Friday, November 1, 2024

Running Late

It was Friday morning, and I was having a Friday Late

But I wasn't too concerned. It was already going to be an odd day. I had gotten an email the prior day about how the teacher I was scheduled to cover wasn't going to need me all day, so they had modified my schedule so I'd be roving rather than covering one class. 

(Yeah, so Ms. M had seniors, and Senior Seminar--a day when all the seniors do a thing together out of class--got moved to this particular Friday. Ms. M only had one period of sophomores. I love roving days, so the switch wasn't going to bother me.)

I left home at the usual time, but I got on campus about ten minutes later than normal. Then, while checking in for the day, I took some time to talk to the secretary. Stuff about the roving day. The schedule she had emailed me had been altered as two of the teachers no longer needed me, but a third did. 

By the time I left the office to head to the classroom, the warning bell had rung. (Usually I have ten to fifteen minutes before the school day starts to get set up.) And I had to get from the main office to the back of the school. I had time, but I was going to have a crowd of students waiting.

Only, I did not. Weird.

I got to the classroom a good two minutes (at least) after the warning bell, and there were no students in sight. 

Uh oh. Did I make a mistake? Was I at the correct room for the period? 

I double checked my book. Yup, I was in the right place.

I opened the door. I almost went in to put my bag down when a student arrived. And then another. Whew. They were just cutting it close.

When the bell rang to start class, I had seventeen students. Out of thirty-four. Over the first twenty or so minutes of class, eight more students arrived. (Yeah, they've got a tardy problem at the school. Which is funny as the school day now starts at 8:30 AM. Before 2020, school started at 7:30 AM.) 

Well, at least they weren't waiting on me. And I was there before the bell.

There's just something about Fridays...