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As the end of the school year gets closer, the kids are not the only ones starting to crack under the pressure. The teachers are beginning to show the strain, too.

I share a room with a colleague of mine, and as lunch came to a close we were both frantically trying to corral some last minute details for the next period. The bell rang and I muttered "here come the Mongol hordes."

Her head shot up. "The what!?" "The Mongol hordes," I replied. It's just an expression. You know, like Ghengis Khan and those guys?"

She started to laugh. "For a second, I thought you said mongrel hordes." I cracked up, too.

Well, if you think about it either one would work.

Then, she related another comment that she had popped up with today, as well. She has begun to refer to those kids who constantly shuffle up pathetically to ask for a pass out of class as "Those poor, tired, huddled masses, yearning to pee."

By the time my fifth period started to troop in, we were both laughing like loons.

One more week, people...