Hey, everyone. I'm finally back for an update about Sullivan. I enjoyed my summer off, and went back to school last month. I've been really busy lately, as I have so many things I'm involved with both in school and outside of school (more or less outside). This school year so far hasn't been as good as last year was. It certainly isn't like my freshman year, two years ago, but there's been quite a few fights this school year, including the one I'm making this post on.
From what I have been hearing, there was a huge brawl at 6th period, in the cafeteria. In fact, it was so big that about twenty squad cars showed up. I personally saw about 12 squad cars from my class that I was in at the time. Apparently, two guys got into it in the lunchroom. It wasn't just the regular punch-throwing, either. There were supposedly chairs thrown during the fight. Then, I heard from one person that a lot of people were involved and that it was a food fight that resulted in chair-throwing. Whatever it was, I know it was big enough for one guy to get escorted out of the school, in cuffs. Basically, all hell broke loose. At one point, there was a staff member knocked down during the fight.
Just wanted you guys to know about this, as it was a really big incident. The whole school seems to have opinions on it. So, yeah, I'm doing pretty good in school. I'm trying to keep up with the work, so I can get good grades and graduate next year, eventually going on to college. I don't know if I'll be back for anymore updates, but we'll really see. I probably won't do another update until another really big fight breaks out.
Update, 11/2/10: No big fights within the last week or so, but I'd like to address another issue. First, I'm just going to say that Sullivan administration is already aware of the problem, and are getting to the bottom of it (which I'd like to say a very big "thank you" for), but I would like just to share this with you readers out there. The students in Sullivan's autism program are under verbal attacks from their regular peers. What do I mean by this? What I mean is, the kids in the program have been subjected to blatant disrespect lately. It's been a problem since I've came to Sullivan, but it's gotten just downright disgusting this year. Not only have they been laughed at, but there has been mumbles about them, and uncalled for comments directly to their face, especially with the higher functioning ones in their inclusion classes. Unfortunately, the assistants have not heard the comments (but I've heard some of them, and have addressed it with administration). Let's just say that I have shared this issue with different people in the building, and now pretty much the whole school is aware of the situation. This is actually a shock to most of the school, from what I'm told. Most people who I spoke with were literally shell-shocked about it. They didn't know there was actually bullying going on until I brought it up at a meeting last week. The responses I received from administration, teachers and some students alike to all of this has been very encouraging. But it's a shame that this is happening. It really is. These kids have enough things on their plates dealing with the disability and then only coming to school to hear people saying the things they've said is just ... I don't even know how to describe it. I've said before that the higher functioning kids in my program needed to experience a little of reality of what the real world is like (no, I didn't tell the regular kids to pick on them...), but this is going way overboard. The problem is definitely being taken care of, though. And I've got no problem being a leader in getting this issue resolved. I'm really trying not to get involved in stuff at school this year (as most of it is none of my business), but when the kids in the autism program are being messed with, that is most definitely my business, and I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty to protect them.
28 comments:
When a dozen plus squad cars have to go to our local high school for lunchroom brawl, it's worth reporting.
Did you see all of the squad car going there, Craig? When I heard all of the sirens and saw the squad cars pulling up, with the officers jumping out like we were in some sort of action movie, all I could think was MAYHEM is occurring in our building. I'm thinking it may have been a 10-1 assist call, too. It seemed like the whole 24th District was on scene of this.
Ok...
until the next really big fight.
haha.
10/21/10
In other news...
The dead 60 foot plus tree
on the parkway of 1221 w pratt
is still standing, though I dont know why. Its completely dead and its right by some power lines.
I will call the aldermans office when it opens today.
I already called 311 a few weeks ago. I think this is important to take care of now, before someone possibly gets killed.
And no one will really notice a dead tree (atleast as much) when all the leaves are gone.
Funny how that stretch of Pratt is so unloved.
Its the tyranny of the large buildings over the small houses effect. Alot of trash on Pratt of late. Something to work on.
Especially the vacant lot of the former synagogue. Im sure the Spirits of Rabbis long gone are not pleased with this.
If you google map street view the address of 1221 w farwell
(cool palindrome address)
you will see that even what 1-2 years ago the tree was mostly dead.
I guess the homeowner(s) there dont care if the tree potentially falls and crushes their house.
I think I forgot to mention that the dead tree is also right by some power lines.
Anyways I just called it into the aldermans office.
