That Trip...

So you know that trip Computer Boy and I took to Redmond, Washington?

It was FRIGGIN' AWESOME!!!

But I'm not going to say any more about that until he meets his prerequisites and gets accepted. He didn't even want me to buy him a school t-shirt for fear it might jinx it.

But here's my favorite line from the weekend:

Setting - Open House weekend, after listening to a school adviser talk to a room of roughly 80 people at which time I raised my hand and asked a few questions.

Me: I hope I didn't embarrass you at all by asking questions.

Computer Boy: No, not really.

Me: That's good because I really wouldn't want to embarrass you.

Computer Boy: Thanks, I know it's hard for you.

Crazy Heart

'Computer Boy'.... My first born.... My 'Boy'.... is preparing to apply to a school.

A school on the other side of the WORLD!!! Okay, maybe I exaggerate a bit but we live in Maryland and his choice?.... DigiPen in Redmond, Washington.

(Enter Chandler impression here) I mean, CAN he GET any further from home?

Regardless, next week he and I will be flying to Seattle to check out the school, attend the Open House and get a 'feel' for the area, housing situation and all the pieces of the puzzle we'll need to discover and figure how to fit together, for living life thousands of miles from home.

It sounds a lot like I'm thinking in the 'When' instead of the 'If' but that's because 'Computer Boy' has spent the last several months researching schools and he's determined to do whatever it takes to get accepted to THIS school.

What does this mean for me, the Mom? My heart is all over the place... Thrilled beyond belief for the possibilities the future holds for my 'boy'... Nervous! I mean, what if he blows a hole in his other lung 2800 miles from home? But the one thing that keeps spinning around in my brain, the one thing that both thrills me and terrifies me is the fact that following the 4 yrs. of rigorous education in RTIS (Real Time Interactive Simulation), he'll be snapped up for employment, the same 2800 miles from home, because Seattle is 'home' to the computer gaming industry.... I see frequent flier miles in our future.

TNS Tuesday - The Abandonment

It's been a long time since I've written about my kids school TNS. When this subject came up I thought it the perfect blogging opportunity.

If you've read posts I've written about my kids school in the past, I'm sure you've come to understand that a democratic education is anything but traditional. While you CAN learn the basics at TNS, you can bet your going to be challenged on things you wouldn't get with most educations.

For example, my son attends a bi-weekly class titled 'Boy Class'... It's a simple title for a complex class. A typical 'Boy Class' might involve a discussion on Honesty, Self-Reliance, Sexuality or How to treat a girl respectfully. The 'Boy Class' is made up of roughly eight guys and always involves an open discussion and sharing of thoughts and ideas. So it's my understanding that the group came up with the idea of 'The Abandonment' together and the list of rules which accompany the exercise.

The Abandonment is exactly that... The members of the class were paired off into teams, which were chosen by drawing straws. The teams were then told they needed to be prepared for their 'Abandonment' at any time, for they couldn't be sure which day their team would be drawn from the hat.

The Abandonment entails being blind-folded with your partner and driven to a undisclosed location (A State Park) and well, Abandoned. The object is for the team to find their way to a location where they can purchase a balanced meal, featuring the four food groups, with the twenty dollars they have been provided. The team is given a GPS and a cell phone. They're instructed to use the GPS only if they feel they're hopelessly lost and the phone only when they've achieved their goal and are ready to be picked up or in case of emergency. It's kind of 'Orienteering' but without maps and control points.

After each group has had their opportunity to be 'Abandoned' the members would meet and discuss who best achieved the goal of finding civilization and aquiring a healthy meal. I'm sure each group will have their own methods of interpreting how well they did. BUT judging from the report my son gave, I think he and his partner won. Here's how it went down...

The first duo was dropped at a state park roughly 12 miles from the school. The two boys had their blindfolds removed, eventually found a map in the state park and made their way towards the school. They walked roughly 11 miles, made their way to a diner and ate what some might consider a healthy meal, but others might disagree. Eggs, bacon, toast, home fries and for the veggie a pickle. The other meal consisted of a cheese-steak, with catsup and the veggie. I don't know about the health benefits of catsup? But the real clincher was, if they'd only walked 1/4 mile in the opposite direction they would've found a place much closer to acquire food.

