More animals, getting people angry
Jun. 10th, 2004 08:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
farlaMore rabbit sightings. I've now either seen three, or the same one three times. It/they are remarkably brave for a rabbit, which is worrying.
Lots of road kill. An opossum, and several squirrels. Even the chipmunks are getting bold. We should probably get a feeder up.
I saw another snapping turtle too, at school this time. When I noticed, she had already finished laying eggs.
And also at school, I infuriated a teacher who's a jackass and earned a detention. I'm torn on whether or not it's right to bait him. On the one hand, his behavior indicates he might have taken a few too many blows to the head back when he played sports, and I don't mean that as a hyperbole. On the other hand, he's a controlling jerk who's obviously not very intelligent and more obviously not very good at accepting this.
Seriously. In the directions (for a stupid busywork assignment in a class that's just babysitting which I and the rest of the class didn't do) he said "no direct family members". Then he says that no relatives are to be used. I raise my hand and say what does he mean by direct family members then, and how far removed does it have to be. He explains that 'direct' means 'all'. With a straight face. And then argues with me that it really does. And then gets mad when I don't agree.
Another day he starts talking about 'passive-aggressive' behavior. Asks if anyone knows what it means in his usual 'Of course you don't you're just stupid children' way. I say I do. He gets a disbelieving look on his face and makes me define it. I say it's when someone doesn't go after a person who angers them directly, thinking he's the perfect example. Am I correct? Why, of course not. Passive-aggressive refers to when a student isn't doing well in class, but aren't really worried, and then when they see their grade, they become more active and try to bring their grade up. Yes, the psychological community created a phrase just to refer to that behavior. Failing to immediately apologize and agree produces more anger.
He's also grading me down on the stupid fake tests we take. This is because I will write the answer he wants and then add in paranthesis that it's not true, which leads to getting the question marked wrong. He also doesn't like things that aren't directly true. For example, in half the tests he asks who the president is. I keep writing: 'A small plant related to trees, also known as a shrub' or something related. I wouldn't do this in a real class, but I really hate how stupid this one is. I could have gotten a perfect grade on these tests in fourth grade without reading any of the handouts he keeps giving us.
This sort of thing is typical for that class. Another time he tried to explain why 'purpose' and 'reason' have completely different meanings. You see, we'd had a (stupid) fake test that involved saying how many reasons there were for something (the answer was four. It was wrong. I said so. He said I was wrong.).
The next day, he takes out an overhead. It's on the five purposes for doing the exact same thing. I raise my hand and complain. He tries to prove his point by saying, and this is a quote: "What is your reason for asking that question?" Then he says, "You can't say 'purpose' in that question." I say, "Yes you can. What is your purpose for asking that question."
He blinks a few times and then says that if I'd like to discuss this he'd be happy to after class. Class ends early. I say that we can discuss it now. He says no and drops it. The next day, he acts as though he won and I've apologized and realized the error of my ways, and then is surprised when I still fail to do so.
So you can see why he hates me. Well, most recently, with Holy Lord Reagan dead, beloved of all the presidents, with his amazing insights into economy, he opens class by talking about this (I told you it's not an actual class. He's babysitting, but he insists everyone pay attention to him.). I choose the most diplomatic option short of staying quiet and say that we don't know how much he was really doing during that time and how much other people were saying to do, seeing as he had Alzheimer's.
Well, for obvious reasons, this was an inexcusable offense. Teacher launches on a speech about how Reagan did not have Alzheimer's until the very, very end, was still in complete control of his faculties, I know nothing about Alzheimer's, I'm just a kid and he's much older. Says he's sorry to burst my bubble five times, then ends by blurting out "I'm really glad to do this." He actually did say that, which I found very funny. I don't think he took my reaction of mild amusement and bemusement very well. I think I was supposed to be crushed or something.
But, he can't actually do anything to me for that. Class continues. He moves smoothly from his rant on Reagan into a long rant about children and parenting and how we don't appreciate how hard it is. He goes on to talk about how he knows that by this point we've been hanging out with people who use drugs and stolen things and such. Then he says that anyone who had *not* stolen something should raise their hand, and says he doesn't think anyone can.
I, meanwhile, am doodling. He should be glad I'm doing this because the alternative is saying something. I generally ignore his 'raise your hand' things because it just means getting called on and I know he'll bother me and act as if I'm lying.
