The Cross Country Family/Graduation

I haven't written a blog to post in quite some time. All the usual excuses for being busy apply. No need to dwell, but today I feel compelled.

I just left the graduation ceremony for the high school I coach at. I haven't gone to one before. 8 years and no ceremony.  I just haven't been able to for one reason or another, but today I could. Aside from all the usual gallantry, it was pretty standard, very nice, and well done. What made it special was how many of my athletes were graduating this year. It was an unusually large senior class for the athletes I coach. Something like 12-15 of my athletes finished up this year. I am really proud of all of them. That seems cliche, but lets all be honest. High school may have been fun for some, but its a struggle for many. I am genuinely happy for these kids. I remember my graduation day (another story for sure), but it was important to me. 

One of my perennial JV girls (which i say with absolute love), who's very short and very sweet and very smart was 2nd in the graduating class and got to make a speech.  At a moment in her speech about how everyone on this school comes together she spoke very kindly of cross country being the first family she found in the school before she found others. That one small mention meant the whole world to me. The fact that she said she found a family was everything. That she told the whole school, administration, and crowd that cross country was a family for her meant the world to me. I cried a little. Thats real. That happened. 

I've worked very hard to try to create that sense of family for my athletes. I've had to defend the time I spend doing this for my team to my principal, my friends, and, at the very beginning, and my wife (who coached with me one year and loves it as I do now). It was so great to hear her mention the team's special meaning to her so all those people I've defended it to could understand at last. That seems selfish... it is. I really enjoyed that my retiring middle school principal heard that. He needed to. I got raked over the coals this past year for my coaching at the high school level while teaching at the middle school. I hope he knows why now. Even just slightly. 

For the cherry on top, a former athlete of mine that went on to run in college through sheer will and hard work, was at the graduation for his brother. I sat with his family. I went to his college graduation with them last year. He now has a job at a boys high school for kids in trouble and has now been given the head coaching job for the cross country team. How amazing is that?! I feel as if I was able to pass on what was passed to me. It's a beautiful thing. I can't take the credit for it, but I know what a great person he is and how lucky those kids are to have him. It feels false to say it was my influence. He had other coaches in college, etc. I'm just really happy he's coaching. He'll be amazing for those kids. 

I didn't stick around after the ceremony today. There were so many kids to try to get to, or find, and I didn't know where to get to (it was at an event center with lots of exits). I decided to bow out and leave it to the families. One of my athletes, though, called me and asked where I was... I felt bad. I didn't think about how they would want to see me. Next time I will make better plans. I continue to learn how much these kids mean to me and I to them, in whatever capacity that is. 

Today was a very selfish affirmation for why I love coaching. I could say it's all about the kids, but it's a lie. It makes me feel very good to see their success. It affirms my efforts for me and gets me excited for the next season and next set of kids. 

Running a race 101

I was recently asked to help a friend of mine come up with ideas for a running clinic she wants to put on at the gym she works at. She said she is getting a lot of questions form people getting ready to race. So, I wrote up kindof a Racing 101/race prep bloggy thing. It's got some of the things I think are useful and important. I'm not an expert, but I have been coaching cross country and track for 8 years as well as running for myself. There are so many great articles and experts out there, but I think this is a decent list for starters. It covers preparing for a race, workout ideas, day of race prep, food, warm ups, and some other odds and ends. I hope it helps. 

That guy in the middle... Jesus... he's really fast. Seriously. 

Lets start with training and race prep:

1.      1. Prepare for the distance you are running. If you are running a 5K your training is different than and marathon. If you are doing an obstacle course, you aren’t going to need to run as much as someone trying to run a half marathon. Look at the race ahead, decide on a goal, and work towards that.

2.      2. You also don’t need to over train. When I train for a 5K, I do one long run a week. Usually at an easier pace (1:30 – 2:00 plus mile goal mile pace). So I want to run my 5k miles at 6 – 6:15 a mile, so my 8 mile run is 8-8:15 per mile. I might do 8 – 10 miles on my long run. But I have worked up to that. Someone else’s long run, might be 5. Maybe you are just trying to finish a 5K. I that case or if you need to ease into running, use the run/walk strategy to build up. Jog 2 minutes, walk one. Then build up to 4 and 1 or 5 and 1, you get the picture. It’s a great way to build up without getting hurt or burned out.

3.      3. Do shorter runs with intervals, tempos, or hard last miles. AKA, jog a mile warm up, pick it up for a mile, then blast the last one. 3 miles… that’s it to train for a 5K. But run that last mile close to goal pace. Or, jog a mile warm up, blast the middle, cool down the last mile. Don’t be afraid of running some 400’s or something on the track. Run them at goal pace, then rest for 2X what it took you to run it. Run 4 of them. Jog back home. If you are training for a longer race, adjust the time and distances. You want to work in hard runs to build muscle and lactic thresholds, but also just mental toughness. When I am trying to go fast at the end of a race, I can think back to the 200 repeats I killed myself on or the 400’s I ran at goal pace because they were hard.

