Changes currently
in progress. Writing, Advis-
ing, Educating.
-Joshua Flores
3.18.2008
3.16.2008
Sag Horoscope
Sagittarius
Your idea of what life is, dear Sagittarius, is going through a radical change. None of the "givens" that you have always taken for granted apply anymore. Rather than grieving the change, grow from it. So don't drag your feet! Stand up and move ahead. This is no time for vacation. You have some rebuilding to do! The loving support you may receive from friends and family won't likely be sufficient to remove the very real pressure you face about serious life issues. You might even feel as if others have abandoned you. But doing it alone could also be your decision, so don't try to blame anyone else for your current isolation. Discard those items from the past for which you really have no use anymore. Much as you like to surround yourself with objects of sentimental value, the time comes when it is necessary to look to the future, rather than dwell on the past. Time spent cleaning up and throwing out will release you from the past and allow you to embrace the
future...
Saturday, March 15, 2008
I try not to get involved with all that supernatural, voodoo, spiritual blah-blah-blah, but horoscopes always make me think and self-reflection is an important skill. We have already decided that we’ve come as far as we’re going to go riding on the waves of our past multiple, tremendous, impressive successes. We’ve already started setting new goals and have new accomplishments to make.
So Monday is the one blow-off day we’ll spend enjoying the vacation. I’d rather not go into detail as to what that entails. Tuesday we’ll be at our usual hole-in-the-wall breakfast joint watching the planes land as we recover. That night, we get a free pass into the underground of the city where local businesses do their networking. I wish our business cards had come in on time but our character will more than make up for it. I have some drastic spring cleaning to do and know a friend who has a fireplace. We’ll ceremoniously do away with past achievements because we’ve relied on them for long enough. We’re at risk of abusing them, making them a crutch.
I could take this week off of work to just be lazy or take the option that will make me a better teacher when we return. If you knew the whole story of how I got this far then you’d know what road I’m going to take.
Sagittarius
Your irrepressible optimism is being tested now as you change your plans to respond to new events. Don't be discouraged, for you cannot be everything to everyone. You may have challenging decisions ahead, yet the sooner you eliminate unnecessary distractions, the better. Common sense could pay off quickly, but unrealistic dreaming does not.
March 16, 2008
A Different Kind of Lesson Plan for a Different Kind of Student
“You don’t have to assign all thirty prompts to be completed.”
“Nah, my students are smart. They can get it done. No problem. Besides, I’m giving them a whole week to work on it in class.”
It was a conversation I had at the beginning of the week before Spring Break. I had essays to finish grading, meetings about student behavior, meetings about student progress, faculty meetings, and every meeting has its share of paperwork to complete. Then there were deadlines to fulfill. There were votes to be made that decided the next text book we’d be stuck with for the next six years. We had to vote on the class schedule for next year. My application to the OWP summer institute was due at the end of the week. It’s an extensive application and an important opportunity for me as a writer and teacher.
Among the monotony, two teachers were lost to us: one to the behest of “personal matters” and a second to the ills of cancer.
In the time between teaching and grading/preparing for the next day, I like to fight. Four nights a week, I force the time to train like an MMA fighter: running, endurance training, hand-to-hand combat, and weight lifting. After teaching all day, it’s easy to hand over responsibility to someone else and just take directions. It’s reassuring knowing you’re progressing in a skill on a weekly basis. It takes years to become a comfortable teacher and decades to master. I can see myself improving weekly when it comes to mixed martial arts. Energy, strength, and flexibility are the main improvements others have noted.
This week, on top of everything else, I was going to spend a couple days helping an aspiring fighter train. I barely knew him but any educator would feel compelled to help when asked. I was asked to help drill him and sweat away ten pounds in a sauna. It wasn’t a healthy idea, but he had $300 guaranteed for just showing up to fight. If he won, he’d receive an additional $300. He wouldn’t spend it on frivolous things because he had a baby and a young wife to feed. They shared a duplex apartment and lived off food stamps until recently when his wife started making just enough to disqualify them for government aid. Because of his felony history, he couldn’t drive a vehicle. He’d walk unless his wife was off work.
When we trained, she would be there watching with a frustrated baby. Before agreeing to help him, I had no idea about his personal life. He freely shared it with me and even told me the story of when his friend stabbed him. He showed me the stab wounds on his arms and where the steak knife went into his stomach and pulled out his large intestine.
