school photos?|Pad Patter 10.17.2018

apparently it's an Aust/NZ word and not international!
rort
NOUN
Australian / NZ
informal
A fraudulent or dishonest act or practice. -
‘a tax rort’
VERB

• Engage in sharp practice.

• 1.1with object Manipulate (a ballot or records) fraudulently; rig.
  1.2with object Work (a system) to obtain the greatest benefit while remaining within the letter of the law.

• 
  ‘Senior politicians, rorting the system with inflated travel claims.’

(it's often used as 'rip off' and often associated with politicians and business people as well as those claiming welfare

 

I like it!
Here I would use scheme, or scam, or sham I think. I really like rort!

 

I like it too. Scams are yucky and the word "rort" sounds yucky when I say it.

 

I know people complain and say the pictures are always awful, but I buy them every year. Because I know that they will smile better and cooperate with a stranger than they will for me... so yeah. School photos for the win!

 

I always buy a digital copy of their school pictures. I don't display them or pass them out. The school changed photographers this year, and the new one doesn't offer a digital only option, so now I am buying the cheapest package that allows me to add on the CD.

I used to have professional portraits done every year, but my mom thought it was a waste of money (although she liked the pictures), my husband complained about the time and cost, and the kids always had to be dragged to the studio, so after my youngest finished his first year, I quit doing them. I miss them a lot, but the studio we used was extremely popular, and I just couldn't handle the stress of fighting everyone over it anymore.

 

The last two years my son was sick during photo day and retakes, so I don't have any pics of 6th or 7th grade. He has autism and anxiety, so his facial expressions are either a wide fake smile or a frown, as he is so nervous with all the attention on him. I did buy this year. The family knows this is how his photos look, so they don't make snide comments or act concerned as he looks mad in them.

 

I got that deal, too!

School pictures are a rite of passage thing for me. I would never not buy my kids' school pictures even knowing they don't always turn out great & I have hundreds of photos of them already. My mom has 8x10 frames on her wall for each grandchild so I buy the cheapest package that includes at least one 8x10. It generally runs about $40. I've tried doing a la carte for an 8x10 and 2 5x7s (what we & the ILs do for pics) but it's always more than the cheapest package.

In fact, when I found out that my son's preschool wasn't going to have school pictures this year because they couldn't find a photographer, I reached out to the woman who took my kids' soccer teams' photos this fall & passed along her information after she said she'd be willing. She's coming by sometime in November to take them.