Public Education and Hypocrisy

The public schools are educating kids for about the same price tag as the private schools in East Texas, based on the Texas Comptroller’s Financial Allocation Study for Texas or FAST report.

I think that’s pretty big news, especially when you consider the public schools can’t just bounce out the kids who misbehave and cause chaos in the classroom.

The classroom is not the place for social services, along with naughty to violent behavior.

And yet, most public school teachers spend a good chunk of their teaching time dealing with issues that are related to bad behavior and disrespectfulness.

There also is a laundry list of social services available, mandated by legislative and judicial bodies and administered through the public school system, mostly by overworked teachers.

Most of it has nothing to do with education. Some of the bureaucracy is simply related to keeping control in the classroom.

In the meantime, teachers are burdened with all kinds of accountability disguised as testing. Unfortunately, we are holding the wrong people accountable.

Modern language has twisted the meaning of the word hypocrisy.

Jesus made his most scathing remarks to people He labeled as hypocrites, so it is kinda crucial to know who is a hypocrite.

Basically, if I tell my kids to do as I say, not as I do – which, by the way, is something I tell them regularly - I am not being a hypocrite in the biblical sense of the word.

On the other hand, if I act super-spiritual, burdening people with foolishness, especially if I take on a leadership role, then, bingo, I am a hypocrite of biblical proportions.

So, what has the biblical definition of hypocrisy got to do with public education and the bureaucracy of taxpayer funded schools?

Basically, as a culture, we are guilty of a major kind of hypocrisy.

As taxpayers, we are claiming to fund education when what we are actually funding is juvenile detention for a large percentage of “students.”

Unfortunately, because we are putting a gentle “education face” on a serious cultural “juvenile delinquency problem”, the kids who go to school to learn are getting short-changed.

Pretending to educate when we are really committed to using public schools to keep delinquents off the streets is a serious kind of hypocrisy.

It should go without saying that the classroom is for educating those who want an education. For everyone else, we need juvenile detention.

And we need leaders who will tell the truth about it.

Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at checklistcharlie.blogspot.com.

Red Shoe Philosophy

Valentine’s Day is not really about love at all. It is all about philosophy.

For this reason, I think it is important to note philosophical issues, especially the ones related to Valentine’s Day.

For instance, the Red Shoe Philosophy is one noteworthy theory that seems particularly relevant as Valentine’s Day approaches.

The Red Shoe Philosophy is simple: If you wear red shoes you will have a good day.

This semi-scientifically tested theory seems to hold true regardless of bad hair days, by the way. Or extra weigh gained over the holidays.

There is something so invigorating about a high-healed pair of red pumps.

I especially liked the picture I saw recently of a pair of red tennis shoes under a prom dress.

Or red cowboy boots; yeehaw!

Not only does a gal in red shoes walk with a little extra spring, she puts a smile on the face of anybody who happens to catch a glimpse of her lipstick-colored footwear.

The reason I think the Red Shoe Philosophy is relevant for Valentine’s Day is because a lot of single gals detest this holiday.

There’s something so disappointing for single gals about the heartbreaking combination of a holiday that emphasizes chocolate and having no one to give you any.

Having the right philosophy is self-empowering.

The great news is, you get to choose your own podiatral adornments. And shoes don’t add calories to your diet.

Like a gal in a zippy red sports car, you can leave all those single guys idling in the wake of your glimmering, flashes of self-confidence.

Or for the guy who is the lucky lover of a gal who buys into the whole Red Shoe Philosophy, here’s another philosophical pearl that is sure to come in handy when you rush out at the last minute in a Valentine’s Day buying panic.

Gals love shoes. Especially red ones. Hint, hint.

So, for the guy desperately trying to please his sweetheart, some pertinent philosophical perspectives seem especially relevant this time of year.

Just buy jewelry.

Or check in her closet for her shoe size.

Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at checklistcharlie.blogspot.com.

Famous Quotes by Non-Famous People

“All perspectives are valid, but not all perspectives are (pause) mature,” she said with a twinkle in her eye, addressing her audience of mommies and daddies for the first time as they sat in the miniature chairs their kiddoes would be squirming in soon.

Loretta Van Cleave, kindergarten teacher of both my girls, was definitely in the position to witness the maturity of small people and people who should have known better.

I’m sure she would say that her life was fulfilling, but it wasn’t long enough to suit those of us who loved her. Still, she left behind an inheritance of succinct, practical wisdom, demonstrated with a heart attitude that made everybody want to play nicely.

