And I thought summer would never begin for me...

but this is worse!

Summer break will finally start at two Southern California schools after the state rejected a district's plan to use summer sessions to make up for a potentially costly administrative error.

Officials at Chino Valley Unified School District said Friday they have ended the sparsely attended classes and are now depending on a state bill that could waive a $5 million penalty for not meeting the state requirement for school day hours.

Students had been attending extra classes since June 15 at Dickson Elementary in Chino and Rolling Ridge Elementary in Chino Hills. With grades already final, attendance dipped as low as 8 percent at Rolling Ridge.

The error occurred when administrators shortened bell schedules on 34 Fridays below the requirement of 180 minutes a day.

Well, it wasn't much of a program if attendance was voluntary, although it must have just stunk for the staff. I wonder what the people who made the error have learned?

Her name is Legion

Imagine my shock and disgust as I was cornered by Ms. Legion, the school board member from Heckfire, who tried to sidle up to me and commiserate in an attempt to get me to feed her insatiable desire for the expansion of her power of our tiny, insignificant corner of our little world. She basically wanted to know any dirt on our current administration. This is the woman, mind you, who vowed her unending revenge upon me when I refused to allow her Little Darling to turn in whatever he felt like whenever he felt like it.

Ever been in that position, where you were suddenly confronted with your worst nightmare trying to suck you over to the Dark Side? How many cliches popped into YOUR head upon that occasion? Because I had to choose through
"Oh, HELL NO." (Thanks, Will Smith.)
"Not if you were the last person on Earth..."
"-----, PLEASE."

Look, things are NOT GOOD in the world of Cornelius. It happens in the course of a (cough cough hack) LONG career in education in a relatively small school district. But if anyone out there thinks that that means I am going to ally myself in any way with the Mother of All Lies, -- well, you don't know me very well. This is a woman who started her first conversation with me as the parent of one of my students thusly: "So I said to my son, 'Do you want your mother the School Board Member to go to talk to that teacher?'" 'Pon my honor-- my eyeballs nearly popped outta my hayid.

Maybe I am hopelessly naive. I am most certainly going to pay for my time spent with the Scary One. Okay. What's even more scary than those who don't like you acting openly upon that dislike is when they suddenly start stroking your shoulder and batting their eyelashes at you.

I still smell the brimstone clinging to my clothing. I may have to burn that shirt. Darn.