Accident in 2011

Many of you know that I was in a car accident in August 2011.  I was stopped on the freeway, when a car going about 65+mph rear ended me.  I have had back, rib and neck problems ever since.  I am still trying to get a settlement to cover my costs of the accident.  That being said, I have some wise words of advice for anyone reading this.

1. Call your insurance right now and raise your PIP.  I was at $3000, which is the lowest amount of coverage you are allowed.  For just a few more dollars a month you can get up to $100,000 coverage.  This is an account that is billed for all your medical expenses after an accident.  After you use up the amount that you have, the rest is billed to the other insurance. 
     It doesn't seem right that we should have to have so much coverage on our end if it isn't our fault, but it is something that I wish I would have done before my accident.  The reason is simple, the other insurance will do whatever they can to get out of paying.  Meanwhile, the bills keep piling up and even the lawyers can't keep the companies from reporting past due bills from the accident on your credit. 
   If I would have had a higher PIP, I would have no bills waiting to be paid after the settlement.  My insurance would be more eager to go after the other driver's insurance.  I wouldn't have to spend so much of my time doing things that I thought the lawyers I hired should have already taken care of.

2. If you have Farmer's Insurance, change to another insurance.  The woman that hit my car has Farmer's insurance.  They offered me $700 for a totaled car (Worth +&2000).  They offered me about $2,000 for all my medical bills (+$10,000).  They are only looking out for their bottom line.  I am a victimized victim.

I try not to complain about the accident.  I will have daily pain the rest of my life because of this accident.  I am just trying to get on with my life.  I think it is about time Farmer's took responsibility. 

No Longer in Remission

     When I was on a mission for my church I came down with a debilitating disease.  I had a hard time using my hands, walking, sitting, standing, ect.  I saw many doctors and was told that it was Rheumatic Fever. I was giving penicillin everyday for nine months.  I remember when the doctors used a needle to suck all the inflammation out of my knee.  I was given steroids that I took at the beginning of the day to get me through the day.  The doctors wanted to hospitalize me, but I wouldn't have it.  I was not about to let my physical ailments stop me from serving.
     When I came home, my body was in bad shape.  All my friends were coming off their missions and getting full-time jobs.  I, on the other hand, was sitting in my dad's recliner.  I remember going to the doctors and hearing one say that I did not have Rheumatic Fever.  So I had an unidentifiable condition.  I went through many treatments. Nothing really helped. 
     It wasn't until I was pregnant that the symptoms improved.  Don't get me wrong, I had hard pregnancies, but being pregnant took away the constant pain.  I remember how surprised I was that the pain wasn't as bad as it had been for the last five years.  I was finally in remission.
     What is remission?  Well for me it means that I still have pain.  I get sick easily. Tired is my middle name.  I have many of the same symptoms as Fibromyalgia.  But it is doable.  It has been twenty years and the last fifteen I have managed to stay in remission.
     For about the last two weeks my body has flared up.  My face turns red.  My body hurts back how it did on my mission.  It hurts to hold or touch anything.  I lose my balance.  I keep asking myself how I felt like this and was still able to proselyte.  It makes me worried for the future.  I wonder what it is going to take to get it back into remission.  We still have five days left of school and I know just how hard it is going to be. 

