22 Years

August 31, 1990. This is the day my Dad passed away at the young, young age of 47. I had just graduated college. I had been working as a teacher for a total of one week. And I was engaged to be married 11 months later. I was all of 23 years old. I always get sad on this day. It's true that things get easier with time, but that doesn't mean it's ever easy. It's still so hard not having him around. He didn't live to see me in a great marriage. He didn't live to see my kids (his grandchildren). Although I am happy he got to meet Tami and Jessi before he died. He didn't live to see me getting to be a grandpa. He didn't live to see me successful in my career. He didn't live to see me in a wonderful home. He died much too early to see any of this. I know he would have been incredibly proud and I am certain he would have been plum crazy about all his grandchildren. I still get sad when I think of a time when he and I could have sat and chatted as adults and shared a cold beverage. I still get sad when something great happens and I can't call him and tell him about it. I really miss him.

And here's the scary part for me... If I were to live the same amount of time as my dad, I'd have about 17 months to live. That is totally unbelievable.

Please Throw Money!

As a teacher, I sometimes experience discipline problems in the classroom. I know this must come as a shock to some of you. We all know that 10 and 11 year olds are little angels, right?

Well today I had one of these little angels throwing things in class just to pester his classmates. Surprisingly my lesson was not stimulating enough for him (gasp!). To keep things a little on the light side, I restated one of my favorite classroom rules: You are not permitted to throw anything in class except for money. If you throw money it must be thrown in my direction and I WILL KEEP IT!

Second Biggest Reds Fan

Ok, so maybe there's one person who's a bigger Reds fan than me. Check out what this guy did with his cornfield.

The Mighty Cincinnati Reds

My beloved Cincinnati Reds currently own the best record in all of Major League Baseball. At 80-52, the Reds are about one month away from the end of the regular season and a trip to the playoffs. This is remarkable enough, but it's even more of a feat when you realize they have played the last six weeks without the injured Joey Votto. Joey is the team's best player and arguably one of the top 5 in the whole league. "Votto-Matic" is due to come back this weekend and the already mighty Reds will be prepared to make a march to the World Series. As a matter of perspective, the Reds were last in the World Series when I was engaged to be married in 1990. Go get 'em, Boys!

John F. Kennedy is in my kitchen

Nah! Just kidding! I bet you were looking for photos of JFK on my kitchen floor.

Abraham Lincoln is in my bathroom!

Do you ever look at clouds and see shapes? Maybe an elephant or a turtle? If you're familiar with this, you'll understand why Abraham Lincoln is in my bathroom. My bathroom floor is a cultured marble pattern. The first photo is a shot of the floor from a bit of a distance. The second and third photos are a close up of Honest Abe's profile. Look closely. Do you see it? Look at the dark brown pattern. Look for his hair, his beard, his eye and his sideburns.

Four score and seven years ago...

Shin Gardens

Shin Gardens are what Sveta calls her soccer shin guards. You can probably file this under stuff that only grandparents find cute. Slow news day I guess.

Now that's just plain CRUEL!

It was blazing hot in my classroom today. It was 92 degrees outside. I teach in a building made of steel, concrete and brick. The building has very few windows and the air conditioning %&#@*! (doesn't work very well, to put it delicately). We complain about the heat and non circulating air all the time and we're told the AC works fine. It doesn't! I do have one of the few windows in my classroom and it overlooks the city park. Today the firefighters were setting up their steak fry which is their annual fundraiser. As I'm sweating and dreaming of the weekend, what do I see down in the park? The Bud Light truck. Now that's just plain CRUEL!

I'm not happy, but...

I'm still not happy about going back to work, but as first weeks of school go, it was a very good start to the school year. I really pray this is only a taste of much better things to come. I'm sure there will some some wrench or wrenches thrown into the works and there will be just as much stress as there always was. I've never been known as an optimist, but it is the weekend and that'a always good. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to have a glass of lemonade. A glass that's half EMPTY by the way...

TGIF

It hasn't even been a full week of school, but tomorrow is still TGIF. Any time you work with pre-teens, any Friday is welcomed. TGIF indeed!

Kids!

Since school has begun, the stress level in the house has greatly increased. It's natural. Michael is just learning what a heavy workload college can be. Abby is taking AP and honors courses. Both kids are still working at their part-time jobs. I'm back to work too. The carefree days of summer are gone. Our noses are firmly pressed to the grindstone.