Another pair who asked to be really challenged, were dropped at a state park roughly 25 miles from the school. They were fortunate (or maybe not so fortunate) to run into a park maintnance worker of whom they inquired where they might find food. He asked them why they were lost and they explained. They were then asked if they did so willingly, which I'm sure was a relief to the maintnance guy. They weren't however, thrilled to find out that the 'food source' he suggested turned out to be a liquor store. Eventually they were able to acquire food but healthy food pickin's were scarce at a gas station mini-mart. They're four food group lunch consisted of a sardine sandwich (the sardines we're told, resembled minnow bits more than whole sardines... I know, Eeeewwwww!), Spam on bread, canned green beans they opened with a can opener they puchased. Each guy also had a can of fruit juice, a muffin and a pastry. But they did TRY to cover the four food groups.

My son and his partner Mike were the last group chosen. The day they were taken out was bright and sunny but quite cold. There was still a lot of snow on the ground and when Mike had his blindfold removed he immediately became snow blind. My son Zak, was careful to look at his dark colored jacket while his eyes adjusted to the bright light. Now I know it sounds like my son was the hero in this telling but you have to understand, he really is a bright kid but he was also the one reiterating the story.

So anyway, once the blindfolds came off and they were left to their own devices, Mike suggested they head east because he had the distinct feeling they were in Pennsylvania. Zak decided that was too impulsive and they should climb a nearby hill to see if they could get a better idea of where they were. Once they reached the top of the hill they were able to see a water tower and a cell phone tower and determined that would lead to civilization. Eventually they found a state park map and realized they were near a road they recognized. In fact, not only did they recognize it, Mike lives on that road. So in under 45 minutes they figured out where they were and made their way to Mike's house where they enjoyed a healthy lunch which consisted of ham & cheese sandwiches, milk, celery sticks and clementine oranges... Not only did they not spend any of their alotted money BUT they ate healthy too. So in my opinion, I think they won... But maybe I'm partial.

So the guys haven't had their follow up meeting yet, where they vote on who they believe most successfully carried out the rules of 'The Abondonment' but I think they all learned how to depend on eachother, be resourceful, understand they're capable... Each of these things in maybe a small way but definitely in ways that make an impression on what they're able to achieve when they put their mind to something. And that's just a little peek of what sort of challenges there are at The New School.

A Thoughtful Message?

My son left this note on the breakfast table for me this morning:

Hey Mom & Sarah,

I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be waking up easily this morning because I was up until 2:00am talking to [One of the staff members from school] on AOL Instant Messenger about Shakespeare and it's subtleties.

If one of you could (attempt to) wake me up that would be awesome.

P.S. It also took me 10 minutes to write this note and print it.

Many Thanks,
-Zak

I've heard two of his three alarms going off as I sit here typing this... How can I possibly be upset if he's spending his early morning hours studying the subtleties of Shakespeare?

Right?!

The boy and I have been getting along fabulously lately. We converse, we discuss, we debate topics the likes of -

"Have you eaten?" (He's 6'1", 120 something lbs. and he forgets to eat, it's an issue!)

"Yes, I'm quite sure you DO need a new laptop, have you considered that job thing we talked about?"

And

"I'm not sure why your sister treats you like dirt. Do you really want to drag me in the middle of that again? Don't you think it would be better to work this out with her?"

I call attention to these discussions because I have the annoying habit of ending each of them with "Right?" Sometimes I'll phrase it in other ways, such as, "Don't you think I'm right?"... "C'mon, you know I'm right!"... "You know what I mean, Right?"

Part of my current studies over the last 10 months have included Inter-Personal Relationships and the study of the Art of the Dialectic... Which is fancy talk for 'How to converse well.' It's interesting to note, that the person doing the talking, controls the conversation. Yet, the person who replies with a question regains control.

