Mike's Craphouse

New Blog Address

2006-04-12T22:38:00.000-05:00

I'm trying a new blog platform. I don't know if I'll like it or not, but I'm gonna give it a shot. Here is the address. All my other posts are there, but some of the pictures don't seem to have made it. I'll see what I can do about all that.

Enjoy. The site is below

www.burns105.wordpress.com

New Internet

2006-03-21T22:11:00.000-06:00

I've finally entered the world if Broadband Internet. I used to have it, then moved to good old Malakoff and wasn't able to get it. Now, not only do I have it, but I set up a wireless connection throughout my entire house. I'm living large. So perhaps my blog will come back to life since it won't be such a pain in the butt to log onto the internet anymore.

Anyway...it's offically Spring and that's a great thing.

Bam

2006-03-21T19:39:00.000-06:00

This is Bam. He's a senior at my high school, and this is VERY funny.

My Blog Sucks

2006-03-16T18:47:00.000-06:00

I have not posted in many days. Does anyone out there actually still read this blog? If so, please comment...it might motivate me to write.

Happy Spring Break

Something I wrote -- VERY ROUGH DRAFT

2006-02-19T13:05:00.000-06:00

     “We’re moving,” my father told me on a fall Sunday afternoon during my Sophomore year of high school. “You’re new school is going to be much smaller than Union.”
     The news was cause for excitement. I hated Union High School. The place was huge and I was simply a number…someone who wouldn’t be missed. It was the kind of place that even if I did something drastic, like hang myself in the auditorium just to get noticed, I wouldn’t get noticed. Of course I would never really hang myself, or hurt myself in any form or fashion. I’m just saying that the place was huge and not too many people knew who I was. The idea of moving to a small school made me happy. I had visions of being the big fish swimming in the little pond, and I liked it.
     “I’m going to miss you Chuck,” said Mr. Johnston. Johnston was my English teacher and probably the only member of the faculty who actually knew my name. My grades weren’t great, although I never failed anything, but in Mr. Johnston’s class, I always managed an A. I don’t think it was really that hard to earn an A in his class…he was one of those touchy, feely teachers (and I don’t mean physically) who most students made every effort to try and get in his section. Looking back, I think just about everyone made an A in his class, so I guess I didn’t really have anything to be proud of after all.
     “Thanks Mr. J,” I answered. I always called him Mr. J. I don’t think he liked it all that much, but he never corrected me and I just got in the bad habit of calling him that, so we both just pretty much accepted it as the way things were between the two of us. Mr. J was younger than most of the teachers, but not young enough that we mistook him for a student. I’m guessing he was around 30, although I’m not very good at guessing ages. I always admired those guys at the fair who could guess someone’s age. A couple of years ago, I watched a guy correctly guess the ages of about 15 people in a row. It was fabulous and I couldn’t take my eyes off him. I imagined having that kind of power and it made me jealous. But back to Mr. J. He was probably around 30 and he was cool. We just got to sit around his class all day and write, and talk, and write some more. We pretty much got to write anything we wanted in his class and if we were stuck, he had this cool book that gave us ideas to write about. Some kids just wrote lists, and at first I thought that was coping out, but the more of the lists I read from my fellow students, the cooler I thought they were. Mel Martinez wrote a cool list during the last grading period that I thought was so cool that I wrote it down:

Shit I Like

Chicks with big tits
Tits
Long legs
Catherine Grace (big tits)
Beer
Recess (Deeply missed in High School)
Melanie Harper (legs that won’t quit)
Pizza
Mrs. Kellogg (nice tits for an older chick)
3:20 pm
Me
     For this assignment, Mel earned an A from Mr. J. Some of the other kids in class were kind of pissed that Mr. J would give someone an A for such a shitty list, but if you really stopped to think about it, it was a pretty good list…especially for Mel, which was short for Melvin, and did I mention that Mel was kind of retarded? He wasn’t really retarded, but he was slow. His parents had him tested and he qualified for Special Ed, but I think he faked it. Mel was smarter than he let on and I think he secretly liked making lists, and I think he secretly liked English class. I know this because I told him once, and then he proceeded to punch me in the nuts. It hurt, but I guess I sort of had it coming. You don’t accuse a kid like Mel of liking school, unless it was the part of school where you got to beat other kids up, because that’s all Mel would admit to liking to. But sometimes, when he was writing up a list, I would look over at him and see a little smile on his face like he was enjoying himself. Only Mel and I, and probably Mr. J. knew the real truth.
     “You know Chuck, if you don’t like your new English class, I’ll be happy to e-mail you some writing prompts.”
     “Thanks Mr. J. That would be awesome.” I answered. I knew I wouldn’t ask for any, but it would be cool to know that I could get some prompts from far away if I needed them. I wondered if Mel ever secretly asked for any prompts from Mr. J. I bet he did, and I bet his work was really good. Mel was no retard.
     As for me, well I’m an entirely different story. I’m not a retard at all. In fact, in the second grade, my parents put me in a GT program at my school. They thought I was really smart because I could read in Kindergarten. It wasn’t really a big deal, I just watched lots of Electric Company on TV and figured out how to put sounds together. Anyway, they thought I was a genius and bragged to all their friends and I would go over to people’s houses and read from different books. I remember one time a friend of my dad’s didn’t believe me…he figured I had just memorized the books, so he went up stairs to get one of his wife’s prayer books and I started reading a bunch of crap about staying positive every morning and remembering the Lord. I read it word for word and my dad’s buddy just thought it was hilarious. I didn’t really understand what the big deal was.
     GT was lame. We just drew a lot, and made things. We did get to go on a lot of field trips, which was cool. I went to the Museum of Science and Industry once. It had cool stuff in it, like airplanes and spaceships. I liked it, but most of the time in GT we were stuck in the classroom doing lame artsy stuff. One time we made tie-dyed t-shirts…now tell me, I know I’m only in high school, and I’m not supposed to know these things, but what on earth could possibly be educational about learning how to make a shirt that a bunch of acid heads in the 60’s used to make to show that they were radicals?

It's been a long time....

2006-02-19T12:59:00.000-06:00

Man. I haven’t updated my blog in a long time, in fact…this is the first post of 2006, so let me be the last to wish you a Happy New Year…even though it’s almost March.

2006 has been pretty uneventful. Not too much has been happening. I’ve been busy with the job and that’s been about it. I spent some time in Frisco and the rest I spend here in good old Malakoff.

The Malakoff Hoops teams both did well this winter. The girls were bi-district champs and lost a good game to the number 6 team in the state last night. They had a good year, a season like they should have been having the last 4 years. It’s too bad they weren’t able to do more with the talent they had but this year was fun watching them.

Our boys are doing extremely well. They only lost one district game and are entering the playoffs on a roll. They play their first playoff game next week and it should be a good one.

TAKS is this week. I don’t know how we are going to do on TAKS this year. I don’t really want to talk about it.

I started Mtn. Biking and working out on a regular basis again. So far I’ve lost about 20 pounds, but it’s not good enough. I need to lose about 20 more and I think I will this time. I really seem to actually be making some lifestyle changes this time around which is really good. I hope I can continue to make them a part of my everyday life.

That’s about all I have to bring to the table. I took my ELA Teacher Certification test yesterday. I think it went well and I should be officially a certified teacher from here on out. This is good since I would also like to move on to another school sometime in the near future. This certification will allow that to happen.

That’s it. I hope to start posting more, but looking back at previous posts, I’ve said that before. Perhaps if I ever get DSL and I’m always connected to the Internet this will change. Who knows. Have a good day.

The Miracle of Christmas Break

2005-12-29T09:38:00.000-06:00

It’s times like these that I’m sure thankful for being a school teacher. I’ve had the last week and a half off, and I’m still of until Tuesday. This is a much needed break, and I’ve spent it doing basically nothing.

Well, I haven’t actually been doing nothing…just not doing much. Last week, I decided to do something that I haven’t done in 11 years. I bought a new car, or more specifically, a truck. It’s a 2006 Ford F-150 and it’s loaded. In truth, it’s more car than I need, but I was able to keep the payments low and plan on keeping it for a while, so it will be nice to have. Now, when I go out to my garage and see a Corvette and a F-150 sitting out there, I kind of chuckle to myself and wonder how I got so lucky.

Christmas was good as usual. I spent the holidays with family and some with friends. It was a good time. Christmas was good again as usual.

The rest of the week I will spend resting before I get back to school and begin TAKS prep. I’m not excited about this, but it must be done, so I will do it. Only about two months until the TAKS test. I hope these turds are ready.

TAKS Benchmarks

2005-12-05T22:22:00.000-06:00

TAKS Benchmarks

Today I graded my TAKS benchmark tests. Essentially this was a practice test for the real one that comes up in February. My students didn’t do too hot. Only 66 percent passed my practice test. This isn’t good. We have lots of work to do and I’m now officially nervous. If they don’t do better, I’m gonna be shit out of luck this year.

We had our Christmas party tonight. It was ok. Christmas parties for work are always kind of an ass whip. While you have friends and people you are close with but they aren’t exactly your BEST friends. This one was pretty good though. We ate lots of food and I won a $25 gift certificate at Wal-Mart. All and all a decent night.

Tomorrow I get high definition TV. I am pretty excited about this purchase and can’t wait to play with it tomorrow night. It’s gonna be sweet. I will update tomorrow or Wednesday in more detail.

That’s it. Texas is playing for the National Championship. That’s sweet. It’s gonna be a great game vs. USC. Can’t wait to watch on Jan. 4th.

Bye

Shit Again

2005-11-26T10:35:00.000-06:00

I didn’t write a damn thing. I’m a failure.

Shit

2005-11-26T10:21:00.000-06:00

Writing….It’s a tough thing to get a hold of. I would love to be a writer…but I just have trouble getting started. I try and teach kids to write, but I end up having a bunch of the same problems they do. Sure, I can give out assignments and I’m sure I could do well if I was in a writing class, but the truth of the matter is that I can’t seem to get anything done myself. I wish I could think of good ideas to write about, but none ever seem to get inside my head. I try and find interesting characters, but I don’t do very well with those either.

I just read a small blurb in last month’s Texas Monthly about writing. It was a brief interview with a writer and a teacher at UT. He said the key is writing every day and not worrying about plot, but what your character is going to do next. I know that it makes complete sense, but I still have trouble getting started….frustration.

It’s not 10:20 am on November 26, 2005. I will start writing right now and won’t stop for exactly one hour. I will post what I write, even if it sucks. Then you be the judge.

The Day After

2005-11-25T09:53:00.000-06:00

The Day After

Well, Thanksgiving is officially over. Mine was a good one with plenty of family and friends in around to make it a good day…except of course the Cowboys losing. Other than that, the food was terrific, and it’s always good to spend time with those you love on a holiday.

This morning, as I type this, I’m being extremely lazy. It’s almost 10:00 and I’m still in bed. In about an hour, I will wake up and watch the Texas vs. Texas A&M game, but other than that I plan on being pretty lazy. I might go out and do something tonight. I don’t know.

