I will have to say that our newest JoAnn Stores is a very nice store. They moved into a new space in the mall a few years ago. It is kept very neat, very clean with good lighting. The manager they have now is friendly and just a nice person. One of the older Joanns is a mess. Poor lighting and just junky looking. So, they can do it right if they try.
Donna in Idaho
Was it "Wal*Mart: The High Cost of Low Price?"
You know, last year, they unceremoniously went to a new schedulin' system that totally *&^% their employees over? If you were supposed to be "nights" you were no longer just nights and had to work whatever times they told (hmmm ... how that does work with the whole "flexible hours" spiel they give out>>). *250* employees just walked out. It was either that or be fired when they simply couldn't make it to work because of prior committments (that WM knew about when they hired'em).
And BTW, this happened durin' the height of tourist season ... needless to say, there were quite a few college kids and families that were FURIOUS. And of course, that meant longer lines at my grocery store!! Grrrrr .....
catastrophic
And schools are government buildings that the public uses so just think what is happening in the non-public use, only government employees allowed inside, government buildings. Debra in VA See my quilts at
I can't tell by the trailer if that's the same one or not. But I'll keep checking the schedule and see if anything similar is listed and I'll post if it is.
Well, in my hubby' building (Navy civilian) that would be raccoons peein' and poopin' in cubicles AND the kitchen-area. The ceiling tiles are literally pee-soaked. When they disintegrate and fall (usually on someone's desk - fun, huh?), they just shrug and replace the tiles.
It's been goin' on for the past 6 years. Yuk.
No, no Leslie. It's based on the actual "enrolments" ie bums on seats. Say you have 107 enrolled students that day. That is what you are funded for.
2 days later you get 3 kids move from across town. 1 week later uni goes back and 10 overseas students arrive with their children. These 13 students are not funded because they were not enrolled at your school on that day. Geddit? happens every year for us:P'sactly. We're trying to work out class numbers for next year to try and decipher how many teachers we can afford.
On Mon, 5 Nov 2007 12:13:05 -0600, Debra wrote (in article ):
You probably really don't want to know.
Maureen
At the risk of soundin' like a negative Nancy, whatever number ya'll come up with (affordin' wise) it simply won't be enough. :(
It's so sad ... our county is so voracious in tryin' to get people to move here that they just don't think about the actual infrastructure, namely, schools. When you put ads in newspapers 1000 miles away, toutin' what a great town PCB is to live in and don't think that at least half of those people will have kids ... and will need a school big enough to house them, and enough money to hire enough teachers to teach them ... well, that's just downright poor plannin'.
But nooooo .... all we really build here for kids is theme parks (and cruddy ones at that). >:(
I feel for you, Sharon. If I had to be in charge of the school(s) down here, I think I would have shot up city hall by now. It's a hard job and more often than not, with the way people are, a thankless one at that. :(
I hope you realize that you're a hero ... because you have so many burdens to deal with and STILL do your best and STILL care so much, you're a true hero. Every bit as much as someone who rushes into a burnin' buildin'!! (And I think a lot of schools are much like that, nowadays - all the parents that just don't care, all the political crap, etc ... the list goes on!) :)
((((Sharon))))
Hugs!! Connie :)
Yep, that's why we clutch at our government pensions like a starvin' man grippin' a turkey leg ... if you work for the gov, you miss out on a LOT of things/bennies that civilians take for granted (come on, how many people would REALLY work in an office that has raccoon - or other mammal - pee all over the floor and ceiling tiles???). The gov pension isn't a privilege, it's DESERVED. :)
Hugs!! Connie :)
What's a PTA???? ROFLOL - we are a tiny school 107 students all up with the majoirity of those from non-English speaking background. Majority are also low to mid income earners which mean they pay for very little and they volunteer for even less. this year we managed an 92% collection rate on book fees (these are used to reimburse us fo the bulk purchase of pens/pencils/books/etc) which was mainly due to my motherly harassment! Now the Dept in its wisdom has come out and said that we are not able to "force" parents to pay (which we don't - we encourage) and parents are able to provide their own supplies if they want. Which means if parents choose this option we end up with a squillion leftovers because parents have chosen to provide their own (and wih our population we can't guarantee who will and who won't so we have to cater for everyone) and you'll get 20 different types of books and pencils and "I want their ones".
Because the majority of students come from o/s they have been brought up to believe that "school is alwas right" meaning you don't interfere, so we very rarely see the parents outside of drop off and pick up times. I'm trying to change that but it's a hard battle. There are some parents I haven't seen at all!!
Through hard budgeting we have managed to save enough in our investment account to cover a senior teacher for a year should we need to get one, plus a bit for emergencies. Not the millions that larger schools have but enough to see us through any unexpected happenings. Now through Freedom of Information people want us to account for that and why isn't it being spent on the kids? yet if we had massive storm damage or two teachers went out on extended sick leave and we had to cover them they'd be wondering why we were in deficit (if we didn't have the money)!!!! You can't win!!!
But seriously, I love our school and even though I threaten to leave and say that I hate the joint, I can't leave. Being greeted by hugs from the junior kids each time I see them, hearing "hey Sharon!" from the older ones, seeing the effort they put into their work and the pride they take in their school. It's home.
WHAAAAAAAAT???? Oh heck no, I am so not a hero. Just a mum who cares is all, although recently I've been feeling I could easily become clock tower sniper!!!
And having Bruce (our temporary principal while regular one is on leave) is a true blessing. He's a man who's a principal with a sense of humour, loads of compassion and doesn't mind gettin his hands dirty in the classroom too. A legend. I said to one of our aides today that I'm likely to up and burst into tears and beg him not to leave at the end of the year. So long as I don't do it publicly. LOL.
PTA/PTO (alt. PTSA) = Parents and Teachers Association/Organization (alt. Parents, Teachers, and Students Association)
HTH. PAT
Shar> What's a PTA??
Sorry Miz Pat but I was actually being a bit facetious (sp?) - we have Parents & Friends committees, PTAs, Mum's Clubs, the works over here - just not at my school due to lack of parental enthusiasm.
I worked in a Jo-Ann store for a few years. It had been a House of Fabrics. We worked hard to make sure that the staff we had was at least somewhat knowledgeable and the store was neat and orderly. But when payroll hours are cut, and there are other things that the corporate office says need to be done............ sigh. Won't work for them again. But I do shop there for some stuff. There are good fabrics, good bargains and lots of variety in some areas. But there is also cheap fabric, overpriced merchandise and such in other areas. And some stuff that just plain doesn't belong in a "fabric and craft" store.
Pati, > I will have to say that our newest JoAnn Stores is a very nice store. They
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