Therefore, when I'm talking with my son, with whom I'm trying to achieve an Adult/Adult relationship, as opposed to a Parent/Child relationship (see the book, 'I'm Okay, You're Okay' by, Thomas A. Harris, MD.) I simply MUST learn to refrain from trying to maintain control......

Right?!

Know It All

I enjoyed a long conversation over the phone with my sister yesterday. We don't get to indulge in those very often due to the 3 hour time difference and the fact she has two little people who keep her on the run. I was in the middle of cleaning bathrooms when the phone rang and her call was the perfect excuse to take a break from scouring my shower.

Midway through all of the catching up, our conversation took an interesting turn. We were talking about our kids, her 22 yr. old daughter and my 18 yr. old son (yes, she has a 22 yr. old, a 6 yr. old AND a 2 yr. old... I know, YIKES!) . We were agreeing on how no matter what we tell our kids, they seem to believe they KNOW everything! It's a universal fact. When you're that age, everyone else is an idiot and, quite simply, your not! My sister and I began reminiscing about ourselves at that age. Mostly we were just struggling to survive in a volatile environment and we never considered uttering a word of disagreement for fear of physical retribution BUT, we still managed to believe in our hearts we KNEW everything!

So, I got to thinking to myself... Now that I really DO know everything (Ha! that's a lie, part of being a mature adult is being able to admit you know Nothing, which is STILL roughly 97% more than your young adult offspring.) I should make a list of things I wish I knew then, that I know now. So the following is what I was able to come up with...

Things I Know Now, I WISH I Knew Then:

• Self Confidence will help you weather the slings and arrows of Jr. High & High School.
• Really take time to LEARN the things you're being taught in school, rather than just doing enough to 'get by'... Knowledge is Power!
• Think about your future and make plans to do something with it.
  
• Be outgoing and friendly with Everyone at school, not just those in your 'social circle.'
• P.E. doesn't really suck. Maybe if you invest a little energy in it, you'll set a precedent for your future physical health.
• Be proud of the figure you have, you're not going to have it forever.
• That guy Chuck that you think is so amazingly cute, when he whistles at you, don't be shy, go over and talk to him.
• Don't wish your life away waiting for the next Great moment.
• When at 17, you meet that guy, who at first sight you think is a total dork... Be nice, he's going to be your husband.
• That woman that has made your world a living hell since the day she married your dad... The day is going to come when she won't matter ANY MORE and she'll no longer have any power over you.
  

There are so many other items and moments that come to mind. But I think I hit on the most important things... Self-Esteem, Education, Self Awareness, A Friendly Nature, Live In The Moment but also know when things are going horribly... This Too Shall Pass.

I've tried to TELL my kids these things but they'll be in their 40's before they really know them to be true.

Not as squeamish as I thought I was...

Today we visited a taxidermy studio!

Mr. Bob Brown is perhaps the nicest taxidermist you'd ever want to meet. I must admit, I don't know any other taxidermists but I'd like to think they're all like Mr. Brown.

Perhaps you recall my earlier post regarding my daughters sudden interest in taxidermy? Well, her adviser (Melanie) at The New School contacted Mr. Brown and this morning we all (Melanie, Myself, My Daughter and a friend) went to meet the man, ask questions and discover what secrets he knows about skinning and stuffing dead things.

Hopefully I'll have some pics to post later as my daughter had her camera and took some shots of the main part of the studio, which houses everything from Alligators to Turtles... Bison to Zebras... With a whole lot of deer, squirrels, ducks and fish thrown in.

The first part of our visit with Mr. Brown involved a lengthy story about just 'how' he managed to score a GIANT polar bear. The story involves a Horatio Alger type character, who sold his multi-million dollar company and now hunts the world over. Eventually we got down to the nitty gritty and began discussing just 'how' one goes about making something dead look alive. We discussed everything from teeth to goose fat, which I should add if not completely removed, can liquefy, run down the legs and drip on your den floor.