Tomorrow, the family is heading to Dallas to do some more family-like activities. My uncle is catering a dinner to his house in Highland Park and we will eat well. I’ll spend the night in Dallas and head back out here to the lake sometime on Sunday. Then it’s back to work on Monday…BUT we only have three weeks to go before Christmas break. I can’t wait.

I don’t really want to mention the Cowboys loss. They shouldn’t have lost that game, but they did. I was glad to see them hang around and actually play better than one of the best teams in the league, but the loss still hurt. While they should still make the playoffs, they have a tough schedule and you never know. I hope the team bounces back from this one next week and kicks the shit out of the over-rated New York Giants.

Thanks enough for me….have a great day.

Happy Thanksgiving

2005-11-24T11:12:00.000-06:00

Ahhh. Thanksgiving. When I was younger, this was the one holiday I could do completely without. It was freaking boring. Maybe it was the fact that I never lived near family when I was growing up, but Thanksgiving was always spent having to dress up in some uncomfortable clothes and going to the house of my parent’s friends. There I was forced to make boring conversation about school, what I wanted to do with my future (colleges, career, etc), topics I hated because I was such an average student that I didn’t know if I would be continuing my education other than our local community college down the road. I didn’t even like turkey when I was in school. The only thing I could see that I liked about Thanksgiving was the fact that I didn’t have to go to school for a few days…and it meant that Christmas was right around the corner…and Christmas meant presents.

But times have changed. I’ve since moved back to Texas and my family much closer now. Thanksgiving is meant to be with family and I now spend the day with people I love. We also have some good friends that I get to spend the holiday with and so the day is much more tolerable than it used to be. My taste for different foods has changed too. I love turkey now and love the different ways it can be cooked. Fry them, smoke them, cook them the old fashioned way in the oven…it doesn’t matter.

To top it all off, the Dallas Cowboys play every turkey day and this season, the game actually means something for the first time in several years. The Cowboys play the Broncos…a team many people think is the second best in the NFL. Dallas is playing well too, but many people, including myself, don’t know if the team is for real. Today’s game will let us know where Dallas is in the pecking order of the NFL. It should be a great game and I can’t wait to watch it.

So have a great Thanksgiving everyone. It’s not a bad day anymore. Think off how lucky you are…no matter how shitty your life is, some poor sap out there has it worse…and that alone is enough to be thankful for this year.

Go Cowboys.

Back Again

2005-11-23T17:07:00.000-06:00

As usual, it’s been a while since my last post. I’ve been very busy lately with school but still no excuse not to post, not that there are any readers out there.

Let’s see…since my last time on my blog, I’ve spent a weekend in Austin at an amazing house, went to a wedding, bought a bunch of new bedroom furniture, started a bowling team and kicked back during Thanksgiving Break.

My friend Jeff was married in Austin a couple of weeks ago. It was a great wedding and I had an amazing time seeing old friends. It was also the first time I drank in over two months. I did pretty good though, not really getting too out of control. I probably won’t drink again for a while, so it was good to get away I guess.

While in Austin, I stayed at my uncle’s beautiful house in the hills of West Austin. If I could have any house in the world, it might be this one. I have some pictures but probably won’t post, since it’s not my house and I don’t know if he would want pictures of his house out there on the Internet…even if it is my lame blog.

For my birthday, I got a new bed and dresser, and then I went and bought a big mirror and bookcase. My room looks great now and I’m really excited about it.

But perhaps what I’m most excited about is my bowling team. In my 6th period Journalism class, the topic of bowling came up and I mentioned to my students that the sport I love the most that I NEVER participate in is bowling. A few of the kids said the same thing, and lo and behold, “The Articles” (get it, journalism…news articles) was born. We’ve been bowling a couple of times a week and plan to get in a league in the next week or two. We also are going to order some sweet bowling shirts. Me and a bunch of 17 and 18 year olds hanging out in the bowling alley. What has my life become?

Have a great Thanksgiving. Only a few more weeks until Christmas.

Fun Fun Fun

2005-11-01T17:32:00.000-06:00

It seems like I always start off writing about how long it’s been since my last post. So I won’t even mention it here…instead I will just write.

Things have been going better around here. School is going pretty good and (sorry to all my innocent students who might be reading), I’ve completely quit drinking booze. Not that I was a drunk or anything, but I just decided to cut that activity out of my life. This doesn’t mean I can’t have a beer with the guys during the game, but my days of drinking more than a few beers are over…I hope. Keep your fingers crossed for me. I feel much better than I ever have.

I’ve been reading again too. I’m almost finished with a book called the Tender Bar. It’s a great book, very entertaining, but even more so inspiring for me. I would love to write a book like this one. Maybe someday I will.

Halloween was last night and I thwarted an attack on my house by about 15 high school students last night. They thought they were sneaking up on me, but little did they know that I was waiting in the darkness ready to ruin their parade. It was actually pretty funny.

I don’t have much else to bring to the table. Vince Young is an absolute beast on the football field. I love watching him play ball. If you don’t get any Texas games in your neck of the woods, go to a sports bar and check him out. He’s amazing.

Have a good day. Hope to write more later.

No More Blogger

2005-10-21T23:58:00.000-05:00

Well, it finally happened. My school has banned any Blogger.com domain names from being pulled up at school. Basically, it pissed me off. Blogs can be used as such a good tool for writing and now they aren’t possible to access on our campus. It makes me upset. Several of my students have blogs, some of which were set up on campus. Now they will only be able to access them from home, which kind of sucks.

I may try and fight these blogs from being blocked, but I don’t think I will win this battle. Whatever the case, it makes me upset. All that needs to be done in schools to keep kids safe from the Internet is to monitor what your students are watching.

In other news, I just got back from the Crandall vs. Kaufman football game. One of my favorite students ever moved to Crandall this year and I promised that if he made varsity that I would watch him play. I was proud of him playing out there…his new school is much bigger and his competition is much stronger than what he played in Malakoff. He played great, and so did his team. But they did lose a heartbreaker. His team went up 23-22 with a minute left in the game, and they attempted a two-point conversion to make their lead at least three points. But as the QB dropped back to throw the ball, he threw it to the wrong team and Kaufman ran the two-point conversion back for a TD and two points of their own. Final score 24 to 23. Heartbreaker. Even though, it was one of the best high school football games I’ve seen in a long time. I was glad I made the trip and sat in the brisk cool night air to watch.

The rest of my weekend is for relaxation. I have nothing else planned until Monday when I have to go back to work. Should be a nice kick-back weekend.

Bil King and other thoughts

2005-10-19T18:27:00.000-05:00

I haven’t blogged in a while. I’ve been pretty busy and really haven’t even been using the Internet too much. But, now I’m back…I guess I’ll fill you in on the last week or two.

Last Friday, I flew to Chicago with my parents to attend a wedding of a close family friend. Chicago is an amazing city, full of life. It really is my kind of town (bad pun…started out unintentional, but now it’s there for effect). It revolves around sports and an active lifestyle. Lots of good food, and cool places to go. You don’t even really need a car if you live in the city. I could really see me living there, even with the cold winters. It’s just a cool, city that’s alive and well.

The wedding was great. It was good to see some old friends and meet some new ones. I hope I keep in touch with some of the people who were there. They are good people who I care about a great deal.

This week, I’ve been at a two-day workshop showing teachers how to instruct in a “sheltered” classroom. Sheltered teaching means that you use certain techniques to help ESL students, but you don’t bring the rest of the class down with you to lower non-english speaking level. Some of the strategies used were pretty good and I will definitely use them in my classroom. In fact, we’re using one strategy tomorrow in class already.

Yesterday, the great Bill King died. King was the radio announcer for the Oakland A’s ever since I was a little boy. I grew up listening him describe the action on the radio. I could almost see the games as he described Rickey burning up the base paths, or describing a Canseco or McGwire moonshots. His description of Dave Stewart on the mound was truly unforgettable. I can remember delivering flowers in high school on the weekends and tuning in King’s voice every Saturday. I can remember not so long ago, tuning A’s games in on the Internet just so I could hear King’s voice again. I can remember back to this July, this summer, when I was in the Bay Area and listened to his voice for the last time. While King was probably around 80 years old, his death was still unexpectant, which makes losing him so much more tragic. He had no plans to retire, he had no plans to slow down much more. We all thought we had more time with him and now we don’t. I will miss him, but never forget him. The Great Bill King…may he rest in peace.

Bill King

Small Towns

2005-10-11T13:26:00.000-05:00

I made the decision to move to a small town about 4 or 5 years ago. I wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle of big city life - the traffic, the fast pace of things. Overall I've been happy with my choice, but I find myself thinking more and more about the things I'm missing. Most of the people in my town aren't as culturally aware (not that I'm real cultural myself) as I am. This town is close-minded.

I don't know if small towns are for me or not anymore. I really don't want to deal with the traffic, the polution and the fast pace of life, but I can still teach anywhere. Sometimes I think it might be better if I were in a bigger city.

I also think it would just be cool to buy a motorhome and just go drive for a while. Sometimes you can do yourself some good just to get away from the people who drive you nuts.

If it sounds like I'm rambling...I am. I might be like this the rest of my life. When I finally think I'm happy, I just start thinking about doing something else.

On another note...Go Cowboys.

Great Day for a Monday

2005-10-03T22:13:00.000-05:00

Today was great. We only had to work until around 11:00. The English department had to fill out a form…it took about 10 minutes thanks to my leadership…and then I was off to my room to complete a few lesson plans and a powerpoint presentation for tomorrow in class. Then I was out of there like an old school Vette.

After work, I drove to Corsicana, Texas to have lunch with my Grandma and Mom who were shopping there. It was good, but I started getting a headache, so I headed for home and took about a 30 minute nap.

When I woke up, one of my student’s asked me if I would help her fill out her college application, so I did that and then went and got a sandwich at McAllister’s Deli in Athens. I ate way too much today which was about the only drawback (along with the headache…could they be related?) of my day.

Tonight I came home and watched Monday Night Football. The Panther’s defense, which I started this week in fantasy football looks to be giving me enough points to take the lead in my contest this week. Looks like my team will be starting out the year 3-1. Not bad for me, I usually start out slow.

So, now it’s a short week with the students. They are writing all week, which should be good…they will stay busy. This weekend I have a political fundraiser to attend in Dallas and the Texas plays Oklahoma in the Red River Shootout. I’m excited about the game, but am always weary of the Sooners. Even though they suck, they can still kick Texas’ ass.

That’s about it for today. I’m working on writing something that I may post soon. It needs lots of work, but actually might have some potential. We’ll see.

Keep it real bruthas and sistas.

