Zombies

Today was a library day, one of those rare days when, becuase the kids were in the library looking for books to check out, I had the opportunity to interact with the children in an informal fashion.  So the kids were working on writing sentences while others were cruising the stacks or searching the computers for books they might want to read.

In my second period class, Devlin really wanted to read some books about Zombies.  So we went to the computer, and he showed me how the search function worked, and then I helped him figure out how to do a subject and keywords search for Zombies.  The entire 4J library systems contains zero books about zombies.  A search for the “undead” (which Devlin reminded me wasn’t really about zombies) yielded similar results. So instead he looked up a book about guns, and found a history of the colt rifle.  There were almost 20 books about guns in the library system, but zero books about zombies.

In fourth period, Halie asked me what my favorite food was.  I was in the middle of talking to another student, and she kept interrupting me, so I ignored her until I finished my conversation with the other student, and then I turned to her abruptly and said: “Student brains”.  And she said: “No, seriously.”

And I said: “Well, when I can’t eat student brains, I like enchiladas.”

From across the table, Asha said with a mischievous grin: “You must be a zombie.”

And I said to her, smiling slightly: “If you tell anyone, I will eat your brain.”

And then she said: “And then I’ll be a zombie.”  She paused, I think for effect: “And we could turn the whole school into a zombies like us.”

“Yes,” I smiled.  “Yes, we could.”

Later...Graham came up to me and said that Asha had told her I was a zombie.  And I said to Graham: “I can neither confirm nor deny that.”  Asha, overhearing, smiled at me on her way out of the the library.