To add a little more info to what I posted last night I must say that the meeting was much more calm than I had anticipated. DS's math teacher was very mild mannered in my presence and seemed a bit nervous. The Principal took her side where the confrontation between DS and she were concerned. Not too surprising there. I do know that DS can be hot tempered and his frustration over his learning disabilities gets the best of his at times. He needs to learn to control himself. The Principal said that he had complaints from other students about how DS had spoken to the teacher. There may have been students that complained but I rather expect that it was students that are in the clicks of the "Holier than though" group that are very judgemental and the DS doesn't get along with on a daily bases any way. This is a Christian school and what we have found is that if you don't have money, don't play sports and aren't on the honor roll you don't fit in. Never mind that those kids may very well be the biggest drinkers and the most sexually active in school. Not what I was expecting a Christian school to be. I have told teachers there that they can teach the students the Bible, insist that they memorize the verses but cannot insure that it becomes embedded in their hearts......off on a tangent there...sorry. Last night DS felt like he had lost the war since he was really hoping that I would yank him out the school. I had to explain to him that he had to look at the big picture in little increments. He had won one battle thus far and that was to be taught by his tutor for this class. As soon as he decides which school he wants to attend we can move forward there. So it is one step at a time. I also told him that even though he didn't get everything that he wanted he was learning valuable lessons here and that it was a growing experience. I was happy with his coach. I was happy with his counselor. They both complimented DS on his kind heart and ability to express his feelings in an articulate manner. I told them that for him to be able to humble himself and apologize is a big deal for him. That although it doesn't have anything to do directly with his outburst towards the math teacher he has a great pain in his heart from his father and the fact that they have not spoken in over 3 years is just under the service for him and is something that I feel fuels his anger. He also will not just say the words to apologize, he will search his heart until he come to mean it and then he will speak to the teacher. To get him to graduation is the goal. I feel that he has many teachers at this school that have grown to really love him. His math teacher is new, only having taught a couple of years. He has been a challenge to her and I think she has been caught totally off guard by his situation. Do I think she could have done a better job? Yes. I was in college for a few years in education. I was headed in the direction of working with the kids that were hard to reach. As a teacher's aid I worked with the pain in the butt kids in class and had wonderful results. They did not intimidate me. I think DS did intimidate her. I'm sorry that DS hates school sooo much. He may not be completely happy in another school. I told him that he has to look beyond that and have faith that if he places his trust in the Lord that God will guide him. There is a plan for him and this time is just a flash in the pan but necessary to help ready him for future situations. I told him that at his age kids think that "When I am ..... years old I'll finally know everything." That is not true. He is expected to continue to learn his entire life and he will learn that some of what he thought he knew was incorrect or that there is so much more to it than he ever imagined. I told him that God designed it that way and that when he stops learning he will stop living and that won't be for a very long time. He is a good kid. He has more challenges than most but he can do it. I will be beside him, behind him and sometimes in front of him his entire journey......He is my son and I adore him....blemishes and all.

I spent 12 years at the telephone company. I worked directory assistance,and then long distance, I also helped with keeping the directory up -to-date and with keeping track of the hours everyone worked. I stayed home for a couple of years and when DD started school. I was bored and started working at the University of Georgia part time. Eventually, had part-time hours and full time work so I went to full time. I worked for the Institute of Continuing Legal Education. We provided cont. Ed. seminars for attorneys. I was an Event Planner officially but didn't plan the events. (go figure). I got the programs after they were over. I was the person that everyone went to when they needed something done yesterday. I retired May 1, 2010 but did go back to work in Feb. & March to help out during their busy time. It was nice. I was just part-time again and just had to go do my job and go home. No responsibility! The money was nice too. Linda

The first two KTer's I met were Pat Lavender and FranCes....and my sister embarrassed me. She insisted on going with me in case one of them was an axe murderer. But now I know Wildchild is really the axe murderer. The only reason I have survived our visits is because I take her to Jocko's for steak. I remember going to a get together at Joni's in Ventura long ago and then a couple of them in Bakersfield I have pictures from a Tehachapi trip. I got rescued by Flamingo from a shopping mall in Branson...I think it was Branson. It is really great meeting KTers and hope anyone who travels on the central coast of California will contact me.

It's very close -- maybe 7-8 miles as the crow flies, but the trajectory is south, not east/northeast towards me -- a couple of ridges and a creek and a river and a couple of "major" local two-lane highway (Hwy 9, 236) also break the path. Basically, if the fire gets to Boulder Creek and me, half the town will be gone. I can't see that happening, at least not tonight or tomorrow. A remote smaller fire last year just over the ridge, which did not get widely reported, had me more in a tizzy about evacuating...I had the cat carriers out, fire safe in the car, important files in the car, and a gym bag with a couple changes of clothes, as well as a few things for the cats (litter, food, etc.), and a few things for me as well. Not that it would make much difference because my house is at the peak of a canyon/creek "chimney", I did have quite a bit of fire break/ tree clearing done once I kicked the soon-to-be-ex-not-so-DH outta here. He would never do it since he prunes trees for a living and didn't want to "sacrifice" trees at home as well. 'Nuff said... Here's a current fire map, with a little yellow dot at the top right/center showing approximately where I am.