4.      4. Prepare for the terrain. If you are running in a hilly place, get in some hilly runs. If it’s a trail run….. you get the picture. Plan ahead.

5.      5. Do some speed work. Run 40m with all out sprint. Rest 3 minutes. Repeat x 4-5. Do these 1-2 times a week before or after a run. It’s proven to increase speed over time. The 3 minutes help your ATP system come back to normal levels. In other words, the rest time is important in speed work.

6.      6. Use an app to track data about runs or even set up a plan for you. I use Nike +. It has training plans and I have it set up to tell me my pace very half mile. I love that feature. I can look at how fast I ran each mile in a run, and it pauses automatically when I stop. I live it, but there are lots of others out there.

No static stretching

Warm ups:

1.   1. If you are still static stretching please stop doing this. (I am assuming you may know this, but I will put it out there anyway). Your muscles are like a rubber band. If you stretch it and hold, the band gets weaker. If you stretch and release repeatedly it will work the job you need it for without becoming weaker or breaking. I do the following to active warm up before a race: (and sometimes before a hard workout):

a.       Jog 10 minutes

b.      Walk on toes with them pointed in for 20 meters.

c.       Walk back on heels pointed out.

d.      Knee hugs (step and hug the your knee, switch, repeat)

e.      Flamingos (step, grab foot behind back to stretch quad, repeat)

f.        Military walk/Frankensteins (step, leg swing straight up and out, switch, repeat)

g.       Balance birds (step, touch toes, switch legs , repeat)

h.      High knees (good form, not too fast or too high)

i.         Butt kicks (heel straight up to butt underneath)

j.        A skips (look it up… too hard to explain, but they are great)

k.       A skip backward

l.         Side shuffles with arms swings down and back

m.    Karaoke (tiny steps) down and back

n.      Backwards running with big steps, down and back

2.       This will take, all together, about 20 minutes. Then I might jog  a little more, take a few strides, and hydrate. Don’t overwork. Take breaks as needed. Sip water, etc. It’s a warm up, not a workout, although the first few times you do it you might think otherwise.

Strategy:

1.   1. Have a race strategy way in advance. Picture the type of race you want to run while training. I like getting in a good, quick 1/3 of the race to start, getting a head of my goal a little, trying to stay strong and even and relaxed the second third of a race, then gradually pick it up as I go the last third. Others, beginners (and often myself), will do better starting of slower than goal pace, then picking it up and you go. Either way, have an idea, stick to it, know your pace. If you blow it out the first mile, the rest of the race will be hell. To figure out goal pace, take your goal time and divide it by miles (I know, you know this…). But you will not run each mile at this pace. It’s an average. Don’t panic if you are too fast or slow by a 10 seconds on any given mile. Panic if you are too fast or slow by a few minutes.

2.   2. Race! Don’t just go for a run. Try to stick to a pack if possible. Avoid no man’s land between packs. It sucks there. Don’t lead a pack, it takes up valuable energy. Instead, ride the shoulder of someone going your pace. Use them. I like to give my athletes challenges also: Count how many people you pass after the first mile. Count how many you pass the third mile and so on.

3.   3. Have a mantra. Have a small phrase that you can repeat to yourself while running when it gets hard. I have 2 things I use. I count my breaths down from 20 when I need to get through a hill or a stretch I am struggling with. I might need to do it more than once in a row, but it takes my mind off whatever it is. The other thing I say in my head, and sometimes out loud, is “Come on coach!” and picture all my athletes yelling at me. I just repeat it over and over near the end of a race. It can really be anything, but it should help.

Form and function:

1.   1. Rhythmic breathing… work on it. Looking it up is an easier way of reading about it, but it’s the idea of balancing out your breathing and muscle use to avoid injury, control your breathing, and use your energy better. When running easy, I breathe in 3 steps and out for 2. This makes sure I breathe out of the opposite foot every time I breathe. If you are always breathing out on your right foot, you are flexing just those muscles involved every single time you breathe. It causes cramps, leg pain, etc. Try to exhale on the opposite foot each time. If going faster, I breathe in 1 step and out 2. Always an odd number. It’s really hard to do at first. Its automatic now but I still catch myself getting off of it and have to work to get back on. It’s so helpful, though. It changed a lot for me. Start out at a slow pace to figure it out, then increase.

2.   

      2. Shorter steps. Stop over striding. That’s now how you run faster. The more your feet touch the ground, the more forward momentum you get. If you over stride, your weight is behind your feet and you have to drag your body forward. Your foot should land just about underneath your shoulders with a slight lean forward of the whole body. To check this position, stand on both feet like normal. Lean forward until you need to put a foot out. See where your foot lands in comparison to your body. That’s ideally where you want it landing all the time. I have recently been working on this myself and have seen vast improvements in my abilities, especially when going uphill. If you can maybe take one big step, do it in 2.

