Right now, I am...
-looking forward to having a little break from school next week (we'll probably just do math, our U.S. Presidents study, and plenty of library trips and reading)
-surprised Thanksgiving is in just a week. How did that happen??
-hoping Sonia and Zoe will be more cheerful today. I've experiment with letting them stay up a bit later, and it's become clear that Zoe, at least, is not ready for that. When she starts saying things like, "Books are boring! I hate books!" I know she's just really, really tired.
-looking forward to writing another post about homeschooling, this time answering a reader who asked why we homeschool. Most of the time when I write about homeschooling, I'm responding to emails that question how well homeschooling works, so it'll be fun to write about it from a more positive angle.
-wondering what percentage of people who worry about homeschooling know any homeschoolers in real life. Most times, when people meet us, they feel less nervous about homeschooling.
-thinking about how funny it is that Mr. FG, who went to public school, isn't nearly as outgoing as I am. I could pretty much talk make small talk with a brick wall. 😉
-grateful that he and I both came into this relationship wanting to homeschool our then-future kids. It's lovely to be on the same page.
-thankful that when we have relational bumps, we always manage to work them out, and even more thankful that these bumps are usually productive and change-producing.
-happy about how well My Job Chart is still working to keep Joshua on top of his chores.
-chuckling at some of these outtakes.
That kid over there on the left has some serious personality. 🙂
-wishing I was able to cross more things off of this week's to-do list.
-feeling blah about cooking, but happy that I'm better now at fitting in cooking in the morning.
-still shooting in full manual mode some, and turning out some really awful pictures in the process.
It's all part of the learning process, though, and I'm so grateful for the reusable digital memory I have. I'd ring up a terrible film-developing bill if I was learning back in the day. Either that, or I'd learn to be more careful!
-remembering my unusual but delicious dinner sandwich (fresh whole wheat bread, grilled peppers, spinach, mayo, and dijon mustard). The kids were duly grossed out, but politely said they were glad I enjoyed it.
-hoping that this day of homeschooling will be easier than yesterday. We got done kind of late yesterday and by the end, I was seriously starting to feel like losing my patience. But, by the grace of God, I made it through without raising my voice at anyone. Phew. If the mom loses it along with the kids, things unravel quickly!
Right Now posts (inspired by SouleMama) are really fun to write...if you write one today on your blog, feel free to leave the link in the comments. Or you can do a short 5-item Right Now list directly in the comments.
__________________________________
Today's 365 post:I never get tired of seeing this.
Joshua's 365 post: Something I really enjoy!
How could anyone have doubt that homeschooling works after looking at the smiles on your little ones faces? My daughter went through 12yrs of public school,no problem. I did not even know homeschooling was an option. It seems like ever since my son has been in this world, God has been putting homeschooling "in my face". I have decided this year to finally listen! Will it work, who knows. I do believe God is telling me for a reason and I owe it to him and my son to give it my best try!! Your blog has been so helpful during this process, Thank You.
right now i'm:
-agreeing with your feeling on Thanksgiving. I was actually shocked when someone told me on Tuesday that it's next week.
-thankful that I have loving friends who are willing to share their holiday with us.
-grateful that my grandmother passed down the skillsets that will let me make most of my holiday presents this year.
-hoping that I didn't bite off more than I can chew in that area.
-looking forward to snow. I may regret that in a month or so but right now I'm looking forward to the season.
Right now I'm:
Looking forward to this little girl choosing a birthday!
Wishing I'd gotten more than 2 hours of sleep last night. Lack of sleep makes it harder for me to function and I'm down near base bc of an afternoon appointment.
Glad you did the homeschooling post. It's a while off for us, but I look forward to giving it a whirl in a few years.
Thinking about family and how I'm having to learn that I decide how much impact negative people have on my life and little family.
Thankful that I too married a man who is almost always on the same page as me. Makes life easier to not have to argue about each little thing.
---Right now enjoying reading your right now..
---Also can't believe that Thanksgiving is next thursday!(Now how did that happen???) (have to figure out what to bring to moms for my contribution to dinner)(and that means christmas is right around the corner!)
---Glad Dh and I started our xmas shopping, hopefully we will be done soon.
---Right now.. So glad for my mother, don't know what I/we would do with out her!I am so very glad that she is able to watch my 2 children, and my nephew, so my sister and I can work! (but we take care of her)
--Glad the weekend (which will be crazy as uaual) is right around the corner !