SAGE Testing and Other Things I Wish I Could Talk About

     We just finished up SAGE testing.  I wish I could share all the things I think and feel about the testing.  But as an educator, I can lose my teaching license.  Any teacher can tell you the internal struggle they have as they give the tests and how they feel about end of testing only if you are another educator.  It is like a cult of sorts. 
     John Oliver really hit close to home with me when he talked about end of year testing.  https://youtu.be/J6lyURyVz7k .  I actually tossed my cookies during the last section on the math test.  I said part of a question, then I would run into the coat room and throw up into a garbage  can.  I would come back and finish reading the question.  It was quite the spectacle.  I can guarantee my students did not do so hot on that section.  I think I will the prize.  Not to mention that I am the laughing stock of the entire faculty at my school.  It's good to be me. 
     There is a movement of parents opting out of testing.  This movement is stronger among charter schools where parents have more contact with each other.  I think of the demographics at our school, where 75% of my class speaks English as a second language.  It is rare that my families can communicate with each other.  I wonder how fair it is to compare schools with different amount of parental voice than others.  So my school, with 75% English Language Learners are compared to another school where a greater majority of the students have opted out. 
     I can hear family and friends arguing already.  I am not trying to start a dispute.  But until you come to my school, meet my kids, and understand my school's demographics, you don't really understand the discrepancy. 
     Somewhere through the grapevine I heard that any student that opts out, will receive a score of 2 (out of 4) on the test.  I am actually for that.  Now let me explain.  I have opted two of my children out of testing and had my other two children take the end of year testing.  Teachers are not allowed to tell parents about opting out.  Schools are not supposed to advertise the option of opting out.  But in some communities, it is common knowledge.  What about the communities where it is not common knowledge?  The scores of the students that take the test are compared against each other.  What if all of the underscoring students opt out of the test in a higher scoring school? But all the students, including underscoring students, take the test at my school?  How is that fair?  My ability as a teacher is determined by these tests. 
     The whole testing system is flawed. 

Sit Down and Shut Up

The office called me yesterday to tell me there were parents in the office that wanted to meet with me and the principal.  We decided to meet after school.  There is nothing worse than knowing that a parent wants to meet with you and the principal.  It is the anticipation that is the worst.  After school the principal, vice-principal, both parents, and the school secretary (who was there to translate) came to my room.  Talk about intimidating!

Apparently one of my students went home the day before and told her mom that I told her she was stupid and I threw her ruler across the room.  Before I go on with the story, let me clarify that I would NEVER, EVER call a student "stupid".  I repeat, I would NEVER, EVER call a student "stupid".  You can imagine my surprise.

I told the parents I was glad they came to clarify the matter.  I know I would freak out if a teacher ever said that to my kids.  I would be at the school the next day wanting to know what happened too.

Luckily, and I never thought I would be grateful for this, the vice-principal was in the room when this alleged event happened.  The vice-principal is being trained on observing teachers and giving them feedback.  He chose three teachers in the school to observe every other week this year and I was one of the lucky ones.  I think he chose me because we were both at the same school last year.

I told the parents that the vice-principal happened to be in the room at the time and asked him if he would tell them what had occurred.  He retold how I had just given students clear directions to clear their desks.  I waited until all students had cleared their desks.  Then I asked students to talk to their partner about a specific math problem.  As I was walking around, I noticed she had put her ruler back on her desk.  I took it and gently tossed it on my desk that was three feet away.  The vice-principal clarified that it was not done maliciously or in anger. 

I told the parents I did not and would never tell their child she was stupid.  I told them about all the good things I see in their child and how I act in class.

It is hard when a student says something that is not true.  The parents tend to believe their child more than the teacher.  I don't know what I would have done if the vice-principal hadn't happen to be in my class and was able to act as my witness. 

I wondered why she would have said such a thing.  I went to her first grade teacher to see how she was last year.  What I heard, really cleared things up for me.  Last year, she was caught stealing and lying.  The teacher had contacted parents and told them she was a discipline problem.  Things that make you go hmmmmm.

Insta-Care

I swear I have been sick since the beginning of October.  I went in to Insta-Care and they told me my cold would go away sooner or later.  I went into my doctor two weeks later and she told me it was viral and to keep waiting it out.  Two weeks later I was at Insta-Care with a UTI.  The doctor gave me a prescription.  It helped, but I still felt sick and tired.  A month later I went back to Insta-Care only to have them tell me I had an upper respiratory infection and to wait it out.  I took Ky in a week later.  He had an upper respiratory infection as well.  They told me to come back if he had a fever, a sore throat after two weeks, or an ear ache.  They said I should do the same thing if I had any symptoms.

Esophageal Esophagitis

I was diagnosed with Esophageal Esophagitis after my last biopsy.  It means my throat is affected by what I eat.  The doctor told me to go without dairy products and gluten.  It has been a little while since then and it has been quite the experience.

I used to eat yogurt everyday.  Cheese and other dairy products were pretty much my main food stays.  I don't eat much meat, so cutting out dairy and gluten takes away a lot of my choices.