Back to school

It was literally a rude awakening Monday morning when the secretary from the local high school called and said they needed someone quick, like now. I had nothing planned so I slept in a little. Anyway she is a nice lady and I couldn't disappoint her so I ran in, took a quick shower, and headed to school. It turned out to be an Anatomy class. I don't know much about anatomy, and the fill-in teacher until I got there didn't either. However he had them started on a chapter in the book so that's where I picked it up. No sooner had I taken roll than the phone rang. I fumbled around trying to find the volume control while straining to hear the person on the other end. It was the teacher on the phone and he wanted to give me the lessons for the day. Luckily it was pretty straight forward and I was able to work my way through it without any trouble. There are not all that many emergency sub jobs considering the number of students in the district (60,000+), nor many sub jobs for that matter. But I want to be available for those that do come up. In the middle of the week I had volunteered to come into my favorite science teacher's room at the local junior high to teach the kids how to build and fly rubber-powered airplanes. It is a program developed by the national model organization (The Academy of Model Aeronautics or AMA) with very affordable kits (AMA Darts) and all the instructions you need to complete the project. I figured it would take three class periods to complete, so I was booked until Friday. I had previously taken a sub job a few towns away for what I thought was one day. However it really was for two days, and one of those days it snowed a whole bunch. The class was a shop but I didn't know which one. On arrival I found it was an auto shop. I thought to myself that this was going to be a great two days. Oh boy was I in for a lesson. Shop students do not like to spend even one minute in the classroom. This teacher had left minimal instructions to just have them watch a DVD on the old Lyons Drag Strip in Southern California. Most classrooms have a DVD and a VCR that goes through an overhead projection system onto a screen. This one was going through a laptop that neither I, nor the department head, or any of the students for that matter, could get to work. So we watched The Best of the Best Crashes on VHS for two days. I was bored, the students were bored, and nobody really had a good time. I came to find out that a great percentage of the kids were in the class for what they thought might be an easy grade, not to learn about engines and cars. Anyway I couldn't wait for Thursday and a chance to show the 8th graders in science class how to build planes. I called the science teacher Wednesday evening to make sure we were still on. She then asked if I could take her classes on Friday. So I actually got in a four-day workweek. The model classes went well and we completed the planes. Now all we have to do is get one decent weather day to fly them. And by the way, Associated Food Stores called and offered me a run to Hazelton, ID. But I couldn't fit it in, which was a real bummer. That run is just like my old Swift Shuttle run. You take a loaded truck to Hazelton, meet a Boise driver in a vacant lot, and trade trailers. Thus bringing back pallets and returns. It is easy, short, and for 7 hours of work pays what a sub makes in two days at school. The last time I did this run was last winter and it was snowing like mad! I felt luck to make it back that night. Those classrooms are sure warm and cozy.