We are a family that often enjoys routines, but it’s never more visible than our Sundays.
We get up, take the dog out, hang out looking at the paper too long, lollygag over breakfast and wind up being a couple of minutes late for church.
After church is Sunday School for the junior member.
After that we come home and take the dog out again, get changed, and head out the door to have lunch with my parents.
Every other week I meet with the church youth group while B plays with his friend Jacob.
After that, we usually go to see my in-laws for dinner.
And so goes a normal Sunday.
Today is not normal.
Well, we did all the usual routine up until just now at 11:46. I should be hollering at the kid to turn off the Wii and get changed to go see Nana and PopPop for lunch. But I’m getting ready to go myself.
Instead of lunch with my parents, I have a meeting with some others to help write a policy for a fund to offer financial assistance for teachers who might end up in need for a variety of reasons, but the pressing need is for those who may end up in the same circumstances as those in not-so-far-away Chester Upland.
Important work. Glad to be a part of it. But it unsettles me.
Not just in the way it throws off my usual routine a bit (and I think we all need to shake up our routines here and there), but the fact that politics and policies have gotten to the point where Chester Upland is a reality many school districts may face in the not-so-distant future.
(Here is where I tell you to shout it from the mountaintops that killing our public schools off one by one is not the way to fix any of the problems facing public education.)
I had originally planned to meet them at my in-laws’ house but they were already there yesterday. Since the guys were busy yesterday and I still have oodles of work to get accomplished, I’ll likely hole up in a coffee shop or some other cozy place with a plug and coffee. A treat for me – we don’t haveany coffee shops nearby (unless you count McDonald’s) or bookstores (unless you count WalMart or the grocery store).
Here’s to another day of productivity. Maybe the change of scenery will inspire me.
Charting By the Stars 
It’s hard to get out of one’s usual routine, but it sounds like the writing you’re doing (for the tech assistance for teachers) is of crucial importance. I hope you get back to your normal Sunday routine, so you feel settled, next weekend.
This was one efficient committee. In and out in under two hours. Incredible. It’s not tech assistance – it’s assistance for expenses for those in need. I fear we’ll have need of it soon…
Sundays routines are important to me too! Invariably, a Sunday routine gone amiss makes my week a little sketchy! You are doing important work though. In my district, our union has funds to help teachers. It’s important to have a safety net for our colleagues too.
There are definitely locals that have their own, but there is benefit to starting one for a larger area.
I honestly don’t feel too thrown off now. I came home after I broke for finger nails trying to pry my laptop out of my backpack. Glad I did. Hubby had an awesome dinner waiting… :)
Your Sunday routine sounds delightful. Thank you for breaking that routine to devote time and talent to helping teachers. I will have to go back and read to find out what is happening in Chester Upland.
Here’s a good place to start in seeing what happened there. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/chester-upland-teacher-who-is-going-to-help-our-schools/2012/01/18/gIQA1EaWCQ_blog.html Some ugly stuff happening in PA with school funding,
I’ll join you on the mountaintop about public schools! Our Alabama legislators are thinking that charter schools will fix everything-I’m sure it will fix the money in their pocket but that’s about it! :)
Shannon
http://www.6thgradescottforesmanreadingstreetresources.wordpress.com
I love that phrase: “junior member” of the family. Better than .. the little kid.
:)
Kevin
For some reason, little kid wouldn’t have done him justice yesterday. He was being very grown up for some reason.