while i was lurking over at Cheesehead in Paradise's journal, she spoke of a teacher who made a mistake and was gone in less than a minute.

this reminded me of an incident which occured when my daughter was a junior in high school. it's a small school; there were only 62 people in her graduating class.

she, and several friends of hers, were actively involved in the school newspaper. it was supervised by mr. X, who also taught global studies. he was a popular teacher with most kids; my daughter and her friends spent a lot of time with him.

there was a troubled girl who had self-esteem problems, and she and mr. X would email each other. i don't know if she had a crush on him or not, but evidently her father was hard on her, called her fat and other names. mr. X felt bad for her, and apparently offered consolation.

this girl's sister ( who did NOT like mr. X ) found the emails on her sister's computer, printed them off and showed them to all her friends, crying that she didn't know what to do.

( the family were big-shots in the little town. had been there since columbus landed, or something. )

well, maybe she didn't know what to do, but the school board did. he was fired.

i heard he got a job in another school district, until they heard of this particular incident. he has had to pick another career.

i also heard it made an impact on his marraige.

as far as i know, nothing physical happened between the two parties, and my daughter insists that out of the many, many hours she spent with mr. X, a lot of them alone, there was never, ever any inappropriate conversation or behavior of any kind.

sad.

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the only productive thing i did today was laundry. i got about five hours of solid sleep last night, and i'm hoping to go one better tonight.

there was yet ANOTHER guest dug in like a tick today, thankfully i wasn't working and thus not responsible. the night guy had given them another 1PM checkout at a reduced rate, and the GM was hopping mad. i just nodded my head and moved on...i've had enough for this week, although i'm working saturday so THAT ought to be interesting. we're slated to be pretty busy.

the weekend after that is mardi gras, and i guess it's pretty big in the area in normal times, but since new orleans is in the process of rebuilding, from what i've heard it's being encouraged that people come here. the police are upset because they don't have the manpower to accomodate any extra crowds; it should be quite the party. lord help us.

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i want to thank those that commented on my last two entries; i was just too dang tired to comment myself. don't feel guilty for enjoying the travails - that's one of the reasons i write them here. i just feel grateful ya'll are sticking with me through the ride...the good, the bad and the ugly. i'm trying to breathe, and although people can be horrible, some of them CAN be nice, i just ran into a bad patch. it is wearing - and i am rethinking the whole GM thing. i might take the training anyway, because free training is good, but as far as taking on a job of this magnitude, i'm not sure i have the stress barriers to do it. i hate to admit i might not be up to something; the thing is, i CAN do the job, i would probably be pretty good at it, but at what price?

i still have to shake my head in amazement at the behavior of some people. ( i know, i know...get over it already. )

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speaking of which, i was down here checking my mail last night when a woman who is here because her trailer burned down came out of the fitness room. for some unknown reason, i got a life story, and all i did was say hello. this included personal details of her rock and roll lifestyle; why she is constantly drunk, how the fire started and how bunged up her common-law boyfriend is. it was all fascinating, but all i did was say hello.

i must have that kind of face.

well, i listened. it seemed the least i could do, although i highly doubt she will remember she even talked to me. i was glad she came out of that fitness room in one piece. no one should handle machinery of any kind in that condition.

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i watched entirely too much junk TV tonight...and i'm walking my shame right out here, all naked.

first, there was American Idol.

second, Skating With Celebrities.

third, Project Runway.

it was like drinking a six-pack of pepsi and eating a box of ho-hos, chased with a half dozen mars bars. whew! i'm on overload.

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reality TV...that's an oxymoron, isn't it?

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so again, thanks you guys. i wish i could convey how much your kind comments, pithy remarks and the love i feel mean to me. it's funny how tenuous our connections are, yet how strong the bonds. that's a very good thing.

ty mom, lon, laurie, RT, eric, maggie, and mr. c... right back at you.

:)