Wednesday, August 22, 2007

The dark side of teaching



I hate meetings. This week has been full of them, and they makes me so crazy I feel like one of the poor victims who gets stuck in my class listening to me ramble on and on. Today was a district-wide meeting, and the highlight was that I got to see many teachers with whom I used to teach. One of the teachers I encountered is one who I now really respect, but I used to refer to as my nemesis.

His philosophies on education often smacked brutally against mine and as a newbie teacher I would whimper away from meetings in horror at the atrocities I believed he must've been inflicting on his students. I was silly and green and everything was larger than it would ever be again.

After one particularly frustrating incident, I walked through a bookstore and saw a daily calendar that was on sale for a dollar. It was entitled 14,000 Things to be Happy About. I bought it, and slipped it in his box with no note attached the next day. The following year, I saw the same calendar on sale for a dollar and chuckled to myself "why not?" I bought it and put it in his box with no note yet again. He switched schools the following year, but it didn't stop me. I sent it to him anonymously. I did it again last year. Four years now. I have no idea if he knows. He has probably suspected me, but I wasn't the only one who viewed him as a nemesis. Every year he receives the exact same anonymous calendar, and every year I wonder if my little private joke qualifies me as some sort of stalker. I am so easily amused by myself.

I know that Kory used to have sneaky little things she'd do to get back at people (by the way, I wasn't trying to get back at him as much as save he and his students from a year of misery) but anyway... I wonder how many have sneaky little things we do just to amuse ourselves. If anyone is still reading this and would like to share, I'd love to hear what they are and live vicariously through your own little sneaky worlds. I am so easily amused.

5 comments:

TUG said...

I read your blog (sneakily) to get back at YOU for reading mine!!!

Salt H2O said...

The calendar story is cute. Much cuter than giving doughnuts to people you don't like so they'll continue to put on weight.

crazy4danes said...

You are too funny Lori!...definitely bordering stalking when you're our age!LOL ;) Good luck with your new year! Keep us updated on any new sneaky ideas! ;)

ChelMo said...

Daniel says that I can't not get revenge. I become this whole other person when there is a need for vengeance.

Have you ever seen Amelie? I'm kinda like that. Don't make me mad, or you'll be brushing your teeth with foot cream and your speed dial will have you calling the local police station instead of your mother!

Pyrate said...

I'm not nearly so constructive as you are.
I shoot rubber bands at the ceiling in my office, so that they ricochet and land on my co-workers spiked up hair, often so softly he doesn't usually notice until he goes on break, and someone laughs at him.
I put my bosses' supplies on the top shelf of the supply closet, knowing they can't reach them, which makes them humbly ask me to get them down. Thus far this has saved me from burning out entirely.
I released my roomates pet squirrel into the wild.
I taught my ex's parrot to say snarky things in my voice. African Greys never forget.
I have covered someone's car in bolgna, strewn unused tampons throughout my brother's room while he was passed out.
The one i'm downright proud of: You know people who leave their christmas lights up all year round? i unscrewed every bulb from every string of lights in the middle of the night and left them in a pile on their doorstep. not broken, just detached.
There's a multitude of other fun stories. It's the passive aggression i learned from my mom. it's the only way to battle with my brother and her at the same time.

That, and i frequently have been in the position of having too much time on my hands.