Hobgood Academy closed

Found out the other day that the school board shut the school down. Just a few weeks previous, we attended a meeting and they said the money had been raised to keep the school open for another school year. We are still reeling from the news. Besides all of us teachers being out of work on such short notice, I'm certain the kids, their parents and everyone assiociated with the school are being negatively affected by the news.

So sorry Josh.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

Not sure yet. I may have to take in some carpentry/painting work here and there, though my back hurts all the time now. Or maybe go out and hit the bars for music gigs like I did when in California, though that would be a hard row to hoe also. Or maybe try to sell some paintings, which is very difficult to do here. Either way, I'll have to keep working at something, though at my age, a regular job is out of the question. I'll be looking into other possibilities, like unemployment benefits. Right now, my head hurts thinking about it.

Tomorrow I'm going for a nice long ride somewhere . . . anywhere . . .

Sorry about that Jbob. If there is a silver lining its now you get more you time?

Yup. It's always best to count our blessings, of which we have many. I think as far as more time goes, it won't make much difference as I was only a part time employee; spent about 4 hours a day at the school, five days a week, and it was by far the best "job" I ever had. I will have many happy memories of the twelve years I spent there.

Saw some of the kids yesterday evening at our Independance Day bash in downtown Hobgood. They were running around everywhere having a blast. The hurricane ended up being mostly a non-event for us. The ground was a bit soggy in places but the 300+ people that showed up were in high spirits and we all had a great time watching a fine fireworks display as soon as it got dark.

You know JBob...you seem to thrive if you stay busy. Maybe you can help out at your friends shop. Change tires, change oil and other things?

Yep ya gotta stay busy otherwise possible boredom laziness and depression could set it. You have dome good talents to practice even if the pay sucks.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

Bummer...Been there done that two times...Keep your chin up, spend a few hours a day on the internet, networking with people I know was a great help and most important take a few hours each day for yourself and your better half or you will go nutz...

From time to time I will be helping Tattoo. He usually has me taking motors off lawnmowers or taking trannies out of bikes or taking certain parts off motorcycle engines. Once we took a big Honda motor out of the frame for a rebuild. But it will be gas money wages only - $10 cash per hour - maybe a few hours here and there. He already has a regular employee coming in once in a while. But I spend a lot of time there, riding over most mornings just to hang out and I'm glad he doesn't mind. Sometimes I run errands for him or pick him up something to eat or drink.

Now that the school has closed, our electricity rates will go up - estimates are running anywhere from 5 to 10% higher. It's already one of the highest rates in the nation and we live in one of the most economically depressed areas in the state.
One of the things about closing the school the back-handed way they did, was that there was no warning, and no going away staff party to celebrate the school's accomplishments over the years. Just unceremoniously chopped off at the head. We are all heartsick over the loss of our school. Now the parents must scramble to send their kids to an unfamiliar private or charter, or even worse, public school. Nearly all of the kids have attended Hobgood Academy since kindergarten and now they will be split up.
I believe that the charter school system put in place by the state was designed to force the Christian private schools in N.C. out of business, because that's exactly what's been happening. We were the last one to go in our region.

I agree about the systematic elimination of religeous based schools. 20+ years ago there was a Catholic school in every community. Now ...they are not gone but far and few between. And it was a much better education. When my kids transferred to public schools they were all 2-3 grades ahead of their public school peers. Public schools suck. They teach your kids to tell on the parents if the parents spank them. There is no discipline in the schools. The students can leave the school during a study period and the schools are way over crowded. When I was going to school the teachers came in early and stayed late. Now most come in late and leave early. The children are our future so lets teach them to be out of control and selfish....oh wait thats whats going on in the Whitehouse these days, my bad.

I went to elementary and middle schools when I was a boy living in Cleveland, Ohio. They were equally split between parochial and public schools and I got the better education from the Catholic schools. Plus, the girls were cuter, too LOL. The nuns were sometimes strict, but order was maintained, and we were only disciplined when necessary. Because of the Catholic schools, I'm now able to string two coherent sentences together, which nowadays is a rarity in our public education system. We didn't waste our time stretching rubbers over a cucumber or reading about Jill's two mommies.

No, they don't like that and charter schools are the bludgeon the state is using to smash private schools into oblivion.

You are all right!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

I did go for a good ride yesterday, way over a hundred miles. That's a good day for me anyway. Rode north a ways and watched a fine historical play called "First For Freedom", in an outdoor amphitheater, about the Revolutionary War as it happened here in Halifax County. Strange as it seems, the former guidance counsellor at Hobgood Academy was at the ticket booth. She had retired some years back from the academy. Interestingly, It was her husband who wrote the play and the company has been performing it for 39 consecutive seasons. Amazing. Naturally, she and I reminisced about the school . . .
I was about 30 miles from home and it was 10:30 PM when the show ended and I was in a tee shirt and vest and it was in the low 60s, quite cold for July. It was a shivery ride home! But man, it was a good day.