Also here is some news about our stretch of metra tracks
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-10-20/news/ct-met-metra-up-north-1021-20101020_1_union-pacific-north-line-metra-board-member-metra-chairwoman-carole-doris
For once it was a real slow day. That was probably the whole district. No 10-1. Thats just the way it is when a copper calls for an assist and you don't have a job, you go.............
Nice reporting, Timmy.
http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/news.aspx?id=170615
TIF becomes a RIF?
Keep studying hard and let us know how it's going!
geofredo - is it 1221 w pratt or farwell?
Pratt is always a mess! I can't stand walking by that empty lot with trash, glass, etc. People don't pick up after their dogs - ugh! We have seen people actually throw their trash bags into the alley from the upper stories of the tall subsidized apartment building on Pratt and reported it to their security.
Since moving here from the near north side, trash and just plain idiocy have been one of my biggest issues. Last week people grilling at Loyola Park threw all their hot coals next to a tree? I mean - seriously - what lazy idiots. We put them out with water and sand. I watch people up here just throw their trash on the ground when they are 10 steps from a trash can!
OOPS Razldazzler
yeah sorry its on Pratt.
Yeah 1221 w Pratt.
And yeah Pratt is a mess,
its my new project.
Ive been too busy lately.
Yeah, I think its funny how its more socially accepted to throw trash on the ground, but Im the screwball because I pick it up.
Well Im not as nutty as the people who routinely pick up dog crap all the time(though i do thank them as i dont like stepping on it)
I do pick up dog crap sometimes, but I dont have a dog so
IMHO its crazy to option into
picking up dog crap on a routine basis.
So i have called the aldermans office about the dead tree at 1221 pratt. Because no action was taken since I called 311 a few weeks ago
Bill, glad to hear that wasn't a 10-1. I'm thinking that it indeed was the entire district.
I have heard through the grapevine that in a few months chuckies will have food.
Good.
Come to Chuckies, you might see someone taking a shower across the street!
10/23/10
Hi everyone, Its Geofredo
and I had another discussion with a lax business owner this am.
I dont warrant a blog entry (yet but one can dream) but atleast a comment.
The Royal Coffee business owner saw me picking up the newspapers around his corner this am. He thanked me profusely. Thats nice.
I walked around and picked up some retribution trash (ad paper shredded) atleast a good samaritan helped me pick it up. A nice young gentleman with his dog.
Hmmm, he picks up dog poop so I guess shredded ad paper is no biggee.
Okay so I do my usual round of litter pickup down farwell and around the still boycotted common cup (who still doesnt pick up their litter). I picked some baby shoes (they start so early these youth!) and a destroyed soccer ball and whatnot, the south side of morse is always the most littered. Ok, eventually made it back to the royal coffee, because hey, I would like some damn coffee.
And.... the courtyard is still filled with newspapers, I had picked up the ones outside on the sidewalk, but apparently he thought that was good enough.
I proceeded to pickup all the newspaper and crap (it was a thrown paper)
in his courtyard.
I washed my dirty hands there and let him know that I couldnt buy coffee there today because his place had looked horrible and I cant go to a coffee shop in that condition, he tried to give me all sorts of excuses about the alderman and trash can or whatever.
I told him that if he wont pickup the trash, I still will but I wont buy coffee there and I told him that I stopped going to the common cup because of the litter issue.
Funny, its much easier to pickup the litter than it is to think about it.
I hope the business owner at Royal Coffee got the message. It appears however that most people are dense or insular when it comes to this issue.
10/24/10
Royal Coffee has gotten the message!
Its a miracle.
Someone was sweeping up the courtyard and it looked nice and more people were there.
I know Sheridan is a haven for trash but it does have to be kept at acceptable levels. Otherwise it looks like a great place for derelicts to hang out.
Im still on the dead tree watch at 1221 pratt. Its still dead and its still standing.
Dead tree standing, instead of dead man walking. I picked up a little bit of the massive former synagogue site.
Its ike something unholy.
The site of a former church now turned into a litter/vice locale.
The Common Cup's parkway was picked up yesterday but you wouldnt know it this morning, so i picked it up again, hmmm, how long did it take, id say about 1.5 minutes. There was a large piece of drywall at the corner of morse and greenview that i threw out too.
Ok so Royal Coffee 1
Common Cup -15 or more
not good.....
Its the heart of our community at Morse and Greenview and no one else cares. Amazing....
10/24/10
The Common Cup wont pickup their trash because "there is a whole building above us".
Thats the problem with Roger Park,
The whole "there is a whole building above us" mentality.