Yo

2005-10-01T09:55:00.000-05:00

I haven't got much to bring to the table, so I thought I would address an educational concern that a fellow teacher and I discussed last night. Student dress codes in High School. When I first started teaching at my school a few years ago, I was amazed at the depth of our student dress code. Students can't wear hats, tank tops, jeans can't have holes in them. No flip flops. Hair color is out. Kids can't spike their hair. If a student's jeans are too baggy, they have to go home and change. What even amazed me more than the code itself was how much effort and energy went into inforcing the code by teachers and administrators. This is a school that during my first year sent me 8 students who were either mothers or expectant mothers...and I teach 10th grade. This is a school that has test scores way below the state average. This is a school that has children whose parents are in prison, live in broken down trailers and are uneducated. But most administrators are worried about if a student didn't shave that morning.

I just feel that school needs to be a place that kids WANT to come to. They need to feel good about themselves when they arrive on campus. They need to be able to express themselves. They don't need to be treated like prisoners, second class citizens or 10-year-olds.

I do think there is a need for a dress code. Shirts with innapropriate messages, while often times funny, don't need to be worn in school. Young girls don't need to dress like hookers...but what is cool for a kid isn't always cool for an adult. Adult teachers and administrators have to be more aware of what is going on with the clothes kids wear. There will always be generational differences, but our jobs would be eaiser if we attempted to understand where kids are coming from instead of simply telling them what they are doing is wrong. It's not wrong...it's just different.

Just my two cents.

Small Town Fun

2005-09-23T20:35:00.000-05:00

I haven’t posted in a while. So much has seemed to happen…For weeks, there have been some rumors circulating about me. I’ve decided not to talk about them on this blog, but recently changed my mind. I’m not going to go into details, but I will say that those rumors are not true. It’s not really important what they are. What really has upset me more than anything else about this is that people would actually believe I would do anything wrong. I’ve busted my ass to become the best teacher I can be, and I love my job more than anything in the world. I think that I’ve become a good teacher over the last 3 plus years and I would do nothing to jeopardize that.

The biggest thing I wish is that the people in this community who have decided to talk about me to everyone in this town would add one person to their list to share their gossip with…me. Ask me what is up. Ask me directly about what is going on. You all might be surprised to learn my answers…the truth…the real story. Instead, everyone has decided to talk about me behind my back and assume I’m doing something that I have never done or even considered doing. Making assumptions isn’t always the right thing to do.

I believe there is a reason that this town has had problems keeping coaches and teachers who actually care about kids and do everything they can to see them succeed leave this town every few years…this town can be ruthless. This town likes to watch other people fall. I used to think it was like this in every small town, but after talking to people who have worked in other small communities, I’ve started to learn that this town is unique. I’ve started to learn that this town will always have teachers who are mediocre…the good ones are simply too smart to stick around.

I don’t need to be treated this way…and don’t expect to in the future. I’m a good teacher…no scratch that…I’m becoming a great teacher. I can take my skills anywhere and be successful. I don’t really need my family coming to me and asking me about “rumors”. I don’t need them to be worried about me every time I go to work. Call me crazy, call me cocky, but I truly believe this town needs me much more than I need it. This experience has made me want to get out of here as fast as I can. What a shame for a person who has actually liked living and working here.

I don’t know where I’ll be next year. I could be here, or somewhere else. A few weeks ago, I would have told you I would be gone for sure. I’m still not sure. We’ll see what people do and say. I have the support of the people who count and I know these rumors --even if they continue -- will not amount to anything because I’ve proven my innocence to the people who matter. But I’m tired of the whispers, the stares and the talk.

I really didn’t want to address this here, and I really didn’t think I would actually post it, but I’ve decided to anyway. It’s out there already. I won’t talk about this ever again…and I won’t respond to any comments based on this journal entry. If you really want to talk more about it, get some balls and actually ask me about it…in person.

TIme to get Arrested...again!

2005-09-19T13:28:00.000-05:00

Tonight is the season premire of one of the greatest shows on Television...at least "free TV". Arrested Development comes back after almost not getting renewed for a third season. Why is this show so great? It's hard to explain. It's written different than your usual 30 minute sitcom. It's also filmed different too. All and all, it's just true greatness. Many of my friends think the show is lame, but they don't really give it a shot. You have to watch it more than once because the first time you see it, you are taken back by how different it is.

Anyway. It's on at 7:00 tonight on Fox. I wouldn't miss it.

The Cowboys play at 8:00. Big game because the Triplets get inducted into the Ring of Honor. Should be a good show...even if I have to listen to the ceramony on the radio because ABC is showing some lame hurricane telethon a month after the thing happened.

Fall Weekends - Even when it's 100 degrees

2005-09-18T21:40:00.000-05:00

Weekends are good and this one was no different. On Friday, I went to dinner with some friends and then to our high school football game. The game’s outcome was bad, but I love high school football. I spent my time sitting in the bleachers and “clinging on the fence” as my friend Nathan likes to call it. The Tigers got their butts whooped, but like I said, it’s fun to sit under the lights on a Friday night in Texas.

After the game, I went home and went to bed pretty early. I slept in until about 9:00 and then got up and mowed the lawn and did some laundry. Then I hit Walmart and Lowes for some much needed supplies around the house. Last night, I went to my parents house for dinner with some family friends, and then I was back home at a decent hour. I went straight to bed, and except for someone ringing my doorbell at 11:00, slept well. This sleep is good. I haven’t been sleeping good lately.

Today, I pretty much spent the day on the couch watching football. My fantasy team is winning right now, and my two running backs play tomorrow. I’m holding out hope that I can go 2-0 with a good performance tomorrow night.

This week is six-week test. It’s amazing that the first six-weeks has come and gone. Only five more to go before summer starts.

I think I’m gonna buy a motor home and drive it around next summer. Wouldn’t that be cool?

I think the rut is going away. Things are looking up around here.

Have a good day sir.

Comment Verification

2005-09-15T14:06:00.000-05:00

I've noticed on several of my friend's blogs that they are getting random comments that are nothing more than an advertisement. So I put a comment verification system on my blog. It's sort of a pain in the ass when you post, but at least I won't have spam on my blog. All of my little friends out there should do the same. There are instructions on the Blogger Dashboard.

Rough Night

2005-09-14T19:56:00.000-05:00

I saw something I hope I never have to see again tonight. As I mentioned before, a former student of mine gave birth to a stillborn baby. They asked if I would come to the viewing and even though I wasn’t looking forward to it, I had to say yes. I don’t like any kind of open viewing, no matter who is in the casket, but to see a baby was something that I wasn’t sure I was prepared for.

I had both the mother and the father in class, and quite honestly…the father was one of the most difficult students I’ve dealt with since becoming a teacher, but I always saw his potential and never gave up on him. Eventually he dropped out but did earn his diploma through a private Christian charter school. Nathan was the first person I saw when I entered the funeral home. Even though it has only been about a year since I’ve seen him, he looked much older. Last I had heard, he wasn’t working, so I was happy to learn that he now has a job at Walmart. He was going to enter the military in the next few weeks, but has since decided he needs to spend time with the mother, who wasn’t doing very well. He came up and hugged me, which surprised me considering that we didn’t always get along. He took me and two of my teachers into the viewing room where his girlfriend (the mother) and her family were…all sitting in front of a tiny casket decorated with flowers, pictures of the mother and father, and stuffed animals. Inside the casket was the smallest little baby I’ve ever seen (she was born two months early). In reality, it wasn’t as bad as I thought…If I didn’t really think about it. She was peaceful and looked almost like a little doll. The worst was looking at the mother and father and her mother and father. Of course, the parents are just kids themselves, but the looked older. Much more mature than they were when they were sitting in my classroom just a year or so ago. It’s strange what tragedy and heartbreak will do to you. It can either make you or break you. I wonder what will happen to these two people. I hope it makes them stronger…makes them realize how important life it…makes them want to make more out of their lives. Both of them are smart enough and talented enough to do whatever they want in life. I just hope they go out and get it.

I left the funeral home sad, but almost proud of Nathan. He was so much more mature and seemed like he had finally started to grow up. I would never wish anything like what he is going through on anyone, but as we were driving away, I almost felt good for a kid who I didn’t think would ever amount to anything. He was a man today, and I was never sure if he would ever figure out how to do that.

School

2005-09-14T13:40:00.000-05:00

I'm giving some serious thought about returning to school...full time. I don't know if I'm gonna do it yet or not, but I'm not 100 percent sold on being a public school teacher my entire life. I might want something more.

So I'm looking into graduate degree programs in English throughout Texas. I don't know if it's for me or not, but I'm even considering going as far as earning a PhD.

I'm fucking nuts.

Still Rutting

2005-09-14T13:34:00.000-05:00

I'm still rutting, but I do see myself coming out of it. I still don't sleep, but I think I'm getting used to it.

Life has been depressing lately. Two of my students lost their mom suddenley last week. One minute, she was just sitting down in her chair and the next she was gone. She was only 37.

Another one of my students lost her baby this week. It was born but then died. The funeral is today and I can't say I'm looking forward to a baby that wasn't even born alive, but I'm going to support the ex-student.

These things all bring me down, so I need some things to make me happy. I could turn to booze and drugs. I would never turn to drugs, but booze has been an answer in the past. I just don't want to go that route anymore.

So, I will take the advice of a commentor and start riding my bike again and doing other forms of exercise. I will start working on projects around my house. I will write. I WILL get out of this rut.

Ruts

2005-09-13T13:47:00.000-05:00

I'm still in my rut. I'm getting out, but I'm still in it. I don't know what's wrong with me. Maybe I need some Paxil or something. I doubt it, but it might be fun to try.

Last night I had to drive to Elkhart, Texas so I could attend a UIL meeting with all of the athletic and academic coaches and administrators in our district. The only good thing about the meeting was the barbecue I got to eat before the meeting started. It was a complete asswhip and I didn't get home until almost 11:00. It sucked.

The rest of the week should be slow. I don't have a lot going on. We do have a football game on Friday and then I have nothing else on the weekend.

Maybe I can write more tonight. I have nothing right now....nothing.

Don't Ever Forget

2005-09-11T10:54:00.000-05:00

As you can see from the date above…today is the 4th anniversary of probably the darkest day in the history of our country. I know everyone is concerned about what is happening on the Gulf Coast right now, but we never should forget about what happened on that day four years ago today. Remember how you felt and don’t forget about what this country is all about…even when we are having another dark moment down in the gulf.

One more thing...

2005-09-11T10:50:00.000-05:00

Oh yeah, the Malakoff Tigers had a good game on Friday night. It was a good game, even though the opponent was probably not up to par. But a win is a win.

September Weekends

2005-09-11T10:48:00.000-05:00

I’ve had a good weekend, at least so far. Yesterday, I managed to sleep in a little. Then I woke up and went and watched a softball tournament in Dallas. One of my STUDENTS played in the tournament and her team did well. They are back playing today, but I had too much stuff to do around here to go back and watch. I actually have a little respect for the game of softball. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not the great game of baseball, but it is a good game…IF you know that it’s a different game than baseball.

