With the Windows Down in the Winter

I'm looking forward to this week.  Not the grading...never the grading.  However, I am looking forward to everything else.  My seniors are reading their This I Believe essays.   These essays are always fun and interesting.  I'm expecting some great essays.  My sophomores are wrapping up major units.  Two classes are finishing To Kill a Mockingbird and two are finishing research.  This week is also the end of the first grading period...let's hope everyone has their game faces on.

What does the title have to do with this?  Nothing.  However, the past week or so I have been humming, whistling, and singing a lot of Christmas carols in class.  One of my favorite parts of this time of the year is driving with my windows down and heat on.  Nothing like having warm air blow on my feet and cold air blow on my face.  Strange?  Maybe.  Do I care?  Doubt it.

Basketball is starting up soon too.  This is also something I love about this time of the year.  There is nothing like basketball.  Walking into a gym you hear the sound of the basketball bouncing off the floor and shoes squeaking on the floor.  You hear whistles and cheers.  You can see the sweat dripping off of the faces of players working together to accomplish a goal.

Well, the bottom line?  "It's the most wonderful time of the year."  If that doesn't start you singing Christmas carols, then you need to brush up on your seasonal songs.  While you do brush up, look forward to the unexpected snow days.  They are coming.  Christmas break?  Right around the corner.  Basketball games?   Absolutely.

This I believe Essay-Take Two

Playing the Percentages

Did you know that 99% of all relationships do not work out?  It’s true.  For some people that number even jumps to 100%.  Sucks for them—apparently they didn’t get the memo.  Or perhaps they got the memo all too clear.  Relationships are overrated. 

            I remember my first girlfriend.  It lasted all of one day.  She sent a friend over to ask me out.  “Hey, Matt!  Stacy really likes you.  She thinks you’re cute and wants to know if you’ll go out with her.”  Thinking back now, I realize how lame I was.  But I responded with an emphatic yes; after all, when it’s your first girlfriend, you can’t be too picky—even if she did have the most annoying voice ever.  Seriously, her dog, Fritz, would agree with me.  Fritz only came when called so that she wouldn’t continue to call.  Needless to say, I was grateful she asked me out through one of her girlfriends whose voice bordered on tolerable. 

            I was in 6^th grade and my relationship began during 4^th period lunch.  By 8^th period I was once again single.  At least she had the mercy to break up with me through a note, which was short, sweet, and very much lacking the high pitched tone of her nightmarish voice. 

            This was to be the first of many doomed relationships.  A short time later I experienced my first kiss with a girl I dated for an entire week.  You gotta hand it to God—he creates the universe in a week. All I can come up with is a kiss and a brutal break up. 

            But these are the experiences that have transformed me into the man I am today.  I am called a cynic by some and jaded by others.  But the undeniable fact is that relationships are a joke.  Don’t get me wrong; I love girls.  Like I said, you gotta hand it to God.  He knew what he was doing.  But the whole relationship part…well, we screwed that up ourselves. 

            I have had what I consider three major relationships in my life.  My first was while I was in college.  Sarah.  She no longer speaks to me.  This is not because I am the jerk that I tend to claim to be.  Her reasoning: she moved across the state and met someone and wanted to make sure she got over me.  So she cut all lines of communication.  Nice.  That one was worth the time. 

            Strikingly similar was my second major relationship.  This one was post-college.  Abbey.  She was finishing up college as a fifth year senior while I had been out for two years.  We made it work for a while, but the distance put a strain on the relationship.  We mutually decided it would be best to take a break until she was done with college so we would not have to deal with the distance. 

            A short time later she met a guy who was still in school and he did not want her to speak to me anymore.  She agreed.  As I have clearly demonstrated my belief in God and his greatness, I think it is only apt that I likewise admit to the existence of the Devil and his cruelty.  Where do I see it?  Relationships.  The devil and girls.  Who woulda guessed it. 