I love these posts! They're so random and enjoyable. Right now, I'm:
- enjoying my morning coffee
- staring down a carrot cake cupcake
- feeling apprehensive about a big meeting with our new boss
- excited about sewing group tomorrow night
- enjoying my morning coffee (slurp)
Happy Thursday-ing.
And hoping my husband got to the dentist on time.
Those pictures of the kids really made me smile! I love reading your blog. I hope you have a blessed Thanksgiving!!
Thanks for the inspiration, I didn't know what to post today! And I loved your homeschooling post yesterday, looking forward to the next!
Here's my Right Now I Am post:
http://purposelyfrugal.com/2011/11/17/right-now-i-am/#.TsUbWEAVmK8
Great post. November is flying by!
Right now I am...
...hoping the baby can get a decent nap before her brothers wake her up...
...excited that today is our art lesson day...
...wondering when on earth I am going to get my edits for my Christmas book...
...mulling over my morning Bible reading...
...and procrastinating on what I really should be doing...
Now I'm off to do what I should be doing. 🙂 Great post!
Thank you for your inspiration today. I wasn't sure what to write about this morning, or even if I wanted to blog, but you gave me the push I needed. 🙂
http://livingbetteronedayatatime.blogspot.com/2011/11/right-now-i-am.html
I wrote one today! Thanks for the inspiration!
http://lifelovelibrarianship.com/?p=1103
So fun! I did one on my blog:
http://leah-abundantlife.blogspot.com/2011/11/right-now.html
What a cute group of kiddos! Enjoy the good times with them.
That is so cute that your kids were so polite! Sometimes that how I think my husband is about my dinners! 😉
I love seeing how home school works. Its so interesting to me to see how children learn since I volunteer in a public school and then check your site all the time.
Its appropriate for kids to go to home school, private school, or public school as longs as you are picking the right one for your children and your family at the right time in their lives and as long as the parents are not making the choice out of fear.
I do know home schoolers and some of them are great examples like your family- well adjusted, learning a lot, but I also know home schoolers that are the definition of why home schooling makes some people worried. And their main motivation to home school is fear. They live in a state of utter fear about their children ever being touched by the evil outside world, or evil public school people and so seclude themselves.
Obviously this is NOT what you are doing, and not what other successful, positive home schoolers are doing either.
Just thought I would let you know, if someone is worried about home schooling they might have a legitimate reason for that fear and its so exciting that you have chosen to show those people that it can work! 🙂 kudos!
oh and I forgot to add- that the same goes with public and private school. If someone places a child in public or private school out of fear they could do just as much damage. Its a big decision how and where to educate children. I have always been grateful how you and this blog are so respectful of people who have chosen differently for their kids.
Please keep it up! 😉
I agree about homeschooling out of fear. I once heard someone say they were trying to keep their children from being tainted by the world. And I was like, "Uh, too late. They kinda come into the world already tainted." Hee.
I don't look at homeschooling as a way of keeping my children in a bubble. I look at it like gardening...when you're growing a tender plant, you put it in potting soil, indoors, under a light, and as it gradually grows stronger, you expose it a little more to the elements until you finally plant it outdoors in the garden. The problem with homeschooling out of fear is that you keep your kids indoors under the plant light until they graduate from high school and then shove them out into the world. The kids aren't really going to know how to handle that very well.
Our kids will have more and more freedom and fewer and fewer restrictions as they get older, so that their transition to independent, adult living isn't sudden.
Oh yes! It is OBVIOUS that you and your husband have sought God and done what He wants. If you are doing what you know He wants for you kids, there is no need to fear! Three cheers for you guys! - and thanks for commenting! I love it when you respond to comments on your blog!
Sociable/reserved has nothing to do with homeschooling and everything to do with personality. In my opinion.
Right now I am:
WISHING I could go back to bed. (coffee is my friend this morning!)
THANKFUL for a day off from work.
LOOKING forward to spending it with my daughter who has the day off from school.
ANNOYED with my big dog who keeps shoving her head into my arm as I try to type, wanting to be petted. Again.
WONDERING how I'm going to "get Christmas accomplished" this year since I've joined the ranks of working moms.
(and a 6th) DEBATING starting a blog but unsure if I should use my time that way.
