Duck and Weave: Life with a Liberal Arts Degree

The rhythm of things

2009-10-18T20:44:00.002-05:00

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: I have class from 9:10 to 10:10. Occasionally I will then go to my mother's house, where she pays me to help her clean and organize since I'm currently unemployed. Sometimes I get a free meal or two out of the deal. Jess has classes Monday and Wednesday nights, so I take that time to get some serious Oblivion-playing in.

Tuesday, Thursday: I get up around 9, play Oblivion until 11, and then do any assigned readings for my Dance II class, which runs from 12:50 to 2:20. Jess is usually home when I get back, so I putter around to give her space while she does homework. Then we have dinner and hang out. Tuesdays we usually watch Hell's Kitchen (which just ended last week), and on Thursdays we have a sign language class we're taking through Community Ed. from 6:00 to 7:45. There are a LOT of blithering idiots in that class. Julie, the teacher, is freaking hillarious, however.

Saturday: Hang out, putter, clean, run errands, play Oblivion.

Sunday: Watch the Vikings, play Oblivion, putter, occasionally go grocery shopping. Usually feed one or both snakes.

Change-up: On various nights of the week, we head over to The Chatterbox Pub on Ford Parkway. Sunday and Wednesday they have Karaoke, Thursday they have music bingo. Out first time playing, we won coupons for two free personal pizzas and a free breakfast.

2009-09-21T08:49:00.002-05:00

Yesterday Skulle and I were back at RenFest, this time Jess came with us. She didn't enjoy it quite as much as I did, but her dad and brother were out there, so she got to hang with them for a few hours, and during my break we all went and caught a show together. It seemed like a much longer day this week than it was last Sunday. I'm still signed up for one more Sunday, and the weekend after that, I'm going out as a patron. One day to actually enjoy the festival... and I won't be required to dress up!

Classes are okay, but I thought I was going to die the other day in Dance II. We were doing warm-ups and I thought my back was going to die on me. I wonder if there are warm-ups for the warm-ups.

Dumping burdens

2009-09-15T08:40:00.002-05:00

On Saturday I sent in an e-mail officially telling the Oak-Land administration that I can't direct the Drama Club. I hated to do it, but I just can't handle it with everything else going on.

On the happier side, I worked out at RenFest on Sunday with the MN Herpetological Society. It was hella fun. Skulle handled it very well, but after getting home he slept for over 24 hours. In fact, he only woke up when he did because I took him out to feed him.

Firestorm

2009-09-10T13:45:00.004-05:00

So, I'm back to school at Hamline. I'm taking two classes: Stagecraft and Dance II. I haven't had a dance class yet, but it's my understanding that only 4 people are registered at this time. Should be interesting... and then I'm one of 23 people in my stagecraft class... and only the professor is older than I am.

On top of that, I'm starting the Oak-Land drama club. I was given the go-ahead to direct it in the fall, since student teaching in the spring will leave me unavailable. I've finished a rewrite of Midsummer Night's Dream, and Jess started helping me edit it last night... only to find out that it still needs a lot of work. I think it gets better as the show goes along, though. I think I was still trying to find my voice in the first two scenes.

I have auditions today and tomorrow, and I have homework to do besides! I went from having too much time on my hands to not having enough!

By the way, speaking of too much time on my hands, I've been playing this online game called "Gates of Andaron" lately. It's somewhat like Everquest, but MUCH more "do it in this order"-ish. I enjoy it, though, despite there only being three playable races and six character classes. My favorites are Archers and Evocators. Warriors are okay, Priests are lame (though at level 12 they can transform into ravens temporarily!), Magicians die really fast if you're lagging at all, and NightBlades (assassins) aren't nearly as cool as they should be. They're like crappy archers without all of the cool bow abilities.

Sensitivity

2009-08-31T21:49:00.002-05:00

Well, I did a stupid.

Skulle has been a bit twitchy lately. I think it's a combination of several factors. We just brought Lucrezia, Jess' new Ball Python, home a few months ago. So he has a new neighbor. I've also been practicing to have him for RenFest, for which I have to keep his head and tail away from the public, while keeping his middle available for them to pet. I'm typically very passive when I hold him, so he's not so keen on me taking a more active role in controlling his movements.

