September 2005

Day Care Nightmare

After a rough morning of sickness, Will and I finally got out the door and made it to our first Kindermusik class. Kindermusik is at the same church where he is attending daycare. It is a class for parents and toddlers where the kids play with a variety of instruments, sing songs, move around, and play to music, melody, rhythm and dance. Totally up my alley. The class was great and Will did well, all things considered.

We stayed behind to speak with the Kindermusik teacher (“Mrs. G”). So, by the time we got over to the daycare building, it was about quarter past 9 and the other parents had come and gone. Kids were crying all over the building. In Will’s room, it was no different. Just about every kid was crying and the two teachers had lapfuls of crying or just-had-been-crying kids. The second Will saw the room he started serious sobs. I opened the gate and went into the room with him. When he realized that I was not going to leave him, he settled down (took a few minutes), and he stayed very clingy to me for the rest of the time. So, I got to experience the center.

My thoughts? It’s a Sunday Box-Social for busy-body church ladies. I was more nurturing to the children there than they were. (They were busy trashing the Mayor of my city, lameting on how none of this mess could possibly be the fault of the President, and just generally being clueless fools.) I was there for an hour. A music lady came room to room for about 15 minutes with a rabbit puppet and boom box and sang and played music — this calmed everyone down and Will even got engaged in the activity out of my lap. But that was the only activity they had and the other times, the kids were upset. I am no early childhood education specialist, but I could easily tell that all these kids needed was a little thought into some structure and activities and they would be fine. Two boys were having a rough time and one was completely hooked to me — when I left, I actually did it quietly because I was afraid the other boys would become upset. (My guess is that they probably did become upset — I feel pretty confident that any loving atmosphere that was happening in that room came from me, and I’m really not being all that harsh.) At one point, we brought the kids outside (with much compliant from the teachers of the heat.) The boys loved it. One of the girls completely broke down. No one helped her at all! The teachers were busy talking to parents who were on the other side of the fence (another Kindermusik class had just let out.) I picked up the little girl and was distracting her (Will was okay at this point playing in a car) and just as she was calming down, a teacher annoyingly snatched her up from me, bringing on serious tears and sobs from the poor little girl. (This particular girl was in Kindermusik with Will and I that morning and I felt like she at least recognized me a little… and I could not sit and watch a child sob for comfort while no one did anything!!)

So, Will cannot go back there. If he were completely self-sufficient, did not need comforting, and could play on his own, it would be fine. But in an environment where kids everywhere are crying and no one is trying to redirect their attention, it will not improve.

The trick: this is a small town and smaller church. If I want to stay in Kindermusik (also part of the church) I have to dis-engaged him from the daycare program nicely. (And I want my money back, so this could be difficult.)

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HP4

You can see the new extended trailer (and teaser, if you missed it) here. There is also an official release date: November 18th.

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Surpassing what was already a Class Act!

Holy moly. I just received this email from the Associate Dean of the School of Social Work, University of Michigan:


Hi Holly,
As a special studies student, I want you to be able to get the most out of the experience, to minimize the disruption you are experiencing but maybe also to get some value added if we can manage it.
I am hoping we can provide some consultation and mentorship via distance mechanisms –phone, computer, etc, as you work towards your dissertation. This can be above and beyond the access you will have to the library resources as an enrolled student.
I am willing to act as your special studies faculty member and coordinate any additional help we can provide you as a faculty member. I know you have been in contact with Deb Schild, and there are undoubtedly others who can provide some expertise and support. Maybe we can speak briefly to see how we can best be of assistance.
Take care,
Rich

Richard M. Tolman, Ph.D.
Professor and Associate Dean for Educational Programs
University of Michigan, School of Social Work

Jeez. That is hard act to follow. And what exactly has Tulane done for me (or any of it’s doctoral students) lately?? I’m not quite sure how to proceed with this.

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A Class Act

One email and ba-boom! The following message arrives:


Holly,

On behalf of the School, I am happy to inform you that we have admitted you to the School of Social Work today as a non-degree (NCFD) student for the Fall Term 2005. The Registrar’s Office has completed the process for your registration. Your basic computing account and email should be activated tomorrow and I will email you your Kerberos password for access as soon as I receive it from the ITCS Accounts Office. To complete our records, please fill out the attached Non-Degree Special Student Application and return it to our office at the earliest date possible. No application fee is required. We are glad that we able to assist you in this way. Please contact our office if you have any questions.

Office of Student Services
University of Michigan
School of Social Work

Thank you, Michigan Fairy God Persons!

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Today is a Rough Day.

Everything seems to be off today. Our entire lives seems to be off today.

– I officially started tossing cookies yesterday. Today hasn’t been too much better.
– Paul dropped Will off at Day Care, only to have them call us 2 hours later (with poor Will heaving and sobbing in the background) to say that he’s been inconsoliable basically the whole time. He’s home now and we’re not exactly sure what to do.
– Tulane is top on my list of disappointment. Doctoral students got a blanket academic “non-response” about our concerns. We were told that comps needed to be proctored (which I think is a bit silly) and that they don’t have any funds to support doctoral students in conferences. (Not that those funds had been redirected due to the crisis, or that funds had been frozen, etc… that point blank: they don’t do it. I have a *very* hard time with believing that a department which hosts open bar parties at a bar on Bourbon Street *twice* a term for students isn’t able to put away a few hundred dollars to help their doctoral students present their work. Most Universities brag about where there students present their work. Tulane doesn’t seem to care less.) This information came to me through a group email — not as a response to the individual message I sent days before our group message went out.
– I keep coming back to the idea of violence as my core disseration focus… which makes me wonder why the hell I left Michigan. Granted, I need the support of family nearby — and no one comes to visit or help you when you live in Michigan. But damn, the University supports (and is actually proud of) their doctoral students, and has a fabulous center for violence studies that includes some global health elements. I wanted a global health program and I thought I’d made the right choice… but sacrificed a program that invested in its students to one that basically doesn’t give a rat’s ass.
– What to do???

Today is a rough day.

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The Incredible Paintings!

My parents commissioned a friend of theirs, artist Glynn Moore, to create two murial paintings for the flat sides of the domed ceiling in their kitchen. My Mom envisioned a 1960s 4th of July — day on one side, night on the other — and with some paintings my Mom selected to indicate style, they traded sketches back for a few months. A few years of back and forth work and talk — and these fantastic pieces arrived today. WOW! They are absolutely breathtaking. I’ve posted several pictures below, although they do nothing to give them justice.

(It reminds us of the gift of our own Picasso, Dave, who we hope to one day to commission to capture our love for New Orleans in a similar treasure.)

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Full View, Day Celebration Side. Original art by Glynn Moore of Suffolk, VA.  Posted by Picasa

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Detail: Day Celebration side.  Posted by Picasa

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Detail: Day Celebration side. (My parents’ grew up across the street from each other in Leetsdale, PA.) Posted by Picasa

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Detail: Day celebration side. (My parents’ attended Quaker Valley High School.) Posted by Picasa

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