The Woes of a Teacher

This Friday at school, they were having a fundraiser for a student who passed away. For a donation of dollars, students could--for the day--break dress code. A dollar allowed you to wear slippers or a hat, and two dollars earned boys the right to untuck their shirts.

Wanting to make a donation (and secretly hating tucking my shirt in as much as my students, ESPECIALLY on casual Friday), I chipped in some dough and didn't worry about tucking my shirt into my jeans. I wore the ensemble you see at the left, only with a baggier pair of jeans. (I've found students are uncomfortable if I wear skinnier jeans, which is the same point I'm making, as you read on). I enjoy casual Friday, if for no other reason than not having to dress up, and do laundry a day earlier.

Before school started, I was chatting with one of my colleagues in the Math Office and she discovered a collection of ugly white hats, fresh from the eighties it seemed. We decided that we were going to donate some more money and wear them, convincing as many other math teachers to join us.

Now, keep in mind that I'm not the most attractive hat-wearer. So it seemed only natural for me to perch it sideways on the back of my head (for an example, see the photo at the right). Granted, it looked better and more appropriate when I had the long bangs, but I decided I was going to do it, regardless.

The first few hours of the day, students chuckled. Students in passing remarked on how "fresh" I looked, which is nothing new; I have some students who refer to me as "Mr. Swag". Throughout the day, students, teachers and janitors alike commented that they thought I was a student at first glance.

During Advisory (Central's version of homeroom), I learned something fascinating: teachers are not allowed to be normal people. My Advisory students are a cool bunch of seniors. They're all really relaxed, well-behaved young adults. I like them quite a bit. We were chatting and one of them asked why I chose to wear my hat in such a way. As was my response all day, I said it was because I'm very street. At this, on of my female students said with much confusion and disdain, "Why is it that the teacher is better dressed and more fresh than all of his students?"

I know she didn't mean anything by it; it was simply a poorly articulated observation, so I laughed aloud and asked, "So? As a teacher, am I not allowed to be normal? I can't have a life?" She was flustered, realising how what she said was taken, and covered with, "No! That's not what I mean... It's just that from a student's perspective, teachers don't have lives outside of the classroom. They're not normal people." Then we had discussions for the rest of the time about how they've weirdly encountered their teachers outside of the classroom and been unsettled seeing them "in the wild", as it were.

So I learned two things. One, I'm not allowed to out-dress my students. And if I am going to, I'd better not see them in public, because their entire reality will be shattered...

National Poetry Month

April has been is National Poetry Month. A couple of my dear friends have been writing awesome poetry in celebration. I've been so caught up doing the 30-Day Challenge that I didn't want to do anything else until it was finished.

Now that it's over, I've decided to try my hand at a bit of creative writing in honour of the month. My friends' writings are far superior, but I wanted to try. Below is a sestina about education, a topic I have very frustrated feelings about... I hope you like it.

"Education"

I have always wanted to be a teacher;

It forever seemed like a righteous passion.

It has never appeared to be a bore.

I dreamed I’d be a teach who made the grade,

Teaching lessons, well-liked by ev’ry student.

I wanted to inspire them to learn.

I went to college so that I could learn

What I must do to be a great teacher:

Learn how to handle that troubled student,

Help them kindle that academic passion,

To aid their quest to earn a decent grade,

And make lessons that are not a huge bore.

With ‘thusiasm of a tidal bore,

I wanted to destroy every student

Great fear and weaknesses, like the poor grade

Levies in a storm. They would say, “Teacher

Has got knowledge and serious passion.

I am glad I am his (or her) student.”

Instead, in my classroom there’s a student

Miming drilling a large rotary bore

Into his head. Annulled is my passion

As I realise students don’t want to learn.

They don’t even see me as a teacher,

But an adult who gives a letter grade.

Now government thinks they need to degrade

My job educating, because student

Failure is all the fault of the teacher.