I’ve been collecting quotes for years. Me, the girl who can’t remember her own phone number and who deletes all names necessary for introductions at the exact moment of any handshake.

For some reason, I store non-famous peoples’ quotes away instantaneously and recall them without any effort at all. Unlike names and other crucial information, like where I put my car keys.

I heard a couple of doozies lately.

“God does not honor complaining. He honors thankfulness,” said Johnnie Herndon as she pinned the hem of my trousers to prepare them for alteration. Johnnie and I are friends because she works at Alterations by Sylvia’s. I’m in there a lot because slacks are always too long for short, fluffy girls; not that I’m complaining. Actually, I was complaining to Johnnie about how people always complain. She was sympathetic and oh-so-gentle.

“Everything a man does to get a wife, he needs to do to keep her,” said Byron Henderson in front of my son and my husband as we were saying goodnight to our guests. Byron, an air conditioning specialist and also an associate pastor of Galilee Baptist Church, had just finished a discussion with a group of my son’s friends about being a Godly man. I wasn’t invited to the discussion, but was simply reappearing to shake his hand and say thank you.

I’m pretty sure Byron’s quote is one I will never forget.

I might even have occasion to use it.

My son’s future wife will thank me someday, I bet.

But I guess that could be a matter of perspective.

Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at checklistcharlie.blogspot.com.

Meals on Wheels: Recipe for Service

Fruit salads are one of my favorite treats next to turkey or ham around the holidays.

Another treat is eating at Meals on Wheels.

I bet you didn’t know that Meals on Wheels occasionally hosts club luncheon meetings for organizations interested in knowing more about their efforts.

“Meals on Wheels Ministry, Inc. serves a daily meal to nearly 3,500 frail, homebound senior citizens and disabled persons every weekday in East Texas.

These meals are prepared fresh at the central kitchen located at 3001 Robertson Road, Tyler, TX, “ according to www.mealsonwheelseasttexas.org. “The meals are then home-delivered by compassionate volunteers to eligible persons who cannot provide meals for themselves. Often this is the only meal they will have that day.”

When Mike Powell and his staff served up this fabulous Waldorf salad along with lunch for a recent meeting of the Bethesda Alliance luncheon, I asked for the recipe to share with readers. It’s the best Waldorf I ever put in my mouth.

Monarch Mayonnaise’s Waldorf Salad

2/3 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup mayonnaise

3 Tbsp. sour cream

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. sugar

4 Granny Smith apples, cut into ½ inch cubes

1 1/3 cup thinly sliced celery

1 1/3 cup red grapes, halved

¼ cup candied pecans, for garnish

Mix all ingredients, except the pecans, together in a mixing bowl, until uniform. Cover and refrigerate until needed. Serve on a bed of fresh bib lettuce. Sprinkle the candied pecans on top for garnish.

While I was munching on lunch, I learned another interesting fact about Meals on Wheals. Did you know that you don’t have to be impoverished to enjoy having a meal delivered to your home? If you have a loved one who could benefit from the service and can afford to pay for the meals, Meals on Wheals will deliver your lunch at a prorated fee.

They even have grateful customers and families who subsidize other, less fortunate customers’ lunches with a regular donation.

Making Meals on Wheels a perfect example of the motto: “Serve people and success will follow.”

In Bullard, the plan is to collaborate with the Bullard library to put in a kitchen that can act as a southern staging point for Meals on Wheels delivery.

If you ask me, this is one more reason to support efforts to build the new library building in Bullard.

To volunteer for Meals on Wheels or for more information, contact Executive Director Mike Powell at 903.593.7385 or go to their website at www.mealsonwheelseasttexas.org.

Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at checklistcharlie.blogspot.com.

Night Before Hunter’s Christmas

I am not much of a poet, as you will see if you read further.

My apologies.

Hunting season and the holidays collide this time every year and all Texas women know what that means.

In case you are giving your husband a utensil useful for hunting, like say a gun, this Christmas, this little ditty can serve as an incentive to send your husband on a scavenger hunt that is sure to entertain your children and other loved ones.

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring not even a mouse.

The children were tucked in and trembling with fear because a cowboy was loose and protecting their gear.

The stockings were hung by the chimney with glee and there was amo beribboned and under the tree.

Other folks get golf clubs, fishing rods, and the occasional book.

Not at this house; no, take another look.

The gun safe is locked with its dangerous load.

Nothing new there, so don’t bother with the code.

With another weapon, we’ll all feel more secure.

You’ll be the envy of all alpha males, that’s for sure.

Burglars, be warned: Best stay out of sight!

This Christmas is protected and locked up tight!

