It's supposed to snow a lot here. The t.v. says it should have already started. The sky says otherwise.
When snow is predicted in the teacher world there is a certain low-level-mob-mentality that reigns supreme.
I am not immune.
Teacher friends post weather musings on Faceb00k and it's as if everyone were waiting for a chance to comment on the possibilities. And if not actually commenting, we absorb the comments like a heroin addict while checking to see if there are any delays or cancellations.
Myself included.
It drives Mr. Sophanne a little bit crazy I think. The Railroad Doesn't Get Snow Days. I remind him that the Railroad is but a mile from our house and my school is a 25 minute (on a good day) country road commute.
It drives me a little bit crazy too but I've come to believe that it's part of being a teacher. Whereas my eager to begin new student teacher sends an email that says See You Tomorrow for my First Visit, I am thinking yeah, right, don't count on it sister- I've already got the snow day planned in my head.
I believe in addition to mass hysteria and mob mentality it's also a matter of what I think psychologists calls "Intermittent Reinforcement."
If we NEVER got a snow day EVER, we would be like the rest of the world. But give us one or two and we're like Liza Jane when there's pot roast for dinner-shifting between pouting and feeling unloved to looking sweet and adorable to jumping with glee when rewarded.
And when worse comes to worse and we're at the end of our -can't control the weather- wondering what the future will bring- rope, we blog about it while watching the Weather Channel, hoping that by doing so we'll get that "ultimate fix."
6 comments:
you are so right, very well written.
today was nuts at school with the early dismissal, we were all betting on it, and betting on whether or not we'll get tomorrow off. it's heady stuff.
i grew up in a very hilly city in virginia where they sometimes close schools because it is supposed to snow (i am NOT kidding). anyway, my sister still lives there with her husband who is from wisconsin. since he's used to dealing with snow and never getting snow days, he gets so frustrated with his employees who call off at the first sign of snow.
I believe it's called a conditioned reflex. I'm not really sure any of us are immune, but I have found that the more attention I pay to it, the more sucked in I get;-P
What do teachers in Florida do. Watch for hurricanes? And hope for a Hurricane Day?
In Cali we had earthquake days. Just kidding.
I now look at my iphone for weather info, even when I can look out the window. Honestly, I believe I'm dorkier.
I can remember snuggling into my parents' bed at 6 or so in the a.m. whilst we all listened to the school closings on the radio, hoping and praying to hear our respective schools. Mom was a teacher, I went to a different school. Dad (self-employed at home) slept through the whole thing.
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