Just taking a little break from reading the Ulrik proofs. Those are going well. Considering the size of the book, there really aren’t that many mistakes. I found a few places I wish I could tweak a little more, but it’s too late for that … and it’s nothing serious. I hope to finish reading today, report my corrections to Scrybe, then read the proofs for “Okie Werewolf Seeks Love” and get that out of the way so I can get back to The Fetch. I was really hoping to have The Fetch finished before school let out, but that didn’t happen. Maybe I’ll finish it during our vacation, sitting in a cabin overlooking the Arbuckle Mountains

The school year is over. I made it through the semester without strangling any of my little darlings in fourth period. There were days I wasn’t sure I’d be able to say that. Here’s what I learned this year:

• I have to continue learning to be a hardass
• Our suspension policy is ridiculous
• I need a new policy on bathroom passes
• Athletes are better students during the semester of their chosen sport
• Sometimes, when kids cry, there’s nothing you can do but listen

That last one is the hardest. Usually, the crying students is female. Being a male teacher I don’t feel like I can even offer them a hug. The things some of these kids today go through … it’s just amazing.

Some of my students graduated this year. (I should mention that I haven’t had the opportunity to teach many seniors yet.) That was kind of sad. One in particular would come to visit me often, but now she’s gone. She’s off to become a pharmacist. Another, the smartest kid I ever had in class, will be off to boot camp soon. The guy is way too smart to become cannon fodder; I can only hope he’ll be safe. Others are on their way to motherhood, cosmetology school, or other colleges and universities. The whole world is laid out in front of them. All they have to do is make wise decisions.

It’s the junior class that I had the most fun with. One of the last kids I saw on Friday was one of my English 3 students from this semester. As she was leaving she was talking about how much fun we had in class, but added, “I really learned a lot in your class, too” as she went out the door. That’s what matters. They’ll do fine as seniors.

My sophomores … Well, many of them will be in jail pretty soon. haha I have to admit that I was glad to see most of them go. There are some really good kids mixed in there, but so many of them were just incredibly immature and … stupid. Stupid in the sense of knowing the rules — in my class and the school in general — and choosing to do other things. Out of about 50 sophomores this block, only two finished with A’s. It was really disappointing.

I got confirmation that I’ll be teaching the AP literature class next year. It’s a senior class. Most of my juniors from this past year are not in AP, obviously, but several of them are going to give it a try since I’m teaching it. I signed off on the ones I believe can do the work, and I look forward to having them again. It will be so nice to have classes with kids who actually want to learn, where I don’t have to spend half my time on discipline issues.

Speaking of AP, I’ll be taking the summer workshop at the U. of Tulsa in July. I need a roommate. Anyone reading this going? Gregg? I dread being assigned a random roommate, and don’t want to pay the money for a private room.

I brought home a new dog the other day. He’s proving to be one of the best animals we’ve ever had. He’s half border collie and half blue heeler, between 18 and 24 months old. He’s well behaved, smart, active when playing and calm when he needs to be. He’s almost inseparable from Amanda. We couldn’t agree on a name, but since he’s responded so well to Amanda, she won the naming rights, so the dog is called Bubba. Nah, we ain’t redneck.