Day #40

Just a comedy of errors this morning. I'm taking my kids to Mt. Clare Mansion tomorrow to continue our expedition into Pigtown/B'more history--it's great because we can walk there in about 10 minutes and really get a sense of how important B'more is and was in U.S. history.

In order to tour three classes through the house in three shifts I made a deal with the docents that I would show a video they usually show as part of the tour in my classroom. That way I'd have walking time to and fro and sufficient space to get back and get my next class ready to go, etc.

But the complications started early. I use my laptop and LCD projector in school every day. A couple weeks ago an overly curious 7th grader pulled a cable out of my 5-year old VAIO which pulled the internet jack out and destroyed it. Not a big deal, considering it's a wireless computer--but there's no wireless signal at school, so now I can't show websites or whatever unless I borrow the school's Cricket, which plugs into a USB port and gives me fast and reliable service. So I requested the Cricket for today so I could show the Mt. Clare video on my laptop via their website. But it turns out the Cricket was borrowed and the teacher who borrowed it is at Outward Bound with her kids in the woods somewhere and nobody knows where the Cricket is. So, no biggie, I borrowed a school laptop with a functional internet port and plugged it up and did a trial run on the Mt. Clare website--no problems until I clicked on the video link and the B'more City schools filter shut it down as an "adult video."

The welcome video to Mount Clare Mansion is easily the least racy video on the internet.

So after a while trying to find someone who could get through the filter I got no where, but finally figured out that if I added an 's' to 'http' I could get past the filter and show the video. How stressful!

I hope the kids behave at the Mansion tomorrow. They were ridiculous today--all three classes! Lots of drama and fussing and pushing and throwing things. I'm going to enjoy writing the behavior portions of their progress reports this week...