The old saying goes, “You can lead a bore

To water but you cannot make it learn.”

Maybe? Idioms were not my passion.

The bleak state of affairs erodes passion,

In its place there are ineffective grade

For teachers who cannot force kids to learn.

Now charter schools, they will save the student,

Even though apathy still leads to bore.

So why would anyone be a teacher?

I still force passion for every student—

Despite their grade and thinking I’m a bore—

I long to learn to be a great teacher.

Now what?

I came to my blog today because I habitually have to do the 30-Day Challenge, but I guess I'm done now...

I need to keep using this blog. I like it. I like writing...

Hopefully inspiration strikes me sooner rather than later...

While you wait, here's one of my favourite pictures from Ad Liberation's show at Jurassic Park last week.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Thirty

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Thirty - A picture of someone you miss.

If I were to write this blog in a year, I could probably put a picture of just about anyone. For now, however, the people I miss most are the friends I made during my semester abroad. It was such a phenomenal time, and I grew so close with the friends I made that semester in such a short amount of time.

This photo was taken in Greenwich, England, at the Prime Meridian. I'm at the top, then Andy, Alissa and Jenna. We took a trip out there so Alissa could stand in both hemispheres at the same time while she was in London visiting (Andy, Jenna and I had gone out there once before already). It was such a great afternoon. Andy and I also had another conquest climbing trees in the park there. We had such a blast together all semester, and in particular that week Alissa was in town. She and I also spent a ton of quality time together while Jenna and Andy were at rehearsals, and I knew from the get-go that we were meant to be together, because she bought MGMT's album the day she arrived.

As a bonus photo, below is the tree Andy and I climbed...

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Nine

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty-Nine - A picture that can always make you smile.

Here's another prompt that I feel I've addressed already. To be fair, this could be just because I always associate smiling and laughing. Although, quite a few of the photos I've chosen during this challenge-process could be used today make me laugh and smile, probably because I always take photos that make me laugh. (For those of you too lazy to follow links, consider that paragraph a montage of this 30-Day Challenge; all it needed was some music).

The photo above was taken Easter Sunday, 2009--which happened to fall the first weekend of my spring break studying abroad. I attended Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square, with the Pope presiding. In an effort to make my life as full-circle as possible, I thought it was the best picture given today (and I wore that shirt this morning). It was a wonderful experience to get an opportunity to go the Vatican and see everything, but to do it on such a day, and get to see the Mass in all it's grandeur was really something.

Also (shameless self-promotion warning), I did write a song about my Sunday that year.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Eight

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty-Eight - A picture of something which you are afraid.

I've always had an irrational fear of heights. I always have; I assume I always will. If you cannot, this is what it looks like if you look straight down from the top of the Eiffel Tower. It was an incredible sight to see. Although, I didn't get a look quite like this; I had to reach my hand far outside the net and point my camera downward to get this view. I will say, even looking at this gives me a bit of a chill.

I try not to let the fear slow me down. There are things I want to do, regardless of this fear. I love riding roller coasters, but man do they scare the life out of me. When I visited Paris, I went with someone else who claimed to be afraid of heights. They refused to climb the tower. I thought that was an unfortunate life decision. I can't imagine turning down an opportunity of such momentous proportions for anything.

Sure, I was afraid, but it was a rush. I was scared to look down, but it was incredible...

UPDATE: Meigan wins a prize, because she realised I rewrote today's prompt so it would not end with a preposition. If you noticed, too, you should have said something.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Seven

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty-Eight - A picture of yourself and a family member

Well, here's another prompt that I feel like I've explored already once before (maybe twice, honestly). I say that because I don't really have any digital photos with my parents. I don't know if that says something awful about me. In my head, it's only because I don't usually have my digital camera and want to use it at the same locations I'm with my parents--and they get really snooty with me about taking photos of them.

