You know it's time to visit the dermatologist when...

So I stayed after school yesterday with one of my students so she could take a test she had missed. Now, this student is a very sweet girl - quiet, struggles with Spanish, but very sweet. She finished her test (a rocking 21 out of 50, in case you were wondering) and handed it to me. She looked like she was going to head out the door, and then she turned back and said:

"I don't want to be rude, but you have two really big zits on your face."

"I know," I responded with a forced smile. "There's nothing I can do about it."

She didn't miss a beat. "Well, actually, one of them is really white. You could pop it."

Oh really? I could pop it? Just what I needed - zit popping advice from a THIRTEEN YEAR OLD.

"Well, it wasn't white this morning, when I could have popped it, and now if I tried it would bleed," I explained.

"Oooohhhh...yeah." She looked worried for a second, as if my world was crumbling and she alone was responsible to save me. Then she perked up. "Well, here! This will cheer you up!"

She pulled out a BOBBLE.HEAD.DOG. and pushed the head down. She grinned at me as I watched the little orange head bobble up and down. Up and down. I forced a laugh, hoping that would stop the madness and send her on her way. It didn't.

She smiled, knowingly, as if she now knew what would really make me laugh. She pretended to throw a ball up in the air, letting it "drop", and then she pulled a bouncy ball out of her pocket. MAGIC! - How did the ball get from the air to her pocket?!

I laughed nervously, wondering what in the world was going on in her head.

"Ha! Gotcha! I knew that would make you laugh!" She said triumphantly. And then she skipped out the door...leaving me behind to wonder .... what. just. happened?