3.   3. You don’t need really expensive corrective shoes. I won’t go into the whole thing here. Not enough time for that. Find shoes that fit your feet and are preferably neutral and comfortable. Work on your body strength and form instead of finding a shoe to fix your aches and pains. Imbalances and body mechanic take time and work to fix. A shoe won’t do it. It may help, but ultimately, it’s a Band-Aid.

4.   4. That brings us to strength training. Very important. There’s a lot of stuff you can do to help, but I like to stick to the basics. I have even stopped using weights for the most part. Squats, push-ups, lunges, planks, etc. Replace old workouts. Do rows instead of bicep curls (speed is generated from the pulling back motion, not driving arms forward). You need to work your glutes, core, and some arm strength. You don’t need to max out on the squat rack, but don’t just do 10 squats. I have upped my game to 300 squats a day. It’s awesome and took time and don’t do them all at once, but I do as many as I can until the burn is too much to do them right. I won’t write up a whole plan here, but 2-3 times a week you need to do some strength work. You will see a huge difference.

Food:

1.       

      1. I am far from the person that needs to lecture anyone about eating and how to do it. Most people know what is good and what’s not. I feel and run better if I try to eat a little cleaner. I try to stick to food I find on the outskirts of the grocery store. I do have a fruit and spinach/kale smoothie almost every day for a snack. I do take a vegan protein powder in the morning when I wake up and after a workout. I take some supplements (fish oil, vitamin d, multi-vitamin, b-vitamin complex with electrolytes, and randomly a few others to try it out). I don’t think they are necessary always, but I feel a difference. It could be a placebo, but it’s just my opinion.

2.   2. Eat like you normally do before a race. If you usually have cereal for breakfast, have cereal. If you don’t use goo and stuff while training, don’t use it in the race. If you have coffee right before you run, have coffee right before your race. Train how you want to race, race like you trained. You can’t eat like crap for weeks while training, then eat a kale salad before a race and expect results. You can’t run at a super slow pace training for months and then expect speed in the race. Not everyone’s eating is perfect. I love donuts. “Free donuts” if my second favorite phrase to “free beer.” We are here to enjoy ourselves. If you hate life while eating healthy and stay alive forever, what’s the point? But if you eat pretty darn healthy and feel good and treat yourself sometimes, I think we’ll be OK.

Day of the race:

1.   1. Plan it out. Get a good night’s sleep. Lay out your clothes and stuff you need ahead of time. Know how to get to the race, where to park, how to check in, and how much time you need to warm up. I like to get to a race an hour before. I usually try to pick up my packets before the day of if possible.

2.   2. Clothing. I try to race in as little as I need to be comfortable. If you don’t train in tiny short shorts and a jersey, don’t race in it. But if you want to race in it, train in it once in a while. I just wear my normal training shoes. If you want to wear racing flats or something, train in them once in a while. I usually have a way to put my warm ups away before a race. I will wear wind pants and a long sleeve shirt or hoodie to warm up in. I just throw them in my car or give them to my wonderful wife before the start of a race. I try to keep them on until right before the start. If you can’t do either of these things, go to a Goodwill and get some very cheap sweatpants and shirt you are willing to lose or throw away before the start of a race. It’s a common strategy. I like wearing a stocking cap if it’s cool out, even if I just go with a t-shirt. Its just my style and comfort. Be comfortable while racing. It’s less distracting.

3.   3. Headphones or not?… I wear them. I have a playlist and everything. I also use my app to help me pace. I train with music and podcasts all the time. I know there are lots of experts that argue against this. That’s fine. It’s how I run, so I don’t change it for race day. I go with what I know. I suggest the same. If you want to run without the headphones, train without them and least once a week. For me, I like my time out alone with my music or audio books.

4.   4. Schedule the day of…. Get up at a normal time, eat at a normal time, etc…. unless you have a ways to travel. I plan backwards. If the race starts at 9, I want to start warming up at 8:20-30. I want to be there by 8 to get my bearings. If I need to drive 30 minutes I leave the house at 7:30, which means I should eat around 7:15 or so. I try to eat about an hour and a half before the race to allow digestion, but might have some b-vitamins or a granola bar closer to the race.  I should get up at 6:15-30 so I have time to wake up, shower, dress, etc. It’s my routine. Know yours and plan backwards.

5.   5. Bag O’ stuff…. I have a bag o’ stuff. In it I have gloves, a hat, chaffing sticks, a muscle stick, extra socks, extra underwear, extra shorts, a water bottle, knee braces, etc. Anything I may or may not need for a race. The day of the race I pack my race bib, shoes, and other crap I need for the day. This way I have a bag full of whatever I might need the day of the race. If you are doing a long race and need to keep an ID or phone on you, you can get cheap pouches to wear around your waist. You can always tie your car key into your shoes, but most running shorts have a tiny pocket for this stuff.

Last pieces of advice:

1.   1. Relax and enjoy the run. It might not go as planned. Make adjustments. I had a race recently in which I had a time goal. I trained really hard for it. They day before and of the race it snowed like crazy. They held the race anyways. I changed my goal from tie to a place. I had to let the time go. It happens. I’ve had races that started great and had a bad cramp and had to adjust. It happens. It’s not the end of the world.