Santa is jolly and his message is blunt:

Merry Christmas to all and to all a safe hunt!

I’m sure my husband is hoping the hunt for a new gun will become an annual Christmas morning tradition.

Personally, I think a good novel and a box of chocolates are more in keeping with the peaceful sentiments of the season.

Bambi agrees with me.

Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at http://checklistcharlie.blogspot.com.

Gun Safety; a Mom’s most-feared the oxymoron

A kid brought a BB gun on a Bullard school bus causing a serious stir on the rumor mill among worried parents, but fortunately no other disturbances.

Thanks to the alert and quick handling by school officials, and some well thought out policies and training, we are not reporting a tragedy in this week’s paper.

When I heard the rumors, my first thought was: There but for the grace of God go I.

My husband was in charge of gun safety at our house because, well, bluntly my dad did such a good job on gun safety over 40 years ago that I am paranoid of guns to this day.

Gun safety is an oxymoron, if you ask me.

Thank heavens God gave my children two parents because my husband has a more judicious, less hysterical approach.

I never worried about our daughters, too much, being hormonally predisposed to a sensible, practical approach to weapons.

In fact, one of our daughters recently finished her Concealed Handgun License, or CHL. I love to brag about her perfect score on the target shooting section of the training.

Her daddy rewarded her by buying her a sleek, small black handgun that looks like a toy. I have no idea how it feels cus I won’t get near it.

Knowing she is licensed to carry actually makes me sleep sounder at night.

My son is getting there, too, but that hasn’t always been the case.

As a 3-year-old, he would slip out of the house and stop traffic with his plastic cowboy pistols. The main danger was to his mother who suffered serious panic attacks on multiple occasions with that kid’s adventures.

Fortunately, the neighbors quickly grew to anticipate the unexpected and graciously proceeded with extreme caution while he outgrew the sheriff stage.

We took the obvious precautions with our guns.

-We locked them in a gun safe with a combination, not a key, lock.

-I insisted on trigger locks on each and every gun inside the safe.

-We kept the ammo in a separate, secure place on the other side of the house.

Our kids know “All guns are always loaded, even the ones you think are unloaded.” They also know to get the heck out of Dodge if they see anyone holding a gun in an unsafe way or place. Run, don’t walk.

We live in Texas. People keep as many guns as they keep Bibles in their homes. And that’s a lot.

But for heaven’s sakes, there are things you can do to keep guns out of the hands of children.

Do so, or suffer serious personal consequences, folks.

Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at checklistcharlie.blogspot.com.

Putting the Profit in Non-profit

All successful organizations are purpose-driven.

Whether it’s a good cause or just having fun, a shared sense of purpose is what unites people.

Unfortunately, with the recession, many non-profits are checking their budget and squirming for lack of funds, even those groups who are united around a worthy purpose.

With so many inexpensive booths available at fairs and festivals this fall, a booth is an excellent way to get the word out about your organization AND pick up some spare change.

But what to sell? Anything that is fun to buy.

That especially includes any paraphernalia pertaining to hobbies and sports, like:

-Hunting (pocketknives, camo hunting vests, ammo belts),

-Fishing (lures; antique lures, rods, or tackle boxes),

-Auto, Boat, and Motorcycle accessories (special cleansers or chamois, flashlights, gadgets, gizmos, and guy stuff),

-Grilling (small recipe books created by your organization, tools like tongs or spatulas, spice packages),

-Golf (golf balls or towels with funny sayings, emergency medical kits with sunscreen and band aids and funny “remedies” for bad golf days).

If you still need ideas for what people want to buy, here are a few more suggestions:

-Spend the day at Canton with some club members and search for ideas.

-Walmart has a whole aisles of ideas of stuff that people want to buy, especially the “impulse” displays that always catch me right before the cash register.

-Don’t miss a chance for members to clean out their attics and re-purpose gently used stuff to raise funds for your group.

-Why not plan a special fundraiser dinner for a few days later and sell tickets at your booth?

Finally, most importantly, new members mean new income in dues and donations, so don’t forget to recruit. Come prepared with brochures that clearly state the purpose of your organization.

Having enthusiastic volunteers ready to answer questions will make recruitment more successful. Have clipboards with membership applications ready that include contact info like email, phone, and address.

If you offer a discount to anyone joining that day, you may find that new members are eager to write a check for membership dues on the spot. Be sure to have a lock box available and a member assigned to be responsible for it.

In fact, if you plan your booth strategy well, you may find your next big project is training new members and figuring out what to do with all that extra cash.

Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at checklistcharlie.blogspot.com.