The Daily News

1   Just got home from spending a goodly part of the evening taking my Theatre back. Jose, Ray and I did the work of a hundred strong men tonight.

2   We should have had some help, but there was a Powderpuff Football Game tonight, major grudge matches among the girls in the classes.

3   So the three of us needed the Theatre clean, because the Pigeon Players puts up Thugs next weekend.

4   Stage left was a Spirit Week shambles!  There were boxes stacked to the ceiling, paint virtually everywhere, papier mache slopped all over the tiles, as far as the eye could see, chicken wire, paint brushes, posters, and all the rest. I'm pretty sure it was a wall around 8 feet tall, and as wide as the entire Stage Left Garage.

5  We pretty much gave the lion's share of that stuff the heave-ho.

6  Three-and-a half hours we worked. Jose mused that the Seniors' favorite day in the Fall is their Spirit Day, but that HIS favorite day  in the Fall is when the Seniors have disappeared, and we could return our Theatre to its natural state. As we speak, Stage Left is immaculate!

7  So yeah, tonight was actually wonderful. Every time the stage is returned to Drama, it totally rocks!!

8  Blissfully tired. The Seniors gave it everything they could today, and then some. A little TOO much and then some: they got chased off stage by Mr. Moser, so they lost a dance, and worse, the dramatic ending of their lunch stuff, which was the young clown deciding to go with his parents and go off to clown college. He was to have been raised by the masses, and marched off to the classic circus music.

9  A HUGE backdrop made of burgundy silk with gold letters was to drop down from the quad roof. The thing took Loan and Nancy well over thirty some-odd hours.

10  Oh, well. I'm pretty certain it will arrive at the rally in no time.

11  Go WARRIORS!!!

12  Exhausted.

13  Go.

The Daily News

1  It's practically one a.m. as I move my way across the keyboard. I spent the lion's share of my evening working on Senior Circus, which is our theme for today. I haven't even gone to sleep yet, but I know I'll get less than three hours.

2  How funny. I went on a diatribe yesterday about the absolute corruption of the American Dream, and I spend the good part of yesterday with streamers, school spirit, and just having a joyous time with my Seniors.

3  Seniors.

4  Most times I say that, I just figure they are masquarading as Seniors. They're still those little Disney kids, walking effortlessly through purple balloons.

5  It's funny. I have gotten SO into the whole Spirit Week thing, that I am pretty amazed when people who couldn't care less wander into the picture.

6  It isn't at all about winning; heck, we've technically never won a thing. It's about the class bonding, and joining with one another through everything life throws us.

7  I say us. Isn't that funny?  In many ways, I'm a Senior too! I'm leaving this, as well as Drama, and the plays, and all. Moreso, I have seldom bonded with a group of kids the way I have with the Class of '05. I knew when they GOT here that we were destiny.

8  We all met at just the right time, and I feel that we are all one. It's a little bit funny, but Thuy Ann included my name on the Senior T-Shirt. I was really moved by that.

9  And we go into our last Spirit Week today.

10 I think I'm going to go to bed.

11 Peace.

The Daily News

1   Good for Kerry/Edwards!  Despite vote tampering with "minority" votes in Ohio, despite Brit Hume, Dan Rather, Wolf Blitzer, Rupert Murdoch, Dick Cheney, Peter Jennings, Ralph Nader, George Will, and a host of other shifty people and shenanigans, Kerry and Edwards somehow managed to keep it close.  I hope they hold it, and investigate all the CIA spook movements that have happened in Ohio for the past two weeks. They should hold out, investigate, and blow the roof off these creeps once and for all.

2   Next time I vote in a rigged election, I'm at least going absentee.

3   Yesterday morning, I awoke, fresh as the proverbial daisy, put on my game face, and found my way down to the polls.

4   There was a line around the block, at 7:15 in the morning. I decided to ride it out, and was out around 7:40, plenty of time to be around five minutes late for school. Wrong! I pulled off at McKee Rd. and moved over to the new Kohl's store, where I made a beeline to the pay phone. Anybody who knows me knows I'm not a cell phone guy, so I got over to the phone, called the school, and told them I'd be late.

5  I got back out to McKee, and it was literally stopped. HUGE traffic jam. I stood amazed. Had all these people done the same thing as I?

6  I was hoping it was just a flock of republicans who were too impatient to wait around in line to vote, but alas!

7  I pulled into the school almost thirty-five minutes late. Mr. Moser had taken over my class. I actually didn't mind one bit, since there was pretty much very little I could have done.

8  Fifth period rolled around. I explained my morning to my students, telling them that what happened this morning to me happened to a lot of people. One student shouted, "Whodja vote for, Mr. H?"

9  "John Kerry's horse!" was my instant answer. I'm pretty fed up with all of it, in case you haven't noticed.

10  Sparky picked up on the cue. "John Kerry's HORSE is running?" he asked.

11  A bright girl in my class, Jamie, chimed in, "Of course he's running! He's a horse!"

12  A bright moment in an otherwise grim election day.

13  Quite a break from Spirit Week.

14  Ohio corruption. Yeah outfoxxing Kerry won't be easy.  Amazing thing to sit and watch. The control, the propaganda, the incredible cover-ups continue, as always. It's been blatant to any learned person.

15  Sorry, but politically, I will always manage to get a few people pee-oed. Too bad. I saw JFK get replaced years ago by this band of thieves, and they have managed to pass their Machiavellian ways to their idiotic children, and then control all of it through blanket media propaganda (I site the film Outfoxxed, as just the tip of the iceberg) and corruption.