That is true about personality being a large factor, which is kind of what I was saying yesterday. Some people are naturally great at relating to people, and some aren't. Mr. FG isn't as good at reading people or anticipating responses from people as I am, and being in public school his whole educational career didn't really change that. He is what he is, and I am what I am. 🙂
Have a fun day off!!!
We don't homeschool, but face some of the same criticism for sending our children to a private, Christian school. When someone asks where our children go and I tell them, many times, I get the "What's wrong with public school" or "Oh, you're too good for the regular schools!" I just say they're not right for our family. But, inevitably, they feel compelled to divulge the endless benefits their children are receiving at public school. I understand. However, it's still not right for us. Then, I came to the realization that, instead of me feeling like I have to constantly defend our choices, they are actually trying to justify theirs.
I've definitely experienced that. I think people expect that I will look down on them for not homeschooling, so they quickly explain why they don't or why their public school is really fabulous (and all of this when I haven't really said more than that we homeschool!). It's a little awkward, and I really don't want people to feel like they have to justify their school choices six ways to Sunday. 🙂
Okay, I am one of those who is nervous about homeschool. And yes, I have met a few homeschoolers, as has my husband and that is why we are nervous. The one homeschooler I knew about 20 years ago, could barely do basic arithmatic and had no grammar skills. My school was not the best at teaching grammar, but he was probably writing about on a fifth grade or lower level when he was nearing graduation from high school. My husband had a similar experience when he met some homeschooled students when he was in high school. Now, my actually thoughts and feelings. Homeschooling has the potential to be a great thing, if parents do it well. But it also has the likelihood of not being done well, IMO. Most parents are not teachers and are not trained as teachers. They can teach some of your basic materials, elementary school materials, as could my husband and I. (Even though our son has shown that parental approval is much more serious than teacher approval, so learning something from us is much more ego busting than from a teacher, who has that relationship with him.) But where the problem develops is as the child matures. How many of us can teach grammar? I can't. I can read and write decent English, but I am not a grammarian. I don't know the grammar rules that well. (Was I really misspelling it, or is spell check nuts?) I also could not teach higher math. I could probably teach some algebra and geometry, but would miss some stuff. Now that curriculum is easier to find in the subjects, that does make home schooling easier than it used to be, I would think. I can't teach science dissections. Way too gruesome for me. Most parents have subjects they are good at and ones they aren't as good at, and the child will feel that. What a child needs is teachers who love their subject and yes, I know public school teachers won't all love their subject, but in 12 years they are bound to have at least one teacher who loves each subject I hope.
Finishing off, I guess I will just say that if done well home schooling can be wonderful, but in most cases parents don't knuckle down and do the work necessary. Seems to me the home schooled students I met had shortened days with long field trips, less work and wound up graduating from "high school" with rudimentary writing and math skills. I also wonder how colleges cope, but I guess they just put more emphasis on the placement tests which should make it doable for accepting home schooled students. Oh, and of course, there is the most home schooled students I met were almost totally unsocialized but then I was just as bad being a public school student who was teased for a very long time.
I know you are trying very hard to show both sides in this post, but I think you are generalizing homeschooled kids based on the one you knew, and the one your husband knew.
Sure, many parents who homeschool aren't grammarians. Aren't mathematicians. Aren't professionally trained to teach something specific (if anything at all). But many elementary through middle school teachers are trained to teach a broad range of subjects with an emphasis that all kids pass the standardized tests. It isn't until (sometimes) high school or college that you actually get a chance to study with a professor who is a trained mathematician. Or grammarian. Or linguist.
It's a homeschool curriculum that is followed, often times with homeschool materials and books very similar to traditional schools. The shorter hours are not because a person is lazy and doesn't want to teach--it's because it takes longer to teach a room of 30 than it does to teach one child. This is how home schooled children often graduate early and can even finish college by the time high school is over. They use that "spare" time to learn ahead and complete additional course work before their traditionally schooled peers.
Not all parents are equipped to homeschool their children and some are afraid--that's ok! There are perfectly wonderful public/private schools out there to help 🙂 But to say one is better than the other in any way (especially with the socialization aspect or skill levels learned) is an uninformed opinion.
What if those homeschooled children you knew of had learning disabilities? And were kept home so they could focus on learning rather than on opinions that people thought they were less smart than other children?
edit: Reese, you posted while I was writing my comment! 🙂 Sorry for any repetition in mine.
