Subbing

I love to substitute for other instructional assistants. I get my "kid fix" AND I can look the other way when special projects are stacked around the schools. I mean, I stared at a HUGE pile of aluminum cans and plastic bottles and didn't have to dive into any of it. The past 10 years, I've been the one organizing the can/bottle drives. I've been the one to spend her lunch, breaks, before and after school sorting through stinky beer cans and garbage.

But not any more. I now go to work on time.... not 45 minutes early like I always did and I come home on time..... not 1-2 hours later like I usually did. It feels strange but wonderful at the same time.

Today, I got to sub at our rural school in Trail. It is such a precious building. I crack up every time I see this one old, old pine tree that somehow has survived years of woodpeckers hammering away at it's bark. There isn't a square inch without a hole in the trunk.

I talked to the custodian and he told me he discovered 230 pounds of acorns stashed in the bell tower of the school! OMG!!!! They stash them under the roof, in the sides of the building, etc. What a nuisance. It was funny because there are acorns everywhere. Today was a rainy day and recess was inside the gymnasium. No lie, there were acorns everywhere in the gym. Each time I picked one up, I smiled.