Rubber Room Journal - Last Day Before Vacation

While the teachers were celebrating their last day of school, it was nothing compared to the relief we felt in the Rubber Room.
We were all enjoying the bagels that Yeoj brought when Moocher practically stuck his nose in the plate. "Oh, who brought bagels? I should have brought them." Who are you kidding? You haven't offered anyone a peanut since you've been here, I think. Moocher quickly grabs two bagels. "Now I have lunch and breakfast", he says. "You are disgusting", says Sec. Moocher walks away as if he didn't hear a thing.
We had all received an envelope in the mail requesting our summer contact numbers just a few days earlier. "They are going to send us a letter telling us where to report in September", Sketcher told the group. "Will you be back here in September?", he asked. " Where else would I be? Nothing is going to change over the summer", answered Mac. "Looks that way", Moocher said as he sat there scoffing down his bagel. "Well, I just got my charges. I'm looking at six months to a year at least", said Sketcher. When Moocher arrived to the Rubber Room (this is his second stint) he had the whole "mightier than thou" attitude. He was a complete narcissist. "Not me", he would say. "My principal told me he wants me back". Every comment he would make sounded more ignorant than the last. "Do you think that I could work summer school?", He added. "I have retention rights". Annoyed, Sec answered, "You are a criminal. You have no rights! Nothing is as it was before." Moocher sounded like a seven year old who asked the same questions over and over expecting a different answer. "It's pensionable if you work in the summer." He just keeps on pushing.

"So where we goin' for lunch girl? We gots to cel-e-brate!" Flea sings out. "I got to get me some su-shi." This girl requires huge doses of attention when she isn't sleeping. She is loud and irritating which upsets a lot of people. "I got to get me out of this joint. Come on. Where we eatin? Wake me up when it's time for lunch."

Princess makes her entrance at about 10:00. In her high heels and her high pitched voice she says, "Ooh, It's so cold in here. It's freezing! Aren't you cold? It's like an icebox!" No, we're not, I am thinking. It's 89 degrees outside and 75 in here. The air is barely breathable. You come here everyday in shorts and a skimpy blouse. If you're always so cold, why don't you wear a sweater? -"Why don't you wear a sweater?", comments Sketcher. Princess rolls her eyes at him. This is an act that Princess puts on everyday so that she gets out of sitting down here like the rest of us. There is nothing 'real' about Princess. She is a very large woman who dresses up everyday as if she is 'going out with the girls.' Just then her phone rings and she speaks as if none of us can hear. "These people are freezing me out of here!", she tells her phone mate. "I am allergic to the cold". Before she even puts her bag down, she turns around and leaves.

Mr. Warden is in full attire on this last day before the summer. He is wearing a tank top with a suit jacket thrown over the chair. Whenever he wears anything sleeveless, the odor is unbearable. "I have to hold my breath whenever I walk by him. The odor lingers if you don't hold your breath", says Sec.
At lunch time, everyone cuts out to the restaurant except for a few of us. We just go out for a walk to the park. We find Princess outside flirting with the custodian. You can hear her laugh all the way up the block. After lunch, Mr. Warden tells us that we have to stay the full day- unlike our colleagues who usually are granted early departure. Regardless, some people punch out early.
So, there it is. Another day of life in the Rubber Room... Until we return.
Have a Safe and Peaceful Summer.