Monday, November 1

 

Monday, November 1 - Went to school. Marv had snow tires put on. Laid the law down to Bud about his activities, his car and his grades. Worked 5 - 9. Long evening. 

Tuesday, November 2 - Went to school. Then home and to bed exhausted. More phone calls and decisions. At 9 Mick called and we decided to go back to work. 

Wednesday, November 3 - Went to work and am so relieved. Clarence Dunn came in and told us we would be fined. So now I'd work no matter what.

I was a social lion in those days. Yeah, right. I have no idea what mom was on about, although I did spend quite a bit of time at the drive-in with Sandy and her little topless pal, and Ron and Mike took up the rest of my spare time. 

We didn't do anything particularly exciting. We just hung out.

My grades were dismal. I got behind in school two years earlier after a ten day stint in the hospital to have my tonsils out. (There's a story there. I'll fill you in later.) After I got out of the hospital, I had another seven days at home for an unrelated infection. By the time I got back to school, my advanced classes - SMSG Math, Immersive Spanish, Instrumental Music, and Language Arts - had all moved on, and I was hopelessly left behind. You know that feeling when you miss a day and you come back and everyone is speaking Esperanto? Multiply that feeling by twenty.

The following year, I was moved down a level to classes more befitting my grades. Jesus, what a crashing bore that turned out to be. I had no recourse, though. My reaction was to stop worrying about succeeding and focus more on surviving junior high school among the general population. Sounds like prison, doesn't it? Yeah, I probably needed a talking to.

My mom has definitely had it up to here with collective bargaining. 

Mom and her buddies have decided to suck it up, cross the picket lines, and go back to work.

This is what is commonly referred to as the "Shit hitting the fan." The union representative has informed mom that this is going to cost her. That grating sound you hear is mom digging in her heels. 

She's tough as they come. She will be tested in the weeks to come.