Busy Weekend With Shoreland Robotics!

 I pretty much spent the entire weekend helping out the Shoreland Robotics team.   I would say it was fun!    This was the second and third time I have experienced a robotics event,  and I guess I'm still kind of into it.   Who would have ever thought that I would be enchanted by something I know very little about. 

Friday after school,  I noticed the STEM folks carrying stuff down the hallway and past my office.   I offered to help them move... because I used to be a mover.  and moving things is kind of my thing.  ( don't ask me to explain. I barely understand it myself)   They did not refuse,  so I injected myself into the set up of the Gym for the upcoming robotics event.  

I also wanted to get Huan a little experience visiting people outside the house.    He is new to the high school,  and,  like me,   he probably has to be pushed out of his comfort zone to meet people.   I volunteered his services and together, we helped the robotics club set things up.  AND got free pizza!   What a pleasant surprise!

On Saturday,  the temperature dropped  to the single digits! After running three miles in it,  I headed off to the school to plan for my upcoming earthquake lab for Earth and Space.   The plan was to work on that lesson and then drop by the gym to see how the teams were doing.   

9 hours later!    I was still there!    Helping the robotics club set up for the grade school meet on Sunday.  I didn't mind,  because I was asked to judge the Grade schoolers today.  I figured I would get some exposure to the differing heats as I helped set things up.  

While I was there,  I cheered on the Shoreland teams and took a few pictures.   One of the Shoreland Teams  ( the flying Dutchmen) won the tournament!   

Today,   I had to shore up early to dress in the Judging attire.   I grouped up with a bunch of other Shoreland students to judge and interview the grade school teams that came to compete.  It was a fun time. 

It also went by FAST!   Time flies when you are trying to interview a bunch of kids.  Before I knew it, we were judging the notebooks and setting up the second interviews.   After that..  It was time for the final break down.  I didn't get home until nearly 7 PM!  

Good thing I don't have school tomorrow!   I need the day to recover and do my laundry!   I also have to plan my weeks lessons and that earth quake lab.   Good times!   

I have to say,   it was a long day and rather exhausting,  but a new experience!   And As much as I do not envy the coaches, who stayed even later to put things away...   I would like to thank them for allowing me to join them and be a part of their world for ,just a brief moment.  It was fun talking to the parents and the kids about heir experiences and cheering them on.  Who would have ever thought there was this other world out there.....

I'm finding that my second semester shows promise.  I don't want to make bold claims just yet, but I find myself looking forward to the days now.   I hope that trend continues.   

I should also mention that last Tuesday, I had Chapel and I think I managed to pull it off.   That task had been bothering me for a while now, and I am happy it is over and I did not mess things up.   I was also happy to hear that I am not alone in my anxiety over Chapel.   Many of the nerdy science guys are not hip to speaking in front of that many people.    I guess I am in good company.

This coming week will present new challenges... even though it will only be four days long.  Dave will be traveling on Wednesday, I believe.   That will leave me and Huan to fend for ourselves in the food department.  Huan likes noodles, so he should be ok.  

I also have to figure out the weeks lesson plans for Physical Science as Mr Hutchenson will be touring colleges in Madison and South Dakota.   Since he and I are trying to stay on the same track as far as Physical science pacing goes.    I will have to chat with him about the weeks lesson plans and how far he wanted to go. 
Currently,  we are following his lesson plans and with him gone,  that will leave me to go it alone.    Another challenge to be embraced and overcome!

As for now.  I will continue to pray for strength and guidance from God.  And hope that the lessons and challenges he presents me are not as difficult as the ones he tossed my way during the first semester.   Already I have had a hiccup  with an Earth and Space Lab.  I was fortunate that I could pivot quickly and recover.  Small lessons like that I feel I can handle....  for now.  

May God continue to bless me and all of my students.   I would ask that he continues to guide me to help his children navigate this world and bring them closer to him.  For time is short...  and every second counts...

By he way, Several of these pics were from Mr. Tesch.  Who was nice enough to say I could use them.  (His are the clear ones!)

