When my husband found me in the hall armed with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser at midnight he asked, "What are you doing?"

"I'm angry and I'm cleaning."

"Okay then."  He turned around and went back to bed.

When I'm deeply angry about an unfairness or very disturbed, I clean.  Mom says that I get it from her.  I don't just clean, I deep clean.  It's not a bad thing.  Really, it isn't destructive.  It is productive and I burned a lot of calories during my 5 1/2 cleaning frenzy from 8 PM - 1:30 AM.

What sent me into my lengthy cleaning binge was the PTA meeting last night.  The meeting as a whole wasn't bad, just a certain run of it.

The Bylaws and Standing Rules of our PTA were last updated in March of 2002.  They are to be updated every three years.  To be considered as a PTA in good standing, you must have your Bylaws and Standing Rules current.  We are in good standing other than that.  I stated that if I only accomplish one thing in my presidency of the PTA, it was to update the Bylaws and Standing Rules.

Long, sorted story short came when the previous administration of the PTA decided to group together, elect a speaker who would then rake me over the coals in front of the general membership in attendance.

Good times, especially since there was staff present.

The raking lasted for 20 minutes.  Little did they know that I had gone to art school for 7 years and spent those 7 years defending my work in more critiques than I can count.  I was calm.  I spoke effectively.  I had my mind and details about me.

I appreciate people bringing forth inconsistencies that they see.  They aren't intentional gaffs.  The one bringing forth the barrage of complaints has been the president of a PTA for 7 years.  She stated that to the general membership and all I could think was that instead of accusing me of not allowing people to vote (I handled voting in the way that was modeled to me by previous administration in the years prior to my presidency), why couldn't she offer mentoring of the position if she is so experienced?

PTA is a wonderful organization that does great and wonderful things for the children.  We are fortunate to have a very active PTA.  I don't mind being called out on things that people perceive as being wrong.  I told the general membership last night that we are not a dictatorship, but a group of people to meet to discuss the things that they find are wrong and we come up with solutions.  What I have a problem with is the way that it was handled, with the collective of women behind her bobbing their heads in all knowing attitude, hands raised in agreement and falsehoods that spewed from their mouths.

The worst part of that was that the biggest player in this was the past president, someone who has given me great guidance and I've confided in during times of major frustration.  If that allows her to sleep at night, God bless.  The knife is still deeply lodged in my back.  The relationship is permanently altered.  I'm sure that the wound will start to heal around the knife, but that will continue to remain until the previous administration vacates to a building of higher learning.  She was a mentor and she did do her best to guide me in the ways that she knew.  I was just stunned that the one who guided me and encouraged me was one of the ring leaders.  Ouch.

I volunteered at the school today.  I saw this member and in my same happy tone, I told her hello when I passed her in the hall and wished her a happy day as she left.

I'm not letting them win.  I think that just might irritate the crud out of them.  ;)

The principal met with me.  He gave me his evaluation of the situation and did inform me that there are a few members that have made appointments to meet with him next week about this drama.  He asked how I was and told me that he felt that I handled the "personal attack" professionally and that one staff member in attendance commented in a similar way.

I think that may have made the previous administration mad, too.  The fact that I acted like a human and didn't jump up and down and scream may have thrown them.  See what great powers you have when you have God on your side?

In the end, if they want to kick me out for voting on PTA items in the very same fashion as they did, have at it.  If they want to smear me all over God's green (or white, depending on the day here) creation, have at it.  I told the principal that I rest in knowing that I regret nothing that I have done for our PTA.  I've worked hard and I feel good about it.

Until then, my house hasn't been this clean in a long time.  I scrubbed walls and floors.  I washed down doors and interior windows.  I cleaned the bathroom from top to bottom.  I wiped woodwork, dusted, laundered the back door curtain.  I laundered several loads of laundry.  I removed the build up residue from hair spray that was on the bathroom floor that wouldn't clean off by conventional methods.  I cleaned and scrubbed the landing and all of the basement steps.  I even cleaned the hand rail that leads down to the basement.  I killed two Mr. Clean Magic Erasers.

Take that previous administration people who make me angry!  I take that anger and do constructive things with it.

HA!  Anger cleans my house.