Avast, me hearties and beware...for here there be pirates!

Today 'twas Talk Like A Pirate Day, mates!

Our teachers & staff really got into the spirit of the day. They rock!My principal made a "phone call" over the intercom to let the entire student body know she had been captured by pirates who were in league with those who had taken over the school for the day. She called back several times throughout the day to update the students on her status as a captive.One of the kindergarten classes wrote a letter to the pirates and sent them a treasure chest filled with books in exchange for our principal. They decided the reason pirates had captured her was because they wanted her to teach them to read! So cute!I, of course, had a ball traipsing around the building, reading to the children and refusing to answer to any name other than "Mad Bess Bonney" my pirate name courtesy of the Pirate Name Generator. Our principal(photo above) also went from room to room reading pirate stories...the students looooove it when she acts silly. They're used to it from me. One of our primary teachers, Bloody Jack Flint (or something like that) helped out w/reading stories too...he made a fine scallywag scurvy dog pirate! Southern Belle Mama was my co-conspiritor in getting TLAPD going! Next nine weeks...LUAU!
We had a party for some of the wee pirates in the library media center. On the menu...grog, Chips Ahoy and Goldfish. Hats courtesy of Long John Silvers! By the end of the day, some o' the pirates were gettin' a might punchy.
'Twas a good day! But me voice is gone and me bones is weary. This pirate be headin' for the sweet solace of slumber. 'G'Night me hearties!

Heard At Work

"Mrs. C you always call me by my brother's name! Can you just give me a nickname so you won't get us mixed up?"

Said with much enthusiasm..."Me and my brothers were walking on the railroad tracks and we heard a Hobo playing drums...in the woods!!!"

"You seem like the kind of chick who would be into vampires."

"Mrs. C...you silly!"

Apron Day!

Today was National Apron Day. Needless to say I participated and I enjoyed it! I even whipped up an apron last night just for the occasion. The pattern is called "Lorelei" and it came from this book. I may be mistaken but I believe it is the same or very near this pattern. I plan on making some of these for the shop in the near future. This fellow is a student whom I forced who agreed to tie on an apron and pose for a picture with me.

Luckily I have some good great wonderful friends at work who are almost always willing to join me in my occasional bouts of silliness. Is that? Why yes it is! There's Southern Belle Mama looking gorgeous...as usual.
Several other gals at work tied one on today...more than are pictured here. And these girls, unlike others of my generation, see aprons for what they really are.

One gal said about Apron Day..."What? is that something some man came up with to keep women in the kitchen cooking?" Yes, aprons, by default, are a symbol of domesticity...but not in the derogatory sense she meant. Aprons, for me anyway, also represent the generations of strong hardworking women who came before me...those women who donned their aprons and worked on the farms and in the fields, women who, during WWII, worked in the factories and returned home at night to care for their families, who labored at home to provide a good life for their children and husbands. And aprons are a symbol for the strong hard working women that we are today..be it in our homes, in the workplace or both.

What I Heard at Work Today

Working in an elementary school for the past 13 years, I've heard a lot. I know you thought I was gonna say "it all", but I doubt the surface has been scratched. I'm fairly certain there's no end to the touching, funny, and occasionally mind boggling stuff that comes from all angles; parents, teachers, staff, and of course, the kids I work with!

Sometimes the things I hear bear repeating...at least in my mind. Those things are a new topic here on the ole' blog which I shall simply call "What I Heard at Work Today".

This idea of documenting some of the things I hear at work was inspired by something a fellow teacher who is incredibly patient said as their children were lining up to leave the library this morning. Maybe I'm just goofier than usual because it's the end of the school year, but I had to turn my head and laugh when I heard this...

The What I Heard at Work Today Inaugural Quote:

"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD...Stop Talking!"

**Update** My friend Fiona is playing along with this topic on her blog as well. Please leave a link to your blog if you decide to add a "Heard at Work" post of your own!