The Official End of the First Semester

 Yesterday was the last day of the first Semester at Shoreland.  I know!   What a weird arrangement!   The first semester ends a week after winter break.  But the ways of many things have changed over the years.    Especially since I was a kid...  So I just accept it and try to do my best to adjust.  

But that means second semester begins!  And I find myself rather excited about that!   Let's call it a New Start!   Only this time, I'm armed with a little more experience to deal with things.   ( God willing)   I'm sure I will discover gaps in the armor this semester.   But I am feeling a little more confident this go around. And hopefully,  that little bit of "extra" will come in handy. 

In the mean time,  I wanted to post that we have a new room mate.   His name is Hyan Tu and he is from China!   Out with the student teacher and in with the exchange student!  How different could they possibly be? 

Well,  besides the language and culture shock... not much!   Hyan is a lot like Kyle in that he has  imprisoned himself  in the guest bedroom...  so far. ( I think it is Dave... he is so scary!)   

Just kidding.  

I'm sure that the huge change is difficult to process at first.   It takes someone like Christina or my brother to be able to deal with all of the new experiences that are shoved on you in such a short time.  But I'm sure he will come out of his shell eventually. 

IN the mean time,   I took him to see Lake Michigan... Because...  Great Lakes!   How can anyone live here and NOT understand that this is one of the largest concentration of fresh water on the planet!  I thin he was impressed...  Having no large bodies of water where he lives in China. 

On Friday,  Dave ordered Fried Fish  and chips for the taste of Wisconsin.  It was a good way to share the cultures a bit.   I think he may have enjoyed it. 

For now,  I will have to adjust my morning schedule so I can take him to school with me.   This will be a bit of a change from my usual 5:30 arrival time.   Hopefully I will  be able to adjust smoothly and not have any issues in the coming semester.  

We have Monday off to prepare for the new Semester.   Well,  I mean there is no school for the kids!   The teachers have to enjoy a meeting and possibly a little school prep to get ready for the next wave of classes.  This is compounded for me as I have to give Chapel Tuesday!   ( My First time here at Shoreland!)   I'm hoping it is not much of an issue and everything goes well.   Still,  It does produce a touch of anxiety when thinking about being in front of the entire Student Body.  But if Kyle can do it... I figure I should be able to too!  

Well that is all for now.   Tomorrow,  I am supposed to show up to Church early so I can help with the coffee.  I'm actually a bit excited about that as well,  since I will be making Cappuccino and Lattes for people.  I can hardly wait!

That is all for now.  Tomorrow, I have lesson plans to prepare and a chapel presentation to write.  Sounds like a busy day.   And every second counts.

Hello 2025!

 A quick post on some of the things I have been up to in the new year.    Since only two days have gone by,  you would think that there is not much to blog about....  So this should be a short one.   Then again, I might as well toss in a couple of the things that I missed in my last (HUGE) post...  so we shall see how it goes. 

Yesterday, I helped Christina take down her Christmas decorations and watched several episodes of Yellowstone.  Nothing really epic, just a basic hangout with videos and playing with the pooch.   She also game me one of her end tables that she no longer wanted.   I now have a mirror downstairs!  Yeah!

   I spent yesterday and today working on some slightly more challenging Origami.   I made a horse and have been working on a Crane today.   Cranes take so long to fold, that I am taking a break form the process.   Hopefully I will find the focus tomorrow.  

   I also have been reviewing some of my classes for the second semester.  We finally enter the "physics" part of physical science, and I have to review a few things to get ready.   I'm hoping we will be able to do a few more labs this semester and that the kids actually learn from them rather than simply goofing off or make a mess.  Then again,  that is probably part of the lab appeal.

I forgot to mention that when I was graving back from Michigan,  I stopped into the Culver;s in Grand Haven to see if my wood elf carving was still there.   She was!   I posed with her and a lady was nice enough to take my picture.  The Wood Elf has been out there for 14 years now!   And , aside from a little weathering,   I thought she looked pretty good!   

It is difficult to describe the feeling of having something you worked on being appreciated by people.   And those people still have it on display after a decade!   If the carving would not have been oak,   perhaps it would have weathered differently.  But, then again,  if it had been any other type of wood, it might have rotted away by now.   Either way, I'm happy she was still there.... And that they Culver's people still have her on display and have not used her for firewood. 