2.   2. Find a reason to run. You know why you are running. There’s a very personal reason somewhere inside you… maybe even one you don’t want to share out loud with anyone. That’s OK. Identify it and use it to your advantage. 

Best and worst teaching moment

In my latest leadership team meeting at school we were asked to reflect on our very best and very worst teaching moments. What moment made me feel awesome and that I was born for this? What moment made me feel like a total failure?

I had a very easy time thinking up terrible moments. They all came from my first 3 years teaching and they all involve me yelling. It's not that I don't yell at some kids now... every once in a while. It's that I make a choice to yell or raise my voice. I use is strategically now. In the past this wasn't always the case. 

I don't want to bore you with the exact situations, but there were a few moments from my early teaching days that my anger and frustration burst forward like a dam giving way the inevitable force of massive amounts of water. When I think of those times it's like I'm watching a movie about someone else, but I can still physically feel my rage. I am in no way proud of them. It brings feelings of embarrassment and shame. I want to chalk it up to my inadequacies as a new teacher. Fact is, though, the problem wasn't being a new teacher. It was being a new adult. I was not in control of myself as much as I wanted to be. I don't want to make it seem that I was yelling and screaming all the time. I had some very good times... But those moments of totally losing my cool have stayed with me like scars. They are reminders of my past failures. I can do better and have since. There's no advice I can give a new teacher to through these times other than to take deep breathes or even leave the room if you have to as I have done recently. But, as I said, it's not a teaching problem. I think it's an adult problem. I think being a new teacher is hard anyways, but stack on top of it figuring out how to be an adult out of college... it makes it much worse. Your anxiety about paying bills, and getting groceries, and starting a life seep into the classroom... just like it does for kids. 

Sadly, when I tried to think of an exact moment when I knew I was born to teach, I couldn't think of one specifically. I can think of kids who went on to be successful in art, but I'm not sure it was due to me. Instead of one big moment, my successes are built from tons of little tiny moments you don't realize are important until later. 

There were tons of moments that flashed through my head of sitting and helping a kid think though a project idea and coming up with something that made their whole body light up. Or when you push them a little harder and they exclaim at something awesome they just did. When they can't wait to show you what they did. When they bring in work from home that blows you away. When they come to your room everyday during lunch to make art because it's there favorite place in the world.

I don't want it to sound like this is my whole day. I'm not that teacher. I'm not the worst, but I'm far from the best. But I have little, tiny moments frequently that seem to reaffirm what I'm doing.

In teaching, often times the days are hard. You go home thinking of that one kid who threw clay, or the kid whose project broke, or the kid who just has given up. Those kids make it hard. Not because they are that awful but because you actually care. But there are so many successes we don't think of day to day. While I was unable to think of one example of why I was meant to teach, there is a body of work that keeps me coming everyday.

Sorry if this was too sappy. Its just a reflection. 

Punk rock show

Recently, and friend of mine I coach with, a little older than me, called me up and said his son was having a show at some dive bar down the street from my house. He was going and wanted to know if I was in. His son is a great drummer (and actually can coach jumps for Track and Field, too). He's played with pretty big local Irish punk bands and the like.

I told my friend I would get back to him. I wasn't sure I wanted to commit to this. After researching the place, I was really unsure. I saw the flyer for the show on Facebook. There were several band names attached. They worried me. Names like Skidmark graced the flyer. I asked my friend which band his son was in. The answer... GUTS. All caps. Again, none of this reassured me that I should go to this.

The venue looked gross and beat up, the bands seemed sketchy, and I wasn't sure this was how I wanted to spend an evening. But then I thought about it all differently.

For starters, I felt bad that my friend might be sitting in this place alone with a bunch of crazy people and dirty teenagers listening to nonsense while waiting for his son. I thought maybe I should just go for support. Secondly, I hadn't been to see any live music in awhile, especially a local band. I used to love going to local shows in college, especially punk band shows. They were almost all bad, but always pretty fun. The people watching was superb. I thought maybe I should get in touch with the old me and go. Lastly, I am always talking about taking chances and going to try new things and I almost never do. I just stick with my routine. I decided I would go, if for no other reason than to do something different (after my wife gave me permission that is... we do have an infant).

Upon arrival, the place was as I predicted. It was dirty and had a bunch of weird stuff all over. they had Bud or Bud light on tap. It was an 18 or over show, so there were a bunch of punk rock teens there with big black X's on their hands. I found my buddy at a table in the back. We ordered a beer and it came in a giant mug... 2 bucks... at least we had that going for us.

Random picture I found googling the place. This makes it look nicer than it was.

I will save the description of each band as they played. You can image it for yourself if you've ever seen any local teen punk rock. It was a bunch of poorly played Misfits covers and hard-to-tell-the-difference originals they learned that morning. The mic stand had been stolen the week before and had been replaced my an Oreck vacuum cleaner with the mic taped to it. There was a mosh pit of 5 in the front. Once in awhile someone would run up to the main mic and start singing with the lead. At one point the bar owner made an announcement about not bringing in outside alcohol or he would kick you out and kick your ass. When my friend's kid finally played, the crowd had thinned some. It was getting late. They were actually pretty good. Noisy and crazy, but they could actually play their instruments. The kid killed those drums. He was awesome.

