We have begun our Fall Frolic countdown, so I am pressed for time. I decided to do a post requiring no research that just updates some past subjects of which some expressed an interest or update. There may be some information that can help somebody. However, I am going to lead off with something that is important and in the news daily.
New York City Mayoral Race
New Yawkas need to prepare for the very real possibility that the commie might win. There are that many criminals and idgits that live in the city with so many others that do not give a shiz about voting that it can happen. Should that happen and barring a last minute successful attempt to salvage that mess, the NYPD will react. Many quality officers and families are going to relocate, as they have aleady been doing, or they may do their version of blue flu. Things are going to deteriorate in the capital of world capitalism. We will see more major companies and investment houses pull out of NYC. Gotham City will be real for a time. Implosion will be the big picture.
Then at some point, PDT and patriots will shut it all down. Memphis, Chicago, New Orleans, and St. Louis and even Portland are dress rehearsals. Most Americans have no idea that those first four cities provide safe haven and sponsor illegals, operatives, gangs, union criminals and armies of other criminals that have helped fund corrupt NYC based business and political leaders for over a century. When patriots take over the center of America they are destroying a feeder system for the northeast and left coast. They will be replacing it with a walled defense of law enforcement and military assets. One must never forget we are at war. Forget Normandy and Okinawa. Forget Iraq and Afghanistan. It has not yet devolved into Gaza City here, but that is what our enemies wanted. If you need proof, simply remember what happened at our southern border. Then go take a cold shower and wake up.
Should the more sane, but still criminal Democrat enabling and supporting residents decide they better unite around Cuomo, the immediate crisis will be averted. I predict he might put up an anti-Trump front, but be token opposition to the eventual move by the feds to straighten it all out and send the illegals packing as well as the domestic criminals and terrorists to prison. That will keep the blue on the job and the Street still doing what they do.
The rot is infested into all of federal government as well as in some states. However, I seriously doubt PDT will allow the permanent destruction of his home town and assets there, although it would not bother this hillbilly in the least. They have it coming to them in spades. If you continue to reside, work, buy things from, and pay taxes to criminals and traitors in that area, you are enabling what has happened. Choose this day, stay and fight or leave, but do not contribute to the status quo without raising a legal ruckus.
Charlie
Never forget. I once again feature…
Now on to more pleasant subjects.
Homeschooling
Just some advice, homeschool your children and grandchildren if you can arrange it. By all measures, homeschooled students score higher on comprehensive state and college entrance exams as a general rule. You can look up the research yourself, you don’t need to depend on my representations. Many kids have environments at home that lead to better focus than at school and as a result, more comprehension of subject matter. Scheduling their work to when it fits the family’s lifestyle and their biological clocks is just a better way to do things. So is allowing them input as to how to arrange their studies.
If this latter point or any other problem area is getting in the way of academic achievement, which should be the primary goal of an education, you can change and do it a more appropriate way for the student. As an example, being able to multi-task is important, however, it is a skillset that can be developed later or at a more measured pace if it is in the way of learning effectively now. Such is the case with Grandson #1. He hyper focuses on one subject. The widget process of traditional schools that teaches multiple subjects a day for shorter periods does not work for many kids. They lose focus and do not retain what they have been taught.
Taking it one subject at a time works for a good number. With Grandson #1 he absolutely slays it – throws all he has into it. As an example, he completed 6th grade math in less than four weeks with a solid A despite dumb problems with the curriculum provider that are explained below. There were no other distractions or concerns. He would go at it for 3-4 hours each day – done. It was also good to see he retained a good portion of what he learned from previous studies in the past couple of years doing it this way.
We multi-task by breaking up his school days with sports and physical activities such as golf and swimming; vocal music lessons; library and educational field trips; and his OT sessions. This method has delivered high achievement in his subjects and far less boredom. As a result he has generally completed all of his core subjects by some point in January. He is then free to focus on electives that interest him until he accumulates the state mandated 180 days of school. That mandate becomes a moot point if the material is interesting.
Other students may respond better the exact opposite way or some other tailored method, which is the point. Students and parents can flex it in whatever manner helps the child to learn most effectively while fitting the demands on the family’s time. Regardless, no more woke, bullying, alcohol/drugs and other drama in schools when you homeschool. You are removing sources of concern that also involves the competency of teachers and administrators. The kids have a better opportunity to be educated, well adjusted and happy. If desired, most homeschooled students are permitted to participate in school sports and many permit participation in music/choral programs as well.
Going into this school year we collectively chose to use Time 4 Learning as the primary curriculum again. It instructs at a mid-high achievement level and is the largest provider in America with a 20-25% market share. However, the updated software they rolled with this year is not good overall. We nicknamed it Glitch. 😀
This was another perfect example of fixing something that was not broken, which will probably break the provider if they do not quickly fix the issues.
