Sunday, January 14, 2007

Watching the train roll away

I feel as if I'm standing on a station in a black and white film in someone else's imagination, watching a train chug out of the station.

There she goes. Byyyye! Off into the distance. Byyye! Send a letter when you have a chance! Take my New York Times with you!

And as the train rounds the far corner, it occurs to me that if it were to crash, or derail or get stepped on by a Japanese monster wandering in from another movie, as long as I didn't see it, I really wouldn't care. It's puffing around the bend. Chugga Chugga Chugga. Look at all that black smoke curling up into the sky. And look how it disappears into clear air just above the back of the train. I know I'd feel bad if my Dad died in pain or in fear, and he's probably on that train too, so I don't wish it ill, I'm just struck that all of my ability to care about the train and its passengers is simply beyond my ability right now.

Bye!

To everyone who commented this week, this horrible past week, with the laundry queen, the museum fights, and the police back-up, I need to say thank you. I kept meaning to respond to individual comments (I certainly read them repeatedly), but somehow I couldn't find anything other to say than, "Thanks" and "You don't know the half of it." I've been industriously doing laundry, my OWN laundry, you'll be happy to hear (although that means folding it), and I've retired behind the pages of a PG Wodehouse collection. (Where is JEEVES to sweep my mother out of my life using only a chance encounter with a toy dog and and an opera ticket? Must hire a Jeeves immediately.) My son is doing much better, although Dear Butcher and I had a Most Frustrating meeting with his case manager on Friday morning after The Incident. Even the principal thought she was ridiculous.

(Best quote of the meeting: "Perhaps a round of anger management courses is in order." Oh My God. Thank you, Jesus, for sending down this messenger from the heavens with this pearl of wisdom clasped in her tiny little wrinkled hands. Because in eight years, it certainly never occurred to his parents or to any of his teachers that behavioral control methods might be an option! Anger Management! Wow! And to think that neither one of the psychologists nor the psychiatrist nor the pediatric nurse (Who's Reports You've READ already!) ever would have thought of that. ...... The Principal started chuckling, actually. Dear Butcher turned to the Case Manager and said, "I appreciate that you're new to our son, and that you haven't been around him long, but you need to get educated about him real fast. Right now. We've been doing this for a loooong time already.")

This week the snake, Cloudy Sky, pooped on Saul. Saul took that as an insult of the highest order. Take him away. I hate him, etc. Then, yesterday, Cloudy Sky pooped on me. Never has my son been so delighted. Now he has a pet which is a wealth of poop-jokes, and it pooped on Mom. The world is spinning properly on its axis once again. There's a metaphor to this entire week in there somewhere.

7 comments:

CindyS said...

Good God - the newbies must be the bane of your existance! I'm glad that you principal knows the things they have tried for your son so you don't get an over zealous newcomer thinking she is the answer to all your problems. Ugh.

Hmmm, to get an unfavoured pet back into the family folds you just need it to pee on you. Check.

I hope that the school is looking at better ways of handling things - like *not* calling the police.

CindyS

Bev (BB) said...

I know something that will cheer you up. :D Check out this post on Racy Li's blog: http://racyli.com/wordpress/?p=134

I was going to make sure you knew about it the other day and got distracted.

Hope everything calms down all around.

Suisan said...

Cindy--the principal was horrified. She keeps saying, "We don't embarrass kids at this school."

I don't think I ever blogged about the time the aide and the teacher got it into their heads that Saul HAD to come in from recess and go to the office, which is his safe place. So they dragged him there. To his safe place. We had a fit, and the principal was pissed. We thought had been super clear that this was never to happen again.

Apparently we were, because rather than drag him out from under the table when he started making noises about hurting himself, (YO! There's nothing UNDER the table!!) they called the police to intimidate him out.

The principal is not on campus every moment of the day. (Like all principals) In fact, she had just come from a home visit with that officer, but had gone to the District Office to drop off paperwork. Staff didn't call her either!

Technically, the newbie Case Manager is in charge of Saul's treatment, not the principal, although SHE wasn't on campus on that day either. But her attitude after the fact doesn't reassure me at all.

What's making me craaaazy is that Saul is Getting Better! He's making huge advances. But his behavior at school (but only at school) takes a nose dive the first two weeks back. They won't believe us.

Homeschooling for Middle School is beginning to look more and more attractive. 4th and 5th I think we can get through. But seven periods, six teachers? No way. I can't have that many meetings.

Suisan said...

Bev. Thanks. That was great!

Ahhh, Zorro.

I have a few people I'd like to sic Zorro on in the dead of night. I'll hold the horse.

Anonymous said...

My oldest has two friends with Aspergers - one of them copes okay with big school (with the occasional tiny blip) and the other is now home schooled. Just before the second went totally home schooled, there was an arrangement where she came into school for some of the classes - I can't remember which, but I'm guessing the subjects that are hard to teach at home.
That seemed a better arrangement in some ways, because now she's not at school she's inevitably lost that closeness with her former friends, and that's a pity.

Hopefully by the time multiple teachers are an issue, it won't be an issue any more.

Suisan said...

We can't do the middle ground option. The Homeschooling "school" is sponsored by a different district. So if I use resources from one district (the homeschooling sponsorship) and another district (attending classes)then I have essentially enrolled him in two districts at the same time, and that's illegal.

California demands that if you homeschool you either enroll your child with a public district dedicated to homeschooling or you set up your own private school: "Suisan's Academy for the Education of Saul." Either way, you cannot use the services of the non-homeschool district to supplement. Sigh.

But the homeschooling district does sponsor classroom teaching for a few subjects in a smaller environment.

Bob & Muffintop said...

I hope things are looking up for your family & for Saul. Best wishes finding the correct help for him. I have had my own experiences with public school admin & services & I empathize.