Semi-wordless Wednesday: Beaver-cat & Girl

I'm helping sponsor a new club at school.  It is all about teaching girls how to code on computers so that more women end up in computer science jobs.

I love it.

In the first few meetings, I have learned to create images with code.

Here is my drawing - created by typing in the codes on the left of the image.

Behold: Beaver-cat & Girl

StL friend in NYC

This afternoon after school I received a text from a coach from my last school.  He was my assistant coach and is a great guy who helped me find some joy each day even if it was through a dirty joke or a friendly jab at me.

His wife works for a company that has her travel occasionally for work and she is in NYC.  He took two personal days off school and is in town for today and through the weekend.

Of course, I had to meet up with him for at least a bit.

We met for drinks close to his hotel by Columbus Circle - an area I have been to a couple times to see the massive statue in the mall, but not really to do much else.

We found a hole in the wall, yet still kind of ritzy bar, and had a couple drinks and chatted it up.

Like me, he has made last season his last year of coaching.  Said my leaving made it even easier for him to walk away.

We caught up on him, his family, his neighborhood, the school where he works, the school where I work, and his views of NYC and where he was going to go while here with his wife working all day tomorrow.

It was so nice to see a familiar, friendly, face.  And to be corny and just catch up.

Good times.

Now, I need to catch up with all the other people I have been meaning to meet up with since I have been in The City.

Olympic dreams deferred

When I was in high school, I always imagined that I would make it to the Olympics as a sprinter in track and field.  I even received the honour of Most Likely to Go to the Olympics with the senior superlatives.

In college, I started realizing that I was high-school-talented, but not really as fast as some of those girls from Texas who seemed as though they were breed to run fast.

Around that time, I started coaching summer track.  We had some really good athletes on our team.  I then changed my goal.  I knew I was not going to participate as an athlete, but maybe I could coach an athlete to the Games and attend them for free that way.

That didn't work out, especially as I am not tired of coaching and don't know when I will do it again.

So, now, to get to the Olympics, I will need to be one of the people who holds the baskets for the track athletes at the starting line or I will have to somehow become a great dancer and be part of the opening ceremonies.  Or I can figure out who to talk to to make sure I win the new Visa prize of Olympic tickets for the rest of your life.

This is my five-minute stream of consciousness post.  I just free wrote on the prompt for five minutes and am linking up with Jana's Thinking Place.  Jana's prompt today was: If you could compete in any Olympic sport or participate in the Games in any way, what would you want to do?  Did you ever have Olympic goals personally?

Check out the site to see others' posts and to link your own post if you feel so inclined.

Would you allow this to happen?

I'm not sure whether to laugh or pity clap or feel bad for this guy and the people who allowed him to do this race.



Imagine how horrible the race would have looked if the other participants had not false started and been disqualified.  You would have really been able to compare how slow Eric "The Eel" Moussambani was  compared to his counterparts.

I don't care how much an athlete of mine wanted to be in the Olympics, I would not put them through this sort of embarrassment.

New kind of coaching??

I am so in love with this video!

Perhaps I need to take up a different kind of coaching...

June first photos

For June, I am doing a Photo-a-Day Challenge with Fat Mum Slim.

I've decided to post my photos each Wednesday of the week during June (unless something comes up and I don't have the week's photos ready, or can't upload them, or would rather write, or whatever else.)

Here are the first 6 photos for the month:

1. Morning - Each morning for a year, now, my mornings have been spotlighted by getting out of bed, putting on workout clothes, and doing yoga.  Fortunately, spring (and a new living location) has brought natural light to my mornings.

2. Empty - My wallet after this week's extravagant spending.

3. On Your Plate - Had an awesome Last Supper with Kid Sis #3 and Brother-from-another-mother-and-father to kick off his finishing his MBA, moving to Chi-Town, and getting an awesome job where he lives right across the street from his workplace.  I love Kobi Steakhouse - especially when they are lighting food on fire!!

4. Close-Up - I am re-reading "Slaughter-House Five".  It is the first book I've read for pleasure in over a decade.  Not sure why I selected it, except that it was one of less than a handful of non-educational books on my small bookshelf - though actually it's not even mine, it's been borrowed and not returned.  I love this line about not looking back.

5. Sign.  This is clearly a sign that I need to get rid of the remaining three eggs in the carton.  Not even sure why I moved them into the new place since it was already the end of April when I moved and I hadn't touched the eggs in at least a month at that point.

6. Hat.  This is the big hat I purchased for the track season.  It really helped protect me from the sun and had vents in the top so my head didn't get hot.  I had way less headaches this season than in previous ones.  I bought some super large, 70s sunglasses that I wore with the hat and always looked like I was going on a safari, though still felt cute and somehow got compliments.

More pictures from June to come next week...

