What's there to complain about?

I just joined the blog world, and after my first one I am already suffering from the very worst of writer's block.....or so I thought. I just realized that I thought I would use my blog as an outlet, to vent and rant about things I couldn't stand or things of that sort. The thing is, I have a GREAT life. I have nothing to complain about in my personal life. (At least for now!) Things are peachy!

I guess there is one thing that has me bumming. I am currently working as a substitute teacher, getting my name and face familiar to the schools I hope to be teaching in full time next year. Sometimes, the kids get me feeling depressed. I just can't imagine that I was like that just seven short years ago. Was I? Were we?

There are at least ten girls (and I stress the word girls there...) that are pregnant at the school I taught at today. That's not including the several that have already had their children. This school offers childcare. I get their point of view. They want these girls staying in school and getting their education. I applaud that aspect, but only that aspect. Maybe it's not encouraging girls to get pregnant, but it sure takes some of the fear out for them. They should understand that being careless has consequences, and I'm not so sure that the youth of America sees it that way right now. They get their nice big government check, pull child support from the poor, poor baby daddy who never wanted a kid, and they get a babysitter too? Come on. Don't make it easy for them. I'm not hating on mothers who had children at a young age, or before they planned to have them. Some girls become women early and can handle it. I know someone who had a baby in our senior year of high school and she is and has always been an incredible mom. The likelihood that ten girls in high school will be able to handle it? I don't like those odds. I hurt for those unborn children and it upsets me to know that schools are offering babysitting.

How many programs have been cut that steer these kids in the right direction? I remember D.A.R.E- Drug Abuse Resistance Education. Alright, maybe it's a program that we can do without, if parents are doing their jobs at home and educating their kids. They AREN'T. I had the program in fifth grade. I learned a lot. It was the first time I was exposed to all of it. I had no idea what guns and drugs looked like. A lot of parents don't like the idea of getting their children exposed. Why not? It's responsible and controlled exposure and education about the substances from the RIGHT people as opposed to the people trying to convince your child to give in. Come on, just try it once. It scared me out of smoking. All it took was seeing one nicotine filled lung, talking to one visitor with a hole in their neck from a tracheotomy, and knowing that one cigarette takes seven minutes off your life. I was sold. They went on to scare me out of all of it. You're young in fifth grade, but you have a strong sense of reasoning by then. You can figure out that life is a precious gift, so why would you throw it away on this crap? Great program. Barely anyone from my class went into hard drugs. I doubt if any did.

Health class. The next to go. I remember how awkward it was. No one likes to talk about STD's and sex and all of that when you're that age, but it sure helps. Everyone jokes about it in the hallways before they get there and everyone acts like it's yesterday's news. It's not. I was one of those kids, but I never knew anything about sex or any of that until health class.  This class is not offered at the school I taught at today and I wonder if that's why there are so many kids being so blatantly irresponsible about having casual unprotected sex. If they aren't getting it from their parents, which most of them are not, then they NEED to get it somewhere. They need the facts about what it takes to raise a baby before they are going to get into bed. How much do diapers cost? How many will you need per year? Throw those figures at them, and I guarantee it stops at least three of those ten girls from being so careless. Maybe it doesn't save all of them, but maybe it saves most of them. It has me heartsick that we have to cut these programs. I know we are hurting for money, and I know they have to go before Math and English. I think schools can be a little more thoughtful of how they do their cutting and adding though. How is a school going to ADD something like lacrosse while they are taking away something else. I think that if something or someone's salary is getting cut, then nothing better be getting added.

I just had a flashback to the Maury Povich show. He had a drill sergeant that gave teenage girls that were intentionally trying to get pregnant a reality check. Here's a fake baby that cries, poops, screams, pees on you, etc. You're on your own. I never saw one girl that still wanted one after that. Maybe that should be a required class project. Haha, wouldn't that just be ridiculous. It's extreme, but from where I'm sitting, I don't think it's the worst idea.