if you steal a mouse a cookie...

Lunch is serious business in junior high. Those 18 minutes of glorious socializing mean the world to an average 13 year old. Students get serious about who is wearing what outfit, who is talking to what boy etc but food is also something of almost equal value. Often students trade "goods" for extra bread, grapes, or desserts. I knew this was of great importance to the average junior high student but nothing prepared for me for the random outburst of today's lunch. There I was eating my apple and all the sudden I look up and two grown students begin fighting, but not play fighting like we want to seem tough but we don't want to get in trouble so we're just going to walk around until someone stops us. No, for real fighting. Swinging punches right in the face and all out in the open in the cafeteria. Several teachers and principals get up and try to break the boys up. With the massive intensity of the fight I assumed it had to be over something serious like a three week relationship, ipod, shoes etc. but no, I was sadly mistaken. The intense fight was over... a cookie. One boy stole another boy's cookie and would not give it back. REALLY?!?!? This cookie didn't even have icing, it was oatmeal raisin! I cannot believe a cafeteria cookie was worth days in out of school suspension and endless ridicule over the stupidity of the fight. As gossip began to spread throughout the cafeteria my "informative" (aka loud) girls could not wait to tell me the inside scoop. I had gone back to eating and escaping in my book when I heard my named yelled across the table. I looked up and four eager faces with huge smiles were staring at me. I thought another drama was about to occur but my excited students knew I would love this story and with great energy yelled " that boy hit that other boy over a cookie.. that fight was over a cookie, can you believe it?" Of course I began laughing my famous loud belly laugh and briefly distracted the cafeteria from the ridiculous fight to the teacher laughing hysterically. Once I made it acceptable to laugh at the incident others soon joined in. Ahh, it's dysfunctional at best.

In other news, let's focus on the family! All of us at Natalie's News want to give a huge congratulations to cousin Lindsay (pictured right) of Indiana. Lindsay was just awarded the Fulbright scholarship and will be studying in India for a year! We are all extremely proud of Lindsay; what a huge accomplishment! Being smart is so hot right now. Such a huge award is something sure to be proud of. I am sure an article in a certain local paper written by a certain grandmother will be due out any day now....no worries. I'll be sure to post a link to it so everyone can see what I.E. details.

Well that is all for now. For Natalie's News this has been, Natalie-Corinne.