I have fallen in love with hammocks!

Track season is officially over!

It went out with more of a whimper than a bang, but the State trip was hopefully worthwhile to the athletes I took.  I always take the participants and then pay myself for at least two extra kids to go who look promising for next season.  This way, they are not shocked by the atmosphere and the competition when they get there and compete.

One of the highlights of the trip, aside from some teams' excellent performances, was going to the local mall.  I am not really one to go into sports stores (I love some sports, but would rather look online for anything I want), but with three male coaches there with me, we ended up in a sports store.  Just as the conversation during a couple meals turned to football.  No big, deal, I can hang with guys.  I tried to hula hoop (why am I so unable to do this activity?).  I goofed around in a kayak.  I played with frisbees.  I feigned interest in golf clubs.  I made fun of tall tees.

But the best was yet to come...

Someone please explain to me why it took me three decades to lay in a hammock for the first time!

Even in a sports stores tent sale in the parking lot it was a beautiful feeling to lay on those ropes.

I stayed in it for at least five minutes as the guys continued looking at whatever they were looking at and I loved every minute of it.  I even loved the slight difficulty of trying to get out of the hammock.

After that whimsical experience, we walked more through the mall and came across some masseurs.  Of course I had to continue the tradition of associating track meets with massages, so I was in for a $12, 10 minute massage.  It was bliss!  It was fabulous!  It was much needed!

And it reminded me that I should still have a coupon from the place a few weeks ago that I can use for a discounted, full, 30 minute massage.

Must. Find. Coupon.

Simple pleasures from H2O

How come no one reminded me of the simple greatness that can come from ice products?!?!

credit

Three days ago, I tried a Freezoni from Quick Trip - white cherry at the end of track practice.

Yesterday, I experienced a frozen icee pop-thingie in the flavors of sour apple and cherry during our track awards celebration.

Both. Were. Awesome!!

I don't know if it was just because it was so hot outside, or if they really are great.  But, really, who cares, because they were delightful!!

It's often the simple things that can bring such joy.

Crossroads after semi-epic failure

Yesterday was my 10th district track meet as a coach.  Ten years of coaching high school track.

It was the first year where I have not had an athlete I coach move on to the sectional meet the next week.

First time in 10 years.

I guess, I can kind of count the high jump/long jumper who made it since I coach him in the sprinting portion and when he listened to what I said about technique yesterday, he moved from 6th place to 2nd place.  But, I also can't really count him since he is one of the athletes who prefers not to listen and practices his way rather than the way that is called on by the coaches.  One kid was a thrower, three were distance girls (two have kind of worked with me, but not extensively), and one was a pole vaulter.

It was our lowest number to make it through since I have been at this school.  And I have nothing to show for the hard work I have put in with our sprinters.

I know there are excuses I could use - we didn't have a track this year since it is still under construction; the kids really worked less hard than any previous year, our District consists of athletes that will easily place in the top 8 at the State meet in two weeks so we had really tough competition yesterday, one of our best guys was suspended a week ago and couldn't compete yesterday.  But there are also things that went well this season - we did have a decent place to practice, there were improvements seen in several of the athletes, the kids have competed well against some of the kids they competed against yesterday, the weather this season has been so great that there were not really many times where we had to cancel meets or practices, and there could be tons more.

Part of me is really disappointed in my results from yesterday.

Part of me doesn't really even care anymore.

I have been at this crossroads with coaching for over a year.  Perhaps these emotions, or lack of emotions are a sign.



This is my Stream of Consciousness post for the week.  I didn't follow the prompt since this was on my mind, but you can see the prompt and other link ups for the week at allthingsfadra.  You can also take part - 5 minute free write on the prompt or whatever is on your mind.

I prefer competitive excellence

I am a competitive person.

When I was an athlete, I wanted to do my best.  It made me upset when I got to college and was no longer among the fastest in the meets.  As a coach, I love to be able to take athletes who were not good and make them into athletes that are competitive.  In work, I love trying to be the best teacher I can be.  I love looking for new lessons.  I love watching shows on television the can help me better teach information to my students.

I cannot understand why some students and student-athletes are so noncompetitive.  I have kids on my track team who could care less whether they win or lose.  There are some who don't want to be put into meets.  There are several who are so inconsistent with their practicing that it makes no sense to me.  They either are not attending practices regularly or when they do attend, they do not try as hard as they are capable of doing.

I don't understand.

I talked with a friend of mine who said that he would rather work with people who suck and are competitive and confident rather than someone who is really good and has no confidence.

When I was younger, this would not have made any sense to me.

Now, I totally understand.

I would rather work with people who are horrible at their job/sport, but who care.  I would rather work with people who are going to try.  I would rather work with people who are willing to work to improve rather than people who are really good but don't care at all.