The point of this whole story is not to tell you to go to your local punk scene shows or dive bars, (though you could). The point is that I embraced a sudden question and invitation as an opportunity (after permission from my wife and thinking it over for an hour). It was fun! I won't do it all the time, but I might do it again. It was new and different from staying home and watching Netflix. I felt like I was experiencing another small chance of humanity and I enjoyed it. I hope to embrace opportunities more going forward and I encourage you do the same. Even if it seems like its something that might not be that great, if its it low risk.... go. Why not?

Plus, you know what? Being in a punk rock band as a teen or early twenties kid is awesome. Its just fucking cool.

Helping People Move

There's a consistent joke in our culture about helping people move. Its like that episode of Seinfeld (which so much of life is), where they discuss helping someone move being a big step in a relationship. I think part of that is true. I certainly don't ask casual or work friends to help me do things that are not going to be fun or enjoyable at all. I've had to ask friends to help me move, build fences, move drywall around, put up drywall, move dirt, etc. I always feel like a jerk for asking because I know they might feel obligated to help. If they are good friends, though, I feel a little bit better about it. They know I will return the favor whenever. Because, truth be told, I kinda like helping people move and build fences or a deck, etc. I think, since moving to Colorado, I have helped people move at least seven times. That's not that much, I know, but it seems like a lot.

There's a few things I enjoy about the experience that all might seem very silly, but I will expound upon them anyway.

1. Its a great workout. I don't do a lot of heavy lifting or use the strength I have to do much with other than run and lift some more weights at the gym. I enjoy the workout aspect of lifting and moving furniture and boxes. Its a test of my abilities as human being. Can I lift this ridiculous piano my friend never mentioned? Hell yeah I can lift a piano! After helping someone move I always feel drained, but good, like I just did some great work for my body. Though it always seems like you hit your elbow or get a dead leg from the corner of an entertainment center and go home with a bruise of scar somehow. I don't want to drone on about how good it feels for me to pick up huge things and feel like a man, but its the truth. I enjoy the challenge of it to see where my fitness is at. If I can't lift the couch, I need to get in the gym.

2. The puzzles involved. When you are moving someone there's always a few puzzles you have to figure out. How are we going to get this couch into the door way? How are we going to move the dryer upstairs?  Those are always interesting problems to try and figure out with a bunch of guys who are huffing and puffing and obligatorily complaining about how heavy and stupid all their friend's furniture is. What I really enjoy is loading U-Hauls. I see it like a 3D game of Tetris. I've always enjoyed this. I think it stems back to helping my dad pack the family van for a two week road trip, trying to figure out how to fit the tents and sleeping bags and clothes and books, etc. It was always a big puzzle. You learned to see gaps and how to stack things. I moved my wife and I out here to Colorado from Illinois in a van, two Saturn Vues, and a Cavalier. I gathered all of our stuff, laid it out in the garage, and began packing up all four vehicles. A couple beers and several hours later, the vehicles were packed with no room to spare, but expertly organized. I try to stay out by the U-Haul when moving people out and play the game.

3. The jokes and stories. When helping my friend Mike move into his home, my good friends and I discovered you could add "That's what she said" to pretty much everything you say while moving someone. Think about it for a minute. I won't write examples. I'm sure you get it. Anyways, that was a mistake. Its really hard to move a dresser up stairs while giggling. It was incredibly immature and very fun. Another time I was helping my buddy Jarid move out of his apartment. It was late after work and we didn't have much time because he had to get the U-Haul back. We got into fast a furious mode and at one point we were just throwing things into his huge U-Haul, not looking at where they landed. Run down stairs, throw a sack of clothes, turn around before they landed, get another load. We were doing this so rapidly one of his neighbors called the cops because they thought we were robbing the place. Not all moves are fun. Many portions suck. But there's usually a good story or two to laugh about later or at least you can give your friend shit about their stupid piano for at least a few years afterwards.

4. The free food. What most people offer when you help them move is some free food. In the morning there's coffee, donuts,breakfast burritos, etc. Afternoons usually involve pizza and beer. To me, this is worth it. I love me some free junk food. Plus, you're burning so many calories, you can eat a bunch of pizza and have a few beers. You need to replace those calories... right? But its not a lie. I do love the free food. I will work for food.

5. You become better friends. This may sound too hippy dippy or melodramatic, but I think when you help someone do something like move, or build a fence, or drywall, or anything tough and physical you make a stronger bond with that person. While it might seem a trivial task, you have both been through something difficult together and you (the person who's there volunteering) have given up your time and energy for the benefit of another person and almost no benefit to you. That's a sacrifice that others can appreciate. I helped a not-so-close friend move the other day. Our wives are pretty close, thus my services were offered. I didn't mind. I would like to be better friends with them and hang out more. I saw it as an opportunity. I stayed until very late helping move furniture around. I know they appreciated it and I just thought of the help I would need if I was in the same situation.


