Frozen Salad?

All children are getting meals to take home at LAUSD. It's a snack and a breakfast for the next day. On Friday's, they get a bit more food for the weekend. This service is provided for all students, free of charge. This undertaking began during covid for LAUSD. Its then superintendent Austin Beutner, wanted to provide food for all students because he knew that was where most underprivileged students got their nutrition. This then blossomed into anyone could pick up food to take home during the months when covid was raging in Los Angeles.  

Now that school is in session, it is back to only students receiving a food parcel. On Monday, my son brought home his. I always look through the food and offer fruits and juices. His bag had a lettuce bag on Monday. It was frozen and in no condition to be eaten. The food on Monday was frozen from the Friday before. I wrestled with contacting his teacher. I had already made a fuss about the drop off and pick up line. But at the end, I sent off a note and a picture of the salad to his second grade teacher. 

Three days later I get a response...from the principal!! I didn't want to bother her. I thought his teacher might direct the message to one of the two vice principals. But I get it, she's the boss. 

Mrs. S replied with screenshots of emails sent between herself and two district food employees. She told me she'd check in regularly with the food service manager to make sure the food provided is of good quality. 

My heart "hurts." People don't seem to care. I've written on here before that I love my city. But its a tough ass place. In my own ways I am here to stand up for the little guy. 

I also see I can appear like a neurotic bitch, which again, self reflection is a good thing.

Have a great day, 

Kathy 

Unsolicited Covid Opinions - In Person Learning

I'm not going to apologize for sending my son to school. 

He stayed home for nearly 18 months. At the end of first grade he got top of his class and a perfect attendance award. He was eager to go to school. By now we have spoken about Covid often enough that he knows he needs to protect himself. 

Look, I understand that he can get sick, and I worry about my young daughter getting sick. But I am trying to have him change masks, wash his hands, use hand sanitizer and shower when he gets home. We are vaccinated. He's getting Covid tests weekly. We are doing our part, and the school is too. They were open during the last trimester of my son's first grade year. We declined our son going to school, then. We were not vaccinated. 

In the midst of surge in cases, I wrestled with second thoughts, even the day before classes began I was nervous and wanted to pull the plug. The plan is to give it two weeks and if everyone feels well and there are no cases, he can continue going to school. 

Related to all that, yesterday I received a text message that upset me. This person wrote LOL (laugh out loud) after I wrote them in a text message much of what I wrote above. 

And in the same text writes, Hope Jazzy doesn't get sick. 

Thanks, for the well wishes? He says he misses the kids, and wants to spend time with them, but then acts like an immature person when he's in his 30's! 

Like, why the LOL?

I told him he was laughing at my kids. Did he think it would be funny if my children became sick?  He says, "It's not that serious, I'm just being 'funny'." Really? I told him to shove his LOL where it don't shine. He doesn't have time for me he reply's, good, It's mutual. 

I heard a sweet soul say last night that if you ignore you're bodies messages, the primal tingles, and feelings you get when you know things don't feel right, you may get other messages that are more in your face. More evident. This interaction was a big let down for me. This person has lacked empathy for years. Deflects from himself when things don't go how he'd like. I have made effort to give advice. And to push past bad feeling between us. But he needs to become more aware of his words, his behavior. 

Thanks for sticking with me. 

Return to in Person Learning: Disaster (YOU are the change)

My son joined in person learning today. Second grade status! I've been worried about him going back to school. It's a pandemic! But he's been home for months and needs time to run and have fun. I know my son, and his impulsiveness and his enjoyment in the act of having a good time. He's young, wild and free. I want him to have all that without me, he deserves to be carefree. 

His elementary has roughly 800 students. Lots of parents, strollers, and cars. This morning was a disaster. The lack of organization was right in your face. My frustration is with staff that can't multitask, can't delegate or take the wheel. I am that person. I can't just stand by and allow bullshit. My own impulsivity has gotten me recognition in life, but sometimes, I just wish I would refrain from doing it in the order my brain tells me. Take a breath, assess and adjust needs to be my new mantra. 

LOLLLL guys, I'm on my period and Lexapro may not be doing its full effect on me. I told my husband maybe I'm too intense for this neighborhood. He said "No." I'm the right level. "Everyone else is brand new." They sure do act brand new. 

