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Thursday Diary

 In Maplewood, everyone fights to have a chance to be severely mistreated by the disorganized public-school system.


There is a cap on pre-K spots, and you win your spot by participating in a lottery. The details of the lottery are shrouded in mystery, and each announcement is delayed until the last possible moment, so families put down "back-up" deposits at private schools, then lose their deposits when they learn their SOMA public-school admissions status.

SOMA public schools seem to *advertise* their own incompetence; for example, if you visit the SOMA applications lockbox, an actual, physical box, you might find a cheerful sign that says, "PLEASE COME BACK DUURUING [sic] OUR USUAL BUSINESS HOURS."

I could focus on this, but instead I'm trying to focus on my daughter, and her impending Halloween. Motherhood involves long, lonely hours, and you sometimes find yourself crazily snapping shots of your costumed baby as you half-listen to a murder podcast and snack (too much) on fried "veggie sticks."

Will my life ever change?








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