We call it the Clounge or the coffee closet. It’s a storage closet in the school offices, a narrow closet that houses spare books and curriculum resources and the huge lock boxes that keep our state tests secure. On the other side we have a long, narrow table and small cabinet that support two microwaves, a toaster, and the coffeepot. Closet + Lounge gives us Clounge, and coffee closet is self-explanatory.

This Clounge is narrow – narrow enough that only one person can stand in between the table and storage shelves. At lunch time, there’s a lot of “Excuse me. Can I get past you to the water cooler? The refrigerator? Or maybe could you just hand me my yogurt?” as we maneuver around to get what we need.

But once in a while, someone brings in a treat. This one came from a long-term substitute to say Thanks on her last day with us.

Cute, aren’t they?

We had some fun discussions, trying to figure out who ate the head from the turtle but left its shell, wondering why everyone left the smilies for last. One thing was simple; that frog was calling my name. It was great with coffee.