So I'm trying to ignore him, in part because I try to keep 'bringing teacher to near homicidal rage' down to once per class. He calls on me anyway, saying well, so even I've done this.
I look up and say that I'm sorry but wasn't paying attention, which was better than the other option of 'I hate this class and think you're an idiot and why the hell should I tell you?'. I say this in a completely innocent way so he can't get mad at me for being disrespectful, because I generally know when I need to start acting in a way that looks good when told to a third party.
And get detention, which was a bit surprising since I was expecting something closer to chair-tossing. He kills any possibility of this actually being about control issues by saying he'll make me research Alzheimer's and Greatest President of Recent Times Reagan, which, yes, he did said in his first rant. He was nearly drooling as he talked about the guy. And if I don't show up I get Saturday detention.
I shrug, go home, tell Mom. She's mad. She goes and tells the other teachers she works with. They agree. She calls the school. She doesn't say too much, just that she's not sure about whether or not he had reason to do this and wants the teacher to call her. She waits at home, but ultimately has to leave for something else. Because I know he's calling, I ignore the phone. He calls twice and doesn't leave a message. Why? Possibly because anything he says that we record will get him in more trouble, but probably just because he wants to talk to her directly because he needs to figure out what I said and how to convince her, as the facts don't favor him much.
He calls next morning and explains to her. I'm belligerent. You see, when the other students make jabs at me, I respond. That is what he actually said. Anyway, this is totally about the other students, despite my barely talking to them and usually only to those who spoke to me. He goes on with a bunch of weasel-wordings: He really enjoys me in class, he thinks I'm 'smarter than most of the class' (the class is about seven people and made up of idiots who I get thrown in with because I switched schools midyear, so this can be seen as a pretty bad insult). The standard stuff the teacher says to parents when they're trying not to get in trouble. And he said she should talk to me afterward. We did. And laughed.
So he agrees he won't give me detention. He talks to me after class and says the same stuff about 'enjoyable student' and such, with his very creepy fake 'I'm telling the truth' face, and says that I shouldn't be so argumentative the other students. Who are all male, older than me, and have shown no sign of giving a damn. I'm sure I've been crushing their little spirits.
I also just went to the pet store, because I felt really, really bad about the beta my mother saw. He was still there (poor baby...he's a really little red male, so he doesn't stand out much). He looked sick, lying at the bottom of the cup, but perked up and swam around when I picked him up. Another beta there was dead. It had starved to death. He'd already been there a few weeks, so that would probably have been him soon.
I brought him home and put him in the main tank, still in his cup, of course. He flairs right up at my other beta, who's about three times bigger. My other beta ignores him. He swims past the cup, he nudges against the cup, he swims off, he swims back...and the little male is displaying and displaying and just getting completely blown off.
I take out the other beta. He's been hanging around the heater, which is a hint he was too cold, and put him in a smaller tank I had set up with the same water and another heater. The water's just in the high seventies to eighty, and he swims around a bit. Then I let out the new beta, who acts sick and scared after he stops displaying. The goldfish try to nip his fins a few times, which they do when they see anything new, but he swims off. I feed them.
The next day, I find that the power has shifted to the little male, who's smaller than any of the goldfish. He's flairing at the goldfish and attacking them. He's even torn off sections of their tails. This is really odd, because beta flairing is triggered by things that look like betas and food, and betas don't think huge fish are prey. I take him out and feed him while I try to figure out what to do. He eats, and eats, and eats, and keeps eating even after he's eaten about five times what my adult beta can manage. Turns out the problem was just that he was still too hungry after not eating for so long and so he was trying to eat the fins of the goldfish. It'd warmed up and both tanks were up to eighty, so I switched the two tanks of the betas. I've been feeding the little male twice or three times a day, and he's stopped flairing, so he should be okay for a community tank again soon. I think I'll leave him in the fifteen gallon and move the larger beta with the goldfish.
My cats have also been experiencing some strife. My female cat is starting to go after the kittens. I don't know if this is normal or just more hormonal screwiness. We had to get her spayed while she was just finishing weaning one kitten and pregnant with another litter, and she went a little nuts and started to try to carry her half-grown son around by the underside of his throat and chewed on his mouth. Then we got a bunch of very young kittens (young enough to need bottle-feeding) and she adopted them. Mainly the two longer-haired spotted calicos, who looked a bit like her. She licked them and even caught a vole and crawled through the window to bring it to them (I put it back outside. She hadn't even scratched it). So I don't know why she's acting so aggressive to these cats, except that they're half-grown. I really hope they get adopted soon, because we can't keep them.