So here again is a photo of my brother, Phil and I; this time we are modeling the greatest in winter-wear accessories. This was from Christmas a couple years ago. The three of us went shopping at the University Park Mall the weekend before Christmas, and it was a madhouse. While trolling around JC Penny's, we found these obnoxious hats, and decided they needed to be documented.

Phil and my brother are my closest family. Like mentioned in previous posts, they've been with me, and the closest to me for the longest. When I do end up leaving for the Peace Corps, they're going to be who I miss the most of all...

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Six

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty-Six - A picture of something that means a lot to you.

Quite a few things mean a lot to me, so much so that I wasn't sure what I should upload. To alleviate such a dilemma, I looked at my life in its current situation, and decided what really has my passion right now is improv. Above is my friend Andrew and myself performing a scene during my final improv show as a Puma. I started doing improvisational comedy as a freshman at Saint Joseph's College, which is really when I began doing performing arts.

Improvisational comedy has become my outlet for everything. It has become a hobby and creative outlet; it's given me something beautiful and fun to do outside of my "daily grind" of school, students, home. While the photo above is of my time as an undergrad in Production Under Construction, I'm currently a member of Ad Liberation--a group started in Lafayette. On top of that, I've started to make contacts with a local improv group, GoProv, to broaden my improv horizons. All of this has happened within the last couple of months, and has really given me something to enjoy while I transition into the next phase of my life.

UPDATE: There are photos from Ad Liberation's first show!! I don't want to change the photo that's there, so here's a link to tons of great photos.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Five

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty-Five - A picture of you last year and how you've changed since then.

Well, first and foremost, I do not have a mustache. I had that mustache for four days--the four days of The 21st Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee--so please do not think I walked around with a sex-offender crustache. (Also, had I planned ahead, I would have saved a certain photo for this post, and the following discussion would have been entirely diferent.)

This photo was taken almost exactly a year ago. I was, with a group of dear friends, participating in a tried and true tradition of "finding your own fun" while attending Saint Joseph's College. (That phrase was the go-to when perspective students ask tour guides what there is to do in Rensselaer). The local Catholic church has a biannual rummage sale, and when freshman-me was was still quite the Goodwill goer, I insisted that a group of us go check it out. I took my own camera, because if the collection of clothing was going to be as good as I hoped, some of it must be documented.

Thus began the biannual tradition of going to the basement of St. Augustine's and finding the most bizarre, silly, inappropriate and downright hideous articles of clothing, only to don them and model them for all to see. To think the things people donated to the sale were actually worn at some point is utterly unacceptable (and you can take that however you'd like). However, it was always a riotous good time, and I've got a million pictures to prove it.

While this photo isn't one of the really odd shots, it still represents a more carefree and jovial version of myself. It's amazing to think something so simple was something I looked forward to with such vehemency. I cleared my schedule, insisted my friends clear theirs, then verbally abused anyone who could not come take part in the silliness.

Oh... simpler times...

I just don't ever feel like I can be that guy again, which is unfortunate. But I wonder if that's not a part of growing up?

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Four

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty-Four - A picture of something you crave a lot.

This photo is from my first week in London. They challenged us with a city-wide scavenger hunt. Some asked for photos, others asked for information or pamphlets. We needed a photo of the lions in Trafalgar's square, and got a bonus point for climbing up them first.

This may come as no surprise, given my constant need to talk about it--particularly on this blog--I crave London. I absolutely loved every minute of my time there, and I long to go back. If I could make a living there, doing whatever I could, I would. Without hesitation. Part of me feels guilty saying something like that. It almost feels wrong or disloyal to want to leave--leaving not just my country, state and city, but my family and friends. However, I would if given the opportunity, and I'd probably do it with little hesitation. I hope that doesn't make me a bad, or selfish person (it probably does), but I cannot help but feel drawn to the city and the culture. If expatriate was a legitimate career choice, it would be mine.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Three

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day 23 - A picture of your favourite book.