When I came home, I had a Texas vs. Ohio State/Poker weekend with some friends from around the lake. The Texas game was great. I’m excited about their season, but I’m not going to get into the National Championship talk yet. It’s WAYYY to early for that.

I also won the poker tournament last night. It was only $50, but it’s more than I went in with. It’s amazing how much better at poker you are when you don’t drink. Well, I did drink a couple of beers while playing, but I didn’t drink 15. It’s so much easier that way.

Today, the Cowboys start their season. It should be an interesting one down here in Big D. I don’t know what we have, but they should be better. The Raiders, my second favorite team played on Thursday and looked respectable until the Patriots simply picked them apart.

That’s about it for my weekend. I have to do some laundry and really should mow my lawn before the games start today…but I’ll probably only do laundry. I’m lazy, lazy, lazy.

Meaningless Crap

2005-09-07T22:53:00.000-05:00

Man...what a day. I can't really go into it right now, but I might at a later date. Let's just say that everything is all right, but it's been an interesting day.

I'm still having trouble getting back into the swing of school. It's not 11:00 and I don't see myself going to bed for about another hour. I usually get up around 6:00, so that doesn't give me as much sleep as I need. I know...6 hours is usually enough, but it's not right now...I need more like 7 or 8 hours in order to control the high school kids.

The A's won today. Nice comeback, so I'm happy. They are only .5 games out of first, so I'm happy about that too. I hope they make the playoffs. If they don't, I feel real good about next year...so that's good.

New Post through Word

2005-09-06T22:38:00.000-05:00

I just downloaded a new feature for blogger. Now I can blog from Microsoft word and post directly from it. I think. I’m testing it with this post. If it works, it will be exciting, but if not, none of you will be able to see this amazing piece of writing by yours truly.

I did forget to write about football. It has officially started again…at least high school and college. Pro football starts Thursday and the Cowboys start on Sunday. Should be cool. Texas played on Saturday, and although the team they played blew ass, they still looked good. This Saturday is a tough test though. I hope they pull it out against Ohio State, a very tough place to play.

Dallas opens against San Diego. The Chargers are good, but Dallas can win this game. I just don’t know what team will show up, the one that looks good on paper, or the one that always disappoints me every year since 95.

Malakoff didn’t fare well on Friday. Hopefully they will bounce back this week against Winonna. If not, it’s gonna be a long year for the Tigers.

That’s it. I hope this new feature works. If not, I’ll figure it out later. Bye.

Sleep

2005-09-06T22:21:00.000-05:00

I haven't been sleeping much. I don't know why. I do know that I'm staying up later, but I'm also getting up a little later than usual too. Who the hell knows. Anyway, I'm more tired than usual and that means I'm not myself. So if you have been out there wondering what the heck is wrong with me, that could be the answer.

I bought one of those ionic air purifiers tonight. I have so much animal hair in my house, I thought this might help. I also have friends with allergies and maybe this will help with that too. It better work, it was 150 bucks, which is cheaper than some I've seen, but still high for a glorified fan.

Nothing else has been going on. My life is offically boring. I don't drink anymore (much anyway...but this is a good thing), I never go out, and I'm losing touch with some of my friends. Who knows, maybe I'm at one of those crossroads in life.

This is a lame post, and it looks like I'm bitching a lot. I'm not, but it feels like it. Maybe I'm just bummed out because New Orleans is underwater. New Orleans is one of the greatest cities in the world. I hope it bounces back. I love going down there for a weekend every now and then. I really hold out hope that I will be able to go down there again sometime.

Man, I've got nothing. I just wanted to update. Maybe I'll think of something better later.

Gotta Go.

New Post

2005-09-06T13:09:00.000-05:00

Armstrong says I must update, so I'm updating.

We are in Journalism class right now. It's exciting. I just got completed with an intriging lesson on Ethics. The students are facinated and are now looking up ethics cases on the Internet. I didn't even tell them to. Now three of them are debating a recent case of media libel. Two of them are arguing so hard that they might come to blows. This is awesome. I love my journalism class. They are so dedicated to the craft. I believe I have molded 10 young minds into future journalism stars. Crap. One of the students just punched the other one in the face after arguing about the merits of the watergate case on American History. I better go break them up.

Church

2005-08-21T22:23:00.000-05:00

I attended Church today...for the first time in almost a year. I decided it would be nice to take my grandma since my mom was out of town and honestly, I've been giving some thought to going back to church on a regular basis. But I've always disliked churches and today didn't do anything to dispell this notion.

I was baptised in the Catholic Church and then attended CCD classes so I would be able to take Communion on Sundays. Once I finished the classes (I think I was in about 3rd or 4th grade) I was under the impression that I was now able to recieve communion anytime I was in church as long as I followed the guidelines.

So today, after listening to a horrible sermon from our local priest (he's basically a religious biggot...he must have said all other religions are wrong 5 or 6 times during the sermon), I went up to recieve communion. Everything seemed fine. I was wrong.

After Mass ended, I headed out of the church with my grandma and went up to shake the priest's hand. He asked me if I was planning on attending every week and I told him I wasn't sure...maybe. Then he told me I couldn't recieve communion unless I came every week. It was all I could do not to get in his face...but my 92 year old grandma was in my presense, so I calmed down and left the church...for the last time (until my granma's funeral).

I may or may not attend church on a regular basis again, but I know for sure, as long as that bigoted, close-minded, shallow priest is in charge, it will NEVER be in that catholic church again.

Just goes to prove my point that Church is lame...I prefer to worship at home, in my own way...Even if that crazy priest told his congregation today that worshiping at home makes me a "bad catholic".

Here's to being a Bad Catholic.

School

2005-08-16T20:55:00.000-05:00

Well, the turds returned. I have good classes I think and now I'm actually looking forward to working.

I am tired though. I need to catch up on my sleep and get used to waking up early. So this post is short. I will write more tomorrow.

Back to School

2005-08-14T13:23:00.000-05:00

Well, the summer is offically over in a few short hours. Actually, it ended for me last week when I had to return to work for teacher in-services and work days. But tomorrow the Turds come back to class for the first time. A new group of kids, most of whom I don't know at all. I hope this year is as good as the last, but you never know with teaching. As always, I'm actually looking forward to it, even though it makes me tired at the end of each day to be a teacher.

This summer has been a good one. I've had a good time with friends, I got to travel and I had a good time on the lake.

I'll try and post more as the year goes on. I'm also toying with the idea of a blog that will have assignments on them for my classes. I haven't decided on how to make it work best. There is no doubt in my mind that a blog can be a good tool in class if we use it right. We'll see.

Wish me luck tomorrow.

School Finance

2005-07-26T23:03:00.000-05:00

Our politicans in Austin are a joke. School Finance was shot down today, despite a last minute attempt to try and improve the bill. I'm so frusturated with the Republican leadership in this state that I'm seriously thinking about becoming a supporter of the Democratic party...at least in Texas (I would never support the national party). Tommy Craddick, Rick Perry and the rest of the Republicans should be ashamed of themselves.

As I teacher, I would just like to see these State Reps and Senators at least acknowledge that teachers and school are actual professionals. Most of us have advanced degrees and know what we are doing.

Get it down ladies and gentlemen. I'm sick of being embrarrassed for you.

Roger The Beta Fish

2005-07-26T12:16:00.000-05:00

Not that having a dog and a cat is enough, I decided to buy a fish yesterday. So I went to Walmart and bought a Beta Fish and gave him the name Roger. He's pretty lame, usually just sits there unless I poke a finger at him, but he's cool enough that I'll hang with him for a while...until he dies. Then I might eat him.

A picture for you

Now This is Funny

2005-07-26T12:00:00.000-05:00

Bill Clinton was offered some Goats and some Cows in exchange for his Daughter's marrige. He should have gone for it...have you seen Chelsea lately? U.G.L. Y.

I think this is really funny. Maybe this is my chance to find a woman. I'm gonna start raising goats and cows and see what I can find. Who knows what's out there?

Out at Seven

2005-07-24T10:45:00.000-05:00

Big Lance Armstrong might be a major league asshole, but he's an amazing athlete and an even more amazing story of inspiration. The Texan won his seventh Tour de France today, and it will also be his last. It's really an amazing accomplishment, considering everything he has been through in his life. The guy had cancer literally all over his body and somehow managed to beat it and then come back to be the best athlete in his sport ever.

That being said, he's still an asshole. I know a few people who have met him before and they say he's an arrogant jerk. I don't like the fact he left his wife and kids for a celebrity rock star (Sheryl Crow) who pretty much sucks is a little sorry.

All that being said, what he has accomplished is truly amazing. Now he is out of out of the sport, we can say he is maybe the best ever.

Congrats on a great run, and being an inspiration to millions...even if you are an asshole.

The Triplets

2005-07-20T18:22:00.000-05:00

Right now, as I type this, the Cowboys are annoucing the induction of Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith to the Cowboys Ring of Honor. It's a well-deserved honor for all three of these great Cowboys who did so much for the franchise during the 1990s. It's hard for me to believe that all of these players are out of the league, I can remember when all three were rookies, Irvin in 1988, during Tom Landry's last year, then Aikman in 1989, and Emmitt in 1990. All three were amazing players and I'm happy for all of them.

That being said, it's time for the Cowboys to get some of the old guard in the Ring too. I still don't understand why Drew Pearson is not in the Ring. He and Irvin are without a doubt, the best two recievers in franchise history. I love Jerry Jones, but he needs to realize that much of the Cowboys tradition came before he owned the team. I wish he would embrace the history of his team and understand the team was not an expainsion team in 1989 when he bought the team. They were around almost 30 years before he came along. Don't forget it Jerry.

Congrats to The Triplets, three of the best players I've ever seen, not only because of the way they played individually, but for the way they played as a team too.

Nothing New

2005-07-20T10:35:00.000-05:00

There is nothing new going on, but I like to post things, so here is a post. Yesterday evening, my friend and his nephew came into town from Dallas to do some wakeboarding on the lake. The lake during the week is the best time to be on it. There are no boats, and the water is smooth as glass. We did a little wakeboarding and then just kicked it on the water with a full moon. Then, because it was so late, and the damn town of Malakoff closes up at 9:00, we had to go to Athens to eat. Taco Bell is was, and it was a little dirty. I wish Taco Bell would make its employees at least wear clean shirts to work. It was really kind of disqusting. Anyway, I'll be going through the drive-thru for now on.

Then, we came home and watched Entourage on my TIVO. Good stuff

I really need to mow my lawn, but I'm lazy and don't feel like it. My front yard needs it more than the back, but they both need to get done. I need to go to Wal-Mart and get a new battery for my lawn mower. My current battery isn't working and a lawn mower without a battery isn't a very good lawn mower.

I'm tired today. I do think I will be taking some kind of nap this afternoon. Naps are nice.

That's it. Have a great day.

Oh yeah, this just in...Rich Harden is a really good pitcher.

