Deb's Daze(d and Confused) Showing 1,051-1,100 of 1,219

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

I think the South Island is going to cop the worst of it.....should be no snow this far north and the lowest daily high will be around 10.....bearable...just!

[Carol]

Stay warm and have a hot toddy or a black russian.

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Having internet issues....until provider sorts it out I can only post when at school so appearances will be sporadic and few. Sorry.

[Carol]

Sorry about that.

[Ruth]

I loathe shopping. I love it that I can just go on the internet and some nice little slave in a brown truck brings it to my door.

[Ken, Moderator]

Didn't know the "S" in "UPS" stood for slave. United Postal Slaves to the rescue!

[Ruth]

United Parcel Slaves!

[Ken, Moderator]

Oh, yeah. Parcel. Don't go postal on me.

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Had to happen eventually I suppose......today was the first time a kid has deliberately hurt me.....I was bitten on both arms (3 times) by a damaged and coldly angry 7 year old.....skin abraded but no deep bites.....swelling and bruising.....still sore to touch 9 hours on. He has been suspended (newspeak for excluded/expelled). I was restraining him til his mother arrived, in order to prevent him from damaging himself or others. With me holding his arms, and the school secretary holding his feet (he was kicking as well), his mouth was the only weapon he had left....poor little bugger.......

[Carol]

Such anger in one so young. I hope the little guy gets some help. Sorry you had to be the recipiant of his anger. Hopefully his parents are willing to work with others and not abandon him.

[Carol]

The school would probably get into trouble if they resorted to using cold water Gabi. The little tyke has some issues going on there. It is not always home enviroment though, it can be mental as well as physical issues. All I know is he was not feeling safe. That is truly a scary situation for all involved, because you have to tread lightly, because of lawsuits and such. Sometimes you feel like your hands are tied ,even if you are aware of the home situations.

[Ruth]

My mother worked for a few years as an elementary school teacher in a private school. She hated it. But I suppose she didn't hate it as much as one little boy, who didn't speak for the entire semester, until he finally opened his mouth....and bit her.

Wow, Debbie, kid must really have bitten you hard to cause real swelling and bruising. If I were you I would have had a hard time not taking the top of his head off. Makes me wonder about the future for such a violent child.

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

It was a bit like a pitbull hold....school secretary prised his jaws loose......I was too busy containing any reaction.....I didn't want him to know he was having an effect. Yes there are definite home issues with agencies involved, but I think there are also mental health issues too.....he wasn't even my pupil.....I was called out of class to deal with him cos rest of senior management on a course.....

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Fine today....bit tender, perfect tooth prints!!

[Ken, Moderator]

Ah, education....

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Yup! All those holidays you know.......

[Carol]

You need combat pay Debbie.

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

As if....hahaha!

[Ken, Moderator]

Academy for L'il Vampires. I see a movie coming out soon...

[Carol]

Debs you must have delectable arms, every man and beast wants to bite you.

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Well.....every child anyway Carol! I did go to the doctor on bosses insistence....I felt a bit of a dick......he gave me a script for antibiotics in case of infection but so far so good. I had to go to get ACC paperwork.

[Carol]

You had your tetnus when the cat bit you , right? I still keep thinking about the little guy. Did his parents apologize to you all?

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Hahahahahaha!! There IS a reason these kids are feral!

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

More a case of the acorn not falling far from the tree......

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

No....thank YOU for the portraits! I am the eldest daughter and I was 16 when mum was in hospital for 8 months. Spent all my time at school and helping dad( a full-time teacher)look after my much younger brother and sister (5 and 7 years at the time).

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Teachers go mad in the holidays....little-known fact! This one decided that the best winter tonic was to make her house work for her for a change....so ......new car (pictured) and a substantial savings starter for a trip to Europe next year....WHEEEEEE!

[Carol]

Congratulations. BMW right?

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Borrowed against the mortgage.....yep. You only live once!!
And it is a BMW....10 years old and, surprisingly, the same price as a Toyota Echo of the same vintage.

[Ken, Moderator]

Wow. We're moving into the high rent district with these Beamers I'm seeing around. Just don't park it next to my car, will ya? Contrasts are especially brutal when proximity comes into play...

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Why don't you have a mad moment too! Oh....I forgot.....I don't have a wife and you do!

[Ken, Moderator]

Actually, she gave me a green light on buying the car of my choice... within reason. I just hate the process of buying cars. Need to hire someone to do all the negotiating for me or something. Drives me crazy....

[Carol]

Newengland wrote: "Actually, she gave me a green light on buying the car of my choice... within reason. I just hate the process of buying cars. Need to hire someone to do all the negotiating for me or something. Driv..."

If you are a big box store member use their car buying services. Everything is prenagotiated except tax and registration is extra. Call them with the car you are interested in, then the dealer will call you to arrange a time.

[Ruth]

Or there are services that will do the same for you for a small price. We always go that way. No more horse trading.

[Ken, Moderator]

Services like...? Big boxes like Home Depot?

[Carol]

Costco, Sam's Club ,or Triple A Insurance.

[Ken, Moderator]

OH... them guys. Thanks.

[Ruth]

Newengland wrote: "Services like...? Big boxes like Home Depot?"

USAA Insurance does it, too. There are others, and if you don't qualify for any of the free ones, there are others that will do it for a price.

http://www.kiplinger.com/columns/car/...

We've bought our last 4 or 5 cars that way. No stress.

[Carol]

Sounds great Ruth.

[Ken, Moderator]

Merci bien, amies.. Now I must get out and test drive target cars. Vroom, vroom.

[Carol]

I am betting a hybrid car. Prius or some such.

[Ken, Moderator]

I hear say that Beamer's have a bad track record, repair-wise. At least the new ones do.

Prius comes with all kinds of baggage. Tree hugger, for starters. I love how cars have connotations, don't you? There's another game -- match the connotation with the car.

Cadillac = tacky wealth

[Ken, Moderator]

No, no. That's your body. When it comes to money, ostentatious is gauche.

[Carol]

Smart Car-lawn mowers

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[Ken, Moderator]

They look like little Matchbox cars you could pick up and move around the road at will. I wouldn't want to be in an accident sitting in one, though. Almost as bad as a motorcycle. Almost.

[Carol]

Ditto. I want a little more car around me.

[Ruth]

The only car I ever had that I fell in love with was a 1958 Volkswagen beetle. My first brand new car. Probably a horror by today's safety standards but I adored that car. So much so, that I wrote a poem, Elegy to My 1958 Volkswagen. (Rattle is publishing it soon.)

I wrote the poem a while ago, and have often read it at readings. Discovered that almost everyone over a certain age has a Volkswagen story. They come swarming up after I've read to tell me theirs.

[Ken, Moderator]

Does the poem contain the line: "My car doesn't bug me..."?

Don't forget the deadline for RATTLE's poetry contest is right around the calendar corner. Tim Green wrote me as much.

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Yep Gabi....Rarotonga has been and gone....they loved it and want to go again.....
Go on NE....good advice from our friends there....just do it!
So what does BMW= if Cadillac = tacky wealth?

[Ken, Moderator]

BMWs are status symbols. Buying a used one, though, shows an appreciation for good breeding.

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

The more used the better? Mine is 10 years old.