Update

I should be grading papers right now but tomorrow is Back to School Night so I'll be at work late. Also, they have this weird thing were the day after BtSN is a minimum day so the kids get to leave early but the teachers aren't allowed to. The students leaving early is supposed to make up for the teachers staying an extra 4 hours (technically I don't have to be here between 3:10-4:45 but I'm not going to drive home, stay for five minutes and then drive back) but I'm not sure how. I am looking forward to some fresh tacos tomorrow I just need to scrounge up some extra cash.
By the way, if you hadn't figured out yet, I'm back to work. I have been back to work for about three weeks now and I guess I can say that I am getting the hang of this teaching thing. My classroom management is getting better; I yell at them more productively now or something. I have even had fun handing out a few detentions (you would have fun at it too if it was to some punk kid giving you attitude and not doing their work). And my favorite line right now is "I'm not your friend, I'm your teacher!" Tough love baby, tough love. Actually I will put up with a lot if they will actually do their work and some of my students get that. It's just those that equate being relaxed with not doing their work that gets to me. So I am trying to be less relaxed this year.
I was blog surfing and came across a blog of a recent first year teacher. She had just finished her school year and was excited to be picked up for another year. She was bemoaning the fact that she didn't have a sink in her room. I was a little confused because all I could tell that she taught was English (she had been blogging about finding new books for her Freshman English classes next year). In case anyone didn't know, I have been teaching biology for two and a half years without a sink. I read a little farther and saw that she also taught art so I guess I can give her that one, teaching art without a sink would kind of suck. I just avoid as many wet labs as possible to get around not having a sink.
The worst part about not having a sink is that they have been telling us that we would be getting sinks since before I started working here and there has been no progress. At yesterday's department meeting, our chair mentioned how we had a projected completion date of July 26, 2009 (and this is the fourth projected completion date, probably three years after the first one) and while the people who need them supposedly have keys and permission and the work order and who knows what else) nothing has been done. I don't think that I'm getting my sink next Monday. The new rock patio around the fountain in our quad looks nice. I wonder how long ago they put the work order in for that?