Too much too soon

Usually this time of year my zombie sitting duties are few and far between. I start getting busy around mid October. So on Monday when I got called into the favorite school for a three day gig I jumped at it. But right away things started going wrong.


First there were no plans. The teachers in the next room were tossing ideas back and forth on how to fill the day. It was all sounding stinko. I was saved from all of that when another teacher brought my teacher's plan book all filled out. Seems that they are neighbors and she sent it in. Crisis one averted.


Now here comes the principal. He wants to know how long I've been called in for. When I say it's three days he tells me it's probably going to be more like three weeks. My teacher has done something serious to her back and she won't be returning any time soon. Crisis two identified- Job with no foreseeable end.


Hmmm. That's a lot of work for early fall. But it should be okay.


Now the other teachers come in to check on me and that's when they drop the bomb. It seems I have just inherited the roughest group of kids that this school has seen....ever. They say things like "You know those sixth graders from two years ago? These guys are worse."


Hmmmmmmm. More stinko. Tres stinko.


In my head though I thought, Pah. What do these teachers know sitting in their ivory tower? I've seen rough. Bring it on.


Yeah.


These kids are rough. If you didn't have the view out of the window, you could easily forget which school you were working in kind of rough. It's such a shame. There's only a hand full of them but they have pretty much destroyed the education process for everyone in the room. The rest of them are all a bunch of sweetie-pies too. I've known most of them since kindergarten and they are great zombies. But I can hardly see them. And favorite school has a shocking lack of policy when it comes to discipline. They are just not prepared for this kind of behavior.


It's been such a long week. I'm just dead tired physically and emotionally. It's hard not to bring that kind of frustration home. I'm snapping at everyone around here, so I think I'm just going to go hide in the bathtub.


I'm scheduled in the same room through next week. When they ask me to extend it, I'm going to politely refuse. Feeling like this is not worth it. I want to be me again.