Eventually a kid, roughly my daughters age, came out of the back room and Mr. Brown asked him if the fox was ready yet. A few minutes later the kid, who they refer to as 'HP' because with glasses on they think he looks like 'Harry Potter' (I didn't see it)... Anyway, 'HP' comes back and says he's got the fox ready. We were then invited into the workshop to see for ourselves 'skinning' in action. I should note here that my daughter just adores foxes. She has images of foxes she swaps out as screensavers on her computer. The fox we saw however, would likely, only merit a screensaver on a pc located somewhere on the 3rd level of hell. Our lad HP was standing at a workbench with scalpel in hand, carefully separating the skin from the muscle. Was my daughter horrified to see her favorite little woodland creature as a mass of tendons and muscle? Oh NO! You see, this is NO girly-girl we're discussing here... Quite the contrary, she was fascinated!... And quite frankly, so was I... Not so much about what I was seeing but that I was seeing it AND it wasn't really bothering me... Go figure?

At one point Mr. Brown took us to a workshop annexed off the main back room where the freeze dryer was stored. I kinda blanked out when Mr. Brown described the freeze drying process so I wasn't all that interested.... I was instead awed by the number of deer heads that rested all over the room, at least a dozen of them leaned against work benches and walls in various states of polish. I considered asking Mr. Brown if at any point he had visions or nightmares of deer chasing him down to skin and stuff him, but thought it better to keep my wild imagination to myself.

I should mention the reason Mr. Bob Brown decided to become a taxidermist. He tells that one day, thirty some odd years ago as he was preparing a pheasant he killed for meat, he thought to himself, "What a waste of this beautiful creature." You see, Mr. Brown treasures nature and appreciates the beauty of each animal he works on. He told us he spends a great deal of time studying the movements and subtle expressions, unique to each variation of animal. I admire Mr. Brown for not wanting to be a taxidermist to showcase the pride of a kill but to instill a further appreciation for the creature.

As we drove away from the studio I asked my daughter if the experience made her think twice, or cement her decision, to try her hand at taxidermy. She said, "Oh most definitely TRY IT! I can't WAIT!"... I think she's excited for the same reason Mr. Brown taught himself taxidermy... Because they both love animals.

TNS Tuesday - The Case of the Spitter

So my husband had this idea that I might consider setting aside one day a week to write a little something about the school my kids attend or something about 'Democratic Education' in general. Since we're currently hosting a house guest who is here for a couple of days 'checking out' The New School, and some of the stories we've been sharing are fresh in my mind, I figured today was the day to start Tuesday TNS. It's maybe the first installment, maybe the last (I'm dedicated like that), but I'll try to give you a glimpse into what life is like with two kids learning how to:

• learn responsibility through self-reliance.

• be free to explore without the constraints that smother interest and breed mediocrity.

• develop individualized curricula, including group and independent study, hands-on exploration, travel, correspondence, experiment, and major projects, limited only by their imaginations and ambition.

• be accepted for who they are and gain insight and toleration of others by working in a community composed of empowered individuals, without age or other imposed segregation.

• learn the arts of liberty by participating in the student administered judicial process and using the tools of the participatory democracy of the School Meeting which govern and manage The New School.

• use the close, supportive community of The New School as a base from which to explore local, regional and global communities, through trips, personal contacts, and telecommunications..

• reflect on their growth to adulthood, while preparing the written arguments and public defense of their belief that they are ready to be responsible and productive adults. Proof of this, to the satisfaction of the school community of students, staff, and parents, is the requirement for graduation from The New School.

So did you make it through all that? It's how The New School is run, and until you have a student who actually attends the school, you might find it difficult to understand exactly how it all works, thus my reasoning behind TNS Tuesday.

In today's installment of TNS Tuesday, I'd like to address the topic of the JC... Or what's better known as the 'Judicial Committee' of The New School. You see, in a democratic school, the school is run by the students. The students, utilizing the democratic process make decisions regarding school rules, staff members, budget and disciplinary issues, by a majority vote... Which brings me to my story...