Pizza

2005-07-19T11:22:00.000-05:00

I need good pizza. There is no good pizza in this horrible town. I wish there was, but there isn't. I wish someone rich would open up a REAL pizzaria in town that everyone went to so it would stay open. But this is Malakoff, and Malakoff doesn't always work the way it should.

Poker

2005-07-19T10:21:00.000-05:00

A guy from my Fraternity in Chico just came in 4th place in the World Series of Poker. He only won $2 million. I never knew Aaron Kanter, I believe he came in about a year after I left Chico, but some of my friends did know him. It's amazing that he makes more money playing poker than he does as a Mortgage Banker.

Well, once again, Chico Delta Chi does it again.

I guess I better start playing more poker.

Frisco

2005-07-18T19:17:00.000-05:00

Went to Frisco over the weekend. It was fun as always. Saw the Valens, they have a sweet new house. I'm so poor compared to my friends. Oh well.

More about the weekend later. I gotta go run.

It worked

2005-07-14T23:09:00.000-05:00

I jinxed the son of a bitch.

Still a great pitching performance.

Jinx

2005-07-14T21:55:00.000-05:00

You're not supposed to talk about these things, but Rich Harden is throwing a perfect game right now against the Rangers. Now that I've posted this here, I'm sure he will give up a base hit, but no matter...this guy is throwing darts right now.

On a day where the A's traded Eric Byrnes, this is exactly what the A's need.

Running

2005-07-14T21:43:00.000-05:00

I ran again today. Same distance, but a little bit faster. I had to run fast, because a big storm was brewing in the distance, so I had to move my ass a little to make sure I didn't get struck by lightning. I didn't and managed to beat my first time by about a minute and a half. I actually kind of like running. I don't know what my problem is.

I hope to keep going. In a week or two, I hope to be running two miles. We will see.

Cleaning

2005-07-14T15:39:00.000-05:00

Did some cleaning today. My house wasn't horrible, but it needed a quick go through. Got rid of some clutter, and put a little order to the place. It looks much better, although I'm sure it could look even better. I need a maid. I also need a gardener. I could also use a butler and a personal massuse, but I should just keep dreaming.

What I did learn today is that I have cat hair everywhere. Is there anything I can do about this? If any loyal readers have any suggestions (besides killing the cat, trust me...it's crossed my mind), let me know.

I'm broke and we don't get paid for two weeks. I guess I better head down to the plasma center and sperm bank for some extra cash. Looks like it might be one of those months.

The Hardship of Loving the A's

2005-07-14T10:21:00.000-05:00

The A's traded another one of my favorite players. Regular "Web-Gem" member Eric Byrnes was traded to Colorado late last night for two relief pitchers. I understand that Byrnes is an overated player who has his reputation for hustling and making some amazing catches, and I'm sure Billy Bean, the Oakland GM knows what he is doing, but I hate to see Byrnes go. He was just a hustler and a fan favorite, something A's fans need since we seem to lose all of our best players every year.

I gotta trust the GM, but this one is tough. It seems every year, as an A's fan, I have to say goodbye to one of my favorite players. I hope Beane knows what he is doing on this one.

Boating

2005-07-12T20:45:00.000-05:00

Boating is great. I went out for about 4 or 5 hours today. Did some swimming, took some kids tubing and then we switched boats and did a little wakeboarding. It was good. I actually did pretty good today behind the boat. For a fat guy, I can still get going a little on a wakeboard. I need to do it more, so if anyone knows how to drive a boat, sign up here.

I'm tired now. I think I'm going to sleep early tonight. Maybe.

Goodnight.

Boats

2005-07-12T10:45:00.000-05:00

Going out on the boat today. Haven't been out in a couple of weeks since I've been out of town. Today looks like a good day for it.

I love boats, and can't wait to go float. Everyone should have a boat.

Home Run Derby

2005-07-11T21:35:00.000-05:00

I love the great game of baseball. I really do. I love my little A's, I hate the Yankees, I think the game has some of the best players ever playing the game right now. That being said, I hate the Home Run Derby, which is taking place right now as we speak on ESPN. This thing is one of the biggest ass whips known to man. To make matters worse, the event (and that's what it is, not a sport, not a game, etc...) is announced by Chris Berman, perhaps the most annoying man on television. Yet here I am, watching it. I will admit, I haven't watched much of this...in fact, I've now turned if off. My point being, that just like the NBA Slam Dunk Contest, and the NFL Skills Competition, the Home Run Derby is a freakin joke.

Let's get this All-Star break over with and get on with some real baseball...especially since the A's are the hottest team in baseball.

Running Like Forrest

2005-07-11T21:09:00.000-05:00

Well, not exactly like the great Forrest Gump, but tonight...after much talk, I ran a mile...non-stop. This is something I haven't done probably since I was 19 or 20 years old. For those readers who don't know, I'm 33 now, and a good 50 pounds overweight.

I didn't go very fast. In fact, if I were a girl athlete at the high school I teach at, I would be in big trouble...but if I keep doing it, I think I'll get better. In fact, I'm gonna go run again tomorrow.

I'm not sure how much exercise I really get running a mile...it would probably be better to run about three to really get the heart going, but at the end of my mile, I was a little tired. Tomorrow I'm gonna do it faster.

That's it. Bye.

I'm a Killer

2005-07-11T12:45:00.000-05:00

I killed a turtle. Yesterday. On St. Paul road.

I was driving down the road, and didn't see the little guy until it was too late. I crushed the little bastard under the frontmleft wheel of my Corvette. It was ugly. I felt bad, but kept going.

So, to my little turtle friend, I say sorry.

And to your Turtle friends, I say...a little more effort crossing the street would be good.

Pictures Below

2005-07-09T10:32:00.000-05:00

I posted a bunch of pictures from my trip, but of course, I forgot I was blogging. They are out of order. It will be best of you scroll down to my last post (describing my trip) and then make your way back up the blog. It's probably the best way to go, otherwise it won't make as much sense.

Enjoy.

2005-07-09T10:31:00.001-05:00

And Faith...Pat's daughter.

2005-07-09T10:31:00.000-05:00

Chase...my buddy Pat's son. I can make anyone happy.

2005-07-09T10:30:00.000-05:00

My old house. Ahh the memories. It can be yours for a mere million dollars.

2005-07-09T10:29:00.000-05:00

Me, Sonny, Chris, Mark and Pat in Hooters Dublin. All of these guys are Chico boys and were in my fraternity.

2005-07-09T10:28:00.001-05:00

A's Win. A's Win.

2005-07-09T10:28:00.000-05:00

I actually did take in a baseball game. Here is the decent Sunday crowd at the A's game.

2005-07-09T10:25:00.000-05:00

This just proves I can laugh at myself. Look at that horrible face.

2005-07-09T10:24:00.001-05:00

Who's your Rock Star now??? Look at my dedicated backup singers.

2005-07-09T10:24:00.000-05:00

Don't ask me what kind of dance this is. If there weren't pictures of this, I would deny, deny, deny.

2005-07-09T10:23:00.000-05:00

Apparently, I was part of the entertainment of guests. This is all in my memory...but a little blurry. I do know I'm singing Gin and Juice, by Snoop Dogg.

2005-07-09T10:21:00.000-05:00

This is Miki. We were in Journalism classes together and she married my buddy Chris. As you can see by this picture, Miki always loved me best.

2005-07-09T10:19:00.000-05:00

This is a good picture except for my beer gut rolling over my side. This is Donny, Casey, Stacey and Donny's girl...I have no idea of her name. Donny, Casey and Stacey all went to Chico with me.

2005-07-09T10:18:00.000-05:00

My friend Casey and my old roomate Brian. Notice the sweet disco ball in the background. I gotta get me one of those.

2005-07-09T10:17:00.000-05:00

Proof that there really was a wdding. The Wedding Party posing for pics.

2005-07-09T10:16:00.000-05:00

Me and a few of my boys before the wedding. We look old.

I'm Back....

2005-07-09T09:49:00.000-05:00

I can't remember the last time I was out of town for an entire week. I guess it was about 5 years ago. It's nice to get away that long, but it's just as nice to come home...even if it is to a dirty house.

I went to California for a week. The trip was two-fold. First, I went to Sacramento, the state's capitol, for a wedding. This was no ordinary wedding. This was my friend Scott's wedding. Scott has always been a little different, and this wedding was no exception. No ties, no formal dresses. Just "Tommy Bahama" style clothes, which was incredible, especially since it was around 100 degrees at wedding time. The other great thing about the wedding was it was in Scott's own backyard which is simply amazing. I can only hope that my own backyard will be half as nice as his. It looked like something you would find in a resort, a beautiful pool, almost an acre of plush green grass, and an outdoor bar/patio that would make anyone jealous. The wedding itself was nice, with great speeches from the best man (also a good friend), good food and most of all good friends. Then the party started. Aparently, I became a part of the entertainment...which I will show later in pictures.

After the wedding, my friend Pat picked me up and we headed down to the Bay Area for the rest of the week. Our goal on Sunday was to make it to the Oakland A's game against the Chicago White Sox. It was close, but we did make the game. We had seats on the second deck right behind home plate (pictures to follow), and it was the first time I had been in the Oakland Alameda County Coluiseum (now named somethone else lame) since 1996. Although the stadium is a dump, I did feel like I was home...having attended over 100 games there as a kid and college student. Of course, Oakland won, taking the series from the White Sox, the best team in baseball.

The rest of the trip was kind of a class reunion. I saw lots of old friends and went to lots of old places. I even drove past my old house, which looked great from the outside.

Overall, it was a great trip. I realize that I have great friends back in California, but I also have great friends back in Texas. I also realize that there is no way I could afford to live in the great state ever again as a teacher. My house would easily cost close to a million dollars when you consider the size of my lot and house (even though the house is small). Ain't gonna happen, even though I do have some really good friends that are always worth the visit.

Anyway, now I'm home. I'm in terrible shape. Probably gained 10 pounds out there eating great food and drinking adult beverages, so I seriously am going to start working out this week. Don't know what I'm going to do, but I'm going to do something.

Glad to be back. There is no place like Texas.

Shelby Lynne

2005-06-26T21:54:00.000-05:00

I'm watching a Shelby Lynne concert on Direct TV right now. Simply put, this woman is amazing. Her music is incredible, she's pretty hot, and understands who and what makes great music.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the greatness of Ms. Lynne, put down the Brittany Spears and Green Day CDs and give her a try. She was a failed country star, who went to Nashville and fell victim to the marketing machine that is shitty country music. For a while, she tried to make commercial country music, but finally bailed out on Nashville and went out on her own, and found her own style.

She's since won Grammys, won critical acclaim and most people have never head of her.

Don't be one of those people.

Check her out.

Pat Tilman

2005-06-25T12:19:00.000-05:00

I just got done watching an ESPN Sportscentury documentary on Pat Tilman. Tilman was the NFL player who spurned millions of dollars to stay in the league and joined the Army Rangers to help find Bin Laden.

