I took a "day off." Actually, I attended a conference at CSU San Bernardino about the ACT test. Because it was a work day, I had to call for a substitute. My evil twin, who was already stressed out and did not think he could make it till Christmas break, decided to call in sick.
Leaving kids with a sub is not always the greatest thing for some teachers. I felt like a parent leaving their toddler with a babysitter for the first time. I laid out explicit instructions for the day's lesson plan, I even thought about leaving my cell phone number just in case of emergency. I told my kids to be good and all that jazz. My goodness... I am a parent.
After that conference, I called up the twin and asked him if he wanted to go to UC Riverside and hang out at the library and grade work. I noticed something different about him that I'm sure his kids will point out tomorrow:
"You shouldn't have gotten a haircut," I said.
"Why not? I needed it, and today was the perfect day to get my errands done."
"I mean, you went out and got a haircut. You must have been really sick today."
Realization hit. "Damn it! I didn't even think of that! Argh!"
New teachers. So much to learn...