            I just got out of the third relationship recently.  A good year and a half with her ended in one day.  So here I am.  An older, wiser man.  I haven’t lost sight of the truth.  I see that there is only one relationship that will ever work out: the relationship that ends in marriage.  I repeat—the relationship.    Singular.  One relationship out of all of ‘em.  For those keeping track out there…that would be 1%.  Could it be any clearer?  Relationships suck.  They always have and always will. 

            People will argue that you learn and grow from failed relationships.  Great—make that argument.  I have grown.  I have grown to be less trusting of girls and to open up as little as possible when talking with a girl.  And yes, I have learned.  I have learned that relationships don’t have much going for them.  You want companionship outside of marriage?  Get a dog.  I did.  We watched a movie last night.  You want to be able to have a conversation outside of marriage?  Buy a parrot and teach it to speak.

            Someday I might get married.  If not, I think I’ll survive.  I will say one thing though.  Statistics say that one out of every two marriages end in divorce.  If and when I get married, I’m only gonna do it once.  Because even though it’s only 1% of relationships that work out…I am looking forward to that 1%.  I’ll take my time and when it comes I’ll make sure it is right.  Let me leave it at this: I love girls.  I abhor relationships.  You are too young to understand the futility of relationships.  So heed my belief and know it for truth.          

This I Believe Essay for Senior Comp...

                                      Don’t Just be Alive—Live

You have probably heard the Latin term Carpe Diem.  It means to seize the day.  To some this phrase is overused.  However, I have lived a life that has removed any cliché from this saying.  I believe that everyone should live everyday and every moment to the fullest.

            When I was 22 years old, I went to stay with my grandpa for a week.  He was sick and one of my uncles called me: “Feel like a road trip?”  It was only one week of my Christmas break.  “Sure,” I said, “I haven’t seen Grandpa forever!”

            My grandpa had skin cancer and had recently undergone chemotherapy.  He was also in the process of receiving dialysis treatments for his failed liver.  I helped my grandpa do the most basic chores that I took for granted.  I helped him to and from the bathroom as he was too weak to sit down or stand up from the toilet.  It tortured me to see someone I loved this much struggle to get through daily routines in his life. 

            My grandpa would have moments of extreme clarity where he would talk about some of his greatest memories.  He would tell me stories about my dad when he was growing up.  He told me about meeting his wife, my grandma, who had already passed away.  Regardless of the pain he was in, he still smiled when he told me these stories.  These were the memories that made getting up each day worth it for my grandpa.  He had lived a full life. 

My grandpa died just months later at the age of 86.  Going to the funeral was difficult for me having had recently spent time with him, but I would never give up that week of my life.

            My grandpa’s funeral was not the first family funeral I had to endure.  My mom was just 36 when she passed away.  This moment in my life is a little more difficult to discuss.  Her death was not as foreseeable as my grandpa’s was.  She had an undiagnosed heart murmur and had died suddenly on her way home from work one Saturday morning.  I was just 14.  I learned two important truths from having gone through these losses.

            First, these two situations showed me the frailty of life.  My Grandpa lived a full life.  He lived a life full of passion.  His death was painful, but the positive memories he had made the end sufferable.  My mom, on the other hand, didn’t live a full life; however, I know she enjoyed each and every day.  I have great memories of spending time with my mom, but it seems to me the most vivid memories are more images and sounds.  I can still hear her laughter…an uprising, melodic sound that could take place at any moment.  Also, I can still see her lips begin to curve as she would be on the brink of a smile.  I see the lines forming next to her dark almond colored eyes due to her having given in to that smile.

            Secondly, these two events showed me how important it is to hold onto each moment.  I don’t want to let minor disappointments ruin any part of my day.  My mom died before she should have, but she loved life.  She lived life.  She took joy in each moment.  That is what I learned from my mom and my grandpa.  They both took joy in what time they had.  I know this from my grandpa’s last poignant memories, and I know this from the memories and images I have of my mother. 

