Friday, March 13, 2009

Can You Say "Passive-Aggressive"?

I have 20 people coming over tomorrow for a curricula meeting. Believe it or not, this is how homeschooling mothers have fun - we all get together and discuss the learning materials we use and get to see everyone else's fun learning toys. A big event, complete with snacks! If this doesn't sound fun to you, you probably shouldn't homeschool. It's that simple.

20 people, probably 20 cars - and not many parking spaces available in our townhouse lot. Most people will park on the road, saving those precious close-in spots for mothers with babies. Which is why it is hard to understand why my husband had a man with a dump truck deposit a full truckload of topsoil in two of the available spots yesterday. You know, for his ongoing alienate-the-neighbors backyard project?

It was a lot of dirt. And most of it is still there.

Of course, this behavior may be part of a pattern. I mean, remember the Pampered Chef party incident? I told Larry I'd be holding a Pampered Chef fundraiser that week and then I left the house for an hour or so to run some errands. By the time I came back, he had ripped up the entire kitchen floor, right down to the 25-year-old plywood subfloor that reeked of rot.

I don't know what to think. Maybe he doesn't like my friends? Or perhaps he harbors some deep-seated animosity toward Pampered Chef cookware and also toward homeschooling materials? Those items do tend to cost money, and you know wives - they'll spend whatever you make.



But, hey, aren't we worth it?

16 comments:

  1. Passive-agressive, much?

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  2. I used to be a Pampered Chef "consultant" that way I had an excuse for buying new gadgets.

    I needed them for my job.

    I still love my Pampered Chef stuff. Except for the self sharpening knife. That one has never worked properly.

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  3. You've done it! You've totally impressed me. I could never homeschool! (mostly because I wouldn't know any of the answers once they reached 4th grade.) I'd have to actually LEARN the math.

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  4. OH NO Not again! Good luck today.

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  5. At our monthly homeschooling support meeting on Thursday, I offered to again host our annual curriculum meeting in June. A cheer went up in the room. We REALLY LOVE curriculum night! And, this year, we're going to have prices on things people want to sell right then and there, so that I may actually get to keep some of the things I see that night!

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  6. Actually it does sound fun . . . but I still don't think I am up for homeschooling.

    Can I come to a meeting although I am not a homeschooling Mom?

    Or, how about I send my boys to you for school?

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  7. A lot of my friends home school, but it is not for me. It drove me crazy when I tried to home school my oldest both times I tried to. She gets very easily distracted, and I did not have the time to redirect her contantly.

    Besides, I like the quiet having only 2 or 3 home during school hours. :)

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  8. I stopped hosting anything. My house could potentially be deemed uninhabitable by some well-meaning stranger dragged to my place by a friend. I don't need that kind of stress. I have no desire for homeschooling. My 15 year old does virtual school. Next year, he WILL be at a brick and mortar building of "education". I've long been over-exposed to him. I want a few hours a day with the baby that does not involve annoyance, screaming and irrational behavior. And no I'm not talking about the baby, I mean the teenager. At least the baby won't spew vitriol at me. Just milk.

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  9. and poo...forgot about the whole poo thing. Too many years between babies is not always a good idea....

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  10. I think it is great to home school, even though I don't do it! I really wanted to home school my son now 16, when he was transitioning into 7th grade, I was sure he was going to either beat someone up or get beat up! But that never happened and if it did he never told me!

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  11. I think it is great to home school, even though I don't do it! I really wanted to home school my son now 16, when he was transitioning into 7th grade, I was sure he was going to either beat someone up or get beat up! But that never happened and if it did he never told me!

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  12. Three part comment:

    1. I wish I was in your homeschool group. Curriculum comparison/lust is SO MUCH FUN!

    2. My husband does similar things. In his case I think it's a matter of hyperfocusing. He hears me say "This house needs to get whipped into shape, I have people coming over!" What I mean is "Everybody pick up this CRAP and someone please clean the pee off the bathroom floor!" What he hears is "This house needs serious structural remodeling and you've been procrastinating...get in there and remodel me something!"

    3. Michel...we homeschool moms have access to some dirty little secrets...like teacher's manuals, answer keys, Google, good stuff like that. :) We also email/call each other in desperation and beg for help sometimes. :) If we had to know all the answers we would be terribly sunk. (Also, I have friends who are classroom teachers. They're doing the same thing...no one can remember it all.)

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  13. husbands: Passive-Agressive or just totally and completely in their own worlds?

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  14. But hey! At least you're getting stuff done around the house.

    (um, sorry.)

    yea, definitely passive-agressive. snort.

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  15. Maybe he could volunteer to valet the cars?

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