I have been in a strange place lately. I feel like I am going through the motions but not really enjoying anything. I picked up another freelance job so I have been working a lot.

Amazingly I was able to get noodle promoted to the second grade. He is doing well in all subjects but he struggles with reading. I let the school know that retention was not an option. I also said we were willing to do whatever was needed to get him on grade level.

Unfortunately, his (young redneck who has never been more than ten miles from home) teacher was determined that she was going to hold him back. So during my many conversations with the principal (and several calls to the school board) I mentioned that if they tried to retain him, I was not opposed to:

1. Hiring a lawyer to fight it.
2. Pulling him out and going to a private school.
3. Showing several reporters the documents I had obtained that reveal that his school has the highest retention rate of K-2 in the county (almost the highest in the state)

Why did I mention retention rates? Schools in N.C. get bonus money (or sanctions) based on the number of children who pass or fail the 3rd grade tests. During my research on retention statistics for noodle’s school I discovered that if a child has been retained in K-2, his/her 3rd grade test scores do not count against the school.

I also suggested to the principal that maybe they were holding kids back in order to keep their "End of 3rd Grade" test results artificially high.

Anyway, when Noodle’s report card arrived they had marked retained on it and it had been scratched out and promoted to 2nd grade was written in. My inside sources tell me that his teacher was determined to hold him back (we had a few run ins this year) but the principle told her that the school had to many other problems to deal with right know and I was not someone who would go away quietly.

Sometimes it pays to be a bitch. Also we are paying (big bucks) to have noodle privately tutored 5 days a week this summer so he will be back on track.

What else is going on? The medical procedure (test) I had a few weeks ago came back good. However, like every other time I have been to a doctor they identified a new problem. I hate that phone call .... Ms. Lawson we noticed some spots on your mammogram that need to be checked further.

I went for a sonogram on Friday and it was going well, most of the spots were just cysts. The technician and I were chatting away when she suddenly got quiet. Then she started marking things on the screen. I finally asked "What are you marking?" She replied "uh, well, you have some abnormal lymph nodes."

I decided not to ask any more questions. After I dressed, she said okay you’re done. You'll hear from the doctor Tuesday.

TUESDAY???? I hate when they make you wait, wondering for days what the hell they suspect.

On a good note I have several trips planned over the next few weeks. My parents and one sibling have rented a beach house about 1 1/2 hours from Mayberry, so I am going to go see them for a few days.

Then Megmonster and her Dude Guy are coming to visit and we are all heading up to DC for a few days to visit the Smithsonian and the National Zoo.

That’s it for now, we are all caught up.