All in all, I think we need to get over ourselves and fear of helping others move or do difficult things. Instead of excuses and reasons not to help, we should do the opposite. Be available. Jump at the chance. Help when asked. They took a chance even asking, knowing they are asking you to give up free time to move other people's lives around. Its good for the body and can be good for the soul. Even if you have to lift a piano.

Painting a Poster for a Play

I've been collaborating on art and ideas with my best friend Steve for some time now. We've collaborated in many ways and come of with some great imagery (in my humble opinion... at least I found them interesting). He's written poems I incorporated into paintings. Like the one below.

Watercolor and Ink

We've collaborated by choosing a word and discussing the movies and ideas surrounding it, then I create type of movie poster incorporating those ideas. Below is another example.We discussed the idea of "revolt" and talked a lot about "Cool Hand Luke", which we watched together a bunch of times.

Watercolor and Ink

Mostly what I've done, though, is create posters and flyer for his improv groups, podcasts, and plays that he writes and performs in Chicago. I LOVE doing this. It allows me to create very strange and fun works of designed surrealism I wouldn't think of otherwise. He tells me about some of the skits they've done or the content of the play and I take the ideas and run. Here's a few examples. The Album ones are my favorite.

 

      

This latest painting is another poster I just finished for another play Steve has written with a few other people called Blockbuster (it takes place in a Blockbuster). the imagery was inspired by William Morris flower designs. I wanted to mix in my own styling with the look of one of his textile designs and keep the colors subdued but welcoming and cheery. I also didn't want it to be overly polished. I left some areas where I smeared a little paint or left some transitioned a little rough by not adding another layer. I wanted it to look a little older and partially weathered. It was a new way for me to create posters. I combined some watercolor background techniques with acrylics and my drawing methods. I like how it turned out and expect I can get better at this as I try more.

Art Teaching Philosophy

I recently applied for an Adjunct Professor job at a local community college. Its for Art Appreciation and Art History. It took me much longer than I thought to rework my resume or CV (which I had to look up). I then had to write an Online Teaching Philosophy Statement. That turned out to be quite difficult. I found some good examples online, though, and finally created it. The way that worked for me was to just forget about all the formal stuff and examples and just sit down and write my real thoughts and feelings about my teaching philosophy, blast them all out, then go back modify. I won't go into how to write one here. I'm not at a level where I can teach others to do it, or how to write a resume, or get a job. I can just share what I wrote and how I did it and hope it helps me get the job. I'll let you know.

TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

I want to share my passion for Art and for learning in a way that will encourage and help my students in the present and have positive if not profound affects on them for the future, allowing students to find connections to other artistic avenues and endeavors as well as to the greater world itself.

In my experiences in undergraduate studies, I had a handful of amazing professors and mentors that not only pushed me to work harder and smarter, but also the importance of putting in the time and investing myself into my Art and my teaching. I learned how to see artistic opportunities and possible art lessons in everything around me. I learned to see how everything was or could be connected inside and out of the Artistic world. In my travels and studies I met many amazing artists and educators that showed me how an interest in microbiology could lead to a living biome as an amazing work of art or how an interest in Baroque architecture could help lead to an innovation in contemporary stained glass technique. These are the types of work ethics and connections I want to share with my students. Its what I try to do in my classroom everyday.

There are many roads and paths one can take to achieve these goals. There are countless, infinite, examples to Art to gaze upon, dissect, and use as catalysts to new realizations, connections, and discussions. I want my students to not only come away with the learning and skills that come from rigorous work in writing, reflection, and collaborative conversations. I want my students to come away with a sense of how Art is connected to the world around us, past and present. I want them to discover how art shapes our society and vice versa, how it reflects our recent and ancient pasts, and how it might help create or be created by the next chapter in human history. I think the question of, “What does Art have to do with me?” is on too much of a micro scale. I believe we need to ask more questions in the macro scale.

I believe that through the use of important and significant Art examples, engaging discussion questions, compelling peer conversation, and challenging but purposeful projects, I can help my students make gains in their understanding of Art and in their critical thinking abilities. In my class you would see students breaking down works of art through the formal steps of Art Criticism. You’d also see my students using that information to see how that work of art fits into its time and space and how we may use that information in a more contemporary context. You would see students challenging conventional ideas about what they may have been taught about art, challenging each other’s ideas, and hopefully challenging my own, allowing us all to learn and grow in knowledge together.

What I want to be when I grow up

My wife and I have been talking quite a bit lately about our next career moves. She has her administration license and is looking for an assistant principal job. I will be going into my 9th year teaching next year and I have been at the same school the whole time (not counting a year I was a sub in Rockford, IL). If I am going to move to a new school or district, I need to do so in the next year or two in order to keep my pay where it is (other districts often only give you credit for a maximum of 10 years).

