day as a family event, we would always get together for the traditional Irish supper of corned beef and cabbage, which hasn't changed.  I am in charge of making my Nana's Irish soda bread, which is my favorite and very easy to make, however rather sticky.  I love this holiday because I can tap into my roots and get together with family just like Christmas and Thanksgiving.  Also there's usually a Boondock Saints marathon, which is nothing to scoff at.  It's a time to celebrate life and good luck, which a lot of people do with booze.  Good thing I always keep a spare bottle of Jameson in the freezer!

    That's all I have for you this week.  If you want to see this week's TV reactions and predictions, check out my last post.  Next week school is back in session, so I will go back to having a full schedule.  I'm in the middle of an X-Men marathon right now, so I'll have to decide between that and the homework I still have to get done...  If you are interested in following my progress in the Northeast Bloggers March Photo Challenge, the link to my Instagram is among the rest of my social media links at the top of the page.  I know I've said this before, but if anyone has ideas of what you would like to see me post about or review, let me know in the comments below!  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.