And lastly, I helped put up one of Dave's Christmas Gifts that his sister gave him.   A Fruit Hammock!    I guess the point is that it hangs so the fruit will last longer.  

At first. I thought it was one of those hand made "Corona Masks" that were so in style back in 2020.   Kind of looked like a Santa beard to me, though.   

    I installed it just above the normal bowl where we usually put the fruit so now the Bananas can hang out.   Kind of an odd place to put a Banana hammock, but who am I to judge.  

Hope everyone is having a wonderful 2025 so far.   Any resolutions?    That you have kept?   I already broke the "no sugar" one... But am keeping up  with the running and Yoga stuff.   With the colder weather coming on,  it will be a challenge to keep running in the arctic chill...  But then again,  I ran for three years in Alaska in temps that often dipped below -20F!   Plus it will add to my personal grind and misery index.  

May God bless you all this new year.   And hopefully you will be able to make it a great year with every new day.   Because every second counts!

The Year In Review. 2024.

 So much has happened this past year that I am struggling with where or how to begin.   I used to simply post a bunch of pictures about stuff  and just added captions on the important pics.  Our lives used to be summed up with only a couple things:   Stockings and Racing.    

But things have changed for me, now that it is only me.    ( And a BUNCH of other people.)  Who do I include?   What do I focus on?   And just how many tangents do I really want to go down so as not to miss anything?    

I guess we should just start from the beginning....   January.  

I was celebrating a Year with Zebra.    And Zebra was a fun job.  With lots of fun people to work with.   

John and Francisco were the first guys I have ever known to introduce me to the Pub and actually got me to enjoy it.   Don't get me wrong, I have been invited to bars and pubs before, but found them rather noisy and not really my scene.   

But the folks at Zebra showed me that it can be more than simply drinking or watching sports.  I had not experienced a since of family and friendship like that since the Army.  

Don't get me wrong,   Pearson and ACT were family in some cases.   Mostly because the same types of people followed the jobs from ACT, SAT, and Pearson.   After several years with those folks,  a select few of us were pretty close.    ( In fact, I just got an email from a couple wishing me a Merry Christmas!)  But the scoring gig was a revolving door.  It can be difficult to make gigs work as a full time job.   And many of the people who score do it only as a temporary thing.   

But Zebra was different somehow.   And I am still chatting with many of them.   Even meeting up at the Clubhouse to catch up since I left.  

I kind of liked the "Big Fish" in a small pond feeling too.   I mentioned several times that I had done pretty much everything in the warehouse that could be done.   From receiving, packing, loading, unloading, and picking.    My last great mountain to climb was VAS, and I created badges every time I accomplished another training level.  

I was even able to fold several dragons while I was employed there.   Some of the shipping material made for great folding media.  

Speaking of paper making...  I created several fish before I called it quits at Zebra.   I finished the Sunfish and am still working on the Walleye.   Ever since the Shoreland chapter, I have found my time dedicated to mostly students and studying.   This first year of teaching has become all consuming!  

In July,  I started Shoreland Lutheran as a Teacher of Physical Science and Earth Science.   It has been a humbling and rewarding experience!   Possibly the greatest adventure of my life!  

Adventure is a fitting term, because I feel every day has been an adventure for me.    A feeling of the unknown and a touch of fear and excitement that accompanies it.  What will happen next?  Somedays I feel like I hit a home run and can't wait for more! Other days,   I can't wait for the day to finish so I can go home and attempt to recover.  

But the good times should be remembered!   I'm the head of the Natural Science club and was able to take several students out to hunt for mushrooms!   We did manage to find a few, but unfortunately,  many of the edible ones were too far gone to salvage.   It was fun walking around in the forest though, and ID-ing various mushrooms in the process.   The first half of the semester was so busy with me trying to figure things out and the homecoming events.  

I tended to gravitate towards the "lesser known" sports events.   Like Tennis,  Cross country, and Soccer.    The funny thing is that Soccer placed second in the state!  
And Cross Country had a great year as well,   sending two of the runners to the state finals!    Several High school Records were broken along the way.  And I just happen to be there to witness it.  