In the updated version there are far more written answers to lessons, quizzes and tests; which are graded by AI review of the student’s responses with grading being provided an hour or more after taking. It has some major problems and obviously needs an overhaul already. They occasionally cannot even give the correct answers on lessons, quizzes and tests as well explanations of their AI responses that are wrong – frequently. In one case they called a lesson as a test. During lessons they will abruptly interrupt in the middle of it for the student to do a question with no warning at all. That interrupts the concentration of the student. Then they start the lesson back mid sentence. It is stupid to put out a product that is not ready for distribution. The users are letting them know by the thousands.
We gone. 😂
As a result, after much research we have made a switch to one that gives parents more control and input into the teaching method and testing while providing a great visual and interactive experience for the student. Miacademy is much more user friendly, interesting, has more subject options, and is in a similar price range as Time 4 Learning. It has a 4.7 out of 5 star Trustpilot rating from users. Parental controls, reporting and access to test answers are very easy to navigate. The text is even easier to read. The parent/teacher can print out PDF’s of the video lesson in advance to have the student follow along and fill in notes to reinforce the lessons, which helps them study for quizzes and tests. The way it is done will train the student to be self taught through the curriculum’s system as time passes, which is a big benefit to parents.
We LOVE it so far. Below is a user review that we found accurate.
The founders and staff of the company have a strong international education background. As a result we were very careful to review closely before selecting. However, any woke/leftist concern we had went away as there has been none force fed into the curriculum so far. Quite frankly it is very well done and interestingly presented. #1 never gets bored with it at all. Unlike Time 4 Learning we have yet to observe woke elements, although we have not gone into all subjects at this point. It seems solely focused on educating, however, if a parent is concerned with a segment there is a feature permitting them to exclude that subject matter. There are also numerous good Christian subjects from which to choose as electives. #1 is taking a Bible study related one for an elective this school year.
Parents can also accelerate or delay the taking of subjects as they are presented in the curriculum listing for two grade levels. As an example, #1 loves Social Studies and American History like his Papaw. For all curriculum providers we know, including the local public school, sixth grade Social Studies is some form of World History. #1 is all about PDT, America, Charlie Kirk, etc. currently. He loves learning about our nation’s history, culture, government, founding documents, people, etc. So, strike while the iron is hot. U. S. History is normally assigned to seventh/eighth grade. We have the flexibility to go ahead and do it in sixth grade and take World History in seventh grade as it is a sixth/seventh grade listed subject. In effect, #1 will be taking an advanced placement class in Social Studies because of his current interest level and capability. He can return to the normal placement subject next year.
Miacademy and his umbrella school both permit the acceleration of his education if he so chooses. We have observed over the past couple of years that #1 would prefer to not take a long break over summer as an example. He gets bored. He has told us he would rather have shorter breaks while only taking a month off in the summer. If that desire changes at some point we can adjust to fit it. All of this is the beauty of homeschooling while self reporting or using an umbrella school. If a curriculum is messed up or just not worthy of using, change it. You the parent are in control. The net result for #1 is that he will probably take three or more elective subjects, which is beyond the state requirements (2) for this grade level, which will only broaden his knowledge and understanding overall.
He will ace them all. So far he is making a 100% score in Language Arts more than halfway through the subject. He will be done with that subject in less than three weeks from start to finish. Try doing any of that it in a public school. What was it they told us in those IEP meetings in third and the start of fourth grade? Oh yeah, he was at the level of a kindergarten student academically.
The umbrella school charges $135 a year to record grades and attendance as well as transmit the information to the public school/state on behalf of his parents. It is a “family” charge, so if there are multiple students they do not charge more, which will be soon with #2. Once #1 completes high school classes, he will receive a regular diploma from that accredited school. It has been a seamless process. The school is accredited in four states and they are domiciled as an actual private school facility in our state. His transcript will be accepted no matter the higher education school he chooses to attend subject to his college entrance exam test results. So if you or someone you know goes the route of homeschooling, they can do likewise with an umbrella school in their area.
Grandson #1’s Health Status
In addition to great academic progress while homeschooling, #1’s health continues to improve. His dyspraxia is lessening with OT and his coordination is becoming completely normal for his age. We have begun to work on his physical strength. His sensory condition is being managed better by him and all of us. His nutrition is improving and he is finally beginning to gain a little weight. His eyes are still performing normally as they should. The infrequent focus events only happen with increased anxiety from the sensory condition and are short in duration (5-10 seconds). A light tap on the shoulder generally snaps him out quicker. He is now active in the Youth Program in church as well. All systems are go.
That said we are having his folate level tested this week. After PDT, Kennedy, and crew’s comments it made sense as his pediatrician believes he has moderate ADHD in addition to the known sensory issues. They are interconnected. His pediatrician has been very supportive.