P is for Perspective

I have to keep things in perspective.

Renaissance-era perspective in my textbook

Today, on NPR, there was a story about how a lot of young people think that if there had been the internet back in the day, Watergate would have happened differently.  They believe that people would have just been able to search and find information about the people sneaking around and the story would have broke differently.  In the story, Tina Brown mentions that a lot of young people believe that everything can be found online.

They have no perspective that human contact is a necessary part of life.

The story was about journalism, but it is true in real life as well.

I have seen people - mostly young - who will be standing right next to a person and will start to text or Tweet the person.  It is not as though there is a meeting or something going on that will be disturbed if they talk to each other, they are sometimes just sitting next to each other in a mall or in a car.

I have to keep my old-school perspective of actually talking with people who are next to me.  I don't want society to become one where actually talking with and communicating in person becomes obsolete.  I have heard of people who will Skype their loved one who is upstairs or in another room rather than getting up and walking to go talk with them.

There have been athletes I have coached and seen who were really fast or who jumped really high/far.  Sometimes I have to ask athletes a question when they tell me their time or their distance.  "You did that. Is that good for you?"  Otherwise, I compare it to some of the best I have seen and I might end up unconsciously furling my face at their performance when the nine year old daughter of one of my assistants beats some of the athletes on the team.

I must use perspective in different situations.

A stormy, clear day

All Friday night I couldn't sleep due to the sounds of rain and thunder.  We have a track meet every Saturday from the end of March through May, we leave for most around 7:45am and return around 5pm - they are all day affairs.  Between disorienting dreams, I was worrying about the logistics of a rainy meet.  I checked the radar online and saw that it was all to clear up around 11:00.  Around the time the second crew of our athletes were to head to the meet.

While still in bed contemplating what I would wear to keep my body dry, I received a text from a fellow coach asking if the meet was called off.  I text back that the school's coach was hopeful and I doubt he would call it off.

About 35 minutes later while I was getting ready to go into the bathroom and prep for my departure into the elements, coach calls and says that the meet was cancelled.

At first, there were thoughts of how I would tell all the kids - fortunately, I have a mass texting program that I used on the computer that let all the kids and coaches know with just a few clicks of the computer.

Next thought I had after completing the messaging, "What a glorious day!"

I went back to bed.

I slept late on a Saturday for the first time in what seems like forever.

I ran errands that I usually have to jam into Sunday.

I lazed around the house.  I did some prepping for this week's move out of the house.

It was great.

On Thursday, as I sat before practice waiting for the kids to arrive to our practice location by bus, I had a mini-panic attack when I saw two buses coming over the horizon.  "I'm not ready, yet," was my thought.  I just wasn't ready to deal with the drama of practice - the absent athletes, the athletes that don't try consistently, the athletes that say that they can't lay down or bend over because they are on their period (please explain that to me if any of you have that problem), I wasn't even ready for meaningless coach-banter.

Saturday morning, my thoughts not exactly joy of not being around the kids, but joy of not being out in the rain all day.

By 11:30 Saturday the skies cleared and it was sunny the rest of my day off.

Stream of Consciousness Sunday - I free wrote today, but you can find the day's prompt and other participants on all.things.fadra.  I just wrote whatever was in my head for 5 minutes.

New month, keep writing?

I am still debating whether to keep writing each day in the month of April.  Right now, track meets and practices are kicking my butt and I feel that is affecting my writing.

I still have a lot of ideas in my head for posts, just not enough time to put them onto the screen.

There are some ideas I have seen besides NaBloPoMo that can open me to some prompts as well as a new audience.

I'll think about it over the next day or so and make a decision.

Part of me wants to try and go each day for another month.  Part of me wants a break.

At this point, I almost don't even know what I would do each day without posting each day.  This has really become a part of my daily activities.  But, if I don't have the time to write something meaningful, I don't know that I should be writing each day just to fulfill my monthly mission.

Long day short writing

Not much to write today.  Long day of school and track that started when I left the house at 6:55am and lasted until after 7:30pm when I walked back in the door, showered, cooked and ate dinner, and, then, just was exhausted.

Image source

But, I feel I must write something to continue NaBloPoMo.

I received an email to day from Blogher inviting me to join the daily blogging for April.

Part of me wants to continue since I have already been doing it for almost a month.

Another part of me wants to pass since April is the heart of track season and I am exhausted on days we have meets - 2-3 times many weeks; 4 days this week.

But, I think that I will strive on; keep on writing and, hopefully, continue to find time to write more meaningful posts than this one.

Got to love hospitality

A beautiful day for a track meet today.

Only issue is that I want to continue with my health kick and coach hospitality is not really conducive to that.

Today, I was tempted and succumbed to a Krispy Creme glazed donut - two, half a sandwich, some generic sandwich cookies, and some chips.

