From the archive
“There’s no way we’ll have a snow day tomorrow,” I believe were my exact words to students yesterday. We have the day off. I knew there was snow in the forecast, but it looked like a small amount and our district is notoriously stingy with “snow days” to begin with, so I figured there was […]
Over the last few years, I’ve gone to great lengths to rid myself of vices. I’ve given up smoking, alcohol, soda, and coffee. I’ve started trying to eat healthier, to drink more water, and to exercise more. If I’m being honest, it’s been horrible. More than horrible. Boring. When I lived and taught in Korea […]
This blog wasn’t exactly a new year’s resolution; it just so happened that I started blogging again at the beginning of a new year and was somewhat resolved to blog every day. Like any pedestrian chump, though, I fell off after about a month. Sad! The trick is, I’ve learned, not to beat yourself up […]
The school where I work has what’s called a plan center, which is slightly different that a teacher’s lounge (in that it’s not meant for “lounging”). We have this plan center because my school has more teachers than it has classrooms. The school simply isn’t big enough for each teacher to have their own room; […]
There are a lot of things that happen in an educational setting today that didn’t happen when I was in high school. No surprise there — I’m a solidly middle-aged guy, so you’d expect that things would have changed in some way, shape, or form. One change that has become an everyday buzzword in schools […]
I downloaded a little book called The Trauma of Burnout by Dr. Claire Plumbly the other day, hoping (as I always do) to find more information about why I’m having trouble sleeping. And, hopefully, to find ways to improve the situation. Am I actually burnt out? I don’t know. Being burnt out is more of […]
I’m listening to The Prisoner of Azkaban now, and there’s a part of the Full-Cast Editions from Audible that I’m finding particularly strange: The foley work. Foley work is what we call the sounds produced for movies, tv, radio, podcasts, etc. It can be footsteps, gunshots, squeaky door hinges, coughs, grunts, barks. Cars passing by […]
I was able to keep some food down yesterday (toast, some soup), but I’m still nowhere near back to “normal,” so I’ve decided to take another sick day. I still feel a bit feverish and just so…exhausted that I don’t think I’d be much use in front of a classroom. I’m a little guilty about […]
Welp. My day yesterday went from me wondering, “Why do I feel so exhausted?” straight into my having to leave my first class to go throw up in the teacher’s bathroom. Turns out I have the flu. Huzzah! I managed to find another teacher to cover class for me and headed straight home to vomit […]
Up incredibly early this morning. Not feeling great. Yesterday, after work, I came home and played World of Warcraft Classic for an hour at my standing desk. I walked on a little treadmill while I did so, hoping that a little more exercise would help out with my sleep. It didn’t. Well — I know […]