I emailed the principal, posted below:

Dear Mrs. S,

Happy first day of school. Getting here has not been easy and I want to take the opportunity to thank you for your efforts to keep our Lions learning.

This email is to express some concerns regarding morning arrival for students. I am aware that the daily pass website was not capable of dealing with the amount of traffic. But, I think Fairview (fake name) staff should be more proactive, speaking to parents, informing them to continue to wait or to log into the daily pass website. I had to leave my kids and ask staff if my son could bypass the line since the pass loaded. I was told he could. So I say, “Why don’t you let them know?” (meaning parents). So I inform parents, and guess what, a bunch had the pass.

So I finally get to my kids. We go back to the front together, and I tell an African American man wearing what I think was a black Fairview Shirt, “There is no organization here” He shrugs his shoulders and says, “It’s the first day.”

Really? So all of those people’s time doesn’t matter? Society should suck it up? I am sorry, but his response was rude. Sir, get yourself out there and inform parents. Leave the safety of the school grounds, and get kids in school! Isn’t that the point?

So then I go around to the front gate and see my son wondering around having no clue where to go!

Who was supposed to be there to tell him where to go? It’s rhetorical, a human should have been there to help.

To say I was disappointed is an understatement. I was angry.

 

My suggestions would be to have a roving team to go to each section and talk to parents about the pass, encourage them to keep trying and wait in the websites virtual line for the daily pass. Have giant QR codes on clipboards to help parents get there.

Have two lines for people that have a daily pass and those without. Don’t think we all know we don’t need to wait in line, again, due to a lack of communication.

More people directing kids to their corresponding areas.

 

Lastly, there were WAYYYY toooo many people near each other. Next to P avenue, two lines formed one facing north and one facing south, separated by three feet, and people walking down the middle to get to where they need to go. It’s a pandemic. I was shocked, and that fueled my frustration. The line closest to 77^th street should wrap around 77^th, not stay on P Ave.

I think you put your freshest folks on those gates, and they may need more help.

 

Thanks for reading,

Kathy Mora

-----I love my kids, I love my community. Pushing out the negative self talk about what happened this morning in order to put in clear view why TF I do what I do. Why I say what I say. 

I am the change. 

(And the strip club eeeehhh)

Hump Day (updated x2)

Have a wonderful Wednesday :)

I have a few meetings today, school meeting for my son, my daughters speech therapy, and a video conference with my son's eye doctor. We get to find out if Noah will need a second eye surgery, or if glasses will correct his eye issues. 

As for me, I feel anxious.

I have my little one telling me to play slime with her, for two minutes. 

So I must. 

Have a wonderful day! 

Update: Jazzy's therapy session went OK. She gets in these moments of not wanting to repeat words, and being moody. What a pint sized diva!

The eye doctor had less good news. It looks like my son will need a second eye surgery to correct his right eye's deviation (to the right). Noah is not happy about the news. But for me, it's like a band aid, just tell him it's coming, and keep him informed. 

Still waiting for my son's school "townhall" meeting to discuss how online school will change now that hybrid school starts next week. We have decided to keep Noah online. I've felt like the school is not informing us as much as the students going hybrid. We're kind of like an afterthought, probably because we've been operating online for months. My son goes to a Dual Language school, so he is learning Spanish along with English. Spanish is integrated into all of his regular studies. How will they plan to teach Spanish and everything else in three hours is beyond me. 

BUT we are in desperate need of change. Noah was getting super bored with school and the pace of the lessons. 

Update (2):

Almost 300 Tk-6th grade students are returning to my son's LAUSD elementary school. The numbers worked so that no student had to change to a different teacher and everyone returning to school will be able to safely socially distance. 

Not so lucky are parents that have to work longer than the three hours their children will be at school. Currently the after school program is maxed out, one week ago 180 students had already signed up for the after school program. Ufffff, the need is great to work, provide for your family and give them a better life. 

As for Spanish, an hour and a half Spanish and then they'll switch to English for the rest of the day. It is only a three hour day online with teacher instruction and then three hours of independent work. Big changes coming.