Blog Archives - The Land of the Weird

The Land of the Weird

End of June 2017

6/30/2017

Another fast-flying month has passed by. Here are some of the highlights:

I am still on layoff. While a couple of jobs have opened thanks to the passing of the state budget, I have not made any progress beyond applying for the positions. The one call for an interview ended up being for a job in Homer that I had mistakenly applied for (thinking it was in Kenai ...).

I attended the AP World History Exam Reading in Salt Lake City for the the first portion of the month. It was great connecting with the friends that I have made there as well as spending time geeking out over history once again. It is certainly a worthwhile experience that always fills me with positive ideas to bring back to the classroom.

Trevor earned his driver's permit and has been gaining experience in parking lots and now on the road. He's been taking an actual driving course, but I've made it a point to spend several hours a week letting him get more comfortable behind the wheel. He is certainly improving, even if he is not enthusiastic about the experience.

I'm still taking my summer quarter classes for my Ed.D. degree with Walden University. These two courses have both been interesting with textbooks and discussions that are opening my mind to new concepts. That said, they have also taken a good deal of time and effort. I'm glad that I'm not working on them during the school year.

Janelle has moved up to full time work for the summer. I know that we need the money, especially considering the uncertainty about my employment this coming school year. Still, I think we will both be a great deal happier when she is able to focus more on her art projects. Hopefully, that will not be too far in the future.

We've made progress in cleaning up my office which had been filled with boxes from the move. Although we are not done yet, I certainly have a better feel for the possibilities.

We finally put up our hammocks. Although the rainy weather has not had us out in them as much as we would like, it is nice to have them ready for us to use.

There are certainly more details that I have missed or glossed, but this month was another net positive. I hope that July brings even better experiences and news.

Reliability

6/29/2017

I tend to speak despite not having all of the necessary facts. In many cases, I speak about things that I want to be true rather than how they actually are. In some cases, my beliefs are entirely vindicated, in others ... well, let's say that I've bought into some stories that further investigation proved to be false.

As an example, for decades I believed that Mr. Rogers was a sniper in Vietnam who started his show as a type of therapy and that his long sleeved shirts were to cover up the tattoos on his arms. I first heard the story from a friend (whose reliability was not always the best to begin with) but I heard and read it in other places as well. I even found Internet sites that supported the opinion. Thus, I spread this disinformation as interesting trivia (and because I wanted it to be true; I like the idea of such a peaceful man doing what he does from such a choice while still having the capability to take someone down). It was only earlier this month that someone pointed out proof of my error. It only took me a few minutes from that moment to then find a great deal of evidence to show, not just my mistake, but from where it probably originated.

My research courses have had the positive effect of making me more open to legitimately questioning the information that I take in. I am trying to apply what I have learned more to my day to day life as well. With the amount of information, and misinformation, now spinning around us, I believe that it is even more important to not limit ourselves to sources of information that only tell us what we want to be true. Our world is a complex place, yet so many people want us to see things only one way or the other. This forced dichotomy is to blame for so much of the bile that I see spread online.

I need to recognize this within myself and not be one of those who spreads animosity. I need to look past what I want to be true and find the Truth that actually resides. I need to be willing to look beyond my preconceived notions. If I am not willing to do so, how can I expect others to? More importantly, why would they have any reason to trust me?

Cool Summer

6/28/2017

My brother recently asked me if it ever gets warm up here in Alaska. Were he to ask Janelle, I think that he might hear a resounding negative. The cool temperatures are one of the reasons that I wanted to move here. Still, this past June has been cooler than I expected.

Today, we had a rare break in the seemingly ever present clouds that warmed us up to the mid sixties. For me, that is perfect shorts weather. It was nice enough that I was able to get most of the lawn mowed (I need a second battery so I can keep mowing when one runs out of charge). We also received the straps we needed to finally hang up our hammock. Thus, I spent a little while "testing" it out, just enjoying being outdoors (with some mosquito swatting).

However, the next few weeks are projected to see temperatures in the fifties. Gone are the long term forecasts of seventy degree temperatures (although they can still pop up if the sun gets enough time on stage). While I prefer this to the warmer summers of Michigan or the downright hot summers in other areas, this does make it less likely that I will go swimming in any nearby lakes.

Job Update

6/27/2017

The bad news is that my job at Skyview has been reduced to a half time position (which also means no benefits). The good news is that a couple of positions have opened up at nearby high schools. I put in my applications for them as soon as I saw them available.

Unfortunately, my enthusiasm also led to a moment of stupidity on my part (it's not like it's the first time). I received a call asking if I wanted to interview for one of the jobs I applied for just a few hours after I sent in the application. I was eating lunch at the time, I was expecting a phone call from the car mechanic, and the phone connection was not the best. Thus, although I was confused when only one position was mentioned and that I was offered a phone interview, I set up a 9 AM interview for tomorrow.

It was only when texting my wife about it that I realized that the job in question is in Homer. Somehow, I had applied for a Homer job even though it is about an hour and forty minutes away. It is listed immediately above a job from Kenai and sounds like one that I was told to watch for.

