[Ann]

His mother and my mom used to be really good friends, that's how I know him. And my mom thinks the big problem is that his mother was in a horse accident about 6 + years ago, was in a coma for a bit, and now has mild brain damage. Not enough to put her on disability, or for the state to intervene, but enough so that her life is totally different than it was before the accident because she can't handle it very well (house is always a huge mess, one time she was 24 hours later for something ... literally my mom called her, she said, "I'll be right over," and then didn't call or show up until the next day). Once I asked Andy if he could think of any words that started with a soft c, and she kept suggesting words like snake. I felt very awkward having to explained that started with an 's'. She stopped making Andy go to school after the accident, so his education has been super spotty. The only reason I'm even involved at all was because I asked if I could work with him because I feel bad for him and need the practice. I don't think she would have even sought out the extra help. Anyway, I've been in contact with someone at his school and she's going to provide me with a ton of materials for over the summer work. According to her, he's at a 5th grade reading level, but there's no way considering he reads substantially worse than the girl I tutor who's in second grade and supposedly behind. His teacher also said his mother currently reads with him every day -- when I'm around her she talks about how she has double vision (from the accident) and can't see print very well. I don't think she reads with him at all.

I just really hope I can help so he doesn't spend the rest of his life functionally illiterate.

[rainbowdash]

Life sucks because I have to do two paintings in less than two days and I don't have turpentine and I have to go to Pearl or something and I'm just completely past caring about doing them but I also need to get on my teacher's "good side."

[Weirdelves]

I've got my second of five exams tomorrow. Really stressed. And I got an essay back today that I thought was gonna be a sure first but ended up being a high 2:2 which is shite and not really fair, I was criticized for lack of modern lit crit but when I went to the tutor concerned that it didn't have enough she said it'd be fine. Now I'm just doubting that any of the work I've done for these exams is good enough because I clearly am not too clear on what these tutors want from me... ugh i hate that I'm just hoping for a 2:1 by this point

[Gerritsón]

good luck Tom, good luck rainbowdash

[Jordan~]

It's a really dumb thing to say, but try not to stress about it. I never really knew what people expected of me when they said that - "Oh, thanks, that's brilliant advice, why didn't I think of that? I just had to stop worrying! There, now that I've done that, everything is fine." - but, y'know, you're more likely to do yourself justice if you approach it with self-confidence. Or even carelessness.

[Weirdelves]

Carelessness ho!

[Jordan~]

I'd have worried so much about an exam before I went into it that by the time I sat down to do it I was past caring and I'd just do it as best as I knew how. And because I went into it with a light heart I'd put in the odd joke and that'd keep morale up, and maybe work in my favour if the marker had just marked fifty sub-par, boring papers. Never did me any harm!

[ursulabear]

scraped my knee.

[milkisobel]

it's only skin hon

[rainbowdash]

I'm really bad at being stressed or worried. Like, if I can't do it easily I just stop caring about it.
I don't stay up late studying (in fact, I never study at all) 'cause I believe that I learned it already and I shouldn't have trouble remembering it during an exam. And this method has worked for everything but tests on Probability and Sequences. I hate probability.

[Jordan~]

That's what I'm like - maybe a bit worse - and I just got given ritalin for it. If you're anything like me, it's not a problem until you go to university and then oh god no.

[Jordan~]

Max (one of my kittens) killed something for the first time today. A little bird. I didn't see it - it was just out of view when my dad told me about it; he'd chased Max away from it and Tabby had picked it up and taken it inside. I think I could smell the blood, maybe I was just imagining it. The poor, defenseless thing. Of course, it's just their nature and they don't know any better, but I feel a little responsible for having them. This is partly why I prefer dogs - they understand the instruction not to kill. I don't know what my dad did with the body - I feel like we should return it to nature or something, apologise.

Edit: Turns out he put it in the bin in a plastic bag. I said to him that I thought we owed more than that, and he kind of agreed so he went and got it out and put it somewhere the cats wouldn't get at it. Now I'm in the odd position of having to come up with appropriate funerary rites for a bird your cat killed. The Persians used to take their dead to a high place and expose them to be scavenged upon - that seems appropriate for a bird.

[ursulabear]

psh. you should have sent the bird to me.

[Ann]

Last night I went to a party and was sort of amused at how quintessentially Enumclaw, country-esque, it was. We were in a field sandwiched between a cow pasture and a horse pasture and a group of guys were shooting birds with their rifles and drinking beer. I felt really bad for the birds and the horses panicked every time they shot. There ended up being a few dead birds just in the field which later someone moved. Poor things. Also, the guns scared me. Oh, and I got to argue with someone about Obama, which I loved. (He said something about him being a muslim and why did he take so long on the birth certificate and I went kind crazy, ranting about Christianity and Islam and how people like you aren't gonna believe he's American anyway; it was pointless but enjoyable.)

But now I feel like death because I played flip cup and it turns out I'm very competitive and will chug beer after disgusting beer just to win. I got so drunk, and was so stupid and now I'm so sick, but I still have to leave in a bit to go tutor. Oh my goodness this is why I don't drink, this is why I don't drink aggghhh.

[Jordan~]

[queenofnerds]

Aww poor birdie

My cats do that sometimes. They think they are bringing home dinner by now they should have realised that I am a veggie

[ursulabear]

Yes, exactlt. So I can make something woth it.

[Jordan~]

Nature will make our bedding plants with it.

[queenofnerds]

Yes it won't go to waste.


Bit down today need lots of attention... hint hint

[Gerritsón]

okay Queenie, what's up?