Four Thoughts for Friday

This week got away from me a little bit as we went back to school for in-service and the challenges of a new school year in a building that is very much under construction, new administration, and a new last name that needs to be changed in every system (and the mind of every previous student) kind of overshadowed all other things.

On top of that, it was a post race week so not only should there have been a race recap to share, but I was kind of in burned out, recovery mode...which can only last so long as the MedCity Fall Half is coming up in three weeks, so there's no real time for a letdown. Recover...rebound...run...repeat. That's the current model.

Today, however, there is no in-service and the weather is dismally grey and raining, so I've set aside this moment of my afternoon to share with you the following four thoughts about life in the world this past week.

1. As I mentioned, this week marked the official back to school for teachers in Pine Island, and that brought to light the many challenges that we will face this year, particularly as our building is under MUCHO construction and reorganization. Already it's stressful to navigate the hallways that have construction happening in them, let alone figure out the new routes from one end of the building to the other, avoiding the hallways that are closed because of construction! It's going to be an interesting year...and I haven't even begun setting up my own classroom yet.

One funny note of interest however, is in the process of construction they opened up/discovered a brand new staircase that had been hidden/forgotten that will now be accessible to students. I jokingly said that it was like teaching at Hogwarts, not knowing were the staircases or hallways would be at any given moment. Then I happened across this story about a Harry Potter loving teacher and her Harry Potter loving classroom and thought, "I want to be friends with this person!" (Or at least teach in her classroom!) CLICK HERE for the story. Scroll down for pictures!

2. I love love love ironic language so much that I laughed out loud at the official statement made by Avid Life Media after the CEO of Ashley Madison resigned. They said, and I quote: 

"This change is in the best interest of our company and allows us to continue to provide support to our members and dedicated employees. We are steadfast in our commitment to our customer base..." 

Which is ironic, of course, because their whole customer base is there to begin with because they're not committed! 

3. As I watched and read the news this week, I found myself making a list of things in my head that I'm calling the, "I'd rather not live in a world where...." list. The list currently reads like this. I'd rather not live in a world where: 

• Donald Trump is a viable candidate for President of the United States. 
• News anchors and cameramen get shot on live television. 
• 80 year old archaeologists get beheaded by terrorists while ancient cities worth of artifacts burn to the ground. 
• Women read poems called "If my vagina were a gun..." on the Senate floor.
• Women have to continuously defend themselves and their rights on the Senate floor. 
• Fast food workers believe that they should earn a salary that would allow them to rent a two bedroom apartment...when there are plenty of people with four year degrees and professional licenses that could not otherwise afford a two bedroom apartment. (That said...I do get it that the lower/middle class is all scraping the bottom of the barrel for the spare change, so I'm not sure I blame them.) 

4. Because we should all head into our weekend with something happy to smile about. This is the cutest...saddest..most adorable make you laugh and cry at the same time little thing!

Happy Trails,