Monday, August 21
- Overnight, Paul's been thinking about how his family is going to change things in this new town. His dad will be making changes at his job with the county civil engineering department, his mom will be changing things in their Homeowners' Association, and Erik will change the football season for his high school.
- So, now Paul wonders, will he be making a difference somewhere, too? Like maybe on his middle school's soccer team?
- As he goes down to breakfast, his dad is just leaving, furiously lecturing Mrs. Fisher on his way out.
- He's not happy about the way Wayne handled her 911 call, and wants her to complain.
- When Paul leaps to Wayne's defense, his dad snaps at him and leaves. Someone sure got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning,
- After breakfast, Paul helps his mom continue to unpack. She tells him that a bunch of their stuff is in a storage unit now, since their new house doesn't have an attic or basement. Hey, less stuff to unpack!
- Later, Paul and his mom drive out to Lake Windsor Middle School to get Paul registered.
- It starts to rain (again) as they step into the school's office. Paul notices a field full of portables, connected by wooden walkways, outside the office window, and is told that all 7th and 8th grade classes are held in them. The main building is only for 6th graders. Talk about unfair!
- The lady explaining this is Mrs. Gates, the principal. Paul's mom tells her that Paul's vision is impaired, so she wants to give him a head start on learning his way around the school.
- Hm, we didn't realize his eyes were so bad.
- And maybe they're not. Paul gets mad at his mom for drawing attention to his vision, and insists he can see fine.
- Mrs. Gates takes them on the tour regardless, and Mrs. Fisher is less than impressed with the facilities.
- Paul asks about the soccer team, telling Mrs. Gates that he plays goalie. So, his eyes can't possibly be that bad.
- But Mrs. Gates has Mrs. Fisher fill out an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) for Paul anyway, so the school can keep track of his special needs.
- As they drive away in the pouring rain, they notice that the field where the portables are has completely flooded. Tangerine sure is a strange place.