So much has been said about Tilman's sacrifice, but what I learned about him through this documentary is exactly what kind of man he was. He was not only an athlete. He was a reader, a friend and a role model, all long before he made the ultimate sacrifice to his country.

We need more Pat Tilmans. I know there are lots of them out there, but we don't get to hear enough about them. Instead we simply hear about the bad things.

The Rip Off that is Office Supplies

2005-06-24T17:47:00.000-05:00

When I woke up this morning...late I might add, I went to the mailbox and found a letter from my school district. Usually, when I get a letter from the main office, it's bad news. I either have to attend some lame training session or I have to go to a very important meeting that usually doesn't end up being very important. So imagine my surprise when the letter was informing me that the first 24 teachers who went out and spent $100 on classroom supplies would be reimbursed the same day they turned in their recipts.

That was all the motivation I needed. I got up off my ass and with a fellow teacher, headed out to Office Depot to buy some much needed classroom supplies. The amazing thing is that office supplies aren't cheap. It costs almost $4 for a lousy pack of post it notes. I managed to spend $33 more than I was hoping, but considering that I got $133 worth of stuff for only $33, I think I'm ok.

So, at least I didn't sit on the couch today. I'm proud of myself, sort of.

I was a baby like this

2005-06-23T13:21:00.000-05:00

I can remember having a toilet just like this one...how do I remember this? I don't know...but it's scary

Click here to see for yourself.

1971

2005-06-23T11:14:00.000-05:00

Hell of a year, 1971. It was the year I was born, which at one time, didn't seem that long ago. But now that you think about it, it really was. In 1971, the Vietnam war was still going on. In 1971, no one had ever heard of Watergate. In 1971, Disco hadn't even hit the scene. In 1971, my mom was making about $2000 a year teaching elementary school kids. In 1971, my mom was excited because my dad got a raise making $10,000 a year. In 1971, my dad was 31 (I'm two years older now).

So, looking at it, I'm starting to feel old. But nothing made me feel older than looking at the Sears Robuck Catalog from the year 1971...the same year I was brought into this wonderful world.

There are pictures of me wearing clothes very similar to these when I was young.

I can only make myself feel better by realizing that I was born at the end of November. If I could have waited a month and a half, I would have been born in 1972. That would be nice.

Happy viewing.

I think this guy has a problem

2005-06-22T22:32:00.000-05:00

Wow. I've heard of some stupid things to do when you are drunk...I've even done some stupid things when I was drunk, but this has to take the cake.

Man Accused Of Taking Drunken Joyride In Stolen Plane

This is hilarious. A dude not only steals a plane...which under these post Sept. 11 days isn't a smart idea, but then he goes up, drinks some beers and just cruises around for 3 hours. I like this quote, talking about how the pilot managed to find the runway even though the airport was closed and all the lights were off

It was unclear how Patricio spotted the Westchester airport, which had closed its main runway for construction work and turned off the lights at 11 p.m. Tuesday. The landing, which Belfiore called an "accomplishment," was made on a taxiway in front of the main terminal, the county executive said

What really cracks me up is that this guy probably would have been a good pilot. He managed to do all this while drunk and he only had seven hours of training. Way to go dude. Too bad the FAA will never let you near a plane again.

Nice work. I feel better about myself when I read something like this.

When I'm 64?

2005-06-22T22:21:00.000-05:00

Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm 64?

Beatles song. Good one. I used to think that being 64 is old. Of course, I think the two surviving Beatles are getting close to 64, but my dad turned the same age today. Weird.

If he's 64, does that make me old? Sort of. It's weird seeing your parents get old. In another 10 to 15 years they will be really old, and that scares me. I can't take care of myself, how am I going to take care of them?

Oh well. Happy birthday Dad. Hope you have lots more to go. You're still going strong.

Yo

2005-06-22T17:40:00.000-05:00

I'm possibly the laziest person in the world. I've really accomplished nothing over the course of this week. I've slept late, done nothing, and logged lots of couch hours.

Some people argue that I deserve this, that I work hard during the school year. I agree, but come on, this is ridiculous. I haven't showered today. I haven't shaved in about three days.

I need something to do. I know several things I could do, yet I don't do anything about it.

I will write. At least I won't feel bad sitting on my ass if I write something.

If it doesn't suck, I'll post it.

Running

2005-06-20T22:09:00.000-05:00

I'm gonna run a mile.

There are a bunch of poeple out there who don't think I can run a mile. I'm gonna run one.

I'm fat. The last time I probably ran a mile was in high school, when I weighed about 17o pounds. I wieigh about 250 now. But I'm determined. I'm also gonna try and run it in 8 miles...what the girls at our school have to do it in. In high school I used to run about three miles every other day. But that was high school. I'm not in high school anymore.

I think I can do it, but I might be in for a surprise. But, it's gonna happen. Tomorrow. And if it goes well, I'm gonna run two miles on Wednsday.

Then I'll be Forrest Gump.

Back again...

2005-06-20T21:37:00.000-05:00

I'm a shitty blogger. I read blogs. I like many of them. I enjoy this blogging world, yet I don't participate like I should. Sure, no one reads my blog. I've had 500 hits in the last 4 months, many of which are probably mine, but that's no excuse.

I need to write. It doesn't matter what I write, I just need to do it. I can write about my boring days on the couch (summertime), or I can write funny stories about stupid things I've done. I just need to write.

So, I say this over and over again, yet here we are. I don't post everyday. I don't even post every week. This is horrible. This is bad. I need to write.

So, I will write today.

I ate at Hernandez. I went with my friend's wife and his daughter, but my friend was nowhere to be seen. He had to work. So, everyone in the place thinks that his daughter is my daughter. Instead of explaining myself after someone says, "Your daughter is so cute", I just say..."thanks". I find myself in this role often in my life these days. I guess I'm at the age where people assume I should be married and have kids. Just last week, I was having lunch with some friends and their kids...again, their dad was nowhere to be found, and someone came and told me how "well behaved" my kids were. I just kinda played along and told them "thanks, it's something we've really been working on." IT's kinda fun to mess with people like that. Someday I hope I have some kids of my own, but for now, it's a lot better to be around someone elses kids and just send them home at the end of the day.

That's all I have for today. If I'm inspired to write something later tonight, I guess I will.

By the way, I was at the track tonight, but didn't have my shoes...so I couldn't run. I think I'm gonna try for a mile tomorrow. See if I can do it. I don't think anyone thinks I can.

Out of here.

Are you kidding me?

2005-06-15T18:52:00.000-05:00

What on earth is this guy thinking?

A door-to-door meat salesman from Maine is accused of assaulting a potential customer after she turned down his offer of chicken in exchange for sex.

Sometimes I'm baffled by what I read in the news. Who on Earth would give it up for a couple of chicken wings? Thankfully not this woman and now her "Chicken Salesmen" is on his way to the slammer.

Just watch your door when the Chicken Man comes a knocking.

This would make for an excellent short story.

2005-06-13T15:22:00.000-05:00

One of the views. I took this picture right before I left. It was humid and would have been better if I had taken it earlier in the week.

2005-06-13T15:20:00.000-05:00

Me and Artie...My Partner in Crime. I hope he is still married after this week.

2005-06-13T15:18:00.000-05:00

My room and balcony. I spent some serious time in those chairs and hammock

Mexico Baby...Mexico

2005-06-13T14:29:00.000-05:00

Mexico is a great country. Playa Del Carmen is perhaps one of my new favorite places on earth. Other places include Mt. Diablo in Northern California, Lake Tahoe, Cedar Creek Lake (don't laugh), Austin, Texas and downtown Denver, Colorado. Playa is now on that list.

When my plane landed last Tuesday, I was upset to see fairly large rain drops slamming against the window of our airplane. Rain was not what I came to Mexico to experience. When I cleared customs and went outside into the sea of Mexican cab drivers, the rain started coming down even harder. So far, my vacation wasn't looking good.

I secured a cab with a couple of my friends who landed in Cancun at the same time and we negotiated a deal for a ride into Playa Del Carmen. We told our cab driver, Jose Luis, that Michelle one of the girls with us in the cab was a famous American television star (this is not entirely a lie, she has done some TV work and had a few bit parts in some movies). Jose Luis was thrilled and radioed back to his headquarters that he had a famous movie star in his car..."Maybe an Oscar" was about the only thing I could translate. When we got out of the car, he insisted on taking a picture with Michelle. She wasn't happy with me for bringing up her TV career.

AFter finding our hotel (Jose Luis, perhaps in a momentary moment of blindness thanks to having a movie star in his car, couldn't find the entrance to the resort at first), we checked in and were shown our rooms. They were nice and very private. Tile floors and no television, telephone or clock. My bellhop asked me if I wanted my hamock hung on my balcony and I said yes. There, for the next 30 minutes...I sat in my hamock, reading a book overlooking the ocean view in front of me. Things were good.

Seven of our 15 people (including me) were at the hotel, so after a little relaxation, we headed to the resorts bar where we started drinking Dos XX beer and played pool and caught up on all we had missed over the last year or so since we had last been together. The talk was mostly of kids and houses (most of our crew lives in California, where the average home price is 800 thousand dollars). The drinks kept coming and more and more friends started to arrive (I don't know how they knew to find us in the bar). A little later, we had a party at one of the larger rooms that was litterally on the beach. Then we went to dinner and then back to the local bar. At about 12:30, the beers and the travel caught up to me and I went to bed. The first day was a sucess, but the real trip was just about to get started.

Lazy

2005-06-03T16:31:00.000-05:00

Summer is good, but I need to be more productive than I was today. Sure, I mowed my lawn and even did a load of laundry, but other than that I was worthless...just sitting on the couch surfing the internet and watching golf on TV.

Michael Jackson was in the news today. I guess his case ended today. I'm so glad that I've stayed completey uninformed about this case. Jackson is so irrelivant to our society, it's not even funny. Lock the freak up or don't, I don't care. No one will ever buy another one of his records again. One more thing, all those fucking insane people camping out in front of the courthouse with the hopes of catching a glimpse of the King of Pop...please, as soon as possible, could you all go to Walmart and get yourselves a life?

Enough on that...I do have a bunch of family coming into town tonight, so maybe things will pick up as far as laying (is that the right word) around on the couch is concerned. We'll just have to see.

I didn't write anything today. I'll see what I can do later.

My Job

2005-06-02T21:18:00.000-05:00

The radio was screaming in my ears. I rolled over, opened one eye and looked at the clock. It was 6:30. I considered hitting the snooze, but thought the better of it and rolled out of bed and stumbled towards the bathroom. It was still too early for butterflies, but the thoughts of my first day were starting to creep back into my brain after a few hours of sleep and dreams.

“I’ve never had to be at work at 7:30 before,” I thought out-loud to myself while turning on the shower. “Waking up this early is going to suck.”

