Meh, part deux

I'm grouchy this morning because I'm tired. I feel tired all the time now and it's because my schedule sucks. Part of me wishes I was the kind of disciplined person who just functions and gets things done in a timely manner; the sadder part is that comparatively speaking, I AM this person and still can't give myself a break. Whatever I'm not doing sits in the back of my brain, scowling at me without regard to what I am accomplishing. Alas.

I'm going to gripe about students, so if you're bored already, stop reading here.

For the duration of my being a teacher, I have marveled at the number of students who go to college, pay for books and tuition, and sacrifice the time they could be partying or working, only to slack off and pretend they're still in high school. I know that needs no direct response because it's a given that most people under 25 have no concept of the forest; only trees. Having said that, I'm sick to death of having to play Mommy with these people who need Mommies more than they need professors to teach them something. I must again undercut this by confessing that with dedicated students, I often enjoy mothering/mentoring; it's the fucking slackers that I can no longer suffer.

A is a girl who missed the entire first week of class, which is never a good sign. It also means that she has missed every single thing I said about how I operate, what the course is all about, and the grumpy syllabus rules that dictate all of the shit I refuse to accept. Then she disappears for another entire week, writes me a half-assed email about a death in the family - which, can I say, is the LAMEST excuse ever. Not that it doesn't happen, but I have a hard time believing that so many grandmothers can die in a single semester span. Seriously. Is there a dead grandmother epidemic I should know about?

Even if that is bitchy and sending me straight to hell, how does that death - if it happened - justify a week's absence from school? My grandfather died when I was a freshman in college and he was in Wisconsin; do you know how many days of school I missed for that event? NONE. Pam lost her husband three weeks before master's comps, and how many classes did she miss? NONE. Either school is a priority for you or it isn't. This is a simple concept, and my thing is, if school isn't or cannot be a priority for you due to personal life constraints, then quit and return when you can dedicate yourself. I don't know why so many people think I should have to hear about their lives and their supposed tragedies and make exceptions for them. Fuck their collective sense of entitlement. Grrrrr.