Tonight, we warmed some mice, then fed one to Lucy. I then moved to feed Skulle right away. He was immediately tense, since he'd been smelling warm mice for half an hour at that point. When I went to put him in the feeding bin, he undoubtedly smelled Lucy's smell in the bin, and freaked out. He coiled around my hand in a death grip and wouldn't get down. I reached for him, and he snapped at me (and missed.) I tried offering him some food to get him down, and he turned around and bit me on the wrist. I couldn't exactly react, as he was still firmly wrapped around the attached hand. It barely hurt, and to be honest my feelings are far more hurt than my body. I dunno. We'll see how it goes.

Scheduled

2009-08-10T23:52:00.004-05:00

Jess noticed that, without any particular activity to make me be productive, I do as little as humanly possible on an average day. In an attempt to combat this, she has begun making weekly schedules for me. Time is set aside for writing, reading, disc golf, cooking, cleaning, doing dishes, and working on some of my larger, as-yet-untouched projects that have to be completed by the end of August. While I find myself chaffing at times under the constraints of time, I have been much more productive with this schedule than I ever would have been otherwise, and have made good progress both on my Student Teaching Profile, which needs to be turned in by mid-September, and my re-write of Midsummer Night's Dream, which I wouldn't even have read over yet if not for her.

In other news, I got over my bronchitis, but now I think I'm coming down with either a head cold or allergies, because I keep waking up in the mornings with an itch in my throat that whispers "post-nasal drip."

P.S. Lucy finally pooed... and it was freaking HUGE!

recuperation

2009-07-30T14:39:00.002-05:00

Well, I have two more days of antibiotics for my Bronchitis. One of the listed possible side effects of the medication is tendonitis. It says that, if you experience any swelling or bursting of tendons that you should discontinue the use of the medication immediately. Funny, then, that I developed a sore tendon in my knee last night. I'm waiting for a call from the doctor to tell me if I should continue with the medication for two more days or if I should stop. We'll see.

Jess has been down in the dumps because her new Ball Python, Lucrezia (Lucy), is preparing to shed, and hasn't come out of her cave in over a week. We also haven't seen her poo since we got her, so Jess is worried about Lucy's health. I keep trying to tell her that Lucy's fine, but Jess is prone to worrying.

My lower back is killing me.

OH! Good news. I have been in e-mail communication with the principal at Oak-Land. I have officially been given permission to return to direct the drama club this year, but this time we'll be doing it in the fall, not the spring. I'll be too busy student teaching this spring. We'll see how it goes. I have a month to do a modernized re-write of Midsummer Night's Dream.

Totally Suck

2009-07-23T05:01:00.002-05:00

Yeah.

I finished with my summer classes. I know for a fact that I got an A in Creative Dramatics for Teachers, and another in Teaching Literacy 5-12, but I'm not sure about Exceptionality yet... though Jeff, the professor, is a fairly easy grader who also happens to like me.

Then it struck. CrapKarma. The weekend before I finished my summer classes, I began to come down with a cough and fever. After nearly a week, I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with Bronchitis. I was put on meds that are helping... barely. So just when I should be jobhunting and enjoying what's left of my summer, I'm stuck at home coughing my freaking lungs out!

In a vague attempt at remaining positive, Jess feels unable to complain about me playing video games while I'm sick.

Out of the job and into the meat grinder

2009-06-13T09:46:00.003-05:00

Well, my last week at Oak-Land was also my first week of summer classes at Hamline. I'm taking 8 credits, which was the same full-time load I've taken every semester, but this time it's being administered in three half-term classes that meet a total of four times a week. That means I'm at Hamline Monday through Thursday every week for the next month and a half. The rest of my time should consist of homework. Oh, holy crap. See you in a month, most likely... at which time I need to find a part-time job.

Greetings from Duluth

2009-05-25T09:06:00.003-05:00

Friday at work, everybody was asking what we were doing for the long weekend. Since we had made no plans, I told them all, "Nothing." I was wrong, however.

Upon my return home Friday afternoon, Jess informed me that we were going to Duluth on Saturday for a three-day, two-night mini-break. We had room service, we went on a boat tour of the harbor area, we went on a scenic train ride, we visited the Great Lakes Aquarium, and we saw "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian"... which was awesome, by the way.

The only thing that upsets me is that the nice little cafe downstairs is closed for Memorial day, so we can't get bagels for breakfast. Other than that, this has been great.

