As the Mazurs were getting ready for work and school Tuesday, we had a discussion around the kitchen as we ate cereal, drank caffeine, made sandwiches, and tried to get out the door by 7:20 a.m.

My husband said kids should have Veterans Day off from school.

My sons agreed with that position. They wanted to stay home and watch a John Wayne movie with dad. Even though John Wayne wasn't a veteran, he did star in a lot of war movies.

Being the objective journalist, I sat on the fence and listened. Well, not literally. I actually was making coffee, tea and cocoa and listening.

So I asked my friends on facebook, which includes a sizable number of veterans and educators, what they thought.

For the most part, my parent friends said schoolkids should have Veterans Day off from school. My teacher friends, for the most part, said kids should be in school so they could actually learn about U.S. veterans and the contributions they have made. My cousin, a substitute teacher in Loveleand, said if kids have the day off from school, they typically play video games and don't do much of anything else.

Others thought school should be in session, but as a service day.

I did attend the Bayfield Middle School lunch for veterans, which I thought was awesome. The music was great, and the servicemen (and a few women!) seemed genuinely pleased when they stood up during their branches' military marches and all of the kids applauded. The BMS orchestra did a great job performing the music, by the way.

Carole photographed the Veterans Day parade in Durango. Other commitments kept us from making it to the Ignacio Veterans Day celebration that evening at Ignacio Middle School, but I have attended in the past and it is always a great event. Ignacio schools usually are out on Veterans Day, but this year, they took Nov. 10 off, which makes no sense to me whatsoever.

Several people were of the opinion that if students get out of school for Martin Luther King Day, they should get out for Veterans Day, as well.

One good idea - veterans should get the day off!

In my perfect world, kids would learn about Veterans Day during that week, then have the actual Veterans Day off from school, and no calendar shuffling would be allowed to make it a three-day weekend. Unfortunately, my perfect world doesn't exist yet. But I do like the idea of veterans getting the day off. I think my vet friends would, too!

Thank you to those of you who have served, and to all of you, thanks for reading.