In the cage, we practiced defensive drills over and over. It made us both out of breathe and equally beat up our bodies. While I write this, I’m still limping three days later from a wrong landing. My ankle is swollen and bruised but it didn’t prevent me from practicing leg locks. I was already dehydrated but I suited up in multiple layers with this new kind of student and stood up in the sauna with him as we ran through punching drills. We were soaking but had lost ten pounds over the course of thirty minutes of non-stop movement. I had to demand he stay in the sauna. The heat was getting to him and making him frustrated. He tried to make excuses to get out but two hours earlier I had promised that I wouldn’t let him get away with that. It’s very similar to getting students to stay seated and remain engaged but a lot less comfortable.
He was exhausted when we walked out, so I pushed the stroller with his infant son. We still lacked six pounds to make weight, but he had forty-eight hours until it mattered and he wasn’t going to eat tonight or the next. I drove him to his apartment so he wouldn’t have to walk. If he wins, we’ll be celebrating with a victory barbecue on Sunday.
He’ll be helping me drop weight if needed for an amateur submission competition in April. It’s in Tulsa and I can’t think of a better excuse to drive to Tulsa.
“Nah, my students are smart. They can get it done. No problem. Besides, I’m giving them a whole week to work on it in class.”
It was a conversation I had at the beginning of the week before Spring Break. I had essays to finish grading, meetings about student behavior, meetings about student progress, faculty meetings, and every meeting has its share of paperwork to complete. Then there were deadlines to fulfill. There were votes to be made that decided the next text book we’d be stuck with for the next six years. We had to vote on the class schedule for next year. My application to the OWP summer institute was due at the end of the week. It’s an extensive application and an important opportunity for me as a writer and teacher.
Among the monotony, two teachers were lost to us: one to the behest of “personal matters” and a second to the ills of cancer.
In the time between teaching and grading/preparing for the next day, I like to fight. Four nights a week, I force the time to train like an MMA fighter: running, endurance training, hand-to-hand combat, and weight lifting. After teaching all day, it’s easy to hand over responsibility to someone else and just take directions. It’s reassuring knowing you’re progressing in a skill on a weekly basis. It takes years to become a comfortable teacher and decades to master. I can see myself improving weekly when it comes to mixed martial arts. Energy, strength, and flexibility are the main improvements others have noted.
This week, on top of everything else, I was going to spend a couple days helping an aspiring fighter train. I barely knew him but any educator would feel compelled to help when asked. I was asked to help drill him and sweat away ten pounds in a sauna. It wasn’t a healthy idea, but he had $300 guaranteed for just showing up to fight. If he won, he’d receive an additional $300. He wouldn’t spend it on frivolous things because he had a baby and a young wife to feed. They shared a duplex apartment and lived off food stamps until recently when his wife started making just enough to disqualify them for government aid. Because of his felony history, he couldn’t drive a vehicle. He’d walk unless his wife was off work.
When we trained, she would be there watching with a frustrated baby. Before agreeing to help him, I had no idea about his personal life. He freely shared it with me and even told me the story of when his friend stabbed him. He showed me the stab wounds on his arms and where the steak knife went into his stomach and pulled out his large intestine.
In the cage, we practiced defensive drills over and over. It made us both out of breathe and equally beat up our bodies. While I write this, I’m still limping three days later from a wrong landing. My ankle is swollen and bruised but it didn’t prevent me from practicing leg locks. I was already dehydrated but I suited up in multiple layers with this new kind of student and stood up in the sauna with him as we ran through punching drills. We were soaking but had lost ten pounds over the course of thirty minutes of non-stop movement. I had to demand he stay in the sauna. The heat was getting to him and making him frustrated. He tried to make excuses to get out but two hours earlier I had promised that I wouldn’t let him get away with that. It’s very similar to getting students to stay seated and remain engaged but a lot less comfortable.
He was exhausted when we walked out, so I pushed the stroller with his infant son. We still lacked six pounds to make weight, but he had forty-eight hours until it mattered and he wasn’t going to eat tonight or the next. I drove him to his apartment so he wouldn’t have to walk. If he wins, we’ll be celebrating with a victory barbecue on Sunday.
He’ll be helping me drop weight if needed for an amateur submission competition in April. It’s in Tulsa and I can’t think of a better excuse to drive to Tulsa.
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