We also got the greatest souveniers ever: Little black gloves with cut-off fingers, and with a white skull and crossbones on the back of each! Freaking awesome!

Hatred - OR - The Moustachioed Madman

2009-05-17T22:42:00.002-05:00

It's Sunday night. My final project for my OTHER class is due tomorrow night. I don't want to do it. Do you know why? Because I have a moral problem with a teacher holding me to high standards when he obviously doesn't hold himself to any!

If I'm feeling vaguely sane in the next few days, maybe I'll explain that comment a bit more clearly.

Titania's Domain

2009-05-10T18:59:00.002-05:00

I bought a new laptop yesterday, as I lose my work laptop at the end of the school year. This because I'm not going to be back in the fall. Nevertheless, the important part is the new laptop. I have named her Titania, and she's freaking awesome. I'm typing this on her silky-smooth-actioned keyboard, and she runs games without breaking a sweat. I name her Titania because she's extremely powerful AND quite fickle (last night she decided that she didn't want to restart, and froze in place rather than comply. After a hard reset, however, she's been running like a dream... a sexy, frothy dream with sugary sprinkles on top.

But not in a creepy way...

One down

2009-05-08T11:45:00.002-05:00

Okay. Last night was the final class period of Teaching in Secondary Schools. Despite the fact that last night was the last class, we actually were given until next Thursday to finish our final project. It had been my intention to finish weeks ago (see previous posting), but that didn't happen. Wednesday came and went, and I figured that I would have to turn it in on Monday, but Thursday was a slow day at work, so I made the big push and got it done for class light night... with about 2 minutes to spare.

SO

FREAKING

RELIEVED.

Commitment... and being committed.

2009-04-24T09:29:00.002-05:00

I realized Tuesday that the only thing standing between me and finishing all homework for one of my classes (which has another three class periods) was that I needed to complete a presentation on Thursday, which I then needed to write a reflection on. So, now it's Friday. Aside from attending two plays this weekend, my only plans are to lock myself away and churn out the remainder of my homework, thus allowing me to relax through the remaining two classes. We'll see if I survive. Wish me luck.

Random observation

2009-04-23T08:02:00.002-05:00

African Folktales are pretty cool... but some of them are just plain wrong.

Homework sucks

2009-04-11T17:54:00.002-05:00

I love most of my classes in the MAT program. Most of them either fall under the categories of "Interesting" or "Interesting AND useful." In fact, only one class so far has fallen under a third heading, which I call "Annoying Hoop to Jump Through."

This semester I'm taking two classes. One is "Interesting," and the other is "Interesting AND useful." I enjoy both. There's just one tiny problem.

I don't want to do any more homework.

I feel more than just a bit burnt out. I'm trying, but the work isn't happening. I wrote my professor earlier this week to ask for a two-day extension on my assignment. I'm supposed to have it done and e-mailed to him tonight, and I just can't seem to get anywhere. It feels like I'm trying to use a solid wooden dowel as a straw. I'm trying really hard, but not really getting any results.

Grr.

April Fool's Day: Idiocy In Action OR Youth Inaction?

2009-04-01T08:03:00.003-05:00

It's April Fool's Day, and I'm sitting in my office. I don't need to be in my first hour class for ten more minutes. Unfortunately, most of the students won't be there, since the ninth graders are staging a sit-in in the hallway. OOH - it just got deadly quiet out there, and I now hear the assistant principal talking to them... and now there's a round of cheering.

Why are idiots so prone to idiocy? If I were an idiot, I'd want to do everything in my power to hide the fact. Why do some people continuously search for bigger and better ways to wave their dumbass flag?

Monday, March 23rd: Two days until I'm 31.

2009-03-23T07:39:00.003-05:00

Yes, the shows went very well. We made a whopping $56 in donations, which doesn't even cover our performance rights, not to mention the script purchases. Nevertheless, the shows went very well. I was very proud of the kids.

Then came "Spring Break Oh-Nine! WOOOOOOOOO!" I spent two days observing/helping out at another school for one of my grad classes, then I spent one day getting my car fixed and having lunch with my mother. Friday I had to be up bright and early to get Jess to LasikPlus, where she had her eyes done. The rest of the day alternated between video games (while she slept) and tending to her (when she was awake.)