Every job I had before didn’t require that I be at work until about 9:00. It meant working later, but to me, anything was better than waking up before the sun was up.

By the time I was in the shower, the butterflies came back. This job wasn’t going to be like the others. I wasn’t going to be able to hide in an office and sit behind a computer all day. I wouldn’t be able to take those ever so frequent hour and a half lunches. No appointments during the middle of the day. This new job would require me to stay at work all day, and if I didn’t, I doubt I would be able to keep the job very long. The new job was the start of my career as a high school teacher.

I came to the conclusion I needed to get out of the corporate world sometime during one of those long lunches. I would take off, get some food and then keep driving past the office when I was supposed to turn into the parking garage. I would drive through the Austin hills and think about what I was supposed to be doing. I thought about what I was good at and what I was happy doing, none of which I was doing now. I thought back to when I was younger, during the last year of high school and early college when I was a swim coach. I loved working with kids…maybe I should teach. When I got back to work, I looked up teacher salaries on the Internet (I couldn’t get back to my real work).

“No way,” I thought when I saw that the starting salary was thousands less than my first job out of college. I wanted to do something I liked, but I also had to pay for my apartment and enjoy the things I had become accustomed to. Teaching was out.

A few weeks later, the best thing that ever could have happened took place. I was laid off from my job. With a nice severance check that made sure my bank account would have money in it for a couple of months, I was off to search for a similar job. Another great thing happened…no one hired me. Of course at the time, it wasn’t such a great thing, but looking back it insured that I didn’t get stuck in the same corporate grind I was in before.

As the weather got warmer, I decided to spend more of my unemployment time at my parent’s lake house in East Texas. The lake relaxed me and for the most part, my parents stayed off my back about the job search. Weekends at the lake turned into long weekends, and long weekends turned into week-long trips. One night, while making the drive back to Austin, I started thinking about what it would be like to live at the lake. I knew it would be relaxing, but I also knew I would be giving up so many of the things I enjoyed in Austin – the night life, the people, the music, the great places to eat. But the more I thought about it, moving to the country made sense. I had spent the majority of the 90’s partying hard in college. I had lived the nightlife, been around all the people (were they all really good friends?) and while I would miss the music, I could always download the CD. I went to dinner one night with my parents and told them I wanted to move home. I didn’t know what I wanted to do for a living, but I knew I wanted to try and do it in their small East Texas town.

I spent several weeks searching for job opportunities, and no good ones really came up, so I looked at that website again that showed teacher salaries in Texas. Despite the pay cut, it wouldn’t hit me as hard living at the lake as it would in Austin. This was right after September 11^th and in addition to just wanting to find a career that made me happy, I wanted to find a career that would enable to me give back and help others. I made the decision to become a teacher.

After some classes, I was actually hired in the district I lived in. I went to some training (nothing can prepare you for the job) and then given the keys to my classroom. I walked into my classroom that first day and looked around the room as I waited for the first kids to arrive. I was scared shitless. I had no idea what I was going to teach them, I had no idea how to teach them, and I had no idea what my students were going to think of me. Not having any ideas was a really bad idea.

The first day of school, I was eaten alive by a bunch of 15 year olds. They refused to sit down, they refused to listen, and they refused to respect me. How could they refuse to respect me? I was their teacher! This was my first lesson, that I never really grasped until it was too late…you don’t deserve the respect of your students as a teacher and you aren’t entitled to it either…you have to earn it.

The first year was miserable and I never had a day where I felt like I had succeeded the entire day. Sure, there were moments when a class did well on an assignment, or you felt like you saw an improvement in someone’s work, but then later in the day, everything that worked well earlier would fail. The end of the year couldn’t come soon enough.

Towards the end of the year, I was helping some students set up for our prom. One of my students and I were hanging something on a ladder when she looked at me and sad, “You know Mr. Burns, you’re pretty cool when you get outside of class.”

“I’m pretty cool all the time,” I replied, but I knew I was wrong. There I was with hours of education courses to my credit and almost a year in the classroom and a 17-year old junior gave me the best advice anyone had all year. I needed to loosen the hell up.

Year Number Two started well. I decided that I needed to be more like my everyday self. It helped almost immediately. My relationship with students improved. It wasn’t that I wanted them to like me. I didn’t and still don’t care about that. But I wanted them to know I LIKED them. I seemed like once that happened, they started working. I can’t put myself in their heads, but I guess that once they knew I liked them and wasn’t a teacher just for the money (ha!) or because I liked to boss kids around, they started working. Year number two was overall a success.

Before I started year number three, I learned that I would be responsible for every 10^th grader in the school. I was excited about the challenge, but also knew that everything would fall on me…I couldn’t blame anyone else If the class didn’t perform up to par. I also taught my first AP class (badly I might add).

Without a doubt, year number three was the most rewarding experience of my career so far. I think most of the kids knew I actually cared about them, and they started to work. Even kids who didn’t work in other classes would work for me. It was rewarding and I felt great. Even other teachers started to come to me for advice. In just a couple of years, I had gone from a teacher who had absolutely no control in the classroom to one that other teachers were coming to for advice. I thought back to when I was looking for in a career and realized I probably found it.

So now I look back to that first day, when the alarm clock went off and I started a new career, I don’t really think I knew what I had in store for me. Work was always that before…work. Teaching is different. It’s become more of a lifestyle than just a job. That doesn’t mean that I’m a teaching nerd, and that I don’t have anything else outside of it, but I really do believe God put me here to work with kids, not only to teach them how to read and write, but to teach them about life too. That’s why I love teaching where I do. So many of our kids come from messed up homes and I hope that I can make some kind of an impact on their lives…tell them what other parts of the world are like…show and tell them about things they can do. Now I’m a morning person, and when the alarm goes off, it’s not so hard to get up in the morning. I’m actually excited to go to work. Who would have thought that four years ago?

Summer

2005-06-02T16:52:00.000-05:00

Summer is the best time of the year. Especially when you are a teacher. But, amazing as this seems, this was the first school year I was a little sorry to see end. I actually had some good kids this year and I already miss a few of them.

That being said, I've helped a couple of students out with some of their writing this summer, so I guess I'm still teaching. One student is writing a paper for college. It was pretty good. The other is just writing to write. It's fun helping both of them, so even though school is out, I'm still trying to help a few of the turds out.

I bought some new shoes today with the hope of exercising more. I did exercise this morning for about 30 minuts (did some stuff on the exercise ball and lifted some light weights) but I didn't really feel very worked up. I think I'll get on the stationary bike in a little while and ride for 45 minutes. I need to finish a book anyway and have about 50 pages left. That should get it done.

Mexico is around the corner. My mom told me that I look good except when I take my shirt off. You have to love moms. They'll tell it how it is. I told her that I would probably still be taking my shirt off, I don't really care what I look like, and besides...I'll have enough Margaritas going through my bloodstream that it won't really matter.

Religion

2005-06-02T10:23:00.000-05:00

People ask me all the time, especially in the confines of East Texas, what church I go to. I hesitiate, think about it for about two seconds and then tell the truth...I don't go to church.

I can tell from the reactions I get that some people are cool about it, some people are surprises and some people think I'm a terrible human being, and I can just see their wheels spinning trying to figure out ways to try and save me.

I don't really mind any of the reactions really. I don't get into my religious background with most people I associate with and I think sometimes that's a bad idea. In fact, I think some people I work with are just worried about me and think I'm an atheist (I'm not).

Some of the teachers I work with get together and pray every morning, and sometimes they ask me to join them. I always say no, and all but one of them (Garrard..we've talked about this before) give me a funny look, like "How could you not say yes?". I feel guilty, then I walk away....I don't worry about it long, but I just don't like to share my beliefs with everyone else. So, since I've been inspired by a little muse, here is my personal history with religion and God.

My mom grew up a hard-core Catholic...I mean hard-core. They had priests over for dinner, went to Catholic schools, the works. My dad grew up baptist, but I don't think he was ever very active growing up. When I was born and for about the first 10 years of my like, my entire family went to the Catholic church every Sunday. I hated it. It was boring, it wasn't directed towards kids and I didn't understand anything being said. I dreaded Sundays because it meant church. Finally, about the time we moved to California (I think I was about 12), my parents weren't able to find a Catholic church they liked going to, so the family stopped going to church. My prayers were answered.

About a year and a half later, I discoverd something. Our local Presbyterian church had a cool youth group that had lots of really, really cute girls in it. So, once a week, my friends and I rode our bikes to the Community Presbyterian Church in Danville, Calfornia not for the purpose of finding God, but instead for the purpose of finding our first girlfriend.

It worked. In eighth grade, I met the great Kim Archibald and asked her to "go with me". She went to a private school so the only time I would ever really see her was at church...so I went all the stinkin' time. Honeslty, I can't say my 13 year old brain was paying any attention to what was being said, I was too busy being googly eyed over Archibald, but I was in church...so I guess it wasn't half bad.

At the end of eighth grade the unthinkable happened...the Great Kim Archibald broke up with me. I was crushed and church was now out. I couldn't step foot in that place ever again. For about another year and a half, church was out.

Then towards the begining of my Sophomore year, a friend of a friend talked me into going to his church youth group. It was at a much smaller church than the Presbyterian church I went to before and I was a little interested. Then he told me there were cute girls in this youth group too...so I went.

This group was different. Yes, the girls were cute, but because the group was smaller, I actually had to talk when someone asked me a question, and a lot of times, the questions were about my faith and God. I as baffled and sounded like an idiot, but did I mention that the girls were cute?

Thankfully, the Youth Director was a great guy. His name was Brian (I can't remember his last name) and he was pretty young, probably in his early 20's and to a young kid like me he was cool. He started talking to me about God, and even though I was still a little confused, I started to seek out some answers. Now I wasn't just going to church for the girls, I was going for God too, but I still sort of felt like an outsider, until a weekend trip to Santa Cruz, California changed everything.

I really don't remember the details. Santa Cruz was a beach town and the group would start the day swimming on the beach and hanging out at the Boardwalk. Then that night we went to a HUGE church in the area and there was a concert featuring some Christian bands (I wasn't impressed) and a few speeches from some people that seemed a little cheesy to me (they tired to be funny, but it felt like they were just trying too hard be be cool). After all the entertainment, a guy got up on stage and started talking about accepting Jesus Christ as your savior. I had heard something about this in the past, but I didn't really know what it was all about. As he continued to talk, he started to ask people to come forward when they were ready to accept Jesus as their savior. There were probably over a thousand kids in the room and as he kept speaking, more and more kids began to stand up and walk towards the front of the stage. One by one, people near me, many of whom were friends, began standing up and walking towards the stage. I didn't feel anyting and thought maybe something was wrong. After a few minutes, I was the only one still sitting in my area. I felt stupid, but I also didn't want to fake accepting Jesus just because everyone else was doing it. Then I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was Brian, my youth leader. I can still remember exactly what he said, "It's ok. Just think about what we've talked about the last few months...You'll know when you know. Just listen to what is going on around you."

