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You are here: Home / 2006 / Archives for July 2006

Archives for July 2006

First couple of days at school

July 30, 2006 by Jen at Semantically driven

JJ’s first day of school went well in the end. I left him sitting on the floor in the classroom for group time. I could tell he was nervous but I hardened my heart and walked out anyway, blinking back my tears.

I went and had a coffee with a friend (another school mum who remembers what that first day is like for a parent), then I went shopping and afterwards popped into another friend’s place where she had a margarita all ready for me to drink. I couldn’t drink all of it as it was starting to go to my head and I didn’t think it would be a good look if I didn’t turn up on the first day to pick up JJ drunk, or not all all cause I smashed my car on the way home.

He really enjoyed his first day of school, he made friends he saw a great educational video and was keen to do some school work after we arrived home.

The second day, however, was quite different. When school was over, JJ’s teacher asked to have a talk to me in the classroom. As I walked in with her it took me back to school and the few times I got into trouble. Sure enough, JJ got into some trouble yesterday.

It wasn’t just one thing, it was more than one thing and after his teacher told one story about his behaviour, she kept saying and that wasn’t the worst thing. Actually she probably said it twice but it felt like more times. He ended up being picked up and taken to the principal’s office (because he wouldn’t walk there) and spent half an hour ‘with the man’. He didn’t do himself any favours by not acknowledging his misbehaviour.

She apologised to me for this happening on his second day at school but I felt like I should be apologising to her. My irrational side of thinking told me that I’m a complete failure as a parent. The irrational side went on to tell me that because I’m a sole parent, my son doesn’t have the male influence he so desperately needs, and sole parents cannot possibly bring up a child that doesn’t have some problems.

Fortunately my rational side kicked in and told me that teachers have probably seen it all and what JJ did was nothing really and once he’s settled in he’ll probably be fine. It also told me that I’m a caring parent that loves my son and if he does have problems at school I will work with the staff there to get him through them. Yeah! Go me!

For the record he was fine on Friday. He didn’t get into any trouble. Phew.

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Starting school for the first time

July 23, 2006 by Jen at Semantically driven

This week JJ will start junior primary school. I think we are both as apprehensive as each other but we’re both trying to put a brave face on it. He’s apprehensive because it’s a big change for him and  he’s really going to miss all his childcare friends (both teachers and kids). He also won’t really know anybody at his school so for the first couple of weeks it’s going to be hard on him, and on me until he adjusts to his new routine.

We’ve put together a little present for the staff at childcare and we’ve crafted a card. He chose the shocking pink cardboard, I wrote a message in it and he dictated a message for me to write. It says:

‘I love all my friends. I love you wider than the sky. You’re beautiful. You’re like a rainbow in the sky. You’re pink as everything in the whole wide world.’

He definitely knows the right things to say to his predominantly female carers and they will love him even more for it.

Back to starting school. I’m apprehensive and a little worried because up until now his care when apart from me, I’ve known all about and known that if he needs any help that staff are on hand to deal with his just about every need. This will be different at school. At our last school visit I asked him if he knew where the toilet was. He didn’t, so I showed him after asking a group of big kids if this was the correct one. Will he think to ask the question if he can’t find the toilet or will he just hold on and eventually wet his pants?

I talked to him today and told him that he’s never allowed to leave the school grounds without me, his family day care worker who’ll be picking him up for after school care, or his auntie. He didn’t really seem to take on board what I was talking about. Up until now, at childcare, he’s been fenced in and physically not able to leave. I don’t think he will just run off but it’s something at the back of my mind.

I remember when a good friend of mine’s daughter started school she said she felt that she was losing control over her daughter’s life. She was going to be influenced more by people outside the home and family/friends unit than ever before. I feel a bit the same. Maybe we’re both control freaks or maybe we’re just thinking, caring parents. In my case I would say it’s a bit of the former and more of the latter. Not all these influences are going to be good and it’s really hard to know how to teach your child to tell the differences between good and bad influences. Plus, most of us parents used to get up to no good at some stage and we don’t want our kids to do the same silly things.

In addition, childcare is open nearly all year round – they only close for a bit over Christmas and New Year. School is considerably different because of the 12 weeks holidays throughout the year. I’m sure it will all work out with vacation care but it’s a pain in the arse because it’s something extra I have to think about and plan.

I’m also going to have to prepare his lunches five days a week and childcare used to do that for me. It will be an extra chore I’ll have to do the night before when I come home from work. So it’s all the little details, half of which I don’t probably even know about yet. I will not miss paying the same amount of childcare fees though.

The upshot is, my little boy is growing up and it’s happening so damn fast.

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My family

July 21, 2006 by Jen at Semantically driven

I’ve borrowed my sister’s scanner so I can scan some family photos that don’t belong to me. This photo does actually belong to me though as my sister used to work in a photo processing lab and printed this one off (among others) for me.