I definitely won't defend homeschoolers who are doing a poor job (I said that yesterday). However, I think your statement that "most parents don't knuckle down and do the work necessary" might not be accurate. Do you have studies to base that on? Or are you just basing that on your personal experience with homeschoolers?
I'd also like to say that I've come across plenty of public schoolers who have very poor grammar and math skills. Of course, that doesn't make poor homeschooling any better, but I think it's unfair to say that the schooling method is the problem when traditional schools turn out their fair share of people who are poorly educated, you know?
Homeschoolers typically perform well on standardized tests, and they do just fine in college. Here's an interesting article from the early 90s on some of the very first Harvard homeschooled students: http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1989/3/16/homeschoolers-are-at-home-at-harvard/
Here's a more recent article from CBS about homeschoolers in college: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-37242551/can-homeschoolers-do-well-in-college/
Hope that helps! 🙂
My husband's a public school teacher, and he frequently refers to his education degree as a giant waste of time and money (and he went to one of the better-regarded education programs in the country!) His take is that to learn to teach, you have to just jump in and start teaching. He says he learned way more about teaching during one semester of student teaching than he did during a couple years of education classes. Additionally, just because someone has a degree to teach, say, English, doesn't necessarily mean they have an English degree. Many teachers get bachelor's degrees in education (with a focus on whatever subject they want to teach), and then get a master's in education, too. Generally speaking, public schools---and lots of private ones, too---don't have trained grammarians or mathematicians on the faculty. I'm not trying to say all teachers stink, because they don't! Most teachers are pretty good and many of them are great. But I definitely don't believe that an education degree or even a college degree is necessary to teach.
I'm also curious about your claim that "most parents don't knuckle down and do the work necessary." Are you drawing that from your own observations of homeschooled kids who have long field trips and short periods of classroom instruction? Because that's honestly one of the benefits of homeschooling. As Reese noted, it takes much longer to teach a class of 30 or more children and deal with the accompanying interruptions than it does to teach one or a few more children. I know that when I was homeschooled, we only spent a few hours in the classroom each day because it was simply much more efficient. In public school, I was often bored waiting for other kids to finish their work or for the teacher to deal with misbehavior. As far as reading levels and grammar, you would be amazed. My husband teaches high school and many of his students read and write at a low elementary level.
It really just all depends! There are certainly bad homeschooling parents out there, but there are also bad teachers, and bad public-schooling parents, etc.
Kristen, I totally agree that many publicly schooled kids have poor grammar, etc. But as a retired teacher, I have to say that grammar patterns are pretty well established at home before kids come to school at the age of 5. Of course those who wish to internalize what they are taught and strive to become a more educated sounding person can totally overcome that. But...just saying...even though we public school teachers try our hardest to correct poor grammar, it is very hard to do when they come so deeply ingrained with poor speaking habits when they start school. Some dedicated effort has to be put in by the student, too!
Just an update on my post that happens to follow this one--the apple peeler was a great success! I could hardly stop myself from peeling every single apple in the house, it went so quickly! And now I have that delicious smell of apples/nutmeg/cinnamon wafting through the house--can't wait to taste it!
Oh, I agree with you. What I was trying to say is that sometimes people who point out poor homeschooling families an example often neglect to say that there are public schooled graduates with abysmal grammar skills as well.
One shouldn't write off public schools in general because of some poorly run schools just like one shouldn't write off homeschooling in general because of some poorly run homeschools.
I definitely wasn't trying to denigrate teachers and their efforts, though. 🙂
Sorry, if people thought I was attacking home schooling. I was not. I was merely saying in response to the question if those who are nervous about home schooling have any experience or not, that yes, some have had some experience. I admitted that my experience was based on a few home schooled students of about 20 years ago before much curriculum was available and that it did make me nervous. I never argued against home schooling, merely that it had to be done well.
Now when it comes to public schools, I have a hard time arguing for that one too, to be honest. Teachers do have to spend so much time on the most behind student, leaving the students like my son completely bored. So what are we doing? What have we decided has worked for us so far? Well, we took him out of public school after first grade, when he started to get an attitude that he was smarter than his teacher because he was ready for subtraction and successive adding/intro to multiplication and his class was mostly on single digit addition. When my son said if there was one less dart on the dart board there would be x, I decided it was time to introduce him to subtraction. (Between kindergarten and 1st grade, I think it was.) We went to a private Montessori school for a few years, until they did something in 5th grade that annoyed us, and then for 6th through 8th so far, he has been doing IQ Academy. It is online schooling through the Waukesha Public School system (Wisconsin). And so far, it is working quite well. He can take high school classes if the teachers think he is ready and he is.