This event happened years ago, I think my son was around 10 yrs. old. I just received his permission to tell this story, which is.... My son spit on someone at school.... (funny, I didn't know he was a spitter?) Because he spit on this person, she 'wrote him up' and took him to the JC. The process takes a few days, in the same way being summoned for a court case can take a few months. When my son went before the JC (a group of his fellow students) he was found guilty of the crime of spitting. After deliberation, a judgment was handed down. My sons sentence? In order to understand how really disgusting spitting is, he was given a bottle and sentenced to fill it to a certain point with his own spit. Now, my son, being a squeamish sort was filled with horror at the notion of seeing his spit collected in a bottle. He 'neglected' to carry out his sentence. Refusal to carry out a sentence results in 'Exile' (a number of days decided upon, in which the student may not attend school.)

Now it's important to understand at this point that the parents of a New School student are NOT made aware of what their kids DO or DON'T DO at school. A Democratic Education is based on the idea that the student is given the responsibility to be in command of their own education. Therefore, if they make a mistake, they suffer the result. In turn they can be proud of all THEY achieve because THEY are the ones who've achieved it, as a direct result of their own choices. No helicopter parenting takes place at The New School.

So, I discover that my son has 2 exile days from school... The parents are informed (of course) that their kid has been given an exile, in order to make plans for them being home instead of in school, but they are told nothing more than that. It's up to the student whether or not to share the reason with his/her parents. In this incident, I didn't ask... (this story came out a year or so later from his sister.) I simply told my son that since he was going to be home, it would be an opportune time for me to get some help painting his and his sisters room. This was not a punishment, it was merely a matter of, "Oh hey, you're gonna be home? Cool, you can help me paint!"... We ended up having a really good time doing the project together and he learned some painting skills, so it turned out to be a win-win situation. As a result of the entire affair I can proudly say, my son never spit on anyone ever again... Because through his given sentence, he was able to grasp just what a disgusting habit spitting at people really is.... Wait 'til I tell you about the kid (not my own), who was found guilty of slamming doors.

You want to What?

So I've told you a bit about the school my kids attend The New School. And I'm sure you've heard me mention that at this school, the students have the opportunity to pursue any course of study that interests them...

My daughter, my 15 yr. old sweet, delicate flower.... Yeah, not even!
More like my 15 yr. old tree climbing, dirt digging, toad catching, outdoor photography 'Nature Girl' has decided to study 'TAXIDERMY'.

She ordered a book for herself, with her own money AND Everything! She's also setting up a field trip for herself and a staff member to visit a Taxidermist Studio roughly an hour drive away.

There's already talk of what part of the school she'll take over in order to hone her skills... And an old fridge in the basement will house her um, 'subjects'. As other students at the school discover my daughters new course of education, some are interested, while others are obviously repulsed. As for me? I'm most concerned with whether or not 'dead' things are going to be showing up at my house. I don't think I mind too much once they're 'stuffed' but my daughter has already had folks offering up locations of deer carcases on the side of the road, along with rodents and others creatures of that ilk.

You know, I bought her dolls when she was little... She wouldn't touch them!
I put bows in her hair... Until she was old enough to tear them out!
I purchased pink dresses and pretty things... She wore 'frog boots' and carried around a big net and a bucket!

In the delivery room, when the doctor announced, "It's a Girl!"... I had a completely different picture in my mind than the reality that is my 'little girl'... And all I can say is... Thank heaven!!! because she's so incredibly unique and wonderful and amazing and really very much her own person!... But still, I'm really concerned about where all that dead stuff is gonna go?

I pulled this photo from my archives, not to worry, this turtle is very much alive!

Yeah, I'm down with all that's Tech

I added to my blog roll (check out, Christy & Amy) AND included a link you'll find if you scroll down the page...
And here's the REAL COOL part... I did it sans 'Techno Man' aka, my son.
Just call me 'Madame HTML'

Anyway, about that link... Sorry, self promotion takes precedence to 'Feeding the World'... I'm working on humility... No really, I am!

Free Rice! Click on it and if you're competitive in any way (like me), I dare you to try and stop. I was up until after midnight last night telling myself, "Just one more word... Just one more definition... Just another 1,000 grains of rice for the hungry!"

