Drowning My Sorrows in Fresh Maple Syrup

Cartwrights Maple Tree Inn is an institution around here. For miles and miles. It is only open for a brief two months, give or take, at the end of winter, beginning of spring. When the nights are still cold, but the days warm up, the sap starts running and that means it's pancake time. The MTI is famous for its thin, buckwheat all you can eat pancakes and its fantastic maple syrup. When I heard they opened on the 11th of this month, I've been waiting for one of these nights to run up there for dinner. It's about 16 miles away, 20 if you don't go back roads. I always take the back roads. It's my way through life. But that's another story. Tonight was the perfect night to eat there: 

As an update to my saga of losing my cool and my better judgement a couple of weeks ago when I let fly the F bomb at a couple of students after school after yet another bullying incident  (see earlier post regarding not swearing at your students!!!)  - I received an official "Letter of Admonition" in my permanent file. If I were going to go to another school to apply for a new job, this would probably be a bad thing. But since I only have 9 years left until retirement, and intend to spend them at the school I'm currently at, and have been at for the past ten years, it really didn't end up being a particularly big deal. I was glad that that was the end of it, if for no other reason than to just simply put it behind me. It's not like me, and I am not proud of it, and I just want to forget that it happened (though my student's life seems to be a little quieter lately - not sure if there is a connection? Whatever.) Today it appears that it is NOT done. The mom called the School Superintendent again today. The State Police told her that it was not a criminal matter, that the school was investigating it, and would let her know when it was resolved. When she called today, the Superintendent told her it had been taken care of, but she could not say how or what was done to me, as it was a personnel matter. She was not happy about that. She wanted to come to the Board meeting tonight, and was denied because the agenda was already set, but was told that she was welcome to make an appointment to come in and discuss what she wants from the Board, get on the agenda, and come to the next meeting. So the Superintendent decided that she needed to inform the Board about the situation tonight so that they were not blindsided by this woman in a week or two. So I wrote a brief explanation of the situation to attach to my letter of admonition, not to excuse what I did, but simply so the Board was aware that there WAS a situation to which I was responding, however poorly I may have chosen to respond. Apparently there is another issue - the Superintendent "fears" that she may be required to file something with the State Education Department, according to Section 83 of the NYS Education Law, which deals with the Moral Character of a teacher. Good GRIEF.
     Seriously,. I'm not worried. I think this mother has nothing better to do than this. She doesn't have a job. Her son was kicked out of the previous school district, in which they still live, due to behavior issues there, so that's a big red flag to me. I hope it is to the Board as well. AND, the mom is lying now, also. Today she declared that this took place while her son was on the steps of the school. Totally untrue, and there is tape from the outside camera to prove this untrue - and the Superintendent KNOWS it to be untrue. I would absolutely not have lied about that, and there is taped evidence to PROVE I am not lying. In addition, the mom continues to call this an "assault."  It could, I suppose, perhaps be a verbal assault? More in line with harrassment, I suppose, though I wasn't even harassing them. I simply yelled at them, and drove on. And criminally, this is neither assault NOR harassment. 
     I find it funny that there were TWO students involved, and I have not heard ONE WORD from the other parents. Not one. AND I have their other son in my reading class, daily. THEY were the ones I was afraid I would hear from. And actually, I ams somewhat afraid of them, so...I guess it could be worse, huh?
     All I know at this point is, I am SICK to death of this situation, and sick of it dragging me down every time it pops up again. SO, what better night to go to the Maple Tree Inn and drown my sorrows in sticky, sweet, gooey, fresh tapped and boiled maple syrup and buckwheat pancakes? Tonight was the PERFECT night for it. It was yummy, and good and I was glad I went. And I came home about the time the Board meeting was ending, so...

     Who knows. Tomorrow's another day. That is about the only thing I'm sure of, at the moment! That, and I LOOOOOOVE pancakes at the Maple Tree Inn!