Burning lips

During winter (which NJ is still enduring), I have a tendency to consume large amount of citrus. Grapefruits are my favorite, although I'm not opposed to oranges. When I peel oranges, I attempt to peel the entire piece of fruit in one peel. I revel in receiving more than 10 slices too. Some slices have those "mini slices" connected to them. With grapefruits, I peel the entire fruit and then carefully cut it into ten slices. Then, I use a knife to remove the outer pith, as well as the pith covering the individual slices.

In short, I've made an artform out of peeling citrus.

The over consumption of citrus often leads to my lips having pseudo-lip liner around them. I realize that temporarily putting a moratorium on citrus consumption will rid me of the crimson lips, but I don't care. I'm stubborn.

Right now my lips are ultra red. I look like I had "the works" done via Botox. In other words, I look like Goldie Hawn. There is also a crude term for what my lips now look like : DSL.

Army of Assholes

Well' I've been teaching for 12 years and it's only logical that, at some point, my former students would reach the age of late teens/early adulthood and I'd be seeing them in public places that I like to occupy.

I saw one of my former students at the DMV. One of my former students waited on me @ Applebee's. Another former student ending up working with John at a temp job. When he found out I still taught at the same school, he inquired if a certain teacher was still "hot." Once a hot teacher, always a hot teacher, right? Hot people age well.

I used to hate bumping into former students, but now if the person acknowledges me, I acknowledge him right back.

Recently, abundant amounts of former students have basically been taking over my gym. It makes sense. I live one town over from where I teach; this gym is situated midway between both towns. It's cheap and offer students additional discounts.

Of course, it is not the former scholars and do-gooders who are joining the gym in huge amounts. It's mostly students who, at age 13, were assholes. I wonder what an outcome chart would look like, in terms of predicting if middle school assholes will indeed continue on that same course for the rest of their life. I realize it is ignorant of me to assume that a 13 year old's personality will be the personality that is set in stone for the rest of his life, but when I think of my 13 year old self versus now, there are not huge amounts of differences. I'm more outgoing, but the core of me is still an introvert. I'm more confident, but the core of me is still insecure and anxious. I'm less of a pushover, but the core of me is still nice and sweet.

When I see past students, I avert my eyes and make it seem like I don't see them. The other day, one got onto the treadmill right next to me. His presence somehow made me work a little harder, kind of like I was thinking, There, you little fucker, watch me go. 

Sometimes I think that maybe they have not made the connection that it is "me" at the gym, but that's idiocy. I've basically looked the same all my life and I haven't aged all that much. I'm pretty easy to identify.

I've gotten over it. Whatever. It was my gym before it was theirs. I'm there alone though and they're marching in their little platoons----an army of assholes.