The three handsome devils in the back row are (L to R) Murray, Sid (my grandpa) and Alf. The four in the bottom row (L to R) are Alice, George, Eliza and Min. Alice and George, in case you haven’t gathered, are the parents – my great grandparents who I never met. I never met Alice either. Don’t know what happened to her. I’ll have to ask dad.

My grandpa died when I was about five so I don’t really remember him either. All I really remember is him driving out to the farm where I grew up in his black car and he’d bring us kids Monte Carlo biscuits for a snack. The family gossip is that he was an alcoholic which could be the reason why he was relatively young when he died.

They are all dead now, Auntie Min being the last one to go fairly recently.Myfamily

My great-grandparents are looking quite serious and this reminds me of another photo I remember from my grandparents house of them where there are no smiles to be found. I guess this photo was taken in an age (1940s?) and there were more instamatic type cameras around then, therefore people didn’t have to pose for a photo for quite as long as the original cameras. I’m not sure about this so don’t quote me.

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Macromedia/Adobe Help wish

July 19, 2006 by Jen at Semantically driven

I was trying to do something in Freehand, go to the Help menu to find out if such a thing is possible. It is, but it tells me to open a menu window but does not tell me how. I’ve noticed this lack of more contextual help in Photoshop also. As I don’t use these packages all the time it’s a problem for me. 

It wouldn’t be that hard to have a section that could be linked to from this type of help where you can click here and here (with a couple of helpful diagrams) so I don’t have to search elsewhere to find these sorts of instructions.

For example, this is the current version.

FreehandhelpasisAnd this is what it could look like with a link to tell a user what and where the effect type pop-up menu is.

FreehandhelpwithlinkedhelpHow about it Macromedia/Adobe?

Website support has this type of information but you have to be online to get it.

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From a D in English to professional writing

July 18, 2006 by Jen at Semantically driven

When I did year 12 at high school – a 200 student country high school with not very many year 12 subject choices back in 1983 – one of the subjects I did was English. I could choose between English or Physics and physics definitely isn’t my strong point so English it was.

In my midyear exams I really bombed out with a ‘D’ in English, if memory serves. I was disgusted with my crap mark and the thought of end of year exams filled me with dread. Failing yera 12 was not an option I wanted to consider even though I had no idea that if I went to university what I would study. In fact I had no idea what I would do at all as the world wide web wasn’t around then and that’s my area of work now. Our high school only got computers after I left and they wouldn’t have been on the internet for some years to come.

When I finished year 12 I had an idea that I might do social work. That idea to me now is quite laughable as I’m sure I would not be a very good social worker. We had no career counsellors then and all I really remember doing to prepare me for my life beyond high school was a visit to a couple of universities to have a look at their degree options. Nothing stood out at all but it was a trip away from my country town.

Back to my ‘D’ for English. I put my head down and my bum up and practised and practised writing essays. I got my English teacher to give me essay questions and I would do an introduction to them so I got the gist of what was required in an essay which was a large part of the exam. She would have a look and give me feedback and I’d take some more home the next weekend. I obviously didn’t have a life.

I think subjecting students to an end of year exam which can make or break your entrance into university is torture. I can only presume that when I hear of year 12’s now getting perfect or almost perfect scores that the majority of them do science subjects where there are right and wrong answers. I can’t imagine, unless someone’s absolutely brilliant at things that require your own interpretation like English and history and art, that students can get perfect scores in these subject areas. And these were the types of subjects I did in year 12.

All my hard work paid off and I got a reasonably good mark for my year 12 English. In fact the rumour was that I wouldn’t pass year 12 but I did. Some fellow students that I thought would pass, didn’t.

I ended up working and travelling for about ten years before I entered university and my year 12 marks were good enough that I didn’t need to sit a test to gain entry. And now, the irony is, I’m a professional writer/editor.

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Batman sleeps

July 12, 2006 by Jen at Semantically driven

Tonight I went to check up on JJ about an hour after he went to bed. His blankets were completely covering his face and when  I pulled them back I discovered he was wearing his batman costume – mask and all.

BatmanI managed to take off the mask and the cape so he doesn’t wake up with a dented face from the mask and choke to death from the cape.

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Life ruined?

July 10, 2006 by Jen at Semantically driven

I was sitting down in the kitchen eating a meal the other day when JJ came in and sat down to eat his.

‘Mum, I’m cross with you. You’ve ruined my life.’

At this point I tried very hard to keep a serious face as he was so earnest when he said it as though the world was going to end because his life was ruined. And where did this come from. Whenever new things come from his mouth it’s something he’s heard somewhere and it’s certainly something I don’t say regularly, if at all.

I asked him, ‘Why have I ruined your life?’

After repeating this question a few more times he finally told me that his life was ruined because I had shouted at him.

Yes, sometimes I do shout. No, it doesn’t get me anywhere but it still occasionally happens. He must have been brewing about this for a while because some time had passed since the last shout.

This happened about a week ago and his life does not appear to be ruined. In fact, the weekend was pretty much all about him, with a movie and a friend staying over.

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