So this week has been interesting and perhaps for all of the wrong reasons. Those of you who know me will have, at least once, heard my infamous (roof seal) cough. Yeah, that’s right, the one that sounds like a seal barking. So after going out on Saturday night, I awoke on Sunday to find that the roof seal had come to visit again. This happens whenever I am run down or sick and so is an ominous sign really.
He made a rather dramatic (and embarrassing) appearance at the staff meeting at school on Monday night in front of all of the junior school teachers whilst the junior school AP was holding the floor. Not only did he make a smart remark about my cough but he stopped speaking so everyone could turn their full attention to me as I coughed! However I am not one to be sensitive about my cough, I have lived with a visiting roof seal for long enough to be used to the strange stares and ‘amusing’ comments that the roof seal earns me. By Tuesday I was suffering from swollen glands in my neck, an improved, more awful cough and the beginning of blocked sinuses. I went home early on Tuesday afternoon because I had the last two periods off and was not really feeling well. I had coughed my way through 4 periods already which had considerably amused my students. Wednesday morning I had a doctors appointment to remove more skin from around a freckle that I had previously had cut out. Whilst I was at the doctors I asked him to check me out because I really wasn’t feeling the best. I had a temperature and other such nasties so he put me on antibiotics. I headed back to school for a scheduled PD day with the best intentions, however my flu-like illness (bird-flu? Can chicks get that?!) and the nausea that I feel after a local anaesthetic meant that I had to keep getting up and walking out of meetings to get fresh air because I felt like I was going to be sick. I ended up going home at lunchtime that day too. Thursday I woke up worse and so had to call in sick. I spent the day in a drug induced haze correcting practice year 12 writing folio sacs and year 11 assessment tasks as any good sick teacher will do (well I cant waste a day off can I?). Friday I woke up and still didn’t feel any better really, however Friday night marked the first social outing that I had organised for the staff (ten pin bowling at Strike on Chapel) and I decided that if I was going to make it out that night, then I was going to have to put in a day at work! (stupid I know). So I coughed, spluttered and snotted through my day at school (again the students were some what bemused by my coughing – particularly at the discovery that laughing made me cough which resulted in much laughter, much coughing and not a lot of work being done) all so that I could go out that night. Not only was I on antibiotics, but Sudafed too to keep the sinus headache away. Managed to make it through the day, came home and had a well-needed nanna-nap for an hour and then got ready to go out. Bowled like the total unco that I am, drank 2 ½ vodka and orange, which I might add does not mix well with antibiotics and Sudafed (as my stomach noted at 4.30 this morning) but had an okay night. Was a great turn out and I think that it was good for newbie/oldie relationships and a bit of getting to know you outside of school.
On reflection though I feel as though I have lost most of the week to sickness and PD, and it means that in an already ridiculously short term, I have lost even more classes. Not only do we only have 6 weeks this term, but school has packed more social/sporting events into the 6 weeks too which means that we haven’t had a single week yet without at least one day without classes due to something else on. It is a strange scenario. There are people who, due to unfortunate timetables, have only seen their year 12 classes for 8 periods instead of 16 over the first 4 weeks of term, which is a massive difference. It is making it hard for my fellow Year 12 history teacher and I to keep our students up to the same point in terms of content because I have had so many more classes than she has. Due to the short term too, we have a ridiculous number of teachers trying to run SACs in the last week which means our History students have to come in to school on the holidays to do their sac. Dedication hey? Or craziness? But you do what you have to do I spose. I am hoping that I can return to school next week with renewed health and vigour because I really don’t enjoy feeling like crap and dreading going to school because I don’t know if I can make it through the day. I guess no one does really so maybe that was a stupid thing to write… I can sense the delirium setting in again…
No comments:
Post a Comment