::sighs:: I'm also emailing yet another author over a review I gave. I don't understand why everyone makes their trainer start overage. Dammit, is it really that hard to just start the story with them already a trainer? It's not like it's that interesting that they woke up and picked a pokemon. I could survive without hearing that for the hundredth time. But no, everyone's got to start there, and their trainer can't be ten because a ten year old would never be able to wander around on their own. I'm so sick of the condescending attitude people have toward ten year olds, especially when the author's just a few years older. The seventeen year old authors, while they should know better, at least have the excuse of having a reasonable age difference. But twelve, thirteen, and fourteen? It's always whatever age the author is. It's like they forgot they were ever ten.
Give ten year olds some credit, people. They can use a cell phone, order their charmander to light a campfire, and walk along a road, which is not only enough to be a trainer, but probably as much or more than what the authors of these stories are able to do.
I also don't understand why the authors I talk to keep assuming that because I don't agree with them, I'm the one who doesn't know about the subject, not them.
Lots of road kill. An opossum, and several squirrels. Even the chipmunks are getting bold. We should probably get a feeder up.
I saw another snapping turtle too, at school this time. When I noticed, she had already finished laying eggs.
And also at school, I infuriated a teacher who's a jackass and earned a detention. I'm torn on whether or not it's right to bait him. On the one hand, his behavior indicates he might have taken a few too many blows to the head back when he played sports, and I don't mean that as a hyperbole. On the other hand, he's a controlling jerk who's obviously not very intelligent and more obviously not very good at accepting this.
Seriously. In the directions (for a stupid busywork assignment in a class that's just babysitting which I and the rest of the class didn't do) he said "no direct family members". Then he says that no relatives are to be used. I raise my hand and say what does he mean by direct family members then, and how far removed does it have to be. He explains that 'direct' means 'all'. With a straight face. And then argues with me that it really does. And then gets mad when I don't agree.
Another day he starts talking about 'passive-aggressive' behavior. Asks if anyone knows what it means in his usual 'Of course you don't you're just stupid children' way. I say I do. He gets a disbelieving look on his face and makes me define it. I say it's when someone doesn't go after a person who angers them directly, thinking he's the perfect example. Am I correct? Why, of course not. Passive-aggressive refers to when a student isn't doing well in class, but aren't really worried, and then when they see their grade, they become more active and try to bring their grade up. Yes, the psychological community created a phrase just to refer to that behavior. Failing to immediately apologize and agree produces more anger.
He's also grading me down on the stupid fake tests we take. This is because I will write the answer he wants and then add in paranthesis that it's not true, which leads to getting the question marked wrong. He also doesn't like things that aren't directly true. For example, in half the tests he asks who the president is. I keep writing: 'A small plant related to trees, also known as a shrub' or something related. I wouldn't do this in a real class, but I really hate how stupid this one is. I could have gotten a perfect grade on these tests in fourth grade without reading any of the handouts he keeps giving us.
This sort of thing is typical for that class. Another time he tried to explain why 'purpose' and 'reason' have completely different meanings. You see, we'd had a (stupid) fake test that involved saying how many reasons there were for something (the answer was four. It was wrong. I said so. He said I was wrong.).
The next day, he takes out an overhead. It's on the five purposes for doing the exact same thing. I raise my hand and complain. He tries to prove his point by saying, and this is a quote: "What is your reason for asking that question?" Then he says, "You can't say 'purpose' in that question." I say, "Yes you can. What is your purpose for asking that question."
He blinks a few times and then says that if I'd like to discuss this he'd be happy to after class. Class ends early. I say that we can discuss it now. He says no and drops it. The next day, he acts as though he won and I've apologized and realized the error of my ways, and then is surprised when I still fail to do so.
So you can see why he hates me. Well, most recently, with Holy Lord Reagan dead, beloved of all the presidents, with his amazing insights into economy, he opens class by talking about this (I told you it's not an actual class. He's babysitting, but he insists everyone pay attention to him.). I choose the most diplomatic option short of staying quiet and say that we don't know how much he was really doing during that time and how much other people were saying to do, seeing as he had Alzheimer's.
