Soundtrack

I'm not sure if you all have this problem um...curse um....condition....I seem to have a constant soundtrack playing in my head on a continual basis. Sometimes it is loud and I can hear it above all else...and sometimes it is soft background music that I find myself humming without realizing the source. This morning was dreary, to say the least. It was rainy and gloomy and cold. Not my ideal weather....ever. Usually on Friday I have something snappy with a quick (very danceable) tempo. Even on days when I have to go to work. Some of you may not know...but I work with special needs kids as a substitute teacher in our school district. Most days I LOVE my job and I enjoy going to work every day. But this week has been the week from hell a bit frustrating. It started out with me getting bit and escalated from there. I don't think professional football players come home with as many bruises and bite marks as I've logged in this week. I am seriously beaten and bruised and scarred...and that's not just my body....but my ego has been a bit damaged in the process. Working with Shelby last year and her more passive aggressive tendencies, I guess I was a bit sheltered. If she didn't want to do something she would just drop to the floor. End of discussion. Well, I have worked with Shelby this whole month....for just over an hour a day. For some of the day I work with higher functioning kids that need extra help and for almost 2 hours a day every frickin' wonderful day this month I have had the torturous task opportunity to work with a boy named Jake. Jake is bigger than Shelby...a lot....and a couple of years older too. He is severely autistic like Miss Thang...but he is more articulate. And violent. Yeah, he pinches like a vise grip, scratches like a mad cat, bites like a rabid dog and slaps like an old time Mid-Wife. But that is just one side of his personality. The other side loves to giggle and give hugs and high fives and will mimic almost anything he's asked to. In any given hour or so you can pretty much plan on running the full gamut of emotions with this kid. As with all kids, you love the good parts and hope to endure the rough patches. My usual Friday morning rendition of "Good Morning Baltimore" (in which I change the lyrics to fit the town I live in) was replaced with a song from Disney's "Robin Hood". It's a slow gloomy dirge called "Not in Nottingham". One refrain ends with the sad lament...."Can't there be some happiness for me??? Not in Nottingham." I didn't really realize how much I was dreading going to work today until I caught myself singing it as I was filling the washing machine. "If we weren't so down, we'd up and leave......" So sad. I hate feeling that way. I want to be grooving to a happier tune. I NEED A SHOW TUNE!! Usually Friday mornings are a time to celebrate the coming weekend and the mountain of household chores that I haven't had the energy to tackle quality time I will get to spend with my family. But the closer I got to work the louder the song became....until....I started walking down the hall to the locker where I put my coat on cold mornings. Then it changed to the Tony Orlando and Dawn version of "Tie a Yellow Ribbon". Yeah...I know...weird. The part of the song where Tony sings, "I'm going home, I've done my time....." As I got to the classroom and noticed one boy (who will probably be featured on America's Most Wanted) was having a melt down. I said to myself, "Lori, you do this because it brings you joy. Find some energy and get to work." That seemed to do the trick because I was able to suck it up and trudge through. On a happy note...I only worked until noon today and by so doing avoided Jake's afternoon tantrum that has become common place in the "Green Resource Room". As I ran gleefully walked calmly to my car at noon, there was some mellow Kenny G playing in the background. I do wonder what song will be playing when I get up in the morning. Probably something from "Grease" as Jo is out at the high school dance ("Where you can find romance. Maybe it might be lo-o-o-o-o-o-o-ve." Sorry.)tonight. ((Another drawback to having a built in soundtrack...I always have a song lyric on the tip of my tongue...just waiting)) So, if you do happen to hear random music in your head constantly.....you're not alone. Maybe some time we will have to compare music selections. I'm always up for an energetic game of "Name That Tune".