That is the official credo of many here in this community.
And of the Common Cup.
I don't get it - come to Chuckies and see someone taking a shower across the street?
Where is this Royal Coffee you are talking about?
I saw the owner of the store next to the food place on Morse and Wayne (with the ghetto gates) just kick the trash in front of his store into the street - I thought what the h????
So many people up here in Rogers Park just have a different mentality and responsibility than how I was raised. I really don't know how much longer it will be before I have to go back to yuppieville! LOL
I do pick up after my dogs, but see a lot of people that don't. I always just hope karma gets them and they are the ones that step in it!
I was joking about chuckies.
Its just that the building with the flowershop in it has its bathrooms facing the street,
in fact the showers directly abutt the street,
Its the glass brick windows,
typical for bathrooms, and its hilarious because this guy was taking a shower at night and you could see him on the third floor from across the street in chuckies.
Royal Coffee is at the corner of Pratt and Sheridan
Are you talking about the golden food market or morse gyros?
I know nico loses his cool sometimes, but you dont understand how those gangbangers and in general neredowells screw with him all the time, so he gets pissed off...
Thats why I like to eat there,
its good to keep him company and the local ruffians cant stand to see decent people hanging out there.
The golden minimart guy is just a plain weirdo that is kindof sketchy and isnt keeping his store in anything close to decent shape.
The last time my mom tried to get milk there the freezer wasnt working and the milk was warm,
health inspectors from what ive heard are going to be checking up on him.
I see that picking up the litter really is having an effect though,
much less litter to pickup now than before.
Its just something Im not going to give up on. There is definitely a contigent that feel that Im evil for pickup up the litter.
There is a weird lady who uses a concrete slab in the chase/family dollar/laundry parking lot to store her stuff. I thought it was trash and she yapped at me, and I just said ok, i guess this is where you store stuff.
But I think there is a change where there is less people littering. There are people who will litter if they see that there is alot of litter and just join in.
And there are the people who are the primary litterers that will litter no matter what.
But there are some people who say thank you. Which is nice.
But I also think in my head,
dont thank me, Im just doing what everyone should be doing.
What Im doing isnt extraordinary,
Im just being a normal person.
You can pick up too.
@geeko-freeko
PLEASE... start your own blog.
Nah,
Id rather not chipbag,
nice name i like it.
Ive been a regular contributor to the blog for years.
And if caring about your community makes you a freak or geek, fine im guilty.
10/27/10
Found a full can of special export of beer in the mess of crap in the parkway of Common Cup.
I guess that may be the reward for anyone picking up the multitude of beer cans and paper that was there, it was two small bags full of trash. Phew!
About 2-3 minutes of work, but alot easier than the headache of looking at that crap.
10/28/10
More vandalism to the scuplture at Common Cup, so I picked up the broken part and another bag or two of trash there. Its amazing how it reaccumulates so quick, but overall I have seen trash get better, its really just that corner.
Ofcourse no one (Ruth) at the Common Cup will talk to me, because thats embarrasing. Its embarrasing for a whole community to not care about themselves.
Common Cup talks a good story about helping the community but hey 2-3 minutes at most of upkeep right outside their door is just
way way too much to ask i guess.
More bark lost from the tree at 1221 w pratt. So maybe someone has looke at the tree
but its still dead and still standing
Geo
There are rewards to picking up trash. On several occasions I found dollar and once a 10 dollar bill while cleaning the trash from the gutters on my block.
update on heartland cafe
http://www.loyolaphoenix.com/2.541/news/rogers-park-restaurant-will-remain-open-1.1729720
I lived in RP for nearly 30 years, and Nico of Morse Gyros has always ran a decent spot. Once he gets familiar with people, he's cool, but I don't blame him for being wary of folks, either.
There used to be a barber shop on the corner of Columbia and Sheridan. Unlike Nico, the owners were not mindful of keeping the outside of the place in order. There were too many characters always hanging in and around the door. The barber shop didn't last long. I'd like to think the surrounding neighbors got tired and stopped patronizing the place. Sometimes, a hit to the business owner's pocketbook is enough of an incentive for them to straighten up.
http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/tales-from-the-top/2010/11/i-love-rogers-park.html
a screwball professes love for rogers park, even the bad part....
http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local-beat/batman-robber-chicago-illinois-106436644.html
http://www.suntimes.com/news/24-7/2856568,CST-NWS-batman02.article
Not a completely uneventful halloween in Rogers Park.
Batman, how could you?
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