So for me, it is not the method of education one chooses to employ, it is the dedication to education the parents have. The few people I have met who most often do home schooling do it out of a fear or hatred for the outside world, not to give their kids a good education. Even some of the curriculum seems to be written for that purpose from what I have seen. IE my son could do well at public school, why? Because his parents will make sure he does and will supplement if needed. Whatever direction you choose, you have to understand that the school or curriculum won't do it all for you. The parents have to put in some time. (Even if the public school does their darndest to either pigeon hole you into particular places or tells you to get out. Which by the way, they do, even if they don't know it.)
I do have to support your statement that home schooling lessons can be accomplished in a MUCH shorter time than public schooling can. In the later years of my public school career, I was spending SO much time on getting all of my students on task, disciplining, etc, etc, that much of the time I spent teaching in the early years of my career went out the window just with "housekeeping" type things before we could even get down to teaching the lesson! You wouldn't have much of that wasted time in home schooling with a few kids.
Oh, I didn't mind the examples you wrote about. I just take exception to your statement about "most homeschooling parents" because that was more of a generalization about us homeschoolers, not just an observation of the homeschoolers you met.
That said, I am 1000% on board with you about parents...without sufficient parental involvement, it'll be a rare child that succeeds educationally, no matter what form the schooling takes.
Right now I am...
1. Enjoying a cup of coffee from McDonalds.
2. Thinking that Thanksgiving snuck up on all of us because Nov. 24th must be about the earliest it could possibly fall.
3. Getting ready to start baking the apple cake I will serve to the seniors at an assisted living place where I volunteer to read to a group every week. I always take a homemade snack for them, they love it. I borrowed a friend's apple peeler/slicer to make the work easier!
4. Mulling over ideas in my mind, so I can put them on paper and get my contractor out here to discuss the remodel I plan to do next summer to bring my laundry room up from the basement.
5. Watching the weather report and seeing that we had the coldest night of the year so far--16 degrees. I suppose that means that the blooming geranium in the pot on my front porch may have finally bitten the dust!
Holy moly! -16 is seriously cold.
Sorry, that was a dash, not a minus sign! It was +16 here in Nebraska! Brrrrr, hate to think of those January nights when it will probably get down to -16!!!
Well, +16 is STILL cold. 😉
I am:
--enjoying reading my favorite blogs with a cup of tea
--wishing that a couple of friends who are on the outs with each other would resolve their differences
--tired as I didn't make my bedtime deadline last night
--amazed that the holiday season starts next week
--feeling too busy with a lot of social events and little time at home
I hate it when I let my life get like that...I need at least some time at home in order to be on top of things!
Right now I'm:
*finishing getting ready for parent/teacher interviews
*looking forward to an annual shopping trip this weekend
*needing a cup of java
*feeling I made a breakthrough with a kiddo who has been struggling
*deciding how to spend some extra time with my kiddo tomorrow afternoon since I work late tonight
*glad again that I happened upon your blog (no, I'm not sucking up-it just tends to make my day)
Aww, that makes MY day! 🙂 I know how other blogs sometimes brighten my day, and I'm so glad mine serves you in that way.
🙂
It is nice to wake up to your blog!
Praying for my husband to do well in his job interview
Freaking out cause if he gets the job it means a 1000 mile move away from my family
Thankful that if he get the job its close to his family and my aunt
Praying for God will in our lives
Chuckled yesterday on comments to "adjusting to the real world" after homeschooling vs public schooling. Isn't homeschooling a bit more real world than public school? It seems you'd need to utilize disciplining yourself a lot more @ home vs at public school...
"-wondering what percentage of people who worry about homeschooling know any homeschoolers in real life. Most times, when people meet us, they feel less nervous about homeschooling."
I agree! I think there's a really big stereotype about homeschooling and homeschoolers that's ALMOST entirely based on assumption.
http://paperarmour.blogspot.com/2011/11/right-now-im.html
I would love to know how Mr. FG learned about homeschooling and why (having gone to public school himself) he wanted your kids to be homeschooled. And I totally agree with your point about actually knowing homeschoolers. I used to think it was kooky until I met some homeschoolers, and now I think most homeschoolers are proactive, smart and have done a lot of thinking about their children's education.