I also went to one of the Robotics Events.    Our kids did not do so well there, but it was fun cheering them on and watching them overcome the challenges that the robotics program throws at them.  

It was also a year of Farewells!   I had to say farewell to the Silver Bullet Subaru.    I failed in being able to get him over the 400,000 mile mark.   (only 7000 miles short!)   But I could not risk having my first year of teaching being plagued with Car Repairs and uncertain start ups each morning.   

John,  The guy who got me into the Clubhouse,   Retired and went to Texas in October.   He still leaves comments on my Facebook posts, so it appears he is doing well there in the lone star state.  He was one of those people whose company I truly enjoyed.  

But...   As with all things in life,  you find new ones that help fill the void.   I purchased a new Subaru Forester and have been slowly getting to know it over the last 6 months.   He is a manual and fun to drive.  Last weekend,  I took him on his longest trip yet, to Michigan!   To see my brother and former in-laws.   He made the trip without incident and it was a fun and enjoyable ride.  

Speaking of my brother,   I have not seen him in many years and he had been bugging me to come to the property to to see what he had been working on over the last several months.   I finally have the time to go and thought it would be a great time.  In the process,  I was able to visit with Ed Arnold, my other "brother" from all those years ago growing up.   He was there to help Eric with several projects.   Those two have done amazing things with the place since I last saw it.    Unfortunately,   Eric can not get around like he once used to and Ed can only get up there on Weekends... So the improvements are slow going.   They did manage to fix the Sewer system while I was there... with only a few hiccups.  Perhaps I will plan a trip up there in the Summer and see if I can help out.   That seems like an Eternity away at the moment.   And I am now stuck with a week to week vision of the future.   We shall see how things pan out. 

I ran several half marathons this year!   The Lincoln,  The Glass City, and The Lakefront Half Marathon.   I'm not sure if I will be able to find the time now that I no longer work for Zebra.  AND most Marathons and Half Marathons tend to be in the Spring or Fall.  But, again, we shall see how things turn out  this year.  

I should also mention that Cheryl came up to visit several times.   She ran the Lincoln and Glass City Half Marathon with me as well (She ran the FULL Version of the Glass City.)   But when she came to Kenosha,  Most of the time we spent it on the beach, looking for rocks and bits of glass.   Walking along the lake shore is very calming, and I would recommend it to everyone who lives here.  Having the goal of trying to find some treasure along the way is merely a bonus.   

We also got to visit several beer gardens while exploring the coast.  Turns out,   Sampling beer after a hot day of beach combing can be rather fun!  

There were also times when the weather was not as hospitable as we would have liked,   but that is part of the "practice being miserable" process.
Next year she has suggested that we run the Half Marathon in Kenosha.   I'm no sure if I will be properly trained or will have the time to do it.   But I will keep an open mind. 

Cheryl was not the only one I did things with this year.   Christina was dragged along for several events of my suggestion.   One Comedian,  One Nutcracker Ballet,  And One Christmas Dinner...   There was also that Battleship Tournament in the Petrified Springs.   She is one of those folks who is dangerously exciting... as long as you don't get the police involved....

And Finally I should mention the "Pretty Big Deal" that was the Solar Eclipse I was able to witness.   It was truely a once in a lifetime experience!   And I was very fortunate that I got to see it first hand.    The partial events can not compare to the full Solar Eclipse!   It was absolutely breathtaking!   I know the next one is nine years from now, ( In the arctic, I think)  But if you ever have the opportunity to see one.  And to be on the path of Totality...  YOU MUST DO IT!  

This year has been an absolute Roller Coaster for me.   With LOTS of ups and downs along the way.    It was terrifying at times,  Awe-inspiring, Fun and Exhilarating at others. And, just like the last roller coaster I was on,   I could not wait to get on again!   Hopefully the upcoming year will have less fear and more fun and excitement in store for me.    And the Teaching part of all of this is the key factor.   God has been Gracious.   Gracious to me and everyone else in the world by sending his Son to die for us.   But to allow me to be a part of the spreading of His Word is an honor.  An honor I hope I can rise up to.  Because the year is almost over...   And every second counts. 

Happy New Year Everyone!