Not too bad today.

My goals are to bring more of my own food, not spend my own money at meets (unless the food is too cheesy or has been sitting out too long), to stay hydrated, and to not over eat during the meets.

We'll see how I do Monday, Tuesday, Friday, and next Saturday.

A touching teacher/coach moment

Today when I left the house this morning for track practice, it was rainy, and foggy, and looked like it was going to storm.  I was not looking forward to being outside for practice in the rain.

Driving into the parking lot, I saw a car that looked familiar, but that I hadn't seen since last season.

I pulled into a parking space and saw one of my former athletes talking with another coach - he was the owner of the car.  This young man was visiting our practice to see me, the other coaches, and the other kids.

Shortly after seeing him, two additional former athletes showed up.

Original image

It was great seeing the three guys; seeing them grow even more into great men who have goals and are working to meet them.  None of them are running in college, though two of them are shooting to make a team in the next school year.  All of them are making good grades, working, and adjusting well to college life.

We reminisced on fun times when they qualified for State and placed at the State meet.  Good times were had by all each season I coached them.  They talked about the difference I made in their athletic abilities.  They talked about some life lessons I taught and methods I used to get messages across.

It's rare as a teacher or a coach to have kids come back later and tell you that you made a difference in their life, or even that you mattered to them in some way or even that they liked you and learned something from you.  I love when it does happen and I love seeing former students/athletes go on to college/work and do amazing things.

This was one of those rare moments.

Shortly after we started practice, the sun came out and the weather was perfect.

Beautiful day, ugly pain

Today it was a lovely, joyous 83 degrees in the StL.

Beautiful.

Coaching today was lovely -  some kids did really well, and even if they didn't, the weather was fabulous.

Unfortunately, even now, 5 hours after practice, I am still suffering from a headache that the sun induced.

I was dehydrated all day, and that did not help matters.  Neither did my visor that covered the front of my head, but not the sides where the sun just blasted my eyes.

I still enjoyed the weather, but am currently drinking water and searching for a fabulous, kinda too cute, not too fisherman-looking, breathable, water resistant wide brimmed hat so that I don't suffer from headaches on long meet days and sunny practice days.

Kind of digging this one from Athleta...

No work, but not much play either

No work today.

I also cancelled practice so that I could have the only true day off that I will have until the end of May.

After this weekend, practices will happen each day (even over Spring Break) and starting 2 Saturdays from now, I will not have a free Saturday.  Those Saturdays will start at around 6:30 so I can go to track meets that will last until around 5 outside in whatever elements StL weather has to offer.

What am I doing on this break day?  Something ever so exciting and luxurious, right?

No.

Very mundane, but still relaxing and fruitful.

• Sleeping in
• Longer yoga session than normal
• Catching up on bills
• Reading various blogs online to gather ideas of what I want to do with this one
• Catching up on DVR'd shows
• Watching the cheesiness of daytime television
• Going to the UPS store to return some clothes I bought online (haven't been able to do that since I work until 6 each day)
• Going grocery shopping so I don't have to do so on Sunday
• Making and enjoying an awesome smoothie
• Planning classes for next week so that I won't have to do so on Saturday or Sunday this weekend
• Spending time with some friends

I will enjoy this day and will look forward to more relaxing days after the season is over.

Dodging practice

A few days ago the weather fabulous!  I believe it was close to 70.  Friday morning it was still pretty nice when I left for work.

As I drove north to school, the clouds opened up.  It even started hailing a bit.

By the time practice arrived, it was in the 40s, winds were high and the windchill was in the low 30s.

What a difference a day made, right?

Practice went the same way.

The previous days were nice, but on Friday, I had over 20 athletes not in attendance.  Some maybe assumed that we didn't have practice (I haven't given the track-practice-is-never-cancelled speech yet).

Others, perhaps skipped out to get ready for a school sponsored event that evening.

What was that event?

Dodgeball.

Yeah, I don't understand why they would need to prep for that, either.

I don't punish kids with running since that is part of our sport, but the place where we practice has some wonderfully steep, fairly long hills that will welcome some lunges and bear crawls.

For at least 45 minutes.

Their legs will be begging for some running.

And they will wish they had dodged that missed practice.

Stretching and finishing lists... again

Day two of track practice, day two of finishing off everything on my to-do list.

I am happy that practice is going well so far.  I am happy that I am able to use some of the time I use to demonstrate technique to the students as a way for me to incorporate some cardio into my life.  I am also able to use the cool down portion of practice to stretch more (in addition to the morning (daily) and pre-bed (sometimes) stretching that I do).

I am a little sore in my back, but not quite as sore all over as I have been in past seasons after a few days and I attribute that to my morning stretching routine.