With all these adjustments to new schedules and workloads, increased stress levels are bound to happen. With that being said, I was reminded of a couple funny plaques I saw last year. The first one said, "Raising children is like being pecked to death by a chicken". Anybody who has ever had teenagers can relate to that statement very quickly. The second one said, "Raising teenagers is like nailing Jell-O to a tree". Once again, anybody who has raised teenagers will have no problem knowing what that means.

Here's a photo of the first one---

Here's the second one---

First Day!

Today was my first day back to school with students. I'd like to report that I was excited and eager to go back to school, but that wouldn't be honest. I always go back kicking and screaming before I settle into a routine. Once I settle in I will be fine.

This was day number one... or as I prefer to look at it, 179 more days until summer vacation. Ha! Ha!

And so it begins...

Today Michael completed his first day of college. He really liked it and we pray this is the beginning of a successful college experience for our beloved Butterhead. A good first impression is so important! My first year of college was at UC and it couldn't have been a more horrible experience. The next year I enrolled at NKU convinced I was not college material. My first day on that campus changed my life. I had some wonderful advisors and my first class (History) was taught by one the most amazing professors I ever had. Bottom line--- That first day was very positive and set the tone for the rest of my time at NKU. I hope Michael's first day nets similar results.

A doll named WHAT?

Sveta loves her baby doll. We asked her what her doll's name was. She said, "Tortilla". Yeah, you heard right... Tortilla.

Tami asked if it was a chicken or beef tortilla. Sveta replied, "It's not a food! It's a person!" I guess we've been told! Tortilla it is!

Soccer with Sveta

We went to watch Sveta play soccer today. What a joy it is to watch four year olds play soccer and not have them worrying about winning or losing. There's plenty of time for that when they get older.

We set up our chairs on the sideline and just as both teams were lining up for the kickoff, Sveta yelled to the sideline, "Daddy! I gotta go potty!". We all thought that was really funny. Once the game got started we had a good time watching the little ones doing their best to play some semblance of soccer. As mentioned in a previous post, they don't keep score in Lollipop Soccer. However, If they did, Sveta's team, The Pixies, would have been on the wrong end of a 10-1 rout. I do have to say our little Sveta is quite aggressive and looks to have some potential in her soccer future.

When the game was over, the teams went through the traditional handshake line. Then the kids got juice boxes and animal crackers. After the game she also proclaimed, "I was lost". We weren't sure what she meant at first, but what she meant was that her team lost. Very cute! We also bought lunch for everybody and then took Sveta for her favorite "sock-a-lit" ice cream. What a GREAT day!

What a nice time!

What a nice trip down memory lane! We had dinner with our former neighbors last night. It was so nice to see everyone after 7 years. For the most part these people haven't changed a bit. Honestly, I think Tami and I have probably changed the most.

Memory Lane

We will be taking a trip down memory lane tonight. Actually in this case it's going to be a trip down Constance Lane. Constance Lane is the street we lived on when we lived in Finneytown. We are meeting four other families at a restaurant. These four families used to be our neighbors. Only one family remains on the street today. It was a special mix of people who all got along really well. We used to have street parties and "Christmas on Constance" celebrations. We used to watch each others kids and help each other in any way needed. I am really looking forward to seeing some old friends after nearly seven years in Indiana.

Groovy!

Remember the days of listening to the radio? Switching stations looking for a good song? Sticking with a station hoping they'd play your favorite song. Well, those days are long gone. Nowadays folks download MP3's to their iPod and customize everything they listen to. I don't have an iPod, but I have discovered the joys of listening to music online. You can't download it like we did in the days of Napster (the forerunner to iTunes). My website of choice (of which there are many) is GROOVESHARK. With Grooveshark you can search for virtually any song and save it to a playlist. Then you can listen to all your favorite songs. No commercials. No listening to cruddy songs waiting for good ones. I still love my radio, but Grooveshark ROCKS!

One Week

One week from today Michael starts college. I am in disbelief that my middle child (and only son) is going to college. Where has the time gone? (Incidentally --- Michael has a class in the same building where Tami and I first met).

One week from tomorrow I begin my 23rd year of teaching. Once again, I ask where the time has gone.

Abby started school today. I can't believe the baby of the family is a sophomore.