Well, for obvious reasons, this was an inexcusable offense. Teacher launches on a speech about how Reagan did not have Alzheimer's until the very, very end, was still in complete control of his faculties, I know nothing about Alzheimer's, I'm just a kid and he's much older. Says he's sorry to burst my bubble five times, then ends by blurting out "I'm really glad to do this." He actually did say that, which I found very funny. I don't think he took my reaction of mild amusement and bemusement very well. I think I was supposed to be crushed or something.
But, he can't actually do anything to me for that. Class continues. He moves smoothly from his rant on Reagan into a long rant about children and parenting and how we don't appreciate how hard it is. He goes on to talk about how he knows that by this point we've been hanging out with people who use drugs and stolen things and such. Then he says that anyone who had *not* stolen something should raise their hand, and says he doesn't think anyone can.
I, meanwhile, am doodling. He should be glad I'm doing this because the alternative is saying something. I generally ignore his 'raise your hand' things because it just means getting called on and I know he'll bother me and act as if I'm lying.
So I'm trying to ignore him, in part because I try to keep 'bringing teacher to near homicidal rage' down to once per class. He calls on me anyway, saying well, so even I've done this.
I look up and say that I'm sorry but wasn't paying attention, which was better than the other option of 'I hate this class and think you're an idiot and why the hell should I tell you?'. I say this in a completely innocent way so he can't get mad at me for being disrespectful, because I generally know when I need to start acting in a way that looks good when told to a third party.
And get detention, which was a bit surprising since I was expecting something closer to chair-tossing. He kills any possibility of this actually being about control issues by saying he'll make me research Alzheimer's and Greatest President of Recent Times Reagan, which, yes, he did said in his first rant. He was nearly drooling as he talked about the guy. And if I don't show up I get Saturday detention.
I shrug, go home, tell Mom. She's mad. She goes and tells the other teachers she works with. They agree. She calls the school. She doesn't say too much, just that she's not sure about whether or not he had reason to do this and wants the teacher to call her. She waits at home, but ultimately has to leave for something else. Because I know he's calling, I ignore the phone. He calls twice and doesn't leave a message. Why? Possibly because anything he says that we record will get him in more trouble, but probably just because he wants to talk to her directly because he needs to figure out what I said and how to convince her, as the facts don't favor him much.
He calls next morning and explains to her. I'm belligerent. You see, when the other students make jabs at me, I respond. That is what he actually said. Anyway, this is totally about the other students, despite my barely talking to them and usually only to those who spoke to me. He goes on with a bunch of weasel-wordings: He really enjoys me in class, he thinks I'm 'smarter than most of the class' (the class is about seven people and made up of idiots who I get thrown in with because I switched schools midyear, so this can be seen as a pretty bad insult). The standard stuff the teacher says to parents when they're trying not to get in trouble. And he said she should talk to me afterward. We did. And laughed.
So he agrees he won't give me detention. He talks to me after class and says the same stuff about 'enjoyable student' and such, with his very creepy fake 'I'm telling the truth' face, and says that I shouldn't be so argumentative the other students. Who are all male, older than me, and have shown no sign of giving a damn. I'm sure I've been crushing their little spirits.
I also just went to the pet store, because I felt really, really bad about the beta my mother saw. He was still there (poor baby...he's a really little red male, so he doesn't stand out much). He looked sick, lying at the bottom of the cup, but perked up and swam around when I picked him up. Another beta there was dead. It had starved to death. He'd already been there a few weeks, so that would probably have been him soon.
I brought him home and put him in the main tank, still in his cup, of course. He flairs right up at my other beta, who's about three times bigger. My other beta ignores him. He swims past the cup, he nudges against the cup, he swims off, he swims back...and the little male is displaying and displaying and just getting completely blown off.
I take out the other beta. He's been hanging around the heater, which is a hint he was too cold, and put him in a smaller tank I had set up with the same water and another heater. The water's just in the high seventies to eighty, and he swims around a bit. Then I let out the new beta, who acts sick and scared after he stops displaying. The goldfish try to nip his fins a few times, which they do when they see anything new, but he swims off. I feed them.