Well, that was an embarrassing phone call that I had to make. He sounded understanding, but I'm fairly certain that I did not leave a good impression. It probably didn't help that my call to cancel the interview started with me saying I was a world class idiot.

Anyway, here's hoping that I still get called in to interview for the jobs that are within a reasonable commuting distance. At least there has been some movement, even if it does not look like I will be back at Skyview.

Morning Haze

6/26/2017

Sure, I woke up at 8 am, but by the time I exercised, ate breakfast, showered, etc. I found that it was nearly 11. This has happened to me more than once. Sure, part of me thinks that I should just roll with it since I'm on summer break, but there is also so much that needs to get done.

It would help if I went to bed before midnight. It might also be beneficial if I didn't sit looking through exercise options for a quarter of an hour. Nor should I take so long choosing clothes for the day (during the school year, I pick out my clothes the night before). Perhaps the problem is that I sit in bed for about half an hour deciding if I really want to get out of bed. Basically, I need to get out of first gear after I wake up.

Tomorrow, I need to get moving faster since I have some early morning errands to run. That means that I should probably head to bed. It's just so easy to stay up when the house gets quiet with no one demanding my attention. Granted, it's that kind of thinking that gets me into such a fog in the morning.

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

6/25/2017

I have to admit that I was having a hard time staying focused during mass today. I continually found my thoughts wandering. In some cases it was anger, or at least irritation, at different things that I had heard or seen. In some cases, I found myself thinking about movies, video games, or other forms of entertainment. Each time I recognized my inaccountability, I snapped back to the moment ... only to find my mind wandering again.

One of my prayer books says that wandering thoughts during prayer are not always a bad thing. Rather, God wants to help us with the problems in our lives and may be helping us try to find solutions to them. I would like to think that was the case rather than just a lack of mental discipline on my part.

Today's homily started with the story of the three blind men trying to describe an elephant to each other based on what part of the elephant they happened to be touching. To each of them, the elephant was something different and they could not understand how the others could be so wrong. God is a great deal larger than an elephant and we all have a rather limited perception of His vastness, yet we are determined to make everyone else see God the way that we see Him, and only in that way. Now, I do believe that there are some fundamental Truths to God (e.g. the Trinity); however, I do worry when people try to force others to only see God their way. Perhaps they're only holding onto the elephant's tail.

Late Night Construction

6/24/2017

For reasons that I do not know, one of our neighbors (through the forest, so I do not know which) is using heavy machinery of unknown (to me) type as we approach midnight. There seems to be a decent number of people involved, as I can hear a several of them trying to make themselves heard over the noise. Thankfully, I can only hear the event with my window open. Unfortunately, my office is currently still warm enough that I want the window open.

The noise itself did not bother me too much. However, my curiosity has been tingling. Certainly, it is light enough to work outside right now, but why? And on a Saturday night? To me that suggests non-contracted work as that would otherwise cost quite a bit. I wonder if they only have a limited amount of time to get their project done. Yet, if that was the case, why did they wait to start work until after 10 pm?

The machinery shut off a few minutes ago, but the people are still in discussion. Like many mysteries in life, I may never find out what this was about let alone why it was done this way. As long as it doesn't interrupt my sleep, I think I can live with that.

Embers

6/23/2017

As I have been cleaning out boxes from our office, I have been coming across all sorts of missing treasures: the scrapbook from my high school open house, Annie's collar and tags, the original Legend of Zelda map that I painstakingly crafted on used computer paper during my junior year of high school, and many other items that had been hastily packed during our move.

One item in particular caught my attention today: A binder filled with classwork and journals from my last couple of semesters at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. One section was devoted to my required ENG 313 course: the Art of the Essay. I don't know if that was its actual title, but it was the one we used.

It was during that class that I truly developed my writing style. Despite having taken other writing courses since then, I still largely hold to what I learned in that class. Its textbook is, by far, the most annotated text that I own, filled with highlighting, margin notes, and dog-eared pages. As I scanned through my writings from that class (from which many of my personal essays on Chicken, Alaska, originated), I found myself in bittersweet nostalgia. It was nice to get a chance to "talk" with my younger self, a man half my age. Unfortunately, some of that discussion found my current self lacking.

One of my reflection writings about what sort of writer I want to be plainly stated that I had the "determination to rock the world some day" with my writing. I often shy away from this particular dream as it burns a bit when I look directly at it. I have contented myself with smaller successes, and I am genuinely happy with my life. Still, I would like to feel the fire again that burned within me those many years ago.

Some Positive News

6/22/2017

As of yet, I still do not have a job for this coming school year. However, two recent items in the news have made it more likely that I will hear something positive soon. The first was a couple of weeks ago when the Borough voted in an increase to amount of funds that it provides to the school district. That allowed the district to immediately hire 12 people who had been put on standby based on the news that the Borough was thinking of flat-funding the school.

The second came today as the committee between the Alaskan House and Senate voted to keep education funding at last year's rate rather than give the $60+ million cut that the Senate had proposed. This does not mean that the budget itself has passed, simply that it is very likely that it will do so. Some schools are already talking about hiring back laid off teachers because of this news. I'm hoping that I will receive similar good news sometime soon after the budget actually crosses the governor's desk.