The problem is we are both feeling restless. She wants out of the classroom. I won't go into all the reasons why. She's not giving up on education. She just wants something new more than she wants to be in the classroom and if you don't love it in there, it makes a very difficult day-to-day living.

I'm not sure if I do want something new or not. I'm not really sure where I want to end up. My dilemma is more along the lines of trying to figure out where I want to be when I grow up (at 32 already).

I have a passive tendency from my father. He is a wonderful man and a great dad. He's been a speech pathologist in the same school district since I can remember. He's been coaching cross country and track at the same high school since, what seems like, the beginning of time. He's  very nice but generally passive individual. Its what makes him awesome, though. But, in me, it's what makes me unsure if I want to leave what I have. Do I try to find a new job in the district at a high school and try that out? That might help me if I want to try to teach in college. Do I want to teach in college? Where could I do that? What about a design firm or something? Am I even qualified?.... Now you see how my brain has been working and why I often stop thinking of it and just forge ahead with where I'm at. The options are vague and abstract. I don't see how any other path might work. I just cant picture it.

Let's list what I have and see if its worth risking or losing. I have an Art job at a fairly new (8 years old) middle school at the beginning of the eastern plains of Colorado. Its 10 minutes from my house, 30 from downtown Denver, and I can see the mountains from my classroom. I get to come up with and write whatever lessons I want to fulfill the standards. I have a decent budget, but dwindling every year. I have 6 classes a day of about 35-40 kids, which is becoming a lot with more kids in my class every year. I have to do duty everyday outside in the morning, which isn't bad when its nice. My school leadership drives me a little crazy, but my principal just announced he is retiring. Next year could be interesting because of this. All that being said about my school, I haven't experienced any other type of school, population of students, or ways of doing things. Maybe my school is amazing. Maybe it sucks. I don't have much to compare it to.

On another note, I also have a coaching gig at the high school next door. I coach cross country and track (except I took this year off from track with the baby and all). I built that program from 15 kids in last place to 50 strong and league champions. Tha'ts going to be very hard for me to give up. Its a passion. I love coaching and I love that team. That might actually be the hardest thing for me to walk away from if I have to/choose to leave for something else.

I also make a decent wage and am now responsible for a baby boy. It scares me to walk away from something so stable and put him at risk because I want to do something else possibly.

With all that being said and listed out and all the real positives that come with all that, there's still a lingering feeling I need to do something else, something more, something different. I feel like I am smart enough, cable enough, talented enough to do something bigger that would allow me greater opportunities. ( I sound like Stuart Smalley from SNL)

Maybe its because I keep listening to these podcasts that interview creative and successful people. They talk about their influences and daily rituals and how they got to be where they are. They've traveled, started businesses, written books, met with others of influence, etc. I listen to these people to try to figure out how I can take the next step, but recently I've just felt like these people are inadvertently mocking me. Its pointing out all the stuff I haven't done yet and didn't do when I was younger and might never do now that I'm older. Damn it! Its motivating but also depressing. How something can be both I don't know. I want to do something drastic and follow my passion and put in the work to become something new and better, but I'm not sure what that is, how to start, and if its too late. Maybe I'm too old, too set in my skill sets and experiences, too settled down with a family and debt and a house, etc. Don't get me wrong... I love my wife and son. I love my dog. I love where I live. But, those are all things I am responsible for and can't just up and go back to art school because I want to be a better painter or something.

All this leaves me wondering what my next step is going to be. Will I just stay here and teach art at the same school forever, coaching into the sunset? I can think of worse things, but the thought of that makes me just as nervous. I think there's more out there to experience. We only get one life in the flesh. I don't think I should spend it doing the same thing for 30+ years. I am not knocking those who do. If you are perfectly happy where you are, doing what you do, that seems fine to me. For me, though, I believe strongly that there's more out there. I just don't know what or where it is yet. Maybe that's okay. I am open to opportunity. I just wonder if I should give opportunity a nudge and in what direction.

School and Community reflections

I wrote the following in response to some reflection questions we were asked at school in my SLT meeting. I joined the SLT (school leadership team) this year in an effort to try to make some changes to our school from within. I am tired of complaining and whining. I need to make an effort. We are reading the book The Courage to Teach, which I don’t really like and find a lot of issues with. Anyways, these are the responses I wrote to the questions that proceed them. I know it’s going to push a couple buttons of my administration, but I think it’s not that crazy and needs to be said. It’s my truth even if it’s not the truth of others in my building. It’s not revolutionary or anything, but it’s about community and school and my feelings on how they need to overlap.

What structures at your institution promote a sense of disconnection from students, parents, colleagues, and the administration? What keeps us beholden to these structures?

