I'm not much of a baseball fan. I know it's "America's Pastime" and all, but I've always been more of a football guy. Baseball is fun to watch in person, but I'll only watch it on TV if I'm also doing something else or if I need a nap. That said, one of my favorite … Continue reading Focus
I'm not much of a pet person. I grew up out in the country with outside cats who helped keep the critters to a minimum. Only for a few brief years here and there did we ever have any kind of pet inside the house. Just before my wife and I got married, she (we) … Continue reading Pets
This past week I began my twentieth year as a high school social studies teacher. After the excitement of last school year, this summer was a much-needed break. In fact, I gave myself more of a break than I normally do.
When we moved a couple of years ago, I told myself I was going to simplify things. We now had a smaller yard so it would be less maintenance. We wouldn’t have a pool since our new neighborhood has two. And I wasn’t going to have a garden anymore. I was tired of keeping up with it.
Yesterday was Father’s Day, and like any self-respecting father, I chose to eat too much, play video games, and basically do a whole lot of nothing. It was wonderful. I can’t wait until next year.
It was tempting when school ended last week to write about how relieved I was and how much I was really looking forward to the end of the school year...more so than most years. Most years I look forward to summer without necessarily looking forward to the end of the school year. I know that sounds contradictory, but it really isn't if you think about it.
Last weekend, my daughter watched The Mitchells vs The Machines at our neighbors' house. The next morning, before she'd even had breakfast, she turned it on so I could watch it with her. I'm glad she did. It was really funny.
That said, there was a running gag in the movie about possums with stereotypical (and incorrect) ideas about them attacking people and carrying rabies. I'm not exactly an animal rights activist, but I do have to say that possums get a bad rap much of the time.
I was asked recently about my favorite work of art and why it is my favorite. This one stumped me for a bit. If what they meant by "art" is painting, sculpture, and other such works, I don't really have a favorite. I went to the art museum with a friend once. That, for me, was an expensive way to realize that "art" in the traditional sense is not my thing.
I don't have any memories of the first part of the day; it started normally enough. Several of my coworkers and I decided to stay after school to use the weight room. It was January, and we'd made some resolutions that we were attempting to stick with.
I've not written much since we went back to school in the fall. Every time I do, I sit at my computer, stare at my keyboard, and realized just how mentally drained I am.
Before I write anything else, I want to be very clear. I'm not complaining.
Okay, maybe I am a little bit.
Reflections Of A Middle Aged Nobody 