{{Buffistas with school age kids}} Another level of stress and uncertainty is so not helpful. This too shall pass?

Logged in to the Publix vaccine link again early this morning and watched it auto refresh for an hour before telling me the many thousands of doses were all gone. Try again on the 3rd. Sigh. Maybe the single dose JNJ variety will be here before my name gets to the top of a queue.

flea, FWIW, my son was self-sabotaging with not turning in work, or doing it and not turning it in, for 9 years of school. We finally found a counselor that he couldn't snow and they've been working on his low self esteem issues...but what really turned him around was at the end of last year, I made him sit down and do the math for his GPA as it would have been, had he turned in every assignment and gotten Cs on each one. I then asked him to show me what he actually got on the assignments he turned in (As and Bs). He saw first-hand the huge bump in GPA...and we promised to not criticize him about his grades this year as long as every assignment was turned in.

This was his first semester with all assignments in. He got Ds on some of them, but given that he's had about 40 hours of homework a week in addition to school, I get it. I even managed to keep his father from criticizing him about pulling a B- in history, and instead praise him for getting the work in.

This is because he had been telling himself that he'd never be good enough, so why try? But also, he had to experience first-hand that it's much less effort to turn in work than to do the work and not turn it in and lie about it and hide it.

My whole job right now is to get my kids through this safely, and I can't even seem to do that.

You are 100% doing that!

Side note to gamers: the buyer was the CTO of Electronic Arts back in the day. He was the guy in charge of developing The Sims! (among many other things)

Anyone else just dying to see the house this guy builds???

Today is my bosses last day. She's been here (not in this position) for 31 years, straight out of HS. The knowledge leaving is immense. Big Boss has been here just over a year.

Sorry so many are having a rough time. Flea, I totally feel you. Sorry I do not have any advice, I had decided to let E fail by that time.

There was an article in the paper, an opinion piece, by a doctor who specializes in treating adolescents. They said that they routinely ask any other family members to leave the office and ask kids how they're doing. Some are doing all right - they've found new interests or hobbies - but a lot of them are having problems (if you didn't already know that). They do try to help out the kids who are having problems, who are anxious, and so on, but there's a limit to what they can do. I hate that so many kids are having such an awful time of it. And their parents and their teachers. I'm hoping things get better.

And, to change the topic, it's National Puzzle Day. Celebrate responsibly.

flea, all kinds of love and support to you. I think you're doing great in an impossible situation.

it's much less effort to turn in work than to do the work and not turn it in and lie about it and hide it.

God, this. I don't understand how they don't get that. I'm glad things are turning around for your guy, Volans.

Sara is now "feeling like poop" and her whole body is achy. I feel fairly crappy myself, although how much of that is regular sinus badness is hard to tell. And it's supposed to snow over the weekend, so I'm envisioning many pots of tea, and probably brownies and cinnamon rolls for morale.

not turn it in and lie about it and hide it

Rationalization is not just a river in Egypt.

My whole job right now is to get my kids through this safely, and I can't even seem to do that.

Unless there is something big you haven't told us, flea, you are doing pretty well! Just a reminder, "safely" does not necessarily have to include "successfully graduated".

I don't understand how they don't get that.

I understand all too well, although I don't know if I could explain it in words.