Saturday I had to take Jess to a 9AM check-up to make sure her eyes were healing well enough. After that we got some iced chai and headed up to Forest Lake. I hadn't been back there since we moved out, but it was home to the Adevia salon and spa, and Jess had signed us up as an early birthday present to me. I had a one-hour massage, a facial, and at the last minute, Jess gave me her reflexology appointment. I've never felt so wonderful in my life as I did coming out of that massage.

It's now Monday the 23rd. I'm back to work. Yech. On the (possible) upside, I'm going to teach a lesson at Crosswinds this Friday.

27 Hours later

2009-03-11T11:56:00.003-05:00

It's noon. I'm still at home, but I started feeling WAY better about two hours ago. I haven't needed a tissue since 9 this morning. This afternoon is the LAST rehearsal before the big show tomorrow. I'm nervous as all get-out. I don't know what I have left to do at this point, however, besides hold on and (try to) enjoy the ride.

I think I almost accidentally typed "ennui the ride." That's funny.

Flarn, as Jason would say...

2009-03-10T09:04:00.003-05:00

It's Tuesday morning... 9:09 according to the clock on the TV (which tends to run 3 minutes fast.) Why am I writing from home on a school day? Because I'm sick as a dog. Two days before my drama club performs, and I'm laid up.

Yes, I'm dragging myself in for tonight's rehearsal. Yes, I can speak. Yes, I'm sniffling a lot, coughing rarely, and my nose and lips are chapped from dehydration and incessant nose blowing.

I was originally going to write myself a speech to give before the show started. At present, it looks like I'll be writing a curtain speech for somebody else to read on my behalf. Suck. On top of it all, Wednesday's rehearsal NEEDS to run long.

The nature of dreams... and why I'm an idiot.

2009-03-04T22:47:00.002-06:00

In high school I dated a girl named Kelly. Some of you know about this relationship, some of you don't. Suffice it to say that the relationship ended badly, and she never wanted to speak to me again... and to be honest, there were a few years in there that I never wanted to see her again. Time, however, is really good at two things: tearing down mountains, and mellowing me out. After a few years of loathing everything that she stood for and regretting everything that had passed between us, I forgave her and let it slip into the past.

There's one problem with the past. It doesn't stay there.

Two years ago, I was working at "The Bend." When things got slow, I'd surf the web. Most days I would just play games online, but every now and then I would think of somebody I knew in high school and wonder what had happened to them. Then I would internet search until I was sure that I had nothing, or until I found out what had become of this person. Sometimes the search would take 20 seconds on MySpace, and sometimes the search would take 30 minutes of hard-core googling... especially when it was somebody who had gotten married.

Kelly was one of the latter, but I found out that she had married a guy from Bethel, where she had gone to college. I also learned that they both worked for the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and that he also worked as a playwright. Sounds great for them. I was happy for her.

Every now and then, however, I think of how she felt about me when last I spoke to her. I knew that I had forgiven her, and I had forgiven myself, but I wondered if she had managed to do the same. The thought would come to me, and disappear within a week.

Monday night, I had a really strange dream. I dreamt that a friend of Kelly's that I knew had just had a baby, and that I contrived to be visiting that friend in the hospital when Kelly came for a visit. There was a lot of awkward shuffling, but then a conversation started. That's where the dream got creepy. It was a musical. Even more bizarre, every time a musical number started, Brian Luke, a science teacher at Oak-Land, would walk by, stare at me, and laugh maniacally. I assume he thinks musicals are silly and/or frivolous. Either way, three scenes and two musical numbers later, the dream ended with Kelly and I being friends again.

Something about this dream got to me in a way that I hadn't expected. So tonight, I requested Kelly as a friend on Facebook. By the next time I logged on, she hadn't accepted my request, but she had changed her picture. Bad sign?

Like I said, I'm an idiot. Some people just can't let go.

The incessant march.

2009-03-01T18:08:00.002-06:00

I apologise for any typographical errors... I'm typing this with my glasses off.

I have two weeks left. Two weeks. Then my drama club play will be over, and I can sit back and fight to play catch-up with my Hamline classes. I'm not falling behind exactly, but I don't feel like I'm on top of things, either. I fully expect the next twelve days to be the longest and most difficult of the last five years. We'll see.

