Do you believe the media anymore???

I'm 54 and I am morphing into an old lady who wants to keep her money under the mattress. The media has oversimplified, mislead and sometimes write just plain stupid and insulting stuff.

I don't buy their stories anymore. Do you?

Black Friday-Indeed-the empty Big Lot's

Don't be fooled by what you see in the press.

Look around you.

Many people may have waited in line to buy the 3.99 coffee pot Wal-Mart offered between the hours of 5am and 10 am. You might have seen pictures of people lined up outside electronics stores for the big deals.

That's the American mentality. To be first in line. To pay for something they don't need. To feel like they just triumphed over some kind of obstacle. We have to ask ourselves, more often, I am thinking-do I really need this?

The generation of 30 somethings think home equity lines of credit and credit cards are a way of life. Just one more source of income.

The main streets of local shoppers in Las Vegas were even quieter than usual for a Friday afternoon. Even the Strip seemed a little slow.

A friend of mine and I stopped at Big Lots to pick up our usual cleaning supplies for a dollar each. It was 2:00 in the afternoon and the store was pretty slow. We even had a cashier offer to help us! It felt pretty strange to be driving down one of the busiest streets in Las Vegas and not have problems with the traffic.

I drove my daughter to Mandalay Bay's House of Blues for a concert. Usually the strip is wall to wall cars after Thanksgiving. It was pretty slow. I didn't have any problems getting into the casino nor did I have a problem parking. I hate driving to the Strip during the holidays. It felt eerie to be able to drive in reasonable traffic.

This year I bought my turkey dinner fixings at Food for Less. We thought about forgoing Thanksgiving altogether with milk at almost 5.00 a gallon at Albertsons. Food For Less sold it for 3.00 a gallon. I don't mind packing my own groceries if I save a fair amount of money.

Gas is 3.15 a gallon. Milk 5.00?! Coke, at Albertsons is 5.99 a for 12.

Maybe the retailers need to hear us.

I think we have reached a saturation point. I don't think they could squeeze another dime out of us.

I am a teacher receiving a modest salary and I work three part time jobs. It is expensive to live in this town.

I bought a town home last year and it has already depreciated 50,000 dollars.

I don't plan on moving anywhere so it is all on paper. But the payments are high and it is why I work so much.

I predict Christmas may bring us back to a point beyond the gluttony of years past. With no home equity lines of credit available and the credit cards maxed out, the Las Vegas real estate and job market crashing around us, maybe we will be able to appreciate that it isn't "stuff" that shows love but "us".

Or maybe this generation has not been exposed to this concept and will struggle with what many of us from older generations already understand-that it is people who count-not belongings.

Or do they?

The Teachers Witch Hunt

We teach in an environment of cauldrons and burning stakes. I love teaching children. The deep satisfaction of watching the light burst forward when a child discovers new information and makes sense of it is a thousand times better than any fireworks display I have oohh and aahhhed over in my lifetime.

I feel honored.

I am also terrified for all of us working in a room for seven hours a day-theoretically-alone.
Terrifying is the word-the witch hunt of teachers.
Headlines are made based on allegations.
A teacher never recovers from those.
Even if or when found innocent, or when charges are thrown out.

I would not want to be a male teacher today. Our kids need good male role models-desperately. No wonder we have about one male teacher to every thirty-five female teachers.

Who would risk it?

Students are wise today. Even my second grade children who come to me for hugs will yell, "Ow" if a teacher pats their shoulder-they know the game.

Fifth grade girls are no longer children. Look around you. Most fifth grade girls look thirteen or fourteen. Puberty comes early. Sadly, in my neighborhood school of poverty, instability and a revolving door of parental partners, many girls have become sexually active.
When they reach out for reassurance and validation, yearning for approval and encouragement, we have to be even more careful-never allowing ourselves to be alone with a student, maintaining a distance-not even the hugs they got from their second grade teacher are without suspect three years later. We all have to be so careful.

It only takes one word to ruin a teacher. One word from a confused child, an angry parent, or a disgruntled aide. They all know it as well.

Peoples reaction is, "Well, if the teacher is innocent that will come out."

A teacher I knew was accused a few years ago-he was found innocent-he hung himself afterwards.

You have to understand why teachers teach.
We teach because we have a passion for learning. We believe, deeply, believe in the future of our children. We know education is the way out for many of our poor, abused, neglected, confused kids. We love them and we love teaching our kids. I can't think of any other profession I would rather do-it is an honor to teach children-and a gift to me.

When allegations are made and the press gobbles them up on the front pages without substantiation and the indiviudal's life drifts through the system-not even a statement exonerating the teaching, or the simple act of throwing out the charges can heal the terrible stab wounds to a teacher's psych.

I hope to God I have never have to go there. It is frightening enough to make me rethink teaching as a career.