It’s a strange sensation; something I haven’t experienced for about a year.  Last winter I was pregnant, and due to the fact that pregnant women have 2/3 more blood coursing through their bodies than non-pregnant people, they rarely get cold.  Then I had the baby in the middle of summer, went to Florida, and now that we’re back in NW Ohio, it’s cold!  The older I get, the more I dislike the cold weather.  Not only do I dislike bundling everyone up, including myself, but I especially dislike the winter gas bills.  We have a humongous furnace that increases our gas bill by 144% in the winter months, which is why I opt to freeze a few months out of the year.  I just can’t bring myself to turn on that huge furnace for the season yet.  Every year when we get our first winter-sized gas bill, we vow to winterize the house and we talk about getting a new furnace, but somehow, we never get around to doing anything.  Maybe this year will be different, but in the meantime, I’m going to try to hold out until at least November 1.  Maybe I should check the weather forecast before I say that…

Just kidding.  Thursday I subbed at a middle school again, and eighth grade did have graduation rehearsal most of the day.  Fortunate for me, I subbed for seventh grade.  The end of year had already come for three of the districts I sub in, but this one district actually finishes next week with a half-day Thursday and a one-hour day Friday.  I currently have an assignment for Tuesday, but I am not sure if it will last.  I didn’t get along well with one of the TAs in that class and even got a call from the principal on the day, but I have a good record with that school so he recognized it as an anomaly.  I did skip out on an assignment with this teacher since, but being the end of the year with only one district still in school I can’t be too fussy.

So, back to this week, I subbed Thursday for a BD/LD teacher.  The classes I had were two small-group reading classes and two tutorials.  There were two other classes, but I acted more as an assistant in those.  It was mostly self-work,  but one class was end-of-year details, i.e. turning in books.  Yippee.

Friday was a half-day with the class I was with Wednesday.  Good for me as I left my lunch is his fridge… 😀  He never noticed, and I grabbed it Friday.  Not much to do here- silent reading, correcting homework, math test, self-science review…  The teacher is going to be out all day Monday too.  Too bad for me someone else has that assignment.

Sweltering heat those last couple of days I will tell you.  With temps in the high 80s (with high humidity!) and no AC in the schools we were all sweating, even with fans going.  This district is finally entering the latter half of the 20th century starting next year, but that didn’t help much those two days, or the at least one day I will be working next week.  Can I wear shorts please?

For a few days now and a few more days to come 🙁 the temperatures in our region have been over 90°.  For a pregnant woman of my girth, it is proving disasterous.  I am so lathargic – I don’t feel like doing ANYTHING, including eating!  The house is a mess, and the kids have been cooped up because I’ve been cooped up in the a/c.  It’s not the best a/c though because we have window units, not central air, so it’s still hot!  Luckily, the kids are going on vacation with their Grandma and will get plenty of stimulation next week.  After that, I have to hope and pray for an arctic streak until I deliver the baby in mid-July or we won’t make it.  Since I’m sitting here doing nothing, just as I want, I decided to post this poem as a distraction to myself in lieu of the heat.  It’s a poem by Shel Silverstein, and I had to memorize it in 5th grade.  While I no longer have it memorized, certain lines keep running through my head as I sit here and boil.  Enjoy and stay cool!

It’s Hot!
By Shel Silverstein

It’s hot!
I can’t get cool,
I’ve drunk a quart of lemonade,
I think I’ll take my shoes off
And sit around in the shade.

It’s hot!
My back is sticky,
The sweat rolls down my chin.
I think I’ll take my clothes off
And sit around in my skin.

It’s hot!
I’ve tried with ‘lectric fans,
And pools and ice cream cones.
I think I’ll take my skin off
And sit around in my bones.

It’s still hot!