Owls, Explosions, and Spit-Up
Yesterday I woke up at 3:30 in the morning to the sound of chattering monkeys, today a student blew himself up, and my baby spit up all over me right after I changed my shirt. If any of those topics interest you, read on.
Ok, it wasn’t really monkeys I heard yesterday morning, but let me set the scene for you. Sunday morning in South Carolina, three thirty in the morning. I was sleeping soundly when a series of strange whoops split the air just outside my window.
Living with a three-month-old, we already don’t get a lot of sleep, so my wife and I were pretty frustrated. It started kind of quiet at first, then stopped. You know how it’s more difficult to perceive reality right after you wake up? Well, that was the state of mind we were both in.
The noise went on just long enough for us to question our sanity. Fortunately, the sound started again, dispelling that question. Still, we had no idea what the noise could be. Naturally, I found my phone and started researching. (Gotta love the wonders of modern tech.)
After just a few minutes, I figured it out: it was a barred owl. Don’t believe me? You can hear it for yourself by watching the video below. It sounds like a typical owl at first but eventually deteriorates into full-blown crazy monkey. Check it out:
See what I mean? It makes me wonder if the owl had recently picked up a mouse that had been swimming in a pool of Red Bull.
*Self-note, look up the effect of caffeine on birds later.
But monkey owls are far from the only interesting thing happening here in South Carolina. Today, while teaching a lesson on using AI responsibly, one of my students was sitting in the back of the class and messing with a pair of pliers.
That didn’t set off any alarm bells for me. My students often need something to fidget with and it seems to help them focus. Unfortunately, I failed to notice he was messing with the wire that led to a clock I had. I say had because it no longer functions…
Yeah… mid-lecture they sucker popped in a brilliant display of blue zaps. It only lasted the blink of an eye, but man did it capture the room’s attention. Luckily the plier handles were made of rubber and the kid didn’t get shocked. Still, it did burn him a little and left a nice blister.
Needless to say, we paused our lesson on AI and started an impromptu lesson on electrical outlets, wires, and why you shouldn’t snip them.
Look, I know many teachers would probably get after the kid and use some hard discipline to discourage that kind of behavior, but I’m pretty sure that kid learned his lesson. In fact, something tells me he’ll be asking other people to plug things in for the foreseeable future.
That’s just one more example of how you have to plan for every eventuality as a teacher. Did I expect a kid to find some of my robotics pliers and snip a wire? No. I thought higher of them. (Yes, even the sixth-grade boys.) Looking back, I see that was a bit foolish. I’ll be keeping my pliers out of reach from now on.
Which leads us to the final notable event. I got home today after a full shift and an extra meeting. At last, I shed my collared shirt and slipped into a cozy t-shirt. Not two minutes passed and my son let out a mother lode of spit-up all over my chest.
C’est la vie, no?
Fortunately, he’s super cute and I love him to death.
Say what you will about my life, but it sure isn’t boring. From owls, to exploding kids, to rapid wardrobe changes, I seem to be dancing around on my toes more than not. I guess that makes me a ballerina. Not something I’d normally readily admit to, but hey, you can’t deny that it takes skill to dance like that.
