2017 Winter December 22 Friday

33 degrees this morning (feels like 22), currently 30 degrees.  No walk.

This temperature is particularly nasty because of the wind and the moisture in the air.

That isn’t the reason I didn’t walk, I didn’t  want to take a chance on what I have a feeling is a sore throat, or perhaps just “post nasal drip”, a term (and a condition) I hate.  Hopefully just allergies.

I remember hearing the term “post nasal drip” when I was in college when the nurse told me that is what I had and nothing could be done.  I’ve hated the term and the condition (that I have a lot) ever since.

One year (actually I know the year, it was Christmas of 1995) I had a terrible flu over a 4 day Christmas holiday.  I decided never again if I could help it.  I think I actually was sick the day before and the day after and I missed the entire holiday.  

Anyway, I didn’t walk, with some regret since I enjoy walking.  I may have to find a gym with inside walking that is open when I like to walk, although part of what I like is walking outside.

I had a comment on a recently post that  “The current school system can be summarized by "Memorize, Regurgitate, Forget”.  Unfortunately I couldn’t agree more.  

The problem is, what do you do about it, especially since we (including me) were educated this way and it limits our ability to change the system.  

Even more unfortunately we have the proclivity to elect officials who only pander to the “low tax at all costs” group (and maybe wouldn’t be elected if they didn’t).  By the way, this isn’t always true at the local level, where people see taxes as an investment in a better quality of life.  Why it doesn’t extent to the state and national levels, I don’t know.  Maybe it is too far away from the people.  

I think the alternative of “Charter Schools”-Well, some are excellent, too many are just rip-offs of public funds by greedy companies and individuals who are nothing but criminals and that only decimate public schools more.  

While I don’t want to even hint at my source, I recently heard some, quite frankly, horror stories of extremely poor teachers who are basically allowed to lazy their  incompetent way through to retirement, shortchanging their students all the way.

Of course, the same persons told of outstanding teachers who cared about teaching, even though they are criminally underpaid in this state.  

In some cases, the teachers are paid less that the elected legislature who only “work” 60 days per year and get huge benefits besides that!  Sick.

It seems that the companies who shovel huge “donations” (or call them what they are, bribes)  to elected officials to keep their taxes/fees low and get big “incentives” would realize it is in their own best interest to encourage education, but private industry if obviously short sighted, looking only to the next quarter to so they can get more bonuses.  

Anyway, I don’t know what to do about it, except start getting more involved in elections and work agains the short-sighted elected officials.  

That’s it for now, Friday, December 22, 2017.