The next day, I find that the power has shifted to the little male, who's smaller than any of the goldfish. He's flairing at the goldfish and attacking them. He's even torn off sections of their tails. This is really odd, because beta flairing is triggered by things that look like betas and food, and betas don't think huge fish are prey. I take him out and feed him while I try to figure out what to do. He eats, and eats, and eats, and keeps eating even after he's eaten about five times what my adult beta can manage. Turns out the problem was just that he was still too hungry after not eating for so long and so he was trying to eat the fins of the goldfish. It'd warmed up and both tanks were up to eighty, so I switched the two tanks of the betas. I've been feeding the little male twice or three times a day, and he's stopped flairing, so he should be okay for a community tank again soon. I think I'll leave him in the fifteen gallon and move the larger beta with the goldfish.
My cats have also been experiencing some strife. My female cat is starting to go after the kittens. I don't know if this is normal or just more hormonal screwiness. We had to get her spayed while she was just finishing weaning one kitten and pregnant with another litter, and she went a little nuts and started to try to carry her half-grown son around by the underside of his throat and chewed on his mouth. Then we got a bunch of very young kittens (young enough to need bottle-feeding) and she adopted them. Mainly the two longer-haired spotted calicos, who looked a bit like her. She licked them and even caught a vole and crawled through the window to bring it to them (I put it back outside. She hadn't even scratched it). So I don't know why she's acting so aggressive to these cats, except that they're half-grown. I really hope they get adopted soon, because we can't keep them.
::sighs:: I'm also emailing yet another author over a review I gave. I don't understand why everyone makes their trainer start overage. Dammit, is it really that hard to just start the story with them already a trainer? It's not like it's that interesting that they woke up and picked a pokemon. I could survive without hearing that for the hundredth time. But no, everyone's got to start there, and their trainer can't be ten because a ten year old would never be able to wander around on their own. I'm so sick of the condescending attitude people have toward ten year olds, especially when the author's just a few years older. The seventeen year old authors, while they should know better, at least have the excuse of having a reasonable age difference. But twelve, thirteen, and fourteen? It's always whatever age the author is. It's like they forgot they were ever ten.
Give ten year olds some credit, people. They can use a cell phone, order their charmander to light a campfire, and walk along a road, which is not only enough to be a trainer, but probably as much or more than what the authors of these stories are able to do.
I also don't understand why the authors I talk to keep assuming that because I don't agree with them, I'm the one who doesn't know about the subject, not them.
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no subject
Date: 2004-06-13 07:18 am (UTC)I totally admire your willingness to fight for what you know and believe, from reviewing crappy fanfics to putting jackass teachers in their place. Wish there was some way to tap into some of that.
And *please* continue Unoriginality. I noticed that the bad fics started coming up again at about the time you stopped updating, and I definately think the two incidents are related.
I think maybe the reason people start their trainers overage is becasue they cannot (or feel they cannot) relate to their character otherwise. I for one have a character that's about five years younger than me, and Im always afraid Im making her seem either overly childish or too mature for her age. Can't think of any way to fix this, and Im sure lots of people can't either. If you had any suggestions for that I'm sure they'd be greatly appreciated and very useful.
Anyway, glad to see you updated your LJ. :) --Katie
no subject
Date: 2004-06-14 02:55 am (UTC)I used to be unable to say this kind of stuff too. I'd always think that the teacher, being older and a teacher, would know more than me, and that if they really were wrong, someone else would have noticed and mentioned it. Then I learned teachers don't know new things and that my classmates are idiots. It all went downhill from there.
^^ I'll continue Unoriginality soon. I've actually got a couple different chapters written in my notebook, so I just have to type it up. And I've noticed the same thing. Submitting Unoriginality tends to kill off the desires of other writers to post, at least temporarily. I actually can't figure it out. Are they new authors just wandering onto FFN, looking at the first page, and then posting? Or do older authors just forget they saw it? If Unoriginality didn't have any effect on new stories, that's be one thing. But I don't understand why it seems to work for a day or two, and then stops.
I think too many people get hung up on what age their character is. Some people are more mature than others, so there's a wide range. I think it helps to try to remember what you were thinking when you were younger, but really, as long as people remember than ten year olds aren't interested in the opposite sex, and maybe that they might be more impressed by things or more frightened, they're just the same as any other character.
no subject
Date: 2004-06-14 07:28 am (UTC)"...might be more impressed by things or more frightened." That is actually a very interesting (and true) thought. I'll definately (try to) incorporate that into any stories I write. Now that I think about it, you've hit it on the spot--one of the most distinctive traits of a young child are his/her impressionability and naivite. Thanks for the tip. ^_^ --Katie