The Final Fire Drill and Floral Bouquets

Something smoking in in the culinary room.  You know how easily the smoke alarms  go off when you burn toast at home.

You always know it isn’t just a drill when you hear the trucks come. All was checked out and fine.

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And two girls were waiting for me at my classroom door yesterday morning, bouquet in hand.

bouquetWhat a surprise!  Thank you girls.  That was so sweet.

 

 

 

and at the Double Wide Grill after school, a colleague brought the two retirees, another lovely bouquet

A good day.

Friday the last day with students, Two classes take finals.  Then it is clerical days next week, gradebook entries and RETIREMENT begins.

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Thank you Cynthia. The flowers are lovely.

 

 

My June Plans Revealed at School Friday Afternoon 

During seventh period my door got decorated as a surprise, courtesy of Ms. McCann and a team of The Future Is Mine students.

I got some lovely words from some sweet teenagers as they read the door.

In January. I’d put in my letter of intent to retire at the end of this school year and told the adults but hadn’t shared with the students.  Now they can help me celebrate.

 

Today it feels real. 🎓🎉🎏😃

 

    

 

 

Thanks Ms. McCann

What Hundreds of Years of Teaching Thousands of Students Looks Like

Greenfield Elementary School, Pittsburgh PA  Veteran’s Day Dinner.

Breaking bread together. It’s an annual event.  One that former prinicpal BJ (Brent Johnson) looks forward to all year.

Lots of conversation,good food, catching up.

Here’s the group. Photographed by our server Daniel McCormick at Mitchell’s Fish Market, Waterfront, Homestead PA. November 5, 2014

The youngest member has taught at Greenfield for 25 years already and is still teaching third grade.

I was the art teacher for 9 years.

There are just four of us in the trenches still, two at Greenfield now.  See below.

All of others have retired although a couple go in to substitute.  And there are a couple of spouses in the shot.

Thanks Daniel for photographing us after the dinner.   I’ll get an exact total of years taught.

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Lara and Josie still at Greenfield K-8.

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Hypothetical Self-Help Books Cover Art

Cover Art- Part two-  A fun weekly challenge created by Pete Rosos- you can check out his blog

I neglected to add a title/text right onto the images.

Today I went to www.picmonkey.com as suggested on WordPress, found some images that lent themselves to the addition of text and went with the Self-Help Genre.

Not that self-help books really help

Here’s the bookshelf of Cover Art of my imaginary titles.

dawn at St george Island

Keep your Marbles

Knit Your Way Through Winter

dawn at St george Island (1)

Find balance in your life

Baseball in the leaves

Our Lady of the RV Sales Lot

Last Spring my sister and I went with Erika’s parents, Donald and Marlene as they were shopping around for a camper or trailer for their retirement.

 Here is what we found at one of the RV Sales Lots.

 I can’t add it to my “Urban Madonna” collection as it is just north of Columbus, Ohio so more like
“Country or Rural Madonna”    

 Safe journeys.  

our lady of rv sales

Celebrating 39 Years of Teaching!

It’s hard to keep this friend anonymous since her name is on the cake. In chocolate letters!

Ellen is a blog follower and I hope she doesn’t mind….

Colleagues, family and friends gathered together to honor Ellen today.  Effusive praise and accolades aren’t  what Ellen would wish for but let me just say – there are thousands of students who have benefitted from having been taught by her in her classroom.

I didn’t see the smiley face on the cake until I looked at the photos.

 Jean-Marc Chatellier baked this and decorated it so beautifully. It tasted delicious, too.

(You remember the colorful macarons?)

Enjoy your retirement Ellen. You deserve every happiness!  A job well done.