Summer fun is but a distant memory and it's time for the stress and routine of school life to begin again. Yipee! (*sarcastic cheer*)

More Cuteness

Sveta came over to swim today. We had a good time. At one point I tried to get her to jump off the side of the pool into my waiting arms.She chickened out and climbed down the ladder. I expressed my disappointment with an exaggerated, "AWWWWWW!!!!!". She deadpanned... "Don't be sad. I was just kiddin'".

CUTE!

Strange Phenomenon

Last night small water droplets fell from the sky. They didn't last long and I have no idea what they were. Some guy on the news said it was called rain. I have no idea what that is. A long, hot, DRY summer indeed!

Oh, Randy...

We all did things when we were younger that seem foolish to us now. When Tami and I were dating I took her to a Randy Travis concert. She was a big fan of his at the time. Trying to be a good boyfriend and trying to impress the woman of my dreams, I bought tickets 4 or 5 rows from the stage. At some point during the concert, Randy made his way across the front of the stage shaking hands with adoring fans in the front row. The next thing I knew Tami was vaulting over rows of chairs and dodging other people to shake Randy's hand. She succeeded in her quest. She did indeed shake his hand. I couldn't believe that she did it.

Why this post about Randy Travis? Well, he was recently arrested for DUI after wrecking his car and laying in the street with no clothes on. After the police responded he threatened their lives.

To have a little fun with my loving wife, I sent her Randy's mugshot with the following simple message:

And to think you once vaulted over rows of chairs to shake this man's hand...

Out of the frying pan...

This week is out of the frying pan and into the fire. I have finished my summer job at the bottling plant, but I am now going full tilt into getting ready for school to begin in a few weeks. UGH!

Time to crank it back up

It was back to school today. Not the official first day, but the day I went back to write curriculum. Doesn't that sound like an exciting time? I will spend the next two weeks writing curriculum, writing tests and getting everything ready for the students' first day. I'm not really looking forward to it, but it has to be done. The fun is over. Back to the ol' grind!

The Family's Next Soccer Star

Back in November there was much adulation when my niece Mary was part of a state championship soccer team. Now we have a new soccer star in the family. Sveta had her first soccer game yesterday. Much to our dismay we were unable to attend :-( However, we did get the highlights from the Greensburg affiliate of ESPN. Sveta played goalie in the first half and stopped 4 or 5 shots. Stellar performance! In the second half she played in the field. Reportedly Sveta kept wanting to pick up the ball. She was having trouble understanding that only the goalie could use her hands. I'm sure she must have been thinking that the guys in the funny looking black and white striped shirts needed to make up their minds. 20 minutes ago I could pick up the ball and now you're telling me I can't! Sheesh! Make up your mind! They don't keep score in lollipop soccer leagues, but this proud Goppa is sure Sveta's team would have won if the score had been kept! After the game the customary trip to the Dairy Queen was taken. Here's Sveta in her uniform and with her "sock-a-lit" ice cream cone.

My man Marty!

Most people know I am a diehard Cincinnati Reds fan. I bleed true American red for lots of reasons, one of which is my beloved professional baseball team. Like many of my ancestors, I truly enjoy listening to the Reds on the radio (for you young folks, do a Google search on radio... it's kind of like a really old iPod). Anyway, since 1974 Marty Brennaman has been the radio announcer for the Reds. Recently Marty declared he would shave his head if the Reds won 10 games in a row (a very difficult feat in baseball). This may not seem like a big deal, but by his own admission Marty stated, "Nobody has carried on a more passionate love affair with his hair than me". He has often teasingly been called a poofy haired fancy boy. Well, you can probably figure out what happened. The Reds got on a hot streak and won 10 in a row. True to his word, Marty said he would shave his head bald. In an added twist, he said if the fans would donate $20,000 to the Reds Community Fund by Friday, he would do the deed on the field at Great American Ballpark. With all the Reds fans in Cincy, that was no problem.

We watched the game last night, followed by Marty's shave job. It was all fun and games until the end when Marty peeled off his Reds jersey to reveal a t-shirt that said, "I'm still me". It was from a local group that helps children with cancer and blood diseases resulting in hair loss due to chemotherapy. Three of these children were on the field with Marty and he thanked them for letting him be a member of their club. He then went and kissed each of them on their bald heads. It brought Tami and me to tears. Tami didn't know much about Marty until last night. She is now a big fan. I always have been.

To quote Marty's most famous line, "And this one belongs to the Reds!"