You see, it works like this:

In the middle of the FreeRice Home page you will see something like:

small means:

little
old
big
yellow

To play the game, click on one of the four definitions (“little,” “old,” “big,” or “yellow”) that you think is correct. If you get it right, FreeRice donates 20 grains of rice to help end hunger. In the example above, you would want to click on “little,” which means “small.” You will then get a chance to do another word the same way. You can play as long as you like and give as much rice as you like.

What's in it for you?:

Learning new vocabulary has tremendous benefits. It can help you:

• Formulate your ideas better
• Write better papers, emails and business letters
• Speak more precisely and persuasively
• Comprehend more of what you read
• Read faster because you comprehend better
• Get better grades in high school, college and graduate school
• Score higher on tests like the SAT, GRE, LSAT and GMAT
• Perform better at job interviews and conferences
• Sell yourself, your services, and your products better
• Be more effective and successful at your job

After you have done FreeRice for a couple of days, you may notice an odd phenomenon. Words that you have never consciously used before will begin to pop into your head while you are speaking or writing. You will feel yourself using and knowing more words.

So why are you sitting here reading this?... Go, click on the link, build your brain-power and more importantly, Feed the Hungry!

Theatre

Thursday evening I had the distinct pleasure of attending the opera with a group from The New School. The Grand Opera House often extends invitations to the school for dress rehearsal night of a new production. The last opera I tagged along for was 'The Pirates of Penzance'. I'm not a huge opera fan but I LOVE theatre productions so I'll take a live show any way I can get it, especially if it's free!

Now, when I say I had the 'distinct pleasure' of attending the opera on Thursday, I say it merely because of the company in which I shared. As far as this particular opera... Well, let's just say that 'Little Women' was (I believe) NEVER intended to be set entirely to song, especially the operatic kind. I'm reluctant to critique the production too harshly as I'm not much of an expert on opera but frankly, it hurt my head... And since I was in the company of friends who have studied music who had pretty much the same impression... Well, 'nuff said.

On Friday I had the even GREATER pleasure of attending a play put on by the students and staff of The New School. Now of course I'm going to be quite biased here and gush about how excellent this entire production was... However, I'd never be able to write about it as eloquently as my friend Amy... Who, I should add, is also a parent at The New School. However biased we may be, I urge you to go to her site and read the review of 'What the North Wind Saw'... The pictures I took can be found here.

Online Madness

You've most likely heard me mention the unique, wonderful and amazing place my kids go to school. It's called The New School and our family considers itself so fortunate to have found a place where our kids can become educated not in just the basics but are challenged to become Responsible, Independent, Compassionate and Articulate individuals.

This week, The New School was featured on a front page article in the local newspaper, The News Journal. Earlier in the year, The New School was approached by 'Delaware Today Magazine - The New School on the block' to feature the school in their Education Review issue. A News Journal reporter was intrigued by the article and contacted TNS for an interview. The New School is democratic, which means the members, including students, make decisions regarding their school. The notion of the school being publicized in the newspaper was something the students and staff discussed in school meeting and ultimately decided might be 'good' for the school. Very few people are familiar with the idea of a Democratic Education. Many haven't heard of 'Summer Hill' or 'Sudbury Valley' and this article might show people struggling with traditional education that their are other options.

The article appeared on Wednesday and the comments over at the Delaware Online website have reached 351 at this point. Some of the comments have been from folks intrigued or confused by how a child could achieve an education without the measure of tests and grades. Some find it difficult to believe that a child would WANT to learn anything when not forced to do so. Parents and students of TNS have been posting answers to those questions.

Now I come to the point of why I'm even blogging about this... The Haters or Trolls as we've been referring to some of the folks who've posted comments regarding the article. There are people out in cyberspace who seemingly have nothing better to do with their time than attack and malign. It's so terribly disheartening to read hate filled comments from people, who know nothing about the students of this school and their achievements... Nothing about the staff who treat each and every student with respect and love... Nothing about the parents, who before TNS ,wrung their hands in despair as they watched their once bright and happy children become broken and sad by a system rife with frustrated teachers, hours of homework, docked recesses, bullies and labels of ADD.

