Currently Reading: I'm up to Ch 6 of Danger On XY-One and loving it! Can hardly wait til I can get back to it!
Sept 2003:
Brief recap: The spouse had undergone two heart surgeries, one to replace his aortic valve and the other to remove a blood clot and fluid in his pericardium. Later, he would have to start TB meds, due to cross contamination in the lab for one of those fluid samples. During the summer, he still managed to impregnate me, catching everyone off guard! The kids and I traveled to White Rock, BC, to meet the newest member of the family, my sister's son who was born in May. Grandpa also took us to Yellowstone and Cody, WY. School began, with K beginning 6th grade (middle school) and S in 3rd.
Middle school was rough on 11 y/o K. He had to use a locker for the 1st time, and was struggling to understand algebra. His main issue was he could do it faster in his head, but the teacher wanted to him to SHOW how he arrived at the correct answer. And trying to slow down a speeding train to show how his wheels worked was nearly impossible.
Mid-September, K began acting a little strange. When I tried to get him to open up, he looked embarrassed and refused to talk about it. After about three days, I took him aside and told him I wouldn't be mad; I was just concerned about his behavior. He admitted something was going on, but his eyes welled up with tears as he shook his head and said he couldn't tell me. I asked him to whisper it in my ear. So he gulped, came over, and whispered that he had a message for me from one of his friends.
"Tell your mom I send my love."
I couldn't help it. I laughed, knowing immediately what the kid was trying to convey. I took K in my arms and explained J was just trying to rattle him; did he really think I'd sleep with one of his friends? K looked sheepish for a moment, but then explained why he was embarrassed about it. I told him to laugh it off; it wasn't true, and if he continued to fume about it, J was 'winning'. I also told him the story of when one of my young customers at ACC had tried to 'claim' K as his when I was working, to show him I understood the adolescent mind.
He hugged me, thanked me, and the evening went a lot better. Until the next day.
We were called to the office soon after school began. Apparently, J had made a snide remark and K punched him. A fight ensued; both boys were suspended for five days. We also had a chat about K's tardies, which we'd been unaware of. Turns out K's locker was next to one of the more popular girls. Her friends would crowd around, making it impossible for K to get to his locker. Therefore, he was late getting to class. We told him he had every right to push his way through and open his locker.
I put him to work during his suspension. He got up with the rest of us and helped me scrub the house from top to bottom. He complained at first, but by the 2nd day agreed to carry out his 'sentence'. We did laundry; we mopped the floors; and outside, we cleared more brush from our wooded area.
And I need to explain J: He and K had been close the previous two years, and I was good friends with his mom. When J had been bullied in the 4th grade, I handled the situation, since I knew the girls who were giving him a hard time, and it stopped. I had spoken to J's mother, who told me she had sentenced J to be her 'slave' during those five days. She had her own beef-jerky making business, so she put him to work doing every chore she invented. Always nice to know you're on the same page with your friends!
I don't think K and J's friendship continued; the boys pretty much avoided each other the rest of the year.
Next Month: The School Carnival and more rumors
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Present Day:
Wrote another 1861 on that wip I posted on Wednesday, and am enjoying the responses!
As for my karaoke line up tomorrow, it's KJ Mark's birthday, so I plan to hand him a list of some of my better songs and tell him it's His Choice this week:) And knowing Mark, he'll probably start at the top, so I'll make sure my favored ones are at the top, lol! As always, I'll report back on Monday:)
Have a good weekend!
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