Lock Down Drama

Ya'll know I just can't help myself and hey this blog beats me paying for a therapist so it's your choice to listen to me rant and rave about my crazy life....I'm just warning you!

After all my jealous talk concerning 'those moms' who get to volunteer in their kids' classrooms b/c 1. they don't have anything better to do 2. they sacrifice the time from their job (yes, working moms volunteer too now!) or 3. they have the money for a babysitter (something I'm just not that devoted to do this year, the kids have to eat, sorry)for all those preschoolers/babies they have at home, I finally got to sign up to help in Eli's classroom for a project. It was my friend's scheming and on the ball planning that arranged it all...I watched her kids yesterday so she could help with project number 1 and then she reciprocated today for me to help with project number 2.

I was all ready with my glue gun and sequins in hand. Eli was so excited about me coming into his classroom this morning. I met my friend in the parking lot to hand off sister girl for an hour of play and I started up the big stairs to our school.

And what did I see? All the other moms who were volunteering sitting on the steps. "Code Yellow - the schools locked down and we don't know why but we can't get in." At first we sat their nice and cordial talking with each other and then the time kept passing and we became curious. Finally the SRO pulled up in his cop car and gave the five of us moms baking in the hot sun the scoop..."there is a psych patient that escaped the hospital (just down the road) and is wandering around. Everyone's out looking for him so it maybe awhile." Well, being the protective and devoted moms that we all were we asked for a description of this loony man and stood our ground. Of course no one was going to be the first to get up and say "I'm leaving" because there was still a project that needed to be done and WE were the moms to get it done today! Our teacher needed our crafty abilities; we couldn't let her down.

So we kept chatting and watched all the strange people walking around the neighborhood (our school is right down from the square and beside MTSU's campus so you can only imagine the characters we saw.) At one point an old man wearing the same clothes described by the SRO as our escaped assailant walked right past us. You should have seen the five of us staring him down as he approached. Now don't you know he was an old man out on a leisurely stroll but some of the moms just let their maternal instinct kick into overdrive and one even yelled out, "You don't have a tattoo on your neck do you?" (this was police information we had) to which the older gentleman looked our way and said "no" as he gave us all a quick "you are a bunch of crazy overprotective mothers who can't leave the steps of your kids' school for some reason" look. Then another mother piped up..."You didn't just come from the mental hospital did you?" I almost died! Thankfully she yelled out (by this time he was starting to jog away from us as fast as he could) "be careful there is a crazy man wearing the same clothes as you out there!"

This sure beat watching Elmo's world and eating goldfish!

Well...the time finally approached the end of the designated volunteer hour and my free babysitting was up (not to mention she had been playing on the playground near by and I forgot to call her and let her know there was a crazy man on the loose...so when I did make the call, I was just enjoying myself so, she quickly tossed the little boogers into the van and locked the doors!)I had to call it a morning.

Now I will just vent one time...I understand the precautions that schools have to take but I'm just saying...really???? Is this what our community has come to that we are so protective b/c there are so many crazy people now that we have to lock out a bunch of moms from getting into the school to use a glue gun? I know, I know...that crazy man could have changed clothes and dressed like a stay at home dad wanting to eat lunch with his kid and all...that can be confusing for the administration. But really? Weren't there crazy people a long time ago that just walked around town free? No, I am very glad that my school takes precautions to keep my kids safe (like last year when they practiced code red and all the kids had to pick a weapon of choice like a book or pencil and throw it at the 'stranger' who was trying to break into their room). I have no worries over their safety while at that school. It's just a sad, sad time we live in when five moms in pony tails and flip flops can't enter the school b/c of fear of the outside.

But I did enjoy my hour of adult talk where I wasn't chasing a toddler around and I think I even got a little tan on my arms! And as for that crazy man? I sure hope they find him before 2:45 or that school might just be serving a bunch of kids supper tonight!