            Do not take life for granted.  Do not take tomorrow for granted.  Live everyday and every moment for all it’s worth.  Cherish it.  I have seen first hand that we are not guaranteed a tomorrow.  So don’t put all your hope in the future. 

            We may live a full life and have incredible experiences, or we may die tomorrow.  So make the most of today.  Make the most of the next hour.  Make the most of this minute.  Go to school and have a desire to learn.  Let the knowledge enrich your life.  Learn for the experience and not the grade.  Go to work and enjoy the company of the people you work with.  Joke with them and laugh with them.  Help them find the joy in living for the moment.

            Enjoy what you’re doing no matter what it is you’re doing.  Sing a song to yourself just because you enjoy music…no matter if there are other people around.  Smile at a complete stranger as you would a best friend.  Laugh at your own clumsiness.  Let people call you weird.  You are weird because you embrace the now and can laugh regardless of the situation.

            We all endure tragic moments and moments of complete joy alike.  Enjoy each moment for what it is and the experience and knowledge it gives you.  The only true tragedy there is in life is regret.  So live a life that will remove any possibility of regret.  I believe that is a life truly worth living.

A Dearth of Vocabulary

I said I was going to write this post and it would be rampant with Senior Composition vocabulary words.  However, the title and the previous sentence will be the only words I place in the text on purpose.  A word might slip in on accident, and for that I apologize.  Sometimes my vocabulary cannot be contained.  Instead, I would like to apologize to Ohio State fans for Michigan's inability to defeat Michigan State.

I can't say I was shocked by the result.  I imagined it would take the kidnapping of Alabama's defense and placing them in the guise of Michigan players to stop MSU's running game.  Maybe we did, and that's why Alabama lost.  I don't know.  All I do know is that MSU won and they now have a great chance of winning the Big Ten title.  They do not have to play OSU.

Surprisingly, the defense actually looked better than they have.  They gave up a couple big running plays which hurt, but they weren't completely dominated like they were in weeks' past.  We actually lost the game because of the very "human" performance of Robinson.  He drove Michigan down the field twice and threw interceptions in the end zone.  Those turnovers translated into two touchdowns for MSU.  Flip the points accordingly, and there would be quite a different result.

However, in the end, MSU knocked off Michigan and now they have a chance to run the table much to the disdain of OSU fans.  So, for those OSU fans who were rooting for MSU to knock off Michigan, congratulations.  You got your wish...to your detriment.

Round 3...In the Red corner-Potter...in the Blue corner-DVR..."Ding, Ding"

I just finished up my Grad school homework.  Now I'm gonna take care of the blog before my show comes on at 9:00.  I would like to say that I love DVR.  Being a teacher, I don't really have time to watch TV shows when they come on.  I love those people out there who say, "Teachers have it great.  They work from 7:35 until 2:50...and they get summers off!"  To those people, I say that DVR is a teacher's best friend.  Why? Because sometimes it isn't until the summer when we get a chance to catch up on shows.

I wish one of those people would trade me places for about a week.  They would see that I get up at 5:45 in the morning so that I can get to the school by 6:45.  They would see that I get to my classroom by 7:00 to help anybody who needs it or to let students use computers if they need those.  They would then find that they don't get to leave at 2:50.  Instead, they get to run basketball conditioning until about 5:00.  I hope they didn't skip breakfast or lunch, because when they get home they can't spend much time worrying about dinner.  They've got to find time to take the dog for a walk and grade essays.  By the time 10:00 rolls around they are gonna be able to crash just to repeat the whole process the next day.  I'm not going to even make this person work on my Grad school assignments throughout the week...basically because I don't think they could handle it...and I'm not taking the bad grade for them.  So, yeah, the moral of the story is I love DVR.  Sunday night is the one night when I can actually get everything done and watch my show without having to record it.  

Round 3 goes to Potter.