Well, today's been a momentous day. Today was the first day I took a photo solely for the sake of the 30-Day Challenge. Then it became the first photo I uploaded to my Mac. It then became the first photo I opened in iPhoto and the first photo I then edited with the software. It then became the first photo I uploaded to facebook and emailed from iPhoto. Hopefully you enjoy it, because I've been suffering a few growing pains making this transition and today I felt frustration trying to navigate the Finder...

My favourite book will always be Brave New World. I adore it with every ounce of my being. I don't think there's a more fascinating character in literature than John the Savage. I also feel, beyond the beautiful and chilling dystopian tropes the novel, there is another philosophical discussion bursting through. The most beautiful quotations come from these ideas. Near the end of the novel, there is a lengthy--two chapters, if I remember correctly--conversation between John and and the World Controller, Mustapha Mond, about the worldviews of the brave new world John has been thrust into. I actually used passages from this section in an essay that helped me win the Lilly Endowment.

It don't know what it is about this book, but something just has always piqued my fancy. It says so much about society, mankind, and the effects of religion and emotion on the human condition. I feel it's only appropriate to end with a quotation from the novel...

"We prefer to do things comfortably."

"But I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin."

"In fact," said Mustapha Mond, "you're claiming the right to be unhappy."

"All right then," said the Savage defiantly, "I'm claiming the right to be unhappy."

"Not to mention the right to grow old and ugly and impotent; the right to have syphilis and cancer; the right to have too little to eat; the right to be lousy; the right to life in constant apprechension of what may happen tomorrow; the right to catch typhoid; the right to be tortured by unspeakable pains of every kind." There was a long silence.

"I claim them all."

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-Two

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty-Two - A picture that confuses you.

As you can see, the editorial cartoon above is dates from last year. It seems as though this has been an on-again, off-again hot button issue for some time. At the risk of being too political, the current state of education confuses me quite a bit. There's quite a bit of legislative talks among politicians about how to fix the state of education in America, and it seems like most think the solution to the problem lies within the teachers. Not only are teachers the problem, but apparently removing teachers and replacing them with business persons will fix the problem.

Underperforming schools are at risk of a total, top-down take over. The entirety of a school's administrative staff will be replaced by private business owners. They have the right to then fire 49% of teachers, regardless of their status or contracts, and replace them with whomever they want--and there are no qualifications or standards for these newly hires.

Well, now I'm concerned this will become quite the soapbox. That's not my intention. It just frustrates me to see popular media villainise teachers for students' failings. As the old adage goes, I can bring the student to knowledge, but I cannot make him learn.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty-One

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty-One - A picture of something you wish you could forget.

This photo was taken at the end of my freshman year of college. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed every minute of my freshman year. However, in hindsight, I do wish I could forget my hair looked like that. That was when I was first starting to let it grow, but it hadn't really come into its own yet. In fact, I think I got a haircut about a week later, which was when I first started developing my infamous hair flip.

(Also, this is the first blog post from my new Mac. The layout and composition window is a bit different, so I'm hoping it looks the same.)

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Twenty

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Twenty - A picture of somewhere you'd love to travel.

During my time abroad, I got to see quite a few noteworthy places across Europe. I would, without question, love to return to Europe. However, I would also prefer to broaden my horizons and experience other non-European cultures. I say that because I really could have posted images of anything from the Asian Continent (or Subcontinent, for that matter). I guess I'm just desperate to travel again...

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Nineteen

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Nineteen - A picture of a habit you wish you didn't have.

If there's a particular habit I wish I didn't have, it's probably some of my more aggressive driving habits. Keep in mind this photo is not because of my driving habits--this photo is because a deer decided to cross the street without looking both ways first--I just thought it would be a good jumping off place for my habits that some have called "road rage".

