greetings from planet hartwell: April 2012

Monday, April 30, 2012

You had to be there.....

but it was wicked ass funny when we thought about it later. The mother of all mothers, firstborn and myself went to the Cav Rd 60th anniversary open day, as himself had two music performances. It was really kinda cool...lots of "old boys" (and girls), previous principals, music performances and a decent coffe vendor. Interesting to look back at how much things have changed. UNTIL some well meaning person suggested singing "The School Song". You kinda knew it wasn't going to be pretty when the first two lines went "This is our song, it's our school song". And it pretty much fell into a mineshaft from there. Although the line "We're brainy brawny brave and bright" managed to bring a tear to a few eyes, I have to admit, mine were watering for a whole nother reason. I think I cracked a rib from swallowing giggles. There were a few other bits that defied description because nobody remembered the words but the bit about "we'll do our very very very (etc etc) best" was a real show stopper, mainly because nobody seemed to know how many "very's" were stipulated in the lyrics. Seriously, you can't script this stuff. Best. Day. Ever.

Catchup

So this is where we are. The last three weeks have been hideous. After Second Son's interview at Cav, we were informed that because he doesn't live in the catchment area, he didn't stand much of a chance of gaining a place for year 8 next year. I was ropeable....not so much about the catchment deal, which I had been aware of, but about the school not giving me the heads up that EVEN with a special needs sibling attending the school in 2013 and EVEN with well documented special needs, the chances of himself getting a placement where somewhere between Buckleys and none. Which left me with no back up plan and a category 5 migraine. We had basically decided that the only option open to us (after checking various private special ed schools which had no places and which we couldn't afford anyway) was to move into the catchment area, which meant that the school would have to admit us. It would also have meant borrowing rent money, and splitting the family in two as Firstborn and FF would have to stay here with nanna and the piano, as it's kinda hard to prepare for two 7th grade piano exams minus a piano, while Second Son and myself gypsied into the catchment area. See where the migraine comes in?? Fortunately, after explaining the situation (many, MANY times) to a bunch of Dept Ed reps, we finally got someone to intercede on our behalf, and himself will be attending with Firstborn next year. It still amazes me that with all the "excellence" programs that schools have, there is still a massive lack of special education services. If it were me, I'd be taking down that "our school is a insert subject/sport/whatever school of Excellence" banner and replacing it with one that reads
Turning disabled students into able adults for 20 years.....Special Ed, we have it!!!!
Looking at my kids alone, the Government of this country is going to save itself hundreds of thousands of dollars in pensions, paid carers and support services, because of the dedication and perseverance of the Special Ed services. Try doing that with a football.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Mothers Month

is almost upon us, and true to form I have my lists ready, catalogued in order of how likely I am to recieve it. So, here's a sneak preview.
A is likely, B is a maybe, C is wishful thinking at it's finest.....

Extension to the Cat House (A+)

Yes indeedy, this one is a sure thing, according to the tribe of three. We already have a lovely covered catio, which FF enclosed in Catmesh in time for the arrival of the hooligans last August. We spend much time out there, but because it's got a roof, and you can roll down plastic blinds to protect it from the weather, it doesn't really count as "outside", IYKWIM. I have been after the tribe for MONTHS to build me a little outdoor extension to the catio, where myself and the furboys can soak up the winter sun and generally zen out, cat style. So this was actually on the Wishful Thinking end of my list but I have been assured that it will be fully completed and ready for occupancy by the end of May. Which brings me to the next part of my list.....

all the goodies that the furries and I will need in our new establishment. The last picture is all about the bench.... we already have almost 26 pounds of over-nourished Ragdoll in charge of Planet Hartwell. More furries are NOT in my future plans at this time.

I'm hoping to score at least three of these....since we already have sleepers and bricks under the house, the bench shouldn't be a huge ask. We also have an old tyre that's BEGGING to be recycled into something funky, and the chair has been on my Mothers Month list for several years, so I figure it's time it came to the top of the list. The sundial I can live without, but it's awesome and I really want it, so we'll see what happens.....

Monday, April 16, 2012

The cat ate my mouse.....

and is still napping on my keyboard. It's fatal....the sound of typing on a keyboard is aural catnip to Achilles. As soon as he hears me start work, he appears on my desk, which in itself is no mean feat as said desk is standing height. When he was three months old and weighed under 5 pounds (and couldn't levitate) he would lie under my chair making pathetic kitten noises until I picked him up. More fool me, 'cos now he's nearly 12 months, weighs over 12 pounds and just appears in mid-air (scaring the crap out of me) before settling down on my keyboard, purring loudly and expecting my full and complete attention. Who am I to argue??