kitchen table math, the sequel: Protocol

Saturday, January 20, 2007

Protocol


Mr. Greenblatt couldn't help but notice that after he heard the sneeze, there were copious amounts of blood on Jose's desk. Jose had somehow bit his tongue while sneezing, and deeply. Fortunately the nurse's office was right across the hall.

"Jose," he ordered, "Go straight to the medical office."

A moment later Jose returned. "She wanth a path, Mithter Greenblatt."

Mr. Greenblatt scoured his bag for the requisite medical pass. He couldn't find one. He quickly scribbled something on a piece of paper and sent Jose back. But a moment later Jose returned, still bleeding.

"She wanth a medical path, Mithter."

Mr. Greenblatt was not happy. He sent Jose across the hall with a note written with his dry erase marker proclaiming the following, in block letters:

PLEASE DO YOUR JOB!

Jenny the nurse (who was actually not a nurse but a paraprofessional) found this beyond the pale. She got up from her desk and went over to give that Greenblatt guy a piece of her mind. Since he had no manners, she figured she'd walk right into his classroom, and that's just what she did.

"How dare you address me like that! In all my years in that office, I've never had anyone speak to me like that. Is it my fault if you can't keep a stock of medical room passes? You should be ashamed of yourself!"

She contemptuously tossed a pad full of passes onto Mr. Greenblatt's desk. Mr. Greenblatt filled one out, sent Jose to the medical office, and moments later Jose was in an ambulance, on his way to get that tongue looked at.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hope this is a work of fiction.

TurbineGuy said...

There was two friends, who were both builders. One was German and the other was American.

One day, after some good natured ribbing and debate about which country was the most efficient, they made a bet about who could build a house the fastest.

After about four weeks, the German guy called his American friend and asked him how he was doing.

"I am doing pretty good. I have layed the foundation, the plumbing is in, and we have started framing the walls. How are you doing?" the American asked.

"You wouldn't believe how quickly I am moving. Last week, I got permission to from the city, to submit my building permit request to the state office. I should be able to break ground next month."

Both of my kids were born in Germany, and I had to literally go to three difference offices to register their births.

I can't stand people who hid behind petty rules to avoid doing work.

NYC Educator said...

This is a true story, actually. There's a lot of bureaucracy in NYC education. I once thought that if I ever went to hell I'd spend it at the NYC Board of Education.

But the Germans seem to have the knack as well. Great story.

Catherine Johnson said...

nyc educator

I didn't doubt this story for a second. (In fact, the only thing I could have doubted would have been the teacher standing up to the para!)

We plenty of stories like this here in our district.

Catherine Johnson said...

France has HORRIFIC bureaucracy.

huge

TurbineGuy said...

Europe in general has a problem with bureaucracies.

Heaven is a place where:
The lovers are Italian
The cooks are French
The mechanics are German
The police are English
The government is run by the Swiss

Hell is a place where:
The lovers are Swiss
The cooks are English
The mechanics are French
The police are German
The government is run by the Italians