Well, he met some people in CA while he was living there who had a bunch of children and they were homeschoolers. That family really changed his mind about children and about education.
He also did some reading about public education, and that made him more sure he'd like to go the homeschool route.
At the moment, I am:
- Reading your blog 🙂
- Enjoying a glass of wine and chatting with my husband while we watch a taped TV show (Homeland)
- Worrying about my 13 year old daughter, who has a sore throat, cough and a mild fever. She's miserable.
- Wondering what to do about this horrible cracks on my super dry fingers and feet, that are bleeding. Nothing helps - trust me, I've tried every remedy out there. Boo.
Ever see a doctor for that? I have excema and my dermatologist gave me some cream that at least helps mine. In the winter is the bad time for me, and yes, it has begun. My skin is dry and gets to where I look like an old woman and sometimes the skin pulls, like it is too tight or something and I get friction when I rub my husband's back and yes, I barely tap my hand on something and I bleed. Sometimes I think I am going to bleed if I bend my hands and stretch my skin too much.
Skirnir, gosh, that sounds so painful! Ack!
My hope in describing it in more detail, Shana could decide if that is what she had. It can be very annoying. Like constant rug burn, but the cream does help up to a point. What was bad is when I wasn't using it, moisturizing cream got to where it made it worse. It stung badly and I had to go wash it off. Now if I could just get my dermatologist to give me more of the cream. *grumble* My GP tried to give me the same stuff, but it is a different consistency/make up more of a cream and less of a gel, and doesn't work as well as what the dermatologist recommended years ago.
Constant rug burn would definitely get old! I get dry skin to a degree in the winter, but nothing like what you and Shana are describing.
Yes, I went to a doctor for this -- he basically just used a tool to grind the callouses on my feet down and handed me cream and said to wear socks (insert eye roll here). As for my hands, I just use liquid skin and wear bandaids, but it is very very painful.
I can only imagine how bad dry skin can be in your area. I remember when I visited my uncle in your state, I couldn't even wear my contacts because my eyes were so dry.
Shana, I get painful cracks in my fingers in the winter. To remedy that, I go to bed every night with bandaids and Neosporin on all of the sore ones. It takes the soreness out overnight and I can function the next day without pain. By evening they are hurting again, and I may have to do that for several nights before they fully heal, but it does eventually encourage healing.
Pam, this is exactly what I do 🙂 You're right - it is better in the morning but just cracks/bleeds again the next day.
Sigh. Another reason that I really, really, hate winter.
My reflexive unease with home schooling comes from a long career as an investigator of child abuse. They were disproportionately represented in homes where sexual and/or physical abuse was going on---it got so bad that whenever I heard that the husband, in particular, was fanatical about home schooling, it made the hair rise up on my neck. I am not saying it is the majority of the home schoolers at all, please don't misunderstand. But when it is coupled with an element of a super-controlling father, it makes me very nervous. There were cases of physical abuse where we told the parents we would put the child in foster care unless the child was enrolled in public school and did not miss a day of school without a physician's note; it was the only way to insure that someone would see a child every day and notice bruising. When I read all the comments having to do with concerns about the quality of home schooling, it is reassuring to me because it balances out a decade of seeing it as a red flag.
Right now I'm
looking... forward to Food Waste Friday going up!
wondering...whether I'll be at my desk when it does!
thinking...about what an earth to put with broccoli to make a nice soup as part of NWTG!
grateful...that I have three slow-cookers and not just one to take the strain today!
happy...that I have enough leftovers to excuse me from cooking lunch today - I've enough to batch cook without adding to the pressure!
Zoe's face in the second photo is absolutely cracking me up. Love the photos! 🙂
{giggle} ... the comment about how outgoing you are and talking small talk with a brick wall ... that's ME ... I was very very quiet when younger but then my first office job (thanks to my b/f Ellen working with NFL football players) answering the phones (um, yeah, receptionist) ... I was so very nervous that I'd be speaking to people I had never met (horrors!) ... she told me "just pretend that they are the best friend you never met" ... can I tell you that is my motto to THIS very day. Which is probably how I became the highest paid receptionist in town at the time =D ...