I don't think I have road rage issues. I just get annoyed when people don't drive at a level of competency that I deem acceptable. While I think defensive driving is an important part of being safe in an automobile, I feel that sometimes, individuals confuse defensive driving with passive driving. Passive driving is what really boils my blood.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Eighteen

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Eighteen - A picture of your favourite place.

At the risk of being too terribly repetitive, my favourite place will always be London. This photo was taken on our final night in the city, walking back from the Royal Haymarket Theatre and the greatest theatre I will ever see in my life. A little fun fact, that is not a picture of Big Ben. Big Ben is actually the name of the bell atop the Westminster Clock Tower, which, as you can see, is attached to the Parliament Building.

I genuinely miss London, and I miss it terribly. Although, if I'm going to be honest with myself, even if I someday make it back to London, it will never be the same. I will never have the same opportunities I had during my semester studying there. There are so many opportunities in London for university students for discounted everything. It's so simple to get around the city, to see everything and do everything.

Pardon the PSA, but because of the time I had, I can undoubtedly say any undergrad that doesn't spend a semester abroad is wasting their time. There should be no excuses--none whatsoever. I was a double-major with an education minor, and I still graduated in four, so "not enough time" shouldn't be an excuse. "I can't afford it" should also not be an excuse. The total cost of my semester abroad (including my near-epic spring break) actually cost less than a semester's tuition at my university, and to be fair, whatever money spent on a semester abroad is money well spent; a far greater investment than your average semester of schooling.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Seventeen

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Seventeen - A picture of your biggest insecurity.

The above photo was taken during my commencement speech. I was given the opportunity to speak as the Class President of 2010. It was a really powerful moment in my life, but it was also one of the most terrifying. One of my biggest insecurities is public speaking. Not necessarily the talk-to-people type of public speaking, but this more formal I-wrote-this-and-you-should-like-it type of speaking. I always want people to think I'm being meaningful, eloquent, humourous, or otherwise well-spoken, and so when I take the time to write things is when it gets terribly unnerving.

The average person would probably tell me that I'm making a mountain out of a mole-hill. They'd say I always do really well when I write like that. If that's the case, it's really only because I work so hard and stress myself out about making it perfect.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Sixteen

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Sixteen - A picture of you and your friends.

There is the obligatory "stand in a cluster and smile so we remember these times forever" photo. In the front row, from left to right: Jeni, Allie, Tom and Allison. Kathleen right above them. Then the back, me, Katie, Ethan, Bailey, Matt, Nicole, Ben, James and Tony. This was Homecoming 2010, the semester after the majority of us graduated. It was an exciting weekend of celebration, reminiscing and talks of the future.

I'm sorry if that sounds too cynical. That's not my intent... I've never been the biggest fan of large, posed group shots, but I know this photo meant a lot to a lot of people. I always just prefer candid shots of friends, interacting and laughing in their natural habitat. The action shot, if you will.

The 30-Day Challenge: Day Fifteen

So, I've tossed around the idea of playing along with this facebook trend for some time. But I've never really enjoyed following trends. However, my apparent narcissism keeps bringing me back to it.

That being said, I'm going to participate, but I'm going to do it here, instead of on facebook. (The goal is to satisfy my narcissism, as well as motivate me to start using my blog again.) Enjoy!

Day Fifteen - A picture of something you want to do before you die.

One thing that's ALWAYS been on my bucket list is running a marathon. I've loved running most of my life, and the thought of running a marathon seems like a tremendous feat I'd like to say I have done. I'd be lying if I said the thought of running that much didn't scare the holy polka-dots out of me, but I hope it is something I can some time in my life man-up and do.

The picture above is from my semester abroad. Because I was there in the spring, I got to enjoy seeing the London Marathon one Saturday. It was a huge phenomenon that consumed much of the city. I rushed around, trying to capture images and emotions from various legs of the long trek. The photo is what I'd hope to see if I ever ran--the finish line. The final metres of the race take runners in front of Buckingham Palace and down the Mall.

I do love running. Twenty-Six miles is soo long, though.