16  Germans sat and watched Hitler do that. I've studied this stuff meticulously for years, and have watched this CIA-run cabal tattoo our constitution, as well as our lives. I hope Kerry and Edwards call for an investigation into these crooks.

17  The time is now. I'd love to see these buzzards get their comeuppance.

18  Sorry. Just kidding. I was just pretending I felt that way, just to get a rise out of you. Actually, I love the Bushies; I love their froofy wives, and I'd love to sit down with the daughters and talk some serious politics.

19  So, yeah. I look forward to four more years of these lovely people.

20  Me smoke 'em peace pipe.

21  See ya.

The Daily News

1   It's either Yes on 61, or No on 61, but some advertisement on the issues has this really groovin' little version of Over the Rainbow, sort of reggae. I always half-listen, then get into a bit of a head-bob, and always miss the ad. Great little ditty, though.

2  Election Day.

3  Who wants to vote for a millionaire?

4  I sure am glad that the Presidential election will be decided by dumbasses who can't seem to make up their minds. Hey, there are LOTS of issues at play here. You either line up with one side, or you line up with the other. It isn't rocket science.

5  Environment. Supreme Court. Women's issues. Gay Rights. Abortion. Jobs. Foreign Policy. The potential draft; who's more likely to send our children? Military experience. Education. Stem Cell research. Whether or not Pee Wee Herman should go free. Who's wife is hotter. You get the idea.

6  Oops. Sorry. I think I'll just climb up on that big, dumb fence and hang with the knuckleheads...

7  It doesn't really matter; the Dynasty will see to it that the goat-ropers stay in power. It's already a done deal, I guarantee it.

8  But at least we will have a President who knows all about goats.

9  Oh, well. I'm STILL going to the polls and punching a few chads. At least in that one move, there is still a ton of hope.

10 I'm pretty sure this is already a done deal, and that you will probably be hearing a lot of "Yee, haws!" coming to us from Houston.

11  On to other items. I was AMAZED that the Sophomores were able to get that HUGE poster up yesterday in the midst of high winds. I awakened yesterday, listened to that dry wind, shook my head, and said, "No way!"

12  But there it was, in all its glory. What a great moment after the bell rang for sixth period, watching the Sophs' group hug, tears, and bonding. Brought back lotsa good memories...

13  So today is Freshmen day. I just hope nobody yells out, "Good luck Freshmens, good luck!" Uh...and this goes out to my Seniors: the plural of Freshman is Freshmen. It always amazes me that people in high school don't know their plurals. Pretty scary. Every time I hear that, I cringe.

14  Well, I think I'm gonna get off this fence and go vote, before I get a sliver up my ass.

15  If you are voting, don't just vote the way your parents trained you, or how your boyfriend or girlfriend is voting. Think for yourself. You have a mind, and a voice.

16  Use them.

17  Peace.

The Daily News

1  Happy Halloweeen, everybody!

2  Well, yesterday, but it's Halloween as I craft these words.

3  I finally wrote a new chapter to the Heidi Chronicles, and I was at the school at the time. It was REALLY weird! I accidentally entitled it Chapter 10, when it was Chapter 11, but geocities wouldn't allow me to fix the error, so Chapter 11 will probably always be titled Chapter 10, even though there already IS a Chapter 10! 

4  Make sense? It didn't to me, either.

5  So yeah, it's Halloween, 11:30 at night, and I'm still at the school working! The Theatre is the hot spot for Spirit Week, Thugs, the Drama Workshop, and most of the classes. I'm REALLY tired, but it feels pretty good. Helped the Sophs tonight. It's that HUGE poster thing, the one with the wind?

6  We totally had it, but a huge gust came and blasted their beautiful poster hither and yon. I hope it gets up there later this morning.

7  On Friday, I told the story of Heidi, the Theatre ghost. All my classes sat intently, some kids not so intent, but overall, the session was a good one. I included in my story the account of this guy named Denis Alexandre, a former band student, Class of '94. He once told me that he had visited noted Psychic Sylvia Browne, who told him that it sounded as though we had a little "activity" in the YB Theatre, nothing we veterans didn't already know.

8  I'm pretty certain that Denis spelled his name with one "n", so please don't think I'm a nincompoop.

9  The thing about it is, on Friday night at the Haunted House, I saw Denis! At first I couldn't believe it, because I had earlier wondered how nice it would be to talk with him. I looked over the line for the Haunted House, and there he was. I wasn't certain it was him, but it sure LOOKED like him.

10  Finally, after I combed over the crowd several times, he stepped out of line and approached me.

11  I simply said, "Denis?", and he replied, "Yes!" We exchanged pleasantries, and the conversation very quickly turned to Sylvia Browne, and the fact that I had been talking about him earlier in the day.

12  Strange days.

13  I awakened this morning worried about the Sophomores' poster. They totally HAD it last night, but one simple gust, and poof! Back over the top. As I awakened this morning, I heard the gushing, and the dry winds, and instantly knew that the poster won't work for them today. Too bad; it's a GREAT poster.

14  So...Spirit Week. Even though it is later than normal, it seems like it just zoomed in on us like a fierce, windy monster. Spirit Week has normally come and gone by now, so everything is crazy. Sunset is at 5:12, and have YOU adjusted to the change in time?

15  Go SOPHOMORES!!!!

16  See you again.

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