Yes, I Know It's April Fools

Does that mean we all have to be paranoid? Apparently so.

This morning the office staff was convinced that I was pranking them because a man kept calling the school before classes began and asked to speak to, "Mr. Cobb". I could not be found. I hop all around the school before the kids get there. I pop into the art room to talk to the art teacher, I go into my old class to visit with staff, and I may even use the restroom before the students arrive. When I finally heard I was receiving phone calls I went to the office and inquired. This caller had called a handful of times already, always asking for, "Mr. Cobb", never using my name. I became suspicious. No one would call me at the school repeatedly, and not leave a message. I though perhaps someone was trying to play a joke on me.

At this point the office staff, seeing that I wasn't really concerned with who might be calling for me decided that I must be the jokester. They became convinced that I was calling the office and asking for myself sending them on a wild goose chase. I knew this wasn't the case but I couldn't convince them. I spent time in the office hoping the mysterious caller would try again. They didn't. I returned to the classroom since now the students had arrived, and, wouldn't you know it, I was paged to the office.

Turns out it was a concerned parent calling to discuss a personal matter that had happened yesterday. They wanted to discuss it with me and didn't think to leave a message or ask for a return call. Okay, so that cleared it up. Except one receptionist still claimed that I was playing a prank. She said that I was pretending to have the 10 minute conversation on the phone with a cohort to cover up my guilt. (Like I have that kind of time or energy.)

A side note - Besides all of the ridiculously lame April Fool's jokes perpetrated by my students the day went pretty smoothly. A coworker did feel the need to warn me away from the Beltway for my afternoon commute due to a truck fire that had screwed things up. I believed her completely but she still felt the urge to say, "This is not an April Fool's joke."

Everybody relax!