I still felt stupid, but I did stop thinking and just started listening. I can't really described what happened next, but I started to feel different. It felt like the guy on stage was only talking to me and everything started to make sense. All of a sudden I began to understand what was going on and I stood up and went to the front of the stage with the other kids. I accepted Jesus and I really felt it!

I was excited for the next year and became pretty active in my church. I loved it, loved my youth leader and loved my friends in the church. I listened to Brian tell us how we had to always be there for our friends and love everyone, and I bought it. I was a changed kid, until another youth trip to Lake Tahoe during my junior year of high school. This trip was the first of two events changed everything about religion for me.

One of my best friends in the group was Justin. Justin was a great kid, but had lots of problems. He wasn't good in school and that led to disipline problems for him. He also drank and did drugs. BUT he was active in the church and he never threw any of his problems on anyone else int he group and never did drugs with the kids in the group. In otherwords, while he did have problems, I think his safe place was church. He was as active as any kid in the group.

A few days before the Tahoe trip, Justin ran away from home. He actually ended up in Tahoe and thought he had a place to stay, but his plans fell through. It was the middle of winter, and snow was all over the area. Justin called us at the house we were renting and asked to come by and Brian told him no. Brian was tired of hearing about Justin and thought he would be a negative influence on all of us. In truth it was the oposite. Justin used to tell all of us not to do the same things he was, and we made the effort not to, but Brian didn't care. He wouldn't let Justin come to the house.

I was furious. I confronted Brian in front of the entire group. I was mad. I said things I shouldn't have. Then, because I had my own car on the trip, I left and picked up Justin and I took him home to his parents.

As I was driving home with Justin, I thought. I thought a lot. I thought about Brian and how he could try and teach me one thing, and then turn around and act in a differnt way. It made me angry and I vowed never to return to his church.

That didn't mean I kicked God out of my life. I still thought about religion all the time. I felt like my relationship with God could be something that I could share with just the two of us. I didn't need a church to prove to him how I felt.

College changed things. For the first couple of years, it was safe to say that I probably was about as far away from God as I ever had been. I was drinking, partying, not going to school, and doing lots of other things I shouldn't have been doing. I wasn't thinking about God, and I definitly wasn't going to church. The two tragedies happend in my life, and God let me know he was still around.

During Spring Break of my second year, one of my good friends Tyler was killed in a car accident. A couple of kids I knew in high school were killed in car accidents, but they weren't really friends. Tyler was different. We had spent the last two years doing almost everything together and I really liked him. He was from my town, but we went to rival high schools. I hated him in high school and after we became friends in college, we loved telling stories about how much we wanted to kick each other's asses. While Tyler was in San Diego with his girlfriend, a car he was riding in ran off the road and hit a tree. Tyler was the ONLY one wearing a seatbelt, but for some strange reason, was the only one killed instantly. Everyone else in the car walked away with nothing but scratches.

I got the news while I was partying for spring break in Lake Havasu, Arizona. I was devestated, but didn't want my friends to know. I went on like everything was normal, but deep down I was mad at myself for the way I treated him the last time I saw him (he woke my up early before heading to San Diego to borrow something...I was pissed at him because I wanted to sleep), and I was mad at God for taking someone who had still so much of his life to live.

When I finally got home and went to the funeral, I was doing a little better. The memorial service was a bit of a blur, but I remember one thing the preacher said, right before we lowered Tyler into the ground.

"This place (the cemetary) isn't where Tyler is. He's not here anymore. This is just a place you should come to remember Tyler. Hopefully, if we're all Christians, you can say to Tyler not goodbye...but see you later".

That stuck with me, obviously it still does. I realized that it was just "see you later" and it helped me deal with his death much easier. I'm glad it did, because just one year later, everything I learned while dealing with Tyler's death would be tested again. Big Time.

When I was 21 I was having the best summer of my life. I was living in Lake Tahoe "working" as a lifeguard. I was living with 8 of my good friends in a Condo that overlooked the lake. Life was good. Towards the end of the summer I got a phone call no one ever likes to get. It was my mom telling me that my sister had drowned in a river. I didn't believe it at first, but knew that my mom would never joke around like that. I was numb and didn't know what to think. Shock might be a good work for it, but one thing I wasn't was angy or mad. For some reason, as upset as I was over the death of my sister, I knew she was in heaven. She had been a Christian (a better one than me) and I knew she was in a better place. In fact, I didn't just know...I could actually FEEL it. It was pretty amazing. That's not to say I didn't grieve and that I still don't miss my sister. I do...everyday. But the comfort I got in knowing that she is ok and in a better place than where she was before makes it easy to deal with. Again, I know that someday, whether it's tomorrow or 70 more years from now, that I will see my sister again.

Even though my faith was renewed, I still wasn't even interested in going to church and another incident renewed the reasons behind my decision.

My uncle was an up and coming attorney making lots of money when he decided to become an Epispical Priest. He gave up his job and went to Seminary...everyone thought he was nuts. He was happy though and after graduating, he worked his way up to being in charge of the largest Epispical Church in Austin. Things were great career wise, but at home, his marrige was breaking up. He tried to do everything he could to save it, but finally...after years of trying to save it, he asked his wife for a divorce.

The Church....which is supposed to be a place where people come to one anothers aid, turned it's back on my uncle. In fact, they even made up rumors about him. One of the young girls (16) in the church was pregnant and the rumor going around was that the baby was his. He decided to not only leave the church, but leave the profession all together. He still gives sermons at times, but he became discouraged with the church he loved and doesn't feel the same way anymore.

I don't go to church mainly because of the two examples I mentioned above dealing with my youth group and my uncle....But I am a Christian and I pray to God (although I don't everyday). The challenges I've had in my life over the years have renewed my faith in God, and even though I don't go to church once a week, I do feel close to him. Maybe (I hope) my thoughts about church will change and I'll go and find one I really like. Maybe it will be a Catholic church, maybe it will be a Baptist, maybe it will be non-demonational. Then again, maybe I'll never go on a regular basis again. But I am a Christian and a proud Christian. I'm not a devout Christian like many people I know, but I feel Him inside of me, and I know that for right now that's good enough. Maybe someday God will let it be known I better get my butt in Church...but until then, I'm content with things being the way they are.

So, there you have it. It's a lot to digest, and if you made it this far, I'm impressed. Feel free to comment...either youthink I'm crazy, stupid, mis-informed, or dead on right. Who knows.

Sorry for the typos too. I haven't proofed any of this. Maybe later....

I suck

2005-06-01T21:04:00.000-05:00

I keep saying I'm going to write on this blog, and I never do. There is no excuse. Especially now thaty summer is here. I have no job, no school and no responsibilities. I should make a point to write something every day, no matter what.

I keep telling myself I would like to be a writer. I don't want to quit teaching, but I think it would be cool to be able to do both. So all I have to do to be a writer is to write. But I never do. Sure, I write stupid posts on this blog, and show pictures of girls I know with fake boobs, but other than that, my posts are meaningless (except for one I wrote a while back about teaching, which can be seen in my archives somewhere) and I need to work on that too.

So, I'm challenging myself. I will write...everyday. Even if it sucks. Because sucky writing sometimes turns into good writing by accident.

So tonight. In a little while, after I digest my two hamburgers and fries I cooked myself, I'm going to write something. I don't know what...fiction, non-fiction or crap. I will write it, and I will post it. You readers, all 5 of you can comment too if you'd like.

Before I leave, the A's have won two games in a row. They are still horrible, but they give me hope. I hope they win tonight.

Enough. I wll post tonight. Something. If I don't....please kick my butt. Verbally. I don't like pain.

Bye.

Ramble of the Day

2005-05-17T21:39:00.000-05:00

I don't have much to say today, but my goal is to try and write every day I'm near a computer so here goes.

Went to dinner with an old co-worker who recently earned her Doctorate in Education. An amazing accomplishment considering she was also the principal of a school while working on it. I would love to earn a doctorate in education, but don't think I ever will. That's an awful lot of work and I don't really ever plan on leaving the classroom. The money is better when you leave, but I didn't get into this gig for the money.

Anyway, the former co-worker is great. She's in a different district now, but we still keep in touch. She did a lot to help me in my career with advice and also with her ability to listen to all of my problems early on. I'm proud of what she has accomplished and hope she finds more success in her career.

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Weather is warming up in Texas. I took the Corvette out for a little spin tonight. It's great driving that thing when the weather in nice. Everyone should own a Corvette for at least 6 months of their life.

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I'm tired tonight and I think I'm going to go to sleep. I know I'm a boring dude, but sometimes that's what I like about me. I do need to start exercising again. Mexico made me feel pretty shoddy in the fitness department.

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It's a quarter to 10 and the A's are losing 2-0 in the second inning. They managed to win last night by coming from behind. I hope they can do the same tonight. They need a big series win right now.

Good night.

Oakland

2005-05-16T21:48:00.000-05:00

The A's are killing me. The team has lost 8 games in a row. Two years ago they won 20 in a row. I don't know what to think of this team, but it makes me sad. I don't like it when they lose, and I think they are a better team than what they are showing.

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On the plane to and from Mexico, I re-read the book "All My Friends are Going to be Strangers" by Larry McMurtry. I love this book. It's exactly the kind of book I wish I could write, or someday will write. It's the story of a young student at Rice University who finds success early in life as a writer and learns fast that other things in life won't come as easy. He goes from Texas to California and back to Texas again on several small adventures, but it's not really a road story but a story about someone looking for something that he probably won't ever find. McMurtry wrote the book in the early 70's and twenty years later wrote a sequel called "Some Can Whistle". I've read it once before but plan on reading it after I finish the last 50 pages or so of "All my friends". McMurtry isn't just one of the greatest Texas writers, he's one of the best writers in the United States over the last 50 years or so. I hope he continues to write, instead of just collect books.

TAKS

2005-05-16T17:01:00.000-05:00

We got out TAKS scores today. Things went pretty good for my students. The numbers are always a little weird, but from what I can tell, the students who were physically in my classroom this year, had a passing rate of about 93 percent. This is a pretty amazing feat and I'm very proud of them. I also had six commended scores, in my previous two years of teaching, I've never had any. Last year, less than one percent of all 10th graders earned a commended score. This is an amazing accomplishment for those six students.

The important thing is that overall, the kids did good which I suppose means I did good. I don't like to judge my job by one test, but since the state and my bosses do, I guess I'll be happy for a while.

I guess I'm shaving the head again. I need to work all of that out. Just when my hair was getting long, I gotta get rid of it all again.

Oh well. It's worth it.

2005-05-16T16:59:00.000-05:00

Cabo at night from the house. Don't know if this will turn out on the blog.

2005-05-16T16:58:00.000-05:00

A good picture of what we did all day.

2005-05-16T16:57:00.000-05:00

Our pool.

2005-05-16T16:56:00.001-05:00

Senoritas