Wifey
The past health issues of Wifey have been discussed periodically. As you did with #1, a number of you provided recommendations and prayers that helped for which we are very grateful. In Wifey’s case she physically recovered from her corneal ulcer that occurred upon return from our Fall Frolic a year ago as we traveled through the effects of Helene. The specialist had the infecting white colored blob analyzed at the lab and they came back with, “We don’t know, the lab results were inconclusive.” They treated as a bacterial infection and it responded reasonably well. Scar tissue remained and was near a newly forming cataract. Vision in the affected eye made it back to the 20-40 with her corrective lens. So after release from the specialist she went to our optometrist and was refitted with a more appropriate lens. She continued to struggle some with focus in the affected eye. Which led next to what I learned from my eye issues.
I had experienced early stages of macular degeneration (MD) for 15+ years in one eye to go with early stage cataract development in both eyes. With my use of IVM for several years and a parasite cleanse of IVM/Mebendazole this spring; my vision has been quite good for my age. My comprehensive annual optometrist visit revealed no change in lens needed and no presence of cataract formation at all. In fact, they did not even note the MD in the report despite the use of computer aided high tech imaging equipment. I did make a move away from the prism lens I had used that the binocular vision doc had me using. The prisms did a nice job of encouraging my weak eye to be more involved, but the lens can be a bit disconcerting with some activities, especially while walking and looking down. So I decided to try traditional lens and see if the affected eye got lazy again. 😀
About this same time things got interesting with Wifey’s situation. My success encouraged Wifey to get serious about doing something different. So she also did the Parasite Cleanse and noted a month later that she felt better and could see better, the eye focus issues had begun to go away. In previous posts I also discussed the fact that we chose to begin DSMO drops in our eyes at that point, which was in the spring of this year. She uses a 20% concentration. Wifey wanted to look for positive changes in vision that may or may not have occurred from the time she was released by the corneal specialist until her next appointment with him in a few months. She does the drops morning and evening every day. I did them once every other day for a couple of months and stopped due to my vision improvement. Her observation is that her vision has returned to pre-corneal injury performance, which was very good for her age, and all focus blurring is gone. She is very happy with the results.
I will update folks on this after her appointment.
The second thing with Wifey has been blood pressure spikes. For about a year she had weaned herself off a fluid pill, Hydrochlorothiazide, and tried going with just supplements. She researched thoroughly and tried everything that was recommended that made sense for her. For a time she found some success. However, over time the random BP spikes came back at 200+/100+ more frequently, such that she was taking Clonidine to bring it down too frequently. Her weight, fitness and nutrition are not contributing factors – she is in good shape with them. So with our wellness exam results in June she agreed to retry the lowest dose of amlodipine for the BP. It worked. No more spikes and very good BP and heart rate every single day. That improved her sleep patterns. We have no idea why it worked well now when it did not work several years ago.
So far, it looks like a win for traditional medicine with that one.
Bud
Bud is having his surgery in about a week. Will try to update everybody afterwards as to status. Again, thank you for the prayers. They are working.
As things work and God would have it, Bud had something positive happen out of the blue. His former employer called him. As previously posted, Bud had worked with this large family owned contracting firm that handled sheetrock installation and finishing for commercial and industrial businesses in the region for over 15 years before venturing out on his own. His upside was blocked by his supervisor who was no where near retiring then, but is now doing so. The company’s ownership has offered Bud the job, His previous experience with them would be vested and his personal income would be guaranteed at the level he is making now along with annual bonuses and 401-k with matching contributions. He would work normal day shift hours Monday through Friday. It is a job working for Christian people he trusts and respects, as they do with him.
They asked a few months ago if he was interested. They have been pressing him for an answer, which demonstrates he is their Plan A choice. He asked my opinion and for prayers. It did not take long to ponder and hear the still small voice. Bud has been estimating jobs after work hours 6 days a week in his own business. He has much business risk and the incomes of employees that includes two family members are also at stake. His employees are all ready from a competency standpoint to work as a unit without him through another contractor’s company connected to Bud’s if they so choose. Bud’s former, soon to be new employer has assured each of his employees that jobs with them are available if they choose to not go on their own. This employer has also agreed that Bud can work other jobs, such as handling our needs, whenever he chooses after hours.
Bud has reached the age to make this move and his health concerns are just more reinforcement. This all came up as a no-brainer to me after prayer. I let him know, that just like Doc #2 walking in the door and positively changing the trajectory of his life, it appears God is making sure Bud continues down a path he has made straight for him. Bud and his wife agree with this assessment and had come to the same conclusion He has started the ball rolling.
It has all been so reassuring of God’s love and provision for His children. All praise and glory to the Lord!
Please remember Wolf’s rules for our community. In general that means to be respectful to each other and to pull no shenanigans that your mom might find offensive or otherwise cause jail time. That said, free speech is honored here. Be blessed and go make something good happen!
Thank you, Charlie. As so many have said and I repeat, we have it from here. Your work will not be in vain. See you in Heaven, brother.