One of the things I get frustrated with in our school, and see in other schools in the area, is an overall lack of community in a sense that there isn’t really an outside world for the students once they are within the school. They come to school, go through the assembly line of the day, and then go home. I realize we do more than that and it’s not that simple, but I feel that we often push away experiences and see them as less important than “class time” or time to study in the classes that will be most valuable to them for testing later on. I think this it is a wrong assumption to believe that experiences, trips, speakers, presentations, etc. are not as valuable. This chapter (chapter 2) discusses our fears and that what we fear holds us back as teachers. I think we fear the loss of time in place of an experience. Experiences and presentations don’t always hit a specific standard or “help them on the test”. But I remember the local symphony coming to my middle school to play and discuss music and how it affects our senses. I remember it vividly. The feeling when the music got loud and reverberated throughout the entire auditorium.  I remember smiling and looking at my friends who were as giddy as I was. I feel that it was extremely valuable to me in the development of my person. I remember seeing plays put on at my school by other school or travelling professionals, going to see a plays locally or in nearby cities, listening to inspirational speakers, watching school-wide talent contests, dance showcases, students groups going to different seminars to learn to become leaders or engineers, or whatever. I realize we have groups that try to create experiences. We have assemblies sometimes. We have spirit weeks, and fundraising for causes, etc. But what happens at the end of it? It almost always stops at our doors and doesn’t head out into the community. Taking my class to see some real 3D art by some great artists on a field trip at a great arts center was not celebrated as an opportunity for something amazing. It was seen as a hassle and a distraction to what should be happening. But in my opinion, THAT’s what should be happening. I am teaching them to prepare them to go out into the community and see and experience and explore. What are we here for otherwise? We go to school to learn and get good jobs and careers. But we need those so we can afford to experience life and the world!  There are so many places I want to take the students. I know the guys at Blake street glass who would probably demonstrate for us and show us live glassblowing and have them even participate. I would love so much to show them this. The Denver art museum, the outdoor art museum, the Denver tour of modern spec houses from the 1960’s, the Kirkland art museum, first Fridays, etc. This is where life is happening. I know the work we do is good and I know that we can, as teachers, make the learning experience fun and valuable and often they are. I see the great and amazing activities happening. But I think we can better prepare them to be part of an active community by bringing it into the building and also going out into it. Speakers, plays, causes, etc.

            Being a PVMS Tiger should mean more than being in a specific building to go to school. I think we need to create a small community of our own to make them feel comfortable out in theirs. But the community in our school and world outside of it can’t begin and end at the door’s threshold. Seneca, the Stoic philosopher, advocates taking on an issue and of whether or not to do something by making a list of worst case scenarios. You take those scenarios and write out what the damage would be. Then you write out how long it would take to get back to where you were. Often times this shows us that the risk is worth the reward because it’s not as risky as we thought. I realize in writing all this that I could go out and find these experiences and bring them in, but I think they need to be valued to do so. We hold on tight to our schedules and plans and standards to the point of strangling the life from them  and I am guilty as anyone. I worry about fitting in projects and will cut out valuable discussions and experiences for the sake of time and ease, but I shouldn’t and I know it. I know better but often get caught up in the day to day scheduling.

What negative images are there for today’s students?  What fears do young people face in today’s society?  And what are some positive traits for today’s students?

I think my answer to this question goes easily with the previous question. There are tons of negative images out there for students, most of which are created by social media and other forms of media found so easily in their pockets. This is another reason I feel it important for them to become a part of their community. The stuff happening on TV and on Facebook and other sites isn’t real life. It’s a hyped up version of it, sensationalized. But students aren’t experiencing their own neighborhood or area. They are experiencing a bizarre version of reality though a small screen plugged into the internet. A great number of the kids I took to Stuart Middle School for a basketball game had no idea it even existed where it did. That neighborhood was a foreign land to them. Stuart is 5 miles away at most. Denver, to them, is another state even though we can literally see it from my classroom. Everything else seems like another country. On my XC team I tell the new kids we are running to the Fairgrounds and they look at me like I’m crazy until I explain it’s literally 2 miles away. Not even that. There’ so much negativity and fear the students have access to now and they feel it is part of their world. It is, but not necessarily within their community. We all fear the apocalypse and what might happen, and I hate to be the bearer of bad news…. But it’s here. But it’s just not HERE. Terrible things are happening all over the world, but the area around our school is relatively safe and sound. Yes, it has its own issues, but how can we feel able to combat them in the face of the terrible things happening elsewhere? This question must be daunting to the students.

I think there are positive people and experiences within their communities all over if the kids know where to look and they can find them easier maybe with technology, but for all the great and good technology does for them, it hinders them in its ability to connect them to their own friends and people next door. I feel so sad when I see two friends hanging out and talking and one of them is on their phone, ear bud in, and only half listening. While a positive is that the kids are more “in the know” than I ever was at that age and can find the answers they needs, the support they need, and others like them, it also shuts them out of their own surroundings. This is why I feel the growing need for creating a better sense of community with those around them. All these things can be said of myself and our staff as well. I am not free of sin and stupidity. I am not free of the want to check  Facebook and email and read articles that only confirm my ideas of the world, but I have recognized it in myself and try to resist. I think as a staff we can create a better sense of community, too. There are opportunities and I don’t always take them. That’s true. But I am speaking in generalities and hopes for our own peers that needs to include on effort on my part as well.