Did I mention: March 12th, 7 PM at Oak-L:and Junior High in Lake Elmo, MN. 820 Manning Ave, for those of you who care.

On the flip side: Jess bought a puzzle yesterday, and I find myself having trouble staying away. It's one of those photo-mosaic things, where the hundreds/thousands of tiny pictures make up one big picture. This is scenes from disney movies making a big Mickey Mouse. It's pretty cool.

Also, Jess had gotten frustrated with her diet. She's been maintaining weight for a couple months now, and she said either I joined her on the diet to give her some back-up, or she'd quit. I joined... and now I'm scared. Not much, but scared.

Gotta go. If I finish my homework tonight, we're going to begin re-watching the series of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

I am not communicative lately.

2009-02-24T06:20:00.003-06:00

I'm sorry I haven't been posting much lately. By the looks of things, neither have any of the people who normally read my blog.

Things are crazy right now. I'm working five days a week. Three of those days I go straight into Drama Club rehearsals after the work day ends. That takes me right up to 5 PM. Then it takes me about half an hour to get out of there, twenty minutes to get home, and I spend my evening doing homework (or avoiding it.) The other two nights of the week I get done with work at 2:45, hurry home, make sure my homework is done, and then fly off to class.

My drama club performance is on Thursday, March 12th at 7PM. Only a couple of the people who read my blog are even vaguely able to attend, but I hope they do.

I have to go make a pizza. Laters.

2009-02-09T06:58:00.003-06:00

I've come to realize a few things in the last 24 hours. While I don't wish to go into detail, I am going to sum up for those dear friends of mine who give a crap.

1. My priorities are out of whack, and I need to work on correcting them.

2. What started as an attempt to purge myself of an obsession has turned into binging an addiction (to Morrowind.)

3. I am a hypocrite. I complain about apathetic people, yet I let apathy hold me back from trying things all the time.

4. My wife has told me all of these things, and it didn't sink in until last night.

Hecticity

2009-02-06T12:10:00.002-06:00

...is that a word? My computer's dictionary says no, but I remain resolute in my belief that it should be.

So, yeah.

Monday: Stop off at Wal-Mart on my way to work and buy over $100 in supplies for the reorganization of the Theatre storage rooms. Average day at work that seemed to drag on abnormally long, rehearsal was painful and felt relatively unproductive.

Tuesday: Another average work day with a time dilation effect. Afterwards I run up to Menards and spend $300 on MORE storage supplies. Squeeze everything into the car except for the lumber and take it back to school. Take an hour to assemble three sets of shelves, run back to Menards, intending to take the lumber home with me overnight. There's just one problem: It doesn't fit into my car. So I stick it in the trunk, tie down the trunk door, and take off back towards school... and take a wrong turn. Fifteen minutes later I find a road that I recognize and head back to school, dump the lumber, head home, and pass out.

Wednesday: Yet another time-dilated average day. Afterwards I had a "clean-up day" for the Drama Club. Over two hours of cleaning and reorganizing. We didn't finish. With half an hour left to go, Jess calls me and tells me that she has a flat tire. She gets to a gas station and realizes that she has no tire gauge. She hobbles home and I run out of the clean-up right at 5 to pick up Jess and take her to her evening class. Upon returning home, I take Jess' car to refill the tire... seeing if the tire will hold if refilled. It seems to hold, so I take her car to pick her up from class. After picking her up, I get two blocks from Century when the tire blows. We hobble to the gas station on the corner. Jess calls for a tow, and I call for a ride.

Thursday: I call in sick. I take Jess to work, run to Goodyear, and pick out a set of tires for her car. (Only one tire blew, but the other three were nearly bald.) I run home, relax for all of 45 minutes, then run to grab Jess some lunch. I get it to her, then run to Oak-Land for clean-up, Part II. Roughly 6 students show up, but we muddled through. I then run back to get Jess, take her to pick up her car, and dash to Hamline, arriving with two minutes to spare for the first meeting of my new class, "Teaching in Secondary Schools." It was a good class. It was a professor that I'd had before, and I knew 5 of the 20 students in the room (including myself.)

Friday: Time dilation is a serious problem this week. I've got a rehearsal tonight, then I intend to go home and veg out with a movie. Perhaps with a video game. Preferably with the company of my beloved spouse. Tired. Urgh.