Do you remember that from school?  That may have been the second scariest thing the Principal could say to us... and I heard it a few times...

But, come on...

Does my broker care that I put a harmless garden snake in the desk of my 4th grade teacher, Miss Bottomly (I'm not making that name up...)?  Or was the record not so permanent?  To hear Dr. Green... that episode would haunt me for the rest of my life. 

In 7th grade, I had a serious school skipping problem.  Keep in mind that I carried an A average... with my lowest grade being an A...  I still skipped 2 days a week for 2 months before the school figured out a pattern.  I could have skipped three, but that seemed too much to me.  You'd think that any kid that was absent every Tuesday and Wednesday for eight weeks would trigger an alarm somewhere... a phone call home?  No, my Dad busted me. 

As a high school senior, I again had a little issue with attendence.  I went sailing with my Jeff out on the Chesapeake Bay.  May was a beautiful month...  I didn't have any tests...  We had a great time sailing.  But the kicker was that I needed a note.  So, I wrote one and signed my own name.  I suppose there is an advantage to having the same name as good ol' Dad.  I was not asked if it was me... just asked for my Dad's phone number to verify.  My Dad, living in MN with a phone number in MN just assumed that the person that called him must be an idiot... calling from VA to ask if he wrote the note for me that morning.  1983.  Doubtful that my Dad had that kind of call forwarding available.  I had a little "splainin;" to do when I got home.  I graduated with honors. 

None of those things seemed to stick to my "permanent record"

And now...  Another generation of the "permanent record" is about ready to launch.  I've been told that as a Pre-K student, my son is to be at school five days a week.  He can't miss more that like 8 days per semester without danger of failing...  He's 4.  Is he going to miss an important World History test?  It will be worse next year with Kindergarten.  And I want to take him out of school for a week to go to Moab, UT.  He will learn WAY more during a week of fourwheeling that he would at school.  Dinosaur tracks.  Ancient art.  Sandstone.  Jeeps.  Steep hills.  Or should I say: Paleontology, Anthropology, Geology, Physics, Geography.

I guess I'll risk it...

The world has a LOT of incredible lessons to teach.  The Georgia Aquarium.  The World Of Coca-Cola.  The Atlanta Zoo.  The Atlanta Botanical Gardens.  The Georgia Railway Museum.  Stone Mountain Park.  Cloudland Canyon.  Amicalola Falls.  I could go on for quite a while... there are thousands of places to have fun and learn in North Georgia... or Utah... or Michigan... or anywhere else. 

Take a day...

And take your kid out to learn something and have fun.  Get a dent in that permanent record. 

*** The Gwinnett County Schools and the NEA did NOT approve this message. ***