It's astounding to me, the stones one can hurl at complete strangers, hidden behind the anonymity of a computer screen. It saddens me that there is so much anger based simply on choice made by another parent, regarding the well-being of their own child. One thing I've learned from this experience... It reinforces the choice my husband and I made to send our kids to The New School... Because I know for a fact that the education they're receiving will result in them being caring, thoughtful individuals who would never consider slinging stones behind a computer screen.

Typical Day at The New School

My daughter is absolutely LOVING the new camera she got for her birthday... And thank heaven, I finally have MY camera back, all to myself (whew!)

Yesterday she took several pics of the kids at school and they're such a wonderful representation of the unique school my kids attend, I thought I'd post a couple of them here.

Here's a trio of the younger kids at the school, without even realizing it, demonstrating the strong bonds of friendship formed in such a nurturing environment.

'The Creek' is a popular spot once the weather turns warmer. Rare indeed, is the school where a day or days spent discovering nature or just playing together for hours is encouraged. The students of the school have recently submitted a proposal to the school meeting, to engineer a foot bridge across an area of the creek... However, since the creek is on public property they're facing having to take their proposal to the city. It's just another day at The New School, where the kids decide, through a voting process, whether or not to take on the city council.

Teaching An Old Dog New Tricks...

I'm taking classes...
I'm allowing myself to be taught...
I'm opening my mind... Expanding my horizons...
I'm learning MATH!

For most of you this may seem quite benign... Big deal... math.

NO, you don't understand... This IS a big deal! Math abso-freakin'-lutely terrifies me. My nightmares often involve going an entire semester of never having attended class, yet sitting down to the final exam and realizing it's MATH class I was skipping all those months and the problems look like a foreign language.

I'm a product of the California Education System. I'm not saying it's all bad. I'm just referring to the place I managed to skirt through with my winning smile, good nature and knack for wrapping teachers around my friendly little finger.

Math in high school consisted of something known as The Phase Program. Some misguided school board members idea of educatin' teens their numbers. Book 1 of the Phase Program consisted of Addition & Subtraction... Book 2, Multiplication & Division... Book 3, Fractions... Book 4, Percentages and Book 5, Geometry. At the end of each semester a student in the Phase program would be tested on Books 1-5. If the student didn't pass any portion of the test in any of the five areas they were sent back to the that book to work all the way back through again. I ALWAYS failed long division. All those numbers swimming around in my head confused the hell out of me. So even though I'd work my way up to the Geometry in Book 5 throughout the semester, at the end I'd take that damn test and place all the way back to Book 2 again. Did it make me any better at long division? NO! All it did was make me hate math all the more. Finally after 2 1/2 yrs. of bouncing around the damn Phase Program, I finally squeaked out by a teacher who took pity on my situation or more likely just got sick and tired of seeing me in his class semester after semester. Mr. S tore up my Geometry test and proclaimed me to be educated. Did I ever learn how to determine just how much fence I would need to enclose that oddly shaped backyard? Nope, nor any other fence I might have to erect in my future. Thankfully, I've got my husband, should I ever decide to fence our yard.

Anyway... So here I am, 43 yrs. old and I'm challenging myself to finally learn this stuff. There's another reason for this interest in math. I'm also currently studying 'Transactional Analysis' using the book 'I'm Ok - You're Ok'... It's fascinating, and my adviser is not only patient but incredibly adept in the art of conversation. I'm learning SO much about how to better communicate with my family and friends. My adviser tells me the math is important because I tend to dwell a great deal in my emotions. Learning Math helps me 'step out' of the part of my brain run by emotions and practice using the analytical part of my brain. Therefore, as I exercise my analytical brain I can remain level headed and thoughtful as I converse... Even during stressful interactions... Hey, I have issues and I'm working through them... That's cool, I'm excited AND I'm doing math without freaking out.

It's all good and I thought I'd share.