Young Pups

6/21/2017

Our puppies are now over a year old, and they are already acting like teenagers. Case in point: I went outside to let in Starbuck only to find that not only had it started raining, but she had wrapped her chain around one of the trees at the far end of the area. Usually, when I call her in, she'll at least make an attempt to untangle, but this time she just sat there, wagging her tail.

Grumbling, I went back into the arctic entryway to slip on my sandals, and then walked out into the rain. She waited until I was midway into the yard before she ran around the tree, untangling herself and took off past me and to the door. As I walked back to the door, she then took back off into the yard, almost showing off. She would dart in, and then run off. At one point she ran past me, circled around, and almost tripped me up with her chain like she was recreating the Hoth battle. As I entered the doorway, she came right up and sat with her panting, goofy grin.

Both of the dogs will steal the chair or the couch spot you were sitting in (well, the comfy ones) the moment you get up to get something. Starbuck is pretty good about getting back out when I ask, but she then insists on climbing up into my lap. Meanwhile, River is much more stubborn. Sometimes, she will move a bit like she's making room for me to sit too.

Iced Coffee

6/20/2017

While I can trace my Friday morning coffee habit to my carpool buddy back in Michigan, what really hooked me on the drink was actually a dessert coffee punch that someone (I do not remember whom) had at an open house. Janelle asked for the recipe, and we served it at our own daughters' open houses and then at our summer choir picnics, creating a devoted group of followers.

Janelle then found a way to use a similar sort of coffee concentrate in iced drinks. It requires time and care, but the result is a tasty and cool summer drink. Normally we also add an amazing chocolate syrup that Janelle makes. Today, Alex created a salt caramel syrup that required a great deal of effort, but is absolutely amazing.

As with all things sugar-related, I need to make certain that I moderate the amount I imbibe. Yet that might be a benefit, as it makes the drink more of a delicacy.

Proud

6/19/2017

I don't feel that I really have a right to be, but I am truly proud of so many of my former students. I see their accomplishments, their growing families, and in some cases their posts, and I cannot help but feel glad to have been at least some small part of their lives. So many of them have become great people, people who give me hope for the world and our future. From Valedictorians, to proud parents, to intellectual thinkers, to teachers themselves, these women and men continually impress me.

I have been thinking about this lately as the last group from Lincoln who would have been in my class graduated recently. I missed the last couple of graduations of my students, and while I do not regret forgoing the overlong ceremony, I do wish I could have been there for their special moment as they crossed the stage. Even if I wasn't there, I was thinking about them.

I continually see posts and articles of older people complaining about "snowflakes," "millennials," and young people in general. Yet, I know these young people and can say that they are intelligent, caring, and motivated individuals. Don't get me wrong, there is still some room for improvement, especially in knowing when and how to challenge figures of authority. However, I believe those who demonize our younger generations often do so with a mistaken recollection of their own youth.

We have a thriving group of wonderful people who, I believe, are capable of making up for our many mistakes. It fills me with an almost inexpressible satisfaction to see them working at making the world a better place, whether that be on a college campus, with their own children, in their jobs and professions, or in the halls of government. It makes me excited to see what's next.

Father's Day 2017

6/19/2017

Even though we seemed to spend a good portion of the day shopping in one store or another, today was a pretty good Father's Day. Janelle made Chinese-style food for lunch and Alex made a cheeseburger salad for dinner. Uncharted 4 (which has been amazing so far) and Rise of the Tomb Raider are now parts of my video game collection.

I also now have two light fixtures to replace as part of our shopping included going to Home Depot. I seem to always have a reason to go into that store, but I also usually forget whatever that reason was immediately after I enter its doors. As is, I have quite a list of home improvement items to get through. I suppose that, at least, is a true sign of Father's Day.

Planning

6/16/2017

The plan is that my daughter Katrina will marry her fiance, Peter Maurer, one year from today. She, Janelle, and my mother are all deeply immersed in planning for the day. They are figuring out venue, table runners, cakes, etc. while Peter is working on the honeymoon (which is to be a surprise to everyone). Meanwhile, we are trying to figure out travel arrangements, dog-sitting/house-sitting scenarios, and finances.

This is a bit more difficult as my employment is still in question. We know that school is scheduled to end on the 23rd of May next year (barring any snow days tacked on at the end), but we are not certain if I will be following that calendar. Will the job I find myself taking (should I have a job at all) be a year-round position? How might that affect not just our finances, but also our travel arrangements?

Already, we've had to sign up for insurance through Janelle's work since, for reasons that drive me a bit insane, my coverage drops at the end of this month. I think that even if I were to be hired back to my same position today, I would still have an insurance gap until my first day of school. I was surprised by this problem. I'm hoping that there are not more surprises headed my direction because of this.

As far as planning out a year ahead is concerned, we are still operating under the assumption that someone in the area will hire me for at least this coming school year. Hopefully, I will not have to take more extreme measures to keep our family afloat. However, I was disappointed to see our state legislature extend into a second special session today, putting the jobs of many state employees in peril as a state shutdown looms at the end of this month. Hopefully, they get their act together soon. I still have a lot of planning to do.